Remarks by Ned L. Siegel, Ambassador-Designate to The Bahamas to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee:
I am honored to come before you as the President’s nominee to serve as the Ambassador of the United States of America to the Commonwealth of The Bahamas. I want to thank President Bush and Secretary Rice for their confidence and support in nominating me for this position. I also wish to thank the Members of the Senate and, in particular, this Committee, for the opportunity to come before you today.
I would like to introduce and acknowledge my family members who are here with me today – my wife and partner in life for 31 years, Stephanie. I am also honored to have my brother, Marc, and my nephew, Robert, joining us. I have been extremely fortunate to have had the love and support of my family in all of my endeavors, and I realize I would not be here today without them.
Over the years, I have had the opportunity to visit the Bahamas to celebrate various special family occasions. I have always considered The Bahamas as a special place, and my family and I have many fond memories of the Bahamas over the years. If confirmed, I look forward to creating many, many new ones.
The opportunity to appear before you today in this exceptional process can only be described as a privilege. This is not my first time to appear before a Senate Confirmation Committee, but I would like to share with the members of this Committee my qualifications to serve as the United States Ambassador to the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. From 1999 to 2004, I served as an appointee to the Board of Directors of Enterprise Florida, Inc. (EFI), a public-private partnership that acts as Florida’s primary organization for statewide economic development. The mission of EFI is “to diversify Florida’s economy and create better-paying jobs for its citizens by supporting, attracting and helping create business in innovative, high-growth industries.” I traveled to Israel on the Governor’s Trade Mission in 1999 and worked throughout my tenure to bring Israeli companies to Florida.
In 2003, I was nominated by the President and appointed to serve as a member of the Board of Directors of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, a position I currently hold. Throughout my tenure as an OPIC Director, I have been able to evaluate and approve projects that mobilized U.S. capital to provide people in developing countries with first-time access to credit for new small businesses and low and moderate income housing. These efforts have had a tangible effect on job creation and economic growth, helping to lift people from poverty – all carried out in cooperation with the private sector.
In September of 2006, I was again honored by the President to serve as a Public Delegate to the U.S. Mission to the United Nations and as a United States Representative to the 61st General Assembly. This was a unique opportunity to serve at an exceptional time in our efforts to build international support for U.S. policies through the United Nations. Through my experience at the U.N., I gained a greater appreciation for the strategy and preparation necessary to advance U.S. interests on the world stage. I also experienced first-hand the tremendous impact that small countries can have through their UN votes on the United States’ ability to carry out its foreign policy and enhance our national security. Without a doubt, my time as a delegate to the United Nations provided me an opportunity to gain exposure to the conduct of our nation's international affairs at the highest level, and thereby to sharpen my own diplomatic skills.
Through my experiences at Enterprises Florida, OPIC and the United Nations, I have acquired a broad knowledge of the political sensitivities of promoting sustainable investment while advancing U.S. foreign policy and development initiatives. That knowledge, coupled with my extensive business experience has prepared me to serve effectively as the United States Ambassador to the Commonwealth of The Bahamas, should I be confirmed. The United States and The Bahamas enjoy a close and productive bilateral partnership built on all four pillars of the President's Western Hemisphere Strategy: Bolstering security, strenghtening democracy, promoting prosperity and investing in people. Our shared interests, common commitment to the rule of law, and geographic proximity make The Bahamas one of our closest operational partners in the Western Hemishere.
The Bahamian public is broadly committed to the values that we as Americans hold dear – democratic governance, the rule of law, and respect for human rights. These shared values provide a firm foundation to build a productive partnership, but it is up to the Embassy to ensure that our message is heard and our actions are understood. If confirmed, my embassy team will step up efforts to explain, promote and defend U.S. policies and actions in order to build support for U.S. strategic goals in the region. We will focus our outreach efforts to support our counter-drug and crime efforts, promote greater public awareness of HIV/AIDS, encourage a stronger Bahamian international role on human rights and democracy, and promote improved education.
