WEBVTT 00:00.700 --> 00:03.260 - [Benjamin] Good Morning, thank you all for waiting. 00:03.260 --> 00:04.850 Welcome again to the Foreign Press Center. 00:04.850 --> 00:07.090 I'm Benjamin Weber, the director, and we are very, very 00:07.090 --> 00:11.230 pleased today to have a briefing today on SelectUSA. 00:11.230 --> 00:12.790 Now, before we begin, I should say 00:12.790 --> 00:15.320 I know that last week the headlines were filled 00:15.320 --> 00:18.403 with trade reporting, but I want to emphasize 00:18.403 --> 00:21.040 that for today we are talking about SelectUSA. 00:21.040 --> 00:24.050 If you have questions about other trade issues, 00:24.050 --> 00:26.150 I'll ask you, please, to send them to me instead, 00:26.150 --> 00:27.480 and we'll make sure that we route them either 00:27.480 --> 00:31.452 to the Department of Commerce or USTR as appropriate. 00:31.452 --> 00:34.980 SelectUSA is the premier annual even to facilitate 00:34.980 --> 00:37.920 job-creating business investment in the United States 00:37.920 --> 00:39.620 and to raise awareness of the critical role 00:39.620 --> 00:42.640 that foreign direct investment plays in the U.S. economy. 00:42.640 --> 00:45.488 To brief us on this topic, I'm very pleased to welcome. 00:45.488 --> 00:46.321 (coughs) 00:46.321 --> 00:47.850 Under Secretary for International Trade from the 00:47.850 --> 00:50.510 Department of Commerce, Mr. Gilbert B. Kaplan. 00:50.510 --> 00:53.500 He is a recognized expert on international trade 00:53.500 --> 00:57.070 with long experience both in government and legal practice. 00:57.070 --> 00:58.130 With that, I'll turn it over to him 00:58.130 --> 00:59.580 to make some opening remarks. 01:00.840 --> 01:01.673 - Good morning. 01:01.673 --> 01:05.330 Thank you, Benjamin, for your warm welcome and introduction, 01:05.330 --> 01:07.020 and thanks to the Foreign Press Center 01:07.020 --> 01:08.833 for hosting us this morning. 01:09.840 --> 01:13.350 I really appreciate the opportunity to join you today 01:13.350 --> 01:17.840 to highlight the upcoming SelectUSA Investment Summit 01:17.840 --> 01:21.320 and to tell you why this event and attracting foreign 01:21.320 --> 01:24.930 direct investment into the United States is such a priority 01:24.930 --> 01:28.080 for me and for our Department of Commerce and 01:28.080 --> 01:29.773 for our Government as a whole. 01:31.230 --> 01:34.760 The U.S. economy is strong, the strongest in the world 01:34.760 --> 01:37.170 and it continues to improve. 01:37.170 --> 01:41.270 We have seen incredible gains in the financial markets. 01:41.270 --> 01:45.240 U.S. unemployment levels continue to decrease, 01:45.240 --> 01:47.810 recently hitting the lowest levels recorded 01:47.810 --> 01:50.510 in nearly 20 years. 01:50.510 --> 01:52.810 Tax cuts, regulatory reforms, 01:52.810 --> 01:55.820 and other pro-growth initiatives enacted 01:55.820 --> 01:59.030 in the last 18 months are making the United States 01:59.030 --> 02:01.593 a better place than ever to do business. 02:02.610 --> 02:07.610 This is reflected by the more than $3.7 trillion 02:07.830 --> 02:11.700 of foreign direct investment stock in the United States, 02:11.700 --> 02:16.283 which remains the largest share of FDI in the world. 02:17.400 --> 02:21.550 Global CEOs rank the United States as the best place 02:21.550 --> 02:25.370 in the world for business investment for the sixth year 02:25.370 --> 02:28.730 in a row, based on the A.T. Kearney Foreign Direct 02:28.730 --> 02:31.083 Investment Confidence Index. 02:32.220 --> 02:36.330 President Trump has repeatedly said that the United States 02:36.330 --> 02:38.883 is open for business and we are. 02:40.290 --> 02:43.470 Next week, we will swing the shop doors open 02:43.470 --> 02:47.130 and welcome potential business investors from 02:47.130 --> 02:51.180 around the world to check out what we have to offer. 02:51.180 --> 02:53.563 This is why I'm here to talk to you today. 