Speeches and Remarks

Royal Missionary Baptist Church
North Charleston, South Carolina

10:53 A.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Hey, folks.  It’s going to be quick because I got to be downstairs, but thank you very much for being here.

This morning, the deal that I first put forward last May for the Middle East has finally come to fruition.

The ceasefire has gone into effect in Gaza, and today, we’re seeing hostages being released — three Israeli women, held against their will in the dark tunnels for 470 days.  Four more women will be released in seven days; three additional hostages every seven days thereafter, including at least two American citizens, in this first phase.

We pray for them and their families for their — their — going to be a long recovery ahead.

By the 16th day of the deal, talks will begin in the second phase.

This phase includes the release of Israeli soldiers and a permanent end to the war without Hama- — without Hamas in power or able to th- — threaten Israel. 

Hundreds of trucks are entering Gaza as I speak.  They’re carrying assistance for civilians, who have suffered enormously from the war that Hamas started on October 7th, 2023, nearly 15 months ago.  Today alone we anticipate several hundred trucks will enter the Gaza Strip as I’m — probably as I’m speaking.

And after so much pain, destruction, and loss of life, today, the guns in Gaza have gone silent.

This was the deal that I outlined for the world back on May 31st — many of you covered it at the time.  I was endor- — I — it was endorsed overwhelmingly by folks around the world, including the U.N. Security Council unanimously endorsed the deal.  And developed a — in coordination with — I developed it in coordination with Egypt, Qatar, and Israel.

I’ve worked in foreign policy for decades, and this is one of the toughest negotiations I’ve been part of.

Many of you who’ve followed these negotiations will attest that the road to this deal has been not easy at all and a long road.  But we’ve reached the point today because of the pressure Israel built on Hamas, backed by the United States.

Some said my policy of a firm support for Israel is relentlessly pursuing diplomacy risked drawing America into a wider war in the region.

I listened to those voices, many of whom I respected a great deal.  But I concluded abandoning the course I was on would not have led us to the ceasefire we’re seeing today, but instead, it would have risked the wider war in the region that so many feared.

Now the region has been fundamentally transformed. 

Hamas’s long-time leader, Sinwar, is dead.  Hamas sponsors in the Middle East have been badly weakened by Israel, backed by the United States.

Hezbollah, one of Hamas’s biggest backers, was significantly weakened on the battlefield and its leadership was destroyed.

Even as we worked for diplomatic solutions in Lebanon, we provided ongoing assistance and support to Israel’s military campaign against Hezbollah, including its efforts to take out the terror inf- — the terror infrastructure along the border between Israel a- — and Lebanon.

Israel’s campaign was extens- — extremely successful.  So much so that by the end of November, the United States had brokered a ceasefire in Lebanon. 

Hezbollah did what it said it would never do: It cut its — its — cut its deal and abandoned Hamas.  

And today, Lebanon — in Lebanon, there’s finally a new president and prime minister, both of whom support a sovereign Lebanon without Hezbollah ruling the show — running the show or playing any part in it. 

The Assad regime next door in Syria is gone, removing Iran’s ready access to Lebanon.

Iran is in the weakest position in decades after the U.S. military helped defend Israel from Iranian missiles and supported Israel’s military response inside Iran.

Just look across the region.

In Lebanon, there’s an opportunity for a future free from the grip of Hezbollah.  In Syria, a future free from the Assad — the tyranny of Assad.  For the Palestinian people, a credible path to a state of their own.  And for the f- — for the region — and the future of normalization and integration of Israel with all its Arab neighbors, including Saudi Arabia, with whom I’ve spoken with.

You know, we’ve had many difficult days since Hamas began this terrible war.  We’ve encountered roadblocks and setbacks, but we haven’t given up.

And a special thanks to my team, particularly Brett McGurk, who many of you know, who spent weeks and months working nonstop to reach this deal, many of — many of those weeks and months out of the — out of the country.

Today’s ceasefire in Gaza and the release of hostages is a result of a principled and effective policy that we pre- — I presided over for months.  And we got it — we got here without a wider war in the Middle East many predicted.  

And now it falls on the next administration to help iml- — implement this deal.

