WATCH: House Members Grill Sec. Antony Blinken During House Appropriations Committee Hearing

7 months ago

On Wednesday, Secretary of State Antony Blinken testified before the House Appropriations Committee.

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Transcript

00:00:00 >> The subcommittee on state foreign operations and related programs will come to an order.

00:00:16 Actually before we begin the formal hearing process, I want to take a moment to welcome

00:00:22 and to thank our full committee chairman, Mr. Tom Cole.

00:00:26 All of us know he's a tremendous leader who really understands the details and cares deeply

00:00:34 about the issues in the state and foreign operations bill.

00:00:37 So again, Mr. Chairman, thank you for your leadership and thank you for spending this

00:00:40 time with us this morning.

00:00:42 Mr. Secretary, good morning.

00:00:45 Welcome back to the state and foreign operations subcommittee.

00:00:48 We appreciate you being here today to discuss the fiscal year 2025 budget request for the

00:00:53 Department of State.

00:00:56 Let me also thank you for your service, your willingness to serve our country as well as

00:00:59 the men and women of the department who are so often unsung heroes.

00:01:05 But we appreciate their service as well.

00:01:07 Now Mr. Secretary, I was really prepared to discuss the specifics of the budget request

00:01:13 today, but I'm so deeply concerned by frankly the dangerous policies being pursued by this

00:01:19 administration.

00:01:20 Don't take my word for it.

00:01:22 Look around, the world is up in flames.

00:01:24 But most notably I want to focus towards Israel.

00:01:27 In this critical moment in history, I'm so concerned that I frankly just scrapped all

00:01:34 the work that we had done preparing for this hearing.

00:01:36 Instead, I'm going to use my time during this statement to focus on this alone.

00:01:42 This administration is playing a very dangerous, dangerous game with Israel's security and

00:01:45 by extension, frankly, our own national security.

00:01:50 So here's what we know.

00:01:51 The Biden administration is withholding certain weapons to Israel in its time of greatest

00:01:55 need, as it faces a threat to its very existence as a nation state.

00:02:01 We also know that apparently, we also know that apparently that wasn't enough because

00:02:10 the president said during an interview with CNN that he will withhold all offensive weapons

00:02:16 to Israel if they go after Hamas and Rafa, which is frankly stunning.

00:02:23 Just that one moment, that one moment, the president made it harder for our hostages,

00:02:28 which include Americans to be freed.

00:02:31 He emboldened Hamas, Hezbollah, and the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism, Iran.

00:02:36 Let's be honest, he gave a green light to the International Criminal Court.

00:02:40 That one statement was likely viewed around the world as a defining moment, a defining

00:02:46 moment creating even greater doubt about the strength and the reliability of the United

00:02:50 States as a security partner.

00:02:54 Communist China and Russia must have been overjoyed by the president's pronouncements.

00:02:59 I'm sure that it will be included in their talking points.

00:03:02 It'll be now in their talking points when they're trying to woo foreign leaders to come

00:03:05 to their corners.

00:03:08 Despite the administration's grand rhetoric about countering malign influence of China

00:03:13 and other adversaries, frankly their policies are doing the exact opposite.

00:03:18 Of course, this is not in isolation.

00:03:21 After the disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan, there is example after example after example

00:03:27 of this administration.

00:03:28 Frankly, treating allies like enemies and enemies like allies.

00:03:34 Them your partners, even publicly, and pressure them for any number of issues where maybe

00:03:38 they think that it's, I don't know, keeping the high ground or maybe politically expedient,

00:03:43 and then turn around and appease the enemies of the United States, even the most brutal

00:03:47 dictatorships.

00:03:49 It's hard to imagine a more damaging foreign policy to the national security interests

00:03:53 of the United States.

00:03:54 Mr. Secretary, I've heard you say, I've heard you say that Hamas embeds itself with civilians

00:04:02 within hospitals, schools, apartment buildings, and refugee camps.

00:04:06 You have also said it is Hamas's responsibility to stop those practices in order to avoid

00:04:12 harming civilians and that the war could be over if Hamas would lay down its arms, surrender

00:04:18 the leaders who are responsible for the slaughter and the torture and the murder and the rapes

00:04:24 of October 7th.

00:04:26 And you have on occasion noted the lack of other voices making those same claims among

00:04:32 the local protesters against Israel.

00:04:36 And Mr. Secretary, you're absolutely right.

00:04:41 But it's truly unfortunate that every statement made by officials from this administration

00:04:45 does not start with this very premise that I just quoted you saying.

00:04:53 How can you ensure the protection of innocent civilians?

00:04:55 By Hamas releasing the hostages and surrendering, period.

00:04:59 It's just not that difficult.

00:05:01 How do you increase pressure on Hamas?

00:05:03 Not by publicly rebuking and shaming Israel and withholding weapons.

00:05:07 Not by letting sanctions expire on the terrorist state of Iran, which funds Hamas.

00:05:13 Not by planning to restart aid to UNRWA, which cannot be untangled from Hamas.

00:05:19 Not by sending condolences after the death of the butcher of Tehran, when thankfully

00:05:25 he will no longer be around to torture and kill and maim innocent Iranians just because

00:05:30 they want freedom and human rights.

00:05:33 It's pretty simple, Mr. Secretary.

00:05:35 We must let Israel do its job and destroy Hamas.

00:05:39 We cannot stand between Israel and their fight against terrorism for their own survival.

00:05:45 We must do what we say and demonstrate real, real ironclad commitment to Israel's security.

00:05:52 And by doing so, we can begin to reverse this administration's damaging foreign policy

00:05:56 disasters, which have emboldened our enemies and weakened the credibility of the United

00:06:01 States around the world.

00:06:03 I wish it were not the case, but the comments made by former Defense Secretary Robert Gates

00:06:09 still hold true today, that Joe Biden has been wrong on nearly every major foreign policy

00:06:14 issue.

00:06:16 We need to do better, Mr. Secretary, before it's too late.

00:06:20 I understand you have an incredibly difficult job.

00:06:22 As I mentioned at the start, I do have great respect for your service and, by the way,

00:06:26 for the fact that we've been able to have frank conversations.

00:06:29 But as chairman of this subcommittee, which provides the funding for your department,

00:06:33 we need to know how – you need to know how deeply concerned I am about this administration's

00:06:38 lack of a strong, cohesive, consistent foreign policy.

00:06:43 With that, I now would like to yield to the distinguished ranking member of the subcommittee

00:06:48 for her opening remarks.

00:06:51 Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.

00:06:54 Senator Blinken, I appreciate you taking the time to be with us this morning.

00:06:58 I don't believe it has ever been more urgent for the case to be made on the central role

00:07:03 of development and diplomacy.

00:07:05 And of course, the chairman spent his time talking about Israel, because I don't believe

00:07:13 that a majority can defend this allocation, because the allocation is indefensible.

00:07:22 And also, I'd like to hear in your testimony the whole issue of humanitarian assistance

00:07:29 in Gaza and the 35-plus thousand people who have been killed, and the strategies of Israel

00:07:39 in terms of how productive these strategies have been into ensuring Israel's security

00:07:46 also.

00:07:47 The challenges of the 21st century, they can't be solved by one nation.

00:07:52 Our president recognizes that these challenges require teamwork.

00:07:57 They require alliances, and they require true partnerships.

00:08:01 And that's why I am really, just quite frankly, appalled about the trends that we're seeing

00:08:09 in the state foreign operations appropriations bill.

00:08:12 The fiscal year 2024 House bill proposed a huge 15 percent cut from the prior year.

00:08:21 We battled back to almost a 6 percent cut as the final level, but still face the greatest

00:08:28 percentage cut across appropriations bill, the greatest.

00:08:33 As of this hearing today, the House majority has told us that they plan to cut the bill

00:08:38 a further 11 percent for fiscal 25.

00:08:44 We have a problem, Mr. Secretary.

00:08:46 The world will continue to get smaller.

00:08:49 We have migration issues, climate, disease, even the flow of goods and crime, unfortunately,

00:08:55 such as drugs.

00:08:56 There are problems that are begging for a global approach.

00:09:01 Countries overseas continue to see the United States as a beacon of hope and promise, but

00:09:05 I don't know how long that that's going to last.

00:09:09 How long will we be able to rest on the achievements of prior generations, the Marshall Plan, the

00:09:15 eradication of smallpox, the end of the Cold War, PEPFAR, before we realize that we are

00:09:22 no longer offering the same leadership?

00:09:25 My colleagues are often quick to focus on the influence of the People's Republic of

00:09:31 China, but I will point out that China has now more embassies and more diplomats around

00:09:38 the world than the United States does.

00:09:41 More.

00:09:43 Simply put, we are being outnumbered just when countries are clamoring for greater partnerships

00:09:50 with the United States.

00:09:53 It's not just important that the United States is showing up for partners around the world,

00:09:58 but equally important to face the fact that America is showing.

00:10:04 Diversity is the Americans' and our country's superpower.

00:10:07 However, far too often, the representation of the United States is not reflective of

00:10:13 the full spectrum of backgrounds and experiences that America has to offer.

00:10:17 And I know you agree with us on this.

00:10:19 It's true for the workforce, but it's also true who the department works with.

00:10:25 The President has set a goal to increase the share of contract dollars going to small and

00:10:30 disadvantaged businesses to 15 percent across the federal government by fiscal '25.

00:10:38 So I commend the State Department for already exceeding that goal.

00:10:42 But Mr. Secretary, let me tell you, that obscures the fact that black, Asian Americans, and

00:10:48 Hispanic-owned small businesses are getting less than 2 percent each of State Department

00:10:56 contracts.

00:10:57 That's 2 percent each.

00:10:58 I believe African-American-owned firms is at 1.9 percent.

00:11:05 AAPI firms are at 1.45 percent.

00:11:11 And Hispanic firms are at 1.9 percent.

00:11:15 I'm a former 8(a) contractor, Mr. Secretary, in the '80s and '90s, and this is less than

00:11:22 what was taking place in terms of contracting then.

00:11:25 And so we have to understand and look at why these numbers are shockingly low.

00:11:32 We've got to do a better job making sure that historically disadvantaged entrepreneurs get

00:11:37 a larger share of the State Department contract.

00:11:41 Members, Mr. Secretary, they're outraged.

00:11:44 And so I intend to follow up, and I just wanted to let you know with a letter to the Department

00:11:49 asking you to outline the strategy to increase the share of contract dollars that go to all

00:11:55 historically disadvantaged groups and why black and Asian American and Hispanic firms

00:12:02 are being denied access to these contracts.

00:12:05 Now, 20 years ago, after we first started talking about this three-legged stool of national

00:12:11 security, diplomacy, development, and defense, we are no closer to bringing balance to that

00:12:17 stool.

00:12:18 In fact, we have never been so lopsided.

00:12:20 The resources that we spend on defense dwarf the resources that we spend on our overseas

00:12:27 presence, the pursuit of American interests, and our most basic partnerships to build a

00:12:33 safer world.

00:12:35 I'm sure that you see this every day.

00:12:38 We over-rely on our military tools because that's what's available, meanwhile starving

00:12:44 our civilian diplomatic tools.

00:12:46 Our military understands this and is often the first to advocate for development and

00:12:52 diplomatic tools that they see as necessary.

00:12:55 However, successive Congresses have refused to make the investments needed to take the

00:13:01 pressure off of military action.

00:13:05 And now, once again, our diplomatic and development activities are facing the biggest cuts of

00:13:11 any part of the United States government.

00:13:14 We can't keep going on like this.

00:13:16 If we're serious about confronting these challenges, then it must be reflected in our budget.

00:13:23 Without sufficient development funding, we face a future struck by cycles of crises that

00:13:30 require more and more humanitarian interventions and even military interventions and result

00:13:37 in a less stable world.

00:13:40 Secretary Blinken, you're currently crisscrossing the globe.

00:13:44 You're listening to partners.

00:13:46 You're hunting for joint solutions.

00:13:48 I'm sure getting an earful about United States policy.

00:13:52 I'm eager to hear from you today what tools that you need, that you need, that the State

00:13:57 Department needs to advance the mission of the United States and provide the leadership

00:14:02 and partnerships of the world that the world, quite frankly, expects of us.

00:14:07 What do you see as the cost of us stepping back and letting others fill the void?

00:14:13 I see that everywhere in the world.

00:14:16 What investments are we leaving on the table, the opportunities left untaken?

00:14:22 What do you hear from our brave diplomats around the world and what they need to do

00:14:25 their job?

00:14:26 I want to thank them for their service and their sacrifices, which they're making.

00:14:33 I want them to know that we do value their work in spite of these huge, horrific, terrible,

00:14:40 deep cuts that are being proposed.

00:14:43 I look forward to our work together, Mr. Secretary, also with you, Chairman Diaz-Billard, and

00:14:48 with all the members of this subcommittee to make the case for why this bill needs to

00:14:53 invest more this year and in future years to serve America, to serve the American people,

00:14:59 and yes, quite frankly, our entire planet.

00:15:02 Thank you, Mr. Secretary, and I yield back.

00:15:05 Thank you.

00:15:06 Now it's a privilege and an honor to yield to the Chairman of the Full Appropriations

00:15:09 Committee, Mr. Tom Cole, for his opening statement.

00:15:13 Mr. Cole.

00:15:14 Thank you, Chairman Diaz-Billard, Ranking Member Lee, Ranking Member DeLauro, and my

00:15:18 fellow appropriators.

00:15:21 I'm so pleased to be back with the State and Foreign Operations Committee.

00:15:25 I previously served on this subcommittee, both with our distinguished Chairwoman Emeritus

00:15:31 Kay Granger, Chairwoman Emeritus Nita Lowy, and the legendary Al Rogers, Chairman Emeritus.

00:15:38 So I know this committee is well-stocked with talented people.

00:15:43 Experience tells us that the work done before this committee is of critical importance to

00:15:49 America's national security.

00:15:50 Secretary Blinken, we appreciate your appearance before us today and your service to our country.

00:15:56 There's no denying we're facing a time of increasing global disorder and rising threats

00:16:01 to the security of the United States.

00:16:04 We all know that historical analogies can be misleading, yet it is hard not to see haunting

00:16:09 parallels between the conflicts raging across Europe and in the Middle East and another

00:16:14 dark time in world history, the 1930s.

00:16:17 The disturbing echoes of that dangerous decade are certainly before us.

00:16:22 In Europe, Vladimir Putin's warped dream of a new Russian empire has led to the unjust

00:16:27 and brutal invasion of his democratic neighbor, Ukraine.

00:16:31 In the Indo-Pacific, the Chinese Communist Party continues its efforts to undermine the

00:16:36 rules-based order, threaten Taiwan, and seek Chinese strategic domination in Asia and beyond.

00:16:43 And in the Middle East, Israel faces threats on multiple fronts, beginning with the horrific

00:16:48 attack launched by Hamas on October 7.

00:16:51 Even now, the terrorist regime in Iran is using missiles and proxies to threaten Israel

00:16:56 and the United States' interests across the region.

00:17:00 As you know, many of us on this panel were deeply disappointed at the administration's

00:17:05 decision to pause very vital weapon transfers to our friend Israel.