02:56.340 --> 03:01.340 The SelectUSA Investment Summit is the highest profile event 03:01.360 --> 03:05.653 facilitating foreign direct investment in the United States. 03:06.620 --> 03:09.780 The summit promotes the United States as a premier 03:09.780 --> 03:14.020 investment destination and connects qualified foreign firms 03:14.020 --> 03:17.750 with U.S. economic development organizations 03:17.750 --> 03:21.253 to facilitate business investment and job creation. 03:22.270 --> 03:25.990 The event attracts serious potential business investors 03:25.990 --> 03:29.190 and U.S. economic development leaders. 03:29.190 --> 03:32.520 Participants at the first four investment summits 03:32.520 --> 03:36.750 have announced nearly 93 billion in Greenfield FDI 03:38.020 --> 03:43.020 in the United States between October 2013 and September 2017 03:44.020 --> 03:47.853 supporting more than 140,000 jobs. 03:49.170 --> 03:53.380 The 2018 SelectUSA Investment Summit will continue 03:53.380 --> 03:56.800 the tradition of connecting global business investors 03:56.800 --> 03:59.190 with economic development officials 03:59.190 --> 04:02.033 from around the United States. 04:02.980 --> 04:06.210 50 U.S. states and territories will be represented 04:06.210 --> 04:07.830 at the summit. 04:07.830 --> 04:10.737 This year's Investment Summit theme is, 04:10.737 --> 04:14.550 "Invest here, grow here, succeed here." 04:14.550 --> 04:17.870 And I have some up-to-date statistics 04:17.870 --> 04:19.293 about the investment summit. 04:20.300 --> 04:25.300 So far we have 2846 registrants, over 1000 foreign firms 04:26.690 --> 04:30.430 from 60 markets are confirmed to attend the summit. 04:30.430 --> 04:35.430 This is expected to grow to 1200 firms from 64 markets. 04:36.070 --> 04:38.593 18 chiefs of mission confirmed: 04:41.630 --> 04:43.990 Ambassador Braithwaite from Norway, 04:43.990 --> 04:47.470 Ambassador Terry Branstad from China, 04:47.470 --> 04:50.740 Ambassador Scott Brown's comin' in from New Zealand, 04:50.740 --> 04:55.310 Ambassador Duke Buchan from Spain, Ambassador Kelly Craft, 04:55.310 --> 04:59.220 Canada, Ambassador Richard Grennel, Germany, 04:59.220 --> 05:01.960 Ambassador Peter Hoekstra, Netherlands, 05:01.960 --> 05:04.610 Ambassador Kenneth Juster, India, 05:04.610 --> 05:07.400 Ambassador Hans Klem, Romania, 05:07.400 --> 05:10.000 Ambassador Jamie McCourt, France, 05:10.000 --> 05:12.830 Ambassador Edward McMullen, Switzerland, 05:12.830 --> 05:15.720 Ambassador Geoffrey Pyatt, Greece, 05:15.720 --> 05:18.390 CDA Reese Smyth from Ireland 05:18.390 --> 05:21.370 and DCM Leslie Tsou from Israel, 05:21.370 --> 05:24.403 CDA Henry Wooster from Jordan. 05:25.350 --> 05:28.230 We have over 700 economic development officials 05:28.230 --> 05:32.270 from 49 states confirmed to attend the summit, 05:32.270 --> 05:35.350 and 10 U.S. governors are confirmed: 05:35.350 --> 05:38.270 Bevin from Kentucky, Bryant, Mississippi, 05:38.270 --> 05:43.170 Fallin, Oklahoma, Herbert, Utah, Hicklenlooper, Colorado, 05:43.170 --> 05:47.780 Holcomb, Indiana, Otter, Idaho, Ricketts, Nebraska, 05:47.780 --> 05:50.563 Rossello, Puerto Rico, and Walker, Wisconsin. 05:53.440 --> 05:55.670 These attendees have already scheduled more 05:55.670 --> 05:59.790 than 1200 meetings during which they will meet one-on-one 05:59.790 --> 06:02.930 to discuss potential business deals. 06:02.930 --> 06:07.680 In addition, SelectUSA is coordinating with U.S. EDOs 06:07.680 --> 06:12.290 to support 20 plus region and industry-specific SelectUSA 06:12.290 --> 06:14.940 Investment Summit spinoff events, 06:14.940 --> 06:18.513 either directly before or after the Investment Summit. 06:20.000 --> 06:23.140 These spinoff events will allow business investors 06:23.140 --> 06:26.040 to receive additional on-the-ground intel 06:26.040 --> 06:30.150 about U.S. investment opportunities and make connections 06:30.150 --> 06:32.883 with business leaders and local experts. 