State Department Holds Press Briefing After Julian Assange Reaches Plea Deal To Avoid US Jail Time
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller holds a press briefing.
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NewsTranscript
00:00Matt, where's the blazer?
00:02I'm not used to seeing you.
00:03It's too damn hot.
00:04It is hot, but it's nice and cool.
00:06It's a nice, hopefully 65 degrees in this room, as I like it.
00:09You know, I'm not wearing it because it's too hot.
00:12Anyway, can you – there seems to be a lot of concern that the UN is going to pull out
00:23of Gaza and not stop, halt its relief assistance operations there.
00:32I understand there was some kind of a meeting that you guys brokered or tried – or arranged
00:38yesterday to try to figure out a way to – that they could keep operating.
00:45What can you tell us about that?
00:46I can't speak to a meeting yesterday from here.
00:49I can go back and get – work on details of that after the briefing, but I can tell
00:52you that this is an issue that we have been intensely focused on.
00:56Our special envoy for Middle East humanitarian issues, Lise Grande, has been working with
01:02the UN and with various Israeli Government entities to try to figure out a way to allow
01:08UN workers to safely do their jobs and deliver humanitarian assistance.
01:13We have seen over the past few weeks a big backlog of humanitarian assistance at Kerem
01:17Shalom, so a lot of trucks that have made it to Kerem Shalom but then have not made
01:21it out of Kerem Shalom into the Gaza Strip where they can deliver goods, and they largely
01:27haven't been able to move because of a breakdown in security on the ground.
01:31This isn't a breakdown in security where trucks are being shot by Hamas or by the IDF.
01:38It is just random looting and criminal gangs and criminal actors who have been attacking
01:44trucks.
01:45So we are working with the UN and Israel to try and find a solution to that problem, including
01:51such ideas as trying to make sure that UN workers have personal protective equipment,
01:57that they have radios and other communications equipment so they can communicate with each
02:03other and safely move around Gaza, and that work is continuing.
02:09Okay.
02:10I'm sorry.
02:11You said that some of these trucks were being shot at by the IDF?
02:13No, I said they are not.
02:14I said they are not.
02:15So when you come to say this is not – so obviously we've had issues in the past where
02:18there have been deconfliction issues and you've seen strikes on convoys by the IDF, and you've
02:22had other incidents where convoys have been diverted by Hamas.
02:26That's not what the current problem is.
02:28The current problem is they're being attacked by criminal elements inside Gaza.
02:33Okay.
02:34So where do things stand right now as far as you understand it?
02:40So there is aid that is moving, both commercial trucks and then humanitarian aid that is moving
02:45from Kerem Shalom.
02:46Commercial –
02:47Are you saying humanitarian aid on the commercial trucks?
02:50No, there – well, there's commercial trucks that include food and other humanitarian
02:55goods, but they're sold on the market, in the free market inside Gaza.
02:59And those have been moving –
03:00Free market?
03:01It is a free capitalist market for what's worth.
03:05There are markets in Gaza where these goods are sold.
03:07Okay.
03:09And there has been a fairly substantial amount of commercial activity, but that in no way
03:15accounts for all the need because there are obviously a lot of people in Gaza who don't
03:18have access to money, don't have access to any way to pay for those goods, and so
03:22we need to see humanitarian assistance sustained too.
03:27And that has slowed out of Kerem Shalom because of this breakdown in activity.
03:31There still has been a fair amount of humanitarian assistance going into northern Gaza over the
03:38Jordan route and stuff coming in from Ashdod, but there has been a problem in southern Gaza
03:43that we've been working to try to resolve.
03:45I'll stop.
03:46I'll leave it to others to talk about the free market that exists in Gaza.
03:49Go ahead.
03:51Matt, so on that, what mechanism does U.S. think could be put in place to improve the
03:58lawlessness – to improve the law and order in Gaza to allow aid distribution?
04:03Is there anything specific that they're talking about?
04:05So let me answer it two ways.
04:07One is in the short term.
04:08As I said, we are working through this with the UN and the IDF and COGAT and others inside
04:16the Israeli Government.
04:17Some of this is the measures I just talked about, and there are other things that I don't
04:19want to get into from here because they're the subject of conversations with those two
04:22parties that I don't think should be made public.
04:25And then, of course, long term, we want to see a ceasefire and the reestablishment of
04:30Palestinian-led governance, and ultimately we have ideas for providing security inside
04:35Gaza and providing governance and reconstruction, all of these things that would go to a restoration
04:39of law and order.
04:40But that is the long term.
04:41It in no way accounts for the here and now, which is what we're working on, as I said,
04:44with the UN and the Government of Israel.
04:47And who's responsible, in your eyes, for putting that kind of mechanism in place, especially
04:52when it comes to security?
04:53So right now, it's something that needs to be resolved between the UN and the IDF.
04:57Obviously, the IDF is the dominant security actor inside southern Gaza right now.
05:01There are IDF brigades that are operating inside southern Gaza.
