Monday, July 22
Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security Affairs Andrea L. Thompson will be in Tallinn July 23-24 to conduct bilateral meetings with Ministry of Defense Permanent Secretary Kristjan Prikk, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs Under Secretary Paul Teesalu and Ambassador Heli Tiirmaa-Klaar.
While in Estonia, Under Secretary Thompson will deliver remarks at the two-week Women in Science (WiSC) STEAM Camp for Girls, and attend one of the program’s public speaking modules. The Under Secretary will serve as a mentor to 100 girls from Estonia, Georgia, Latvia, Poland, and the United States and facilitate a conversation about international cooperation in cyber issues. The innovative camp is a public-private partnership between the Department of State, the UN Foundation’s Girl Up program, Intel, Google, NASA, the American Society for Microbiology (ASM), the Tallinn City Government, Telia, the Nordic Council of Ministers, the NGO “Spirit of America,” as well as a host of local actors.
“WiSci STEAM Camp for Girls is an exceptional tool in advancing female involvement in the tech sector. The United States firmly believes in bringing greater female presence into innovation fields, and closing the gender pay gap. We are grateful for the public and private partners who have stood behind this initiative to get these extraordinary young women excited about a future in STEAM fields,” Under Secretary Thompson stated.
In addition to her WiSci engagement, Under Secretary Thompson will speak at the Cyber Diplomacy Summer School in Tallinn, sharing insights on the cyber stability framework, cyber defense, deterrence, and diplomacy as part of a five-day program for diplomats tasked with drafting their nations’ cyber foreign policy and fielding complex cyber issues.
Before her arrival at the Department of State, Under Secretary Thompson served as the Deputy Assistant to the President, National Security Advisor to the Vice President, and Senior Military Advisor to the Chair, U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee.
