U.S. Congratulates Clark

U.S. Embassy Chargé d’Affaires Dave Keegan today congratulated Helen Clark on her nomination to lead the United Nations’ Development Program.

“It’s a role which strives to empower the world’s most vulnerable people--I cannot think of a more inspiring vocation,” said Dr. Keegan.

“New Zealand has a deserved reputation for transparency and inclusiveness. That teamed with Helen’s personal strengths of leadership and clarity and the program’s future could not be in more capable hands,” he said.
 

Acting State Department spokesman, Gordon Duguid.

U.S. to Run for Election to the UN Human Rights Council

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and U.S. Permanent Representative to the U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice announce that the United States will seek a seat this year on the United Nations Human Rights Council with the goal of working to make it a more effective body to promote and protect human rights.

The decision is in keeping with the Obama Administration's "new era of engagement" with other nations to advance American security interests and meet the global challenges of the 21st century.

"Human rights are an essential element of American global foreign policy" said Secretary Clinton.  "With others, we will engage in the work of improving the UN human rights system to advance the vision of the UN Declaration on Human Rights.  The United States helped to found the United Nations and retains a vital stake in advancing that organization's genuine commitment to the human rights values that we share with other member nations.  We believe every nation must live by and help shape global rules that ensure people enjoy the right to live freely and participate fully in their societies." … (more)

NZ Foreign Minister McCully with U.S. Chargé d’Affaires David Keegan, pictured at the NZ US Council function where the Minister announced his upcoming trip to the U.S

Minister McCully’s U.S. Visit Welcomed

New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully has announced that he will be visiting Washington April 6-8 to meet with U.S Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and to participate in the 2009 Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM).

Minister McCully described the United States as "one of New Zealand's oldest friends" saying that "share common values and interests, as well as a commitment to promoting a free, democratic and secure world".

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will be hosting the ATCM this year, marking the 50th anniversary of the Antarctic Treaty.  Minister McCully has announced that in addition to taking meetings in Washington he will, at the Secretary's invitation, chair one of the ministerial sessions of the ATCM.

ATCM 2009 will include nearly 400 diplomats and Antarctic experts from 47 countries, as well as representatives from other Antarctic Treaty system entities and observers from non-governmental organizations.
 

Related Links

• Old friends, new opportunities - Speech by Minister McCully to the New Zealand-United States Council
• McCully to meet US Secretary of State in Washington - Press release from Minister McCully
• Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting

U.S. Trade Representative Takes Office

U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk was formally sworn into office on Friday, March 20 (Saturday, March 21 NZ time) in a ceremony presided over by Vice-President Joe Biden.  Ambassador Kirk's swearing in follows overwhelming approval from the Senate confirmation process. On March 18, the Senate voted 92-5 in favour of confirming Ambassador Kirk.

As United States Trade Representative (USTR), Ambassador Kirk is member of President Obama’s Cabinet and serves as the President’s principal trade advisor, negotiator and spokesperson on trade issues.  During the swearing in ceremony, Vice-President Biden described the role of the USTR "This administration is about improving lives everywhere, plain and simple.  And as the U.S. Trade Representative, that's pretty much his job description in a nutshell, improving lives everywhere." … (more)

U.S. Central Bank Moves to Pump Up Economy

The Federal Reserve has declared that it will employ all available tools to promote economic recovery and to preserve price stability, announcing a full range of measures as part of this comprehensive approach.  The most traditional mechanism used by "the Fed" is the setting of the federal funds interest rate.  The target range for this rate is currently set a 0% to 0.25%, and the Fed has stated that it anticipates maintaining the rate at similar exceptionally low levels for an extended period.

However, the Fed has been earning praise for developing a number of innovative tools in response to the economic crisis.

Support to mortgage lending and housing markets will be strengthened through the purchase of up to $750 billion more agency mortgage-backed securities, for a total this year of $1.25 trillion, and through an increase in purchases of agency debt by up to $100 billion, for a 2009 total of up to $200 billion.  Conditions in private credit markets will be improved by the Fed purchasing up to $300 billion of longer-term Treasury securities over the next six months.  Households and small businesses will be assisted by the launch of the Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility to facilitate the extension of credit, and the Fed anticipates making the Facility more available by expanding the range of financial assets eligible to be collateral.

Following the Federal Reserve’s announcement, the Dow Jones Industrial Average stock index rose 91 points and market analysts expect the interest rate on fixed-rate home loans to fall soon. (more)

Pacific Partnership 2009 Announced

This year’s Pacific Partnership, the U.S. Pacific Fleet’s annual humanitarian civic assistance mission, has been announced.  Pacific Partnership 2009 is the fourth in the series of humanitarian missions that work in concert with partner nations, non-governmental organizations, and other U.S. Government agencies.

In recent years, New Zealand has been one of the partners in Pacific Partnership, with New Zealand Navy medical personnel hosted aboard as part of the mission.

This year’s mission will be based on board the transport ship USS Dubuque , and is slated to conduct engineering projects and provide medical, dental, and veterinary assistance to Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Kiribati, and the Marshall Islands.

Pacific Partnership traces its origins to the unprecedented international response to the 2004 Asia tsunami.  Collaborative efforts such as Pacific Partnership are a part of U.S. Pacific Command’s (USPACOM) focus on partnership, and on working throughout the Asia-Pacific region with friends and allies to be better prepared to face challenges and crisis together. (more)

Dr. Jerry Jordan speaking at the U.S. Embassy in Wellington

Insight Offered into U.S. Management of Financial Crisis

Just weeks before the G20 meetings in London, the U.S. Embassy hosted a visit to New Zealand by Dr Jerry Jordon, President of the Pacific Academy for Advanced Studies and a leading U.S. economist.

During his visit Dr Jordan met a number of New Zealand's senior economic figures, and spoke with a number of academic, business, and government audiences.  During his conversations, he examined the origins of the global financial crisis and the lessons to be learned through considering those origins.

Looking to the future, Dr Jordan explored mechanisms available to address the financial crisis, and outlined the possible responses of U.S. and global leaders.  From a U.S. perspective, he offered insight into the ongoing discussions of the crisis within the U.S. economic community, and the anticipated effects of the Obama administration's strategies to manage the crisis. … (audio)  (Dr Jordan in Auckland)

U.S. Committed To A Comprehensive Peace

Saying time is of the essence, the United States pledged $900 million in humanitarian aid for the Palestinians at an international conference in Egypt.

In pledging assistance at a conference that hopes to raise more than $3 billion for the Palestinian Authority, the United States is pursuing both short- and long-term strategies, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said.

“Our response to today’s crisis in Gaza cannot be separated from our broader efforts to achieve a comprehensive peace,” Clinton said March 2. “Only by acting now can we turn this crisis into an opportunity that moves us closer to our shared goals.” … (more)