Commissioner General Villarreal’s Remarks

I am honored to join you all here today.  Director General Hong Hao, Consul General Camp, I thank you for your kind words of introduction. 

It was with great excitement that I accepted the position of Commissioner General for the U.S. Pavilion at the Shanghai 2010 Expo.  When my friend, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, asked me to take on this leadership role, I was honored to accept this opportunity to represent my country and the people of the United States.  The highest levels of the United States Government are committed to U.S. participation at the Shanghai Expo, and I am personally committed to having a national pavilion that will showcase the best of America and will make our Chinese hosts and visitors as well as the American people proud.   

The United States is pleased to confirm our participation in the Shanghai 2010 World Expo at this signing ceremony today, taking our Pavilion effort to the next level to ensure a great representation of America in Shanghai. This will be a labor of love and a high honor for me, and our May 1 Pavilion opening next year will be a proud moment for everyone involved in our unique USA Pavilion effort -- a true public-private partnership.  While I am new to the U.S. team, I have been following the Expo story for a long time.  I want to acknowledge the contributions by the U.S. Consulate staff, U.S. Pavilion team and the Expo Bureau for their work in getting us to this very important day.  I first saw the Expo site last November, and it is with great honor and excitement that I returned this week to see firsthand all the work that is already underway.  
 
I also personally understand the importance of a world expo.  Some of you will know that my own hometown of San Antonio, Texas, hosted the World’s Fair in 1968 and there is a monument that reminds us daily of this important event, the “Tower of the Americas.”  It is my feeling that years from now guests will visit Shanghai and marvel at the magnificent Chinese pavilion and remember the Shanghai 2010 Expo and the better city and better future that we all worked together to create.