05:06The UN is the humanitarian implementer who is carrying out the delivery of humanitarian
05:10assistance, so they need to be able to work together to resolve this security situation.
05:14And is this the best option right now for U.S.
05:18Government to improve distribution and to get in more aid into Gaza?
05:24The best option is to get a ceasefire.
05:26That is the best option.
05:28The best option is the best option.
05:29The best option is getting a ceasefire and end of hostilities.
05:31That has been very logical, so we're talking about in the meantime.
05:34I'm wondering if there are any other avenues that you are pursuing, or is this the main one?
05:39This is the main one.
05:40There is no substitute for the land route aid coming in through Kerem Shalom.
05:45Obviously, we've been able to supplement aid coming in through the ground at times.
05:48We've been able to supplement it through the pier, and we've been able to supplement it
05:52at times through airdrops.
05:53But those are supplements.
05:55The main delivery route needs to continue to be through gates into Gaza.
05:59Right.
06:00And final thing is – and I've asked whether this is the main thing and this is your best
06:04option, because you must have seen IPC's update.
06:07It now talks about nearly half a million people are living – are facing the most severe
06:13form of starvation, and they say clearly that after some slight improvement, things have
06:20– there is renewed deterioration after Israel has started its Rafah offensive.
06:25So how is the U.S. going to remedy this situation?
06:30And how – it's like help us wrap our heads around the fact that how are we still in this
06:36situation eight months into this war?
06:38So I think we are in this situation because of the difficulty that this conflict poses
06:43to delivering humanitarian assistance.
06:46And it is not just a question, as we've seen over the past month or so, of getting
06:52humanitarian assistance delivered to the gates.
06:54There was a long time where we were just trying to get the numbers of trucks coming into Kerem
06:58Shalom every day up.
06:59We were able to get the number of trucks coming into Kerem Shalom up, and now we're dealing
07:03with a different problem on the other side, which is the breakdown of law and order and
07:08the inability in some cases, or at least the extreme difficulty, of delivering humanitarian
07:13assistance inside Gaza.
07:14That was actually a problem several months ago.
07:16We were able to work to resolve it.
07:17It has become a problem again.
07:19So these are always problems that pop up that we are trying to resolve, which is why I say
07:26– and this is something the IPC said in their report today, which is the only real
07:30way to resolve – to fully resolve these challenges is to get a ceasefire.
07:35You can work to deal with problems as they pop up, but I think our experience shows us
07:41over the past eight months that to fully get the amount of humanitarian assistance into
07:47Gaza and then delivered to the people in Gaza who need it, we need to see a ceasefire.
07:51Another thing I want to say about the IPC report, though – obviously it confirmed
07:54what we all know and what we've been dealing with for some time – is that the humanitarian
07:58situation on the ground is extremely dire.
08:00That's why we have been so incredibly focused on alleviating that situation.
08:04It did note some improvements, however, especially in the north, and I think it is important
08:08to note that in their last report in March, the IPC predicted that famine was imminent
08:13in the north and that we would reach famine, I think it said, by May.
08:17The United States Government intervened and did a lot of work to get Erezgate open,
08:22Zekum open, to get Ashdod Port open, to get humanitarian assistance delivered
08:26into the north, and that has happened.
08:29Now, the IPC assessed today that that prediction ultimately did not bear true,
08:34and I think you have to assess it's because of those efforts to get humanitarian assistance,
08:39which is in no way to declare that the job is finished.
08:42Of course, the job – the work remains ongoing.
08:46The situation is still incredibly dire.
08:48We need to continue to get more humanitarian assistance into the north and, of course,
08:51address the stagnation and, in some cases, the reversal in situation in the south,
08:56and that's what we're trying to do.
08:57Final, final thing.
08:58Sorry.
08:59Did you get any specific assurance from Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galan towards this end yesterday?
09:04So I don't want to speak to the specifics of it, but I can tell you that we went through
09:08a number of specific things that we want to see resolved when it comes to the humanitarian situation
09:15and gotten assurance to continue to work on those,
09:17and we'll follow through with the governor of Israel in the coming days.
09:20Can I follow up on that a minute?
09:21Yeah.
09:22The IPC said that it's such a precarious situation that it could backslide into famine at any point.
09:27What is your comment on that?
09:28I mean, like, they are acknowledging there's been improvements in the north,
09:31but at the same time, it's such a precarious situation.
09:33I think it confirms two things.
09:37Number one, as the IPC itself said, we need to get a ceasefire,
09:41and that is the best way, bar none, to alleviate the humanitarian situation on the ground
09:46and alleviate the very real, very tragic situation of the Palestinian people.
09:52And that is why we are working every day to try to get a ceasefire.
09:55It's why we were so disappointed that Hamas rejected the ceasefire proposal that was on the table
09:59that the United Nations Security Council and countries around the world endorsed.
10:03The second thing is that we can't wait for a ceasefire, obviously, even as we try to get one,
10:07and we need to do more to improve the humanitarian situation on the ground,
10:10and that's what we're trying to do, as I just mentioned,
10:12through working to resolve these issues between the government of Israel,
10:15the Israeli security forces, and the UN humanitarian agencies.
