Tweeting Farewell on the Fourth

Tweeting about Munich's 4th of July celebration click to enlarge

More than 1000 invited guests from politics, business, religious communities and culture joined Consul General Eric Nelson and his team in celebrating the 233rd anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.  After the Munich Marine Security Guard Detachment had presented the colors, the Tigertones of Princeton University performed the "Star Spangled Banner".  The Bavarian State was represented by Dr. Beate Merk, State Minister of Justice.  Consul General Eric Nelson who is leaving Munich this summer, mentioned in his farewell remarks the importance of new media in communicating the diplomatic message. "New technology, used effectively and creatively, can be a game changer."  Guests had the opportunity to share their farewell thoughts for Consul General Nelson live through Twitter.

• 4th of July video
• "Ich komme aus Bayern." Consul General Nelson's remarks 
• Flip through our 4th of July photos


Second Lady, Dr. Jill Biden, visited U.S. troops in Bavaria over July 4th weekend.
"I wanted to say thank you to our troops for what they have done and to bring greetings from the administration," said Second Lady, Dr. Jill Biden, as she visited with U.S. troops and family members in Bavaria over the Independence Day weekend.
• Photo gallery: Dr. Jill Biden's visit to Bavaria

Bavarian-American Ties - Strong and Developing
June 23, 2009

Augsburger Allgemeine chief editor Rainer Bonhorst (right) with Consul General Nelson Photo by Thomas Schaller click to enlarge

In an interview with the regional newspaper Augsburger Allgemeine, Consul General Eric Nelson reflected on his three years in Bavaria and described the broad scope of Bavarian-American ties.  He specifically talked about the tremendous potential for Bavarian-American "green" cooperation in the alternative energy technology field.  During his farewell visit to Swabia, he also gave remarks to the Wirtschaftsjunioren at the Swabian Chamber of Commerce.  While in the area, he met with the Muslim community of Lauingen and visited the Lauingen mosque, one of the first in Bavaria with a minaret.  In his entry into the Golden Book of Lauingen he mentioned the city’s tradition of tolerance.

PROGRAMS AND EVENTS 

Selected Events 2009

President Obama's Trip to Germany
June 5, 2009

President Obama lays a rose in front of the gate at the former Buchenwald  concentration camp

President Barack Obama arrived in Dresden Thursday night, June 4. On June 5, he met for talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Dresden, visited the Frauenkirche, signed the city's Golden Book and gave apress conference together with Chancellor Angela Merkel. Afterwards, President Obama and Chancellor Merkel paid a visit to the former Nazi concentration camp Buchenwald. President Obama  concluded his trip to Germany with a visit to the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center where he met with wounded U.S. soldiers and hospital staff. | Dresden Press Conference Transcript | MDR TV | City of Dresden Official Visit Page | Buchenwald Memorial Site | Buchenwald Remarks | White House Blog Buchenwald

First 100 Days Interactive
April 30, 2009

Junior journalists networking Photo by Marianne Pidala click to enlarge

Munich Consul General Eric Nelson and Public Affairs Officer Kathryn Crockart led a press conference for junior journalists on the "First 100 Days" of the Obama administration.  The program, co-organized by Junge Presse Bayern (Young Press Bavaria) and Bildung Interaktiv (Education Interactive), was attended in person by 40 young journalists aged 15-25 and was simultaneously broadcast live online.  Junge Presse Bayern is a federation that links young and aspiring journalists across Bavaria. During the press conference at the consulate questions from the live and the online audience ranged from the financial crisis, the role of the first lady to the closure of Guantanamo. On April 29, Consul General made remarks on new aspects of American economic policy to an audience of 100 economic leaders at the Wirtschaftsbeirat.

