FROM: THE WHITE HOUSE
April 19, 2015
Statement by National Security Council Spokesperson Bernadette Meehan on Murders in Libya
The United States condemns in the strongest terms the brutal mass murder purportedly of Ethiopian Christians by ISIL-affiliated terrorists in Libya. We express our condolences to the families of the victims and our support to the Ethiopian government and people as they grieve for their fellow citizens. That these terrorists killed these men solely because of their faith lays bare the terrorists’ vicious, senseless brutality. This atrocity once again underscores the urgent need for a political resolution to the conflict in Libya to empower a unified Libyan rejection of terrorist groups.
Even as terrorists attempt through their unconscionable acts to sow discord among religious communities, we recall that people of various faiths have coexisted as neighbors for centuries in the Middle East and Africa. With the force of this shared history behind them, people across all faiths will remain united in the face of the terrorists’ barbarity. The United States stands with them. While these dehumanizing acts of terror aim to test the world's resolve – as groups throughout history have – none have the power to vanquish the powerful core of moral decency which binds humanity and which will ultimately prove the terrorists' undoing.
Showing posts with label ETHIOPIA. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ETHIOPIA. Show all posts
Monday, April 20, 2015
Thursday, January 29, 2015
U.S. CONCERNED REGARDING TRIAL OF ZONE 9 BLOGGERS IN ETHIOPIA
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Zone 9 Bloggers Move to Trial on Amended ATP Charges in Ethiopia
Press Statement
Jen Psaki
Department Spokesperson
Washington, DC
January 29, 2015
The United States is concerned by the Ethiopian Federal High Court’s January 28, 2015, decision to proceed with the trial of six bloggers and three independent journalists on charges under the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation. The decision undermines a free and open media environment—critical elements for credible and democratic elections, which Ethiopia will hold in May 2015.
We urge the Ethiopian government to ensure that the trial is fair, transparent, and in compliance with Ethiopia’s constitutional guarantees and international human rights obligations. We also urge the Ethiopian government to ensure that the trial is free of political influence and continues to be open to public observation.
The use of the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation in previous cases against journalists, activists, and opposition political figures raises serious questions about the implementation of the law and about the sanctity of Ethiopians’ constitutionally guaranteed rights to freedom of the press and freedom of expression.
Freedom of expression and freedom of the press are fundamental elements of a democratic society. We call on the government of Ethiopia to support freedom of expression and freedom of the press to demonstrate its commitment to democracy as it approaches its May 2015 national elections.
Zone 9 Bloggers Move to Trial on Amended ATP Charges in Ethiopia
Press Statement
Jen Psaki
Department Spokesperson
Washington, DC
January 29, 2015
The United States is concerned by the Ethiopian Federal High Court’s January 28, 2015, decision to proceed with the trial of six bloggers and three independent journalists on charges under the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation. The decision undermines a free and open media environment—critical elements for credible and democratic elections, which Ethiopia will hold in May 2015.
We urge the Ethiopian government to ensure that the trial is fair, transparent, and in compliance with Ethiopia’s constitutional guarantees and international human rights obligations. We also urge the Ethiopian government to ensure that the trial is free of political influence and continues to be open to public observation.
The use of the Anti-Terrorism Proclamation in previous cases against journalists, activists, and opposition political figures raises serious questions about the implementation of the law and about the sanctity of Ethiopians’ constitutionally guaranteed rights to freedom of the press and freedom of expression.
Freedom of expression and freedom of the press are fundamental elements of a democratic society. We call on the government of Ethiopia to support freedom of expression and freedom of the press to demonstrate its commitment to democracy as it approaches its May 2015 national elections.
Saturday, January 10, 2015
FORMER ADOPTION AGENCY DIRECTOR PLEADS GUILTY FOR ROLE IN ETHIOPIAN ADOPTION FRAUD SCHEME
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Thursday, January 8, 2015
Former International Program Director of Adoption Agency Pleads Guilty to Ethiopian Adoption Fraud Scheme
The former International Program Director of International Adoption Guides Inc. (IAG), an adoption agency, pleaded guilty today to conspiring with others to defraud the United States by submitting fraudulent documents to the State Department for adoptions from Ethiopia and paying bribes to foreign officials.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Bill Nettles of the District of South Carolina made the announcement.
James Harding, 55, of Atlanta, Georgia, admitted as part of his guilty plea that, between 2008 and 2009, he and his co-conspirators submitted fraudulent documents to the State Department to facilitate adoptions of Ethiopian children by U.S. parents. Harding admitted that, in support of U.S. visa applications for the Ethiopian children, he and others submitted false documentation, including contracts of adoption signed by orphanages that could not properly give the children up for adoption because, for example, the child in question was never cared for or never resided at the orphanage.
In entering his guilty plea, Harding also admitted that he and others paid bribes to two Ethiopian officials so that those officials would help with the fraudulent adoptions. Specifically, Harding admitted that an audiologist and teacher at a government school was given money and other valuables in exchange for non-public medical information and social history information for potential adoptees. Additionally, Harding and his co-conspirators provided cash and all-expense paid travel to the head of a regional ministry for women’s and children’s affairs in exchange for his approval of IAG’s applications for intercountry adoptions and ignoring IAG’s failure to maintain a properly licensed adoption facility.
Harding pleaded guilty before Senior U.S. District Court Judge Sol Blatt Jr. of the District of South Carolina, and a sentencing hearing will be scheduled at a later date.
This ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Bureau of Diplomatic Security. The department appreciates the assistance of the Office of Children’s Issues at the U.S. Department of State. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney John W. Borchert of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamie Lea Schoen of the District of South Carolina.\
Thursday, January 8, 2015
Former International Program Director of Adoption Agency Pleads Guilty to Ethiopian Adoption Fraud Scheme
The former International Program Director of International Adoption Guides Inc. (IAG), an adoption agency, pleaded guilty today to conspiring with others to defraud the United States by submitting fraudulent documents to the State Department for adoptions from Ethiopia and paying bribes to foreign officials.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and U.S. Attorney Bill Nettles of the District of South Carolina made the announcement.
James Harding, 55, of Atlanta, Georgia, admitted as part of his guilty plea that, between 2008 and 2009, he and his co-conspirators submitted fraudulent documents to the State Department to facilitate adoptions of Ethiopian children by U.S. parents. Harding admitted that, in support of U.S. visa applications for the Ethiopian children, he and others submitted false documentation, including contracts of adoption signed by orphanages that could not properly give the children up for adoption because, for example, the child in question was never cared for or never resided at the orphanage.
In entering his guilty plea, Harding also admitted that he and others paid bribes to two Ethiopian officials so that those officials would help with the fraudulent adoptions. Specifically, Harding admitted that an audiologist and teacher at a government school was given money and other valuables in exchange for non-public medical information and social history information for potential adoptees. Additionally, Harding and his co-conspirators provided cash and all-expense paid travel to the head of a regional ministry for women’s and children’s affairs in exchange for his approval of IAG’s applications for intercountry adoptions and ignoring IAG’s failure to maintain a properly licensed adoption facility.
Harding pleaded guilty before Senior U.S. District Court Judge Sol Blatt Jr. of the District of South Carolina, and a sentencing hearing will be scheduled at a later date.
This ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Bureau of Diplomatic Security. The department appreciates the assistance of the Office of Children’s Issues at the U.S. Department of State. The case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney John W. Borchert of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamie Lea Schoen of the District of South Carolina.\
Monday, December 29, 2014
DOL GRANTS WORLD VISION $10 MILLION TO FIGHT EXPLOITED CHILD LABORERS IN ETHIOPIA
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR
World Vision receives $10M US Labor Department grant to combat
exploitative child labor in Ethiopia
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of International Labor Affairs today announced the award of a $10 million cooperative agreement with World Vision to implement a project to address exploitative labor among youth in Ethiopia.
"We know when youth are provided skills training and career services that align with needs in the jobs market, they are less likely to be drawn into exploitative labor," said Deputy Undersecretary of Labor for International Affairs Carol Pier. "Our goal is to help vulnerable youth in Ethiopia develop the skills they need to make a successful transition into decent jobs."
The project will promote education and vocational training opportunities and seek to enhance livelihoods and access to social protection programs for youth and their households. Focusing specifically on the needs of girls, the project aims to address exploitative child labor by providing youth ages 14 to 17, with marketable skills and support to secure decent work. The project will also support President Obama's Young African Leaders Initiative.
Since 1993, ILAB has produced reports to raise awareness globally about child labor and forced labor. ILAB has also provided funding for more than 280 projects in more than 94 countries to combat the worst forms of child labor by providing assistance to vulnerable children and their families.
Based in Washington State, World Vision is a non-profit, humanitarian organization conducting relief, development, and advocacy activities in its work with children, families, and their communities in nearly 100 countries to help them reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice. World Vision serves all people regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, or gender.
World Vision receives $10M US Labor Department grant to combat
exploitative child labor in Ethiopia
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of International Labor Affairs today announced the award of a $10 million cooperative agreement with World Vision to implement a project to address exploitative labor among youth in Ethiopia.
"We know when youth are provided skills training and career services that align with needs in the jobs market, they are less likely to be drawn into exploitative labor," said Deputy Undersecretary of Labor for International Affairs Carol Pier. "Our goal is to help vulnerable youth in Ethiopia develop the skills they need to make a successful transition into decent jobs."
The project will promote education and vocational training opportunities and seek to enhance livelihoods and access to social protection programs for youth and their households. Focusing specifically on the needs of girls, the project aims to address exploitative child labor by providing youth ages 14 to 17, with marketable skills and support to secure decent work. The project will also support President Obama's Young African Leaders Initiative.
Since 1993, ILAB has produced reports to raise awareness globally about child labor and forced labor. ILAB has also provided funding for more than 280 projects in more than 94 countries to combat the worst forms of child labor by providing assistance to vulnerable children and their families.
Based in Washington State, World Vision is a non-profit, humanitarian organization conducting relief, development, and advocacy activities in its work with children, families, and their communities in nearly 100 countries to help them reach their full potential by tackling the causes of poverty and injustice. World Vision serves all people regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, or gender.
Thursday, October 30, 2014
ANNE RICHARD MAKES REMARKS AT CONFERENCE ON PROTECTION OF REFUGEE CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Investing in the Future: Protecting Refugee Children in the Middle East and North Africa
Remarks
Anne C. Richard
Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration
Remarks at the First Regional Conference Dedicated to the Protection of Refugee Children and Adolescents
Sharjah, United Arab Emirates
October 15, 2014
Children in the region confront horrors and hardships that almost defy belief. They have been blown apart by bombs at elementary schools, sold as sex slaves and forced to fight.
Millions of children have been driven from their homes in Syria. Recently hundreds of thousands have fled their homes in Iraq. I have met refugee children in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq, and heard their harrowing stories.
I have also seen hundreds of refugee children who were bound for North Africa. They had walked from Eritrea to a camp in Ethiopia. Many were utterly alone. They had fled ruthless repression, hopelessness, and military service without end. But were about to continue northward, where smugglers and traffickers could easily kidnap, rob, rape them or send them off aboard unseaworthy boats to drown.
By cooperating more effectively, I believe we can offer more and better protection to these vulnerable refugee children and adolescents. So I am very pleased that we have gathered for this conference.
Meeting refugees’ basic needs – providing shelter, health care, and nutrition – is not enough. Children and adolescents need targeted aid that is tailored to their ages and needs, recognizes how vulnerable they are and how resilient they can be. These programs can change the trajectory of their lives.
The U.S. government supports the goals outlined in UNHCR’s 2012 Framework for the Protection of Children. Today I will focus on one of these goals, safety, and on the related issues of protecting girls, providing quality, education and proper documentation for refugee children.
Children continue to face danger, long after they flee from the bullets and the bombs. Often refugee children and adolescents shoulder burdens that they should not, because families are fractured, or because years of exile have stripped them of their money, their dignity, and their patience.
More and more children are working, often in jobs that jeopardize their health or their futures because their families need the cash.
Refugee girls and adolescents face sexual exploitation and abuse. Some of those who wield power over refugees have reportedly extorted sexual favors. Land lords, camp leaders, and as in crises elsewhere, even some of those charged with delivering aid.
Many Syrian refugee girls are not allowed to attend school or even leave their homes because it’s considered too dangerous. Women and girls may be reluctant to seek help when they are harassed. Adolescent girls who are harassed may themselves be blamed and punished by relatives for shaming their families. In part, because sexual abuse is such a danger, and in part because families are running out of money, girls are being forced to marry.
Studies show that in two years, the rate of child marriages among Syrian refugees in Jordan has doubled, and nearly half of these marriages pair girls with men at least a decade older. Child brides are more likely to drop out of school, have risky early pregnancies, and face domestic abuse, which endangers both them and their children.
Donors, aid agencies, and host governments can work together to help children be and feel safer. Specialized training can help aid workers care for and counsel children. Most aid groups know that we should not create redundant structures that run parallel to existing government institutions, but instead, improve government services to protect all children.
As humanitarians and donors, we must hold ourselves to the highest possible standard. Aid workers and others who are supposed to be helping refugees should NEVER – not ever – get away with sexually exploiting or abusing them. This is why codes of conduct and respect for the core principles of Preventing Sexual Exploitation and Abuse are so important. We can improve safeguards and mechanisms for reporting abuse and work together to bring perpetrators to justice.
Countries hosting refugee children can also consider tightening certain laws or stepping up enforcement of existing laws to prevent forced early marriage and the worst forms of child labor. Governments could ease the financial pressures on families that put children at risk. For instance, granting temporary work permits to adults – can make an enormous difference to children.
Access to good schools can insulate refugee children from all sorts of hazards. Parents who believe their children are learning something useful are less likely to urge them to drop out and go to work or get married. Being in school lowers the risk that children will be recruited to fight.
In addition, school can offer something precious to uprooted children: normalcy and social cohesion. Yet, after more than three years of warfare, three million children in Syria are no longer in school. More than half a million Syrian refugee children in neighboring countries face the same predicament. This includes half of all registered Syrian refugee children in Jordan and 80 percent of those in Lebanon.
Because schools are severely overcrowded, some communities have resorted to double-and even triple-shifts. Syrian children in Turkey and northern Iraq also struggle because they do not understand Turkish or Kurdish. The majority, who do not live in camps, have a much harder time enrolling in school. Some have missed too much school to go back. Some are too traumatized to concentrate and learn.
Education is also under siege in Iraq and Gaza. In parts of Iraq, more than 2,000 schools now house families forced to flee the mayhem unleashed by ISIL extremists. After the recent fighting, many schools in Gaza are either damaged or destroyed or continue to shelter displaced civilians.
Many of your governments are pouring enormous effort and resources into accommodating the huge influx of refugee children. The No Lost Generation initiative has helped to nearly triple the number of Syrian children receiving education in neighboring countries. The United States is committing millions of dollars for education programs through organizations like UNICEF, UNHCR, UNRWA, and international non-governmental organizations.
The international community supports steps to broaden access further by making it easier to register for school or earn certificates or other credentials. Innovative solutions including non-traditional education can fill gaps. For example, UNRWA is broadcasting school lessons on satellite television and YouTube to reach its students in Syria who are unable to attend school.
We can help children feel safer in school and on the way there. Children too emotionally distraught to pay attention may benefit from counseling. Additional training can help teachers to recognize and assist them. Our projects should not only help refugees but also build social cohesion between refugee and host communities by meeting both groups’ needs.
Finally, I would like to talk about my third topic: the legal documents every child needs to be recognized as a person. We are at risk of creating a generation of stateless children. This is because many refugee children are not registered at birth and because nationality laws in several countries in the region bar women from conferring their nationality to their children.
Every year, thousands of Syrian refugee children are born without documentation, and without fathers on hand to help secure their nationality. Without birth registration, these children may not be able to enroll in school or gain access to vital services. Worse still, they become particularly vulnerable to the type of exploitation we’ve already discussed today: to child labor, child marriage, and other forms of gender-based violence. This lack of birth registration can haunt refugee children for the rest of their lives.
In 2011, the U.S. Department of State launched an initiative to promote women’s equal right to nationality. It seeks legal reforms in the 27 countries where women lack this right, and pushes for registration of all children at birth.
Some countries have taken important steps to remove barriers to registration.
Jordan, for example, is establishing satellite offices of its Civil Service Department in major refugee camps, and waiving certain deadlines and fees for birth registration.
We know that children are resilient. If someone stands up for them, protects them, teaches them, while they are still young they can heal, and learn. The demands are so great and the stakes so high that we must not falter, or waste precious resources or miss opportunities to cooperate. I am grateful to be here, to share our perspectives and to hear yours as we work together to help the region’s children.
Thank you very much.
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
SECRETARY KERRY EXPRESSES CONCERN OVER SOUTH SUDAN PEACE TALKS
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Deeply Concerned by Failure of South Sudan Peace Talks to Meet Region's Deadline
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
August 11, 2014
Deadlines keep passing and innocent people keep dying. The log-rolling and delay has to end. The Government of South Sudan and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) - in Opposition agreed to take no more than 60 days to form a transitional government of national unity. Regional leaders helped broker the agreement, but despite the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) mediation team’s best efforts, neither party engaged in peace talks seriously. Along with my Troika colleagues from Norway and the United Kingdom, we condemn these failures.
