UNDER SECRETARY KENNEDY: It is now my honor to introduce the Honorable James A. Baker
III, the 61st Secretary of State.
Mr. Secretary.
(Applause.)
SECRETARY BAKER: Thank you very much, Pat.
Ladies and gentlemen, Washington, of course, is blessed with museums and memorials that
are dedicated to a broad array of topics that have helped shape the history of this great
nation.
There are museums of American art, the Jewish Holocaust, and our news industry.
There are memorials that preserve the memory of the brave men and women who fought in the
two World Wars, the Vietnam War, and other major conflicts.
And of course, there are testaments to George Washington, to Thomas Jefferson, to Abraham
Lincoln, and other Americans who helped make this nation great.
But until now there hasn’t been a center dedicated to one of the most important aspects
of our nation-state, and that’s its diplomacy and the diplomats who’ve practiced it over
the centuries.
Since the days of our founding, the United States has really been blessed by adroit diplomacy.
It was, after all, successful diplomacy that allowed us to strike the Treaty of Paris;
diplomacy that made possible the Louisiana Purchase; diplomacy that formulated and implemented
the Marshall Plan; and diplomacy that made sure that the Cold War ended with a whimper
and not with a bang.
Throughout American history, our nation has been strengthened and protected through strong
diplomatic alliances and agreements.
And so I think we should be very pleased that this Diplomacy Center is being built.
For one reason, it will tell the amazing story of the brave men and women who have served
on the front lines of American diplomacy – the stories of all of them.
Although too often overlooked, their tales of heroism are truly inspiring.
When I was Secretary of State, I knew I could count on my State Department colleagues to
respond with speed and skill to any challenge, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, even as
the world shifted under their feet.
The Diplomacy Center will capture this trademark quality in an exhibit entitled “Diplomacy
is Everywhere 24/7.”
The exhibit will emphasize a simple reality: No matter what political upheaval or crisis
the world faces, diplomacy never sleeps.
American diplomats are and will be hard at work managing a myriad of problems.
There’s, of course, another big reason that this center is very important.
It will explain why diplomacy matters to every American citizen.
Such an understanding of the purpose and practice of statecraft in a democracy like ours is
extremely critical, because the people are, after all, the ultimate arbiters of our foreign
policy.
During tough times like today, as crisis brews in the Ukraine, the entire Middle East burns,
tensions rise in the Far East, and terrorism grows stronger, not weaker, diplomacy is going
to play an important role in peacefully resolving many of the challenges that we face.
As a result, the better educated Americans are about this nation’s diplomacy, the more
effectively our leaders can engage on the world stage to find sound solutions.
And so, ladies and gentlemen, I look forward to returning to Washington for the grand opening
of the United States Diplomacy Center.
It will remind us of the great diplomats in our past, and it will remind us as well of
the importance of diplomacy in our future.
Thank you all for supporting this very important project.
(Applause.)