JUST IN: White House Holds Press Briefing After Americans Released In Prisoner Swap With Russia
Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:
https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript
Stay Connected
Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes
Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes
Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes
More From Forbes: http://forbes.com
https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript
Stay Connected
Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes
Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes
Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes
More From Forbes: http://forbes.com
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Meet up?
00:30Good afternoon, everyone.
00:43So it's a historic and important day.
00:46President Biden and his administration have secured a deal for Americans who were unjustly
00:51imprisoned in Russia.
00:53I know for a lot of reporters in this room, especially Wall Street Journal team, this
00:58is personal.
01:00And I know for the families of Paul, Evan, Alsu, and Vladimir, it's one of the best days
01:06of their lives.
01:07As President Biden said in his statement, as we celebrate the return of these brave
01:13Americans, we remember all those still wrongfully detained or held hostage around the world
01:19and reaffirm our pledge to their families.
01:23We see you, we are with you, and we will never stop working to bring your loved ones
01:28home where they belong.
01:31And with that, I will turn it over to our National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan.
01:39Thank you, Corinne.
01:40And good afternoon, everyone.
01:41Today, as you've seen and heard from the President and from Corinne, we've completed one of the
01:46largest and certainly the most complex exchange in history.
01:51And Paul Whelan, Evan Gershkovich, Alsu Kermysheva, and Vladimir Karamurza, three American citizens
01:57and one American green card holder, are finally coming home.
02:01I had the honor and pleasure of joining the President this morning in the Oval Office
02:04as he shared the wonderful news with the families.
02:07And then together, they spoke with Paul, Evan, Alsu, and Vladimir, who are on the tarmac
02:12in Ankara with U.S. officials where the exchange happened.
02:16To say that everyone in the room was overjoyed, even at a loss for words, is an understatement.
02:23Since taking office, President Biden and Vice President Harris have made clear that they
02:26will not stop working until every American wrongfully detained or held hostage around
02:31the world is reunited with their family.
02:33As an administration, we're proud to celebrate the return home of over 70 such Americans
02:39from places around the world like Afghanistan, Burma, Gaza, Haiti, Iran, Russia, Venezuela,
02:45Rwanda, and elsewhere.
02:48Today's exchange is a feat of diplomacy that honestly could only be achieved by a leader
02:52like Joe Biden.
02:53At his direction, the professionals in our national security, foreign policy, and intelligence
02:58community worked tirelessly and relentlessly to secure the release of 16 individuals who
03:03were detained in Russia.
03:06The three American citizens, one American green card holder, five German citizens, and
03:10seven Russian political prisoners in exchange for eight individuals held in a combination
03:16of the United States, Germany, Norway, Slovenia, and Poland.
03:21The President was himself personally engaged in the diplomacy that brought this about,
03:26including multiple conversations with Chancellor Schultz, with the other leaders of the countries
03:32who provided some of the Russians as part of the exchange, and most recently, as has
03:37now been reported, calling the Prime Minister of Slovenia early in the afternoon of Sunday,
03:43July 21st, to coordinate the final arrangements to make the final piece of this deal fall
03:48into place.
03:50There is no more singular or concrete demonstration that the alliances that the President has
03:55reinvigorated around the world matter to Americans, to the individual safety of Americans, and
04:00to the collective security of Americans.
04:03And we're deeply grateful to our allies who supported us in these complex negotiations
04:08to achieve this outcome.
04:09And while I'm standing at this podium, the President is reaching out to give personal
04:14thanks to the leaders of Germany, Poland, Slovenia, Norway, and Turkey.
04:19And honestly, guys, I can just say this was vintage Joe Biden, rallying American allies
04:27to save American citizens and Russian freedom fighters, and doing it with intricate statecraft,
04:32pulling his whole team together to drive this across the finish line.
04:36His goal has always been to put the families first, the families who are enduring an unimaginable
04:41ordeal.
04:42From the President on down, we've stayed in regular and routine touch with them.
04:46I spent a lot of time with the families of Evan and Paul and also.
04:52And most of the time, as you can imagine, those are tough conversations.
04:55But not today.
04:56Today was a very good day.
05:05And we're going to build on it, drawing inspiration and continued courage from it for all of those
05:10who are held hostage or wrongfully detained around the world.
05:13And that includes Mark Fogle, who we are actively working to get his release from Russia as
05:19well.
05:20And there are others being held in Syria, Afghanistan, other countries around the world
05:24who we are working to get released.
05:26And just on a personal note, I want to say that this is the culmination of a monumental
05:31level of effort and level of skill by my teammates across the national security enterprise.
05:38My colleagues here at the NSC, my colleagues at the Central Intelligence Agency, my colleagues
05:42at the State Department.
05:43These are dedicated, talented professionals who are not in the headlines, who don't get
05:48to stand at a podium like this one.
05:50And it was at the President's direction that they built and pulled off the most intricate,
05:54expansive deal of its kind in memory.
05:57So they know who they are.
05:59I salute them.
06:01And every American should be proud to have those kind of people standing up on their
06:05behalf and on behalf of American security.
06:08While this has unfolded, we've been closely monitoring the events in the Middle East as
06:12well.
06:13Since October 7th, we have worked to deter and prevent escalation into a wider regional
06:18war.
06:19That risk has always been there.
06:21That risk is there now.
06:22And we are determined to engage in deterrence, defense, and de-escalation to try to ensure
06:28that we do not have a wider regional conflict or escalation that goes unchecked.
06:34So I'm happy to get more into that in response to your questions, and with that, I'll turn
06:38it over to you.
