Blinken Makes First Calls as Secretary of State
Secretary of State Antony Blinken made the first calls of his tenure on Jan. 26, speaking with his counterparts in Canada, South Korea, Mexico, and Japan, according to the Department of State.
The U.S. Senate confirmed Blinken earlier the same day. He made the first call to Canadian Foreign Minister Marc Garneau.
According to a readout of the call, Blinken “looks forward to working closely with Foreign Minister Garneau to revitalize our economies and strengthen the broader North American partnership and to address shared challenges, including COVID-19 and climate change, among many others.”
Senate Confirms Blinken as Biden’s Secretary of State
The Senate on Tuesday confirmed President Joe Biden’s nominee for secretary of state.
Antony Blinken, a longtime aide to Biden, was approved by a vote of 78-22 in the upper chamber. His predecessor is former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
His confirmation was welcomed by most Democrats and some Republicans, as well as the U.S. Foreign Service political association.
“Leadership of the Department of State, our nation’s oldest cabinet agency, represents a great responsibility,” the American Foreign Service Association (AFSA) said in a statement after he was confirmed. “As we have done for his predecessors, AFSA extends our congratulations and welcome to Secretary Blinken. We wish the Secretary and his team the best of luck in the years ahead. AFSA and its members pledge to work alongside them to strengthen the career Foreign Service and protect and enhance the institution that is American diplomacy.”
Daniel Shapiro
This compilation of observations and policy ideas related to Russia by William Burns is part of Russia Matters’ “Competing Views” rubric, where we share prominent American thinkers’ takes on issues pertaining to Russia, U.S.-Russian relations and broader U.S. policies affecting Russia.
On January 11, President-elect Joe Biden selected William Burns to serve as his CIA director. Prior to his appointment, Burns served in the U.S. Foreign Service for 33 years, including in such roles as Deputy Secretary of State and as U.S. Ambassador to Russia. Following his retirement from the State Department in 2014, Burns was appointed president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Burns is also the
Black Ambassadors Association Calls for Diversity Reforms at State and USAID
Recommendations address recruitment, assignments, mentoring, promotions and retention.
The group’s post––published in the January/February 2021 edition of
The Foreign Service Journal, a publication of the American Foreign Service Association––covers recruitment, assignments, mentoring, promotions and retention. Both State and USAID have made mixed progress
in improving racial and gender representation in their workforces over the years, as the Government Accountability Office found.
“The foreign affairs agencies have a collective responsibility to stand up and take serious action to address structural barriers to diversity and inclusion in their respective agencies,” said the Association of Black Ambassadors. “All employees should be provided with the skills, resources and mentoring that contribute to professional advancement. These proposed changes should be codified in th