Trip Reports by Jimmy Carter

Written by Jimmy Carter, former U.S. president and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, these trip reports provide detailed accounts of official meetings held and trips taken by the Carter Center founder.

May 15, 2015
Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter on Trip to Guyana, May 8-10, 2015
The purpose of this visit to Guyana was to become acquainted with the leaders of the country and to monitor the election of president and members of the parliament. The Carter Center has been deeply involved in Guyana since observing the election of 1992, which was politically transforming.

May 5, 2015
Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter on Trip to Moscow and Palestine,
April 26-May 3, 2015
Elders Kofi Annan, Martti Ahtisaari, Ernesto Zedillo, Gro Brundtland, Lakhdar Brahimi, and I joined Elders CEO Lesley-Anne Knight and the staff for a visit to Russia, and then Gro Brundtland and I went on to East Jerusalem and the West Bank. Our goals were to learn about Russians and the issues in which they are involved, and to explore latest developments among the Israelis and Palestinians.

Sept. 11, 2014
Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter on Trip to Beijing, Qingdao, Xian, and Shanghai, China, Sept. 1-10, 2014
The primary purpose of this visit to Beijing, Qingdao, Xian, and Shanghai was to enhance understanding between our two countries and to promote collaboration between The Carter Center and our primary contacts in China. Recent polls indicate that only 10 percent of Chinese believe the United States can be trusted "a fair amount," and only 25 percent of Americans feel the same way about China. Many Chinese think the United States wants to change their political system and control the rapid growth of Chinese economic and political influence, while Americans are concerned about adverse trade imbalance and aggressive Chinese policies that create disharmony with Japan, the Philippines, South Korea, and Vietnam. The United States has political and military alliances with some of these countries.

June 23, 2014
Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter on Trip to Sweden and Norway, June 16-20, 2014
The primary purpose of our trip was to explain more fully to our supporters and partners the Carter Center's projects in South Sudan, Sudan, Israel, Palestine, Syria, Myanmar, Liberia, Nigeria, Hispaniola, and a few other countries. Nicole Kruse, Hrair Balian, and I met with foreign ministers and officials responsible for development assistance to thank them for their longtime support, answer their questions, and describe future plans of mutual interest. We enjoyed delightful visits with U.S. Embassy staffs in both Stockholm and Oslo, where I made brief speeches and answered questions from the assembled crowds.

April 28, 2014
Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter on Trip to Paris, April 21-24, 2014
Representing The Carter Center and The Elders, I traveled to Paris to discuss our programs with the French foreign minister, to enhance involvement of French students in climate change (global warming), to promote Middle East peace, and to publicize my latest book about the abuse of women and girls.

March 17, 2014
Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter on Trip to Panama, March 13-15, 2014
Dr. Jennifer McCoy and I were invited by the Electoral Tribunal and the Peace and Justice Commission to witness the Ethical Pact and assess preparations for elections to be held May 4. We met with all the major candidates and with business leaders, the Electoral Tribunal, President Ricardo Martinelli and his key advisors, and former presidents and executives of the canal authority. I spoke to several audiences, including a ceremony for the signing by all presidential candidates of Ethical Pact standards, sponsored since 1993 by the Catholic Church. These are quite strict, prohibiting any negative references to political opponents in media advertisements.

Feb. 3, 2014
Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter on Trip to Dubai and Sudan, Jan. 18-25, 2014
After spending the night at the new Waldorf-Astoria in Dubai, we met privately with Mr. Al Habtoor and his sons. He was very critical of U.S. policy in the region regarding Syria, Iran, and Egypt, but interested in helping with the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians. He was generous in providing us with hotel accommodations and transportation.

