Category: APO-OPA

WASHINGTON, May 7, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Special Briefing

Senior Administration Officials

Via Teleconference

May 6, 2014

MODERATOR: Hi everyone, this is [Moderator]. This is a background call. We’ll have a couple of speakers, both of whom should be referred to in reporting as Senior Administration Officials, please. That’s how we’re going to do this call. Just so you know who’ll be speaking, first we’ll hear from [Senior Administration Official One] at the Treasury Department, who I know you are all very familiar with, and then we’ll hear from [Senior Administration Official Two] here at the State Department, who will talk a little bit about the Secretary’s trip and some of the other policy issues as well. And then we’ll open it up for questions.

So again, this is all background, Senior Administration Officials. Thanks for joining today. As you saw, the Secretary just announced to talk about the sanctions we’ve imposed related to South Sudan. So with that, let’s turn it over to [Senior Administration Official One] and then we’ll go to [Senior Administration Official Two] and then we’ll go to questions.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: Thanks very much, [Moderator], and good afternoon to everyone. Just wanted to talk briefly about the sanctions steps that the Administration has taken today. In the last hour, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Asset Control has rolled out sanctions against two individuals who have been driving and directing the conflict in South Sudan. The individuals are a South Sudan anti-government force leader by the name of Peter Gadet and a commander within the South Sudanese Government’s Presidential Guard by the name of Marial Chanuong. And we will have our press release up shortly, if it isn’t up already, to give you the spelling of those individuals.

Marial Chanuong, first, is, as I noted, the commander of the Presidential Guard for the South Sudanese Government, so he is reporting to President Salva Kiir. The Presidential Guard led the operations in Juba following the fighting that began on December 15th of 2013. And the second individual, Peter Gadet, who is fighting among the anti-government forces, is commanding a group of troops who were responsible for some of the horrific violence we saw just last month in Bentiu, the capital of Unity State in South Sudan.

Both of these individuals were sanctioned under the recently issued Executive Order by President Obama EO 13664, which allows us to target those responsible for or complicit in actions or policies that threaten the peace, security, or stability of South Sudan. That EO was signed by the President just last month on April 3rd, 2014. And it is a broad and flexible EO, which gives us the authority to target not just commanders but those directly engaged in violence and those who are providing material support to the forces that we see directing the violence, including those who are targeting UN peacekeepers or those delivering humanitarian supplies.

This new EO will be a critical new peace to our efforts to hold accountable those who obstruct the peace process and those responsible for violence against civilians. Today’s actions are the first designations under this authority, and we expect them to serve as a warning to those engaged in continuing the cycle of violence that has already claimed thousands of lives in South Sudan since December 2013.

And with that, I would turn it over to my State Department colleague.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL TWO: Thanks very much, and I appreciate the chance to speak about what’s happening in South Sudan. As my colleague from Treasury stated, today the United States officially sanctioned two individuals whose actions have threatened the peace, security, and stability of South Sudan, or who have committed atrocities.

First, Marial Chenuong, as he said, commanded the Presidential Guard Forces and ordered and led attacks directed at civilians in the early stages of this conflict in Juba. The other, Peter Gadet, was – led the anti-government forces who were responsible for the April 17th attack on Bentiu, in violation of the cessation of hostilities from the January 23rd agreement, which resulted in the killing of more than 200 civilians.

As [Senior Administration Official One] said, we will continue to use the authority under President Obama’s executive order to hold accountable those who commit atrocities, obstruct the peace process, or undermine peace and stability in South Sudan.

Today’s announcement comes on the heels of the Secretary’s trip to South Sudan. It was his first as Secretary but by no means his first trip to South Sudan. He traveled to Juba and to the region, where he made very plain that it was critical that all parties abide by the cessation of hostilities, where he met with members of civil society and with UNMISS, the United Nations peacekeeping operation in South Sudan, and where he underscored the vital importance of humanitarian assistance, especially as the rainy season has already commenced.

In these meetings, he pushed for a meeting between President Kiir and former Vice President Riek Machar to come to Addis for negotiations as a – one stage but a critical stage in the road to a more inclusive peace process for South Sudan. Both parties have now agreed to travel to Ethiopia for that meeting, and it is now tentatively scheduled for May 9th.

As the Secretary said today, we refuse to let South Sudan plunge into violence, famine, and deeper desperation. We will continue to stand with the people of South Sudan who call for peace and who recognize that the only way to resolve this conflict is through political dialogue.

And we’d be happy to take your questions.

MODERATOR: Great. If the operator could let folks know how to ask a question.

OPERATOR: Thank you. If you’d like to ask a question today, you may press *1 on your telephone keypad, and you should hear a tone acknowledging that you’re in the question queue. Once again, it’s * then 1 at this time.

MODERATOR: Great. Thanks. It looks like our first question is from Reuters, from Anna of Reuters. Go ahead.

QUESTION: (Inaudible) why you chose these particular two people outside of – is it meant to – also to send a message to Kiir and Bashir that there could be more sanctions? And also, are you, in general, ready to sanction more people if the peace talks don’t lead to cessation in the violence? Thank you.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: Yes. I mean, as I tried to signal in my opening remarks, this is a very powerful and flexible tool, the President’s new executive order, and today is our first use of the tool. We’re using it in a limited way against two individuals. They’re two individuals that we think are fairly significant, both of whom have blood on their hands with respect to the activities that they have directed or conducted. So we believe today’s actions are significant but also are, as you note, a signal to any who would consider or who are already contributing to violence on either side in South Sudan.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL TWO: I would just add to that in this case you have individuals who are both responsible for attacks on civilians, one of whom was responsible for attacks that began in December 15th in Juba, and one for attacks in Bentiu much more recently. So we see the sort of scope of the conflict and the toll it’s being – that it’s taking on civilian lives. And I think that was one of the reasons for these selections.

MODERATOR: And I’ll just jump in here. Finally, we’ve also said repeatedly that there are a couple goals with these sanctions, right? One is accountability, which is what you’ve seen today. And the other is to serve as a deterrent, if it can, going forward for future violence. So I think hopefully this can begin to serve both of those goals.

Our next question is from Deb Riechmann of the Associated Press.

QUESTION: Hi. Can you just explain what the sanctions do? I haven’t seen anything yet that says – do they freeze assets or what do they do?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: Yeah. So they do freeze assets. The other component is that they prohibit any and all transactions by U.S. persons, wherever located, with the designated individuals. What that means, as a practical matter, is that, as of 2:30 today, these names and their identifying bio-identifiers were sent out to tens of thousands of institutions in the U.S. and around the world, who now have them as a part of the OFAC SDN list or blacklist.

And as a practical matter, we’ve seen these actions disrupt and interfere with financial operations of designated individuals far away from U.S. shores. But certainly, the legal direct impact would be any assets they have in a U.S. bank, with a U.S. person, or that transits the U.S. even for a split second would need to be blocked, and U.S. persons can’t do business with them. As a complement, the State Department is – typically enacts a visa ban against the individuals listed as well.

MODERATOR: Thanks. Our next question is from Barbara Usher of the BBC.

QUESTION: Thank you. I’m just wondering if it was only a U.S. action. I know that some officials were saying that sanctions would be more effective if Uganda and Kenya participated, because a lot of the assets of these men are in those countries. Is this something that you’ve done in conjunction with neighboring countries?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL TWO: We’re definitely working in partnership with neighboring countries, including Ethiopia, Kenya, and Uganda, talking to them about these steps as well as their own efforts to secure peace in South Sudan. We are also working in partnership with the European Union and other – the members of the South Sudan Troika, which consists of the U.S., the United Kingdom, and Norway, and coordinating our efforts across the board to bring this crisis to an end.