06:34.050 --> 06:36.770 The Investment Summit is where international business 06:36.770 --> 06:40.050 happens, and I hope many of you will attend 06:40.050 --> 06:41.843 and cover the event. 06:43.040 --> 06:47.193 There will be several deal announcements during the summit. 06:48.480 --> 06:52.250 In addition, the Investment Summit Matchmaking Tool, 06:52.250 --> 06:54.570 which we can describe in more detail, 06:54.570 --> 06:57.250 helps participants set up on-site meetings 06:57.250 --> 07:02.250 with key attendees and maximize their time at the event. 07:02.370 --> 07:05.490 The Exhibition Hall provides opportunities for networking, 07:05.490 --> 07:09.060 one-on-one matchmaking and other opportunities 07:09.060 --> 07:11.950 to make connections between businesses, 07:11.950 --> 07:13.780 economic development teams, 07:13.780 --> 07:16.623 U.S. Government staff and service providers. 07:17.620 --> 07:20.900 SelectUSA investment counselors and investment-focused 07:20.900 --> 07:24.290 staff from relevant U.S. Government agencies 07:24.290 --> 07:27.090 provide one-on-one counseling to support business 07:27.090 --> 07:30.370 investors and economic developers. 07:30.370 --> 07:33.890 And the Select USA Investment Academy is a full day 07:33.890 --> 07:37.410 interactive program providing educational sessions 07:37.410 --> 07:41.240 for business investors and economic development officials 07:41.240 --> 07:42.420 looking to make the most 07:42.420 --> 07:44.643 of their Investment Summit experience. 07:46.970 --> 07:50.910 I hope that many of you and your colleagues attend 07:50.910 --> 07:52.860 this year's Investment Summit. 07:52.860 --> 07:54.970 Applying for a press pass is simple. 07:54.970 --> 07:59.970 You can visit SelectUSASummit.u-s and click apply. 08:01.200 --> 08:05.223 And my team is here to help with any registration questions. 08:06.460 --> 08:08.670 With that, I will gladly take your questions 08:08.670 --> 08:12.343 and Seth Eisenberg from the SelectUSA team, 08:13.600 --> 08:15.170 he's been a member of that team nearly 08:15.170 --> 08:17.620 from the very beginning of the program, 08:17.620 --> 08:20.940 will help me out on some of the more technical questions. 08:20.940 --> 08:22.430 Thank you very much. 08:22.430 --> 08:23.630 - [Benjamin] Thank you very much, sir. 08:23.630 --> 08:26.480 Okay, the Under Secretary has only a very brief window 08:26.480 --> 08:29.580 so, in addition to our typical rules that we ask you 08:29.580 --> 08:31.500 to wait for the mic and then identify yourself 08:31.500 --> 08:33.210 by name and outlet when you get it, 08:33.210 --> 08:35.290 please do limit yourself to one question 08:35.290 --> 08:38.410 and, again, the topic for today will be SelectUSA. 08:38.410 --> 08:40.970 If you have other trade questions, please contact me 08:40.970 --> 08:42.580 or one of my colleagues and we'll get it to the people 08:42.580 --> 08:43.880 who can answer it for you. 08:50.100 --> 08:51.070 - [Nadia] Hi, Mr. Secretary. 08:51.070 --> 08:52.130 Thank you for doing this. 08:52.130 --> 08:54.850 My name is Nadia Chou, Washington Correspondent 08:54.850 --> 08:56.460 for the Beijing Times. 08:56.460 --> 08:58.140 First of all, my question is, 08:58.140 --> 09:00.740 this is a policy that initiated 09:00.740 --> 09:03.460 by Obama Administration and then Trump Administration 09:03.460 --> 09:08.120 decided to continue, which means that it might be, 09:08.120 --> 09:11.020 in your assessment, it's productive. 09:11.020 --> 09:14.600 Could you give us some concrete number all this year 09:14.600 --> 09:19.230 after SelectUSA, how many FDI have you actually attract? 09:19.230 --> 09:20.340 Thank you. 09:20.340 --> 09:23.070 - Well, some of that will be discussed at the summit. 09:23.070 --> 09:24.490 So this is like the preview. 