NAVY ESCORTING U.S.-FLAGGED SHIPS IN STRAIT OF HORMUZ

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT

Right:  Sailors assigned to the Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Farragut prepare to launch a MH-60R Sea Hawk helicopter assigned to Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 46, April 15, 2015. Farragut is deployed in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of operations supporting Operation Inherent Resolve strike operations in Iraq and Syria as directed, as well as maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the region. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Jackie Hart.

Navy to Escort U.S.-Flagged Ships in Strait of Hormuz
By Cheryl Pellerin

DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, May 1, 2015 – Ships from U.S. Naval Forces Central Command in Bahrain have begun accompanying U.S.-flagged maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, Defense Department officials said.

Sufficient U.S. naval forces are assigned to the command to meet the requirements of the accompanying mission, officials said, adding that Navcent will coordinate with shipping-industry representatives to ensure the operations go smoothly and efficiently.

The mission was prompted by two incidents this week in the Strait of Hormuz in which Iranian navy patrol vessels harassed commercial motor vessels traversing the strait.

On April 24, four Iranian patrol boats approached the U.S.-flagged merchant ship Maersk Kensington, Pentagon spokesman Army Col. Steve Warren said during an April 29 briefing.

First Incident

“The boats came astern of the Kensington and followed her for 15 or 20 minutes in actions that the Kensington’s master interpreted as aggressive,” he added.
There was no U.S. military involvement at the time, but after the incident, the ship's master filed a report with Navcent, Warren said.

“It's difficult to know exactly why the Iranians are operating this way,” Warren said. “We certainly call on them to respect all the internationally established rules of freedom of navigation, the law of the sea to which they are a signatory, and other established protocols.”

Then on April 28 at about 2:05 a.m. EST, Iranian patrol vessels approached the M/V Maersk Tigris, a Marshall Islands-flagged cargo vessel, Warren said in a briefing that day.

Maersk Tigris

The Republic of the Marshall Islands is a sovereign nation for which the United States has full authority and responsibility for security and defense under the terms of an amended security compact that entered into force in 2004.

The United States and the Marshall Islands have full diplomatic relations, according to the U.S. State Department, and the security compact between the two nations includes matters related to vessels flying the Marshallese flag.
The Maersk Tigris was in Iranian territorial waters that also contain internationally recognized commercial shipping lanes, Warren said, adding that the Strait of Hormuz is in Iranian territorial waters, which is within 12 miles of the Iranian coast. But because the narrow strait is recognized as containing international shipping lanes, he added, the principle of “innocent passage” is applied, so ships that abide by international rules of the sea are authorized to pass through the strait.

Innocent Passage

Warren said no Americans are among the 30 or so people aboard the Maersk Tigris.

The Tigris was transiting inbound, or north, in the Strait of Hormuz, between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman in the Arabian Sea. The strait is one of the world’s major strategic choke points, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

“The ship's master was contacted [by one of the Iranian ships] and directed to proceed further into Iranian territorial waters,” Warren said during an April 28 briefing. “He declined, and one of the [Iranian] craft fired shots across the bridge of the Maersk Tigris.”

Afterward, the master complied with the Iranian demand and motored into Iranian waters near Larak Island, Warren said. Larak Island is off the coast of Iran in the Persian Gulf. The master then issued a distress call.

Boarding the Tigris

Warren said initial reports indicated that members of the Iranian navy had boarded the Tigris. Navcent, having picked up the distress signal, directed the USS Farragut, an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer, to proceed to the nearest location to the Maersk Tigris, Warren said. Navcent also directed a Navy maritime patrol and reconnaissance aircraft to observe the interaction between the Maersk vessel and the Iranian craft, he added.

The Tigris’s destination, according to a marine-traffic website, was Jebel Ali, a port town 22 miles southwest of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates.

Maritime Security Operations

During an April 29 briefing, Warren said the USS Farragut was operating along with three U.S. Navy Cyclone-class coastal patrol ships -- the USS Typhoon, the USS Thunderbolt and the USS Firebolt -- all stationed in Manama, Bahrain.

The ships are conducting maritime security operations, maintaining continual U.S. presence and supporting the monitoring of the Maersk Tigris, which is at anchor near Larak Island and Bandar Abbas, he said.

“As is always the case, these assets give commanders options,” Warren said, adding that the U.S. government is in discussions with the Marshall Islands on the way ahead.

Warren said the Navy ships’ mission is to conduct maritime security operations, “but what they’re doing is keeping an eye on things.”
Traversing the Strait

All of the ships are operating in the Persian Gulf, in the Strait of Hormuz, near where the Maersk Tigris incident occurred, he added. They are close enough to the Maersk Tigris, Warren said, “that they'll be able to respond if a response is required.”

“Two [incidents] within four or five days has certainly created a situation where maritime cargo vessels presumably would have to consider the risks of traversing that strait,” he added.

Warren said that Iran's motive is not clear to the Defense Department and that DoD is not in contact with the Iranian government.

ALLEGED DRUG TRAFFICKING LEADER EXTRADITED FROM GUATEMALA

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Friday, May 1, 2015
Alleged Leader of the Lorenzana Drug Trafficking Organization Extradited to the United States

An alleged leader of an international drug trafficking organization based in Guatemala was extradited to the United States yesterday to face international narcotics trafficking charges in the District of Columbia, announced Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.

Eliu Elixander Lorenzana-Cordon, 43, was arrested in Guatemala on Nov. 8, 2011, after being indicted for conspiracy to import cocaine into the United States, and has been detained since that time pending extradition.  He arrived in the United States yesterday and was arraigned today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Alan Kay of the District of Columbia.

According to allegations contained in the indictment, Lorenzana-Cordon is a leader of an international drug trafficking organization that includes his father and several other family members.  Between 1996 and 2012, the organization allegedly received and stored multi-ton quantities of cocaine from Colombia for later importation into Mexico and the United States.

These cocaine shipments, worth millions of dollars, were allegedly transported to El Salvador on “go-fast” boats, and then smuggled into Guatemala by land and air.  The cocaine was then inventoried and stored for later export to Mexico and eventually the United States.

On April 27, 2010, the Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control designated Lorenzana-Cordon as a Specially Designated Narcotics Trafficker pursuant to the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act due to his significant role in international narcotics trafficking and his ties to the Sinaloa Cartel.

The charges in the indictment are merely allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Lorenzana-Cordon’s brother, Waldemar Lorenzana-Cordon, was extradited to the United States on Nov. 13, 2014, and is currently awaiting trial.  Lorenzana-Cordon’s father, Waldemar Lorenzana-Lima, pleaded guilty on Aug. 18, 2014, to conspiracy to import over 450 kilograms of cocaine into the United States, and is currently awaiting sentencing.  All three defendants were charged in the same indictment.

