WOUNDED WARRIOR SOLDIER RIDE TOOK PLACE AT THE WHITE HOUSE

FROM:  AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE
President Barack Obama cheers on participants in the Wounded Warrior Soldier Ride on the South Lawn of the White House, April 20, 2012. (White House Photo by Lawrence Jackson)
President Pays Tribute to Wounded Warriors on Soldier Ride

By Terri Moon Cronk
WASHINGTON, April 21, 2012 - President Barack Obama cheered for 22 wounded warriors taking part in a Wounded Warrior Project Soldier Ride yesterday, calling it "one of the most inspiring events" to take place at the White House.

Soldier Rides are four-day cycling events designed to "use cycling and the bonds of service to overcome physical, mental or emotional wounds," according the Wounded Warrior Project website. This was the fourth year the White House hosted a Soldier Ride, and it included members of each military service and the Coast Guard. The events have been occurring for six years.

"I'm glad to see you're all decked out in the stars and stripes, because I want anybody who sees this ride go by to know that they're in the presence of heroes," Obama told the colorful group of riders on the South Lawn.

Obama pointed out a few of the riders and their physical challenges: Max Rohn, who lost a leg in Fallujah, Iraq, during a grenade attack; Leslie Smith, who lost a leg and her eyesight in Bosnia, who rode tandem yesterday; and brothers Erik and Deven Schei, who also rode together on a tandem bike.

"When Erik enlisted in the Army, Deven made a promise that if anything bad ever happened, he would finish what his brother started," the president said. "During his second tour in Iraq, Erik was shot in the head by a sniper. So Deven enlisted. Then two years ago, Deven was injured in Afghanistan. And now the two brothers ride a specially made tandem bike, with Deven leading the way. They're taking on this latest challenge just like they did every other one -- together."

Veterans Administration Secretary Eric Shinseki, also attended the event and cheered on the riders. The president promised to do everything he could to make sure wounded warriors and other veterans get the care and benefits they earned.

"All of you have served your country. That's why now it's time for the country to serve you. That's what you deserve, and here in America we take care of our own," Obama said.

The president said the riders participated in the challenge for a variety of reasons.
"Some of you may be athletes looking to get the competitive juices flowing again," he said. "Maybe some of you are trying to see how far you can push yourselves. Some of you are doing it for the camaraderie and the bond that comes when you work hard alongside people who know what you're going through.

"Maybe you're doing it to honor a loved one or a buddy," the president added. "But all of you are here because you believe in living your lives to the fullest. You know that each of us has a responsibility to seize the opportunities we've been blessed with. You ride because you can, and you ride for those who can't. That's what this is all about."
The president also welcomed the 200 U.S. service members whom the White House invited to cheer on the riders as they circled the South Lawn.Fifty troops each represented the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps.

Obama paid tribute to the riders' military family members who were in attendance.
"[They] don't wear a uniform, but ... work just as hard and sacrifice just as much alongside you," he told the riders.

The president said the soldier rides across the country remind U.S. citizens to support the men and women who serve for other Americans. He encouraged citizens to show their support for the riders and thank them for their service by cheering them along in communities around the country.

Wounded warrior riders have clocked miles this year on Soldier Rides through Chicago, New York, Seattle, Phoenix, San Antonio and Miami, Key West, Tampa and Jacksonville, Fla.; Nashville, Tenn., North Fork, Calif. and Landstuhl, Germany.
"We are proud of you. Your country is proud of you," the president told the riders. He then sounded the horn to start the ride of three laps around the South Lawn of the White House.

PRESIDENT OBAMA STRENGTHENS U.S. ABILITY TO DEAL WITH GENOCIDE AND MASS ATROCITIES

FROM AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE

Obama Announces Strategy to Counter Atrocities

By Karen Parrish
American Forces Press Service

WASHINGTON, April 23, 2012 - President Barack Obama today announced a strategy to strengthen the U.S. government's ability to foresee, prevent, and respond to genocide and mass atrocities, and extended U.S. troops' efforts to do just that in Central Africa.

During a visit to the Holocaust Memorial Museum here, Obama said preventing mass atrocities and genocide is a core national security interest and a core moral responsibility for the United States.

"That does not mean that we intervene militarily every time there's an injustice in the world," the president said. "We cannot and should not. It does mean we possess many tools, diplomatic and political and economic and financial and intelligence and law enforcement, and our moral suasion."

Obama's strategy calls for the Defense Department to develop doctrine and increase training and planning efforts emphasizing mass atrocity prevention and response.

Obama announced the creation of the Atrocities Prevention Board, which will include Defense Department representatives as well as those from the departments of State, Treasury, Justice, and Homeland Security; the U.S. Agency for International Development, the U.S. Mission to the United Nations, the office of the director of National Intelligence, the CIA, and the office of the vice president, according to White House officials.

The board will help identify and address atrocity threats, and will oversee institutional changes to make the U.S. government "more nimble and effective" is response to such threats, administration officials said.

The strategy also increases diplomatic and intelligence efforts to identify and respond to atrocities, they said.

Obama said the United States over the past three years has helped to counter mass atrocities in Libya, South Sudan and Cote d'Ivoire.

The military mission to help counter the Lord's Resistance Army, a terrorist group in central Africa led by Joseph Kony, demonstrated how U.S. forces can support national and international efforts to quell atrocities, Obama said.

About a hundred U.S. military advisors, mostly from the Army's Special Forces, have been working since October with the militaries of Uganda, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan to capture or kill Kony and other LRA commanders under an Obama executive order.

When he announced that mission, the president directed the National Security Council to review its progress after 150 days.

Today, Obama said, "I can announce that our advisers will continue their efforts to bring this madman to justice and to save lives. It is part of our regional strategy ... to end the scourge that is the LRA and help realize a future where no African child is stolen from their family and no girl is raped and no boy is turned into a child soldier."

The LRA is composed mostly of kidnapped children forced to execute Kony's terrorist tactics over the past 20 years, administration officials have said. Tens of thousands of people have been murdered and as many as 1.8 million have been displaced by the LRA, they said.

Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. John Kirby told reporters today the U.S. advisors in central Africa have had "a significant impact ... improving the capabilities of indigenous forces there to put pressure on the LRA."

The advisors' role, Kirby emphasized, is training and assistance, not combat. He added that the U.S. assistance is helping.

"We've seen indications that [Kony] and his followers are less active and less effective," he said.

EPA TOUTS NEW MAPPING TOOL FOR ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEWS AND PLANNING

FROM:  EPA WEBSITE
EPA Releases Innovative Mapping Tool to Improve Environmental Reviews and Planning
NEPAssist part of CEQ initiative to increase efficiency and effectiveness of environmental reviews
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the public release of a web-based mapping tool developed for Federal agencies to facilitate more efficient and effective environmental reviews and project planning. The tool, NEPAssist, is part of an initiative developed by the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) to modernize and reinvigorate federal agency implementation of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) through innovation, public participation and transparency. NEPAssist draws information from publicly available federal, state, and local datasets, allowing NEPA practitioners, stakeholders and the public to view information about environmental conditions within the area of a proposed project quickly and easily at early stages of project development.

“NEPA helps ensure that Federal agencies protect the health of our communities and the natural resources that support our economy,” said Nancy Sutley, Chair of the Council on Environmental Quality. “Making this tool available to the public will help make information more accessible, a key part of our effort to increase transparency for projects that impact American communities.”

“NEPAssist helps users identify the possible impacts of federal projects on local environments and communities,” said Cynthia Giles, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance. “By making tools like NEPAssist available to the public, EPA is helping citizens to be involved in environmental decisions that affect their community.”

NEPA requires all federal agencies to incorporate environmental considerations in their planning and decision-making through a systematic interdisciplinary process. NEPAssist is designed to help promote collaboration and early involvement in the NEPA process by raising important environmental issues at the earliest stages of project development. The mapping tool can be used by Federal agencies to identify alternative project locations, to avoid and minimize impacts, as well as identify potential mitigation areas.

THE U.S. ARMY AND CONCUSSION SUFFERED BY MILITARY PERSONNEL

FROM:  AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICES

Army Refines Medical Management of Concussion

By Cheryl Pellerin

WASHINGTON, April 18, 2012 - Over the past 20 months, the Army has been working to refine the way it tracks and treats the most common form of battlefield brain injuries -- concussion, also called mild traumatic brain injury, or mTBI.

