U.S. Department of State
95/10/29 Remarks at American Business Delegation Reception
Office of the Spokesman

 
                         U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE 
                          Office of the Spokesman 
 
                             (Amman, Jordan) 
______________________________________________________________________ 
For Immediate Release						October 29, 1995 
 
 
                            JOINT STATEMENTS BY 
                  SECRETARY OF STATE WARREN CHRISTOPHER  
                                    AND 
                   SECRETARY OF COMMERCE RONALD BROWN  
         AT RECEPTION FOR THE AMERICAN BUSINESS DELEGATION 
                       TO THE AMMAN ECONOMIC SUMMIT 
 
                             Marriott Hotel 
                             Amman, Jordan 
 
 
AMBASSADOR EGAN:  Ladies and Gentlemen:  My name is Wes Egan. I am your 
American Ambassador in Jordan.  (applause).  It is a great pleasure to 
welcome all of you to Amman, to the Amman Summit, and to the courtesy 
and the great hospitality at the Marriott Hotel which has been very good 
to the American Delegation over the last twenty four hours since we 
arrived.  It is a great pleasure to welcome you.  It is an even greater 
pleasure to welcome the Honorable Warren Christopher, Secretary of State 
and the Honorable Ron Brown, Secretary of Commerce who have joined for a 
bit this evening.  I believe Secretary of State Christopher has a few 
remarks he would like to make first. 
 
SECRETARY CHRISTOPHER:  Thank you, Wes.  Well, we are running on Middle 
East time.  I am sorry we got a little behind, but the result of this is 
a happy one for you because I have thrown away my fort-five minute 
speech and I just going to thank you very much all for coming.  You are 
what makes this go.  Governments can provide the foundation, but it is 
business that really does the job.  I am so grateful that all of you are 
here.  And, I am grateful for the good talk I hear around the corridors 
in the deals that have been announced.  It is a real tribute to the 
American business that you have the courage and determination to be out 
here. 
 
We are trying very hard to help.  When I say we, I mean a unified 
government team.  I thought it was a nice tough that the first person 
that started clapping by the name of our Ambassador was Secretary of 
Commerce.  I think that's some reflection of the fact of how closely Ron 
Brown, I, and others are working together on this.  It is a unified 
team.  Phil Lader, the Small Businesses Administration has been 
reflected.  Is Phil here someplace?  I know he has been with us.  Ruth 
Harkin of OPIC has been delayed on her flight in Brussels.  I know that 
she will be here tonight.  The Trade and Development Administration is 
heavily involved.  We want to make clear to you that our Administration 
is friendly to business.  We want to do all we can to help business. 
 
Without reaching over too hard to pat myself on the back, I think this 
is the best relationship between the State Department and the Commerce 
Department, probably in history.  Certainly, it is a very good one.  
That is what American business deserves.  You've made a big difference 
here.  I think we have an opportunity to capitalize on Casablanca and to 
move it forward.  Frankly, after Casablanca last year I was worried.  I 
was worried whether that might be the top of curve, and we couldn't 
sustain it.  Now I am satisfied that not only are we going to be able to 
do the three things we committed do in Casablanca -- that is to set up 
the bank, set up the tourism association, set up the business 
association -- but we can move beyond that to new areas of cooperation.  
So, it is a very good session, a very good scene.  I have just come from 
meeting with the King, who I think, is justifiably proud with what's 
been done here in Amman. 
 
One of the nice things that is happening here is people are beginning to 
compete for future events like this.  A number of countries that want to 
host next year's event are even talking about 1997 events.  With the 
heavy competition growing on where the bank will be located, where 
various elements are located. That's the measure, I think, of the 
success of these endeavors.  I say it all comes down to the activities 
that you have on the ground.  I know that you are not here, at least, my 
experience with American businesses is that they have their eye on the 
ball and they are because they think that there are opportunities.  You 
have an opportunity but you also have a chance to participate in 
probably the most historic transformation of any region we've seen in a 
long, long time.  You just couldn't imagine two years ago a conference 
like this taking place.  I was watching King Hussein and Prime Minister 
Rabin sitting together at lunch today.  They acted like they had been 
friends for forty years.  It was a very close relationship between the 
two of them.  I think there is more progress made between Jordan and 
Israel in the last year than has been made with almost any other pair of 
countries.  That is all good news.  I hope that this means good things 
for you.  
 
Now with a great deal of pleasure, I introduce my partner in this 
endeavor, Ron Brown, Secretary of Commerce. 


 
SECRETARY BROWN:  Let me just say that you are the reason that we are 
here.  One of the things that was most pleasing to me is that Secretary 
Warren Christopher some months ago approached me and asked me to be here 
with him in Amman.  I think that gives you a signal that reinforces what 
Secretary Christopher said about our relationship.  But, the 
relationship goes more than just between two individuals, and between 
two departments in the Federal Government.  It permeates throughout the 
Clinton Administration. 
 
The fact is that our commercial offices are working more closely with 
our Ambassadors than ever before.  We're all part of the same team, 
pulling in the same direction, some people tell me for the first time in 
recent American history.  And, it's all agencies of our government 
working together because we understand a simple truth.  That is, it is 
the private sector that fuels the engine that pulls the train of 
economic growth and job creation.  We in government have a role to play 
as well.  That role is to clear the tracks so that that train can run 
smoothly and swiftly, so it can get to its destination so we can remove 
any barriers that get the way.  That's the kind of partnership that we 
have attempted to create with you.  We believe it's working.  We believe 
that its making a difference.  The fact is that is the way business is 
done in this new global economy.  Unless we have a partnership between 
the public and private sector we're not going to be able to achieve our 
objectives.  We believe in not only a competing in the global economic 
arena but in winning in the global economic arena.  That can only happen 
if your government stands shoulder to shoulder with you to help be 
strong and effective advocates for your interest, not for any 
philosophical reasons or ideological reasons, but because we want to be 
relentlessly programmatic in doing what is best for the American 
economy.  Therefore, it behooves us to see economic growth in Jordan, 
economic growth in Gaza, economic growth in Israel, economic growth all 
over this region, not only because it helps the people of this region 
improve their lives, but it provides a great market for our goods and 
products and services so we can export more so we can supply some of the 
capital goods for these major infrastructure projects.  To show that 
we're more than just talk that we're serious, we have produced what we 
call an opportunities book which has in it over a hundred opportunities 
here in this region that we want to share with you that we hope that you 
will pursue.  We hope we can coordinate and communicate with you so that 
we can be advocating your interests as you pursue those opportunities. 
 
You all know that particularly in the developing world it remains the 
case that the most important decisions are made by government officials.  
So, it stands to reason that when your government officials are 
advocating your interest, that helps to level the playing field because 
we know what our commercial competitors are doing.  We know that they're 
using their governmental resources to help their companies.  We can 
certainly do no less for ours. 
 
So on behalf of Secretary Christopher and on behalf of President 
Clinton, we just want to express our appreciation to all of you for 
being here in Amman.  We know it has been has been a long journey for 
almost all of you.  We hope it will be worth while.  We hope that you 
share our view, that we have to be here on the ground.  We have to be 
here participating in the economic growth that is going to take place 
here because we know that there is no better way to support the peace 
process.  As peace comes to this region, the expectations of the people 
rise considerably.  There is only one way to meet those expectations and 
that is through investment, trade and commerce.  That is through 
promoting the economic world and economic opportunity.  That is the only 
way to change the lives of the people for the better.  We intend to be 
there with you over the long haul to see that we accomplish that 
mission.  Once again, we thank you for joining us here in Amman.  Thank 
you very much.  
 
(applause)