10:19And is there any engagement with these criminal elements that you keep referencing
10:23through mediators or anything?
10:25Like, how are you convinced that a ceasefire would convince these actors to join on?
10:29Not that the United States Government is engaged in.
10:32I can't speak to other parties.
10:34But we do – I mean, we just assess that a ceasefire leads to a general calm in all areas
10:39that would allow us to get more humanitarian assistance safely
10:42and would allow people to operate more safely inside Gaza.
10:45And this may be a DOD question, but why does the U.S. continue to offload all of this aid from the pier
10:49when the UN is not operating to distribute this aid?
10:52I would defer to DOD on that, who's the operator there.
10:55Yeah, Chuck.
10:56Can we go to Lebanon, the Lebanon part of the equation?
10:59Maybe just to begin with a couple of specific things.
11:01I know yesterday, in response to a question I think for Michel,
11:04you said that you couldn't talk about the daily Telegraph report, whether it was factual or whatever.
11:09Is there anything more you can say about that, whether there is a finding that has been lost?
11:12No, I can't speak to it in detail, and that's a matter that we take extremely seriously.
11:16Is there still some process to look into?
11:18I just don't – I don't have any kind of assessment to offer.
11:20It wasn't – that was a report that we read in the Telegraph and something we take seriously,
11:26but I don't have an assessment about the underlying factual claims in that report.
11:29This is about the airport?
11:31Yeah.
11:32It hasn't been known for decades that southern Beirut, including the airport, is run by Hezbollah?
11:40It's a different question than what was in the Telegraph report.
11:43If they're storing weapons.
11:45Yeah.
11:46One other thing specifically on Lebanon.
11:48The Canadians say – issued a travel alert saying that get out while you can, basically.
11:53Is the travel advice still the same for Americans?
11:55It is still the same for Americans as it has been.
11:57Okay, no plans.
11:58I mean, obviously –
11:59It's something we always review and update based on matters on the ground,
12:02but it's something that hasn't changed.
12:03Sure.
12:04And a bit more broadly on Lebanon.
12:05Both the Secretary yesterday in your readout and Defense Secretary Austin today
12:09were talking about the importance of diplomacy in Lebanon,
12:12raising this with Defense Minister Gallant.
12:14What's your assessment on that right now?
12:16I mean, do you think that there is – are we headed to a larger conflict in Lebanon?
12:20What are the chances right now of a diplomatic resolution?
12:23So I wouldn't – I, as usual, would never want to assign a percentage chance
12:27to anything of this nature.
12:29I would say that we think a diplomatic resolution is possible.
12:32We think it is in the interest of all parties.
12:34And I will say that Minister Gallant confirmed to the Secretary yesterday
12:38that that is Israel's preferred outcome,
12:40that they would prefer a diplomatic resolution to the situation
12:44in the north of Israel across the border.
12:46And so we're going to continue to pursue that
12:48because it's in the interest of all the parties involved.
12:50And most importantly, in the interest of the tens of thousands of Israeli
12:55and Lebanese families who have been displaced from their homes
12:57and want to be able to return home.
12:59You said that Gallant indicated that they want a diplomatic resolution.
13:02Is that – do you think that's – is that shared across the Israeli Government?
13:07Some of the actions, for example, the prime minister was saying,
13:09would be troops to the north.
13:10I know he cast a defensive, but is that consistent with a diplomatic resolution?
13:14So there is a – there are a broad spectrum of actors inside the Israeli Government,
13:18and I certainly wouldn't want to speak for all of them,
13:20but I can say in all of our meetings with senior government officials,
13:23including the prime minister, they have time and time again expressed to us
13:28that their preferred resolution is a diplomatic one.
13:32Sure. There are a few non-Middle East things, but I imagine some people would like to keep going.
13:35I imagine so.
13:36If not –
13:37Go ahead.
13:38Yeah. First, I just want to start off, see if I could ask you for a reaction
13:42to Medicines Sans Frontieres saying that one of their colleagues, Fadi al-Wadiyah,
13:48was killed in an attack this morning.
13:50The attack killed five other people, including three children.
13:54Do you have any comments on that?
13:55So obviously we mourn the loss of any civilian life.
13:59I don't have any particulars with regard to that specific attack,
14:02but obviously we don't want to see any civilians killed in this conflict,
14:06and that's one of the reasons why we continue to pursue a ceasefire.
14:09I want to take a step back for a second, if I could, and just go over –
14:13over the past nine months, folks in this room have repeatedly raised potential war crimes
14:18and crimes against humanity committed by Israel and Gaza.
14:21That has included repeated mass casualty events that have resulted from strikes,
14:26sexual abuse in detention, allegations thereof,
14:32as well as malicious destruction of civilian property.
14:36In many of these cases, you've called on Israel to investigate itself.
14:40Generally speaking, are you satisfied with how your ally has responded to these appeals?
