On 4 July, the United States will celebrate 250 years of independence. To mark this special day, the US embassy in Luxembourg held a reception on 30 June.
Titled "America through the ages", the celebration took guests on a journey through US history, from the country's founding in 1776 and the Gold Rush of the 1870s to the disco era of the 1970s.
US Ambassador Stacey Feinberg said this was her first Independence Day celebration as a diplomat in the Grand Duchy. Reflecting on her first eight months in the country, she described the experience as extraordinary and said she had travelled across the country, visiting many different places.
Alongside ministers and business leaders, she said she had met many local residents, among them the woman who sells flowers every Saturday at Place Guillaume II. "There are so many people who have made me feel welcome here and I'm deeply grateful to each and every one of them", Ambassador Feinberg said.
She added that she has already made many lasting memories in Luxembourg, from her first audience with Grand Duke Guillaume to her visit of the American military cemetery in Hamm. She also highlighted a Q&A session with secondary school students, during which she answered questions about the United States.
The ambassador said that she had often described the relationship between the United States and Luxembourg as being stronger than ever:
Now, do we agree on everything? Ney, but that's okay! Most friends don't agree on 'everything'. The strongest relationships are not built on 100% agreement 100% of the time. They're built on dialogue. They're built on shared goals.
One of the lessons that she had learned over the past few months, she said, was that Luxembourg is a country that never stands still and is always looking ahead.
Reflecting on the United States' upcoming 250th anniversary, Feinberg said that the country's first 250 years had been about making the impossible possible. The next 250 years, she said, would be about proving that its greatest achievements still lie ahead.
She suggested that artificial intelligence, space exploration, and defence innovation in particular would shape the future.
Feinberg described Luxembourg as a key hub for American companies in Europe and an important destination for US investment:
Altogether, mutual FDI between our countries exceeds $800 billion. That's not just statistics. Those are thousands of jobs, thousands of opportunities, and thousands of lives made better. That's confidence. That's trust. That's friendship.
Looking ahead to the next NATO summit, she also referred to the Alliance's commitment to spending 5% of GDP on defence. Feinberg said she felt encouraged by Luxembourg's ambitions for its defence strategy and by the country's growing defence ecosystem.
"I like what I see so far", she noted.
