Source: Statistics New Zealand
Household labour force survey estimated working-age population: September 2024 quarter – information release – 2 October 2024 – The household labour force survey estimated working-age population table shows the population benchmarks used to produce household labour force survey estimates for the upcoming labour market statistics release.
Visit Statistics NZ’s website to read this information release:
MIL OSI –
Source: Statistics New Zealand
Census results reflect Aotearoa New Zealand’s diversity – media release – 3 October 2024 – Aotearoa New Zealand continues to become more culturally diverse, according to 2023 Census data released by Stats NZ today.
The 2023 Census showed that people living in Aotearoa New Zealand identified with a wide range of ethnicities – and spoke over 150 languages. Additionally, while most of the population were born here, New Zealand was also home to people born in a diverse range of countries.
“Just under 30 percent of New Zealanders were born overseas, and the census recorded well over 200 different birthplaces,” deputy government statistician and deputy chief executive insights and statistics Rachael Milicich said.
“Pretty much every part of the world is represented here, from people born in Iceland in the north, to Argentina in the south.”
Of the census usually resident population count, 3.5 million people were born in New Zealand and 1.4 million were born overseas.
Visit Statistics NZ’s website to read this news story and information release:
MIL OSI –
Source: Statistics New Zealand
Home ownership increases and housing quality improves – media release – 3 October 2024 – 2023 Census data shows home ownership has increased and housing quality has improved, according to statistics released by Stats NZ today.
Around two-thirds of households in Aotearoa New Zealand (1,175,217 or 66.0 percent) now own their home or hold it in a family trust, compared with 64.5 percent in 2018.
“This increase in home ownership, although small, is a reversal of the falling rates we have seen since home ownership peaked in the early 1990s,” Stats NZ principal analyst Rosemary Goodyear said.
Visit Statistics NZ’s website to read this news story and information release:
MIL OSI –
Source: Statistics New Zealand
2023 Census shows 1 in 20 adults belong to Aotearoa New Zealand’s LGBTIQ+ population – media release – 3 October 2024 – Confidentialised data from the 2023 Census found that 172,383 people (4.9 percent of adults) belonged to the LGBTIQ+ (or Rainbow) population, according to data released by Stats NZ today.
LGBTIQ+ includes people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, non-binary, intersex, or have other minority genders or sexual identities.
Gender, sex, and LGBTIQ+ concepts in the 2023 Census has further information. LGBTIQ+ status is derived for all usual residents aged 15 years and older who responded to the census.
The 2023 Census was the first census to collect data from New Zealanders about their gender, sexual identity, and whether they have a variation of sex characteristics.
“Census data is for everyone in Aotearoa New Zealand, so it is important that Rainbow communities can see themselves in the data for the first time. We thank those who have advocated for and contributed to the delivery of this data over the years,” deputy government statistician and deputy chief executive insights and statistics Rachael Milicich said.
Visit Statistics NZ’s website to read this news story and information release:
MIL OSI –
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)
Q3 of 2024 for LHV was marked by strong loan portfolio growth and the highest business volumes so far.
AS LHV Group earned EUR 84.9 million in revenue on a consolidated basis in Q3 of this year, which is 3% less than in Q2, but 4% more than at the same time a year ago. Of the revenue, net interest income accounted for EUR 67.4 million, and net fee and commission income for EUR 16.3 million. The Group’s operating expenses amounted to EUR 37.2 million in Q3, which is 1% less than in the previous quarter, but 14% more than a year earlier.
In Q3, AS LHV Group earned EUR 34.7 million in consolidated net profit. It was 10% lower than in Q2 and 12% less than in Q3 of 2023. The return on equity attributable to the Group’s shareholders was 22.4% in Q3.
During the quarter, AS LHV Pank earned EUR 34.1 million euros in net profit, AS LHV Varahaldus EUR 0.6 million, and AS LHV Kindlustus EUR 0.5 million. LHV Bank Limited reported a net loss of EUR 0.6 million in Q3.
By the end of September, the volume of LHV Group’s consolidated assets increased to EUR 7.82 billion. Over the quarter, the volume of assets increased by EUR 491 million, i.e. 7%. Compared to the previous quarter, the Group’s consolidated loan portfolio increased by EUR 236 million to EUR 4.13 billion (+6%; + EUR 246 million in Q2). Consolidated deposits increased by EUR 502 million to EUR 6.29 billion during the quarter (+9%; + EUR 150 million in Q2). The total volume of funds managed by LHV was EUR 1.52 billion at the end of September, which is EUR 8 million less than in the previous quarter (-1%; – EUR 11 million in Q2). The number of processed payments to financial intermediaries’ clients amounted to 18.8 million in Q3 (+3% compared to 18.3 million payments in Q2).
In the nine months of 2024, LHV Group has earned EUR 257.6 million in net income on a consolidated basis (+15% compared to 2023), and the total expenses have been EUR 110.4 million (+14%). This year, LHV’s consolidated loan portfolio has increased by EUR 564 million, i.e. 16%, and deposits (excluding deposits of financial intermediaries) by EUR 659 million (+14%).
The Group’s consolidated net profit for the nine months was EUR 114 million, which is EUR 5.8 million more than a year earlier (+5%). In nine months, AS LHV Pank earned EUR 105.7 million, LHV Bank Limited EUR 5.2 million, AS LHV Varahaldus EUR 1.1 million, and AS LHV Kindlustus EUR 1.1 million in net profit. LHV Group’s nine-month return on equity was 25.6%.
LHV’s nine-month net profit fell EUR 0.4 million short of the financial plan published at the beginning of October.
| Income statement, EUR thousand | Q3-2024 | Q2-2024 | Q3-2023 |
| Net interest income | 67 427 | 70 424 | 68 141 |
| Net fee and commission income | 16 320 | 16 262 | 13 617 |
| Net gains from financial assets | 798 | -37 | -589 |
| Other income | 355 | 638 | 311 |
| Total revenue | 84 900 | 87 287 | 81 480 |
| Staff costs | -20 166 | -21 108 | -16 308 |
| Office rent and expenses | -854 | -609 | -1 085 |
| IT expenses | -3 820 | -3 471 | -3 379 |
| Marketing expenses | -1 338 | -973 | -845 |
| Other operating expenses | -11 066 | -11 426 | -11 190 |
| Total operating expenses | -37 245 | -37 587 | -32 807 |
| EBIT | 47 655 | 49 700 | 48 673 |
| Earnings before impairment losses | 47 655 | 49 700 | 48 673 |
| Impairment losses on loans and advances | -7 276 | -5 043 | -2 883 |
| Income tax | -5 681 | -6 071 | -6 314 |
| Net profit | 34 697 | 38 586 | 39 476 |
| Profit attributable to non-controlling interest | 312 | 300 | 418 |
| Profit attributable to share holders of the parent | 34 385 | 38 286 | 39 058 |
| Profit attributable to non-controlling interest | 0.11 | 0.12 | 0.12 |
| Profit attributable to share holders of the parent | 0.10 | 0.12 | 0.12 |
| Balance sheet, EUR thousand | Sep 2024 | Jun 2024 | Sep 2023 |
| Cash and cash equivalents | 3 376 016 | 3 217 448 | 2 857 964 |
| Financial assets | 259 933 | 157 131 | 269 828 |
| Loans granted | 4 168 778 | 3 925 877 | 3 396 048 |
| Loan impairments | -42 543 | -35 333 | -20 466 |
| Receivables from customers | 10 598 | 15 919 | 36 873 |
| Other assets | 47 567 | 48 681 | 50 924 |
| Total assets | 7 820 348 | 7 329 723 | 6 591 170 |
| Demand deposits | 4 160 516 | 3 882 999 | 3 814 480 |
| Term deposits | 2 125 844 | 1 900 930 | 1 501 724 |
| Loans received | 679 550 | 735 281 | 461 635 |
| Loans received and deposits from customers | 6 965 910 | 6 519 211 | 5 777 839 |
| Other liabilities | 108 605 | 100 710 | 124 238 |
| Subordinated loans | 106 079 | 107 521 | 166 848 |
| Total liabilities | 7 180 595 | 6 727 441 | 6 068 925 |
| Equity | 639 754 | 602 282 | 522 245 |
| Minority interest | 8 006 | 7 695 | 7 706 |
| Total liabilities and equity | 7 820 348 | 7 329 723 | 6 591 170 |
Although the business environment is still affected by the economic downturn, both the growth and quality of LHV’s loan portfolio remained at a strong level. In addition to the growing number of clients, the activity of clients was also at a good level. The share of overdue loans remains low, but both model-based discounts and discounts to individual clients have been added.
The number of clients of LHV Pank increased by 11,200 during the quarter, and a total of 37,200 bank clients (+9%) have been added in a year. The activity of clients in terms of settlements and the use of bank cards was good, and the active issuance of home loans continued: one in four home loans in Estonia continued to be taken out with LHV Pank. Retail loans increased by EUR 112 million over the quarter and corporate loans by EUR 47 million. The growth in deposits resulted in EUR 174 million from regular clients and EUR 52 million from financial intermediaries. Platform deposits were added in the amount of EUR 92 million. In a situation where interest rates on fixed-term deposits are falling, the bank’s focus remains on attracting deposits.
During the quarter, the offer of student loans was reopened, and with the help of LHV Pank, both Estonian Treasury Bills and several other securities offers were organised on the Baltic markets. In September, the Instar survey identified LHV Pank as the most preferred employer in Estonia in terms of students, business students, and experienced employees.
For LHV Bank operating in the United Kingdom, Q3 saw record loan growth, as the loan portfolio increased by EUR 76 million. There are EUR 150 million of loans approved by the Credit Committee but not yet issued. The quality of the loan portfolio remains strong, as there are no debtors. The focus on loans will continue to be relevant: to date, LHV Bank has entered into cooperation agreements with more than 50 loan brokers and has assembled the entire team. The deposits included by LHV Bank increased by EUR 189 million over the quarter. The payment volumes of financial intermediaries remained at the same level as in Q2. In September, the results reflected one-off expenses incurred in the previous months, which affected the quarterly profit.
The development of LHV Bank’s retail banking offering, mobile bank, and website continued. At the beginning of October, the mobile bank was opened for testing by own employees, the first accounts were opened and the first payments were made. At the beginning of July, LHV Bank joined the SEPA scheme, and joining the TIPS scheme is scheduled for April 2025.
All pension funds managed by LHV Varahaldus had a positive rate of return in Q3. The quarter was characterised by a more volatile and weaker time in the markets. The volume of the II pillar was affected by the movements of clients at the beginning of September and the exit from the II pillar, which reduced the number of active clients making monthly contributions by 2,000. At the same time, the volume of the III pillar exceeded the level of EUR 100 million. Business results were largely in line with the financial plan revised in October. Approximately 8,000 people had submitted applications for larger contributions to the II pillar by the end of the quarter, and applications for the coming year can be submitted until the end of November.
LHV Kindlustus continued on the path of good sales performance and profitability. For the second quarter in a row, home and travel insurance sales showed excellent growth. At the same time, there were few major loss events. The number of clients continued to grow. Net earned bonuses are outpacing the financial plan, with operating expenses being lower than planned. The decreasing net cost ratio supports the achievement of profitability goals.
As at the end of the quarter, LHV Group is well capitalised and the Group’s internal capital generation capacity exceeds loan growth. If the growth continues, there is a possibility that LHV Group will organise the offering of T2 bonds in Q4.
Comment by Madis Toomsalu, Chairman of the Management Board of the LHV Group: “During Q3, we achieved the highest business volumes in history, both in Estonian home and corporate loans, and in UK corporate loans. The total loan portfolio increased by EUR 236 million, showing a very strong result. To finance loan growth, deposits increased by EUR 502 million. In Estonia, the activity of clients continued to grow, and free euro payments bring in clients who make settlements and receive wages to their account. More and more clients are also using the insurance services of LHV. In the United Kingdom, the focus is on preparing for the launch of mobile banking, payments, and bank cards aimed at retail clients.”
To access the reports of AS LHV Group, please visit the website at https://investor.lhv.ee/en/reports/.
In order to present the results of the quarter, LHV Group will organise an investor meeting via the Zoom webinar platform. The virtual investor meeting will take place on 22 October at 9.00, before the market opens. The presentation will be in Estonian. We kindly ask you to register at the following address: https://lhvbank.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_3bEDDGaqQL-Q3rXLMkk-eA.
LHV Group is the largest domestic financial group and capital provider in Estonia. The LHV Group’s key subsidiaries are LHV Pank, LHV Varahaldus, LHV Kindlustus, and LHV Bank Limited. The Group employs nearly 1,200 people. As at the end of September, LHV’s banking services are being used by 445,000 clients, the pension funds managed by LHV have 116,000 active clients, and LHV Kindlustus protects a total of 169,000 clients. LHV Bank Limited, a subsidiary of the Group, holds a banking licence in the United Kingdom and provides banking services to international financial technology companies, as well as loans to small and medium-sized enterprises.
Priit Rum
Communications Manager
Phone: +372 502 0786
Email: priit.rum@lhv.ee
Attachments
Source: United Nations Economic Commission for Europe
Renault Group and the United Nations, via the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), have entered into a two-year strategic partnership agreement to support the work of the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety, Jean Todt.
With this partnership, Renault Group has become the first automobile manufacturer to take a stand alongside the Special Envoy’s Secretariat and is stepping up its long-standing commitment to increasingly safe and accessible mobility in all its markets.