14:45So I'm going to say that they have a number of open investigations into potential war crimes.
14:52I don't want to pass judgment on how those investigations have been conducted
14:56until they have concluded, and there are a number of them that are ongoing.
14:59I will say, though, separate and apart from what Israel is doing,
15:04the United States is undertaking its own reviews of potential war crimes in this conflict,
15:09and those reviews are ongoing, and that's separate from anything that Israel is doing.
15:13Yeah.
15:14Thank you, Matt.
15:15There are some reports speaking about that Hamas is thinking to move from Qatar to Iraq,
15:20and the Iraqi Government approved it to host the Hamas leaders last month.
15:25Do you have any comments, and have you seen these reports?
15:27So I've seen the report.
15:28I addressed this at the briefing yesterday.
15:29We've made clear that no country should carry out business as usual with Hamas
15:35since the horrific actions of October 7th,
15:38and we would hope no country would provide a safe haven for Hamas.
15:41Have you received any signs, any indication from the Iraqi Government that they have?
15:44I'm just not going to speak to private diplomatic conversations.
15:47Okay.
15:48And second question, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq,
15:50repeatedly they are threatening the U.S. forces to leave Iraq.
15:53And what they said in their last statement,
15:56the four-month guarantee that they gave it to the Iraqi Government to work with you
16:00to set a deadline for the U.S. withdrawal in Iraq has passed and it's been expired.
16:05So they're saying that they are going to resume their attacks on the U.S. forces in Iraq
16:10if there is no deadline for the U.S. withdrawal in Iraq.
16:14So this is not something that you are wishing for.
16:17So how are you going to prevent these attacks not be resumed in Iraq?
16:22So with respect to the status of U.S. forces in Iraq,
16:25I'm going to defer that to the Pentagon ultimately to speak to.
16:29But we have long made clear that our forces in Iraq are there
16:33at the invitation of the Government of Iraq to conduct anti-terrorist activities
16:39that benefit the Iraqi people.
16:41And if our forces are attacked, we will respond appropriately
16:45and hold those responsible accountable.
16:47And do you take these statements seriously
16:49when they are saying we're resuming the attacks on the U.S. forces if they are not?
16:53I think I'll rest on what I just said a moment ago about what our posture is
16:57towards any entity that would attack U.S. forces.
17:01Stay in the region.
17:04Jackson, go ahead.
17:06Thanks, Matthew.
17:10So if Israel does plan to intensify combat along its northern border with Lebanon,
17:18will we get a warrant to get U.S. citizens clear?
17:22I'm not going to deal with a hypothetical.
17:23We are trying to avoid an escalation in this conflict,
17:27but obviously the safety and security of U.S. citizens overseas is our first priority,
17:31and we always monitor ongoing dynamics and advise U.S. citizens accordingly.
17:36And Canada is reportedly considering plans to evacuate its citizens from Lebanon.
17:40Is the U.S. considering similar evacuation plans
17:43or changes to its Lebanon travel advisory here soon?
17:46I believe I got this question five minutes ago and answered it.
17:49It's something that we always monitor when it comes to the safety
17:52and security of American citizens, but I don't have any updates to the travel advisory.
17:55And then finally, the House GOP appropriations bill for the State Department
18:01does have to consist of cut in funding.
18:05What's the administration's response to that?
18:07I'm not going to comment on proposed legislation from here.
18:09Sam, go ahead.
18:10Thank you.
18:11Thank you.
18:12A couple questions if I could.
18:13It's been a while.
18:14The U.S. vetoed multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions
18:18for a ceasefire over the last several months, of course,
18:20but finally drafted one itself, which claimed that Israel had accepted the ceasefire.
18:25You say that they did.
18:27Other people don't see it that way.
18:29My question is about the timing.
18:32It came just after the latest orders from the International Court of Justice.
18:39On May 24th, they ordered Israel to not invade Rafah,
18:44and they stipulated that the invasion had, in fact, started on May 7th.
18:49Was that the actual purpose of the U.S. backing that resolution at that time
18:53in order to forestall the U.N. Security Council doing its normal job
18:57of instituting the Security Council, the ICJ orders?
19:01No, it was not.
19:03No, it was not.
19:04Our purpose in backing that resolution is we saw Israel put forward a proposal
19:07that we thought offered a real chance for not only a ceasefire
19:12but an enduring end to the conflict that would return the hostages home
19:15to be reunited with their families,
19:18that would alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian people,
19:20that would set the conditions potentially for lasting peace,
19:23and we thought it was important that the entire world rally around that proposal,
19:28and that's why we put that resolution forward.
19:30You talk about the hostages.
19:32Israel has a Hannibal Directive in which it has orders in place to kill at least its own soldiers
19:39lest they fall into the hands of Palestinian groups,
19:42and there's substantial reporting that that, in fact, was utilized on October 7th
19:48not just against Israeli soldiers but against civilians.
19:51Are we not now in a situation where Israel may be using the Hannibal Directive
19:57not just on Israelis, civilians and military,
20:00but on U.S. citizens and other foreign nationals?
