The United States is shocked and deeply saddened by the death of a U.S. citizen serving as a paramedic with the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Special Monitoring Mission (SMM), when his vehicle struck an explosive in separatist controlled territory in eastern Ukraine. We extend our deepest and heartfelt condolences to his family, friends, and loved ones, and we wish a quick recovery for those injured in the blast. This death underscores the increasingly dangerous conditions under which these courageous monitors work, including access restrictions, threats, and harassment. The United States urges Russia to use its influence with the separatists to allow the OSCE to conduct a full, transparent, and timely investigation.

Since its establishment in 2014, the OSCE SMM has played a vital role in its role of monitoring the Minsk agreements designed to bring peace to eastern Ukraine. This incident makes clear the need for all sides- and particularly the Russian-led separatist forces-to implement their commitments under the Minsk Agreements immediately. This includes a real and durable ceasefire, withdrawal of heavy weapons, and disengagement from the line of contact. The brave monitors of the SMM have the full support of the United States, and we condemn in the strongest terms all acts of hostility and intimidation toward SMM monitors. They must also have safe, full, and unfettered access throughout the conflict zone.

The United States again calls upon Russia to use its influence with the separatists to take the first step toward peace to eastern Ukraine and ensure a visible, verifiable, and irreversible improvement in the security situation.

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The following is attributable to Acting Spokesperson Mark Toner:

Secretary Tillerson spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov today to follow up on bilateral issues discussed during his April 11-12 visit to Moscow.

The Secretary and Foreign Minister also discussed a range of other topics, including the OPCW investigation into Syria’s use of chemical weapons on April 4. The Secretary reiterated his support for the OPCW’s existing investigative mechanism.

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On April 25, the United States Special Representative for North Korea Policy Joseph Yun will travel to Tokyo for a trilateral meeting with Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Director General for Asian and Oceanian Affairs Kenji Kanasugi and Republic of Korea Special Representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs Kim Hong-kyun. The three plan to discuss the evolving situation in North Korea as part of the three parties’ regular consultations on North Korea to exchange views and coordinate actions. They last met on February 27 in Washington, D.C. Special Representative Yun will also meet bilaterally with both Director General Kanasugi and Special Representative Kim.

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The U.S. Department of State’s Secretary’s Office of Global Partnerships (S/GP) is pleased to announce a new partnership with HackerNest, a nonprofit organization and movement that builds local tech communities worldwide, to carry forward Fishackathon.

First organized by S/GP to coincide with the “Our Ocean” conference in 2014, Fishackathon is a public-private partnership hackathon that aims to capitalize on the expansion of digital solutions to address sustainable fishery challenges. Hundreds of technologists and entrepreneurs around the world spend a weekend competing to build practical tech solutions to endemic problems defined by fisheries experts. Panels of distinguished judges evaluate these demos to select winners from each participating Fishackathon city, awarding the very best team the coveted Global Grand Prize.

Five cities across the United States took part in Fishackathon’s first year. By its third year, Fishackathon had expanded its reach to aquariums, tech hubs, and participants in more than 40 international cities.

A veteran producer of blockbuster cause-hackathons with partners that include Facebook, Airbnb, and the UK and Canadian Governments, HackerNest has run tech community-building events in 33 cities across 14 countries on five continents. The organization’s global reach and mission of economic development through tech proliferation make it uniquely well-positioned to continue growing the Fishackathon crowd-sourcing model and brand.

HackerNest and S/GP will launch Fishackathon 2017 on the weekend of November 18-19 in celebration of World Fisheries Day on November 21.

For more information, please visit—

Fishackathon: fishackathon.co | @Fishackathon

HackerNest: hackernest.com | @HackerNest | fb.me/HackerNest

Secretary’s Office of Global Partnerships: state.gov/s/partnerships | @GPatState | fb.me/GPatState

For media inquiries, please contact Anita Ostrovsky at OstrovskyA@state.gov or Shaharris at fishackathon@hackernest.com.

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

Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs Ambassador Tina Kaidanow will travel to Germany, Estonia, and Ukraine April 23-29 for discussions on a variety of international security issues.

Ambassador Kaidanow will consult with U.S. government officials from the U.S. European Command in Germany and other senior U.S. representatives in the region regarding ongoing U.S. efforts to strengthen NATO Allies through security cooperation and defense trade. She will also discuss security assistance programs overseen by the Department of State that strengthen the capabilities of partner nations in Europe contributing to coalition operations to defeat ISIS and promote security in Afghanistan.

In Estonia and Ukraine, Ambassador Kaidanow will meet with civilian and defense officials to discuss a wide range of political-military issues, including regional strategic priorities, security assistance, military-to-military cooperation, and related issues.

For further information, please contact the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, Office of Congressional and Public Affairs at PM-CPA@state.gov, and follow the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs on Twitter, @StateDeptPM.

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