President Obama, in his speech at Cairo University:
“I've come here to seek a new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world, one based on mutual interest and mutual respect, and one based upon the truth that America and Islam are not exclusive and need not be in competition. …I know there are many…who question whether we can forge this new beginning. Some are eager to stoke the flames of division…. Many more are simply skeptical that real change can occur. …But if we choose to be bound by the past, we will never move forward. … All of us share this world for but a brief moment in time. The question is whether we spend that time focused on what pushes us apart, or whether we commit ourselves to…a sustained effort to find common ground…and to respect the dignity of all human beings.”
Engagement
In his first State of the Union address, President Obama told U.S. lawmakers, cabinet members, Supreme Court justices, U.S. military officers and the American people that the United States is engaging
the world to advance “the common security and prosperity of all people.”
Secretary Clinton defines U.S. policy on Upholding Internet Freedom
Secretary Clinton defines U.S. policy on Upholding Internet Freedom. In a policy speech she delivered at The Newseum in Washington, D.C., on January 21, Secretary Clinton linked the
freedom to use the Internet without government obstruction to human rights such as the freedom of religion,
On their own, new technologies do not take sides in the struggle for freedom and progress, but the United States does. We stand for a single internet where all of humanity has equal access to knowledge and ideas. And we recognize that the world’s information structure will become what we and others make of it,” the Secretary said.
The tragic earthquake in Haiti on January 12 and its aftermath pose enormous challenges to the people of Haiti and the entire world community. As a friend, a partner, and a supporter, the
United States is assisting the people and Government of Haiti in rescuing trapped victims, aiding the survivors, and helping Haiti begin to rebuild. This is a broad international effort and Haiti has received contributions and offers of support from countries across the world. The United States is consulting and coordinating closely with Haitian authorities, the United Nations, and the many international partners and aid organizations on the ground in this enormous undertaking.
To date, the United States has provided more than $111.3 million in humanitarian assistance to Haiti through donations to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the World Health Organization (WHO), and the World Food Program (WFP) to support emergency relief supply distributions, emergency health interventions, and logistics.
Additional U.S. assistance to Haiti includes search and rescue teams consisting of nearly 11,300 U.S. military personnel, five U.S. Navy ships, 5 U.S. Coast Guard cutters, 33 military helicopters and two planeloads of medicine. Another planeload of medicine, as well as additional five U.S. Navy ships are slated to arrive in the next few days.
For updates on U.S. response to Haiti disaster, click the following links:
Clinton Reaffirms Importance of East-West Engagement
The United States will continue to deepen its strong economic and strategic partnership with the Asia-Pacific region, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton
President Obama Addresses Strengthening Intelligence and Aviation Security
On Thursday, January 7, President Obama delivered remarks on security reviews aimed at strengthening intelligence and aviation security, in the
wake of the thwarted attempt to bomb an airplane near Detroit on Christmas Day. FULL TEXT
A Breakthrough in Copenhagen
In a much-anticipated United Nations climate change conference in Copenhagen, Denmark, President Obama seized the opportunity to forge
an agreement that would curb greenhouses gases, provide ways to verify countries’ emissions, save rain forests, and shield vulnerable nations from the impacts of climate change. As President Obama said “If we are flexible and pragmatic, if we can resolve to work tirelessly in common effort, then we will achieve our common purpose: a world that is safer, cleaner, and healthier than the one we found; and a future that is worthy of our children.”
CLIMATE CHANGE: Major Emitters to Deliver Energy Technology to Developing World
Washington — Developing countries will receive easier access to clean and renewable energy technology such as solar and LED lights, as well as financing and improved information sharing, through a five-year, $350 million plan announced
by the Obama administration December 14. FULL STORY
For the latest information on the United States and COP-15, plus your chance to comment on the climate change negotiations in Copenhagen, click here.
Read the Philippines
portion in the following U.S. Government Annual Reports:
In the southern Philippines' Mindanao region,
thousands of former combatants of the Moro National Liberation Front
(MNLF) have made the transition from fighting to peaceful and
productive civilian lives. "Arms to Farms" profiles four former MNLF
rebels and shows how USAID's LEAP program enabled them to reap the
benefits of their choice of peace over war.
