I am straight forward; I am not manipulative; I am not two-faced. And I think that that has served me well in all of my roles, particularly as a diplomat, because people knew if I said something, I meant it. If I said no, I meant no, and if I said we could make this work, we would make it work.

It may not be what you would've chosen, but we all have a responsibility to be active citizens and shape our system and our future.

Can I be blunt? Yes. Can I be diplomatic? Yes. Can I concoct a mixture of vinegar and honey when the circumstances warrant? Yes.

I was conscious of the fact that it could be to my disadvantage to marry a white guy - that some folks would hold that against me.

I like to think that with me, what you see is what you get, and you can like or dislike it, it's up to you, but it's straight. That's something that I pride myself on.

If you're trying to get something done, there will always be people who don't want to see you get something done, or who have a stake in the status quo. And if they approach that through ad hominem criticism of you, you've got to have enough confidence and thickness of skin to be able to endure.

We know that weapons, heavy weapons continue to flow across the border from Russia into Ukraine. And we have now, in recent days, indications that Russians - Russian military units themselves have, on occasion, fired into Ukraine.