U.S. Department of State

The application deadline has passed, and we are extremely pleased with the large number of applications we received for the 2011 UNESCO Youth Forum. While we process the applications and narrow the pool to finalists, we wanted to share some of the video submissions with you. These videos will give you a sense of how outstanding the applicants are that have applied for the program this year.

So what about you, what do you think is the greatest global challenge facing youth, and how can American youth help to address it? more »

About the Author: Tom Weinz is the dedicated Foreign Service Liaison Officer for Pacific Partnership 2011.

While I love sharing my experiences on the Pacific Partnership with you, I want to you to hear other perspectives from the mission as well. As a result, I asked Lieutenant Commander Casey Mahon, U.S. Navy officer in charge of the Advance Echelon (ADVON) Team Bravo (for Vanuatu and Timor-Leste), to describe his role for the Pacific Partnership. He said:

“The Navy has taught me how to drive a ship, fix an engine and navigate through a harbor. But as I sat in a hot, crowded two-room medical clinic near Uato-lari in the remote Southeast corner of Timor-Leste I realized that one of the most important skills, patience, needs to be learned on the job in order to be fully appreciated. The District Administrator for Uato-lari, a hardened former fighter named Domingos, was trying to convince us to move our MEDCAP (MEDical Civic Assistance Project) from the chosen school next… more »

About the Author: Makila James serves as Director of the Office of Caribbean Affairs in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs.

Earlier this week, Roberta Jacobson, Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, met with Caribbean countries’ ambassadors to the United States. Their meeting, which coincided with the celebration of National Caribbean-American Heritage Month in the United States, reflected the deep ties of shared heritage, shared interests, and shared aspirations between the United States and countries of the Caribbean.

With more than 34 million people and 16 independent nations sharing a rich and diverse cultural and ethnic heritage, the Caribbean is a diverse region that includes some… more »

About the Author: Shamim Kazemi serves as an Economic Officer at the Haiti Special Coordinator’s office. He served in Port-au-Prince from 2008 to 2010, assisting with relief and reconstruction efforts post earthquake.

I was born a refugee in Cote d’Ivoire. My parents, who in their late teens had settled in West Africa from Iran, lost their citizenship during the 1979 Islamic revolution for being part of the Baha’i religious minority.

Few people ever understood what it meant to be stateless. “Well, you must have a passport from somewhere,” I was told. Though I was born in Cote d’Ivoire, I was not a citizen of the country. We did not gain citizenship from Burkina Faso either, where we lived for 11 years while my parents managed a primary health care program. I was 15 years old when my family was granted asylum by the United States with the help of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

We moved to Buffalo, New York, and I distinctly remember boarding the TWA flight that brought us here, our lives frantically — yet neatly — packed into… more »

About the Author: Robert O. Blake serves as Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs.

I recently hosted Kyrgyz Republic Foreign Minister Ruslan Kazakbayev, who led a delegation of Kyrgyz government officials to Washington, June 9-10, for the inaugural session of Annual Bilateral Consultations (ABC).

The meeting gave me an opportunity to reflect on the close relationship that we have established with the new Kyrgyz government. Given the many activities we have initiated and sponsored in Kyrgyzstan over the past year, the ABC provided a valuable mechanism to review these programs and conceive new ones. The participants discussed all aspects of the U.S.-Kyrgyzstan relationship, including support for Kyrgyzstan’s parliamentary democracy, judicial and legal reform, human rights, regional stability and security, education and cultural exchanges, and economic development and trade.

Members of both delegations commemorated the victims of the tragic… more »

Press Statement by Victoria Nuland

Department Spokesperson , Office of the Spokesperson

Washington, DC, June 16, 2011

Yesterday at the Human Rights Council, the United States joined more than 50 other UN member states in issuing a forceful statement addressing the deteriorating human rights situation in Syria, calling for an end to the on-going human rights violations committed by the Syrian authorities, and urging the Government of Syria to allow the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Office access to Syria to conduct their mission. The international community has been shocked by the horrific reports of torture and arbitrary arrests, and widespread use of violence against peaceful protestors. The Human Rights Council has spoken again and used its voice to pressure the Syrian authorities to stop these human rights violations. The United States condemns in the strongest possible terms the use of force by the Syrian government against peaceful demonstrators. This outrageous use of violence to quell protests must come to an end now.

