Informal Communication

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Press Briefing Room

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Good afternoon, everyone.  About an hour ago, two American citizens held by Hamas since October 7th were released.  These two Americans are now safely in the hands of Israeli authorities in Israel.  We expect a team from the U.S. embassy to see them very shortly.  Over the coming hours, they’ll receive any support and assistance they need, and of course we’re very anxious to be able to reunite the

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Regions: Iran , Israel , Qatar , United Kingdom , United States

Topics: Countering Terrorism, Refugee and Humanitarian Assistance

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Iran’s development, procurement, and proliferation of missiles and missile-related technology remains one of the greatest challenges to international peace and security. We see the horrific impact of Iran’s provision of missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to designated terrorist organizations and militant proxies that directly threaten the security of Israel and our Gulf partners.

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Regions: China, Iran , Israel , Russia , United Kingdom , United States

Topics: Countering Terrorism, Science, Technology, and Innovation

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Washington, D.C.

The Benjamin Franklin Room

QUESTION:  And joining me now is Secretary of State Antony Blinken.  Mr. Secretary, welcome back to Meet the Press.

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Good morning, Kristen.

QUESTION:  So the big question on everyone’s mind, Mr. Secretary:  How did Israel, how did the United States miss what Hamas was planning?

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Well, first, put this in perspective –

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Regions: Iran , Israel , United Kingdom , United States

Topics: Countering Terrorism, Energy, Refugee and Humanitarian Assistance

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Washington, D.C.

Benjamin Franklin Room

QUESTION:  We go now to Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who joins us from the State Department here in Washington.  Good to have you with us, Mr. Secretary.  I know you have been working —

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Thanks, Margaret.

QUESTION:  — straight through on this.  Can you answer the question yet of whether the Hamas assault is over?  Are there more attacks

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Topics: Countering Terrorism, Human Rights and Democracy, Refugee and Humanitarian Assistance

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Washington, D.C.

Benjamin Franklin Room

QUESTION:  Mr. Secretary, thank you for joining us this morning.  I know you’ve been working through the day, through the weekend.  What is the United States doing right now?  What comes next?

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Well, George, first, to put this in perspective – and as some of your correspondents just said – this is the worst attack on Israel since 1973, the Yom Kipp

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Regions: Iran , Israel , Saudi Arabia , United Kingdom , United States

Topics: Countering Terrorism, Energy, Human Rights and Democracy, Refugee and Humanitarian Assistance

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

New York City, New York

Permanent Mission of Canada to the UN

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Thank you all very much.  I have to say, it’s a little bit humbling to speak after Jason, who has been an extraordinary profile in courage, an extraordinary profile in absolute determination to move all of us to a better place on this issue that in so many ways is, for me, one of the most profound things that I have to deal with in my job.  And I su

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Regions: Canada , Iran , Russia , United Kingdom , United States

Topics: Energy

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

New York City, New York

United Nations Headquarters

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Thank you very much.  Mr. Prime Minister, thank you for focusing the Security Council on this critically important issue.  And Mr. Secretary-General, thank you for the moral clarity that you’ve shown in dealing with Russia’s war against Ukraine.

We’re grateful to have been able to welcome President Zelenskyy to this council table, and we thank him.  We thank him

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Regions: Belarus , Iran , Russia , Ukraine , United Kingdom , United States

Topics: Climate and Environment, Human Rights and Democracy, Refugee and Humanitarian Assistance

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

New York City, New York

QUESTION:  And Nancy’s sticking around because our next guest is Secretary of State Antony Blinken, in town because New York is beautiful in the fall, of course, and also a little thing called the UN General Assembly.

Mr. Secretary, thank you very much for being here.

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Great to be with you.  Thanks.

QUESTION:  We just saw the amazing footage of these Americans returning

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Regions: Canada , Iran , Korea, South , Russia , Ukraine , United Kingdom , United States

Topics: Countering Terrorism, Energy, Refugee and Humanitarian Assistance

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

New York City, New York

QUESTION:  And joining us now in Studio 1A, Secretary of State Antony Blinken.  Secretary Blinken, good morning to you.  Good to have you here.