The investigation was led by the DEA’s 959/Bilateral Investigations Unit and Guatemala City Country Office, and was part of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force.  The case is being prosecuted by the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section.  The Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs provided significant assistance in the extradition.  The department appreciates the assistance provided by the government of Guatemala.

CENTCOM REPORTS SETBACKS FOR ISIL IN SYRIA AND IRAQ

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
ISIL Experiencing Setbacks in Iraq, Syria, Centcom Says
By Terri Moon Cronk
DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, May 1, 2015 – While Beiji and Ramadi in Iraq remain contested between Iraqi security forces and extremist Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant militants, ISIL is experiencing setbacks, a U.S. Central Command spokesman said today.

Speaking to reporters in the Pentagon via teleconference, Air Force Col. Patrick Ryder provided a weekly update on Centcom’s operational highlights in the fight against ISIL in Iraq and Syria.

In central Iraq, Iraqi security forces continue to conduct operations to secure the city of Karmah, and they have retaken territory around the Tigris River canal, Ryder said.

“We’ve seen these efforts help isolate ISIL fighters who are in the town, and this has helped choke off their lines of communication,” he said, adding that from an operational perspective, such gains help to secure ISIL approaches to Baghdad.

Iraqi Forces Hold Ramadi

There have been no significant changes from last week’s operations in Ramadi, a city in western Iraq, where Iraqi forces continue to hold onto key ground while ISIL forces try to keep territory they captured in the eastern part of the city. “We expect Ramadi to remain contested,” Ryder said.

ISIL also continues to contest the Iraqi forces’ hold on Beiji’s oil refinery, he said.

“ISIL has shown that Beiji and Ramadi are strategically important to them, and they are committing a significant amount of limited resources to secure these locations,” Ryder said.

ISIL wants to “score a win” after suffering numerous recent setbacks, most notably in Tikrit, he added. “Because of this, both cities are expected to remain contested for some time,” he said.

ISIL Temporarily Seizes Sub-dam

ISIL forces temporarily seized the Thar Thar, or Takseem, sub-dam north of Habbaniyah earlier this week, but Iraqi forces ultimately were able to repulse ISIL and re-secure the sub-dam.

“As it has elsewhere, ISIL employed this attack as a propaganda opportunity, and afterward posted online they killed 140 Iraqi soldiers, a number grossly over-exaggerated,” he said. Centcom’s information indicates the actual number of Iraqi forces casualties was five to 15, he told reporters.

Kurdish peshmerga forces in northern Iraq have continued to clear additional territory from ISIL and strengthen forces there, Ryder said, adding that ISIL attacks against Kurdish forces in the region can be best characterized as “harassing attacks.”

Kurdish Fighters Hold On in Syria

Similarly in eastern Syria, Kurdish fighters continue to expand and hold the territory they’ve taken, but ISIL is trying to contain the Kurds’ gains, Ryder noted.

“As the Kurds take territory from ISIL, they’re having an effect on the group’s lines of communication into northern Iraq,” he said.

“This development, along with continued coalition air strikes, has put further pressure on ISIL and it is inhibiting their ability to flow additional resources or freely operate in this region,” he said.

Centcom officials expect ISIL to continue its limited-scope attacks to exploit their propaganda value and give the false impression they’re able to conduct major offensive operations, Ryder said.

And while the fight against ISIL is “by no means over,” he added, Centcom officials are confident ISIL ultimately will be defeated.

BNP PARIBAS SENTENCED FOR VIOLATING TRADING WITH THE ENEMY ACT, INTERNATIONAL EMERGENCY ECONMIC POWERS ACT

FROM:  U.S. JUSTICE DEPARTMENT
Friday, May 1, 2015
BNP Paribas Sentenced for Conspiring to Violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act and the Trading with the Enemy Act

BNP Paribas S.A. (BNPP), a global financial institution headquartered in Paris, was sentenced today for conspiring to violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and the Trading with the Enemy Act (TWEA) by processing billions of dollars of transactions through the U.S. financial system on behalf of Sudanese, Iranian and Cuban entities subject to U.S. economic sanctions.  BNPP was sentenced to a five-year term of probation, and ordered to forfeit $8,833,600,000 to the United States and to pay a $140,000,000 fine.  Today’s sentencing is the first time a financial institution has been convicted and sentenced for violations of U.S. economic sanctions, and the total financial penalty—including the forfeiture and criminal fine—is the largest financial penalty ever imposed in a criminal case.

Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara of the Southern District of New York, Assistant Director in Charge Diego Rodriguez of the FBI’s New York Field Office and Chief Richard Weber of the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) made the announcement.  U.S. District Court Judge Lorna G. Schofield of the Southern District of New York imposed the sentence.

“BNP Paribas flouted U.S. sanctions laws to an unprecedented extreme, concealed its tracks, and then chose not to fully cooperate with U.S. law enforcement, leading to a criminal guilty plea and nearly $9 billion penalty” said Assistant Attorney General Caldwell.  “BNPP deliberately disregarded the law and provided rogue nations, and Sudan in particular, with vital access to the global financial system, helping that country’s lawless government to harbor and support terrorists and to persecute its own people.  Today’s sentence demonstrates that financial institutions will be punished severely but appropriately for violating sanctions laws and risking our national security interests.”

“BNPP, the world's fourth largest bank, has now been sentenced to pay a record penalty of almost $9 billion for sanctions violations that unlawfully opened the U.S. financial markets to Sudan, Iran, and Cuba,” said U.S. Attorney Bharara.  “BNPP provided access to billions of dollars to these sanctioned countries, and did so deliberately and secretly, in ways designed to evade detection by the U.S. authorities.  The sentence imposed today is appropriate for BNPP’s years-long and wide-ranging criminal conduct.”

“The sentencing of BNP Paribas Bank and the $9 Billion monetary penalty should sound the alarm to international financial institutions thinking of perpetrating these crimes,” said Chief Weber.  “The ability of IRS-CI and our partners to expose blatant violations of U.S. embargos and sanctions has changed the way financial matters are handled worldwide. We will continue to use our financial expertise to uncover these types of violations, as well as methodical and deliberate actions to conceal prohibited transactions from U.S. regulators and law enforcement.”

In connection with its guilty plea on July 9, 2014, BNPP admitted that from at least 2004 through 2012, it knowingly and willfully moved over $8.8 billion through the U.S. financial system on behalf of Sudanese, Iranian and Cuban sanctioned entities, in violation of U.S. economic sanctions.  The majority of illegal payments were made on behalf of sanctioned entities in Sudan, which was subject to U.S. embargo based on the Sudanese government’s role in facilitating terrorism and committing human rights abuses.  BNPP processed approximately $6.4 billion through the United States on behalf of Sudanese sanctioned entities from July 2006 through June 2007, including approximately $4 billion on behalf of a financial institution owned by the government of Sudan, even as internal emails showed BNPP employees expressing concern about the bank’s assisting the Sudanese government in light of its role in supporting international terrorism and committing human rights abuses during the same time period.  Indeed, in March 2007, a senior compliance officer at BNPP wrote to other high-level BNPP compliance and legal employees reminding them that certain Sudanese banks with which BNPP dealt “play a pivotal part in the support of the Sudanese government which . . . has hosted Osama Bin Laden and refuses the United Nations intervention in Darfur.”

