Despite John Kerry being confirmed as the Secretary of State for President Obama’s second term two months ago, numerous senior State Department positions remain unfilled with no plans to fill them in sight. Instead, the White House process for political appointees is moving as “slowly as molasses,” according to State …
Human rights advocates stressed the importance of U.S. leadership in fighting violations of liberty in China in testimony before a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee in advance of Secretary of State John Kerry’s trip to Beijing. Chen Guangcheng, a renowned human rights advocate and former prisoner in China, told Congress the …
Although the Obama Administration has proclaimed its intention to “pivot” toward Asia, Secretary of State John Kerry has been forced to pivot back to the Middle East in advance of his forthcoming trip to Asia. Kerry was originally slated to travel to South Korea, Japan, and China following the April …
On Friday afternoon—the traditional time to issue unpopular statements—U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry signaled the conditional commitment of the U.S. to the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT). The conditions were as important as the commitment: According to Kerry, the U.S. wants a “strong and effective Arms Trade Treaty” that …
On Friday, the House of Representatives will hold a hearing on the persecution of religious minorities in Iran. It will feature Nagmeh Abedini, the wife of a Christian pastor currently jailed in Iran. Nagmeh’s husband, Pastor Saeed Abedini, is an American citizen who was sentenced to eight years in prison …
In Washington, a presidential Administration releases news it doesn’t like at 5 p.m. on Fridays. So it pays to pay attention when everyone is leaving work for the weekend. Late last Friday, the State Department released a positive environmental review of the Keystone XL pipeline. President Obama has been delaying …
On Thursday, at the Friends of Syria Conference in Rome, Secretary of State John Kerry abruptly reversed U.S. policy on Syria. Much to the surprise of Members of the U.S. Congress—and possibly of the members of the Syrian opposition as well—Kerry announced that the U.S. will be supplying $60 million …
Today the State Department released yet another positive environmental review for the northern portion of the Keystone XL pipeline project. The State Department approved the original pipeline route through Nebraska, which was supposedly less environmentally friendly, without any problems. It is no surprise, then, that the State Department also seems …
