FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Press Availability at Ben Gurion International Airport
Press Availability
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Tel Aviv, Israel
December 6, 2013
SECRETARY KERRY: We’re here this morning just outside of Tel Aviv, but our hearts are in Johannesburg with all the millions of people who loved Nelson Mandela. Madiba’s long walk to freedom gave new meaning to character and to courage, to forgiveness, and to human dignity. And now that his long walk has ended, the example that he set for all of humanity lives on. He will be remembered as a pioneer for peace, and there are some people, I think, in the course of life who truly – you meet and you are touched by them, and you’re forever changed by the experience. Nelson Mandela is one of those people.
Teresa and I had the honor of sitting with Mandela over the Thanksgiving holidays of 2007, and – that and several other times. And I also stood in his tiny cell on Robben Island, a room with barely enough space to be able to lie down in or stand up in. I learned that the glare of the white rock quarry on the island permanently damaged his eyesight, and it hit home even more how remarkable it was that after spending 27 years locked up, locked away, and having his own vision impaired by that condition, that this man was still able to see the best interests of his country, the best interests of humanity, and embrace even the very guards who kept him prisoner. That is the story of a man whose ability to see resided not just in his eyes but in his conscience. He was a stranger to hate. He rejected recrimination in favor of reconciliation, and he knew the future demands required that we move beyond the place that he had been, beyond the past.
So we just think of the lessons that he taught the world which have special significance at this moment in history. He said, “It always seems impossible until it is done.” I think it’s appropriate for us to think about that in the context of the work that I’ve been doing here in the last couple of days and over these last months, and of the hopes and aspirations of the people of this region. That example of Nelson Mandela is an example that we all need to take to heart as we face the challenge of trying to reach a two-state solution.
Over the past two days, I had the opportunity to meet with both Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Abbas. And despite the fact that we are discussing really difficult, complicated issues, I am encouraged by the continued commitment of both leaders to the pursuit of peace. And they both underscored their commitment to continue to work through these difficult issues in the days ahead. As we look to the challenges that we face in the coming months, we need to all be not just reminded of the example of Nelson Mandela’s words, but by his actions. The naysayers are wrong to call peace in this region an impossible goal. It always seems impossible until it’s done.
Since the two parties first agreed to resume talks four months ago, they have held regular discussions and the United States has remained in close contact with both sides. It hasn’t been easy; I won’t pretend that. But none of the parties embarked on this path with the expectation that it was going to be a simple or easy process. We all knew upfront that it would be a long, arduous, and complicated journey.
Nonetheless, it is absolutely clear to me through the discussions that we had – and believe me, I wouldn’t spend these hours and I wouldn’t come back here given the agenda that we face on a global basis if I didn’t think it was worthwhile, if President Obama didn’t believe it was worth pursuing. And it is quite clear that both President Abbas and Prime Minister Netanyahu remain as determined as ever to continue down this path and to explore these possibilities. Because both parties have the same endpoint in their sights: Two nations for two peoples living side by side in peace and prosperity.
But neither peace nor prosperity are possible without security, and the United States will only support a final status agreement that makes both Israelis and Palestinians more secure than they are today. As I made clear yesterday, the commitment of the United States to Israel’s security is ironclad. It is a commitment that spans decades. It is permanent. In 1973, that commitment was the driving force behind the 32-day airlift the United States conducted to deliver military assistance to Israeli forces during the Yom Kippur War. More than 20 years ago, that commitment was the reason we began work with Israel to develop ballistic missile defense technologies that continue to protect the Israeli people from the range of threats that they face every day. And at this moment, our commitment to Israel’s security – a central issue as we work towards a lasting peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians, and as we work towards the creation of a viable, independent, Palestinian state.
That’s why President Obama and I have been working very closely with General John Allen, who is one of the United States’ most experienced military leaders, and a team with him of American defense experts – so that we can anticipate all of the threats to Israel’s security at every step of the final status negotiations process and work out ways to address those threats as well as to address the complicated questions of security within a new state of Palestine and to deal with the issues of a viable independent Palestinian state and the security challenges that that presents. Together, there is no doubt in my mind we can reach an agreement that will support the peaceful and promising Palestine that the Palestinian people deserve alongside a prosperous and a more secure Israel.
There’s another issue at the heart of Israel’s security that’s also been a key focus of all of our discussions, and that is the P5+1 negotiations with respect to Iran. Throughout these negotiations, our commitment to Israel’s security is paramount. The fact remains that both the United States and Israel have the same priority with respect to Iran. We are laser-focused on preventing the Iranians from acquiring a nuclear weapon. The United States firmly believes that the P5+1 first-step agreement not only makes Israel more secure than it was the day before that agreement, but we believe it will take us closer to a lasting, peaceful, and comprehensive solution to the Iranian nuclear program. It is the best opportunity we have to resolve the international community’s concerns about Iran’s nuclear program.
I pledge this, as President Obama has: As we proceed forward in this negotiation, we will continue to consult very closely with Israel as the negotiations resume as well as with our other friends and allies in the region and around the world, because that input is critical to us in the process. And as is known, Security Advisor to Prime Minister Netanyahu Yossi Cohen will travel to the United States next week. We will be engaging in very direct conversations so that we are on the same track going forward. I look forward to speaking in greater detail about the United States partnership with Israel tomorrow when I address the Saban Forum in Washington, D.C.
For now, let me just now reiterate how grateful I am for the courage that both Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Abbas both continue to display against naysayers, against opponents, as they pursue a full exploration of the possibilities of peace. I believe we are closer than we have been in years to bringing about the peace and the prosperity and the security that all of the people of this region deserve and yearn for.
Thank you very much, and I look forward to answering any questions.
MODERATOR: Lara Jakes, AP.
QUESTION: Thanks. Thank you. Just kind of following up on what you just said, you said you believe that we are closer than we have been in years to bringing about peace and prosperity. You’ve been here eight times, and as you know, the media is full of reports that there has actually been no progress made. So what specific examples of progress can you give us to show for your time here?
Also, this was the first time that General Allen briefed the prime minister on some ideas for a security resolution for Israel. Is the U.S. moving now into a more proactive bridging role because the two sides together have been unable to come up with some kind of resolution, solution, or compromise? Thanks.
SECRETARY KERRY: Well, no, actually, no. Let me answer the first – the second part of the question first as I answer the first part of the question.
The United States has always been an active participant and will remain an active participant, but the negotiation is between the two parties. And we play a critical role because we have an ability to be able to provide technology as well as other technical capacity as well as concepts that we can help shape with respect to security. Now, why do I say that I believe we’re making progress? Because we’ve gone through a very detailed, lengthy, in-depth analysis of the security challenges of the region, and particularly the challenges to Israel and to the creation of a viable, independent Palestinian state. And that process has taken time.
General John Allen, who came with me on this trip and did brief, did so because we’ve reached a point where we have something to brief on, where we have results as a consequence of the analysis that’s been made. And we believe we’re able to contribute thinking as a consequence of those – that analysis that could help both the Palestinians and the Israelis to make judgments about some of the choices that are important to arriving at an agreement. So that is progress, and it hasn’t come easily. There are about 160 people who have contributed one way or the other to the process General Allen has pursued. The intelligence community, the Department of Defense, the State Department, the White House – all have been engaged in thinking through the various possibilities of how you deal with one problem or another with respect to security. And so obviously, security is paramount in the minds of the prime minister and his team with respect to their ability to be able to move forward with other issues that have to be dealt with. If Israel’s security cannot be increased through this agreement, it’s very difficult to make an agreement. So we are making certain that we’re addressing each and every one of those questions.
And I’m not going to comment further on the progress, but one thing I will say is this: We purposefully agreed at the beginning of this process that I would be the only person to comment on these talks publicly. And I notice in the newspapers or in some comments here or there there’s a leak and somebody suggests this or that. I have no idea who is leaking; I know it’s not me, and I’m the only authorized spokesperson. So whatever people are saying that something is on the table or not on the table or this or that is really not grounded in these talks. Some people may want to think they know more than others or suggest that they know what’s going on or – but the reality is that the people who really know what’s going on are not talking about it. And so there is not going to be a lot of information coming out. And the fact that there is not a lot of information coming out doesn’t mean that the talks aren’t being productive.
So we feel – I mean, I wouldn’t spend these hours if I didn’t think it was productive and we weren’t hammering out important concepts. And nor would the prime minister of Israel, who has a lot to do, spend this kind of time – nor would President Abbas, who has major responsibilities with respect to finance and to management of the Palestinian Authority. But all of us are committed to this process and they have taken, particularly, political heat for choices they have made in order to continue to pursue it. And guess what? They are continuing and they remain committed, and that’s because they know that we are engaged in serious conversations about how we could resolve the differences between the parties.
MODERATOR: Anne Gearan from The Washington Post.
QUESTION: Thank you. Mr. Secretary, do you leave here today with any assurances from the Israeli prime minister that he will be quieter or more cooperative on the Iran talks front? And also, did you discuss with him directly the role of Congress and possible new sanctions and anything that he might do to influence against that? Thank you.
SECRETARY KERRY: No. I did not have any conversation with the prime minister regarding Congress or Congress’s role. But of course, we did discuss the substance of the issue of Iran and the negotiation. And look, the prime minister has every right in the world to make his views known with respect to his concerns about the security of his country, and we would expect him to do that. But the prime minister has also been extremely constructive in working with us on the next steps and where we need to go now. He understands that we are now in the real negotiation.
And as I pointed out in my earlier comments, and I’ll say this again – I have said this to the prime minister, and I think it’s – and I’ll say this again now to the people of Israel and to any interested parties: I am personally convinced beyond any reasonable doubt that Israel is safer today after we have reached this first-step agreement than it was before we did that. Why do I say that? I say that because we are now engaged in the major comprehensive discussion that the prime minister wanted us to be engaged in, but guess what? We have stopped their program where it is.
They are destroying – under requirements, they will have to destroy the 20 percent enriched uranium in its entirety. They will not be able to grow their 3.5 percent enriched to stock at all. They will not be allowed to put new centrifuges in place. They will have to submit to inspections of the Fordow facility, of Natanz facility, of Arak facility. The Arak facility cannot progress at all with the installation of components or the testing of additional fuel or the installation of any of the nuclear components. And therefore, we have expanded the amount of time during which Iran could actually break out. That makes Israel safer in our judgment.
And the fear of the prime minister with respect to the sanctions is certainly an appropriate concern, but it is one that the Treasury Department and the Obama Administration are absolutely determined to prevent from becoming a problem, because we have the ability to control what happens with respect to those sanctions. And we will continue to enforce them. There is no change in the fundamental sanctions regime. A very small amount of money is released, but those sanctions will continue over the course of these negotiations. And we are free at any time, if Iran is not complying, or we do not move forward, to ratchet up those sanctions and even to go back to Congress and ask for additional sanctions.
So I am convinced that we have put forward a strong proposal, and now what we are doing with Israel is working very closely on what the final comprehensive agreement ought to look like. Israel and the United States are absolutely in sync, not an ounce of daylight between us, with respect to the need to make sure that Iran cannot achieve a nuclear weapon, will not in the future be able to achieve it, and certainly cannot move towards it without the United States of America and Israel knowing that and therefore being able to take steps to deal with it. I believe Israel is safer today and we will approach this final negotiation with an absolute view about Israel’s security, Israel’s safety, the region’s safety, and our ability to stand up afterwards and say, this was an agreement that was good for the region, good for Israel, good for the United States, good for the world. That’s our objective.
MODERATOR: Thanks, everyone.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you all very much. Appreciate it.
Friday, December 6, 2013
U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT CONTRACTS FOR NOVEMBER 6, 2013
FROM: U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
CONTRACTS
AIR FORCE
Lockheed Martin Corp., Marietta, Ga., has been awarded up to $169,726,427 not-to-exceed firm-fixed-price contract for advance procurement funding for long lead efforts associated with 18 C-130J aircraft. Work will be performed at Marietta, Ga., and is expected to be completed by Oct. 31, 2016. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. Fiscal 2013 advance procurement funds in the amount of $169,726,427 are being obligated at time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center/WLNNC, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8625-14-C-6450).
Booz Allen Hamilton Inc., McLean, Va., has been awarded an $18,062,895 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification (P00047) under an existing contract (FA8811-10-C-0006) for systems engineering and integration support to the Launch and Test Range System . The contract modification extends the existing contract for one year. Work will be performed at Los Angeles Air Force Base, Calif., and is expected to be completed by Dec. 7, 2014. Fiscal 2014 other procurement and research and development funds in the amounf of $3,665,819 are being obligated at time of award. Range and Network Division, Space and Missile Systems Center, Los Angeles Air Force Base, Calif., is the contracting activity.
Oasis Systems LLC, Lexington, Mass., was awarded an $11,918,862 modification (P00005) on an existing cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost-reimbursable contract (FA8721-13-C-0025) for professional acquisition support services. This contract modification provides the exercise of an option for an additional six months of professional acquisition support services under the basic contract. Work will be performed at Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., and Langley Air Force Base, Va., and is expected to be completed by April 17, 2014. This modification provides professional acquisition support services in support of Air Force Life Cycle Management Center divisions. Fiscal 2012 procurement and fiscal 2013 research and development and procurement funds in the amount of $420,420 were obligated at time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Enterprise Acquisition Division/PZM, Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., is the contracting activity (Awarded Sept. 10, 2013).
Quantech Services Inc., Lexington, Mass., was awarded a $10,074,671 modification (P00006) on an existing cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost-reimbursable contract (FA8721-13-C-0016) for professional acquisition support services. This contract modification provides the exercise of an option for an additional six months of professional acquisition support services under the basic contract. Work will be performed at Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass. and Langley Air Force Base, Va., and is expected to be completed by April 17, 2014. This modification provides professional acquisition support services in support of Air Force Life Cycle Management Center divisions, including classified foreign military sales. FMS support accounts for approximately 46 percent of the stated modification and includes Afghanistan, Egypt, Jordan, and Oman. Fiscal 2013 research and development, procurement and FMS funds in the amount of $2,016,142 were obligated at time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Enterprise Acquisition Division/PZM, Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., is the contracting activity (Awarded Sept. 10, 2013).
Global Defense Systems LP, Warner Robins, Ga., has been awarded a $9,624,302, firm-fixed-price contract for 480 C-130 Loadmaster Crashworthy seats. The Crashworthy seat will provide lifesaving capabilities during hard landings. Work will be performed at Albertville, Ala., and is expected to be completed June 30, 2016. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition via the internet, and five offers were received. Fiscal 2011 and 2012 procurement funds in the amount of $9,624,302 are being obligated at time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center/WLKCA, Robins Air Force Base, Ga., is the contracting activity (FA8504-14-C-0002).
P E Systems Inc., Fairfax, Va., was awarded an $8,968,305 modification (P00005) on an existing cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost-reimbursable contract (FA8721-13-C-0029) for professional acquisition support services. This contract modification provides the exercise of an option for an additional six months of professional acquisition support services under the basic contract. Work will be performed at Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., Langley Air Force Base, Va., Washington, D.C., and Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, and is expected to be completed by April 17, 2014. This modification provides professional acquisition support services in support of Air Force Life Cycle Management Center divisions, including classified foreign military sales. FMS support accounts for approximately 1 percent of the stated modification and includes the countries of Germany, Greece, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and Thailand. Fiscal 2012 procurement and fiscal 2013 operations and maintenance, research and development, procurement and FMS funds in the amount of $621,641 were obligated at time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Enterprise Acquisition Division/PZM, Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., is the contracting activity (Awarded Sept. 19, 2013).
NAVY
Lockheed Martin, Mission Systems & Training, Mitchel Field, N.Y., is being awarded a $58,785,716 cost-plus-incentive fee, cost-plus-fixed fee contract for United States and United Kingdom D-5 navigation subsystem engineering support services. This contract provides for U.S. and U.K. fleet support, U.S. and U.K. trainer systems support, Ohio-class SSBN engineered refueling overhauls, U.S. and U.K. SSI4 trainer system, SSBN-R strategic weapon training system and training system development, U.K. successor support, software modernization and Linked Autonomous Programmed Navigational Operational Trainer modernization. The maximum dollar value, including the base period and one option-year if exercised, is $114,236,770. The work will be performed in Mitchel Field, N.Y. (97 percent), Clearwater/Oldsmar, Fla. (2 percent) and Manassas, Va. (1 percent), with an expected completion date of April 2017. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Navy contract funds in the amount of $36,042,285; fiscal 2014 research, development, test and evaluation contract funds in the amount of $12,382,648; fiscal 2014 United Kingdom contract funds in the amount of $6,912,487; and fiscal 2014 other procurement, Navy contract funds in the amount of $3,448,296 are being obligated at time of award. Contract funds in the amount of $36,042,285 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was a sole-source acquisition in accordance with 10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1). Strategic Systems Programs, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00030-14-C-0002).
