# Western Hemisphere – United States Department of State

- United States to Chair Community of Democracies’ 38th Governing Council Meeting Office of the SpokespersonOn June 11, the United States will chair the Community of Democracies’ (CoD) 38th Governing Council Meeting in Warsaw, Poland.  Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary (DAS) for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Allison Peters will lead the U.S. delegation and will underscore the United States’ commitment to and continued collaboration with CoD member states on democracy and human rights priority issues, including a more open and resilient information environment, free and fair elections, defending civic space and freedom of association, and the meaningful inclusion of youth in civic and political processes.  On June 10, she will join Guatemala’s Vice Foreign Minister Mónica Renata Bolaños Pérez for a side event focused on the advancement of Women in Politics.During a reception hosted by the Government of Poland, Acting DAS Peters will recognize the forthcoming departure of Thomas Garrett, Secretary General of the CoD, who has provided steadfast leadership to the Community for the past seven years.  Following the third Summit for Democracy in March 2024, she will also look ahead to the celebration of the Community’s 25th anniversary in June 2025 and call upon all members to continue advancing relevant Summit commitments and the Warsaw Declaration to promote and protect democratic principles, bolstering our democracies and respect for human rights at home and abroad.  She will reaffirm the U.S. commitment to work closely with CoD co-founder Poland to lead the CoD into its next chapter.For further information, please follow the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor on X and Facebook at @StateDRL, or email DRL-Press@state.gov.
- Congratulations to Mexico’s President-Elect Sheinbaum Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of StateThe United States congratulates Claudia Sheinbaum on her historic victory as Mexico’s first woman president.  We also congratulate the people of Mexico for making their voices heard through the democratic process.  I look forward to building on the strong U.S.-Mexico partnership with President-elect Sheinbaum.We deeply value our special relationship with Mexico that is based on shared democratic values, deep economic ties, and strong cultural and familial connections.  The United States is committed to working together with Mexico as neighbors, friends, and partners, to advance our mutual economic and security interests.  I extend my best wishes to President-elect Sheinbaum and the people of Mexico.
- Inauguration of President Bukele of El Salvador The Secretary of StateThe United States extends congratulations to President Nayib Bukele of the Republic of El Salvador on his inauguration today.  We stand ready to deepen our ties with El Salvador and work together under the Administration’s Root Causes Strategy on good governance, citizen security with due process, inclusive economic prosperity, and human rights.We look forward to continued partnership and collaboration in the years ahead to build a brighter future for all Salvadorans.
- Deputy Secretary Verma’s Meeting with Jamaican Foreign Minister Johnson Smith Office of the Spokesperson													HomeOffice of the SpokespersonPress Releases&#8230;Deputy Secretary Verma’s Meeting with Jamaican Foreign Minister Johnson Smith				hide		if(window.jQuery) {		jQuery( document ).ready(function() {			if (jQuery(".bc_middle").hasClass("collapse")) {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});				jQuery(".bc_hide").click(function(){					jQuery(".bc_hide").toggleClass("visible");					jQuery(".bc_middle").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_ellipse").toggle();					jQuery(".bc_content").toggleClass("noflex");					jQuery(".block_breadcrumbs_content").toggleClass("noflex");				});			} else {				jQuery(".bc_ellipse").hide();			}		});	}																										Deputy Secretary Verma’s Meeting with Jamaican Foreign Minister Johnson Smith																																		Readout																														May 31, 2024																																							The below is attributable to Spokesperson Matthew Miller:Deputy Secretary for Management and Resources Richard R. Verma met with Jamaican Foreign Minister Kamina Johnson Smith on the margins of the Conference on Small Island Developing States in St. John’s, Antigua and Barbuda on Wednesday May, 29. Deputy Secretary Verma thanked Foreign Minister Johnson Smith for Jamaica’s key role in contributing personnel and coordinating the Caribbean Community’s (CARICOM) contribution to the Kenyan-led Multinational Security Support mission in Haiti. Deputy Secretary Verma also underscored the U.S. commitment to support Jamaica in reducing violence in the Caribbean and decreasing the illegal trafficking of arms under the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI). They also discussed collaboration on other shared priorities, and noted the upcoming launch of a Coalition for Climate Entrepreneurship Hub in Kingston.						Tags																					Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs																								Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources																								Jamaica																								Office of the Spokesperson
- Deputy Secretary Verma’s Meeting with Antigua and Barbuda Prime Minister Gaston Browne Office of the SpokespersonThe below is attributable to Spokesperson Matthew Miller:Deputy Secretary for Management and Resources Richard R. Verma met with Antigua and Barbuda’s Prime Minister Gaston Browne on the margins of the UN Conference on Small Island Developing States in St. John’s, Antigua and Barbuda on Wednesday May,29. Deputy Secretary Verma congratulated Antigua and Barbuda on a successful conference and highlighted our continued collaboration on climate adaptation and accelerating the clean energy transition through the U.S.-Caribbean Partnership to Address the Climate Crisis 2030. The Deputy Secretary and Prime Minister also discussed security cooperation through the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative, including assistance to address illicit trafficking and to strengthen citizen security.