00:17:09 In my judgment, utilizing these weapons transfers as leverage over Israel's military decisions

00:17:14 during this critical time is both dangerous and self-defeating.

00:17:17 Moreover, withholding arms to Israel has our adversaries celebrating.

00:17:23 It weakens Israel's deterrence against Iran, as well as Hamas and Hezbollah.

00:17:27 I am deeply concerned over the signal it sends to these terrorists and enemies of both our

00:17:33 nation and of Israel.

00:17:35 Meanwhile, in what some have called an "axis of upheaval," our sworn adversaries in Beijing,

00:17:44 Moscow, and Tehran are increasingly joining hands to challenge us and to challenge Western

00:17:50 institutions, democratic values, and the cause of freedom.

00:17:54 The prospect of greater military, economic, and technological cooperation between these

00:17:59 hostile authoritarian powers can only be deeply disturbing to the United States, our allies,

00:18:05 and our partners.

00:18:06 Here at home, the unprecedented flow of illegal immigrants across the southern border and

00:18:12 the uptick in dangerous and deadly drugs such as fentanyl into our country have brought

00:18:17 America to an important crossroads that demands clear leadership.

00:18:21 Mr. Secretary, your budget request for the coming year aims to address some of these

00:18:25 challenges.

00:18:26 But I am concerned that in some respects, it's missed the mark.

00:18:30 I am pleased at the request to fully fund security assistance for Israel and Egypt,

00:18:35 a proposed increase for the Indo-Pacific region, as well as for international narcotics and

00:18:41 law enforcement funding, which is critical to countering the transnational criminal network

00:18:49 trafficking in fentanyl and other deadly narcotics.

00:18:53 I am, however, concerned that the budget proposes billions in additional mandatory funding and

00:18:58 other budgetary gimmicks.

00:19:00 These incentives appear to ignore our deteriorating fiscal outlook, and frankly, Congress is unlikely

00:19:05 to adopt them.

00:19:07 When your department or any executive branch agency resorts to budgetary gamesmanship rather

00:19:12 than making the hard strategic choices necessitated by limited resources, it does a disservice

00:19:17 to your cause.

00:19:18 Mr. Secretary, again, I want to thank you and the men and women who serve in the Department

00:19:23 of State for your service, and I look forward to your testimony and the dialogue to follow.

00:19:28 I yield back.

00:19:29 Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.

00:19:30 It's always a pleasure to also yield to the Ranking Member of the full committee, Ms.

00:19:35 DeLauro, for her opening statements.

00:19:36 Thank you so much, Mr. Chairman.

00:19:38 Thank you, Ranking Member Lee, and a pleasure to have the Chair at the meeting as well.

00:19:44 Thank you, Secretary Blinken, for being here today and for what you and the devoted public

00:19:49 servants of the Department of State do to protect Americans' security and interests,

00:19:55 to project America's strength, share our values, celebrate our common cause with those

00:20:00 who support freedom and democracy around the world.

00:20:04 Unfortunately, the majority has recently revealed that they are prepared to cut the State and

00:20:10 Foreign Operations Funding Bill by more than 11 percent.

00:20:15 That would decimate your department's ability to conduct diplomacy around the world at a

00:20:21 time when America's diplomatic might is as critical to our national security as our

00:20:27 defense capabilities.

00:20:29 Later in this hearing, I plan to ask you about the damage to our diplomatic capabilities

00:20:34 that a $7 billion cut to the State Department's funding bill would bring and the losses it

00:20:40 would entail for State Department personnel, from Foreign Service officers to aid workers.

00:20:48 We are at a critical juncture in our history.

00:20:52 Wars in Europe and the Middle East have tested our nation's resolve.

00:20:57 I was greatly disturbed and still am by the majority's lack of resolve to pass security

00:21:01 and humanitarian aid for months while our allies waited, our adversaries took advantage,

00:21:08 and humanitarian disasters unfolded.

00:21:11 But thankfully, despite the majority's unnecessary delays, we did pass the Supplemental Security

00:21:18 Funding.

00:21:19 We showed our trusted allies that we have their back and that our word can be counted

00:21:23 on.

00:21:25 I believe it is our duty to support Ukraine's victory over Russia.

00:21:29 We cannot let Vladimir Putin be successful in his ambition to expand Russia's territory

00:21:34 by force.

00:21:36 Of course, arms and munitions are not all we are providing Ukraine.

00:21:40 The State Department is administering $9.5 billion in forgivable loans to support Ukraine's

00:21:46 government, its energy sector and other infrastructure, and its first responders, health care workers

00:21:52 and teachers.

00:21:53 I look forward to learning more about how you are working to ensure Ukraine's economic

00:21:59 stability.

00:22:01 In the Middle East, while we must support Israel's defense against aggression from Iran

00:22:07 and its proxies like Hamas and Hezbollah, the situation in Gaza is increasingly dire.

00:22:13 One point one million Gazans, half its population, are on the brink of famine due to this conflict.

00:22:20 We have a moral obligation to ensure that humanitarian aid appropriated and obligated

00:22:25 by this Congress can reach Gazans.

00:22:28 And we must ensure that this conflict does not spread.

00:22:32 These are not just feel-good activities.

00:22:34 They are central to the security of Israel, the United States and the region for generations

00:22:41 into the future.

00:22:42 While the situation on the ground in Israel and Gaza is urgent and commands our attention,

00:22:48 the State Department is also leading negotiations to secure the release of the hostages and

00:22:53 must prepare for the future of this region.

00:22:56 And I know you agree that planning with regional partners must happen now and how we bring

00:23:01 about a ceasefire and a peaceful end to this conflict.

00:23:05 All of this takes resources.

00:23:09 And even as these conflicts continue, the State Department is also focused on the growing

00:23:13 influence of China throughout the world as the State Department works to preserve the

00:23:18 rules-based international order through diplomacy.

00:23:22 Moreover, China is rapidly expanding its military and technological capabilities.

00:23:27 The State Department's work is crucial to maintaining the United States' competitive

00:23:31 advantage and that work, again, requires sufficient resources.

00:23:38 There is a small faction in this Congress that believes that we should put America first

00:23:42 by building walls between us and the rest of the world.

00:23:46 I strongly believe that we put America first by demonstrating the power of American leadership,

00:23:52 that we have the strength and the determination and the heart to fight for the most vulnerable

00:23:58 people, protect the freedom of our allies and share American values around the world.

00:24:04 I thank you for appearing before this subcommittee and I thank you for your public service to

00:24:09 our country.

00:24:10 I yield back.

00:24:12 Thank you very much.

00:24:13 Secretary Blinken, as you know, your full written statement will be placed in the record.

00:24:18 Obviously, feel free to summarize your testimony as we said before.

00:24:21 Thank you for being here and now you are recognized, sir.

00:24:24 Mr. Chairman, thank you very much.

00:24:26 Always good to be with you.

00:24:27 Chairman Cole, thank you for being here this morning.

00:24:30 Ranking member Lee, Ranking member DeLauro, all the distinguished members of the subcommittee,

00:24:35 thanks for the opportunity this morning to testify before you.

00:24:37 And thank you for the partnership that we have had to work to advance American leadership

00:24:41 in a world at a time when it is so essential having that leadership in order to deliver

00:24:47 on the priorities that actually matter to our people here at home.

00:24:50 I think the need for U.S. global leadership and cooperation with allies and partners has

00:24:54 never been greater.

00:24:56 If we don't, if we're not engaged, if we're not leading, then we know someone else will

00:25:00 and likely not in a way that advances our interests and values.

00:25:02 Or maybe even worse, no one does and then you're going to have a vacuum that's filled

00:25:05 by bad things before it's filled by good things.

00:25:07 At the same time, we know that the very nature of the problems that we face, greater multiplicity

00:25:13 and a greater complexity, requires cooperation, coordination, work with allies and partners.

00:25:19 That's more imperative than it's been in my time here as well.

00:25:22 People's Republic of China is pursuing military, economic, geopolitical preeminence, challenging

00:25:26 our vision for a free, open, secure, and prosperous international order.

00:25:30 Russia is committing aggression not only against Ukraine, but against the principles at the

00:25:34 heart of the United Nations Charter, sovereignty, territorial independence and integrity, independence,

00:25:41 which are the very building blocks of global peace and security.

00:25:44 In the Middle East, we've been standing with Israel in its efforts to ensure that what

00:25:47 happened on October 7th never happens again, as we do everything we can to bring about

00:25:51 an end to the terrible human suffering of Palestinians in Gaza and to prevent the conflict

00:25:56 from spreading to other fronts.

00:25:58 U.S. leadership is needed to address humanitarian crises elsewhere around the world, including

00:26:02 in Sudan, Haiti.

00:26:04 We've seen millions of people in many other places displaced and killed.

00:26:08 We have to focus, and we are, on them.

00:26:11 And also to address, as many of you said, the global issues that no one country can

00:26:15 solve alone, whether that's food security, changing climate, transnational corruption,

00:26:20 or the fentanyl crisis.

00:26:22 [Chanting]

00:26:27 Mr. Secretary.

00:26:28 [Chanting]

00:26:36 We will not have disturbances in this committee.

00:26:42 Mr. Secretary.

00:26:43 Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

00:26:45 But with the support of Congress, we can and we are approaching these challenges from a

00:26:49 position of strength.

00:26:51 Because of the actions we've taken, the United States is stronger economically, militarily,

00:26:56 diplomatically than we were a few years ago.

00:26:59 We've made historic investments here at home in our competitiveness, in our innovation,

00:27:03 in our infrastructure.

00:27:04 We've renewed our alliances.

00:27:05 We built new ones and secured unprecedented alignment with key partners in Europe and

00:27:10 Asia and beyond.

00:27:12 We've delivered essential American aid to Ukraine.

00:27:14 And we've called the international community to share the burden.

00:27:17 For every dollar that we've spent in Ukraine on economic or development assistance, others

00:27:22 have collectively invested three more.

00:27:24 Now, I know there was doubt about whether bipartisan support for Ukraine and other urgent

00:27:30 national security priorities could endure, but last month, Congress demonstrated to the

00:27:33 world that we will not pull back when you passed President Biden's supplemental funding

00:27:38 bill by an overwhelming margin.

00:27:41 Our investment abroad does not come at the expense of our strength at home.

00:27:44 Far from it.

00:27:45 Most of the supplemental is being spent here in the United States, building up our own

00:27:49 defense industrial base, supporting thousands of good American jobs.

00:27:54 But we need to keep up this momentum.

00:27:56 That requires a State Department budget that we fully resource so that we can actually

00:28:00 meet the challenges of this moment.

00:28:02 The FY25 budget the President's put forward, requesting $58.8 billion to the State Department

00:28:07 and USAID, does that in two key ways.

00:28:10 First, it funds the essential missions of our Department and USAID.

00:28:15 The budget will ensure that the United States continues to be the partner of choice for

00:28:19 countries around the world when they turn to us and look to us to help them solve problems

00:28:25 that they're trying to solve, but that are also profoundly in our interest to help solve.

00:28:29 In an era of renewed great power competition, we have to present the strongest possible

00:28:33 offer, one that is relevant and responsive to countries' needs, and one that advances

00:28:38 our security and economic interests.

00:28:40 That's why we're requesting, among other things, $2 billion for a new fund to build high-quality,

00:28:45 sustainable infrastructure around the world.

00:28:48 Crucially, investments like these create jobs for Americans and expand markets for our businesses

00:28:53 overseas.

00:28:54 We're requesting resources for the World Bank.

00:28:56 With $1 billion in U.S. funding, we can unlock another $36 billion in development fund capacity

00:29:02 to direct to the top priorities of emerging economies.

00:29:05 That's an enormous return on our investment and essential for competing with China around

00:29:09 the world.

00:29:10 The budget also includes $1.7 billion for international organizations, including the

00:29:14 UN, APEC, the Inter-American Development Bank, to help shape them in ways that reflect our

00:29:19 interests and our values.

00:29:22 We're asking for $500 million to give more people around the world access to secure Internet

00:29:27 and digital technologies.

00:29:29 Doing that will support the U.S. economy through the export of our technology products.

00:29:33 It will also help ensure that we and our fellow democracies remain the leaders and standard

00:29:37 bearers in key technologies, including artificial intelligence.

00:29:41 Our budget includes funding to address global issues that affect the lives and the livelihoods

00:29:47 of the American people, as well as people around the world, especially the synthetic

00:29:51 drug crisis.

00:29:52 It also funds our response to irregular migration, global food insecurity, public health, climate,

00:29:57 and energy security.

00:29:58 We're also asking Congress to fully fund the State Department's educational and cultural

00:30:01 exchange programs.

00:30:02 They're one of the best, most cost-effective tools that I've seen for advancing our values

00:30:07 and interests around the world.

00:30:08 They support the students, the researchers, the young professionals from our communities

00:30:13 who study and work abroad.

00:30:14 They connect us in the world with the world in powerful human ways.

00:30:19 To outcompete our strategic rivals, we need to invest in the foundation of our strength

00:30:22 abroad, and that is our diplomatic corps.

00:30:24 And that's the second pillar of the budget.

00:30:26 Our budget makes a strong investment in expanding our overseas presence, opening posts in the

00:30:30 Pacific Islands and the Eastern Caribbean.

00:30:33 As was noted, we want to make sure that we are represented at the ambassadorial level

00:30:39 and that we have posts everywhere so that we can effectively represent our interests

00:30:43 everywhere.

00:30:44 We'll also continue our modernization of our diplomacy.

00:30:47 We have reorganized the department in ways to make it better fit to address the challenges

00:30:52 that we face in this moment.

00:30:54 We're working to attract and retain the best talent, again, needed to take on these challenges.

00:30:59 We're investing in our people in Washington and overseas with training, with technology,

00:31:03 with support.

00:31:04 We're promoting greater agility, greater innovation, greater efficiency in our processes.

00:31:09 Last year's enacted budget represented a 5 percent cut from the year before.

00:31:15 That challenges our efforts to deliver results that Congress expects and the American people

00:31:19 deserve.

00:31:20 So, I urge you to support this budget, which helps us address the most pressing foreign

00:31:23 policy priorities for the coming year and lays the foundation for continued strong American

00:31:28 leadership in the years ahead.

00:31:30 With that, I'm happy to address any questions.

00:31:32 Thank you very much, Mr. Secretary.

00:31:34 Members, as usual, I'll call members based on seniority of those present when the hearing

00:31:38 was called to order.

00:31:40 And alternating between each side, each member will have five minutes for questions and responses.

00:31:44 And I anticipate that we should have enough time for two rounds of questions.

00:31:49 Mr. Secretary, I will start in the Western Hemisphere.

00:31:54 I'll just ask you, you're aware, right, that in Cuba, the FBI's top ten most wanted terrorists,

00:32:04 Joan Chesimard, is harbored, right, by the regime?

00:32:08 You're aware of that?

00:32:09 Yes.

00:32:10 You're aware that bomb maker William Morales, or the FALN, responsible for the murder of

00:32:14 four Americans, injuring 50 in New York, is also harbored by the regime in Cuba?

00:32:19 You're aware as well that the ELN and FARC terrorists are harbored there?

00:32:23 Yes.