06:39Yeah.
06:40Thanks, Jake.
06:41Whose idea was it to try to go big and bring everyone home at once instead of going for
06:47a simpler one-for-one type deal, and why?
06:51That's a great question, which I don't feel entirely comfortable answering because this
06:56was an organic process involving a lot of people across our government.
07:01But what I will say is this.
07:02The President sat us down on a regular basis over the course of the detentions of Paul,
07:08Evan, and also, and really pushed us to think about what configuration would actually work
07:14to make this happen.
07:17And it was through an iterative process of back and forth with various of the allies
07:23I mentioned, with engagements with our Russian counterparts, where we were making proposals,
07:30getting responses, that this all came together.
07:33And so I would say that if you had not had Joe Biden sitting in the Oval Office, I don't
07:37think this would have happened.
07:39But as I said in my remarks, there were a lot of other people who played a central role
07:43in building out the pieces of this and then executing on that.
07:47The execution phase of this, to get this level of coordination together, to have those plans
07:52all land on the tarmac at the same time from multiple different countries with so many
07:57different individuals coming from Russia and going back to Russia, really extraordinary.
08:02And I think team effort can be a cliche, but I think in this case, it's a warranted description
08:08of what happened.
08:09Was Alexei Navalny supposed to be a part of this deal before he died in prison?
08:13So we had been working with our partners on a deal that would have included Alexei Navalny.
08:25And unfortunately, he died.
08:30In fact, on the very day that he died, I saw Evan's parents, and I told them that the president
08:36was determined to get this done, even in light of that tragic news, and that we were
08:40going to work day and night to get to this day.
08:44And so that work continued over the course of the past few months and culminated in today.
08:48Yeah.
08:49You've mentioned that a little bit, but can you describe and give us a little bit more
08:50color on that Oval Office conversation just before the president came out?
08:51Did all four Americans get to speak?
08:52Did each of the family members get to speak to their loved ones?
08:53Did the president tear up?
08:54Did you tear up?
08:55I saved my tearing up for this podium.
09:07I would like to strike that from the record, if we can either.
09:09I don't know if that's permitted, probably not.
09:13So the president invited the family members in at the moment that we received the word
09:20from the tarmac in Ankara that the exchange was complete.
09:24And he was able to give them the news directly that the exchange was, in fact, complete.
09:31When Paul, Evan, and also were in one place, Vladimir was actually in another place.
09:38So he conducted two calls from the Oval Office, one with the three American citizens on the
09:43phone, and he welcomed their freedom, said that on behalf of the American people, he
09:51was so proud to have them out, and then very quickly turned the phone over to their family
09:56members.
09:57And each family got the opportunity to engage by phone with their loved one who was out.
10:03He then conducted a second call with Vladimir, and Vladimir's wife, one of their daughters,
10:10and their son were there to be able to speak with him.
10:14And the president and he also got to reminisce on the fact that they were both pallbearers
10:19together at John McCain's funeral.
10:24And so it was a kind of extraordinary personal exchange in the Oval Office, and the family
10:33members were both overwhelmed, of course, by the events of the day and also standing
10:37there in the presence of the U.S. President at the Resolute Desk.
10:41So it was quite a moment.
10:44Can you talk about how the administration tries to make sure this doesn't incentivize
10:50more arrests of innocent Americans, beyond what the President said, advising people not
10:54to go abroad in certain places, especially because you're looking at this inherent imbalance
10:59between releasing or between securing the release of innocent Americans in exchange
11:03for rightfully convicted criminals, including a murderer?
11:06Look, it's a fair question.
11:07It's a question that we grapple with every time that we look at the hard decisions involved
11:12in one of these exchanges.
11:16It is difficult to send back a convicted criminal to secure the release of an innocent American.
11:24And yet, sometimes the choice is between doing that and consigning that person basically
11:30to live out their days in prison in a hostile foreign country or in the hands of a hostile
11:36power.
11:37So from our perspective, we have assessed and analyzed that risk, and we have judged
11:44that the benefit of reuniting Americans, of bringing people home, and also of vindicating
11:49the idea that the American President and the American government are going to do what it
11:54takes to protect and secure the release of innocent Americans, that that benefit outweighs
12:01the risk, and that's how we have proceeded.
12:03I would point out, in addition to that, that in periods of time when the U.S. government
12:09didn't tend to do prisoner exchanges, Americans were unjustly detained and held hostage overseas.
12:16In periods where we did, Americans were unjustly detained and held hostage overseas.
12:21So I think there are real questions, and Roger Carstens, the hostage negotiator at the State
12:27Department, has actually pointed out that in this analysis, it is not quite as clear
12:32cut that the evidence actually demonstrates the kind of result that your question speaks
12:38to, that a lot more people get taken because we do these exchanges.
12:42But it's something that we have to pay attention to, and it's something that makes these decisions
12:46by the President not simple decisions, hard decisions, and yet, as he did today, he was
12:52prepared to make them.
12:53Yeah.
12:54Can you explain a bit more, when did it become clear that Krasnikov was this linchpin to
12:58a deal like this, and was it during the negotiations over Brittney Greiner?
13:05When you're engaged in a negotiation and one side lays down a position, there's not like
13:10a light bulb moment when you say, okay, that position is immovable.
13:14That has to be tested, and alternatives have to be suggested, and proposals get put on
13:19the table and rejected, and new proposals and rejected.
13:23So it is less of a aha moment, okay, now we know, and it's more something that you
13:31accumulate through the experience of the negotiation.
13:35And so over the course of this negotiation, we did reach the conclusion that Krasnikov
13:40was a key.
13:41You've discussed, obviously, the President's involvement, direct involvement in all of
13:44this.
13:45Can you talk us through any involvement that the Vice President had?
13:47Was she also speaking directly to other leaders and allies?
13:52So as I said in my opening comments, both President Biden and Vice President Harris
13:58have made the return of unjustly detained Americans hostage, American hostages, an absolute
14:05priority.
14:06And in this particular case, Vice President Harris actually had an opportunity to engage
14:11with Chancellor Schultz earlier this year at an opportune and timely moment at the Munich
14:15Security Conference, where she talked about this issue with him.
14:20That followed on a conversation that the President had just a short time before that,
14:25and it was in the run of high-level engagements and a back-and-forth that the President and
14:30the Chancellor were having that Vice President Harris was actually able to sit face-to-face
14:34with Chancellor Schultz and talk through the elements of this.
14:38And then I've sat in the Oval Office more times than I can count over the course of
14:42the past years providing briefings and updates on this and getting peppered with questions
14:48by both the President and the Vice President, thinking through the strategy, iterating the
14:53approach, which she was a participant in very much, a core member of the team that helped
14:59make this happen.
15:00Two quick questions.
15:01One is it relates to the President's interactions with Chancellor Schultz.
15:04It's been detailed to us, but maybe from the podium you could help us understand.
15:07Chancellor Schultz had to make a big sacrifice giving up Krasnikov here, a Russian criminal.
15:12What specifically did the German Chancellor say to President Biden about his willingness
15:16to do this?
15:17Well, I will leave that to Chancellor Schultz because I think for, you know, important and
15:21sensitive conversations, leaders should speak for themselves.
15:25The White House said he said, for you, and then he said, I will do this.
15:29Is that fair?
15:30And if so, can you at least detail that?
15:32I can confirm that he did say that, but I thought you were asking sort of to elaborate
15:36in greater detail, which I just, I'm afraid I don't feel comfortable doing because he
15:40can speak to his conversations with the President.
15:43But I will say, and President Biden made this point when he spoke to the press just
15:48a short time ago, that relationship between the President and the Chancellor, a relationship
15:53of respect, a relationship of genuine friendship, had the character of being able to work through
15:59this sensitive issue in a way that wasn't antiseptic or professional.
16:04It was two guys actually trying to figure out a solution.
16:08That was the nature of all of the conversations.
16:10And ultimately the Chancellor was able to say to the President, let's do this.
16:13Just to be clear, my second question.
16:14Today is clearly a day of celebration, but already there is some criticism, including
16:18from the Republican vice presidential nominee, J.D. Vance, who moments ago said, I think
16:23what this demonstrates, I think that really what this shows is that a lot of bad guys
16:27across the world are worried that Donald Trump is coming back into office.
16:31Your response to those comments?
16:33I don't follow.
16:34Yeah.
16:35Thank you, Jake.
16:36Can you talk about what, if any, engagement U.S. officials had with Vladimir Putin as
16:41part of this?
16:43No engagement directly with Vladimir Putin.
16:45What about his deputies?
16:46There was extensive engagement with Russian officials over the course of this.
16:51I'm not going to get into the details because those channels are sensitive and need to be
16:55protected for exactly this reason, because having those sensitive channels enables us
17:00to produce results like today.
17:01And then last week in the Oval Office, President Biden said that he remains committed to bringing
17:06Americans home during his final six months in office.
17:10How important was it for him to get this deal before leaving office?
17:16Honestly, I don't think he was thinking about it like, I got to get it before I leave office.
17:21He was thinking about it from the family's perspective, which is every day is a lost
17:25day.
17:26So I want to do this as rapidly as humanly possible.
17:29I want to push the pace on it because the longer that these Americans are held abroad,
17:35the greater the risk and the greater the pain.
17:38So for him, it was really important to do the deal, but less tied to his time in office
17:44and more tied to the power and responsibility he had and wanted to exercise to get this
17:49done as fast as he possibly could.
17:50Jeff, can I just want to follow up on this interaction with the Russians?
17:55Does this in any way lay any groundwork for discussions about the war in Ukraine with
18:02the Ukrainians?
18:03I mean, just to sort of say, look, we've cooperated on this.
18:07Is there any path that this creates any sort of goodwill in terms of creating more discussion?
18:15We do not see a link between the hostage negotiation or the detained persons negotiations and any
18:23potential diplomacy over the war in Ukraine.
18:25We see those as operating on separate tracks.
18:28One is really about the practical issue of producing this exchange.
18:32The other is a much more complex question where the Ukrainians will be in the lead and
18:39the United States will consult closely with all of our allies to support them when they
18:44are prepared to step forward and engage in that kind of diplomacy.
18:47Can I just follow up on – so we can't have you here and not ask you what was happening
18:53and unfolding in the Middle East and with Iran and with this – the killing of Hamyan.
18:59Can you please just give us your assessment of how high the temperature really is and
19:05how great the risks are now of an all-out war or a bigger war?
19:11Just taking a step back, we have been laser-focused on trying to prevent that wider war since
19:16October 7th.
19:19There have been moments that have required intensive effort to keep a lid on things.
19:27The risk has always been there, and the risk remains today.
19:32And we believe we do have to be engaging in intensive efforts now through deterrence,
19:38through de-escalation, through diplomacy to prevent a wider war.
19:42And we will continue to do that.
19:44Thanks, Jake.