This action comes six weeks after the Human Rights Council held a special session on the crisis in Syria where the Council unequivocally condemned the use of violence against peaceful protestors by Syrian authorities, and called upon the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to urgently dispatch a mission to Syria to investigate the Syrian government’s ongoing violations of its citizens’ human rights. To date, the High Commissioner’s office has not been permitted to enter Syria.

This statement further demonstrates the international community’s resolve to highlight the ongoing campaign of violence by the Syrian government. The international community again calls on the Syrian authorities to establish credible, independent, and transparent investigations into these abuses, accountability for those who perpetrated them, and to allow unfettered access to the UN High Commissioner’s mission to investigate the many and varied allegations. The Syrian government must demonstrate that it is serious about addressing the Syrian people’s desire for freedom and a transition to democracy. The Syrian government must meet the aspirations of the Syrian people, including upholding individual’s universal rights and allowing them to peacefully assemble and freely voice their grievances. The United States strongly supports the universal rights of the Syrian people, including the rights of peaceful assembly, freedom of expression, and the ability to determine their own destiny.

The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later). Smart Traveler provides easy access to frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more. Travelers can also set up customized e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. Additionally, the app provides a link for travelers to enroll in the Department’s free Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) so the State Department can better assist them in an emergency.

Information for the app comes from content that is also posted to www.state.gov andhttp://travel.state.gov. Please visit those websites for even more information… more »

About the Author: Robert O. Blake serves as Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs.

I recently hosted Kyrgyz Republic Foreign Minister Ruslan Kazakbayev, who led a delegation of Kyrgyz government officials to Washington, June 9-10, for the inaugural session of Annual Bilateral Consultations (ABC). 

The meeting gave me an opportunity to reflect on the close relationship that we have established with the new Kyrgyz government. Given the many activities we have initiated and sponsored in Kyrgyzstan over the past year, the ABC provided a valuable mechanism to review these programs and conceive new ones. The participants discussed all aspects of the U.S.-Kyrgyzstan relationship, including support for Kyrgyzstan’s parliamentary democracy, judicial and legal reform, human rights, regional stability and security, education and cultural exchanges, and economic development and trade. 

Members of both delegations commemorated the victims of the tragic… more »

The United States is announcing an additional pledge of $7.5 million in humanitarian assistance for refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) in Côte d’Ivoire and Liberia. With this latest funding, the U.S. is providing over $51 million in humanitarian assistance to refugees, IDPs, and other conflict-affected populations in the region. The Côte d’Ivoire political crisis turned violent after the run-off presidential election between victor Ouattara and incumbent Gbagbo in late November 2010 and uprooted hundreds of thousands of Ivoirians. More than 210,000 refugees fled from Côte d’Ivoire – most to Liberia; up to a million were displaced inside Côte d’Ivoire; and thousands of nationals of neighboring countries fled as well. The situation in Côte d’Ivoire is improving; but some continuing unrest is still generating new refugees, and fear among those who fled keeps a majority of refugees from returning home at present. Up to an estimated 500,000 remain internally displaced.

This latest U.S. contribution includes $6.5 million in support for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and $1 million for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). This assistance will help provide basic life support such as food, health care, and essential household items; the construction and maintenance of camps where needed; increasing access to clean water; and will support efforts to restore family links severed as a result of displacement.

The United States, through the Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, has provided more than $28 million for humanitarian response in Liberia, Côte d’Ivoire, and other neighboring countries since March 2011. The U.S. Agency for International Development has also provided almost $23 million in funding and food aid to non-governmental organizations and UN agencies in Côte d’Ivoire and Liberia.

About the Author: Chris Thomas and Ryan Cherlin serve at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

“The most transformative technology at our disposal, vaccines ensure protection against killer diseases whether children are immunized by pediatricians in the U.S. or by health workers in rural clinics in Africa,” said USAID Administrator Dr. Raj Shah.

Yet, vaccine-preventable diseases are still estimated to cause more than 2 million deaths every year in developing countries. The global effort to expand the coverage of existing vaccines and introduce new vaccines against pneumonia and diarrhea got a powerful shot in the arm Monday.

At a first-ever pledging conference for the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI), donors committed US$ 4.3 billion, exceeding the $3.7… more »

Last week, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton launched the Women’s World Cup Initiative, and demonstrated the opportunities sports diplomacy presents. This week, NBA Star and Sacramento Kings’ center Samuel Dalembert and Nykesha Sales, a six-time Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) All-Star, participated in UNICEF’s annual Haitian Children’s Week by visiting the University Hospital of Haiti, where they toured the rebuilt nutrition center and visited with children and premature infants. Sales also served as a guest coach for the J’aime Haiti Foundation’s basketball tournament to help raise money for children… more »

About the Author: Cindy Huang serves as Senior Advisor to the Office of Global Hunger and Food Security Initiative.

