Category Archives: Foreign Policy

A very intense day of activity took place at APEC yesterday, featuring remarks by Hillary Clinton followed by a candid discussion with her, bilats with President Sang of Vietnam, President Humala of Peru, Prime Minister Gillard of Australia, new Commerce Secretary John Bryson, and a host of other events including the signing of the Terms of Reference for the new U.S.-Indonesia Commercial Dialogue. The evening featured the arrival in Honolulu of President Obama, who flew in after watching an NCAA basketball game on the USS Vincent in San Diego (the first-ever staged on the deck of an aircraft carrier), a fitting event for Veterans Day. The day concluded with a “nightcap” conversation on “Realizing APEC’s Economic Growth through Sound Energy Policy,” a discussion that featured, among others, U.S. Undersecretary of State Bob Hormats and Indonesia’s Minister of Trade Gita Wirjawan and drew a big crowd despite the late hour and the long day. Secretary Clinton spoke eloquently about the importance of empowering women and girls. Continuing the theme she spoke about so powerfully at the Women and the Economy Summit in San Francisco, she talked about how important it is to unleash the potential of women, not only to achieve justice and equality and because it is the right thing to do, but also as the best way to grow our economies in the 21st century. Later, during the candid conversation with host Nina Easton of Fortune, in response to the question of what she will do when she finishes this term as secretary of state, Ms. Clinton said she is not focused on what she will do, but on what she won’t do. She pointed out that she is in beautiful Hawaii but has been in closed-door, windowless meeting rooms non-stop since 8 a.m. “There’s got to be a better way to see Hawaii,” she said.