MODERATOR: Can the operator remind folks how to ask a question, please?

OPERATOR: If you would like to ask a question today, you may press * then 1.

MODERATOR: Great. Thank you. Our next question is from the other Matt Lee, Matthew Russell Lee of Inner City Press. Go ahead.

QUESTION: Great. Thanks a lot, [Moderator]. I wanted to ask, there was a – it was said that in Security Council consultations at the UN that senior government officials were named in a radio broadcast prior to the attacks in Bor on the UN compound in killing the civilians. I just wonder if you can say are these people – is that the case? Do you know the names of people that sort of called for that attack, and in which case, why aren’t they on this list?

And I also – this might for Senior Administration Official Number Two. Secretary Kerry was talking about a legitimate force to help make peace. And I just wanted to know, is the UN – is the U.S. thinking of that as part of UNMISS mission or as the IGAD force? And if so, would it require a Security Council approval? Thanks.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: On the first, I mean, we typically do not comment on actors against whom we are – we have not yet – we have not yet acted, a clunky way of saying we don’t comment on those who are not part of our designation. But anyone who is contributing to the violence, whether that’s by directing violence, whether that’s by funding it, fueling it, contributing arms, can be a subject of designation in the future. And I’ll leave it to my State Department colleague to answer the second question.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL TWO: Yeah. On the question about the regional force and on UNMISS, we – it is something that conversations and discussions are ongoing between countries of IGAD, with New York, with ourselves and others on how best to create this additional force presence that we are working very much with UNMISS and see this as part of the same effort. But we do think it’s very important that the regional forces are able to join this effort in larger numbers and appreciate the efforts of, particularly, the governments of Ethiopia and Kenya, who are leading the mediation and who are seeking to work with UNMISS in this regard.

MODERATOR: Great, thanks. Our next question is from Phil Stewart of Reuters.

QUESTION: Yeah, hi. Can you hear me?

MODERATOR: We can hear you.

QUESTION: Great. Just quickly, what assets of these two individuals are actually going to be affected if any? Are there any identified? And also, I’m seeing a report that Uganda is saying that targeted sanctions against South Sudan are not necessary. Has Uganda communicated this to the United States? Thank you.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: So we typically will put out an action like this and then hear from financial institutions in the coming hours about assets that they’ve frozen. We don’t have perfect transparency, of course, into where assets may be held or where they be moved. And movement of assets is really important to recall here, in that a typical international transfer from one country to another, neither U.S. – neither of them, the United States, will often transit U.S. shores.

So many lay people aren’t following the dynamics of what a U.S. designation means, but what it means is typically a transaction between two African countries may well touch a U.S. institution, and a transaction of that type would need to be blocked in the U.S. But as of today, the moment of designation, we’re not identifying the assets of blocked individuals and we don’t traditionally identify how much has been blocked under an individual’s name.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL TWO: I can’t comment on Uganda’s statement specifically. I can tell you that we have been talking to all the countries in the region and we will continue to do so and take on board their thoughts on this. We do very much think that targeted sanctions – and these are highly targeted sanctions – will, in fact, have the impact we hope, and that we will continue to dialogue with the region on it.

MODERATOR: Great, thanks. I think we have time for a few more. The next question is from Gregory Warner of NPR.

QUESTION: Yeah. I’ll make this quick and I’m joining by Skype from Juba. So I guess I just wanted to clarify – and maybe you don’t know this – but the percentage, a rough percentage, of their assets that might be affected by the sanction and that split-second passage though the U.S. that we’re talking about. And then also, in terms of your conversations with the neighboring countries, I mean, how soon do you hope that the neighboring countries will join the sanctions, or is that your intention?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: On the first question, obviously, we’re not in a position to assess what percentage of their assets might be bound up in international transactions. It’s not simply a question of what might have been transiting today, but on any future day. So long as these designations are in effect, they’ll bar these individuals from access to the U.S. dollar, to the U.S. financial system, and any transactions that are attempted will more than likely be blocked.

But in an action like this, the primary purpose, as you heard both myself and my colleague describing, is not a freezing of funds. The primary purpose is to isolate and apply pressure to change the decision-making calculus of the key actors involved, whether that’s the two individuals we named today, who we very much hope will desist from directing bloodshed against innocent civilians, or whether that’s others who would contemplate engaging in similar actions. So the tool here is a financial tool, but of course it’s much more than that, and these actions are noted around the world and have, in the past, served as powerful disruptors and deterrent actions against individuals engaged in human rights abuses.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL TWO: And on the question of other countries in the region, we definitely encourage others in the international community to take similar steps, and we will work with the UN Security Council in the effort to authorize additional targeted sanctions. These are issues that the Secretary discussed during his visit to Addis last week, and to make sure that the steps we are taking are consistent with the goals of the mediating teams and other partners in the region.

MODERATOR: Great, thanks. Our next question’s from Pat Reiber of the German Press Agency.

QUESTION: Yeah, hi. I think most of my questions have been answered. I was – just wanted to know more about what Kenya and Uganda will be doing, and Ethiopia, in accord with the sanctions that the U.S. is putting out there.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL TWO: Yeah. On that, as we said, we certainly encourage others in the international community to take similar steps to what we’ve done today.

MODERATOR: Great. Our next question’s from Emile Barroody of Al Mayadeen.

QUESTION: Yes, thank you for doing this. Is there any other sanctions in the pipes against other members of the South Sudan military?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: We don’t talk about prospective actions that may still be coming, but we are clearly signaling today our willingness to use this tool against others who are directing or committing acts of violence. And the hope here, of course, is to incentivize the diplomacy and to encourage the talks that we’re all very much hoping will reduce the violence.

MODERATOR: Great, thanks. And it looks like our last question’s from Brian Monroe of MoneyLaundering.com.

QUESTION: I’m going to record it so we can put it on the site, okay?

MODERATOR: This is on background, though, so you can’t actually record it for the site. Brian?

QUESTION: Hello? Can you hear me?

MODERATOR: Yeah. Did you hear me?

QUESTION: Oh, now I can perfectly. No, the key question I was asking is – I apologize (inaudible), another conversation jumped in there – I was just curious, what is the expectations from banks in terms of the depth of due diligence on these names? I mean, because always the question is: Is this names that they just put in their filters and they just see what sticks out? Or do you expect maybe a more rigorous look in terms of assets or sub-entities, or basically, just all the assets tied to these names? Thank you very much.

MODERATOR: Hey, Brian, this is the Moderator. Did you hear that this call’s on background, so not to be recorded for broadcast?

QUESTION: Yes.

MODERATOR: Okay. So you can’t record the answer and put it on your website.

QUESTION: No, no, no, that was a conversation for someone else. No, absolutely.

MODERATOR: Oh, okay. Well, it came up on here. Okay. Go ahead. If my colleagues have answers, go ahead and [Senior Administration Official One] may.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL ONE: Yeah. So the primary obligation, of course, is to ensure that filters contain these names and identifiers to be sure that any current accounts are searched, and any prospective transactions or account openings are detected and blocked.

We’re not talking with these two individuals about CEOs or those who have large business interests, and so I don’t think the question about how deep should people be diving in terms of their due diligence is as applicable as it might be in another context. But of course, if you’re a bank that has more heavy exposure to South Sudan, to business coming in and out of Juba, that implies a greater burden with respect to the due diligence one needs to do.