I was pleased to have our teams speak as one voice in the final days.  It was both necessary and effective, and unprecedented.  But success is going to require persistence and continuing support for our friends in the region and the belief in diplomacy backed by deterrence.

So, as we reflect on the news from Gaza today, we also remember all the victims of this war.  They were — we are mindful — we are mindful that the pursuit of a lasting peace, while never easy or quick, must always be our calling.  

So, thank you all for listening.  May God bless you all.  And may God protect our troops.  I’m looking forward to this deal being fully implemented.

And I’m sorry I’m not going to take any questions now because I’m waiting — there’s a whole congregation waiting for me, and I’m sure the remainder of the day I’ll have an opportunity to speak with you.

Thank you very much.

Q    Can you say anything about the condition of the hostages that were released today and the others that are yet to be released?

THE PRESIDENT:  Yes, I — I’ve just got a call saying the three are released into Gaza to the — out of the hands of — of the — of their captors, and they appear to be in good health, but it’s early to tell.  They’re literally being — they may be across the border, out of the Gaza Strip into Israel now; I’m not certain.

Thank you.

Q    Sir, any concerns about Hamas regrouping?

THE PRESIDENT:  No.

Q    Will you remain in the — in the — involved in the deal as it moves forward?

THE PRESIDENT:  No way out.  I’m proud of the deal.

10:59 A.M. EST

The post Remarks by President Biden on the Ceasefire and Hostage Deal | North Charleston, SC appeared first on The White House.

Royal Missionary Baptist Church
North Charleston, South Carolina

12:31 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, hello, hello.  (Applause.)  Please.  Please, sit. 

Before I — before I begin, let me tell you what I told Jim about 20 minutes ago. 

I used to start off, as a young kid getting involved in the civil rights — my state, Delaware, to its great shame was a — was a — anyway, fought on the wrong side of the w- — (laughs).  My state was segregated by law.  My state, Delaware, was no different in terms of its laws than South Carolina or any other Southern state.  And like two other states, just couldn’t figure out how to get in the fight on the side of the South because it was cut off.  But the southern two parts of my state, they talk funny like y’all do down here.  (Pronounced in an accent.)  You know what I mean?  (Laughter.)

And — but all kidding aside, I — I used to — I used to go, when I got engaged to — in the c- — I — I didn’t plan on — I love reading these biographies on how I knew I was going to be president, going to run for president, et cetera.  Truth of the matter was that I’m a kid who — we talk about impediments; I used to ta- — t- — ta- — talk — talk like that.  I used to stutter.  Came from — came from a — a — you know, came from a place called Claymont, Delaware.  A lot of steel town — it all went bankrupt.  Come from Scranton, Pennsylvania.  Things didn’t work out so well because of the economy. 

But you know what?  Every time — every time I spent time in the Black church — I was telling Jim — I think of one thing: the word “hope.”  (Applause.)  No, not a joke. 

Pastor Holt, thank you for allowing me to be back at this pulpit.  And, Senator, thank you for that introduction.  I appreciate it. 

You know, you made a really moving sermon, Pastor.  And — and thank you, for the congregation of Royal Missionary Baptist Church, for welcoming me back to Charleston to worship with you. 

I prayed with you here in February of 2020 when I was running for president.  On my final full day as president, of all the places I wanted to be was back here with you.  (Applause.)

I first got involved — first got involved in public life because of the Civil Rights Movement.  I — I’d attend 7:30 mass at my church, then I’d go to another morning service at the AME Church in Delaware — the Black church, the spiritual home of the Black experience that helped redeem the soul of the nation, literally. 

That’s the truth we honor on the weekend we celebrate one of the political heroes — my political heroes, many of yours — Dr. Martin Luther King.

I have two busts in my office that I can see from my desk.  I had two political heroes growing up: Dr. King and Bobby Kennedy.  (Applause.)  No, I’m serious.  S- — you’ve been in my office, Jim.  There’s two busts fr- — that I see from my desk.

On Sundays, we often reflect on resurrection and redemption.  We remember Jesus was buried on Friday and he rose on Sunday.  We don’t talk enough about Saturday, when his disciples felt all hope was lost. 