Similarly, from October 2004 through early 2010, BNPP knowingly and willfully processed approximately $1.74 billion on behalf of Cuban sanctioned entities.  BNPP admitted that it continued to do U.S. dollar business with Cuba long after it was clear that such business was illegal.  BNPP further admitted that its conduct with regard to the Cuban embargo was both “cavalier” and “criminal.”

BNPP also engaged in more than $650 million of transactions involving entities tied to Iran, and this conduct continued into 2012—nearly two years after the bank had commenced an internal investigation into its sanctions compliance and pledged to cooperate with the government.  The illicit Iranian transactions included transactions for a petroleum company based in Dubai that was effectively a front for an Iranian petroleum company and an Iranian oil company.

In accepting BNPP’s guilty plea, Judge Schofield stated that BNPP’s actions “not only flouted U.S. foreign policy but also provided support to governments that threaten both our regional and national security and, in the case of Sudan, a government that has committed flagrant human rights abuses and has known links to terrorism.”  Judge Schofield further stated that the forfeiture of over $8 billion will “surely have a deterrent effect on others that may be tempted to engage in similar conduct, all of whom should be aware that no financial institution is immune from the rule of law.”

The Justice Department is exploring ways to use the forfeited funds to compensate individuals who may have been harmed by the sanctioned regimes of Sudan, Iran and Cuba.  As a preliminary step in this process, the Justice Department is inviting such individuals or their representatives to provide information describing the nature and value of the harm they suffered.  Beginning today (May 1, 2015), interested persons can learn more about this process and submit their information at www.usvbnpp.com [external link], or call 888-272-5632 (within North America) or 317-324-0382 (internationally).

In addition to its federal criminal conviction, BNPP pleaded guilty in New York State Supreme Court to falsifying business records and conspiring to falsify business records.  BNPP also agreed to a cease and desist order and to pay a civil monetary penalty of $508 million to the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.  The New York State Department of Financial Services announced that BNPP agreed to, among other things, terminate or separate from the bank 13 employees, including the Group Chief Operating Officer and other senior executives; suspend U.S. dollar clearing operations through its New York Branch and other affiliates for one year for business lines on which the misconduct centered; extend for two years a monitorship put in place in 2013; and pay a monetary penalty of $2.24 billion.  In satisfying its criminal forfeiture penalty, BNPP will receive credit for payments it made in connection with its resolution of these related state and regulatory matters.  The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control also levied a fine of $963 million, which will be satisfied by payments made to the Justice Department.

This case was investigated by the IRS-CI’s Washington Field Office and FBI’s New York Field Office.  This case was prosecuted by Deputy Chief Craig Timm and Trial Attorney Jennifer E. Ambuehl of the Criminal Division’s Asset Forfeiture and Money Laundering Section and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Andrew D. Goldstein, Martin S. Bell, Christine I. Magdo and Micah W.J. Smith of the Southern District of New York.

The New York County District Attorney’s Office conducted its own investigation alongside the Justice Department in this case.  The Justice Department expressed its gratitude to the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, the New York State Department of Financial Services and the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control for their assistance with this matter.

CROWDSOURCED SCIENCE TRACKS "SUDDEN OAK DEATH"

FROM:  NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION

Trees turned to snags: "Sudden Oak Death" fells California oaks in their prime
Citizen scientists assist with research on infectious plant disease
Sudden oak death, beware.

Crowdsourced science is helping to predict the path of the deadly plant disease, demonstrating the contributions trained citizen scientists can make in large-scale geographic tracking projects.

That's the conclusion of a study of sudden oak death monitoring in California. The results are published in this month's issue of the journal Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment.

Ebola of the plant world

"Sudden oak death is the Ebola of the plant world, the most serious threat to non-agricultural plants," says lead paper author Ross Meentemeyer, director of the Center for Geospatial Analytics at North Carolina State University.

The disease, which has killed millions of oak and tanoak trees in California and Oregon, can infect up to 60 landscape plant species and spread from nursery stock to residential landscapes.

Starting in 2008, University of California, Berkeley, researchers expanded their sudden oak death monitoring efforts exponentially, thanks to observations from 1,600 trained volunteers who collected leaf samples from trees in metropolitan and urban-wildland areas.

Citizen scientists often needed in research

"To answer many science questions, we need the efforts of a large number of people--and the general public can help," says Sam Scheiner, National Science Foundation (NSF) director for the NSF-NIH-USDA Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Diseases Program, which funded the research.

"This study shows that asking local residents to report on the locations of outbreaks of sudden oak death can provide critical information. The result is a better understanding of the spread of this serious plant disease."

Adds Meentemeyer, "We were able to get data from backyards in the San Francisco Bay area, along with other locations.

"Those data were used to develop accurate computer models for the disease's spread, showing that properly trained and educated citizen scientists can collect data that's just as reliable as that of professionals."

Predictions allow for targeted treatments

Accurate predictions about sudden oak death's spread allow scientists to target treatments to the most vulnerable areas, says paper co-author and forest pathologist Matteo Garbelotto of UC Berkeley.

The annual Sudden Oak Death Blitz, which includes extensive publicity during peak periods for the disease, involves high school students, homeowners, tree specialists, firefighters, teachers and others.

Follow-up evaluation showed that trained citizen scientists were as effective as experts in identifying and collecting diseased tree leaves, whether or not they reported having a professional background in science.

Additional authors of the paper are Monica Dorning and John Vogler of NC State and Douglas Schmidt of UC Berkeley.

-- Cheryl Dybas, NSF
-- D'Lyn Ford, NCSU
Investigators
David Rizzo
Ross Meentemeyer
Related Institutions/Organizations
University of California-Davis
University of North Carolina at Charlotte

USDA ANNOUNCES 1 MILLION ACRES IN CONSERVATION PROGRAM

FROM:  USDA FARM SERVICE AGENCY
USDA Wildlife Habitat Conservation Program Reaches 1 Million Acres
Milestone achieved in North Dakota

WASHINGTON, May 1, 2015 — The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) Administrator Val Dolcini today announced that a major national conservation program that restores high-priority wildlife habitat has now surpassed 1 million acres with the recent enrollment of land in La Moure County, North Dakota.


