Secretary Clinton Meets With Embassy Staff and Their Families
Remarks
Hillary Rodham Clinton
Secretary of State
Ambassador's Residence
New Delhi, India
May 8, 2012
Thank
you. It is wonderful to be back here at Roosevelt House. And I know
that the ambassador was being absolutely accurate when she talked about
the stellar team that she inherited upon her arrival here three weeks
ago. But I’m also confident that under her excellent leadership this
team will be doing even more to merit the kind of reputation that you
deservedly have. The high bar that Ambassador Burleigh set will be
certainly met or exceed by the high bar that Ambassador Powell sets.
Now, I think this is reflected in what some of you might have seen on
the dance floor when I think Peter and Nancy certainly demonstrated
diplomacy in action. (Laughter.)
I also want to recognize your
excellent DCM. Where is he? There he is. Thank you so much, DCM Lu. He
makes Embassy Delhi a special place to be with themed New Year’s Eve
parties, summer movie nights, and I’m told killer Don Draper
impressions. (Laughter.)
But for me, coming back here after my
very first visit 17 years ago is really extraordinarily poignant. This
is such an important relationship. Managing the ties between our two
giant, contentious democracies can seem a little unwieldy at times, but
you are doing a superb job. Thank you for your work. You’ve been
preparing for the Strategic Dialogue. You’ve also maintained over 20 of
our ongoing dialogues between our two governments, involving every
agency here at post. That takes a lot of teamwork and coordination. It
can be difficult at an embassy this big, but it’s really paying off. We
have helped to focus and coordinate all of our many
government-to-government, people-to-people initiatives.
I also
thank you for your community outreach and the community work that you
are doing. I appreciate the extraordinary councilor work. This is the
most challenging of your work because so many Indians want to come to
the United States, particular visas, particular times. We have 100,000
students currently from India studying in the United States. And you
have all balanced and managed this beautifully.
So I appreciate
greatly everything that you do every single day, and I especially am
grateful for the extra work that goes into a visit like this, especially
one that includes two cities. So we are well aware of everything that
you do every day and then the extra work that comes when somebody like I
show up.
And Nancy, thank you for including Eleanor in the
Roosevelts. That is something that I think is well deserved. I’m always
quoting her, so it’s nice to have her recognized. And the book that she
wrote that Nancy just referenced is really something about her travels
through South Asia. It’s quite a read. I have – I don’t think I’ve been
anywhere in the world that Eleanor Roosevelt had not already been to.
I’m still waiting to show up in a place where they say you’re the first
woman who was ever a first lady that came to this country or visited
here, because Mrs. Roosevelt was indefatigable.
So at this very
well named house representing the values and the leadership of the
United States, as we continue to chart the way forward in this most
important relationship, I’m grateful to all of the Americans who served.
And I’m especially grateful to our locally employed staff, all of our
Indian employees. Because I am well aware that ambassadors come and go,
and secretaries of state come and go, and political officers and
councilor officers come and go, but it’s our locally employed staff who
provide the continuity, who are here year in and year out, helping to
train ambassadors and others of us. And we are very appreciative for the
role that you’re playing.
So let’s continue to move forward
and make this relationship even broader and deeper than it already is.
And please know that those of us in Washington follow what you do with
great interest and are very proud to be working with you. Thank you all.
(Applause.)