The job isn't easy, because even in the United States, where civilians experience traumatic brain injuries at the rate of 1.7 million a year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, no single diagnostic standard exists for TBI.

In the words of experts at the 2nd Annual Traumatic Brain Injury Conference last month in Washington, treatment of TBI and especially acute, or rapid-onset, TBI is still "a major unmet medical need" worldwide.

"This is why we have our program," Army Col. (Dr.) Dallas Hack, director of the Army's Combat Casualty Care Research Program, told American Forces Press Service.

"This is why Congress in 2007 issued a special appropriation of $300 million to start funding traumatic brain injury and psychological health research for our troops," he added, "and has continued to [add] significant amounts of funding," up to $633 million today.

In the research program, scientists try to find ways to look into the brain noninvasively to measure the effects of brain trauma, using brain scans, electroencephalograms for measuring brain electrical activity, eye-tracking systems that offer a window into the brain, and more.

Objective measurements are critical for mild brain trauma, which is called an invisible injury because effects on the brain of falls or explosions or vehicle accidents aren't always obvious.

Today, while processes and devices sensitive enough to measure mild brain trauma are in development, on the battlefield and at home mild TBI tends to be assessed in large part using the best tools available -- questionnaire-type assessments.

During a recent briefing at the Pentagon, Army specialists in behavioral health and in rehabilitation discussed the evolving behavioral health system of care for TBI.

A hallmark of the Army's standard of behavioral health care is a screening process administered to soldiers before they deploy, while they are in theater, as they prepare to return home, and while they are in garrison, said the behavioral health specialist.

The assessment process includes the following questionnaires:

-- Predeployment: All incoming service members are screened with the neurocognitive assessment tool, called NCAT, which is used as a baseline for future concussion or mTBI injuries.

-- In theater: Immediately after injury, the Military Acute Concussion Evaluation, called MACE, is used to quickly measure orientation, immediate memory, concentration, and memory recall. Combined with clinical information, a MACE score can guide recommendations, including evacuation to a higher care level.

-- Postdeployment: Because mTBI is not always recognized in the combat setting, active duty service members receive postdeployment health assessments. Four questions adapted from the Brief Traumatic Brain Injury Survey are asked during the assessments. Positive responses on all four prompt an interview with a doctor for an mTBI evaluation.

-- Veterans: Vets are screened for mTBI when they enter the Veterans Health Administration system. A TBI clinical reminder tracking system identifies all who were deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan. Those who report such deployment and don't have a prior mTBI diagnosis are screened using four sets of questions based on the Brief Traumatic Brain Injury Survey. Those who screen positive for mTBI are offered further evaluation.

"Part of what they do is complete those questionnaires," the rehabilitation specialist said. "The other part of any of those screenings is a face-to-face interview with a primary care provider. If there's something the primary care provider or the screening instrument identify as indicating some kind of psychological distress, then the soldier will also see a behavioral health provider face to face.

"The other part of our system of care includes something we call embedded behavioral health that we're rolling out across the Army right now," the behavioral health specialist said.

This involves putting behavioral health specialists in the physical location of brigade combat teams, she said. In such a setting, she explained, "[care] providers develop a habitual relationship with the commanders so they feel trust about communicating appropriate information about the soldier's health."

The Army is reaching out, she added, "trying to connect with soldiers at the various touch points, in their unit areas and also in primary care clinics, so they have every opportunity to access behavioral health care at any point in their health care and in their daily lives."

The current protocol for the traumatic brain injury system of care in theater, said the rehabilitation specialist, comes from a 2010 Defense Department directive-type memorandum that makes screening mandatory for soldiers who are involved in four kinds of events, even if they don't appear to be hurt.

Those who must be screened have been near a blast, sustained a blow to the head, are involved in a vehicle accident, or have commanders who are concerned about them and want to enter them in the protocol.

Anyone involved in a mandatory event receives the MACE evaluation, a medical evaluation and at least 24 hours of rest. And they must be cleared by a medical provider before returning to duty, the rehab specialist said.

Slightly different guidelines cover those who have had multiple concussions.

For somebody who has suffered a second concussion in theater, she added, the minimal 24-hour down time is extended to a minimum of seven days.

Those who have a third diagnosed concussion in theater receive seven days of down time and a comprehensive concussion assessment that consists of consultations with specialty care providers and a functional assessment -- for example, one that assesses their ability to keep their balance.

Also in theater are 11 concussion care centers with specialty providers and a restful environment.

In Afghanistan, for moderate or severe TBI, three neurologists staff Role 3 advanced hospitals, along with a neurology consultant who oversees the TBI neurology specialists.

Telemedicine -- the remote diagnosis and treatment of patients using telecommunications technology -- is also used to treat TBI, and those visits doubled from fiscal 2011 to 2012, the behavioral health specialist said.

The Army has invested more than $530 million to improve access to care, quality of care and research, and TBI screening and surveillance. But the best clinical treatment for service members and civilians with mild TBI may be months and years in the future.

Hack says it's the state of the science.

The Defense Department's protocol "is as good as we have," he said. "I am completely supportive of it. I'm trying to do better," he added.
 

EX-IM BANK WORKS TO BUILD INFRASTRUCTURE IN VIETNAM

FROM:  EXPORT-IMPORT BANK
One of Nine: Spotlight on Vietnam
Chairman in Vietnam Leads Business Development Team in Vietnam to Promote Closure of Nearly $1.5 Billion in Critical Infrastructure Projects

In early February, Chairman Hochberg led a business development team with Ex-Im Director Patricia Loui in both Ho Chi Minh and Hanoi to boost commercial ties and business opportunities between the United States and Vietnam. Vietnam is one of nine key markets where Ex-Im Bank is focusing its business development efforts because of the country's infrastructure and development needs. Ex-Im Bank's current exposure to Vietnam is $175.8 million.

Asia is Ex-Im's largest regional market, representing nearly a quarter of the Bank's portfolio. Ex-Im Bank’s current exposure in Asia is approximately $27 billion. And Vietnam is a country with a great deal of untapped potential for U.S. exporters. Currently, over 500 U.S. American businesses have a presence in Vietnam. This country is speeding up implementation of economic and financial sectors restructuring. Ex-Im Bank is looking for projects that will create good jobs and economic opportunities in both countries while also meeting Vietnam’s power and infrastructure needs. Ex-Im Bank's business development team currently has three infrastructure projects in the pipeline and is continuing to hold discussions with business leaders on additional export opportunities for U.S. exporters.

REMARKS OF U.S. SEC. OF STATE CLINTON AND SALVADORAN FOREIGN MINISTER MARTINEZ

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Remarks With Salvadoran Foreign Minister Hugo Martinez Before Their Meeting
Remarks Hillary Rodham Clinton
Secretary of State Treaty Room
Washington, DC
April 24, 2012
SECRETARY CLINTON: I’m very pleased to welcome Minister Martinez here. We have developed a very good working relationship, and we’re very honored to have this chance to continue our ongoing consultations. We are very impressed by the progress that El Salvador is making under the leadership of President Funes and his government, and the United States stands ready to be a good partner going forward.
Welcome, Minister.

FOREIGN MINISTER MARTINEZ: (Via interpreter) It’s always an honor to be able to visit Secretary Clinton and to be able to express our friendship to her on behalf of the people and the Government of El Salvador. It is such a solid relationship that El Salvador and the United States enjoy that allows us to have these kinds of exchanges, these kinds of talks and visits as often as we possibly can in order to promote and develop the projects that we work on as partners in order to benefit our communities.
The United States has been decisive in its vision of this partnership for growth that we enjoy together. And as a result, we have had a better perspective in the work that we carry out together to be able to benefit the development and growth and welfare of our people.

SECRETARY CLINTON: Thank you again, Minister.

FOREIGN MINISTER MARTINEZ: (Via interpreter) Thank you again, Madam Secretary, on behalf of the people and the Government of El Salvador.