The initiative, known as State Acres for Wildlife Enhancement (SAFE), is a part of the USDA Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), a federally-funded voluntary program that contracts with agricultural producers so that environmentally-sensitive land is not farmed or ranched, but instead used for conservation benefits. With SAFE, wildlife that may be endangered, suffering population declines, or that provide value to the local community, is identified by nonfederal partners. Agricultural producers within an approved SAFE area then can submit offers to voluntarily enroll acres in CRP contracts for 10-15 years. In exchange, these producers receive annual CRP rental payments, incentives and cost-share assistance focused on establishing, improving, or creating higher-quality wildlife habitat.


“We’re celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Conservation Reserve Program this year, so one million acres of new wildlife habitat is another a parallel milestone for the program,” said Dolcini. “SAFE began in 2007 as an offshoot to focus on establishing key plant species that help not just soil and water, but also are beneficial to selected rural wildlife habitat. And as it enhances the flora and fauna of the countryside, it can also create recreational opportunities for the sportsman, which is an investment in the rural economy as well.”


Four of the 98 SAFE projects nationwide can be found in North Dakota, covering more than 122,000 acres. The one millionth national SAFE acre was enrolled as part of the Coteau-Drift project, which creates waterfowl, shorebird and terrestrial bird habitat the Missouri Plateau and Drift Prairie region.


According to FSA State Executive Director for North Dakota, Aaron Krauter, “Since the Coteau-Drift project was established, we’ve worked with producers to enroll more than 69,000 acres in SAFE that have helped improve habitat and maintain excellent numbers of waterfowl, which in turn draws more hunters and nature enthusiasts that contribute to our local economies, so it’s altogether fitting that this milestone occurred in North Dakota.”


Producers can offer land for enrollment in SAFE and other CRP programs by contacting their local FSA county office at http://offices.usda.gov. To learn more about Farm Service Agency conservation programs, visit www.fsa.usda.gov/conservation.


The 2014 Farm Bill continues the Conservation Reserve Program. The Farm Bill builds on historic economic gains in rural America over the past six years, while achieving meaningful reform and billions of dollars in savings for the taxpayer. Since enactment, USDA has made significant progress to implement each provision of this critical legislation, including providing disaster relief to farmers and ranchers; strengthening risk management tools; expanding access to rural credit; funding critical research; establishing innovative public-private conservation partnerships; developing new markets for rural-made products; and investing in infrastructure, housing and community facilities to help improve quality of life in rural America.

U.S. CONGRATULATES POLISH PEOPLE ON THEIR CONSTITUTION DAY

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
On the Occasion of Poland's Constitution Day
Press Statement
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Washington, DC
April 30, 2015

On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I congratulate the Polish people as you celebrate the 224th anniversary of your constitution on May 3.

Poland’s journey has long been personal to me. I have visited several times, and it’s no accident that I chose Poland for my first stop in Central Europe as Secretary of State. I was deeply moved to stand at the gravesite of former Prime Minister Tadeusz Mazowiecki and lay a wreath on behalf of the American people. I was struck by how much has changed in just one generation, and how much of that change was possible because of the vision of this extraordinary man. Prime Minister Mazowiecki was a devoted advocate for freedom and human rights and democracy. His legacy continues to inspire today.

The Polish people know what it means to stand up to tyranny. Poland’s story of triumph since the fall of communism inspires advocates of freedom around the world. You have shown what is possible when people are allowed to embrace and define their own futures.

The United States commends your support for civil societies from Eastern Europe to North Africa, including the people of Ukraine as they proceed with constitutional reform and elections. We value our extensive security relationship as NATO allies. Our troops are proud to serve alongside Polish soldiers in Afghanistan and we honor their shared sacrifice. Last summer, our two countries launched an innovation program that will benefit both of our economies by tapping the creativity of our nations’ researchers, entrepreneurs, innovators, financiers, and educators.

As you celebrate Constitution Day, the United States stands with you as we work together toward a free, prosperous, and democratic world.

GEN. BREEDLOVE SAYS RUSSIA TAKING A 'DIFFERENT PATH' SIGNALED BY ACTIONS IN UKRAINE

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Breedlove: Russia Now Taking ‘Different Path’
By Jim Garamone
DoD News, Defense Media Activity

WASHINGTON, May 1, 2015 – The West assumed the best of Russia once the Cold War ended, but Russian President Vladimir Putin had other plans and NATO must remain strong in face of the threat from the East, Air Force Gen. Philip M. Breedlove said here yesterday.

Breedlove, the Supreme Allied Commander Europe and commander of U.S. European Command, told the Atlantic Council that freedom is being challenged by “a revanchist Russia embarked on a reaching revision of what once were shared hopes for a stable and mutually beneficial partnership.”

Breedlove yesterday received the Distinguished Military Leadership award from the council.

The general said that when the Berlin Wall fell and the Cold War ended, the United States fundamentally changed the way it dealt with Russia. The United States believed there was a genuine hope for a new friendship, a new partnership and the prospect of a Europe whole, free, at peace and prosperous, he said.
“We broke with confrontation and pursued a policy of cooperation, and for a long time many of us believed Russia would also embrace that cooperation,” Breedlove said. “But as we look back, there were clear signs that Russia was on a different path.”

In the early 1990s, Russia stoked separatist tensions in Georgia and Moldova, Breedlove said. In 2007, Russia suspended observance of the Conventional Forces in Europe Treaty. In 2008, Russian forces invaded Georgia. Through it all Russian leaders clamped down on freedoms the Russian people had only recently won, the general said.

‘Signals of a Changing Russia’

“All of these were signals of a changing Russia, breaking with the principles and the values of the West,” he said.

But the United States and its NATO allies remained optimistic and continued to treat Russia as a valued and trusted partner, Breedlove said.

But last year, with the illegal annexation of Crimea and movement into Eastern Ukraine the West’s optimism faded, the general said. Russia’s actions against Ukraine since last year have signaled “a clear end of what I see as two decades of clear Russian struggle over security policy,” Breedlove said.

Russia is now on a far different course, he said, one that shifts the relationship between Russia and the West from strategic cooperation to one of strategic competition. This is not a temporary aberration, but the new norm, Breedlove said.

“This is a Russia that recognizes strength and sees weakness as an opportunity,” he said.

Strategic Competition

This strategic competition requires a new mindset and a new approach, the general said.

“The U.S. and NATO must adapt,” he said. “And we are. The stakes are high but we must not shy away from that because, frankly, Russia is not.”

There still must be a dialogue with Russia, but conversations with the country must be done from a position of strength, the general said.

“We must embrace cooperation wherever our mutual interests align, but we must also ensure that we are ready to compete,” Breedlove said.
NATO is Strong

NATO is strong and it gives the West the ability to compete successfully against current and future challenges, he said.

