PRESS RELEASE
Media Contact: Office of Communications (202-565-3207)
For Immediate Release: September 27, 2020
WASHINGTON – Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM) President and Chairman of the Board of Directors Kimberly A. Reed, at the invitation of U.S. Ambassador to Luxembourg J. Randolph Evans, participated in the American Chiefs of Mission September Summit 2020 (September Summit) and various side meetings.
While in Luxembourg, Chairman Reed engaged in strategic discussions with U.S. Ambassadors to 16 European nations, interagency colleagues from the U.S. Departments of State and Commerce and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and leaders from the Luxembourg Government and European Union institutions.
“It was an immense honor to join such a distinguished group of U.S. Ambassadors to Europe for discussions on topics important to the United States, Europe, and the world – ranging from U.S.-European relations to COVID-19 economic recovery to space cooperation to EXIM,” said EXIM Chairman Kimberly Reed. “The United States and Luxembourg are two nations committed to advancing liberty and prosperity. EXIM is a tool in our nation’s toolbox, and we together will do our utmost to strengthen the United States competitiveness around the world, support jobs for our nation’s workers, and keep America strong. I want to thank President Trump for his leadership, guidance, and focus in the most challenging of times, and for wisely taking a whole-of-government approach, which prominently includes EXIM.”
The following U.S. Ambassadors and officials participated in the September Summit:
- Ambassador J. Randolph Evans, U.S. Ambassador to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg
- Ambassador Kay Bailey Hutchison, U.S. Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the United States to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization
- Ambassador George E. Glass, U.S. Ambassador to Portugal
- Ambassador Stephen B. King, U.S. Ambassador to the Czech Republic
- Ambassador Carla Sands, U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Denmark
- Ambassador Jamie D. McCourt, U.S. Ambassador to the French Republic and Principality of Monaco
- Ambassador Callista Gingrich, U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See
- Ambassador W. Robert Kohorst, U.S. Ambassador to Croatia
- Ambassador Peter Hoekstra, U.S. Ambassador to the Netherlands
- Ambassador Duke Buchan, III, U.S. Ambassador to Spain and Andorra
- Ambassador Ronald Gidwitz, U.S. Ambassador to Belgium, Acting Representative of the United States to the European Union
- Ambassador Georgette Mosbacher, U.S. Ambassador to Poland
- Ambassador Jeffrey Ross Gunter, U.S. Ambassador to Iceland
- Ambassador Lynda C. Blanchard, U.S. Ambassador to Slovenia
- Ambassador Kenneth A. Howery, U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Sweden
- Ambassador Adrian Zuckerman, U.S. Ambassador to Romania
- U.S. Department of State Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment Keith J. Krach
- President and Chairman of Board of Directors of the Export-Import Bank of the United States, Kimberly Reed
- Counselor of the U.S. Department of State, Ulrich Brechbuhl
- Acting Associate Administrator for International and Interagency Relations at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Mike Gold
- Director of the Office of Space Commerce at the U.S. Department of Commerce, Kevin O’Connell
On Tuesday, September 22, Under Secretary Krach and Chairman Reed met with European Investment Bank President Werner Hoyer and then with Luxembourg Minister of Finance Pierre Gramegna to focus on the economy, Blue Dot Network, Clean Network, 5G, innovation, competition with China, and infrastructure. Luxembourg Export Credit Agency Chairman Arsène Jacoby also joined the discussions.
On Wednesday, September 23, Chairman Reed joined the 16 U.S. Ambassadors to pay their respects to the 5,070 service members, including General George S. Patton Jr., buried at the Luxembourg American Cemeter. The group then convened at the Court of Justice of the European Union to meet with President Koen Lenaerts.
While at the Court of Justice, Chairman Reed presented her September Summit remarks to the U.S. Ambassadors. She outlined President Trump’s leadership on EXIM that led to the agency’s full reopening in May 2019 following nearly four years of dormancy and the agency’s historic seven-year bipartisan Congressional reauthorization—the longest in the agency’s 86-year history—which was signed into law by the President on December 20, 2019.