20:03So I am not familiar in any way with either that supposed directive or those reports,
20:07and so certainly would not want to comment on that.
20:11You've never heard of the Hannibal Directive?
20:12Sean, I thought you wanted to go out of the region.
20:15Sure.
20:16Julian Assange.
20:17Yeah.
20:18Some of you.
20:20I thought we'd get around there eventually.
20:23I sort of expected you were going to say it's an ongoing judicial matter.
20:27But you're going to ask anyway.
20:30What was the importance for the United States of reaching a plea deal with him?
20:34Why was it important to settle this?
20:36So you're right.
20:37It is an ongoing judicial matter,
20:39and so I am really limited in what I can say where I can't really say anything about that.
20:43I know that the Justice Department has published court documents related to this case.
20:47I know he's scheduled to appear in court in the coming hours,
20:50and given that it is a pending case that is about to go before a federal judge,
20:54I think it's appropriate for me to not comment on the matter at this time.
20:57Sure.
20:58I'll try a little bit more, but obviously he's an Australian citizen.
21:01Can you talk about the nature of discussions between the United States and Australia
21:04at the diplomatic level?
21:06Was this important to resolve for the sake of the alliance with the U.S. and Australia?
21:09Again, I think while the matter is pending, it's important for me not to comment on it at all.
21:13Maybe tomorrow I'll have more to say,
21:15but I think today I should refrain from commenting and defer to the Department of Justice.
21:19Okay, unless anybody wants to pursue that.
21:21Can I ask a follow-up question?
21:22Yeah, go ahead.
21:23This obviously has been a source of disagreement between Australia and the United States.
21:27Do you consider that this matter is now on the cusp of being resolved?
21:31I appreciate you trying, but I think I'm going to go back to the days
21:35when I was the Department of Justice spokesperson,
21:37and when we had a matter pending in court that was about to go before a federal judge,
21:41I think I very much would have objected to the State Department spokesperson
21:44opining on it from the podium before the matter was resolved,
21:47so I'm going to decline to do so today.
21:51And I'm sorry.
21:54Tell us what you think about having this case heard by a judge in a trench in the Pacific Ocean.
22:06I think that is a matter for the Department of Justice to comment on, not the State Department.
22:10I was wondering if this is sort of a relief for the State Department when it comes to engagement.
22:17I hate to interrupt, but I only interrupt to say
22:21you're going to get the same answer that I have given with respect to the other question.
22:25It just isn't appropriate for me, while this is pending and about to go before a federal judge,
22:30to comment on any way.
22:31The matter is not yet resolved.
22:32Once it's resolved, maybe there will be a different case, but not today.
22:35Not about the case per se, but its implications for diplomacy.
22:38As it was on the record, the President is saying that he raised his case with Secretary Blinken.
22:43That is an interesting pivot, Alex.
22:47Sorry, I interrupted you.
22:50Go ahead with the question.
22:52There are others out there, particularly those with problematic human rights records.
22:57Do you feel that it does open up avenues?
23:00Is it sort of a relief for you to engage with those sort of regimes?
23:04I don't want to draw a connection between this case and any other.
23:08I have different questions if I may.
23:10Go ahead.
23:11Can I go to the Middle East?
23:12Yeah.
23:13Can you comment on the violent protests that have been happening outside the parliament
23:17after a bill was passed to raise taxes?
23:19Yes.
23:20We condemn the violence reported during protests in Nairobi and around Kenya.
23:25We mourn the loss of life and injuries sustained
23:27and offer our condolences to the families who lost loved ones.
23:30We urge restraint to restore order and provide space for dialogue.
23:34Related to Kenya, the Kenyan troops are heading to Haiti.
23:41Can you give the latest on that with Haiti?
23:45I will defer to Kenya to speak to the exact details.
23:49My understanding is that they have deployed and are arriving in the near future,
23:52if they haven't already.
23:54Some of the rights groups are saying, look at what's happening in Nairobi right now,
24:02the use of live rounds could dispose ill for Haiti and for the security there.
24:08What's the level of concern with how Kenyan forces are handling the protests?
24:12As I said, when it comes to the violence in Kenya,
24:17we urge the government to exercise restraint.
24:20When it comes to the MSS, so in conjunction with the Government of Kenya,
24:23the United States has vetted the Kenyan personnel for the MSS mission.
24:27We have also worked with other governments to vet their personnel for the mission,
24:31and we will continue to engage and vet personnel that are going to participate in the mission
24:36because obviously it is important that the human rights of the Haitian people be respected
24:39as this mission to restore law and order is carried out.
24:44Can I switch regions again?
24:46Yeah.
24:47Evan Grishkovich goes to trial tomorrow.
24:48What is your expectation?
24:51I certainly don't expect a free and fair trial,
24:53given that these are charges that never should have been brought in the first place.
24:57What I can say with respect to the case is that personnel from the embassy are traveling
25:03to be on hand for the trial.