Our lives and in the lives of the nation, we have those Saturdays; we bear — to bear witness of the day before glory, and some people’s pain — are in pain and they can’t look away.  But what — the work we do on S- — Saturday is going to determine whether we move a- — with pain or purpose. 

How can faith get a person, get a nation through what’s to come?

Here’s what my faith has taught me.  Scripture says, “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another person.”  (Applause.)  That’s what faith and friendship has taught me. 

And friends in South Carolina, like Jim and Emily Clyburn, I could not be standing here, I would not be standing — that’s not hyperbole — I would not be staying here in this pulpit were it not for Jim Clyburn.  (Applause.)

And although somewhat presumptuous of me, neither of us would be standing here without Emily, who we all miss dearly, and who actually made Jim endorse me.  (Laughter.) 

Thank you, Emily.  (Laughter and applause.)

South Carolina friends like Fritz and Peatsy Hollings, who believed in me when I got through one of the most difficult times of my life.  When I was a 26-year- — -9-year-old kid, I got a phone call saying my wife and daughter were dead and my two boys were not likely to live. 

Well, guess what?  Jim, Emily, Fritz and Peatsy, and so many friends in South Carolina have always been there for me, and especially in those Saturdays when I felt all hope was gone; those days when I buried pieces of my soul — my wife, my daughter, my son, Beau, who was the attorney general of Delaware; when I felt like there was just a black hole in my chest sucking me into it — anger and rage that I felt at the time. 

But then, friends — your friends bear witness.  They see your pain.  They pick you up to help you get to Sa- — to Sunday, from pain to purpose.  (Applause.)

I felt that faith of pres- — friendship when I prayed with this congregation — when they play- — played with the congregation and prayed with the congregation of Mother Emanual.

I went there and tried to confront [comfort] them on my own Saturday, but it was they who ended up comforting me, as we arrived together and found grace together.  Moving from pain to purpose strengthened my faith in the service of others, to “love the Lord thy God with all thy heart and soul and all thy mind” and “love thy neighbor as thyself.” 

Very easy to say, but very hard to do.

But in the words — in those words are the essence of the gospel, is the essence of the American promise: the idea, as was mentioned earlier, that we’re all created equal in the image of God and deserve to be treated equally throughout our lives. 

My dad used to say, “The greatest sin of all is the abuse of power.”  (Applause.)

We’ve never fully lived up to that commitment, but we’ve never walked away from it either because of you and your ancestors before us, who followed light of the North Star even in the darkness. 

After this service, I’ll be visiting the International African American Museum.  It captures the ongoing story of redemption.  I’ll tour the exhibits, and I’ll speak about the power of history to make real the promise of America for all Americans.  But this morning, I’d like to talk about the essential piece of redemption — the power of mercy and justice.

With experience, wisdom, conscience, compassion, and science, we know how healing and restoration from harm is a pathway to the kind of communities we want to live in, where there’s fairness, justice, accountability in the system; where the people we love go through hard times, fall down, make mistakes, but we’re right there to help them get back up.  (Applause.)

We don’t turn on each other.  We lean into each other.  That’s the sacred covenant of our nation.  We pledge an allegiance, not just to an idea but to each other.  That’s who we’re pledging allegiance to. 

That’s how I viewed my decision to issue more inv- — individual pardons and commutations than any president in American history.  (Applause.)  To inspire an end to federal death penalty by commuting most of those sentences to life in prison without parole.  To commute the sentence of individuals serving disproportionately hard, long, and harsh sentences for non-violent drug offenses compared to the sentence they would have received today in commuting [committing] that crime.  To show mercy for individuals who either did their time or a signi- — a significant amount of time and have shown significant remorse and rehabilitation.  To understand that supervision after release is critical to provide accountability and support, while knowing that government supervision over a very long time serves neither the interest of the person or the public. 

These decisions are difficult.  Some have never been done before.  But in my experience, with my conscience, I believe, taken together, justice and mercy requires as a nation to bear witness; to see people’s pain, not to look away; and do the work to move pain to purpose, to show we can get a person, a nation, to a day of redemption. 

But we know the struggle toward redeeming the soul of this nation is difficult and ongoing, the distance is short between peril and possibility, but faith — faith teaches us the America of our dreams is always closer than we think.  That’s the faith we must hold on to for the Saturdays to come. 

