Hillary Clinton with U.K. Foreign Secretary David Miliband

Remarks With United Kingdom Foreign Secretary David Miliband Before Their Meeting

Remarks

Hillary Rodham Clinton
Secretary of State

Treaty Room

Washington, DC

May 12, 2009

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SECRETARY CLINTON: It’s wonderful to have David Miliband back. He and I have already forged a close working relationship on not only our bilateral issues but on so many of the global concerns that we both care greatly about.
We’re going to meet to catch up on a range of issues. In particular, we’ll be issuing a statement on Sri Lanka and our continuing insistence that more be done on a humanitarian basis in order to try to help the people who are trapped by this ongoing fighting get out safely.
But there is a lot on our agenda, from Afghanistan and Pakistan, to Iran and so much else. But it’s great to have you back, David.
FOREIGN SECRETARY MILIBAND: Madame Secretary, thank you very much for that welcome. I’m delighted to be back in Washington. I think it’s the third time we’ve got a chance to meet here since January the 20^th. The leadership that you’ve offered to countries right around the world with real drive over the last three months, I think has set a very important tone and given us new substance as foreign ministers to engage with.
The agenda is indeed broad and deep, and I’m looking forward to our discussions of Afghanistan and Pakistan, of the Middle East, the wider Middle East, given the important visits that are coming through to Washington over the next few weeks, and also, of course, this humanitarian catastrophe that’s really playing out in the northeast of Sri Lanka, which has called the conscience of the world. And we’ve got a lot of business to do, so it’s good to be here.
SECRETARY CLINTON: So we’ll get to it.
FOREIGN SECRETARY MILIBAND: Right.
SECRETARY CLINTON: Okay, thank you all very much.