It looks like you're using an Ad Blocker.
Please white-list or disable AboveTopSecret.com in your ad-blocking tool.
Thank you.
Some features of ATS will be disabled while you continue to use an ad-blocker.
Originally posted by JohnySeagull
I originally thought the meeting was last week too but it is definetely going on this week. They having a few school like lessons and then Clinton is going to address them all, I think on Thursday.
Chiefs of Mission from every corner of the world who may not ever get a chance to meet each other or exchange ideas are here today for the gathering that we have been looking forward to.
We’ve wanted to do this for some time. We figured early February would be quiet, not much going on. (Laughter.) What better time to pull you from your posts and responsibilities.
whether your mission is large or small, whether you’re a political appointee or a career diplomat, you are all on the front lines of America’s engagement with a fast-changing world. And that’s why we think this conference is so important.
It goes without saying – but I will say it anyway – that this is a critical time for America’s global leadership. We have spent two years renewing our alliances, forging new partnerships, and elevating diplomacy and development alongside defense as pillars of American foreign policy and national security.
Now, as we look to the next two years, it is time to build on that progress and deliver results – results that are expected from ourselves and certainly from the Congress and the American public.
We’re going to be looking to see how we can advance America’s interests and values on security, on climate change, on boosting exports and rebalancing the global economy on all of our core priorities.
But I will hasten to say we face a very difficult budget climate and we face an increasingly complex, no easy answers if there ever were any, diplomatic and development environment.
From the theft of confidential cables to 21st century protest movements to development breakthroughs that have the potential to change millions of lives, we are all in uncharted territory, and that requires us to be more nimble, more innovative, and more accountable than ever before.
That is why we launched the first ever Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review, the so-called QDDR.
Now, many of you participated in this process and you contributed valuable suggestions and ideas, your staffs were deeply involved, and we consulted not only thousands of people within State and USAID directly and indirectly, but also hundreds of experts outside government.
And the result is a sweeping report that we hope will fundamentally change the way we do business.
Now, the QDDR covers a wide range of reforms, including a reorganization here in Washington, that will encourage us to be more cross-cutting and results-oriented and, frankly, significantly expand our capacity to prevent and respond to crises and conflicts.
You’ll also hear from Ambassador Melanne Verveer about how we are attempting to integrate women into everything we do. That is not just a pet project of mine.
That is rooted in decades of evidence about women being partners and participants in peacemaking, in economic opportunity, in participatory governance, and it’s something that we want to really understand how better to promote.
We are also making it easy to pursue new public-private partnerships.
What caught my attention the most was;
"WHAT IS CIVILIAN POWER?
Civilian power is the combined force of civilian personnel across government and civil society.
It is the power of diplomats in 271 missions around the world, development professionals in more than 100 nations, and experts from other U.S. government agencies working together to advance America’s core interests in the world. "
Head in hands. This seems to be clarifying my fears. Its all about Americas control of the world. When you dress it up in nice words and a positive apprach world domination doesn't seem too bad. BUt to me thats what it looks like.
The other thing i take from this is that they do all this by having so many people working for the government , right down to your ordinary joe the civil servant. Thats your civilan power. Right there. They are actually admitting this upfront.Saing it straight out. A person having their wages paid by the government is not going to cause any trouble. Maybe the plan is to eventually have everyone working for the government.
( I also noticed Clinton speaking over the weekend and thought her facial movements were a little odd. I was wondering if she had been ill. Her left eye seems much larger /more open than her right. Hadn't noticed this before?