From: Berhane Habtemariam (Berhane.Habtemariam@gmx.de)
Date: Fri Jul 31 2009 - 09:04:24 EDT
Ambassador Carson on Secretary Clinton's Africa Trip
Will show Obama Administration's commitment to making Africa a priority
31 July 2009
(begin transcript)
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman
July 30, 2009
ON-THE-RECORD BRIEFING
Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson On Secretary
Clinton's Upcoming Trip to Africa
July 30, 2009
Washington, D.C.
MR. WOOD: Okay. Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome. Today we have for you
Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Ambassador Johnnie Carson.
He's going to speak to you about Secretary Clinton's upcoming trip to
Africa. He's - Assistant Secretary is going to make some brief remarks and
then take your questions. But before asking your questions, if you could
just identify yourselves and your news organization, we would greatly
appreciate it. So I'll turn it over to Ambassador Carson.
AMBASSADOR CARSON: Robert, thank you very much. A pleasure to be here with
you this afternoon to talk to you a little bit about Secretary Clinton's
forthcoming trip to Africa. Secretary of State Clinton will travel to Kenya,
South Africa, Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria,
Liberia, and Cape Verde, starting on August 4th and returning to the United
States on August 14th. The trip will start at the U.S.-Sub-Saharan Africa
Trade and Economic Cooperation Forum, known mostly as the AGOA Forum, in
Nairobi, Kenya, where she will deliver a speech at the ministerial opening
ceremony of the forum on August the 5th.
The Secretary's trip comes just three weeks after President Obama's
successful trip to Accra, Ghana, and will highlight and underscore the Obama
Administration's commitment to making Africa a priority in U.S. foreign
policy. This is the earliest trip by the Secretary of State and the
President to Africa of any previous administration.
The Secretary will underline America's commitment to partner with
governments, the private sector, nongovernmental organizations and private
citizens to build societies where each individual can realize their full
potential. The Secretary's trip follows the themes laid out by President
Obama during his visit to Ghana: supporting strong and sustainable
democratic governments; promoting sustainable economic development;
strengthening public health and education; assisting in the prevention,
litigation, and resolution of conflicts around Africa.
The United States wants to partner with African leaders to advance the
President's vision which is also a vision shared by many African leaders as
well.
Secretary Clinton will stress also the importance of facilitating social and
economic entrepreneurship, encouraging a new generation of young African
scientists, small business leaders, entrepreneurs, and civic leaders who are
trying to seek real solutions to Africa's challenging problems. The
Secretary will also discuss ways to foster good, regional governance,
partnering with regional leaders to ban together to prevent conflict and
violence, including gender-based violence, democratic erosions, and
transnational threats that challenge Africa. The Secretary will also meet
with President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed, the President of Somalia's Transitional
Federal Government. That meeting will occur in Nairobi, Kenya.
Let me say briefly a little bit about the seven countries and the
Secretary's schedule in those countries. In Kenya, as I mentioned, she will
be attending the AGOA Forum, speaking at the ministerial opening ceremony.
She also intends while she is in Kenya to meet with President Kibaki, Prime
Minister Raila Odinga. She will encourage both of those leaders to move
forward with their efforts to rewrite the country's constitution and to
prevent a return to the kind of
violence that erupted in that country in January and February of 2007
following the very difficult and flawed presidential elections there.
>From Kenya, the Secretary will move on to South Africa, where she will have
an opportunity to meet the leadership of South Africa's new government. She
will meet with President Jacob Zuma, and she will also meet with South
Africa's new foreign minister, Ambassador Mashabane. This will give us an
opportunity to talk with South African leaders about issues such as Zimbabwe
and HIV/AIDS. The United States and South Africa have much in common. The
Secretary will use this to strengthen an important relationship in South
Africa with a country which is the engine of that region's growth.
>From South Africa, the Secretary will move on to Angola. Angola is one of
the largest energy producers in Sub-Saharan Africa and is a major supplier
of both petroleum and LNG to the U.S. market. The Secretary will meet with
President Dos Santos, and she will also renew her acquaintance with the
Angolan foreign minister with whom she met here in Washington approximately
a month ago. It is the desire to strengthen that relationship with one of
Southern Africa's emerging countries, a country which has enormous economic
potential.