This is an outrage and an insult to the people of South Sudan. Their leaders are letting them down again and again. Peace talks have been on-going in Ethiopia for six months, while the people of South Sudan continue to suffer and the war persists. Over a million people have been displaced due to the fighting and South Sudan now faces the worst food security crisis in the world with a real risk of famine.
I condemn the recent clashes in Maban County that resulted in the deaths of at least six humanitarian workers, and am especially concerned at reports that civilians may have been systematically murdered based on their ethnicity. These killings further undermine the enormous humanitarian response needed to support the 3.9 million South Sudanese who are in desperate need of life-saving food assistance and who continue to live in fear of violence.
Regional leaders have previously called for punitive measures if the parties failed to secure peace by the agreed deadline. I call on IGAD and the African Union to immediately take appropriate action to bring peace to the people of South Sudan. We’re well past the point where enough is enough.
This is an outrage and an insult to the people of South Sudan. Their leaders are letting them down again and again. Peace talks have been on-going in Ethiopia for six months, while the people of South Sudan continue to suffer and the war persists. Over a million people have been displaced due to the fighting and South Sudan now faces the worst food security crisis in the world with a real risk of famine.
I condemn the recent clashes in Maban County that resulted in the deaths of at least six humanitarian workers, and am especially concerned at reports that civilians may have been systematically murdered based on their ethnicity. These killings further undermine the enormous humanitarian response needed to support the 3.9 million South Sudanese who are in desperate need of life-saving food assistance and who continue to live in fear of violence.
Regional leaders have previously called for punitive measures if the parties failed to secure peace by the agreed deadline. I call on IGAD and the African Union to immediately take appropriate action to bring peace to the people of South Sudan. We’re well past the point where enough is enough.
Sunday, August 10, 2014
REMARKS: SECRETARY KERRY WITH SUDANESE PRESIDENT SALVA KIIR
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Remarks With South Sudanese President Salva Kiir Before Their Meeting
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Treaty Room
Washington, DC
August 5, 2014
SECRETARY KERRY: It’s my pleasure to welcome President Kiir of South Sudan. The president and I have visited many times there and here, and I’ve had the privilege of being with him at the moment that the referendum took place that gave birth to the nation of South Sudan. This is a very timely meeting because right now South Sudan is suffering the fate of being the most food-insecure nation in the world as a consequence of manmade circumstances. There is a struggle going on, which has been going on for some time, in which innocent civilians are caught up. And President Kiir has agreed – along with the former Vice President Riek Machar – to negotiate, and ultimately to engage in the creation of a unity transition government.
That transition government needs to be negotiated, and the neighbor countries – Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia – have been deeply involved together even with Sudan in trying to help bring parties together and see if we can’t resolve this in a peaceful way. So our hope is that we can have a discussion today that helps to clarify the road ahead, to try to minimize the violence. There is a commission of inquiry on what has been happening on the ground. It’s very important for us to figure out how that will also figure into the future here.
The most important thing, and I know President Kiir agrees with this, is to make sure that the people are able to find security, and hopefully that we’re able to get food, medicine, humanitarian assistance to people at a time of huge need. And I look forward to my conversation with the president this morning.
Mr. President, if you want to say anything.
PRESIDENT KIIR: Well, thank you very much, Honorable Secretary, and it’s my pleasure to be in Washington at this moment, and on bilateral issues and for your also involvement in the issues of our country. The situation in South Sudan today, of course, on the ground it is not as been reported in the media. And if the two sides – that is the government and the rebels – were forthcoming, all of them, this thing could have been resolved a long time back. But we get difficulty on the side of the rebels. We signed the cessation of hostilities with the leader of the rebels in May on the 9th, which he did not respect. We again met in June and we signed another recommitment, cessation of hostilities on the 10th of June, but they did not abide with all these agreements.
I always say that Riek Machar is not in control of what he calls his army. And so each commanders in different areas are operating on their own. I want to repeat what I said in that meeting, the last meeting. I told the press that if peace was to be brought to South Sudan today or tomorrow, I will be happy because the people who are dying on both sides are my people. I am an elected president, and the people who elected me were not from my tribe. I was elected by all the people of South Sudan. So other people die in support of Riek Machar or is my support – these are all my people.
Those who are in need of humanitarian assistance can be served anywhere, wherever they are. This is still my position today, that if there is any humanitarian assistance, that ought to be delivered to the people who are affected. This thing has – can go unhindered. And it has been happening that humanitarian assistance has been going to the areas affected by this conflict. I’m hopeful that we are going to find a solution very soon to that conflict. Thank you.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you, Mr. President. I just want the record to be clear that it is our judgment – and the former Vice President Mr. Machar needs to understand this – that he has broken – it was his initiative that broke the agreement and took his troops back into a violent status. And he needs to understand the importance of living by the agreements. In my conversations with the prime minister of Ethiopia, who made it clear this is his judgment also, he needs to understand the international community is going to be impatient with those breaches.
So what we’re looking for is the fulfillment of the agreement, which means moving to a transition government that heals the wounds and brings people together. And we have said before and I reiterate now that the president is the duly elected, constitutional president of South Sudan, and this is a rebel group. Nevertheless, it needs to understand the importance of adhering to international agreements and the importance of bringing this to a negotiated conclusion and path forward.
So I hope today we can find a way to get back to these talks in a serious way, Mr. President, and I thank you very, very much for your statement and for being here to join us for this conversation. Thank you all very much.
That transition government needs to be negotiated, and the neighbor countries – Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia – have been deeply involved together even with Sudan in trying to help bring parties together and see if we can’t resolve this in a peaceful way. So our hope is that we can have a discussion today that helps to clarify the road ahead, to try to minimize the violence. There is a commission of inquiry on what has been happening on the ground. It’s very important for us to figure out how that will also figure into the future here.
The most important thing, and I know President Kiir agrees with this, is to make sure that the people are able to find security, and hopefully that we’re able to get food, medicine, humanitarian assistance to people at a time of huge need. And I look forward to my conversation with the president this morning.
Mr. President, if you want to say anything.
PRESIDENT KIIR: Well, thank you very much, Honorable Secretary, and it’s my pleasure to be in Washington at this moment, and on bilateral issues and for your also involvement in the issues of our country. The situation in South Sudan today, of course, on the ground it is not as been reported in the media. And if the two sides – that is the government and the rebels – were forthcoming, all of them, this thing could have been resolved a long time back. But we get difficulty on the side of the rebels. We signed the cessation of hostilities with the leader of the rebels in May on the 9th, which he did not respect. We again met in June and we signed another recommitment, cessation of hostilities on the 10th of June, but they did not abide with all these agreements.
I always say that Riek Machar is not in control of what he calls his army. And so each commanders in different areas are operating on their own. I want to repeat what I said in that meeting, the last meeting. I told the press that if peace was to be brought to South Sudan today or tomorrow, I will be happy because the people who are dying on both sides are my people. I am an elected president, and the people who elected me were not from my tribe. I was elected by all the people of South Sudan. So other people die in support of Riek Machar or is my support – these are all my people.
Those who are in need of humanitarian assistance can be served anywhere, wherever they are. This is still my position today, that if there is any humanitarian assistance, that ought to be delivered to the people who are affected. This thing has – can go unhindered. And it has been happening that humanitarian assistance has been going to the areas affected by this conflict. I’m hopeful that we are going to find a solution very soon to that conflict. Thank you.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you, Mr. President. I just want the record to be clear that it is our judgment – and the former Vice President Mr. Machar needs to understand this – that he has broken – it was his initiative that broke the agreement and took his troops back into a violent status. And he needs to understand the importance of living by the agreements. In my conversations with the prime minister of Ethiopia, who made it clear this is his judgment also, he needs to understand the international community is going to be impatient with those breaches.
So what we’re looking for is the fulfillment of the agreement, which means moving to a transition government that heals the wounds and brings people together. And we have said before and I reiterate now that the president is the duly elected, constitutional president of South Sudan, and this is a rebel group. Nevertheless, it needs to understand the importance of adhering to international agreements and the importance of bringing this to a negotiated conclusion and path forward.
So I hope today we can find a way to get back to these talks in a serious way, Mr. President, and I thank you very, very much for your statement and for being here to join us for this conversation. Thank you all very much.
Thursday, August 7, 2014
SECRETARY KERRY MAKES REMARKS WITH IGAD LEADERS
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Remarks With IGAD Leaders After Their Meeting
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Treaty Room
Washington, DC
August 5, 2014
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you very much. It’s my pleasure to be here with the IGAD leaders: the presidents of Kenya, of Uganda, and Djibouti; and the prime minister of Ethiopia, who is the chair of this effort. And we just met with respect to the situation in South Sudan, and there is a unanimous agreement that this war must end and must end now. These leaders will go back to their region and meet in Addis Ababa very, very soon, where they will decide on specific actions that they are prepared to take in unanimous fashion with their countries in an effort to guarantee that the war comes to an end. They are prepared to issue a final ultimatum to the parties to come to the table, and in addition to that, the United Nations Security Council will be visiting – the entire Security Council – next week to make it clear there is no other alternative except to proceed with the plan of these leaders that they have put on the table.
The United States is fully supportive of that effort, and we will do everything in our power to make a difference. There’s a threat of starvation for 50,000 children, there’s a continued threat to life, there is a tribal series of attacks on both sides taking place that is simply unacceptable. And I wanted to thank the leaders for their leadership. We applaud their initiative to find an African solution and to take the leadership, and we’re particularly encouraged by that.
I was just asked if it’s all right with everybody if the prime minister wants to say a few things as the chair.
PRIME MINISTER DESALEGN: Secretary Kerry, thank you very much for letting me speaking with IGAD leaders. We in the IGAD region and leaders have agreed that the war has to stop and stop very, very quickly. And the region has come a long way in sorting out the problem, and to solve this problem we will stand together. And in this regard, we have come to the end now. The violation of the ceasefire has taken place by Riek Machar.
And so the region has put the comprehensive solution to the government of transitional national unity, which is going to be established in South Sudan. And both parties has to agree to this proposal of the region. And I think if the parties do not agree on the proposal that the region has put in place after studying (inaudible) circumstances in South Sudan, then the region is going to take strong action, as we have put in the IGAD summit – punitive action that has to be taken immediately after convening the meeting of IGAD heads of state and government in Addis Ababa very soon after this summit.
So the region has come to the climax and the human catastrophe has to stop. In this regard, we are ready to propose our proposal, and if they agree, then your ambassador will come to South Sudan. If not, then the region is going to take strong action.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you, Mr. Prime Minister. Thank you very much. Thank you all.
The United States is fully supportive of that effort, and we will do everything in our power to make a difference. There’s a threat of starvation for 50,000 children, there’s a continued threat to life, there is a tribal series of attacks on both sides taking place that is simply unacceptable. And I wanted to thank the leaders for their leadership. We applaud their initiative to find an African solution and to take the leadership, and we’re particularly encouraged by that.
I was just asked if it’s all right with everybody if the prime minister wants to say a few things as the chair.
PRIME MINISTER DESALEGN: Secretary Kerry, thank you very much for letting me speaking with IGAD leaders. We in the IGAD region and leaders have agreed that the war has to stop and stop very, very quickly. And the region has come a long way in sorting out the problem, and to solve this problem we will stand together. And in this regard, we have come to the end now. The violation of the ceasefire has taken place by Riek Machar.
And so the region has put the comprehensive solution to the government of transitional national unity, which is going to be established in South Sudan. And both parties has to agree to this proposal of the region. And I think if the parties do not agree on the proposal that the region has put in place after studying (inaudible) circumstances in South Sudan, then the region is going to take strong action, as we have put in the IGAD summit – punitive action that has to be taken immediately after convening the meeting of IGAD heads of state and government in Addis Ababa very soon after this summit.
So the region has come to the climax and the human catastrophe has to stop. In this regard, we are ready to propose our proposal, and if they agree, then your ambassador will come to South Sudan. If not, then the region is going to take strong action.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you, Mr. Prime Minister. Thank you very much. Thank you all.
Saturday, May 3, 2014
SECRETARY KERRY'S REMARKS ON U.S. COMMITMENT TO AFRICA
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Commitment to Africa
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Gullele Botanic Park
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
May 3, 2014
Hallelujah, thank you very much for a spectacular introduction. Thank you for even getting out of the city and up into the mountains. And everything is so beautiful. This is an extraordinary building, and I just had the pleasure of walking out on the veranda here and enjoying the view. I understand this is the first green building, totally green building. So I congratulate the Gullele Botanical Gardens, and I particularly congratulate the University of Addis Ababa. Thank you, Mr. President, for being here. And thank you, all of you, for treading up the hill to join me this morning. I saw a couple of donkeys out there. Did some of you come up on the donkeys? (Laughter.) But a lot of buses and cars, and I am very, very appreciative.
It’s really good to be back in Addis, and I want to thank the Prime Minister and -- Foreign Minister Tedros and Prime Minister Hailemariam for a very generous welcome. And I want to thank them particularly for their terrific support in efforts not just with our development challenges and the challenges of Ethiopia itself, but also the challenges of South Sudan, the challenges of Somalia, the challenges of leadership on the continent and beyond.
I was here last spring to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the African Union and it was an appropriate time to take note of the meaning behind the AU’s significant emblem, the red rings that remind us all of the blood that was shed for an Africa that is free, and the palm leaves that remind us of the fact that the blood was not just shed for freedom, but it was shed for peace. And then the gold that symbolizes the promise of natural resources and economic potential. Today, as I come here to this hilltop, it’s important to understand how we will fulfill the promise of still another symbol of the African Union’s crest, the interlocking rings of green that embody all of Africa’s hopes and dreams.
These are the dreams I believe absolutely can be realized if we are, all of us, together, prepared to make the right choices. And it is a matter of choice. There is no pre-determined destiny out there that pushes us in a direction; this is up to the will of the people, and the will of leaders. We need to make certain that we grab the choice that seizes the future, and we need to refuse to be dragged back into the past.
I have absolutely no doubt that this could be an inflection point for the new Africa, a time and a place where Africans bend the arc of history towards reform, and not retribution; towards peace and prosperity, not revenge and resentment. And it’s important to acknowledge -- at least I feel it's important to acknowledge candidly -- that for too long the ties between the United States and Africa were largely rooted in meeting the challenges and the crises of a particular moment. But we’re discovering that, at the beginning of the 21st century, we both want a lasting and more grounded relationship, one that is not reflective, but visionary and strategic.
And for many Americans, Africa was too long a faraway place on a map, a destination for philanthropy, an occasional and harrowing image on the TV screen of starvation and war, a place of distance and some mystery. The fact is that today Africa is increasingly a destination for American investment and tourism, that African institutions are increasingly leading efforts to solve African problems. All of this underscores that dramatic transformations are possible, that prosperity can replace poverty, that cooperation can actually triumph over conflict.
But even as we celebrate this progress, we are also meeting at a time of continued crisis. Conflicts in South Sudan, which I visited yesterday, Central African Republic, Mali, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the events that we've just seen in Nigeria, these are among some of the things that are preventing millions of Africans from realizing their full potential. And in some places they are plunging the continent back into the turmoil of the past.
Now, some things are absolutely certain as we look at this panorama: Africa has the resources; Africa has the capacity; Africa has the know-how. The questions that Africa faces are similar to those confronting countries all over the world: do we have the political will, the sense of common purpose, to address our challenges? Are we prepared to make the hard choices that those challenges require?
The continent’s course is ultimately up to you. It's up to Africans. But we firmly believe that the United States is Africa’s natural partner. One thing we know for sure, the United States could be a vital catalyst in this continent’s continued transformation, and President Obama is committed to that transformation.
The United States is blessed to be the world’s epicenter for innovation. Africa is home to many of the fastest-growing economies in the world. There is no limit to what we can accomplish together by working together, and cooperating, and setting out a strategy, and agreeing to have a vision, and join it in common purpose. And though we never forget -- we never forget -- how our first ties were forged in some of the darkest chapters of human history, we still start from a strong foundation.
Now, I’m sure that some of you have seen that in your travels, hopefully across the United States. Whether it is Little Senegal in Los Angeles, or the Somali community in Minneapolis, or the Ethiopian community in Washington, DC, Africans are making American culture richer, and our economy stronger, and contributing to the future chapters of American history. It’s time to make sure that we build on this deep connection; it’s time that we take these connections to the next level by investing in the future of this continent.
And when we know, as we do, that Africa will have a larger workforce than India or China by 2040, then it is time for us to get ahead of the curve, to invest in education for the vast numbers of young people, and the increasing numbers of people demanding their part of that future. It is time to build a more open exchange of ideas and information that leads to partnership and innovation. President Obama’s Young African Leaders Initiative -- I had a chance to meet a number of them, they will be coming to Washington in August -- YALI, is designed to harness this energy, and it’s one example of how some of these efforts are already well underway. YALI is bringing leadership and networking to thousands of young people across the continent. And I am very, very pleased that many of you who are here today are participating in YALI, and that four of you will come and join us this summer as part of the first class of the Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders.