MODERATOR: Okay, great. Well, thank you to everyone for joining. Again, sorry to be a stickler there, I thought you were talking about this call. This is all on background, senior Administration officials. As always, you know how to follow up with us, but thanks to everyone for joining, and have a great rest of your evening.

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, May 7, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — (FORMER CONFERENCE OF MINISTERS OF JUSTICE/ATTORNEYS FROM MEMBER STATES BUT NOW INCLUDING MINISTERS RESPONSIBLE FOR ISSUES SUCH AS HUMAN RIGHTS, CONSTITUTIONALISM AND RULE OF LAW)

INVITATION TO REPRESENTATIVES OF THE MEDIA

When: 6 – 16 May 2014

The meetings will hold as follow:

6 – 14 May 2014: Meeting of Government Legal Experts of the STC on Justice and Legal Affairs

15 – 16 May 2014: Meeting of STC on Justice and Legal Affairs (Ministers of Justice and Attorneys General, Ministers responsible for Issues such as Human Rights, Constitutionalism and Rule of Law)

Where: New African Union Conference Center, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

(Medium Hall)

Who: Organised by the Office of the Legal Counsel of the African Union Commission

Why: The STC on Justice and Legal Affairs is expected to consider the following:

i. Draft Protocol on Amendments to the Protocol on the Statute of the African Court of Justice and Human Rights;

ii. Draft Protocol to the Constitutive Act of the African Union relating to the Pan-African Parliament;

iii. Draft African Union Convention on Cross-Border Cooperation (Niamey Convention);

iv. Draft African Union Cyber-Security Convention;

v. Draft African Charter on the Values and Principles of Decentralisation, Local Governance and Local Development;

vi. Draft Protocol on the Establishment of the African Monetary Fund;

vii. Draft Rules of Procedure of the STC on Justice and Legal Affairs; and

viii. Draft African Model Law on Biosafety.

Objectives: Once developed these instruments will reflect the collective shared values of the AU Member States in those thematic areas.

Participants: participants will include African Ministers of Justice/Attorneys General, Ministers responsible for issues such as human rights, constitutionalism and rule of Law, Legal Experts from AU Member States Representatives from the African Court on Human and Human and Peoples’ Rights; Pan African Parliament (PAP); African Union Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, African Union Commission on the International Law

JOURNALISTS ARE INVITED TO COVER THE EVENT

OSLO, Norway, May 7, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — ‘The death sentences in Egypt in recent months are a clear breach of human rights and of Egypt’s international obligations. Norway condemns these sentences, and we have raised the matter directly with the Egyptian authorities,’ said Foreign Minister Børge Brende.

The Egyptian Ambassador was called in to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday, 5 May so that Norway’s protest against the most recent trials in Egypt could be presented to him.

‘Egypt is a party to the UN International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The trials in Minya represent a severe breach of this covenant. I am concerned that the authorities’ brutal approach to political opponents may increase radicalisation and hostilities,’ said Mr Brende.

On 24 March and 28 April, respectively, 529 and 683 death sentences were handed down in Egypt. Since then, 37 of the 529 death sentences imposed on 24 March have been upheld, while the remainder have been commuted to life imprisonment. The trials lasted for only a few hours.

WASHINGTON, May 7, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Remarks

John Kerry

Secretary of State

Treaty Room

Washington, DC

May 6, 2014

SECRETARY KERRY: Well, good afternoon, everybody. I am very pleased, as always, to welcome my very good friend and colleague in these endeavors, the EU High Representative Cathy Ashton back here to Washington. I’m also personally happy to be back in Washington – (laughter) – after a trip through Africa that has left us with a very long to-do list, which we’re already working on.

Lady Ashton and I just covered a lot of ground, but since we’re in agreement on so much of it, we were able to cover it quite quickly. We discussed, most importantly, our shared strategy of using the tools of diplomacy in order to reduce the conflicts that are threatening Europe, Africa, the Middle East, and other parts of the world, but particularly there.

Let me begin with Ukraine. In the weeks since Lady Ashton and I met in Geneva, along with the Ukrainian foreign minister and the Russian foreign minister, we have been, it is fair to say, nothing less than disappointed to see Russia to fail to live up to the very plain and simple, easy-to-interpret commitments that were made in Geneva. And I’ll reiterate: The agreement that we made in Geneva, it really isn’t vague and it’s not open to some loose interpretation. It was simple, it was specific, and it outlined concrete steps that all of the parties had to take. Ukraine’s government, literally before the ink was dry, started to implement on that agreement. And they have held up their end of the bargain.

Ukraine has shown remarkable restraint. Almost immediately coming out of that meeting in Geneva, they ordered a cessation of any kind of counterterrorism activity, any effort to remove people from buildings based on the notion that both sides were going to work to bring people out of those buildings. And the fact is that they have been committed in Kyiv to trying to move their country forward through nonviolence, through constitutional reform, through dialogue, and by reaching out to the disaffected parts of Ukraine.

We also are very concerned about efforts of pro-Russian separatists in Donetsk, in Luhansk to organize, frankly, a contrived, bogus independence referendum on May 11th. We flatly reject this illegal effort to further divide Ukraine, and its pursuit will create even more problems in the effort to try to de-escalate the situation. This is really the Crimea playbook all over again, and no civilized nation is going to recognize the results of such a bogus effort.

As President Obama has made clear, if Russian elements continue to sabotage the democratic process and prevent Ukraine from holding a free and fair election 19 days from now on the 25th, then we stand ready to implement additional sanctions. And the “we” is Europe and the United States together. I know the European Union is strong in its commitment to do this, and I think the high representative will address meetings that are shortly going to be held next week in furtherance of our common goals here.

We are not going to sit idly by while Russian elements fan the flames of instability, instead of fulfilling the commitments that we made. Look, we came together, and we came together in a real spirit of trying to de-escalate. And we weren’t playing a game. We laid down some very specific steps that could be taken, and immediately, the Government of Ukraine, in good faith, undertook to implement those steps, including removing barricades from the Maidan in Kyiv, removing people from buildings, as well as reaching out to make clear to the people of Ukraine how decentralization could take place to give more power to those people in places that were disaffected. Regrettably, that was not met with reciprocity, and reciprocity is one of the things that we discussed very clearly in Geneva.

I must add also that it’s very hard to reconcile that Russia is now making the argument that Ukraine ought to reduce – not have an election or postpone an election because of the violence that’s taking place, but Russia is full, whole-hog behind having an election in Syria where there is far worse violence. Reconcile that one for us, please.

So the choice is really Russia’s. The United States, the EU, and our allies have made our choice very, very clear: We are going to stand together united not just in support of Ukraine, but united in support of de-escalating; united in support of a peaceful, diplomatic solution; united in recognition that, yes, there are historic and cultural and other ties between Russia and Ukraine, but the way to assert them is at the diplomatic negotiating table, not at the end of a gun. And we believe that we will also stand together in the effort to try to de-escalate this situation.

Next week, I will meet in London with our European counterparts in order to discuss what the appropriate next steps will be.

I also want to underscore that Lady Ashton and I applaud the commitment and the courage of the monitors of the OSCE. We’re deeply appreciative of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, who have put themselves in harm’s way, not on one side or the other, but on the side of a peaceful resolution, on the side of de-escalation. And they have tried to enforce compliance of the Russian-backed forces to ensure that there is a fair and reasonable approach to defining the future for all of the people of Ukraine.