Nov. 26, 2013
Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter on Trip to Nepal, Nov. 14-23, 2013
The purpose of this visit was to participate in observing the second Constituent Assembly (CA) elections, which we hope will lead to an effective government and the writing of a constitution. The previous election in 2008 that we observed did not result in either of these accomplishments. After these failures became obvious, the four major parties agreed earlier this year to appoint Chief Justice Khil Raj Regmi to head an Interim Election Council, and he has performed admirably in coordinating the elements of government necessary to accomplish this goal.

July 31, 2013
Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter on Trip to Bogota, Colombia, July 28-30, 2013
Our goals for this visit to Colombia were: a) to recognize Colombia as the first country to be certified by the World Health Organization as free of onchocerciasis, or river blindness; b) to receive a briefing from President Santos about peace talks with the FARC; c) to explore a role for The Carter Center in helping to evolve a national human rights policy for the post-conflict era; d) to launch a mental health journalism fellowship program; and e) to ascertain whether to join in a project to develop a national human rights policy.

July 30, 2013
Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter on Trip to Washington, D.C. and London, July 21-26, 2013
The purpose of this trip was to meet with Secretary of State John Kerry, National Security Advisor Susan Rice, and British Foreign Minister William Hague to explain the work of The Elders and The Carter Center, to offer our assistance when needed, and to learn as much as possible about the policies of the two governments regarding Syria, Egypt, Israel-Palestine, Sudan, and North Korea.

April 8, 2013
Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter on Trip to Nepal and Myanmar, March 28-April 6, 2013
Rosalynn, Trustee Sherry Lansing and I traveled on Trustee Richard Blum's Gulfstream and met David Pottie in Nepal and David Carroll in Myanmar. John Hardman was with us in both countries.

Jan. 14, 2013
Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter on Trip to Colombia, Jan. 11-13, 2013
At the request of President Juan Manuel Santos, I made this trip a week earlier than planned. The primary purposes of the visit were to be briefed on the peace talks underway between the FARC and the government of Colombia, to promote support for the Inter-American Human Rights Commission and Court, and to explore how existing drug control procedures might be improved.

Dec. 18, 2012
Trip Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to Beijing, Nanjing, and Sanya,China, Dec. 11-17, 2012
Responding to an invitation from the new leaders of China and to pursue projects of The Carter Center, we made what lately has become an annual visit. In addition to Rosalynn, John Hardman, Yawei Liu and staff members, we enjoyed having Brent and Diane Slay, Bob McKinney, Shelley Barr, and Marni and Dick Waterfield with us.

Nov. 7, 2012
Trip Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to Israel, Palestine, Jordan, Egypt, and Germany, Oct. 20-Nov. 3, 2012
I arrived at the American Colony Hotel in E. Jerusalem, where I was joined by Elders Mary Robinson and Gro Brundtland. We had decided to go to the MidEast early so we could meet with Arab leaders before the rigid Islamic Eid holiday begins. Since none of Netanyahu's cabinet will meet with any of us Elders, we made a courtesy call on President Shimon Peres and listened to his broad-ranging comments on political theory, the problems of water, and ancient history when we asked questions about current events. He was especially evasive when we asked if Israel has abandoned the 2-state peace solution. Afterward, he issued a nice press statement.

May 29, 2012
Trip Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to Egypt, May 21-28, 2012
Having witnessed the parliamentary elections in January, I returned to Cairo with Rosalynn, John Hardman, David Carroll, and Avery Davis-Roberts for the election of a president. Our Carter Center team, including Field Office Director Sanne van den Bergh, has been present since November and will be here until the president is inaugurated and a new constitution approved. Compared to our previous 89 election missions, our role has been limited by late issuing of credentials and by other restraints that prevent our access to the news media, restrict time we can spend in each polling station, etc.

Jan. 17, 2012
Trip Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to Egypt, Jan. 8-14, 2012
The primary purpose of my trip was to join 40 other Carter Center election observers who have been deployed in Egypt since late November. Additionally, I wished to consult with the leaders of the major political parties, Supreme Council for Armed Forces (SCAF), the prime minister, election officials, donors, U.S. officials, revolutionary activists, women's rights leaders and others who will shape the future of the nation.