09:24.490 --> 09:28.560 We can't give you all the big, you know, actually, news, 09:28.560 --> 09:31.270 but this will be discussed at the actual summit, 09:31.270 --> 09:34.310 and Secretary Ross will discuss that in more detail. 09:34.310 --> 09:36.630 But as I know, the participants at the first four 09:36.630 --> 09:40.080 investment summits, for the last four years, 09:40.080 --> 09:43.820 have announced nearly 93 billion in Greenfield FDI 09:43.820 --> 09:48.427 in the United States between October 2013 and September 2017 09:49.340 --> 09:52.233 supporting more than 140,000 jobs. 09:53.310 --> 09:54.730 - [Benjamin] Let me go to New York, please. 09:54.730 --> 09:55.563 Sir, go ahead. 09:56.840 --> 09:57.700 - [Manik] Yeah. 09:57.700 --> 10:01.670 This is Manik Matta, I'm a syndicated journalist. 10:01.670 --> 10:05.210 You have certain sectors, which are considered 10:05.210 --> 10:09.980 to be priority sectors, notably aerospace, logistics. 10:09.980 --> 10:12.440 Could you give some more info on that, 10:12.440 --> 10:16.850 and also provide details about tax holidays 10:16.850 --> 10:19.780 and other benefits for foreign investors? 10:19.780 --> 10:20.613 Thank you. 10:22.700 --> 10:26.170 - Well, we're looking across an enormous number of sectors. 10:26.170 --> 10:31.170 There's certainly some specific programs on space and 10:32.370 --> 10:36.490 infrastructure that are occurring at the investment summit, 10:36.490 --> 10:38.560 but we're looking across the entire economy. 10:38.560 --> 10:43.560 There are people coming from almost every possible sector. 10:43.570 --> 10:46.760 In terms of tax holidays and the like, 10:46.760 --> 10:48.480 there'll be a lot of discussion about that. 10:48.480 --> 10:51.580 Secretary Mnuchin will be talking about tax 10:51.580 --> 10:53.510 as will other people. 10:53.510 --> 10:56.000 Maybe not so much tax holidays, but about the fact 10:56.000 --> 10:59.590 that the Unites States has dramatically lowered 10:59.590 --> 11:04.590 its corporate income tax rates just a few months ago now 11:05.030 --> 11:07.810 making the United States highly competitive 11:07.810 --> 11:09.580 with respect to tax. 11:09.580 --> 11:12.970 Also, many of the states will be there and many 11:12.970 --> 11:17.080 of the states have very beneficial tax programs 11:17.080 --> 11:18.893 to attract foreign investment. 11:20.890 --> 11:22.480 - [Benjamin] Yes. 11:22.480 --> 11:23.523 - [Luyu] Thank you. 11:23.523 --> 11:25.400 Luyu from Hong Kong Phoenix TV. 11:25.400 --> 11:29.640 My question is, you mentioned the U.S. Ambassador to China, 11:29.640 --> 11:31.083 Branstad, will be here. 11:31.990 --> 11:36.370 At the same time, the U.S. Administration is considering 11:36.370 --> 11:39.710 putting trade restrictions and investment restrictions 11:39.710 --> 11:43.503 on China, so what kind of message are you trying to send 11:43.503 --> 11:45.910 to the Chinese investors? 11:45.910 --> 11:47.270 Thank you. 11:47.270 --> 11:52.270 - Well, this summit is about investment in the United States 11:52.470 --> 11:57.470 and we are open for investment from any country, 11:58.170 --> 12:01.240 and, of course, there are some restrictions 12:01.240 --> 12:02.800 under CFIUS and other things. 12:02.800 --> 12:04.670 Those will be looked at with respect to China 12:04.670 --> 12:06.350 and any other investors. 12:06.350 --> 12:09.570 But we are open for investment. 12:09.570 --> 12:13.780 We think every country would find it very beneficial 12:13.780 --> 12:17.220 to invest here because we have such a strong market, 12:17.220 --> 12:21.360 a very large market, a very strong business climate, 12:21.360 --> 12:26.360 and so many resources: clean water, clean air, 12:26.630 --> 12:30.570 great workforce, regulatory reform going on. 12:30.570 --> 12:35.560 And we welcome investment from all countries. 12:35.560 --> 12:37.090 - [Benjamin] Take one more in Washington 12:37.090 --> 12:38.590 and then we'll go to New York. 12:40.920 --> 12:43.380 - [Chung] I'm Chung Chu with China's Taishin Media. 