I was particularly impressed, frankly, by one of the stories of these young women, Haleta Giday. Perhaps it’s because Haleta is a prosecutor, and I used to be a prosecutor in my early career. But she graduated from Jimma University, which you all know is one of the best schools in Ethiopia. And the fact is that she had her pick of any lucrative job that she wanted to do, right here in the capital. Instead, she chose to represent women and children who were victims of violence. And when Haleta saw how many widows went bankrupt after they lost their husbands, she began a campaign to educate women about their legal and financial rights.
Just consider what Haleta has witnessed over the course of her young life: she spent her first years in a nation traumatized by famine. Today, Ethiopia is one of the world’s fastest growing economies. Since Haleta arrived on her first day of school, the number of democratic governments in Africa has tripled. Since she left high school, banking assets have more than doubled. And since Haleta graduated from university, Africa’s telecommunications market has doubled in size. She has already lived a remarkable life, and she’s doing amazing work here in Ethiopia. What’s more remarkable is she is one of many young leaders across this continent who are proving their mettle by taking on some of the toughest challenges.
So this is clearly a moment of opportunity for all Africans. It is also a moment of decision, because it’s the decisions that are made or the decisions that are deferred that will ultimately determine whether Africa mines the continent’s greatest natural resource of all, which is not platinum, it's not gold, it's not oil, it is the talent of its people. Africa’s potential comes from the ability of its citizens to make a full contribution, no matter their ethnicity, no matter who they love, or what faith they practice. This continent is strong because of the diversity and the dynamism of the people. The nations in Africa, like nations all over the world, are strongest when citizens have a say, when citizens' voices can be a part of the political process, when they have a stake in their nation's success.
Over the next three years, 37 of the 54 African nations will hold national elections, including 15 presidential elections. Millions of Africans will be going the polls, selecting their leaders in free and fair elections, and that will have a dramatic impact and show the world the power of this moment for Africa. These elections, I promise you, are vitally important. But elections cannot be the only moment, the only opportunity, for citizens to be able to help shape the future. Whether a citizen can engage with their government, not just on Election Day, but every day, whether or not they can engage with their fellow citizens in political discussion and debate and dialogue every week, every month, these are the questions that matter profoundly to Africa’s future.
The African Union is working to answer “yes” to all of these questions. “Good governance, democracy, and the right to development,” these are enshrined in universal rights, and the African Union’s charter represents that and reflects that. The AU has also gone to great lengths in order to highlight the corrosive effect of corruption, both in the public square, as well as corruption in the marketplace. To the AU’s great credit, they have reported that corruption costs Africans tens of billions of dollars, if not more. And that money -- every one of you knows that money could build new schools, new hospitals, new bridges, new roads, pipes, power lines. That’s why it is a responsibility for citizens in Africa and in all nations to demand that public money is providing services for all, not lining the pockets of a few.
And that is why it is so important for all of us everywhere, in our country, your country, and elsewhere, to fight against public corruption and corruption in the marketplace. Our cooperation is essential in order to protect economic growth that is shared by everybody in order to provide opportunity for all individuals in Africa. And, as you well know, fighting corruption is difficult. It takes courage. It sometimes has its risks. But fighting corruption lifts more than a country's balance sheet. Transparency and accountability attract greater investment. Transparency and accountability create a more competitive marketplace, one where ideas and products are judged by the market and by their merits, and not by backroom deals or bribes. That is an environment where innovators and entrepreneurs flourish, I promise you.
The United States has learned through its own experience that entrepreneurship is an essential driver of prosperity and of freedom. That’s why President Obama launched the Global Entrepreneurship Summit, which this fall will bring some of the world’s brightest minds to Morocco. Last year I had the pleasure of being in Kuala Lumpur for that meeting, for the same meeting. And I was stunned by the 15,000 young people screaming like they were in a rock concert or something, all challenged by the prospect of themselves becoming or being the next Steve Jobs or the next Bill Gates. It was unbelievable to feel their energy and enthusiasm.
And they are all connected, all these kids are connected. Everybody shares everything with everybody else in the world, all of the time. And that changes politics, and it changes business, and it changes perceptions. It changes hopes and dreams and aspirations. And every political leader needs to be tuned in to that reality, because that's what we saw in Tunisia, that's what we saw in Egypt. That's what we're still seeing in Syria, where young people came out, asking for a future.
We want to make certain that every country can provide young people the ability to be able to take an idea and turn it into a business. And we know beyond any doubt that the places where people are free not just to develop an idea, but to debate different ideas, to transform the best ideas into a reality, those are the societies that are most successful. Now, this success is not a mystery, and it's not something that is hard to achieve, if you make the right choices. This success is possible for all of Africa. This new Africa is within everybody's reach. But a new Africa will not emerge without becoming a more secure Africa.
In too many parts of the continent, a lack of security, the threat of violence, or all-out war prevent the shoots of prosperity from emerging. The burdens of past divisions might not disappear entirely, my friends. But they must never be allowed to bury the future. The African Union’s commitment to silence the guns of Africa by 2020 is an ambitious goal. It is the right goal. It is a vision worth fighting for, and one that we will do everything in our power to help you achieve, and that’s why we will continue to provide financial and logistical support to African Union-led efforts in Somalia, where al-Shahaab is under significant pressure. That’s why we will continue to support the African Union Regional Task Force against the Lord’s Resistance Army, where LRA-related deaths have dropped by 75 percent, and hundreds of thousands have returned to their homes. And that’s why we are working to strengthen Nigeria’s institutions and its military to combat Boko Haram, and their campaign of terror and violence.
Let me be clear. The kidnapping of hundreds of children by Boko Haram is an unconscionable crime, and we will do everything possible to support the Nigerian government to return these young women to their homes and to hold the perpetrators to justice. I will tell you, my friends, I have seen this scourge of terror across the planet, and so have you. They don't offer anything except violence. They don't offer a health care plan, they don't offer schools. They don't tell you how to build a nation, they don't talk about how they will provide jobs. They just tell people, "You have to behave the way we tell you to," and they will punish you if you don't.
Our responsibility and the world’s responsibility is to stand up against that kind if nihilism. That is the reason that we have committed up to $100 million to support AU and French forces in Central African Republic to push back, as well as $67 million in humanitarian assistance. It’s why we support wholeheartedly the Framework Peace Process and the leadership of Angola and the 10 other African nations to resolve the root causes of conflict in the Great Lakes. Through our Special Envoy to the Great Lakes, a former Senator, a friend of mine that I appointed, Russ Feingold, the United States has been supporting the burgeoning dialogue that is now taking place, and we have already helped to broker the demobilization of M23. We stand ready to support all efforts that help the parties stay on a peaceful path.
Yesterday I was in South Sudan. I was there at the birth of the nation, at the referendum. I know President Kiir, I know the hopes and aspirations of the people there. And I saw yesterday how a nation that once had a hopeful vision for the future can be challenged by old grudges degenerating into violence by personal ambition, by greed that gets in the way of the hopes of all of the people.
I expressed my grave concerns to President Kiir about the deliberate killings of civilians on both sides of the conflict and he agreed to embark on negotiations to form a transitional government that can lead the nation back from the abyss. I congratulate him for his willingness to do that, and I look forward, as the world will, to watching him lead the nation back from this abyss. I also called the former Vice President, Riek Machar, and I urged him to do the same, to come to Addis Ababa in the near term, and to engage in these direct talks in order to move South Sudan to its rightful future.
If both sides do not take bold steps to end the violence, they risk plunging South Sudan into greater desperation and even famine. And that famine could be right around the corner if we don't turn the corner ourselves in the next days. They will completely destroy what they claim they are fighting for if we do not make a difference now. Both sides must do more to facilitate the work of those providing humanitarian assistance. The UN, UNMIS, and all organizations that are urgently providing aid must be supported and protected and not demonized, the way they have been.
Once again, African nations are all working hard to try to forge a regional solution through the AU's Commission of Inquiry and IGAD Monitoring and Verification Mechanisms. And in the days to come I will continue my personal engagement with both sides, and it is imperative that both sides abide by the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement, and implement it as fully as possible. The international community must stay committed to the people of South Sudan and see them through this time of incredible difficulty.
Preventing new conflicts also requires coordination to confront the causes of conflict, including food insecurity and famine and, obviously, poverty. Africa has 60 percent of the world’s arable land. Just think about that. That is a tremendous opportunity for the future, not just to feed Africa’s people, but to feed the world. The United States wants to help Africa seize this opportunity by making investments in agribusiness and in crops with greater yields and greater resistance to extreme weather.
With Feed the Future, which was built on the foundation that was laid by the African Union with your own Comprehensive African Agriculture Development Program, the United States is investing several billion dollars to improve seed quality, to enhance farming methods, to protect against soil erosion, and link small farmers to the marketplace. To underscore the importance of these commitments, the AU has made 2014 the year of agriculture and food security.
But it is no exaggeration to say that the greatest risk to African agriculture, and even to our way of life, not just in Africa but on this planet, comes from the potential ravages of climate change.
According to the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, portions of Mombasa, Dakar, Monrovia, and dozens of other coastal cities could be under water by the middle of this century. Yields from rain-fed agriculture in parts of Africa could decline by 50 percent. An additional 100 million people or more will be living without water or under greater water duress as a result of the changes from climate.
When 97 percent of scientists agree that the climate is changing, and that humans are responsible for much of the change, and that it is happening faster than predicted, let me tell you something: We need to listen to that 97 percent, and we need to act. And when this continent produces less carbon than almost any other nation, when the continent produces less carbon than almost any other nation, but has the most to lose climate change, it is true there is an inherent unfairness to that equation. And there can be no doubt about it: greater prosperity in Africa is going to demand greater energy supply. So, citizens in Africa will have to make certain that the mistakes that we make, the mistakes that other developed nations have made, that those are not repeated, that the mistakes that created this moment of urgency for the world are not repeated on this continent.
The United States wants to support Africa’s efforts to develop more sustainably, even as we move to do so ourselves, and move to curb our emissions. And that’s why, as part of the President’s bold Power Africa Initiative, a partnership that will pump billions of dollars into the continent’s energy sector, we are working with programs such as the U.S.-Africa Clean Energy Finance Initiative. We’re leveraging public resources and private resources to support $1 billion in clean energy investment from the private sector. Climate change is a global challenge, and it's going to threaten this continent and all continents in profound ways if it is not matched by global cooperative action.
We will -- we face this challenge remembering that we’ve come together before to confront a borderless, generational crisis, one in which I am proud to say we are now winning. So when someone suggests that we are impotent to combat climate change here on Africa’s soil, remind them that we already turned back armies of indifference and denial in the fight against AIDS.
I’ve worked with some of you in this battle since the 1990s. It was 15 years ago when I co-authored the first Africa AIDS legislation which later became the foundation for PEPFAR. Back then, what I saw this week at Gandhi Memorial Hospital that I visited a couple days ago, that would have been unthinkable back then. Because of the commitment of local doctors and healthcare professionals, and with PEPFAR’s sustained support, we have dramatically reduced the number of young children infected with HIV. And the fact is that we have -- we are -- I think we were about, what, 15,000 children were receiving antiretroviral drugs back in 2004. Today, there are more than 330,000 receiving them. The number of people living with HIV has been reduced by one-third. And, remarkably, we are on the cusp of witnessing the first generation of children who will be born AIDS-free because of what we have learned to do.
There was a sign I saw yesterday at the hospital -- or the day before yesterday. It was -- it read, “Ethiopia and the United States of America investing in a healthy future together.” My friends, that sign tells it all. It tells us what's possible, it tells us what we're doing together. It tells us what’s possible in all of our endeavors together.
Achieving President Obama’s goal for an AIDS-free generation would have been the most distant dream. I tell you it was back when we first started talking about doing something about AIDS. Back then it was a death sentence, and back then it was almost a death sentence for politicians talking about it. They didn't want to hear about it. But despite the difficulties that lie ahead -- and there are still difficulties -- this goal is now within our reach. So don't let anybody tell you we can't do something about climate change or these other things.
In fact, in so many ways, Africa is on the move. And that is why investment is moving here from all over the world. IBM has invested $100 million in Big Data on the continent. IBM’s initiatives are helping Africans to find ways to streamline the work of their businesses and governments, to provide more effective and efficient services. Microsoft is investing in what it calls “Mawingu,” the Swahili word for cloud, to develop cloud computing and storage in Kenya that could be expanded to additional African nations. Google is exploring ways to develop underused spectrum in order to deliver broadband Internet access to remote communities.
And it was here in Addis Ababa that we launched a formal review of the African Growth and Opportunity Act, in order to determine where to take AGOA for the future. President Obama is committed to a seamless renewal of AGOA, as it continues to serve as a vital link in order to facilitate trade between our countries.
I say this unabashedly, too: we want more American companies to be here, to invest, both to unleash the power of the private sector in Africa, and, yes, to create jobs in America at the same time. Now, we’ve seen time and again: when we help nations stand on their own two feet, we share in their success. Out of our 15 largest trading partners today, 11 are former recipients of American aid. They are now donor countries. That is the transformation that can be made.
The transformation from aid to trade has been a powerful driver of American prosperity, as well as global growth. And that’s what we saw take root from our partnerships in Europe after World War II, when America came in and we helped to rebuild Germany (inaudible) before the war, helped to rebuild Japan (inaudible) before the war, helped to rebuild Europe that was crushed by the war. We have seen this same kind of resurgence in Asia, where American investment and partnership helped underwrite their incredible rise. And today, that’s what we’re beginning to see here Africa.
When people say that the kind of development that happened in Europe and Asia can’t happen here, we just plain disagree: it’s already happening. Africans are shaping their future for themselves. You are shaping it for yourselves. And we want to share in your effort and help to provide and drive for a shared prosperity that reaches these millions of young people who need education and jobs. That’s one of the reasons I’ve come to Addis today, and why I’m traveling across the continent from the Horn of Africa to the Atlantic coast in the next couple of days.
So this is a very important time for us both. This summer we will further advance the vital work that we are undertaking together with the Africa Leaders’ Summit. This summit will be the first of its kind. Never before will so many leaders from such a diverse cross-section of the African Continent come together with the President of the United States and leaders from all across American society in the United States. It’s an historic gathering that matches the remarkable importance of this particular moment.
The theme of this Summit will be “Investing in the Next Generation.” And I am pleased to see that generation is so well represented here today, with the younger participants from YALI that I mentioned earlier. These young African leaders are the future. And I have to tell you, when we introduced YALI, we were stunned by the response. We put out this notion of young African leaders and invited people to come to Washington. And guess what, 50,000 young people responded and applied to be a part of this program. We could only take 500. So, what we need to do is make sure those other 49,500, and for millions beyond them, are able to be reached.
That is the kind of commitment that actually inspired a young Bobby Kennedy. Some of you may remember when he came to South Africa during some of that country’s darkest days. And he challenged the young audience at Cape Town University to muster the courage and the determination to confront their generation’s most daunting challenges. He said: “The world demands the qualities of youth: not a time of life, but a state of mind, a temper of the will, a quality of the imagination, a predominance of courage over timidity, of the appetite for adventure over the love of ease.”
It’s that spirit, it’s those qualities, it’s that appetite that I guarantee you will propel the next generation of Africans to tackle today’s greatest challenges. And as they do so, the United States of America will stand beside them, bound together by a shared future, a common purpose, and a shared destiny.
So, I say to you, thank you. (Speaks in foreign language.) Thank you very much. (Applause.)
It’s really good to be back in Addis, and I want to thank the Prime Minister and -- Foreign Minister Tedros and Prime Minister Hailemariam for a very generous welcome. And I want to thank them particularly for their terrific support in efforts not just with our development challenges and the challenges of Ethiopia itself, but also the challenges of South Sudan, the challenges of Somalia, the challenges of leadership on the continent and beyond.
I was here last spring to celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the African Union and it was an appropriate time to take note of the meaning behind the AU’s significant emblem, the red rings that remind us all of the blood that was shed for an Africa that is free, and the palm leaves that remind us of the fact that the blood was not just shed for freedom, but it was shed for peace. And then the gold that symbolizes the promise of natural resources and economic potential. Today, as I come here to this hilltop, it’s important to understand how we will fulfill the promise of still another symbol of the African Union’s crest, the interlocking rings of green that embody all of Africa’s hopes and dreams.
These are the dreams I believe absolutely can be realized if we are, all of us, together, prepared to make the right choices. And it is a matter of choice. There is no pre-determined destiny out there that pushes us in a direction; this is up to the will of the people, and the will of leaders. We need to make certain that we grab the choice that seizes the future, and we need to refuse to be dragged back into the past.