00:32:24 You're aware that the regime did not cooperate in the investigation regarding the so-called

00:32:30 anomalous health incidents, the sonic health attacks, against U.S. personnel?

00:32:35 You're aware of that, right?

00:32:38 You're aware that the Cuban dictatorship has a very extensive espionage network?

00:32:42 The most recent case that was very public was the State Department's Victor Manuel Rocha,

00:32:48 who pled guilty of spying for decades on Cuba's behalf.

00:32:51 And you're aware of that, I'm assuming, as well, Mr. Secretary.

00:32:54 You're aware that the Cuban regime recently signed a military agreement with Belarus to

00:32:57 train Cuban nationals, and then Cuban nationals are traveling to Russia to fight for Russia

00:33:05 against Ukraine, correct, sir?

00:33:07 Okay.

00:33:08 Well, then, this is what caught me by -- not by surprise, but as you know, the State Department

00:33:19 failed to designate Cuba as a not fully cooperating country when it comes to terrorism.

00:33:24 The rationale was that Colombia's, frankly, how do I describe him, pro-Hamas, pro-communist,

00:33:32 former M-19 guerrilla president decided to no longer wants to extradite Marxist terrorists

00:33:40 from Cuba.

00:33:41 And then the Biden administration decided to resume law enforcement cooperation with

00:33:45 the regime.

00:33:46 Again, not to mention the fact that Cuba has thousands of intelligence agents in Venezuela

00:33:51 keeping Maloud in power.

00:33:52 It is a terrorist regime.

00:33:54 And so, how does this coddling to a dangerous anti-American dictatorship with all of those

00:34:00 issues that I just mentioned that I know you're aware of, and so many others, how does that

00:34:03 protect U.S. national security interests?

00:34:05 Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

00:34:08 As you know, the not fully cooperating statute requires an annual review, and the basis for

00:34:16 the designation by the previous administration was the presence of these National Liberation

00:34:20 Army members from Colombia in Cuba.

00:34:23 The demand at the time by the Colombian government that they be returned to Colombia, the refusal

00:34:30 of the Cuban government to do so, hence harboring terrorists.

00:34:35 The change this year has been that the Colombian government no longer seeks their extradition.

00:34:41 And as you noted, we've resumed law enforcement cooperation with Cuba in the national interest,

00:34:47 and thus the basis for the designation was no longer there.

00:34:51 There are other designations, as you well know, for Cuba that remain on the books.

00:34:55 And of course, all of the acts that you rightly cited, we continue to push back against, take

00:35:03 steps against, wherever and whenever we can.

00:35:05 But in this particular case, given the annual requirement, given the basis for the designation,

00:35:11 and the changing facts, that's the determination we made.

00:35:14 And Mr. Secretary, but again, as we mentioned in the beginning of this, my question, those

00:35:19 are not the only terrorists that are harbored there, including folks who have murdered Americans.

00:35:25 And in many cases, we have fugitives of justice who are being accused, indicted, convicted

00:35:30 of crimes different from terrorism.

00:35:33 Absolutely.

00:35:34 Absolutely.

00:35:35 And I just found it hard to understand that the fact that a country decided to not ask

00:35:42 for a group of terrorists to be sent back doesn't change the fact that there are other

00:35:48 terrorists that are there, including ones who have killed Americans, who by the way,

00:35:53 the regime has refused to send back to the United States, for God's sake.

00:35:56 But anyways, again, we'll continue that conversation, because I'm frankly taken back by that aspect.

00:36:05 I am going to stay, keep to the clock.

00:36:09 I'm going to ask the rest of you to do the same.

00:36:11 So with that, let me recognize the distinguished ranking member of the subcommittee, Ms. Lee.

00:36:18 Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.

00:36:20 Of course, you know, and we're friends and colleagues, we disagree on Cuba, and we will

00:36:26 continue this conversation, because this 50 plus year policy of the United States toward

00:36:33 Cuba with the embargo has not changed any dynamic that the chairman just mentioned.

00:36:44 And we have to move toward having full normal relations with Cuba.

00:36:49 Mr. Secretary, I know that you and you said this in your statement, believe in diversity,

00:36:56 equity, inclusion, accessibility.

00:36:59 And I also know you're still struggling with a workforce that is still less diverse than

00:37:04 the labor force.

00:37:05 And it gets wider and more male at each rank of seniority.

00:37:11 Culture change is hard.

00:37:12 It takes time.

00:37:13 But we also need urgently to see progress because the world won't wait for us to catch

00:37:18 up.

00:37:19 So how and what role does DEIA play in achieving this strategy?

00:37:25 What metrics, quantifiable metrics will you cite for your leadership tenure as evidence

00:37:31 of success?

00:37:33 And what do you think are the obstacles to the success?

00:37:36 And how can we help you and your team overcome them?

00:37:39 Because as I travel the continent of Africa, for example, and in the Caribbean, I still

00:37:43 don't see the diversity that this country should be presenting in our foreign service.

00:37:52 Well, thank you very much and thank you for your leadership on this issue.

00:37:56 And let me just be clear at the outset why I think this is so important to have a department

00:38:00 that better reflects the people we represent.

00:38:03 It's important because it's the right thing to do, but it's also important because it's

00:38:06 the smart and necessary thing to do for our foreign policy and for our interests.

00:38:10 We are operating in an extraordinarily diverse world.

00:38:14 The greatest strength we bring to our ability to operate in that world and advance our interests

00:38:17 is our own diversity.

00:38:19 And if we are holding back, denying ourselves the talents of people from different backgrounds,

00:38:24 different perspectives, different experiences, who have ways of engaging with the world that

00:38:30 can make a real difference and help us solve problems by bringing these different perspectives

00:38:35 to bear in our own policymaking, we're simply shortchanging ourselves.

00:38:38 So it's imperative in my judgment that we continue to build a department that fully

00:38:42 reflects our diversity.

00:38:44 It is our strength around the world.

00:38:46 And we've been working to do that.

00:38:48 As you know, very early in my tenure, I appointed the first Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer

00:38:52 for the department.

00:38:54 We now have the second one who's taken over, Zakiyah Carr-Johnson, who's hit the ground

00:38:59 running.

00:39:01 Our first Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer in that office produced the AEI strategic

00:39:05 plan very early on with input from employees all over the world.

00:39:10 We finalized that plan.

00:39:11 We set out 215 objectives in it.

00:39:14 And I can tell you that as of this moment, about 58 percent or 125 of those objectives

00:39:18 have actually been met, and we're working to complete the others.

00:39:20 I believe we shared that plan with you, but we can go over exactly where we are.

00:39:24 We have DEI as a function now of performance evaluations to make sure that people are focused

00:39:29 on that as part of their responsibilities as they seek to advance in the department.

00:39:34 I'd note, and I thank Congress for this, for the first time, we were able to get paid internships

00:39:39 at the department.

00:39:40 And that is a wonderful tool for opening the socioeconomic aperture to make sure, again,

00:39:46 that we have a department that's better reflective of the country.

00:39:49 And that includes making sure that we have people from communities all over the country,

00:39:53 rural as well as urban, who are able to try out the department through an internship and

00:39:58 then decide whether they want to pursue a career there.

00:40:01 We have a quantitative baseline for the first time.

00:40:03 In January of '24, we published the third year of demographic data in a public dashboard

00:40:08 that's available to everyone.

00:40:10 And the dashboard provides a detailed snapshot of every bureau, broken out by race, by ethnicity,

00:40:17 by gender, by disability status, by grade, by rank, by place of origin in our country.

00:40:24 And that will allow us, I think, to see clear trend lines over the next decade.

00:40:29 And in terms of senior leadership selection, we have at the deputy assistant secretary

00:40:35 level and above, we've added new transparency to the process, clear criteria, so that people

00:40:42 can be clearly evaluated on the merits.

00:40:44 Now, to your point, all of this takes time.

00:40:50 And it's not flipping a switch.

00:40:51 Yeah, but Mr. Secretary, just very quickly, it takes time, but not five years, ten years.

00:40:57 We need to look, and you all need to look, at new ways of breaking down these systemic

00:41:02 barriers.

00:41:03 Because from what I've seen, first of all, retention is a problem.

00:41:09 The cultural issues.

00:41:10 That's an important point.

00:41:11 Can I just say on that?

00:41:13 You're exactly right, because it's one thing to recruit people and bring them in.

00:41:16 It's another thing to retain them.

00:41:17 One of the things we've done is we've established a retention unit to try to understand why

00:41:21 it is that people across the department may be leaving well before their time, and why,

00:41:26 in particular, underrepresented groups may be leaving at a higher level.

00:41:31 And that work is ongoing.

00:41:33 We're learning a lot from that retention unit.

00:41:35 Thank you.

00:41:36 Thank you.

00:41:37 Now we will recognize the full committee chairman, Mr. Cole.

00:41:40 Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.

00:41:42 Mr. Secretary, as you know, the People's Republic of China has repeatedly used economic coercion

00:41:48 against the United States, our allies, and frankly, Nailong countries as well.

00:41:53 And quite often trying to extract a political advantage or trap a country in a debt trap,

00:42:00 basically, in order to have influence over its behavior.

00:42:04 That runs very much counter, obviously, to a rules-based international order.

00:42:08 I'm wondering what you and the department are doing to counter those kinds of activities.

00:42:13 And frankly, do you have the tools that you need?

00:42:15 I know my colleague, Mr. Meeks, and I, along with Yang Kim and Amy Barrow of the Foreign

00:42:22 Relations Committee, actually have legislation to try and give you more tools to deal with

00:42:27 that.

00:42:28 Can you tell us how serious you view the problem and what weapons you have and are using and

00:42:32 what weapons you might need?

00:42:34 Yes, thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.

00:42:35 I think it's an important question and one we're very focused on.

00:42:38 I'd say two things quickly about that.

00:42:39 One is we want to make sure that wherever we can, we can make, create a better alternative

00:42:48 for countries as they're looking at investment.

00:42:51 Because the main way that China exercises this coercion is, of course, by getting the

00:42:56 leverage that comes through investments, including through Belt and Road.

00:43:00 So we have done a tremendous amount of work putting together all of the resources and

00:43:05 tools in our government, working with allies and partners through the PGI the President

00:43:11 established at the G7, the Mineral Securities Partnership, and other things, to be able

00:43:16 to effectively channel investment in places where it matters so that we can effectively

00:43:20 compete.

00:43:21 For us, of course, the secret sauce is the private sector.

00:43:25 We're never going to match and we shouldn't match China dollar for dollar when it comes

00:43:29 to state investment.

00:43:30 Our job is to be a catalyst of, supporter for, private sector investment.

00:43:35 And as we do that, I think there's no question that most countries would prefer to work with

00:43:40 us.

00:43:41 However, the other side of this is when you see, exactly as you said, examples of coercion

00:43:45 being exercised, using economic leverage that China has to get countries to do things that

00:43:49 it wants geopolitically.

00:43:50 A good example of that was Lithuania a few years ago.

00:43:54 And when Lithuania took steps in terms of its relationship with Taiwan that China didn't

00:43:58 like, China tried to squeeze Lithuania.

00:44:00 We came in.

00:44:01 We worked with EXIM to generate about $600 million in financing as an alternative to

00:44:07 the money that Beijing was pulling out or threatening to pull out.

00:44:11 We had a defense procurement agreement, the DOD put forward, that was very helpful as

00:44:16 well in going to the Lithuanians.

00:44:18 Force helped support and move supply chains away from the PRC.

00:44:24 And we mobilized posts around the Indo-Pacific to help Lithuania find new markets for the

00:44:29 markets that were being taken away when China was trying to exercise its leverage.

00:44:33 So I think there's actually a pretty good model there, a good model actually in the

00:44:36 way Australia responded to economic coercion some years ago from China that we can build

00:44:41 on.

00:44:42 And we really welcome working with you to make sure that not only do we have the tools,

00:44:45 but the tools are adequately financed so that we can come in and create the kind of resiliency.

00:44:50 Last thing I'd mention is the European Union's also gotten into the game on this in a big

00:44:55 way.

00:44:56 They have important legislation so that if states are on the receiving end of economic

00:45:00 coercion, the EU can come in and support them.

00:45:03 Well, again, we'd like to work with you on that.

00:45:06 So if there are specific things that you would need that we could be helpful with, I'd like

00:45:09 to know.

00:45:10 One quick question.

00:45:11 We don't have enough time, but obviously we've all been intrigued by some of the things I've

00:45:17 read at least about a potential agreement with Saudi Arabia.

00:45:21 Could you give us some sort of overview of where you are in those negotiations and where

00:45:27 you hope to be?

00:45:29 So we've been working, and this goes back well before October 7th, working with Saudi

00:45:34 Arabia and with Israel to pursue normalization between the two countries.

00:45:38 This would be a game changer.

00:45:40 It would be the first time that Israel has normalized relations with the largest Arab

00:45:46 and Muslim country in the world in terms of its significance.

00:45:51 And it would reshape the region and well beyond.

00:45:55 We have pursued the work to try to get that agreement.

00:45:59 It requires two things.

00:46:00 It requires first some understandings and agreements between the United States and Saudi

00:46:03 Arabia on security, on nuclear energy, and on defense cooperation.

00:46:11 Those agreements in principle are very close to being able to be concluded.

00:46:16 Now of course we will come to Congress with them when they're ready to be reviewed, but

00:46:22 we could be really weeks away from being able to conclude them.

00:46:25 However, in order for normalization to proceed, Saudi Arabia has made very clear that even

00:46:30 with the agreements between us completed, they have to have two things.

00:46:33 They have to have calm in Gaza, and they have to have a credible pathway to a Palestinian

00:46:37 state.

00:46:38 So we of course are working on both.

00:46:40 We want to see both.

00:46:42 Whether a government in Israel in this moment is able to engage on that basis, I don't know.

00:46:51 What I do know is until now, this has been a hypothetical or theoretical question for

00:46:56 Israel.

00:46:58 Assuming we complete the agreements between the United States and Saudi Arabia, that hypothetical

00:47:03 or theoretical question becomes a real question that they will have to answer one way or another.

00:47:08 Thank you very much.

00:47:09 Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

00:47:10 I yield back.

00:47:11 Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

00:47:12 Mr. Lora, you're recognized.

00:47:14 Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

00:47:15 Mr. Secretary, as I previewed in my opening remarks, I first wanted to ask you about what

00:47:22 I view as a misguided allocation for fiscal year 2025 and the impact on the State Department's

00:47:28 critical diplomacy and development work.

00:47:31 I was interested in the line of questioning with all the initiatives that we are talking

00:47:37 about with regard to the State Department that need to be discussed and need to be worked

00:47:42 on.

00:47:43 I think the foundation of that is what kind of resources does the Department have to move

00:47:49 forward.

00:47:50 The recently announced top-line funding level for State and Foreign Ops for the appropriation

00:47:56 bill proposes a nearly 12 percent cut.

00:47:59 That's compared to the 2024 enacted level.

00:48:04 That's on top of an almost 6 percent cut from fiscal years 2023 to 2024.

00:48:09 Let me be extremely clear.

00:48:11 Nearly 12 percent cut to the SFOPS budget is a staggering $7 billion, billion with a

00:48:19 B.

00:48:20 So, three questions in this regard, Mr. Secretary.