We believe that the OSCE can now play an enhanced role, and right now there are efforts taking place. I talked yesterday with the OSCE chairman, President Burkhalter of Switzerland, and he is tomorrow going to be traveling to meet with President Putin. Today there were meetings. I talked yesterday also with the foreign minister of Germany, Frank Steinmeier. He today met with Foreign Minister Lavrov in Vienna, and there are further discussions taking place. I will talk with him in an hour or two from now. So there’s a lot of energy being expended to try to see if we can find a reasonable way forward here. And we support the efforts very much of this kind of diplomacy to help the Ukrainians restore law and order and improve the environment for free and fair elections on May 25th.

And before I invite our honored guest to offer her thoughts here, I just want to briefly mention a couple of other topics that we discussed very quickly this afternoon: South Sudan, Nigeria, and Iran.

First on South Sudan, the cessation of hostilities agreement that was signed in January by the South Sudanese Government and the opposition has obviously not been upheld. And the recent attacks by the South Sudanese Government and the anti-government forces, both of them, are absolutely unacceptable, and the United States condemns them in the strongest terms.

I talked this morning with Prime Minister Hailemariam of Ethiopia, and he has been directly in touch with Riek Machar, who tells him that he will come to a meeting though they’re working on the precise date and hope to have something to announce shortly. He has also talked to President Kiir, and President Kiir has, in fact, committed absolutely to be there and to come. And we’re very hopeful that that can be the beginning of a dialogue, and we will have participants there to assist in that process.

As President Obama has made clear, however, we will hold accountable those who have stood in the way of a peace plan. And I’ve said as much directly to President Kiir and to former Vice President Riek Machar when I was there this past weekend. So today, the United States will announce sanctions on two individuals responsible for violating the cessation of hostilities agreement, individuals responsible for perpetrating unthinkable violence against civilians. The first is the commander of the South Sudanese Government’s Presidential Guard Forces Marial Chanuong, and he has led violent attacks against civilians in Juba. And that will – further details will be announced later regarding that. The second, Peter Gadet, who led anti-government forces in the April 17th attack on Bentiu that left more than 200 civilians dead.

And we will do our utmost to prevent South Sudan from plunging back into the violence and despair that tore that country apart for so long. We will continue to stand with the people of South Sudan who call for peace and who recognize that the only way to resolve this conflict is through a political dialogue.

Secondly, on Nigeria: Today I spoke with President Goodluck Jonathan on behalf of President Obama and offered – on behalf of President Obama offered America’s support for Nigeria in their response to this crisis. Our embassy in Abuja is prepared to form a coordination cell that could provide expertise on intelligence, investigations, and hostage negotiations, and to help facilitate information-sharing and victim assistance. And President – the President was – President Goodluck Jonathan was very happy to receive this offer and ready to move on it immediately, and we are immediately engaging in order to implement this. We remain deeply concerned about the welfare of these young girls, and we want to provide whatever assistance is possible in order to help for their safe return to their families.

And finally, Lady Ashton and I discussed – I think you see the breadth of the things that we’re talking about. You get a sense of the tremendous cooperation between the EU and the United States, and particularly between Cathy Ashton and myself, for which we are very, very grateful. And we are extremely grateful for her stewardship of the important negotiations that are taking place with Iran on the nuclear program, on a comprehensive – on the search for a comprehensive solution to the challenge of that program.

We – Lady Ashton and our political directors will meet again in Vienna next week. And as we try to seize this diplomatic moment and make our allies and ourselves safer, Iran obviously has to make some very tough decisions. We remain firm in our goals. They don’t vary. Iran must not obtain a nuclear weapon, and it must ensure it has a peaceful nuclear program. And as I’ve said many times, we continue to believe that no deal is better than a bad deal.

Let me close by extending to Lady Ashton early greetings for Europe Day, which falls this Friday. It’s a holiday that recalls and renews the EU’s vision for a united, peaceful, stable, and democratic Europe, and the United States will stand side by side with Europe as it strives to live up to that vision and to those high ideals. Lady Ashton, thanks for being with us.

HIGH REPRESENTATIVE ASHTON: Thank you. Thank you very much, Secretary Kerry, or John, as I would prefer. Thank you for your good wishes for Europe Day. I held a reception in New York last night, and it was my great pleasure to be able to see the Empire State Building lit up in the colors of the European Union of blue and yellow. It is a recognition of this incredibly important transatlantic partnership that every nation of the European Union values so highly, and for which I thank you, your predecessors, and all of your colleagues for the work that has gone on to develop it to the point where I think we are very much joined up in our thinking.

As you’ve said, we’ve talked about a range of issues. We talk a lot in between these meetings, so we cover a huge number of current concerns. And I will just pick up on the back of some of this news. You’ve said two or three of them, of which Ukraine is inevitably the highest on our agenda, and the latest news of the great concern that we have from the illegal actions by armed separatist groups is, of course, at the foremost of our attention. We want to see Russia join in in the call to see an immediate end to these actions, and that is very much, as you’ve said, in line with the discussions we had in Geneva, where we talked practically for seven hours. We talked about what this meant. There was no vagueness. There was absolute clarity in what we were trying to do – to try and find ways to begin the de-escalation. And we will continue, as the European Union, to engage fully in seeking a political solution and to stay fully behind what we said in Geneva and to find ways that we can see the implementation done by everyone.

We know, too, that Ukraine has the right to defend its territorial integrity. We understand the international obligations that it has, and we work closely with them. And as you have indicated, they have done a lot from the beginning of leaving Geneva at the end of that day to try and implement what was agreed.

I pay tribute, like you, to the OSCE, and I join the chief monitor of the special mission, who’s called upon all sides to exercise maximum restraint, to avoid bloodshed, and to solve differences peacefully. You all know that on the 28th of April we took the decision to extend the number of people subject to targeted sanctions for actions that undermine Ukraine’s territorial integrity, sovereignty, and independence. Any further steps that destabilize the situation in Ukraine would lead to additional and far-reaching consequences for our relations in a broad range of areas.

Like you, too, we are focused on the elections and the importance of free and fair presidential elections. This is a really important step in the stabilization of Ukraine. It’s about democracy. It’s an opportunity, too, for there to be a legitimate and broad debate on the future of Ukraine and to engage with people who do want to talk about how that future should be – peacefully working together, and to take this opportunity to be able to do that. We, of course, will continue as well with our assistance package, which, as you know, will bring in overall support of about 11 billion euros over time.

I want, as well, to mention the terrible escalation of violence in South Sudan and to pay tribute to your visit. I already know from our special representatives in the region and from people from the countries concerned that your visit was extremely timely and your efforts were very well recognized. So may I pay tribute to you for that, as well as many, many other things.

I’m worried that this country is on the brink of what could be a civil war, ethnically motivated. And the prospects of famine and the humanitarian disaster – they’re really looming large now, so we need to work together. We need to work to ensure that the leaders in South Sudan really do take the action that you’ve identified they need to. And when the meeting takes place on Friday, they really have got to now try and put aside personal differences and try and change the atmosphere and to try and prevent any further offenses and to respect the cessation of hostilities.

We’re actively considering the targeted sanctions that you’ve described. As you know, the Foreign Affairs Council, we’re meeting on Monday, and that’s the forum where I am president to try and look at all of these issues and see how we go forward. So we need to work very closely in good cooperation with you and with others and to make sure that we put as much energy as possible into trying to prevent what, as I said, could be a disaster.

Like you, our thoughts are with the parents of the Nigerian girls and with the girls themselves. These are the future of the country. They are teachers, dancers, politicians. They are scientists; they are mothers. They are women in the making, who have a right to play their full part in their society. And what has happened to them is devastating for all of us, and we must do, like you, everything possible to try and reunite them with their families and to prevent this ever, ever happening again.

