Washington, DC - Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Russel will travel to Laos and New Zealand August 11-16.

In Laos, Assistant Secretary Russel will meet with Lao officials and attend the East Asia Summit Preparatory Senior Officials Meeting. This will be the last high-level meeting before President Obama travels to the East Asia Summit in September, the first visit of a U.S. President to Laos.

Assistant Secretary Russel will then travel to New Zealand on August 14 to participate in the sixth U.S.-New Zealand Strategic Dialogue. He will meet with New Zealand government officials and discuss bilateral cooperation and developments in global affairs.