00:48:26 You're deeply involved in conflicts in Ukraine, Middle East, maintaining a competitive advantage

00:48:32 against China, trying to deal with other food assistance efforts around the globe.

00:48:44 You have to conduct its day-to-day business from D.C.

00:48:47 You're in almost every country in the world.

00:48:49 How would losing $7 billion from the budget affect your Department's diplomatic capabilities

00:48:55 and the implementation of U.S. foreign policy?

00:48:59 Thank you.

00:49:00 It would severely undermine our efforts across the board.

00:49:02 As you said, this would take us back to FY 2014 funding levels.

00:49:07 In other words, almost a decade ago.

00:49:11 In terms of our hiring, in terms of our support for our diplomats, for our locally engaged

00:49:18 staff, which is two-thirds of our employee base, in terms of our operations, in terms

00:49:23 of our programs, this would have a – I don't want to exaggerate by saying devastating,

00:49:30 but close to that impact on what we're able to do to actually advance the interests of

00:49:35 the American people.

00:49:36 If you look at the big things that we're trying to do to effectively engage the strategic

00:49:44 competition with China, including by creating better alternatives for countries that are

00:49:49 looking to choose between our path and theirs, it would severely penalize those efforts.

00:49:56 Our ability to continue to sustain support with our allies and partners for Ukraine and

00:50:01 pushing back against Russian aggression, that would be severely undermined.

00:50:06 Our ability to address a wide variety of global challenges that have impacts here in the United

00:50:12 States, including things like the fentanyl crisis, as well as irregular migration, as

00:50:18 well as dealing with climate and food security.

00:50:22 Would each and every one of those be affected?

00:50:24 No, because we'd have to make incredibly hard decisions, but some of them inevitably

00:50:30 would be severely penalized.

00:50:31 But let me be even more parochial about it, just to cite a few examples.

00:50:36 Embassy security.

00:50:38 We're trying to have more embassies in more places to make sure that we're fully represented.

00:50:43 We want to open new embassies in the Pacific Islands, in the Caribbean.

00:50:50 We need to secure those embassies.

00:50:52 We would have trouble sustaining the current security levels for our existing embassies

00:50:56 if we had these cuts.

00:50:57 And then if you insulated those security programs, then of course the cuts would have to be felt

00:51:02 elsewhere.

00:51:04 Our ability to expand our diplomatic presence would probably be cut.

00:51:06 The exchange programs that so many in Congress I know support and appreciate would face significant

00:51:12 cuts.

00:51:13 We'd probably have something like 600 or 700 fewer IVLP participants, curtailing one of

00:51:19 our most valuable tools to connect with people around the world.

00:51:24 This is the International Visitors Leadership Program.

00:51:27 We would have, I think, we want to open new passport offices in this country, in different

00:51:32 places, to respond to what has been historic demand.

00:51:35 We would not be able to do that.

00:51:37 I can go down the list and we'll obviously provide this list to Congress in the interest

00:51:40 of time.

00:51:41 I won't do it now.

00:51:42 But both in terms of the big muscle movements that we need to make and very specific things

00:51:48 that we want to sustain or grow for the American people, we would be severely penalized.

00:51:53 So we're looking at a loss of personnel, of frontline critical personnel, and thereby

00:52:00 just hurting our ability to pursue our own interests.

00:52:03 And the number of priorities that would have to be put on a back burner.

00:52:09 And if you can, Mr. Secretary, I know how busy you are and thereby your staff is busy,

00:52:15 but I think it would be very, very helpful if this committee could understand what this

00:52:21 $7 billion cut, what is the consequences?

00:52:25 I'm not looking for percentages.

00:52:27 I'm not looking for numbers.

00:52:29 But the actual consequences on American foreign policy, our diplomacy, our stature, and world

00:52:36 leadership.

00:52:37 We'd be happy to provide that to you.

00:52:38 Thank you.

00:52:39 I yield back.

00:52:40 And thank the ranking member.

00:52:41 This subcommittee has amazing members, but I'll tell you what, for me, it's always a

00:52:45 special honor to be able to recognize not only the Chairman Emeritus, the former chairman

00:52:51 of the subcommittee, but the dean of the house, Mr. Rogers.

00:52:55 Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you for arranging this hearing with the secretary

00:53:00 and running it.

00:53:01 And, Mr. Secretary, we're delighted to see you.

00:53:05 We thank you for your service.

00:53:08 We pray for your safety.

00:53:12 Fentanyl overdose is now the number one killer of adults ages 18 to 45, destroying families,

00:53:24 ruining lives.

00:53:26 We've got to find a way to stop it.

00:53:29 We know China and the Mexican cartels are the primary drivers of the problem.

00:53:37 The Chinese ship the precursor chemicals to the Mexican cartels, who are then producing

00:53:45 the pills and trafficking them through our borders.

00:53:50 It seems that despite Beijing enacting new laws in 2019 to outlaw the export of fentanyl

00:54:00 and its precursors, these efforts have not actually been enforced.

00:54:09 Has China taken any sort of meaningful action to try to stop the export of these deadly

00:54:17 drugs?

00:54:18 Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

00:54:20 It's very good to see you here as well.

00:54:22 And two things.

00:54:23 First, I wholeheartedly agree with you on the urgency, the priority that we have to

00:54:31 place and we are placing on synthetic opioids and fentanyl.

00:54:34 We see a devastating community after community in this country.

00:54:38 40 percent of Americans know someone who died of an opioid overdose.

00:54:43 And as you point out, it's the number one killer of Americans age 18 to 49.

00:54:48 It has a domestic component and the President has put more money into dealing with the domestic

00:54:54 side of this in terms of prevention, in terms of treatment, in terms of recovery, in terms

00:54:57 of public awareness than ever.

00:54:59 And that money is getting to the communities that need it.

00:55:01 I've seen it firsthand in Denver and Tucson and other places I visited.

00:55:05 But for us at the State Department, we're working hard on the international side.

00:55:08 And with regard to China, in December of last year, late November of last year, the President

00:55:15 met with President Xi Jinping in San Francisco at the APEC Summit.

00:55:20 And a big part of that meeting and a big part of the work that we had done in the lead up

00:55:23 to that meeting was to get an agreement from China to take more effective action against

00:55:28 fentanyl, and particularly against the chemical precursors that are made in many cases in

00:55:33 China, then as you said, get shipped over to Mexico, synthesized into fentanyl, and

00:55:37 then into our country where Americans are killed.

00:55:41 China has taken important but not yet sufficient steps to make a real difference in curbing

00:55:46 the flows.

00:55:47 It promulgated new regulations.

00:55:49 It took down some companies that were engaged in this practice.

00:55:53 It established a regular working group with us so that we can track progress.

00:55:57 I was just in China a few weeks ago, and among others, I met with the Minister of Public

00:56:02 Security on this question.

00:56:04 And there are steps that we believe China can and should take now to really make a dent

00:56:09 in the flow of these chemical precursors.

00:56:13 Very public law enforcement actions, particularly to arrest, prosecute, and convict those who

00:56:19 are engaged in this illegal transfer of the precursors.

00:56:23 That would, I think, send a very strong deterrent message.

00:56:27 Actually scheduling certain precursors that they've agreed to schedule and thus restrict,

00:56:33 but have not yet done.

00:56:35 And then there's a nexus that we've seen between some enterprises in China, a financial

00:56:42 nexus between them and the criminal enterprises in, for example, Mexico, that needs to be

00:56:48 cut.

00:56:49 And there, we believe that China needs to take action to do exactly that.

00:56:53 So we are tracking this very closely, very carefully.

00:56:57 I think we've seen progress, real progress, but it is not yet sufficient.

00:57:01 And we want to see that the flow of the precursors continues to come down.

00:57:05 Well, we're all keeping an eye on China and what they're doing, or more importantly, what

00:57:12 they're not doing to keep the fentanyl from reaching our kids and our adults in the U.S.

00:57:22 I'm not sure that they're doing all that they can.

00:57:27 In fact, I know that that's the case.

00:57:31 Your budget proposal, you're asking $1.56 billion for international narcotics control

00:57:39 in law enforcement.

00:57:41 That's $166 million increase over the fiscal '24 enacted level.

00:57:49 How do you plan to use those funds to help end this ongoing tragedy?

00:57:56 One of the most critical things is continuing to build the capacity of partner countries

00:58:01 as well as to strengthen our cooperation with them.

00:58:03 I think Mexico is a good example of that.

00:58:05 We've significantly increased our collaborative efforts over the last few years with Mexico

00:58:09 to try to disrupt, dismantle, take down these transnational criminal organizations that

00:58:14 are engaged in trafficking, as well as to deal with the financial networks.

00:58:21 We have worked with them, for example, with information and support that's produced

00:58:25 dozens of arrests of first and second tier operatives in these criminal enterprises.

00:58:31 They've seized a record amount of fentanyl.

00:58:34 They've disrupted production facilities.

00:58:36 But all of that comes with our assistance, our support.

00:58:39 This is just one example of where the additional funds would allow us to further strengthen

00:58:44 their own capacity to deal there.

00:58:47 Second, the border itself, very important that we deploy the most modern and effective

00:58:52 technology in detecting efforts to smuggle fentanyl or other synthetic opioids into the

00:58:58 United States.

00:58:59 We have the technology.

00:59:00 It's both the old kind, things like canines, can be very effective, but also actual technology,

00:59:05 screening technology.

00:59:07 We've seen that based on our best assessments, the overwhelming majority of the fentanyl

00:59:13 that's coming into this country is coming through our ports of entry.

00:59:17 So deploying that technology on both sides, the Mexican side and our side, that can make

00:59:22 a big difference.

00:59:23 Thank you, Mr. Secretary.

00:59:24 I hate cutting off the dean, but I apologize, but I feel obligated to do so, Mr. Chairman.

00:59:34 Thank you, Mr. Secretary.

00:59:35 Ms. Ming, who I know is not upset that the dean went a little bit long, correct?

00:59:40 You're recognized.

00:59:41 No problem.

00:59:42 Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

00:59:43 Secretary Blinken, before I ask my question, I wanted to thank you and your team for listening

00:59:50 to the concerns about extended passport processing times that I raised last year in this hearing.

00:59:56 Since then, standard processing times have been reduced to six to eight weeks, and expediting

01:00:01 processing is down to just two to three weeks.

01:00:04 My constituents and Americans all over the country have directly benefited from these

01:00:10 improvements, and I urge you to continue to build on them heading into fiscal year '25

01:00:15 to continue to reduce passport and visa wait times for all of our constituents.

01:00:22 My first question is the fiscal year '25 budget request focuses on advancing peace and security

01:00:29 in the Middle East.

01:00:31 As we sit here, 124 hostages are being held by Hamas in Gaza, including American citizens.

01:00:39 Today marks 228 days that they've been in captivity.

01:00:44 As we know from those released, Hamas has inflicted deep psychological trauma and physical

01:00:49 and sexual violence on the hostages, including women and children.

01:00:55 Many require immediate medical attention, but Hamas still has not allowed the Red Cross

01:01:00 to conduct a medical visit and instead releases sign-of-life videos as propaganda.

01:01:07 Many of us here have met with the families of the hostages, and I believe we can all

01:01:11 agree that we need to bring them home now.

01:01:14 How does the budget help the department increase pressure on Hamas and its allies to release

01:01:19 the hostages and bring them home?

01:01:23 We share your conviction and commitment that bringing hostages home is our top priority.

01:01:34 Like you, I've met with the families of these hostages many, many times.

01:01:40 It's important that you point out that among the hostages are American citizens, and my

01:01:43 first obligation is to our fellow Americans.

01:01:48 We've been determined to try to bring them home, and we've been working on this every

01:01:51 single day since they were taken.

01:01:54 You're right as well that the International Community of the Red Cross has not been able

01:01:58 to get in to see them.

01:01:59 This is something we've also worked on in the Gaza environment.

01:02:03 That's a challenge, but we would like to see that in the interim happen.

01:02:06 But the most important thing would be to get their release immediately.

01:02:10 I think we've been very close to being able to get a ceasefire and hostage release on

01:02:15 a couple of occasions.

01:02:17 We continue to work on that.

01:02:18 I think it's the fastest way to get the hostages home, get conditions changed in Gaza so that

01:02:27 much more humanitarian assistance can get in to the people who so desperately need it,

01:02:30 and also create the foundation upon which to build hopefully a more durable, lasting,

01:02:35 peaceful and secure solution.

01:02:38 So we continue to drive at that every single day, but to date, at the end of the day when

01:02:43 it's come down to making a decision, Hamas has not agreed to do what's necessary to get

01:02:47 an agreement.

01:02:48 But we continue at that, including with Egypt, Qatar and other parties that have been helpful.

01:02:55 The budget in supporting our diplomacy writ large, our ability to sustain that diplomacy,

01:03:03 I think is critical.

01:03:04 But of course, there are many other ways that I think the budget demonstrates our commitment

01:03:13 to resolving these deep-rooted challenges, demonstrating that we have a better path forward

01:03:20 than the path that's offered by Hamas of nihilism, of destruction, of terrorism, death, and all

01:03:27 of our diplomatic efforts seek to move in that direction.

01:03:32 Thank you very much.

01:03:33 I wanted to quickly mention yesterday's CNN report that Egyptian mediators changed the

01:03:38 text of the latest hostage deal at the last minute.

01:03:42 Egypt is also refusing to allow more humanitarian aid into Gaza by opening the Rafah crossing,

01:03:48 despite Israel's request to do so.

01:03:50 I wanted to hear your thoughts about the accuracy of the reports and your assessment of Egypt's

01:03:56 motivation for derailing the hostage negotiations and what can the State Department do?

01:04:01 Well, two things.

01:04:02 First, Egypt's been a critical partner in this effort in two ways.

01:04:07 Critical partner in the effort to find an agreement on a ceasefire on hostages.

01:04:12 Critical partner as well in trying to get humanitarian assistance into people in Gaza

01:04:15 who need it.

01:04:16 I can't comment on the details of the negotiations.

01:04:19 The bottom line, though, is that Hamas has not said yes to what I think was a good proposal

01:04:25 that was put on the table.

01:04:28 And then with regard to humanitarian assistance, there is a – we have a deep concern about

01:04:34 the Rafah gate, which I endeavored and President Biden endeavored to get open in October so

01:04:40 that assistance could begin to flow into people who need it.

01:04:45 That gate is closed.

01:04:47 I think there are two things that are going on.

01:04:49 One is, yes, it's important, I think, politically for the Egyptians to show that they are a

01:04:56 critical actor in providing assistance.

01:04:58 At the same time, because of combat activities around – near and around the gate, the environment

01:05:05 for bringing the assistance in is really challenged.

01:05:09 And so we need to find a way to make sure that the assistance that would go through

01:05:14 Rafah can get through safely.

01:05:17 But we do strongly urge our Egyptian partners to do everything that they can on their end

01:05:24 of things to make sure that that assistance is flowing.

01:05:26 What we don't want to see – and it's part of what we're seeing – is a reversal

01:05:30 of the situation that we had, where aid was not getting to the north where it was so desperately

01:05:35 needed.