BAE Systems Technology Solutions Inc., Rockville, Md., is being awarded a $56,517,376 cost-plus-fixed fee, cost-plus-incentive fee contract for the United States and United Kingdom D5 strategic weapons systems programs, U.S. guided missile submarine attack weapons systems programs, Nuclear Weapons Security, and future concepts. These services will include: weapon system coordination, safety class engineering, conduct of installation test programs, direct logistics support of deployed forces, and support of logistics management programs. This contract provides for coordination documentation; electrical diagrams; systems publications; shipyard installation test support; test equipment and test data analysis; support for re-engineering the SWS as appropriate in response to guidelines resulting from continuous improvement initiatives, configuration management through SSP Alterations program, logistics engineering, Preventive Maintenance Management Plan, Standard Maintenance Procedures; systems level documentation and training curriculum support; logistics planning; logistics engineering; field logistics services; network development and maintenance. In addition, BAE Systems will provide the following products for the Common Missile Compartment (CMC) concept development effort to ensure that the existing TRIDENT II (D5) SWS is compatible with the Concept Development efforts being pursued for the CMC Program: weapon system coordination, class engineering, configuration management, logistics engineering, systems-level documentation, network development and maintenance and facility engineering and design support. They will also provide technical and engineering support to the CMC concept development efforts for SWS life cycle cost control evaluations. The maximum dollar value, including the base period and two option years, is $171,358,761. Work will be performed at Rockville, Md. (73 percent); Washington, D.C. (13 percent ); Silverdale, Wash. (5 percent); St. Mary’s, Ga. (4 percent); Portsmouth, Va. (3 percent); San Diego, Calif. (1 percent); the United Kingdom (.6 percent) , and Mechanicsburg, Pa. (.3 percent), with an expected completion date of Sept. 30, 2014. Fiscal 2014operations and maintenance, Navy funds in the amount of $33,679,376; fiscal 2014 United Kingdom contract funds in the amount of $10,268,000; fiscal 2013 and 2014 research, development, test and evaluation contract funds in the amounts of $488,000 and $6,783,000 respectively; fiscal 2012, 2013, and 2014 other procurement, Navy contract funds in the amounts of $173,000, $513,000, and $4,418,000 respectively; and fiscal 2014 weapons, Navy contract funds in the amount of $195,000 are being obligated at time of award. Contract funds in the amount of $34,340,376 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was a sole source acquisition in accordance with 10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1). Strategic Systems Programs, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00030-14-C-0009).
Huntington Ingalls Industries, Pascagoula, Miss., is being awarded a $39,051,995 modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-10-C-2203) for life cycle engineering and support services on the Amphibious Transport Dock Ship Program LPD 17 class. Services to be provided include post-delivery planning and engineering, homeport technical support, Class Integrated Product Data Environment, data maintenance and equipment management, systems integration and engineering support, LPD 17 class design services, research engineering, obsolescence management, material support, emergent repair provision (including warranty enforcement), training and logistics support; LPD 17 Integrated Planning Yard support including ship alteration development and installation, material management, Fleet Modernization Program planning, availability planning, configuration data management, research engineering, logistics documentation, and other logistics and executing activity coordination, and management of all related data within the Configuration Data Manager’s Database-Open Architecture. Work will be performed in Pascagoula, Miss., and is expected to be completed by December 2014. Fiscal 2005 shipbuilding and conversion, Navy funds in the amount of $5, 045,557, fiscal 2012 shipbuilding and conversion, Navy funds in the amount of $2,373,000, fiscal 2014 shipbuilding and conversion, Navy funds in the amount of $1,727,500, and fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Navy funds in the amount of $50,000 will be obligated at time of award. Contract funds in the amount of $2,423,000 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.
Bell-Boeing Joint Project Office, Amarillo, Texas, is being awarded a $15,597,818 firm-fixed-price delivery order (0075) against a previously issued basic ordering agreement (N00019-12-G-0006) in support of the V-22 aircraft. This order provides for additional nonrecurring engineering and technical support to forward fit/retrofit engineering change proposal #1007 into the aircraft. This effort will also provide for the delivery of eight helmet mounted display retrofit kits, spares, support equipment, tooling and training devices. Work will be performed at Ridley Park, Pa. (99.9 percent), and Fort Worth, Texas (.1 percent), and is expected to be completed in March 2015. Fiscal 2013 aircraft procurement, U.S. Special Operations Command funding in the amount of $15,597,818 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.
DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
Atlantic Diving Supply Inc.*, Virginia Beach, Va., has been awarded a maximum $84,063,089 fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment contract for various commercial fasteners. This contract is a competitive acquisition, and seven offers were received. Location of performance is Virginia with a Dec. 5, 2016 performance completion date. This is a three-year base contract with one two-year option periods. Using military services are Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2014 through fiscal 2019 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pa., (SPM5EN-14-D-0001).
KPMG LLP, McLean, Va., has been awarded a maximum $12,834,740 firm-fixed-price contract for all necessary management services, personnel and documentation required for Defense Logistics Agency audit readiness review. This contract is a competitive acquisition, and six offers were received. Location of performance is Virginia with a Dec. 5, 2014 performance completion date. This is a one-year base contract. Using service is federal civilian agencies. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2014 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Contracting Services Office, Richmond, Va., (SP4703-11-A-0017-0034).
ARMY
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc., Poway, Calif., was awarded a $40,253,105 modification (P0003) to contract W58RGZ-13-C-0109 for the Gray Eagle full rate production option exercise applicable to the Gray Eagle Unmanned Aircraft System. Fiscal 2014 other procurement, Army funds in the amount of $40,253,105 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is Sept. 30, 2016. One bid was solicited with one received. Work will be performed at Poway, Calif. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity.
EADS North America, Herndon, Va. was awarded a $33,217,089 firm-fixed-price contract with options for the purchase of six UH72A Lakota aircraft and six airborne radio communication 231 radios. Fiscal 2014 other procurement funds in the amount of $33,217,089 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is Dec. 31, 2014. Five bids were solicited with three received. Work will be performed in Herndon, Va. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (W58RGZ-06-C-0194).
Dutra Dredging Co., San Rafael, Calif., was awarded a $19,869,500 firm-fixed-price contract for dredging the Thimble Shoal Federal Navigation Channel and the Cape Henry Federal Navigation Channel. Fiscal 2014 other procurement funds in the amount of $8,231,200 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is Sept 1, 2014. Bids were solicited via the Internet with three received. Work will be performed at Newport News, Va. Army Corps of Engineers, Norfolk, Va., is the contracting activity (W91236-14-C-0014).
BAE Systems Information & Electronic Systems Integration, Greenlawn, N.Y., was awarded an $11,527,257 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to acquire engineering services, a technical data package and technical training required to develop organic depot activation repair capability of the AN/APX-124 Mode S/5 Identification Friend or Foe Transponder System at Tobyhanna Army Depot, Pa. Fiscal 2014 other procurement funds in the amount of $3,562,257 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is June 6, 2016. Bids were solicited via the Internet with one received. Work will be performed at Greenlawn, N.Y. Army Contracting Command, Tobyhanna, Pa., is the contracting activity (W25G1V-14-C-0003).
Jorge Scientific Corp., Arlington, Va., was awarded a $7,309,301 firm-fixed-price contract for Counterinsurgency (COIN) Advisory and Assistance Team services in Afghanistan regarding a new COIN concept without a break in service. This assistance entails training U.S. forces on how to train Afghanistan National Security Forces (ANSF) on functions critical to ANSF sustainment. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Army funds in the amount of $5,755,730 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is March 15, 2014. This was a sole-source acquisition. Work will be performed in Afghanistan. CENTCOM Joint Theater Support Contracting Command – Phoenix APO, AE is the contracting activity (W56SGK-14-C-0003).
DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY
Koniag Information Security Systems, Chantilly, Va., has been awarded a $6,600,688 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract. This award is for contractor support services for the DARPA Security and Intelligence Directorate. Work will be performed in Arlington, Va. The estimated completion date is Dec. 31, 2014. Fiscal 2013 research and development funds are being obligated at time of award. The contracting activity is the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Arlington, Va., (HR0011-14-C-0048).
*Small Business
CONTRACTS
AIR FORCE
Lockheed Martin Corp., Marietta, Ga., has been awarded up to $169,726,427 not-to-exceed firm-fixed-price contract for advance procurement funding for long lead efforts associated with 18 C-130J aircraft. Work will be performed at Marietta, Ga., and is expected to be completed by Oct. 31, 2016. This award is the result of a sole-source acquisition. Fiscal 2013 advance procurement funds in the amount of $169,726,427 are being obligated at time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center/WLNNC, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, is the contracting activity (FA8625-14-C-6450).
Booz Allen Hamilton Inc., McLean, Va., has been awarded an $18,062,895 cost-plus-fixed-fee modification (P00047) under an existing contract (FA8811-10-C-0006) for systems engineering and integration support to the Launch and Test Range System . The contract modification extends the existing contract for one year. Work will be performed at Los Angeles Air Force Base, Calif., and is expected to be completed by Dec. 7, 2014. Fiscal 2014 other procurement and research and development funds in the amounf of $3,665,819 are being obligated at time of award. Range and Network Division, Space and Missile Systems Center, Los Angeles Air Force Base, Calif., is the contracting activity.
Oasis Systems LLC, Lexington, Mass., was awarded an $11,918,862 modification (P00005) on an existing cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost-reimbursable contract (FA8721-13-C-0025) for professional acquisition support services. This contract modification provides the exercise of an option for an additional six months of professional acquisition support services under the basic contract. Work will be performed at Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., and Langley Air Force Base, Va., and is expected to be completed by April 17, 2014. This modification provides professional acquisition support services in support of Air Force Life Cycle Management Center divisions. Fiscal 2012 procurement and fiscal 2013 research and development and procurement funds in the amount of $420,420 were obligated at time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Enterprise Acquisition Division/PZM, Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., is the contracting activity (Awarded Sept. 10, 2013).
Quantech Services Inc., Lexington, Mass., was awarded a $10,074,671 modification (P00006) on an existing cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost-reimbursable contract (FA8721-13-C-0016) for professional acquisition support services. This contract modification provides the exercise of an option for an additional six months of professional acquisition support services under the basic contract. Work will be performed at Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass. and Langley Air Force Base, Va., and is expected to be completed by April 17, 2014. This modification provides professional acquisition support services in support of Air Force Life Cycle Management Center divisions, including classified foreign military sales. FMS support accounts for approximately 46 percent of the stated modification and includes Afghanistan, Egypt, Jordan, and Oman. Fiscal 2013 research and development, procurement and FMS funds in the amount of $2,016,142 were obligated at time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Enterprise Acquisition Division/PZM, Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., is the contracting activity (Awarded Sept. 10, 2013).
Global Defense Systems LP, Warner Robins, Ga., has been awarded a $9,624,302, firm-fixed-price contract for 480 C-130 Loadmaster Crashworthy seats. The Crashworthy seat will provide lifesaving capabilities during hard landings. Work will be performed at Albertville, Ala., and is expected to be completed June 30, 2016. This award is the result of a competitive acquisition via the internet, and five offers were received. Fiscal 2011 and 2012 procurement funds in the amount of $9,624,302 are being obligated at time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center/WLKCA, Robins Air Force Base, Ga., is the contracting activity (FA8504-14-C-0002).
P E Systems Inc., Fairfax, Va., was awarded an $8,968,305 modification (P00005) on an existing cost-plus-fixed-fee, cost-reimbursable contract (FA8721-13-C-0029) for professional acquisition support services. This contract modification provides the exercise of an option for an additional six months of professional acquisition support services under the basic contract. Work will be performed at Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., Langley Air Force Base, Va., Washington, D.C., and Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio, and is expected to be completed by April 17, 2014. This modification provides professional acquisition support services in support of Air Force Life Cycle Management Center divisions, including classified foreign military sales. FMS support accounts for approximately 1 percent of the stated modification and includes the countries of Germany, Greece, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and Thailand. Fiscal 2012 procurement and fiscal 2013 operations and maintenance, research and development, procurement and FMS funds in the amount of $621,641 were obligated at time of award. Air Force Life Cycle Management Center, Enterprise Acquisition Division/PZM, Hanscom Air Force Base, Mass., is the contracting activity (Awarded Sept. 19, 2013).
NAVY
Lockheed Martin, Mission Systems & Training, Mitchel Field, N.Y., is being awarded a $58,785,716 cost-plus-incentive fee, cost-plus-fixed fee contract for United States and United Kingdom D-5 navigation subsystem engineering support services. This contract provides for U.S. and U.K. fleet support, U.S. and U.K. trainer systems support, Ohio-class SSBN engineered refueling overhauls, U.S. and U.K. SSI4 trainer system, SSBN-R strategic weapon training system and training system development, U.K. successor support, software modernization and Linked Autonomous Programmed Navigational Operational Trainer modernization. The maximum dollar value, including the base period and one option-year if exercised, is $114,236,770. The work will be performed in Mitchel Field, N.Y. (97 percent), Clearwater/Oldsmar, Fla. (2 percent) and Manassas, Va. (1 percent), with an expected completion date of April 2017. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Navy contract funds in the amount of $36,042,285; fiscal 2014 research, development, test and evaluation contract funds in the amount of $12,382,648; fiscal 2014 United Kingdom contract funds in the amount of $6,912,487; and fiscal 2014 other procurement, Navy contract funds in the amount of $3,448,296 are being obligated at time of award. Contract funds in the amount of $36,042,285 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was a sole-source acquisition in accordance with 10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1). Strategic Systems Programs, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00030-14-C-0002).
BAE Systems Technology Solutions Inc., Rockville, Md., is being awarded a $56,517,376 cost-plus-fixed fee, cost-plus-incentive fee contract for the United States and United Kingdom D5 strategic weapons systems programs, U.S. guided missile submarine attack weapons systems programs, Nuclear Weapons Security, and future concepts. These services will include: weapon system coordination, safety class engineering, conduct of installation test programs, direct logistics support of deployed forces, and support of logistics management programs. This contract provides for coordination documentation; electrical diagrams; systems publications; shipyard installation test support; test equipment and test data analysis; support for re-engineering the SWS as appropriate in response to guidelines resulting from continuous improvement initiatives, configuration management through SSP Alterations program, logistics engineering, Preventive Maintenance Management Plan, Standard Maintenance Procedures; systems level documentation and training curriculum support; logistics planning; logistics engineering; field logistics services; network development and maintenance. In addition, BAE Systems will provide the following products for the Common Missile Compartment (CMC) concept development effort to ensure that the existing TRIDENT II (D5) SWS is compatible with the Concept Development efforts being pursued for the CMC Program: weapon system coordination, class engineering, configuration management, logistics engineering, systems-level documentation, network development and maintenance and facility engineering and design support. They will also provide technical and engineering support to the CMC concept development efforts for SWS life cycle cost control evaluations. The maximum dollar value, including the base period and two option years, is $171,358,761. Work will be performed at Rockville, Md. (73 percent); Washington, D.C. (13 percent ); Silverdale, Wash. (5 percent); St. Mary’s, Ga. (4 percent); Portsmouth, Va. (3 percent); San Diego, Calif. (1 percent); the United Kingdom (.6 percent) , and Mechanicsburg, Pa. (.3 percent), with an expected completion date of Sept. 30, 2014. Fiscal 2014operations and maintenance, Navy funds in the amount of $33,679,376; fiscal 2014 United Kingdom contract funds in the amount of $10,268,000; fiscal 2013 and 2014 research, development, test and evaluation contract funds in the amounts of $488,000 and $6,783,000 respectively; fiscal 2012, 2013, and 2014 other procurement, Navy contract funds in the amounts of $173,000, $513,000, and $4,418,000 respectively; and fiscal 2014 weapons, Navy contract funds in the amount of $195,000 are being obligated at time of award. Contract funds in the amount of $34,340,376 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. This contract was a sole source acquisition in accordance with 10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1). Strategic Systems Programs, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity (N00030-14-C-0009).
Huntington Ingalls Industries, Pascagoula, Miss., is being awarded a $39,051,995 modification to previously awarded contract (N00024-10-C-2203) for life cycle engineering and support services on the Amphibious Transport Dock Ship Program LPD 17 class. Services to be provided include post-delivery planning and engineering, homeport technical support, Class Integrated Product Data Environment, data maintenance and equipment management, systems integration and engineering support, LPD 17 class design services, research engineering, obsolescence management, material support, emergent repair provision (including warranty enforcement), training and logistics support; LPD 17 Integrated Planning Yard support including ship alteration development and installation, material management, Fleet Modernization Program planning, availability planning, configuration data management, research engineering, logistics documentation, and other logistics and executing activity coordination, and management of all related data within the Configuration Data Manager’s Database-Open Architecture. Work will be performed in Pascagoula, Miss., and is expected to be completed by December 2014. Fiscal 2005 shipbuilding and conversion, Navy funds in the amount of $5, 045,557, fiscal 2012 shipbuilding and conversion, Navy funds in the amount of $2,373,000, fiscal 2014 shipbuilding and conversion, Navy funds in the amount of $1,727,500, and fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Navy funds in the amount of $50,000 will be obligated at time of award. Contract funds in the amount of $2,423,000 will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Sea Systems Command, Washington, D.C., is the contracting activity.
Bell-Boeing Joint Project Office, Amarillo, Texas, is being awarded a $15,597,818 firm-fixed-price delivery order (0075) against a previously issued basic ordering agreement (N00019-12-G-0006) in support of the V-22 aircraft. This order provides for additional nonrecurring engineering and technical support to forward fit/retrofit engineering change proposal #1007 into the aircraft. This effort will also provide for the delivery of eight helmet mounted display retrofit kits, spares, support equipment, tooling and training devices. Work will be performed at Ridley Park, Pa. (99.9 percent), and Fort Worth, Texas (.1 percent), and is expected to be completed in March 2015. Fiscal 2013 aircraft procurement, U.S. Special Operations Command funding in the amount of $15,597,818 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity.
DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
Atlantic Diving Supply Inc.*, Virginia Beach, Va., has been awarded a maximum $84,063,089 fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment contract for various commercial fasteners. This contract is a competitive acquisition, and seven offers were received. Location of performance is Virginia with a Dec. 5, 2016 performance completion date. This is a three-year base contract with one two-year option periods. Using military services are Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2014 through fiscal 2019 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pa., (SPM5EN-14-D-0001).
KPMG LLP, McLean, Va., has been awarded a maximum $12,834,740 firm-fixed-price contract for all necessary management services, personnel and documentation required for Defense Logistics Agency audit readiness review. This contract is a competitive acquisition, and six offers were received. Location of performance is Virginia with a Dec. 5, 2014 performance completion date. This is a one-year base contract. Using service is federal civilian agencies. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2014 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Contracting Services Office, Richmond, Va., (SP4703-11-A-0017-0034).
