Secretary Clinton's Meet and Greet with Embassy Staff and Their Families in Bridgetown

Yet another embassy meet and greet, this time in Barbados today demonstrates the dizzying pace at which this Secretary of State tears around the globe. The emphasis below is mine. Chargé Hardt (pictured below with the Secretary and his wife Saskia) knows her history, and I love that! It is very much in keeping with the way Hillary takes the trouble to know about people and their stories.

Meet and Greet with Embassy Staff and Their Families in Bridgetown

Hillary Rodham Clinton
Secretary of State

Bridgetown, Barbados

June 8, 2010

---

CHARGÉ HARDT: (Inaudible) Caribbean, and we are truly fortunate to have the Secretary of State, someone who is totally committed to working with the Caribbean. I know your friends and colleagues greatly value your interest and your friendship.

As we all know, Secretary Clinton has dedicated her life to public service, from working to raise educational standards in Arkansas to promoting adequate healthcare for all Americans, and promoting microfinance to create opportunity for women and empower female entrepreneurs worldwide. She is a passionate advocate, especially for those in need of a helping hand.

Together with President Obama, she especially has articulated a new vision for our international engagement, rooted in the very best of American values that seeks to build relationships of mutual respect and responsibility and to seize opportunities to build a safer, more prosperous, and more just world, which is what the Secretary has accomplished today.

So Madam Secretary, thank you again for your visit with us. I’m pleased to introduce to you the wonderful women and men and boys and girls of U.S. Embassy Bridgetown; and to our Embassy, I’m pleased to introduce you, our Secretary of State. (Applause.)

SECRETARY CLINTON: Well, thank you so much, Brent, for that kind introduction, and thank you, Sasha, and thanks to each and every one of you. Brent was here, as he said, when I visited as First Lady in 1997. He was running around then too trying to organize everything on short notice, and I appreciate all that he and all of you did on the lead-up to this visit. I am so grateful, Brent, for your services as chargé the last 17 months. And I’m grateful to all of you for serving America’s interests in so many countries here in the Caribbean.

When I was last here, this beautiful new Embassy compound was not, and the restoration of the George Washington House was just beginning, so it’s really gratifying to come back and see so much progress in the last 13 years. And clearly, there has been a lot of work that has come out of this Embassy staff here in Bridgetown. You help to lay the groundwork for closer cooperation with CARICOM and especially for the ministerials we held today, the work you’re doing on HIV/AIDS, on addressing the transnational threat of drug trafficking, gang activity – the new Caribbean Basin Security Initiative will, I hope, help you on that – combating climate change, promoting energy security and renewable energy with the Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas, and producing real results.

Security is one of our most important efforts and we have a very good collaboration between U.S. and local law enforcement. Over 250 officials from countries in the region have benefited from your training on issues ranging from terrorism financing to fraudulent document identification to cyber crime to military readiness. And that really matters to us and it matters to the people of this part of our region.

We also appreciate what you’re doing beyond traditional law enforcement engagement to address the lack of opportunity that contributes to crime. Under Jim Goggin’s leadership, our USAID Mission is nurturing a local entrepreneurial spirit and stepping up support for youth job training. That is what our colleagues from the Government of Barbados wanted to talk about with us today. When the chargé and I met with them, it was all about youth employment, education, greater opportunities to build the economy and create greater social inclusion here in Barbados.

You’re covering a far bigger area than some embassies with larger staff, and so that means what you’ve accomplished is even more impressive.

And I do want to thank the locally engaged staff, some of whom were here, as Brent said, when he first came as a junior officer. And a special congratulations to Neil Hinds from the Regional Security Office, who was nominated for Foreign Service National of the year. (Applause.) His network of contacts throughout the Eastern Caribbean and his expertise have made him an invaluable resource for every service and agency in the Embassy.

