In case you hadn’t heard, that unofficial meeting between a visiting delegation of Syrian officials in Washington in a “private capacity” and a State Department “player to be named later” was abruptly cancelled yesterday. State Dept. spokesman Gonzalo Gallegos wins today’s Diplospeak Quote of the Day award with his explanation for why:
My understanding at that time was that they had requested it, that we had looked at the meeting, and we were going to meet with them. Today, conditions have changed, and we’re not going to be meeting with them.
Gonzalo will also be the second addition to my newly minted list of Favorite Foreign Policy Names, joining Turkey’s Foreign Minister, Ali Babacan.
Diplospeak Quote of the Day
“We are willing to make joint efforts with the U.S. to cohere to the dialogue and consultation mechanism and take each other’s concerns into consideration to better achieve mutual benefits.”
— Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao in remarks following his meeting with Condoleezza Rice.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, in talks with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Monday, called on the United States to take measures to stabilize its currency and prevent further slowdown of the global economy. . .
China was taking measures to safeguard its stable economic development and hoped the United States would overcome its credit crisis soon, Wen said, adding that China was willing to cooperate with the United States.
Thanks for sharing, Wen.
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