But I want to end, if I might, by also reiterating my full support for everything that you have done in the Middle East. Your efforts are not, by any means, over yet. I know that. And I know that this has been a difficult time. But I do think that you have made tremendous progress and the European Union stands absolutely beside you as you continue your efforts and remains committed to supporting you in every way possible.

My final thought is on Iran. We will, of course, next week try and take this process forward. And we’re all interested in making sure that if we can get an agreement it’s the best agreement.

SECRETARY KERRY: Thank you, Cathy.

HIGH REPRESENTATIVE ASHTON: We always hug. There’s always a hug. (Laughter.)

MS. PSAKI: The first question will be from Andrea Mitchell of NBC News.

QUESTION: Thank you very much, Mr. Secretary, Lady Ashton. On Nigeria first, why has it taken so long to mobilize an American effort? We understand that President Jonathan today said he is welcoming the help, that there was no invitation before this, and if you understand that to mean that you can now act. But it will take a while to organize this cell in the Embassy. Why, given our extraordinary abilities with surveillance, with detection, did not the United States act sooner with other allies? It’s understood that some of these girls may have been taken across borders. There is an international issue. They are listed as a terror organization, Boko Haram, on the State Department list. It seems inconceivable to people around the world that we could not act sooner where lives are at stake. And how long now will it take to act?

And if I could ask you about Benghazi, because this is our first opportunity, sir. First of all, your response to Chairman Issa’s committee’s subpoena for you to appear, we understand that on May 21st, the date that you were ordered to appear, that you are supposed to be traveling, previously scheduled, in Mexico. Will you now organize another day to appear? How do you feel about being subpoenaed rather than being invited, as would have been the normal protocol? And what is your response to the committee’s charge that the State Department, under your watch as well, has dragged its feet on being forthcoming with all of the demands for documents?

And if I could ask Lady Ashton, finally, given the conversations between President Obama and Chancellor Merkel last week, can the international community really wait to see whether the sectoral sanctions should be imposed? It does seem as though Vladimir Putin and his supporters, these separatists, are not changing their policy and are not responding even to the damage that has been done, whatever it has been, to their economies.

Thank you all so very much.

SECRETARY KERRY: The last question —

QUESTION: Well, you can —

HIGH REPRESENTATIVE ASHTON: He’ll answer it as well.

SECRETARY KERRY: No, no, no. I want her to answer it. I thought it was for her.

QUESTION: Yes, for both, but —

SECRETARY KERRY: So – well, give me the last question again of the four questions I got on here.

QUESTION: Sorry. The last question is: Why wait to impose tougher sanctions given that Vladimir Putin has shown no sign of desisting despite the sanctions that have already been imposed? But I think first —

SECRETARY KERRY: Well —

QUESTION: — Nigeria and Benghazi.

SECRETARY KERRY: All right, sure. Well, let me speak to Nigeria. First of all, we have been in touch from day one, and our Embassy has been engaged and we have been engaged. But the government had its own set of strategies, if you will, in the beginning. And you can offer and talk, but you can’t do if a government has its own sense of how it’s proceeding. I think now the complications that have arisen have convinced everybody that there needs to be a greater effort, and it will begin immediately. I mean literally immediately. We are in touch, our Embassy is in touch. We’ve been talking with AFRICOM, we’ve been talking with the various entities, and I think you’re going to see a very, very rapid response.

QUESTION: We have satellites, though, surveillance?

SECRETARY KERRY: I understand. Yeah, we do, but it depends where they are and what they’re looking at on any given day. And so there are options, and I can assure you – I think the White House will have more to say about what we are going to be doing, and I’ll let them speak for that. But the simple answer is we’re going to do everything in our power to able to be helpful. And I’m going to see the President in a little while this afternoon. I think the President may or may not have something to say about this in the near term.

And let’s just – the important thing is that we have put everything on the table. We’re going to send a team, and it’ll be a combined team ready to work. But you have to have a host country that’s ready to receive and work with you in any situation, and we’re prepared to work.

On the issue of Benghazi, I served 29 years in the United States Senate, 28-plus. And I was chairman of a major committee, and I don’t think I ever issued a subpoena to somebody that I hadn’t first invited to come and speak. I think this sort of speaks for itself, frankly.

We have had more than, I think, 50 briefings. There have been in the double digits of hearings. We’ve delivered over 25,000 documents. And the fact is that documents require a legal process to go through for examination of executive privilege or other kinds of – classified or other kinds of things that may or may not be in them. That’s just not – it doesn’t happen automatically. But I’ve guaranteed that we would cooperate in every single way. We have, and I will, and the Department will. That’s our obligation. And of course, we will. But I think everybody needs to take a hard look at – and sort of measure what’s been already put out there versus where this effort is going. And you see a very partisan response on the Hill with respect to it.

I also think there’s an issue of the requisite body figuring out who has jurisdiction over this, from what I understand. There are still some questions as to who is going to do what. So we’ll respond, because we have absolutely nothing to hide whatsoever, and I look forward to complying, whatever responsibilities we have.

QUESTION: Do you intend to —

SECRETARY KERRY: With respect to – I’ll comply with whatever responsibilities we have. And with respect to the question of tougher sanctions and sanctions, what we are doing is having a major impact. Nobody should doubt that. The bonds in Russia are already just above junk bonds in categorization, and they’ve had to postpone a number of sales of bonds. The economy is already on the downward decline. The IMF has already declared that it’s in recession. Their growth was going to be about 1.3 percent; it’s now prospected to be perhaps .1 or 2 percent, minimal, and we have only yet begun, if we have to. And I think there’s no question. But it is important for the United States and Europe to try to move together in this. We believe that. And so that requires a certain element of preparation, coordination. You have to do the right paperwork, the right examination. You have to pull your teams together. And we are proceeding, I think, in a very effective and authoritative way.

We’ve made it very clear – President Obama and Chancellor Merkel had a meeting the other day. And they said clearly that if there are interference or continued interference, if there is continued interference with respect to the election and election process, there will be more sanctions that this time will start to bite into the sectors of the economy. And those become even more compelling than what has been put on the table to this point.

But obviously, when you’re trying to keep a door open to be able to find some kind of a diplomatic solution, when the other party says they’re willing to come to the table and actually engage in that discussion, it seems to me reasonable to try to do that. And I think most people in most places want a responsible government, not to escalate to the point of creating an inevitable confrontation, but rather to find out if there’s a way to be able to find that diplomatic solution. That’s what diplomacy is about. There’s no question about our ability, when we want to, to be able to put sanctions in place that are even more biting than what we have today. But you have to ask yourself if the price has been (inaudible) ahead of time, whether or not that invites something further that you don’t want to have happen.

So there’s a delicate mix here, and I think President Obama has calibrated this extremely effectively. It’s having a biting effect, and we will continue to proceed in unity with our European allies to do what we think has the greatest impact and the most effect.

HIGH REPRESENTATIVE ASHTON: I mean, I have nothing much more to add, except to say that from the perspective of what the European Union is doing, it is this desire to see a way to find a method of de-escalation. And that was what Geneva was about. It’s why we put on hold measures that we were considering, because that’s, as you said, is what you do. When we saw that we were not getting the results from Geneva, we pressed the start button again and we’ve continued with those measures. And we’re looking at all of the possibilities. It’s a mix of things that you want to do to try and create the circumstances that will lead to the most important thing, which is stopping the violence, for people to stop occupying the buildings, and to get the kind of discussion, debate, and democratic approach that will lead Ukraine into its future. And so you have to consider all of the ways in which that can be done.