I also want to recognize Malika White from the Consular Section for her courage and service in the wake of the earthquake in Haiti. (Applause.) Even before we issued a call for additional staff, she had volunteered for duty and did critical translation work, assisting Haitians to complete evacuation forms requesting medical and financial help. So I am grateful to her.

And thanks also to Management Counselor Marcia Norman for her 31 years of service to the State Department and – where are you, Marcia? (Applause.) I’m told that Marcia delayed her retirement by a week in order to help prepare for this visit, so I’d better hurry up and finish so she can start – (laughter) – enjoying some overdue R&R.

I hope that you all know how much President Obama and I appreciate your long hours, your commitment. Although frankly, serving in Barbados, I mean – (laughter) – I don’t know. I’m not going to hear too many complaints from anybody here. But I do think that it’s important to underscore how everything we’re trying to do to reengage with and deepen and broaden our relationships with our friends in the Caribbean depends on you.

I can come and pay a visit. Obviously, you had Bob Gates here, you had Eric Holder here. But then we go, and the work is left to each and every one of you, and I want to thank you for doing an exemplary job. And I thank the family members who are here, especially the children, because they serve as well. It’s a great pleasure for me to be your Secretary of State and to have this opportunity to come and thank you after a visit like this. But I really came to thank you for every day, because I know that what goes on here makes a difference. And so I’m afraid we agreed to do a lot more work. That means you’ll have a lot more work in furthering our common efforts with our friends here in Barbados and throughout the Caribbean, but it’s worth it because this is essential to America’s security and well-being.

And so for every American who comes through on a visit, for every interdiction that you make preventing a narco-trafficker and their evil wares from making its way north, to every program you implement to help a young person in poverty see a better future – for all that and so much more, we are immensely grateful. Thank you all very much. (Applause.)

# # #

Joint Statement of Secretary Clinton and CARICOM Ministers on the Commitment of Bridgetown: Partnership for Prosperity and Security

Joint Statement of Secretary Clinton and CARICOM Ministers on the Commitment of Bridgetown: Partnership for Prosperity and Security

Office of the Spokesman

Washington, DC

June 10, 2010

---

Today, Secretary Clinton and the CARICOM Ministers released the following final outcome statement:

“We, the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Heads of Delegation of Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, the Commonwealth of Dominica, the Dominican Republic, Grenada, the Republic of Guyana, the Republic of Haiti, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the Republic of Suriname, the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, and the Secretary of State of the United States of America, meeting in Bridgetown, Barbados, on June 10, 2010, pledge to strengthen our cooperation in responding to the challenges we commonly face, in a spirit of partnership and mutual respect.

We recognize the diversity yet shared identity of the people and states of the Caribbean and the United States. We are bound together by our social and economic ties, shared history, culture, and geography, our commitment to the values of democracy and respect for human rights, and our determination to achieve social justice, stability, and security for all of our peoples.

To meet the common challenges of the 21st Century, we declare our intention to act in concert to improve the social and economic well-being of our peoples, to ensure the safety of all our citizens, to advance towards a secure and clean energy future, and to defend and strengthen our democratic institutions.

Cooperation and Assistance to Haiti

We affirm our support for and solidarity with Haiti and stand in partnership with its people. In accordance with the priorities of the Government of Haiti, we are committed to supporting Haiti in its reconstruction efforts, and the building and strengthening of its institutions and human capacity. In this regard, we urge states that have not already done so to honour commitments made in order to ensure that the projects identified in the Action Plan for National Recovery and Development of Haiti can receive well needed funds within the time frame as agreed by donor countries. We reiterate our support for and cooperation with Haiti in the organization of the forthcoming electoral process to ensure a democratic transition.