THE LEGOBOT COMPETITION

FROM:  ARMED WITH SCIENCE DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Naval Research Laboratory oceanographer Dr. Clark Rowley (back right) coaches the Boyet Junior High School's FIRST LEGO League team. (Photo credit: U.S. Naval Research Laboratory/Clark Rowley)

LEGObot Competition
Naval Research Laboratoryoceanographer Clark Rowley recently spent 80 hours over 10 weeks playing with LEGO blocks, teaching junior high students how to build robots.
Rowley has been coaching the Boyet Junior High School’s FIRST Lego League (FLL) team since 2009. FLL is a robotics-focused, extra-curricular program for middle school students. During the 10-week season, junior high teams build LEGO-based robots and develop research projects for a chance to compete in the FLL regional competitions.

“It’s fun to watch the kids go from just a box of LEGO parts and create a really capable robot with some very clever engineering,” Rowley said. “The kids do the research. They build the robots. They do the work. That is the heart of FIRST LEGO League.”

With the help of teachers and an assistant coach, Rowley prepared the 10 students for the 2011 FIRST LEGO League Louisiana Regional Competition in December.

Food contamination was the theme for this year’s competition, so Rowley’s team found an article about a rodent infestation in a Peruvian school cafeteria. The students conducted research and spoke with experts on rats, rat control, and autonomous robots, and proposed a system of communicating robots to perform rodent control in food storage warehouses.

As part of the project, they demonstrated a system of two LEGO robots communicating over Bluetooth.

Rowley and his team’s hard work and dedication paid off again at this year’s competition. Boyet won a Core Award for Mechanical Design and placed second out of 57 teams in the Robot Performance division.

FUJIKURA LTD. WILL PAY $20 MILLION CRIMINAL FINE FOR ROLE IN PRICE FIXING AUTO PARTS IN U.S. CARS

FROM:  DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Monday, April 23, 2012
Fujikura Ltd. Agrees to Plead Guilty to Price Fixing on Auto Parts Installed in U.S. Cars Company Agrees to Pay $20 Million Criminal Fine
WASHINGTON – Tokyo-based Fujikura Ltd. has agreed to plead guilty and to pay a $20 million criminal fine for its role in a conspiracy to fix prices of automotive wire harnesses and related products installed in U.S. cars, the Department of Justice announced today.

According to a one-count felony charge filed today in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan in Detroit, Fujikura engaged in a conspiracy to rig bids for and to fix, stabilize and maintain the prices of automotive wire harnesses and related products sold to an automaker in the United States and elsewhere. According to the charge, Fujikura’s involvement in the conspiracy lasted from at least as early as January 2006 until at least February 2010. According to the plea agreement, which is subject to court approval, Fujikura has agreed to pay a criminal fine and to cooperate with the department’s ongoing investigation.

“The Antitrust Division will remain vigilant in its efforts to detect and prosecute anticompetitive conduct in this important industry, which affects virtually every American consumer,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Sharis A. Pozen in charge of the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division.  “The division has focused its enforcement efforts in industries essential to consumers’ everyday lives, and we, along with our law enforcement partners, have been successful in bringing to justice companies and executives engaged in illegal price fixing conspiracies.”

To date, including Fujikura, eight executives and five companies have been charged and have agreed to plead guilty in the department’s ongoing antitrust investigation into the auto parts industry. Three of the companies have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced to pay criminal fines totaling more than $748 million. Seven of the executives have pleaded guilty and have been sentenced to serve a total of more than 122 months in jail.

Fujikura manufactures and sells automotive wire harnesses, which are automotive electrical distribution systems used to direct and control electronic components, wiring and circuit boards in cars.

According to the charge, Fujikura and its co-conspirators carried out the conspiracy by agreeing, during meetings and conversations in Japan, to allocate the supply of automotive wire harnesses and related products on a model-by-model basis and sold the parts at non-competitive prices to an automaker in the United States and elsewhere.

Fujikura is charged with price fixing in violation of the Sherman Act, which carries a maximum fine of $100 million for corporations. The maximum fine for the company may be increased to twice the gain derived from the crime or twice the loss suffered by the victims of the crime, if either of those amounts is greater than the statutory maximum fine.

U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT SUPPORTS BRAND USA NEW CAMPAIGN

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
State Department Congratulates Brand USA on New Campaign
Media Note Office of the Spokesperson Washington, DC
April 23, 2012
The State Department supports Brand USA, a public-private partnership with the mission of promoting increased international travel to the United States, and applauds the unveiling of its initial marketing campaign. We welcome its efforts as part of the President’s tourism initiative to support economic growth and job creation.

In 2011, international visitors contributed to the employment of more than one million American workers by spending $152 billion on U.S. travel- and tourism-related goods and services. Every additional 65 international visitors to the United States generate enough revenue to support an additional travel- and tourism-related job.

While the majority of visitors utilize the Visa Waiver Program to enter the United States, the State Department is committed to facilitating travel for the approximately 35 percent of international travelers who require visas.

We are meeting visa demand worldwide. Consular officers at our embassies and consulates are working tirelessly to protect our borders, keep visa wait times short, and streamline the process for visa applicants, particularly in fast-growing markets – like China, Brazil, and Mexico – that offer exceptional growth opportunities. In anticipation of the future growth in these new markets, we’re deploying additional staff, expanding existing operations, and opening new consulates.

We’re also looking at other ways we can work with Brand USA to promote economic growth and job creation. We will leverage our presence overseas and our public diplomacy to welcome more visitors to America’s great destinations. We will work closely with industry, Brand USA, and our colleagues across the U.S. government to send a positive message to foreign visitors that the United States is an attractive travel destination.

The State Department is committed to facilitating travel to the United States as part of broader “Jobs Diplomacy” goals. Visas for legitimate travelers are an important tool to help accelerate America’s economic revival.

FROM AIR FORCE SPACE COMMAND

FROM:  AIR FORCE SPACE COMMAND
Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton Schwartz addresses attendees at the 28th National Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, Colo., April 19, 2012.

by Master Sgt. Kevin Williams
Air Force Space Command Public Affairs

4/20/2012 - COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AFNS) -- The Air Force chief of staff spoke to leaders from industry, academia and the government about the current state of national security space and the U.S. aerospace industrial base at the 28th National Space Symposium here April 19.

In his remarks, Gen. Norton Schwartz also recognized the efforts and accomplishments of the Air Force's major command charged with delivering military-focused space and cyberspace capabilities to the joint warfighting team.

"Operating at 134 locations around the world, the 42,000 Airmen, government civilians and contractors of Air Force Space Command are dedicated and trusted stewards of approximately 85 percent of the Defense Department's budget for space, providing space and cyber capabilities that, according to the new Defense Strategic Guidance, are absolutely vital to the conduct of high-tempo, effective operations by modern armed forces -- particularly ours," Schwartz said.

Capabilities and services such as spacelift; secured, high-volume and long-haul communications; space situational awareness; precision navigation and timing; missile warning; and weather forecasting are some of the indispensible enablers that are and will continue to be relevant in both combat and non-military environments alike, the general said.

As the Air Force contends with fewer defense dollars and implements a new defense strategy, Schwartz said space will remain a top priority when it comes to service investments.

"Even with the extraordinary budget pressures we face, we are protecting and, in some cases, increasing investment in our top acquisition priorities," he said. "Space acquisitions represents 21 percent of all Air Force investment spending, including four of 10 of our largest procurement programs."

Space-borne capabilities have played and will continue to play a prominent role in the collective U.S. joint team capabilities, Schwartz said.

"In total, our fiscal year 2013 budget request includes about $9.6 billion for investments in our space programs to help us maintain overall preparedness in addressing a wide range of contingencies," he said.

Space capabilities showed their importance to contingency operations during the recent humanitarian and disaster relief activity in the Far East and the combat operations in North Africa, he said.

"Behind the scenes of cargo airlift in Japan, or fighters and bombers in the air above Libya, was our Joint Space Operations Center providing a full range of reach-back space capabilities for theater commanders around the world," Schwartz said.

The general also addressed the importance of a strong partnership between the U.S. government and aerospace industry.

"The government will continue to rely on the expertise, creativity, innovation and productivity of private industry -- again, throughout the entire chain of materiel and service providers, large and small -- while it works to ensure the least onerous regulatory regime possible," Schwartz said.

