Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Andrea L. Thompson will travel to South Dakota March 14-18, 2019.

Under Secretary Thompson will give a keynote address at the University of South Dakota Distinguished Speakers Series in Sioux Falls. Additionally, she will give a speech on cyber diplomacy at Dakota State University in Madison, South Dakota, meet with students, and tour Dakota State University’s Beacom College of Computer and Cyber Sciences. Under Secretary Thompson will also address students at Whittier Middle School and meet with business leaders at a Rotary Club in Sioux Falls.

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The Fifteenth Coordinating Committee Meeting of the Global Counterterrorism Forum (GCTF), co-chaired by Morocco and the Netherlands, took place today in Malaga, Spain. Coordinator for Counterterrorism Ambassador Nathan A. Sales represented the United States and briefed GCTF members on the activities of the Foreign Terrorist Fighter (FTF) Working Group, urged countries to repatriate and prosecute their FTFs, and called on GCTF members to more equitably share the financial burden of operating the organization.

The FTF Working Group, which the United States co-chairs with Jordan, seeks to identify solutions to the problems posed by the travel of foreign terrorist fighters and their accompanying family members, and to address risk assessment and prosecutions. The related Terrorist Travel Initiative, on which Ambassador Sales also briefed, addresses watchlisting, border security, information-sharing, and other tools that help disrupt terrorist travel.

GCTF members also reached decisions on issues related to the Forum’s organization. Beginning in September 2019, Canada and Morocco will serve as Co-Chairs of the GCTF. The United States will continue co-chairing the FTF Working Group with Jordan through 2021.

Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary for Threat Prevention Elizabeth Neumann will represent the United States at the March 14 portion of the meeting, which invites national counterterrorism coordinators to discuss domestic counterterrorism policies and challenges related to returning foreign fighters and terrorism prevention.

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Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL) Kirsten D. Madison will lead the U.S. delegation to the High-Level Segment of the 62nd Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND), March 14-15, in Vienna, Austria. At the CND, the United States will seek increased national action to control the illicit synthetic drugs that are fueling the ongoing U.S. opioid crisis, building on President Trump’s Call to Action on the World Drug Problem, which was launched at last year’s United Nations General Assembly.

The United States will also take advantage of the high-level international platform of the CND to showcase innovative national approaches for dismantling illicit supply chains of synthetic drugs and supporting health-centered approaches to reduce demand for these deadly drugs.

The U.S. delegation will include representatives of the Department of Justice, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Food and Drug Administration, and the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy.

Following the High-Level Segment of the CND, Assistant Secretary Madison will travel to Pristina, Kosovo to meet with Prime Minister Ramush Haradinaj, officials from the Kosovo Police, the Ministry of Justice, the Kosovo Correctional Service, and members of civil society to advance U.S.-supported justice and law enforcement sector reform in Kosovo. She will also give remarks at an equipment donation ceremony that will significantly enhance the law enforcement capacity of the Kosovo Forensics Agency.

The State Department, through INL, combats drug trafficking, transnational crime, and corruption worldwide by helping governments and civil society build strong, stable, and fair societies overseas that counter the transnational crime and instability that threatens Americans’ security.

To receive updates on the CND and Assistant Secretary Madison’s visit, follow the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs on Twitter @StateINL and Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/StateINL.

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External links to other Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views or privacy policies contained therein.

On March 13, the United States co-hosted an event with Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom at the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland to raise awareness regarding ongoing and egregious human rights abuses in Xinjiang, where more than one million Uighurs, ethnic Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and other members of Muslim minority groups have been detained since April 2017. The United States strongly encouraged the UN and the High Commissioner for Human Rights to make these abuses a priority.

Government officials, expert panelists, and survivor testimony highlighted the magnitude and severity of the violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms in Xinjiang. Participants also considered next steps the international community could take in addressing the situation in Xinjiang.

Please contact DRL-Press@state.gov for more information, or visit https://www.state.gov/j/drl.htm or follow @StateDRL.

The Office of Website Management, Bureau of Public Affairs, manages this site as a portal for information from the U.S. State Department.
External links to other Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views or privacy policies contained therein.

On March 8, delegations representing the United States, the European Union and its Member States, Norway, and Iceland, convened in Washington, DC for the 22nd meeting of the Joint Committee established under the U.S.-EU Air Transport Agreement of 2007, as amended. The delegations initialed an agreement to remove longstanding unfair time constraints on U.S. air carrier leases of aircraft with crew in the lucrative U.S.-EU air transport market. The two sides also discussed preparations to ensure that the exit of the United Kingdom from the European Union would not disrupt air services.

Under the terms of the U.S.-EU Air Transport Agreement, U.S. and European representatives from both government and industry meet at least annually to discuss important issues in civil aviation relations between the United States and the European countries covered by the Agreement. Transatlantic flights linking the United States and Europe power growth and job creation, underpin valuable economic and commercial ties, and foster the shared goal of greater prosperity.

The Office of Website Management, Bureau of Public Affairs, manages this site as a portal for information from the U.S. State Department.
External links to other Internet sites should not be construed as an endorsement of the views or privacy policies contained therein.