Latest U.S. Department of State News
Blinken bids farewell with pep talk to diplomats facing uncertain future under Trump
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Antony Blinken bade farewell to the State Department on Friday, urging career staffers to carry on in their mission to advance U.S. foreign policy amid uncertainty about how the incoming Trump administration will handle relationships and rivalries abroad or...
Blinken defends US policy on Gaza as his final State Department briefing is interrupted by protests
WASHINGTON (AP) — Outgoing Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday defended Biden administration policies on Israel’s war with Hamas after a ceasefire agreement in Gaza was reached, facing protests that interrupted his final news conference at the State Department. He said...
Biden says he's leaving Trump with a 'strong hand to play' in world conflicts
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden said Monday that his stewardship of American foreign policy has left the U.S. safer and economically more secure, arguing that President-elect Donald Trump will inherit a nation viewed as stronger and more reliable than it was four years ago. ...
Biden to deliver prime-time farewell to nation on Wednesday from Oval Office
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden will deliver a farewell address to the nation Wednesday from the Oval Office, five days before President-elect Donald Trump is sworn in. The president's remarks at 8 p.m. Eastern are set to be his last significant opportunity to speak to...
Biden to deliver a capstone address on his foreign policy legacy as he makes way for Trump's return
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Joe Biden plans to deliver a capstone address Monday on his foreign policy legacy, according to the White House. The outgoing president is expected to use his address at the State Department to highlight his administration's efforts to expand NATO, rally...
US shifts $100 million in military aid from Israel and Egypt to Lebanon to bolster ceasefire
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration in its final days is shifting more than $100 million in military aid from Israel and Egypt to Lebanon as it tries to bolster a ceasefire agreement it helped mediate between Israel and Hezbollah. In separate notices sent to Congress, the...
Congress is notified by the Biden administration of a planned $8 billion weapons sale to Israel
WASHINGTON (AP) — The State Department has informed Congress of a planned $8 billion weapons sale to Israel, U.S. officials say, as the American ally presses forward with its war against Hamas in Gaza. Some of the arms in the package could be sent through current U.S. stocks but...
Blinken heads to Asia, Europe on last expected trip as top US diplomat
WASHINGTON (AP) — Secretary of State Antony Blinken will embark on what is expected to be his final overseas trip in office this weekend, traveling to South Korea, Japan and France. The State Department announced Friday that Blinken would visit Seoul, Tokyo and Paris beginning...
Court sides with state over Pennsylvania county's handling of voting machines after 2020 election
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — A Pennsylvania court on Tuesday ruled 6-1 that the secretary of state has the authority to direct counties not to allow “unauthorized third party access” to voting machines or risk having those machines decertified and unable to be deployed for elections. ...
US teacher jailed in Russia is formally designated as wrongfully detained
WASHINGTON (AP) — An American schoolteacher arrested in Russia on drug charges more than three years ago has been designated by the U.S. government as wrongfully detained, the State Department said Friday. Marc Fogel, a history teacher from Pennsylvania, is serving a 14-year prison...