As an example, he pointed to the proposal announced April 18 to normalize export control of satellites and related components by moving their jurisdiction from the U.S. Munitions to the Commerce Control List.

"While the government must continue to maintain reliable funding streams and avoid requirements creep, industry must continue to deliver capabilities on cost and on time to America's warfighters," Schwartz said.

The general concluded his speech by stating his belief that the air and space capabilities the Air Force provides will continue to be important to the nation.

"With many indicators that presage a continuing upward trend of air and space power's importance to our national interests and our daily lives, the ability for those who aspire to take to the skies and into the heavens, to pursue their lofty aspirations, remains as promising and inspiring as it was for so many of us over recent decades," Schwartz said.

"Together, we can -- and must -- further pick up the pace to maintain our leadership in air and space."

ALLEGEDLY A BRITISH ROBOT STOCK PICKER SWINDLED ABOUT 73,000 OUT OF THEIR MONEY

FROM:  SEC

April 20, 2012

Securities and Exchange Commission v. Thomas Edward Hunter and Alexander John Hunter, Civil Action No. 12-CV-3123 (S.D.N.Y.)

The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged twin brothers from the U.K. with defrauding approximately 75,000 investors through an Internet-based pump-and-dump scheme in which they touted a fake “stock picking robot” that purportedly identified penny stocks set to double in price. Instead, the brothers were merely touting stocks they were being paid separately to promote.

The SEC alleges that Alexander John Hunter and Thomas Edward Hunter were just 16 years old when they set their fraud in motion beginning in 2007. They disseminated e-mail newsletters through a pair of websites they created to tout stocks selected by the robot – which they described as a highly sophisticated computer trading program that was the product of extensive research and development. Their claims were persuasive as the Hunters received at least $1.2 million from investors primarily in the U.S. who paid $47 apiece for annual newsletter subscriptions. Some investors paid an additional fee for the “home version” of the robot software.

The SEC alleges that the brothers separately created a third website where they marketed their newsletter subscriber list to penny stock promoters and boasted, “One email to this list of people rockets a stock price.” The Hunters were in turn paid to send selected penny stock ticker symbols to their subscribers, who were misled to believe that the stock “picks” were the product of the robot. The Hunters sent out their newsletters near the beginning of the trading day, and the price and volume of the promoted stocks spiked dramatically as newsletter subscribers rushed to purchase shares. However, the stocks typically fell precipitously shortly thereafter, leaving investors in most cases with shares worth less than they had purchased them for earlier in the day.

According to the SEC’s complaint, the Hunters also offered subscribers a downloadable version of the stock picking robot for an additional fee of $97. Rather than performing the analysis advertised, the software was actually designed to deliver users a stock pick supplied by the brothers.

The Commission’s complaint further alleges that the Defendants violated Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder and seeks permanent injunctions against future violations by the Defendants and disgorgement of all ill-gotten gains, including prejudgment interest and civil penalties.

NATIONAL VICTIMS' SERVICE AWARDS CEREMONY SPEECH

FROM:  THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Reaching Every Victim, Extending the Vision of Service
April 20th, 2012 Posted by Tracy Russo
The following post appears courtesy of Mary Lou Leary, Acting Assistant Attorney of the Office of Justice Programs (OJP).
This afternoon, as I stood with Attorney General Eric Holder and my colleague Joye Frost at the National Crime Victims’ Service awards ceremony, I felt both humbled and proud.  Humbled by the stories of courage and perseverance told by the recipients of this year’s Service Awards, and proud of the persistent work done by OJP since 1983 to promote victims’ rights and honor crime victims.

Supporting victims of crime is a priority for this administration and for the Department of Justice.   It is important to focus the nation’s attention on the courage and concrete results of individuals and organizations that provide services to crime victims. Their long term commitment to helping survivors, their families, and their communities is unparalleled.

This year’s theme, “Extending the Vision: Reaching Every Victim,” calls on us to celebrate the progress we’ve made.  The theme captures the spirit and resolve needed to reach every victim to provide hope and help.

The work and stories of the individuals and organizations who have received this year’s awards are powerful.

Take Roi Holt, from Washington, who received a Federal Crime Victim Service Award.  Through her work in government agencies, beginning with the Department of the Interior, she promoted awareness of federal victims’ rights laws among federal law enforcement personnel.

She has been a resource for law enforcement officers who need information, referrals and assistance for victims of crime. She has been especially active in responding to the critical needs of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and tribal communities.   Her efforts empower communities and have a lasting impact on the lives of many people.
Then there is National Crime Victim Service Award winner Victoria Cruz, of Brooklyn, New York, who transformed herself from victim, to survivor, to advocate.  As Senior Domestic Violence Counselor and Advocate at the New York City Anti-Violence Project, she empowers her clients to stand up and speak for themselves.

She speaks for those who can no longer speak — those lost to violence through murder.  Victoria brings attention to violence against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, and HIV-affected communities and speaks out about sexual violence, dating violence, and intimate partner violence.  Ms. Cruz’s work saves lives and improves the quality of life for many in her community.

Mickey Rooney first entered America’s consciousness as a child movie star in the 1920s.  No stranger to awards, Mr. Rooney has received the Lifetime Achievement Award, a Golden Globe, an Emmy Award, and a Peabody Award, five Oscar nominations, four stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and a Bronze Star for his service during World War II.  But today he received the National Crime Victims’ Rights Week Special Courage Award for bringing a new level of public awareness to the issue of elder abuse.

In 2011, he testified before the United States Senate in the hearing entitled: Justice For All: Ending Elder Abuse, Neglect & Financial Exploitation.  Mr. Rooney spoke about his own emotional, verbal, and financial abuse at the hands of his stepchildren.  He suffered silently for years but knew he needed to speak out about his ordeal.  He said:


“To those seniors and especially elderly veterans like myself . . .You are not alone and you have nothing to be ashamed of.  If elder abuse happened to me, it can happen to anyone.  I want you to know that you deserve better.”

In addition, these outstanding advocates received awards during the ceremony:
Common Justice, for their work encouraging victims’ participation in the justice process.
Dr. Dora Shriro, for creating a state corrections-based victim assistance program.
Girls Educational and Mentoring Services (GEMS) founder Rachel Lloyd, for serving girls and young women who have experienced sexual exploitation and domestic trafficking.
Julia Dunkins and Justin Todd Fennell, for using their personal experiences as survivors of violence to support others.

Dr. Linda Ledray, for establishing the Sexual Assault Resource Service (SARS), one of the first Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) programs.

Maricopa County (AZ) Adult Probation Department Financial Compliance Unit, for holding probationers accountable for financial compliance with the collection of restitution for victims of crime.
Michelle D. Scott, for instituting a victim services program with an advisory board composed of survivors and advocates to ensure that victims’ voices are heard.

Wingate Grant, for implementing an innovative unit for recovering assets for crime victims that is a model for U.S. Attorneys’ Offices.

I invite you to visit the Office for Victims of Crime Gallery to read the full biographies of these extraordinary women and men, and the institutions they represent, who have been honored for their courage and service today.

CASSINI SPACECRAFT SEES NEW OBJECTS BLAZING TRAILS IN SATURN RING

FROM:  NASA
WASHINGTON -- Scientists working with images from NASA's Cassini
spacecraft have discovered strange, half-mile-sized objects punching
through one of Saturn's rings and leaving glittering trails behind
them. The results will be presented tomorrow at the European
Geosciences Union meeting in Vienna, Austria.

The penetration occurred in the outermost of Saturn's main rings,
called the F ring, which has a circumference of 550,000 miles
(881,000 kilometers). Scientists are calling the trails in the F ring
"mini-jets." Cassini scientists combed through 20,000 images and
found 500 examples of these rogues during the seven years Cassini has
been at Saturn.

"Beyond just showing us the strange beauty of the F ring, Cassini's
studies of this ring help us understand the activity that occurs when
solar systems evolve out of dusty disks that are similar to, but
obviously much grander than, the disk we see around Saturn," said
Linda Spilker, Cassini project scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion
Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, Calif.

