For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
June 16, 2004

Statement by Dr. Condoleezza Rice
Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs

Recently I accepted, with regret, the resignation of Ambassador Otto Reich who has been a valuable and trusted member of this Administration. He has served as Special Envoy for Western Hemisphere Initiatives and previously as Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs.

I have been able to count on his good judgment and advice in advancing, through the President's initiatives, freedom and prosperity in the Western Hemisphere. I am especially grateful for Ambassador Reich's work and effort on the Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba. The Commission recently sent to the President its recommendations for how the Administration can hasten the day when Cuba will be a free country.

I appreciate Ambassador Reich's service to our country and his commitment to a brighter future for the Western Hemisphere.

# # #