"Munich meeting productive, sets stage for progress in Afghanistan."
April  1, 2009

"The world has not forgotten Afghanistan" Photo by Marianne Pidala click to enlarge

Prior to the upcoming NATO summit and in the wake of the International Conference on Afghanistan in The Hague, Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke met in Munich with representatives of 15 countries.  He continued talks on international efforts and cooperation in Afghanistan and launched a new commitment to a new U.S. strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton who attended the Afghanistan conference in The Hague yesterday said:  "This has been an important day because of the emphasis that the world community has placed on Afghanistan. And this conference has achieved everything we hoped it could. It has rallied and united the international community against al-Qaida, it has strengthened the United Nations, and it has increased our commitment to cooperate with every country represented here as we work to address our common challenge.  We have listened to leaders from around the world. We have heard them speak with a single voice. We all recognize the need to support the people of Afghanistan as they build up their security services, strengthen their economy and institutions, and work with their neighbors to build a safer region.
For the people of Afghanistan, I hope that this conference marks a new beginning."
• What’s New in the Strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan
• White Paper on U.S. Policy Toward Afghanistan and Pakistan
• Remarks by the President on a new strategy for Afghanistan and Pakistan

Up North
March 4/5, 2009

Kathryn Crockart in discussion with students Photo: Thomas Schaller click to enlarge

Public Affairs Officer Kathryn Crockart visited Northern Bavaria to conduct media interviews with regional papers in Bayreuth and Weiden.  While touring in Upper Franconia and the Upper Palatinate, Kathryn Crockart also participated in a joint school outreach program with Bavarian TV Broadcasting editor Dr. Stefan Meining on the Nazi period and the U.S. liberation in Kronach.  Students of the Kaspar-Zeuß-Gymnasium Kronach watched an historical documentary film on the Nazi period in the Upper Franconia region.  In the ensuing discussion about the time-historical context, Public Affairs Officer Kathryn Crockart answered questions from the students about how students in the U.S. learn about this period in history.  She also consulted and discussed further cooperation with the U.S. Army Garrison Grafenwöhr and the Joint Multinational Training Command.  

Swabian Trails
March 3, 2009 

Eric Nelson gets robotic ideas Photo: Kathryn Crockart click to enlarge

Consul General Eric Nelson and Public Affairs Officer Kathryn Crockart spent a full day in Augsburg conducting school outreach at Jakob-Fugger-Gymnasium and Augsburg International School.  The International School Augsburg (ISA) has started its operation in September 2005.   36 teachers of 16 different nationalities work under one roof.  The school’s mission is to create a welcoming school environment where open-mindedness and respect are fostered.  The Consul General and the Public Affairs Officer also visited KUKA – one of the world’s leading robot manufacturers with strong U.S. ties. Since building its first industrial robot in 1977, KUKA has earned an international reputation for robotic excellence.  The visit to Swabia also included an intercultural dialogue with the Alevite community. About 5,000 Alevites live in Augsburg.  The Augsburger Allgemeine newspaper covered the KUKA visit, and Turkish media were present with the Aleviten.   Consul General Eric Nelson concluded the day at a dinner hosted by Prince and Princess Hubertus and Alexandra Fugger von Babenhausen with Augsburg Lord Mayor Dr. Kurt Gribl (CSU) and State Secretary Franz Pschierer (CSU).
• "Der Diplomat und die Roboter": article in Augsburger Allgemeine

Congressional Delegation at NATO School and Marshall Center
February 20, 2009

From left: Deputy Commandant and Chief of Staff NATO School Colonel Enrico Werner, U.S. Representative John Tanner, NATO School Commandant Colonel James J. Tabak,  Command Sergeant Major Adjutant Chief Claude J. Schmitz Photo: NATO School click to enlarge

