Today we got up early and walked from the hotel to the White House, then up the Old Post Office Tower, past the Naval Memorial to the Dirkson Senate Building.
We arrived before the rest of the group and were able to listen in on a hearing about the nomination of Ambassadors for African Countries.
Our appointment was with Dillon Guthrie, Foreign Policy Aid, working for the office of Senator Kerry. Unfortunately, he turned up late, no room was available, we had to wait a long time in the corridors of the building. Finally, we were allowed into one of the hearing rooms, and could ask him some questions. He mainly explained the working of the hearings in a very general way. Although it was exciting to be in this important building, where many decisions are made that have an influence on the whole of the U.S. if not on the whole world, I was disappointed by the session itself because I had hoped to get more information on the U.S. foreign policy.
From here we walked to the Library of Congress, a fabulous building. We could walk around freely and visited several of the rooms which held special exhibitions, such as Lincoln's personal library. We had a guided visit of the cricular reading room, a splendid place for the eye and certainly even more for the mind.
After a quick lunch at Union Station, we went to the Brookings Institute where Mr Steven Pizer, former U.S. ambassador of the Ukraine under the Bush administration spoke to us about the present U.S.- Russia relationship and how it is evolving under the new administration. A Q&A allowed for some debate and as several of our group come from the ex-USSR countries, many questions came up.
Mr Pizer explained the different approach of President Bush and President Obama and expressed his hope that the relationship would change for the better, with Russia as a supporting partner on issues such as North Korea, Iran and Afghanistan.
Let me summarize what the Brookings Institute stands for: it is a centrist think tank. Their mission is to conduct high-quality, independent research and as such to advance innovative, practical recommendations to advance three broad goals: to strengthen the American Democracy; the advance the economic and social welfare, security and opportunity of all Americans and, to secure a more open, safe, prosperous and cooperative international system.
They organise workgroups on important current issues and write reports for the government. They are however independent and do not belong to any particular party so that their advice is impartial.
Among their top priorities, they count Iran, Health Care, Energy, Education, Immigration.
It was a busy last day in Washington and we had to finish it in beauty. So, Bruce led us to an excellent Chinese restaurant and then I accompanied Sandra, Bruce, Alistair and Dai to a pub where we had a Belgian Beer to celebrate the Belgian National holiday (21st of July). I was really surprised to find the local kriek of Beersel on their list! At 18,5 $ for a small bottle, I decided to wait till I'm home to drink one, however ...
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