On the occasion of the 20th Anniversary of the Establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) and the inauguration of its new Chief Executive, the United States calls on all parties concerned to uphold Hong Kong’s high degree of autonomy and the crucial ideal of “One Country, Two Systems,” as codified in the Basic Law and the legally binding Sino-British Joint Declaration.

The United States has deep and abiding economic and cultural ties to Hong Kong, and admires the city’s outstanding achievements, which are the result of its high degree of autonomy, its economic and personal freedoms, and its respect for rule of law. We also value our excellent cooperation with the Hong Kong SAR government, and look forward to building on that cooperation together with the administration of new Chief Executive Carrie Lam.

The United States remains concerned about any infringements of civil liberties in Hong Kong, including intrusions on press freedoms, and we support the further development of Hong Kong’s democratic systems, including the implementation of universal suffrage in accordance with the Basic Law. As Hong Kong looks ahead to its third decade under Chinese sovereignty, we urge the preservation and enhancement of the key values and traditions that had made the city such an enviable success.

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On June 28-29, Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS Brett McGurk was in Syria to consult with local partners on the campaign to defeat ISIS. He also witnessed first-hand the humanitarian and stabilization assistance that is underway in liberated areas north of Raqqa, and held intensive discussions with local leaders and councils on post-liberation governance issues. Mr. McGurk also met with the Raqqa Civilian Council to discuss stabilization efforts in post-ISIS Raqqa.

Once Raqqa is liberated, it is critical that local officials from the area take over responsibility for post-liberation security and governance. We are working intensively with myriad local entities to prepare for this transition though, as Mr. McGurk noted throughout his visit, the battle to liberate the city has just begun. He also credited the bravery and sacrifice of the Syrian Democratic Forces in their ongoing operations against ISIS.

Mr. McGurk also visited Tabqa city, liberated from ISIS on May 10. While the city is still digging out from the terror of ISIS and the month-long battle to liberate it, Mr. McGurk met with local leaders coordinating assistance that has begun to flow, such as food deliveries, hygiene kits, relief items, and chlorine to provide safe drinking water.

He visited the Tabqa Dam, which ISIS terrorists held for three years as a headquarters and fortress. Since the dam’s liberation, it has been cleared of mines and work is underway to restore its operations to deliver electricity to surrounding areas. Mr. McGurk credited the courage of those who have worked to clear land mines and IEDs left behind by ISIS throughout Tabqa.

As we accelerate our campaign and territory is liberated from ISIS, the United States and other Coalition partners are supporting the UN and NGOs who are working to provide humanitarian assistance to vulnerable populations, and other actors that are working to establish basic security, re-establish essential services, and restore local economies to stabilize communities and allow Syrians to voluntarily return home. It is critical that we remain closely linked with partners on the ground to coordinate both military and civilian efforts to sustain momentum against ISIS.

In all of his meetings, Mr. McGurk emphasized the importance of unity of effort and local control of liberated areas following the ‎defeat of ISIS. He looks forwarding to welcoming all members of our coalition to Washington for meetings at the political directors level in July to organize and coordinate the next phases of our global campaign.

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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.

Through a public-private partnership, the Office of Global Partnerships at the U.S. Department of State and Unreasonable Group welcome the participation of 16 entrepreneurs in the inaugural Unreasonable Goals accelerator program.

The program will launch on July 2 at the Aspen Institute’s Wye River Estate in Queenstown, MD and will run annually until 2030. This year’s two-week program is designed to bring together 16 entrepreneurial solutions, each with a mission of solving one of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Additional 2017 collaborators include: Johnson & Johnson, Lowe’s, Thomson Reuters, Bluescape, Amazon Web Services, and PeaceTech Lab.

Cumulatively, the companies of the 16 entrepreneurs taking part in the inaugural Unreasonable Goals program have raised over $138M USD, generated revenue of over $85M and are already impacting nearly 45 million people in 45 countries.

The 16 entrepreneurs participating in this year’s inaugural accelerator program include: 1mg, a consumer health app with a mission of making healthcare more understandable, accessible, and affordable; Liberty & Justice, Africa’s first Fair Trade Certified™ apparel manufacturing company with a 90% female workforce that also donates school uniforms to children with every purchase; and Desalitech, an industrial scale desalination and wastewater purification company that has saved nearly 3 billion gallons of water to date.

The inaugural program will conclude with a public event on July 13, 2017, at the U.S. Institute of Peace in Washington, DC. If interested, learn more by visiting https://unreasonable-goals.com/.

