âused to express mild disappointment, gentle entreaty, or real or mock sympathy or sentiment.
The Secretary carries out the President's foreign policies through the State Department, which includes the Foreign Service, Civil Service, and U.S. Agency for International Development. On February 1, 2013, John Kerry was sworn in as the 68th Secretary of State of the United States.
Created in 1789 by the Congress as the successor to the Department of Foreign Affairs, the Department of State is the senior executive Department of the U.S. Government. The Secretary of Stateâs duties relating to foreign affairs have not changed significantly since then, but they have become far more complex as international commitments multiplied.