Photo: U.S. lead negotiator Todd Stern speaks during a press briefing at the climate conference in Durban, South Africa, Thursday, Dec. 8, 2011. (AP Photo/Schalk van Zuydam)

Major Headlines of the Week

U.S. Envoy Stern at CO17 Conference in Durban (2011-12-08).

U.S. Special Envoy for Climate Change Todd Stern talks to reporters on the misconception that the United States is delaying action on climate change until 2020, in a briefing at the COP-17 conference in Durban, South Africa. “It is completely off base to suggest that the U.S. is proposing that we delay action until 2020,” says the U.S. special envoy.

Secretary Clinton Remarks at Internet Freedom in The Hague (2011-12-08).

[…] This is an urgent task. It is most urgent, of course, for those around the world whose words are now censored, who are imprisoned because of what they or others have written online, who are blocked from accessing entire categories of internet content, or who are being tracked by governments seeking to keep them from connecting with one another[…]

President Obama on Middle East, Iran and European Debt Crisis (2011-12-08).

[…] Q: The European crisis, do you have any sense --

THE PRESIDENT: Oh, on the European debt crisis -- I am obviously very concerned about what’s happening in Europe. I’ve expressed those concerns repeatedly to President Sarkozy, Chancellor Merkel, all the key leaders involved. I think they now recognize the urgency of doing something serious and bold. The question is whether they can muster the political will to get it done.

Look, Europe is wealthy enough that there’s no reason why they can’t solve this problem. It’s not as if we’re talking about some impoverished country that doesn’t have any resources, and is being buffeted by the world markets, and they need to come hat in hand and get help. This is Europe, with some of the wealthiest countries on Earth; collectively one of the largest markets on Earth, if not the largest. And so if they muster the political will, they have the capacity to settle markets down, make sure that they are acting responsibly, and that governments like Italy are able to finance their debt[…]

Secretary Clinton's Press Availability in Brussels (2011-12-08)

"...This year has been one of great change, and we see democratic transitions under way. We see -- for the United States, troops and diplomats deploying. But some things never change, including our commitment to this alliance, which has been the bedrock of our security for more than half a century."

Virtual Embassy Tehran: Information to Counter Iranian Isolation.  Fact Sheet (2012-12-08)

The U.S. Department of State is launching a Virtual Embassy Tehran website to penetrate the electronic curtain of isolation the Iranian leadership has imposed on its people. This initiative does not represent a change in the U.S. diplomatic relationship with the Iranian regime, but is part of the State Department’s broader efforts to reach out to the Iranian people.

Background Meeting on Syria (2012-12-06)

The Secretary met today … with seven members of the Syrian National Council…  They spoke about the regime tearing apart the fabric of Syrian society, that when they were growing up, they never thought about Syria as being a particularly sectarian place where the confessions were pitted against each other, but that has been the approach the regime has taken in its effort to maintain control, but it’s seeking to divide the society, turn the confessions on each other.

They spoke particularly poignantly about their concern for the need to protect civilians. Obviously, in Hamas and Homs, where the violence has been particularly acute, but all over the country, citing not only killings that we all know about, the arrests and the torture, but new, gruesome weapons of violence, including the use of rape against both men and women, and the targeting of children […]

Clinton: Culture, Religion cannot Excuse Anti-Gay Discrimination (2012-12-06).

To acknowledge the right of gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgendered (LGBT) people to live without fear of discrimination or violence is to honor the rights they were born with. “Like being a woman, like being a racial, religious, tribal or ethnic minority, being LGBT does not make you less human,” Secretary Clinton says.

Clinton makes remarks at breakfast with Afghan civil society representatives in Bonn (2012-12-05)

[…] Next, the reconciliation process is one that we believe, if pursued properly, holds promise for the kind of political settlement that would resolve much of the ongoing conflict. But we are also very conscious that any such reconciliation cannot be at the cost of the gains which you have suffered for – not just the last 10 years but the last 30-plus years, which is why I think it’s so important that your voices be heard in that area as well. You don’t make peace with your friends, but you also cannot make peace with those who refuse to rejoin society and behave in a peaceful manner. So how we test that and how we proceed is something we’re going to need your support for and your understanding of[…]