Richard Buangan serves as Director of Digital Engagement at the U.S. Department of State.

Followers of @StateDept watched the State Department’s Twitter account surpass 500,000 followers this week, and also saw Secretary of State John Kerry wage a friendly bet with his Canadian counterpart, Foreign Minister John Baird, on whether the U.S. women’s team would beat Canada’s team in the women’s world hockey championship. The U.S. team won the game, and Foreign Minister Baird made good on the bet, offering Secretary Kerry a case of Canadian beer during the G-8 Foreign Ministers Meeting in London.

Secretary Kerry departed London today for East Asia, where he will visit the Republic of Korea, followed by travel to China and Japan. And, during his travel, you’ll discover more reasons to follow our websites and social media properties. First, we are pleased to announce our new U.S. Department of State Live webpage, where you’ll be able to watch the State Department’s daily press briefings, major speeches by the Secretary of State, and more. Tune in on Sunday, April 14 at approximately 8:30 p.m. EDT, when Secretary Kerry delivers remarks on U.S. engagement in the Asian-Pacific region. Our@StateDeptLive account will be tweeting the Secretary’s remarks live, and we’ll be releasing the latest photographs from his trip on Facebook, Flickr, and Tumblr.

You can also follow @StateDept and @eAsiaMediaHub for more details on the Secretary’s travel and go to the websites of our embassies in the Republic of Korea,China, and Japan for more on U.S. diplomacy in the region.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Canadian Foreign Minister John Russell Baird fulfill hockey match bet in London, United Kingdom on April 11, 2013. A text transcript can be found at http://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2013/04/207331.htm

About the Author: Michelle Cook serves at the U.S. Consulate in Calgary, Canada.

Every July for the last 100 years, Calgary, Alberta has hosted a boot-stompin’, bronco-bustin’, pancake-eatin’, chuckwagon-racin’ celebration of all things wild and western known as the Calgary Stampede. This ten-day extravaganza draws hundreds of thousands of would-be cowboys (and girls!) from around the world to experience the “Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth.” CNN named it one of the top 10 events in the world to attend this year, but few who pass through the gates of Stampede Park are aware of the deep American roots of this legendary Canadian event. 

Starting in the late 1890s, Americans from across the United States began arriving in Alberta looking for good, reliable crop and range land. They came by the thousands — in trains, in wagons, and on horseback — to settle here and begin new lives. In a few short years, the American population in the region… more »

Press Statement
Hillary Rodham Clinton
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
June 28, 2012

On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I am delighted to send best wishes to the people of Canada on the 145th anniversary of your Confederation this July 1.

This year’s celebration is particularly meaningful as you commemorate the bicentennial year of the War of 1812. Throughout this struggle, Canada’s national identity was forged and it is now a defining moment in the history and development of both Canada and the United States. It defined the geographic, cultural, and political future of our continent and our peoples.

Two hundred years ago, we were adversaries; today, our two countries share ties of family, culture, and trade. Our relationship is as close as the relationship between any two other countries. We work together at home and abroad building prosperity and promoting peace, human dignity and human rights. We cherish this partnership and friendship. As you celebrate this special day with family, friends and loved ones, and reflect on all that you have accomplished, know that the United States stands with you as a partner and friend. Best wishes for a safe and joyous Canada Day celebration.

About the Author: Jennifer Young and Michelle Cook serve at the U.S. Consulate in Calgary, Canada.

American companies flooded into the Calgary Stampede grounds in record numbers this week to promote their goods and services at the Global Petroleum Show. With 65,000 thousand participants, the GPS, as it is commonly known, is now the world’s largest energy sector trade event. To support invigorated economic statecraft, staff from the U.S. Consulate Calgary were on hand to support U.S. companies’ efforts to increase trade with Canada as well as identify joint venture partners, distributors and investors.

Nearly 300 U.S. companies exhibited at the show, 75 of them part of the official U.S. Pavilion hosted by the U.S. Commercial Service in Calgary. With delegations from Missouri, Pennsylvania, and Oklahoma,… more »

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 »

We, the Leaders of North America, met today in Washington, DC to advance the economic well-being, safety, and security of the United States, Mexico, and Canada.  Rooted in deep economic, historical, cultural, environmental, and societal ties, North American cooperation enhances our ability to face global challenges, compete in the international economy, and achieve greater prosperity.  We reaffirm our commitment to further develop our thriving political and economic partnership with a consistent and strategic long-term vision, as progress on our common agenda directly benefits the peoples of our region. 