Chargé d'Affaires Leslie Bassett delivers the keynote address at the February 3 signing of the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) and Launching of Partnership in Combating Corruption in Human Trafficking Cases as Federal Agent Michael Kilfoyle of the Australian Federal Police (left), Ambassador of the Netherlands to the Philippines Robert G. Brinks (middle) and Ombudsman Merceditas Gutierrez (right) look on. In her address, the Chargé reminded the audience that vigilant prosecution of officials complicit in trafficking, along with the traffickers themselves, is a critical element in the fight against human trafficking. Since 2004, the United States has given over 5 million dollars of assistance to anti-trafficking efforts in the Philippines.
Chargé d'Affaires of the Embassy of the United States Leslie Bassett
On February 3, Chargé d'Affaires of the Embassy of the United States Leslie Bassett delivered the keynote address at the signing of the Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) and Launching of Partnership in Combating Corruption in Human Trafficking Cases. The signed MOA forges a cooperative agreement between the Ombudsmans office, the Visayan Forum, International Justice Mission and Ateneo Human Rights Center to build the capacity of the Philippine government to prosecute public officials who engage or are complicit in human trafficking.
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo pins the sash and medal of the Order of Sikatuna on U.S. Ambassador Kenney during a ceremony in Malacanang on January 22. In the ceremony, President Arroyo thanked the Ambassador for strengthening Philippines-U.S. relations, and cited the Ambassador’s efforts in promoting the two countries’ cooperation education for the Filipino youth, environmental protection, securing benefits for Filipino WWII veterans, and fostering peace and development in Mindanao. Ambassador Kenney’s nearly four years of service as the U.S. envoy to the Philippines will end next week. (Click on the picture to view the photo gallery.)
Welding students demonstrate to U.S. Ambassador Kristie Kenney their skills during the Ambassador’s visit to a USAID-assisted livelihood skills training course for out-of-school youth in Zamboanga City. In a farewell trip to the southern Philippine city on January 8, Ambassador Kenney also inaugurated a footbridge that spans Zamboanga City’s Tumaga River for residents of two barangays, formally welcomed seven Mindanao colleges and universities to a partnership with USAID-funded English proficiency project, and visited U.S. military personnel temporarily stationed in the southern Philippines to support the Armed Forces of the Philippines in their training and community development projects. (Click on the picture to view the photo gallery.)
Philippine Armed Forces Chief of Staff General Victor S. Ibrado (right) presents U.S. Ambassador Kristie A. Kenney with a plaque expressing the AFP’s appreciation of the Ambassador’s contribution to U.S.-Philippines military cooperation. Gen. Ibrado presented the plaque during a January 6 event that included a testimonial parade at Camp Aguinaldo in Quezon City to honor Ambassador Kenney, who ends her assignment to Manila this month. (Click the picture to view the photo gallery.)
Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, U.S. Ambassador Kristie Kenney (left) and Sulu Governor Abdusakul Tan (second, right), participate in the ribbon cutting ceremony marking the turnover of the upgraded Jolo Airport runway on December 17 . The U.S. Agency for International Development-Growth with Equity in Mindanao and the Philippine Department of Transportation and Communication jointly undertook the P251-million project. Also on December 17, Ambassador Kenney turned over to the Jolo Mainland Water District an upgraded water system, and formally opened a new American Corner at the University of San Carlos in Cebu City.
(Click the picture to view the photo gallery.)
In a visit to the World Food Program logistics hub in Baguio City on December 3, U.S. Ambassador Kristie Kenney (left), World Food Program Country Director Stephen Anderson (right), Benguet Province Governor Nestro Fongwan (middle) deliver a sample of the relief goods that are being distributed to victims of a typhoon that hit northern Luzon recently. During the visit, the Ambassador also announced an additional $10 million in food aid bringing total U.S. assistance for flood victims to $30 million in the wake of floods and landslides brought by typhoons that hit the Philippines’ central and northern Luzon regions recently. (Click on the picture to view the photo gallery.)
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