We must hold on to hope.  We must stay engaged.  We must always keep the faith in a better day to come. 

I’m not going anywhere.  (Applause.)  I’m not kidding.

So, to the — (applause) — to the people of South Carolina, thank you for keeping the faith.  It’s been the honor of my life to serve as your president, the highest honor for Jill and our family. 

And as I close out this journey with you — (applause) — I’m just as passionate about our work as I was as a 29-year-old kid when I got elected and wasn’t old enough to serve yet.

I’m in no ways tired.  (Applause.) 

I’ve always heard before, “We’ve come too far from where we started.  Nobody told me the road would be easy.”  (Applause.)  “I don’t believe — I don’t believe He brought me this far to leave me.”  (Applause.)

My fellow Americans, I don’t think the good Lord brought us this far to leave us behind.  (Applause.)

As we celebrate Dr. King’s legacy and generations before and since — women and men, enslaved and free — we have to remember one of his favorite hymns: “Precious Lord, take my hand through the storm, through the night, and lead me into the light.” 

Well, God bless you all.  And may God protect our troops. 

I owe you big.  As they say where I come from, you all — you the guys that brought me to the dance. 

Thank you.  Thank you.  Thank you.  Thank you.  (Applause.)

12:44 P.M. EST

The post Remarks by President Biden During Service at Royal Missionary Baptist Church | North Charleston, SC appeared first on The White House.

Cross Hall

2:02 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Good afternoon.  And it’s a very good afternoon, because at long last, I can announce a ceasefire and a hostage deal has been reached between Israel and Hamas.

For more than 15 months of conflict that began with Hezbollah’s [Hamas’s] brutal massacre on October the 7th; more than 15 months of terror for the hostages, their families, the Israeli people; and more than 15 months of suffering by the innocent people of Gaza, fighting in Gaza will stop and soon the hostages will return home to their families.

The elements of this deal were what I laid out in detail this past May, which was embraced by countries around the world and endorsed overwhelmingly by the U.N. Security Council.

The deal is structured in three phases.

Phase one will last six weeks.  It includes a full and complete ceasefire, a withdrawal of Israeli forces from all the populated areas of Gaza, and — and the release of a number of hostages held by Hamas, including women and elderly and the wounded. 

And I’m proud to say Americans will be part of that hostage release in phase one as well.  And the vice president and I cannot wait to welcome them home.

In exchange, Israel will release hundreds of Palestinian prisoners.

And during phase one, the Palestinians can also return to their neighborhoods in all the areas of Gaza, and the surge of humanitarian assistance into Gaza will begin, and the innocent people can have a greater access to these vital supplies.

You know, during the next six weeks, Israel will negotiate the necessary arrangements to get phase two, which is a permanent end of the war.  Let me say that again: a permanent end of the war.

There are a number of details to negotiate to move from phase one to phase two, but the plan says if negotiations take longer than six weeks, the ceasefire will continue, as long as the negotiations continue.

I’ve spoken to the amir of Kuwait [Qatar] and the president of Egypt, and we have pledged to make sure the negotiations will keep moving forward for as long as it takes.

Then, when phase two begins, there will be an exchange of — for a release of the remaining living hostages, including male soldiers, and all remaining Israeli forces will be withdrawn from Gaza and the temporary ceasefire will become permanent.

And finally, phase three.  Any final remains of hostages who have been killed will be returned to their families and a major reconstruction plan for Gaza will begin.

This — this is the ceasefire agreement I introduced last spring.  Today, Hamas and Israel have agreed to that ceasefire agreement and the whole — ending the war.

You know, those of you have followed the negotiations can attest, the road to this deal has not been easy.  I’ve worked in foreign policy for decades.  This is one of the toughest negotiations I’ve ever experienced.  And we reached this point because — because of the pressure that Israel built on Hamas, backed by the United States. 

Hamas’s longtime leader, Sinwar, was killed.  Hamas’s strongest supporter, Iran, launched attacks in Israel.  And those attacks failed after my administration organized a coalition of nations to stop them. 

