FILE - In this Saturday, July 11, 2009 file photo, President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama visit the La General Hospital in Accra, Ghana. President Barack Obama promised to visit his father's homeland of Kenya before the end of his presidency but of the 51 country visits Obama made in the last four years, America's first black president spent less than a day in sub-Saharan Africa. Obama is likely to spend more time in Africa in his second term, a presidential historian said. Freed of domestic campaign politics, second-term presidents can travel more in a continent that has less strategic importance than Europe and Asia. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari, File)
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FILE - In this Saturday, July 11, 2009 file photo, President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama visit the La General Hospital in Accra, Ghana. President Barack Obama promised to visit his father's homeland of Kenya before the end of his presidency but of the 51 country visits Obama made in the last four years, America's first black president spent less than a day in sub-Saharan Africa. Obama is likely to spend more time in Africa in his second term, a presidential historian said. Freed of domestic campaign politics, second-term presidents can travel more in a continent that has less strategic importance than Europe and Asia. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari, File)
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FILE - In this Saturday, Aug. 26, 2006 file photo, the then U.S. Senator Barack Obama, right, walks with his step-grandmother Sarah Obama at his father's house in the village of Kogelo, western Kenya. President Barack Obama promised to visit his father's homeland of Kenya before the end of his presidency but of the 51 country visits Obama made in the last four years, America's first black president spent less than a day in sub-Saharan Africa. Obama is likely to spend more time in Africa in his second term, a presidential historian said. Freed of domestic campaign politics, second-term presidents can travel more in a continent that has less strategic importance than Europe and Asia. (AP Photo/Sayyid Azim, File)
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FILE - In this Saturday, July 11, 2009 file photo, U.S. President Barack Obama, center, reviews members of the Ghanaian military at the Presidential Palace in Accra, Ghana. President Barack Obama promised to visit his father's homeland of Kenya before the end of his presidency but of the 51 country visits Obama made in the last four years, America's first black president spent less than a day in sub-Saharan Africa. Obama is likely to spend more time in Africa in his second term, a presidential historian said. Freed of domestic campaign politics, second-term presidents can travel more in a continent that has less strategic importance than Europe and Asia. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari, File)
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FILE - In this Saturday, Jan. 5, 2013 file photo, youths attend a demonstration calling for peace as negotiators prepare for talks with rebels from the north, one wearing a t-shirt with the face of US President Barack Obama and reading "My president is black, the dream comes true", in downtown Bangui, Central African Republic. President Barack Obama promised to visit his father's homeland of Kenya before the end of his presidency but of the 51 country visits Obama made in the last four years, America's first black president spent less than a day in sub-Saharan Africa. Obama is likely to spend more time in Africa in his second term, a presidential historian said. Freed of domestic campaign politics, second-term presidents can travel more in a continent that has less strategic importance than Europe and Asia. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis, File)
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FILE - In this Saturday, July 11, 2009 file photo, President Barack Obama holds a baby while visiting the La General Hospital in Accra, Ghana. President Barack Obama promised to visit his father's homeland of Kenya before the end of his presidency but of the 51 country visits Obama made in the last four years, America's first black president spent less than a day in sub-Saharan Africa. Obama is likely to spend more time in Africa in his second term, a presidential historian said. Freed of domestic campaign politics, second-term presidents can travel more in a continent that has less strategic importance than Europe and Asia. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari, File)
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FILE - In this Saturday, July 11, 2009 file photo, women wearing traditional dresses bearing the image of President Barack Obama chant his name after he addressed the Ghanaian Parliament in Accra, Ghana. President Barack Obama promised to visit his father's homeland of Kenya before the end of his presidency but of the 51 country visits Obama made in the last four years, America's first black president spent less than a day in sub-Saharan Africa. Obama is likely to spend more time in Africa in his second term, a presidential historian said. Freed of domestic campaign politics, second-term presidents can travel more in a continent that has less strategic importance than Europe and Asia. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak, File)
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FILE - In this Tuesday, Feb. 5, 2008 file photo, Sarah Obama, step-grandmother of U.S. Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama, sits in the living room of her house in the village of Kogelo, near the shores of Lake Victoria, in western Kenya. President Barack Obama promised to visit his father's homeland of Kenya before the end of his presidency but of the 51 country visits Obama made in the last four years, America's first black president spent less than a day in sub-Saharan Africa. Obama is likely to spend more time in Africa in his second term, a presidential historian said. Freed of domestic campaign politics, second-term presidents can travel more in a continent that has less strategic importance than Europe and Asia. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis, File)
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President Barack Obama on Friday will nominate Sen. John Kerry as his next secretary of state, a senior administration official said, making the first move in a sweeping overhaul of his national security team heading into a second term. (Dec. 21)
Happy Waitanga Day from the US
US president Barack Obama and new secretary of state, John Kerry, have wished New Zealanders a happy Waitangi Day.
Kerry, who took up the job this week following Hillary Clinton's retirement, said the US and New Zealand share a strong and enduring relationship.
"On behalf of President Obama and the people of the United States, I send congratulations and best wishes to the people of New Zealand as you commemorate the February 6 anniversary of the Treaty of Waitangi, or Te Tiriti o Waitangi," Kerry said in a statement issued from Washington DC.
"This is an opportunity to reflect both upon New Zealand's unique culture and diverse heritage and to celebrate the promise of the future as new generations carry on your rich traditions.
"The United States and New Zealand share a strong and enduring friendship, which has continued to deepen since we first established diplomatic relations in 1942.
"Our countries share a commitment to work together to bring peace, stability, and sustainability to the Pacific region and beyond.
"As New Zealanders around the world come together to celebrate, I wish you a happy Waitangi Day, and a prosperous and successful year."
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