The partners will take action together to promote road safety by providing training, raising awareness and deploying innovation, with a view to benefiting everyone on roads.
Boulogne-Billancourt (France) and Geneva (Switzerland) – Renault Group and the Secretariat of the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety announce today a partnership to draw attention to road safety around the world, provide training and deploy technological breakthroughs to save lives. By supporting the UN’s endeavour, Renault Group is reasserting its determination to work towards ever safer and more accessible mobility benefiting everyone on roads. During this two-year partnership, Renault Group will share with the Special Envoy the expertise it has gathered through its long-standing commitment to road safety.
Renault Group’s commitment supports the UN’s aim to halve the number of global deaths and injuries from road traffic crashes.
“For Renault, taking safety seriously doesn’t just mean ticking boxes. It means fulfilling our regulatory obligations but also pushing further, guided by what we believe in and our determination to make a difference. By coming up with solutions that make our cars even safer and by pushing innovation everywhere it makes sense. So we are pioneering technology, but also taking action that can potentially make mobility safer, while ranking the issue at the top of the agenda everywhere. That is why I feel very happy that we are supporting Jean Todt’s and the United Nations’ commitment to road safety” Luca de Meo, Chief Executive Officer of Renault Group
A major societal concern
In a world where road crashes remain the leading killer of children and youth aged 5 to 29 years (WHO 2023), there is an urgent need for collective efforts to address this crisis and pave the way for safer roads.
“There were an estimated 1.19 million road traffic deaths in 2021. These new WHO figures give us a sense of the horror we have to deal with. This is why it is so urgent to join forces with partners such as Renault to put an end to the carnage and shine a light on this silent pandemic. Without the active involvement of all actors, including institutional and public sector partners, civil society and the private sector, including car manufacturers, we won’t achieve our objective of halving the number of victims on roads by 2030. I commend Renault Group for its leadership and commitment at our side in this battle.” Jean Todt, the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety.
Road safety facts and figures worldwide (World Health Organization, 2023)
Only 7 countries (France, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Luxembourg, Portugal and Sweden) have applied the WHO’s legislative best practices relating to five risk factors: speeding, drinking and driving, not wearing seat belts, not wearing helmets, and not transporting children in child restraints
Only 10 countries (Belarus, Brunei Darussalam, Denmark, Japan, Lithuania, Norway, Russian Federation, Trinidad and Tobago, United Arab Emirates and Venezuela) succeeded in reducing road traffic deaths by over 50% between 2010 and 2021.
About Renault Group
Renault Group is at the forefront of reinventing mobility. Backed by its alliance with Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors, and its unique expertise in terms of electrification, Renault Group draws on the complementary nature of its four brands – Renault, Dacia, Alpine and Mobilize – to offer its customers sustainable and innovative mobility solutions. With operations in more than 130 countries, the Group sold 2.235 million vehicles in 2023. It employs nearly 105,000 people who embody its raison d’être on a daily basis, so that mobility brings us closer to one another. Ready to take up challenges on the road as well as in competition, the Group is committed to an ambitious and value-generating transformation. This is centred on the development of new technologies and services, and a new range of even more competitive, balanced and electrified vehicles. In line with environmental challenges, Renault Group’s ambition is to achieve carbon neutrality in Europe by 2040.
About the UN and road safety
The United Nations has been promoting road safety since the late 1940s, when the first international agreements on the issue were signed. Following the “Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-2020”, the UN General Assembly in August 2020 adopted a resolution on “Improving Road Safety”, that reconfirmed its commitment to halving the number of global traffic deaths and injuries and to providing access to safe, affordable, accessible, and sustainable transport systems for all by 2030. In October 2021, the World Health Organization and the United Nations Regional Commissions, in cooperation with partners in the United Nations Road Safety Collaboration and other stakeholders, developed the Global Plan for the Decade of Action for Road Safety 2021-2030, as a guiding document to support the implementation of the Decade of Action 2021–2030 and its objectives.
In July 2022, the road safety community met in New York City for the first ever High-Level Meeting on Improving Global Road Safety at the United Nations General Assembly, unanimously adopting a text titled: “Political declaration of the high-level meeting on improving global road safety”.
To galvanize intersectoral actions and raise the visibility of road safety, the UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, appointed in 2015 Jean Todt as his Special Envoy for Road Safety. He was reconfirmed in this role by António Guterres, in 2017 and in 2021. In 2018, Jean Todt contributed to the creation of the UN Road Safety Fund (UNRSF). In his role as UN Special Envoy, Mr. Todt contributes, among other things, to mobilize sustained political commitment to make road safety a priority; to advocate and raise awareness of UN legal instruments on road safety; to share established good practices in this area; to generate adequate funding through strategic partnerships between the public, private and non-governmental sectors.
Special Envoy brochure and Twitter account.
The secretariat of the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for Road Safety is hosted in UNECE. UNECE is the custodian of the United Nations road safety legal instruments applicable worldwide, such as the Convention on Road Traffic, the Convention on Road Signs and Signals, and the 1958, 1997 and 1998 Vehicle Regulations Agreements. UNECE remains the only permanent intergovernmental forum in the United Nations that focuses on improving road safety.
Source: United Nations – Peacekeeping
United Nations peacekeepers operate in some of the world’s most dangerous environments and are often tasked with protecting civilians against physical violence. Hence, they are often themselves exposed to atrocities, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. While the physical safety of peacekeepers is of the utmost importance, it is equally critical that their mental health is also taken care of.
A survey by the Division of Healthcare Management, Occupational Safety, and Health in the United Nations Department of Operational Support (DHMOSH/DOS) revealed that nearly one-third of peacekeepers report disrupted sleep patterns while deployed. Some may manifest with anxiety, sadness, and stress, and these may arise during service or even months or years after peacekeepers return home. While mental health challenges are universal, many countries lack the mechanisms needed to identify mental health issues and provide the necessary support. Cultural factors, particularly in military settings, often discourage personnel from reporting symptoms.
Recognizing the pressing need to address these challenges, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 2668 in December 2022. This resolution calls for comprehensive mental health and psychosocial support for UN peacekeeping personnel. This resolution is a pivotal step toward transforming how mental health is addressed in peacekeeping operations, focusing on providing peacekeepers with tools and resources to manage stress and trauma.
In response to the resolution, DHMOSH/DOS has developed a Mental Health Strategy for uniformed personnel. This strategy focuses on prevention, protection, and promotion of mental health throughout all deployment phases. The aim is to raise awareness about mental health issues, train personnel on coping strategies, and create a supportive culture that encourages peacekeepers to seek help without fear of stigma.
A key component of this strategy is the development of the UN’s MindCompanion mental health app. Launched on 10 Oct 2024 the app is designed to help peacekeepers monitor their psychological well-being, access mental health resources, and seek help when necessary. It provides a confidential platform for peacekeepers to prioritise self-care and act before mental health issues worsen. This app will give peacekeepers 24/7 access to essential resources, information, and support. The app is designed to provide immediate mental health guidance and help users identify potential issues before they become severe.
Although it is tailored for peacekeepers’ mental health, the app is open to everyone.
With the support of Member States and the UN’s continued dedication to peacekeeper well-being, the UN’s MindCompanion app is a significant step toward ensuring that mental health care is accessible for those serving in some of the world’s most challenging environments. The Web App is available at https://un-mindcompanion.un.org and the Mobile app is available for download on the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store.
Source: United Nations – Geneva
Council Extends Mandates of Nine Country and One Thematic Mandate Holders
The Human Rights Council today concluded its fifty-seventh regular session after adopting 37 resolutions and one Statement by the President, in which it, among others, extended the mandates of nine country and one thematic mandate holders.
The Council extended the mandate of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights on promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka under agenda item two.
It extended for a period of one year the mandates of the independent international fact-finding mission for the Sudan under agenda item two; of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Russian Federation, and the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Burundi, under agenda item four; and of the Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in Somalia, the Team of International Experts on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in the Central African Republic under agenda item 10.
Under agenda item four, the mandate of the independent international fact-finding mission on the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela was extended for a period of two years.
The Council also decided to extend, for a period of three years, the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights in the context of climate change.
Further resolutions adopted concerned the thirtieth anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action; the role of good governance in the promotion and protection of human rights; countering cyberbullying; promotion of a democratic and equitable order; the use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights and impeding the exercise of the right of peoples to self-determination; social reintegration of persons released from detention and persons subjected to non-custodial measures; the World Programme for Human Rights Education: the plan of action for the fifth phase; and on terrorism and human rights.
Other resolutions concerned local government and human rights; the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation; the human rights of migrants; human rights and indigenous peoples; promoting accessibility for the full enjoyment of all human rights by all; equal participation in political and public affairs; the elimination of domestic violence; the right to development; the situation of human rights in the Syrian Arab Republic; national human rights institutions; education as a tool to prevent racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance; from rhetoric to reality: a global call for concrete action against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance; technical assistance and capacity-building to address the human rights implications of the nuclear legacy in the Marshall Islands; biodiversity and human rights; promotion, protection and enjoyment of human rights on the Internet; and youth and human rights.
Resolutions on the enhancement of technical cooperation and capacity-building in the field of human rights; cooperation with Georgia; and technical assistance and capacity-building for Yemen in the field of human rights were also adopted.
The President’s Statement adopted concerned the report of the Advisory Committee on its thirty-first session.
During the session, the Council adopted the final outcomes of the Universal Periodic Review of 14 States, namely those of New Zealand, Afghanistan, Chile, Cyprus, Viet Nam, Yemen, Vanuatu, North Macedonia, Comoros, Slovakia, Eritrea, Uruguay, the Dominican Republic and Cambodia.
At the end of the session, the Council appointed four Special Procedures mandate holders: the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus, Nils Muižnieks (Latvia); for the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent, member from Western European and other States, Isabel Mamadou (Spain); for the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, member from Asia-Pacific States, Mohammed Al-Obaidi (Iraq); and for the Working Group on the use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights and impeding the exercise of the right of peoples to self-determination, member from Latin American and Caribbean States, Andrés Macias Tolosa (Colombia).
The Council also elected four members of its Advisory Committee: Frans Viljoen (African States), Miznah O.Alomair (Asia-Pacific States), Alessandra Devulsky (Latin American and Caribbean States), and Vassilis Tzevelekos (Western Europe and other States).
Darius Staniulis, Vice-President and Rapporteur of the Human Rights Council, said over the past five weeks, the Council completed its extensive programme of work. It held 23 interactive dialogues with Special Procedures mandate holders and expert mechanisms; nine interactive dialogues with the High Commissioner, Deputy High Commissioner, Assistant Secretary-General and other Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights Representatives; five dialogues with international investigative mechanisms; five enhanced interactive dialogues; six panel discussions; and nine general debates. The Council also adopted 14 outcomes of the Universal Periodic Review. Finally, the Council completed the adoption of 37 resolutions and one President’s Statement across a wide range of issues.
The Council adopted the draft report of the fifth-seventh session ad referendum.
Omar Zniber, President of the Human Rights Council, in his concluding remarks,
extended his deepest gratitude to the members of the Bureau, the Secretariat and all other United Nations staff for their cooperation, support and dedication during the session. Mr. Zniber said the fifty-seventh session had been a success and was an example of multilateralism.
The fifty-eighth regular session of the Human Rights Council is scheduled to be held from 24 February to 4 April 2025.
Action on a Statement by the President Under Agenda Item One on Organizational and Procedural Matters
In a Statement by the President (A/HRC/57/L.13) on the Report of the Advisory Committee, adopted without a vote, the Council takes note of the report of the Advisory Committee on its thirty-first session.
Action on Resolutions Under Agenda Item Two on the Annual Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and Reports of the Office of the High Commissioner and the Secretary-General
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.1) on Promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka, adopted without a vote, the Council decides to extend the mandate of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights and all work requested of it by the Council in its resolution 51/1, and requests the Office to present an oral update to the Council at its fifty-eighth session and a comprehensive report on progress in reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka at its sixtieth session, to be discussed in an interactive dialogue.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.22) on Responding to the human rights and humanitarian crisis caused by the ongoing armed conflict in the Sudan, adopted by a vote of 23 in favour, 12 against and 12 abstentions, the Council reiterates its call for an immediate and complete ceasefire by all parties, without preconditions, and a negotiated and peaceful resolution to the conflict on the basis of inclusive, Sudan-owned and Sudan-led dialogue; decides to extend the mandate of the independent international fact-finding mission for the Sudan for a period of one year; requests the fact-finding mission to provide the Council with an oral update on its work at its fifty-ninth session and a comprehensive report at its sixtieth session, to be followed by an interactive dialogue, and to submit the report to the General Assembly at its eightieth session.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.24) on the Situation of human rights in Afghanistan, adopted without a vote, the Council decides to extend the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan for a period of one year, and requests the Special Rapporteur to present a report to the Council at its fifty-eighth session, including a separate study on the so-called “Law on propagation of virtue and prevention of vice”, to provide an oral update to the Council at its sixtieth session and to present a report to the General Assembly at its eightieth session; requests the Special Rapporteur to prepare a report on access to justice and protection for women and girls…and to present it to the Council at its fifty-ninth session, to be followed by an enhanced interactive dialogue; and also requests the Office of the High Commissioner to present, during an enhanced interactive dialogue at the sixtieth session of the Council, a comprehensive report, including a mapping of policies and practices, edicts and so-called laws by the Taliban that impair the enjoyment of human rights; and decides to remain seized of the matter.