Sunday was a big day for the Administration’s flagship global hunger and food security initiative, Feed the Future. Secretary Clinton was here in Tanzania and broke new ground…literally! In a visit to Mlandizi Town, Secretary Clinton and Prime Minister Pinda launched Feed the Future in Tanzania and commemorated the event by planting sweet pepper seedlings in the fields of the Upendo Women’s Group. USAID supports group members to raise incomes and improve nutrition by providing training and technologies, such as high quality seeds and simple irrigation systems, resulting in the increased sale and consumption of vegetables. Upendo’s chairwoman told me that the biggest benefit of the group’s shared greenhouse and land is that the women now exchange ideas and solve problems together that lead to… more »

About the Author: Reta Jo Lewis serves as Special Representative for Global Intergovernmental Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.

Next year will mark the 20th anniversary of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development in Rio de Janeiro. In 2012, delegates from around the world will once again meet in Rio, this time for the UN Conference on Sustainable Development. This conference, known as Rio+20, will be an opportunity to re-energize global sustainable development efforts, with an emphasis on strengthening linkages between economic, environmental, and social issues.

On Thursday, June 9, 2011, the Office of Global Intergovernmental Affairs in partnership with the Bureau of Oceans, International Environmental, and Scientific Affairs (OES)… more »

The Department of State today released its new “Smart Traveler” app for U.S. travelers going abroad. The app is compatible with iPhone, iPod touch, and iPad (requires iOS 4.0 or later). Smart Traveler provides easy access to frequently updated official country information, travel alerts, travel warnings, maps, U.S. embassy locations, and more. Travelers can also set up customized e-tineraries to keep track of arrival and departure dates and make notes about upcoming trips. Additionally, the app provides a link for travelers to enroll in the Department’s free Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) so the State Department can better assist them in an emergency.

Information for the app comes from content that is also posted to www.state.gov and http://travel.state.gov. Please visit those websites for even more information on international travel, foreign policy, and the work of the U.S. Department of State.

About the Author: Luke Forgerson serves as DipNote’s Managing Editor, and Laura Rodriguez is the Editor of the USAID Impact Blog.

As Secretary Clinton returns from Africa, here in Washington D.C. the State Department has been hosting some of the world’s best known and most influential bloggers, including several headliners from Africa. The bloggers are part of a larger international group of online journalists and activists from Egypt, Tunisia, Uganda, Bahrain, Burma, China and at least a dozen other countries. They have already met with Secretary Clinton’s Senior Advisor for Innovation, Alec Ross, Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Judith McHale and Deputy Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Daniel Baer. Also on tap are discussions with government and independent U.S. bloggers and several groups working on promoting freedom of expression on the Internet.

… more »

Press Statement

Mark C. Toner
Deputy Spokesperson , Office of the Spokesperson

 Washington, DC
June 14, 2011

The United States is deeply concerned by the rapid and significant deterioration in the security and humanitarian situation in the Southern Kordofan state of Sudan. The Government of Sudan has denied humanitarian flights permission to land in Kadugli for nearly one week. Roadblocks manned by Sudanese Armed Forces and Sudan People’s Liberation Army troops are obstructing access by land. Facilities used by the World Food Programme and World Health Organization in Kadugli have been looted. We deplore these acts and call on the parties to immediately allow full and unfettered access for aid workers to provide much needed humanitarian assistance to tens of thousands of people displaced from their homes and made vulnerable by renewed conflict.

We are equally concerned by reports indicating intensified aerial bombings of mountainous areas to the south and west of Kadugli and a build-up of military forces in the area. The United States condemns any escalation of the military crisis. If Sudan chooses to escalate further the situation and pursue a military solution to the future status of Abyei and Southern Kordofan, the United States will not move forward on the roadmap to normalization of relations and Sudan will face deeper international isolation.

As Secretary Clinton communicated personally to the parties yesterday, it is imperative that northern and southern Sudanese leaders agree to an immediate cessation of hostilities, allow humanitarian assistance to reach vulnerable populations, and work cooperatively to reach a peaceful resolution of Abyei and Southern Kordofan’s future status through the on-going dialogue facilitated by the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel.