President Biden discussed the bilateral security agreement with Ukraine during a press briefing on Thursday.
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NewsTranscript
00:00Good evening, everyone.
00:03Last year at the NATO Summit in Lithuania, the United States brought together every member
00:07of the G7 to sign a joint declaration of support for Ukraine.
00:13Twenty-five additional countries joined us quickly.
00:17Each agreed to forge long-term bilateral commitments with Ukraine.
00:22President Zelensky and I have just now signed that agreement between the United States and
00:26Ukraine.
00:28Our goal is to strengthen Ukraine's credible defense and deterrence capabilities for the
00:34long term.
00:35A lasting peace for Ukraine must be underwritten by Ukraine's own ability to defend itself
00:41now and to deter future aggression any time in the future.
00:46The United States is going to help ensure that Ukraine can do both, not by sending American
00:51troops to fight in Ukraine, but by providing weapons and ammunition, expanding intelligence
00:57sharing, continuing to train brave Ukrainian troops at bases in Europe and the United States,
01:03enhancing interoperability between our militaries in line with NATO standards, investing in
01:10Ukraine's defense industrial base so in time – in time – they can supply their
01:14own weapons and munitions, working with Ukraine's partners to build a future force that is strong,
01:21sustainable, and resilient, and supporting Ukraine's economic recovery as well as its
01:27energy recovery after Russia has repeatedly targeted Ukraine's energy grid with massive
01:32attacks in the futile attempt to break the will of the Ukrainian people.
01:37All these lines of efforts, and others, are laid out in this agreement.
01:42Additionally, the G7 achieved a significant outcome this week on the matter of Russia's
01:48frozen assets in Europe and other places outside of – outside of Russia.
01:54Back in 2022, two days after Russia's invasion, members of the G7 and the European Union worked
01:59together to freeze $280 billion in Russian Central Bank funds outside of Russia.
02:07I'm very pleased to share that this week – this week, the G7 signed a plan to finalize
02:13and unlock $50 billion from the proceeds of those frozen assets to put that money to
02:18work for Ukraine, another reminder to Putin we're not backing down.
02:24In fact, we're standing together against this illegal aggression.
02:28The agreement that President Zelensky and I just signed also lays out our shared vision
02:33for a just peace, a peace rooted in the UN Charter and the principles of sovereignty
02:37and territorial integrity, a peace with a broad base of support around the world that
02:43holds Russia accountable for the damage it has done in this war.
02:47We will see this vision strongly affirmed at the historic peace conference happening
02:52in Switzerland this weekend, where Vice President Harris will represent the United States.
02:57Finally, this agreement accelerates Ukraine's integration into the European, Atlantic, transatlantic
03:02communities.
03:03It includes major commitments from Ukraine to impact – excuse me, to implement democratic,
03:12economic, and security reforms in line with the European Union's accession goals and
03:16NATO's programs of reform.
03:19While we take this step, the United States is also intensifying pressure on Russia.
03:24Yesterday, the U.S. Treasury Department made clear any bank anywhere in the world that
03:30deals with sanctioned Russian banks, companies, or individuals risks being sanctioned themselves.
03:36And we announced roughly 300 new sanctions on individuals and companies that are helping
03:42Russia with war effort.
03:44They include key parts of Russia's financial sector – I'll wait till it goes over – as
03:56well as individual and entities that supply Russia with items critical to its defense
04:01production, like microelectronics, machine tools, and industrial materials.
04:09We also – we also sanctioned more Russian future energy projects, that Russia's natural
04:13gas oil projects, that are under construction and are not yet fully operated.
04:19Putin is counting on revenues from these projects.
04:21Our sanctions will disrupt those plans.
04:23Plus, at the G7, we discussed our shared concern about countries like China for supplying Russia
04:30with materials they need for their war machine.
04:33And we agreed to taking collective action to push back against that activity.
04:39Let me close with this.
04:40We've taken three major steps at the G7 that collectively show Putin we cannot – he
04:46cannot wait us out, he cannot divide us, and we'll be with Ukraine until they prevail
04:51in this war.
04:52First is the bilateral security agreement just signed.
04:56Second, historic agreement to provide $50 billion in value from Russian sovereign assets
05:01to Ukraine.
05:02And third, an agreement to ensure our sanctions efforts disrupt third countries that are supplying
05:08Russia's war efforts.
05:09That will increase pressure on the Russian economy.
05:12Collectively, this is a powerful set of actions, and it will create a stronger foundation for
05:17Ukraine's success.
05:18Two and a half years ago, Putin unleashed a brutal war on Ukraine, and it's been a
05:22horrifying deal for the Ukrainian people who are so brave and incredible.
05:26It's also been a test for the world.
05:29Would we stand with Ukraine?
05:31Would we stand for sovereignty, freedom, and against tyranny?
05:34The United States, the G7, and countries around the world have consistently answered the question
05:39by saying, yes, we will.
05:41We will say it again.
05:42Yes, again and again and again, we're going to stand with Ukraine.
05:46And thank you.
05:47And I now yield.