Breedlove said NATO must challenge Russia’s current policies and demonstrate that Putin’s current approach will not be allowed to damage security.

The alliance also must deter Russia “by carefully shaping Moscow’s choices and managing Putin’s confidence,” the general said.

He added, “And it means continuing to lead courageously, as an alliance and as a nation.”

NATO is rock solid, Breedlove said.

“We are standing together,” he said.

Weekly Address: Ensuring Every Child Gets a Great Education

5/1/15: White House Press Briefing

WHITE HOUSE VIDEO: WEST WING WEEK: 05/01/2015

FTC SAYS MORTGAGE RELIEF BUSINESS TARGETED HOMEOWNERS FACING FORECLOSURE

FROM:  U.S. FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION
Court Halts Mortgage Relief Operation that Targeted Homeowners Facing Foreclosure

Some People Lost Their Homes: Paid Defendants Instead of Making Mortgage Payments

At the Federal Trade Commission’s request, a federal court halted a sham operation that allegedly told financially distressed homeowners it would help get their mortgages modified, but instead effectively stole their mortgage payments, leading some to foreclosure and bankruptcy. The FTC seeks to permanently stop the scheme and its participants’ illegal practices. It also filed a contempt action against one of the scheme’s principals, Brian Pacios, who is under a previous court order that prohibited him from mortgage relief activities.

“These defendants stole mortgage payments from struggling homeowners, and they pretended to be a nonprofit working with the government,” said Jessica Rich, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “We’ll continue to shut down shameful mortgage frauds like this one.”

According to the FTC’s complaint, the defendants, sometimes doing business as HOPE Services, and more recently as HAMP Services, targeted consumers facing foreclosure, and especially those who had failed to get any relief from their lenders. Pretending to be “nonprofit” with government ties, they sent mail bearing what looked like an official government seal, and indicated that the recipients might be eligible for a “New 2014 Home Affordable Modification Program” (HAMP 2).

The defendants called the program “an aggressive update to Obama’s original modification program,” and stated that “[y]our bank is now incentivized by the government to lower your interest rate . . .”

The defendants falsely claimed they had a high success rate, special contacts who would help get loan terms modified, and an ability to succeed even when consumers had failed. After obtaining consumers’ financial information, they told them they were “preliminarily approved” and falsely claimed they would submit consumers’ loan modification applications to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America, and the “Making Home Affordable” (MHA) program. The MHA application form they sent consumers excluded the page that warns, “BEWARE OF FORECLOSURE RESCUE SCAMS,” and “never make your mortgage payments to anyone other than your mortgage company without their approval.”

Later, the defendants falsely told consumers they were approved for a low interest rate and monthly payments significantly lower than their current payment, and that after making three monthly trial payments, and often a fee to reinstate a defaulted loan, they would get a loan modification and be safe from foreclosure. They also told consumers not to speak with their lender or an attorney.

In reality, homeowners who made the payments did not have their mortgages modified, and their lenders never received their trial payments, the FTC alleged. Instead, they were contacted by an “Advocacy Department” run by one of the defendants, Denny Lake, and told that the department would get them an even better loan modification than the one purportedly obtained through MHA, according to the FTC’s complaint.

But the “Advocacy Department” was just another trick designed to make sure consumers continued to make all of the monthly trial payments. When consumers raised concerns about continuing foreclosure warnings, sale date notices, and even court dates, they were told their loan modification was being processed or nearly completed.

By keeping consumers on the hook for months, the defendants doubled, tripled, or quadrupled consumers’ trial payments, the FTC alleged.  They told consumers they would put these payments in escrow accounts and eventually pay off consumers’ lenders. In fact, the defendants simply took the money for themselves. As a result, some consumers lost their homes, and most consumers incurred additional penalties and interest as they fell further behind on their mortgages.

The defendants include Chad Caldaronello, also known as Chad Carlson and Chad Johnson; C.C. Enterprises Inc., doing business as HOPE Services, Retention Divisions, and Trust Payment Center; Justin Moreira, a/k/a Justin Mason, Justin King and Justin Smith; Derek Nelson, a/k/a Dereck Wilson; D.N. Marketing Inc., d/b/a HAMP Services and Trial Payment Processing; and Brian Pacios, a/k/a Brian Berry and Brian Kelly. They are charged with violating the FTC Act, the FTC’s Mortgage Assistance Relief Services Rule (MARS), and its Telemarketing Sales Rule (TSR).

Denny Lake, d/b/a JD United, Advocacy Department, Advocacy Division, and Advocacy Agency, is charged with knowing or consciously avoiding knowing the other defendants were violating the MARS and the TSR. A relief defendant, Cortney Gonsalves, is charged with holding money and assets she received from the scam.

To learn how to avoid mortgage and foreclosure rescue scams, see Home Loans.

RECENT AIRSTRIKES IN SYRIA, IRAQ

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT
Airstrikes Hit ISIL in Syria, Iraq

From a Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve News Release
SOUTHWEST ASIA, May 1, 2015 – U.S. and coalition military forces have continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today.

Officials reported details of the latest strikes, which took place between 8 a.m. yesterday and 8 a.m. today, local time, noting that assessments of results are based on initial reports.

Airstrikes in Syria

Attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 11 airstrikes in Syria:

-- Near Hasakah, four airstrikes struck two ISIL tactical units, destroying two ISIL fighting positions and an ISIL excavator.

-- Near Dayr Az Zawr, an airstrike struck an ISIL tactical unit, destroying an ISIL vehicle.

-- Near Kobani, six airstrikes struck an ISIL large and three small tactical units, destroying seven ISIL fighting positions and an ISIL vehicle.
Airstrikes in Iraq

Attack, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted seven airstrikes in Iraq, approved by the Iraqi Ministry of Defense:

-- Near Beiji, an airstrike struck an ISIL tactical unit, destroying two ISIL fighting positions.

-- Near Fallujah, an airstrike struck an ISIL tactical unit, destroying an ISIL fighting position.

-- Near Mosul, an airstrike struck an ISIL defensive position.

-- Near Ramadi, three airstrikes struck two ISIL tactical units, destroying an ISIL fighting position, and an ISIL resupply cache.

-- Near Tal Afar, an airstrike struck an ISIL tactical unit, destroying an ISIL vehicle.

Part of Operation Inherent Resolve

The strikes were conducted as part of Operation Inherent Resolve, the operation to eliminate the ISIL terrorist group and the threat they pose to Iraq, Syria, the region, and the wider international community. The destruction of ISIL targets in Syria and Iraq further limits the terrorist group's ability to project terror and conduct operations.

