Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, issued the following statement after a bipartisan meeting with Mr. Bill Gates, Co-Director of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.  Including Chairman Royce and Ranking Member Eliot Engel (D-NY), 22 Committee Members attended the meeting in the Rayburn House Office Building.

Chairman Royce said: “Our meeting with Mr. Gates included a frank discussion on a wide range of critical issues, including U.S. engagement in the fight against global HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria, the role of the private sector in global development, and the need to better target foreign assistance.  We also discussed the need to reform U.S. international food aid so that we can better meet needs in real time without causing unnecessary harm to local markets.  The conversation rightly focused attention on the tension between budget constraints in the U.S. and advancing our national security interests by targeted foreign assistance.”

Note:  A photo from the meeting is available HERE. 

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