Action on Resolutions Under Agenda Item Three on the Promotion and Protection of All Human Rights, Civil, Political and Cultural Rights, Including the Right to Development
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.2) on Marking the thirtieth anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, adopted without a vote , the Council decides to convene, during the high-level segment at its fifty-eighth session, a high-level panel discussion to commemorate the thirtieth anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women; invites the President of the Human Rights Council to consider the theme “Thirtieth anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action” for the annual high-level panel discussion on human rights mainstreaming, to be held at the fifty-eighth session of the Council; and also requests the High Commissioner to prepare a summary report on the panel discussion.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.5) on the Role of good governance in the promotion and protection of human rights, adopted without a vote, the Council requests the Human Rights Council Advisory Committee to prepare a study on the impact of artificial intelligence systems on good governance…highlighting good practices around the globe on the ways to develop, deploy, use and govern artificial intelligence systems, and to present the study to the Human Rights Council at its sixty-second session.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.7) on Countering cyberbullying, adopted without a vote, the Council decides to include the topic of countering cyberbullying against persons with disabilities in the context of its next annual interactive debate on the rights of persons with disabilities, to be held at its fifty-eighth session; requests the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to prepare a report … on countering cyberbullying against older persons, and to present the report to the Council at its sixty-second session; and decides to remain seized of the matter.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.9) on the Promotion of a democratic and equitable international order, adopted by a vote of 27 in favour, 15 against and 5 abstentions, the Council calls upon States and the United Nations system to minimise the adverse impact of multiple interrelated global crises, including the COVID-19 pandemic, through the strengthening and enhancement of international cooperation; requests the High Commissioner for Human Rights to continue to provide all the human and financial resources necessary for the effective fulfilment of the mandate by the Independent Expert; and invites the Independent Expert to study and present concrete measures that can be adopted by States and international institutions to contribute to the promotion of a democratic and equitable international order and the transformation of the international financial architecture, in close cooperation with relevant stakeholders from all regions.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.10) on the Use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights and impeding the exercise of the right of peoples to self-determination, adopted by a vote of 29 in favour, 14 against and 4 abstentions, the Council urges once again all States to exercise the utmost vigilance against the threat posed by the activities of mercenaries; and requests the Working Group on the use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights and impeding the exercise of the right of peoples to self-determination to continue the work already carried out by previous mandate holders on the strengthening of international law and the international legal framework for the prevention and sanction of the recruitment, use, financing, arming and training of mercenaries, and to study and identify new sources and causes, emerging issues, manifestations and trends.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.17/Rev.1) on Social reintegration of persons released from detention and persons subjected to non-custodial measures, adopted without a vote, the Council requests the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to prepare a comprehensive study, with practical recommendations on human rights and the social reintegration of persons released from detention and persons subjected to non-custodial measures, based on wide consultations with key stakeholders, and to present the study, accessible to persons with disabilities, to present to the Council at its sixtieth session.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.21) on the World Programme for Human Rights Education: the plan of action for the fifth phase, adopted without a vote, the Council reaffirms the continuation of the World Programme on Human Rights Education and launches its fifth phase, for the period 2025-2029; and decides to convene at its sixty-third session a high-level panel discussion to mark the fifteenth anniversary of the United Nations Declaration on Human Rights Education and Training, further decides that the discussion will be fully accessible to persons with disabilities, and requests the Office of the High Commissioner to prepare a summary report of the discussion and to submit it to the Council by its sixty-fourth session.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.3) on Terrorism and human rights, adopted without a vote, the Council calls upon States to ensure that any measure taken to counter terrorism and violent extremism conducive to terrorism complies with international law; invites the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms while countering terrorism to pay attention to the negative effect of terrorism on the enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedoms, and to make recommendations in this regard; and decides to remain seized of this matter.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.6) on Local government and human rights, adopted without a vote, the Council requests the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to convene a one-day panel discussion … prior to the sixtieth session of the Council, to exchange and review the best practices of States, local governments and other relevant stakeholders in overcoming the various challenges that local governments face in promoting and protecting human rights; also requests the Office of the High Commissioner to prepare a report … in which it compiles and analyses the best practices of States, local governments and other relevant stakeholders in overcoming the various challenges that local governments face in promoting and protecting human rights, taking into account the results of the panel, and to present the report to the Council at its sixty-third session.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.23/Rev.1) on the Human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation, adopted without a vote, the Council decides to convene, at its fifty-ninth session, a panel discussion on the realisation of the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation, and also decides that the discussion shall be fully accessible to persons with disabilities, including through the provision of hybrid modalities; and requests the High Commissioner for Human Rights to prepare a summary report on the panel discussion and to present it to the Council at its sixty-first session.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.27) on the Human rights of migrants, adopted without a vote, the Council requests the Office of the High Commissioner to prepare a study on human rights monitoring in the context of migration, including at international borders, in consultation with States and other relevant stakeholders, and to submit the study to the Council before its sixtieth session; to convene a one-day intersessional panel discussion, accessible to persons with disabilities, and with appropriate gender representation, on measures to prevent, counter and address dehumanising and harmful narratives about migrants and migration, hate speech, xenophobia and related forms of intolerance against migrants; to ensure the meaningful participation of migrants and their family members; and to prepare a summary report on the panel discussion and the recommendations resulting from it, and to submit the report to the Council at its sixty-second session and to the General Assembly at its eighty-first session; and decides to remain seized of the matter.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.29/Rev.1) on Human rights and Indigenous Peoples, adopted without a vote, the Council decides that the theme of the annual half-day panel discussion on the rights of Indigenous Peoples, to be held during the sixtieth session of the Council, will be the rights of Indigenous Peoples in the context of a just transition to sustainable energy systems, including in relation to critical minerals, and requests the Office of the High Commissioner to encourage and facilitate the participation of Indigenous women and youth in the panel, to make the discussion fully accessible to and inclusive for persons with disabilities, and to prepare a summary report on the discussion for submission to the Council prior to its sixty-second session; and invites the General Assembly to consider holding a high-level plenary meeting on the occasion of the twentieth anniversary of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, during its eighty-second session, and to evaluate the implementation of the outcome document of the World Conference on Indigenous Peoples.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.33) on Promoting accessibility for the full enjoyment of all human rights by all, adopted without a vote (as orally revised), the Council invites the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to continue to provide technical assistance and capacity-building support to States upon their request in developing and implementing policies and programmes on accessibility, to continue to share its expertise with the relevant intergovernmental organizations and United Nations agencies, funds and programmes and to assist the relevant special procedure mandate holders and treaty bodies to integrate the view of accessibility for all from the perspective of the full enjoyment of all human rights by all into their work in close consultation with the relevant stakeholders.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.34) on the Equal participation in political and public affairs, adopted without a vote, the Council calls upon all States to enhance the political participation of all women, and to address violence against women participating in political and public affairs; and requests the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to continue its dissemination and promotion of the guidelines on the effective implementation of the right to participate in public affairs … and to prepare, in consultation with States and all other relevant stakeholders, a follow-up report on good practices and challenges that States face when using the guidelines, with a particular focus on participation in elections, and to present the report to the Council at its sixty-third session.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.35/Rev.1) on the Elimination of domestic violence, adopted without a vote (as orally revised), the Council decides to convene an intersessional panel discussion on the intensification of efforts to prevent and eliminate domestic violence, before its sixty-first session, and requests the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to organise the panel discussion … and requests the Office of the High Commissioner to prepare a comprehensive report … on how to address structural and underlying causes and risk factors to prevent domestic violence, in consultation with States and all relevant stakeholders, and to present the report to the Council at its sixty-second session.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.19) on the Right to development, adopted by a vote of 29 in favour, 14 against and 4 abstentions, the Council requests the High Commissioner for Human Rights to continue to submit to the Council an annual report on the activities of the Office of the High Commissioner, including on inter-agency coordination within the United Nations system that has direct relevance to the realisation of the right to development; requests the Special Rapporteur and the members of the Expert Mechanism to participate in relevant international dialogues and policy forums relating to the implementation of the 2030 Agenda; requests the Office of the High Commissioner to organise the next biennial panel discussion on the right to development, to be held at its sixty-third session, in a format that is fully accessible to persons with disabilities, including sign language interpretation; and also requests the Office to prepare a report on the panel discussion and to submit it to the Council at its sixty-sixth session.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.26) on Biodiversity and human rights, adopted without a vote, the Council requests the High Commissioner for Human Rights to conduct a global analytical study on the implementation of a human-rights based approach into the goals and targets of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, to be submitted to the Council at its sixty-first session; and encourages the Office of the High Commissioner to cooperate with other relevant United Nations organizations and bodies, as well as with Indigenous Peoples, people of African descent and groups in vulnerable situations on advancing human rights-based biodiversity action.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.28) on the Promotion, protection and enjoyment of human rights on the Internet, adopted without a vote (as orally revised), the Council calls upon all States to accelerate efforts to bridge digital divides, including the gender digital divide, and to take the necessary and appropriate measures to promote free, open, interoperable, reliable, accessible and secure access to the Internet; and requests the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to prepare a report on a human rights approach to meaningful connectivity and to overcoming digital divides, including by addressing threats to individuals’ access to the Internet, and to present it to the Council at its sixty-second session, to be followed by an interactive dialogue.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.30) on Youth and human rights, adopted without a vote, the Council decides that the theme of the next biennial panel discussion, to be held during the sixtieth session of the Council, will be the role of youth in fostering peaceful societies and creating an enabling environment for the enjoyment of human rights by all, and requests the Office of the High Commissioner to organise the panel discussion following consultations with youth and youth-led organizations and to prepare a summary report on the panel discussion for consideration by the Council at its sixty-first session; and requests the Office of the High Commissioner, in consultation with States and relevant stakeholders, to conduct a detailed study on the impact of mental health challenges on the enjoyment of human rights by young people and to submit the study to the Council for consideration prior to its sixty-third session.
Before the resolution was adopted, the Council took action on and rejected amendment L.39.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.31/Rev.1) on the Mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights in the context of climate change, adopted without a vote (as orally revised), the Council decides to extend for a period of three years the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of human rights in the context of climate change under the same terms as provided for by the Council in its resolution 48/14; and requests the Special Rapporteur to report annually on the implementation of the mandate to the Council and the General Assembly in accordance with their programmes of work.
Action on Resolutions Under Agenda Item Four on Human Rights Situations that Require the Council’s Attention
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.4) on the Situation of human rights in the Russian Federation, adopted by a vote of 20 in favour, 8 against and 19 abstentions, the Council decides to extend the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Russian Federation as defined by the Council in its resolution 54/23 for a period of one year, and requests the mandate holder to … present a comprehensive report to the Council at its sixtieth session and to the General Assembly at its eightieth session; and calls upon the Russian authorities to establish full and non-selective engagement with all United Nations human rights mechanisms, and to refrain from all forms of intimidation and reprisal against persons and associations for their cooperation with United Nations human rights mechanisms.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.11) on the Situation of human rights in the Syrian Arab Republic, adopted by a vote of 26 in favour, 4 against and 17 abstentions, the Council demands that all parties to the conflict in the Syrian Arab Republic immediately comply with their respective obligations under international humanitarian law and international human rights law, and emphasises the need to ensure that all those responsible for such violations and abuses are held to account and that civilians are protected; and demands that the Syrian authorities cooperate fully with the Council and the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic by granting the Commission immediate, full and unfettered access throughout the Syrian Arab Republic; demands that all parties to the conflict maintain rapid, unhindered, safe and sustainable humanitarian access and ensure that humanitarian assistance reaches its intended recipients.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.12) on the Situation of human rights in Burundi, adopted by a vote of 22 in favour, 10 against and 15 abstentions, the Council strongly condemns all human rights violations and abuses committed in Burundi; decides to extend the mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Burundi for a further period of one year; and requests the Special Rapporteur to present to the Human Rights Council, at its fifty-ninth session, an oral update on the situation of human rights in Burundi, and also to submit to the Council, at its sixtieth session, and to the General Assembly, at its eightieth session, a comprehensive report.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.8) on the Situation of human rights in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, adopted by a vote of 23 in favour, 6 against and 18 abstentions (as orally revised), the Council decides to extend for a period of two years the mandate of the independent international fact-finding mission on the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to enable the mission to continue to investigate gross violations of human rights committed since 2014, with a particular focus on the situation of human rights in the lead-up to, during and after the 2024 presidential elections, and on the violence by armed individuals known as colectivos; and urges the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela to resume cooperation in a full manner with the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the fact-finding mission.
Before the resolution was adopted, the Council took action on and rejected amendments L.40, L.41, L.42, L.43 and an oral amendment.
Action on a Resolution Under Agenda Item Eight on Follow-up and Implementation of the Vienna Declaration and Programme of Action
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.16) on National human rights institutions, adopted without a vote (as orally revised), the Council requests the Secretary-General and the High Commissioner for Human Rights to provide the Office of the High Commissioner with the financial and human resources necessary for the servicing of the sessions of the Subcommittee on Accreditation of the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions; and requests the Secretary-General to submit to the Council, at its sixty-third session, a report on the implementation of the present resolution … and a report on the activities of the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions in accrediting national institutions in compliance with the Paris Principles.