Scientists have known relatively large objects can create channels,
ripples and snowballs, or clumps of icy material, in the F ring.
However, scientists did not know what happened to these snowballs
after they were created. Some were broken up by collisions or tidal
forces in their orbit around Saturn. Scientists now have evidence
some of the smaller ones survived, and their differing orbits mean
they go on to strike through the F ring on their own.

"I think the F ring is Saturn's weirdest ring, and these latest
Cassini results go to show how the F ring is even more dynamic than
we ever thought," said Carl Murray, a Cassini imaging team member
based at Queen Mary University of London, U.K. "These findings show
us that the F ring region is like a bustling zoo of objects from a
half-mile (0.8-kilometer) in size to moons like Prometheus a hundred
miles (160.9 kilometers) in size, creating a spectacular show."

These small objects appear to collide with the F ring at gentle speeds
about 4 mph (2 meters per second). The collisions drag glittering ice
particles out of the F ring with them, leaving a trail of 20-110
miles (40-180 kilometers) long.

In some cases, the objects traveled in packs, creating mini-jets that
looked exotic, like the barb of a harpoon. Other new images show
grand views of the entire F ring and the swirls and eddies from the
different kinds of objects moving through and around it.

Saturn's rings are comprised primarily of water ice. The chunks of ice
that make up the main rings spread out 85,000 miles (140,000
kilometers) from the center of Saturn. Scientists believe the rings'
average thickness is approximately 30 feet (10 meters).

The Cassini-Huygens mission is a cooperative project of NASA, the
European Space Agency and the Italian Space Agency. JPL manages the
mission for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The
imaging team is based at the Space Science Institute in Boulder,
Colo.

ARMY DRIVES SCIENCE, SPENDS OVER $630 MILLION ON TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY RESEARCH

FROM:  AMERICAN FORCES PRESS SERVICE

Army Research Drives Brain Injury Science

By Cheryl Pellerin

WASHINGTON, April 18, 2012 - With $633 million and 472 active research projects on traumatic brain injury alone, the Army is driving the science behind this neglected public health problem that affects everyone from kids on the sports field to service members in Afghanistan.

TBI, and especially mild TBI, "is essentially a frontier of medicine," Army Col. (Dr.) Dallas Hack, director of the Army's Combat Casualty Care Research Program, said in a recent interview with American Forces Press Service.

From 2000 to 2011, just over 133,000 soldiers were diagnosed with TBI. For the Defense Department as a whole in that period, 220,000 service members were diagnosed, according to an Army behavioral health specialist.

Traumatic brain injuries range from severe to moderate to mild and can be caused by a bump, blow or jolt to the head or a penetrating head injury that disrupts normal brain function.

On the battlefield, Hack said, fewer than 25 percent of brain injuries are combat related. Most are caused by training injuries, vehicle accidents and a range of other activities.

Severe brain injuries are easy to diagnose, Hack said. Any kind of a computed tomography, or CT, scan can show the resulting physical defect.

CT scans combine a series of X-ray views taken from many different angles with computer processing to produce cross-sectional images of soft tissues inside the brain.

It's a little more difficult to diagnose moderate TBI, he said, "although some of the more advanced imaging, even [magnetic resonance imaging, or MRI] scans generally do a decent job."

MRI machines use powerful magnets and radio waves to create pictures of the internal brain.

"Where it is so difficult and where we as a culture and as a profession basically ignored it for all these years," Hack said, "is in the mild TBI area."

To improve the spectrum of diagnosis-to-treatment of mild TBI, he said, the research program pushes the science with partners like university researchers, and even organizations like the National Football League and the National Hockey League, sports whose players are at risk for concussion, also called mild TBI.

Research being funded includes a range of neuroimaging or brain scanning technologies; quantitative electroencephalography or brain mapping, blood tests for biomarkers of brain injury, and even drugs that may prevent injuries from mild brain trauma.

Brain imaging is "probably the current best we can do," Hack said, but scientists often don't have enough data to interpret mTBI scans.

"The fact is," he added, "that on the milder injuries you don't see physical defects but you can see functional issues."

Studies are ongoing with functional MRIs, which rather than showing brain structures show brain activity by tracking the uptake of glucose, the brain's source of energy.

Other imaging research targets a new kind of CT scan called single-photon emission computed tomography, or SPECT, which shows how blood flows through arteries and veins in the brain.

A technique called DTI, for diffusion tensor imaging, is a special version of MRI that measures the direction of water molecules in the brain, Hack said, so scientists can follow the physical path of nerve tracts in the brain.

Brain mapping, called quantitative EEG, can automatically detect and locate abnormal brain activity, he added, "or what we call silent seizures. We often see these soon after an injury and we have studies that are working on getting [Food and Drug Administration] approval" to use the technique in mTBI.

The program's biomarker studies are producing devices that can test the blood for proteins unique to brain cells and indicate whether brain cells are damaged.

"When brain cells die and break [apart]," Hack said, "they spill their contents into the brain fluid. Some of that gets across into the blood and we can measure it."

An application for FDA approval of the device will be submitted sometime in 2013, the physician said, "and hopefully we can have an approved test by the end of 2013."

Eye movements are another way to get a look inside the brain.

"Certain kinds of eye movements are affected by even mild brain injury," Hack said, "so we have some projects in that. We have others in sensory function. Balance, for instance, or vestibular function, is also quite sensitive to brain injury.

In such fledgling brain science studies, the researchers have to make sure they're diagnosing the right conditions.

"Confounders are other conditions that could cause the same problems," Hack said, "and we need to make sure in our studies that we're able to differentiate brain injury from other conditions that can cause functional impact," including Alzheimer's disease, for example, or even lack of sleep or poor nutrition.

The program's three-pronged approach to understanding mTBI, he said, is to determine whether there is brain cell damage, where the damage is and its functional impact.

"The science behind all of that is still very rudimentary, so we're spending a lot of effort in those areas," he said.

The program also funds drug trials, some of which examine existing drugs to see if they have a beneficial effect on brain inflammation, which can occur after a brain injury.

Atorvastatin, whose brand name is Lipitor, "is one of the drugs that has shown a benefit [on inflammation] in brain cells."

The program is working with the National Institutes of Health on a phase III clinical trial of the female hormone progesterone.

"Progesterone is essentially a steroid that also is a female hormone but it is called a neurosteroid as well," Hack said. "It has a positive benefit on brain inflammation."

He added, "We don't think there's any one drug that will [help those with mTBI]. This is a complex problem and it's going to take multiple approaches to solving it."

A HOLOCAUST SURVIVOR SPEAKS TO CADETS

FROM:  U.S. AIR FORCE
Holocaust survivor: 'You're the last generation that will hear from us'
by Amber Baillie
Academy Spirit staff writer

4/23/2012 - U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. (AFNS) -- To this day, 77-year-old Marion Blumenthal Lazan feels a strong sense of fear when she sees a German shephard.

It takes her back to that cold, rainy night in 1944 when she arrived at Bergen-Belsen concentration camp as a 9-year-old, and was threatened along with thousands of other Jewish families by Nazi guards with vicious police dogs.

Although it's difficult for Lazan to revisit that dark period, she shared her story with 90 cadets at a luncheon April 17 in the Mitchell Hall Formal Dining Room for Holocaust Remembrance Week.

"Although I've spoken to upward of 1 million students and adults over the past 20 years, it still hasn't become easy," Lazan said. "I do recognize the importance of sharing that period of history because in a few short years, Holocaust survivors will no longer be able to give a first-hand account of it."

"You're the last generation that will hear from us, so I ask you to share my story, or any of the Holocaust stories that you have read and heard about," she added.

Lazan spoke about her experiences during World War II from Nazi concentration camps to liberation, and how she started her life anew in the United States.

"Mine is a story that Anne Frank might have told had she survived," Lazan said. "This is a story that could bring a message of preservance, determination, faith and above all, hope."

Lazan said she will never forget the night of Nov. 9, 1938. Often referred to as Kristallnacht, or Night of Broken Glass, Nazis and their followers destroyed Jewish stores, synagogues and books, and Lazan's father was sent to a concentration camp.

"This was the beginning of a massive physical and verbal assault against Jews in Germany," Lazan said. "In reality, this was the beginning of the Holocaust."