ARMY
General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc., Poway, Calif., was awarded a $40,253,105 modification (P0003) to contract W58RGZ-13-C-0109 for the Gray Eagle full rate production option exercise applicable to the Gray Eagle Unmanned Aircraft System. Fiscal 2014 other procurement, Army funds in the amount of $40,253,105 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is Sept. 30, 2016. One bid was solicited with one received. Work will be performed at Poway, Calif. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity.
EADS North America, Herndon, Va. was awarded a $33,217,089 firm-fixed-price contract with options for the purchase of six UH72A Lakota aircraft and six airborne radio communication 231 radios. Fiscal 2014 other procurement funds in the amount of $33,217,089 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is Dec. 31, 2014. Five bids were solicited with three received. Work will be performed in Herndon, Va. Army Contracting Command, Redstone Arsenal, Ala., is the contracting activity (W58RGZ-06-C-0194).
Dutra Dredging Co., San Rafael, Calif., was awarded a $19,869,500 firm-fixed-price contract for dredging the Thimble Shoal Federal Navigation Channel and the Cape Henry Federal Navigation Channel. Fiscal 2014 other procurement funds in the amount of $8,231,200 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is Sept 1, 2014. Bids were solicited via the Internet with three received. Work will be performed at Newport News, Va. Army Corps of Engineers, Norfolk, Va., is the contracting activity (W91236-14-C-0014).
BAE Systems Information & Electronic Systems Integration, Greenlawn, N.Y., was awarded an $11,527,257 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract to acquire engineering services, a technical data package and technical training required to develop organic depot activation repair capability of the AN/APX-124 Mode S/5 Identification Friend or Foe Transponder System at Tobyhanna Army Depot, Pa. Fiscal 2014 other procurement funds in the amount of $3,562,257 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is June 6, 2016. Bids were solicited via the Internet with one received. Work will be performed at Greenlawn, N.Y. Army Contracting Command, Tobyhanna, Pa., is the contracting activity (W25G1V-14-C-0003).
Jorge Scientific Corp., Arlington, Va., was awarded a $7,309,301 firm-fixed-price contract for Counterinsurgency (COIN) Advisory and Assistance Team services in Afghanistan regarding a new COIN concept without a break in service. This assistance entails training U.S. forces on how to train Afghanistan National Security Forces (ANSF) on functions critical to ANSF sustainment. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Army funds in the amount of $5,755,730 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is March 15, 2014. This was a sole-source acquisition. Work will be performed in Afghanistan. CENTCOM Joint Theater Support Contracting Command – Phoenix APO, AE is the contracting activity (W56SGK-14-C-0003).
DEFENSE ADVANCED RESEARCH PROJECTS AGENCY
Koniag Information Security Systems, Chantilly, Va., has been awarded a $6,600,688 cost-plus-fixed-fee contract. This award is for contractor support services for the DARPA Security and Intelligence Directorate. Work will be performed in Arlington, Va. The estimated completion date is Dec. 31, 2014. Fiscal 2013 research and development funds are being obligated at time of award. The contracting activity is the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Arlington, Va., (HR0011-14-C-0048).
*Small Business
HHS ARTICLE ON GIVING SMALL CHILDREN COUGH AND COLD MEDICATIONS
FROM: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.
Cough and cold medications for infants under 2 years of age have been withdrawn from the U.S. market – and labels warn against giving cough and cold meds to children under 4 years old – and it looks like children are better for it. Researchers say the number of visits by young children to emergency departments because of problems from these medications has fallen.
However, the study at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that many children still have problems from these medications. So researcher Lee Hampton advises:
“Do not give cough and cold medications to children less than 4 years old. Keep your medications stored up and away and out of sight. And properly lock child-resistant caps after every use.”
The study is in the journal Pediatrics.
From the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, I’m Ira Dreyfuss with HHS HealthBeat.
Cough and cold medications for infants under 2 years of age have been withdrawn from the U.S. market – and labels warn against giving cough and cold meds to children under 4 years old – and it looks like children are better for it. Researchers say the number of visits by young children to emergency departments because of problems from these medications has fallen.
However, the study at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that many children still have problems from these medications. So researcher Lee Hampton advises:
“Do not give cough and cold medications to children less than 4 years old. Keep your medications stored up and away and out of sight. And properly lock child-resistant caps after every use.”
The study is in the journal Pediatrics.
U.S. OFFICIALS REMARKS ON FOOD SECURITY
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Business Roundtable on Food Security with Private Sector Representatives of the Southern African Development Community (SADC)
Remarks
Jonathan Shrier
Acting Special Representative, Office of Global Food Security
Johannesburg, South Africa
December 4, 2013
The U.S. government currently partners with South Africa as a “strategic partner” in Feed the Future, the U.S. global hunger and food security initiative. As our whole-of-government initiative, Feed the Future works hand-in-hand with 19 partner countries to develop their agriculture sectors and break the vicious cycle of poverty and hunger. Our goal is to reduce the prevalence of poverty and stunted children by 20 percent in the specific areas where we work, which will help families lift themselves out of poverty, purchase nutritious food, and have access to education and health care.
An overarching objective of our strategic partnership with South Africa is for the United States to support a viable South-South, demand-driven approach to development cooperation. We collaborate with three non-traditional donors – Brazil, India, as well as South Africa – to build upon our deep historical ties, and to leverage the expertise, resources, and leadership of rising middle-income countries for the benefit of Feed the Future partner countries. We seek to share South Africa’s innovative business models and advanced technical expertise across the region. We seek to support SADC’s important goal of transferring South Africa’s agricultural success to other countries, thereby reducing hunger and poverty across the region.
To meet these goals, we seek to deepen our partnerships across the government, civil society, academia, and the private sector in South Africa and beyond. We must increase responsible agricultural investment and scale-up our collective development impact in Southern Africa.
South Africa already plays an indispensable role in the achievement of regional -- and, in turn, global -- food security. South Africa is the largest economy on the continent and the engine of economic growth in Southern Africa, with one of the top ten stock exchanges in the world and well-developed physical telecommunications and energy infrastructures. South African firms conducted about 70% of intra-regional investment flows, and South Africa accounted for 71.5% of the region’s GDP in 2009. South Africa is also the largest food exporter within the region. Investment from South Africa’s private sector to neighboring countries is the key to economic growth to the region.
South Africa has achieved some of the highest crop yields in the world because of its innovative, high-performing businesses in the agricultural sector, which have adopted first-generation biotechnologies and effective plant breeding capabilities. For example, the average maize yield in South Africa is about 3,000 kilograms per hectare. This high yield compares to a regional maize yield level of around 1,500 kilograms per hectare. South African firms also boast cutting edge technology in the use of advanced food processing and fortification.
South Africa has also demonstrated a strong commitment in recent years to the development of key trade corridors in the region. As President Zuma has repeatedly stated, South Africa is committed to championing the North-South Corridor and to mobilize resources for the implementation of projects. USAID supports corridor efforts by working with private sector groups, such as the NEPAD Business Foundation, to help small-holder farmers access markets. We also work with the Southern African Trade Hub to improve trade facilitation and cross border management, specifically by focusing on National Single Windows, Coordinated Border Management, and Customs Connectivity. The main objective is to decrease the time and cost of transporting agricultural commodities and inputs across borders. I am pleased to report that we are seeing some significant results, such as improvements in crossing times for exports and imports as high as 60% at Mwanza (between Malawi and Mozambique) and 40% for Songwe (between Malawi and Tanzania) in this past year alone.
Now is a critical time for us to deepen our partnership in food and nutrition security. Southern Africa, as a region, continues to be severely affected by chronic vulnerability and continuous food and nutrition insecurity. With nearly 45% of the population living below the poverty line of $1.25 per day, chronic food shortages exist at both the national and household level throughout the region. Although 70% of the region’s population depends on agriculture for food, income, and employment, the productivity of most rural smallholders remains very low.
To respond to these challenges, the U.S. government’s programs across Southern Africa are designed to advance food security by improving agricultural productivity and market access for agricultural products and inputs, as well as by reducing trade barriers along major transport corridors. In Southern Africa, Feed the Future partners with three countries -- Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique. In Zambia, we support smallholder out-grower schemes, which help link more small-scale farmers to buyers and processors and other key private sector partners. Meanwhile, in Malawi, we work with the government to advance policy priorities that can improve agricultural inputs, agricultural trade, institutional architecture, and nutrition. Our programs in Mozambique focus on catalyzing international and local agribusinesses investments in agriculture, not only through Feed the Future, but also through the G8 New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition, which is a commitment by G8 members, African countries, and private sector partners to reduce poverty through inclusive agricultural growth.
Sharing agricultural technologies currently practiced in South Africa, and relying on South Africa’s world-class educational institutions to train agriculturalists from neighboring countries, can further improve the lives of millions of people across southern Africa. Our Strategic Partnership with South Africa represents an important opportunity to bring together the private sector, South African government, and Feed the Future programs to unlock the potential of Africa’s agricultural sector. For precisely this reason, the United States actively works with South African companies and academic institutions to disseminate key technologies and promote agricultural training.
The United States is committed to supporting South African private investment and sustainable, equitable growth in agriculture across the region. Strategic Partnership Grants have already helped to create new market linkages, connecting farmers in the region to rewarding markets elsewhere in Africa and globally. These grants have also helped to: increase food storage capacity; transfer cutting-edge technology (like drought tolerant seeds, sophisticated soil testing and analysis); and disseminate timely crop extension and market information via mobile technologies. But we can always do more, and we can always do better -- together.
Together, we can increase market access, particularly for small-holder farmers. Together, we can support finance for improving infrastructure and trade, including the development of new financial products, services, and insurance products. Together, we can work from farms to markets to tables to improve incomes and nutrition. Not only is this the smart thing to do; it is also the right thing to do.
We can -- and we will -- make a significant difference in the lives of millions of people by reducing hunger and poverty in Southern Africa.
Business Roundtable on Food Security with Private Sector Representatives of the Southern African Development Community (SADC)
Remarks
Jonathan Shrier
Acting Special Representative, Office of Global Food Security
Johannesburg, South Africa
December 4, 2013
The U.S. government currently partners with South Africa as a “strategic partner” in Feed the Future, the U.S. global hunger and food security initiative. As our whole-of-government initiative, Feed the Future works hand-in-hand with 19 partner countries to develop their agriculture sectors and break the vicious cycle of poverty and hunger. Our goal is to reduce the prevalence of poverty and stunted children by 20 percent in the specific areas where we work, which will help families lift themselves out of poverty, purchase nutritious food, and have access to education and health care.
An overarching objective of our strategic partnership with South Africa is for the United States to support a viable South-South, demand-driven approach to development cooperation. We collaborate with three non-traditional donors – Brazil, India, as well as South Africa – to build upon our deep historical ties, and to leverage the expertise, resources, and leadership of rising middle-income countries for the benefit of Feed the Future partner countries. We seek to share South Africa’s innovative business models and advanced technical expertise across the region. We seek to support SADC’s important goal of transferring South Africa’s agricultural success to other countries, thereby reducing hunger and poverty across the region.
To meet these goals, we seek to deepen our partnerships across the government, civil society, academia, and the private sector in South Africa and beyond. We must increase responsible agricultural investment and scale-up our collective development impact in Southern Africa.
South Africa already plays an indispensable role in the achievement of regional -- and, in turn, global -- food security. South Africa is the largest economy on the continent and the engine of economic growth in Southern Africa, with one of the top ten stock exchanges in the world and well-developed physical telecommunications and energy infrastructures. South African firms conducted about 70% of intra-regional investment flows, and South Africa accounted for 71.5% of the region’s GDP in 2009. South Africa is also the largest food exporter within the region. Investment from South Africa’s private sector to neighboring countries is the key to economic growth to the region.
South Africa has achieved some of the highest crop yields in the world because of its innovative, high-performing businesses in the agricultural sector, which have adopted first-generation biotechnologies and effective plant breeding capabilities. For example, the average maize yield in South Africa is about 3,000 kilograms per hectare. This high yield compares to a regional maize yield level of around 1,500 kilograms per hectare. South African firms also boast cutting edge technology in the use of advanced food processing and fortification.
South Africa has also demonstrated a strong commitment in recent years to the development of key trade corridors in the region. As President Zuma has repeatedly stated, South Africa is committed to championing the North-South Corridor and to mobilize resources for the implementation of projects. USAID supports corridor efforts by working with private sector groups, such as the NEPAD Business Foundation, to help small-holder farmers access markets. We also work with the Southern African Trade Hub to improve trade facilitation and cross border management, specifically by focusing on National Single Windows, Coordinated Border Management, and Customs Connectivity. The main objective is to decrease the time and cost of transporting agricultural commodities and inputs across borders. I am pleased to report that we are seeing some significant results, such as improvements in crossing times for exports and imports as high as 60% at Mwanza (between Malawi and Mozambique) and 40% for Songwe (between Malawi and Tanzania) in this past year alone.
Now is a critical time for us to deepen our partnership in food and nutrition security. Southern Africa, as a region, continues to be severely affected by chronic vulnerability and continuous food and nutrition insecurity. With nearly 45% of the population living below the poverty line of $1.25 per day, chronic food shortages exist at both the national and household level throughout the region. Although 70% of the region’s population depends on agriculture for food, income, and employment, the productivity of most rural smallholders remains very low.
To respond to these challenges, the U.S. government’s programs across Southern Africa are designed to advance food security by improving agricultural productivity and market access for agricultural products and inputs, as well as by reducing trade barriers along major transport corridors. In Southern Africa, Feed the Future partners with three countries -- Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique. In Zambia, we support smallholder out-grower schemes, which help link more small-scale farmers to buyers and processors and other key private sector partners. Meanwhile, in Malawi, we work with the government to advance policy priorities that can improve agricultural inputs, agricultural trade, institutional architecture, and nutrition. Our programs in Mozambique focus on catalyzing international and local agribusinesses investments in agriculture, not only through Feed the Future, but also through the G8 New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition, which is a commitment by G8 members, African countries, and private sector partners to reduce poverty through inclusive agricultural growth.
Sharing agricultural technologies currently practiced in South Africa, and relying on South Africa’s world-class educational institutions to train agriculturalists from neighboring countries, can further improve the lives of millions of people across southern Africa. Our Strategic Partnership with South Africa represents an important opportunity to bring together the private sector, South African government, and Feed the Future programs to unlock the potential of Africa’s agricultural sector. For precisely this reason, the United States actively works with South African companies and academic institutions to disseminate key technologies and promote agricultural training.
The United States is committed to supporting South African private investment and sustainable, equitable growth in agriculture across the region. Strategic Partnership Grants have already helped to create new market linkages, connecting farmers in the region to rewarding markets elsewhere in Africa and globally. These grants have also helped to: increase food storage capacity; transfer cutting-edge technology (like drought tolerant seeds, sophisticated soil testing and analysis); and disseminate timely crop extension and market information via mobile technologies. But we can always do more, and we can always do better -- together.
Together, we can increase market access, particularly for small-holder farmers. Together, we can support finance for improving infrastructure and trade, including the development of new financial products, services, and insurance products. Together, we can work from farms to markets to tables to improve incomes and nutrition. Not only is this the smart thing to do; it is also the right thing to do.
We can -- and we will -- make a significant difference in the lives of millions of people by reducing hunger and poverty in Southern Africa.
SECRETARY OF STATE KERRY'S REMARKS AT MOLDOVA TRADE SHOW
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Remarks at Moldova Trade and Investment Showcase
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Cricova Winery
Chisinau, Moldova
December 4, 2013
Prime Minister Leanca, thank you very much for your warm welcome here. And Minister of Agriculture Bumacov, thank you very much also. It’s an honor to – where is he – to have you over here.
I was just looking over here at this beautiful dress. I didn’t know I was attending a wedding underground. As long as it’s not me you’re trying to marry off. (Laughter.)
I’m really delighted to be here in Moldova and very, very grateful for the opportunity to visit Cricova this afternoon. It’s not every day that I get to visit a place where a legacy from the 15th century, winemaking, is being carried on in this extraordinary underground facility with 21st century technology.
I’m told that people in this region have practiced winemaking really since – for centuries, dating back to the early ties with the Romans. So this winery is really a fitting reminder of how Moldova’s rich history is intimately tied to its now very promising future. And it’s also a reminder of how Moldova’s future and past are both rooted in Europe.
But today and this visit is really much more than a celebration of winemaking, important as that is. I am here today for a larger purpose. I’m here to congratulate the people of Moldova for initiating an Association Agreement and a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement with the European Union at the Vilnius Summit last week and to pledge the support of the United States of America to you as you finalize this agreement over the course of this next year.
The United States believes deeply that European integration is the best road for both security and prosperity for Moldova. The European Union has offered Moldova a historic opportunity to be able to cement a European future for its people, and you have seized that opportunity through the leadership of your government. There’s also no doubt that Moldova’s commitment to reform is going to encourage, inspire greater investment and also greater confidence from financial institutions across the continent.
Moldova may be a landlocked nation, but there is no way that its potential or its future is locked in to any one place or to any one relationship. This is about building bridges of opportunity and it’s about reaching out to be able to touch the possibilities of the future and define them for yourselves. It is about building the bridges and the opportunity and defining the future through your own hopes and your own aspirations.
And to the people of the Ukraine, we say the same thing: You, too, deserve the opportunity to choose your own future. Let me make it clear: The United States and the European Union strongly believe that European integration does not have to be a zero-sum game. Today, Moldova has an opportunity to be able to shape its future with partners in Europe and across the world. This nation’s future can really be defined by the strength of its connections, which reach out to a dynamic continent, as well as providing Moldova with a diverse and pluralistic set of options in the world.
