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NOW, HERE IN WASHINGTON, NO ONE HAS BEEN BUSIER RECENTLY THAN U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE JOHN
KERRY. THE FORMER MASSACHUSETTS SENATOR AND ONE-TIME U.S. PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE RECENTLY
RETURNED FROM A TRIP TO JORDAN, WHERE HE ANNOUNCED AGREEMENT ON A BASIS FOR RESUMING ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN
PEACE TALKS.
WELL, JOINING US NOW IS OUR VOA STATE DEPARTMENT CORRESPONDENT SCOTT STEARNS - ALSO ONE VERY
BUSY FELLOW - AND HE TRAVELED WITH JOHN KERRY ON THIS TRIP. SENATOR JOHN KERRY HAS BEEN
IN THIS POSITION NOW FOR ABOUT SIX MONTHS, SCOTT. SO AT LEAST SO FAR AS YOU CAN TELL,
HOW WOULD YOU COMPARE HIS APPROACH TO THE MIDDLE EAST, COMPARED TO THE FORMER SECRETARY
OF STATE, HILLARY CLINTON?
SECRETARY KERRY HAS BEEN FAR MORE ENGAGED. I THINK EVEN SECRETARY CLINTON WOULD SAY THAT,
IN PART LARGELY BECAUSE HE HAS THE MANDATE FROM PRESIDENT OBAMA, WHO, AS YOU KNOW, AT
THE START OF HIS SECOND TERM WENT TO JERUSALEM, MET WITH PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU, MET WITH
PRESIDENT ABBAS, REINVIGORATED, IF YOU WILL, THE U-S APPROACH TO THE MIDDLE EAST PEACE
PROCESS AND GAVE SECRETARY KERRY THAT JOB. SO HE'S BEEN AT IT. THIS WAS OUR SIXTH TRIP
TO THE REGION IN SIX MONTHS.
AND NOW, IN A TRIP LIKE THIS, YOU'RE TRAVELING WITH THE SECRETARY OF STATE, YOU HAVE TRAVELED
IN THE PAST WITH U-S PRESIDENTS, SPECIFICALLY GEORGE W. BUSH. HOW DO THOSE KINDS OF TRIPS
COMPARE? AND WHAT'S IT LIKE FOR YOU AS A JOURNALIST?
I WOULD SAY IT'S A BIG DIFFERENCE. THE BIGGEST DIFFERENCE IS ACCESS REALLY. I'VE BEEN ON
WHITE HOUSE TRIPS WHERE YOU COULD SPEND A WEEK IN ASIA AND YOU NEVER SEE THE PRESIDENT.
YOU'RE ON THE CHARTER BEHIND HIM, THEN YOU'RE IN A FILING CENTER, THEN YOU'RE IN A BUS,
YOU KNOW .
SO YOU'RE JUST GETTING INFORMATION STREAMED THROUGH TO YOU.
EXACTLY, YOU'RE ESSENTIALLY WATCHING THE PRESIDENT ON TELEVISION FROM WHATEVER SORT OF FILING
CENTER YOU ARE [IN], AND ON STATE DEPARTMENT TRIPS, IT'S FAR DIFFERENT. THERE IS NO PRESS
CHARTER. SO IF YOU'RE ON THE TRIP, YOU'RE ON HIS PLANE. YOU'RE IN THE BACK OF HIS PLANE,
IN THE COACH SEATS, BUT STILL, YOU'RE ON THE PLANE. SO YOU HAVE FAR GREATER ACCESS, BOTH
TO THE PEOPLE WHO ARE AROUND THE SECRETARY, AND THE SECRETARY HIMSELF. I WOULD SAY THAT
IN THE HALF DOZEN TRIPS THAT I'VE MADE MAYBE WITH SECRETARY KERRY NOW, HE COMES BACK MORE
OFTEN THAN SECRETARY CLINTON. SHE WOULD COME BACK AT LEAST ONCE ON A TRIP TO TALK TO US.
OFF THE RECORD ENTIRELY. WHAT'S SAID IN THOSE CONVERSATIONS ON THE PLANE ARE NOT FOR ATTRIBUTION
IN ANY WAY SHAPE OR FORM. IT'S NOT "A SENIOR U-S OFFICIAL," IT'S NOT A "WESTERN DIPLOMAT,"
IT'S NO ONE. THAT'S JUST INFORMATION TO HELP YOU SORT OF UNDERSTAND WHAT'S GOING ON.
RIGHT. BACKGROUND KNOWLEDGE.
NOW THE UNITED STATES DOES NOT HAVE THE MOST STELLAR REPUTATION IN THE ARAB WORLD RIGHT
NOW, AND SINCE JOHN KERRY HAS BEEN TRAVELING AROUND THE MIDDLE EAST HERE FOR A LONG TIME,
AT LEAST FOR THE FIRST SIX MONTHS, HOW'S HE BEING RECEIVED?
HE HAS BEEN RECEIVED, I BELIEVE, QUITE WARMLY IN THE REGION, IN PART BECAUSE HAVING SPENT
29 YEARS IN THE SENATE, HE IS KNOWN, HE HAS PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS WITH MANY OF THESE
LEADERS IN THE GULF, AND IN THE MIDDLE EAST, BUT YOU'RE RIGHT TO MAKE THE POINT THAT THE
REPUTATION OF THE UNITED STATES HAS SUFFERED FROM THE PERCEPTION THAT IT IS AN UNABASHED
ALLY OF ISRAEL. AND SECRETARY KERRY HEARS, I THINK, THROUGHOUT THE REGION, THAT THE ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN
CONFLICT IS ONE THAT AFFECTS ALL OTHER ISSUES IN THE REGION. THE RIGHT OF RETURN ON THE
SYRIAN ISSUE IN LEBANON, AND IF THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION CAN BE SEEN TO BE PLAYING AN
ACTIVE ROLE IN BRINGING THESE TWO SIDES TOGETHER, IT'S THE VIEW AT LEAST AMONG U-S DIPLOMATS
THAT THAT WILL HELP THEM ON OTHER ISSUES.
ALRIGHT SCOTT, WELL THANK YOU SO MUCH, WE REALLY APPRECIATE YOU JOINING US TODAY, AND
WE KNOW YOU WILL BE KEEPING A CLOSE EYE ON SECRETARY OF STATE KERRY. ALRIGHT AGAIN THIS
IS SCOTT STEARNS, OUR STATE DEPARTMENT CORRESPONDENT.