I have absolutely no doubt that this could be an inflection point for the new Africa, a time and a place where Africans bend the arc of history towards reform, and not retribution; towards peace and prosperity, not revenge and resentment. And it’s important to acknowledge -- at least I feel it's important to acknowledge candidly -- that for too long the ties between the United States and Africa were largely rooted in meeting the challenges and the crises of a particular moment. But we’re discovering that, at the beginning of the 21st century, we both want a lasting and more grounded relationship, one that is not reflective, but visionary and strategic.
And for many Americans, Africa was too long a faraway place on a map, a destination for philanthropy, an occasional and harrowing image on the TV screen of starvation and war, a place of distance and some mystery. The fact is that today Africa is increasingly a destination for American investment and tourism, that African institutions are increasingly leading efforts to solve African problems. All of this underscores that dramatic transformations are possible, that prosperity can replace poverty, that cooperation can actually triumph over conflict.
But even as we celebrate this progress, we are also meeting at a time of continued crisis. Conflicts in South Sudan, which I visited yesterday, Central African Republic, Mali, the Democratic Republic of Congo, the events that we've just seen in Nigeria, these are among some of the things that are preventing millions of Africans from realizing their full potential. And in some places they are plunging the continent back into the turmoil of the past.
Now, some things are absolutely certain as we look at this panorama: Africa has the resources; Africa has the capacity; Africa has the know-how. The questions that Africa faces are similar to those confronting countries all over the world: do we have the political will, the sense of common purpose, to address our challenges? Are we prepared to make the hard choices that those challenges require?
The continent’s course is ultimately up to you. It's up to Africans. But we firmly believe that the United States is Africa’s natural partner. One thing we know for sure, the United States could be a vital catalyst in this continent’s continued transformation, and President Obama is committed to that transformation.
The United States is blessed to be the world’s epicenter for innovation. Africa is home to many of the fastest-growing economies in the world. There is no limit to what we can accomplish together by working together, and cooperating, and setting out a strategy, and agreeing to have a vision, and join it in common purpose. And though we never forget -- we never forget -- how our first ties were forged in some of the darkest chapters of human history, we still start from a strong foundation.
Now, I’m sure that some of you have seen that in your travels, hopefully across the United States. Whether it is Little Senegal in Los Angeles, or the Somali community in Minneapolis, or the Ethiopian community in Washington, DC, Africans are making American culture richer, and our economy stronger, and contributing to the future chapters of American history. It’s time to make sure that we build on this deep connection; it’s time that we take these connections to the next level by investing in the future of this continent.
And when we know, as we do, that Africa will have a larger workforce than India or China by 2040, then it is time for us to get ahead of the curve, to invest in education for the vast numbers of young people, and the increasing numbers of people demanding their part of that future. It is time to build a more open exchange of ideas and information that leads to partnership and innovation. President Obama’s Young African Leaders Initiative -- I had a chance to meet a number of them, they will be coming to Washington in August -- YALI, is designed to harness this energy, and it’s one example of how some of these efforts are already well underway. YALI is bringing leadership and networking to thousands of young people across the continent. And I am very, very pleased that many of you who are here today are participating in YALI, and that four of you will come and join us this summer as part of the first class of the Washington Fellowship for Young African Leaders.
I was particularly impressed, frankly, by one of the stories of these young women, Haleta Giday. Perhaps it’s because Haleta is a prosecutor, and I used to be a prosecutor in my early career. But she graduated from Jimma University, which you all know is one of the best schools in Ethiopia. And the fact is that she had her pick of any lucrative job that she wanted to do, right here in the capital. Instead, she chose to represent women and children who were victims of violence. And when Haleta saw how many widows went bankrupt after they lost their husbands, she began a campaign to educate women about their legal and financial rights.
Just consider what Haleta has witnessed over the course of her young life: she spent her first years in a nation traumatized by famine. Today, Ethiopia is one of the world’s fastest growing economies. Since Haleta arrived on her first day of school, the number of democratic governments in Africa has tripled. Since she left high school, banking assets have more than doubled. And since Haleta graduated from university, Africa’s telecommunications market has doubled in size. She has already lived a remarkable life, and she’s doing amazing work here in Ethiopia. What’s more remarkable is she is one of many young leaders across this continent who are proving their mettle by taking on some of the toughest challenges.
So this is clearly a moment of opportunity for all Africans. It is also a moment of decision, because it’s the decisions that are made or the decisions that are deferred that will ultimately determine whether Africa mines the continent’s greatest natural resource of all, which is not platinum, it's not gold, it's not oil, it is the talent of its people. Africa’s potential comes from the ability of its citizens to make a full contribution, no matter their ethnicity, no matter who they love, or what faith they practice. This continent is strong because of the diversity and the dynamism of the people. The nations in Africa, like nations all over the world, are strongest when citizens have a say, when citizens' voices can be a part of the political process, when they have a stake in their nation's success.
Over the next three years, 37 of the 54 African nations will hold national elections, including 15 presidential elections. Millions of Africans will be going the polls, selecting their leaders in free and fair elections, and that will have a dramatic impact and show the world the power of this moment for Africa. These elections, I promise you, are vitally important. But elections cannot be the only moment, the only opportunity, for citizens to be able to help shape the future. Whether a citizen can engage with their government, not just on Election Day, but every day, whether or not they can engage with their fellow citizens in political discussion and debate and dialogue every week, every month, these are the questions that matter profoundly to Africa’s future.
The African Union is working to answer “yes” to all of these questions. “Good governance, democracy, and the right to development,” these are enshrined in universal rights, and the African Union’s charter represents that and reflects that. The AU has also gone to great lengths in order to highlight the corrosive effect of corruption, both in the public square, as well as corruption in the marketplace. To the AU’s great credit, they have reported that corruption costs Africans tens of billions of dollars, if not more. And that money -- every one of you knows that money could build new schools, new hospitals, new bridges, new roads, pipes, power lines. That’s why it is a responsibility for citizens in Africa and in all nations to demand that public money is providing services for all, not lining the pockets of a few.
And that is why it is so important for all of us everywhere, in our country, your country, and elsewhere, to fight against public corruption and corruption in the marketplace. Our cooperation is essential in order to protect economic growth that is shared by everybody in order to provide opportunity for all individuals in Africa. And, as you well know, fighting corruption is difficult. It takes courage. It sometimes has its risks. But fighting corruption lifts more than a country's balance sheet. Transparency and accountability attract greater investment. Transparency and accountability create a more competitive marketplace, one where ideas and products are judged by the market and by their merits, and not by backroom deals or bribes. That is an environment where innovators and entrepreneurs flourish, I promise you.
The United States has learned through its own experience that entrepreneurship is an essential driver of prosperity and of freedom. That’s why President Obama launched the Global Entrepreneurship Summit, which this fall will bring some of the world’s brightest minds to Morocco. Last year I had the pleasure of being in Kuala Lumpur for that meeting, for the same meeting. And I was stunned by the 15,000 young people screaming like they were in a rock concert or something, all challenged by the prospect of themselves becoming or being the next Steve Jobs or the next Bill Gates. It was unbelievable to feel their energy and enthusiasm.
And they are all connected, all these kids are connected. Everybody shares everything with everybody else in the world, all of the time. And that changes politics, and it changes business, and it changes perceptions. It changes hopes and dreams and aspirations. And every political leader needs to be tuned in to that reality, because that's what we saw in Tunisia, that's what we saw in Egypt. That's what we're still seeing in Syria, where young people came out, asking for a future.
We want to make certain that every country can provide young people the ability to be able to take an idea and turn it into a business. And we know beyond any doubt that the places where people are free not just to develop an idea, but to debate different ideas, to transform the best ideas into a reality, those are the societies that are most successful. Now, this success is not a mystery, and it's not something that is hard to achieve, if you make the right choices. This success is possible for all of Africa. This new Africa is within everybody's reach. But a new Africa will not emerge without becoming a more secure Africa.
In too many parts of the continent, a lack of security, the threat of violence, or all-out war prevent the shoots of prosperity from emerging. The burdens of past divisions might not disappear entirely, my friends. But they must never be allowed to bury the future. The African Union’s commitment to silence the guns of Africa by 2020 is an ambitious goal. It is the right goal. It is a vision worth fighting for, and one that we will do everything in our power to help you achieve, and that’s why we will continue to provide financial and logistical support to African Union-led efforts in Somalia, where al-Shahaab is under significant pressure. That’s why we will continue to support the African Union Regional Task Force against the Lord’s Resistance Army, where LRA-related deaths have dropped by 75 percent, and hundreds of thousands have returned to their homes. And that’s why we are working to strengthen Nigeria’s institutions and its military to combat Boko Haram, and their campaign of terror and violence.
Let me be clear. The kidnapping of hundreds of children by Boko Haram is an unconscionable crime, and we will do everything possible to support the Nigerian government to return these young women to their homes and to hold the perpetrators to justice. I will tell you, my friends, I have seen this scourge of terror across the planet, and so have you. They don't offer anything except violence. They don't offer a health care plan, they don't offer schools. They don't tell you how to build a nation, they don't talk about how they will provide jobs. They just tell people, "You have to behave the way we tell you to," and they will punish you if you don't.
Our responsibility and the world’s responsibility is to stand up against that kind if nihilism. That is the reason that we have committed up to $100 million to support AU and French forces in Central African Republic to push back, as well as $67 million in humanitarian assistance. It’s why we support wholeheartedly the Framework Peace Process and the leadership of Angola and the 10 other African nations to resolve the root causes of conflict in the Great Lakes. Through our Special Envoy to the Great Lakes, a former Senator, a friend of mine that I appointed, Russ Feingold, the United States has been supporting the burgeoning dialogue that is now taking place, and we have already helped to broker the demobilization of M23. We stand ready to support all efforts that help the parties stay on a peaceful path.
Yesterday I was in South Sudan. I was there at the birth of the nation, at the referendum. I know President Kiir, I know the hopes and aspirations of the people there. And I saw yesterday how a nation that once had a hopeful vision for the future can be challenged by old grudges degenerating into violence by personal ambition, by greed that gets in the way of the hopes of all of the people.
I expressed my grave concerns to President Kiir about the deliberate killings of civilians on both sides of the conflict and he agreed to embark on negotiations to form a transitional government that can lead the nation back from the abyss. I congratulate him for his willingness to do that, and I look forward, as the world will, to watching him lead the nation back from this abyss. I also called the former Vice President, Riek Machar, and I urged him to do the same, to come to Addis Ababa in the near term, and to engage in these direct talks in order to move South Sudan to its rightful future.
If both sides do not take bold steps to end the violence, they risk plunging South Sudan into greater desperation and even famine. And that famine could be right around the corner if we don't turn the corner ourselves in the next days. They will completely destroy what they claim they are fighting for if we do not make a difference now. Both sides must do more to facilitate the work of those providing humanitarian assistance. The UN, UNMIS, and all organizations that are urgently providing aid must be supported and protected and not demonized, the way they have been.
Once again, African nations are all working hard to try to forge a regional solution through the AU's Commission of Inquiry and IGAD Monitoring and Verification Mechanisms. And in the days to come I will continue my personal engagement with both sides, and it is imperative that both sides abide by the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement, and implement it as fully as possible. The international community must stay committed to the people of South Sudan and see them through this time of incredible difficulty.
Preventing new conflicts also requires coordination to confront the causes of conflict, including food insecurity and famine and, obviously, poverty. Africa has 60 percent of the world’s arable land. Just think about that. That is a tremendous opportunity for the future, not just to feed Africa’s people, but to feed the world. The United States wants to help Africa seize this opportunity by making investments in agribusiness and in crops with greater yields and greater resistance to extreme weather.
With Feed the Future, which was built on the foundation that was laid by the African Union with your own Comprehensive African Agriculture Development Program, the United States is investing several billion dollars to improve seed quality, to enhance farming methods, to protect against soil erosion, and link small farmers to the marketplace. To underscore the importance of these commitments, the AU has made 2014 the year of agriculture and food security.
But it is no exaggeration to say that the greatest risk to African agriculture, and even to our way of life, not just in Africa but on this planet, comes from the potential ravages of climate change.
According to the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, portions of Mombasa, Dakar, Monrovia, and dozens of other coastal cities could be under water by the middle of this century. Yields from rain-fed agriculture in parts of Africa could decline by 50 percent. An additional 100 million people or more will be living without water or under greater water duress as a result of the changes from climate.
When 97 percent of scientists agree that the climate is changing, and that humans are responsible for much of the change, and that it is happening faster than predicted, let me tell you something: We need to listen to that 97 percent, and we need to act. And when this continent produces less carbon than almost any other nation, when the continent produces less carbon than almost any other nation, but has the most to lose climate change, it is true there is an inherent unfairness to that equation. And there can be no doubt about it: greater prosperity in Africa is going to demand greater energy supply. So, citizens in Africa will have to make certain that the mistakes that we make, the mistakes that other developed nations have made, that those are not repeated, that the mistakes that created this moment of urgency for the world are not repeated on this continent.
The United States wants to support Africa’s efforts to develop more sustainably, even as we move to do so ourselves, and move to curb our emissions. And that’s why, as part of the President’s bold Power Africa Initiative, a partnership that will pump billions of dollars into the continent’s energy sector, we are working with programs such as the U.S.-Africa Clean Energy Finance Initiative. We’re leveraging public resources and private resources to support $1 billion in clean energy investment from the private sector. Climate change is a global challenge, and it's going to threaten this continent and all continents in profound ways if it is not matched by global cooperative action.
We will -- we face this challenge remembering that we’ve come together before to confront a borderless, generational crisis, one in which I am proud to say we are now winning. So when someone suggests that we are impotent to combat climate change here on Africa’s soil, remind them that we already turned back armies of indifference and denial in the fight against AIDS.
I’ve worked with some of you in this battle since the 1990s. It was 15 years ago when I co-authored the first Africa AIDS legislation which later became the foundation for PEPFAR. Back then, what I saw this week at Gandhi Memorial Hospital that I visited a couple days ago, that would have been unthinkable back then. Because of the commitment of local doctors and healthcare professionals, and with PEPFAR’s sustained support, we have dramatically reduced the number of young children infected with HIV. And the fact is that we have -- we are -- I think we were about, what, 15,000 children were receiving antiretroviral drugs back in 2004. Today, there are more than 330,000 receiving them. The number of people living with HIV has been reduced by one-third. And, remarkably, we are on the cusp of witnessing the first generation of children who will be born AIDS-free because of what we have learned to do.
There was a sign I saw yesterday at the hospital -- or the day before yesterday. It was -- it read, “Ethiopia and the United States of America investing in a healthy future together.” My friends, that sign tells it all. It tells us what's possible, it tells us what we're doing together. It tells us what’s possible in all of our endeavors together.
Achieving President Obama’s goal for an AIDS-free generation would have been the most distant dream. I tell you it was back when we first started talking about doing something about AIDS. Back then it was a death sentence, and back then it was almost a death sentence for politicians talking about it. They didn't want to hear about it. But despite the difficulties that lie ahead -- and there are still difficulties -- this goal is now within our reach. So don't let anybody tell you we can't do something about climate change or these other things.
In fact, in so many ways, Africa is on the move. And that is why investment is moving here from all over the world. IBM has invested $100 million in Big Data on the continent. IBM’s initiatives are helping Africans to find ways to streamline the work of their businesses and governments, to provide more effective and efficient services. Microsoft is investing in what it calls “Mawingu,” the Swahili word for cloud, to develop cloud computing and storage in Kenya that could be expanded to additional African nations. Google is exploring ways to develop underused spectrum in order to deliver broadband Internet access to remote communities.
And it was here in Addis Ababa that we launched a formal review of the African Growth and Opportunity Act, in order to determine where to take AGOA for the future. President Obama is committed to a seamless renewal of AGOA, as it continues to serve as a vital link in order to facilitate trade between our countries.
I say this unabashedly, too: we want more American companies to be here, to invest, both to unleash the power of the private sector in Africa, and, yes, to create jobs in America at the same time. Now, we’ve seen time and again: when we help nations stand on their own two feet, we share in their success. Out of our 15 largest trading partners today, 11 are former recipients of American aid. They are now donor countries. That is the transformation that can be made.
The transformation from aid to trade has been a powerful driver of American prosperity, as well as global growth. And that’s what we saw take root from our partnerships in Europe after World War II, when America came in and we helped to rebuild Germany (inaudible) before the war, helped to rebuild Japan (inaudible) before the war, helped to rebuild Europe that was crushed by the war. We have seen this same kind of resurgence in Asia, where American investment and partnership helped underwrite their incredible rise. And today, that’s what we’re beginning to see here Africa.
When people say that the kind of development that happened in Europe and Asia can’t happen here, we just plain disagree: it’s already happening. Africans are shaping their future for themselves. You are shaping it for yourselves. And we want to share in your effort and help to provide and drive for a shared prosperity that reaches these millions of young people who need education and jobs. That’s one of the reasons I’ve come to Addis today, and why I’m traveling across the continent from the Horn of Africa to the Atlantic coast in the next couple of days.