Coalition nations conducting airstrikes in Iraq include the United States, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Jordan, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. Coalition nations conducting airstrikes in Syria include the United States, Bahrain, Canada, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

WORKERS' MEMORIAL DAY

FROM:  U.S. LABOR DEPARTMENT
National News
Honoring the Fallen on Workers' Memorial Day

Kathy Pierce was texting with her son Chad just hours before he died at work on a Maryland cellphone tower in Pasadena. She shared the wrenching story of his 2014 death at a Workers' Memorial Day observance April 28 at department headquarters in Washington, D.C. Jordan Barab, deputy assistant secretary for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, reminded all of the extensive physical, personal and social costs of occupational injuries. He also unveiled an updated version of the legally required workplace safety poster. Joseph Main, assistant secretary of labor for mine safety and health, and Leonard J. Howie III, director for the Office of Workers' Compensation Programs, talked about progress their respective agencies have made to keep workers safe. AFL-CIO's Peg Seminario reflected on recent achievements in worker health and safety, and Deputy Secretary of Labor Chris Lu told those gathered: "On this day, we mourn not just for the lives lost, but also for the opportunity that is lost, the American dreams that are extinguished."

SEC COMMISSIONER PIWOWAR'S STATEMENT ON EXECUTIVE PAY VERSUS PERFORMANCE

FROM:  U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
PUBLIC STATEMENT
Statement at Open Meeting on Pay versus Performance
Commissioner Michael S. Piwowar
April 29, 2015

Thank you, Chair White, and a special thank you to Mike Walker of the San Francisco Regional Office for getting in early to set up the video conference.

It has been nearly five years since the enactment of the Dodd-Frank Act, which required the Commission to promulgate nearly a hundred different rules, some of which were actually related to the causes of the financial crisis.  I do not question the fact that we will ultimately need to implement all of our obligations under that law.  I do question, however, the order in which we are considering them.  Instead of prioritizing those rules related to the causes of the financial crisis, we have repeatedly seen the agenda for Dodd-Frank Act implementation filled with rulemakings not related to the financial crisis, such as conflict minerals, mine safety, and resource extraction.  Unfortunately, this proposal represents another questionable and imprudent use of agency resources, which I cannot support while other important rulemakings remain outstanding.

That being said, I had indicated my willingness to consider supporting, at an appropriate time, the implementation of Section 953(a) of the Dodd-Frank Act using a principles-based approach requiring a clear description of the relationship between executive compensation actually paid and the financial performance of the issuer.  Indeed, the approach initially circulated by the staff to the Commissioners, after obtaining approval from the Chair’s office, was one that I might have been able to support.  I thank the staff in the Division of Corporation Finance, the Division of Economic and Risk Analysis, and the Office of the General Counsel for their efforts on crafting that principles-based approach.

Unfortunately, the revised document being considered today has been changed to be a highly prescriptive measure.  It focuses particular attention on a single metric of financial performance – one-year total shareholder return (TSR).  This one-size-fits-all approach assumes that, for all companies and all shareholders, one-year TSR is the only metric that matters.  Although the proposal points out that issuers may include additional disclosures and different metrics, the proposal would only provide specific tags for one-year TSR.  Other metrics and disclosures would be relegated to block-tagging in a form not conducive to comparative analysis.

As one paper from the National Association of Corporate Directors observed, “an isolated emphasis on TSR can result in excessive focus on quarterly financial numbers and encourage short-term thinking.”[1]  To the extent that the prescribed measure of TSR may be less meaningful at particular companies, a principles-based approach could reduce shareholder confusion in understanding the relationship between pay and performance.

The majority of the Commission is pushing forward with the focus on one-year TSR, despite the economic analysis performed by our economists in the Division of Economic and Risk Analysis.  The analysis observes that which performance metrics should be considered, and how much compensation should vary with these metrics, is difficult to ascertain and will vary with a company’s individual circumstances.  Our economic analysis further notes that the available performance statistics may not adequately measure a given executive’s contribution to a registrant’s performance, such as when registrant performance is strongly related to market moves, sector opportunities, commodity prices, or other factors unrelated to managerial effort or skill.

I am greatly disappointed that the proposal does not exclude smaller reporting companies from the disclosure requirement.  Shares of smaller reporting companies are generally less liquid than shares of larger reporting companies.  Thus, estimates of one-year TSR for smaller reporting companies may be less precise and less readily available, potentially making pay-versus-performance comparisons based on this metric less meaningful.

Trying to limit executive compensation through regulation has a habit of backfiring; one need only look at Section 162(m) of the Internal Revenue Code and its attempt to limit executive compensation that, some have argued, had the unintended consequence of increasing executive pay.[2]

Finally, the singular focus on one-year TSR may make corporate executives more likely to engage in efforts such as increasing debt, cutting research and development, and engaging in stock buy-backs to increase stock prices in the short-term to the detriment of long-term performance.  On the other hand, a principles-based approach would reduce the risk that the disclosure requirements could lead registrants to game their compensation structures.

For these reasons, I cannot support the current proposal to implement pay-versus-performance disclosure.

I have no questions.


[1] NACD Perspectives Paper: Pay for Performance and Supplemental Pay Definitions (Dec. 2013) at 3, available at http://www.farient.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/NACD%20PERSPECTIVES_Pay%20Definitions.pdf.

[2] See, e.g., Max Ehrenfreund, “Why Elizabeth Warren thinks Bill Clinton made CEO pay even worse,” The Washington Post (Apr. 27, 2015); “Speech by SEC Staff: Financial Regulation: Economic Margins and Unintended Consequences,” by Chester S. Spatt (Mar. 17, 2006),

SECRETARY KERRY'S REMARKS WITH SYRIAN OPPOSITION COUNCIL PRESIDENT KHOJA

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
Remarks With Syrian Opposition Council President Khaled Khoja
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Treaty Room
Washington, DC
April 30, 2015

SECRETARY KERRY: Good morning, everybody. I’m very pleased to welcome the president of the Syrian Opposition Coalition, President Khoja. And we’re very happy to be able to talk today about, obviously, a very compelling and tragic situation.

The situation on the ground in Syria and in the communities around it is simply unsustainable, catastrophic. It has a profound impact – negative – on each of the surrounding communities, particularly Lebanon, Turkey, and Jordan, but especially on the people of Syria. Three quarters of the population of Syria is now displaced people – and many of them, at least half, internally within Syria itself. Whole communities have been destroyed. Children, innocent medical personnel, women have barrel bombs dropped on them from the sky. This is a regime that has lost all sense of any kind of responsibility to its own people, and that is why there must be a transition from the Assad regime towards a government that represents all the people and can repair this extraordinary damage to Syria, unite the country, protect all minorities, and provide a legitimate future.

The other part of the problem is that as Assad is busy destroying the country in his own interests, he is enabling and attracting terrorists to the country who are having a further negative impact on the region. That’s why he has lost all legitimacy with respect to his ability to be able to be a part of the long-term future of the country.