Chairman Reed also outlined EXIM’s new “Program on China and Transformational Exports.”
“EXIM seeks to reserve at least 20% of our financing authority, or at least $27 billion of our $135 billion in financing, to ‘neutralize’ Beijing’s export subsidies, advance the comparative leadership of the United States with respect to the PRC, and support U.S. innovation, employment, and technological standards through direct exports in 10 industries key to America’s prosperity and security. These include 5G, artificial intelligence, biomedical sciences, biotechnology, and financial technology,” said Chairman Reed. “As Speaker Gingrich wrote last month in The Hill, EXIM’s new China Program will ‘better position the U.S. to push back on China’s global industrial policies and geopolitical ambitions.’ And, when it comes to detractors, the Speaker—who, like me, believes in free markets and that economic security is national security—put it in crisper, simpler terms to me last night: ‘You must ask them: Are you with us or are you with China?’”
During her remarks, Chairman Reed recognized U.S. Ambassador to Luxembourg J. Randolph Evans and highlighted EXIM’s focus on emerging technologies and the space industry. EXIM recently engaged with 180 space technology leaders and stakeholders as part its “Strengthening American Competitiveness” initiative to help set the foundation for EXIM’s Program on China and Transformational Exports.
“Mr. Ambassador, you are an accomplished leader, as evidenced by your arranging this unprecedented summit to discuss with candor the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead for the United States, Luxembourg, Europe, and the world,” said Chairman Reed. “Ambassador Evans, you also have a vision that extends literally to the stars. Our gathering coincides with the visit to Luxembourg of a United States Space Delegation led by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich.”
Chairman Reed’s September Summit prepared remarks can be accessed here.
Later that evening, Luxembourg Deputy Prime Minister François Bausch, Finance Minister Gramegna, and Economy Minister Franz Fayot hosted a discussion highlighting the strong bonds between the United States and Luxembourg as leaders in finance, space, and trade.
On Thursday, September 24, Luxembourg’s President (Speaker) of the Chamber of Deputies (Parliament) Fernand Etgen hosted former U.S. Speaker of the House of Representatives Newt Gingrich, Ambassador Gingrich, Ambassador Evans, and Chairman Reed at the Luxembourg Parliament.
On Thursday night, Chairman Reed joined the Space Delegation, which included Ambassador Evans, NASA Acting Associate Administrator Gold, U.S. Department of Commerce Director of the Office of Space Commerce O’Connell, and Luxembourg Space Agency Director Marc Seres, for a discussion on developing partnerships for Luxembourg’s growing commercial space industry.
On Friday, September 25, Chairman Reed met with her Luxembourg counterparts, Luxembourg Export Credit Agency (ODL) Chairman Arsène Jacoby and CEO Simone Joachim. They discussed the strategic priorities of their respective export credit agencies, COVID-19 economic recovery, EXIM’s June 2020 Report to the U.S. Congress on Global Export Credit Competition, the space industry, and the importance of a strengthened relationship, closer cooperation, and future areas of collaboration.
For additional photos from this week’s events, please see EXIM’s Twitter page.
ABOUT EXIM:
EXIM is an independent federal agency that promotes and supports American jobs by providing competitive and necessary export credit to support sales of U.S. goods and services to international buyers. A robust EXIM can level the global playing field for U.S. exporters when they compete against foreign companies that receive support from their governments. EXIM also contributes to U.S. economic growth by helping to create and sustain hundreds of thousands of jobs in exporting businesses and their supply chains across the United States. In recent years, approximately 90 percent of the total number of the agency’s authorizations has directly supported small businesses. Since 1992, EXIM has generated more than $9 billion for the U.S. Treasury for repayment of U.S. debt.
For more information about EXIM, please visit www.exim.gov.
