VIDEO: 20th Anniversary of Estonian Independence from USSR

By Hillary Clinton

Happy 20th anniversary, Estonia! On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I am delighted to congratulate each of you as you celebrate the restoration of your country’s independence.

Today, we honor the heroes who stood up for freedom 20 years ago – without resorting to violence or aggression. On August 20, 1991, with Soviet troops descending on Tallinn, your Supreme Council declared the reestablishment of Estonia as an independent state. This heroic move gave Estonia back its freedom after 50 years of violent oppression and tyranny.

Reclaiming your independence without the use of force took great courage. But your accomplishments in the years since have been equally inspiring. You have continued to set an example for the world -- first negotiating the withdrawal of Russian troops, and then rebuilding after the damage of years of communist occupation.

Today, Estonia is a shining example for countries around the world yearning for democracy and economic opportunity. Your successes give hope to those in the Middle East and North Africa who are looking to fulfill their own aspirations and realize their own potential.

So as you celebrate this special day with family, friends and loved ones, please know that the United States stands with you – now as we have in the past – standing with you as an ally, a partner and a friend. We are committed to your future and we look forward to strengthening our already strong partnership in the years to come. Thank you very much.

On the Occasion of Hungary's National Day

Hillary Rodham Clinton

On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I congratulate the people of Hungary as you celebrate Saint Stephen’s Day this August 20th.

This June I visited Budapest to participate in the inauguration of the Lantos Institute and reaffirm the commitment of the United States to Hungary's future. Americans and Hungarians share a history of mutual respect and values. Today, we are NATO allies, strong economic partners, and we are working to protect and promote democracy and human rights. Together we are working to foster greater stability in Afghanistan, Kosovo, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and other countries around the world. In your own country you are continuing to work toward reforms that will help strengthen your economy and eliminate corruption. The United States stands with you as you strive to preserve democratic institutions and set an example for other countries as they work to establish their own democracies, create open and pluralistic societies, and promote human rights.

As you honor your rich history on this special day, know that the United States sends best wishes to all Hungarians for continued peace and prosperity in the year to come.

Note: For many years Hungary, much like Bosnia and even Afghanistan, was occupied by Soviet troops who held no qualms with indiscriminately killing civilians who were deemed to be “counter-revolutionary.”

Republic of Korea's Independence Day

August 15th is the anniversary of the establishment of the Republic of Korea (South Korea), much to the chagrin of North Korea, the People's Republic of China, and the Soviet Union.

Hillary Rodham Clinton:

On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I am delighted to send heartfelt congratulations to the people of the Republic of Korea as you celebrate your Independence this August 15.

Our deeply rooted partnership, founded on a shared history and common values, has made both our nations and the region more prosperous and secure. Together, we are collaborating on a wide range of issues -- from strengthening regional security, to expanding trade, to harnessing the potential for green growth and sustainable development. And I am confident that together we will continue to tackle even more challenges and seize more opportunities.

Whether you are celebrating this special day with family, friends or loved ones, I wish all Koreans around the world continued peace and prosperity in the year to come.

Korea: Reunion of Korean-Americans with Family in DPRK

Office of the Spokesperson

Washington, DC

Question Taken at the August 11, 2011 Daily Press Briefing

Question: Would the U.S. support face-to-face meetings between North Korean families who fled to the U.S. during the war and are still living here and their family members still in the DPRK?

Answer: The United States would welcome efforts to reconnect Korean-Americans separated from their family members in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) since the end of the Korean War.

As part of their humanitarian mission, the American Red Cross facilitates reconnecting families around the globe, and this would potentially include Korean-Americans with relatives in the DPRK. We refer you to the American Red Cross for more details on their Restoring Family Links services.

Vietnam: Conviction of Blogger Pham Minh Hoang

Office of the Spokesperson (Taken Question)

Washington D.C.

Question: Do you have a comment about the French-Vietnamese lecturer and blogger who is currently on trial in Vietnam?

Answer: We are dismayed by Vietnam’s conviction of French-Vietnamese blogger Pham Minh Hoang to three years in prison and three years under house arrest. No individual should be prosecuted for exercising the right to freedom of opinion and expression. Vietnam’s prosecution of individuals for expressing their views contradicts the government’s commitment to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Human rights are and will remain a key component of our relationship with Vietnam.

Check out this Vietnam War book which exposes how this type of civil rights and human rights abuse by the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is NOTHING new or out of the ordinary.

Marx and Engels quotes on War, Terror, and Genocide

Did you not read our articles about the June revolution, and was not the essence of the June revolution the essence of our paper?  Why then your hypocritical phrases, your attempt to find an impossible pretext?  We have no compassion and we ask no compassion from you. When our turn comes, we shall not make excuses for the terror. But the royal terrorists, the terrorists by the grace of God and the law, are in practice brutal, disdainful, and mean, in theory cowardly, secretive, and deceitful, and in both respects disreputable.

--Karl Marx, in the final issue of Neue Rheinische Zeitung (18 May 1849) Marx-Engels Gesamt-Ausgabe, Vol. VI, p. 503

"Until its complete extermination or loss of national status, this racial trash always becomes the most fanatical bearer there is of counter-revolution, and it remains that. That is because its entire existence is nothing more than a protest against a great historical revolution... The next world war will cause not only reactionary classes and dynasties, but also entire reactionary peoples, to disappear from the earth. And that too is progress." -Karl Marx, 1849, Neue Rheinische Zeitung.

"The classes and the races too weak to master the new conditions of life must give way.... They must perish in the revolutionary holocaust." -Karl Marx (Marx People's Paper, April 16, 1856, Journal of the History of Idea, 1981)

“To the sentimental phrases about brotherhood which we are being offered here on behalf of the most counter-revolutionary nations of Europe, we reply that hatred of Russians was and still is the primary revolutionary passion among Germans; that since the revolution hatred of Czechs and Croats has been added, and that only by the most determined use of terror against these Slav peoples can we, jointly with the Poles and Magyars, safeguard the revolution. We know where the enemies of the revolution are concentrated, viz. in Russia and the Slav regions of Austria, and no fine phrases, no allusions to an undefined democratic future for these countries can deter us from treating our enemies as enemies. Slav nationality leaves the revolution entirely out of account, then we too know what we have to do” –Engles, Neue Rheinische Zeitung No. 223, February 16, 1849

DPRK: Divided Families

(Taken Question for Mark C. Toner, Office of the Spokesperson)

Question: Does the State Department have any comment on the possibility of a letter exchange between a small number of North Koreans and their family members living in the United States? Can the Department confirm that a letter exchange will occur? What details do we have about the agreement?

Answer: The United States remains concerned about the issue of Korean-Americans separated from their family members in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) since the end of the Korean War. We continue to do all that we can to raise this issue in relevant fora.

We regularly meet with the American Red Cross to discuss possibilities and modalities to reconnect Korean-Americans with relatives in the DPRK. As part of their humanitarian mission, the American Red Cross facilitates reconnecting families around the globe. We refer you to the American Red Cross for more details on their Restoring Family Links services.