Action on Resolutions Under Agenda Item 9 on Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Forms of Intolerance, Follow-Up to and Implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.25) on Education as a tool to prevent racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, adopted without a vote (as orally revised), the Council urges States, in particular, to adopt and implement laws, policies and programmes that prohibit and combat discrimination on the basis of race, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin, at all levels of education, both formal and non-formal; and requests the High Commissioner for Human Rights to submit to the Council at its sixty-third session a comprehensive report, accessible to persons with disabilities, including in an accessible and easy to read format, analysing relevant education-related practices and measures to prevent racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, with input from all relevant stakeholders.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.36/Rev.1) on From rhetoric to reality: a global call for concrete action against racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, adopted by a vote of 30 in favour, 5 against and 12 abstentions, the Council decides that the Chair-Rapporteur of the Ad Hoc Committee on the Elaboration of Complementary Standards to the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination may request that the annual session of the Ad Hoc Committee be split into two full one-week segments; requests the High Commissioner for Human Rights to facilitate the interactive participation of six legal experts in one of the two full one-week segments of the fifteenth and sixteenth sessions of the Ad Hoc Committee, to be held in 2025 and 2026 respectively; requests the Chair-Rapporteur of the Ad Hoc Committee to present in person a progress report to the General Assembly at its eightieth session, and to participate in the interactive dialogue and carry out consultations to continue progress in the elaboration of complementary standards to the Convention; reiterates its decision to request the Group of Independent Eminent Experts on the Implementation of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action to report annually on its session and activities to the Council, and that its report will be also transmitted and presented to the General Assembly, and in this regard requests the Chair of the Group to engage in an interactive dialogue with the Assembly under the agenda item entitled “Elimination of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance”; and encourages the General Assembly to proclaim a second International Decade for People of African Descent commencing in 2025.
Action on Resolutions Under Agenda Item 10 on Technical Assistance and Capacity-Building
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.14) on Technical assistance and capacity-building to address the human rights implications of the nuclear legacy in the Marshall Islands, adopted without a vote, the Council requests the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to cooperate with the Government of the Marshall Islands in the field of human rights and to provide technical assistance and capacity-building to the National Nuclear Commission of the Marshall Islands in advancing its national strategy for nuclear justice and pursuing transitional justice in its efforts to address the nuclear legacy; and requests the Office of the High Commissioner to prepare a report on addressing the challenges and barriers to the full realisation and enjoyment of the human rights of the people of the Marshall Islands, stemming from the State’s nuclear legacy, and to submit it to the Council at its sixty-third session, to be followed by an enhanced interactive dialogue.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.15) on Assistance to Somalia in the field of human rights, adopted without a vote, the Council decides to renew the mandate of the Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in Somalia, under agenda item 10, for a period of one year, to assess, monitor and report on the situation of human rights in Somalia; requests the Independent Expert to report to the Council at its sixtieth session and to the General Assembly at its eightieth session; and also requests the Independent Expert to provide an update to the Council in her report on progress on the implementation of the benchmarks and indicators in the transition plan to inform future action by the Council.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.18) on the Enhancement of technical cooperation and capacity-building in the field of human rights, adopted without a vote, the Council decides … that the theme of the annual thematic panel discussion under agenda item 10, to be held at its fifty-ninth session, will be “The role of technical cooperation and capacity-building in strengthening national structures which play a role in promoting and safeguarding human rights, particularly national human rights institutions and national mechanisms for implementation, reporting and follow-up”; and also requests the Office of the High Commissioner to prepare a report, to be submitted to the Human Rights Council at its fifty-ninth session, to serve as a basis for the panel discussion, on the role of technical cooperation and capacity-building among States, the Office and other relevant stakeholders, to support States’ efforts to strengthen national structures which play a role in promoting and safeguarding human rights.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.20) on Cooperation with Georgia, adopted by a vote of 24 in favour, 3 against and 20 abstentions, the Council demands that immediate and unimpeded access be given to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and other international and regional human rights mechanisms to Abkhazia, Georgia, and the Tskhinvali region/South Ossetia, Georgia; requests the High Commissioner for Human Rights to present to the Council an oral update on the follow-up to the present resolution at its fifty-eighth session and to present a report on developments relating to and the implementation of the present resolution at its fifty-ninth session; and also requests the High Commissioner to continue to provide technical assistance through the Office of the High Commissioner in Tbilisi.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.37) on Technical assistance and capacity-building in the field of human rights in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, adopted without a vote, the Council decides to renew, for one year, the mandate of the team of international experts on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and requests the team to provide the necessary technical support to the Government in implementing effectively its National Transitional Justice Policy, in particular by taking account of the cross-border nature of conflict and insecurity in the Great Lakes, identifying the causes of conflict and preventing their recurrence, and designing and implementing mechanisms for transitional justice and the fight against impunity, and encourages it to support the Government in this regard; requests the team of international experts to submit its final report to the Council, in the framework of an enhanced interactive dialogue, at its sixtieth session and to present it with an oral update at its fifty-eighth session; requests the High Commissioner to present the Council with an oral update on the situation of human rights in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, in the framework of an enhanced dialogue, at its fifty-eighth session; also requests the High Commissioner to prepare a comprehensive report on the situation of human rights in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and to submit it to the Council, in the framework of an enhanced interactive dialogue, at its sixtieth session; and decides to remain seized of the matter until its sixtieth session.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.38/Rev.1) on Technical assistance and capacity-building in the field of human rights in the Central African Republic, adopted without a vote, the Council decides to renew, for one year, the mandate of the Independent Expert on the situation of human rights in the Central African Republic, which is to assess, monitor and report on the situation with a view to making recommendations relating to technical assistance and capacity-building in the field of human rights; requests the Independent Expert to pay particular attention to violations of human rights and international humanitarian law alleged to have been committed by all parties to the conflict; decides to convene, at its fifty-eighth session, a high-level dialogue to enable it to assess human rights developments on the ground…; requests the Independent Expert to provide an oral update on his report on technical assistance and capacity-building in the field of human rights in the Central African Republic to the Human Rights Council at its fifty-ninth session and to submit a written report to the Council at its sixtieth session and to the General Assembly at its eightieth session; and requests the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to continue to provide the Independent Expert with all the necessary technical, human and financial resources to enable him to carry out fully his mandate.
In a resolution (A/HRC/57/L.32) on Technical assistance and capacity-building for Yemen in the field of human rights, adopted without a vote, the Council requests the High Commissioner for Human Rights to continue to provide substantive capacity-building and technical assistance to the Government of Yemen and all requisite technical and logistical support to the National Commission of Inquiry, to enable it to continue to investigate allegations of violations and abuses committed by all parties to the conflict in Yemen and to submit its comprehensive report on alleged violations and abuses of human rights in all parts of Yemen as soon as it is available; and requests the High Commissioner to present a report on the implementation of technical assistance, as stipulated in the present resolution, to the Council at its sixtieth session.
Other Matters
The Council appointed four Special Procedures mandate holders: the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Belarus, Nils Muižnieks (Latvia); for the Working Group of Experts on People of African Descent, member from Western European and other States, Isabel Mamadou (Spain); for the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances, member from Asia-Pacific States, Mohammed Al-Obaidi (Iraq); and for the Working Group on the use of mercenaries as a means of violating human rights and impeding the exercise of the right of peoples to self-determination, member from Latin American and Caribbean States, Andrés Macias Tolosa (Colombia).
The Council elected four members of its Advisory Committee: Frans Viljoen (African States), Miznah O.Alomair (Asia-Pacific States), Alessandra Devulsky (Latin American and Caribbean States), and Vassilis Tzevelekos (Western Europe and other States).
The Council also adopted its draft report for the fifty-seventh session ad referendum.
Bureau of the Council
The President of the Council is Omar Zniber of Morocco. The four Vice-Presidents are Febrian Ruddyard (Indonesia); Darius Staniulis (Lithuania); Marcela Maria Arias Moncada (Honduras); and Heidi Schroderus-Fox (Finland). Mr. Staniulis also served as Rapporteur.
Produced by the United Nations Information Service in Geneva for use of the media;
not an official record. English and French versions of our releases are different as they are the product of two separate coverage teams that work independently.
HRC24.030E
Source: The White House
Residential Area
St. Pete Beach, Florida
11:34 A.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Hello, folks.
I just met a number of the homeowners, been wiped out, and the — everything from the Coast Guard to the fire department. It’s a hell of a deal.
I’m here in Florida for the second time in two weeks and — to survey the damage from another catastrophic storm: Hurricane Milton. Thankfully, the storm’s impact was not as cataclysmic as had — we had predicted. But on top of two [one] before it, it just keeps s- — seem we got to get — getting worse.
And bu- — you know, but for some individuals, it was cataclysmic — all those folks who not only lost their homes but, more importantly, those folks who lost their lives, lost family members, lost all their personal belongings. Entire neighborhoods were flooded, and millions — millions were without power.
Earlier this morning, I did an aerial tour of Saint Petersburg and the battered coastline. I flew over Tropicana Field and — where the Tampa Bays play — Rays play, and the roof was almost completely off. But thank God not many people were injured.
I spoke with first responders who’ve been working around the clock. I also met with small-business owners here and homeowners who’ve taken a real beating — these back-to-back storms. And they’re heartbroken and exhausted, and their expenses are piling up.
And I know from experience how devastating it is to lose your home. Several years ago, my home was struck by lightning. It didn’t all burn down, but we were out of the home for seven months while it was being repaired. The thing I was most concerned about was not just the home; it was all those things, all those — all those pictures I saved, my — and my daughter had drawn when she was little, all the — all the family photographs, all the albums, all the things that really matter.
Folks, the — the fact is that when you lose your wedding ring and the old photos of your children, family keepsakes, things that can’t be replaced — but sometimes, from my own experience, that’s the part that hurts the most.
And I’m standing next to the mayor of Pete’s Beach and the Chairwoman Peters. Both their homes were damaged in Hurricane Milton. The mayor’s home flooded, family vehicles washed away. The county chair’s home had experienced significant damage in the past two storms previous. They just finished rebuilding and settling back in, and now they have to do it all over again.
Both their families lost precious personal belongings, but they’ve stepped up not only to look out for themselves but to help other families, help their neighbors. You know, that’s the resilience of the people of West Florida.
And I want to thank them and all the public officials who suffered consequential losses because of the storm but who are out there doing things to help other people who had serious losses. It matters. The American people should know the sacrifices they’re making.
You know, they’ve been steadfast partners as well. We’ve been in frequent contact.
And it’s in moments like this we come together to take care of each other, not as Democrats or Republicans but as Americans — Americans who need help and Americans who would help you if you were in the same situation. We are one United States — one Unites States.
I also came here to talk about all the progress we have made together. This is a whole-of-government effort, from state and local to FEMA to U.S. Coast Guard, Army Corps of Engineers, the Energy Department, Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Defense, just to name a few.
FEMA has delivered 1.2 million meals, over 300,000 liters of water, 2 million gallons of fuel. And so far, we’ve installed 100 satellite terminals to restore communications in impacted areas so families can ton- — contact their loved ones to be sure everything is okay and be able to reach out for help as well.
You can also go online to DisasterAssistance.gov — DisasterAssistance.gov — or call 1-800-621-FEMA — F-E-M-A.
Yesterday, after I signed the major disaster declaration, more than 250,000 Floridians registered for help — 250,000 — the most in sin- — any — a single day ever in the history of this country — 250,000.
I know you’re concerned about the debris removal, and it’s obvious why. We’re prioritizing debris removal and working with the state and local partners to clear roads, to get wreckage into — of the two hurricanes off properties, and so more folks can return home and businesses can receive much-needed deliveries of food, fuel, medicine, and other essentials. That’s a priority for me.
Power has also been restored to over 2 million people in a matter of days. And thanks to tens of thousands of power workers from 43 states and Canada working nonstop, even more people will have more power restored soon.
Today, I’m proud to announce $612 million to six new cutting-edge projects to support communities impacted by Hurricane Helene and Milton. That includes $47 million for Gainesville Regional Utilities and another $47 million for Florida Power & Light.
This funding will not only restore power, but it’ll make the region’s power system stronger and more capable and reduce the frequency and duration of power outages while extreme weather events become more frequent.
In fact, we’ve been able to restore power quicker because of critical infrastructure investments were made both when I was vice president and president to harden the grid. For folks at home, “the grid” means the electrical power system that transmits energy from the — where it’s produced in a power plant to where it’s used in homes and businesses.
We’ve been hardening the grid, like b- — like burying transmission lines underground, replacing wood power poles with concrete or composite poles so they don’t snap in the wind.
Energy Secretary Granholm is here with me today leading this effort, and she’ll tell you more about it and other cutting-edge technologies on the grid in a moment.
Let me close with this. I’m here to porsonally — personally say thank you to the brave first responders — and I don’t want to underestimate that — brave first responders, men and women in uniform, utility workers. (Inaudible) look at the number that showed up from around the country — from Canada — California, Nebraska, all over the country — to come here to help.
Men and women in uniform, as I said; health care personnel; neighbors helping neighbors; and so many more people. This is all a team effort, folks. You made a big difference. And it’s saved lives.
But there’s much more to do, and we’re going to do everything we can to get power back into your homes, not only helping you recover but to help you build back stronger.
God bless you all. And may God protect our first responders and protect our troops.
Now I’m going to turn this over to Secretary Granholm. Madam Secretary.
