Secretary Clinton is hosting a U.S.-Northern Ireland economic conference today in Washington that brings together American business leaders currently or potentially invested in Northern Ireland with political leaders from that area. "This conference will allow us to sell the Northern Ireland product directly to some of America's most successful and best-known companies," Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson said, as reported in the Irish Times.

It's all part of Clinton's effort to support the Northern Ireland peace process through promotion of economic development, something she touched upon when visiting Northern Ireland last October, as seen in the photo above with Robinson (left) and Northern Ireland Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness outside Belfast's Stormont Castle.

Last Friday, June 4, I was confused by a birthday message Secretary Clinton made to Britain's Queen Elizabeth II that said, "I am pleased to wish Queen Elizabeth II a happy birthday."

The queen was born on April 21, 1926, according to the British monarchy's website. Had someone at the State Department made a blooper?

Turns out the answer is yes, though the blooper wasn't as bad as I thought. The queen actually has two birthdays! The second one, recognized as her official birthday, is celebrated with a ceremony by British troops on a Saturday in June, and this year it'll be celebrated on June 12. So, Clinton erred in sending her message a week early, but an early message is at least better than a belated birthday message.

An Associated Press article states, "The tradition of celebrating two birthdays began under King Edward VII, who was born in November but wanted his birthday parade to take place in summer weather."

(In the photo above, Clinton meets Queen Elizabeth II at a reception at Buckingham Palace on April 1, 2009.)

Yesterday and today, Secretary Clinton attended the NATO foreign ministers meeting in Tallinn, Estonia (the volanic ash cloud from Eyjafjallajokull doesn't seem to have stopped her). Among the topics of discussion:  nuclear weapons, Afghanistan, Iran, the Eastern bloc countries, and relations with Russia. Remarks Clinton made today about the meeting are here.

The meeting comes at a time when NATO's very purpose is being debated. The alliance was established to protect against the Soviet threat, but with the fall of communism, what's its purpose now? In fact, the United States should just withdraw from NATO, argues Andrew Bacevich in his recent FP article, "Let Europe Be Europe."

Above, it's woman power with Britain's permanent representative to NATO, Mariot Leslie, at left, Clinton, and an unidentified woman (who I should probably know, but don't) at right on April 22.

The NATO foreign ministers meeting is under way on April 22. Clinton is on the left, in purple.

What's up? Clinton chats with Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Paet on April 22. (Oops, her second button has come undone, but no big deal -- Clinton has more important things to worry about.) Clinton made these remarks with Paet. After her meeting with Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves on April 23, she made these remarks.

The meeting participants prepare for a "family photo" on April 22.

NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, center, speaks with Clinton and Paet after the "family photo."

Clinton listens intently to Lithuanian Foreign Minister Audronius Azubalis at the beginning of the meeting with non-NATO ISAF contributors on April 23. NATO foreign ministers worked on a plan for international troops and civilian staff in Afghanistan to hand over responsibility to the Afghan military and government.

Clinton speaks to Finnish Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb (who comes across as very sporty and intelligent on his personal website) at the meeting with non-NATO ISAF contributors on April 23.

Clinton is probably glad to be back home in the United States now, as she told Esquire magazine that traveling internationally "wears you out." Still, we know that Clinton has far more stamina and resilience than the typical person -- she bounced back so fast from her broken elbow last year.

Today, on St. Patrick's Day, Secretary Clinton had two more Ireland-related meetings. This morning, before departing for Moscow, she attended President Obama's meeting with Irish Prime Minister Brian Cowen and National Security Advisor James L. Jones's meeting with Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness. (For the story behind why the Irish prime minister -- the taoiseach -- is always in Washington on St. Patrick's Day, read this week's FP Explainer.)

Yesterday, as seen in the photo above, Clinton had a bilateral meeting with Robinson (left) and McGuinness. Their remarks after the meeting are here.