25:05It's unclear whether they will actually be able to attend or not
25:08or whether they'll be able to attend portions of it.
25:11If there are portions of it that are open and other portions that are closed,
25:13but we intend to be there to the extent we can,
25:16given travel restrictions by the Government of Russia,
25:19and we tend to be in the courtroom whenever we can.
25:22And that's not the ambassador?
25:24I'll let the embassy speak to who it is.
25:27And do you have any sense of how long this could trial?
25:30I don't. I don't.
25:32We honestly just don't know.
25:33Let's follow up on that.
25:34Yeah.
25:35So the embassy staffers were allowed to travel?
25:37To travel, which is not the same as being able to attend the proceeding itself.
25:40I don't believe we'll know that until tomorrow,
25:42and then after the proceedings we will have a statement where we make clear
25:47what it is we were actually able to do in terms of observing.
25:50Is it your impression Russia's main motive in this case,
25:53in terms of, you know, tying in, is to, let's say, to trigger prison spying?
26:00So I'm not going to speak to their motivations in apprehending him in the first place,
26:06but it's clear that it's an attack on journalism.
26:10They have made false claims about his behavior, about his actions,
26:14about associations with the United States Government that simply aren't true.
26:18So all I can say is that we are going to continue to try to secure the release of Evan Gershkovich
26:23as well as Paul Whelan, do everything we can to try to bring them home.
26:26May I also get your reaction to today's ICC arrest warrant for Russian Defense Minister and Chief of Staff?
26:32How significant is this?
26:34So we have made clear that there have been atrocities committed by Russian forces
26:38in their illegal invasion of Ukraine and that there ought to be accountability for those atrocities.
26:43We support a range of international investigations into Russia's atrocities in Ukraine,
26:47including the one conducted by the ICC.
26:50And just to follow up on that, are you actively helping ICC to pursue this case?
26:56Are you sharing evidence with them?
26:58And are you offering active help with regards to this case?
27:02I don't want to speak to any of what would be private conversations or private channels between us
27:08and really any agency conducting these kinds of investigations.
27:12As I said, we support the investigation conducted by the ICC
27:15as well as other accountability investigations.
27:17But in terms of private exchanges, I think I'll keep those private.
27:22Just one more on Russia.
27:23Yeah.
27:24The Russians today banned a number of European news outlets
27:27saying it's retaliation for bans on Russian state media.
27:30Does the U.S. have anything to say about that?
27:32Look, I think it's another sign of the Russian Government cracking down on journalism
27:35because they are afraid of their own people hearing the truth,
27:38hearing the truth about Russia's actions inside Russia,
27:42the actions by the government to repress their own people,
27:45about Russia's actions to invade a neighbor and illegally occupy its neighbor.
27:51And so we have seen them cracking down on journalism for some time,
27:55and unfortunately that continues.
27:57Yeah.
27:58Go ahead.
27:59Thank you, sir.
28:00So religion-fueled violence in Pakistan is not stopping for some reason.
28:04Just a couple of days ago, a man was dragged out from a police station
28:08by a mob on blasphemy allegations and burned to death.
28:12We have seen some horrible images.
28:14How concerned you are when you see such kind of incidents?
28:16So we are extremely concerned by those reports.
28:19We share our condolences to the family of the victim,
28:22and we wish a speedy recovery to those who were injured in the mob violence.
28:26As we have previously stated, we are always concerned
28:29by incidents of religiously motivated violence.
28:32Violence or the threat of violence against another person
28:34is never an acceptable form of expression,
28:37and we oppose blasphemy laws everywhere in the world, including in Pakistan,
28:41because they jeopardize the exercise of human rights and fundamental freedoms,
28:44including the freedom of religion or belief.
28:47So in another incident, the police force in Punjab province
28:52destroyed the 17 graves of a minority community,
28:58and they did that under pressure from the Radical Islamic Party,
29:02TLP, Tariq Al-Abaid, Pakistan.
29:04When you see the police forces involved in the attacks of minorities and their graves,
29:07how much concerning is this?
29:09So we are aware of the reports, and we continue to urge Pakistani authorities
29:13to respect the human rights and fundamental freedoms of all.
29:16We make that clear both publicly and privately.
29:19This includes freedom of religion, freedom of expression,
29:22freedom of association, and the right to peaceful assembly.
29:25So Pakistan has been on the CPC list for the last many years,
29:28and despite this, there has been no improvement
29:31regarding violations of religious freedom and attacks on minorities.
29:35So has the State Department ever taken up these issues
29:37when you meet your Pakistani counterparts?
29:40We have. We regularly engage with our Pakistani counterparts
29:43on issues of human rights, including religious freedom
29:46and the treatment of religious minorities.
29:48We remain concerned by continued incidents
29:50and reports of systematic ongoing violations of fundamental religious freedoms.
29:54We have made this clear not only in Pakistan's designation
29:57as a country of particular concern,
29:59but also in the department's annual International Religious Freedom Report
30:02and Country Report on Human Rights Practices.