>From Angola, the Secretary will move on to the Democratic Republic of the
Congo. In the Congo, she will have two stops. She will go to Kinshasa first
and then will proceed the next day to Goma in the eastern region. She
intends to meet with President Kabila and the Congolese foreign minister.
During that stop, the Secretary wants to put a great deal of focus on the
issue of sexual- and gender-based violence which is occurring in the eastern
Congo.
As many of you know, the eastern Congo has been torn by civil strife, a
great deal of conflict since 1994, 1995, largely as a result of the movement
of ex-genocidaires from Rwanda into the eastern Congo. The Secretary is
deeply concerned about the gender-based violence, which is occurring in the
eastern Congo, will underscore America's commitment to try to end this
gender-based violence, and will meet with some of the victims who have
suffered from it.
We will also - the Secretary also intends to encourage and push the
Congolese Government as well as MONUC, the UN peacekeeping force there, to
take a much more aggressive stance against gender-based violence. The
Secretary will also encourage the Congolese Government to continue its
democratic progress, and will also encourage the government to take action
against corruption and to improve its economic and fiscal management so that
it can - its country's resources can be used for development.
>From the Congo, the Secretary will fly to Abuja, Nigeria. Nigeria is
probably the most important country in Sub-Saharan Africa: 140 million
people, 75 million of whom are Muslims. It is also a major source of
petroleum imports for the United States. It provides approximately 8 percent
of America's petroleum and the largest supply of our (inaudible) sweet
crude. Nigeria has also been a major contributor to stability and
peacekeeping in West Africa.
The Secretary will discuss with the Nigerian Government a range of issues,
including West African security, the need to continue to move forward in
strengthening its democracy, dealing with corruption, and also promoting
stronger economic development.
>From Nigeria, the Secretary will move on to Liberia. Liberia is one of our
historically most important relationships in Africa. The Secretary wants to
reaffirm U.S. support for President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, the only female
African president. Liberia, before Johnson Sirleaf became president, had
faced 20 years of intermittent and often very violent conflict. The
Secretary wants to use this visit to show and demonstrate U.S. support for
the democratic progress that has occurred in Liberia, support and reaffirm
U.S. commitment to helping in the development assistance area, and in
security sector reform.
And the final stop on the President's trip will be in Cape Verde.
QUESTION: The President's trip?
AMBASSADOR CARSON: Sorry, the Secretary's trip.
QUESTION: Almost.
QUESTION: Almost. (Laughter.)
AMBASSADOR CARSON: That may have been a Freudian slip. But the Secretary's
trip, she will end it in Cape Verde. Cape Verde is an African success story.
It is a country which is democratically run, well managed, and a country
which has used the economic assistance that it has received from the United
States, including a large Millennium Challenge Account Grant,
extraordinarily well. It will reaffirm our friendship with Cape Verde.
I'll stop right there, no Freudian slips, and take a few questions.
QUESTION: Okay. Matt Lee with the Associated Press. I want to ask about the
meeting with the Somali president in Nairobi and what the Administration's
thinking is right now as to how to deal with this. Ambassador Rice was on
the Hill yesterday, had some very strong words for Eritrea and is warning
Eritrea about, you know, the role that it's playing in Somalia. But I'm just
wondering what the thinking is right now on how to deal with this. Are you
considering sending more ammunition and military supplies and providing more
training to the Somalis?
AMBASSADOR CARSON: The United States strongly supports the Djibouti process,
the Transitional Federal Government, and the government of Sheikh Sharif. We
think that this government, which has the support of IGAD, which is a
regional organization, as well as the AU, offers the best possible chance
for restoring stability to southern Somalia, which has been troubled over
the last 20 years by enormous violence and civil conflict.
We think that the problems in southern Somalia have started to bleed
regionally and internationally. We see in neighboring Kenya to the south
some 270,000 refugees in the Dadaab refugee camp, five to six thousand
Somali refugees flowing across the border each month into Kenya, putting
enormous stress on that country's infrastructure and also a burden for the
UN.
Largely, in the international arena, we've seen the emergence of piracy as a
major issue, in large measure because of the continuing instability in
Somalia. We think that the support for Sheikh Sharif and his government
offers an opportunity to be able to restore some stability, fight against
the Somali Islamic extremists of al-Shabaab and Hizbul Islam, the two groups
that are working against them.