Information on the companies participating in the July 2017 inaugural program:

Babajob (Goal #1: No Poverty) is a digital platform that connects aspiring workers to better jobs and enables employers to hire them. Babajob has registered over 7 million job seekers in India.

Agrinos (Goal #2: Zero Hunger) is seeking to improve the productivity and sustainability of the modern farmer through proprietary crop input products, for the purpose of reducing the need for traditional pesticides and ensure healthier soil.

1mg (Goal #3: Good Health and Well-Being) a consumer health platform in India whose mission is to make healthcare understandable, accessible, and affordable. To date, 1mg has over 8M downloads and 14M monthly visits.

Tamboro (Goal #4: Quality Education) provides a personalized, adaptive, and game-based learning platform for over 30,000 basic education students across Brazil.

Liberty & Justice (Goal #5: Gender Equality) is Africa’s first Fair Trade Certified™ apparel manufacturing company, where 25% of the company’s directors are women and 25% are independent.

Desalitech (Goal #6: Clean Water and Sanitation) provides scale desalination and wastewater purification. To date, Desalitech has saved nearly 3 billion gallons of water.

Carnegie Clean Energy (Goal #7: Affordable and Clean Energy) is the world’s first company to offer a combination of desalination, battery storage, as well as wave, solar, and wind energy via microgrids.

Uncommon Cacao (Goal #8: Decent Work and Economic Growth) is building the world’s first vertically integrated, transparently sourced supply chain for cacao.

SimpliPhi Power (Goal #9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure) has a mission intended to design and manufacture safe, durable, efficient, and scalable batteries for clean energy storage and management.

VOZ (Goal #10: Reduced Inequalities) seeks to empower rural, indigenous, female artisans via ethical and ecologically sustainable luxury fashion. Voz was recently named by Vogue.com as one of the top five sustainable fashion brands.

EcoPost (Goal #11: Sustainable Cities and Communities) seeks to transform plastic waste into a durable, eco-friendly, and 100 percent recycled lumber substitute with a longer lifespan than wood. To date, EcoPost has reused 2.5 million kilograms of plastic waste and has saved 450 acres of forest.

OrganoClick (Goal #12: Responsible Production and Consumption) replaces hazardous petroleum-based chemicals and thus seeks to replace millions of tons of CO2 with non-toxic, bio-based chemicals and polymers.

SEaB Energy (Goal #13: Climate Action) produces energy from waste using the process of anaerobic digestion. Their on-site containers convert waste into electricity, heat, organic fertilizer, and water.

Pelagic Data Systems (Goal #14: Life Below Water) provides solar-powered tracking and data solutions for small-scale fisheries around the world, seeking to improve livelihoods and measure the impact of climate change on marine systems.

EcoFlora Group (Goal #15: Life on Land) is seeking to pioneer the development of plant-based extracts as safe alternatives to unhealthy and toxic pesticides and food additives, resulting in sustainable crop protection.

Colab (Goal #16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions) seeks to transform politics by enabling citizens to participate in the decision-making process of their local government in unprecedented ways. To date, thousands of people use Colab in over 2,000 Brazilian cities.

About U.S. Department of State

The U.S. Department of State’s mission is to shape and sustain a peaceful, prosperous, just, and democratic world and foster conditions for stability and progress for the benefit of the American people and people everywhere. This mission is shared with the USAID, ensuring we have a common path forward in partnership as we invest in the shared security and prosperity that will ultimately better prepare us for the challenges of tomorrow. For further information about the U.S. State Department, please visit our website, https://www.state.gov/.

About Unreasonable Group

Unreasonable’s mission is to drive resources to and breakdown barriers for entrepreneurs solving key global challenges (i.e. ensuring renewable energy reaches the 1.3 billion people currently without electricity, reimagining the future of healthcare, or addressing the global unemployment crisis). Through running worldwide accelerator programs, a globally oriented private equity fund, an extensive network of serial business leaders as mentors, and advanced storytelling and media activities, Unreasonable is designed to exclusively support entrepreneurs positioned to solve society’s toughest problems. For further information about Unreasonable, please visit our website, http://www.unreasonablegroup.com.

Media Inquiries:

Anita Ostrovsky, Office of Global Partnerships

ostrovskya@state.gov

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

SECRETARY TILLERSON: Morning. Minister Dussey, welcome.

FOREIGN MINISTER DUSSEY: Thank you.

SECRETARY TILLERSON: Welcome to the State Department.

FOREIGN MINISTER DUSSEY: Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you.

QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, are you satisfied with the pace of staffing for senior positions at the State Department?

SECRETARY TILLERSON: No, I’d like to go faster. Thank you.

FOREIGN MINISTER DUSSEY: Thank you.

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