Category: Aug2014

WASHINGTON, DC – On September 15, 2014, President Barack Obama will award the Medal of Honor to Army Command Sergeant Major Bennie G. Adkins and to Army Specialist Four Donald P. Sloat for conspicuous gallantry. Command Sergeant Major Adkins will receive the Medal of Honor for his actions while serving as an Intelligence Sergeant assigned…

President Barack Obama today announced the designation of a Presidential Delegation to Ankara, Turkey to attend the Inauguration of His Excellency Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, President-elect of the Republic of Turkey on August 28, 2014. Mr. Jess L. Baily, Chargé d’Affaires a.i. of the Embassy of the United States to the Republic of Turkey, will attend…

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the President’s Commission on White House Fellowships announced the appointment of the 2014-2015 Class of White House Fellows. The Fellows come from diverse backgrounds, varied professions, and have demonstrated a strong commitment to public service and leadership. The 2014-2015 Class of Fellows and their biographies are included in the following pages.…

Earlier today, Vice President Joe Biden called Iraqi Prime Minister-designate Haider al-Abadi.  The Vice President and Prime Minister-designate discussed ongoing military actions against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).   The Vice President observed that Iraq’s political progress to date has already brought about greater regional and international support and that efforts to…

Earlier today, Vice President Joe Biden called Iraqi Council of Representatives Speaker Salim al-Jabouri to discuss political and security developments in Iraq.  The Vice President and Speaker agreed on the importance of rapidly forming a new government that, once in place, can work to address the concerns of all of Iraq’s communities.   The Vice President…

Vice President Joe Biden called Iraqi Kurdistan Regional President Masoud Barzani today. The Vice President and President Barzani discussed ongoing military efforts against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. They agreed on the importance of continuing the historic cooperation underway between the Kurdish Peshmerga and the Iraqi security forces, which—with support from the…

For two years, we have kept Peter Theo Curtis, a U.S. citizen held hostage in Syria, in our thoughts and prayers. Today, we join his family and loved ones in welcoming his freedom. Theo is now safe outside of Syria, and we expect he will be reunited with his family shortly. Just as we celebrate…

WASHINGTON, DC — In this week’s address, the President highlighted the progress made towards rebuilding our economy, including the creation of nearly 10 million new private sector jobs in the past 53 months and the rise in the number of American exports to an all-time high. That growth is in part thanks to the actions…

Vice President Joe Biden spoke with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko about the situation in eastern Ukraine.  President Poroshenko informed the Vice President that most of the Russian military trucks that had unlawfully entered Ukraine the previous day had returned to Russia, and the Vice President commended Ukraine’s restraint in the face of Russia’s blatant provocation…

On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, we congratulate the people of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania on the 25th anniversary of The Baltic Way.  Today, we remember that as many as two million people joined hands on August 23, 1989 to form a human chain spanning nearly 400 miles from…