Daily Press Briefing - September 16, 2010
Daily Press Briefings : Daily Press Briefing - September 16, 2010
Thu, 16 Sep 2010 16:56:05 -0500
Philip J. Crowley Assistant
Secretary
Daily Press Briefing Washington, DC September
16, 2010
INDEX:
DEPARTMENT
Statement by Secretary Clinton and Secretary Gates on New START Treaty
Secretary Clinton Returning to U.S./Meetings with President Abbas in Ramallah and King Abdullah in Amman
Readout of Secretary Clinton Conversation with Swiss Foreign Minister
Secretary Clinton to Announce Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves
Transfer of Two Detainees from Guantanamo Bay to Germany
President Exports Council Discuss the National Export Initiative (NEI) /Under Secretary Hormats Leads Department's Efforts on NEI
U.S. Salutes Mexico on 200 Years of Independence
OMAN/IRAN
Secretary Clinton to Call the Leadership of Oman/Call to Express Gratitude For Assistance in Release of Sarah Shourd/Ongoing Efforts to Seek Release of Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer /Information on Robert Levinson/Access to Reza Taghavi/Oman as an Interlocutor
MIDDLE EAST
Military Cooperation/Consultation Process with Congress
COLOMBIA
Plan Colombia/Release of Funds/Human Rights
NORTH KOREA
President Carter Op-Ed/Ambassador Bosworth Consultations Complete in Beijing Returning to U.S./ North Korea Must Demonstrate Willing to Take Steps in Accord with Obligations Already Made/Cheonan Incident
IRAQ
Compensation for Victims Claims
IRAN
Significant Evidence that Iran is Going Beyond Civil Nuclear Program
Sanctions Are Having an Impact
TRANSCRIPT: 1:32 p.m. EDT
MR. CROWLEY: Good afternoon and
welcome to the Department of State. You will see from
Secretary Clinton and, I believe, from Secretary Gates as
well this afternoon statements congratulating the Senate
Foreign Relations Committee on its strong bipartisan vote to
approve the new START treaty. And it reflects both the
decades-long tradition of bipartisan support for arms
control accords, but it also demonstrates that after
extensive consultations with the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee, the senators feel very strongly that this is in
the national interest.
The Secretary is on her way back
to the United States, having completed another day of
discussions with leaders, both with President Abbas in
Ramallah, but also King Abdullah in Amman. Also, before she
departed the region, she had the opportunity to talk to
Swiss Foreign Minister Calmy-Rey, and in that conversation,
she expressed the strong gratitude of the American people
for the ongoing Swiss efforts not only that led to the
release of Sarah Shourd, but the ongoing Swiss efforts to
seek the release of Josh Fattal and Sarah – and Shane
Bauer as well. They also talked about other subjects
including ongoing efforts to – with respect to tensions
between Turkey and Armenia. And I think there will be a call
the Secretary will make to the leadership of Oman, perhaps
today, more likely tomorrow.
You saw a release
highlighting that Secretary Clinton next week will formally
announce the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves, a new
private-public initiative to save lives, improve
livelihoods, empower women, and combat climate change by
creating a thriving global market for clean, efficient
household cooking solutions. And I think – Mark, it’s
noon tomorrow?
MR. TONER: Noon.
MR. CROWLEY: Yeah. We’ll -- you’ll have
more perspective on this and other activities the Secretary
will have next week in New York. We’ll have a briefing by
Assistant Secretary Esther Brimmer.
I also think the
Government of Germany announced today – and I think the
Defense Department, if they haven’t done already, will
very shortly confirm the transfer of two detainees from
Guantanamo Bay to Germany. Since the beginning of this
Administration, we have transferred 66 detainees to 26
different destinations, including the transfer of 40
detainees to third countries. And with this action today,
174 detainees remain at Guantanamo.
Also today, the
President’s Export Council met to discuss the
Administration’s progress on the National Export
Initiative. This is a top priority for Secretary Clinton. It
plays a central role in advancing the Department’s goal of
using international economic policy to support American
jobs. The Secretary has tapped Robert Hormats, our Under
Secretary for Economic, Energy, and Agricultural Affairs, to
lead the Department’s efforts on the NEI. Secretary
Hormats has engaged our staff in Washington and embassies
abroad to ensure diplomacy is working for American
businesses. Since the NEI was announced in January, the
State Department has worked with the Commerce Department and
other agencies to support $11 billion in U.S. export
content, compared with $3.2 billion in the same period in
2009.
And finally, before taking your questions today,
we salute Mexico as it celebrates 200 years of independence.
Viva Mexico.
With that, Matt.