And after I ordered the U.S. ships and planes to come to Israel’s defense, we also shaped Israel’s strong and calibrated response, destroying Iran’s air defenses but avoiding an escalatory cycle of an all-out war.

The United States also organized a coalition of 20 countries to stand up to attacks by the Houthis, including their missile attacks in Israel. 

Then Hezbollah, another of Hamas’s strongest backers, was significantly weakened on the battlefield and its leadership was destroyed. 

With our support, Israel s- — Israel negotiated a ceasefire with them.  And after that, Lebanon finally elected a new president who’s not — who’s not beholden to Hezbollah, and he can begin a new chapter for the Lebanese people.

All told, these developments in the region, which the United States helped to shape, changed the equation.  And so, now the terror network that once protected and sustained Hamas is far weaker.  Iran is weaker.  Iran is weaker than it’s been in decades.  Hezbollah is badly degraded.

And after more than 15 months of war, Hamas’s senior leaders are dead, thousands of Hamas fighters are dead, and the military formations have been destroyed. 

With nowhere to turn, Hamas finally agreed to releasing hostages.

You know, there was no other way for this war to end than with a hostage deal, and I’m deeply satisfied this day has come — finally come for the sake of the people of Israel and the families waiting in agony and for the sake of the innocent people in Gaza who suffered unimaginable devastation because of the war.

The Palestinian people have gone through hell.  Too many innocent people have died.  Too many communities have been destroyed.  In this deal, the people of Gaza can finally recover and rebuild.  They can look to a future without Hamas in power.

You know, the Bible says, “Blessed are the peacemakers.”  Many peacemakers helped make this deal happen, including an extraordinary team of American diplomats who have worked nonstop for months to get this done.  Secretary Blinken led the effort.  Secretary Jake Sullivan — not — National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Bill Burns, Jon Finer, Brett McGurk, Amos Hochstein, and the vice president worked relentlessly as we worked to deliver this deal.

I’d also note this deal was developed and negotiated under my administration, but its terms will be implemented, for the most part, by the next administration.  In these past few days, we’ve been speaking as one team.  This has been time of real turmoil in the Middle East, but as I prepare to leave office, our friends are strong, our enemies are weak, and there’s a genuine opportunities for a new future. 

In Lebanon, there’s an opportunity for a future free from the grip of Hezbollah; in Syria, a future free from the tyranny of Assad; and for the Palestinian people, a credible — a credible pathway to a state of their own; and for the region, a future of normalization, integration of Israel and all its Arab neighbors, including Saudi Arabia. 

At the G20 in Delhi in September ’23, I rallied key countries behind a vision of an economic corridor from India across the Middle East to Europe.  That vision can now become a reality. 

There are risks as well, including ISIS and Iran, even in a badly weakened state, but — but we’re handing off the — to the next team a real opportunity for a better future for the Middle East.  I hope they will take it. 

Let me close with this.  My f- — my friend for years in the United States Senate, former Senator George Mitchell, who did so much to forge peace in Northern Ireland, once said di- —

about diplomacy — said it is a “700 days of failure and 1 day of success.”  “Seven hundred days of failure and one day of success.” 

Well, we’ve had many difficult days since Hamas began its terrible war.  We’ve encountered roadblocks and setbacks, but we’ve not given up.  And now, after more than 40- — 400 days of struggle, a day of success has arrived. 

God bless all the hostages and their families.  May God protect the troops of all those who work for peace.

Q    Mr. President, how can you see the future of Gaza now — as you are saying, the implementation of this deal will be in the hands of the next administration and, basically, they will shape the future of Gaza.  So, how do you see this future?

And also, how much credit do you give to give to the Trump team for this deal?  Trump is already taking credit for it. 

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, you know, this is the exact framework of the deal I proposed back in May — exact — and — and we got the world to endorse it.

Secondly, it’s America’s support for Israel that helped them badly weaken Hamas and its backers and create the conditions for this deal.

And thirdly, I knew this deal would have to be implemented by the next team, so I told my team to coordinate closely with the incoming team to make sure we’re all speaking with the same voice, because that’s what American presidents do.

(Cross-talk.)

Q    Mr. President, can you tell us how many —  

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.