30:05Go ahead.
30:06Thank you so much.
30:07About yesterday's trafficking in person report on Bangladesh,
30:12you praised some effort taken by Bangladeshi Government,
30:19areas like prosecution, protection, prevention,
30:22with prioritized some recommendation.
30:27One of them is the trafficking Rohingya population.
30:31Over one million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh right now.
30:34Do you have any plan or pathway to assist Bangladeshi Government in repatriation?
30:40Then back to you.
30:41So let me take that question and get you an answer.
30:43I have another question about same area,
30:45that there are some hostile military activities going on
30:49near St. Martin Island in Bangladesh.
30:52Only one island is there nearby, Myanmar.
30:56How does the United States plan to collaborate with the Bangladeshi Government
31:00to address the challenges posed by hostile military activities of Myanmar militant group
31:06and government forces near St. Martin Island in the Bay of Bengal
31:10to support U.S. vision of secure and inclusive end of peace?
31:15And I apologize, but I will take that one and get you an answer as well.
31:18Yeah.
31:19Go ahead.
31:20Thank you, Matt.
31:21About yesterday's trafficking report,
31:23according to that report, which is based on updated data by the international organizations,
31:28in Syria, the SDF, YPG, along with the terror groups YPG, PKK, ISIS, and al-Qaida,
31:34recruit and use boys and girls as child soldiers.
31:40Also last month, the United Nations report revealed that the PKK, YPG,
31:44and the affiliated organizations forcibly recruited children into their armed ranks in 2023 in Syria.
31:51So given the SDF is the U.S. partners in Syria,
31:55what are the possible steps by the United States Government against SDF, YPG?
31:59I mean, should we expect from the United States sanction SDF, YPG, or are there possible other steps?
32:06I just don't have any steps that I want to preview here from the podium.
32:09Go ahead.
32:11Prime Minister, Modi of India is expected to visit Russia and to meet President Modi next month.
32:18Do you have any reaction?
32:20So we've seen those reports.
32:22I haven't seen a visit publicly confirmed by either of the countries,
32:26so I think I'll wait to decline the comment until I see them publicly –
32:29actually confirmed by the governments in question.
32:31Go ahead.
32:32Thank you.
32:33Fixed investment in Israel has declined almost 68 percent during the last quarter of 2023.
32:38GDP also plunged almost 20 percent.
32:42There's a 27 percent drop in private consumption,
32:45and almost half a million people have fled the country, according to local sources.
32:51How worried are you as the U.S. Government about this potential economic crisis in Israel
32:58and how to help the country?
33:00So, look, obviously there's a cost to any country in going to war.
33:04There are human costs.
33:05There are diplomatic – can be diplomatic costs.
33:07There can be economic costs.
33:08And that is one of the things you have heard the Secretary speak to when he's in the region,
33:12that for Israel's long-term security, Israel's long-term economic growth,
33:18Israel's further integration to – in the region, it's important that we get a ceasefire,
33:23but not just that we get a ceasefire, but also that we advance plans to reconstruct Gaza,
33:30to advance Palestinian-led governance in Gaza,
33:33and ultimately lead to lasting peace and security and stability in the region,
33:39because that will benefit the Palestinian people.
33:41It will benefit the people of Israel.
33:42It will benefit everyone in the region.
33:44Yeah.
33:45Also, do you have a written or a public statement from Hamas stating that they don't support the ceasefire,
33:52considering that, according to you, they were the ones who in previous months proposed something similar?
33:59Yeah.
34:00They came back several weeks ago and rejected the proposal that was on the table in written form.
34:04They gave us a written response that rejected the proposal that had been put forward by Israel
34:09that President Biden had outlined that the United Nations Security Council
34:14and countries all around the world had endorsed.
34:16Obviously, we don't make the text of that public because these are very sensitive negotiations,
34:22but it was a written rejection and counterproposal that came from Hamas.
34:26Sorry, do you accept the statistics that were the premise of the first question?
34:31I can't speak to those statistics at all.
34:33Well, then why would – I mean, do you know that there's been this flight of capital and people?
34:38No, but obviously, as I – I will use my own words and I'll – I stand by everything I said, but no.
34:44I'm not asking where they came from.
34:46I'm asking if he agrees with them.
34:48I very rarely can attest to the validity of things that are cited to me in questions,
34:52so I'll speak to what the U.S. Government believes.
34:55Yeah, go ahead.
34:57Thank you very much, Matt.
34:58In Pakistan, they're discussing this military operation again in the tribal areas, which is again my hometown.
35:06My colleague was talking about the man getting burned.
35:09That is also my hometown.
35:11That's where my major readership is.
35:13120 kids were killed by Taliban.
35:16That is again my readership, my hometown.
35:18So my journalism has been filled with these things,
35:21and that is why sometimes I get a little crazy asking questions to you and Vedant,
35:26and I apologize for that sometimes.
35:28This recent incident also happened in Pakistan.
35:31Now the government is again thinking about doing a military operation,
35:34which has not produced any results since the last 25 years that at least I have been reporting for that region.