01:05:36 We've got new gates and new access points open in the north – Erez, Zakim, others

01:05:41 – things flowing in from Ashdod – only to have the south, which has been the critical

01:05:46 hub for humanitarian assistance, be shut down in part because of the ongoing operations

01:05:52 in and around the gate.

01:05:54 So we're working on that every single day.

01:05:56 Thank you.

01:05:57 Thank you.

01:05:58 Mr. Carl, you're recognized, sir.

01:06:01 Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

01:06:03 Thank you again, Mr. Secretary, for joining us today.

01:06:05 I always find conversations with you to be quite interesting.

01:06:10 Last time, when you appeared before us at this committee, which was last year, obviously,

01:06:14 we discussed President López O'Barton's military invasion of the Vulcan Materials

01:06:21 Company's port in the property of Mexico, and we had quite an extensive conversation.

01:06:26 I talked about my trip into Mexico, into Central America, trying to understand what's going

01:06:32 on there.

01:06:33 And of course, things have not changed much.

01:06:35 But as you know, the military has since left, after taking it by military force, and the

01:06:41 President has continued to harass Vulcan and is actively threatening to steal the company's

01:06:49 land to access that port.

01:06:51 It's a deepwater port that Vulcan actually built.

01:06:53 They spent their own money, a billion dollars' worth of investments, to build that port.

01:06:57 Now Mexico is just going to take it, is the image that we're given here.

01:07:03 Last year, we agreed these type of actions would have a chilling impact on the bilateral

01:07:10 relationship and future with U.S. investments in Mexico.

01:07:15 Considering the ongoing situation, what message would you send to the President and the next

01:07:21 President of Mexico and the U.S. business community?

01:07:26 Thank you very much.

01:07:27 Yes, I remember well our conversation about this last year.

01:07:30 And I'd say two things.

01:07:32 Vulcan, I believe, has filed an arbitration case under NAFTA, which is pending.

01:07:38 And so I can't take a position on the merits of the case, which is pending.

01:07:42 I can say that as a general matter, these cases, these instances, yes, can very much

01:07:49 negatively impact Mexico's efforts to attract investment from the United States and, by

01:07:54 the way, from many other countries as well.

01:07:57 So we think it's very important that Mexico take that into consideration, because it will

01:08:02 have an impact on what they seek to do, which is to bring in more investment.

01:08:08 But on that particular matter, let's see where the case goes before the arbitration panel.

01:08:13 Well, as you say that, American-based companies are losing a lot of money.

01:08:18 What was mine or what is being mined from that facility is building roads here in America.

01:08:22 It's very important in our infrastructure.

01:08:24 And I know this administration has put a lot of emphasis on infrastructure.

01:08:30 Why do we not support our American businesses more?

01:08:33 Why aren't we letting the avocados and the fruits and vegetables sit at the border for

01:08:38 a little while and let them figure out a time frame?

01:08:40 Because waiting a year, two years, four years for a court to work it out is not working.

01:08:45 It's not working at all.

01:08:47 My hope and expectation would be that precisely because we tried to put, I believe the previous

01:08:52 administration put processes into NAFTA, the renewed revised NAFTA, that would enable it

01:09:01 to look at these kinds of cases and act swiftly on them, not bottle them up for years.

01:09:08 I think you're exactly right.

01:09:09 It's imperative that that happens.

01:09:11 But there is a mechanism.

01:09:12 There is an understanding about how we try to resolve these disputes.

01:09:16 And that should play out.

01:09:17 But it should, I agree with you, play out quickly.

01:09:20 We have our diplomats all over the world engaged every single day in commercial advocacy, commercial

01:09:27 diplomacy, trying to resolve disputes, trying to make sure that our businesses, our workers

01:09:31 are being treated fairly around the world.

01:09:32 It's a critical part of their mission.

01:09:34 And whether that's in Mexico or any other place around the world where the United States

01:09:39 and our businesses are engaged, that's what our folks are there for every single day.

01:09:43 And we, of course, will look at whatever measures are appropriate to try to make sure that we're

01:09:47 being treated fairly with a level playing field.

01:09:50 Well, if the president of Mexico will do this to Vulcan Materials, they'll do it to anyone.

01:09:56 And I highly encourage business communities in America that's looking at doing business

01:10:00 down there to stop and think, because they may be next.

01:10:04 Thank you.

01:10:05 With that said, Mr. Chairman, I yield my time.

01:10:08 Thank you, Mr. Carl.

01:10:09 Thank you for bringing this up.

01:10:11 It looked that this president of Mexico is acting less like an ally and more like an

01:10:16 adversary.

01:10:18 And so thank you for bringing that up, sir.

01:10:21 The gentleman from Florida, Ms. Frankel.

01:10:23 Good morning.

01:10:25 Thank you.

01:10:26 Thank you, Mr. Secretary.

01:10:28 Thank you so much for your good work in a very chaotic world.

01:10:31 And I give the same praise to our president.

01:10:34 I may not agree on every little detail, but I have to say, given the chaos of this world,

01:10:40 I am very grateful for his very steady, experienced leadership.

01:10:47 I am disappointed with the top lines of this budget, of course, because, again, with the

01:10:52 chaos in the world, I do think more diplomacy and economic stability would bring us to more

01:10:59 peace.

01:11:02 I was in a meeting yesterday with six women ambassadors from around the world, including

01:11:09 from Ukraine, including from Saudi Arabia, Lithuania, I'll try to think of the other

01:11:16 ones, and Ireland and others.

01:11:20 And here's what we got talking about is there are many conflicts in this world, and we know

01:11:28 that there are some negotiations going on in the conflicts.

01:11:32 And to our dismay in talking to these ambassadors, what they were relating to us is there are

01:11:38 very few, if no women, at the negotiating table.

01:11:42 The ambassador from Saudi Arabia told me she's been the only woman at the table.

01:11:49 And number one, we know research shows that when women are part of the negotiations for

01:11:56 peace, much likely that a treaty will last longer.

01:12:01 But number two, we do bring a very different perspective.

01:12:06 And so what I would like to hear from you is what are the various conflicts around the

01:12:13 world that we're actually participating in peace negotiations, and where are the women?

01:12:23 Thank you.

01:12:24 First of all, I agree with the premise of the question or the statement, which is when

01:12:29 we have women involved in matters of peace and security, we get better results.

01:12:35 And I think we need to see and do more of that.

01:12:38 And as you know, we have a Women, Peace, and Security initiative to try to ensure that.

01:12:45 But if you look around at the conflicts that we're working every single day to resolve,

01:12:49 to bring to an end, particularly many, alas, in Africa, whether it's in Sudan, whether

01:12:56 it's the DRC and Rwanda and the eastern Congo, whether it's challenges in Ethiopia, well,

01:13:04 our Assistant Secretary of State for Africa, Mollie Fee, is leading many of our efforts

01:13:11 in those situations.

01:13:13 We have a number of senior diplomats who are engaged around the world every day in trying

01:13:19 to bring conflicts to an end.

01:13:21 And I could go down the list, and I'm sure that you would find women who are critical

01:13:26 leaders in those efforts.

01:13:28 But again, I think the initiatives that we have to make sure that there is greater participation,

01:13:34 engagement, involvement from women in dealing with these challenges, that's very much part

01:13:39 of what we're doing.

01:13:40 We have a strategy.

01:13:41 We have an update that is being sent forward.

01:13:45 Actually, we sent forward last year on that, and it reaffirms our commitment to elevate

01:13:51 women's meaningful participation and protection on the other side of things as critical elements

01:13:57 of our foreign policy and conflict prevention and conflict resolution.

01:14:02 Okay.

01:14:03 Well, let me just put – let me – and I know there's so many stressors, but I want

01:14:09 to respectfully suggest that the State Department and the administration take more – make more

01:14:16 efforts to get the women at the table.

01:14:19 I mean, it's really embarrassing – or disappointing, I would say – when we heard

01:14:24 that – incidentally, the ambassador of Saudi Arabia did recount to us almost exactly what

01:14:33 you told us this morning about the negotiations, so hopefully you're all on the same page

01:14:39 there.

01:14:40 But it was very disappointing when she tells us that when you all are sitting down to talk,

01:14:44 she was the only woman in the room.

01:14:47 That should be a non-starter, so we're going to urge you to do better with that.

01:14:53 We're going to have another round, is that right?

01:14:55 Yeah, so I'm going to – I want to talk about a film I saw last night called Screams

01:15:01 of Silence, which was – it's about the sexual violence committed by Hamas.

01:15:08 I will say this.

01:15:09 I almost – the last time I almost ran out of a – I call it a movie.

01:15:14 It was one of these horror movies that you – but this was a – those things are make-believe,

01:15:19 you know, but this was real.

01:15:22 What I saw and heard last night was so horrifying, really, I could barely sit in my seat, and

01:15:29 we didn't even see the pictures.

01:15:30 We just saw the interviews.

01:15:31 I'm going to talk more about that, Mr. Chair, when we do the second round.

01:15:35 Well, thank you.

01:15:36 Thank you so much.

01:15:37 Mr. LeTourneur.

01:15:38 Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

01:15:39 You're recognized, sir.

01:15:40 Thank you.

01:15:41 Thank you for being here today, Secretary Blinken.

01:15:47 I'm sure you're aware of the growing problem throughout Southeast Asia of scam compounds,

01:15:53 often run by Chinese organized crime groups that are targeting more and more Americans

01:15:56 every year.

01:15:58 These fraud factories, which are increasingly prevalent in Burma, Cambodia, Thailand, contain

01:16:04 thousands of individuals who are trafficked, held against their will inside these compounds,

01:16:09 and then forced to help perpetrate online scams referred to as pig butchering, where

01:16:13 they develop a relationship with their victim and then push them into investing in fraudulent

01:16:18 cryptocurrency apps or platforms.

01:16:20 A recent estimate found that global losses from this type of activity have exceeded $64

01:16:25 billion.

01:16:26 Can you share what the State Department is doing to combat not just this ongoing fraud,

01:16:31 but also the human trafficking that contributes to it?

01:16:34 Thank you, and thank you for putting a spotlight on that, because it's something that is of

01:16:39 deep concern to us.

01:16:41 We have a comprehensive whole-of-government effort to combat trafficking in persons and

01:16:46 to combat different manifestations of that, including these scam factories.

01:16:52 Literally, and this is something that the State Department helps lead, we have every

01:16:57 relevant department in the government coming together, using its resources and doing it

01:17:02 in a coordinated way to combat trafficking and to combat these different manifestations

01:17:07 of it.

01:17:10 There are significant resources that go into that.

01:17:12 There is a very significant effort to help countries develop the capacity themselves

01:17:19 to push back against trafficking, to bring traffickers to justice, to help the victims

01:17:27 of trafficking.

01:17:29 Building their capacity is critical.

01:17:32 Law enforcement collaboration and cooperation is vital to this.

01:17:36 Sharing information.

01:17:37 We have an annual trafficking in persons report that we put out that looks at countries, country

01:17:42 by country, to see what they're doing or not doing and what more needs to be done to

01:17:47 get at the heart of this.

01:17:48 There's a very significant effort underway to deal with that.

01:17:51 Are you seeing the needle move on this particular issue?

01:17:54 We see it move in individual countries.

01:17:57 I think there are a number of countries, and the report makes this clear, where we've

01:18:01 seen genuine, effective progress.

01:18:04 There are other countries where we've seen backsliding or no progress.

01:18:06 The report lays all of this out.

01:18:09 Recently Amnesty International in Nigeria stated that over 1,300 people have been killed

01:18:14 just in Plateau State alone since December, when the horrible Christmas massacres killed

01:18:18 over 200 people, mostly Christians.

01:18:20 The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, in its recently released annual report,

01:18:25 noted a study saying over 8,000 Christians have been targeted and murdered for their

01:18:30 faith in Nigeria.

01:18:32 Most of them in the North and Middle Belt.

01:18:35 These targeted killings have been increasing year over year, and especially now at such

01:18:38 an alarming rate that it's hard to see how these militants are not operating with some

01:18:44 degree of impunity.

01:18:46 Secretary Blinken, since you removed Nigeria from the country of particular concern list

01:18:50 in 2021, the U.S. CIRF has recommended Nigeria be placed back on the list, and every year

01:18:56 since and has condemned its removal.

01:18:59 The U.S. CIRF has affirmed that government toleration of egregious, systematic, and ongoing

01:19:05 violations of religious freedom is the standard for CPC status, and they make it very clear

01:19:11 that Nigeria meets at least that standard.

01:19:14 Given the horrendous targeted violence in the country that is at least in significant

01:19:19 part motivated by religious factors, given these factors, why has the State Department

01:19:23 for every year failed to follow the U.S. CIRF's recommendations regarding a CPC designation?

01:19:28 First, let me say this.

01:19:32 For us, defending religious freedom around the world is a foreign policy priority, and

01:19:39 we are leveraging the global footprint that we have, our presence around the world that

01:19:42 we want to sustain, to focus on cases of concern, to push back against repressive, discriminatory

01:19:47 laws, policies, and practices.

01:19:51 Much of this is highlighted, as you mentioned, in the annual report that we do, and this

01:19:57 is at the heart of our efforts.

01:19:59 We have in the law designation criteria that we take very, very seriously.

01:20:05 We listen carefully to experts in civil society, experts on the ground.

01:20:11 Our embassies are doing a tremendous amount of work in each of these countries, including

01:20:14 Nigeria, and we listen very carefully to the independent U.S. Commission on International

01:20:19 Religious Freedom.

01:20:20 But they're wrong in this case.

01:20:22 So in this case, and I think we have a different perspective in this particular case about

01:20:26 whether – yes, there's no doubt, it is clear that people of Christian faith in Nigeria

01:20:32 have been on the receiving end of terrible abuses and oppression.

01:20:38 But whether that is because of their religion or because they're part of a particular

01:20:43 ethnic group in a particular region, that's a different question.

01:20:47 And what we have not seen is the government of Nigeria, the federal government of Nigeria,

01:20:53 engaging in these practices in terms of targeting Christians.

01:20:56 Having said that, I was in Nigeria – I'm trying to remember exactly when, but I think

01:21:01 it was within the last six or seven months – and we had – I brought together experts

01:21:09 from civil society, from the religious communities, including a leader of the Christian community

01:21:14 in Nigeria, to hear directly from them.

01:21:18 We talked to the government about the imperative that even if things were not being done at

01:21:22 its behest or its acquiescence, that it take stronger action to protect people, and notably

01:21:29 Christians who were – whether or not it was because of their religious status being

01:21:34 persecuted.

01:21:35 And so this is something we're very focused on, irrespective of the designation.

01:21:38 I'm out of time, but I would hope we could find common ground at least on the special

01:21:42 watch list designation, but I look forward to talking more about this.

01:21:45 I yield back.

01:21:46 Thank you, sir.

01:21:47 Thank you.

01:21:48 Ms. Torres.

01:21:49 Thank you, Chairman, and good morning, Mr. Secretary.

01:21:50 It's good to see you.

01:21:53 When you came before the subcommittee last year, we spoke about the administration's

01:21:58 goals in Central America to help stem the number of migrants, specifically the young

01:22:05 people at our southern border, by ensuring that they have safety and opportunity to thrive

01:22:12 within their own countries.