Q    — Americans will be in the — how many Americans will be released when the hostages are being released?

THE PRESIDENT:  All the exact detail of how many of — people are being held and how many bodies will be returned and all this will all be forthcoming — all of it, all of it. 

Thank you.

Q    Mr. President, what’s your level of confidence that this deal will hold?

THE PRESIDENT:  I’m confident. 

Thank you.

Q    Who does the history books credit for this, Mr. President: you or Trump?

THE PRESIDENT:  Is that a joke? 

Q    No.

THE PRESIDENT:  Oh.

Thank you.

2:13 P.M. EST

The post Remarks by President Biden on Reaching a Ceasefire and Hostage Deal appeared first on The White House.

Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall
Fort Myer, Virginia

3:01 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you.

Every time I’m here, it’s made me so damn proud to be an American. And it must all of you as well.

One percent of you are defending ninety-nine percent of us. We owe you. We owe you big.

Just over 240 years ago, George Washington gave his farewell address to the Continental Army. Still astonished by their victory and by their unity, Washington asked, and I quote, “Who that was not a witness could imagine that men who came from different parts of the continent would instantly become one patriotic band of brothers?”

That’s what you are: one patriotic band of brothers.

Vice President Harris, Jill, Doug, Secretary Austin, Secretary [Chairman] Brown — two of the best decisions I ever made in my career, I might add — service secretaries — (applause) — members of the Congress, and, most importantly, this patriotic band of service members before me: Serving as your commander in chief has been the greatest honor of my life.

And while I’m deeply grateful for your thanks and affection, I’m here to thank you — thank you for your service to our nation and for allowing me to bear witness to your courage, your commitment, your character.

As I listened to the choir sing, I thought about it. You all represent what America is: character, honesty, integrity, commitment.

Like Washington, you’ve left me astonished. And I mean it.

Over the years, I’ve frequently seen you in action in war zones in Bosnia, Baghdad, Fallujah, Kabul, K- — I — I wasn’t going to bore the hell out of you, but — (laughter) — Helmand, Kandahar, and other places.

I remember one trip to Afghanistan as vice president. I was at a forward operating base, Wardak province, which is in eastern Afghanistan.

I was asked by a commanding officer to pin a Bronze Star on a soldier for his heroism. The soldier’s teammate was hit while driving in a Humvee. And this soldier did everything possible to rescue his colleague from the burning flames.

But when I went to pin the medal on him, the soldier looked at me and said, “I don’t want it. I don’t want it. He died. I don’t want it.”

And in that moment, all I could think about was the encourage and — incredible courage and humility and moral compass that this soldier had, that all of you have.

You’re the — this is not hyperbole. You are simply the greatest fighting force in the history of the world — in the history of the world. (Applause.) That’s a fact. That’s not hyberbole. That’s a fact.

And there’s never been a time in history when we’ve asked our military to do so many different things, so many places all at the same time. And I want to be clear: You have done all — all these missions with strength and maybe even, importantly, with integrity.

When I asked you to end our nation’s longest war, you rose to the occasion, evacuating Americans, allies, and our Afghan partners; accomplishing the largest airlift in military history; and ending a war with the same courage that defined American service in Afghanistan for over 20 years.

I believe history will reflect that it was the right thing to do, but I know — I know it was hard. After decades of losing your brothers and sisters, including the withdrawal, the pain was still real.

And it was for me as well. Every day I still carry — every single day — (the president holds up a piece of paper) — it’s my schedule. On the back of the schedule, every single day at the top since I’ve been here, it says, “U.S.” — “Daily U.S. troops in Afghanistan” — “U.S. troops that have died in Afghanistan: 2,465.” Not “over 2,000” — “2,465.” “Troops wounded: 20,769.”

And every day we’ll honor their sacrifice for con- — continuing a mission for which they gave their lives: fighting terrorism, defending our homeland, and protecting the American people.

Six months after that war ended, when Russia began its largest war in Europe since World War II, I asked you to help defend Ukraine. You didn’t hesitate. You kept Ukraine in the fight; trained Ukrainian soldiers and pilots, troops; bolstered NATO’s eastern flank; and, above all, you showed the world America stands up for freedom, stands with our friends. America stands strong with our allies. We never bend down. We bend down to no one, certainly not Putin.