11:42 A.M. EDT
Source: The White House
Following Hurricane Helene’s devastating impacts across the Southeast and Appalachia, the Biden-Harris Administration continues its robust Federal efforts to help communities recover and rebuild. The storm heavily impacted North Carolina, where the Administration continues to surge resources and assist families, business owners, farmers, and other impacted communities receive the support and assistance they need and deserve.
Federal disaster assistance for Hurricane Helene survivors has surpassed $474 million – including more than $86 million in housing and other types of assistance for survivors in North Carolina. Survivors can register for assistance at one of three Disaster Recovery Centers in Caldwell, McDowell, and Buncombe Counties, or on disasterassistance.gov, by calling 1-800-621-3362, or via the FEMA app.
The Department of Defense continues to support search-and-rescue operations, route clearance, and commodities distribution across western North Carolina with 1,500 active-duty troops. The Department of Defense is also employing additional capabilities to assist with increasing situational awareness across the remote terrain of Western North Carolina. The Army Corps of Engineers continues missions supporting debris removal, temporary emergency power installation, infrastructure and water and wastewater assessments, and technical assistance. Over 2,000 North Carolina National Guard personnel along with over 200 Guardsmen from 15 States are conducting response operations in western North Carolina.
As response efforts continue in North Carolina, more than 1,250 FEMA staff remain on the ground, with more arriving daily. Nearly 400 Urban Search and Rescue personnel remain in the field helping people. These teams have rescued or supported over 3,200 survivors to date.
Power has been restored to more than approximately 96 percent of customers, as a result of 10,000 utility personnel working around the clock. Cellular restoration also continues to improve, with more than 93 percent of cellular sites in service. FEMA is boosting response coordination by providing 40 Starlink units to ensure first responders can communicate with each other.
Commodity distribution, mass feeding, and hydration operations continue in areas of western North Carolina. FEMA continues to send commodity shipments and voluntary organizations are supporting feeding operations with bulk food and water deliveries coming via truck and aircraft. Mobile feeding operations are reaching survivors in heavily impacted areas, including three mass feeding sites in Buncombe, McDowell and Watauga counties. The Salvation Army has 20 mobile feeding units supporting this massive operation and has provided emotional and spiritual care to survivors. To date, the American Red Cross is engaging in targeted distribution of emergency supplies in low-income communities with high levels of minor or affected residential damage.
Additional recovery efforts in North Carolina include:
Supporting Infrastructure Recovery
As part of the robust, whole-of-government response to Hurricane Helene, the U.S. Department of Transportation is supporting response and recovery efforts in impacted communities in North Carolina. DOT personnel are on the ground in multiple locations of the state.
On October 5, the Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) announced $100 million in Quick Release Emergency Relief funding to support North Carolina. The funding helps pay for the costs of immediate emergency work resulting from Hurricane Helene flood damage. Additional funding will flow to affected communities from the Emergency Relief program.
FHWA worked closely with North Carolina and other federal agencies to assess infrastructure damage, including supporting hundreds of bridge inspections and other critical infrastructure assessments across the Southeast. On October 8, FHWA Acting Administrator Kristin White visited the region with Governor Roy Cooper, North Carolina Department of Transportation Secretary Joey Hopkins and other federal, state and local officials and got a first-hand look at impacts from the storm and recovery efforts.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) continues to work with partners in affected parts of North Carolina and Tennessee, as the national airspace steadily returned to normal operations.
The FAA Air Traffic Organization Technical Operations Team is on-site and leading communications restoration efforts at air traffic facilities. FAA also supported the North Carolina Air National Guard by providing advisory services at Rutherford County Airport and Avery County Airport.
The FAA worked with state and local governments, critical infrastructure owners and operators, and first responders to enable drones to support response and recovery. The FAA granted permission to allow Wing to temporarily conduct beyond visual line of sight drone package deliveries for Walmart’s pharmacy in western North Carolina, delivering essential items including prescription medicine, medical supplies, and medical equipment to hard-to-reach locations.
Additionally, President Biden’s approval of a Presidential Emergency Declaration for North Carolina affords the state a period of emergency regulatory relief from Federal Motor Carrier Safety regulations, including flexibility around driving time for property- and passenger-carrying vehicles. This allows truck drivers to get essential supplies to affected areas in North Carolina. It may also provide opportunities for motorcoach buses to deliver relief teams to response locations and allow for the transport and evacuation of residents.
On October 10, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael Regan joined Governor Cooper, Senator Tillis, Congressman Edwards and local officials to assess federal and state recovery efforts in response to Hurricane Helene. EPA and its state partners have made significant progress bringing drinking water and wastewater systems back online, including restoring service to more than 75 drinking water systems that serve approximately 260,000 people in the Asheville area. EPA is also providing technical assistance and drinking water testing to systems and private drinking water well owners across the Asheville area through their Mobile Drinking Water lab – giving residents clear data and confidence that their water is safe to drink. The lab is capable of testing 100 samples per day. Water utilities and private well owners must request sampling services through their local health departments. EPA will remain on the ground in North Carolina helping area residents as long as their assistance is needed.
The Department of Energy’s Energy Response Organization remains activated to respond to storm impacts, and responders remain deployed to FEMA regional response coordination centers. Via the Electricity Sub-Sector Coordinating Council and Oil and Natural Gas Sub-Sector Coordinating Council, the Department of Energy has been coordinating continuously with energy sector partners on the ongoing Hurricane Helene response. As noted above, there are 10,000 line workers supporting power restoration efforts.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration continues to support post-disaster imagery flights following Hurricane Helene, already totaling over 68 flight hours during 20 flights, including over western North Carolina. This imagery not only supports FEMA and the broader response community, but the public at large.
Providing Financial Flexibilities to Homeowners and Taxpayers
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is providing a 90-day moratorium on foreclosures of mortgages insured by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA) as well as foreclosures of mortgages to Native American borrowers guaranteed under the Section 184 Indian Home Loan Guarantee program. Additionally, affected homeowners that have mortgages through Government-Sponsored Enterprises – including Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac – and the FHA are eligible to suspend their mortgage payments through a forbearance plan for up to 12 months.
HUD announced $3 million for the State of North Carolina to support people experiencing homelessness in communities impacted by Hurricane Helene. Funding from the Rapid Unsheltered Survivor Housing program will help residents and families who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness and have needs that are not otherwise served or fully met by existing Federal disaster relief programs.
This summer, HUD launched a new streamlined process for requesting additional flexibility on existing grants after a disaster is declared. Recipients of annual HUD funding – including in North Carolina – may request waivers to unlock and accelerate the use of their funding for disaster response and recovery. With the updated waiver process, HUD is proactively issuing maximum flexibility to communities impacted by disasters. These flexibilities will expedite the recovery process, reduce administrative burden, and allow impacted jurisdictions to quickly tailor programs and activities to address the post disaster needs of their communities. The Disaster Assistance and Recovery Team within HUD’s Office of Housing Counseling continues to conduct focused meetings with housing counseling agencies in each state impacted by these disasters to discuss their unique response and recovery challenges and identify resources available to assist.
The Internal Revenue Service announced disaster tax relief for all individuals and businesses affected by Hurricane Helene in North Carolina. North Carolina taxpayers now have until May 1, 2025, to file various federal individual and business tax returns and make tax payments.
Protecting Public Health
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) declared a Public Health Emergency for North Carolina to address the health impacts of Hurricane Helene. HHS’s Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR) continues to provide medical support for Hurricane Helene, predominantly onsite in North Carolina. These ASPR personnel are deployed to support Hurricane Helene response operations, which include four Disaster Medical Assistance Teams and personnel from a Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team (DMORT) in North Carolina. ASPR Health and Medical Task Forces and ASPR Disaster Medical Assistance Teams from the National Disaster Medical System are providing 24-hour surge support to three hospitals: Mission Hospital in Asheville, Blue Ridge Regional Hospital in Spruce Pine, and Caldwell Memorial in Lenoir. To date, ASPR teams have seen nearly 1000 patients. ASPR will continue to work with federal, state, and local partners to prioritize medical assistance to other areas affected by Hurricane Helene as required and requested.
Supporting Workers and Worker Safety
Working alongside the Department of Labor, the States of North Carolina has announced that eligible workers can receive federal Disaster Unemployment Assistance to compensate for income lost directly resulting from Hurricane Helene. And, through the Department of Labor’s innovative partnership with the U.S. Postal Service, displaced workers in North Carolina can now go to the post office in any other state and verify their ID for purposes of getting their benefits quickly.
Supporting Farmers and Agriculture
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has put contingency plans and program flexibilities into place to ensure farmers, foresters and communities are able to get the support they need, such as by extending program signup opportunities, expediting crop insurance payments, and using waivers and emergency procedures to expedite recovery efforts on working lands. USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service has issued flexibilities and waivers for North Carolina to ensure that food and nutritional assistance reaches those in need as soon as possible. In North Carolina, waivers have been issued to increase access to WIC products, replace benefits through Summer EBT, allow the purchase of hot foods through SNAP, and more.
Additionally, USDA is currently coordinating over 200 staff on the ground in North Carolina, including saw support teams and emergency road clearance teams, to help clear trees and debris, including in Waterville, Marion, Newton, and Weaverville.
Supporting Students and Student Loan Borrowers
The Department of Education has offered technical assistance to states and local educational agencies to support recovery efforts and shared critical resources, including those developed by other federal agencies and organizations, to support restoring the teaching and learning environment.
The Department’s office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) has flexibilities that are automatically available to affected institutions of higher education to help their continued management of the federal student aid programs. These flexibilities help schools if they need to adjust their academic calendars, such as due to unexpected closures, and also help students who may need to take a leave of absence. The flexibilities also help students avoid reductions in their federal aid due to any state or federal disaster assistance provided. FSA will also work with affected institutions that need help on other areas, such as paying credit balances. FSA has communicated with schools located in the areas impacted by Hurricane Helene. Those communications included existing Department guidance about how natural disasters impact schools and their administration of financial aid, resources, and links to FEMA disaster aid information. FSA’s communications also included a way for schools to share more information about the disaster impact on their campus and submit questions about administrative relief and flexibilities.
The Department is ensuring affected borrowers in areas impacted by the hurricanes can focus on their critical needs without needing to worry about missing their student loan payments. Direct Loan borrowers and federally-serviced FFEL borrowers in the affected area who miss their payments will be automatically placed into a natural disaster forbearance. During forbearance, payments are temporarily postponed or reduced, and interest is still charged. Thanks to regulations issued by the Biden-Harris Administration, months in this forbearance will count toward PSLF and IDR forgiveness. Direct Loan and federally serviced FEEL borrowers are not required to take an action but have the option to call their servicer if they wish to enroll in the forbearance proactively. Perkins loan borrowers should contact their loan holder to request natural disaster forbearance.
Continuing to Survey Data
The Department of the Interior’s U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) continues working to measure river levels and flow, and repair streamgages that transmit critical data. USGS crews continue working to determine the extent of flooding by surveying for high-water marks. These flood-peak data and high-water marks are used to determine flood frequency and are critical in the design of infrastructure and in determining flood plain boundaries. USGS stood up a landslide response team that now includes 32 USGS scientists, 19 of which ware mapping landslides, to provide technical assistance to the North Carolina Geological Survey and Tennessee Geological Survey. Their work includes reconnaissance using satellite imagery, flights, and on-the-ground assessments to map landslides.
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Source: The White House
One year ago, Wadee Alfayoumi, a six-year-old Palestinian American Muslim child, was stabbed to death at home. His mother, Hanan Shaheen, was stabbed 12 times in the same senseless attack.
There is no place for hate in America. Our nation’s founding principles tell us that every person should have the freedom to live safe from violence, hate, and bigotry – and no American, of any background, should be made to feel unsafe in our nation. That includes Muslim and Arab Americans, who have been a vital part of the American story since our founding days. As I told Wadee’s mother, Hanan, when I spoke with her, I condemn the heinous attack against her family, and all forms of hate and bigotry against Muslim and Arab Americans.
Over the past year, we have seen a rise in Islamophobic and anti-Arab incidents in America, such as bullying, online harassment, and hate crimes. These hate-fueled attacks are unacceptable, and stand against our fundamental values. President Biden and I have made taking on hate a national priority, and we will continue to do everything in our power to combat hate in all its forms, and against any community. We must be unequivocal: in America, no one should be made to fight hate alone.
Today and every day, Doug and I hold Wadee’s memory in our thoughts. And we recommit to doing all we can to continue building a country where all people can live safe from hate, bigotry, and violence.
# # #
Source: The White House
Corruption poses a grave and enduring threat to U.S. national interests and those of our partners. When officials abuse their entrusted power for personal or political gain, the interests of authoritarians and corrupt actors win – at the expense of citizens, honest businesses, and healthy societies. As the Biden-Harris Administration took office, this longstanding challenge had metastasized. In some countries, oligarchs were teaming up with foreign kleptocrats to warp policy and procurement decisions in exchange for kickbacks – with no accountability. Corrupt officials were laundering stolen assets through the U.S. and global financial systems, while local investigators were ill-equipped to follow the money. Reformers in countries saddled with corruption had scarce public resources to actually address development needs. The Biden-Harris Administration tacked these challenges starting Day One, to ensure democracy delivers and corrupt actors are held to account.