01:22:14 Since that hearing, I'm very happy to see the steps that you have taken in the Northern

01:22:21 Triangle, including progress on diplomatic appointments as well as publicly naming corrupt

01:22:28 and undemocratic actors.

01:22:31 I want to encourage you to continue to work with U.S. Treasury to not only remove their

01:22:39 visas but freeze their assets so that we can make some real change in the region for those

01:22:47 young people to be able to see a future that includes democracy and improve their lives

01:22:53 in the region.

01:22:54 Guatemala, in particular, faced a coup attempt last year, and now a step toward building

01:23:01 an independent judiciary, the appointment process for many key judicial posts this year.

01:23:09 Mr. Secretary, we must prioritize those governments who are our true partners, committed to democracy

01:23:18 and investing in their own people to help build a better future for all of the Americas.

01:23:26 Mr. Secretary, you have asked this committee for increased funding for the Western Hemisphere.

01:23:31 It's a tough request, given, from my point of view, that we continue to see Russia continuing

01:23:40 to run a mine in El Astor.

01:23:44 Right now, there are hundreds of military and police officers that are seeking to once

01:23:52 again commit brutal crimes against 29 families that remain there, 29 families of the families

01:24:01 that were burnt out of their community.

01:24:04 Most of them are indigenous people.

01:24:06 These are the young people that we see on our southern border.

01:24:12 The last time they unleashed violence on this group, they utilized our own military equipment,

01:24:19 J.A. Jeeps, that I had specifically requested that we remove from the region.

01:24:27 How will this funding be used responsibly to address the root cause of migration from

01:24:33 Central America and continue to support the young people, but not continue to support

01:24:40 old regimes like Giammattei, like Jimmy Morales?

01:24:44 The past ghosts of violence, and give this new administration an opportunity to thrive

01:24:54 and make the change that is necessary.

01:24:57 Thank you very much.

01:24:58 As it happens, I was in Guatemala just a few weeks ago.

01:25:03 Thank you for that.

01:25:04 I had a very good visit there.

01:25:06 I'm impressed by the work that President Revelo and his administration are doing, and it's

01:25:12 something that we strongly, strongly support and will continue to do.

01:25:16 Second, I think we've seen when it comes to tackling root causes, because primarily,

01:25:23 not exclusively, drivers of irregular migration, which is at historic levels around the world,

01:25:29 and of course in our own hemisphere as well, one of the main drivers is a lack of basic

01:25:34 economic opportunity.

01:25:35 If people can't put food on the table for their kids to eat, they will do anything and

01:25:39 go anywhere to try to make sure that they can do that.

01:25:42 One way at getting at this is actually creating greater opportunity.

01:25:46 Vice President Harris has led a very significant effort over the last few years to generate

01:25:50 significantly more private sector investment in the so-called Northern Triangle countries

01:25:55 in Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and we've seen an increase of about $4.5 billion in

01:26:01 such investment.

01:26:02 That is going to create, and is already creating, new opportunities, new jobs, so that people

01:26:06 actually have the choice to remain in their own countries.

01:26:10 Of course, at the same time, we're doing other things to include expanding legal pathways

01:26:14 to this country to take pressure off the border.

01:26:16 We have safe mobility offices so that people can make determinations in their own country

01:26:20 whether they are legally entitled to come to the United States instead of coming to

01:26:24 the border to do that.

01:26:26 But I think the root causes piece, it takes time, but it is fundamentally the best way

01:26:31 to get at it because, again, if people are experiencing conditions-

01:26:35 I want to interrupt you for a moment-

01:26:36 Oh, please go ahead.

01:26:37 Because I cannot let you walk out of here without mentioning Jose Ruben Zamora and the

01:26:44 fact that he continues to be in prison, in a Guatemalan prison, simply for speaking truth

01:26:51 to power about the corruption and these corrupt actors.

01:26:56 The Attorney General continues to thrive in the region, and I'm not sure how much more

01:27:01 we can do to ensure that this action from the Attorney General is reversed.

01:27:10 Angelica Coy Chuck, she's a Mayan elder.

01:27:15 She was recently sentenced to 75 years in prison.

01:27:19 She still has multiple shrapnel on her leg.

01:27:24 She has been refused medical attention.

01:27:27 This is a woman from El Astor, where, again, the government continues to work against indigenous

01:27:33 people that are simply trying to farm and live another day in their own country.

01:27:39 I yield back.

01:27:40 Thank you.

01:27:41 Thank you, Mr. Torres.

01:27:42 Mr. Soskimani.

01:27:43 Thank you, Chairman, and thank you, Secretary Blinken, for being here with us today.

01:27:50 Like many of my colleagues here, and this has been briefly touched on, I'm incredibly

01:27:53 concerned about the ongoing war in Israel and what appears to be a shifting position

01:27:58 from the administration regarding our steadfast support for our greatest ally in the region.

01:28:04 The national security supplemental included significant assistance for Israel.

01:28:08 Does the administration remain committed to spending every dollar appropriated for Israel

01:28:13 in the supplemental?

01:28:14 Yes.

01:28:15 Can you please elaborate on that?

01:28:17 I'm happy to.

01:28:18 Yes.

01:28:20 Every single dollar in the supplemental that Congress passed will be spent.

01:28:25 Let me share a few things.

01:28:27 First, no one has done more or will continue to do more to ensure Israel's defense than

01:28:33 the President of the United States.

01:28:35 He was there in the days after October 7th, the first American president to be in Israel

01:28:39 at a time of war.

01:28:42 We deployed significant assets to the region to prevent other fronts from opening and Israel

01:28:46 being attacked from other places, including from the north in Lebanon by Hezbollah or

01:28:51 by Iran.

01:28:53 More recently, when you had this unprecedented attack by Iran on Israel, the first direct

01:28:57 attack from Iran to Israel for the first time in history, the United States participated

01:29:03 actively in Israel's defense.

01:29:04 Of course, we brought together a coalition of countries to thwart that attack, which

01:29:09 happened very successfully as a result of the efforts that we undertook.

01:29:15 We've tried to make sure that Israel has what it needs to defend itself against the threats

01:29:19 that it faces, not only from Hamas, but Hezbollah, Iran, the Houthis, various Iranian proxies.

01:29:25 I appreciate that.

01:29:26 But when it comes to, I think, the case that you're referencing, I'm happy to address that

01:29:31 as well.

01:29:32 Yeah.

01:29:33 I mean, I was in Israel in just a few days, less than a week after I came back.

01:29:36 That's when Iran launched the attack.

01:29:37 So this is obviously fresh in my view of coming back there, learning about the situation on

01:29:42 the ground.

01:29:43 You're right.

01:29:44 I mean, the attack directly from Iran, not through just the proxies, was not expected.

01:29:50 And when that happened, obviously that raised the concerns on this.

01:29:53 What raises concerns as well is obviously the administration's decision to withhold

01:29:57 arms to our ally as conditions to strategy by Israel in terms of this conflict.

01:30:04 So in the future, will you commit to work with Congress on any withholdings from congressionally

01:30:09 appropriated dollars and arms?

01:30:10 Well, two things.

01:30:12 First, when it comes to the particular case that you're referencing, that is these 2,000

01:30:15 pound bombs, we've been very clear for a long time about our concerns about a full-scale

01:30:22 military assault on Rafa given the dense population there, and particularly the use of that kind

01:30:27 of weapon in a denser environment.

01:30:29 It's a conversation that was ongoing with Israel.

01:30:33 And it's unfortunate that it became public, but it did.

01:30:37 But we have an ongoing conversation with Israel about this and about our concerns about the

01:30:41 use of these particular weapons in that particular way in that particular place.

01:30:46 And those concerns remain.

01:30:48 But the other assistance that we've been providing for Israel's defense continues and will continue

01:30:53 because again, the President's determined that Israel has what it needs to defend itself.

01:30:57 At the same time, we're deeply committed to trying to ensure that people are better protected

01:31:04 in Gaza, people are caught in this crossfire Hamas is making, that the humanitarian assistance

01:31:08 they desperately need gets to them, the operations in and around Rafa have also disrupted that.

01:31:15 And then finally, we're also committed to try to make sure that Israel is actually successful

01:31:21 in dealing effectively and durably with Hamas.

01:31:23 And we do have some different views on the best way to do that.

01:31:27 And when you're a good friend and close partner, it's your responsibility to share your views

01:31:32 and to give your best advice and counsel.

01:31:34 If Israel goes full on into Rafa to eliminate the remaining battalions, as they put it,

01:31:42 the problem will not be solved.

01:31:43 There will be thousands and thousands of remaining armed Hamas even after that happens.

01:31:47 Israel will inherit a major insurgency in Gaza that it will be responsible for if it

01:31:52 decides to leave Gaza, which we believe it must.

01:31:55 It can't reoccupy Gaza.

01:31:56 Then you will have Hamas continuing to run Gaza.

01:32:00 That's unacceptable.

01:32:01 Or you'll have total anarchy and lawlessness.

01:32:03 That should be unacceptable.

01:32:04 The existence of Hamas is unacceptable.

01:32:06 So there needs to be a concrete plan that does not involve Israel's reoccupation, does

01:32:12 not involve Hamas continuing to rule Gaza, does not involve lawlessness and anarchy.

01:32:16 And we want to see such a plan come forward from Israel.

01:32:18 We've been working on one with our partners for months, but it would be imperative because

01:32:22 otherwise, again, they are not solving the problem that we both want to solve.

01:32:26 We have other ways that we've shared with them at more effectively getting at Hamas

01:32:30 and also doing it in a way that lessens the danger to civilians who are caught in this

01:32:35 crossfire.

01:32:36 Well, Mr. Secretary, this Congress was clear on that vote on our desire and intention to

01:32:41 support Israel in defending itself and wiping out Hamas, as they rightfully have to do.

01:32:48 And the world will be a better place without Hamas.

01:32:50 And I appreciate your commitment to use every dollar allocated by this Congress for our

01:32:57 close friend and ally Israel as they fight this horrific war in the Middle East.

01:33:02 Thank you.

01:33:03 Thank you.

01:33:04 Mr. Edwards.

01:33:05 Thank you, Mr. Chair.

01:33:08 Secretary Blinken, it's an honor to meet you.

01:33:10 Thank you for being with us today.

01:33:13 During my recent trips abroad, I saw firsthand how state-run agencies aim to push propaganda

01:33:19 and silence free speech.

01:33:22 The State Department spends millions combating disinformation, $12 million in 2024 at the

01:33:30 Global Engagement Center, to be exact.

01:33:33 On page 28 of the Congressional Budget Justification for fiscal year 2025, your department's asking

01:33:41 for an additional $1.5 million to counter CCP propaganda and disinformation under the

01:33:46 public diplomacy line item for the Global Engagement Center.

01:33:53 Why is $12 million not enough?

01:33:56 And can you give this committee a little bit of a perspective in how those funds are going

01:34:03 to be deployed?

01:34:04 Yeah.

01:34:05 Thank you.

01:34:06 No, thank you very much.

01:34:07 So the Global Engagement Center, this is the only part of our government that is singularly

01:34:12 focused, dedicated to coordinating our efforts to counter foreign propaganda, misinformation,

01:34:19 disinformation.

01:34:20 And we have seen, I think, a growing number of allies looking to the Global Engagement

01:34:25 Center for help and assistance in standing up their own capacity.

01:34:30 We now have many countries that have signed onto a framework that the Global Engagement

01:34:34 Center has put out to more effectively see and respond to the disinformation and misinformation

01:34:41 that's being used against them as well as against us.

01:34:44 And the GEC is the place where that happens.

01:34:47 And we've seen real success in the efforts to expose and actually take action against

01:34:53 this.

01:34:54 We had the GEC release the first comprehensive analysis of how China uses deceptive, coercive

01:35:00 techniques to reshape the global information environment.

01:35:04 That was incredibly informative for countries around the world.

01:35:07 We've exposed disinformation techniques in a variety of countries by China, by Russia,

01:35:15 by Iran.

01:35:17 We've revealed campaigns, for example, to undermine our efforts at helping countries

01:35:23 get health security by trying to distort what we were doing.

01:35:29 We've exposed efforts of these countries, notably Russia and China, to in effect infiltrate

01:35:35 local media in countries around the world, notably in Africa.

01:35:39 All of this was done as a result of the work of the GEC.

01:35:42 But in some sense, it's a drop in the bucket because this really is a major front now in

01:35:49 competition.

01:35:51 That is the information front.

01:35:53 And if we're not resourced to do what we need to do, both to see it, to expose it, to do

01:35:59 something about it, and to coordinate cooperation among like-minded countries, we're going to

01:36:04 be on, I think, on the wrong end of the balance on this.

01:36:09 So for us, the GEC is the one place in government where all of this comes together and we've

01:36:16 seen its effectiveness increasingly around the world.

01:36:19 And thank you for that.

01:36:20 Am I garnering from your response that the strategy is to over-propaganda those folks

01:36:32 that are offering the propaganda?

01:36:34 Or is there anything that we can do to stop them?

01:36:37 Yeah, I think, again, part of it is in exposing it and discrediting it, it becomes much less

01:36:45 effective.

01:36:46 I'll give you one example of something that on one level seems a bit more benign but is

01:36:51 actually quite pernicious.

01:36:54 We have instances in a number of countries where Russia, in particular, would provide

01:37:02 press services that would then be published looking like these were articles, for example,

01:37:08 that were being done by local journalists when in fact it was actually Russian propaganda

01:37:13 from RT and from other organizations.

01:37:16 Well, one of the things we organized was to be able to provide for these newspapers or

01:37:22 online publications access to things like Reuters, the Associated Press, that would

01:37:30 be obviously different from an objective compared to what they were getting and hiding, in a

01:37:38 sense, the origin of when it comes to what Russia was trying to feed in.

01:37:42 So there are big things, there are small things, but I think when you see the disinformation

01:37:48 exposed, that's the most important thing because then people understand that what they're hearing

01:37:54 and what they're seeing has an ulterior motive.

01:37:57 Thank you very much for your response, Mr. Chairman.

01:37:59 I've got other questions.

01:38:00 I hope we'll have another round or so.

01:38:03 Well, your question is spot on.

01:38:05 We're going to do another round of three minutes because, again, that's the time that we have.

01:38:10 As soon as we have this ready, we'll start.

01:38:13 Mr. Secretary, I think a lot of us, it's pretty clear, have lost faith with the WHO.

01:38:20 It was reflected in the '24 bill passed out of the House.

01:38:23 I'm particularly concerned about the direction of the negotiations on the pandemic treaty

01:38:28 and international health regulations.

01:38:30 Reportedly, negotiations continue, but we may not see the final proposal until just

01:38:36 before the vote of the WHO.

01:38:39 My understanding is the draft may include many provisions, frankly, that we outright

01:38:45 reject, such as violations of property rights, treating China like a developing country,

01:38:51 granting China and other improper access to U.S. capabilities.

01:38:57 What can you tell us about the current draft of the treaty and whether it contains these

01:39:01 highly problematic provisions that I mentioned and other potentially problematic provisions?

01:39:06 Mr. Chairman, in short, we're determined that any treaty that would emerge or any agreement

01:39:11 that emerges reflects our clear interests as well as our clear values, including on

01:39:18 property rights and including in terms of our relationship with the PRC.