Dec. 16, 2011
Trip Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to Beijing, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Hong Kong, China, Dec. 6-15, 2011
The basic purposes of our visit were to cement ties with the people and leaders of China, to explore future projects of The Carter Center (TCC) in the region, to study political and economic developments, and to gain financial and political support for future TCC projects involving China. Accompanied by Rosalynn, John Hardman, Yawei Liu, and Carter Center friends Jim and Janet Stanard and Paul Karon, we were supported by Curtis Kohlhaas other members of our staff and Madame Li Xiaolin and the Chinese Friendship Association.

Oct.10, 2011
Trip Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to the Netherlands, Belgium, United Kingdom, and Norway, October 2-6, 2011
Thanks to the fine work of John Hardman, Phil Wise, Don Hopkins, David Carroll, Hrair Balian, Larry Frankel, Nicole Kruse, Curtis Kohlhaas, and others, I completed an interesting and successful series of visits with leaders in these four countries and in the United Nations, the European Union, and other international organizations.

May 2, 2011
Trip Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to Korean Peninsula, April 22-29, 2011
Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter on trip to China, North Korea, and South Korea from April 22-29, 2011.

April 1, 2011
Trip Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to Cuba, March 28-30, 2011
At the invitation of President Raul Castro, Rosalynn and I visited Havana on behalf of The Carter Center, accompanied by John Hardman, Jennifer McCoy, Robert Pastor, Melissa Montgomery, John Moores, and Dianne Rosenberg.

Jan. 18, 2011
Trip Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to Sudan, Jan. 5-16, 2011
The primary purpose of our trip was to lead the monitoring team for the referendum among South Sudanese to determine whether to remain part of a united Sudan or to form a new independent nation. In addition, we wished to learn as much as possible about ongoing efforts to establish permanent accord in the region, based on the Comprehensive Peace Accord (CPA) of 2005, to enhance progress on our Center's health programs in Sudan, and to make plans for future projects.

Oct. 25, 2010
Trip Report: Visit by the Elders to Gaza, Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Israel, and the West Bank, Oct. 15-23, 2010
Led by Mary Robinson, former president of Ireland, a group of Elders visited Gaza, Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Israel, and the West Bank including East Jerusalem. The aim of our visit was to encourage a just and secure peace for Israel and its neighbors based on international law.

Sept. 13, 2010
Trip Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to China, Sept. 4-10, 2010
The purposes of our trip were to promote the expanding projects of The Carter Center in China, to enhance relations between the U.S. and the P.R.C., to fulfill our promises of last year to visit the World Expo in Shanghai, to ascertain opinions of South Korean and Chinese officials regarding North Korea, and to discuss other issues of mutual interest.

April 19, 2010
Trip Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to Sudan, April 7-18, 2010
The Carter Center has been deeply involved in Sudan since 1986, when we launched a program that increased the nation's annual wheat production from 160,000 to 1 million tons. Since then, we have had major health programs and efforts to promote peace and democracy. This current project is to monitor elections for local, state, and national offices throughout Sudan, plus separate ones for the ten states in South Sudan.

March 24, 2010
Trip Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to Seoul, South Korea, March 20-24, 2010
The primary purpose of our trip was to establish a partnership between Cyber University of Korea and the Rosalynn Carter Institute on Caregiving at Georgia Southwestern State University. This will put the Caregiving curriculum online for thousands of students in Korea and other nations.

Feb. 15, 2010
Trip Report by Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter to Ghana & Sudan, Feb. 5-13, 2010
Rosalynn, John Hardman, Nancy Konigsmark, and I were fortunate to travel with Carter Center Trustee Richard Blum in his new Gulfstream. The purpose of this trip was to promote health programs in both countries, to attend a regional conference on Access to Information (ATI) in Accra, and help to prepare for April elections in Sudan and a referendum in Southern Sudan scheduled for next January.

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