I will be bringing together the 28 foreign ministers on Monday. They will be discussing all of the elements of that approach, working very closely with our colleagues in the United States, in order to see how we can best do that. And it’s why countries like Germany, like others, obviously, engaging and talking as well as looking at what we might do as a coordinated effort, and I really hope that we’re successful in that.

MS. PSAKI: The next question will be from Gero Schliess from Deutsche Welle, and I’m sure I butchered that, but go ahead.

QUESTION: Gero Schliess, Gero Schliess, thank you. First part also on Ukraine: Some people have the impression that for the U.S. sanctions – or, let’s say, punishment or isolation of Mr. Putin is the most important goal. And I have a perception that Europe seems to be reluctant to pursue this policy. And my question to both of you is: We have (inaudible) that Putin is a problem, but in what respect could he be also part of a solution? And today, did you discuss the option of a neutral Ukraine that would possibly satisfy Putin and might be acceptable for the Western countries?

And the second part of my question goes – is about Syria. As Syrian delegation of – Syrian opposition is in D.C. to talk to the Secretary of State, Mr. Kerry, your Administration has granted the U.S. offices of Syrian National Coalition diplomatic status. Does this signal that the U.S. are getting more actively involved in the civil war, including providing the rebels with heavy weaponry?

And to you, Lady Ashton, would the European Union also grant diplomatic status to the Syrian National Coalition?

HIGH REPRESENTATIVE ASHTON: Should I start?

SECRETARY KERRY: Go ahead, please.

HIGH REPRESENTATIVE ASHTON: On Ukraine, it’s for the people of Ukraine to decide what Ukraine is and will be, and they will consider very carefully where they sit in the world. I’ve said whenever I visited Ukraine, when I met with the then-President Yanukovych and in more recent times, that it’s not about a competition between Europe and Russia for a nation, that Ukraine will want strong and good economic links with Russia. And we recognize that that’s important. This is never and never should be about this idea of a competition.

For us, it’s always about trying to find now the way forward, as I’ve already indicated, to find the formula that’s going to help to de-escalate the situation, to talk with everybody and to keep all the doors open while being very clear that the situation cannot continue as it is.

On Syria, I’ll answer very briefly, the European Union of itself does not do diplomatic relations with anyone. It’s individual member states who do that.

QUESTION: And may I ask, how far could Putin be part of a solution concerning the Ukraine crisis?

HIGH REPRESENTATIVE ASHTON: Well, President Putin is president of Russia, and Russia is playing a role at the moment. So the question for Russia is: If you take what I’ve just said about the fact that Ukraine as a nation needs to have a good relationship with all of its neighbors, then you need to start looking at how, from Russia’s perspective, they’re going to define that. And defining that for me is about strong economic links. Yes, there are strong historical links, and yes, there needs to be a way in which they can be peacefully co-existing side by side. And I hope that President Putin might consider that that is the way forward.

SECRETARY KERRY: With respect to your question on President Putin, there’s no observer of Russia, there is no one engaged in diplomacy today who doesn’t understand that President Putin is calling the shots in Russia, that a very narrow group of people around him are advising him in one way or the other. But President Putin is almost exclusively, if not exclusively calling the shots.

There is no specific effort by the United States of America to somehow single him out other than to respond to the fact that in his name, Russia has deployed its forces, engaged in direct activities involved first in Crimea, now in east and south of Ukraine, in ways that are destabilizing that country, and still has 40,000-plus or so troops lined up on the border in a place that it didn’t have them before they began to move into Crimea.

Now, what we are trying to do is not targeted on him because we have some personal thing or something about him. It’s because he’s making decisions that are adversely affecting the region and the rights of the people of Ukraine to choose their future and to have their sovereignty respected. We have only one interest in this. That is the stability and respect for Ukraine, its integrity and its sovereignty, and the opportunity of the people of Ukraine to choose their future. That’s our interest. And we are not seeking alignment; we’re not seeking anything except this universal value that is respected around the world for the right of people to not be bludgeoned at the butt of a gun, or with military invasion, to be told what to do.

Now, we believe that it’s appropriate for us to respond in response to the legitimate demands of a government that was voted on even by the former supporters of President Yanukovych, who deserted the country of his own free will, and made a decision not to live up to the agreement that he signed back in February. And the parliament, with his own party’s support, voted him out and provided for an interim government and called for elections. Now, what could be more sensible than to allow this country under siege to be able to have an election where they give legitimacy to a new government by having all of the people be able to vote? That’s all people are looking for here. It seems to me that it shouldn’t be so complicated for Russia to be able to engage in that process.

And we respect that Russia has a long historical connection to Ukraine, and that Kyiv is the home – the birthplace of Russian religion, and that wars of liberation have been fought on that territory. And we understand the connection and the strong feelings about protection of people who – Russian-speaking and so forth. We’re not – nobody’s arguing against that, though. The fact is that the interim government of Ukraine is prepared to respect the Russian language, prepared to respect the greater autonomy for people in that region, to give them – frankly, the people – the Government of Ukraine has offered to give the people in south and east Ukraine more power over their own lives on an everyday basis than Russia gives any individual state or province in Russia. That’s a fact.

And so the answer is that what we think is important here is that the rights of the people be respected. And Lady Ashton’s correct: They have to choose their future. But they have said they are not seeking alignment. They’ve said they’re not looking for NATO membership. And NATO and those of us who are members have said we’re prepared to respect the choice of the interim government and whatever future government of Ukraine there is.

Final comment: We have said again and again to the Russians – and I hope they hear it again today – we are not seeking for a Ukraine that belongs to some other part of the world, but only – we want one that just belongs to Ukraine. And we’re not seeking one that is a pawn between East and West. We’d like Ukraine to be a bridge between East and West. And we certainly agree with President Putin’s vision that we could have an economic arrangement that goes from Vladivostok to Lisbon that involves everybody in a major market where everybody benefits.

So there’s more to talk about than unfortunately some of the heated rhetoric has given people a sense of. And our hope is that – that’s why we pursue these discussions, is to see if we can’t find a way to make those interests meet the moment and find a way forward that de-escalates this confrontation.

MS. PSAKI: Thanks, everyone.

SECRETARY KERRY: Oh, and Syria. I didn’t answer Syria. On Syria, we have not recognized the SOC. We’ve given them diplomatic status to be able to come here, but because we have previously said that they are the legitimate representative. But we have not moved to create a diplomatic – to recognize them or create a diplomatic situation. But we’re hopeful that, again, there also, we can find a way forward that deals with this extraordinary violence that is literally destroying the country of Syria. And our hope is that we could have a reasonable way forward to do that. Thank you. Thank you all.

ANTANANARIVO, Madagascar, May 7, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — An International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission, headed by Mr. George Tsibouris, visited Antananarivo, Madagascar, from April 23 to May 6, 2014 and reached agreement with the Malagasy authorities on a program that could be supported by the IMF’s Rapid Credit Facility (RCF). Subject to IMF management approval, the staff-level agreement is expected to be submitted to the IMF Executive Board for its consideration in June 2014. Under the arrangement, Madagascar would be able to access up to SDR 30.55 million (about US$47.4 million).

The mission met with His Excellency President Hery Rajaonarimampianina, Minister of Finance and Budget Jean Razafindravonona, Minister of Economy and Planning Herilanto Raveloharison, and Acting Governor of the Central Bank of Madagascar Vonimanitra Razafimbelo, as well as representatives of the private sector and civil society.