QUESTION: Yeah. Why is the Secretary going
to call the leadership of Oman?
MR.
CROWLEY: To also thank the Omanis for its efforts
–
QUESTION: For paying the –
MR. CROWLEY: -- for releasing –
QUESTION: -- $500,000 bail?
MR.
CROWLEY: -- for helping to arrange the release of
–
QUESTION: What exactly is she
going to thank them for?
MR. CROWLEY:
Well, let’s wait for the call and I’ll give you a
readout.
QUESTION: Well, but surely
she knows what she’s going to be thanking them for.
MR. CROWLEY: Well, we have one of our
citizens released. We continue to seek the release of Shane
Bauer, Josh Fattal. We seek information on Robert Levinson.
We seek access to Reza Taghavi. But also, as the Secretary
said in various interviews today, we also seek the
opportunity to engage Iran seriously on a variety of issues.
But her call to Sultan Qaboos will be to express our
gratitude for Oman’s efforts not only in the context of
Sarah Shourd, but its ongoing efforts to seek the release of
our other two hikers.
QUESTION: Is it
your understanding that the Omanis’ most recent effort was
confined only to Sarah Shourd? Or was it – were they
actually trying to get all three of them out and they
succeeded in getting one?
MR. CROWLEY:
The Omani effort, just as the Swiss effort, has been
directed at getting all three hikers out. That remains our
focus now that we have Sarah released. We seek the same
decision by Iranian authorities with respect to Josh and
Shane.
QUESTION: And have you heard
President Ahmadinejad’s most recent comments on this
subject, that the other two are going to have to stand
trial?
MR. CROWLEY: I haven’t seen
his full transcript, but as we’ve said, we understand that
there has been a legal process with respect to Sarah Shourd
and it was Iranian authorities that made the decision to
release her. The facts regarding Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal
are identical. So if the Iranian judicial system has reached
judgment with respect to Sarah Shourd, we believe very
strongly that it could reach the same judgment with respect
to Josh Fattal and Shane Bauer.
QUESTION: Is it your hope that the Omanis
are going to serve as a sort of a communication channel on
issues other than imprisoned Americans as well? Is that –
are they now becoming a kind of effective backdoor into
Tehran?
MR. CROWLEY: Well, we believe
that Iran very clearly understands what we want to see
happen. As the Secretary, I think, said today in at least
one interview, we have a two-track strategy. We are applying
sanctions on Iran and we believe that those sanctions are
having an effect. At the same time, we remain open to
serious dialogue with Iran – not only the United States,
but also others within the international community.
And
we, through our public statements, make that clear to Iran,
and we do engage other countries who, in turn, have
diplomatic relations with Iran and they are conveying the
same message. And certainly, Oman, being one of those
countries that has a relationship with the United States, a
relationship with Iran, is an effective interlocutor. But
there are others.
QUESTION:
Congresswoman Ileana Lehtinen of the Foreign Relation – or
International Relations Committee of the Congress has been
discussing with the deputy foreign minister of Israel the
– what seems to be the military sales to Saudi Arabia and
Lebanon, and is expressing kind of objection or reservations
about – the usual reservations that we hear from the
Israeli friends in the Congress toward any sales to any Arab
country. But Saudi Arabia supposedly is trying to push $60
billion of American military ware. Of course, this will help
a lot the American jobs, thousands of American jobs.
Is
the United States State Department going to still play that
smoothing role to make these people understand that Israel
will never be threatened by any kind of military sales, as
Israel is a superpower in that region?
MR.
CROWLEY: A lot in that question. On the specifics
of our military cooperation with Saudi Arabia, we do work
closely with Saudi Arabia and other countries in the region
to make sure that our allies and friends have the
capabilities that they need to – for their own security.
Certainly, Saudi Arabia and other countries have very
justifiable concerns about the emergence of Iran as a less
than constructive actor in the region.
On any specific
proposal that might be under discussion, I have indicated
before that we go through a consultation process with the
Congress before making any announcements, so I’ll reserve
announcements on anything particular, but – other than to
say that we provide military resources, security assistance
to a range of allies from Israel to Saudi Arabia. It is in
our national interest to do so to maintain both security and
stability in the region.
QUESTION: On
the same --
QUESTION: On Iran, were you
able to get anything on this alleged donation from Iran, $25
million, to the Turkish military?
MR.
CROWLEY: We checked around, and nobody has any
information on that.
QUESTION: Deputy
Secretary Mr. Steinberg yesterday met with Mr. Ayalon. Do
you have a readout on that?
MR.
