Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton met the staff and families of Embassy Madrid.
“I am delighted to be back in Spain. I want to thank the ambassador and Susan and Stephanie for their warm welcome.” -Ms. Clinton
She thanked the staff for their work on behalf of US-Spain important relationship and she said Spain is the United States ally and Spain is the United State’s friend. She added that both countries collaborate closely on every aspect of their foreign policy, from countering terrorism to supporting new democracies, to driving economic growth through bilateral trade and investment.
“Spain and the United States are working side by side, such as in Afghanistan, where Spanish troops have made great sacrifice, most recently with the loss of life and injury. And we are just incredibly grateful.” -Ms. Clinton
She thanked all of the U.S. Government team from the State Department and USAID, but from all the government agencies, from Defense and Commerce, and every other part of the U.S. Government.
“And I particularly want to thank our wonderful Spanish employees, because without you there would be no historical memory, and you do so much of what makes this embassy successful.” -Ms. Clinton
Ms. Clinton also thanked the volunteer from pitching in at English language classes to stocking food banks to supplying entertainment and fun for the children of inmates at a women’s prison.
“And thank you for protecting American citizens here in Spain, because you have so many students and so many tourists. And, of course, I learned from the ambassador today that we actually have more Spanish-speaking Americans than there are Spanish-speaking Spaniards. So you are going to keep drawing tens of thousands of Americans to this beautiful country.” -Ms. Clinton
She especially thanked Angelina Sebastian who has worked in the Embassy for more than 40 years. She said it is quite a remarkable history of service. She commended Ms. Sebastian for her work in the embassy for the American Government for a very long time.
