I will do everything in my power, if confirmed, to see that [the Dutch] happen.

I think the nonratification of that convention and the one on the rights of citizens with disabilities are just out of character with who we are.

the rebalance is an overwhelmingly positive refocusing and sharpening of the United States commitment and engagement to the Asia-Pacific region.

The Armed Services Committee of the Senate, when we passed the defense authorizing bill, unanimously supported an amendment that said sequester is foolish.

And is it the case that, in the past, there have been closures that have been reopened once the problem that led to the closure has, you know, reached some point of solution--acceptable solution?

The war in Bosnia did not end because the United Nations acted. It ended because President Clinton, backed by a bipartisan coalition in Congress, including Senator McCain, took robust action.

Neither India nor Pakistan want to see an insecure and unstable Afghanistan.

one of the things that is most troubling about Iran is the way they are trying to play all throughout the Americas

It was really a powerful one.

Would you agree that the commitment of the U.S. and NATO allies to a presence might have an effect upon the smoothness of the transition?

A nation that has been an ally of the United States since the 1770s, that is a predominantly Muslim nation, with a King who is a direct descendant of Mohammed, that has a strong track record of supporting the rights of religious…

A very grim reminder of the challenges of the job, but it sounds as if it was a job effectively done.

It would create more confidence among the Afghan population in the runup to the 2014 elections.

Israel is not perfect, but neither is the United States and neither is any of the member nations of the United Nations.

Is it still the position of the State Department that the best option for the training of embassy personnel in the future is a FASTC Center at Fort Pickett, VA?

If confirmed, working closely with him on the priorities that we have set for an Afghanistan that is stable, secure, and economically linked and integrated into its neighborhood is one that I will work diligently toward.

ultimately the answer is to find a political solution inside Syria.

We need to do a better job networking our alliances.

The bottom line is Prime Minister Abe in Japan has publicly committed to implementing the Futenma replacement plan in Okinawa.

We do not have a position on these territorial claims, but we need to be crystal clear and consistent that we will oppose efforts at coercion against partners and allies.

I applauded because I love the big goals, and I think we are sent here to do big things.

I lived in Honduras in 1980 and 1981 when it was a military dictatorship.

A goal like that of extreme poverty eradication in two decades is one that has to be done in partnership.

The public-private partnership approach, the data I see suggests now, you know, foreign aid dollars, if you look at a public-private, 10 to 15 percent is public, and 80 to 85 percent is private.

How much of the readiness in each of your divisions is related to the issue of the retrograding of equipment back from Afghanistan and then refurbishing and reusing that equipment?