So this is a very important time for us both. This summer we will further advance the vital work that we are undertaking together with the Africa Leaders’ Summit. This summit will be the first of its kind. Never before will so many leaders from such a diverse cross-section of the African Continent come together with the President of the United States and leaders from all across American society in the United States. It’s an historic gathering that matches the remarkable importance of this particular moment.
The theme of this Summit will be “Investing in the Next Generation.” And I am pleased to see that generation is so well represented here today, with the younger participants from YALI that I mentioned earlier. These young African leaders are the future. And I have to tell you, when we introduced YALI, we were stunned by the response. We put out this notion of young African leaders and invited people to come to Washington. And guess what, 50,000 young people responded and applied to be a part of this program. We could only take 500. So, what we need to do is make sure those other 49,500, and for millions beyond them, are able to be reached.
That is the kind of commitment that actually inspired a young Bobby Kennedy. Some of you may remember when he came to South Africa during some of that country’s darkest days. And he challenged the young audience at Cape Town University to muster the courage and the determination to confront their generation’s most daunting challenges. He said: “The world demands the qualities of youth: not a time of life, but a state of mind, a temper of the will, a quality of the imagination, a predominance of courage over timidity, of the appetite for adventure over the love of ease.”
It’s that spirit, it’s those qualities, it’s that appetite that I guarantee you will propel the next generation of Africans to tackle today’s greatest challenges. And as they do so, the United States of America will stand beside them, bound together by a shared future, a common purpose, and a shared destiny.
So, I say to you, thank you. (Speaks in foreign language.) Thank you very much. (Applause.)
REMARKS BY SECRETARY OF STATE KERRY AT GANDHI MEMORIAL HOSPITAL ADDIS ABABA, ETHIOPIA
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Remarks During Visit to Gandhi Memorial Hospital
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Gandhi Memorial Hospital
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
May 1, 2014
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you. Good morning,
everybody. How are you?
AUDIENCE: Good morning.
SECRETARY KERRY: What an incredible, incredible energy I can feel here. You all are amazing in the work that you are doing. And in the small little spaces that I just walked through, I saw how much is going on every single day. So you are maximizing each moment and you’re maximizing every bit of space, and I congratulate you on that.
As I was walking in here, I asked about some of the other activities, and I learned that 25 babies are born here every day – 7,000 or so babies a year, right? And 30 – about 35 percent of those babies are born by cesarean section, so you can imagine how much work is going on here every single day. It’s really quite extraordinary.
And this part of the hospital, the Gandhi Memorial Hospital, is really special. The sign that is back here – you’re just sort of hiding it – but it talks about Ethiopia and the United States of America investing in a healthy future together. And there’s a lot of power in those words, “investing in a healthy future together.” We are doing it together. You’re doing the day-to-day hard work every single day. We’re trying to provide as much medical expertise and as much insight, knowledge as we can to help. But this is your – this is really your program and it’s about your future.
And I am so impressed by the way in which people in Ethiopia have grabbed onto this, and you are making a difference everywhere. Back in 2004, there were about 2.7 million Ethiopians who were HIV-positive, living with the disease. That has been cut by at least a third, but most importantly, for young children, for the children coming into the world, because of the progress that we’ve been able to make, those children now have the chance of being able to live HIV-free. And we are learning how to prevent the transmission of HIV/AIDS from mother to child, from generation to generation, or from wife to unaffected husband or vice versa. This is a huge advance.
There were about, I think, 15,000 children being able to receive antiretroviral drugs back in 2004. Today, it’s about 335,000 who are receiving antiretroviral drugs, and today, there’s an incredible new program in place, the sort of – I guess it’s Plan B+. And through Plan B+, we are now able to guarantee that a mother or a pregnant girl, woman, will be able to receive lifetime antiretroviral drugs if they take part in the program and we are able to be able to make sure that child is born, as a result, HIV-free. That program is taking hold and that’s the promise that is coming through because of PEPFAR, so that we can actually defeat this disease. It’s a huge impact.
Now, I know a story about this hospital. I know that there was a young woman named Ababa who was diagnosed HIV-positive. And she was, after her diagnosis, trying to get to a health center, and she was out in the rain and she was exhausted and tired and she didn’t know – she didn’t have the strength to be able to get where she was going. But some health workers saw her. They didn’t just drive past her. They didn’t ignore her. They helped her. They brought her to the health center. And they were able to find housing for her, they were able to give her treatment, and today, she is one of the people who’s out on the cutting edge of helping other people to know that there is a better alternative, there’s help, there are people there who are ready to be able to make a difference.
So on behalf of every American, I can tell you that Americans are very, very proud to be able to help in this. We’re really – this is the best of countries working together and the best of people working across big oceans and big continents, but coming together because we believe in something for each other. And I think all of you are really amazing leaders in your own right because you’re doing the hardest work every single day. You are working here to make a difference in the lives of other people. And the example of what you’re achieving here in Ethiopia is an example that we can take all over the world.
So I hope you feel very proud of it. I want you to know how pleased I am to be able to come here today and learn something about the Gandhi Memorial Hospital and to meet all of you who are working so hard. So thank you very, very much for everything you are doing, and congratulations to all of you. Thank you. (Applause.)
everybody. How are you?
AUDIENCE: Good morning.
SECRETARY KERRY: What an incredible, incredible energy I can feel here. You all are amazing in the work that you are doing. And in the small little spaces that I just walked through, I saw how much is going on every single day. So you are maximizing each moment and you’re maximizing every bit of space, and I congratulate you on that.
As I was walking in here, I asked about some of the other activities, and I learned that 25 babies are born here every day – 7,000 or so babies a year, right? And 30 – about 35 percent of those babies are born by cesarean section, so you can imagine how much work is going on here every single day. It’s really quite extraordinary.
And this part of the hospital, the Gandhi Memorial Hospital, is really special. The sign that is back here – you’re just sort of hiding it – but it talks about Ethiopia and the United States of America investing in a healthy future together. And there’s a lot of power in those words, “investing in a healthy future together.” We are doing it together. You’re doing the day-to-day hard work every single day. We’re trying to provide as much medical expertise and as much insight, knowledge as we can to help. But this is your – this is really your program and it’s about your future.
And I am so impressed by the way in which people in Ethiopia have grabbed onto this, and you are making a difference everywhere. Back in 2004, there were about 2.7 million Ethiopians who were HIV-positive, living with the disease. That has been cut by at least a third, but most importantly, for young children, for the children coming into the world, because of the progress that we’ve been able to make, those children now have the chance of being able to live HIV-free. And we are learning how to prevent the transmission of HIV/AIDS from mother to child, from generation to generation, or from wife to unaffected husband or vice versa. This is a huge advance.
There were about, I think, 15,000 children being able to receive antiretroviral drugs back in 2004. Today, it’s about 335,000 who are receiving antiretroviral drugs, and today, there’s an incredible new program in place, the sort of – I guess it’s Plan B+. And through Plan B+, we are now able to guarantee that a mother or a pregnant girl, woman, will be able to receive lifetime antiretroviral drugs if they take part in the program and we are able to be able to make sure that child is born, as a result, HIV-free. That program is taking hold and that’s the promise that is coming through because of PEPFAR, so that we can actually defeat this disease. It’s a huge impact.
Now, I know a story about this hospital. I know that there was a young woman named Ababa who was diagnosed HIV-positive. And she was, after her diagnosis, trying to get to a health center, and she was out in the rain and she was exhausted and tired and she didn’t know – she didn’t have the strength to be able to get where she was going. But some health workers saw her. They didn’t just drive past her. They didn’t ignore her. They helped her. They brought her to the health center. And they were able to find housing for her, they were able to give her treatment, and today, she is one of the people who’s out on the cutting edge of helping other people to know that there is a better alternative, there’s help, there are people there who are ready to be able to make a difference.
So on behalf of every American, I can tell you that Americans are very, very proud to be able to help in this. We’re really – this is the best of countries working together and the best of people working across big oceans and big continents, but coming together because we believe in something for each other. And I think all of you are really amazing leaders in your own right because you’re doing the hardest work every single day. You are working here to make a difference in the lives of other people. And the example of what you’re achieving here in Ethiopia is an example that we can take all over the world.
So I hope you feel very proud of it. I want you to know how pleased I am to be able to come here today and learn something about the Gandhi Memorial Hospital and to meet all of you who are working so hard. So thank you very, very much for everything you are doing, and congratulations to all of you. Thank you. (Applause.)
Friday, May 2, 2014
HABTOM NERHAY EXTRADITED FROM ERITREA TO U.S. TO FACE CHARGES OF HUMAN SMUGGLING
FROM: U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Monday, April 28, 2014
Alleged Human Smuggler Extradited to Face Charges in Washington, D.C.
Acting Assistant Attorney General David A. O’Neil of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Ronald C. Machen Jr. of the District of Columbia and Acting Special Agent in Charge Katrina W. Berger of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) made the announcement.
Merhay, 47, arrived in the United States on April 25, 2014, and made his initial appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Deborah A. Robinson in the District of Columbia. He was indicted under seal in the District of Columbia in 2012, and the charges were unsealed today. Merhay has been in the custody of Moroccan authorities pending extradition since his arrest in Marrakech, Morocco, in August 2013.
The indictment charges Merhay with one count of conspiracy to bring undocumented migrants to the United States for profit and 15 counts of unlawfully bringing an undocumented migrant to the United States for profit. Court documents allege that Merhay operated with a network of smugglers in Africa, the United Arab Emirates, South and Central America, Mexico and elsewhere to coordinate and implement arrangements, including providing fraudulent identity and travel documents, for undocumented migrants to travel through Latin America and ultimately into the United States without authorization. For up to $15,000, Merhay arranged for individual undocumented migrants to travel from points in Africa to a house or apartment in Dubai, where he provided travel documents, tickets and instructions for meeting other smugglers while on the way to the United States. Merhay coordinated the migrants’ air travel to South America, where they would meet with Merhay’s associates, who would direct or guide them across the various country borders. The undocumented migrants then met with other smugglers associated with Merhay and were further guided north to Mexico and then into the United States, sometimes by crossing the Rio Grande River by raft.
The investigation was conducted under the Extraterritorial Criminal Travel Strike Force (ECT) program, a joint partnership between the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and ICE-HSI. The ECT program focuses on human smuggling networks that may present particular national security or public safety risks or present grave humanitarian concerns. ECT has dedicated investigative, intelligence and prosecutorial resources. ECT coordinates and receives assistance from other U.S. government agencies and foreign law enforcement authorities.
The investigation was conducted by HSI Washington. This case is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Jay Bauer of the Criminal Division’s Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Frederick Yette of the District of Columbia. The extradition was handled by Dan E. Stigall of the Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs.
The Department of Justice and HSI expressed their appreciation for the significant assistance provided by the Moroccan Ministry of Justice.
The charges contained in the indictment are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.
Thursday, May 1, 2014
REMARKS: SECRETARY KERRY, AFRICAN FOREIGN MINISTERS MAKE REMARKS ON SOUTH SUDAN
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Remarks With Ethiopian Foreign Minister Tedros Adhanom, Kenyan Foreign Minister Amina Chawahir Mohamed, And Ugandan Foreign Minister Sam Kutesa After Their Meeting
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
May 1, 2014
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you, folks. We just had a very positive meeting, laid out a strong agenda which we all agreed on which we’ll talk about later in the day when we have a little more time. But I think it’s clear that everybody is in agreement the killing must stop; that humanitarian access needs to be delivered; most importantly, a legitimate force that has an ability to help make peace needs to get on the ground as rapidly as possible. And we agreed on both the terms and timing and manner and size, and we need to go to work to make sure that happens. I think that’s a quick summary.
FOREIGN MINISTER TEDROS: Thank you.
SECRETARY KERRY: Anybody else?
FOREIGN MINISTER TEDROS: Thank you. I think I agree with him. One thing that we have stressed is the deployment – as Secretary Kerry said, the deployment of the force as soon as possible. And I think with that, many of the other interests can be addressed. And I would like to use this opportunity, actually, on behalf of my colleagues and myself to thank Secretary Kerry, who is here today with us. But since the crisis started, he has been in contact regularly, frequent phone calls and good support, and we hope that support will continue, especially from him and the U.S. Government, and we really appreciate the support.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you.
FOREIGN MINISTER TEDROS: But there is an agreement now that we have to really be as aggressive as possible in order to have an impact on the ground in South Sudan, in order to (inaudible). Thank you.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you, Tedros.
FOREIGN MINISTER TEDROS: Merci.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you.
FOREIGN MINISTER TEDROS: Thank you. Thank you.
SECRETARY KERRY: Sam, thank you.
FOREIGN MINISTER TEDROS: Thank you.
SECRETARY KERRY: Anybody else?
FOREIGN MINISTER TEDROS: Thank you. I think I agree with him. One thing that we have stressed is the deployment – as Secretary Kerry said, the deployment of the force as soon as possible. And I think with that, many of the other interests can be addressed. And I would like to use this opportunity, actually, on behalf of my colleagues and myself to thank Secretary Kerry, who is here today with us. But since the crisis started, he has been in contact regularly, frequent phone calls and good support, and we hope that support will continue, especially from him and the U.S. Government, and we really appreciate the support.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you.
FOREIGN MINISTER TEDROS: But there is an agreement now that we have to really be as aggressive as possible in order to have an impact on the ground in South Sudan, in order to (inaudible). Thank you.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you, Tedros.
FOREIGN MINISTER TEDROS: Merci.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you.
FOREIGN MINISTER TEDROS: Thank you. Thank you.
SECRETARY KERRY: Sam, thank you.
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
U.S. EXPRESSES CONCERN REGARDING SOUTH SUDAN CONFLICT
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
U.S. ‘Deeply Concerned’ About South Sudan Situation
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Jan. 1, 2014 – The United States “remains deeply concerned” about the situation in South Sudan and calls for the immediate cessation of hostilities there to stabilize the situation and permit full humanitarian access to civilians who remain in dire need of assistance, according to a statement issued yesterday by National Security Council spokesperson Caitlin Hayden.
The U.S. also welcomes slated upcoming meetings in Ethiopia, where representatives from South Sudan have agreed to conduct mediated discussions, the statement said.
The text of Hayden’s statement reads as follows:
“The United States remains deeply concerned by the fragile situation in South Sudan. We continue to urge President Salva Kiir and former Vice President Riek Machar to take immediate steps to end the current conflict, and we welcome their agreement to send representatives to Addis Ababa for talks mediated by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development in the coming days. We continue to call for an immediate cessation of hostilities to stabilize the situation and permit full humanitarian access to civilian populations, which remain in dire need of assistance. The United States will deny support and work to apply international pressure to any elements that use force to seize power. At the same time, we will hold leaders responsible for the conduct of their forces and work to ensure accountability for atrocities and war crimes.
“We also strongly support the vital work of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). We are working closely with the UN and other partners to help further strengthen the mission and its efforts to protect civilians, and we call on all parties to the current conflict to allow UNMISS to carry out its mandate without obstruction.
“Finally, the United States is deeply concerned by the continuing reports of serious human rights abuses being committed in various regions of South Sudan, allegedly by government forces and militias that have taken up arms against the government. Human rights abuses against the civilian population are unacceptable under any circumstances, and every new human rights abuse makes South Sudan’s path toward reconciliation more difficult. It is vital that all South Sudanese reject these acts of violence -- and that all South Sudanese leaders call upon their forces to protect civilians -- and that there be accountability for those who fail to heed these calls.”
U.S. ‘Deeply Concerned’ About South Sudan Situation
American Forces Press Service
WASHINGTON, Jan. 1, 2014 – The United States “remains deeply concerned” about the situation in South Sudan and calls for the immediate cessation of hostilities there to stabilize the situation and permit full humanitarian access to civilians who remain in dire need of assistance, according to a statement issued yesterday by National Security Council spokesperson Caitlin Hayden.
The U.S. also welcomes slated upcoming meetings in Ethiopia, where representatives from South Sudan have agreed to conduct mediated discussions, the statement said.
The text of Hayden’s statement reads as follows:
“The United States remains deeply concerned by the fragile situation in South Sudan. We continue to urge President Salva Kiir and former Vice President Riek Machar to take immediate steps to end the current conflict, and we welcome their agreement to send representatives to Addis Ababa for talks mediated by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development in the coming days. We continue to call for an immediate cessation of hostilities to stabilize the situation and permit full humanitarian access to civilian populations, which remain in dire need of assistance. The United States will deny support and work to apply international pressure to any elements that use force to seize power. At the same time, we will hold leaders responsible for the conduct of their forces and work to ensure accountability for atrocities and war crimes.
“We also strongly support the vital work of the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). We are working closely with the UN and other partners to help further strengthen the mission and its efforts to protect civilians, and we call on all parties to the current conflict to allow UNMISS to carry out its mandate without obstruction.
“Finally, the United States is deeply concerned by the continuing reports of serious human rights abuses being committed in various regions of South Sudan, allegedly by government forces and militias that have taken up arms against the government. Human rights abuses against the civilian population are unacceptable under any circumstances, and every new human rights abuse makes South Sudan’s path toward reconciliation more difficult. It is vital that all South Sudanese reject these acts of violence -- and that all South Sudanese leaders call upon their forces to protect civilians -- and that there be accountability for those who fail to heed these calls.”