19:45Back in May, former President Trump made the comment that Russia would release Evan Gershkovich
19:50for him after the upcoming election, quote, but not for anyone else.
19:55Did that comment complicate negotiations at all, and do you have a response to Trump's
20:00comment now?
20:02Look, I'm just happy these guys are out and home, and I won't wade into the comments
20:09of the former president.
20:10What about Jimmy Wilgus?
20:11Are you working on him?
20:12Yeah.
20:13Jake, you noted that the President spoke to the leader of Slovenia right around the time
20:18he was making his decision on his political future.
20:21How much was the thinking that he had to go through on his future part of this process
20:28leading up to these negotiations?
20:29Was this something that weighed on him for days ahead of these calls?
20:35Look, to be honest with you, the way in which this unfolded played out over the course of
20:41weeks, even months, to put all of the pieces in place.
20:45So the timing and the cadence of the different elements coming together was a feature of
20:53the diplomacy and the decision-making of each of the countries involved.
20:56It wasn't about American politics, the American political calendar, the President's thinking
21:01on other issues.
21:03And it did happen to line up on that Sunday in that way, but not through a conscious decision
21:09to make it so, but rather because that's when the pieces were falling into place, and that's
21:14the moment when the President had to drop that final piece in.
21:18And it just so happened to come a couple of hours before he made his announcement.
21:21And when do you think we will actually see them on American soil?
21:23Will the President greet them in person?
21:26I think you can expect to see Evan, Paul, and also later tonight on American soil.
21:36And as the President mentioned in his remarks earlier, they'll be landing at Andrews Air
21:41Force Base.
21:43The President and the Vice President will be out there to greet them.
21:46Vladimir Karamurza is going to be traveling to Germany.
21:51And his family, who was here with the President this morning, will be traveling there to join
21:54him.
21:55But as Vladimir and the President discussed today, we expect him back here in the United
22:00States soon for him to be able to see the President and other people in the U.S. government.
22:05Yeah.
22:06Thank you, Jake.
22:07I want to ask you about a key deal that was breached with 9-11 suspects by military courts
22:17down in Guantanamo.
22:19Republicans are condemning this as showing weakness and calling it a sweetheart deal
22:25because it avoids a trial and a death penalty.
22:28I'm just wondering if the administration has any response to that.
22:32As we said last night, the White House received word that the convening authority had entered
22:38these pretrial agreements that had been negotiated by military prosecutors with KSM and some
22:44of the other 9-11 defendants.
22:46And we had no role in that process.
22:48The President had no role.
22:49The Vice President had no role.
22:51I had no role.
22:52The White House had no role.
22:53And we were informed yesterday, the same day that they went out publicly, that this pretrial
22:59agreement had been accepted by the convening authority.
23:03What the President did, upon learning of that, was direct his team to consult, as appropriate,
23:10with officials and lawyers at the Department of Defense on this matter.
23:13Those consultations are ongoing and I have nothing more to add at this time.
23:17And then one more thing, on Iran-Israel-Hamas negotiations, now that the lead Hamas negotiator
23:27is dead, who is there to negotiate with and why, in your estimation, would Hamas continue
23:37towards negotiating a ceasefire deal when their lead negotiator was just killed by the
23:43people they're negotiating with?
23:45It is too soon to tell what the impact of his death will have on the negotiations.
23:53And so I'm not going to speculate on that, especially in light of the broader dynamics
23:57and set of events unfolding in the region right now.
24:00What I will say is this, the ceasefire and hostage deal is the pathway to ending this
24:05war.
24:06It is the pathway to getting all of the hostages home, including the American citizen hostages
24:10who are relentlessly focused on getting home.
24:12And we remain determined to get it done.
24:15Yeah.
24:16Did the President have a call today with Prime Minister Netanyahu, or is he having one?
24:21I believe the Israeli government has put out that they're having a call.
24:26We had not announced that yet, but in fact, the President is intending to speak with Prime
24:30Minister Netanyahu later today.
24:31They have not spoken yet.
24:32Yeah.
24:33And is the President going to express any displeasure about not having a heads-up about
24:39the attack on the Hamas leader or these other big things that have happened in the last
24:46few days with Israel taking countermeasures?
24:48So I'm not going to preview the President's message before he has a chance to speak directly
24:53to the Prime Minister, and then if I had to predict, I probably will be tight-lipped about
24:56the readout afterward.
24:57Yeah.
24:58Thanks, Jake.
24:59I just wondered if you could make clear for us, when was the actual moment when you really
25:02knew that this deal was going to be done and that it was sealed, or was that not really
25:06until today and you actually saw the released people on the tarmac in Ankara?
25:13We steadily gained confidence following the President's call on the 21st of July, but
25:22that confidence was always tempered by the reality that this was a fragile deal, a complex
25:26deal that could fall apart at any moment from multiple different directions.
25:30So we held our breath and crossed our fingers until just a couple hours ago.
25:34Jake?
25:35Yeah.
25:36Jake, I wanted to ask about arms control trees.
25:38It seems like Russia's been backsliding when it comes to these deals.
25:44What is the update with that?
25:45Is there any progress with getting them to rejoin any of these trees?
25:49No.
25:50The short answer is there is no progress.
25:52We have tried to engage, and I have publicly stated, and my colleagues have also laid out
25:59our view that there is an arms control agenda that's in the interests of the security of
26:05the United States, our allies, and frankly, global stability, and we have not seen reciprocity
26:11on the Russian side to engage in those discussions at this time.
26:15So we're obviously working very closely with NATO, with our other allies and partners,
26:21to ensure that our security is going to be strong, resilient, and credible no matter
26:27what comes next, but we do remain available to engage in arms control, as we did with
26:31the Soviet Union at the height of the Cold War.
26:34Last question.
26:35Yeah.
26:36Can you just confirm that no money was exchanged, no sanctions were loosened to facilitate this
26:43deal?
26:44Yes, I can confirm that.
26:45And can you also speak to why the President chose not to use his moment in front of the
26:49cameras to deliver a warning to Putin?
26:50He said, I don't need to speak to Putin, but what he didn't convey was a price that countries
26:57will pay if they abduct Americans for political purposes.
27:01We have made clear through every conceivable channel, and the President has made clear
27:08publicly on repeated occasions over the last two years about the costs and consequences
27:14of aggression, standing against United States interests, and of taking actions that we believe
27:20are unlawful and unjust.
27:22We're going to continue to do that as we go forward.
27:25For the President today, this was a moment to thank our allies.
27:29It was a moment to celebrate the families, and most importantly, it was a moment to lift
27:32up the human achievement of getting both Americans, citizens of friendly countries, and Russian
27:41political prisoners out.
27:43But as the President said, he doesn't need to talk to Putin for Putin to understand where
27:46the President stands.
27:48What about Jimmy Wilkis?
27:49He's been there eight years, Jake.
27:50Thank you, Jake.
27:52Eight years.
27:53All right.
27:54All right.
27:59As I mentioned at the top, this is an incredibly important day, a monumentous day, and also
28:03an emotional day for the families, obviously, for the incredible team that I get to work
28:11with every day, national security team, and across the administration, and for this President.
28:17And so it's a good day.
28:19It's a really, really good day.
28:21And we should be really proud of what this administration has been able to do.
28:26Now these folks who were unjustly held now get to go home to their families and see their
28:39families and restart their lives.
28:41Go ahead.
28:42I have a follow-up on the 9-11 plea deal with M.A.
28:46Is the President still planning to close Guantanamo Bay Prison before he leaves office?
28:50And is there a realistic pathway to do that in the next six months?
28:54That's still something that the President wants to do and get done.
28:57As far as a timeline, I don't have anything for you here, but obviously this is something
29:02that he wanted to be done under his administration.
29:05I just don't have anything else to read out or preview at this time, but it is something
29:10that he's determined to get done.
29:11And does he have a message to some of the 9-11 families who wanted to see a full trial,
29:15who wanted to see this kind of come to a fuller process?
29:19So look, this is basically what Jake said.
29:23This is something that we had no involvement in.
29:25He didn't have any involvement in.
29:28And so the White House played no role in this process.
29:33And the President directed his team to consult as appropriate with officials and lawyers
29:38and Department of Defense, obviously.
29:40And we have said this before, we are – our hearts go out to the families who lost loved
29:52ones on that day.
29:55And the President on 9-11 has honored them every year and the families, again, who lost
30:01their loved one on that terrible day.
30:03And we remain committed – this administration remained committed to ensuring that the military
30:07commission process is fair and delivers justice to the victims, survivors, families, and those
30:14accused of crimes.
30:16And so that is certainly the President's continued commitment here.
30:19Yeah.
30:20Donald Trump yesterday attacked, obviously, Kamala Harris' identity, said he didn't
30:25know she was black.
30:26You reacted to that yesterday.
30:27But I'm wondering if the President is aware of those comments and what he thought of them.
30:31The President's aware.
30:32I think he – just like myself and what I stated here and what the Vice President
30:38stated as well, I'll just reiterate what I said.
30:42It was repulsive, disrespectful, and insulting.
30:45And we believe – and obviously, we're not the campaign here, but we can speak more
30:51broadly – that generally that the American people deserve better.
30:56They deserve better.
30:58And real leaders do not tear people down.
31:02They don't question someone's identity.
31:04It's just more of the same, more of the lack of respect.
31:09And it is – it couldn't be more inappropriate.
31:16And he also believes that the American people deserve better.
31:20He deserves better.
31:21You have a President who has spent the last four years and more talking about unity, talking
31:27about respecting each other, talking about bringing people together.
31:31That's what this President believes.
31:34And you see that in whether – in any policy that he talks about, right, whether it's
31:37the economy, health care, make sure that we respect each other, dignity.
31:42That is what the President is about.
31:44I'll leave it there.
31:45Kat, Jackie.
31:46Thank you, Corinne.
31:47I'm just hoping for a response to the 9-11 plea deal that spared the architects the death
31:48penalty.
31:49The New York City Firefighters Union put out a statement.
31:50It said, we are disgusted and disappointed that these people are not being treated with
31:51respect.
31:52I'm hoping for a response to the 9-11 plea deal that spared the architects the death
31:53penalty.
31:54The New York City Firefighters Union put out a statement.
31:55It said, we are disgusted and disappointed that these three terrorists were given a
32:02plea deal and allowed to escape the ultimate justice, while each month three more heroes
32:06from the FDNY are dying from World Trade Center illnesses.
32:09Does the administration have a message for them?
32:12Look, our hearts go out.
32:13I mean, not much more than I can add to what you heard from the National Security Advisor
32:17and how I just answered the question to one of your colleagues.
32:21And I'll just reiterate, obviously our hearts go out to the families who lost a loved one.
32:27We didn't have a role in this.
32:29This was not something that we were involved in.
32:32And so we are determined to make sure that they get justice, these families get justice.
32:38I just don't have anything else to add to what the National Security Advisor just stated
32:42from here moments ago.