01:39:23 I think where it currently stands is that it seems very unlikely that negotiations could

01:39:28 conclude successfully in the next days.

01:39:32 There's not consensus.

01:39:33 We've been trying to build that consensus, reflective of those interests that you cited,

01:39:39 but also the interests of many countries around the world in making sure that we're better

01:39:44 prepared for next time.

01:39:45 They're better prepared.

01:39:46 They have their own capacity to detect, to deal with, and it's necessary to produce things

01:39:55 like vaccines.

01:39:56 So all of that is part of the conversation, but I don't think, based on the latest I've

01:40:00 seen, that this is going to come to a conclusion in the near term.

01:40:04 If it does, though, would you plan to submit the treaty to the Senate so that it can fulfill

01:40:07 its constitutional obligations?

01:40:08 I'm sure we will fully consult with Congress as appropriate on anything that we do.

01:40:12 But consult with Congress is not necessarily sending to the Senate to fulfill their constitutional

01:40:16 -- in other words, for their approval.

01:40:17 If there is a constitutional requirement, we will fulfill it.

01:40:20 But I would hope that you would lean, even if there's a gray zone that you might look

01:40:24 at, that you would obviously do that, send it to the Senate to fulfill their role as

01:40:33 a treaty.

01:40:34 Of course.

01:40:35 Ms. Lee.

01:40:36 Thank you very much.

01:40:37 First of all, very quickly, the United Nations.

01:40:38 In the House bill last year, no funding was included for the United Nations regular budget.

01:40:51 And yet, we keep hearing a lot from our House colleagues about the threat of the PRC and

01:40:58 strategic competition.

01:40:59 So, Mr. Secretary, how does the United States' participation and leadership at the United

01:41:05 Nations relate to countering China's influence?

01:41:09 And what would be the impact of the United States being absent from the United Nations

01:41:13 as last year's bill proposed?

01:41:16 And then, secondly, if we have time, if not, you can give us the response in writing.

01:41:20 With regard to the Caribbean, okay, I'm pleased to see, and you mentioned the request to include

01:41:26 the addition of two missions in the Caribbean.

01:41:29 These are our closest neighbors, yet the United States has very little presence.

01:41:33 Barbados, for example, has to cover the ambassador's six countries in the Eastern Caribbean with

01:41:39 little means to access them.

01:41:41 Now, I heard and understand that it's going to take about five years to gear up and to

01:41:47 ramp up for these two new diplomatic missions.

01:41:50 So what happens in the meantime?

01:41:53 We don't have any time to waste.

01:41:54 And so I don't want to know what plan is in place to ramp up these engagements in the

01:42:00 Caribbean until we get the two new embassies open.

01:42:04 So, thank you very much.

01:42:06 And I'll try to be quick.

01:42:07 Look, on the United Nations, we've seen a very concerted effort by China in recent years

01:42:14 to engage and more than engage, to try to seek positions in the United Nations so that

01:42:22 it could have real influence over the direction that the U.N. takes on virtually every issue

01:42:26 under the sun, because whether we like it or not, the United Nations is engaged in pretty

01:42:30 much everything.

01:42:31 It's engaged in ways that are profoundly helpful to the United States, because if the United

01:42:36 Nations were not doing things like feeding children, vaccinating people, looking out

01:42:42 for maternal health, making sure that people had access to electricity, et cetera, then

01:42:48 either we'd have to be doing it on our own or no one would be doing it, and the world

01:42:52 would be a much worse place, and that would inevitably come back to bite us.

01:42:55 So in so many ways, it provides absolutely vital functions.

01:42:58 One of the strange positions we're in is, if you look at program across program at the

01:43:01 United Nations, the United States is typically the leading funder, and it's producing really

01:43:06 important results, again, for us, because absent those results, you're going to have

01:43:11 people who, even more people on the move, more conflict, more economic deprivation.

01:43:19 All of this gets spun up in ways that inevitably bite us.

01:43:22 So we're the leading, often the leading funder, and yet when we have an inability to pay our

01:43:28 dues on time or we get arrears on various accounts, that's a wonderful talking point

01:43:35 for our competitors, including China or Russia, that spend far less in the United Nations

01:43:41 but then point to us as being the laggards.

01:43:46 So it just doesn't make any sense, and it actually has practical implications for our

01:43:53 ability to sustain programs that are vital to our own national interest.

01:43:57 And then, of course, we want to make sure that we have a seat at every table where decisions

01:44:01 are being made about norms, rules, standards that often the UN is a part of setting.

01:44:08 So if that's taken away, we're out of the room.

01:44:11 It's not a good thing for the United States.

01:44:13 Thank you, Mr. Secretary.

01:44:14 And I'll follow up with you later, if I can, on the criticism.

01:44:17 The distinguished Chief Deputy Whip of the House, Mr. Reichel.

01:44:19 Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

01:44:20 I appreciate it, Mr. Secretary.

01:44:22 Thanks for being here.

01:44:23 Mr. Secretary, it's my estimation that your department is just weak, it's feckless, and

01:44:28 at best, your department is incompetent.

01:44:31 I could go through a litany of examples.

01:44:34 We could talk about Afghanistan.

01:44:36 We could talk about the missteps you had in Ukraine.

01:44:39 We could talk about the Houthi rebels.

01:44:42 We could talk about the vacillation with Israel.

01:44:45 But the most distilled example is the most recent, and that's Turks and Caicos.

01:44:51 The reason it's so distilled is you don't have the complexity of the other issues.

01:44:55 Turks and Caicos, you have five Americans that are wrongfully detained, not technically

01:45:01 wrongfully detained in a phrase of diplomacy, but these are individuals that had at most

01:45:10 20 rounds of ammunition.

01:45:12 They've been treated atrociously by a government that represents 60,000 people in a geography

01:45:20 that has a land mass that's roughly 2.5 the size of D.C.

01:45:27 This is not even a sovereign nation.

01:45:28 It's a protector to the British Empire, or the U.K.

01:45:32 You can't tell me that you can't put a "do not travel" today on Turks and Caicos and

01:45:37 bring the four Americans that still remain in Turks and Caicos home.

01:45:41 It would take one order to bring four Americans home.

01:45:45 Four Americans, by the way, one is a grandmother from Florida.

01:45:48 She was caught with two rounds of ammunition in her purse.

01:45:51 She was chained to a desk for three days.

01:45:55 Your state department, your officials, did not come and visit her.

01:45:58 It was up to the other American detainees to bring her food, water, a pillow, a blanket

01:46:03 for that night.

01:46:04 My constituents, your state department didn't even call my constituent for two months into

01:46:10 his detention.

01:46:12 Even though he was in a jail for a period of days, no health and comfort visit from

01:46:18 your department.

01:46:19 So, again, I'm just really baffled by, again, the weakness and incompetence of your department.

01:46:28 You can prove me wrong.

01:46:29 Issue the "do not travel" to Turks and Caicos today.

01:46:32 Bring the Americans home.

01:46:33 I yield back.

01:46:34 Well, thank you, Congressman.

01:46:35 It won't surprise you to know that I fundamentally disagree with you.

01:46:39 Secretary Blinken, I yield back to the chair.

01:46:42 You don't need to say anything.

01:46:43 You can issue a detention.

01:46:44 You can issue a "do not travel" and the detention of those Americans and bring them home.

01:46:49 We're done talking.

01:46:51 You need to now act.

01:46:52 That is what you need to do.

01:46:54 Issue the "do not travel" today.

01:46:55 Bring them home.

01:46:56 I'd be happy to respond.

01:46:57 Thank you, gentlemen.

01:46:58 Well, he yielded back, Mr. Secretary.

01:46:59 Well, it's a nice – it's a wonderful technique to make a statement and not give you a chance

01:47:08 to respond.

01:47:09 Well, why don't we give you some time to respond then?

01:47:11 Because we do have a little bit of time.

01:47:12 I'll simply say, Congressman, I welcome working with you on this.

01:47:16 And please bring the information forward to me.

01:47:19 Second, we have a State Department and extraordinary men and women who every single day are working

01:47:26 to get arbitrarily detained Americans back home with their families and loved ones.

01:47:31 And we've had more success in this administration in doing that than in any previous administration.

01:47:36 And Roger Carstens and his team are at this every single day.

01:47:40 And we brought Americans home from all over the world.

01:47:43 And it's our number one priority.

01:47:45 So I will apologize to no one for the efforts that our people make every day to help Americans

01:47:50 who are in jeopardy anywhere around the world.

01:47:52 I wanted to make sure that you had an opportunity to respond.

01:47:54 Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

01:47:55 I appreciate it.

01:47:56 Obviously, we do need to bring these folks home.

01:47:58 And hopefully, like, pronto.

01:48:01 Ranking member – full committee ranking member, Ms. DeLauro.

01:48:04 Thank you.

01:48:05 Thank you, Mr. Secretary.

01:48:06 Let me ask a question about UNRWA.

01:48:07 I'm just going to tick off some facts and ask you to answer some – a couple of questions

01:48:12 here.

01:48:13 2024 funding, law prohibited funding for UNRWA through March of 2024.

01:48:21 The commentary from all of the nongovernmental offices that I've talked to, UNRWA is an

01:48:29 indispensable partner in conveying life-saving aid to refugees in the Gaza Strip.

01:48:34 They have 13,000 staff, and I might add they've lost 200 – over 200 people as a result of

01:48:41 the conflict there.

01:48:43 And cutting off funding for a critical partner has, in my view, exacerbated the crisis here.

01:48:51 But it's not just Gaza, because the implications, just very quickly, for Lebanon and Jordan

01:48:57 are really fundamental.

01:49:00 Everybody in this room troubled, more than troubled, by the allegations that 12 UNRWA

01:49:04 employees were involved in that October 7 horrific attack.

01:49:09 That is not to be tolerated under any set of circumstances.

01:49:14 Since then, UNRWA has delivered accountability.

01:49:16 They've taken steps to terminate the relationship, and I believe that they have eliminated those

01:49:23 folks or they fired those folks, promised to take action.

01:49:26 It's unclear whether the same can be said for the five units of the Israeli Defense

01:49:30 Forces found to have committed gross violations of human rights against Palestinian civilians.

01:49:36 Your department has referred that four of the five units have effectively remediated

01:49:40 these violations.

01:49:42 Serious questions about whether there's been true accountability.

01:49:44 The NSM report recently says that there's credible reports that violations of human

01:49:49 rights in Israel has used U.S. provided defense articles inconsistent with international humanitarian

01:49:56 law.

01:49:57 I'm going to pose the questions all at once, Mr. Secretary.

01:50:00 You read the Kelowna report, which I assume you have, and the vetting and other processes

01:50:04 UNRWA has in place to ensure the neutrality of staff.

01:50:08 UNRWA has said it's committed to implementing the report's recommendations.

01:50:11 You see this as a serious attempt to address the shortcomings in UNRWA's operations.

01:50:17 Isn't this a double standard?

01:50:18 U.S. holding all partners accountable, Hamas, Israel, and our international partners.

01:50:23 Can you clarify what effective remediation of these human rights violations means in

01:50:27 the context of these four IDF units?

01:50:30 Each was treated as a lone perpetrator.

01:50:32 Most of the perpetrators went through the justice system, but some are already out on

01:50:36 parole.

01:50:37 Is that accountability for a gross violation of human rights?

01:50:41 There isn't much time left, and I would ask the indulgence of the chair if I could have

01:50:45 a little bit of time for the Secretary to respond.

01:50:47 We will ask the Secretary to try to answer quickly and succinctly.

01:50:52 Thank you.

01:50:53 It's a critically important issue.

01:50:54 Yes.

01:50:55 So very quickly, we strongly support the recommendations of the Independent Kelowna Report.

01:50:58 She used to be my counterpart as French Foreign Minister.

01:51:02 I think that report's very important, and its results, recommendations need to be implemented.

01:51:07 Second, there's an ongoing UN internal investigation of the particular allegations related to

01:51:13 individuals who are both members of UNRWA and allegedly participated in the horrors

01:51:18 of October 7th.

01:51:19 We await that UN internal investigation.

01:51:22 But I do believe that UNRWA plays a critical and necessary role in trying to get humanitarian

01:51:28 assistance to people who need it in Gaza.

01:51:30 No one else has the same network.

01:51:33 So we want to see these reforms go forward.

01:51:35 And of course, we have laws that Congress has passed in terms of what we're able to

01:51:39 do or not able to do.

01:51:41 But we believe that UNRWA does play a critical function, and so others may choose to support

01:51:46 its efforts.

01:51:47 But we also want to make sure that the reforms go forward.

01:51:48 When it comes to the Leahy Law that you referenced, a critical part of that law is seeing appropriate

01:51:56 remediation when an individual or a unit has been engaged in a gross violation of human

01:52:02 rights that receives our assistance.

01:52:06 And in the cases that have come before the State Department, which we have looked at

01:52:09 very, very, very carefully, we found gross violations of human rights committed by individuals

01:52:17 in five different units.

01:52:19 In four cases, Israel did take appropriate and effective remediation under their laws,

01:52:25 and that typically includes anything from disciplining to discharging to prosecuting

01:52:30 to convicting, depending on the case and on the law, the individuals.

01:52:35 In one case, while action was taken, we didn't have sufficient information to determine that

01:52:40 the remediation had been sufficient, and we're in an ongoing discussion with Israel on that.

01:52:45 Thank you, Mr. Secretary.

01:52:46 Mr. Soskhimani.

01:52:47 Mr. Secretary, the steep increase that we have seen in migrant encounters during the

01:52:52 last three years has not only to do with our domestic and asylum policies and enforcement,

01:52:58 but also can be linked to the signals we're sending our neighboring countries and around

01:53:03 the world.

01:53:04 I hear and see consistently the impact of the poorest border policies are having in

01:53:09 my communities.

01:53:10 Now, when the Biden administration began, you all swiftly suspended the asylum cooperative

01:53:15 agreements that we have with El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras.

01:53:18 Additionally, you all ended the migrant protection protocols, also known as Romania and Mexico,

01:53:23 that we had a cooperative agreement with Mexico on that, both that had been working.

01:53:27 In the statement you wrote, you said the Biden administration believes there are more suitable

01:53:32 ways to work with our partner governments to manage migration across the region.

01:53:37 That was your statement.

01:53:38 Mr. Secretary, I would note that while we vehemently disagree over the value of these

01:53:44 agreements, I would be pleased if we had seen a positive result from the end of these agreements.

01:53:50 However, we have not.

01:53:53 That's not an opinion, that's a fact.

01:53:54 Numbers show it.

01:53:56 So do you believe that ending these agreements has yielded a net positive result as it relates

01:54:00 to U.S. interests?

01:54:01 Well, I think we are seeing positive, necessary, but still insufficient results.

01:54:08 We've seen, for example, as a result of the work that we were doing with Mexico, encounters

01:54:12 decreased significantly from where they were in December by a cut by about half.

01:54:18 The different things that we're putting into play-

01:54:19 Mr. Secretary, I'm sorry to interrupt on that, but December was the record-breaking all-time

01:54:23 high.