Monday, May 27, 2013
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL'S BRIEFING ON THE AFRICAN UNION SUMMIT
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Background Briefing on the African Union Summit
Remarks
Senior State Department Official
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
May 24, 2013
MODERATOR: And this is just to – as always, but just so you know, on background as a Senior State Department Official.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yeah. All right, so thank you. Drink a lot of water. You’re at 8,500 feet. If you go to the Embassy, it’s 9,000 feet up. The other thing, too, is if you want to protect yourself on health, I wouldn’t eat raw vegetables.
MODERATOR: We had a thorough briefing.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yeah.
MODERATOR: Very thorough. (Laughter.)
QUESTION: Do you speak from experience?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes. I served here for three years (inaudible). And if you have a chance off (inaudible) to see the – and everyone is looking at Lucy (ph). I think (inaudible) is much better, (inaudible) and it’s on display at the museum.
MODERATOR: Oh. All right.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: So anyway, just a couple things that we’re working on. As far as – number one, of course, this is the 50th anniversary. It really kind of highlights what the African Union has done over the last 50 years. And I think if you take the African Union at snapshots from 50 years ago to 20 to 10 to five to now, the developments and the progress has been dramatic. We now have a lot of peacekeeping operations organized by the African Union, et cetera. We have a lot of efforts that we’re doing jointly with the UN as well as the United States.
The second issue, of course, is to highlight Ethiopia as a host for the African Union and everything that it’s doing to support the African Union. And in that context, Ethiopia has done a lot of work for us in the African Union in Abyei, which has been a crisis area, Darfur, the Congo, Libya, Burundi issues, et cetera. So they’ve been a very part and parcel part of the African Union experience.
The third theme, of course, is to highlight what the United States is doing throughout Africa. And that is, of course, good governance, emphasizing holding governments accountable to the people. The other issue is economic development, and also peace and security. And also it’s a prelude to the President’s trip, so that means highlighting women issues as well as youth.
And as kind of background information, 70 – over 70 percent of Africa, 850 million population, is under the age of 30. And in many countries, two-thirds are under the age of 15. So it’s a very young, dynamic continent.
So with that, tomorrow the schedule is very chockablock jam-packed. And so what we’re trying to do as far as getting bilats for Secretary Kerry – the main area, of course, is Sudan. That means trying to meet with the Foreign Minister Karti, who was supposed to have come to the United States, but because the Secretary was on travel, we couldn’t arrange those meetings. So we’re going to do it here at the African Union.
And then the other side is Salva Kiir from Southern Sudan. The reason why is because of the challenges between North and South Sudan on the recent oil problems. The stoppage of the oil is restarted. The second area, too, is just the border issue challenges. And another area, too, is to work with Southern Sudan on their economic development program.
Another area that we’re going to try to arrange a meeting is with Goodluck Jonathan from Nigeria. As you know, before we left Washington we did issue a statement on the offensive that Nigeria had launched into the north against Boko Haram. We, of course, in that statement said we do not deny or oppose a country’s right for security or its effort to secure its border and the sovereign rights to do so, but also our concerns on human rights issues in the north. And that’s something of great concern, and growing concern actually.
The other area, too, that we’re going to try to meet is with the African Union leadership, and that’s Madam Zuma, and also Hailemariam, the Prime Minister of Ethiopia. Ethiopia is the president for the African Union. So it’s really a dual role for Prime Minister Hailemariam, not only as the President of the AU but also as Prime Minister of Ethiopia, and a discussion of bilateral issues.
MODERATOR: And the other two, just to add, of course, he’s going to be meeting with Morsy tomorrow. The focus of that from our end will be urging action on, of course, putting reforms in place, economic reforms in place, so that they can shore the IMF loan agreement. Also they’ll discuss Middle East peace. As you know, Egypt has played a role both with the Arab League in reaffirming API, and they’ve also had a historic role in that, so the Secretary will update the President on his talks in Jerusalem and Ramallah. And he’ll also, of course, stress the importance of respecting human rights. And he’ll also meet with Ban Ki-moon tomorrow to discuss the good work the UN and AU have done working together on a number of issues in Africa, but also in preparation for the Geneva conference. He’ll update him on, of course, the events of the last couple of days and discuss plans moving forward.
With that --
QUESTION: Can I ask you a question about the – is it confirmed that the Secretary will meet with President Goodluck Jonathan from Nigeria, one? And then two, the statement that you issued was really extremely hard-hitting, as I recall. And one of the things that it talked about was deeply concerned by credible allegations that Nigerian security forces are committing gross human rights violations which internally exacerbate (inaudible) – have you seen any improvement since you issued the statement? Or is this partly just to try to drive home that this may be continuing and that you want it to stop?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: We’re looking at our relationship in Nigeria as extremely important. I mean, kind of one background information is if you ask any leaders on West Africa, what is one area of the relationship that’s really critical, and the issue is Nigeria. Why? Because Nigeria has such a – plays such a pivotal role in West Africa, not only in peacekeeping operations but the economy, its population. And the issue comes in as whatever happens in Nigeria affects the regional states. So Nigeria becomes very critical.
We’ve worked with Nigeria on a wide range of issues. And one of them, of course, is stability within its own country, and that is the – towards the north. When Johnnie Carson was the Assistant Secretary, he made the speech – I think it was at – is it CSIS or USIP, one of the two – and he articulated that in the north, if you have – the education rates was around 40 percent as opposed to 60 percent for the south, and you had a greater focus on southern development, and that more needed to be done in northern development. In other words, economic development, trade and investments, education and healthcare, the whole wide range of areas. And so with that in mind, what we want to say is that there has to be greater dialogue, greater interconnections between the two areas. And I think that would bring not only stability to Nigeria but also calmness in the hill region.
QUESTION: Right, but do you still believe that gross human rights violations are being perpetrated? Or do you still – there are continued allegations that gross human rights violations are being perpetrated by government forces in the north.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: When we issued the statement, it was based on information that we had been receiving that there was continued violation of human rights. And we continue to monitor the north. We’re going to continue to monitor the north. More important is we continue to work with the Nigerians, their military and their security to address the situation in the northern area. And as human rights violations continue, and I think the concern is that because of our concern, it does continue.
QUESTION: Because of what?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Because of our concerns in the north that human rights violations still continue, that we will continue to monitor and work with the Nigerian Government to address those concerns.
QUESTION: And so, since your statement came out, is it continuing?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Again, as I say, we’re monitoring the north. We’re monitoring the north.
QUESTION: And this will be raised by the Secretary in the meeting?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes.
QUESTION: So you’re not --
QUESTION: Wait. Can I just – it’s either continuing or it’s not continuing. It’s a very simple question.
MODERATOR: It’s continuing. It’s continuing.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: It’s continuing. And that becomes – it still remains a concern for us, is the peace, stability in the north and human rights issues. That remains --
QUESTION: I know, but what’s continuing? Sorry, this – I don’t want to belabor this, but human rights violations are continuing, correct?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Human rights violations, yes.
QUESTION: This is post-Baga?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Post-Baga.
QUESTION: And can you just – the first part of Arshad’s question: Is this meeting with Jonathan Goodluck confirmed, or are you still working on it?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: We’re still working on the – I think – the problem comes in is all the scheduling is just --
MODERATOR: We’re going to get a schedule from upstairs, just to see where things are. This was something that’s planned, so we’ll get you guys that before the end of it.
QUESTION: Sorry. The Sudanese Foreign Minister, you said he was supposed to come to D.C. but he’s not, and so they’re meeting him here.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Right.
QUESTION: Does that mean that the Sudanese delegation, which, as you know, was a bit contentious, is not coming to Washington? Or is this separate?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: No, no, this is separate. This was an earlier meeting that was being arranged. We had it scheduled, but the Secretary had another trip overseas, and so we had to delay it. And we just couldn’t get the schedule back on track, so we said we’ll meet at the African Union Summit.
QUESTION: So the delegation, then, that is expected to include Mr. Nafie Ali Nafie, to your knowledge, is still on? That was announced.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yeah, yeah. The meeting here is just with Foreign Minister Karti.
QUESTION: I understand.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yeah. And the issue about Nafie Ali Nafie’s visit, I think that would be discussed with Karti. But I think we will have to give you a briefing later about when that trip is and the details.
QUESTION: Right. No, I understand. Nobody really knows when that trip is, but --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: That’s right.
QUESTION: But the United States, at present, still intends to welcome a delegation that includes Mr. Nafie Ali Nafie?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: At this time.
QUESTION: Is that issue and his alleged involvement in human rights, will that be part of the conversation with the Sudanese Foreign Minister tomorrow?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Right now, I think the main topics for the Khartoum meeting is going to be the relationship with the southerners and the issue of the oil which came up. That, I think, raised a lot of concerns on our part about the relationship between north and south.
QUESTION: So could I ask you – obviously I know there’s a lot of leaders here, but are there any plans for any meeting with the leaders of Rwanda or DR Congo to discuss the – and also Mali and the issues that are happening up there?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: The schedule is so tight. We’ve been doing everything from the lunches and dinners that are being arranged, who’s sitting next to the Secretary at the table. I think that’s still being finalized.
MODERATOR: There’s still a lunch and a dinner. There’s possibilities that there can be kind of pull-asides. So we’ll keep you updated as we know of those, but this is what’s on the schedule as of now.
QUESTION: Can you – is there any expectation that Secretary Kerry or are there any plans of Secretary Kerry to meet or have any interaction with President Ahmadinejad?
MODERATOR: No.
QUESTION: And can you rule out that they’ll see him or deal with him?
MODERATOR: Yes. (Laughter.)
QUESTION: They’ll be in the same room at some point?
MODERATOR: There is a – it is a conference, but there are no plans to see him or --
QUESTION: Do you know the proximity or is --
MODERATOR: I don’t. I don’t. I don’t know that level of technical detail of the setup.
QUESTION: They won’t be sitting at the same dinner table then?
QUESTION: He’s short; Kerry’s tall. He won’t see Kerry. (Laughter.)
MODERATOR: I don’t know how the dinner tables are set up, to be honest. True answer. (Laughter.)
QUESTION: You mentioned that there’s a Dlamini Zuma meeting as well. Is that something you’re working on or you know?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Oh, no, that’s – because that’s the chairperson for the African Union.
QUESTION: Right. What are the highlights expected there?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Again, it’s to highlight the great progress made by the African Union. The other issue, too, is our continued support and assistance for the African Union. As you know, the United States is the first non-African country to assign an ambassador to the African Union. And I happened to be one of the acting ambassadors during that period, too, so --
QUESTION: But maybe we – maybe there’s some Mali in there? I mean, is that --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes. It’s going to be – when you talk to the African Union, it’s a wide range of issues. And that goes into what the African Union is doing on the Mali issue, on Sudan, on Somalia and the Great Lakes, the careful coordination with the United Nations. Just for your information, we had a meeting today with – or lunch with the deputy chair to kind of go over a lot of the issues that will be raised tomorrow. But our relationship with the African Union is very wide-ranging. So --
QUESTION: On Mali, I mean, apart from Secretary Kerry’s meetings, what’s the discussion here about the eventual African force? And where does all that stand? How big a part of the conversation is that here, and how do you assess where they are?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: I think if you talk about AFISMA, the African force, it really has to be in a context of our major goal and objective, and that’s elections on July 28th and --
QUESTION: It has to be in the context of what?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: -- of the – I’m sorry, of the elections, the presidential elections in July 28th. The reason why is because really the elections are critical. Without a credible, transparent election – and we’re doing everything we can, from supporting the registration of refugees in other countries to working on the registration of the Tuaregs in Gao and other areas, as well as the other minorities such as the Songhais and the Peuls is that without the elections, really that becomes a basis for a lot of the other crises that we’re trying to address. That is the dialogue between the north and the south.
The second thing is the humanitarian relief efforts, and of course the addressing of the issue of extremism in the north, and that’s posed by Ansar al-Dine and AQIM.
QUESTION: So --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: And so in that context, then you look at the African Forces. And the issue is that if you look at the African force, you have, I mean, over a dozen countries, three different languages that are being spoken, the different – the capacity and capability of the African forces that are different levels, not all the forces can operate in the north. And then I think it’s still a work in progress to see how you can integrate the interoperability of these African forces.
And so it’s going to take time. And in that issue is that we are very thankful and appreciative of the French forces playing such a significant role in northern Mali. The other issue, too, is trying to get the right force structure, massive transitions from AFISMA to MINUSMA – UN operations. And so those are a lot of things that have to be addressed. But the right questions are being asked by ECOWAS, the African Union, and the United Nations. And as you know, the – a new UN Special Envoy is being assigned from Cote d’Ivoire, the Dutch person, Albert – was it Gerard Koenders?
QUESTION: You mentioned AQIM in the context of Mali. Is that going – is al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb going to be perhaps one of the topics across the board for the Union, or is it going to be contained country by country?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: It’s – One background note is you have, on the Mali crisis, it is one of the – an African issue which galvanized and attracted all these African countries in ECOWAS. In other words, from Cote d’Ivoire to non-ECOWAS countries like Chad, to Algiers, to all these countries that are affected by not only extremism, but also by the flow of different ethnic groups and tribes such as the Tuaregs, which are really in multiple countries. And then the other issue, too, is the flows of refugees. You’re talking 400,000 – over 400,000 people in North Mali who are displaced, either internally or are refugees. So that affects the entire region. And so because of that, it’s really attracted the attention of the entire African area in that region.
QUESTION: So would it be fair to say it’s a point on the agenda that --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: That’s right. AQIM, has to be looked at in a context that there’s four interconnected, simultaneous ongoing crises that are taking place. And AQIM or extremism is only one of those four crises. And so it’s not the – like the main one, but it’s in a context of the four.
QUESTION: And the –
QUESTION: There are just four?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: The four crises are, again, reestablishing democratic governance, because that’s going to be key to a lot of resolving the other crises. The other one is a dialogue between Bamako and the minority tribes in the north. That’s the Peul, the Songhais, the Arabs and the Tuaregs. The third is the humanitarian crisis. Not only do you have 400,000 displaced in northern Mali, but if you look at the trans-Sahel, because of the drought and weather and climactic problems, you have – at one point it was 13 million people food insecure. It’s been eased up because of our USAID efforts. And then the fourth issue, of course, is the issue of extremism.
QUESITON: Wait. How many refugees did you say? How many are without food?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Of the 400,000 displaced, what is it? It’s – I thought was about even, but a little less than 200,000 – 177,000 in refugee camps in the areas and the rest are internally displaced in Mali.
QUESTION: And then – great. And then – well, not great, but thank you for clarifying that. And then – (laughter) – you said that at one point there were 13 million --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: That’s across --
QUESTION: -- food insecure.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: -- across the Sahel.
QUESTION: And you said USAID efforts had helped bring that down. How many do you think now are food insecure?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: I would defer to AID, but it’s – we’re addressing the needs. It’s not --
QUESTION: It’s still millions, though?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Oh yes, of course.
QUESTION: One question on that food insecurity talk. I mean, you mention these four, but how much do they interact? I mean, this food insecurity, the jobs, the problems like that, how much does that interact with other problems, including extremism?
SENIOR STATEDEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: I mean, if you have already a problem with drought, and then on top of it you start adding the insecurity or the instability in northern Mali contributing or exacerbating those people who are at risk of food insecurity, that danger remains there.
The other issue, too, is if you have one country or one area that’s insecure that also compounds and exacerbates the problems that we’re trying to address and makes it more complex.
QUESTION: Can you go back to Mali? You were starting to say something about without credible elections there’s going to be problems basically. Can you say what that’s going to mean from the U.S. and what you want the African countries to bring in terms of consequences, in terms of pressure to make sure that you get something that resembles a democracy story?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: When you – I think if you look at December it was – I think the United States was really pushing for credible, open elections, and there’s a couple of reasons for that. Number one is in a coup situation, we have to impose 7008 sanctions. In order to raise those sanctions, you have to have elections – national elections and the election of a government. So that’s one.
The second issue, too, is that looking at how to resolve the problems in Mali is that if you don’t have a government that is – that people can talk to, discuss, or has the authority to negotiate or to do the dialogue with the North, then that becomes a hindrance to your efforts to dialogue and the address a lot of those things in the North. So things on those two issues – I think the change event from January to now that elections become really the priority.
QUESTION: But are you going to do? What are you – if – what are you and the other African – the African countries going to say to Mali to make sure this happens? It may be in their best interest, but how are you going to tell them, "Look, if you don’t do this, you’re not going to get as much military support. You’re not going to get as much political support. You’re not going to get help at all with dealing with the Tuaregs going across borders." What specifically are you going to tell them so that they actually do what’s good for them?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: I think – look at the Brussels meeting that took place on was it May 15th? There the Tuareg and President Hollande of France articulated that elections were important in the resolution of the crisis in Mali. And really that kind of underscores that this becomes one of the major focuses for resolving the Mali crisis.