And now, nearly three years later, Putin has failed to take Kyiv, failed to make large territorial gains, and failed to break NATO.

As a matter of a fact, when I spoke to him on the phone, I talked — he talked about — he wanted us to be the Finland of Europe. And I pointed out to him at the time, for real, that you’ll not only get the Finland of Europe, you’re going to get the Finlandization — not of Europe — you’re going to see Europe joining NATO — Finland joining NATO, Sweden joining NATO.

On America’s watch, dictators do not get to do whatever the hell they want.

Then, following Hamas’s terrorism on October the 7th, I asked you to de- — excuse my back, by the way. (Laughter.) My mother would be very upset. (Laughter.)

I asked you to deploy to the Middle East. Again, you stepped up, pulling long nights and long deployments to weaken Hamas, to defend Isa- — Israel against unprecedented attacks on [from] Iran.

Imagine had we not.

If we don’t lead the world, who will lead the world? Who?

And twice, you stood up to the attacks by the Houthis in the Red Sea.

Last year, I spoke with the women and men aboard the destroyer that took down the first Houthi attacks. It was the USS Carney. And I want you — to tell you all what I told them: We owe you. We owe you.

And back in May — yesterday I announced — proud to announce the ceasefire, the hostage deal between Israel and Hamas. The road to that deal was not easy. It was eight months ago I laid down the elements of that deal, in May — embraced by countries around the world, because they know we say what we mean; endorsed overwhelmingly by the U.N. Security Council.

It’s taken eight months of nonstop, relentless effort by my administration to get it done, but because of you — all of you standing behind me — because of you, because of so many diplomats and defense professionals, we kept the pressure on Hamas and we got it done. We got it done.

And finally, when I asked you to strengthen America’s position in the Indo-Pacific, in the middle of all the other conflicts and crises, you said, “No problem.” You kept China in check.

Remember when we take of- — took office, China was over — going to overcome the United States economically and politically by 2030. Everybody wrote that, except here in this building.

The skies open. The seas free. And our allies close.

You established our first trilateral defense partnership with Australia and the United Kingdom; our first trilateral partnership that some — we said couldn’t get done — with Japan and the Philippines; and our first trilateral partnership between Japan and South Korea.

Remember that? Camp David. They said we couldn’t do it.

It wasn’t me. It was America. We did it. That’s what America does — people know America is acting out of character. Our nation is so much and so many others as — did — our nation has asked so much of so many others as well.

Doctors and nurses helping service members to learn to walk again, eat again, speak again. The National Guard members who dropped everything to help their fellow Americans during the fires and hurricanes. The Marines guarding embassies around the world. The scientists making sure we have an edge over adversaries. Interpreters who make our missions possible.

And perhaps most importantly, your families. They sacrifice so much.

And I might add, the doctors and nurses — excuse a point of personal privilege, as they used to say in the Senate — came home one — I commuted every day — every single day, over two million one hundred thousand miles on Amtrak because I lost my family when I first got here.

My oldest son — one day, I went home — he was the attorney general — he said, “Dad, what are you doing Friday?” I said, “What do you want me to do?” He said, “I want you to pin my bars on.” I said, “What?” I said, “You’re married with two children.” He said, “I know, Dad, but someone has got to go.”

He spent a year in Iraq, won the Bronze Star, conspicuous service medal. But like many others, he was exposed to those burn pits, which are within about a half a mile of where he was — where he bunked. He had stage 4 glioblastoma, like so many other of our folks.

And I watched the nurses and the doctors who took care of him for so long.

And, by the way, I want to take a moment to speak to all military spouses, kids, and parents here today. Most Americans never see the sacrifices that you make every single day. They’ll never see all those holidays and birthdays with an empty seat at the dinner table because mom or dad was deployed. They’ll never see all the moves you had to make to new states, to new schools, to new jobs. But I see it, and Jill saw it.

She made it her life’s work. She’s — she’s done everything big and small, from helping military spouses find childcare and build their own careers, by hanging photos of deployed moms and dads outside classrooms of those National Guard folks, because then, ev- — every holiday, every time there’s — something is going on, their moms or dads weren’t there but then — but no one ever mentioned it. She started getting into every classroom in America to put a picture of an deployed mom or dad outside the classroom.