At the end of the mission, Mr. Tsibouris issued the following statement:

“The Malagasy authorities have been able to maintain macroeconomic and financial stability during a difficult period of economic disruption over the past five years. However, low economic growth has interrupted the trend of improving social indicators. As a result of weak tax revenue performance and declining support from Madagascar’s development partners, the government has compressed fiscal spending and accumulated domestic arrears. In addition, budgetary subsidies for fuel and energy more generally have become very costly and have been crowding out the room for other priority fiscal spending. Cuts in public infrastructure and social spending have been considerable. About 90 percent of the population now lives below US$2 a day (adjusted for purchasing-power parity), making poverty a critical issue for Madagascar.

“The government’s immediate objective for 2014 is to create a solid foundation for faster growth and poverty reduction. In this context, it will be crucial to pursue policies that address pressing social and development needs while maintaining macroeconomic and financial stability. The International Monetary Fund stands ready to support the government’s goals.

“Madagascar has urgent balance of payments and budgetary needs that, if not addressed, could result in further economic disruption. Accordingly, the Malagasy authorities and the mission agreed on a combination of measures aiming to: (i) improve tax and customs revenue collections; (ii) increase funding of priority public investment programs and social spending; (iii) stop the accumulation of new domestic arrears and clear existing arrears in a phased manner; and (iv) address the issue of fuel price subsidies over time, while identifying efficient mechanisms for supporting vulnerable groups.

“There is also a need for a medium-term strategy to bring the Malagasy economy back on the path of sustainable and inclusive growth. In particular, reforms advancing governance and the rule of law, creating a level playing field for the private sector, and encouraging investment inflows are critical. The strategy should also maintain debt at a sustainable level and give priority to concessional sources of financing. In this context, the Fund stands ready to provide assistance in its core areas of expertise.

“The mission takes this opportunity to thank the Malagasy authorities for their exemplary cooperation and the constructive discussions that took place.”

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates, May 6, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — On Monday 5th May, 2014 at 1pm, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of The Republic of Sierra Leone (http://foreignaffairs.gov.sl) paid a courtesy call on the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs in UAE H.E. Dr. Anwar Mohammed Gargash to discuss bilateral issues relating to the excellent relations existing between the UAE and Sierra Leone in the presence of Mr. Abdulah Bin Abood Alnaqbi, Deputy of the Department of Africa Affairs.

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The high level delegation from Sierra Leone comprised:

 Hon. Dr. Samura MW Kamara – Minister of Foreign Affairs and International cooperation

 Mr. Siray Alpha Timbo – Ambassador Designate of Sierra Leone to UAE

 Mr. Bahige Annan – Consul General of Sierra Leone in Dubai, UAE

 Mr. Eric Gamanga – Director Asia & ME Affairs in The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International cooperation

In furtherance of concretizing the longstanding bilateral relations, a wide range of issues were discussed relating to trade and investment in both the private and public sectors, economic and technical cooperation in the fields of infrastructure developments, like roads, the recently awarded IRENA/ADFD “Solar Park Freetown Project”, water resource management, human resource development and above all the establishment of a full diplomatic mission in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

The Honorable Minister Dr. Samura MW Kamara expressed thanks and appreciation for the excellent work in the past 6 years that was successfully carried out by Mr. Bahige Annan – Consul General of Sierra Leone in Dubai, UAE in collaboration with Mr. Siray Alpha Timbo who served as the Special Envoy of H.E. The President to UAE and GCC which has successfully led to the present status wherein we are now finalizing the establishment of The Sierra Leone Embassy in Abu Dhabi, UAE.

The head of the Sierra Leone delegation Dr. Samura MW Kamara thanked the Government of UAE for successfully hosting the Abu Dhabi ASCENT meeting in preparation for the climate summit to be held in September 23, 2014 in New York.

The special two-day climate meeting hosted by the UN and the UAE held on 4 and 5 May and called the “Abu Dhabi Ascent” brought ministers as well as business, finance, and civil society leaders together to exchange views on the effects of climate change. They developed a range of proposals for action and determined how their countries, businesses and organizations may become more involved in various initiatives so that partnerships can be broadened and deepened to deliver concrete action at the UN Climate Summit in September, in New York.

The Minister remarked that it was a very inspiring, informative and educative gathering wherein all shades of opinions expressed for feasible solutions for mitigating the effects of the climate change.

H.E. Minister Dr. Anwar Gargash expressed thanks and appreciation for the courtesy call paid by Dr. Samura Kamara and his delegation and assured him of continued support and cooperation between both countries. He urged Sierra Leone and the UAE to develop their bilateral mega relations. In this respect, he hoped the bauxite mining project that is currently under consideration by the two countries will be concluded soon. He also expressed the need for broader cooperation in the other sectors including agri-business and fisheries.

Distributed by APO (African Press Organization) on behalf of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Sierra Leone.

Media contact:

APO (African Press Organization)

+41 22 534 96 97

sec.sg@apo-opa.org

BRUSSELS, Kingdom of Belgium, May 6, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Mr Filip de Ceuninck was today appointed new Head of Mission for the EU CSDP mission in Niger, EUCAP SAHEL Niger.

Mr de Ceuninck (Belgium) has been interim Head of Mission since November 2013, succeeding General Francisco Espinosa Navas, who had been in the position since the mission was established in July 2012.

EUCAP SAHEL Niger, embedded in the EU strategy for the Sahel, provides advice and training to support the Nigerien authorities in strengthening their capacities for combating terrorism and organised crime. Around 50 international experts from 10 EU member states

in the mission, which is based in Niamey and has liaison offices in Mali and Mauretania.

The term of the new Head of Mission will initially run until 15 July 2014, the current end of the mission’s mandate. The Political and Security Committee agreed on an extension of the mission’s mandate until 15 July 2016, subject to a Council decision.

Today’s decision was taken by the EU’s Political and Security Committee.

More details: Factsheet on EUCAP SAHEL Niger

Annex: CV of Mr Filip de Ceuninck

Filip DE CEUNINCK, Head of Mission EUCAP SAHEL Niger.

Date of birth: 3 June 1958.

Nationality: Belgian.

Profession: Police Commissioner within Belgian Federal Police.

Education : Ecole d’application des Officiers de Gendarmerie, Brussels;

State University of Ghent: Master’s degree in Criminological sciences;

Royal Military Academy, Brussels.

Professional experience:

2014 – ongoing: Head of Mission EUCAP SAHEL Niger.

2013-2014: Acting Head of Mission EUCAP SAHEL Niger.

2012-2013: Deputy Head of Mission EUCAP SAHEL Niger.

2010-2012: Belgian Federal Police, Liaison officer.

2008-2010: Liaison officer within the Georgian Ministry of Interior as part of EU mission

EUMM Georgia.

2006-2008: Police advisor in EU Police Reform Project in the former Yugoslav Republic

of Macedonia.

2003-2006: Programme Director on Intelligence and Organised Crime within EU mission

EUPOL PROXIMA and EU Police Advisory Team in the former Yugoslav Republic of

Macedonia.

1983-2003: Different functions within the National Gendarmerie and within the Belgian

Federal Police: Judiciary Commissioner- Federal Judicial Police; Supervisor Special Units

in the Gendarmerie, Federal Police; Deputy District Commander; etc.

LONDON, United-Kingdom, May 6, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — On the 9th of October 2014 Oliver Kinross (http://www.oliver-kinross.com) will be hosting the 2nd Annual Africa Oil & Gas Awards (http://www.africaoilexpo.com). The awards are taking place at the world class Sandton Convention Centre as part of the Africa Oil & Gas Expo.

