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 »
President Barack Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton hosted Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda of Japan in Washington, D.C. on April 30, 2012. During a joint press conference at the White House, President Obama said, "It is a great pleasure to welcome Prime Minister Noda of Japan, one of America's closest allies in the Asia Pacific region but also around the world. And, of course, one of the reasons that we enjoy such a strong alliance between our nations is because it's rooted in the deep friendship between our peoples."
President Obama continued, "...We recognize that the U.S.-Japan alliance will remain the foundation of the security and prosperity of our two nations but… more »
The Asia-Pacific is home to half the world's population, more than half the world's GDP and nearly half of its trade. It is home to key allies and emerging powers. It is also home to booming middle classes and growing economic opportunities and is a region experiencing reductions in poverty without parallel in human history.
I recently traveled to the Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia, where I saw firsthand how, in the words of Secretary Clinton, "It's becoming increasingly clear that in the 21st century, the world's strategic and economic center of gravity will be the Asia-Pacific."
While this region is experiencing many gains, there are also many challenges, including arms proliferation, piracy, trafficking and smuggling, natural disasters and regional tensions between powerful countries. A top priority for our Bureau's engagement with partners… more »
Recently the Department of State hosted a Cherry Blossom Centennial event that highlighted the role of youth and women in foreign affairs and diplomacy. I was lucky enough to sit among the Cherry Blossom Princesses who represented all 50 states and even a few foreign embassies here in Washington, and the National Cherry Blossom Festival Goodwill Ambassadors. I was one of many young women gathered in the auditorium mulling questions such as: How can a young person with few resources, few connections, and no real experience be a catalyst for global change? Can society accept and actually appreciate a working mom?… more »
When a massive earthquake hit Japan in March 2011, an informal global network of government officials and NGOs delivered real-time satellite images showing the exact extent of the earthquake and tsunami damage. Japan's emergency responders used this information to find disaster victims, determine evacuation routes, and prepare for further aftershocks. This is a significant yet small example of the ways we are using earth observing and other satellite information from space to respond to disasters, understand the environment and climate change, and improve the use of our natural resources.
For several decades, the United States and many other countries have worked together to develop advanced earth observing satellites that are literally changing the way we look at the world. Earth Day 2012 falls close to the 40th anniversary of the launch of the U.S. Landsat 1, the… more »
On April 11-12, 2012, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton hosted her G-8 counterparts for the G-8 Foreign Ministers Meeting at the Blair House in Washington, D.C. During the opening plenary on April 11, Secretary Clinton said:
"I greatly appreciate this opportunity to discuss in person the many global issues that require joint leadership from the G-8 nations. The events of this past year, even of just this past week, affirm the continued need for comprehensive international cooperation, and the G-8 is an essential forum for that."
Recently, I met with my fellow Global Fund Board members in Geneva and I am buoyed by the reform that is happening at the Fund under the leadership of new General Manager Gabriel Jaramillo. As everyone knows, the United States has been pushing aggressively for reform, linking our historic pledge of $4 billion from FY 2011 -- 2013 to it. I am pleased to report that while we have been encouraged by the significant reforms the Fund has been pursuing over the past year, the pace of reform has now quickened -- meaning that the Fund will be able to save even more lives.
The Fund remains absolutely committed to ensuring the disbursement of approximately $10 billion in its current funding period, 2011-2013 -- $2 billion more than it disbursed between 2008 and 2010. This includes money for new,… more »
One hundred years have passed since the first two cherry blossom trees were planted around Washington, D.C.'s Tidal Basin as a token of friendship between United States and the Japan. Despite the cold weather yesterday, I watched a historic event unfold as First Lady Michelle Obama participated in a commemorative tree planting to mark this centennial milestone.