Now what are we doing? We have all the countries that – African countries that are providing troops for AFISMA, which will become MINUSMA. Those countries have bought in that elections are important. The other issues, too, is that on the donor conference that part of the electoral process – I mean, part of the donation deals with governments and democracy, which is elections. For the United States, we’re putting in --
QUESTION: Part of the donation – I’m sorry, what?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Part of the donation is for --
QUESTION: Donation of what? I couldn’t hear.
QUESTION: Money.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Donations of money in Brussels.
QUESTION: Right. Brussels. Okay.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: So in other words, the United States is putting in a little less than 7 million for the elections, but then other countries, too, will be putting money into it, and part of that money collected is also going to go for elections and electoral processes.
QUESTION: Can I ask one about – back on Nigeria? In just simple terms that an ordinary person can understand, what is Secretary Kerry going to say to the President about the human rights abuses that you believe continue to (inaudible)?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: As you know, the Secretary met with Nigerian Foreign Minister Ashiru in Washington, and remember, Nigeria is a very complex – relationship issues that are very important to Nigeria as well as to us, and it’s not – it’s a whole wide range of issues that we’re discussing with Nigeria from economies to economic development to securities to what Nigeria’s contributing to Malian forces, AFISMA, and also to peacekeeping operations. Nigeria plays a critical role well beyond its own borders in all parts of Africa, just because of its not only peacekeeping operations but because it plays a role in peacekeeping and security around Africa, just as South Africa does. It’s an important continent-wide country. And so our discussions with Nigeria encompasses a wide range of issues, and human rights in the north is just one of those issues.
MODERATOR: Is it fair to say that he’ll reaffirm our concerns about human rights --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Right. That’s right.
MODERATOR: -- abuses in the north?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes. And as we did with –
MODERATOR: That we’ve expressed before and to the Foreign Minister last meeting?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: And as stated in our public statement.
QUESTION: Can I ask –
MODERATOR: One thing just – oh, sorry. I just wanted to make sure on the schedule that you guys know, so I didn’t forget, these are the confirmed meetings, and this is still being worked through. And just remember that the African leaders who are participating have sessions in the morning and afternoon, so some of this is pulling them out of things, so it’s possible there could be more added.
QUESTION: But this is for sure?
MODERATOR: This is for sure.
QUESTION: Good.
PARTICIPANT: And --
MODERATOR: Oh, go ahead.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: I’m sorry. And then going to back to Nigeria, we have a Bi-National Commission, so we have strategic talks with South Africa, Angola, and Nigeria. And Nigeria Bi-National Commission discussions have really been very wide-ranging, progressive in the areas that we’re discussing. So when we talk about security in Nigeria, it’s just not military or intel; it entails the entire security (inaudible), finances, economy, et cetera. Because those are also security issues.
QUESTION: I guess what I was asking for it in simple terms. I was hoping you would say something just like he’s going to urge the Nigerian Government to ensure that its military ceases such abuses.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes.
QUESTION: Thank you. (Laughter.)
MODERATOR: Correct.
QUESTION: We have a deal.
MODERATOR: Get up here, Arshad.
QUESTION: What are the meetings?
MODERATOR: Ethiopian Foreign Minister, Sudanese Foreign Minister --
QUESTION: Foreign Minister or Prime Minister?
MODERATOR: Sorry. Prime Minister. Sorry, long day.
QUESTION: Which one, Ethiopian or --
MODERATOR: Ethiopian Prime Minister.
QUESTION: Right.
MODERATOR: That’s one we’re doing an avail, after that one, joint avail. Sudanese Foreign Minister, AU Chairperson, Ban Ki-moon, South Sudan President, and Egyptian President. Those are the confirmed. There are others we’re still working on.
QUESTION: (Inaudible) Goodluck Jonathan confirmed or no?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: No. Not yet.
MODERATOR: Not yet.
QUESTION: Can I just ask – I’m not an expert on Sudan and South Sudan issues. You mentioned the oil. What is going to be the content of this discussion tomorrow on South Sudan - Sudan oil? What are you going to try to accomplish?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: I think the oil issue I think has strained trust between the North and the South and really it’s restoration of trust. That’s really the basic – one basic thing is to restore trust between North and South to work together to resolve common, shared problems, which is the border issue, it’s the wealth issue, it’s the oil issue.
MODERATOR: Do you want him to explain what the oil issue is?
QUESTION: Yes.
QUESTION: Yeah.
QUESTION: Well, where it stands. I mean, you guys –
MODERATOR: -- talk about it.
QUESTION: -- talk about it, and you issued a statement some weeks or months ago cheering the agreement. And what’s happened since?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Well, right now, as you know, the oil pipes are operating now. They’re flowing again. So you don’t have the prospect of the pipes, where it’s coagulating and the oil breaking the pipes or leaking into the (inaudible). So no it’s flowing again. But again, it’s – I think what the North and South have to do is discuss what gave rise to the North putting restrictions on the oil, what is it that – further discussions need to take place between the North and the South. And as you know, ongoing discussions take place between the North and the South here in Addis Ababa. You have the African Union High-Level discussions. And I think when we get back to Washington is – and I defer you to our Special Envoy’s Office on Sudan to give you really a good in-depth discussion and briefing on Sudan.
QUESTION: Who’s the special envoy now?
QUESTION: It was Princeton Lyman.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Special Envoy’s Office.
QUESTION: Oh, okay.
QUESTION: For Michael’s sake and certainly also for mine, because I haven’t written about this in a long, long, long time, can you explain in real simple terms? The issue, as I understand, is the South has the oil, the North has not been – has at times not been willing to allow it to be transported, and it’s all because of the issues over how the revenue gets shared?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Right. Yes. That’s the bottom line is revenue sharing.
QUESTION: Did they solve the revenue issue or did they just get --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: I think it’s – the issue is – I mean, in simple terms, it is revenue. But in larger terms, its – it goes into the relationship between the North and the South, how they’re going to address the whole wide range of issues. And unfortunately, how they express those issues is expressed, let’s say, in this instance, is the blockage of the oil by the North. So now what we’re trying to do is they build trust and find good (inaudible) for them to resolve their problems on the whole wide range of issues from the borders to wealth-sharing to citizenship to nationality, et cetera.
QUESTION: And how – really stupid question, but two questions. One, how long were the shipments, or more precisely I guess the flow, through the pipelines cut off? And secondly, how did the North do that? Did they have like a giant spigot, or did they just refuse to allow it to be transported along?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yeah. We have to get back to you on how long. (inaudible)
QUESTION: Days or weeks?
QUESTION: It was January of ’12 to --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Off and on. But I mean, this most recent one, because we had an agreement for the oil, oils to flow – I’d have to get back to you on the exact dates.
QUESTION: Right. But it included this year though?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes.
QUESTION: Okay. And then how do they stop it? Just by refusing it to be shipped?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: That’s right. Because the oil – as you know, the pipes go through up to the Port of Sudan and other, which is Khartoum controlled.
QUESTION: Yeah. Okay. And so in other words, by refusing to let it ship on things get filled up and then you can’t --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Right.
QUESTION: Thank you.
QUESTION: [Moderator], can I just ask, I know you’re going to send out a schedule at some point, but just what time you think you’ll have that joint press avail?
QUESTION: 8:40 a.m., right?
MODERATOR: Yeah. It’s 8:40 a.m.
QUESTION: 8:40 a.m.
QUESTION: They sent it already.
MODERATOR: Yeah, we sent you where --
QUESTION: Well, maybe I’m not getting emails.
MODERATOR: Well, you’re not getting emails here.
QUESTION: Okay.
MODERATOR: We sent you a tentative, which may have had all of the meetings I went through. It may have had others that are still being worked through.
QUESTION: Okay. 8:40 a.m. Okay. That’s great. Thank you. I just wanted to --
QUESTION: I feel a little silly about the Nigeria thing, but it’s not even for sure that you’ll meet – that he will meet with President Jonathan Goodluck --
MODERATOR: In a bilat.
QUESTION: In a bilat. Right. But he should raise those issues in a bilat. So you’re basically seeking a meeting at which you would raise these issues.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes.
QUESTION: Great.
QUESTION: Does he want to meet the Secretary?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Oh, yes. I mean, we – this is a – yeah, we do.
QUESTION: So you expect this to happen, it’s just --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: We hope it happens.
QUESTION: Yeah.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Again, you know our relationship is so robust and as complex that we’re going to meet whatever happens. We will meet.
QUESTION: Yeah. Here?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yeah. And it’s not just Goodluck Jonathan. It’s the previous presidents as well also play a tremendous role – Obasanjo and others – in the process.
MODERATOR: Anything else?
QUESTION: Thank you. Thank you very much.
QUESTION: Thank you.
MODERATOR: Thank you very much.
Background Briefing on the African Union Summit
Remarks
Senior State Department Official
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
May 24, 2013
MODERATOR: And this is just to – as always, but just so you know, on background as a Senior State Department Official.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yeah. All right, so thank you. Drink a lot of water. You’re at 8,500 feet. If you go to the Embassy, it’s 9,000 feet up. The other thing, too, is if you want to protect yourself on health, I wouldn’t eat raw vegetables.
MODERATOR: We had a thorough briefing.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yeah.
MODERATOR: Very thorough. (Laughter.)
QUESTION: Do you speak from experience?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes. I served here for three years (inaudible). And if you have a chance off (inaudible) to see the – and everyone is looking at Lucy (ph). I think (inaudible) is much better, (inaudible) and it’s on display at the museum.
MODERATOR: Oh. All right.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: So anyway, just a couple things that we’re working on. As far as – number one, of course, this is the 50th anniversary. It really kind of highlights what the African Union has done over the last 50 years. And I think if you take the African Union at snapshots from 50 years ago to 20 to 10 to five to now, the developments and the progress has been dramatic. We now have a lot of peacekeeping operations organized by the African Union, et cetera. We have a lot of efforts that we’re doing jointly with the UN as well as the United States.
The second issue, of course, is to highlight Ethiopia as a host for the African Union and everything that it’s doing to support the African Union. And in that context, Ethiopia has done a lot of work for us in the African Union in Abyei, which has been a crisis area, Darfur, the Congo, Libya, Burundi issues, et cetera. So they’ve been a very part and parcel part of the African Union experience.
The third theme, of course, is to highlight what the United States is doing throughout Africa. And that is, of course, good governance, emphasizing holding governments accountable to the people. The other issue is economic development, and also peace and security. And also it’s a prelude to the President’s trip, so that means highlighting women issues as well as youth.
And as kind of background information, 70 – over 70 percent of Africa, 850 million population, is under the age of 30. And in many countries, two-thirds are under the age of 15. So it’s a very young, dynamic continent.
So with that, tomorrow the schedule is very chockablock jam-packed. And so what we’re trying to do as far as getting bilats for Secretary Kerry – the main area, of course, is Sudan. That means trying to meet with the Foreign Minister Karti, who was supposed to have come to the United States, but because the Secretary was on travel, we couldn’t arrange those meetings. So we’re going to do it here at the African Union.
And then the other side is Salva Kiir from Southern Sudan. The reason why is because of the challenges between North and South Sudan on the recent oil problems. The stoppage of the oil is restarted. The second area, too, is just the border issue challenges. And another area, too, is to work with Southern Sudan on their economic development program.
Another area that we’re going to try to arrange a meeting is with Goodluck Jonathan from Nigeria. As you know, before we left Washington we did issue a statement on the offensive that Nigeria had launched into the north against Boko Haram. We, of course, in that statement said we do not deny or oppose a country’s right for security or its effort to secure its border and the sovereign rights to do so, but also our concerns on human rights issues in the north. And that’s something of great concern, and growing concern actually.
The other area, too, that we’re going to try to meet is with the African Union leadership, and that’s Madam Zuma, and also Hailemariam, the Prime Minister of Ethiopia. Ethiopia is the president for the African Union. So it’s really a dual role for Prime Minister Hailemariam, not only as the President of the AU but also as Prime Minister of Ethiopia, and a discussion of bilateral issues.
MODERATOR: And the other two, just to add, of course, he’s going to be meeting with Morsy tomorrow. The focus of that from our end will be urging action on, of course, putting reforms in place, economic reforms in place, so that they can shore the IMF loan agreement. Also they’ll discuss Middle East peace. As you know, Egypt has played a role both with the Arab League in reaffirming API, and they’ve also had a historic role in that, so the Secretary will update the President on his talks in Jerusalem and Ramallah. And he’ll also, of course, stress the importance of respecting human rights. And he’ll also meet with Ban Ki-moon tomorrow to discuss the good work the UN and AU have done working together on a number of issues in Africa, but also in preparation for the Geneva conference. He’ll update him on, of course, the events of the last couple of days and discuss plans moving forward.
With that --
QUESTION: Can I ask you a question about the – is it confirmed that the Secretary will meet with President Goodluck Jonathan from Nigeria, one? And then two, the statement that you issued was really extremely hard-hitting, as I recall. And one of the things that it talked about was deeply concerned by credible allegations that Nigerian security forces are committing gross human rights violations which internally exacerbate (inaudible) – have you seen any improvement since you issued the statement? Or is this partly just to try to drive home that this may be continuing and that you want it to stop?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: We’re looking at our relationship in Nigeria as extremely important. I mean, kind of one background information is if you ask any leaders on West Africa, what is one area of the relationship that’s really critical, and the issue is Nigeria. Why? Because Nigeria has such a – plays such a pivotal role in West Africa, not only in peacekeeping operations but the economy, its population. And the issue comes in as whatever happens in Nigeria affects the regional states. So Nigeria becomes very critical.
We’ve worked with Nigeria on a wide range of issues. And one of them, of course, is stability within its own country, and that is the – towards the north. When Johnnie Carson was the Assistant Secretary, he made the speech – I think it was at – is it CSIS or USIP, one of the two – and he articulated that in the north, if you have – the education rates was around 40 percent as opposed to 60 percent for the south, and you had a greater focus on southern development, and that more needed to be done in northern development. In other words, economic development, trade and investments, education and healthcare, the whole wide range of areas. And so with that in mind, what we want to say is that there has to be greater dialogue, greater interconnections between the two areas. And I think that would bring not only stability to Nigeria but also calmness in the hill region.
QUESTION: Right, but do you still believe that gross human rights violations are being perpetrated? Or do you still – there are continued allegations that gross human rights violations are being perpetrated by government forces in the north.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: When we issued the statement, it was based on information that we had been receiving that there was continued violation of human rights. And we continue to monitor the north. We’re going to continue to monitor the north. More important is we continue to work with the Nigerians, their military and their security to address the situation in the northern area. And as human rights violations continue, and I think the concern is that because of our concern, it does continue.
QUESTION: Because of what?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Because of our concerns in the north that human rights violations still continue, that we will continue to monitor and work with the Nigerian Government to address those concerns.
QUESTION: And so, since your statement came out, is it continuing?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Again, as I say, we’re monitoring the north. We’re monitoring the north.
QUESTION: And this will be raised by the Secretary in the meeting?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes.
QUESTION: So you’re not --
QUESTION: Wait. Can I just – it’s either continuing or it’s not continuing. It’s a very simple question.
MODERATOR: It’s continuing. It’s continuing.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: It’s continuing. And that becomes – it still remains a concern for us, is the peace, stability in the north and human rights issues. That remains --
QUESTION: I know, but what’s continuing? Sorry, this – I don’t want to belabor this, but human rights violations are continuing, correct?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Human rights violations, yes.
QUESTION: This is post-Baga?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Post-Baga.
QUESTION: And can you just – the first part of Arshad’s question: Is this meeting with Jonathan Goodluck confirmed, or are you still working on it?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: We’re still working on the – I think – the problem comes in is all the scheduling is just --
MODERATOR: We’re going to get a schedule from upstairs, just to see where things are. This was something that’s planned, so we’ll get you guys that before the end of it.
QUESTION: Sorry. The Sudanese Foreign Minister, you said he was supposed to come to D.C. but he’s not, and so they’re meeting him here.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Right.
QUESTION: Does that mean that the Sudanese delegation, which, as you know, was a bit contentious, is not coming to Washington? Or is this separate?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: No, no, this is separate. This was an earlier meeting that was being arranged. We had it scheduled, but the Secretary had another trip overseas, and so we had to delay it. And we just couldn’t get the schedule back on track, so we said we’ll meet at the African Union Summit.
QUESTION: So the delegation, then, that is expected to include Mr. Nafie Ali Nafie, to your knowledge, is still on? That was announced.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yeah, yeah. The meeting here is just with Foreign Minister Karti.
QUESTION: I understand.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yeah. And the issue about Nafie Ali Nafie’s visit, I think that would be discussed with Karti. But I think we will have to give you a briefing later about when that trip is and the details.
QUESTION: Right. No, I understand. Nobody really knows when that trip is, but --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: That’s right.
QUESTION: But the United States, at present, still intends to welcome a delegation that includes Mr. Nafie Ali Nafie?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: At this time.