12:43.380 --> 12:46.320 I wanted to ask of the influence of a particular case 12:46.320 --> 12:48.960 you would thing that would have impact on investors, 12:48.960 --> 12:50.640 which is about ZTE. 12:50.640 --> 12:53.190 So the Administration has made a decision 12:53.190 --> 12:56.930 to choose another way, alternative penalty, 12:56.930 --> 12:59.640 but Congress is trying to reverse that. 12:59.640 --> 13:03.250 Are you concerned that their efforts on this regard and 13:03.250 --> 13:06.460 what message would you think we send to investors as 13:06.460 --> 13:08.370 Administration has made one decision, 13:08.370 --> 13:11.120 but it seems like Congress will oppose it. 13:11.120 --> 13:14.080 This uncertainty, are you worried that would 13:15.607 --> 13:17.690 scare off Chinese investors, 13:17.690 --> 13:20.310 especially in high-tech sectors? 13:20.310 --> 13:21.143 Thank you. 13:22.771 --> 13:25.920 - I think that's a question you might wanna 13:25.920 --> 13:28.380 put in writing or however to Benjamin and we'll get 13:28.380 --> 13:29.913 that to the right people. 13:32.060 --> 13:36.090 - [Benjamin] Let's go to New York and then we'll come back. 13:36.090 --> 13:38.990 - Good Morning, Under Secretary Gilbert Kaplan, 13:38.990 --> 13:41.770 my name is Ditu Kura and I'm with the Tribune Online 13:41.770 --> 13:42.703 here in India. 13:45.460 --> 13:47.750 I'm keen to know that, what kind of investment 13:47.750 --> 13:50.830 are you looking from India because President Trump 13:50.830 --> 13:55.110 is focusing on investment in USA and similarly 13:55.110 --> 13:57.320 Indian Prime Minsiter is focused on investment 13:57.320 --> 14:00.613 in India, so how do you see this? 14:01.750 --> 14:04.620 Because a lot of Indians are interested in investing 14:04.620 --> 14:08.210 abroad, especially in USA, but there are also reports 14:08.210 --> 14:11.300 that sometimes they do not understand the system. 14:11.300 --> 14:12.450 Especially I'm talking about, 14:12.450 --> 14:15.483 if you talk about small scale and medium scale industry. 14:16.810 --> 14:17.760 - [Gilbert] Do you know how many people are 14:17.760 --> 14:18.593 coming from India? 14:18.593 --> 14:20.463 It's one of our largest delegations. 14:21.350 --> 14:26.350 There are 93 investors, representative government officials 14:26.860 --> 14:29.700 coming from India and I just met with a large group 14:29.700 --> 14:31.450 from the Indian Government a couple days ago. 14:31.450 --> 14:34.180 I would be really reluctant to specify 14:34.180 --> 14:35.760 any one kind of investment. 14:35.760 --> 14:38.490 This is, I think, one of our biggest groups. 14:38.490 --> 14:40.810 We're very happy to have Indian investment 14:40.810 --> 14:41.770 coming to the United States. 14:41.770 --> 14:45.470 And we welcome big investment, but we also welcome 14:45.470 --> 14:48.260 investment by small and medium enterprises. 14:48.260 --> 14:51.620 And smaller ventures, those are obviously the backbone 14:51.620 --> 14:55.050 of the United States job base and the United States economy, 14:55.050 --> 14:56.730 so this summit is not just 14:56.730 --> 15:01.620 about enormous Greenfield manufacturing plants. 15:01.620 --> 15:04.020 It's about all kinds of investment from abroad 15:04.020 --> 15:06.240 into the United States. 15:06.240 --> 15:07.730 - [Benjamin] Right, I'm gonna take one here 15:07.730 --> 15:09.180 and then we'll come up front. 15:11.030 --> 15:11.863 - [Deng] Thank you. 15:11.863 --> 15:13.382 I'm Deng Lao Shu with China Daily. 15:13.382 --> 15:16.740 In the past few years, the Chinese delegation has been 15:16.740 --> 15:19.870 the largest group in the SelectUSA Summit. 15:19.870 --> 15:22.000 I just want to know if you can review the numbers 15:22.000 --> 15:24.970 of Chinese delegates to this year's summit. 15:24.970 --> 15:28.460 And some of the Chinese investors were featured 15:28.460 --> 15:29.970 in the past summit. 