Yes, we are prepared to provide additional assistance to the TFG government.
Yes, we are prepared to continue to support AMISOM, which has Ugandan and
Burundian troops on the ground. And yes, we are prepared to work with the
IGAD states and the AU in finding solutions to the problem of Somalia. And
yes, we believe that the Eritrean Government has not played a positive role
in helping to resolve the problem. Somalia is a place where they have been
spoilers. We would hope that they would cease and desist their support for
al-Shabaab, that they would not allow their country to be used as a safe
haven or a conduit or vehicle for moving people, munitions, or money into
the hands of extremists in Somalia.
They have an opportunity to play a positive role in the region. We would
hope that they would do so. I think Ambassador Rice made our position quite
clear. Time is running out on Eritrea. This is not just an opinion of the
United States, this is an opinion of IGAD, this is an opinion of the African
Union.
QUESTION: In terms of specifics and aid, do you expect anything new to be
announced in terms of -
AMBASSADOR CARSON: I do not think so. This meeting between the Secretary and
Sheikh Sharif will give the Secretary her first opportunity to meet with
President Sharif, and we'll - hopefully, we will get an opportunity to hear
from him how he sees the situation on the ground.
QUESTION: Sue Pleming from Reuters. You said that part of the reasoning
behind the Secretary and the President going so soon to Africa was to show
Africa as a - you know, a key foreign policy priority. How are you going to
be able to do that when the Obama Administration has so many other foreign
policy priorities; for example, it's dealing with Iraq, Afghanistan, you
know, Middle East, Iran, and North Korea? What do you plan to do to make it
a foreign policy priority? Are you going to look more to investment? The
African continent as a whole is quite cynical in many ways about, you know,
the U.S. making promises and not coming through with them.
AMBASSADOR CARSON: The Administration is committed to Africa. The
Administration is capable of handling multiple foreign policy issues at one
time. I think that you will see it demonstrated not only in the presence of
senior U.S. officials who visit the continent, I think you will see it
unfold in terms of support for old initiatives that remain valid, but also
new initiatives that the Administration is committed to pushing forward. One
of these initiatives which is starting to take place is in the area of food
security. The Administration has made that a high priority. The Secretary
has made it a high priority. She will talk about it a great deal in Africa,
in Kenya, and a number of the other stops. The President has spoken about
the need to help Africa deal with its agricultural crisis and concerns. It
was a focus of the President's main initiative at the G-20 meeting in
L'Aquila approximately three weeks ago. And we all know that agriculture
remains a centerpiece in Africa's economic fabric. Some 70 percent of all
African households depend either primarily or secondarily on agriculture as
a source of their livelihood. It is an issue that deserves attention,
especially in light of the fact that the green revolution, which has helped
to transform much of Asia and Latin America over the last 20 or 30 years,
has not yet reached Africa.
This initiative is aimed at helping Africa meet its food crisis and
challenges, as well as helping to stimulate greater agriculture productivity
and agro business. The Administration can handle multiple foreign policy
issues, and is determined to do so. Six months into the new Administration,
it has gotten off to a faster start than any previous administration with
respect to its focus and interest on Africa, dealing with the challenges,
and hoping to work with African states to open up the opportunities for
greater economic progress and development.
MR. WOOD: Folks, we have time - we only have time for one more question. We
have to get Assistant Secretary Carson to another meeting. Just a quick one.
AMBASSADOR CARSON: Okay, go - one, please.
QUESTION: You talked for 20 minutes. We got to - there's a lot - there's
seven countries.
QUESTION: There's so many countries.
QUESTION: Oh yeah, it's an 11-day trip and seven countries. I don't think we
can --
MR. WOOD: We'll have plenty of time to talk about that.
AMBASSADOR CARSON: And I hope that many of you will be joining the Secretary
on her trip. (Laughter.)
QUESTION: Can I ask about the --
AMBASSADOR CARSON: That's perfectly, perfectly all right. I have nothing
against the press, just don't like to be quoted by it.
(Laughter.)
AMBASSADOR CARSON: Yes. Yes, sir.