Should I be confirmed, I will work to improve the United States’ vital, cutting edge efforts to combat international crime, drugs and illegal migration. We will do this by maintaining full U.S. support for Operation Bahamas Turks and Caicos in a coordinated multi-national, multi-agency effort to combat international drug trafficking into and through The Bahamas. As a result of OPBAT's success, we have dramatically reduced the percentage of cocaine destined for the U.S. that flows through The Bahamas from a high of seventy percent in the 1980’s to the current level of less than ten percent.
Working together, the Royal Bahamas Defense Force and the U.S. Coast Guard monitor Bahamian and international waters for illegal migration. Our Comprehensive Maritime Agreement (CMA) allows Bahamian officials to ride on U.S. vessels while they patrol in order to be in position to authorize the boarding of vessels in Bahamian waters to pursue illegal migrant and drug traffickers. Our efforts to combat narcotics trafficking and shut down illegal migration also serve to close off pathways that could be used by terrorists. Last year alone, the U.S. and The Bahamas together interdicted 5,762 illegal migrants.
Secondly, I will ensure that Embassy Nassau's Consular Section continues to provide first-rate assistance to U.S. Citizens in the Bahamas and the Turks and Caicos Islands -- a protectorate of the United Kingdom, over which we have consular jurisdiction. Over 4 million U.S. citizens travel to or reside in The Bahamas every year, and I will work to expand outreach programs that educate both Bahamians and U.S. residents residing or visiting within the Bahamas so they have the information, services and protection they need to live, conduct business or travel between our countries. To protect the most vulnerable, we will intensify our dialogue with Bahamian authorities on sexual assault cases and work with police to prevent assaults, care for victims, and ensure effective prosecutions.
Thirdly, I will work to further improve United States efforts to work with the Bahamians to prevent and respond to terrorism. Cruise ships, vacation resorts, passenger jets, and commercial shipping vessels could all become potential terrorist targets if not secured and screened. The Freeport Container Port is one of the largest in the world and one of the closest foreign ports to the United States. In 2004 the United States signed a Memorandum of Understanding with The Bahamas to include Freeport in the U.S. Megaports Initiative to screen U.S.-bound cargo for radiological materials. In 2006 a Memorandum of Understanding for a Container Security Initiative (CSI) was concluded. Through CSI, over 90 percent of the cargo moving through Freeport -- one of the 25 busiest transshipment ports to the United States -- will be screened and suspicious containers will be segregated and searched. To expand our joint efforts to combat the threat of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, we will seek to conclude a Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) Ship Boarding Agreement. The Bahamas has the third largest ship registry in the world, and their participation in PSI is vital to its success.
Finally, should I be confirmed, I am looking forward to using my business experience and acumen to promote the prosperity that is essential to The Bahamas' continued stability and its ability to take on greater responsibilities as a multidimensional partner for the U.S. The Bahamas has the highest per capita income in CARICOM and its consumer market is attuned to U.S. products. Over 80% of Bahamian imports come from the United States, but competitors such as China and Brazil are working to increase their market shares. My Embassy team will seek to increase U.S. trade and investment in The Bahamas by linking Bahamian importers to U.S. suppliers, fostering Bahamian business development, and promoting U.S.-Bahamian business connections including through our outstanding National Guard State Partnership Program with the State of Rhode Island. We will continue to work with the Bahamas to promote energy diversification and sustainable tourism, fishing and agriculture. The Embassy will continue to promote legal and regulatory changes that will promote sustainable development, an important goal of United States policy.
Our relationship with The Bahamas is strong and vibrant. The Bahamas will continue to be an active partner in our efforts to stem the flow of illegal narcotics, prevent illegal migration, ensure the safety and security of American citizens abroad, combat potential terrorism, and promote prosperity and security in our hemisphere. Should I be confirmed, I look forward to building new areas of cooperation with one of our closest neighbors and to deepening one of our closest bilateral partnerships in the hemisphere. Throughout my life, the same threads have woven the successes in my family life, my business life and my philanthropic service life – those common threads being the ability to assess and understand situations, and to listen and manage people to achieve acceptable and positive results.
Thank you for the opportunity to appear before you today, and if confirmed, I look forward to working with you as the United States Ambassador to the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. I would be pleased to answer any questions you may have.