Broad-based, sustainable economic growth and job creation remains our top priority.  For the first time, in 2011 our total trilateral merchandise trade surpassed USD 1 trillion.  Our integration helps maximize our capabilities and makes our economies more innovative and competitive globally. Working together, we strive to ensure that North American economic cooperation fosters gains in productivity for all of our citizens, enhancing our respective national and bilateral efforts to achieve that goal. 

To that end, we pledge to introduce timely and tangible regulatory measures to enable innovation and growth while ensuring high standards of public health, safety, and environmental protection.  We will continue to reduce transaction costs and improve the existing business environment.  We have launched the U.S.-Mexico High-Level Regulatory Cooperation Council and the U.S.-Canada Regulatory Cooperation Council during the past two years, pursuing a shared objective that we commit to complement trilaterally in four sectors:  certain vehicle emission standards, railroad safety, the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Workplace Chemicals, and aligning principles of our regulatory approaches to nanomaterials.  This is particularly important to small- and medium-sized businesses, which are the engines of growth.  By eliminating unnecessary regulatory differences, smaller businesses are better equipped to participate in an integrated North American economy.  Success in these efforts opens the way to additional North American regulatory cooperation. MORE

About the Author: Diana Marvin serves as a Senior Advisor in the Office of Euro-Atlantic Security in the Bureau of Arms Control, Verification and Compliance.

On March 24, the United States commemorated the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty on Open Skies, and the role it has played in providing peace and stability for Euro-Atlantic relations. On March 27, Acting Under Secretary Rose Gottemoeller spoke at a special reception in Vienna, Austria, hosted by the governments of Canada and Hungary, to mark this occasion. In her remarks, Gottemoeller emphasized, “While much has been accomplished under the Treaty, its potential, in our view, has not yet been fully tapped. Parties need to upgrade to digital sensors as soon as possible, and application of the results should be used to address a wider range of transnational threats and verification challenges.”

In a nutshell, the Treaty gives each State Party the opportunity to conduct unarmed aerial observation… more »

At the March 2012 Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, South Korea, the Governments of Mexico, the United States, and Canada announced the completion of an important joint nuclear security project to convert the fuel in Mexico’s research reactor from highly enriched uranium (HEU) to low enriched uranium (LEU).  The project was initiated at the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, D.C. in April 2010, and was carried out by the three countries, working closely with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). 
 
The full conversion of the reactor from the use of HEU to LEU fuel supports the goal of minimizing the use of HEU for civilian purposes. By converting its research nuclear reactor, Mexico contributes to non-proliferation.
 
President Calderón stated, “With this decision, Mexico reaffirms its commitment to building a world free of the nuclear threat. Each country must do its share to reach a safer North America and a safer planet. This is a clear example of the significant work we can do together in the North American region.”
 
This effort, which was conducted and completed under the auspices of the IAEA, benefited from the hard work and dedication of hundreds of individuals from all three countries and the IAEA, and it further strengthens nuclear security in North America.
 
President Obama stated, “I would like to thank Mexico, Canada and the IAEA for their support of our joint nuclear security efforts.  Our strong trilateral partnership, supported by the IAEA, has made our people safer and advanced our international nuclear security effort leading into the Seoul Summit.” 
 
Prime Minister Harper added that “The successful completion of this project demonstrates the concrete steps countries can collectively take in the context of the Nuclear Security Summit. We will continue to work with the United States and Mexico to enhance nuclear security in our region and worldwide.”
 
The conversion will not only extend the length of time the Mexican reactor can operate with LEU fuel, it also makes the reactor eligible for further program engagement under the IAEA.  With the provided fuel, Mexico’s National Institute for Nuclear Research (ININ) also has the potential to increase the reactor power output, which would greatly improve its capabilities for medical and industrial isotope production, silicon doping, neutron radiography, and nuclear physics research such as neutron activation analysis.