01:54:24 I'm talking about-

01:54:25 No, I agree with you.

01:54:26 So to do better than that is, I wouldn't call that the bar of success.

01:54:28 Well, of course, there's a bill before Congress right now, again, a bill that unfortunately

01:54:31 wasn't passed a few months ago that I believe is back before Congress.

01:54:35 That would, we believe that the President strongly supports, would make a very meaningful

01:54:38 difference in dealing with the challenges at our border, and hopefully it will pass.

01:54:43 I think that would give us important additional tools that could be very effective on top

01:54:48 of what we're doing.

01:54:49 But I think there are other things, Congressman, that are important, including, of course,

01:54:53 the enforcement piece, of course, expanding legal pathways so that people can come here

01:54:58 if they qualify legally, but also one of the initiatives that we have, the Safe Mobility

01:55:02 Offices.

01:55:03 This is a critical tool because in the countries where they have been established, it allows

01:55:07 people to determine, without leaving their countries, whether they're actually lawfully

01:55:11 eligible to come to the United States.

01:55:13 And so they don't come to the border.

01:55:14 We've established these now in half a dozen countries.

01:55:17 We've seen actually very positive results from that in terms of people using it as a

01:55:22 means of determining whether they have a legal basis to come to the United States.

01:55:26 So I think we have to do everything across the board.

01:55:28 It's of course the enforcement, making sure that migration is both orderly and safe.

01:55:37 I'm running out of time, so I'm going to have to jump in here, sir.

01:55:39 But these efforts, as I look at the numbers, you can compare them to December, and any

01:55:44 month in the existence of the United States will look better compared to December of 2023.

01:55:50 So again, that's not the proper standard that I would like to go by.

01:55:53 Still numbers are on the rise.

01:55:54 Once again, they're much higher than they were three years ago.

01:55:57 So all these measures, compared to the measures that were in place in '19 and even '20, are

01:56:01 not working, are not working as well, because we see the numbers that have gone up by 200,

01:56:06 300 percent.

01:56:07 They're not going down significantly in the way that if we are approaching and applying

01:56:11 an all-of-the-above approach, it's simply not working.

01:56:13 My constituents are feeling it every single day.

01:56:16 I'm someone that was born in Mexico, went through the process, became a citizen in 2006,

01:56:20 a member of Congress in 2022.

01:56:22 I believe in the American dream and the opportunities this country offers.

01:56:25 However, what we're seeing on the border and the abuse on our system, the rule of law,

01:56:28 is not the way that we want to be welcoming people.

01:56:33 It's endangering them, creating a humanitarian crisis, as well as a national security crisis.

01:56:38 So I would challenge the premise that this is working.

01:56:40 It's not, Mr. Secretary, and we need to take serious action on this.

01:56:43 And one more item.

01:56:45 We talk about legislation that has been passed this Congress on Republican majority.

01:56:49 We passed the HR2, the border security bill.

01:56:52 It went to go sit in the Senate.

01:56:53 That bill alone would have dealt with this issue immediately.

01:56:55 So I call on my colleagues to do the right thing here, but also on you, sir, to make

01:56:59 sure that this works.

01:57:00 And what we're seeing right now is not working.

01:57:02 Thank you.

01:57:03 Mr. Secretary, do you want to, if you want, if you want a few seconds to...

01:57:06 No, just to say, look, I think there's, I think there's important legislation before

01:57:08 the Congress now.

01:57:09 Unfortunately, it didn't pass the House a couple of months ago.

01:57:12 It's back, it's back up.

01:57:14 I think that could add to the efforts that we've already made, make a real difference.

01:57:18 So I would think that that, that bill would be a good proof point for whether we can take

01:57:24 further effective steps.

01:57:25 We're going to, we're going to recognize, Mr. Secretary, I would also remind you, as

01:57:28 Mr. Sosimone said, that HR2 has been passed.

01:57:30 Not, it's not in consideration.

01:57:33 It passed a long time ago.

01:57:36 And I would hope that you would look at that as a great option and maybe support that as

01:57:39 well.

01:57:40 Ms. Meng.

01:57:42 Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

01:57:44 Secretary Blinken, in your testimony, you highlighted an investment of $500 million

01:57:49 to expand internet access around the world.

01:57:53 But according to the World Bank in 2022, only 36% of Africa's population had broadband internet

01:58:00 access.

01:58:02 Internet access benefits everyone.

01:58:04 As you know, children going to school who can take advantage of more learning resources,

01:58:09 farmers who can get information about the weather, and small business owners who can

01:58:13 reach more customers across the continent and the world.

01:58:16 With competing companies like Huawei taking advantage of billions in incentive dollars,

01:58:22 do you believe $500 million is enough to meet the need for internet access across the African

01:58:29 continent?

01:58:30 Well, in and of itself, it's not.

01:58:32 But the fact that it can act as a catalyst, that it can act as a resource for the government

01:58:42 to help do two things.

01:58:44 To marshal our own resources across our government and align them, including with institutions

01:58:52 like the Development Finance Corporation.

01:58:55 But then to coordinate effectively with other countries and other partners, for example,

01:59:00 as we're doing in the Indo-Pacific, Pacific Islands, bringing undersea cables to the Pacific

01:59:04 Islands, working with Japan, working with Taiwan, working with others.

01:59:09 And then, as I mentioned earlier, to be a catalyst for the private sector.

01:59:14 Because no, we can't finance these things totally on taxpayer dollars, but we can play

01:59:21 a critical role in clearing the way for the private sector in making sure that we provide,

01:59:27 for example, necessary risk insurance, that we help do some of the due diligence that's

01:59:33 necessary for these projects to go forward.

01:59:36 That we build the capacity of local governments to do what they need to do to make these projects

01:59:41 viable.

01:59:42 That's what the money's for.

01:59:43 Now, could we use more?

01:59:44 Sure.

01:59:45 We always can.

01:59:46 But we try to make a deliberate judgment about what could give us the effective resources

01:59:51 we need to do all of these other things that get the results that you're exactly right,

01:59:56 we need to see.

01:59:57 Great.

01:59:58 And I know I'm running out of time, but I just wanted to highlight in the fiscal year

02:00:02 2022 omnibus, it directed both the State Department and USAID to develop a strategy or policy

02:00:08 around youth.

02:00:09 USAID, in response, updated its youth policy in May 2022, but wanted to ask about the State

02:00:17 Department's plans in leading a youth strategy as directed.

02:00:23 Are conversations taking place, and when can we expect to see a strategy like this?

02:00:28 Let me come back to you on this.

02:00:29 I'm happy to follow up on that.

02:00:30 Thank you so much.

02:00:31 Thank you, Ms. Mang.

02:00:32 Mr. Edwards, you're recognized, sir.

02:00:33 Thank you, Mr. Chair.

02:00:34 Mr. Secretary, in September last year, the Office of the Inspector General published

02:00:40 an audit on the selected cooperative agreements supporting the Department of State's Resettlement

02:00:45 Support Centers, the RSC.

02:00:49 The Inspector General found that selected refugee recipients of cooperative agreement

02:00:54 funds did not always adhere to the federal requirements, department guidance, or award

02:00:59 terms and conditions.

02:01:00 In fact, the OIG found that 65% of refugee applications reviewed had deficiencies, and

02:01:08 none of the 12 RSC caseworkers observed conducted pre-screening interviews in accordance with

02:01:14 requirements.

02:01:16 The OIG then found evidence that selected award recipients didn't always spend funds

02:01:21 in accordance with federal requirements.

02:01:24 Specifically, they tested 144 expenditures totaling nearly $2 million and found that

02:01:30 17% of those allocated funds would have been unallowable.

02:01:35 Can you please inform this committee what measurable steps the State Department and

02:01:40 Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration have taken to address these deficiencies and

02:01:46 to systematically end the wasted resources?

02:01:54 Thank you.

02:01:55 Thank you, Congressman.

02:01:56 Two things on this.

02:01:58 First, we've been engaged in a very significant effort to rebuild the resettlement program

02:02:04 in the United States, which was in significant disrepair when we came into office.

02:02:14 That's required a very significant effort to get these resettlement organizations back

02:02:18 up and running, and not only running, but running efficiently, effectively, and of course,

02:02:25 following the law.

02:02:26 Second, we take very seriously the work, the investigations of the Inspector General, and

02:02:32 we are always working to follow up and take action when we find that something needs remediation.

02:02:39 We're working intensely with the resettlement agencies to make sure that they are following

02:02:45 the letter of the law when it comes to the use of our monies and of taxpayer monies.

02:02:51 I'm happy to follow up with your office in more detail on this and share that.

02:02:55 Thank you.

02:02:56 Please, in my last half a minute, can you tell us, has the PRM recovered any of the

02:03:01 costs determined to be unallowable or any of the $759,000 that OIG questioned in the

02:03:09 report?

02:03:10 Let me come back to you on that.

02:03:11 I don't have an answer for you right now, but I'll get you one.

02:03:13 Thank you.

02:03:14 Thank you.

02:03:15 I want to thank everybody for sticking to the three minutes.

02:03:16 We want to be responsible.

02:03:18 And again, the gentleman from Florida, Ms. Frankel.

02:03:22 I was talking about this film I saw last night, which was a recap of the sexual violence,

02:03:31 the brutality of Hamas when they attacked Israel October 7th, as well as women still

02:03:39 being held in Gaza, chained, being raped.

02:03:44 The descriptions of what happened October 7th, they didn't have to show the pictures.

02:03:49 They interviewed people who heard what was going on and what they saw with nails and

02:03:55 objects in women's private parts, women being raped and passed around and their breasts

02:04:02 cut off and burned and horrible.

02:04:05 Interesting.

02:04:06 The movie is called Screams Before Silence.

02:04:10 That's because they heard the screams and then there was silence because the women were

02:04:15 killed.

02:04:16 But Mr. Secretary, what I'm worried about and what I am dismayed about and I don't

02:04:21 understand is the silence of the world, the silence of the world about the brutality of

02:04:29 Hamas, the silence of the world about horrible things that are happening all over the world.

02:04:36 Sudan, Ukraine, Haiti, Miramar.

02:04:42 I could go on and on where millions of people are suffering.

02:04:46 And yet the protests are about Israel.

02:04:51 And this is what I don't understand.

02:04:53 I don't want to, I'm not trying to demean the passion of any particular protester, but

02:05:01 I am just, I'm wondering, is there some sort of organized effort to create conflict in

02:05:11 our country?

02:05:13 Is there organized efforts to fund these protests?

02:05:18 What is driving the fact that the protests are, despite every horror in this world, is

02:05:24 going on against Israel and in part the United States?

02:05:29 Well, first I think the horrific, almost unimaginable sexual violence that you've pointed to and

02:05:35 that this film shows, and I've seen the evidence of it myself on trips, is horrific.

02:05:42 In the world, the United Nations was very late to identifying that and talking about

02:05:49 that.

02:05:51 And more broadly, one of the things that we've seen is that Hamas has almost been erased

02:05:56 from the story, as if it didn't exist, didn't do anything, isn't doing anything right now.

02:06:03 And one does have to ask why.

02:06:06 I think, look, people are genuinely motivated by passion.

02:06:13 The plight of little children, women, men in Gaza, the humanitarian crisis that they're

02:06:23 experiencing is gut-wrenching.

02:06:26 And I think most people are likely motivated by that.

02:06:31 And I not only understand it, we're working to do something about it.

02:06:36 But I also agree with you that as a general proposition, we should try to avoid having

02:06:40 selective outrage.

02:06:42 And we need to see, hopefully, a focus on all of these other challenges where people

02:06:48 are experiencing the worst of humanity.

02:06:51 And we're working to change that, but it would be good if there was more focus there as well.

02:06:56 Well, thank you, and thank you for bringing that up.

02:06:58 I would just say, follow the money.

02:07:01 Ms. Torres.

02:07:03 Thank you, Chairman.

02:07:05 And I hope to be able to have a follow-up with you on just what is happening in that

02:07:11 region as it relates to the farms that were also decimated in Israel during that October

02:07:17 7th attack.

02:07:18 But, Mr. Secretary, as you know, the European Union this Tuesday endorsed new rules on artificial

02:07:24 intelligence, which one headline called a benchmark for the rest of the world.

02:07:31 If we are not at the table on global AI discussions, the rest of the world will move forward without

02:07:38 us, unfortunately.

02:07:40 We must be a part of the conversation for this revolution in the production of knowledge.

02:07:48 From tools to increase productivity to the challenge of deep fakes, AI is already changing

02:07:54 the world, and we must make sure that it is changing it for the better, helping us create

02:08:00 a more peaceful world for us to thrive in.

02:08:02 Mr. Secretary, given President Biden's work on AI policy and your own efforts in this

02:08:08 space, what role do you see for the State Department in global efforts to ensure AI

02:08:15 is working for us to build a better world?

02:08:19 And I should mention, Mr. Secretary, that I am working on funding to support local cities

02:08:24 and states across our country to partner with cities and regions in allied countries on

02:08:30 AI research projects, something similar to our Sisters City program.

02:08:36 That sounds like a terrific initiative, and I'd love to learn more about it.

02:08:39 But very quickly, I think the State Department is playing and must play a central role in

02:08:44 this.

02:08:45 We've reorganized the department to do just that.

02:08:46 We established the first bureau for cyber and digital policy with a special envoy for

02:08:53 emerging technologies to include AI to make sure that diplomatically, not only could we

02:08:59 have a seat at the table, we would be at the head of the table when the norms, the standards,

02:09:04 the rules by which technology like AI gets used actually gets decided.

02:09:08 We were able at the United Nations to get through the first resolution overwhelmingly

02:09:12 passed to the General Assembly as a result of our diplomacy on artificial intelligence

02:09:17 to try to begin to establish principles for its use that would maximize the good, minimize

02:09:23 the bad, and, for example, focus AI on the benefits it can bring to achieving the sustainable

02:09:27 development goals, which, as you know, are stalled.

02:09:29 And AI can make a huge difference.

02:09:31 We've been leading in the G7 countries, again, to begin to establish understandings about

02:09:38 norms and standards for AI on safety, on security, on privacy protection, on eliminating bias,

02:09:47 on making sure that technologies can't be used for misinformation or disinformation.

02:09:52 In all of these places, the State Department is playing a leading role.

02:09:54 Our diplomats, and happily, we have some extraordinary people who come to the department who are

02:10:00 leaders in the field, who are making that difference.

02:10:01 My time is up.

02:10:02 I want to encourage you to continue your efforts in working with Israel in that region, our

02:10:09 partners there, to ensure that we, one, get our hostages back, and ultimately, we see

02:10:16 an end to this war.

02:10:17 And I yield back.

02:10:18 Thank you.

02:10:19 Well, thank you, Ms. Torres.

02:10:20 Obviously, members may submit additional questions.

02:10:22 For the record, Mr. Secretary, as you can see, there's a lot of interest, a lot of

02:10:27 passion, and a lot of knowledge.

02:10:29 Members of this subcommittee, we all look forward to continuing working with you.

02:10:33 Thank you once again for your time.

02:10:35 And with that, this concludes the hearing of the Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations

WATCH: House Members Grill Sec. Antony Blinken During House Appropriations Committee Hearing

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