DHS briefing describes secretary's meetings in Poland, Israel, Bahrain and Italy

Cameron Jones, lieutenant commander, U.S. Coast Guard and military assistant to the secretary at the Department of Homeland Security, told a briefing that Secretary Kristi Noem traveled to four countries this week to meet allies and press U.S. security priorities.

Jones said that in Poland the secretary met with President Andrzej Duda, who “praised President Trump's strong leadership and thanked Secretary Noem for visiting,” and that Duda’s message to Washington, as reported by Jones, was “Poland believes in America.”

Jones reported that Secretary Noem addressed a conservative political action conference in Poland, where she pledged to continue efforts “to secure our border and keep Americans safe,” language Jones used in the briefing.

According to Jones, in Israel President Trump asked Secretary Noem to meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu; during what Jones described as a candid conversation, Jones said the secretary reiterated the administration’s desire to pursue peace in the region and to prevent Iran from obtaining or developing nuclear weapons. Jones also said the secretary, together with an Israeli foreign minister (not named in the briefing), held a candle-lighting and tree-planting ceremony for victims of last week’s terrorist attack in Washington, D.C.

Jones said that on Memorial Day the secretary visited U.S. Coast Guard Patrol Forces Southwest Asia, and that she became, as Jones put it, the first U.S. Homeland Security secretary to visit the base in Bahrain. Jones reported the base is home to six cutters and “over 200 coasties” who, he said, protect the U.S. Navy and shipping industries. Jones said the secretary met with the king of Bahrain to discuss U.S. security assets and to reaffirm the countries’ friendship.

Jones also said Secretary Noem met in Italy with the interior minister, Matteo Piantedosi, to discuss joint efforts against transnational crime, human trafficking and smuggling networks.

The briefing report offered counts and high-level descriptions of meetings and ceremonies but did not include delegation-level travel orders, funding details, or bilateral agreements. Jones closed the briefing by saying, “And that's all for this week.”