35:40General Patrick told me that, yes, Pakistan and the U.S. has military, and ISIS is a threat over there.
35:47Can you just explain to me what this administration has done since this Taliban regime in Afghanistan
35:54and its effect on my area particularly?
35:57What have you done from the expansionism?
35:59Because I believe you guys have supported this administration has helped the Taliban expand
36:04and the mentality and the whole thing.
36:06So as you've heard me say before, the Pakistani people have suffered tremendously from terrorist attacks.
36:11No country should have interest in combating threats to regional security.
36:15We support Pakistan's efforts to combat terrorism
36:18and ensure the safety and security of its citizens in a manner that promotes the rule of law
36:22and protection of human rights.
36:24And our partnership with Pakistan on security issues includes our high-level counterterrorism dialogue,
36:29including funding robust counterterrorism capacity-building programs
36:33and supporting a series of U.S.-Pakistan military-to-military engagements.
36:37Just one more, sir.
36:40A little bit lighter but with a serious note.
36:42Cricket.
36:43I knew this was going to be about cricket again.
36:45Cricket. Pakistan lost pretty badly, right?
36:48But the cricket chairman is the guy who is in charge of this whole terrorism thing.
36:52He's the interior minister of the country.
36:54Now, Manohar, my question is, the serious note is,
36:57while so many serious things are happening there,
37:00how can a guy be a cricket chairman, an interior minister?
37:04He's basically an interior minister who takes care of the –
37:07he's an interior minister, he's a cricket chairman, he's a journalist, he owns a media house.
37:11Like, do you not tell Pakistan, like, come on, get serious on this thing
37:14or it's going to get out of your hands?
37:17I don't in any way, shape, or form have an answer to that question.
37:20Thank you.
37:21Go ahead.
37:22Thank you so much.
37:23Pakistani prime minister concluded visit to China in the first week of June,
37:27and during that visit both Pakistan and China signed different agreements.
37:31And Chinese side did raise concerns on Chinese investment projects in Pakistan
37:36and the security threats for them.
37:38And now the operation that Pakistani government announced,
37:41it is believed that there is a clear Chinese intention in this operation.
37:45So we heard from U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee hearings
37:49that Chinese investment projects in Pakistan is a clear threat for U.S. interest in Pakistan.
37:55So how do you see this?
37:57Let me take that back and get you an answer.
37:58Second one, when we say – like, when you say, like, freedom of information right –
38:04of information right to freedom of speech, so we have three examples.
38:08Pakistan is going to introduce firewall to control internet.
38:12Bangladesh already introduced Cybersecurity Act.
38:15And India is also considering some internet control thing to control the content creators,
38:22all those who are, like, who are giving tough time for the regime.
38:26So when you say, like, countries should treat the citizen with its own laws,
38:33then how we can justify this?
38:35So without speaking to the specific reports or specific pieces of proposed legislation,
38:40we have long made clear that we oppose any attempts to crack down on people's access to the internet,
38:47access to – access information all around the world.
38:51Go ahead.
38:53Thanks, Matt.
38:54The Wall Street Journal interviewed U.S. Ambassador to China, Nick Burns.
38:59In the interview, he blamed the Chinese Government for being extremely hostile to the U.S.
39:04and making it difficult for people-to-people ties.
39:07So President Xi and President Biden agreed at their summit to increase people-to-people ties,
39:12like, through student exchanges.
39:14So does the State Department agree with this characterization?
39:17So absolutely agree with everything the ambassador said.
39:20It has been a priority for this administration to increase people-to-people ties,
39:24and we have seen progress in that.
39:26We have seen progress in cultural exchanges.
39:28We have seen an increase in the number of flights, direct flights, between our two countries,
39:31and work on that continues.
39:33But at the same time, as the ambassador said,
39:37the increased PRC interference in our cultural and educational programming in the PRC since November
39:42runs counter to the commitments made at the Woodside Summit
39:45and suggests that the PRC's version or vision of increased people-to-people connections is very different to ours.
39:51This is something the Secretary raised when we were in our – on our last trip to Beijing,
39:57where he made clear to senior members of the Chinese Government
40:01that as much as we want to see people-to-people ties enhanced and strengthened,
40:06it's very hard to do that when the Chinese Government harasses either American citizens who are in China
40:13or harasses Chinese citizens who participate in American – or attempt to participate in American programs.
40:20So we do think it's in the interest of both our countries to increase people-to-people ties,
40:24and that's what the ambassador was making clear in that interview.
40:26One more.
40:27Yeah.
40:28Last week, Representative McCaul led a congressional delegation to India to meet with the Dalai Lama,
40:34who is now visiting the United States for knee treatment,
40:38and they were expressing support for the Tibetan people.
40:41The Chinese foreign ministry reacted harshly to this.
40:45Do you have a comment on this?
40:47I don't.
40:48And with that, I think I'll wrap for the day.
40:50Thanks, everyone.
40:51Thank you.
40:52Thank you.