 Mr. Chairman, Mr. Secretary General, Ministers, Excellencies, and Distinguished Colleagues, on behalf of the United States of America, I thank the government of Argentina for their generosity and hospitality, and for welcoming us to this beautiful and historic city. Mr. Chairman, we wish you the best as you guide the conference in setting the course for the ITU telecommunication development sector for the next four years. And Mr. Brahima Sanu, thank you for your leadership and efforts at the helm of this important sector of the Union. The global digital ecosystem has truly improved so many people's lives, their ability to communicate and the way in which they relate to each other, and truly affecting the entire world around them. This change has been driven by the dramatic increase in broadband access, the widespread penetration of mobile phones, and the development of a wide range of innovative information and communication technology services. These have helped foster unprecedented increases in economic growth around the world. This progress reflects the continued success of public-private and multi-stakeholder cooperation, market and regulatory reforms, technological innovation, and commitments on the part of diverse stakeholders, including the membership of the ITU. Member states have invested significantly in broadening the deployment of the Internet. The United States has shown its commitment to increase Internet connectivity by, among other efforts, the projects funded by the U.S. Millennium Challenge Corporation. The recent natural disasters that have struck the United States and our friends and neighbors in Mexico, the Americas, and the Caribbean have touched us all, developing and developing countries alike. These events remind us of the critical and life-saving role that ICTs can play, whether it is satellites that help track and predict the coming hurricanes, the early warning systems to alert citizens on their mobile phones, the images broadcast around the world to unite us all in our support for those affected, the mobile and satellite communication systems connecting first responders and families, or the mobile payment systems to mobilize resources. ICT is critically important to mitigating damage and responding to natural disasters. And even more importantly, the responses of these disasters demonstrate the remarkable power of collaboration, cooperation, and partnership across countries, communities, and diverse stakeholders. United States proposals to this conference and our support of our region's inter-American proposals reflect our strong support for the continued ITU development sector role in broadband deployment and emergency communications. We support the continued development by member states of voluntary guidelines and best practices to support efforts to increase digital inclusion, develop advanced networks, and create a stable and predictable regulatory environment. We believe that it is important to preserve and enhance ITU development sector's role as a forward-looking knowledge platform to exchange experiences and views. This process has served the sector well, generating timely and useful deliverables which reflect the experience of many countries in the room today. To help close the digital divide, we will continue to support an open, transparent, and market-based approach to tackling the challenges of expanding the benefits of the digital global ecosystem. We must work together to deliver sustainable and measurable results. With your leadership, Mr. Chairman, and the efforts of the distinguished delegates here, I am confident that we can achieve a positive outcome. To you, Mr. Chairman, and to all of our colleagues, we extend our very best wishes for a successful conference. Thank you.