A century ago, First Lady Helen Taft and the wife of Japan's Ambassador, Viscountess Chinda, planted the first two trees in Washington -- a gift of Mayor Yukio Ozaki of Tokyo -- and the beautiful blooms still honor all that they stand for. For so many years, these trees have stood as a symbol of… more »
“Prepare in calm to respond in crisis.” This was the motto chosen by Pacific Partnership 2012 (PP12) Commodore Jim Morgan as 200 participants gathered in San Diego on January 30 and 31 for the Mid-Planning Conference (MPC) for PP12. All four host nations -- Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam, and Cambodia -- sent high-level delegations, as did many of our partner nations, including Australia, Canada, Chile, Japan, New Zealand, and Thailand.
Pacific Partnership, created in response to the terrible tsunami that killed more than 200,000 people in 2004, will carry out its seventh annual mission from May to September of this year. The program was developed by the U.S. Navy, but has become a demonstrable example of the “whole of government” approach to American policy in the Pacific, including participation by the Department of State, USAID, NOAA, and… more »
Innovate or die. It's an oft-repeated phrase about the adoption of technology and innovation that evokes Darwinian images of people running scared, trying to stay ahead of the curve just enough not to get trampled by the pack. From the perspective of the State Department, we see a different image -- that of a blank canvas that is being painted a bit every day. We see how harnessing technology and digital networks is making our public diplomacy more strategic and how it is strengthening and amplifying the bonds between individuals and institutions like the State Department.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has made 21st Century Statecraft, or using digital networks to advance America's interests around the world, a key part of our foreign policy approach.
May 23: The State Department, through its office of the U.S.-Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI), is pleased to announce $1.5 million in funding to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) to support open governance and political participation in the Middle East and North Africa. more »
May 23: Today, Russia was invited to join the Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA) at a ceremony hosted by its parent body, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in Paris. ã more »
![President Barack Obama along with other world leaders wave during a photo opportunity at the G-8 Summit on May 19, 2012 at Camp David, Maryland. [AP Photo]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0522_g8_obam1_m.jpg)
![Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton laughs as Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda jokes while speaking during a dinner at the National Geographic Society in Washington, April 30, 2012. [AP Photo]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0430_clinton_noda_japan_m.jpg)
![Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs Andrew Shapiro is greeted by naval officials during his visit to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on February 15, 2012 [U.S. Embassy Kuala Lumpur photo/ Public Domain]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0425_shapiro_m.jpg)
![With the Jefferson Memorial in the background, cherry blossoms bloom along the Tidal Basin in Washington, March 19, 2012. [AP File Photo]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0424_cherry_blossoms_m.jpg)
![These images provided by NASA shows a Landsat 5 image of the Mississippi River in the Memphis, Tenn. area taken on May 12, 2006, left, and a Landsat 5 image of the Mississippi River in the Memphis, Tenn. taken area on May 10, 2011. [AP File Photo]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0422_landsat_image_m.jpg)
![Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton addresses the G8 foreign ministers at the start of a working session at Blair House in Washington, April 11, 2012. [AP Photo]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0412_g8_ministerial_m.jpg)
![An unidentified resident of Pamplona, Spain, holds a red symbol of the fight against AIDS during events for World Aids Day, Dec.1, 2011. [AP File Photo]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0409_aids_ribbon_m.jpg)
![First Lady Michelle Obama participates in a centennial tree planting ceremony during the National Cherry Blossom Festival at the Tidal Basin in Washington, D.C., March 27, 2012. [Official White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0328_flotus_cherry_blossoms_m.jpg)
![A Micronesian boy holds onto Project HOPE volunteer, Andrew Siler's hand, while Able Seaman Thomas Pearson of Royal Australian Navy, Lt. Michael Bloir, and Project HOPE volunteer Hanna Taylor puts four sticks in a Micronesian boy's leg at Nanpei medical civic action project site for Pacific Partnership 2011 in Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia, on July 9, 2011. Pacific Partnership 2011 visited the islands of Tonga, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea, Timor-Leste and the Federated States of Micronesia. [Photo By Kristopher Radder]](http://blogs.state.gov/images/Dipnote/behind_the_scenes/2012_0203_pacific_partnership_m.jpg)
