The U.S. Department of State and the Council of the Americas will co-host the 47th Annual Washington Conference on the Americas, “The Americas and the New Washington,” on Tuesday, May 9, at the Harry S. Truman Building in Washington., D.C.

This year’s conference will feature remarks by U.S. Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, Canadian Minister of International Trade Francois-Philippe Champagne, U.S. Senator John McCain, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio, Governor of the State of Colorado John Hickenlooper; and Acting U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs Francisco Palmieri, among others. More information on the program can be found here.

Follow along on Twitter using the hashtag #2017WCA or on @ASCOA, @StateDept, and @WHAAsstSecty.

This event is open to the press. Please RSVP to mediarelations@as-coa.org.

Luncheon Session with Remarks by U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (12:00 p.m.-1:35 p.m.)

Pooled coverage. Please contact WHAPress@state.gov for details.

Afternoon Session (2:00 p.m.-3:30 p.m.)

Pre-set time for video cameras: 1:15 p.m. from the 23rd Street entrance.

Final access time for journalists and still photographers: 1:30 p.m. from the 23rd Street entrance.

Late Afternoon Session Featuring Remarks by U.S. Senator John McCain (4:00 p.m.-6:00 p.m.)

Pre-set time for video cameras: 3:30 p.m. from the 23rd Street entrance.

Final access time for journalists and still photographers: 3:45 p.m. from the 23rd Street entrance.

Media representatives may attend this event upon presentation of one of the following: (1) A U.S. Government-issued identification card (Department of State, White House, Congress, Department of Defense or Foreign Press Center), (2) a media-issued photo identification card, or (3) a letter from their employer on letterhead verifying their employment as a journalist, accompanied by an official photo identification card (driver’s license or passport). Please allow adequate time to process through security.

The Office of Website Management, Bureau of Public Affairs, manages this site as a portal for information from the U.S. State Department.
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The following is attributable to Spokesperson Heather Nauert:

The Secretary of State spoke by phone with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov today about the efforts to de-escalate the ongoing conflict in Syria. The Secretary looks forward to further meetings with the Foreign Minister to discuss the respective roles of the United States and Russia in de-escalating the conflict and supporting the talks in Geneva to move the political solution forward.

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.

SECRETARY TILLERSON: Mr. Munoz, welcome. Welcome to the State Department.

FOREIGN MINISTER MUNOZ: Secretary Tillerson, thank you very much.

SECRETARY TILLERSON: Pleasure to have you here.

FOREIGN MINISTER MUNOZ: Absolutely, a pleasure for us and hopefully continue the excellent relationship that both the U.S. and Chile have had for a long time.

SECRETARY TILLERSON: We certainly will. We certainly will. Thank all of you.

FOREIGN MINISTER MUNOZ: Thank you.

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.

Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Thomas A. Shannon, Jr., will travel to New York City, May 8, to meet with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov to discuss a range of bilateral issues.

To learn more about the Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, please visit here.

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.

The United States supports the statements issued by the European Union and the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights regarding the extension of the pre-trial detention of Lim Mony, Nay Vanda, Ny Sokha, and Yi Soksan, members of the respected Cambodian non-governmental organization ADHOC, as well as that of former member Ny Chakrya. The five have been held in prison without trial for more than a year.

We note with concern reports the impact this prolonged detention is having on the families of the imprisoned and the unreasonable delay in proceeding to trial. We also note the views expressed by the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention in November 2016 that the detention of these five human rights defenders is arbitrary. The United States encourages the Government of Cambodia to consider carefully these recommendations and respect its relevant international human rights obligations.

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.