Here at Cricova, I’m very proud to say that United States assistance programs have actually facilitated advances in the wine industry, and that has helped to increase the effectiveness and the competitiveness of this historic sector of your economy. And in order to help tap into that set of possibilities, I’m really delighted this evening to be able to join with Prime Minister Leanca in unveiling and displaying to all of you a new “Wine of Moldova” branding logo, which we have developed and worked on together and which will promote Moldova wine in the international marketplace.
I’m also proud to announce that we will create – the United States will sponsor a reverse trade mission, where we will actually send some of your best wine makers from Moldova to the United States so that they can work at the whole set of questions of how to break into the American marketplace, and we can help together to make that happen. And after walking by the huge barrels of wine as I came in here and looking at this display in front of me, I know that Moldova’s winemakers will have a few things to share with our winemakers also. And we look forward to that exchange.
I’m also happy to say that this is not a beginning for the United States. Vice President Biden was here, as the prime minister mentioned, in 2011. And we are – we have proudly been supportive of Moldova’s journey over these last years. The United States has, very proudly and happily, provided some $1.1 billion in support of this country’s democracy, prosperity, security, and rule of law.
And this year, we’ve provided some $22 million to help to implement the Association Agreement and the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement. This includes about $4.4 million for peace and security programs, about $10.8 million to support democracy and good governance and rule of law, and $6.4 million for economic growth, competitiveness, and market diversification.
And I’m pleased to say that Moldova – I think the prime minister mentioned this – is benefitting from a $262 million Millennium Challenge grant – Corporation Compact, which supports the rehabilitation of road and irrigation systems. The prime minister was telling me, as we drove over here, that he’s looking forward in June to going back and talking with a woman that he promised would have a road in that period of time. And we’re happy to be able to be helpful in that kind of infrastructure development. These roads are obviously nice to drive on, and they’re smoother, but the fact is they’re also a critical way to be able to get products to the marketplace. And they increase efficiency, and they increase opportunity, and they create jobs.
The United States is also looking forward to working with our friends here to help develop programs that will further energy independence and energy security for Moldova. And in the short term, in order to be able to help reduce reliance on existing natural gas supplies, USAID, which is a division of the State Department, is going to work with the Swedish International Development Agency, and it will leverage 3.5 million in local bank capital for energy efficiency projects.
In closing, let me just say to all of you, I know as a person engaged in public life that our schedules are intense, and we don’t always get as much done to be able to stop and meet people and spend time in a country as we would like. But short as this time is, I wanted to make certain that I came here today. I wanted to make certain that I stopped in order to celebrate this journey that Moldova is on, which is exciting and filled with possibilities, and which we intend to support as much as we can.
Just the few moments I’ve been here, as we drove through town and the prime minister described to me the buildings, some of which obviously represented a very different period of time, when the Soviet Union existed, and now people are living with a whole different set of opportunities, I was excited, and I felt the sense of possibilities that people believe in here.
Before I came here, I learned that the word “Chisinau” – perfect timing – (laughter and applause.) I learned that the word “Chisinau” comes from a root that means “new spring.” I can’t think of a better way to capture what is happening here now or a better thing to celebrate.
So it’s my great pleasure – if I may, I’m going to make a toast. And I would like for us to be able to drink – obviously it’s just the prime minister and me who get this privilege. I’m sorry for that. (Laughter.) But we’ll drink for all of you. And I want to drink to the partnership and the friendship between the United States of America and Moldova and in the great spirit of generosity and the daring and the courage with which your government is moving to embrace a new future. And we drink to that future, to the reintegration of Europe, to the journey ahead, and to the commitment of the United States of America to help achieve that goal. Thank you. (Applause.)
Remarks at Moldova Trade and Investment Showcase
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Cricova Winery
Chisinau, Moldova
December 4, 2013
Prime Minister Leanca, thank you very much for your warm welcome here. And Minister of Agriculture Bumacov, thank you very much also. It’s an honor to – where is he – to have you over here.
I was just looking over here at this beautiful dress. I didn’t know I was attending a wedding underground. As long as it’s not me you’re trying to marry off. (Laughter.)
I’m really delighted to be here in Moldova and very, very grateful for the opportunity to visit Cricova this afternoon. It’s not every day that I get to visit a place where a legacy from the 15th century, winemaking, is being carried on in this extraordinary underground facility with 21st century technology.
I’m told that people in this region have practiced winemaking really since – for centuries, dating back to the early ties with the Romans. So this winery is really a fitting reminder of how Moldova’s rich history is intimately tied to its now very promising future. And it’s also a reminder of how Moldova’s future and past are both rooted in Europe.
But today and this visit is really much more than a celebration of winemaking, important as that is. I am here today for a larger purpose. I’m here to congratulate the people of Moldova for initiating an Association Agreement and a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement with the European Union at the Vilnius Summit last week and to pledge the support of the United States of America to you as you finalize this agreement over the course of this next year.
The United States believes deeply that European integration is the best road for both security and prosperity for Moldova. The European Union has offered Moldova a historic opportunity to be able to cement a European future for its people, and you have seized that opportunity through the leadership of your government. There’s also no doubt that Moldova’s commitment to reform is going to encourage, inspire greater investment and also greater confidence from financial institutions across the continent.
Moldova may be a landlocked nation, but there is no way that its potential or its future is locked in to any one place or to any one relationship. This is about building bridges of opportunity and it’s about reaching out to be able to touch the possibilities of the future and define them for yourselves. It is about building the bridges and the opportunity and defining the future through your own hopes and your own aspirations.
And to the people of the Ukraine, we say the same thing: You, too, deserve the opportunity to choose your own future. Let me make it clear: The United States and the European Union strongly believe that European integration does not have to be a zero-sum game. Today, Moldova has an opportunity to be able to shape its future with partners in Europe and across the world. This nation’s future can really be defined by the strength of its connections, which reach out to a dynamic continent, as well as providing Moldova with a diverse and pluralistic set of options in the world.
Here at Cricova, I’m very proud to say that United States assistance programs have actually facilitated advances in the wine industry, and that has helped to increase the effectiveness and the competitiveness of this historic sector of your economy. And in order to help tap into that set of possibilities, I’m really delighted this evening to be able to join with Prime Minister Leanca in unveiling and displaying to all of you a new “Wine of Moldova” branding logo, which we have developed and worked on together and which will promote Moldova wine in the international marketplace.
I’m also proud to announce that we will create – the United States will sponsor a reverse trade mission, where we will actually send some of your best wine makers from Moldova to the United States so that they can work at the whole set of questions of how to break into the American marketplace, and we can help together to make that happen. And after walking by the huge barrels of wine as I came in here and looking at this display in front of me, I know that Moldova’s winemakers will have a few things to share with our winemakers also. And we look forward to that exchange.
I’m also happy to say that this is not a beginning for the United States. Vice President Biden was here, as the prime minister mentioned, in 2011. And we are – we have proudly been supportive of Moldova’s journey over these last years. The United States has, very proudly and happily, provided some $1.1 billion in support of this country’s democracy, prosperity, security, and rule of law.
And this year, we’ve provided some $22 million to help to implement the Association Agreement and the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement. This includes about $4.4 million for peace and security programs, about $10.8 million to support democracy and good governance and rule of law, and $6.4 million for economic growth, competitiveness, and market diversification.
And I’m pleased to say that Moldova – I think the prime minister mentioned this – is benefitting from a $262 million Millennium Challenge grant – Corporation Compact, which supports the rehabilitation of road and irrigation systems. The prime minister was telling me, as we drove over here, that he’s looking forward in June to going back and talking with a woman that he promised would have a road in that period of time. And we’re happy to be able to be helpful in that kind of infrastructure development. These roads are obviously nice to drive on, and they’re smoother, but the fact is they’re also a critical way to be able to get products to the marketplace. And they increase efficiency, and they increase opportunity, and they create jobs.
The United States is also looking forward to working with our friends here to help develop programs that will further energy independence and energy security for Moldova. And in the short term, in order to be able to help reduce reliance on existing natural gas supplies, USAID, which is a division of the State Department, is going to work with the Swedish International Development Agency, and it will leverage 3.5 million in local bank capital for energy efficiency projects.
In closing, let me just say to all of you, I know as a person engaged in public life that our schedules are intense, and we don’t always get as much done to be able to stop and meet people and spend time in a country as we would like. But short as this time is, I wanted to make certain that I came here today. I wanted to make certain that I stopped in order to celebrate this journey that Moldova is on, which is exciting and filled with possibilities, and which we intend to support as much as we can.
Just the few moments I’ve been here, as we drove through town and the prime minister described to me the buildings, some of which obviously represented a very different period of time, when the Soviet Union existed, and now people are living with a whole different set of opportunities, I was excited, and I felt the sense of possibilities that people believe in here.
Before I came here, I learned that the word “Chisinau” – perfect timing – (laughter and applause.) I learned that the word “Chisinau” comes from a root that means “new spring.” I can’t think of a better way to capture what is happening here now or a better thing to celebrate.
So it’s my great pleasure – if I may, I’m going to make a toast. And I would like for us to be able to drink – obviously it’s just the prime minister and me who get this privilege. I’m sorry for that. (Laughter.) But we’ll drink for all of you. And I want to drink to the partnership and the friendship between the United States of America and Moldova and in the great spirit of generosity and the daring and the courage with which your government is moving to embrace a new future. And we drink to that future, to the reintegration of Europe, to the journey ahead, and to the commitment of the United States of America to help achieve that goal. Thank you. (Applause.)
SECRETARY OF STATE KERRY'S REMARKS AFTER MEETING WITH PALESTINIAN PRESIDENT ABBAS
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Statement Following Meeting With President Mahmoud Abbas
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Muqata'a Presidential Compound
Ramallah
December 5, 2013
Good evening, everybody. Let me begin by thanking President Abbas for his steadfast commitment to stay at these negotiations despite difficulties that he and the Palestinians have perceived in the process. I am very grateful to him for the seriousness of the effort, and he has committed to stay at this and to remain in these talks through their duration with the hopes that we would be able to find an agreement.
Today, we discussed at great length issues of security in the region, security for the state of Israel, security for a future Palestine. And we, I think, made some progress in discussing some of the ideas that are on the table. We are not going to discuss these further publicly, but I will say that the goal here for everybody is a viable Palestinian state with the Palestinian people living side by side in peace with the state of Israel and with the people of Israel.
I think the interests are very similar, but there are questions of sovereignty, questions of respect and dignity which are obviously significant to the Palestinians, and for the Israelis very serious questions of security and also of longer-term issues of how we end this conflict once and for all.
So we will continue. I’m returning now to Jerusalem to have further conversations with Prime Minister Netanyahu, and then shortly, perhaps in a week or so, may return for further discussions depending on where we are. And some of us will have a chance to meet over the weekend in Washington in conjunction with the Saban Forum. So the discussions will go on, the effort will continue, and our hopes with them for the possibilities of peace for the region.
Thank you.
Statement Following Meeting With President Mahmoud Abbas
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Muqata'a Presidential Compound
Ramallah
December 5, 2013
Good evening, everybody. Let me begin by thanking President Abbas for his steadfast commitment to stay at these negotiations despite difficulties that he and the Palestinians have perceived in the process. I am very grateful to him for the seriousness of the effort, and he has committed to stay at this and to remain in these talks through their duration with the hopes that we would be able to find an agreement.
Today, we discussed at great length issues of security in the region, security for the state of Israel, security for a future Palestine. And we, I think, made some progress in discussing some of the ideas that are on the table. We are not going to discuss these further publicly, but I will say that the goal here for everybody is a viable Palestinian state with the Palestinian people living side by side in peace with the state of Israel and with the people of Israel.
I think the interests are very similar, but there are questions of sovereignty, questions of respect and dignity which are obviously significant to the Palestinians, and for the Israelis very serious questions of security and also of longer-term issues of how we end this conflict once and for all.
So we will continue. I’m returning now to Jerusalem to have further conversations with Prime Minister Netanyahu, and then shortly, perhaps in a week or so, may return for further discussions depending on where we are. And some of us will have a chance to meet over the weekend in Washington in conjunction with the Saban Forum. So the discussions will go on, the effort will continue, and our hopes with them for the possibilities of peace for the region.
Thank you.
SILENT FILM DATA BASE TRACKER UNVEILED BY LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
FROM: LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
December 4, 2013
Library Reports on America’s Endangered Silent-Film Heritage
First-ever Database Tracks Existing Films Worldwide
Martin Scorsese’s "Hugo" and Michael Hazanavicius’ "The Artist" were cinematic tributes to the bygone era of silent films. Moviegoers, however, may not realize that 70 percent of feature-length silent films made in America have been completely lost to time and neglect.
The Library of Congress today unveiled "The Survival of American Silent Feature Films: 1912-1929," the first comprehensive survey of American feature films that survived the silent era of motion pictures. Previous documentation established that nearly 11,000 (10,919) silent feature films of American origin were released from 1912 through 1929. There was, however, no definitive, systematic study on how many of these films still existed and where any surviving elements were located in the world’s leading film archives and private collections.
The groundbreaking study reveals some startling facts about America’s endangered silent-film heritage. Only 14 percent—about 1,575 titles—of the feature films produced and distributed domestically from 1912-1929 exist in their original format. Five percent of those that survived in their original 35 mm format are incomplete. Eleven percent of the films that are complete only exist as foreign versions or in lower-quality formats.
"The Library of Congress can now authoritatively report that the loss of American silent-era feature films constitutes an alarming and irretrievable loss to our nation’s cultural record," said Librarian of Congress James H. Billington. "We have lost most of the creative record from the era that brought American movies to the pinnacle of world cinematic achievement in the 20th century."
"This report is invaluable because the artistry of silent film is essential to our culture," said Martin Scorsese, film-preservation advocate and director of "Hugo," a loving tribute to silent film. "Any time a silent picture by some miracle turns up, it reminds us of the treasures we’ve already lost. It also gives us hope that others may be discovered. The research presented in this report serves as a road map to finding silent films we once thought were gone forever and encourages creative partnerships between archives and the film industry to save silent cinema."
In addition to the establishment of the National Film Preservation Board (NFPB)—which is comprised of film-industry leaders and experts—the National Film Preservation Act of 1988 called for the Librarian of Congress to establish initiatives to protect the nation’s film heritage. One of the Librarian’s first directives to the board was to support archival research projects that would investigate the survival rates of American movies produced in all major categories during the 19th and 20th centuries.
Commissioned by the NFPB, the study was written by historian-archivist David Pierce and published by the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR). It is one of several congressionally mandated studies of the nation’s cinematic and recorded sound patrimony. The report is available as a free download at the NFPB’s website as well as CLIR’s website.
As part of the research for the study, Pierce prepared a valuable inventory database of information on archival, commercial and private holdings—who has custody of the films, how complete they are, the films’ formats and where the best surviving copies can be found. The report concludes that the existence of the database will allow the repatriation of lost American movies. Films initially thought lost have been found—and subsequently repatriated—in Australia, New Zealand, France and many other countries.
"As efforts continue to help bring back American silent films to the U.S. and perhaps rediscover even more now believed lost, we must recognize the magnificent contribution made by dozens of foreign film archives in saving many hundreds of U.S. films over the decades," said Gregory Lukow, chief of the National Audio Visual Conservation Center-Packard Campus. "Countless films would no longer exist if not for the heroic efforts made by these overseas archivists who have played a major role in preserving not only their own national heritage, but also that of the United States."
Some of the report’s findings:
Fourteen percent of the feature films produced domestically from 1912-1929 survived in their original-release 35 mm format.
Eleven percent of the films are complete as foreign versions or on lower-quality formats, such as 28 mm or 16 mm.
Five percent are incomplete, either missing a portion of the film or existing only as an abridged version.
Of the more 3,300 films that survived in any form, 26 percent were found in other countries.
Of the silent films located in foreign countries, 24 percent already have been repatriated to an American archive.
The Czech Republic had the largest collection of American silent films found outside the United States.
The vulnerability of nitrate film stock to fire and deterioration and the industry’s practice of neglecting or destroying prints and negatives contributed to the loss to the nation’s film heritage. Among some of the notable films considered lost in their complete form are Lon Chaney’s "London After Midnight" (1927); "The Patriot" (1928); " Cleopatra" (1917); "The Great Gatsby" (1926), and all four of Clara Bow’s feature films produced in 1928, including "Ladies of the Mob." Only five of Will Rogers’ 16 silent features survived and 85 percent of features made by Tom Mix—Hollywood’s first cowboy star—are lost.
Silent-screen legend Mary Pickford paid for the preservation of her films, ensuring that most of them survived. Of her 48 features, eight were lost from the first three years of her career. Pickford’s 1911 short—"Their First Misunderstanding"—was recently discovered in an old barn. It was the first time that she was credited by name in a film.
"Their First Misunderstanding" has been preserved by the Library of Congress, which hold’s the world’s largest collection of American silent features. More than half of the Library’s collection of silent features cannot be found anywhere else.
The report makes several recommendations:
Develop a nationally coordinated program to repatriate U.S. feature films from foreign archives.
Collaborate with studios and rights-holders to acquire archival master film elements on unique titles.
Encourage coordination among American archives and collectors to identify and preserve silent films that currently survive in lower-quality formats.
Develop a campaign to document unidentified titles. The Library of Congress has sponsored annual workshops to identify unknown and lesser-known titles.
Create an audience and appreciation for silent feature films through exhibition and screenings.
December 4, 2013
Library Reports on America’s Endangered Silent-Film Heritage
First-ever Database Tracks Existing Films Worldwide
Martin Scorsese’s "Hugo" and Michael Hazanavicius’ "The Artist" were cinematic tributes to the bygone era of silent films. Moviegoers, however, may not realize that 70 percent of feature-length silent films made in America have been completely lost to time and neglect.
The Library of Congress today unveiled "The Survival of American Silent Feature Films: 1912-1929," the first comprehensive survey of American feature films that survived the silent era of motion pictures. Previous documentation established that nearly 11,000 (10,919) silent feature films of American origin were released from 1912 through 1929. There was, however, no definitive, systematic study on how many of these films still existed and where any surviving elements were located in the world’s leading film archives and private collections.