The U.S. congressional delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, led by Assembly President Representative John Tanner, met with the leadership and faculty of the NATO School and the George C. Marshall Center for European Center for Security Studies in Oberammergau and Garmisch, Germany.  It was the first Congressional Delegation ever to be received by the NATO school, which opened in 1953.
During their visit, the bipartisan U.S. delegation was briefed on NATO training programs, NATO and the European Union's relations with Russia, and the Alliance's ongoing stabilization and reconstruction mission in Afghanistan.  "The NATO School and Marshall Center are playing a crucial role in preparing the United States and its allies to face the evolving security challenges in the 21st century," said Tanner.  "These facilities' efforts to advance security and defense cooperation between allied governments are all the more critical in a time of global economic duress, when national governments face tightening budgets and increasingly transnational and asymmetric threats."  The NATO School, located in Oberammergau, is NATO's key training facility on the operational level. Since its inception over 55 years ago, the school has trained and educated more than 185,202 officers and civilians from Alliance member and partner countries.  The Marshall Center is a U.S.-German security studies institute tasked with advancing U.S. and German defense and security policies, assisting allied governments in combating global terrorism, and building defense capacity in allied and partner countries.  

"We will engage. We will listen. We will consult."
February 7, 2009

U.S. Vice President Biden and Bavarian Minister President Seehofer (left) click to enlarge Photo: Marc Ermer

On his first official visit abroad, U.S. Vice President Joe Biden attended the Munich Conference on Security Policy.   The Munich Conference on Security Policy is an annual gathering of government officials, foreign and defense policy experts and journalists to discuss Trans-Atlantic security issues.  Main agenda items for this year were Afghanistan, the future of NATO, European security, nuclear weapons and non-proliferation.  Vice President Biden delivered the first major foreign policy speech of this administration.  He stressed: "I come to Europe on behalf of a new administration, and an administration that's determined to set a new tone not only in Washington, but in America's relations around the world.  That new tone is rooted in a strong bipartisanship to meet these common challenges.  And we recognize that these challenges, the need to meet them, is not an opportunity -- not a luxury, but it's an absolute necessity."  He continues to say: "In sharing ideals and searching for partners in a more complex world, America and Europeans still look to one another before they look to anyone else."
• Photos>>>Photos>>>Photos
• "Our partnership has benefitted us all." Full text of Vice President Biden's remarks (pdf) 
• Check out the latest on the conference!
• Vice President Biden Biography

strong and competitive in the 21st century
January 24, 2009
In his first weekly address since being sworn in as the 44th president of the United States, President Barack Obama discusses how the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan will jump-start the economy. "This is not just a short-term program to boost employment," he said. "It’s one that will invest in our most important priorities like energy and education; health care and a new infrastructure that are necessary to keep us strong and competitive in the 21st century."In the address, President Obama also goes into detail, noting that the plan will update the U.S. electric grid by laying more than 3,000 miles of transmission lines; weatherize 2.5 million homes; protect health insurance for more than 8 million Americans in danger of losing their coverage; secure 90 major ports; renovate 10,000 schools; and triple the number of science fellowships. 

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Travel to the US?  Be sure to register before you go!
January 12, 2009

Interviewed by B5 aktuell editor Rüdiger Brandt, Consul General Nelson explains ESTA Photo: Thomas Schaller click to enlarge

As of January 12, 2009, all German travelers to the U.S. under the Visa Waiver program, have to register online before departure.   All Visa Waiver Program (VWP) travelers are now required to obtain a travel authorization via the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) prior to traveling to the U.S. under the VWP.  The VWP allows visitors from participating countries to travel to the U.S. for business or pleasure for 90 days or less without first obtaining a visa. ESTA is an automated system used to determine the eligibility of visitors to travel to the United States under the VWP. It requires the same information as the paper I-94W form that VWP travelers currently fill out en route to the U.S.  The online form is also available in German.  Consul General Eric Nelson explained ESTA procedures to Bayerischer Rundfunk B5 news radio channel. 
• ESTA fact sheet 
• B5 aktuell editor Rüdiger Brandt interviews Consul General Nelson
• Bayerisches Lokalradio interview with David Stewart, Minister Counselor for Consular Affairs, at the U.S. Embassy Berlin
• "Wir wollen die Grenzen sichern, aber unsere Türen offenhalten": article in Münchner Merkur
• "Mit ESTA in die USA": article in Münchner Merkur