Thank
you for your patience and thank you so much for everything you’ve done
to make this trip both successful and enjoyable. I wanted to come and
personally thank you for what you do every single day. I want to begin
by thanking the Ambassador and Cody for their leadership, not on just
all of the traditional work that an ambassador must do but on the
expansion of our relationship with Finland and in particular the
emphasis on energy and sustainable development, the Innovation Center,
so much that will really demonstrate and point dramatically what we are
doing and what we are doing together with Finland. Bruce, you’ve really
taken a relationship that was already strong and pumped it up, and now
we’re flexing our bilateral (inaudible) unlike any time before. So I’m
grateful to you.
But this is really a stellar Embassy team. You’ve
worked to strengthen defense cooperation. You signed an important
agreement today on expanding information sharing, particularly of
classified information. You’re working together with our Finnish
partners against terrorism and other common threats. We’re expanding our
people-to-people ties and we’re promoting new trade and economic and
investment relationships as well.
 |
| U.S.
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks during an event
highlighting the Climate and Clean Air Coalition and Greening Diplomacy
Initiatives, Wednesday, June 27, 2012, at the U.S. Embassy in Helsinki,
Finland. (AP Photo / Haraz N. Ghanbari, Pool) |
Being on
the forefront of green diplomacy, to me, is really significant. And I
know it’s not always easy working on a construction site as all of the
work gets done, but this will send a strong message of the American
Government’s commitment to reducing emissions, operating more
efficiently, lowering costs, moving Embassy Helsinki toward LEED
platinum status, running the League of Green Embassies out of Helsinki,
really setting a model and a lot of best practices.
I also want to
say a special word of thanks to our local staff. Secretaries come and
go, ambassadors come and go, but really the local staff provide the
continuity. They provide the real memory bank about what has been the
mission of this Embassy. And I am grateful to you as well.
And
it’s wonderful to see so many of the young people here who are really a
constant reminder of why we do the work we do to try to make the world
better for all of you and to give you more opportunities to live up to
your own potential in the years ahead.
Thanks so much for
everything you’ve done to make this visit a success. Please know that I
speak for our government and our country when I tell you how
appreciative we are. Now, usually when I leave, people have a big sigh
of relief. (Laughter.) I go on to be somebody else’s responsibility. And
I understand that the Ambassador is going to have a barbeque tomorrow.
(Laughter.) Well, if he wasn’t before, he is now. (Laughter.) And it’s
only a well-deserved tribute to all of you and a celebration that you
survived a Secretary of State visit. (Laughter.) Believe me, it’s an
accomplishment.
 |
| U.S.
Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton poses for a photo with
embassy staff and their families, Wednesday, June 27, 2012, in Helsinki,
Finland. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari, Pool) |