The Blumenthal family, Marion, her mother, Ruth, father, Walter and brother, Albert, had filed papers to immigrate to America but were trapped by the Germans in the Netherlands. Eventually the family was shipped to a concentration camp.

"When we saw the cattle cars we were to travel in, our fears began to mount," Lazan said. "Adults suspected and they somehow knew what was in store for us."

Lazan said while at Bergen-Belsen, 600 people were crammed into crude, wooden barracks with two people per bunk.

"There was no privacy, no toilet paper, no soap and hardly any water to wash with," Lazan said. "In the almost year and a half we were there, never once were we able to brush our teeth."

Lazan said she never knew if she'd survive while being marched to the showers once a month.

"Watchful eyes of the guards ordered us to undress and because people had heard about exterminations and gas chambers, we were never quite sure what would come out when the faucets were turned on: Water or gas."

Lazan said death was an everyday occurrence often caused by malnutrition and dysentery. The dark living quarters would cause people to trip and fall over the dead, she said.

"We as children saw things that no one, no matter the age, should ever have to see," Lazan said. "I know that you've probably heard and seen movies and documentaries about the Holocaust, but the constant foul odor, filth and continuous horror and fear surrounded by death is indescribable. There is no way that this can actually be put into words or pictures."

Lazan said she would play make-believe games in her pastime, one in which became very important to her, and eventually became the title of her book, "Four Perfect Pebbles."

"I decided that if I was to find four pebbles of about the same size and shape, that it would mean my four family members would all survive," Lazan said. "I always found my four pebbles, and this game gave me some distant hope."

Lazon said her meager diet caused her stomach to shrink, and hunger was no longer painful.

"By liberation, at age 10-and-a-half, I weighed 35 pounds and my mother, a mere 60," Lazan said. "There is no doubt in my mind that it was my mother's inner strength and fortitude that finally saw us through."

In April 1945, the Russian army liberated the Nazi train one which Lazan and her family were aboard. The train was headed to the extermination camp and gas chambers.

"It's truly remarkable how any of us were able to survive in such horrendous conditions," she said. "Five hundred people died on the route or shortly after."

Among the dead was Lazan's father, who succumbed to typhus six weeks after liberation.

Two years later, at age 13, Marion, alongside her mother and brother, immigrated to the United States.

"It's a wonderful story of how we gradually recuperated and started our lives anew," Lazan said.

Lazan graduated from high school on time, after a delayed education, and married her husband Nathaniel Lazan, who later became a B-25 Mitchell Bomber pilot in the Air Force.

"My relationship with the Air Force goes back to the 1950s," Lazan said. "It was a proud moment when I pinned the silver wings on my husband in 1955 at Reese Air Force Base in Lubbock, Texas."

Lazan said despite all of the terrible things that happened to her as a child, her life today is full and rewarding.

"I'm very grateful that I survived body, mind and spirit, and was able to perpetuate my heritage with my husband and family," Lazan said.

Holocaust Remembrance Day was April 19

U.S. AMBASSADOR RICE REMARKS ON THE MIDDLE EAST

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Remarks by Ambassador Susan E. Rice, U. S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations, At a Security Council Open Debate on the Middle East
Susan E. Rice
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
U.S. Mission to the United Nations New York, NYApril 23, 2012
AS DELIVERED
Thank you, Under Secretary-General Pascoe, for your briefing.
Earlier this month, Secretary of State Clinton hosted the most recent Quartet meeting in Washington, at which the Quartet principals welcomed plans for dialogue between the parties and discussed ways to support them. We have worked closely with our international partners, including the Quartet, to support the parties as they take steps to re-engage and rebuild communications. We should all support that effort, help to create a conducive climate, and avoid any initiatives that distract from the pursuit of peace.
On April 17, we saw the beginning of a dialogue, when senior Palestinian officials delivered the first letter in an exchange with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu. In a joint statement issued following the meeting, the parties said, and I quote, “Both sides hope the exchange of letters will help find a way to advance peace." The United States shares that hope and views the exchange as a positive step that builds on the Jordanian-hosted talks and the statements by the Quartet since last September.

In its most recent meeting, the Quartet also focused on the importance of fostering continued international support for the Palestinian Authority’s important institution-building efforts. In order to realize a future where Palestinians live in a sovereign state of their own, we must vigorously support the difficult steps needed to build the institutions and capacities of a future Palestinian state.

We welcome the actions taken by the parties to resolve the outstanding issues related to tax and revenue collection, and urge their prompt conclusion. While the parties address these difficult issues, the international community must continue to play a vital role in support of their efforts. The United States echoes the Quartet's call for continued international support for institution-building by the Palestinian Authority, including for contributions toward the $1.1 billion required to meet the Palestinian Authority’s 2012 recurrent financing requirements. This funding is essential to preserve and build on the Palestinian Authority’s institutional gains and to expand economic opportunities for the Palestinian people.

As we look to improve the financial situation on one side, we must do our utmost to promote an atmosphere of cooperation on both sides. International partners should urge the parties to refrain from provocative and unhelpful actions, including in Jerusalem, that undermine trust, cause delay, or threaten to derail prospects for a negotiated settlement. Lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians requires both parties to take meaningful steps.

Provocative actions, including rocket fire from Gaza, should be unanimously condemned. Such attacks are unacceptable and serve as a constant reminder of the serious threat posed to civilians by the illegal trafficking of weapons to Gaza.

The Palestinians must continue efforts on security cooperation, strengthening public institutions, and ending incitement. Any Palestinian government must accept the principles established by the Quartet that are the building blocks of an independent Palestinian state: renouncing violence, recognizing Israel, and accepting previous agreements.

We likewise urge Israel to continue and to step up its efforts to deter, confront, and prosecute anti-Palestinian violence and extremist hate crimes. Let me also reiterate that we do not accept the legitimacy of continued Israeli settlement activity. We continue to oppose any effort to legalize outposts. The fate of existing settlements must be dealt with by the parties, along with the other permanent-status issues.
I will now turn to the situation in Syria, where the threat to international peace and security is both urgent and grave.

The scale of the Assad regime’s murderous campaign is shocking. Ten thousand Syrians killed; tens of thousands injured and imprisoned; widespread torture; and an ever worsening crisis of displaced persons and refugees. The conflict is also destabilizing Syria’s neighbors. In Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon, there are already tens of thousands of Syrian refugees. Turkey and Lebanon have recently seen deadly violence spill across their borders. The United States continues to support the international humanitarian response to the crisis in Syria, providing more than $33 million in assistance, much of it channeled through UN agencies and programs We will continue to support those in greatest need.

Two days ago, this Council authorized a UN supervision mission in Syria, charged with monitoring compliance with the full set of commitments and obligations laid out in Joint Special Envoy Kofi Annan’s Six-Point Plan. We welcome the positive statements from various Syrian opposition figures and groups about this new mission, understanding how desperate the Syrian people are for assistance and, ultimately, for political change. Syrians have said they hope this mission can help restrain the regime’s brutality and that it will help them uphold their rights to express themselves freely. But we are all sober in our expectations. The regime’s long track record is one of dependable deceit and deception. Thus, this UN mission is unusually risky and dangerous. The Syrian regime should make no mistake: we will be watching its actions day and night. We will work to ensure there will be consequences should the Syrian regime continue to ignore this Council’s decisions, press ahead with its murderous rampage, and flout the will of the international community.

Let me conclude by reiterating the United States’ appreciation to the United Nations personnel—both military and civilian—who will comprise this new mission. The United States urges the Government of Syria to seize this chance for a peaceful political solution to the crisis – before it’s too late.

Thank you.

SPECIAL BRIEFING ON INTERNATIONAL ENERGY AFFAIRS

FROM;  U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Joint Coordinating Committee on Energy
Special Briefing Carlos Pascual
Special Envoy and Coordinator for International Energy Affairs Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Hussain Al Shahristani and Deputy Secretary of Energy Daniel Poneman,
Washington, DC
April 23, 2012

MR. TONER: Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to the State Department. As you know, today, Monday, April 23rd, the United States and the Government of Iraq held the inaugural meeting of the Joint Coordinating Committee on Energy at the Department of Energy. And here to talk about that meeting and some of the issues raised there, we have the Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Dr. Hussain Al Shahristani, as well as our Special Envoy and Coordinator for International Energy Affairs Ambassador Carlos Pascual, and of course Deputy Secretary of the Department of Energy Dan Poneman.
So without further ado, I’ll let Ambassador Pascual take the mike.