32:43And then on the Vice President's presence tonight, is she going to be around for any
32:50of the evening when we expect the detainees to come back to the U.S.?
32:57Is she going to be part of this?
32:59Again, Jake Sullivan, National Security Advisor, just literally confirmed that she would be
33:03part of this when they land tonight at JBA.
33:12And so the President and the Vice President will be there to greet them.
33:18You just heard this from Jake Sullivan.
33:19I wanted to follow up with Jake, but didn't have a chance.
33:22It sounded like he almost took a swipe at the Vice President and said that if Joe Biden
33:28wasn't in the Oval Office, I don't think this would have happened.
33:31Was that a swipe at her relative inexperience?
33:34Oh, I see what you're saying.
33:37They're partners in this.
33:39Joe Biden and the Vice President are partners in this.
33:41You heard him say that the Vice President played a critical role in this diplomacy at
33:47a number of key moments.
33:50She met with the Chancellor of Germany in Munich to help pave the way.
33:54She also met with the Prime Minister of Slovenia to help bring them into the negotiations.
34:00They were partners in this.
34:02And then you'll see her tonight join the President to welcome back those Americans
34:07who were unjustly imprisoned in Russia.
34:10And that is going to be an important moment, a critical moment.
34:14But they worked together on this.
34:17And I think what Jake, not to say what he was saying, but he was very clear, this is
34:25a President that has had a long history in government, more than 50 years as a Senator,
34:30as a Vice President, and now as President.
34:35And it is because of his understanding of the world and the relationships with these
34:40leaders that he has had, he's been able to build back up our partnership with allies,
34:46and also partners.
34:48But let's not be very clear here, the Vice President has been a partner in this.
34:52I just listed out how critical of a role that she played in key moments very, very recently.
34:59So they're partners, and I think that is what we want to make sure that is very, very
35:03clear to all of you.
35:04Was there ever any consideration given to asking the Vice President to come back sooner
35:10so she could be part of the announcement today?
35:14No, no, I'm sorry, you should finish your question.
35:17I was just going to ask if there was, just for the atmospherics or the visual impact
35:24of having her there with the families.
35:27Just to reiterate, she played really a key role here, a critical role during some key
35:33moments as I just listed out.
35:35But I will remind you that she was at a funeral in Houston this morning, she was speaking
35:39at a funeral for the late Congresswoman there in Texas.
35:43And that was also, as you know, when you're President and even Vice President, you play
35:49multiple roles here.
35:51And so she'll be coming back today, if she's not back already, and she'll be joining
35:55the President and the families as they get to welcome their loved one back after being
36:02unjustly imprisoned in Russia.
36:04I just have one more question about the 9-11 fleet deal.
36:08Can you say from where you sit now whether you think the death penalty would have been
36:15an appropriate end, or is that a sort of a matter of principle for you, for the people
36:22at the White House, and for President Biden in particular?
36:25As you know, the President's been always very clear about the death penalty.
36:28I don't have anything else to add.
36:31This is something that we learned about yesterday.
36:35This is something that the convening authority for military commissions made, an independent
36:40decision.
36:41They made an independent decision.
36:42We were not involved.
36:43I don't want to get into specifics on this, because we're just not involved at all
36:50in this process.
36:51And so I'll just be careful here and just leave it there.
36:55Did the President or anyone in the administration speak to the family of Mark Vogel today, to
37:00your knowledge?
37:01That's a good question.
37:02I don't have anything to read out about a particular conversation with the family of
37:07Mark Vogel.
37:08As you know, our team here has been in regular touch.
37:12Many of the families who have loved ones who have been detained don't have anything at
37:18this time to read out with Mark Vogel specifically.
37:21But we are continuing to be committed.
37:23You heard Jake speak to this at the top when he was delivering his remarks to getting Americans
37:30home.
37:31With each of these exchanges, it is our goal to secure release of as many Americans as
37:37we can.
37:38That is the goal every time we get into these negotiations, and we're always very careful.
37:42We do not do these in public, obviously.
37:44And at every step in this process, starting all the way back when we sought the release
37:50Paul Whelan and Brittany Greiner, we also sought to release Mark Vogel as well, as you
37:55heard from Jake Sullivan.
37:57We are actively continuing to do so and are engaged in active discussion on how we can
38:02get to that, how we can get to a path to get him home.
38:05I don't have anything to read out on a recent conversation with their family, with his family.
38:10On a separate topic, the Federal Reserve yesterday signaled that it could cut interest rates
38:14for the first time since the pandemic.
38:16Does the White House believe that's a good idea?
38:18I'm not going to comment on any monetary policy decisions or potential decisions by the Federal
38:25Reserve.
38:26They are independent.
38:27We respect that, and so I'm not going to comment on that.
38:29Okay.
38:30Just to circle back, Jake did make the point that he believed that this wouldn't have happened
38:34if the President wasn't the one in the Oval negotiating.
38:37So, can you tell us a little bit more about how he's thinking about this very clear work
38:42to seal up his legacy and balancing that with having to support the Vice President, campaign
38:49for her even, and treat her as a partner in a subject where he clearly has a lot more
38:55experience?
38:56I'm not denying that Jake said that.
38:58I know.
38:59Reveal some of his thinking about how he's got to balance this.
39:04I think you have to look at this in separate pieces.
39:08The President has been President for some time.
39:11I used to say this all the time, with age comes experience, and I think that's important
39:18to note.
39:19He's had relationships with many of these leaders that are currently out there in this
39:28present time, in present day.
