As pointed out previously in I Can See Russia, one of Sarah Palin’s roles was that of Commander in Chief of the Alaska National Guard. While she wouldn’t have been charged with making decisions concerning the military, she would have been kept informed of any possible threats to the state. While Border States in the U.S. Southwest have to deal with the invasion of illegal aliens, Alaska has to contend with the ominous threat of Russian “Bear” bombers. Should these military airplanes penetrate our defenses, they could quite possibly disrupt the flow of oil by bombing the Trans-Alaskan Pipeline System and the terminals located at either end of the pipeline, not to mention large city centers. It would be illogical to think that the governor would not have been briefed regularly on this particular threat, or that she wouldn’t have developed insight into the behavior of a potentially dangerous country like Russia even without direct contact with its leader.
But Governor Palin would have gained foreign policy experience in another arena as well.
Unlike most states’ governors in the lower 48, Alaska’s governor is in the unique position of dealing with international issues on a regular basis. Because Alaska is located at the top of the Pacific Rim, its strategic position and vast wealth of natural resources make it an important trading center.
International investment and trade contribute heavily to Alaska’s economy. Its exports reached $3-$4 billion per year for the last seven years in seafood, minerals, energy, precious metals, and forest products, respectively.
Exports for 2008
Exports for 2007, 2008, 2009
Alaska’s Total Exports (in Billions – 2010 not yet available)
Governor Palin’s first encounter with foreign diplomats was in January 2007 when she met with officials from Canada. Yukon Premier Dennis Fentie, Consul General Peter Lloyd from the Canadian Consulate in Seattle, and the Northwest Territories Minister for Industry, Tourism and Investment Brendan Bell met specifically with her to discuss continued trade between Alaska and Canada, and joint border security challenges.
In March of 2007 Governor Palin welcomed more than 30 diplomats and international tourism and aviation representatives to Fairbanks promoting travel and tourism to the 49th state.
May 2007 brought Chinese health officials to Alaska led by the People’s Republic of China Minister of Health, Qiang Gao. The purpose of this delegation was to observe the delivery of rural health care in Alaska.
Governor Palin also welcomed the International Whaling Commission (IWC) to Alaska. In her address to the 59th annual meeting of the IWC in Anchorage, she highlighted the importance of aboriginal subsistence hunting and the scientific contributions Alaska’s whaling captains have made in the study of bowhead whales.
At the Arctic Energy Summit, Governor Palin and Lt. Governor Sean Parnell met with the President of Iceland, H.E. Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, at the Egan Center in Anchorage.
“President Grimsson was the guest of honor during the Wednesday evening closing banquet, receiving the Institute of the North’s Robert O. Anderson Sustainable Arctic Award for his leadership in promoting geothermal and hydrogen energy in the Arctic. The Institute of the North established the Robert O. Anderson Sustainable Arctic Award in 2001 to recognize individuals, organizations and/or nations that make outstanding contributions toward sustainable development within the Arctic.”
Ben Ellis - Summit Director (Read entire article here.)
Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell, Gov. Sarah Palin, Iceland President Grissom
Consul Hee-Chul Kim of the Republic of Korea was welcomed by Governor Palin as a new Korean Consular office was re-established in Anchorage. Trade, culture, tourism and transportation have been important ties between Alaska and Korea for many years. Korea is one of Alaska’s leading exporters.
Governor Sarah Palin and Yukon Territory Premier Dennis Fentie met again in March 2008 to renew the Alaska-Yukon Intergovernmental Accord.
“This accord provides a framework for the governments of Alaska and Yukon to continue working cooperatively on tourism, transportation and trade and commerce initiatives. We have also included climate change, wildlife management, economic development and infrastructure in the accord as additional key areas of opportunity.”
–Sarah Palin (Read the entire article here.)
Premier Fentie & Governor Palin
At the invitation of Governor Palin, an international delegation of diplomats from nine countries in North America, Asia, and Europe traveled to Alaska to celebrate Alaska’s 50th anniversary and discuss international trade matters in January 2009.
Governor Palin meets with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak
Finally, in July 2009, Governor Palin met with Ambassador Petr Kolar of the Czech Republic who was in Alaska to promote Alaskan Frank Nosek to Honorary Consul General of the Czech Republic.
(left to right) Honorary Consul General Frank Nosek, Mrs. Jaroslava Kolarova, Governor Palin, Ambassador of the Czech Republic Petr Kolar, Alaskan Sandy Ptak Miss Czech Slovak, US Commissioner Emil Notti.
In addition to hosting foreign dignitaries and dealing with any number of international issues, Governor Palin implemented The Governor’s North Star Awards for International Excellence in an effort to promote international trade and business in Alaska. The first awards given in 2008 were in the areas of trade, foreign investment, education, cultural exchange, and scientific exchange. The first recipients of the award included the Kenai LNG (liquid natural gas) for export, the Aleut International Association for scientific exchange, the Institute of the North for transportation advancement, Sumitomo Metal Mining Corporation for foreign investment in Alaska, and the Sand Lake Elementary School in Anchorage for educational and cultural exchange. It’s worth nothing that Sand Lake Elementary has successfully conducted a Japanese Immersion Program for over 20 years, portraying the diversity that is found and embraced in Alaska.
Awarding The Governor's North Star Award to Sand Lake Elementary Recipient
While some might consider Alaska to be an isolated, untamed wilderness, it is, in fact, a cosmopolitan international trading hub. Not only is its location and resources vital for conducting trade with Pacific Rim countries, but in the eyes of circumpolar nations, Alaska is a warm, friendly neighbor who shares the same challenges of living and thriving in an inhospitable arctic environment. And as governor, Sarah Palin successfully fulfilled her role by encouraging, promoting and advancing Alaska’s place in the world of international trade and exports, and has acquired the experience necessary to lead the nation.
Some photos obtained from us4palins.com website.
"Consul Hee-Chul Kim of the Republic of Korea was welcomed by Governor Palin as a new Korean Consular office was re-established in Anchorage. Trade, culture, tourism and transportation have been important ties between Alaska and Korea for many years. Korea is one of Alaska’s leading exporters."
ReplyDeleteMaybe the above information should be sent to the bloggers and the MSM media that stated that Sarah did not know the difference between North and South Korea. Nah! Why bother? They would just ignore it since it does not fit in with their "Palin is dumb" orders.
No one would question the need of the governor of Florida to be knowledgeable about the policies of his neighbor, Cuba, 90 miles to the south. But when the governor of Alaska asserts that she has knowledge of her neighbor, Russia, 2 and a half miles to the west of Alaska, the assertion is laughed at even though over 15,000 square miles of the Russia/US border has been in dispute for over 20 years. The difference is that our media knows much more about Cuba than they do about Alaska.
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