Other Ireland-related remarks from Clinton:

•Clinton's keynote address at the gala dinner of the American Ireland Fund

•Clinton's St. Patrick's Day message for the people of Ireland

On the eve St. Patrick's Day, Secretary Clinton has six Ireland-related items on her busy schedule. (In the photo above, then-presidential candidate Clinton waves at onlookers during the St. Patrick's Day Parade in Pittsburgh on March 15, 2008.)

11 a.m. Bilateral meeting with Irish Foreign Minister Micheál Martin

12:30 p.m. Bilateral meeting with Northern Ireland Secretary of State Shaun Woodward

2:30 p.m. Meeting with Gerry Adams, president of Sinn Fein

4:30 p.m. Bilateral meeting with Northern Ireland First Minister Peter Robinson and Deputy First Minister Martin McGuinness

7:15 p.m. Meeting with Irish Taoiseach (Prime Minister) Brian Cowen

7:30 p.m. Delivers keynote address at the American Ireland Fund dinner, where she'll be honored for her role in the peace process in Northern Ireland. 

Secretary Clinton is departing tomorrow for another overseas trip, this time to London and Paris. On Wednesday, she'll miss President Obama's State of the Union address because she'll be attending a ministerial meeting on Yemen in London. On Thursday in London, she'll attend an international conference on Afghanistan. In Paris, Clinton will give a speech on European security and meet with the French president and foreign minister, as reported by Laura Rozen over at Politico.

Last Sunday on ABC's This Week, Secretary Clinton said she was so "immersed" with Afghanistan policy that she hasn't had the time to develop an opinion on the Amanda Knox case. Not to be insensitive toward Knox, but Clinton really does need to focus on Afghanistan policy at this crucial time. Clinton's exchange with This Week's George Stephanopoulos:

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: "Do you share her [Sen. Maria Cantwell's (D-Wash.)] concerns about this trial?"

SECRETARY OF STATE HILLARY CLINTON: "George I honestly haven't had time to even examine that. I've been immersed in what we're doing in Afghanistan. Of course I'll meet with Sen. Cantwell or anyone who has a concern but I can't offer any opinion about that at this time."

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS: "So you have not expressed any concerns to the Italian government?"

SECRETARY OF STATE HILLARY CLINTON: "I have not, no."

And Knox's lawyer, Luciano Ghirga, seems to want it that way. Ghirga said, as reported in the Daily Mail:

That's all we need, Hillary Clinton involved. I have the same political sympathies as Hillary but this sort of thing does not help us in any way."

Prosecutor Giuliano Mignini may want Clinton out, too, based on his comments about Sen. Cantwell, as reported in the Daily Mail

This senator should not interfere in something she has no idea about. I am happy with how the trial went.

Note (Dec. 15, 2009): The sentence before Mignini's quote was revised to make it clearer that he was referring to Sen. Cantwell, not Secretary Clinton.

 

Yesterday evening at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, Secretary Clinton once again declared that the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall should serve as a "call to action" to "advance freedom" for the millions of people around the world who still face obstacles and lack opportunity. In her remarks, she said:

Two decades later, we remember. But it is also a call to action. There are still millions across our world who are separated -- maybe not by walls, maybe not by barbed wire, although that still exists -- but who are separated from loved ones, who are kept down and behind, unable to fulfill their own destinies. So as beneficiaries of this great bequest we inherited in 1989, those of us gathered here tonight, leaders and citizens alike, we must pledge ourselves to work together to advance freedom beyond its current frontiers so that people everywhere are afforded the opportunities to pursue their dreams and live up to their God-given potential.

Above: Clinton reviews an honor guard carrying torches at Bellevue Palace -- the home of the German president -- in Berlin. 

Below: Clinton appears on the big screens that flanked the Brandenburg Gate yesterday. In front are some of the 1,000 giant dominoes that were toppled to symbolize the fall of the Berlin Wall. (Check out this cool video of the dominoes falling.)

Photos, top to bottom: Andreas Rentz/Getty Images, WOLFGANG RATTAY/AFP/Getty Images

Last night at a gala banquet in Berlin, Secretary Clinton received an Atlantic Council Freedom Award on behalf of the American people. Above, she holds the award while posing with former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, an Atlantic Council board member who introduced Clinton.