QUESTION: Just - I'll keep it brief. Sean Tannen with AFP. I was wondering
if, on Zimbabwe, how much that'll factor into the trip, the (inaudible)
talks with the South Africans and with other nations. Could the trip be a
moment to actually have any sort of new initiative on Zimbabwe, either - the
Obama Administration has reached out in many parts of the world, say, Cuba,
Iran. Could this be a time to reach out and try something new, or could this
be a continuation of policies trying to further isolate the Mugabe
government?
AMBASSADOR CARSON: The Secretary certainly intends to talk about Zimbabwe
with the leadership in South Africa. We'll seek their views on how they see
the situation evolving, encourage the South Africa as a primary leader in
SADC to continue to press the government of Robert Mugabe to fully implement
the global political agreement that he signed with Prime Minister Morgan
Tsvangirai. And we will also seek to work with South Africa and the regional
states to ensure that the GPA is fully implemented, and that that country is
able to return to democratic rule and its people allowed to have some
opportunity for economic progress.
We have tried to reach out to the Zimbabwean Government. In the past three
weeks, I myself have met with the vice president of Zimbabwe. I've also met
with President Robert Mugabe - I think the first time that a senior U.S.
official has done so in many years - again trying to encourage reform,
progress, commitment to the GPA, improved human rights. And we will continue
to do so. My meeting was a little bit difficult, but we continue to try to
make progress.
QUESTION: Sorry, just --
AMBASSADOR CARSON: Yeah.
QUESTION: Janine Zacharia with Bloomberg. Just really quickly on the oil
countries that you're going to, can you be a little bit more specific about
what she'll be looking for in Nigeria and Angola besides reforms? I mean,
obviously, Nigeria's election was a disaster. I mean, what specifically does
she want from those energy-producing countries? And if you could address the
China - potential rivalry there in those countries as well, if that's
spurring her to go there?
AMBASSADOR CARSON: No. The Secretary is going there because we have serious
political, economic and hydrocarbon interest in those countries. In Nigeria,
U.S. oil companies play a significant role, both in investment and
production. U.S. investment in Nigeria in the oil production and service
industry is well in excess of $15 billion. We are one of the leading
purchasers of South African - sorry, of Nigerian oil. And we think that it's
important to discuss with Nigeria a range of issues. We are concerned about
having a good energy relationship with them. We're interested in seeing them
continue to play a positive regional role, including providing peacekeepers
to key conflict areas. We also believe it is also important for them to deal
with some of their domestic issues. We'd like to see greater improvement in
their electoral performance and strengthen - which will help to strengthen
their democracy.
We'd also like them to address issues of corruption and transparency. When
there is an absence of transparency and when there is a great deal of
corruption, it makes the business environment extremely difficult. I think
it was a point that the President made in his speech to the parliament in
Accra, Ghana. If in fact you have democratic governance, respect rule of
law, it is easier to draw in investment and business opportunities because
people are certain and assured that they will be treated fairly. These are
all issues - the range of issues were there.
The Secretary is going because we have interest in working with Angola and
Nigeria in strengthening our relationship with two major countries,
oil-producing countries on the continent, working with them on issues in the
global environment and the community that are important to them as well as
us. Our presence there has nothing to do with anyone else's operations on
the continent. The mention of our colleagues from Asia is a Cold War
paradigm, not a reflection of where we are today.
QUESTION: The Chinese are not putting as much pressure on those countries in
terms of governance. They are not being - not lecturing the Africans as much
as, say, - or that's the view of some people - as the U.S. is. So -
AMBASSADOR CARSON: I hope the United States is not lecturing anyone, but in
effect, having diplomatic discussions and dialogues, respectful and those
that are mutually beneficial and important for the United States and the
countries that we deal with. I think it's important to respect African
governments and leaders, to work with them to resolve problems and
challenges that they have, and to engage and be able to engage on these
issues. We have and should encourage countries, wherever they are, to do the
same thing. If countries are not paying attention to human rights issues of
child soldiers, bad governance, mismanagement, we need to talk to those
governments about encouraging them to do the right thing, which is not only
right for them, but also the countries that they deal with.
MR. WOOD: Okay. Thank you all very much.
(end transcript)
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