AMBASSADOR PASCUAL: Thank you. Good afternoon. It’s a pleasure to see you, and on behalf of the State Department and the Department of Energy, let me introduce you to the Joint Coordinating Committee on Energy. It’s reflective of the relationship between the United States and Iraq and how it has evolved and how we have established mechanisms to be able to work on issues that are critical to both countries, and energy is obviously one of those. It’s fundamental to Iraq’s economic future. It’s fundamental to its ability to generate power for its own people. It’s fundamental to its ability – to Iraq’s ability to supply international markets. And in that context, it’s of direct interest to the United States.

We have been working together on how to support Iraq’s efforts to increase its oil production, and indeed, Iraq, through its efforts, has reached a level of about 3 million barrels a day in production. Last year, the average was about 2.7 million barrels a day, and the year before that it was about 2.4 million barrels a day, reflective of a consistent increase over time. And hence, one of the issues we discussed was how to sustain that progress. One of the issues that Deputy Prime Minister Shahristani focused particular attention on was the importance of turning Iraq’s energy resources into the benefit for the Iraqi people, and in that sense, the importance of electricity generation. And so we reviewed how to continue to work together on increasing electricity availability internally with Iraq.

Our commitment to this Joint Coordinating Committee is a reflection of the all-of-government approach that we have taken. The Department of Energy and the Department of State have been chairing it together, but we have included participants from a range of other agencies, including the Department of Treasury, the Department of Commerce, and some of our security agencies looking at Iraq’s energy infrastructure. And through this kind of ongoing mechanism, our intent is to be able to reinforce in a consistent, steady way, the development of Iraq’s hydrocarbon resources, electricity resources for its people, the environment for international companies to be able to invest, and through that, the United States will benefit as well.

So with that, let me ask my colleague, the deputy secretary of Energy, who has played an absolutely leadership role in the establishment of this Joint Coordinating Committee and a leadership role within our government on energy issues, Don Poneman, to say a few words.

DEPUTY SECRETARY PONEMAN: Thank you. Thank you, Ambassador. This is a historic moment. It’s a pivotal moment in the transition of the relationship between the United States and Iraq, rooted in the 2008 Strategic Framework Agreement. We now see, as we have been working for many years in the energy sector, that sector move front and center. As many of us joined Vice President Biden last December when we witnessed the transition from a military-dominated relationship into, much more formally, a civilian-driven relationship, we’ve been working hard to expand on the cooperation that Ambassador Pascual has just outlined.

The areas of cooperation are wide. The opportunities that we have discussed and that we have identified are vast. And we have reached a strong convergence of view with our Iraqi partners on a path forward. Clearly, it’s centered in the oil and gas sector, as you heard Ambassador Pascual note. There have been impressive gains in Iraqi oil production in recent years, and those gains look set to continue. We have been working hard also in the area of electricity – not only power generation, but discussing such widespread issues as demand-side management, energy efficiency, and even the possibility of developing renewable energy resources in Iraq.

We have also, with, I think, great enthusiasm on both sides, talked about the importance of critical infrastructure protection. And our Iraqi colleagues will have a chance further to discuss this as they make their way around the U.S. and talk to other experts in this area. In this connection, I would like to note that as the next stage of this cooperation, I’m delighted to join Deputy Prime Minister Shahristani, and we will be visiting Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, where we’ll be able to continue not only discussions about critical infrastructures, but also on some of the exciting new energy technologies that have so much promise for us all.

As Ambassador Pascual said, none of this would be possible without tremendous cooperation from the other agencies and the leadership of the President, the Vice President, or the Secretary of State, who have been very, very clear with us on the importance that they attach to the burgeoning energy relationship between the United States and Iraq. It’s an area not only of great opportunity, but in which we have a very clear convergence of interest, and, as we agreed in our very extensive discussions for the first part of today, we have a very clear sense on both sides and mutually what work we have before us, and I think we’re all very enthusiastic to embrace that work program.
And with that, I’d like to not only thank our State Department hosts and Ambassador Pascual, who’s also been absolutely essential in this effort, but also turn the floor over to our esteemed colleague and good friend, Deputy Prime Minister Shahristani.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER SHAHRISTANI: Well, thank you, and thank you for coming. Iraq is called upon to cater for the world energy needs in the coming years, and it is expected that the world will need more energy, more hydrocarbon energy, in the coming two to three decades, and Iraq is uniquely positioned to be able to provide the world with its incremental energy needs. That’s why we have invited the international oil companies to work with us to develop the Iraqi resources, and the work has started based on the contracts where they signed two years ago. And the production is already increasing, and so are our exports.
We have developed infrastructure to enable us to handle more exports to the world market. As we speak, Iraq is producing more than 3 million barrels per day of crude oil, but we expect in the coming six years to be able to increase that capacity of production to more than 10 million barrels per day. This is to assure the world market that there is sufficient crude for them. We’d like Iraq to be considered as a dependable long-term supplier of world energy needs, whether oil or gas, and there should not be concerns of shortages in the supply in the near future.

We are extremely happy with our cooperation with the United States, not only to develop our energy resources but the general Strategic Framework Agreement in a number of areas. The United States have stood beside the Iraqi people to help them free from a dictatorship, build a democracy, rebuild the country. And as we are moving into a more strategic cooperation in civil areas, we consider the energy sector as one of the most important sectors where the two countries can cooperate not only to develop and unleash Iraq’s potentials in the short term, but also to look further forward to develop other sources of energy that – alternative sources of energy in Iraq.

Gas is – also is a very important resource that many countries in the region and also in Europe are looking towards Iraq to be able to provide them with some of their needs. Iraq is very much interested to be a partner and a supplier of gas to not only our Arab neighbors but also to the European countries and the world at large. We have also discussed cooperation in protecting the Iraqi energy infrastructure, whether on shore or offshore. This area of cooperation is also extremely important. And we look forward to further cooperation in other areas.

We also had a chance to meet with some American companies who are interested and looking to investment opportunities in Iraq. We welcome them and assure them that Iraq, with its new policies of – and investment incentives, is most welcoming to international companies, specifically to the American companies and come – to come and work not only in the energy sector but in all other sectors – in the financial sector, in the telecommunications sector, in the reconstruction, housing, and so on. There’s a great potential over the coming years to work in Iraq, and we hope that this cooperation and the success that we have already had with the oil companies to develop our fields would be incentive to the other companies to come and join us in rebuilding Iraq.
Thank you.

MR. TONER: Thank you. We have time for a few questions, just if you could give your name and media affiliation.
Go ahead, Andy.

QUESTION: Andy Quinn from Reuters. I’d like to address, actually, all three of you if I may, and ask if, during your discussions, if the situation with Kurdistan and Exxon came up, what the current state of play is with that particular issue. And specifically to the deputy prime minister, was Exxon’s decision to freeze its contacts with the KRG enough to get it back on the list of prequalified companies for the next round?

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER SHAHRISTANI: Well, Exxon, being the largest oil company in the world, have been among the first companies to sign a contract and work on developing one of the largest super-giant fields in the south of Iraq. They are continue their work, and the progress of work has been so far totally good, according to plan. And they are – we are discussing with them the concerns that were raised in Iraq when a contract was signed with the KRG. You asked if that letter, commitment that they will freeze things as they are is – are sufficient. The answer is yes. And we are working with the KRG – try to develop a framework to enable all companies to be able to work in Iraq.

DEPUTY SECRETARY PONEMAN: I would just add, since you directed it to us as well, we maintain, of course, a continuing dialogue with all U.S. companies doing business around the world. And that having been said, on the particular matters before – between a company and a government, we don’t get in the middle of that discussion. Our role as a government is to work with the other government to encourage any issues that may be involving sovereigns to be resolved in a manner that’s clear and transparent, and that any due process that is required for U.S. companies be offered in the same spirit of due process that we call for companies all across the world. It was not specifically a part of our JCC agenda.

MR. TONER: Yeah. Go ahead, Michel.

