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Europe is and remains America's partner of first resort. I have now traveled to Europe
27 times as Secretary of State. President Obama has visited 10 times. And wherever
America is working to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, to fight disease, to help
nations on the difficult journey from dictatorship to democracy, we are side by side with our
friends in Europe. In fact, I would argue the transatlantic community has never been
more closely aligned in confronting the challenges of a complex, dangerous, and fast-changing
world. The breadth and depth of our cooperation is remarkable. You know the litany. In
Libya, NATO allies came together with Arab and other partners to prevent a catastrophe
and to support the Libyan people. In Afghanistan, with nearly 40,000 European troops on the
ground alongside our own, we have built and sustained NATO's largest-ever overseas deployment.
And we will continue to support the Afghans as they assume full responsibility for their
own security by the end of 2014. As Iran continues to defy its obligations, America, Europe,
and other partners have put in place the toughest sanctions yet. And we are also pursuing
diplomacy through the E3+3 track, because Europe is vital to both halves of that dual-track
strategy. And as a tyrant in Damascus brutalizes his own people, America and Europe stand shoulder
to shoulder.