U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry delivers remarks with High Representative of the European Union Catherine Ashton at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C. on February 14, 2013. A text transcript can be found at http://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2013/02/204788.htm

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will travel to Prague, the Czech Republic; Brussels, Belgium; Dublin, Ireland; and Belfast, Northern Ireland December 3-7.

Secretary Clinton will travel to Prague, the Czech Republic, December 3 to meet with Czech officials on strengthening Czech energy independence, as well as advancing human rights and supporting democratic transitions around the world.

Secretary Clinton will visit Brussels, Belgium, December 4-5 to participate in a meeting of NATO foreign ministers. The Secretary and her counterparts will discuss current security challenges in the Western Balkans and NATO’s global partnerships. The Secretary will participate in a foreign ministers’ meeting of the NATO-Russia Council on December 4 and of the NATO-Georgia Commission on December 5. NATO foreign ministers will also meet with their non-NATO partners… more »

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Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton will travel to Algeria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Kosovo, Albania, and Croatia from October 29 to November 2.

In Algeria, the Secretary will consult with President Bouteflika on issues of bilateral and regional concern and will follow up the productive discussions on economic and security cooperation at the U.S-Algeria Strategic Dialogue held in Washington on October 19.

The Secretary will then travel to the Balkans to demonstrate the enduring U.S. interest, commitment and support for its future in the European and Euro-Atlantic community. She will be joined by Baroness Catherine… more »

About the Author: Amanda Berry serves in Office of Public Diplomacy in theBureau of European and Eurasian Affairs.

Imagine this: Mere minutes after a lengthy bilateral meeting with European counterparts, you step on to the stage and take your place behind a microphone. You have been asked, alongside a “top official” from the United States, to represent Germany at a press conference on the latest developments in the Eurozone. Palms sweating, you take the first question, hoping that they will be easy on you. A journalist turns on his microphone and starts out with a tough one, “Germany has been imposing austerity measures across the Eurozone, but are you considering the effects these drastic measures might have on working class Europeans?”

For 68 European and American high school students representing 42 different countries, this scenario became reality, if only for a few hours, in a simulation conducted at the State Department as part of the Benjamin Franklin Transatlantic Fellows… more »

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton meets with EU High Representative Catherine Ashton in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, on July 12, 2012. [State Department photo by William Ng/ Public Domain]

On May 18-19, 2012, the leaders of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, and the EU joined President Barack Obama at Camp David for the annual G8 Summit. The leaders met to address major global economic, political, and security challenges, including energy and climate change, food security and nutrition, Afghanistan’s economic transition and transitions taking place across the Middle East and North Africa.

In his remarks at the closing of the Summit, President Obama said, “For the past three years, our nations have worked together and with others first to rescue a global economy from freefall, then to wrestle it back to a path of recovery and growth. Our progress has been tested… more »

About the Author: Philip H. Gordon serves as Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs.

In early January, I had the opportunity to engage with European policy-makers and analysts in Brussels, Vilnius, and Copenhagen. Given President Obama’s announcement of the new defense strategy guidelines on January 5, my visit provided an opportune moment to share U.S. perspectives on the state of the transatlantic alliance as well as policy objectives for the coming year. My central message was clear: three years into the Obama Administration, the strategic alignment between the United States and Europe has never been greater. This theme… more »

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton delivers remarks with European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton after their meeting at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C. on July 11, 2011.

Media Note Office of the Spokesperson Washington, DC
July 2, 2011

The following is the text of a statement released by the Middle East Quartet (United States, United Nations, European Union and Russia) in New York on July 2, 2011:

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The Quartet remains concerned about the unsustainable conditions facing the civilian population in Gaza but notes that efforts have improved conditions over the last year, including a marked increase in the range and scope of goods and materials moving into Gaza, an increase in international project activity, and the facilitation of some exports. In that regard, the Quartet commends the recent approval by Israel of materials for new homes and schools to be constructed by UNRWA, but notes that considerably more needs to be done to increase the flow of people and goods to and from Gaza, including a liberalization of the market in aggregate, steel bar and cement. Members of the Quartet continue to urge full implementation of Israel’s June 2010 policy decision and further meaningful steps to improve the situation in Gaza consistent with Security Council resolution 1860 (2009).

They will work, including through UN and Quartet Representative Tony Blair, with Israel, the Palestinian Authority, donors and the international community to ensure that the needs of the people of Gaza are being met.

The Quartet recognizes that Israel has legitimate security concerns that must continue to be safeguarded. Members of the Quartet are committed to working with Israel, Egypt and the international community to prevent the illicit trafficking of arms and ammunition into Gaza and believe efforts to maintain security while enabling movement and access for Palestinian people and goods are critical. In this context, the Quartet strongly urges all those wishing to deliver goods to the people of Gaza to do so through established channels so that their cargo can be inspected and transferred via established land crossings. The Quartet regrets the injury and deaths caused by the 2010 flotilla, urges restraint and calls on all Governments concerned to use their influence to discourage additional flotillas, which risk the safety of their participants and carry the potential for escalation.

The Quartet also calls for an end to the deplorable five-year detention of Gilad Shalit.