39:30What I also want to state is that the Vice President has been Vice President for three
39:35and a half years.
39:37She has been part of this administration, obviously, not just part of it, but a partner,
39:42and has developed her own relationship with world leaders, with our allies and partners.
39:48I think that's important to note.
39:50She was part in having conversations with the Chancellor of Germany, for example, in
39:57starting to get us on a path for what we're seeing today.
40:02Obviously, we feel that she's immensely qualified.
40:08That's why the President endorsed her.
40:10That's why she is certainly a partner to him, but also is doing her part, being careful
40:20here, in the next four months.
40:23So I'll leave it there.
40:24But look, they are partners.
40:26They talk regularly.
40:29I would say they've learned from each other with this partnership over the three and a
40:34half years.
40:35But this is also a Vice President who's been a Senator, who's been an Attorney General,
40:40again, a Vice President for almost four years, and has been in conversation, in critical,
40:45important conversations that matter to the American people pretty regularly with the
40:51President, having her by the President's side.
40:54And I think that matters.
40:56I think that matters, and that's important.
40:58Can you tell us about the condition of Evan, Paul, and also Vladimir?
41:02How is their health, and did that come up when they had those phone calls?
41:06So, I'm not going to get into details or into specifics or speak about their health.
41:12Obviously, they will be landing here in short order, in a couple of hours, so you all will
41:18be able to see, at least you'll see them for yourselves.
41:22But I'm not going to speak to their health from here, not from this podium.
41:25You've described that they've gone through a lot.
41:28They have.
41:29They have.
41:30They were in prison.
41:31Unjustly so.
41:32Did they talk about that in their phone call at the Oval Office?
41:34I'm not going to get into further details to what the National Security Advisor shared
41:39here today.
41:40I'm pretty sure that, when the time permits, they will, I'm sure, at some point, if they
41:45wish to, they'll speak for themselves.
41:48Thanks, Karine.
41:50So, Germany got 12 citizens back on this.
41:53Were they negotiating with the Russians, and was this two negotiations that merged, or
41:57did this generate out of the U.S. talking about the U.S. prisoners?
42:01Look, I think we've laid out in pretty detail on how this occurred.
42:07Obviously, the U.S. played a leading role in this, and we are certainly very grateful
42:15to our allies that worked with us on this.
42:19Obviously, I talked about Germany, Slovenia.
42:24So, I don't have anything beyond what we've already shared with you on this.
42:28I don't want to get into specifics or details.
42:30We have already shared how this came about.
42:33Look, this is an important day.
42:34This is an important day.
42:36And, truly, as I've been asked a couple times, because of this President's leadership, we
42:40have been able to get this done.
42:42We have been able to get home about 70.
42:45Seventy Americans who were unjustly imprisoned and held in the last three and a half years.
42:52Just because this President has shown his commitment, and the Vice President has shown
42:56their commitment, on doing that.
42:59And I think it sends, today and many other days that we've been able to get this done,
43:03it sends a message to the American people that we will put them first, always, as it
43:09relates to foreign policy, national security, making sure that we are getting Americans
43:15home.
43:16And I'll leave it there.
43:17Are there going to be any events here at the White House with the prisoners, the American
43:21prisoners?
43:22I know we're going to Andrews.
43:23No, I hear you.
43:24I can't speak to anything this evening.
43:26I mean, obviously, they're going to be landing here this evening.
43:29And they're going to, my guess is, they're going to want to see their families, hold
43:33their families, hug their families.
43:36It's been a long journey for them, not just getting home, but these past couple of years.
43:42And that is my guess, is that's what they're going to want to do.
43:46This is an emotional day.
43:47This is an emotional day.
43:48And it's a good day.
43:49It's a good day.
43:50We should be really, really proud of what this administration has been able to do.
43:53And, you know, I don't have anything beyond that.
43:56Go ahead, Garrett.
43:57Just a brief.
43:58Congresswoman Sheila Jackson-Levy was arrested in Houston.
44:01And one of her signature bills in Congress was H.R. 40, which, as you know, would create
44:06a commission to study the issue of reparations for African Americans.
44:09She took up that mantle from Congressman, the late John Conyers.
44:14And after more than 30 years of this bill being introduced, Congress has yet to be able
44:19to pass this bill.
44:20And as a result, Congresswoman Jackson-Levy, when she was still alive, she urged, along
44:25with advocates for President Biden, to take executive action.
44:28Though the White House has repeatedly said that the president's position is that it should
44:32happen through Congress, I do wonder, given with only six months left of his administration
44:36and to honor her legacy, whether the president is more amenable to taking executive action,
44:42especially given the fact that he announced those Supreme Court reforms that came from
44:47a similar commission.
44:48Look, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson-Levy, who we had an opportunity, the president had an
44:52opportunity to go to Houston earlier this week to meet with her family, to offer up
44:57his condolences in person.
44:59And you saw the statement that he put out after we learned of her passing.
45:04She was a hero.
45:05She was beloved, obviously, by the people in Texas and Houston and the community that
45:10she represented, but also beyond that.
45:13Certainly, her colleagues in the Congressional Black Caucus and in Congress more broadly.
45:18And we lift her up and we honor her, not just through legislative action, but obviously
45:28honor the work that she has been able to do and what she has meant to so many.
45:33As far as the commission, the president has not changed where he is.
45:38He wants to see, he believes there should be a commission, and he does believe it should
45:42be a legislative process.
45:44Obviously, we think it's important.
45:45We want to help in any way to get that legislation done, but I just don't have anything else
45:50to add beyond that.