The groundbreaking study reveals some startling facts about America’s endangered silent-film heritage. Only 14 percent—about 1,575 titles—of the feature films produced and distributed domestically from 1912-1929 exist in their original format. Five percent of those that survived in their original 35 mm format are incomplete. Eleven percent of the films that are complete only exist as foreign versions or in lower-quality formats.
"The Library of Congress can now authoritatively report that the loss of American silent-era feature films constitutes an alarming and irretrievable loss to our nation’s cultural record," said Librarian of Congress James H. Billington. "We have lost most of the creative record from the era that brought American movies to the pinnacle of world cinematic achievement in the 20th century."
"This report is invaluable because the artistry of silent film is essential to our culture," said Martin Scorsese, film-preservation advocate and director of "Hugo," a loving tribute to silent film. "Any time a silent picture by some miracle turns up, it reminds us of the treasures we’ve already lost. It also gives us hope that others may be discovered. The research presented in this report serves as a road map to finding silent films we once thought were gone forever and encourages creative partnerships between archives and the film industry to save silent cinema."
In addition to the establishment of the National Film Preservation Board (NFPB)—which is comprised of film-industry leaders and experts—the National Film Preservation Act of 1988 called for the Librarian of Congress to establish initiatives to protect the nation’s film heritage. One of the Librarian’s first directives to the board was to support archival research projects that would investigate the survival rates of American movies produced in all major categories during the 19th and 20th centuries.
Commissioned by the NFPB, the study was written by historian-archivist David Pierce and published by the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR). It is one of several congressionally mandated studies of the nation’s cinematic and recorded sound patrimony. The report is available as a free download at the NFPB’s website as well as CLIR’s website.
As part of the research for the study, Pierce prepared a valuable inventory database of information on archival, commercial and private holdings—who has custody of the films, how complete they are, the films’ formats and where the best surviving copies can be found. The report concludes that the existence of the database will allow the repatriation of lost American movies. Films initially thought lost have been found—and subsequently repatriated—in Australia, New Zealand, France and many other countries.
"As efforts continue to help bring back American silent films to the U.S. and perhaps rediscover even more now believed lost, we must recognize the magnificent contribution made by dozens of foreign film archives in saving many hundreds of U.S. films over the decades," said Gregory Lukow, chief of the National Audio Visual Conservation Center-Packard Campus. "Countless films would no longer exist if not for the heroic efforts made by these overseas archivists who have played a major role in preserving not only their own national heritage, but also that of the United States."
Some of the report’s findings:
Fourteen percent of the feature films produced domestically from 1912-1929 survived in their original-release 35 mm format.
Eleven percent of the films are complete as foreign versions or on lower-quality formats, such as 28 mm or 16 mm.
Five percent are incomplete, either missing a portion of the film or existing only as an abridged version.
Of the more 3,300 films that survived in any form, 26 percent were found in other countries.
Of the silent films located in foreign countries, 24 percent already have been repatriated to an American archive.
The Czech Republic had the largest collection of American silent films found outside the United States.
The vulnerability of nitrate film stock to fire and deterioration and the industry’s practice of neglecting or destroying prints and negatives contributed to the loss to the nation’s film heritage. Among some of the notable films considered lost in their complete form are Lon Chaney’s "London After Midnight" (1927); "The Patriot" (1928); " Cleopatra" (1917); "The Great Gatsby" (1926), and all four of Clara Bow’s feature films produced in 1928, including "Ladies of the Mob." Only five of Will Rogers’ 16 silent features survived and 85 percent of features made by Tom Mix—Hollywood’s first cowboy star—are lost.
Silent-screen legend Mary Pickford paid for the preservation of her films, ensuring that most of them survived. Of her 48 features, eight were lost from the first three years of her career. Pickford’s 1911 short—"Their First Misunderstanding"—was recently discovered in an old barn. It was the first time that she was credited by name in a film.
"Their First Misunderstanding" has been preserved by the Library of Congress, which hold’s the world’s largest collection of American silent features. More than half of the Library’s collection of silent features cannot be found anywhere else.
The report makes several recommendations:
Develop a nationally coordinated program to repatriate U.S. feature films from foreign archives.
Collaborate with studios and rights-holders to acquire archival master film elements on unique titles.
Encourage coordination among American archives and collectors to identify and preserve silent films that currently survive in lower-quality formats.
Develop a campaign to document unidentified titles. The Library of Congress has sponsored annual workshops to identify unknown and lesser-known titles.
Create an audience and appreciation for silent feature films through exhibition and screenings.
LOAN MODIFICATION OPERATORS ARRESTED IN ALLEGED SCAM
FROM; U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Federal Agents Arrest Operators of Loan Modification Scam That Targeted Struggling Homeowners
Federal agents arrested yesterday Bryan D’Antonio, 47, of Brea, Calif., and Charles Wayne Farris, 53, of Aliso Viejo, Calif., for operating the Rodis Law Group and America’s Law Group, businesses that allegedly offered bogus loan modification assistance to struggling homeowners. Attorney Ronald Rodis, 49, of Irvine, Calif., surrendered today to federal agents on charges alleging that he participated in, and lent his name and the law license he formerly possessed to, the fraudulent operation. All three defendants were named in a federal indictment unsealed yesterday following an investigation by the FBI and IRS-Criminal Investigation.
According to the indictment, as a result of the scheme run by D’Antonio, Farris and Rodis, more than 1,800 financially distressed homeowners lost a total of at least $12 million in fees they paid to the companies. Many homeowners also lost their homes to foreclosure. During a nine month period that began in October 2008, the Rodis Law Group and America’s Law Group allegedly defrauded distressed homeowners by making false promises and guarantees regarding the companies’ ability to negotiate loan modifications from the homeowners’ mortgage lenders, falsely representing that a “team of attorneys” would represent the homeowners and advising homeowners to cease making their mortgage payments.
“These arrests send a strong message to those who would prey on vulnerable homeowners during these tough financial times,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division Stuart F. Delery. “If you defraud homeowners, you will be found and brought to justice.”
The Rodis Law Group, and its successor company, America’s Law Group, allegedly advertised loan modification assistance on radio stations nationwide. According to the indictment, many of these radio advertisements featured Rodis’ voice telling homeowners that a “team of experienced attorneys,” who were “highly skilled in negotiating lower interest rates and even lowering your principal balance,” would negotiate with mortgage lenders. Sales staff hired and trained by Farris and D’Antonio allegedly told interested homeowners that Rodis Law Group was “100% successful,” “routinely lowered monthly payments” and obtained reduced principal balances. According to the indictment, once the defendants and their co-conspirators convinced homeowners to pay a fee of several thousand dollars, little to no effort was made to obtain loan modifications. After making their payments, homeowners who tried to get updates on the status of their cases were often unable to contact anyone at either company.
The indictment further alleges that D’Antonio committed these crimes after having been convicted of mail and wire fraud for his role in a previous telemarketing scheme. The previous scheme resulted in a civil case by the Federal Trade Commission and ultimately a court order, entered in 2001, which permanently banned D’Antonio from participating in future telemarketing operations. The indictment in this case alleges that D’Antonio committed criminal contempt of court by directing the telemarketing activities of Rodis Law Group and America’s Law Group and by misrepresenting the services they provided.
“Posing as successful lawyers, these defendants offered struggling homeowners false hopes and bogus promises of quality legal representation,” said U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California André Birotte Jr. “The market offering loan modifications is rife with fraud, which is why we have redoubled our efforts to investigate and prosecute those who engage in financial crimes that target distressed homeowners.”
“The unconscionable act of scamming homeowners already facing foreclosure is far too common,” said Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office Bill Lewis. “This indictment should send a clear message to anyone contemplating similar crimes, and should also remind potential victims to be cautious before paying fees to those offering financial rescue, regardless of whether the solicitor holds a law degree.”
D’Antonio, Farris and Rodis are each charged with 10 felony counts – nine counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy. Each of these counts carries a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years’ imprisonment. In addition, D’Antonio is charged with 13 counts of criminal contempt for violating the 2001 court order. Criminal contempt of court has no statutory maximum penalty.
This indictment was brought in coordination with the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force’s Mortgage Fraud Working Group. The task force was established to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed nearly 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,900 mortgage fraud defendants.
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Federal Agents Arrest Operators of Loan Modification Scam That Targeted Struggling Homeowners
Federal agents arrested yesterday Bryan D’Antonio, 47, of Brea, Calif., and Charles Wayne Farris, 53, of Aliso Viejo, Calif., for operating the Rodis Law Group and America’s Law Group, businesses that allegedly offered bogus loan modification assistance to struggling homeowners. Attorney Ronald Rodis, 49, of Irvine, Calif., surrendered today to federal agents on charges alleging that he participated in, and lent his name and the law license he formerly possessed to, the fraudulent operation. All three defendants were named in a federal indictment unsealed yesterday following an investigation by the FBI and IRS-Criminal Investigation.
According to the indictment, as a result of the scheme run by D’Antonio, Farris and Rodis, more than 1,800 financially distressed homeowners lost a total of at least $12 million in fees they paid to the companies. Many homeowners also lost their homes to foreclosure. During a nine month period that began in October 2008, the Rodis Law Group and America’s Law Group allegedly defrauded distressed homeowners by making false promises and guarantees regarding the companies’ ability to negotiate loan modifications from the homeowners’ mortgage lenders, falsely representing that a “team of attorneys” would represent the homeowners and advising homeowners to cease making their mortgage payments.
“These arrests send a strong message to those who would prey on vulnerable homeowners during these tough financial times,” said Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department’s Civil Division Stuart F. Delery. “If you defraud homeowners, you will be found and brought to justice.”
The Rodis Law Group, and its successor company, America’s Law Group, allegedly advertised loan modification assistance on radio stations nationwide. According to the indictment, many of these radio advertisements featured Rodis’ voice telling homeowners that a “team of experienced attorneys,” who were “highly skilled in negotiating lower interest rates and even lowering your principal balance,” would negotiate with mortgage lenders. Sales staff hired and trained by Farris and D’Antonio allegedly told interested homeowners that Rodis Law Group was “100% successful,” “routinely lowered monthly payments” and obtained reduced principal balances. According to the indictment, once the defendants and their co-conspirators convinced homeowners to pay a fee of several thousand dollars, little to no effort was made to obtain loan modifications. After making their payments, homeowners who tried to get updates on the status of their cases were often unable to contact anyone at either company.
The indictment further alleges that D’Antonio committed these crimes after having been convicted of mail and wire fraud for his role in a previous telemarketing scheme. The previous scheme resulted in a civil case by the Federal Trade Commission and ultimately a court order, entered in 2001, which permanently banned D’Antonio from participating in future telemarketing operations. The indictment in this case alleges that D’Antonio committed criminal contempt of court by directing the telemarketing activities of Rodis Law Group and America’s Law Group and by misrepresenting the services they provided.
“Posing as successful lawyers, these defendants offered struggling homeowners false hopes and bogus promises of quality legal representation,” said U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California André Birotte Jr. “The market offering loan modifications is rife with fraud, which is why we have redoubled our efforts to investigate and prosecute those who engage in financial crimes that target distressed homeowners.”
“The unconscionable act of scamming homeowners already facing foreclosure is far too common,” said Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office Bill Lewis. “This indictment should send a clear message to anyone contemplating similar crimes, and should also remind potential victims to be cautious before paying fees to those offering financial rescue, regardless of whether the solicitor holds a law degree.”
D’Antonio, Farris and Rodis are each charged with 10 felony counts – nine counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy. Each of these counts carries a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years’ imprisonment. In addition, D’Antonio is charged with 13 counts of criminal contempt for violating the 2001 court order. Criminal contempt of court has no statutory maximum penalty.
This indictment was brought in coordination with the President’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force’s Mortgage Fraud Working Group. The task force was established to wage an aggressive, coordinated and proactive effort to investigate and prosecute financial crimes. With more than 20 federal agencies, 94 U.S. attorneys’ offices and state and local partners, it’s the broadest coalition of law enforcement, investigatory and regulatory agencies ever assembled to combat fraud. Since its formation, the task force has made great strides in facilitating increased investigation and prosecution of financial crimes; enhancing coordination and cooperation among federal, state and local authorities; addressing discrimination in the lending and financial markets and conducting outreach to the public, victims, financial institutions and other organizations. Over the past three fiscal years, the Justice Department has filed nearly 10,000 financial fraud cases against nearly 15,000 defendants including more than 2,900 mortgage fraud defendants.
FUNERAL HOME SUED BY FTC FOR FAILURE TO COMMUNICATE PRICES TO CONSUMERS
FROM: FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
FTC Sues Funeral Home for Failing to Disclose Prices
The Federal Trade Commission charged Ross-Clayton Funeral Home Inc. in Montgomery, Ala., and its owners, David C. Ross, Jr. and Eleanor Lewis Dawkins, with violating the FTC’s Funeral Rule, which requires funeral providers to provide consumers with important pricing and other disclosures when making funeral arrangements.
The FTC’s complaint alleges that on at least two occasions the funeral home failed to provide a casket price list at the time and manner required by the Funeral Rule for in-person discussions of funeral arrangements.
The FTC conducts undercover inspections across the country every year to ensure that funeral homes are complying with the Funeral Rule. First-time offenders cited for significant violations are offered a chance to enter the Funeral Rule Offenders Program (FROP), a three-year training program designed to increase compliance, as an alternative to possible legal action, a court order, and civil penalties of up to $16,000 per violation. The FROP program is run by the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) and provides participants with a review of price lists and disclosures, ongoing training, follow-up testing, and certification of compliance with the Rule. Participants also must make a voluntary payment to the U.S. Treasury for an amount less than what likely would be sought if the Commission authorized filing a lawsuit for civil penalties, and pay annual administrative fees to the NFDA for each year of training. The defendants refused the opportunity to resolve their alleged violations by participating in the FROP program.
The Funeral Rule, enacted in 1984, gives consumers the right to receive information about funeral products and services so that consumers pay only for what they want and need. Key provisions of the Rule require funeral homes to provide consumers with an itemized price list at the start of an in-person discussion of funeral arrangements, as well as a casket price list before consumers view any caskets. The Rule also prohibits funeral homes from requiring consumers to buy any item, such as a casket, as a condition of obtaining any other funeral good or service. The Rule requires funeral homes to provide itemized prices so that consumers can compare prices and buy only the goods and services they want.
For more information about the Funeral Rule, read Shopping for Funeral Services and Complying with the Funeral Rule.
The Commission vote authorizing the staff to file the complaint was 4-0. The complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama.
The Federal Trade Commission works for consumers to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices and to provide information to help spot, stop, and avoid them.
FTC Sues Funeral Home for Failing to Disclose Prices
The Federal Trade Commission charged Ross-Clayton Funeral Home Inc. in Montgomery, Ala., and its owners, David C. Ross, Jr. and Eleanor Lewis Dawkins, with violating the FTC’s Funeral Rule, which requires funeral providers to provide consumers with important pricing and other disclosures when making funeral arrangements.
The FTC’s complaint alleges that on at least two occasions the funeral home failed to provide a casket price list at the time and manner required by the Funeral Rule for in-person discussions of funeral arrangements.
The FTC conducts undercover inspections across the country every year to ensure that funeral homes are complying with the Funeral Rule. First-time offenders cited for significant violations are offered a chance to enter the Funeral Rule Offenders Program (FROP), a three-year training program designed to increase compliance, as an alternative to possible legal action, a court order, and civil penalties of up to $16,000 per violation. The FROP program is run by the National Funeral Directors Association (NFDA) and provides participants with a review of price lists and disclosures, ongoing training, follow-up testing, and certification of compliance with the Rule. Participants also must make a voluntary payment to the U.S. Treasury for an amount less than what likely would be sought if the Commission authorized filing a lawsuit for civil penalties, and pay annual administrative fees to the NFDA for each year of training. The defendants refused the opportunity to resolve their alleged violations by participating in the FROP program.
The Funeral Rule, enacted in 1984, gives consumers the right to receive information about funeral products and services so that consumers pay only for what they want and need. Key provisions of the Rule require funeral homes to provide consumers with an itemized price list at the start of an in-person discussion of funeral arrangements, as well as a casket price list before consumers view any caskets. The Rule also prohibits funeral homes from requiring consumers to buy any item, such as a casket, as a condition of obtaining any other funeral good or service. The Rule requires funeral homes to provide itemized prices so that consumers can compare prices and buy only the goods and services they want.
For more information about the Funeral Rule, read Shopping for Funeral Services and Complying with the Funeral Rule.
The Commission vote authorizing the staff to file the complaint was 4-0. The complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Alabama.
The Federal Trade Commission works for consumers to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices and to provide information to help spot, stop, and avoid them.
GEORGE WASHINGTON STRIKE GROUP RETURNS TO YOKOSUKA, JAPAN
Photo Credit: U.S. Navy Photo By Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Trever Welsh
George Washington Strike Group Completes 2013 Patrol
Story Number: NNS131204-20Release Date: 12/4/2013 10:54:00 PM
By Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Ricky Guzman
YOKOSUKA, Japan (NNS) -- The USS George Washington Strike Group (GWSG) returned to its forward-operating location of Commander, Fleet Activities Yokosuka, Japan, Dec. 5, to conclude the second half of its 2013 patrol.
The GWSG participated in three joint-training exercises with regional partners, conducted three goodwill port visits, and provided humanitarian assistance and disaster relief to the Republic of the Philippines.
"George Washington Sailors, embarked staffs and air wing all performed at a high level during the ship's 2013 patrol," said Capt. Greg Fenton, George Washington's commanding officer. "We completed numerous shipboard qualifications, performed multiple exercises to strengthen interoperability and most importantly, provided humanitarian assistance and disaster relief to the Republic of the Philippines."