In delivering the evening's keynote address, Clinton said the festivities surrounding the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall "should be a call to action, not just a commemoration of past actions. That call should spur us to continue our cooperation and to look for new ways that we can meet the challenges that freedom faces now."

She went on to say:

We need to form an even stronger partnership to bring down the walls of the 21st century and to confront those who hide behind them: the suicide bombers, those who murder and maim girls whose only wish is to go to school, leaders who choose their own fortunes over the fortunes of their people."

Very inspiring words indeed -- calling for people to use the spirit that animated the wall's fall to fight terrorism and authoritarian regimes. Hopefully it will move people to action, but Thomas Carothers, of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, is skeptical that Europeans will buy into the Bush-era "trope" of linking the Cold War and extremism. He told Agence France-Presse via e-mail:

Facing difficult pressures on Afghanistan, the Obama administration marked the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall by revving up a rhetorical trope that President Bush favored. … Europeans and others never found it very convincing under Bush. … I suspect they won't like it much better now."

But between Clinton's star power and President Obama's hope-oriented charisma, the new U.S. administration has an inspiring and influential presence that Bush never had. Sometimes you just need the right messenger for your message.

Photo: JOHN MACDOUGALL/AFP/Getty Images

An article in the Belfast Telegraph has accused Secretary Clinton of a fib that has "echoes" of her "blooper" last year when she said she dodged sniper fire in Bosnia in 1996.

In a speech in Northern Ireland last week, Clinton said, "When Bill and I first came to Belfast, we stayed at the Europa Hotel, as I have again this time, even though then there were sections boarded up because of damage from bombs."

The article states that the last successful bomb attack on the Europa Hotel was in 1993 and that renovations to the hotel, seen at left, were completed in January 1994, 22 months before the Clinton's 1995 visit. Hotel sources told the Telegraph that there's "no way" any boards were visible during the Clintons' stay at the hotel, which has been described as the "most-bombed hotel in Europe."

Clinton's spokesman Ian Kelly told the Telegraph: 

I think what Secretary Clinton was trying to do was draw contrasts between contemporary Belfast, which I know has changed hugely from the Belfast of 1995.

"We [are] not talking about the same thing [as misspeaking about Bosnia]. Secretary Clinton was simply contrasting."

There might be clarifying information we don't know about -- maybe Clinton confused the hotel with another boarded building -- but it sounds like she got carried away and embellished during her speech. I'm willing to forgive her, but I hope it doesn't happen again.

Photo: thumbnail by Joe Fox/Getty Images

Later today, Clinton heads to Europe, where she'll visit the following places and do the following things:

Zurich, Switzerland: She will attend the signing of two protocols between Turkey and Armenia that pave the way toward normalization of their relations.

London: Clinton will meet with senior British officials to discuss important issues such as Iran, Afghanistan, and Pakistan.

Dublin, Ireland: She will reaffirm the United States' commitment to Ireland during meetings with senior Irish officials.

Belfast, Northern Ireland: Clinton will emphasize the United States' support for political progress and economic recovery in the area.

Moscow: As part of her efforts to reset relations with Russia, she'll meet with President Dmitry Medvedev and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to discuss a successor agreement to START, the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty. They'll also discuss Afghanistan, Iran, the Middle East, and North Korea.

Kazan, Russia: Clinton will visit Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan, to talk with local officials and religious leaders about promoting tolerance and interfaith dialogue. The city has a large Muslim population, and yesterday, in this clumsy exchange, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said Kazan "really shows that the Russian Federation is a multiethnic country."

Bon voyage, Secretary Clinton!

Photo: BAY ISMOYO/AFP/Getty Images

 

Last week, Secretary Clinton was promoting a U.N. resolution to protect girls from sexual violence. Yesterday, she received a letter from the French and Polish foreign ministers requesting that the United States drop its extradition demand for Oscar-winning filmmaker Roman Polanski, who was detained in Switzerland Saturday for sexually molesting a 13-year-old girl in Los Angeles in 1977 (a crime to which he pleaded guilty back in the 1970s).