Even this morning, she held an event for — with Joining Forces, an historic White House initiative to support military and veterans’ families, because, as the poet John Milton wrote, “They also serve who only stand and wait.” “They also serve who only stand and wait.”

So, for the last time as commander in chief, I want to say thank you, thank you, thank you to all the families. We owe you.

I’ve long said, as a nation, we have many obligations. But I said we only have one truly sacred obligation, and that’s to prepare those we send into harm’s way and care for them and their families when they come home and when they don’t.

Over the last four years, Kamala and I have worked to make good that obligation. We passed more than 40 bipartisan laws to support you, including something I felt so strongly about: the passage of the PACT Act. I drafted that law, and we passed it. Now it’s already helped over 1 million service members and their survivors, their children have access to everything from college to health care.

These people were exposed to toxins — in my generation, to Agent Orange; my son’s generation, to burn pits. But we had to prove that what you had — what’s your disease, all the brain damage, all the brain cancers — were a direct consequence of those toxins or Agent Orange.

But we changed that. And I want to publicly thank the 9/11 Commission. All those folks, all those firefighters were so badly, badly damaged because of the fumes and the toxins associated with the — 9/11.

And those of you who are the Vietnam generation — finally, all you had to prove is that stuff dropped on you and it didn’t cause — they didn’t have to prove beyond a reasonable doubt it caused your disease. Just state the fact and you’re covered.

We’ve invested over a trillion dollars in our defense industry base. In real dollars, that’s more than America did in any four-year period during the Cold War.

We also invested record resources to fight the scourge of military suicide. No more calling and saying, “My husband needs help. He needs help.” You get an answer.

We fought (inaudible) — we brought veterans’ homelessness to record lows, made historic changes in the military justice system, which has reduced the rates of sexual assault for the first time in nearly a decade.

We ended the ban on transgender service.

We took landmark steps to create more economic opportunities for military spouses.

We expanded opportunities for women in combat roles. And I’m proud to have appointed the first woman as a service chief in the history of this country. Clap for that, folks, because she deserves it. (Applause.)

I don’t know about the rest of you guys, but the women in my st- — family are a hell of a lot smarter than the men in my family. (Laughter.)

Look, if there’s one thing I hope to take away from today, it’s this — this is not hyperbole: You’re truly the finest fighting force in the history of the world. That’s not hyperbole. That’s true.

Everything I and others have asked of you, you’ve done — you’ve done with honor, commitment, grit, and guts.

Let me close with a final request. I say it not as your president or commander in chief; I say it as a man who spent 50 years of his life serving his country in a different way: Remember your oath.

My son, Major Beau Biden, used to call it “home base.” That’s a set of principles, of values that give you light in darkness, that guide you.

It’s true that the military has the best weapons, the best training in the world. We have the most cutting-edge ships, planes, and subs. We have the smartest and most well-trained force on Earth.

That’s all critical, but that alone is not what makes us strong. This is not what brought Washington’s “band of brothers” together all those years ago. It’s our values. I mean this sincerely. It’s our values — American values. Our commitment to honor, to integrity, to unity, to protecting and — and defending not a person or a party or a place, but an idea, literally, unlike — as a student of history, I can say unlike any other in human history.

And that idea is: The United States of America is unique in the world. Virtually every other nation in the world is based on geography, ethnicity, re- — ethnicity, or religion, or some defining feature. But we’re the only nation in the world — only nation in history built on an idea — an idea — an idea that we’re all created equal.

We know the words by heart. We’re endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights, among them life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness. That’s the idea that generations of service members have fought for, an idea you have sworn an oath to defend.

As a nation, we’ve never fully lived up to that idea, but we’ve never, ever, ever walked away from it. And our country is counting on you to ensure that that will always be true.

As I said when I began, 1 percent of you defend 99 percent of the people across this nation. That’s why you all deserve a special place in our hearts and in God’s heart.

May God bless you all. And may God protect our troops.

Thank you, thank you, thank you. (Applause.)
3:21 P.M. EST

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