The GWSG most recently finished Annual Exercise (Annual Ex) 13, designed to increase the defensive readiness and interoperability of Japanese and U.S. Naval forces through training in air and sea operations. The strike group also conducted exercises in Oct. with the Republic of Korea navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) in the waters around the Korean peninsula.
"It's important for the U.S. Navy and JMSDF to train to continue to evolve, upgrade and compare tactics to increase our interoperability," said Rear Adm. Mark Montgomery, commander, Battle Force 7th Fleet.
The GWSG also conducted three goodwill port visits to Busan, Republic of Korea, Singapore, and Hong Kong, where the ship's crew conducted 39 community service events.
"We wanted to show that we're not just here to provide military support," said Aviation Boatswain's (Handling) 2nd Class Ricardo Lopez, from Caguas, Puerto Rico. "We also like to interact with the communities we visit, which allow us to have a better understanding of each other's cultures."
The GWSG departed Hong Kong Nov. 12 to assist the Republic of Philippine government in disaster relief efforts in the aftermath of super Typhoon Haiyan during Operation Damayan.
"Our Sailors did an outstanding job in answering the call of humanitarian assistance from the Philippine government," said Fenton. "Our ship refueled aircraft and provided a staging area for relief supplies to be airlifted ashore."
USS George Washington (CVN 73) also embarked more than 200 distinguished visitors from Republic of Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Japan to provide a first-hand look at the day-to-day operations of an underway aircraft carrier.
"I'm extremely proud of every milestone we've accomplished during this patrol," said Fenton. "I have no doubt that the Sailors aboard the ship will continue to excel throughout the inport period."
The GWSG consisted of the aircraft carrier George Washington; the embarked staffs of Battle Force 7th Fleet and Destroyer Squadron 15; Carrier Air Wing 5; Ticonderoga-class guided-missile cruisers USS Antietam (CG 54) and USS Cowpens (CG 63); and Arleigh-burke class guided-missile destroyers USS Lassen (DDG 82), USS McCampbell (DDG 85) and USS Mustin (DDG 89).
REMARKS BY SECRETARY KERRY AND ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Joint Statement With Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Prime Minister's Office
Jerusalem
December 5, 2013
PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU: It’s good to have you again, Secretary of State John Kerry. John, you’re a welcome friend, and it’s good to welcome you back in Jerusalem.
Our discussion this morning focused on two central issues. First and foremost, we discussed the danger to the world posed by Iran’s pursuit of a nuclear weapons capability. We believe that in a final deal, unlike the interim deal, it’s crucial to bring about a final agreement about determination of Iran’s military and nuclear capability. I have expressed my concern since Geneva that the sanctions would begin to unravel, and I think steps must be taken to prevent further erosions of sanctions.
Now, on the Palestinian issue, I want to say that Israel is ready for historic peace, and it’s a peace based on two states for two peoples. It’s a peace that Israel can and must be able to defend itself, by itself, with our own forces against any foreseeable threat. I would also stress that Israel continues to honor all understandings reached in prior negotiations.
Now, if this process is going to continue, we’re going to have to have a continual negotiation. We don’t need artificial crises. I think we don’t need finger pointing either. What we need is not grandstanding, but understanding and agreements. And that requires hard and serious work. It actually requires that we do not put before you, gentlemen and ladies of the press, everything that we’re discussing, but to have these real discussions inside in a sustained effort to bridge historic gaps and provide security. I’m fully committed and Israel is fully committed to such an effort. And I hope the Palestinians are committed to this goal as well.
I want to thank you, John, for your tireless effort. I use that word carefully, “tireless” and indefatigable. You continue to pursue this quest for peace. I appreciate it, and I welcome it. And I also welcome the opportunity to continue our discussions this evening and tomorrow and beyond. So welcome to Jerusalem, again.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you, my friend. Well, Mr. Prime Minister, my friend, Bibi, I am very, very happy to be back in Israel. It’s always a pleasure for me to visit. And I have visited here so many times, as a United States Senator, and now as a Secretary of State.
I’ve had the privilege of getting to know many people here, many parts of this great country. When I first came here – I think in 1986 – I spent a week and traveled to every part of the country, climbed Masada, bathed in the Dead Sea, went to Galilee, the north, visited Kiryat Shmona, where kids were having to hide from rockets, Katyusha rockets, then indiscriminately attacking them from Lebanon. And I have seen the rockets in Sderot from people who were taking cover from Gaza.
So I understand the challenge of security that Israel faces. I understand it very well. And I join with President Obama in expressing to the people of Israel our deep, deep commitment to the security of Israel and to the need to find a peace that recognizes Israel as a Jewish state, recognizes Israel as a country that can defend itself by itself, and that is an important principle with which the prime minister and the President and I are in agreement.
Much of our discussion in the very beginning obviously focused on where we are with respect to Iran. I can’t emphasize enough that Israel’s security in this negotiation is at the top of our agenda. And the United States will do everything in our power to make certain that Iran’s nuclear program – a program of weaponization possibilities – is terminated. We agree on what the goal of the final status agreement ought to be. And in the days and weeks ahead, we will consult very closely and continually with our Israeli friends in order to bring about a comprehensive agreement that can withstand everybody’s test. A peaceful program should not be that hard to prove, and everybody will know whether or not in the end the comprehensive agreement actually provides a test adequate to prove the peacefulness of that program.
We will continue to keep our friends in Israel and our friends in the region fully advised as we continue those negotiations. And for the moment, we’re in the process of simply putting in place the implementation language itself.
With respect to the sanctions, we will obviously be vigilant. We say to any country that contemplates moving ahead of sanctions, don’t, because those sanctions will continue to be enforced. The fundamental sanctions regime of oil and banking remains absolutely in place. It is not changed, and we will be stepping up our efforts of enforcement through the Treasury Department and through the appropriate agencies of the United States.
We obviously also spent a very significant amount of time – and we will continue those discussions tonight – with respect to the direct negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians. We have always known that this is a difficult, complicated road, and we understand that. I believe we are making some progress, and the parties remain committed to this task. They are meeting regularly, and they have also remained – we have remained in very close touch with both leaders as we proceed down this road.
Once again, Israel’s security is fundamental to these negotiations. And today, General John Allen, who is one of the very best military minds in the United States, one of our most experienced military leaders, who has been spending months now analyzing the security challenges with respect to this process – President Obama has designated him to play a very special role in assessing the potential threats to Israel, to the region, and ensuring that the security arrangements that we might contemplate in the context of this process will provide for greater security for Israel. This morning, General Allen and I provided Prime Minister Netanyahu and his military leadership with some thoughts about that particular security challenge. And this conversation will continue over dinner and possibly into tomorrow morning.
At some point in time – it depends a little on our talks here – I look forward to visiting the Palmachim Airbase and doing so with Minister Moshe Ya’alon. I don’t know if we’ll have time to do that tomorrow or not, but I do want to do that because I want to see firsthand the remarkable ballistic missile defense technologies in place that our nation has spent over 20 years building with our friends here in Israel in order to protect Israel from the full range of missile threats that it faces. And the advancement of these programs in recent years I think is a reflection of President Obama’s and his Administration’s strong commitment, unwavering commitment, to Israel’s security. It’s appropriate that at some point I get a chance to see how that is implemented and how it is working.
So I’d just close by saying what perhaps doesn’t need to be said, but I want to say it: The bond between the United States and Israel is unbreakable. And while occasionally we might have a difference of a tactical measure, we do not have a difference about the fundamental strategy that we both seek with respect to the security of Israel and the long-term peace of this region. And we will continue to work for that. And I thank my many Israel friends for their embrace and for their patience as we pursue this complicated process.
Thank you, Prime Minister.
Joint Statement With Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Prime Minister's Office
Jerusalem
December 5, 2013
PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU: It’s good to have you again, Secretary of State John Kerry. John, you’re a welcome friend, and it’s good to welcome you back in Jerusalem.
Our discussion this morning focused on two central issues. First and foremost, we discussed the danger to the world posed by Iran’s pursuit of a nuclear weapons capability. We believe that in a final deal, unlike the interim deal, it’s crucial to bring about a final agreement about determination of Iran’s military and nuclear capability. I have expressed my concern since Geneva that the sanctions would begin to unravel, and I think steps must be taken to prevent further erosions of sanctions.
Now, on the Palestinian issue, I want to say that Israel is ready for historic peace, and it’s a peace based on two states for two peoples. It’s a peace that Israel can and must be able to defend itself, by itself, with our own forces against any foreseeable threat. I would also stress that Israel continues to honor all understandings reached in prior negotiations.
Now, if this process is going to continue, we’re going to have to have a continual negotiation. We don’t need artificial crises. I think we don’t need finger pointing either. What we need is not grandstanding, but understanding and agreements. And that requires hard and serious work. It actually requires that we do not put before you, gentlemen and ladies of the press, everything that we’re discussing, but to have these real discussions inside in a sustained effort to bridge historic gaps and provide security. I’m fully committed and Israel is fully committed to such an effort. And I hope the Palestinians are committed to this goal as well.
I want to thank you, John, for your tireless effort. I use that word carefully, “tireless” and indefatigable. You continue to pursue this quest for peace. I appreciate it, and I welcome it. And I also welcome the opportunity to continue our discussions this evening and tomorrow and beyond. So welcome to Jerusalem, again.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you, my friend. Well, Mr. Prime Minister, my friend, Bibi, I am very, very happy to be back in Israel. It’s always a pleasure for me to visit. And I have visited here so many times, as a United States Senator, and now as a Secretary of State.
I’ve had the privilege of getting to know many people here, many parts of this great country. When I first came here – I think in 1986 – I spent a week and traveled to every part of the country, climbed Masada, bathed in the Dead Sea, went to Galilee, the north, visited Kiryat Shmona, where kids were having to hide from rockets, Katyusha rockets, then indiscriminately attacking them from Lebanon. And I have seen the rockets in Sderot from people who were taking cover from Gaza.
So I understand the challenge of security that Israel faces. I understand it very well. And I join with President Obama in expressing to the people of Israel our deep, deep commitment to the security of Israel and to the need to find a peace that recognizes Israel as a Jewish state, recognizes Israel as a country that can defend itself by itself, and that is an important principle with which the prime minister and the President and I are in agreement.
Much of our discussion in the very beginning obviously focused on where we are with respect to Iran. I can’t emphasize enough that Israel’s security in this negotiation is at the top of our agenda. And the United States will do everything in our power to make certain that Iran’s nuclear program – a program of weaponization possibilities – is terminated. We agree on what the goal of the final status agreement ought to be. And in the days and weeks ahead, we will consult very closely and continually with our Israeli friends in order to bring about a comprehensive agreement that can withstand everybody’s test. A peaceful program should not be that hard to prove, and everybody will know whether or not in the end the comprehensive agreement actually provides a test adequate to prove the peacefulness of that program.
We will continue to keep our friends in Israel and our friends in the region fully advised as we continue those negotiations. And for the moment, we’re in the process of simply putting in place the implementation language itself.
With respect to the sanctions, we will obviously be vigilant. We say to any country that contemplates moving ahead of sanctions, don’t, because those sanctions will continue to be enforced. The fundamental sanctions regime of oil and banking remains absolutely in place. It is not changed, and we will be stepping up our efforts of enforcement through the Treasury Department and through the appropriate agencies of the United States.
We obviously also spent a very significant amount of time – and we will continue those discussions tonight – with respect to the direct negotiations between the Israelis and the Palestinians. We have always known that this is a difficult, complicated road, and we understand that. I believe we are making some progress, and the parties remain committed to this task. They are meeting regularly, and they have also remained – we have remained in very close touch with both leaders as we proceed down this road.
Once again, Israel’s security is fundamental to these negotiations. And today, General John Allen, who is one of the very best military minds in the United States, one of our most experienced military leaders, who has been spending months now analyzing the security challenges with respect to this process – President Obama has designated him to play a very special role in assessing the potential threats to Israel, to the region, and ensuring that the security arrangements that we might contemplate in the context of this process will provide for greater security for Israel. This morning, General Allen and I provided Prime Minister Netanyahu and his military leadership with some thoughts about that particular security challenge. And this conversation will continue over dinner and possibly into tomorrow morning.
At some point in time – it depends a little on our talks here – I look forward to visiting the Palmachim Airbase and doing so with Minister Moshe Ya’alon. I don’t know if we’ll have time to do that tomorrow or not, but I do want to do that because I want to see firsthand the remarkable ballistic missile defense technologies in place that our nation has spent over 20 years building with our friends here in Israel in order to protect Israel from the full range of missile threats that it faces. And the advancement of these programs in recent years I think is a reflection of President Obama’s and his Administration’s strong commitment, unwavering commitment, to Israel’s security. It’s appropriate that at some point I get a chance to see how that is implemented and how it is working.
So I’d just close by saying what perhaps doesn’t need to be said, but I want to say it: The bond between the United States and Israel is unbreakable. And while occasionally we might have a difference of a tactical measure, we do not have a difference about the fundamental strategy that we both seek with respect to the security of Israel and the long-term peace of this region. And we will continue to work for that. And I thank my many Israel friends for their embrace and for their patience as we pursue this complicated process.
Thank you, Prime Minister.
NSF: RISING SEAS THREATEN WETLANDS
 |
| Credit: Wikimedia |
Wetlands' ability to overcome sea level rise threatened
When do wetlands reach their limit, and how are we lowering that point?
Left to themselves, coastal wetlands can resist rapid sea level rise.
But humans could be sabotaging some of wetlands' best defenses, according to results published in this week's issue of the journal Nature.
Thanks to an intricate system of feedbacks, wetlands are remarkably good at building up soils to outpace sea level rise. The questions are: When do they reach their limit, and how have we lowered that point?
Without human-caused climate change, "we wouldn't be worried about wetlands surviving the rates of sea level rise we're seeing today," says lead paper author Matthew Kirwan of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science and the National Science Foundation (NSF) Virginia Coast Reserve Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) site.
Virginia Coast Reserve is one of 26 such NSF LTER sites around the globe in ecosystems from deserts to mountains and marshes to grasslands.
In an unchanged world, "wetlands would build vertically at faster rates," says Kirwan, "or move inland to higher elevations."
The paper's co-author is Patrick Megonigal of the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center.
A wetland is land that's saturated with water, whether permanently or seasonally. The water found in wetlands can be saltwater, freshwater or brackish water. Main wetland types include swamps, marshes, bogs and fens.
Wetlands have developed several ways to build elevation to keep from drowning.
Aboveground, tidal flooding provides one of the biggest assists. When marshes flood during high tides, sediment settles out of the water, adding new soil. As sea level rises and flooding occurs more often, marshes react by building soil faster.
Belowground, the growth and decay of plant roots add organic matter.
Even erosion can work in wetlands' favor, as sediment lost at one marsh may be deposited in another. While a particular wetland may lose ground, the total wetland area may remain unchanged.
But, if a wetland becomes so submerged that its vegetation dies off, these "positive feedback loops" are lost. Similarly, if sediment delivery to a wetland is cut off, that wetland can no longer build soil to outpace rising seas.
"This study reveals the complex, long-term interplay among processes that maintain coastal wetlands in the face of sea level rise," says Saran Twombly, program director in NSF's Division of Environmental Biology, which funds the NSF Virginia Coast Reserve LTER site.
"Humans are newcomers to this delicate balance. The future of a habitat so essential to human well-being depends on how severely we alter it."
For example, groundwater withdrawal and artificial drainage can cause the land to sink, as is happening in Chesapeake Bay.
Because of this subsidence, eight of the world's 20 largest coastal cities have relative sea level rise greater than climate change projections.
Dams and reservoirs also prevent 20 percent of the global sediment load from reaching the coast.
Marshes on the Yangtze River Delta, for example, have survived a relative sea level rise of more than 50 millimeters per year since the 7th century--until the recent building of more than 50,000 dams cut off the supply of sediment and accelerated erosion.
"Tidal marshes are amazing ecosystem engineers that can raise themselves upward if they remain healthy, especially if there is sediment in the water," says Megonigal.
"We know there are limits, however. Those limits are changing as people alter the environment."
-NSF-
Thursday, December 5, 2013
UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE WEEKLY CLAIMS REPORT FOR WEEK ENDING NOVEMBER 30, 2013
SEASONALLY ADJUSTED DATA
In the week ending November 30, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 298,000, a decrease of 23,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 321,000. The 4-week moving average was 322,250, a decrease of 10,750 from the previous week's revised average of 333,000.
The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 2.1 percent for the week ending November 23, unchanged from the prior week's unrevised rate. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending November 23 was 2,744,000, a decrease of 21,000 from the preceding week's revised level of 2,765,000. The 4-week moving average was 2,796,500, a decrease of 32,500 from the preceding week's revised average of 2,829,000.
UNADJUSTED DATA
The advance number of actual initial claims under state programs, unadjusted, totaled 313,973 in the week ending November 30, a decrease of 54,507 from the previous week. There were 500,163 initial claims in the comparable week in 2012.
The advance unadjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.9 percent during the week ending November 23, a decrease of 0.2 percentage point from the prior week. The advance unadjusted number for persons claiming UI benefits in state programs totaled 2,480,863, a decrease of 192,783 from the preceding week. A year earlier, the rate was 2.6 percent and the volume was 3,315,644.
The total number of people claiming benefits in all programs for the week ending November 16 was 4,096,901, an increase of 183,227 from the previous week. There were 4,959,201 persons claiming benefits in all programs in the comparable week in 2012.
No states were triggered "on" the Extended Benefits program during the week ending November 16.
Initial claims for UI benefits filed by former Federal civilian employees totaled 2,395 in the week ending November 23, an increase of 452 from the prior week. There were 2,144 initial claims filed by newly discharged veterans, an increase of 117 from the preceding week.