CROWLEY: I do not. We’ll see. I mean, we do meet
with officials from the Israeli Government from time to
time. But I wouldn’t say that we have – we are in close
consultation with Israel on a variety of subjects, from
regional security to Middle East peace. So I’m sure the
meeting was in that context. I’m not sure there’s much
more to say about it.
QUESTION: Because
Congresswoman Ileana said – she issued a press release
today and said she discussed with him concerns regarding the
sale of airplanes to Saudi Arabia and security assistance to
the Lebanese army.
QUESTION: That
question was just asked.
MR. CROWLEY:
Well, but I’ll tell you what. Samir, since you mentioned
that, I will say that we have completed our review of
assistance to Lebanon and we are in the process of
consultations with members of Congress regarding our
findings. We’ll have more to say with that when the
consultations are done.
QUESTION: My
question – I meant to see if this – the issue of
assistance to the Lebanese army was discussed with Mr.
Ayalon. That’s what I meant
MR.
CROWLEY: I don’t know. That’s a good question.
But I – as I said, we indicated that we were reviewing our
programs with Lebanon. We have completed that review and we
are now briefing Congress on our findings.
QUESTION: P.J., Plan Colombia – there was
an additional release of $30 million, I believe, that just
took place. And I’m just trying to – we’re trying to
assess what prompted the release, what specifics were –
led to the monies, and what kind of improvement has the
United States seen, so to – basically to --
MR. CROWLEY: Well, there are certain
statutory requirements that we have to meet regarding our
assistance to the Colombian armed forces. We believe that
the Colombian Government has made steady progress in
improving the human rights situation in the country and has
met specific certification require – certification
criteria for the release of those funds.
We applaud
President Santos for his commitment to human rights. We
applaud the steps that he’s taken to make tangible changes
in Colombia’s human rights situation. But at the same
time, we will continue to engage with the Colombian
Government to achieve further progress.
QUESTION: How would – can you put some
meat on that, what you can define as human rights progress?
I mean, what specifics?
MR. CROWLEY:
Well, I’ll give you some examples: significantly improving
relations with Colombia’s high court, overhaul of the
judicial system in consultation with the high courts, a new
prosecutor general, and then to a 13-month gap in permanent
leadership in that institution, establishing a roundtable on
labor issues with organized labor, meeting with NGOs and
promising increase in regular dialogue with Afro-Colombian
and indigenous groups, increasing to – the condemnation of
threats of violence against human rights defenders and
increased attention to human rights abuses and their
prevention, then legislation on land reform and restoring
land to victims of forced displacement. There’s now a
victims law that has provided real resources to cover
victims of violence by state security forces. So it’s a
fairly lengthy list.
QUESTION: P.J.,
former President Carter has an op-ed in The New York
Times today where he’s talking about that he sees a
new opportunity with North Korea, that the North Koreans
showed real signs of eagerness to restart the talks, and
that he thought – and this was a message that he conveyed
– he apparently seems to think they’re sincere – to
the Secretary and to this building when he returned. He also
said the Chinese are viewing Kim’s decision to – or
offer of restarting family reunions and freeing the South
Korean fishing crew as sort of signs of a new openness and
perhaps a step towards some of the demonstration you’ve
been looking for.
How much weight does this building give
President Carter’s views on this matter? Do you think that
there is a real opportunity here, and do those two things
begin to qualify as signs of a new attitude in
Pyongyang?
MR. CROWLEY: Well,
certainly, President Carter had his opportunity to present
his views on his trip directly to Secretary Clinton. I think
in the op-ed he also indicated he conveyed his findings to
Chinese officials as well. But as Steve Bosworth – he and
his team have completed their consultations in Beijing,
they’re on their way back here to the United States. But
before he left, he made clear that while we remain open to
dialogue either on a bilateral basis or a bilateral basis
leading to a multilateral basis, the onus is on North Korea.
It has to demonstrate that it’s willing to take steps in
accord with the obligations and commitments that it has
already made.
So we will continue to consult and we’ll
continue to watch to see what concrete steps North Korea
takes. So if there’s an eagerness on behalf of North
Korea, that can be backed up by affirmative actions that
demonstrate a seriousness of purpose. And I think as both
Steve Bosworth has said and also Kurt Campbell has stressed,
among the things that we will be watching for is affirmative
steps by North Korea to improve its relations with South
Korea.
QUESTION: Speaking about
President Carter’s op-ed, did you find it unusual at all
that he didn’t mention the Cheonan incident in
it?
MR. CROWLEY: I’ll leave it to
President Carter.
QUESTION: Well, the
reason that I ask this is because it was a major part of
Bosworth and Sung Kim’s theme, as it was almost the over
– it was the overwhelming focus of the testimony this
morning by Assistant Secretary Campbell and the people from
DOD.