45:53Thank you, Corrine.
45:55Can you talk about the support from Turkey?
45:58This morning in the briefing, Jake Sullivan mentioned that Turkey provided logistical
46:02support, but what we're hearing now is that they are coordinating the exchange.
46:08Is that an accurate description?
46:10And also, did the U.S. give the Turkish government anything in return for their support?
46:14So, look, this was a big effort, as I mentioned before when I was answering a question from
46:20one of your colleagues.
46:22It took our partners and allies to get this done, and we appreciate every effort that
46:28was done by them.
46:30Obviously, I think Jake was also asked if there was a phone call made recently to Erdogan.
46:36I don't have anything to read out at this time, but it was – and they did offer technical
46:43support, as you know.
46:44I don't have anything beyond that to share, but we are very grateful, very grateful for
46:50the role that they have been able to play to get Americans home today, and so I just
46:56don't have anything beyond what we've already been able to share.
46:59Can you give us an update on American journalist Ahsan Taiz, that's held in Syria?
47:04And also, just beyond that, I mean, obviously our network, we're very grateful and relieved
47:08that Ahsan is freed, but there are other journalists in our network who may not be Americans.
47:14You know, we have colleagues held in Belarus, in Russian-occupied Crimea, in Myanmar, families
47:19of Uyghur journalists held by China.
47:21Again, these are not American journalists, but would the White House be able to say a
47:25position on their team?
47:27So, look, I'm not going to go by person by person and take a position, but the President
47:30has been very clear on the importance of the freedom of the press, of the importance of
47:34journalists being allowed to do the work that they should be doing, right?
47:38Being able to report and see, you know, what is happening on the ground wherever they are
47:45and reporting and making sure they are freely able to do that.
47:48And the President has those tough conversations with leaders that he meets privately, and
47:53we've been very clear publicly about supporting journalists and the work that they do and
47:59being able to do that work freely and not be intimidated and without violence.
48:04And so that's something that we're going to continue to be very, very clear about.
48:07You just listed out a bunch of names.
48:09I don't want to go point by point on these names, but more broadly, we believe in the
48:14freedom of the press.
48:16This is important to us.
48:17We believe it's part of our democracy.
48:19And we want to see, not just here, it's important to see that, obviously, across the world.
48:24I don't have anything specific for you at this time.
48:27When it comes to Americans being unjustly held, wrongfully detained, as you have seen
48:32from this President in the last three and a half years, he's going to do everything
48:35that he can.
48:36I think today is a perfect example.
48:38Bringing home 70 Americans over the last three and a half years is a perfect example of this
48:42President being committed to bringing home Americans who have been unjustly held.
48:47I think I'm going to have to wrap it up pretty soon.
48:49Go ahead, John.
48:50Thanks a lot, Karine.
48:51When the President announced two Sundays ago that he's withdrawing from the race, that
48:56he's not running for another term, there were some that described him as a lame duck President.
49:01How does this news today, this joyous news at the White House, answer those critics describing
49:07President Biden in that fashion?
49:09Well, I'm glad you call it joyous news, because it is.
49:11This is very, very good news.
49:13For all of us as Americans, we should be very proud of this moment.
49:16Look, I've heard the term lame duck.
49:18I was asked at the podium if he is a lame duck President.
49:22We've been very clear that he's not.
49:25He is an example of that.
49:27What he did on Monday, talking about SCOTUS reform, is an example of that.
49:30The President is determined, and he is very focused, along with the Vice President, to
49:35get things done, to build on the accomplishments that we have been able to deliver for the
49:40American people over the last three and a half years.
49:42And these are historic accomplishments.
49:44Whether it's the American Rescue Plan that turned the economy around, restarted the economy
49:48now, we're leading in the world on that.
49:51Again, no Republicans voted for the American Rescue Plan.
49:53Think about the Inflation Reduction Act.
49:55No Republican voted for that, and that is a piece of legislation that has seen the biggest
49:59investment in climate change.
50:01Now, Medicare can actually negotiate with Big Pharma, something that elected officials
50:06have been trying to do.
50:08And he reached across the aisle to get infrastructure done, to get the Chips in Science Act done,
50:13to get the PACT Act done.
50:16So, it doesn't end there.
50:18It doesn't end there for him.
50:20He wants to see a lot of these important laws now.
50:24He wants to get them, make sure they're implemented.
50:27And we're going to continue to use the remainder of this term to look for ways to build on
50:33that progress.
50:35And we will certainly share with you the specifics of that as we, certainly as we continue these
50:42next six months.
50:43And secondly, yesterday I asked a series of questions to you about the possibility of
50:48a hostage deal.
50:49At the time that I asked you those questions, were you aware?
50:52Yes.
50:53You were?
50:54I was.
50:55And so, given that, you just didn't want to answer that truthfully?
50:58I mean, let's...
50:59You didn't want to spoil the process of the transfer process?
51:02I said I had nothing, I said I had nothing to share.
51:04You have to understand, you have to understand, this is a critical, as these things are moving,
51:11it is important.
51:12Our main focus is to make sure that we get these Americans home safely.
51:19I would hope, as a journalist, you understand that.
51:22It is important that they get home safely.
51:25That is our number one priority, number one priority.
51:30And now that they are on their way home, the families were here, the families, the president,
51:36the vice president, will get to greet these Americans when they land here tonight.
51:41This is a huge, huge, monumentous day, emotional day, and it is important.
51:47That is our goal, to make sure that they get home safely.
51:50Alright, thanks everybody.