Caribbean-U.S. Security Cooperation

We celebrate the launching and reaffirm the commitments made at the recently concluded Caribbean-U.S. Dialogue on Security Cooperation (CBSI) in Washington, D.C, on May 27, 2010, including the adoption of three key documents that guide our new security partnership:

The Caribbean-United States Declaration of Principles that reflects our joint political will to address our shared security priorities and responsibilities to our citizens and to work together to substantially reduce illicit trafficking, advance public safety and security, and promote social justice;

The Caribbean-United States Plan of Action on Security Cooperation that establishes the concrete and practical ways we plan to partner in reducing crime and violence and in strengthening our institutions; and

The Joint Caribbean-United States Framework for Security Cooperation Engagement that defines how we plan to partner with each other to effectively address our strategic security priorities.

Firm in our conviction that stable and prosperous economies, buttressed by the rule of law, are bulwarks against the forces of transnational crime, we acknowledge our common concern over the growing strength and capabilities of transnational criminal organizations and drug cartels, their attempts to distort and weaken our economies and democratic systems, and the effects which their activities and presence have on the safety of our citizens and the levels of violence in our societies. Through the CBSI, we declare our resolve to collaborate as partners in combating both organized transnational crime and the threat posed to our states and our citizens. We also pledge to work together through CBSI to address the social and economic factors that contribute to crime in our societies.

In addition, we declare our intention to strengthen our cooperation in the following areas:

Energy Security and Climate Change Cooperation

Ensuring energy security and mitigating the impact of climate change are fundamental to our sustainable development, long term prosperity and stability. We underscore our commitment to cooperating under the Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas (ECPA) and to identifying new areas for partnership in the following areas: energy efficiency, renewable energy, cleaner fossil fuels, infrastructure, energy poverty, sustainable forests and land use, and adaptation.

We reiterate our shared commitment to addressing climate change, recognizing the special vulnerabilities of small island and low lying states to the social, economic and environmental impacts of this global phenomenon. We are cognizant of the need for urgent and decisive actions on climate change and, reaffirm our commitment to work toward the successful conclusion of negotiations within the context of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. To this end, we stress the importance of stepping up financing of mitigation and adaptation measures.

We are concerned about the recent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and the impact that this is having on the lives and livelihood of persons in the affected areas of the United States. The U.S. and the Caribbean will cooperate to protect our marine environment and share information to mitigate any potential impacts in the region.

Health Cooperation

We underscore our commitment to work together to promote the health and development of our people. We note the continuing HIV/AIDS emergency in the region, and reaffirm our commitment to implementing the United States-Caribbean Regional HIV and AIDS Partnership Framework. The Framework will strengthen the efforts of governments, regional organizations, and national health systems in reducing the incidence of HIV and AIDS among populations most at risk and provide treatment to those affected by the disease. The Framework will strengthen the efforts of governments, regional organizations, and national health systems to reduce the incidence of HIV and AIDS among populations most at risk and provide treatment to those affected by the disease.

We reiterate the importance of paying greater attention to non-communicable diseases which have the highest mortality rates and are particularly heartened by the international support for the special session of the United Nations General Assembly on the issue in September 2011.

Trade Relations

Trade and regional economic integration are fundamental to prosperity and sustainable development of the Caribbean region. We reaffirm our commitment to deepen and diversify our trade relationships, as well as to ensure that the benefits of growth and trade are widely shared within our societies. We welcome the recent extension of the Caribbean Basin Trade Partnership Act for a further ten year period, recognizing that continuation of preferential access to the U.S. market for Caribbean products will help to stimulate growth and job creation in the Caribbean countries.

Impact of the Global Economic and Financial Crisis

We note the important efforts being made by the United States Government to effect economic recovery and introduce reform of financial and economic infrastructures in order to prevent economic crisis and financial instability. We also note the impact of the global economic and financial crisis on the economies of the Caribbean. We will work, as appropriate, in coordination with the relevant international institutions and organizations to improve the effectiveness of aid and development cooperation with middle-income states. Recognizing our interdependence in the global economy, we pledge to work together in our recovery efforts.

Continued Dialogue

We stress our commitment to maintain regular dialogue at the level of Foreign Ministers and Secretary of State to meet the common challenges we face and advance the security and prosperity of our peoples.”