The first National Security Study Memorandum of the Biden-Harris Administration established countering corruption as a “core U.S. national security interest,” leading to the issuance in December 2021 of the first United States Strategy on Countering Corruption. Since then, the United States has taken action at home and around the world to curb illicit finance, hold corrupt actors accountable, forge multilateral partnerships, and equip frontline leaders to take on transnational corruption. The result has been historic progress in protecting the U.S. financial system from money-laundering, including in the residential real estate sector, while enhancing corporate transparency. This Administration has mobilized record levels of foreign assistance dedicated to anti-corruption, including $339 million in Fiscal Year 2023 alone – almost double the yearly average during the previous four years. This new assistance has unlocked support for anti-corruption institutions, leveled the playing field for law-abiding businesses, enabled journalists to team up across borders, and more. Expanded law enforcement cooperation and capacity-building have generated convictions of corrupt actors as well as the seizure, forfeiture, and return of criminal proceeds, while new anti-corruption offices at the Department of State (State) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) energized diplomatic and stakeholder engagement. The United States imposed sanctions on more than 500 individuals and entities for corruption and related activities, and established – for the first time in any jurisdiction globally – a new visa restriction for those who enable corrupt activity.
U.S. progress on anti-corruption has produced concrete benefits for the American people and stakeholders around the world – enhancing prosperity, economic security, safety, and democracy, as outlined below. To bolster and sustain this work, the U.S. government has also modernized its approach to addressing corruption as a cross-cutting priority. Today, Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economics Daleep Singh will highlight the benefits of this work to American businesses and workers at a White House anti-corruption roundtable with leaders from 15 major U.S. companies.
Advancing economic opportunity abroad
Protecting the U.S. financial system from abuse
Keeping America and our partners safe
Defending democracy by rooting out corruption
Modernizing and coordinating U.S. government efforts to fight corruption
Expanded interagency capacity has been complemented by the National Security Council’s establishment of a dedicated Director for Anti-Corruption position, for the first time, to ensure whole-of-government coordination and advance anti-corruption within key policy processes.
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Source: The White House
Principal Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer traveled to Port-au-Prince, Haiti on October 16 to meet with senior Haitian officials, and leadership of the Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission and the Haitian National Police (HNP) to drive progress on security and governance efforts. Mr. Finer was joined by a senior U.S. delegation from the Department of State, the Department of Defense, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and the National Security Council. During separate meetings with members of the Transitional Presidential Council (TPC) and Prime Minister Garry Conille, Mr. Finer expressed condolences for the tragic loss of innocent life in the recent gang-led massacre in Pont-Sondé and reiterated the U.S. commitment to support Haitian-led efforts to restore security and pave the way toward free and fair elections. Mr. Finer also commended the TPC for the transition of the presidency to President Leslie Voltaire on October 7, while noting that all Haitian officials must continue to put country over party and deliver on their promise to work for all Haitians.
In his meeting with MSS and HNP leadership, Mr. Finer underscored our continued commitment to rally international support and provide the tools necessary to restore security and rule of law in Haiti. To ensure that the MSS has the resources that it requires, the United States is by far the largest contributor to support the MSS mission to date. Following the Haitian government’s request to the UN Security Council to authorize a UN peacekeeping mission to take over from the MSS at an appropriate time, Mr. Finer reassured Haitian officials of U.S. support for such a transition.
The United States remains the largest contributor of humanitarian aid to the Haitian people through our UN and NGO partners, while also supporting the renewal of the HOPE/HELP trade preferences program as soon as possible to spur greater economic prosperity in Haiti.
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Source: The White House
Higher education should be a pathway to economic opportunity – not a lifetime of debt. That is why I have fought to make education more affordable and reduce the burden of student debt throughout my career.
When President Biden and I took office, only 7,000 people had ever been approved for Public Service Loan Forgiveness. Today, I am proud to say that a record one million teachers, nurses, first responders, social workers, and other public service workers have received student debt cancellation. As I travel our nation, I meet many of these public servants who say they now have more money in their pocket to put towards buying a home, renting an apartment, getting a car, starting a family, and saving up for the future.
Our Administration has forgiven over $170 billion in student debt for nearly five million people throughout the country — more than any Administration in history. And while Republican elected officials do everything in their power to block millions of their own constituents from receiving this much needed economic relief, I will continue our work to lower costs, make higher education more affordable, and relieve the burden of student debt. I am fully committed to doing what is necessary to build an economy that works for every American.
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Source: The White House
5:54 P.M. EDT
THE FIRST LADY: Thank you. (Applause.)
Thank you, Alexa. And I’m excited to see your generation forging new connections to our past and shining such a bright light into our future.
And I’m also grateful to the National Italian American Foundation. (Applause.) John, Robert, you’ve all — you’ve helped so many people experience our heritage in Italy and preserve it here in the United States. So, thank you.
Buonasera, everyone. (Laughter.)
AUDIENCE: Buonasera!
THE FIRST LADY: And welcome to the White House.
When I was a little girl, I learned what it means to be Italian American in my grandparents’ tiny, well-worn kitchen — and not only because there were ribbons of pasta — homemade pasta and sauce bubbling over on the stove.
No, the most important lesson that I learned in their kitchen was that, when you’re Italian American, there’s always room for one more chair at the table — (applause) — enough bread toast to feed one more guest, enough space in our hearts for another friend to become like family.
And even when times are hard, there’s —
THE PRESIDENT: Looking at me. (Laughter.)
THE FIRST LADY: There’s always enough time to — (the president makes the sign of the cross) — (laughter) — enjoy the pleasures of life together.
My grandparents also taught me to never waste an opportunity to invite more people to the table and make a difference together. So, I knew I had to bring those values of love, abundance, and service to the White House as the first Italian American first lady. (Applause.)
That’s why I’ve used this platform to give more women a seat at the table in discussions about their own health — (applause) — to hear from military families about how we can support them, to uplift community college students.
And I’ve had the opportunity to bring so many more people inside the historic walls of the White House by creating new educational experiences that allow more Americans to immerse themselves in this house, the People’s House; by using these rooms to celebrate the young people who are changing our world; by honoring the immigrants who helped build this country; and tonight — (applause) — thank you — and tonight, gathering with this community — my community — to celebrate our culture. (Laughter.)
So, it’s been the honor of my life to serve as first lady. And during my time here, I’ve often thought of my great-grandparents leaving everything they knew behind to chase the promise of America. And then, when they arrived on Ellis Island to take their first strides into a new life, I don’t think that they could ever have imagined that a group of hundreds of Italian Americans — coming together in the White House.
When our roots run deep, there’s no limit to how high we can reach. So, tonight, I hope that you feel the power of our ancestors’ values beating inside of us as we carry their legacy forward; that you feel home — you feel at home, eat good food, and end up with a little something sweet together, as a family. (Laughter.)
Now, it’s my pleasure to introduce a man who’s always felt at home — (laughs) — with Italian Americans. (Applause.) In fact, Joe first met my family at a big cookout at my grandparents’ house in Hammonton, New Jersey.
So, I was pretty nervous, you know, about Joe coming to meet my family. But as soon as Joe pulled up into the driveway — and you kn- — you can picture this — my tiny grandmom bolted out of the house, bounded down the porch steps, in her housecoat and her apron, and she gave Joe this huge hug, as if she’d known him his entire life. And before he could even get a plate, Joe was greeted not as a stranger but as family.
Over the years, I’ve seen the Italian American community extend the same joyful love and support to Joe. You mean so much to him. (Laughs.)
So, please welcome — I don’t know why I’m getting so emotional — your president, my husband, Joe. (Applause.)
THE PRESIDENT: Welcome to the White House. (Applause.) My name is Joe Biden, and I’m Jill Biden’s husband. (Laughter and applause.)
Now, I may be Irish, but I’m not stupid. (Laughter.) I married Dominic Giacoppa’s granddaughter.
And five years ago, I want you to know, I received the Sons of Italy Man of the Year award. To the best of my knowledge, I’m the only non-Italian ever to receive that award. (Laughter and applause.) There was a large crowd when I received that award. It was down by the train station.
You know, I said I — I moved from an Irish Catholic neighborhood in Scranton to an Italian Catholic neighborhood in Claymont, Delaware. And I went from a — where — a place where you ended like Finnegan and Murphy and all that, down if your name didn’t lend — end in “O,” you’re in real trouble. (Laughter.)
I was one of the few guys whose name didn’t end in “O.” I’d look out there and look at all my friends. You know, I accepted the award and named some of the guys I grew up with next door: Sonny Daramo, whose mom would say, “Joey, it’s not sauce; it’s gravy, Joey. It’s gravy, Joey.” (Laughter and applause.) Oh, you think I’m kidding. I’m not. (Laughter.)
No, Anzilotti, De- — Sabatino, Buchini, Bifferato, Ceni, Congialdi, Deluterio, Monaco — no, you think I’m kidding — Tancr- —
By the way, after I talked about it, I looked down at that crowd and said, “You know…” — thinking about it, I said, “I deserve this damn award.” (Laughter.) “With that many Italian friends, man, I deserve that award.” (Laughter.)
Thank you, Alexa, for being here and sharing your pride in your family and your heritage.
Look, and it’s great to see so many friends from the National Italian American Foundation, you know, the Sons and Daughters of Italy, and so many other Italian American leaders and organization from all across the country.
You know, I can honestly say I wouldn’t be president without you. I wouldn’t be president without the Italian American community.
Now, what she didn’t say is we do have something in common. I’m Catherine Eugenia Finnegan — Irish Catholics background. You guys, a lot of you are Catholics, you know. (Laughter.) I know you don’t admit it as much, but there — (laughter).
This month is about celebrating the extraordinary contributions and proud, proud herita- — heritage of Italian Americans to our nation. And it’s kind of endless.
For some of our families, your story is America’s story. It stretches back generations. For others, it just started. No matter when these st- — stories of immigrants who left everything behind to travel across the ocean in pursuit of the American dream just for a shot — just a simple shot. You and your ancestors worked hard to help build this country and build the middle class.
People like my college friend, the late Congressman Bill Pascrell — he’s been — Bill, Jr. is here. Where — where are you, Bill? (Applause.) There you are.
I used to kid his dad all the time. I said, “You know, Delaware may be the second-smallest state in the Union, but we own the Delaware River up to the highwater mark in New Jersey.” (Laughter.) There was actually a Supreme Court case about that. Anyway. (Laughter.)
But he represented New Jersey, and his son represents the House of Representatives. And Bill did it for 27 years, when he passed away this summer. He was the grandson of Italian immigrants, a giant in the community, and a devoted patriot to the nation. You got good blood, kid, as my dad would say. (Applause.)
He was a part of a proud, proud heritage of Italian Americans who enrich every part of American life: entrepreneurs, educators, scientists, chefs, diplomats, doctors, servicemembers, veterans, athletes, actors, artists, and so much more. There’s nothing the Italian community is not engaged in — I mean, virtually nothing. There’s noth- — no community you don’t excel in.
But I also know it wasn’t always easy. Many of your ancestors faced horrific discrimination, like my ancestors faced horrific discrimination, when they first came to our shores. Yet, even in the face of — Italian Americans proved that they had the resilient spirit and a devotion to family and community, an unshakeable faith in the promise of a better tomorrow.
You know, my dad used to have an expression. He’d say, “Joey, family is the beginning, the middle, and the end — the beginning, the middle, and the end.” It’s a faith that has carried through to today, both at home and abroad.
Italian Americans are central to our nation’s deep friendship and strategic partnership with Italy. I’ve — I’ve worked out a really good relationship with the Italians. I’m — well, Ital- — I better have done that but at home. (Laughter.) But all kidding aside, with th- — with Italy. What a magnificent country.
You know, and — anyway, I won’t get started. But — (laughter) — you know, the bond between our countries is founded on a shared principle and shared commitments, including the shared support for the brave people of Ukraine as they defend themselves against Russia’s illegal (inaudible). (Applause.)
I might add, they have a female leader. (Applause.) I wish Sonny Daramo were here to hear that. (Laughter.)
In addition, Italy’s remarkable stewardship with the presidency of the G7 this year, as well as Italy’s long-standing contributions to transatlantic security through NATO — look, and their strong leadership in the European Union — it underscores how important Italy’s role is on the global stage, not just, you know, for America but for the world.
You know, let me close with this. You know, Michelangelo famously said he “saw an angel in the marble, and I carved until I set it free.” “I saw an angel in the marble, and I carved until I set it free.” To me, that’s the essence of what Italian Americans have done to our country for our entire history. You’ve carved until you set us free. I’m — I’m being dead- — deadly earnest.
We’re all reminded that when Jill and I had the honor to host one of the greatest singers of all time, in my view, Andrea Bocelli, here at the White House for Christmas in our first year in office, he performed with his son and his daughter as if they were a choir of herald angels. They were incredible. You know, with their God-given talent, the Bocelli family moved our hearts, pierced our souls — and I mean this sincerely — I have all of the music on my — and they embodied the spirit and beauty of all that connects us as people. A powerful reminder that America’s story depends on — not on any one of us but on — not on some of us but all of us.
It’s a story I see in all of you, working tirelessly — tirelessly to help realize the promise of America — and I mean it — for all Americans. Not a joke. Because some of you have been on the short end of the stick like my family growing up had been.
This is what the Italian American Heritage Month is all about. It’s about celebrating and connecting, feeling the pride in heritage and community, remembering who the hell we are.
We’re the United States of America, and there’s nothing beyond our capacity when we do it together — nothing, nothing, nothing. (Applause.) No, I really mean it.
So, thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
And I want to tell you, you know what made me mo- — the — probably one of the most famous guys in my family — the whole family? Not being president. I took her to a beautiful little island off of Sicily. (Laughter.) And she keeps saying, “I’m going back.” (Laughter.)
THE FIRST LADY: Soon!
THE PRESIDENT: “With — with or without you.” (Laughter.)
So, folks, all kidding aside, thank you. You’re an incredible community. (Applause.)
THE FIRST LADY: Thank you.
THE PRESIDENT: You’re an essential part of my life.
Thank you, thank you, thank you. (Applause.) Enjoy the day.
God bless you all. And may God protect our troops.
Thank you. (Applause.) All right.
6:07 P.M. EDT
Source: The White House
3:53 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Hello. (Applause.)
Joe, thank you.
Thank you, thank you, thank you. (Applause.)
I’m sure you’re clapping because I’m the last speaker.
Well, that was worth that partial comment — or concert. You know what he said on the way out? Can I tell them, pal? He said, “If I get a Grammy, I’m going to give it to you,” the only guy in this whole darn church who can’t sing a note. (Laughter.)
My dad used to have a band and sang. He said, “Joey, I don’t know where the hell you came from. You can’t carry a tune. You can’t sing. You can’t dance. I don’t know where you came from, but I love you anyway.” (Laughter.)
Father MacMillan, thank you for everything. Thank you for — for being so good to us.
President Clinton, President Obama, distinguished guests; the Kennedy family, children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and extended family, it’s been an emotional journey listening to all of you. When I knew I was going to be the last speaker, I thought, “How did that happen?” Because, you know, it brings back so many memories.
Ethel was always there for so many people, and she played an essential role in my life as well — maybe a little different than with others. She was there as soon as I entered political office in 1972 as a 29-year-old kid before I got sworn in.
I was in her brother-in-law’s office — Teddy’s office — hiring staff — I was only 29; you had to be 30 years old to be sworn in, and I wasn’t 30 yet — when I got a phone call from the fire department in my — by my house saying there had been an accident. A tractor-trailer had broadsided my wife’s automobile, Christmas shopping with a Christmas tree on top, on December 18th, and killed my wife and killed my daughter, and my boys weren’t expected to live.
When I lost my family — and she was there. Joe, your mom was there then — then.
As soon as I got elected president, I received a letter from your mom. The letterhead was titled Mrs. Robert Kennedy, and in her very neat handwriting, she had written that she took great comfort in knowing the country was in good hands.
She had no idea, for a 29-year-old kid in that circumstance, how much it meant. Because as some of you know — Bill knows — I didn’t plan on sticking around after that accident.
She said she was honored and proud there was a bust of her husband, Bobby Kennedy, in my office, the Oval Office.
I have only two political heroes in my life: Dr. King and Bobby Kennedy. Not a joke. So, I didn’t realize — my two colleagues from the — who were president know — you get to pick what you want in your office, and I wanted to be able to see both of them from my — from the Resolute Desk by the fireplace: Dr. King and Bobby Kennedy.
And days later, I received another letter from her that I’ll always remember, and I know all of you look forward to each year: a valentine card — a valentine card. Which, in our house, Valentine’s Day is known as “Jill’s holiday.” (Laughter.)
Like Ethel, Jill is a practical joker. This was no surprise — it was no surprise that Jill loved Ethel’s card that year, which said — I’m not sure the hundred others who receive it felt the same way because, apparently, she sent that card — she sent it to everyone that year. (Laughter.) It was a picture of me and Ethel surrounded by hearts. (Laughter.) Oh, you think I’m kidding. I — it meant a lot to me, I’m telling you.
Printed — the language on the card, it said — in the printed language of the card, it said, “I’m not Biden my time waiting for you, Valentine.” (Laughter.) And then in her handwriting, she says, “‘Cause he’s no ordinary Joe.” (Laughter.)
I don’t know how many of you got that damn valentine, but I tell you what, it meant a lot to me. (Laughter.) I’ve received a lot honors in my life, but that might be the best one I’ve ever received. (Laughter and applause.)
You know, yes, Ethel was Mrs. Robert Kennedy. She was one of my politi- — he was my — as I said, one of my political heroes. But I always knew her as Ethel Kennedy, a hero in her own right. I loved Bobby Kennedy. I’ve only met him once when I was in Syracuse law school and he was campaigning. But I — I just — I admired him so damn much.
I’ve told John Kerry this, my buddy. I — I could picture Bobby at my kitchen table with my dad and my mom. I could picture him there.
But, you know, Ethel was a hero in her own right, full of character, full of integrity and empathy — and genuine empathy.
She was full of laughter and joy and light. She was a great athlete in her own right, for real. She was a mother. Literally, there was nothing, from my perspective and, I suspect, most of you, that she couldn’t do — nothing.
Four years later, after I had gotten — after Bobby — she lost her beloved Bobby, she invited me and my boys to her home after the accident left my family broken, having lost my wife and daughter, my boys barely making it. Along with Teddy, she got me through a time I didn’t want to stick around. I wanted no part of being in the Congress or the Senate. I mean it.
I’d spoken to my governor, because we had elected a Democratic governor, to find a replacement for me. But Teddy and Ethel Kennedy would hear nothi- — none of it.
You know, the fact is, like she did for the country, Ethel helped my family find a way forward with principle and purpose.
We saw how she picked up Bobby’s cause and stamped her own mark on the country. Marching for civil rights, as you heard about today, and working to end poverty at home, attempting to secure peace abroad, and so much more. She once said, “For anyone to achieve something, you have to show a little courage. You’re only on this Earth once. You must give it all you’ve got.”
Reminded me of my mom. My mom used to say, “Joey, courage lives in every heart, and one day you’ll be called upon. Be ready to stand up.” And that’s not — that’s from Catherine Eugenia Finnegan Biden, and she meant it. She meant it.
For over 50 years, with Ethel’s own iron will and moral courage, she gave it everything she had, and we’re a better nation and a better world because of Ethel Kennedy.
Let me close with this. On a Sunday in May this year, I delivered a commencement speech at Morehouse College in Atlanta. I noted that had we been in church that day, there’d be a reflection about the resurrection and redemption. We remember Jesus was buried on Friday, and on Sunday, he rose again. But we don’t talk nearly enough about that Saturday when his disciples felt all hope was lost — all hope was lost.
In our lives and in the life of the nation, we have those Saturdays — and thank God your mom, your grandmom, your great-grandmom was — was there for me — to bear witness to the day before glory, to see people’s pain and not look away. But work is to be done on Saturday, is to move pain to purpose. How can faith get a person, get a nation through what is coming?
Well, my message to all of us here today and to the entire the country is look to Ethel Kennedy’s faith.
To the Kennedy family — presumptuous of me to say this and maybe sound inappropriate, but to the Kennedy family, the Biden family is here for you, as you’ve always been for us. You changed the life of my boys. You really did.
When I lost my son Beau, he was attorney general of the state of Delaware. And he volunteered to join the National Guard as attorney general. You either have to be state property or federal property. And he temporarily gave up his office to go with his unit for a year in Iraq. And unfortunately, I was in — in out — in and out of Iraq, as Barack knows, because — and Afghanistan 30-some times. And I got to see him several times.
But the bad news was he was about a quarter to a half mile away from a burn pit — 100 yards long, 10 feet deep, burning everything from waste to — everything, poisoning the air. And he came home with Stage 4 glioblastoma and he died. Your mom was there then too.
I apologize.
So, from the Biden family to the Kennedy family, the hymn that’s very close to our heart based on the 91st psalm, it goes like this: “May he raise you up on eagle’s wings and bear you on the breath of dawn, and make you to shine like the sun, and hold you in the palm of his hand.”
May God bless Ethel Kennedy, and may we — she re- — may be — she be reunited with the blessed pieces of her soul in Heaven.
God bless you all. And thank you for letting me participate. Thank you. (Applause.)
4:04 P.M. EDT
Source: The White House
2:15 P.M. EDT
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Okay. So, I’m just going to get straight to it.
As you can see, I have the national security advisor, Jake Sullivan, here to talk to us about the trip but also the latest in the Middle East.
Jake, the floor is yours.
MR. SULLIVAN: So, I don’t know if you guys have heard because of the lack of Wi-Fi back here, but the IDF has confirmed the death of Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas leader, and I’ll come to that in just a moment.
But let me start by laying out what we hope to achieve over the course of the next 24 hours in Berlin. This is the president’s first visit to Berlin as president, and he did not want his time in office to go by without going to the capital of one of — one of our most important partners and allies.
Germany is a core Ally in NATO, a core partner in the G7. They’ve been a core player in the Allied response to Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine. And the president is looking forward to having the opportunity to talk to the chancellor and other German officials about where we go from here in Ukraine; about developments in the Middle East, in Iran, Lebanon, Gaza, Israel; about how we align our respective approaches on the PRC; about how we align our industrial and innovation strategies; about artificial intelligence and the clean energy transition.
He will also have the opportunity to meet with the prime minister of the UK and president of France. The four leaders — Germany, France, UK, U.S. — will sit together to particularly focus on two issues.
One, the war in Ukraine and the pathway ahead, particularly in light of the fact that they’ve all had the opportunity to engage in person with President Zelenskyy over the course of the last few weeks and heard from him about where he sees things going. So, this is an opportunity to consult on that.
And then, second, to talk about the ongoing and fast-moving developments across the Middle East region.
The president will see President Steinmeier. He’ll spend one-on-one time with Chancellor Scholz. He’ll spend time with his delegation — with Chancellor Scholz and his delegation.
And then, of course, there’ll be this meeting among the four leaders in the afternoon, and there’ll be an opportunity for press statements with the chancellor and the president.
So, that’s the plan for tomorrow.
Of course, this comes against the backdrop of a pretty significant — very significant day in the Middle East, and that is that Yahya Sinwar has been taken off the battlefield. This is a murderous terrorist responsible for the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust. He has a lot of blood on his hands — Israeli blood, American blood, Palestinian blood — and the world is better now that he’s gone.
President Biden has just put out a written statement sharing his thoughts and reactions to the death of Sinwar, and he looks forward to the opportunity soon, perhaps very shortly, to speak to Prime Minister Netanyahu to congratulate the IDF and the brave Israeli soldiers and security professionals who carried out the operation that killed Sinwar but also to talk about the way forward, because Sinwar was a massive obstacle to peace and the day after in Gaza. And now that that obstacle has been removed, President Biden looks forward to talking to Prime Minister Netanyahu about how we secure the return of the hostages, an end to the war, and a move to the day after in Gaza — a Gaza where Hamas is no longer in power or control.
So they’ll have the opportunity to have an initial conversation about that, but this truly is an opportunity we need to seize together to bring about a better day for the people of Gaza, the people of Israel, the people of the whole region. And the United States is committed to doing everything in our power to help contribute to that.
Last thing I will say is that from shortly after October 7th, President Biden dispatched special operations personnel and intelligence professionals to Israel to work side by side with their Israeli counterparts in the hunt for Hamas leaders, including Sinwar, and it was with American intelligence help that many of these leaders, including Sinwar, were hunted and tracked, were flushed out of their hiding places, and put on the run. And, ultimately, this is a credit to the IDF for taking out Sinwar over the course of the last hours and days, but we’re proud of the support that the United States has given to the IDF all along the way.
So, with that, I’d be happy to take your questions.
Q Jake —
Q Can you say anything — well, go ahead. I’m sorry.
Q Jake, thanks so much for doing this. You kind of implied that Sinwar had been an obstacle to hostage release and ceasefire. How big an obstacle is that? And does this give you additional hope now of a ceasefire and possibly a hostage release? How should we process this?
MR. SULLIVAN: I didn’t just imply it; I stated it explicitly.
At various points along the way, Sinwar was more interested in causing mayhem and chaos and death than in actually trying to achieve a ceasefire and hostage deal. And we repeatedly saw moments where it was him, in particular, who stood in the way of making progress towards a ceasefire and hostage deal. Now, there were other obstacles too along the way, but he was certainly a critical one.
And, yes, I think his removal from the battlefield does present an opportunity to find a way forward that gets the hostages home, brings the war to an end, brings us to a day after. That’s something we’re going to have to talk about with our Israeli counterparts.
Of course, there are still other Hamas actors who need to be brought to justice, and there are hostages, including Americans, being held by terrorists. We’re going to have to deal with all of that, but we believe there is a renewed opportunity right now that we would like to seize.
Yeah.
Q Do you assess this as being the cutting off of the head of the Hydra, or what — what’s your assessment of Hamas’ capabilities from now on? Is there going to be a mop up? And what — what would you recommend the Israelis do?
MR. SULLIVAN: Sinwar was a critical figure operationally, militarily, and politically for Hamas. He had, in fact, consolidated control of both the political and military wing under his singular leadership in — in recent weeks and months. And so, this is a very significant event.
But what exactly it means for the future of Hamas as an organization, it’s early days yet. We will have to see.
What we do know is that the broad military structure, the battalions of Hamas have been systematically dismantled. We do know that Hamas does not pose the kind of threat to Israel that it posed on October 7th or anything close to it. We also know that there are still Hamas terrorists wielding guns and holding hostages and harboring a desire to continue to attack Israel and attack others.
And so, we’re going to have to sort through all of that. But this is an incredibly significant blow to Hamas. It is the removal of someone who, as I said, was unique in the consolidation of the control of the Hamas apparatus under his command. And now we will have to work to ensure that his death actually does deal the kind of long-term blow to Hamas that all of us would like to see.