Clinton must protect the interests of girls (and children, more generally) and do all she can to bring this child molester to justice.

The legal process for extraditing Polanski is primarily in the hands of the state of California, where the crime occurred, and the U.S. Justice Department, said State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley at yesterday's press briefing. The State Department's role will simply be to ensure that California's formal extradition request meets the terms of the United States' extradition treaty with Switzerland, Crowley added.

For more about why Polanski must be brought to justice, check out Eugene Robinson's op-ed in today's Washington Post.

Photo: SEBASTIEN BOZON/AFP/Getty Images

 

Yesterday, among other things, Secretary Clinton, as shown above, attended President Obama's speech on closing the Guantánamo Bay detention facility. (Sitting with her are U.S. Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.), far left, and CIA Director Leon Panetta.)

Today, she moves on to accepting an award from the National Coordinated Effort of Hellenes. One of the main issues the group appears to tackle is the highly sensitive "FYROM"/"Republic of Macedonia" name issue. Greece wants the "Republic of Macedonia" to instead be called the "Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" (or "FYROM" for short). The U.S. State Department currently states on its background note for the country that the "official name" is "Republic of Macedonia." To people not familiar with the centuries of history behind the name dispute, it might sound like a trivial issue, but actually it's sensitive enough that it caused rioting last year and is affecting "FYROM"/"Republic of Macedonia"'s ability to enter NATO and the European Union.

The official schedule for today:

9:30 a.m. Receive Award from the National Coordinated Effort of Hellenes in the Treaty Room.

11:30 a.m. Bilateral with His Excellency Karel De Gucht, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belgium.

Update: When asked about the name issue at the award presentation, Clinton said:

Well, we have been very committed to that. I have spoken out about the need to resolve the name issue in a way that is acceptable to both parties. And Deputy Secretary [James] Steinberg was recently in the region making that case. We have picked up this issue with a lot of commitment early on in our administration. Obviously, this has to be resolved by the parties themselves, but we are urging that resolution. We think it is in everyone's best interest. As you said, it would open the way for movement toward another nation joining the European Union, which we think promotes stability in the region, so we are very committed to doing what the United States can to facilitate that.

Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images

Here's a photo summary of Secretary Clinton at this weekend's 60th-anniversary NATO summit in Strasbourg, France, and the German cities of Baden-Baden and Kehl:

Check out those shades! U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and her German counterpart, Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, greet one another in Baden-Baden at the start of the NATO summit on April 3.

Pink power: Clinton talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel after U.S. President Barack Obama and Merkel reviewed a guard of honor upon Obama's arrival for bilateral talks on April 3 in Baden-Baden.

She's earned her stripes: Clinton arrives at the opening of the NATO summit at the Kurhaus on April 3 in Baden-Baden. Heads of state, foreign ministers, and defense ministers of the 28 NATO member countries participated in the summit from April 3 to 4 to mark the 60th anniversary of the transatlantic military and political organization.

Clinton attends the opening of the NATO summit at the Kurhaus on April 3 in Baden-Baden.

Clinton and Obama appear to be sharing an inside joke while attending the North Atlantic Council meeting on April 4 in Strasbourg during the NATO summit. Next to them are British Foreign Minister David Miliband (far left) and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

Clinton and Obama speak during a meeting at the NATO summit on April 4 in Strasbourg.

NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer intently listens to Clinton at the North Atlantic Council meeting on April 4.

This photo isn't from the NATO summit, but I threw it in because it's from Clinton's European visit: European foreign ministers pose with Clinton for a group picture on April 5 during the EU-U.S. summit in Prague, Czech Republic.

Photos, top to bottom: MICHAEL KAPPELER/AFP/Getty Images, Ralph Orlowski/Getty Images, Sean Gallup/Getty Images, Joerg Eberl/action press-Pool/Getty Images, SEBASTIEN BOZON/AFP/Getty Images, Sascha Schuermann-Pool/Getty Images, SASCHA SCHUERMANN/AFP/Getty Images, OLIVERIO IMAGO ECONOMICA/AFP/Getty Images