15:29.970 --> 15:33.000 Is there any special programs this year? 15:33.000 --> 15:33.833 Thank you. 15:33.833 --> 15:34.666 - How many? 15:36.411 --> 15:39.560 - [Benjamin] Can you quote this figure? 15:39.560 --> 15:40.800 - [Seth] I don't know the exact numbers 15:40.800 --> 15:43.390 for the Chinese delegation, but we're over 100 15:43.390 --> 15:46.110 and it's right now, again, one of the largest, 15:46.110 --> 15:49.860 so it's probably maintaining the same number 15:49.860 --> 15:51.777 as last time's numbers. 15:52.780 --> 15:53.613 - [Benjamin] Thank you. 15:53.613 --> 15:54.446 I will take one more here 15:54.446 --> 15:56.240 and then I'm afraid we are out of time. 15:57.120 --> 15:59.230 - [Dmitry] Dmitry Kirsanov, TASS. 15:59.230 --> 16:02.770 Sir, I wanted to ask you about the Trump Administration's 16:02.770 --> 16:07.770 approach to Russia in the business sphere. 16:08.040 --> 16:11.170 The message seems to be a bit schizophrenic. 16:11.170 --> 16:15.270 Ambassador Huntsman just attended Saint Petersburg 16:15.270 --> 16:17.250 International Economic Forum. 16:17.250 --> 16:20.310 He was publicly speaking about the need and necessity 16:20.310 --> 16:23.080 to further expand economic ties. 16:23.080 --> 16:26.020 You have spoken about how it's time to do that now. 16:26.020 --> 16:29.830 At the same time, there is a current crunch of sanctions 16:29.830 --> 16:32.577 and such, so what exactly is going on? 16:32.577 --> 16:34.770 Are you trying to expand it or 16:36.800 --> 16:38.520 to do something on the contrary? 16:38.520 --> 16:41.110 And is there any delegation from Russia? 16:41.110 --> 16:43.552 I don't think you mentioned Ambassador Huntsman. 16:43.552 --> 16:44.890 He was not on the list. 16:44.890 --> 16:45.923 Anybody else? 16:50.850 --> 16:52.360 - [Seth] We don't currently have delegates 16:52.360 --> 16:54.207 from Russia at this time. 16:55.407 --> 17:00.290 - And I would just say that, obviously, the sanctions are 17:00.290 --> 17:05.290 an issue and I think we certainly are very concerned 17:06.110 --> 17:08.660 about a variety of issues related to Russia, 17:08.660 --> 17:11.390 but the general issue of U.S., Russia relations, 17:11.390 --> 17:14.820 again, I'd ask you to refer that to Benjamin 17:14.820 --> 17:18.303 and we'll get an answer to that from you. 17:19.304 --> 17:20.740 - [Benjamin] I apologize. 17:20.740 --> 17:23.280 We did say at the start that we had a very limited window 17:23.280 --> 17:24.980 and I'm afraid we have to stop now, 17:24.980 --> 17:27.190 but if you do have additional questions, 17:27.190 --> 17:29.290 if you can please send them to me by email. 17:29.290 --> 17:31.380 I will make sure they get either to the Under Secretary's 17:31.380 --> 17:33.470 team or if they're trade issues, 17:33.470 --> 17:35.120 perhaps they're better directed to USTR. 17:35.120 --> 17:36.120 We can do that, as well. 17:36.120 --> 17:37.820 Thank you very much to the Under Secretary 17:37.820 --> 17:39.470 for joining us today. - Thank you. 17:39.470 --> 17:41.810 - [Benjamin] And thank you all for coming out. 17:41.810 --> 17:43.270 One additional announcement. 17:43.270 --> 17:46.370 As you turn around and see a lot of faces in the back. 17:46.370 --> 17:48.790 These are interns working at the Bureau of Public Affairs 17:48.790 --> 17:52.620 this summer learning about the work that we do, 17:52.620 --> 17:54.680 and we'd love to give them the chance to perhaps 17:54.680 --> 17:56.340 have a word with you, as well. 17:56.340 --> 17:59.130 To entice you do so, we put some coffee and refreshments 17:59.130 --> 18:00.540 in the back. 18:00.540 --> 18:03.020 Drinking our coffee or eating our cake constitutes 18:03.020 --> 18:04.040 acceptance of the fact 18:04.040 --> 18:06.520 that this is an off-the-record event. 18:06.520 --> 18:08.210 Thank you very much. 18:08.210 --> 18:09.100 - Thank you very much. 18:09.100 --> 18:10.950 And we hope to see you at the summit.