- Maduro’s Decision to Withdraw Invitation to European Union Election Observers Matthew Miller, Department SpokespersonThe United States is deeply concerned by the decision by Nicolas Maduro and his representatives to withdraw an invitation to European Union election observers. This action runs counter to the commitments made in Barbados in October 2023 to support the integrity of the electoral process. Maduro and his representatives should immediately reverse this decision and allow credible international election observation that will build trust in the electoral process.We will continue to work with the international community to support the aspirations of the Venezuelan people for a more democratic, stable, and prosperous Venezuela.
- United States Welcomes Peru’s Signing of the Artemis Accords     Office of the SpokespersonPeru became the 41st signatory to the Artemis Accords today at a ceremony at NASA Headquarters in Washington.  The Artemis Accords were established in 2020 by the United States and seven other countries to set out a practical set of principles to guide civil space exploration and use.Foreign Minister Javier González-Olaechea signed the Accords for Peru in the presence of Ambassador to the United States Alfredo Ferrero Diez Canseco, State Department Acting Assistant Secretary Jennifer R. Littlejohn, and NASA Administrator Bill Nelson.  The United States and Peru have a long history of working together on the global stage, and we applaud Peru’s decision to extend our collaboration to space exploration.  Peru first announced its decision to join the Artemis Accords at the highly successful High-Level Dialogue on May 9, 2024.  At that event, the United States and Peru committed to furthering our already close bilateral relations and advance our shared efforts to support democratic values, promote inclusive economic prosperity, and strengthen security to the region.  Peru joining the Artemis Accords is yet another mechanism to expand the close friendship between our nations.Peru joins 40 other nations – Angola, Argentina, Australia, Bahrain, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Colombia, Czech Republic, Ecuador, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, India, Israel, Italy, Japan, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Poland, the Republic of Korea, Romania, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Uruguay – in affirming the Accords’ principles for sustainable civil space activity.  The Department of State and NASA lead the United States’ outreach and implementation of the Accords.For more information, please visit https://www.state.gov/artemis-accords/.  For media inquiries, please contact OES-Press@state.gov.
- Joint Statement on the XI High Level Dialogue Colombia – United States Office of the SpokespersonThe text of the following statement was released by the Governments of the United States of America and the Republic of Colombia on the occasion of the XI High Level Dialogue.Begin TextHigh-level representatives of Colombia and the United States held the XI High-Level Dialogue at the San Carlos Palace in Bogota on May 28-29, 2024. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Colombia, Luis Gilberto Murillo Urrutia, and the Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources of the United States, Richard Verma, met in the presence of delegations from the governments of both countries and reaffirmed the 202-year ties of friendship and cooperation that unite them, announcing a new vision for bilateral relations with the “Vida Colombia Strategy.”Both countries reaffirmed their commitment to move forward with concrete actions to strengthen this strategic alliance in areas such as democracy, peacebuilding, and human rights; generation of economic and social opportunities; environment and climate change; energy transition, mining, and infrastructure, including the railways; information technology and communications; public diplomacy, citizen security, global health security, and the fight against the global drug problem; rural development; and  effective safe, humane, and orderly migration management.The high-level officials announced the launch of the &#8220;Vida Colombia Strategy,&#8221; which outlines a new focus on relationships and is oriented towards hemispheric collaboration, facing common challenges and opportunities such as democratic stability, environmental protection, socio-ecological transition, implementation of peace accords, countering crime and narcotics, safe, orderly, and humane migration management, and the inclusion of Afro and Indigenous Peoples, LGBTQI+ persons, and historically marginalized communities, among others.Delegations from both countries affirmed that the comprehensive dialogue in the eight working groups represents a diversity of joint actions and highlighted the collaboration with multiple actors from civil society and the private sector.  Both countries remain focused on elevating the efforts of the U.S.-Colombia Plan for Racial and Ethnic Equality (CAPREE) to advance equity for marginalized racial and ethnic communities.  They recognized the private sector&#8217;s invaluable role to promote economic development, energy transition, and digital transformation.  The delegations also welcomed contributions from civil society on addressing climate change in relation to environmental justice and racial justice, highlighting communities as key actors for change.End Text
- Deputy Secretary Verma’s Meeting with Colombian President Petro Office of the SpokespersonThe below is attributable to Spokesperson Matthew Miller:Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources Richard R. Verma met Colombian President Gustavo Petro in Bogotá, Colombia, on the margins of the 11th U.S.-Colombia High-Level Dialogue.  Deputy Secretary Verma and President Petro reaffirmed their governments&#8217; commitment to addressing issues of shared priority, such as bolstering regional democracy, peacebuilding, and human rights; enhancing equitable economic and social opportunities; mitigating the effects of climate change; strengthening citizen security and countering narcotics production and trafficking; enhancing people-to-people ties; and humanely managing irregular migration across the hemisphere.
- Assistant Secretary Noyes Travels to Colombia Office of the SpokespersonAssistant Secretary for the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM) Julieta Valls Noyes will travel to Bogotá, Colombia May 27-30. She will accompany Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources Richard Verma and other delegation members in the 11th round of the U.S.-Colombia High-Level Dialogue to underscore areas of shared interest including migration management, counternarcotics and security, human rights and equity, education, economic opportunities, energy transition, and climate action. Assistant Secretary Noyes will also meet with PRM partners, staff and applicants at the Bogotá Safe Mobility Office and the Resettlement Support Center, and UNHCR and IOM representatives.