QUESTION: Yeah. How will the lack of a comprehensive oil agreement between Iraqis affect the cooperation between the U.S. and the Iraqis? I don’t know what kind of –

AMBASSADOR PASCUAL: Well, I think, first of all, one of the things which the Iraqi side has been consistently working on is to try to find a mechanism to create a hydrocarbons law and reach consensus internally within the country so that everybody has clear rules of the road.

In the meantime, throughout most of the country, mechanisms have been put in place that have allowed companies to be able to make investments and to begin production. We’ve seen that in the south with the significant production increases that have already occurred. We’ve seen the potential for it in the northern parts of the country, including the Kurdish region.

There have been disputes, and the Iraqi Government has been very clear about that. We’ve heard about it from both the KRG and from the Iraqi side. And the critical issue that we’ve been trying to play – to work on from the perspective of the United States Government is to play any kind of facilitating role, either from technical advice or any other matter, that could be helpful or useful to the parties. But in the end, it has to be fundamentally an issue that the Iraqi parties decide.

In the meantime, there is still tremendous potential and opportunity for the development of energy resources within Iraq, and we have seen that consistently over the past few years. And even as we speak right now, new investments have been put online that are allowing for additional export production capacity, including a single-point mooring mechanism, a second one which has just been opened up and which a ship is, in fact, actually being loaded.

So we look forward to the continued increase of production and export out of Iraq, but at the same time, we are encouraging all of the parties to do everything that they can so that they have clear rules of the road going into the future on how they are able to further develop their hydrocarbons resources.

MR. TONER: Minister, go ahead.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER SHAHRISTANI: Yeah, I’ll just add to that. Sorry, I’ll just add to that. Of course, to have a hydrocarbon law, legislation that clears all the issues is important, and the Iraqi Government is pushing for the legislation of such a law. However, this has not deterred the oil companies to come and sign contracts and to start working in the country. They have already succeeded to increase production and to increase exports. And we are trying, with the oil companies that have signed contracts with us, our best to increase Iraq’s production to a significantly higher level than what we are producing right now. Until the new hydrocarbon law is legislated, the prevailing laws in Iraq that have been regulating the energy sector with – the oil sector or electricity – are enforced till they are changed by a new legislation.

AMABASSADOR PASCUAL: Go ahead.

QUESTION: Dr. Shahristani, Dave Ivanovich with Argus Media. I believe you said – you had mentioned 10 million barrels a day within six years. Now I also – if I understand it right, you’ve also talked about reducing your output target – your output capacity target for 2017. So is the 10 million barrels a day the new target that you were contemplating?

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER SHAHRISTANI: We have engaged the IOCs who are developing these fields to put a production plan based on best reservoir practices to increase the recoverable oil from these fields. We have also engaged international consultants to advise us on what are the best production targets for Iraq. And we are revising the recommendations that – we are reviewing the recommendations that have been made, and before the end of the year, Iraq will make a decision and announce it as what are the targets for the coming years. But the figure that I mentioned, about 10 million barrels a day, this is a revised figure. The contracts that have already been signed, the 12 contracts for the 12 oil fields and the three gas fields, the total plateau of these contracts is about 12 million barrels per day.

MR. TONER: I think there’s time for a couple more questions. Any other questions? Go ahead, Andy.

QUESTION: Okay. I’ve actually got one for the American participants. It’s not explicitly on Iraq, but I’m wondering if you could talk a little bit about whether or not the current falling energy prices make it more likely the strategic preserves might be tapped. And do you feel that the Iran sanctions alone make that – are enough to justify tapping the SAR, or would an additional market disruption be necessary?

DEPUTY SECRETARY PONEMAN: The President has been very clear about this. First of all, in reference to the prices, I think everyone who is – including me – who has been to the gas pump understands the pain all Americans are feeling. And it’s hurting families and it’s hurting companies, and we are very focused on the current high state of energy prices, and they are too high. We have been watching closely, daily the energy markets for disruptions. We have, as the President has made clear, kept every tool available to us in a state that they can be used. And we are continually consulting with our international partners on this.

We are looking at the whole cluster of factors that contribute to this – the production that has fallen off the market, the demands in the market, both pro and con – and we’re going to keep monitoring those issues. It will not be any single issue. The President has also been clear that the regional tensions that are related to Iran’s noncompliance are unsettling markets, and in that respect the best thing for Iran to do would be to return to full compliance with their international obligations.

MR. TONER: Last question, in the back.

QUESTION: Jim Michaels, USA Today. Dr. Shahristani, a question about power generation, electricity. Clearly demand is continuing to go up, but I’m wondering if you have some projections at when you anticipate supply will be able to meet demand or close to meeting demand.

DEPUTY PRIME MINISTER SHAHRISTANI: We have already signed contracts to build new power stations with a total capacity of 15 gigawatts. The construction is actually going on. Some of these new power stations will be ready this year, some of them during the summer and others before the end of the year. And all this new power generation we expect to be connected to the grid before the end of next year. So by then, we should have enough generating capacity. The 15,000 in addition to the about 9,000 we have this year should meet all the demand, including the anticipated increase for the coming – for this year and the coming year.

And our plans is to build additional plants with a total generating capacity of 30 gigawatts in the coming four to five years. And most of these units are based on gas turbines that have already been purchased and are being constructed now. Our second phase will be to convert them into combined cycles that can add another 50 percent to the generating capacity. So these are our projections for power generation. Our projection for the increase in demand is about one gigawatt per year. So we should have sufficient spare capacity when these new power stations are completed.

MR. TONER: Thank you. Thanks to all of you for coming. Thanks.

NASA RECRUITS AMATEUR ASTRONOMERS TO TARGET ASTEROIDS

WASHINGTON -- A new NASA outreach project will enlist the help of
amateur astronomers to discover near-Earth objects (NEOs) and study
their characteristics. NEOs are asteroids with orbits that
occasionally bring them close to the Earth.

Starting today, a new citizen science project called "Target
Asteroids!" will support NASA's Origins Spectral Interpretation
Resource Identification Security - Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx)
mission objectives to improve basic scientific understanding of NEOs.
OSIRIS-REx is scheduled for launch in 2016 and will study material
from an asteroid.

Amateur astronomers will help better characterize the population of
NEOs, including their position, motion, rotation and changes in the
intensity of light they emit. Professional astronomers will use this
information to refine theoretical models of asteroids, improving
their understanding about asteroids similar to the one OSIRIS-Rex
will encounter in 2019, designated 1999 RQ36.

OSIRIS-REx will map the asteroid's global properties, measure
non-gravitational forces and provide observations that can be
compared with data obtained by telescope observations from Earth. In
2023, OSIRIS-REx will return back to Earth at least 2.11 ounces (60
grams) of surface material from the asteroid.

Target Asteroids! data will be useful for comparisons with actual
mission data. The project team plans to expand participants in 2014
to students and teachers.

"Although few amateur astronomers have the capability to observe 1999
RQ36 itself, they do have the capability to observe other targets,"
said Jason Dworkin, OSIRIS-REx project scientist at NASA's Goddard
Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md.
Previous observations indicate 1999 RQ36 is made of primitive
materials. OSIRIS-REx will supply a wealth of information about the
asteroid's composition and structure. Data also will provide new
insights into the nature of the early solar system and its evolution,
orbits of NEOs and their impact risks, and the building blocks that
led to life on Earth.

Amateur astronomers long have provided NEO tracking observations in
support of NASA's NEO Observation Program. A better understanding of
NEOs is a critically important precursor in the selection and
targeting of future asteroid missions.

"For well over 10 years, amateurs have been important contributors in
the refinement of orbits for newly discovered near-Earth objects,"
said Edward Beshore, deputy principal investigator for the OSIRIS-REx
mission at the University of Arizona in Tucson.

NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., will provide
overall mission management, systems engineering and safety and
mission assurance for OSIRIS-REx. Dante Lauretta is the mission's
principal investigator at the University of Arizona. Lockheed Martin
Space Systems in Denver will build the spacecraft. OSIRIS-REx is the
third mission in NASA's New Frontiers Program. NASA's Marshall Space
Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., manages New Frontiers for the
agency's Science Mission Directorate in Washington.