So we will talk about this today. The Syrian opposition continues to fight difficult odds. They have agreed to be part of UN talks that will take place over the course of the next weeks and month. And we very much hope that in the immediate days ahead, that people will be able to find a new path by which to create an outcome that will restore the secular, united nature of Syria and be able to prevent this extraordinary humanitarian catastrophe that is unfolding before the world’s eyes.

So, Mr. President, I welcome you here, delighted to have you, and I look forward to our conversation.

PRESIDENT KHOJA: (Via interpreter) I am here to thank the United States for its continued support to the Syrian people in its endeavor to achieve its – to realize its goals to freedom, democracy, and pluralism. The U.S. has given the Syrian people an excess of $3 billion in assistance and it has stood by the Syrian coalition as the legitimate representative of the Syrian people. I will be discussing with the Secretary of State the latest developments in Syria with regards to – on the political and military levels, and we are here also to ask the assistance of the U.S. in establishing safe havens in liberated areas. As Mr. Secretary has pointed out, President Assad has no legitimacy and he is not part of the future of Syria. And for that reason he needs to be prosecuted and subjected to fair trial for the crimes he has committed against the Syrian people.

Once again, I would like to thank the Secretary for this opportunity. Thank you.

REMARKS AT FORTUNE/U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT GLOBAL WOMEN'S MENTORING PARTNERSHIP

FROM:  U.S. STATE DEPARTMENT
04/29/2015 09:58 PM EDT
Remarks at the 10th Annual Fortune/U.S. State Department Global Women's Mentoring Partnership
Remarks
John Kerry
Secretary of State
Benjamin Franklin Room
Washington, DC
April 29, 2015

Thank you very, very much, Evan. Thank you very, very much, Pattie. Thanks so much for doing this and for Fortune’s commitment to all of this. And thank you, all of you, good evening. And I apologize profusely; I gather you’ve been sitting here waiting to eat, right? Anyway, I am sorry. I was held up in the place where Tina works, called the White House – (laughter) – where we were having a long discussion about one of our trouble spots in the world. And I’m really happy to be here. This is not a trouble spot. (Laughter.)

I want to thank the members of Congress who are here. I guess they’re spread around. I don’t see them all sitting at one table. I see Nita over here. But Representatives Debbie Dingell, Nita Lowey who’s here, Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Maxine Walters, I want to thank – Waters – I want to thank them for their tremendous contribution. They are powerful women, let me tell you, especially Nita’s got my budget. (Laughter and applause.)

But thank you for the hard work that you do every single day. Honestly, we really appreciate it. And thank you to the Treasurer of the United States Rosie Rios. I mentioned to her she’s got her name on every dollar around the country. She said, “I’m watching that money really carefully.”

And Tina Tchen, what a great job you do. Thank you, you’re a delight to work with and we really appreciate everything that you and the First Lady are accomplishing. Thank you very much. We’re excited to have all of you with us on this extraordinary floor of the State Department. This is, I think you know, the Ben Franklin Room. It’s a special room. That’s Ben over there above the fireplace, and the other Ben, my dog, who is the diplo-mutt, is downstairs waiting for me to take him home so he can eat, too. So I’ve held everybody up tonight. (Laughter.) He’s not talking to me.

The most powerful women. We’re in the Ben Franklin Room, as I mentioned. All these rooms are named after men. They didn’t listen to Abigail Adams, who told her husband, “If particular attention is not paid to the ladies, we will mount a rebellion.” (Laughter.) Well, there’s been a number of rebellions since that period of time. One of them is that Ben Franklin led a pretty interesting life and he particularly led an interesting life when he was the ambassador to Paris with Jefferson, and John Adams was there – a period of time when they were all there together. If you’ve read about him, you would all know that when he said wine is constant proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy, he knew what he was talking about. (Laughter.) And you also would understand that he would clearly not get confirmed by the United States Senate today. (Laughter.)

This is supposed to be a fun evening and it is a fun evening. Evan Ryan is, as you know, our assistant secretary of state for educational and cultural affairs. And she has it all, as you see. She’s got energy, creativity, eloquence, dynamic, and I am very, very grateful to have her on our team. She’s doing a great job of reaching out across all the international boundaries to bring us closer together, and I appreciate enormously what she is doing.

And Pattie Sellers has been a champion for women for many, many years, a driving force behind Fortune’s Most Powerful Women’s partnership with the State Department. And so I’m happy to celebrate the fact that this partnership is now in its 10th year and frankly is generating more energy and more excitement than ever. So Pattie, thank you for tremendous leadership. We appreciate it. (Applause.)

Now sadly, there was a time – and it was not so long ago – when U.S. foreign policy was pretty much a male-only club, like a lot of places in our country and in the world. Until the early 1970s, a woman Foreign Service officer had to literally choose between keeping her job and getting married because she wasn’t allowed to do both. It wasn’t until 1997, more than two centuries after our nation’s birth that we celebrate here in this building so much, that a woman was finally permitted to take the oath of office as secretary of state.

And today, I am proud to say the President’s national security advisor is a woman, our ambassador to the United Nations is a woman. My predecessor was a woman, and so was her predecessor. We have one woman out of two positions as deputy secretary a woman – that’s 50 percent. And we have four under secretaries of state out of six who are women. And I believe that is what happens when brains and talent determine who does what instead of bigotry bringing down the ceiling. (Applause.)

And literally preventing half the population of a nation from taking part – I will tell you, in the course of my travels I am thunderstruck all the time. Cathy Russell knows this. She’s helping to build on this – the amount of energy in country after country today that is embracing this notion that you cannot survive, you can’t make it, you can’t build in today’s world with half your population on the bench. It’s impossible. No team in anything can survive that way. And I think we’ve broken through here; there’s no question in my mind about that. It’s forever. And the levels of – we have some things we can still do better. We all know that, and we’re working at it constantly. But I’m proud to say that I had, I think, more women serve as my chief of staff in the Senate, my campaign for President, any number of major efforts – Stephanie Cutter’s over here. She was my spokesperson in the campaign. (Applause.) And countless numbers of people have made the difference.

But whether it’s in the United States or in any country – and you all know this. I know I’m obviously stating the obvious, but it’s important to say it, and again and again and again, because we have a lot of places which haven’t broken through. But pushing women back, shoving them aside, holding them down, beating them up are simply not parts of an argument of any kind. Those actions are always wrong, they’re always dumb, and in some cases they’re actually criminal.