MR. CROWLEY: Sure.
QUESTION: Do you not find it unusual that
--
MR. CROWLEY: Well, again, I’ll
let --
QUESTION: Do you think that the
president – former President Carter is unaware of this
incident?
MR. CROWLEY: I --
QUESTION: Or is he choosing to gloss over
it?
MR. CROWLEY: No, I know for a fact
he is very much aware of the Cheonan because we did
--
QUESTION: Okay. Well, given the
fact that --
MR. CROWLEY: – we did
provide a perspective to him on – before he left.
QUESTION: Given the fact that he didn’t
mention it, do you take what he said seriously?
MR. CROWLEY: Well --
QUESTION: Or what he’s written
seriously?
MR. CROWLEY: Of course. For
someone of President Clinton – President Carter’s
stature as a former president, as a Nobel laureate, of
course, his views have – carry weight. But by the same
token, the sinking of the Cheonan is a fact. It was a
provocative act.
QUESTION: So --
MR. CROWLEY: And we are looking to see not
just the aspirations of North Korea but the actions of North
Korea, and we’ll be guided by North Korea’s actions.
QUESTION: So do you think that his
omission of this fact from this piece in which he says that
he thinks that the North Koreans are eager to get back to
talks is a rather glaring omission and --
MR.
CROWLEY: I’m not going to characterize --
QUESTION: And --
MR.
CROWLEY: I read President Carter’s op-ed --
QUESTION: Were you surprised that it was
not mentioned in there?
MR. CROWLEY:
Again, I read it with interest, as I’m sure others in the
building – we respect his --
QUESTION: Were you waiting for a sentence
about the ship sinking?
MR. CROWLEY: We
respect his views. But by the same token, as President
Carter said in his op-ed, he’s offering his views as a
private citizen, and in his interactions with North Korea,
he made clear that he was not representing the official
policy of the United States Government. We do, in fact –
we are focused on the Cheonan, but these
consultations that Steve Bosworth and Sung Kim and others
have had this week are, in fact, to try to identify a path
forward from the Cheonan. But there are things that
we will be focused on as to actions that North Korea must
take to demonstrate that it is willing to behave more
constructively in terms of its interactions with South Korea
and others in the region.
QUESTION:
From President Carter’s briefing to the Secretary – does
the Secretary understand that the – that President Carter
discussed the Cheonan incident with the North Koreans
while he was in Pyongyang?
MR. CROWLEY:
I’m not going to characterize the discussion that the
Secretary had with --
QUESTION: Well,
it goes to – you say that you hold his opinions in high
regard, and yet he is – he has omitted the main – the
biggest hindrance that’s come up in the last several
months to a resumption of direct talks. He has completely
ignored it. So I --
MR. CROWLEY: By
the same token, I mean, we are very mindful of what has
happened. But in fact, what Steve Bosworth and Sung Kim and
others – we are focused on the way forward in light of the
Cheonan. The current situation should not stay in
limbo forever. We are willing to engage. We are willing to
do so on a bilateral basis, on a multilateral basis. We want
to get back into negotiations with North Korea. But the onus
is on North Korea. There are steps that they have to take
first.
QUESTION: Is it responsible to
move ahead unless there’s been some kind of movement from
the North on this incident?
MR.
CROWLEY: Well, as we said, among – we’re not
going – we don’t have a detailed list you must do this,
this, this, this, and this. But among the steps that we are
looking for from North Korea to demonstrate that it is
willing to be a constructive actor in this process, in light
of the Cheonan, is that it should take affirmative
steps to improve its relations with South Korea, thereby
significantly reduce the tensions in the region that North
Korea is itself responsible for. So we’ll be guided by
North Korea’s actions, not just its aspirations. And based
on what North Korea does, we will respond accordingly.
QUESTION: So President Carter mentioned the
return of the South Korean ship – the ship that was –
the fishermen and their willingness to resume these family
meetings. Is that enough? Are those positive actions?
MR. CROWLEY: Well, it is --
QUESTION: Or do they need to address the
Cheonan too?
MR. CROWLEY: It is
fair to say that North Korea is making gestures and – that
demonstrate that it has an interest in getting back to the
Six-Party process. We share that interest. By the same
token, there are things that North Korea has to do. And
there – as Steve Bosworth said again today in Beijing, we
want to see North Korea take affirmative actions associated
with its – with the 2005 communiqué. We want to – so we
have the ability to verify that, in fact, they have taken
specific steps that demonstrate their commitment to
denuclearization. So as North Korea takes these actions, we
will assess and – but part of the process of what Steve
has been going through with his team over the past few days
is these consultations to understand what the path forward
is, share ideas among our partners in the Six-Party process,
so that we’re prepared to respond should North Korea take
a different path.
