State Newswire News


State Department, U.K. Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, and Norwegian Foreign Office Engage with Companies Operating in the South Sudanese Oil Market Regarding Sanctions and Due Diligence

News Release: Today, State Department Sanctions Coordinator Ambassador James O’Brien and Bureau of African Affairs Deputy Assistant Secretary Peter Lord convened a discussion with companies and associations operating in or providing services to companies in South Sudan’s oil sector. They were joined by UK and Norwegian Special Envoys to Sudan and South Sudan, Robert Fairweather and Jon Anton Johnson.


Risch, Hagerty, Colleagues Reintroduce Bill to Require Congressional Vote on Any Iran Sanctions Relief

News Release: WASHINGTON - U.S. Senators Jim Risch (R-Idaho), ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Bill Hagerty (R-Tenn.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, today led colleagues in reintroducing the Iran Sanctions Relief Review Act (ISRRA), a bill to ensure that the president ...


McCaul and Kim Welcome Prime Minister Modi

News Release: Washington, D.C. - House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-TX) and Subcommittee on the Indo-Pacific Chairwoman Young Kim (R-CA) issued the following statement welcoming Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Congress.


The Republic of Ecuador Signs the Artemis Accords

Release: In a ceremony held at its embassy in Washington, D.C. on June 21, 2023, the Republic of Ecuador became the 26th nation to sign the Artemis Accords, demonstrating its commitment to sustainable and transparent space activity. Minister of Foreign Affairs Gustavo Manrique signed on behalf of Ecuador, which is the third South American nation to join.


The Republic of Ecuador Signs the Artemis Accords

News Release: In a ceremony held at its embassy in Washington, D.C., the Republic of Ecuador became the 26th nation to sign the Artemis Accords, demonstrating its commitment to sustainable and transparent space activity. Minister of Foreign Affairs Gustavo Manrique signed on behalf of Ecuador, which is the third South American nation to join.


Special Online Briefing with Rear Admiral Ronald J. Piret, Commander of the Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command

Release: MODERATOR: Greetings to everyone from the U.S. Department of State’s London International Media Hub. I would like to welcome our participants dialing in from Europe and around the world for this on-the-record briefing with Rear Admiral Ronald J. Piret, Commander of the Naval Meteorology and Oceanography...


Announcing the Fallon Smart Policy – Visa Restrictions on Foreign Government Officials Who Have Assisted Fugitives in Evading the U.S. Justice System

News Release: The Department of State is committed to deterring and promoting accountability for extraordinary foreign government involvement in aiding fugitives to evade the U.S. justice system.



Congratulations to Belgrade, Serbia for Winning Expo 2027 Vote

Release: The United States congratulates the city of Belgrade and the government of Serbia for winning the bid to host Expo 2027 at today’s vote at the 172nd General Assembly meeting of the Bureau of International Expositions (BIE) in Paris, France.



DOS-IND offers new grant application process starting June 22

Mapping the Entrepreneurial Landscape for Tibetans-in-Exile in India grant opened on June 22.


Secretary Antony J. Blinken and Türkiye Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan Before Their Meeting

Release: SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, good afternoon, everyone, and it’s a real pleasure to have this opportunity to meet with a colleague of many years, Hakan Fidan, the new foreign minister of Türkiye. I’m so pleased to be working with you. I had a terrific relationship and partnership with Mevlut Cavusoglu, and ...


USTDA Technical Assistance Grant for Network Modernization in the Republic of Palau

Release: The U.S. Department of State is pleased to announce the signing of a technical assistance grant between the U.S. Trade and Development Agency (USTDA) and the Republic of Palau. The USTDA grant, with funding from the Digital Connectivity and Cybersecurity Partnership, will provide the Palau National Communications Corporation (PNCC) with technical assistance to modernize Palau’s telecommunications network and advance Internet connectivity for its population.


Sanctioning Two State-Owned Banks and the Ministry of Defense for the Burma Military Regime’s Atrocities

Release: Today, the United States is designating Burma’s Ministry of Defense (MoD) and two of Burma’s largest regime-controlled banks, Myanma Foreign Trade Bank (MFTB) and Myanma Investment and Commercial Bank (MICB). MFTB and MICB have been instrumental in facilitating the regime’s use of foreign currency to...


U.S. Department of State Announces 350 Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange (CBYX) Participants Awards

Release: The State Department announced today that 350 Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange Program (CBYX) scholarships have been awarded to high-achieving U.S. high school students, recent high school graduates with an interest in vocational fields, and young professionals from 50 states and Washington, D.C. This ...


McCaul Presses Blinken to Produce Missing Afghanistan Documents or Face Subpoena

News Release: Dear Secretary Binken: I wrote to you on June 8, 2023 about the Department of State’s (the Department) ongoing failure to produce documents and information regarding the Afghanistan withdrawal, warning you that I was prepared to initiate compulsory process should you fail to produce three specific priority...


McCaul Calls for Accountability in COVID-19 Origins

News Release: Washington, D.C. - House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul released the following statement on reports that Ben Hu, a researcher at the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) who was conducting gain-of-function research on coronaviruses at dangerously unsafe biosafety levels, was one of three scientists who were ill with COVID-like symptoms in November 2019.


Preview of the 53rd General Assembly of the Organization of American States

Release: Ambassador Francisco O. Mora, United States Permanent Representative to the Organization of American States (OAS), previews the upcoming 53rd OAS General Assembly in Washington D.C., June 21-23. The theme of the OAS General Assembly is “Strengthening a Culture of Democratic Accountability with Human...


McCaul Speaks on House Floor in Support of Resolution Calling on Russia to Release Paul Whelan

News Release: Washington, D.C. - House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul spoke on the House Floor in support of passing H.Res. 272, Calling on the Government of the Russian Federation to immediately release United States citizen Paul Whelan.


Secretary Blinken’s Meeting with Ukrainian Prime Minister Shmyhal

News Release: The below is attributable to Spokesperson Matthew Miller