Letters & Speeches
Remarks by Charge d’Affaires James R. Moore at the Independence Day Reception
Mr. Minister, fellow members of the diplomatic corps, other distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen – it is an honor to welcome you this evening to our celebration of the Independence Day of the United States of America. Thank you very much for coming.
First, let me say that Ambassador Blake sends his greetings to you from Washington. In his new position, he continues to follow events in Sri Lanka with great interest. His successor, Ambassador Patricia Butenis, looks forward to taking up her responsibilities in Colombo later this summer.
Tonight we observe the 233rd anniversary of our country’s Declaration of Independence. For Americans, this is a time to reflect on our history and celebrate the values that define our national character and culture. At embassies around the world, and homes across America, we gather with friends and colleagues and family to celebrate this occasion, and we are privileged that you could join us this evening.
Relations between the people of the people of the United States and people of Sri Lanka date back almost to the founding of our nation --- to 1789 when merchant ships from New England first sailed into your harbors.
1789 was a pivotal year for the United States. It was the year that our Constitution -- the document that unites us a nation and a people -- was ratified.
Ever since those first American sailors visited this island 220 years ago, our two countries have benefited greatly from partnerships and interaction between our peoples.
Over the past two centuries, countless Americans have visited and spent time in your country, including the industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie and Mark Twain, the well-known American humorist and writer. Both remarked on the natural beauty of this island and the friendliness of its people.
Later, in the 1950s, the American author Paul Bowles came for several consecutive years to Taprobane Island, a place that he found ideal for his writing.
Likewise, over the past two centuries, numerous Sri Lankans have visited and lived in the United States. Americans were introduced to the culture and traditions of Ceylon by your exposition at the St. Louis World’s Fair in 1904. And the Sri Lankan writer and art historian Ananda Coomaraswamy lived for many years in the United States and served as the curator of Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts.
Today, we continue to learn from each other, to experience one another’s culture, and to work together toward common goals.
Many of you have extensive firsthand experience of the United States – whether as businesspeople, diplomats, students, or tourists. For example, among tonight’s guests are representatives of the Sri Lanka’s business community. Collectively, you have helped to make the United States the leading export market for Sri Lankan goods and, at the same time, you have helped to establish Sri Lanka as an important destination for American goods and services.
Also with us this evening are several American professors and students who are living in Sri Lanka and learning about your country through the Fulbright program, as well as through the American Institute of Sri Lankan Studies.
Mr. Minister, let me assure you that the U.S. Embassy will continue to support strong people-to-people ties through a wide range of cultural exchange programs conducted by the American Center and through academic linkages between higher education institutions in the United States and Sri Lanka.
Also here tonight are representatives of US non-governmental organizations, such as Medical Teams International, that are providing much needed humanitarian assistance in northern Sri Lanka.
Through the commitment of all these individuals, American and Sri Lankan, the relationship between our two countries continues to expand and flourish.
Mr. Minister, 2009 is a watershed year for both for the United States and Sri Lanka. Today, both of our nations face momentous challenges and opportunities.
President Barack Obama took office as our 44th president less than six short months ago. In that period, he has several bold and difficult decisions to provide economic stimulus and to meet the challenges of the global economic downturn.
President Obama has moved forward with a major reduction in the U.S. military presence in Iraq. He has charted a new course for our country in the vitally important areas of global warming reduction and affordable health care.
In the case of Sri Lanka, under the leadership of President Mahinda Rajapaksa for the first time in more than a generation, all Sri Lankans today are living in a unified country, one in which the LTTE no longer controls any territory or coastline.
Your nation now has a unique opportunity to heal the wounds of a long conflict and to build a multicultural Sri Lanka that is truly united – united by -- and united in -- its diversity.
2009 brings a defining opportunity for the government and the people of Sri Lanka to articulate and implement a vision of how power and resources can be shared equitably among the Sinhalese, Tamil, and Muslim communities.
In this historic year, the United States is firmly committed to continuing its close relationship with Sri Lanka. USAID will be in the forefront of our continued efforts to support the Sri Lankan government and people in meeting the humanitarian needs of those affected by the conflict and in returning the internally displaced to their homes and communities as quickly as possible. My government will also provide significant assistance in the critically important area of demining.
Mr. Minister, distinguished guests, as we celebrate the two-hundred and thirty-third Independence Day of the United States, we also celebrate the bonds of friendship between our two countries, each with their own unique and rich cultural, social, and political traditions. We celebrate the close interaction among our people and institutions that has continued for many generations, enriching the people of the United States and Sri Lanka. And we celebrate the prospect of a bright and prosperous future for Sri Lanka, for which we strive together.
Mr. Minister, please join me in offering a toast to continued friendship and close cooperation between our countries and between the people of the United States and Sri Lanka.
Thank you very much.