Informal Communication

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Washington, D.C.

Press Briefing Room

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Good afternoon, everyone.  Good to see you all.

I suspect that most of you are looking forward to what will be a well-deserved break.  It’s been quite a year.

When I walked into the State Department on my first day as Secretary, we had COVID-19 lockdowns around the world.

Less than 1 percent of the United States was vaccinated, compared to more than 60

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Regions: Afghanistan, China, France , Germany , Iran , Japan , Russia , Singapore , Ukraine , United Kingdom , United States

Topics: Climate and Environment, Countering Terrorism, Coronavirus (COVID-19), Economic Prosperity and Trade Policy, Global Health, Human Rights and Democracy, Refugee and Humanitarian Assistance, Science, Technology, and Innovation

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Washington, DC

Mayflower Hotel

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Thank you.  Thank you all very, very much.  It is actually wonderful to be in a room with real people – (laughter) – with friends, with colleagues and without masks too.  So in and of itself, that’s a very positive thing.

But there is a lot to be positive about today, and it starts with the remarkable work of the National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence, esp

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Topics: Arms Control and Nonproliferation, Climate and Environment, Economic Prosperity and Trade Policy, Energy, Global Health, Human Rights and Democracy, Science, Technology, and Innovation, Treaties and International Agreements

Wendy R. Sherman, Deputy Secretary of State

Alexandra de Hoop Scheffer, Director of the German Marshall Fund

Irene Braam, Executive Director of the Bertelsmann Foundation

Provided courtesy of the German Marshall Fund

Alexandra de Hoop Scheffer, Director of the German Marshall Fund of the United States’ Paris office: Good afternoon, and good morning to all of you who are joining us from both sides of the Atlantic. I am Alexandra De Hoop Scheffer, director o

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Regions: Afghanistan, Belgium , Canada , China, France , Iran , Italy , Korea, South , Russia , Turkey , Ukraine , United Kingdom , United States

Topics: Arms Control and Nonproliferation, Climate and Environment, Coronavirus (COVID-19), Economic Prosperity and Trade Policy, Energy, Global Health, Human Rights and Democracy, Refugee and Humanitarian Assistance, Science, Technology, and Innovation