There were 20,409 former Federal civilian employees claiming UI benefits for the week ending November 16, an increase of 1,217 from the previous week. Newly discharged veterans claiming benefits totaled 32,030, an increase of 753 from the prior week.
States reported 1,350,604 persons claiming Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) benefits for the week ending November 16, an increase of 45,705 from the prior week. There were 2,008,608 persons claiming EUC in the comparable week in 2012. EUC weekly claims include first, second, third, and fourth tier activity.
The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending November 23 were in Alaska (5.5), Puerto Rico (3.7), Virgin Islands (3.3), New Jersey (3.2), California (3.1), Pennsylvania (2.9), Connecticut (2.8), Oregon (2.6), Illinois (2.5), and Nevada (2.5).
The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending November 23 were in California (+8,326), Pennsylvania (+4,416), Michigan (+3,426), Illinois (+2,638), and Texas (+2,099), while the largest decreases were in New Jersey (-572), Florida (-492), Idaho (-293), Mississippi (-287), and Virginia (-72).
In the week ending November 30, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 298,000, a decrease of 23,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 321,000. The 4-week moving average was 322,250, a decrease of 10,750 from the previous week's revised average of 333,000.
The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 2.1 percent for the week ending November 23, unchanged from the prior week's unrevised rate. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending November 23 was 2,744,000, a decrease of 21,000 from the preceding week's revised level of 2,765,000. The 4-week moving average was 2,796,500, a decrease of 32,500 from the preceding week's revised average of 2,829,000.
UNADJUSTED DATA
The advance number of actual initial claims under state programs, unadjusted, totaled 313,973 in the week ending November 30, a decrease of 54,507 from the previous week. There were 500,163 initial claims in the comparable week in 2012.
The advance unadjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.9 percent during the week ending November 23, a decrease of 0.2 percentage point from the prior week. The advance unadjusted number for persons claiming UI benefits in state programs totaled 2,480,863, a decrease of 192,783 from the preceding week. A year earlier, the rate was 2.6 percent and the volume was 3,315,644.
The total number of people claiming benefits in all programs for the week ending November 16 was 4,096,901, an increase of 183,227 from the previous week. There were 4,959,201 persons claiming benefits in all programs in the comparable week in 2012.
No states were triggered "on" the Extended Benefits program during the week ending November 16.
Initial claims for UI benefits filed by former Federal civilian employees totaled 2,395 in the week ending November 23, an increase of 452 from the prior week. There were 2,144 initial claims filed by newly discharged veterans, an increase of 117 from the preceding week.
There were 20,409 former Federal civilian employees claiming UI benefits for the week ending November 16, an increase of 1,217 from the previous week. Newly discharged veterans claiming benefits totaled 32,030, an increase of 753 from the prior week.
States reported 1,350,604 persons claiming Emergency Unemployment Compensation (EUC) benefits for the week ending November 16, an increase of 45,705 from the prior week. There were 2,008,608 persons claiming EUC in the comparable week in 2012. EUC weekly claims include first, second, third, and fourth tier activity.
The highest insured unemployment rates in the week ending November 23 were in Alaska (5.5), Puerto Rico (3.7), Virgin Islands (3.3), New Jersey (3.2), California (3.1), Pennsylvania (2.9), Connecticut (2.8), Oregon (2.6), Illinois (2.5), and Nevada (2.5).
The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending November 23 were in California (+8,326), Pennsylvania (+4,416), Michigan (+3,426), Illinois (+2,638), and Texas (+2,099), while the largest decreases were in New Jersey (-572), Florida (-492), Idaho (-293), Mississippi (-287), and Virginia (-72).
SECRETARY OF STATE KERRY ISSUES STATEMENT ON DEATH OF NELSON MANDELA
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Death of Nelson Mandela
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
December 5, 2013
Madiba’s 'long walk to freedom' gave new meaning to courage, character, forgiveness, and human dignity. Now that his long walk has ended, the example he set for all humanity lives on. He will be remembered as a pioneer for peace.
There are some truly brave people in this world whom you meet and you’re forever changed for the experience. Nelson Mandela remains Teresa’s hero, and a person who inspired her as a young woman to march with her classmates against apartheid. We had the honor of sitting with Mandela over the Thanksgiving holidays of 2007. I was struck by how warm, open, and serene he was. I stood in his tiny cell on Robben Island, a room with barely enough space to lie down or stand up, and I learned that the glare of the white rock quarry permanently damaged his eyesight. It hit home even more just how remarkable it was that after spending 27 years locked away, after having his own vision impaired by the conditions, that this man could still see the best interests of his country and even embrace the very guards who kept him prisoner. That is the story of a man whose ability to see resided not in his eyes but in his conscience. It is hard to imagine any of us could summon such strength of character.
Nelson Mandela was a stranger to hate. He rejected recrimination in favor of reconciliation and knew the future demands we move beyond the past. He gave everything he had to heal his country and lead it back into the community of nations, including insisting on relinquishing his office and ensuring there would be a peaceful transfer of power. Today, people all around the world who yearn for democracy look to Mandela’s nation and its democratic Constitution as a hopeful example of what is possible.
Teresa and I join those from around the world in honoring the life of this great man. Our deepest condolences go out to his wife, Graça, his family, all the people of South Africa and everyone who today enjoys the freedom Madiba fought for his entire life.
Death of Nelson Mandela
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
December 5, 2013
Madiba’s 'long walk to freedom' gave new meaning to courage, character, forgiveness, and human dignity. Now that his long walk has ended, the example he set for all humanity lives on. He will be remembered as a pioneer for peace.
There are some truly brave people in this world whom you meet and you’re forever changed for the experience. Nelson Mandela remains Teresa’s hero, and a person who inspired her as a young woman to march with her classmates against apartheid. We had the honor of sitting with Mandela over the Thanksgiving holidays of 2007. I was struck by how warm, open, and serene he was. I stood in his tiny cell on Robben Island, a room with barely enough space to lie down or stand up, and I learned that the glare of the white rock quarry permanently damaged his eyesight. It hit home even more just how remarkable it was that after spending 27 years locked away, after having his own vision impaired by the conditions, that this man could still see the best interests of his country and even embrace the very guards who kept him prisoner. That is the story of a man whose ability to see resided not in his eyes but in his conscience. It is hard to imagine any of us could summon such strength of character.
Nelson Mandela was a stranger to hate. He rejected recrimination in favor of reconciliation and knew the future demands we move beyond the past. He gave everything he had to heal his country and lead it back into the community of nations, including insisting on relinquishing his office and ensuring there would be a peaceful transfer of power. Today, people all around the world who yearn for democracy look to Mandela’s nation and its democratic Constitution as a hopeful example of what is possible.
Teresa and I join those from around the world in honoring the life of this great man. Our deepest condolences go out to his wife, Graça, his family, all the people of South Africa and everyone who today enjoys the freedom Madiba fought for his entire life.
U.S. DEFENSE CONTRACTS FOR DECEMBER 5, 2013
CONTRACTS
ARMY
M1 Support Services L.P., Denton, Texas, was awarded a $38,722,328 firm-fixed-price contract for advanced instructor pilot support services for the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence, 110TH Aviation Brigade Support at Fort Rucker, Ala. Work will be performed in Alabama with an estimated completion date of Dec. 12, 2017. Funds will be determined with each order. Bids were solicited via the Internet with seven received. Army Contracting Command, Fort Eustis, Va., is the contracting activity (W911S0-14-D-0001).
FEDCON Joint Venture, Clearwater, Fla., was awarded a $34,536,510 firm-fixed-price contract for resilient features for the west bank and vicinity, hurricane storm damage and risk reduction system, Mississippi River Levee, Augusta to Oakville La. (A), WBV-MRL 1.2A. Fiscal 2014 other procurement funds in the amount of $34,536,510 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is Oct. 23, 2015. Bids were solicited via the Internet with 13 received. Work will be performed in Belle Chasse La. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans, La., is the contracting activity (W912P8-14-C-0011).
Aecom National Security Programs Inc., Springfield, Va., was awarded a $10,019,790 contract modification (000328) to contract W52P1J-09-D-0043 to provide U.S. Forces-Afghanistan with the capability to passively gather, analyze, and disseminate open sources atmospheric information throughout the Afghanistan Combined Joint Operating Area; monitor, track and measure trends in local sentiment regarding U.S. Forces-Afghanistan programs and policies. It will also provide professional advice and assistance with regard to cultural professional advice and assistance with regard to social, religious, political, economic, and tribal matters and communication strategies; produce open source atmospheric information that support Afghanistan related strategic, operational and tactical decision making. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Army funds in the amount of $5,009,895 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is Dec. 4, 2015. Work will be performed in Afghanistan. Army Contracting Command, Rock Island Arsenal, Rock Island, Ill., is the contracting activity.
DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
Cottonwood Inc., Lawrence, Kan., has been awarded a maximum $15,000,000 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-quantity contract for vehicle cargo tie downs. This contract is a sole-source acquisition. Location of performance is Kansas with a Dec. 4, 2018 performance completion date. This is a two-year base contract with three one-year option periods. Using military services are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and federal civilian agencies. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2014 through fiscal 2019 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pa., (SPE8EF-14-D-0001).
NAVY
Jacobs Technology Inc., Fort Walton Beach, Fla., is being awarded an $11,341,989 cost-plus-fixed-fee task order under the previously awarded General Services Administration Alliant Multiple Award contract for information technology services (GS0QBG-09-D-0059-GM01). This contract provides services for IT, information management, information assurance product service delivery mechanisms, software development, engineering and enterprise architectural compliance, server support services and information assurance compliance. The level of effort for the base year is 177,270 man hours. Work will be performed in China Lake, Calif. (82 percent); Point Mugu, Calif. (13 percent), and Norfolk, Va. (5 percent), and is expected to be completed in January 2015. Fiscal 2014 Navy working capital funds in the amount of $5,477,268 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division, China Lake, Calif., is the contracting activity.
ARMY
M1 Support Services L.P., Denton, Texas, was awarded a $38,722,328 firm-fixed-price contract for advanced instructor pilot support services for the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence, 110TH Aviation Brigade Support at Fort Rucker, Ala. Work will be performed in Alabama with an estimated completion date of Dec. 12, 2017. Funds will be determined with each order. Bids were solicited via the Internet with seven received. Army Contracting Command, Fort Eustis, Va., is the contracting activity (W911S0-14-D-0001).
FEDCON Joint Venture, Clearwater, Fla., was awarded a $34,536,510 firm-fixed-price contract for resilient features for the west bank and vicinity, hurricane storm damage and risk reduction system, Mississippi River Levee, Augusta to Oakville La. (A), WBV-MRL 1.2A. Fiscal 2014 other procurement funds in the amount of $34,536,510 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is Oct. 23, 2015. Bids were solicited via the Internet with 13 received. Work will be performed in Belle Chasse La. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans, La., is the contracting activity (W912P8-14-C-0011).
Aecom National Security Programs Inc., Springfield, Va., was awarded a $10,019,790 contract modification (000328) to contract W52P1J-09-D-0043 to provide U.S. Forces-Afghanistan with the capability to passively gather, analyze, and disseminate open sources atmospheric information throughout the Afghanistan Combined Joint Operating Area; monitor, track and measure trends in local sentiment regarding U.S. Forces-Afghanistan programs and policies. It will also provide professional advice and assistance with regard to cultural professional advice and assistance with regard to social, religious, political, economic, and tribal matters and communication strategies; produce open source atmospheric information that support Afghanistan related strategic, operational and tactical decision making. Fiscal 2014 operations and maintenance, Army funds in the amount of $5,009,895 were obligated at the time of the award. Estimated completion date is Dec. 4, 2015. Work will be performed in Afghanistan. Army Contracting Command, Rock Island Arsenal, Rock Island, Ill., is the contracting activity.
DEFENSE LOGISTICS AGENCY
Cottonwood Inc., Lawrence, Kan., has been awarded a maximum $15,000,000 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-quantity contract for vehicle cargo tie downs. This contract is a sole-source acquisition. Location of performance is Kansas with a Dec. 4, 2018 performance completion date. This is a two-year base contract with three one-year option periods. Using military services are Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and federal civilian agencies. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2014 through fiscal 2019 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is the Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pa., (SPE8EF-14-D-0001).
NAVY
Jacobs Technology Inc., Fort Walton Beach, Fla., is being awarded an $11,341,989 cost-plus-fixed-fee task order under the previously awarded General Services Administration Alliant Multiple Award contract for information technology services (GS0QBG-09-D-0059-GM01). This contract provides services for IT, information management, information assurance product service delivery mechanisms, software development, engineering and enterprise architectural compliance, server support services and information assurance compliance. The level of effort for the base year is 177,270 man hours. Work will be performed in China Lake, Calif. (82 percent); Point Mugu, Calif. (13 percent), and Norfolk, Va. (5 percent), and is expected to be completed in January 2015. Fiscal 2014 Navy working capital funds in the amount of $5,477,268 will be obligated at time of award, none of which will expire at the end of the current fiscal year. The Naval Air Warfare Center Weapons Division, China Lake, Calif., is the contracting activity.
SECRETARY OF STATE KERRY'S REMARKS TO CHISINAU STAFF AND FAMILIES
FROM: U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Meeting With Embassy Chisinau Staff and Families
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Secretary of State
Embassy Chisinau
Chisinau, Moldova
December 4, 2013
SECRETARY KERRY: (In progress) -- really delighted. I’m traveling with our Assistant Secretary of State who’s responsible for all this area, Victoria Nuland over here – Toria, as we call her. (Applause.) And --
PARTICIPANT: (Inaudible.) (Laughter.)
SECRETARY KERRY: Hopefully you’ll all be seeing a lot of her over time as we get out here.
But let me just say a quick thank you. I don’t want to give a speech, a long-haul, or anything like that. I’d like to just have a chance to run up and down the line, shake your hands, and say thank you. But we have a great Embassy out here. And you are right now engaged in a really important enterprise, which is helping Moldova to be able to make this shift of focus so it can choose to be affiliated with the economies and the countries and the values and the opportunities that it wants to be. And that means integration with Europe. What happened in Vilnius a few days ago with the initialing of the documents for the association agreement and also for the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement is a critical step towards this full integration.
Now, in my meetings with the prime minister who was here a moment ago – where did Prime Minister Leanca go? I think he’s out there talking to Michael Gordon. Is he still here? Or he’s in the other room?
PARTICIPANT: He’s across the hall.
SECRETARY KERRY: He’s across the hall. He went over to talk to The New York Times. He knows what he needs to do right now. (Laughter.) Much more important. But anyway, we had a terrific conversation. But he made it clear to me that the road ahead is not automatic. It’s not easy, and there will be pressures. And we’ve all seen what’s happened in Ukraine in the last few days. So this is not always easy, but it’s the right thing to do.
And so what I’ve gained out of this very short, quick visit, which I apologize to you for – I hate coming in and going out – but I thought it was far more important on my way to Israel, where I have to go for our Middle East peace process, that since we had the chance to come by here at this important time, and given what’s happening in Ukraine, I wanted to come here in order to be able to send a message about the importance of the choices that the government is making and what you’re working on.
So we’re going to work hard at this. We’ve got the Millennium Challenge Corporation grant that’s going on, Compact. We’ve got other initiatives that we’re engaged in, in helping them to deal with competitiveness, with businesses. I just came from the winery where we had a chance not only to taste a little wine – (laughter) – very little, I might add – but importantly, we were able to see a business that we think we can make a difference in with respect to how they market what their opportunities are. And particularly since Russia sort of brought the wall down and said, “We’re not going to let you sell your wine because you want to affiliate with Europe,” well, we’ve got to help open up the market so that they can see that that choice pays off.
So all of this is what matters to us going forward, the work you do every single day. I know we have a bunch of folks who make this Embassy work who are local hires, and I think we got about 160 or so, something like that. Now, can you raise your hands, those of you who are local hires? Thank you very, very much. We very much appreciate what you do for us. (Applause.)
And everybody else, whether you are a civil servant, Foreign Service national, foreign national, whatever it is, we thank you for the work that you’re doing.
Final word, because I can tell the kids are getting into – they want playtime or different time or something, I don’t know – (laughter) – I just want to say thank you personally as your Secretary of State.
As the Ambassador said, I was the – I am – was the son of a Foreign Service officer who served for a period of time. And I served right in the midst of the Cold War in the 1950s. I came over to Berlin, which was a divided city with a British sector, a French sector, an American sector, and a Russian sector, and guards, and divisions, and you came through on a special train from Frankfurt and it was right through the Russian sector, and they didn’t let you pick the blinds up, and it was pretty foreboding and imposing to a young kid. But I learned a lot at that stage about what it meant to be abroad, what it meant to be representing your country even though you’re a kid in another place. I went to school abroad and I learned what it was like to pack up and leave home and leave your friends and go to another place.
But it was a fabulous experience, and I’m sure you feel that way or you wouldn’t be doing it. It’s invaluable to our country. You are, every single one of you, ambassadors. And in many cases, you may be the only American that some people will ever meet. So the impression you leave and the service that you can provide and whatever it is you do for people leaves an indelible message about who we are, what kind of people we are, what we care about, and whether we care about people and how we take care of people. That’s very, very important.
We have a lot of other things that are going on, obviously. This is the first visit of the Secretary of State since Jim Baker in 1992 opened this mission. So I’m privileged to be here tonight. I’m glad to be in good company with our Assistant Secretary.
And I thank you all very much for this very, very important work you are doing at a critical time where we are transitioning into the 21st century with a whole set of different challenges – from cyber warfare to trade to the globalization to the movement of people in unfettered and amazing ways that we never imagined, a huge number of workers from Moldova in other countries sending remittances back, including from Russia – all of which creates this global fabric that we are still learning how to manage and how to navigate our way through. You all are at the vanguard of that and I thank you profoundly on behalf of President Obama, on behalf of the American people. We are grateful for your service. We really can’t do what we need to do for our country without you. And that includes our local hires; we thank you for what you do.