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The awards ceremony is an initiative of Oliver Kinross to reward achievements made by African and International companies operating across Africa. Oliver Kinross has built a very strong reputation in the last six years establishing itself as a global name in oil & gas through providing high level workshops, conferences and unique networking opportunities across the world.

The first edition of the Africa Oil & Gas Awards saw operating companies such as Tullow, OMV and Oando Plc pick up awards for demonstrating continued excellence in HSE, Local Content and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). There were 8 awards for the solutions and services industry. Last year’s winners included Halliburton, Maersk Drilling, GNPC-Technip and Drillmec.

The awards are judged by a prestigious panel consisting of oil & gas operators and government representatives. Amongst those on the panel last year were Anadarko, Afren, Marathon oil, NOC Kenya as well as ministerial representatives from Namibia, South Africa and Ethiopia. The judges for 2014 will be reviewing submissions and giving their individual verdict on 14 awards. This year there are 10 award categories for solutions and service providers and 4 awards for oil & gas operators.

The awards ceremony is part of the Africa Oil & Gas Expo which is taking place on the 9th & 10th of October in the world class Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg, South Africa. The exhibition will feature over 100 exhibitors, in excess of 4000 visitors. As part of the exhibition Oliver Kinross will be running 10 complimentary workshops over the two days. Topics include Contract Negotiation, Local Content, Project Financing, HSE and LNG Logistics. Entry to the Africa Oil & Gas Expo is complimentary along with all the workshops on offer.

Running alongside the exhibition is the 5th Africa Oil & Gas Summit 2014. This year’s event has over 50 top level speakers. Oliver Kinross holds this event biannually once in London and once in South Africa. VIP speakers at the event include Mr. Immanuel Mulunga, Petroleum Commissioner within the Ministry of Mines and Energy of Namibia, Mr. Muzi Mkhize, Director General from the Department of Energy for South Africa and the Director of Hydrocrabons from the Ministry of Mines Mauritania, Mr. Ahmed Salem Tekrour. Keynote speakers representing oil companies include Engr. Simbi Wabote the Global Local Content Manager for Shell and Gilbert Yevi, Jubilee Asset Manager at Tullow Ghana.

Quotes from 2014 Speakers:

“Mozambique is on the cusp of a natural gas boom and it is time for a reality check. Greater clarity is needed on all aspects of Mozambique LNG, from timelines and the scale of development costs through to gas sales agreements and prospects for associated mega-projects. The Africa Oil and Gas Summit will be an important step along this path.”

Adriano Nuvunga, Program Director, CIP Mozambique

“Africa holds the largest untapped hydrocarbon potential in the World. With the right enabling socio-economic, political and business environment, these resources can propel the continent to great heights and get its people out of poverty. I am looking forward to discussing these developments at The Africa Oil and Gas Summit”

Gilbert Yevi, Jubilee Asset Manager, Tullow Ghana

Distributed by the African Press Organization on behalf of Oliver Kinross.

Media contact:

Eoghan McDonaugh

e.mcdonaugh@oliverkinross.com

NOTES TO THE EDITOR

The Africa Oil & Gas EXPO will be held in Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg on 9th & 10th October 2014.

The Summit is co-organised by Oliver Kinross. For more information please visit the event website, http://www.africaoilexpo.com

For exhibition enquiries please contact adam.jaffe@oliverkinross.com

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Plano, TX, May 6, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — WorldVentures Foundation™ (http://www.worldventuresfoundation.org), the philanthropic arm of WorldVentures™ (http://www.worldventures.com), collaborated with multiple South African organizations to help educate and nourish children in South Africa by renovating two buildings and devloping a school’s permaculture food garden.

Logo WorldVentures Foundation: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/logos/wvfoundation.jpg

Photo 1: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/photos/sizanani—media_.jpg

Photo 2: http://www.photos.apo-opa.com/plog-content/images/apo/photos/cosmo-city—media.jpg

“WorldVentures Foundation is honored to support the extraordinary passion of South African WorldVentures Independent Representatives, led by Steven & Tessa Kahn and Devraj & Cassendra Soojay, in assisting local children and communities,” Gwyneth Lloyd, Executive Director, WorldVentures Foundation said. “The excitement and energy of launching the Foundation’s first two Service Days in South Africa enthused volunteers from multiple countries.”

On its first South African Service Day, WorldVentures Foundation teamed up with Botshabelo Community Development Trust, Sizanani Children’s Home and Prettify Your Township to help several South African children, who were orphaned by HIV or whose families cannot care for them financially. Collectively, the organizations revamped two buildings, doubling the initial goal: a day care and a foster home in the community of Olievenhoutbosch, Gauteng.

“The WorldVentures Foundation team brought change and empowerment to children in the community of Olievenhoutbosch,” Michelle Hinrichsen, Funding Coordinator at Botshabelo said. “Both the day care and the foster home buildings were completely transformed, and their new colorful appearance has greatly surprised and inspired the children.”

On its second Service Day in South Africa, WorldVentures Foundation joined with Food & Trees for Africa (FTFA), the first South African social enterprise realizing sustainable development, and assisted to develop Cosmo City Secondary School’s permaculture food garden in Randburg, Johannesburg North. Together, the volunteers planted herbs, vegetables and staple foods to accompany the existing orchard.

“The Service Day was a great success,” said Joanne Carty, Programme Manager FTFA. “Developing the school’s permaculture food garden will help feed local families, donate to the school feeding scheme and sell produce to the surrounding community. The money collected is ploughed back to the school’s garden.”

WorldVentures Foundation’s first two South African Service Days follow the first ever Service Day in Zimbabwe, held a few months ago, and many other frequent service projects in Mexico, Liberia and Guatemala. The Foundation’s next collaboration with Botshabelo will take place on July 24, in the form of a third Service Day in South Africa.

Distributed by APO (African Press Organization) on behalf of The WorldVentures Foundation.

For inquiries, contact:

Hadas Sasson-Zitomer/Christine Carter

Email: press@worldventures.com

About The WorldVentures Foundation:

Launched in 2010, the WorldVentures Foundation (http://www.worldventuresfoundation.org) became the philanthropic arm of WorldVentures with a focus on positive global change for children. WorldVentures Independent Representatives and DreamTrips Members are inspired, serving and implementing sustainable economic and environmental solutions within communities around the world. WorldVentures Independent Representatives and DreamTrips Members are the volunteers and driving force behind the WorldVentures Foundation’s Service Days and global initiatives.

LONDON, United-Kingdom, May 6, 2014/African Press Organization (APO)/ — Foreign Secretary condemns kidnap as “disgusting and immoral” and repeats UK offer of help

Speaking at a Council of Europe meeting in Vienna this morning, the Foreign Secretary said:

“Using girls as the spoils of war and the spoils of terrorism is disgusting and immoral. It should show everybody across the world that they should not give any support for such a vile organization.

“It is another example of why we have set up the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative. As you know, I will be hosting a global summit in London next month to help countries including Nigeria improve the way they tackle the consequences of sexual violence in conflict and make sure that those responsible are called to justice. Recently we persuaded Nigeria to join that campaign.

“This might help in the future; of course, it does not help today. I called the Nigerian Foreign Minister when this first arose, back on Good Friday, to offer help from Britain. Our High Commissioner will continue to discuss that with the Nigerians. Britain is offering assistance but of course the primary responsibility will rest with the Nigerians, and I hope they will do what is necessary to reunite these girls with their families.”