QUESTION: The South
Korean defense minister said today the North is proposing
working-level military talks; that’s a new thing. Is that
enough? Or is the nuclear component, is that a requirement
that they have to do something on the nuclear side
specifically to demonstrate their –
MR.
CROWLEY: Again, I wouldn’t say there’s one
thing. There’s a – there are specific things that North
Korea can do associated with its prior commitments, but we
will be looking for sustained action by North Korea. And
based on that performance, we’ll judge whether they are
serious about not only just coming back to talks, but
through those talks to make real progress towards
denuclearization of the North – of the Korean Peninsula.
QUESTION: New subject? Iraq, the $400
million settlement which is now pending in the Iraqi
parliament. Any reaction to – for the people – victims
who have sued the Saddam Hussein regime?
MR.
CROWLEY: Well, we have signed an agreement with
Iraq on compensation for victims’ claims and the agreement
is working its way through the Iraqi political process.
QUESTION: Do you see – is that –
because there was some irking in the Iraqi populace over the
situation saying, “Hey, why should we have to cut this
check for the occupiers,” so to speak. I mean, that’s
being reported in the region. Is there a sense that that
might – that as this settlement works its way through the
Iraqi parliament, that might have some adverse effect on the
strengthening of – you talk about the Iraqi parliament
trying to be stable and trying to move forward and all those
things? Is that sort of a fly in the ointment that might
muck things up?
MR. CROWLEY: I
wouldn’t call it a fly in the ointment. You’re right;
the current government is not directly responsible for the
actions that occurred during the regime of Saddam Hussein.
By the same token, Iraqi leaders have accepted that they
have to resolve issues, some of them with the United States,
but others with neighbors such as Kuwait. And as the Iraqi
Government demonstrates a political commitment – and we
appreciate that commitment to work beyond these issues –
it opens up the opportunity, say in the context of Kuwait,
for stronger bilateral relations going forward. These are
the steps that we believe that Iraq is taking and must take
so that it can enjoy the same kind of relationship with its
neighbors as we hope it will.
QUESTION:
Iran’s foreign minister yesterday said Iran’s atomic
case in IAEA is the most clear and straightforward cases
amongst the others, also said that the U.S. and allies and
the IAEA concern over its atomic activities is baseless and
seeking credibility. And also Ahmadinejad said that
sanctions have got no effects on his country whatsoever. Do
you see anything positive coming next week if Iran
delegation gets the visa to come to U.S.?
MR.
CROWLEY: Well, I can’t predict whether anything
positive will come out of next week. It depends on the
approach that President Ahmadinejad takes when he arrives at
the UN next week. I believe it was just over a year ago
where President Obama, in a discussion with President
Medvedev, revealed the existence of the secret facility in
Qom, which proved that, in fact, our concerns are factually
based.
So for Iran to dismiss that the claims are false
– in truth, we have significant evidence that Iran is
doing things that go beyond any plausible civilian nuclear
program. It’s one of the reasons why we have steadfastly
offered to engage Iran directly so that, to the extent that
we have questions and to the extent that Iran has answers,
we can resolve these issues. It is Iran that has failed to
come forward and cooperate fully with the IAEA or answer the
questions that the international community has about the
true nature of its nuclear program. As Secretary Clinton
said in one interview today, “This should not be hard.”
On the issue of sanctions, we believe they are having an
effect. I believe the Secretary today mentioned that Mr.
Rafsanjani, among others, have indicated publicly that we
should – that they should – Iran should take sanctions
seriously. The fact is that they are having an impact. Iran
is one of the most, if not the most, sanctioned country on
earth. It is isolated from the international community. It
has very few friends around the world.
If Iran wants to
have a different relationship with the international
community, including the United States, answering the
questions that the international community has about its
nuclear program would be a very important step.
Jeff.
QUESTION: One other subject. Pakistan
drones? Its drone activity seems to have gone up quite a bit
in September. Is this seen by the U.S. Government as a way
– sort of a way to push the diplomatic efforts forward in
terms of negotiating the different parts of the Taliban in
the area?
MR. CROWLEY: We don’t do
drones at the Department of State.
QUESTION: At all? (Laughter.) I know you
don’t do drones, but do you have a comment on the
diplomatic part of it?
MR. CROWLEY: We
do have an air force here at the Department of State, but it
doesn’t include drones. (Laughter.)
QUESTION: Thank you.
MR.
CROWLEY: Thank you.
QUESTION:
Thank you. (The briefing was concluded at 2:01 p.m.)
ENDS