So if we’re going to sit down and compose an agenda, all of us; if you were to say, “Here are the things we need to do to try to move forward globally, country after country,” whether it’s five years from now or 25 years from now, I think you’d probably end up with a list that looks something like this. You’d talk about an economy that generates opportunity for all. You’d talk about better access to quality education from pre-K all the way up. You’d talk about urgent action on saving the planet and having enough food and having enough security, being able to avoid refugee challenges and lack of water and children dying and disease being spread, and we’d avoid it by taking action on clean energy and climate change. You’d talk for sure about healthier babies and improved child nutrition and less maternal mortality in the course of childbirth. And you would talk about lower rates of disease, crime, violence, and civil strife, and finally, a stronger sense of community, of belonging, of sharing.

So if you wanted to save time, you could just draw a line on a page and write underneath it, “Empower women,” because every single one of those things sees progress if women are in fact empowered and able to address those concerns. They’re all part of it. It’s why the State/Fortune magazine partnership actually is so meaningful, and it’s why it is helping to bring about a larger transformation that is so vital to our future.

One of my predecessors, Madeleine Albright, said there is a special place in Hell reserved for women who don’t help other women. (Applause.) But let me just build on that for a minute. The actual – the truth is we all need to help each other. And a mentoring program in which one generation gives a hand up to the next is a vital way to be able to expand leadership networks. And what we know today is that in today’s world – Rick and a group of young Foreign Service officers articulately brought this to my attention when we met to just talk about the changes in the world that we’re living in today – and they commented on how today power is not served up so much in hierarchies as it is served up in networks. Think about that: everybody connected all the time, 24/7, everywhere, but many of them powerless to be able to do anything about those connections, to be able to move on them.

So something like the Fortune Most Powerful Women Network is a critical way to pay homage to that notion of how power is in fact created. And so far, this women’s network has helped 250 emerging leaders from more than 50 countries – leaders such as Sarika Bhattacharyya, who went through the program in 2012 and is now running a nonprofit mentoring initiative for women entrepreneurs in her home country of India; or leaders such as one of last year’s participants, Florence Ozor, who returned to Nigeria to join a flourishing civil society movement to advocate for voting rights and for the safe return of girls kidnapped by terrorists.

As for the emerging women leaders who are gathered here tonight, all I can say is this is an amazingly impressive group – and I’m not sure that “emerging” is quite the right word. I think you’ve already emerged, taken off. (Laughter.) From as near as Mexico to as far away as East Asia and Africa, every single one of you are making a mark in just about every sector: trade, investment, engineering, fashion, finance, travel, human resources, the selling of cars and trucks, and the use of advanced technology to prevent that scourge of the modern world – cattle rustling. (Laughter.) That’s actually happening.

Now I don’t have to tell any of you here that – in this audience – we got a lot of work still to do to eliminate those barriers completely. I can remember when I first started in politics after I came back from Vietnam, early 1970s, one of the things we threw ourselves into was the Equal Rights Amendment. And it was pre-Roe v. Wade and pre-other things that advanced the interests of women, and we learned then how difficult it was to eliminate the barriers of bigotry and condescension and tokenism, and let’s be honest, in some cases just jealousy, that unjustly impeded the progress of women. And it look a lot of folks ready to break down those barriers and stand up and take risks – sometimes risks of livelihood – to be able to bring about those changes. We’d have to be pretty dim, though, not to recognize a trend. With us tonight are 19 very good reasons to be optimistic in a world that may at times seem broken and hurting, but which is also full – amazingly full – of exciting new opportunities and grounds for hope.

So my concluding note to you tonight is a very a simple and indeed even a personal one. As the father of two daughters, both very independent and out there in the world carving out their own careers – one a doctor and one a filmmaker; as the husband of a wife who is a powerhouse in her own right and defined her own course, I want to say thank you to every advocate, every person who is an activist, all of you, and those who are here in spirit tonight. I thank you for not accepting injustice. I thank you for not waiting when people suggested you should. I thank you for not settling for half-measures. I thank you for working so hard and for so long with such determination to bring about the day that will surely come, the day when we are able to say with confidence to any girl anywhere that she can truly expect to rise as high and go as far as her energy and her skills will take her.

Because when that day comes, there’s no question in my mind – I’ve seen it in community after community – women help make peace. Women help resolve conflict. Women usually are picking up the pieces. And if we will simply give more power in places where it should’ve been put a long time ago, then we are going to make this world reach a place it has dreamed of and needs to. Thank you. God bless. (Applause.) It’s time to eat. Thank you. (Applause.)

WHITE HOUSE VIDEO: 4/30/15: WHITE HOUSE PRESS BRIEFING

U.S. DOD VIDEO: GEN. BREEDLOVE ON VIOLENT EXTREMISM IN EUROPE

FROM:  U.S. DEFENSE DEPARTMENT

Breedlove: Violent Extremism In Europe Can Threaten U.S. Homeland

Washington, DC, United States

℠2015 - Commander, U.S. European Command Gen Phillip Breedlove briefed reporters at the Pentagon on the threats facing Europe.

AMBASSADOR POWER'S STATEMENT CONDEMNING SYRIA'S SHELLING AND BOMBING OF PALESTINIAN REFUGEE CAMP

FROM:  THE STATE DEPARTMENT
Samantha Power
U.S. Permanent Representative to the United Nations
New York, NY
April 30, 2015
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The United States strongly condemns the Syrian regime’s April 28 shelling and bombing of Yarmouk, a Palestinian refugee camp in southern Damascus, and expresses concern over today’s reports of ongoing violent clashes in the camp. The regime’s latest aerial bombardment further threatens the thousands of trapped civilians who have struggled under horrendous siege conditions for nearly two years. The military strikes also imperil humanitarian relief agencies’ ability to provide life-saving assistance to people in Yarmouk and the surrounding neighborhoods to which many Yarmouk residents have reportedly recently fled.

The Syrian regime must lift the siege of Yarmouk and allow UNRWA and other humanitarian partners immediate and unfettered access to vulnerable populations in need, both in Yarmouk and in the surrounding regime-besieged neighborhoods. All parties, including the regime, ISIL, al Nusrah and Aknaf Bait Al-Maqdis should afford safe passage to those civilians who choose to relocate temporarily; families must not be separated; and departing civilians must not be detained. The United States continues to call for independent, international monitoring of civilians’ passage to ensure it is safe and in line with international law.

Yarmouk is only one example of the conflict’s devastating impact on civilian populations. The Syrian regime’s continued siege, combined with the recent incursions by ISIL, has decimated entire neighborhoods in the camp and reflects more broadly the death, destruction and despair to which innocent Syrians have been subjected for more than four years. The international community must come together with a heightened sense of urgency to find a political solution that can end the terrible conflict.

To that end, the United States welcomes the United Nations’ efforts, under the leadership of Special Envoy Staffan de Mistura, to foster dialogue between all parties to advance conditions for a genuine political solution in line with the Geneva Communique. We also urge the United Nations to work intensively to facilitate the safe relocation of civilians who wish to leave Yarmouk.