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Good morning.

QUESTION:  Let’s talk about the news this week, the prisoner swap – five Americans brought home.  You cannot look at these pictures of Americans being returned to U.S. soil and not be elated for them, emotional.  But the

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Topics: Countering Terrorism, Energy, Refugee and Humanitarian Assistance, Science, Technology, and Innovation

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Washington, D.C.

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Thank you.  Good morning, everyone.

AUDIENCE:  Good morning.

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Dean Steinberg, Jim, thank you for the honor of joining the SAIS community to help inaugurate this truly magnificent new home.

Jim has contributed so much over his remarkable career, but his most lasting contribution is the generation of thinkers, the generation of d

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Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Washington, D.C.

Press Briefing Room

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Good morning.  Good morning.

QUESTION:  Good morning.

QUESTION:  Well, barely morning.  (Laughter.)

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Speak for yourself, Matt.

Very good to see everyone here.  Actually, I kind of hoped more of you might be on vacation by now but – (laughter) – I see we have a pretty full house

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Topics: Arms Control and Nonproliferation, Climate and Environment, Countering Terrorism, Energy, Global Health, Human Rights and Democracy, Refugee and Humanitarian Assistance, Science, Technology, and Innovation

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Aspen, Colorado

Aspen Security Forum

QUESTION:  Mr. Secretary, pleasure to have you on.

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  It’s great to be with you, Fareed.

QUESTION:  Tell us what you can sense of what is going on in the counteroffensive that Ukraine is managing – attempting with Russia.  So far the reports seem to be, it is very slow and very tough going.

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Well, first, Fareed, put this in pe

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Regions: China, France , Iran , Israel , Japan , Russia , Ukraine , United Kingdom , United States

Topics: Climate and Environment, Refugee and Humanitarian Assistance

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Aspen, Colorado

Aspen Meadows Resort

MS MITCHELL:  Good morning, everyone.  It’s wonderful to be back in Aspen, and especially after such a great program all week, and most especially to be with Secretary Blinken.

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Thank you.

MS MITCHELL:  Tony Blinken, of course, you all know, but – (applause) – I think this is your first time here since becoming Secretary.

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Topics: Arms Control and Nonproliferation, Climate and Environment, Combating Drugs and Crime, Coronavirus (COVID-19), Economic Prosperity and Trade Policy, Global Health, Human Rights and Democracy, Science, Technology, and Innovation

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Karuizawa, Japan

The Prince Karuizawa

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Good afternoon, everyone.  Let me – let me start with the situation in Sudan.  For the past 36 hours, we and our partners have been focused on how to stop the widespread fighting in Sudan between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces.  Indiscriminate military operations have resulted in significant civilian deaths and injuries, and are recklessly endangering the Su

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Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Washington, DC

Dean Acheson Auditorium

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Well, good afternoon, everyone, and welcome to the State Department and welcome to the second Summit for Democracy.

Jen, to you for your remarkable leadership at the White House Gender Policy Council; to Kat, for yours here at the State Department on Global Women’s Issues:  We could not have a better team, a more dynamic duo, leading our efforts.  And I’m gra

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Topics: Global Women's Issues, Human Rights and Democracy, Science, Technology, and Innovation

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Washington, D.C.

SECRETARY BLINKEN:  Good morning, good afternoon, good evening, everyone.  Thank you all so much for joining.  It’s very good to be with friends and partners from around the world as we prepare to open the second Summit for Democracy.

In his first year in office, President Biden launched the summit to look at the future of democracy, which we see is at an inflection point.  Worldwide, we see autocrats violating human right

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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, Treaties and International Agreements

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

The United States is designating four entities and three individuals for sanctions, pursuant to Executive Order 13382, involved in an Iranian military procurement network that has links to Iran’s unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) programs.  This procurement network operates on behalf of the Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics (MODAFL).

Today’s action follows Treasury’s 

Secretary Antony J. Blinken at a Press Availability