Thank you all. Great to be with you. Happy to be here. Appreciate it. (Applause.)
PARTICIPANT: (Inaudible.) (Laughter.)
SECRETARY KERRY: Hopefully you’ll all be seeing a lot of her over time as we get out here.
But let me just say a quick thank you. I don’t want to give a speech, a long-haul, or anything like that. I’d like to just have a chance to run up and down the line, shake your hands, and say thank you. But we have a great Embassy out here. And you are right now engaged in a really important enterprise, which is helping Moldova to be able to make this shift of focus so it can choose to be affiliated with the economies and the countries and the values and the opportunities that it wants to be. And that means integration with Europe. What happened in Vilnius a few days ago with the initialing of the documents for the association agreement and also for the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement is a critical step towards this full integration.
Now, in my meetings with the prime minister who was here a moment ago – where did Prime Minister Leanca go? I think he’s out there talking to Michael Gordon. Is he still here? Or he’s in the other room?
PARTICIPANT: He’s across the hall.
SECRETARY KERRY: He’s across the hall. He went over to talk to The New York Times. He knows what he needs to do right now. (Laughter.) Much more important. But anyway, we had a terrific conversation. But he made it clear to me that the road ahead is not automatic. It’s not easy, and there will be pressures. And we’ve all seen what’s happened in Ukraine in the last few days. So this is not always easy, but it’s the right thing to do.
And so what I’ve gained out of this very short, quick visit, which I apologize to you for – I hate coming in and going out – but I thought it was far more important on my way to Israel, where I have to go for our Middle East peace process, that since we had the chance to come by here at this important time, and given what’s happening in Ukraine, I wanted to come here in order to be able to send a message about the importance of the choices that the government is making and what you’re working on.
So we’re going to work hard at this. We’ve got the Millennium Challenge Corporation grant that’s going on, Compact. We’ve got other initiatives that we’re engaged in, in helping them to deal with competitiveness, with businesses. I just came from the winery where we had a chance not only to taste a little wine – (laughter) – very little, I might add – but importantly, we were able to see a business that we think we can make a difference in with respect to how they market what their opportunities are. And particularly since Russia sort of brought the wall down and said, “We’re not going to let you sell your wine because you want to affiliate with Europe,” well, we’ve got to help open up the market so that they can see that that choice pays off.
So all of this is what matters to us going forward, the work you do every single day. I know we have a bunch of folks who make this Embassy work who are local hires, and I think we got about 160 or so, something like that. Now, can you raise your hands, those of you who are local hires? Thank you very, very much. We very much appreciate what you do for us. (Applause.)
And everybody else, whether you are a civil servant, Foreign Service national, foreign national, whatever it is, we thank you for the work that you’re doing.
Final word, because I can tell the kids are getting into – they want playtime or different time or something, I don’t know – (laughter) – I just want to say thank you personally as your Secretary of State.
As the Ambassador said, I was the – I am – was the son of a Foreign Service officer who served for a period of time. And I served right in the midst of the Cold War in the 1950s. I came over to Berlin, which was a divided city with a British sector, a French sector, an American sector, and a Russian sector, and guards, and divisions, and you came through on a special train from Frankfurt and it was right through the Russian sector, and they didn’t let you pick the blinds up, and it was pretty foreboding and imposing to a young kid. But I learned a lot at that stage about what it meant to be abroad, what it meant to be representing your country even though you’re a kid in another place. I went to school abroad and I learned what it was like to pack up and leave home and leave your friends and go to another place.
But it was a fabulous experience, and I’m sure you feel that way or you wouldn’t be doing it. It’s invaluable to our country. You are, every single one of you, ambassadors. And in many cases, you may be the only American that some people will ever meet. So the impression you leave and the service that you can provide and whatever it is you do for people leaves an indelible message about who we are, what kind of people we are, what we care about, and whether we care about people and how we take care of people. That’s very, very important.
We have a lot of other things that are going on, obviously. This is the first visit of the Secretary of State since Jim Baker in 1992 opened this mission. So I’m privileged to be here tonight. I’m glad to be in good company with our Assistant Secretary.
And I thank you all very much for this very, very important work you are doing at a critical time where we are transitioning into the 21st century with a whole set of different challenges – from cyber warfare to trade to the globalization to the movement of people in unfettered and amazing ways that we never imagined, a huge number of workers from Moldova in other countries sending remittances back, including from Russia – all of which creates this global fabric that we are still learning how to manage and how to navigate our way through. You all are at the vanguard of that and I thank you profoundly on behalf of President Obama, on behalf of the American people. We are grateful for your service. We really can’t do what we need to do for our country without you. And that includes our local hires; we thank you for what you do.
Thank you all. Great to be with you. Happy to be here. Appreciate it. (Applause.)
SEC CHARGES HOLDING COMPANY OF FIFTH THIRD BANK WITH IMPROPER ACCOUNTING DURING FINANCIAL CRISIS
FROM: U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged the holding company of Cincinnati-based Fifth Third Bank and its former chief financial officer with improper accounting of commercial real estate loans in the midst of the financial crisis.
Fifth Third agreed to pay $6.5 million to settle the SEC’s charges, and Daniel Poston agreed to pay a $100,000 penalty and be suspended from practicing as an accountant on behalf of any publicly traded company or other entity regulated by the SEC.
According to the SEC’s order instituting settled administrative proceedings, Fifth Third experienced a substantial increase in “non-performing assets” as the real estate market declined in 2007 and 2008 and borrowers failed to repay their loans as originally required. Fifth Third decided in the third quarter of 2008 to sell large pools of these troubled loans. Once Fifth Third formed the intent to sell the loans, U.S. accounting rules required the company to classify them as “held for sale” and value them at fair value. Proper accounting would have increased Fifth Third’s pretax loss for the quarter by 132 percent. Instead, Fifth Third continued to classify the loans as “held for investment,” which incorrectly suggested that the company had not made the decision to sell the loans.
“Improper accounting by Fifth Third and Poston misled investors during a time of significant upheaval and financial distress for the company,” said George S. Canellos, co-director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement. “It is important for investors to know the financial consequences of decisions made by management, so accounting rules that depend on management’s intent must be scrupulously observed.”
According to the SEC’s order, Poston was familiar with the company’s loan sale efforts, which included entering into agreements with brokers during the third quarter of 2008 to market and sell loans. Despite understanding the relevant accounting rules, Poston failed to direct Fifth Third to classify and value the loans as required. Poston also made inaccurate statements to Fifth Third’s auditors about the company’s loan classifications, and certified the company’s inaccurate results for the third quarter of 2008.
“By failing to classify large pools of loans as required, Fifth Third and Poston kept investors from knowing the full truth behind its commercial real estate loan portfolio,” said Stephen L. Cohen, an associate director in the SEC’s Division of Enforcement.
Fifth Third and Poston consented to the entry of the order finding that they violated or caused violations of Sections 17(a)(2) and (3) of the Securities Act of 1933 as well as the reporting, books and records, and internal controls provisions of the federal securities laws. Without admitting or denying the findings, they agreed to cease and desist from committing or causing any violations and any future violations of these provisions. Poston is suspended from appearing or practicing before the SEC as an accountant pursuant to Rule 102(e) of the Commission’s Rules of Practice with the right to apply for reinstatement after one year.
The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Beth Groves, Paul Harley, Jonathan Jacobs, and Jim Blenko. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP).
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged the holding company of Cincinnati-based Fifth Third Bank and its former chief financial officer with improper accounting of commercial real estate loans in the midst of the financial crisis.
Fifth Third agreed to pay $6.5 million to settle the SEC’s charges, and Daniel Poston agreed to pay a $100,000 penalty and be suspended from practicing as an accountant on behalf of any publicly traded company or other entity regulated by the SEC.
According to the SEC’s order instituting settled administrative proceedings, Fifth Third experienced a substantial increase in “non-performing assets” as the real estate market declined in 2007 and 2008 and borrowers failed to repay their loans as originally required. Fifth Third decided in the third quarter of 2008 to sell large pools of these troubled loans. Once Fifth Third formed the intent to sell the loans, U.S. accounting rules required the company to classify them as “held for sale” and value them at fair value. Proper accounting would have increased Fifth Third’s pretax loss for the quarter by 132 percent. Instead, Fifth Third continued to classify the loans as “held for investment,” which incorrectly suggested that the company had not made the decision to sell the loans.
“Improper accounting by Fifth Third and Poston misled investors during a time of significant upheaval and financial distress for the company,” said George S. Canellos, co-director of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement. “It is important for investors to know the financial consequences of decisions made by management, so accounting rules that depend on management’s intent must be scrupulously observed.”
According to the SEC’s order, Poston was familiar with the company’s loan sale efforts, which included entering into agreements with brokers during the third quarter of 2008 to market and sell loans. Despite understanding the relevant accounting rules, Poston failed to direct Fifth Third to classify and value the loans as required. Poston also made inaccurate statements to Fifth Third’s auditors about the company’s loan classifications, and certified the company’s inaccurate results for the third quarter of 2008.
“By failing to classify large pools of loans as required, Fifth Third and Poston kept investors from knowing the full truth behind its commercial real estate loan portfolio,” said Stephen L. Cohen, an associate director in the SEC’s Division of Enforcement.
Fifth Third and Poston consented to the entry of the order finding that they violated or caused violations of Sections 17(a)(2) and (3) of the Securities Act of 1933 as well as the reporting, books and records, and internal controls provisions of the federal securities laws. Without admitting or denying the findings, they agreed to cease and desist from committing or causing any violations and any future violations of these provisions. Poston is suspended from appearing or practicing before the SEC as an accountant pursuant to Rule 102(e) of the Commission’s Rules of Practice with the right to apply for reinstatement after one year.
The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Beth Groves, Paul Harley, Jonathan Jacobs, and Jim Blenko. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the Office of the Special Inspector General for the Troubled Asset Relief Program (SIGTARP).
FTC CONGRESSIONAL TESTIMONY ON 100TH ANNIVERSARY
FROM: U.S. FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
FTC Testifies on Its Work to Protect Consumers and Promote Competition As the Agency Approaches Its 100th Anniversary
The Federal Trade Commission testified before Congress on the agency’s long track record of protecting consumers and promoting competition in the U.S. economy, as well as the agency’s ongoing work and future challenges as it approaches its 100th anniversary next year.
Testifying before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade, FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez and Commissioners Julie Brill, Maureen K. Ohlhausen and Joshua D. Wright told lawmakers that the FTC is a highly productive and efficient, small independent agency with jurisdiction to protect consumers and maintain competition in broad sectors of the economy.
“Our agency structure, research capacity, continued commitment to bipartisanship and cooperation, and exceptional staff will allow the FTC to continue to adapt to external changes and successfully fulfill its mission of protecting consumers and competition into its next century,” the testimony states.
President Woodrow Wilson signed the Federal Trade Commission Act and the Clayton Act in 1914, and the FTC opened its doors on March 16, 1915. The Commission was given enforcement authority and was empowered to conduct investigations, gather information, and publish reports. Since then, Congress has expanded the FTC’s responsibilities through a number of other statutes, such as the Fair Credit Reporting Act; the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act; and the 1994 Telemarketing and Consumer Fraud and Abuse Prevention Act, which led to establishment of the popular National Do Not Call Registry.
The testimony outlines the FTC’s current work to protect consumers and promote competition. In recent years, the FTC has emphasized protecting financially distressed consumers from fraud, protecting consumer privacy and data security, prosecuting false or deceptive health claims, and safeguarding children in the marketplace.
In fiscal year 2013, the FTC filed 72 new consumer protection complaints in federal district court and obtained 100 permanent injunctions and orders (including two civil contempt orders) requiring defendants to pay approximately $198 million in consumer redress or disgorgement of ill-gotten gains.
The FTC’s efforts to maintain competition focus on stopping anticompetitive mergers and other anticompetitive business practices in a wide range of industries of critical importance to American consumers, the testimony states. These include health care, technology, energy, consumer goods and services, and manufacturing. This work is critical to protect and strengthen free and open markets – the cornerstone of a vibrant economy.
In fiscal year 2013, the agency pursued 27 new competition law enforcement actions (merger and nonmerger) and undertook several important workshops, reports, and advocacy opportunities to promote competition and educate its stakeholders about the importance of competition to consumers. Over the past three years, the agency estimated that it saved consumers approximately $3 billion in potential price increases by stopping illegal anticompetitive practices and mergers in the marketplace.
Finally, the testimony describes the challenges facing the FTC as it nears its 100th anniversary. In light of resource constraints and a growing workload, the FTC will continue to leverage its resources through careful case selection, by partnering with public and private entities, and by improving its own technological infrastructure to allow its staff to work more effectively, among other things.
The FTC will continue to adapt as technology continues to evolve. The agency convenes public meetings, such as its recent workshop exploring the Internet of Things, that help the agency to identify the consumer protection and competition issues that may be raised by the use of new technology.
In addition, the testimony states, the FTC will seek to address challenges posed by increased globalization and an international marketplace, and will continue its longstanding initiative to review FTC rules and guides to ensure that they enhance consumer welfare without imposing undue burdens on business.
“As we approach our 100th anniversary, the FTC remains committed to finding ways to enhance its effectiveness in protecting consumers and promoting competition, to anticipate and respond to changes in the marketplace, and to meet current and future challenges,” the testimony states.
The Commission vote approving the testimony and its inclusion in the formal record was 4-0.
FTC Testifies on Its Work to Protect Consumers and Promote Competition As the Agency Approaches Its 100th Anniversary
The Federal Trade Commission testified before Congress on the agency’s long track record of protecting consumers and promoting competition in the U.S. economy, as well as the agency’s ongoing work and future challenges as it approaches its 100th anniversary next year.
Testifying before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade, FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez and Commissioners Julie Brill, Maureen K. Ohlhausen and Joshua D. Wright told lawmakers that the FTC is a highly productive and efficient, small independent agency with jurisdiction to protect consumers and maintain competition in broad sectors of the economy.
“Our agency structure, research capacity, continued commitment to bipartisanship and cooperation, and exceptional staff will allow the FTC to continue to adapt to external changes and successfully fulfill its mission of protecting consumers and competition into its next century,” the testimony states.
President Woodrow Wilson signed the Federal Trade Commission Act and the Clayton Act in 1914, and the FTC opened its doors on March 16, 1915. The Commission was given enforcement authority and was empowered to conduct investigations, gather information, and publish reports. Since then, Congress has expanded the FTC’s responsibilities through a number of other statutes, such as the Fair Credit Reporting Act; the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act; and the 1994 Telemarketing and Consumer Fraud and Abuse Prevention Act, which led to establishment of the popular National Do Not Call Registry.
The testimony outlines the FTC’s current work to protect consumers and promote competition. In recent years, the FTC has emphasized protecting financially distressed consumers from fraud, protecting consumer privacy and data security, prosecuting false or deceptive health claims, and safeguarding children in the marketplace.
In fiscal year 2013, the FTC filed 72 new consumer protection complaints in federal district court and obtained 100 permanent injunctions and orders (including two civil contempt orders) requiring defendants to pay approximately $198 million in consumer redress or disgorgement of ill-gotten gains.
The FTC’s efforts to maintain competition focus on stopping anticompetitive mergers and other anticompetitive business practices in a wide range of industries of critical importance to American consumers, the testimony states. These include health care, technology, energy, consumer goods and services, and manufacturing. This work is critical to protect and strengthen free and open markets – the cornerstone of a vibrant economy.
In fiscal year 2013, the agency pursued 27 new competition law enforcement actions (merger and nonmerger) and undertook several important workshops, reports, and advocacy opportunities to promote competition and educate its stakeholders about the importance of competition to consumers. Over the past three years, the agency estimated that it saved consumers approximately $3 billion in potential price increases by stopping illegal anticompetitive practices and mergers in the marketplace.
Finally, the testimony describes the challenges facing the FTC as it nears its 100th anniversary. In light of resource constraints and a growing workload, the FTC will continue to leverage its resources through careful case selection, by partnering with public and private entities, and by improving its own technological infrastructure to allow its staff to work more effectively, among other things.
The FTC will continue to adapt as technology continues to evolve. The agency convenes public meetings, such as its recent workshop exploring the Internet of Things, that help the agency to identify the consumer protection and competition issues that may be raised by the use of new technology.
In addition, the testimony states, the FTC will seek to address challenges posed by increased globalization and an international marketplace, and will continue its longstanding initiative to review FTC rules and guides to ensure that they enhance consumer welfare without imposing undue burdens on business.
“As we approach our 100th anniversary, the FTC remains committed to finding ways to enhance its effectiveness in protecting consumers and promoting competition, to anticipate and respond to changes in the marketplace, and to meet current and future challenges,” the testimony states.
The Commission vote approving the testimony and its inclusion in the formal record was 4-0.
SECRETARY KERRY, EU HIGH REPRESENTATIVE ASHTON MAKE REMARKS AT START OF MEETING IN GENEVA
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| U.S. State Department Photo |
Remarks at Top of Meeting With EU High Representative Cathy Ashton
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
NATO
Brussels, Belgium
December 4, 2013
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you very, very much. Let me just say how much we look forward to continuing to work with High Representative Ashton. Her efforts in Geneva with respect to the initial Iran first step have been key, and now we’re going to talk about how we proceed to try to move towards the comprehensive agreement, as well as some other important issues that we face. Nice to be with her again. Thank you.
HIGH REPRESENTATIVE ASHTON: Thank you. Just to say it’s a great partnership, and the work that we do between the European Union and the U.S. on so many issues, of which Iran is one of the greatest examples but by no means the only example, it’s crucial we share the same values, we work together to try and deliver for people across the world. And I know that as we think about some of the issues and challenges we’re facing right now, this partnership is going to be even more important in the future.
SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you all very much. Appreciate it. Cathy, please.
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