QUESTION: Is that issue and his alleged involvement in human rights, will that be part of the conversation with the Sudanese Foreign Minister tomorrow?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Right now, I think the main topics for the Khartoum meeting is going to be the relationship with the southerners and the issue of the oil which came up. That, I think, raised a lot of concerns on our part about the relationship between north and south.
QUESTION: So could I ask you – obviously I know there’s a lot of leaders here, but are there any plans for any meeting with the leaders of Rwanda or DR Congo to discuss the – and also Mali and the issues that are happening up there?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: The schedule is so tight. We’ve been doing everything from the lunches and dinners that are being arranged, who’s sitting next to the Secretary at the table. I think that’s still being finalized.
MODERATOR: There’s still a lunch and a dinner. There’s possibilities that there can be kind of pull-asides. So we’ll keep you updated as we know of those, but this is what’s on the schedule as of now.
QUESTION: Can you – is there any expectation that Secretary Kerry or are there any plans of Secretary Kerry to meet or have any interaction with President Ahmadinejad?
MODERATOR: No.
QUESTION: And can you rule out that they’ll see him or deal with him?
MODERATOR: Yes. (Laughter.)
QUESTION: They’ll be in the same room at some point?
MODERATOR: There is a – it is a conference, but there are no plans to see him or --
QUESTION: Do you know the proximity or is --
MODERATOR: I don’t. I don’t. I don’t know that level of technical detail of the setup.
QUESTION: They won’t be sitting at the same dinner table then?
QUESTION: He’s short; Kerry’s tall. He won’t see Kerry. (Laughter.)
MODERATOR: I don’t know how the dinner tables are set up, to be honest. True answer. (Laughter.)
QUESTION: You mentioned that there’s a Dlamini Zuma meeting as well. Is that something you’re working on or you know?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Oh, no, that’s – because that’s the chairperson for the African Union.
QUESTION: Right. What are the highlights expected there?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Again, it’s to highlight the great progress made by the African Union. The other issue, too, is our continued support and assistance for the African Union. As you know, the United States is the first non-African country to assign an ambassador to the African Union. And I happened to be one of the acting ambassadors during that period, too, so --
QUESTION: But maybe we – maybe there’s some Mali in there? I mean, is that --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes. It’s going to be – when you talk to the African Union, it’s a wide range of issues. And that goes into what the African Union is doing on the Mali issue, on Sudan, on Somalia and the Great Lakes, the careful coordination with the United Nations. Just for your information, we had a meeting today with – or lunch with the deputy chair to kind of go over a lot of the issues that will be raised tomorrow. But our relationship with the African Union is very wide-ranging. So --
QUESTION: On Mali, I mean, apart from Secretary Kerry’s meetings, what’s the discussion here about the eventual African force? And where does all that stand? How big a part of the conversation is that here, and how do you assess where they are?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: I think if you talk about AFISMA, the African force, it really has to be in a context of our major goal and objective, and that’s elections on July 28th and --
QUESTION: It has to be in the context of what?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: -- of the – I’m sorry, of the elections, the presidential elections in July 28th. The reason why is because really the elections are critical. Without a credible, transparent election – and we’re doing everything we can, from supporting the registration of refugees in other countries to working on the registration of the Tuaregs in Gao and other areas, as well as the other minorities such as the Songhais and the Peuls is that without the elections, really that becomes a basis for a lot of the other crises that we’re trying to address. That is the dialogue between the north and the south.
The second thing is the humanitarian relief efforts, and of course the addressing of the issue of extremism in the north, and that’s posed by Ansar al-Dine and AQIM.
QUESTION: So --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: And so in that context, then you look at the African Forces. And the issue is that if you look at the African force, you have, I mean, over a dozen countries, three different languages that are being spoken, the different – the capacity and capability of the African forces that are different levels, not all the forces can operate in the north. And then I think it’s still a work in progress to see how you can integrate the interoperability of these African forces.
And so it’s going to take time. And in that issue is that we are very thankful and appreciative of the French forces playing such a significant role in northern Mali. The other issue, too, is trying to get the right force structure, massive transitions from AFISMA to MINUSMA – UN operations. And so those are a lot of things that have to be addressed. But the right questions are being asked by ECOWAS, the African Union, and the United Nations. And as you know, the – a new UN Special Envoy is being assigned from Cote d’Ivoire, the Dutch person, Albert – was it Gerard Koenders?
QUESTION: You mentioned AQIM in the context of Mali. Is that going – is al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb going to be perhaps one of the topics across the board for the Union, or is it going to be contained country by country?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: It’s – One background note is you have, on the Mali crisis, it is one of the – an African issue which galvanized and attracted all these African countries in ECOWAS. In other words, from Cote d’Ivoire to non-ECOWAS countries like Chad, to Algiers, to all these countries that are affected by not only extremism, but also by the flow of different ethnic groups and tribes such as the Tuaregs, which are really in multiple countries. And then the other issue, too, is the flows of refugees. You’re talking 400,000 – over 400,000 people in North Mali who are displaced, either internally or are refugees. So that affects the entire region. And so because of that, it’s really attracted the attention of the entire African area in that region.
QUESTION: So would it be fair to say it’s a point on the agenda that --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: That’s right. AQIM, has to be looked at in a context that there’s four interconnected, simultaneous ongoing crises that are taking place. And AQIM or extremism is only one of those four crises. And so it’s not the – like the main one, but it’s in a context of the four.
QUESTION: And the –
QUESTION: There are just four?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: The four crises are, again, reestablishing democratic governance, because that’s going to be key to a lot of resolving the other crises. The other one is a dialogue between Bamako and the minority tribes in the north. That’s the Peul, the Songhais, the Arabs and the Tuaregs. The third is the humanitarian crisis. Not only do you have 400,000 displaced in northern Mali, but if you look at the trans-Sahel, because of the drought and weather and climactic problems, you have – at one point it was 13 million people food insecure. It’s been eased up because of our USAID efforts. And then the fourth issue, of course, is the issue of extremism.
QUESITON: Wait. How many refugees did you say? How many are without food?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Of the 400,000 displaced, what is it? It’s – I thought was about even, but a little less than 200,000 – 177,000 in refugee camps in the areas and the rest are internally displaced in Mali.
QUESTION: And then – great. And then – well, not great, but thank you for clarifying that. And then – (laughter) – you said that at one point there were 13 million --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: That’s across --
QUESTION: -- food insecure.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: -- across the Sahel.
QUESTION: And you said USAID efforts had helped bring that down. How many do you think now are food insecure?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: I would defer to AID, but it’s – we’re addressing the needs. It’s not --
QUESTION: It’s still millions, though?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Oh yes, of course.
QUESTION: One question on that food insecurity talk. I mean, you mention these four, but how much do they interact? I mean, this food insecurity, the jobs, the problems like that, how much does that interact with other problems, including extremism?
SENIOR STATEDEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: I mean, if you have already a problem with drought, and then on top of it you start adding the insecurity or the instability in northern Mali contributing or exacerbating those people who are at risk of food insecurity, that danger remains there.
The other issue, too, is if you have one country or one area that’s insecure that also compounds and exacerbates the problems that we’re trying to address and makes it more complex.
QUESTION: Can you go back to Mali? You were starting to say something about without credible elections there’s going to be problems basically. Can you say what that’s going to mean from the U.S. and what you want the African countries to bring in terms of consequences, in terms of pressure to make sure that you get something that resembles a democracy story?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: When you – I think if you look at December it was – I think the United States was really pushing for credible, open elections, and there’s a couple of reasons for that. Number one is in a coup situation, we have to impose 7008 sanctions. In order to raise those sanctions, you have to have elections – national elections and the election of a government. So that’s one.
The second issue, too, is that looking at how to resolve the problems in Mali is that if you don’t have a government that is – that people can talk to, discuss, or has the authority to negotiate or to do the dialogue with the North, then that becomes a hindrance to your efforts to dialogue and the address a lot of those things in the North. So things on those two issues – I think the change event from January to now that elections become really the priority.
QUESTION: But are you going to do? What are you – if – what are you and the other African – the African countries going to say to Mali to make sure this happens? It may be in their best interest, but how are you going to tell them, "Look, if you don’t do this, you’re not going to get as much military support. You’re not going to get as much political support. You’re not going to get help at all with dealing with the Tuaregs going across borders." What specifically are you going to tell them so that they actually do what’s good for them?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: I think – look at the Brussels meeting that took place on was it May 15th? There the Tuareg and President Hollande of France articulated that elections were important in the resolution of the crisis in Mali. And really that kind of underscores that this becomes one of the major focuses for resolving the Mali crisis.
Now what are we doing? We have all the countries that – African countries that are providing troops for AFISMA, which will become MINUSMA. Those countries have bought in that elections are important. The other issues, too, is that on the donor conference that part of the electoral process – I mean, part of the donation deals with governments and democracy, which is elections. For the United States, we’re putting in --
QUESTION: Part of the donation – I’m sorry, what?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Part of the donation is for --
QUESTION: Donation of what? I couldn’t hear.
QUESTION: Money.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Donations of money in Brussels.
QUESTION: Right. Brussels. Okay.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: So in other words, the United States is putting in a little less than 7 million for the elections, but then other countries, too, will be putting money into it, and part of that money collected is also going to go for elections and electoral processes.
QUESTION: Can I ask one about – back on Nigeria? In just simple terms that an ordinary person can understand, what is Secretary Kerry going to say to the President about the human rights abuses that you believe continue to (inaudible)?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: As you know, the Secretary met with Nigerian Foreign Minister Ashiru in Washington, and remember, Nigeria is a very complex – relationship issues that are very important to Nigeria as well as to us, and it’s not – it’s a whole wide range of issues that we’re discussing with Nigeria from economies to economic development to securities to what Nigeria’s contributing to Malian forces, AFISMA, and also to peacekeeping operations. Nigeria plays a critical role well beyond its own borders in all parts of Africa, just because of its not only peacekeeping operations but because it plays a role in peacekeeping and security around Africa, just as South Africa does. It’s an important continent-wide country. And so our discussions with Nigeria encompasses a wide range of issues, and human rights in the north is just one of those issues.
MODERATOR: Is it fair to say that he’ll reaffirm our concerns about human rights --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Right. That’s right.
MODERATOR: -- abuses in the north?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes. And as we did with –
MODERATOR: That we’ve expressed before and to the Foreign Minister last meeting?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: And as stated in our public statement.
QUESTION: Can I ask –
MODERATOR: One thing just – oh, sorry. I just wanted to make sure on the schedule that you guys know, so I didn’t forget, these are the confirmed meetings, and this is still being worked through. And just remember that the African leaders who are participating have sessions in the morning and afternoon, so some of this is pulling them out of things, so it’s possible there could be more added.
QUESTION: But this is for sure?
MODERATOR: This is for sure.
QUESTION: Good.
PARTICIPANT: And --
MODERATOR: Oh, go ahead.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: I’m sorry. And then going to back to Nigeria, we have a Bi-National Commission, so we have strategic talks with South Africa, Angola, and Nigeria. And Nigeria Bi-National Commission discussions have really been very wide-ranging, progressive in the areas that we’re discussing. So when we talk about security in Nigeria, it’s just not military or intel; it entails the entire security (inaudible), finances, economy, et cetera. Because those are also security issues.
QUESTION: I guess what I was asking for it in simple terms. I was hoping you would say something just like he’s going to urge the Nigerian Government to ensure that its military ceases such abuses.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes.
QUESTION: Thank you. (Laughter.)
MODERATOR: Correct.
QUESTION: We have a deal.
MODERATOR: Get up here, Arshad.
QUESTION: What are the meetings?
MODERATOR: Ethiopian Foreign Minister, Sudanese Foreign Minister --
QUESTION: Foreign Minister or Prime Minister?
MODERATOR: Sorry. Prime Minister. Sorry, long day.
QUESTION: Which one, Ethiopian or --
MODERATOR: Ethiopian Prime Minister.
QUESTION: Right.
MODERATOR: That’s one we’re doing an avail, after that one, joint avail. Sudanese Foreign Minister, AU Chairperson, Ban Ki-moon, South Sudan President, and Egyptian President. Those are the confirmed. There are others we’re still working on.
QUESTION: (Inaudible) Goodluck Jonathan confirmed or no?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: No. Not yet.
MODERATOR: Not yet.
QUESTION: Can I just ask – I’m not an expert on Sudan and South Sudan issues. You mentioned the oil. What is going to be the content of this discussion tomorrow on South Sudan - Sudan oil? What are you going to try to accomplish?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: I think the oil issue I think has strained trust between the North and the South and really it’s restoration of trust. That’s really the basic – one basic thing is to restore trust between North and South to work together to resolve common, shared problems, which is the border issue, it’s the wealth issue, it’s the oil issue.
MODERATOR: Do you want him to explain what the oil issue is?
QUESTION: Yes.
QUESTION: Yeah.
QUESTION: Well, where it stands. I mean, you guys –
MODERATOR: -- talk about it.
QUESTION: -- talk about it, and you issued a statement some weeks or months ago cheering the agreement. And what’s happened since?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Well, right now, as you know, the oil pipes are operating now. They’re flowing again. So you don’t have the prospect of the pipes, where it’s coagulating and the oil breaking the pipes or leaking into the (inaudible). So no it’s flowing again. But again, it’s – I think what the North and South have to do is discuss what gave rise to the North putting restrictions on the oil, what is it that – further discussions need to take place between the North and the South. And as you know, ongoing discussions take place between the North and the South here in Addis Ababa. You have the African Union High-Level discussions. And I think when we get back to Washington is – and I defer you to our Special Envoy’s Office on Sudan to give you really a good in-depth discussion and briefing on Sudan.
QUESTION: Who’s the special envoy now?
QUESTION: It was Princeton Lyman.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Special Envoy’s Office.
QUESTION: Oh, okay.
QUESTION: For Michael’s sake and certainly also for mine, because I haven’t written about this in a long, long, long time, can you explain in real simple terms? The issue, as I understand, is the South has the oil, the North has not been – has at times not been willing to allow it to be transported, and it’s all because of the issues over how the revenue gets shared?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Right. Yes. That’s the bottom line is revenue sharing.
QUESTION: Did they solve the revenue issue or did they just get --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: I think it’s – the issue is – I mean, in simple terms, it is revenue. But in larger terms, its – it goes into the relationship between the North and the South, how they’re going to address the whole wide range of issues. And unfortunately, how they express those issues is expressed, let’s say, in this instance, is the blockage of the oil by the North. So now what we’re trying to do is they build trust and find good (inaudible) for them to resolve their problems on the whole wide range of issues from the borders to wealth-sharing to citizenship to nationality, et cetera.
QUESTION: And how – really stupid question, but two questions. One, how long were the shipments, or more precisely I guess the flow, through the pipelines cut off? And secondly, how did the North do that? Did they have like a giant spigot, or did they just refuse to allow it to be transported along?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yeah. We have to get back to you on how long. (inaudible)
QUESTION: Days or weeks?
QUESTION: It was January of ’12 to --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Off and on. But I mean, this most recent one, because we had an agreement for the oil, oils to flow – I’d have to get back to you on the exact dates.
QUESTION: Right. But it included this year though?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes.
QUESTION: Okay. And then how do they stop it? Just by refusing it to be shipped?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: That’s right. Because the oil – as you know, the pipes go through up to the Port of Sudan and other, which is Khartoum controlled.
QUESTION: Yeah. Okay. And so in other words, by refusing to let it ship on things get filled up and then you can’t --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Right.
QUESTION: Thank you.
QUESTION: [Moderator], can I just ask, I know you’re going to send out a schedule at some point, but just what time you think you’ll have that joint press avail?
QUESTION: 8:40 a.m., right?
MODERATOR: Yeah. It’s 8:40 a.m.
QUESTION: 8:40 a.m.
QUESTION: They sent it already.
MODERATOR: Yeah, we sent you where --
QUESTION: Well, maybe I’m not getting emails.
MODERATOR: Well, you’re not getting emails here.
QUESTION: Okay.
MODERATOR: We sent you a tentative, which may have had all of the meetings I went through. It may have had others that are still being worked through.
QUESTION: Okay. 8:40 a.m. Okay. That’s great. Thank you. I just wanted to --
QUESTION: I feel a little silly about the Nigeria thing, but it’s not even for sure that you’ll meet – that he will meet with President Jonathan Goodluck --
MODERATOR: In a bilat.
QUESTION: In a bilat. Right. But he should raise those issues in a bilat. So you’re basically seeking a meeting at which you would raise these issues.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yes.
QUESTION: Great.
QUESTION: Does he want to meet the Secretary?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Oh, yes. I mean, we – this is a – yeah, we do.
QUESTION: So you expect this to happen, it’s just --
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: We hope it happens.
QUESTION: Yeah.
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Again, you know our relationship is so robust and as complex that we’re going to meet whatever happens. We will meet.
QUESTION: Yeah. Here?
SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL: Yeah. And it’s not just Goodluck Jonathan. It’s the previous presidents as well also play a tremendous role – Obasanjo and others – in the process.
MODERATOR: Anything else?
QUESTION: Thank you. Thank you very much.
QUESTION: Thank you.
MODERATOR: Thank you very much.
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