Q Can you give —
Q Do you get the sense that Netanyahu is done now, that he’s — he’s reached his objectives? You just laid out the decimation of Hamas —
MR. SULLIVAN: No, his critical objective that — has not been reached. That objective is the return of the hostages, including American hostages. So, from the United States’ perspective, we now need to work with Israel, with Qatar and Egypt, with others — and this is something we’ll discuss with our European partners as well — to secure the release of those hostages. We’d like to see that happen.
Q You referenced U.S. intel. To what extent did that play a role in this particular operation?
MR. SULLIVAN: This operation was an IDF operation. I’m not here to overclaim or — or try to take credits for something where the credit belongs to them.
But the Americans — the special operations personnel, the intelligence professionals — they also deserve our thanks for the work that they did alongside the IDF over the course of many months to help create the kind of counterterrorism pressure in Gaza that put a lot of these guys on the run. And Sinwar was plainly on the run (inaudible).
Q Earlier this — earlier this week, Secretary Blinken and Secretary Austin sent letters to their counterparts threatening legal action if the humanitari- — humanitarian situation in Gaza doesn’t improve. Can you give us a sense of what that legal option would be and if there are any deadlines or specific actions that the president will raise with Prime Minister Netanyahu about that today?
MR. SULLIVAN: The letter speaks for itself. I think a lot of the headlines were breathless and overblown. We have had an ongoing dialogue with Israel for months now about improving the humanitarian situation. We have had previous communications that looked quite similar and that generated positive momentum towards opening crossings and getting more aid in. We’ve had, actually, constructive back-and-forth with our Israeli counterparts over the last few days in response to our requests, and we expect that we’ll see progress on the ground.
One thing that has unfolded this week is — is the reopening of some of the crossings that had been closed in the north and trucks going in. We need to see that sustained and expanded as we go forward, among the other requests in that letter.
But I’d — and I’d — just the other point I would make here is that it’s — it was a private diplomatic communication. It was a serious, substantive laydown. It’s part of our ongoing work and partnership with Israel. And having it all out there in the open, leaked in the way that it was, I think, was highly unfortunate. And I’ll leave it at that.
Q Can you give us a sense of what the president will say in this conversation with Netanyahu? Will he push for an accelerated timeline for a ceasefire? Will he say, you
know, kind of, “Now you achieved the main direct- — main objective and we should move forward on — on other things,” or push for humanitarian aid?
MR. SULLIVAN: I’m going to let the president speak to the prime minister before I preview what he’s going to say in the press on the record, but we’ll try to give you a good sense of both what the president is thinking and what he’s communicating to the prime minister at the appropriate time.
Q To — to what extent do you think this success with Sinwar might embolden Netanyahu when it comes to retaliating against Iran? Or do you see them as totally unrelated? And what are your conversations right now with them in terms of restraint — or whatever you want to call it — when the president has thoughts about what the target should be when they hit back?
MR. SULLIVAN: We’ve had very constructive communications with the Israelis about how they’re thinking about responding to the attack on October 1st. Those conversations will continue.
I can’t speculate as to the psychology of the prime minister based on what happened today. What I can say is that the logic of deterrence, the logic of a response to a salvo of 200 ballistic missiles — nothing in the Middle East is unrelated, but that is a distinct logic from the killing of Sinwar today.
Q Jake, going back to the trip. What message will President Biden give his fellow leaders about America’s place in the world, given the uncertainty around our upcoming election?
MR. SULLIVAN: Say that again.
Q What reassurance will President Biden give his fellow leaders about America’s place in the world, given the uncertainty about our upcoming presidential election?
MR. SULLIVAN: What President Biden can do is what he’s done for four years, which is lay out his vision of America’s place in the world and point the way forward based on what he thinks are in America’s national security interests and in the interests of our close allies.
Beyond that, he can’t speak for anyone else and doesn’t intend to.
Q Is there any —
Q Does this change your calculus on whether Israel can come to the table on a ceasefire by the end of the year?
MR. SULLIVAN: I’m sorry?
Q Your calculus on whether a ceasefire could be reached by the end of the year.
MR. SULLIVAN: I have long since given up on making predictions or drawing timelines. All I can say is that we see an opportunity now that we want to seize to try to secure the release of the hostages, and we’re going to work at that as rapidly as we possibly can.
Q Give- — given the situation, would the president reconsider possibly holding a press conference during his time in Berlin? It would be good to hear from him firsthand on how he thinks about this and the situation in Ukraine.
MR. SULLIVAN: I will note for the record there are heads nodding. (Laughter.) I’ll also note for the record that that is a really fascinating way to bring the press into the middle of a world historical event. So — (laughter) — and I’ll leave it at that.
Q I’ll follow up on that. The president talks about democracy as being a key part of his administration, of his vision for America that you just referenced. Why would he not take questions from the press at what was originally going to be a state visit to Germany? I don’t understand.
MR. SULLIVAN: It’s fascinating how you guys can — (laughs) — make this the story.
Q It’s not the story. It’s just a question.
MR. SULLVIAN: I mean, honestly, I think invoking democracy and suggesting that President Biden is somehow insufficiently committed to it because of the structure of his press engagement on one day in Germany is a bit ludicrous.
Q I can ask a Germany question. So, a lot of the moves that President Biden has made both domestically and internationally have been characterized as “Trump-proofing” the — the, you know, U.S. government for a future Trump presidency.
How do you feel about that characterization? I’m talking about moves like bringing NATO under — forgive me, it’s too complicated to explain, but you know what I’m talking about.
So, do you think he’s Trump-proofing?
MR. SULLIVAN: I — I don’t like characterizations like that because they’re inherently political.
Q So, what is he doing, then?
MR. SULLIVAN: What the president is trying to do is to make our commitment to Ukraine sustainable and institutionalized for the long term. And every other ally agreed that that was the responsible thing to do.
The la- —
Q (Inaudible) necessarily reduced U.S. role, is that the idea?
MR. SULLIVAN: Not at all. The basic logic was what the president laid out at the Washington Summit this summer, which is the communiqué said Ukraine’s place, Ukraine’s future, is in NATO. There is work to do to get from here to there, including reforms and security conditions being met.
So, the question is, how do you build a bridge from where we are now to Ukraine’s eventual membership in NATO? And the answer to that question was the set of deliverables in Washington, including the institutionalization of the security support apparatus for Ukraine. That is what we were trying to accomplish, and that’s what we believe we did accomplish.
Q Jake, on Iran. Can you confirm and elaborate on reporting that President Biden directed the NSC to warn Iran that any attempt on President Trump’s life would be seen as an act of war?
MR. SULLIVAN: I will tell you that President Biden has taken this issue with the utmost seriousness. He asked to be updated on it regularly. He gives us direction for how to respond to it regularly and in a very serious and consequential way. We are following his directives and implementing them. And I’m not going to get into specifics on what that looks like.
Q Jake, what about these reports that President Trump and President Putin have had seven conversations? Are you worried about this? Are you worried about any sort of backdoor conversations President Trump is having with leaders?
MR. SULLIVAN: I do not know if that’s true or not, but obviously that would raise red flags if it were true.
Q Another one on — since you just said Putin. There’s been reporting in Germany that Chancellor Scholz said he would be open to speaking with President Putin ahead of the G20 if asked — sort of various ways he said it. Have you guys talked about this? Has he told President Biden about this? Do you think this would be a good idea to do a leader-level conversation with President Putin at this time?
MR. SULLIVAN: That has not come up between the chancellor and the president. You know, I was just in Germany at the end of last week with my German counterpart. That — the question of a call to Putin didn’t come up. So, I think that’s a question better put to the chancellor.
Q The official who briefed us yesterday about the Germany trip on the — on the phone mentioned that the Ramstein meeting would be rescheduled. Does that mean the president will be going back to Ramstein at some point, or what — what did that mean?
MR. SULLIVAN: We will hold a leaders-level Ramstein meeting virtually in November.
Q One more. On the frozen assets deal — the Russian frozen assets. What’s the progress on that there? I assume this comes up in the conversations. Is there a plan B if the EU doesn’t figure out a sanctions regime?
MR. SULLIVAN: I’m feeling very good about the progress that we’ve made on the G7 commitment to mobilize $50 billion from the proceeds of the Russian sovereign assets by the end of the year. We intend to meet that commitment, and we intend to make a contribution — the United States. The EU, obviously, has announced that it’s prepared to make a contribution. So are other partners. So, from my perspective, at this point, everything is on track.
Q Is there any update on when the president might talk to President Xi?
MR. SULLIVAN: No.
Thank you, guys.
Q Thank you.
Q Who you — wait, who are you rooting for in the playoffs, World Series?
MR. SULLIVAN: I’m a Minnesota Twins fan, so I can’t root for the Guardians, but I definitely can’t root for the Yankees.
I don’t know.
Q What about the Dodgers and Mets?
MR. SULLIVAN: Yeah, I’m watching, but actually I don’t — I’ve not clearly determined who I’d prefer to win. But, yeah, Dodgers or Mets.
Q Can you swing back and talk to us off the record later?
MR. SULLIVAN: Sure.
Q Great.
Q Thanks.
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: I don’t know. Is there any real thing — anything else to discuss? Let me t- —
Q The only thing I would say is we disagree with the suggestion that democracy and speaking — and taking questions from the press is “ludicrous.”
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: All right. Noted.
Q I would argue that our stories allow the president to have a relationship with the world, not just with other leaders, and the ability to talk openly will help that.
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: All right. Noted. Noted.
Let’s move on.
So, just want to talk about an announcement. This is domestic, obviously, going to go to the — to that space. I just wanted to touch on an announcement very quickly.
And so, today, the Biden-Harris administration announced an additional $4.5 billion in student debt cancelation for over 60,000 public service workers, bringing the total number of public — of public service workers who have had their student debt canceled under the Biden-Harris administration to over 1 million people.
One such example is Kelly, a kindergarten teacher in Rhode Island, who had been paying off her student loans for a decade. After the student let her know that her debt had been canceled, she tol- — after the president, pardon me — she told us that after 12 years of marriage, she might be able to take the honeymoon she never had.
The president — the president’s administration made it a priority to fix the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program. Prior to our administration, only 7,000 public service workers had received relief since the program was established in 2007.
Thanks to the work of the Biden-Harris administration, as of today, 1 million teachers, nurses, firefighters, service members, first resp- — responders, and — and more who — who pursued careers in public service have gotten the relief they deserve.
The relief brings the total loan forgiveness approved by the Biden-Harris administration — administration to over $175 billion for nearly 5 million Americans. And while — meanwhile, our Republicans elected officials have repeatedly attempted to block student debt relief.
President Biden and Vice President Harris remain committed to making education affordable for all Americans.
With that, what else do you guys have for me?
Q I have a question.
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Sure.
Q Did President Biden talk to Vice President Harris ahead of this trip to see if she had any message for the world leaders or to get her input on what the situation should be going forward?
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: As you know, the president and the vice president talk regularly. I don’t have a specific call to — to read out, but I think you can see the last almost four years of the — what we’ve been able to do, what the president has been able to do on the world stage, certainly has been in partnership with the vice president. I know that she supports his trip and everything that he’s — he’s trying to do tomorrow in the — in the short trip that we have in — in Germany.
I just don’t have anything to read out as a call specifically on this trip.
Q Is the president or the administration facing pressure from allies to get something done after the election but before he is out of office? There’s been some talks that Zelenskyy — you know, whether that’s accelerating a push for Ukraine into NATO or — or other funding things for Ukraine?
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Well, you’re talking about the victory plan. Certainly, I’m going to let the Ukr- — Ukrainians speak to their victory plan as it relates to that question about NATO.
Look, I think — I think what you have seen from this president, from this administration — obviously, including the vice president — is how much we have stand behind — next to, if you will — with Ukrainians and how they’re trying to beat back the aggression that we’ve seen from Russia. And you have not just seen us standing there. You’ve seen this president take action, and — which is why you see NATO much stronger than it was, and that’s why you see 50 countries have gotten behind Ukraine. And you heard us — you heard us lay out yesterday an additional assistance package that we have provided to Ukrainians.
And so, we’re going to have to continue — we’re going to continue having conversations with the Ukrainians on what they need on the battlefield and how else we can be helpful to them.
As it relates to their victory plan — as it relates to what’s next, I’m certainly going to let the Ukrainians speak directly about that.
Obviously, the president has had a conversation with the president, President Zelenskyy, on that plan. I just don’t have anything beyond that, and I’m not — certainly, I’m not going to get into hypotheticals from here.
Q The president at the funeral yesterday had a — what looked like a spirited conversation with former President Obama. Did you talk to him about what they discussed?
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: No, it’s been kind of busy the last couple hours on the plane, as you can imagine.
Look, I’ll — I’ll say this. The president really very much looked — appreciated being there at the — at the funeral of Ethel Kennedy, who he saw as someone who was incredible and had a — was an incredible force, obviously, in her life, during her — her years. And what he wanted to do is — was to lift up — lift her up and speak to her accomplishment and what she meant to him — not just to him but to her family and to the country. So, he appreciated doing that.
And we have said many times the president and — and president — and former President Biden [Obama] — they have a very close relationship. They’ve had one for a long time, obviously, as he served as his vice president.
I don’t have anything else to — to share on that. I have not had this conversation with the president. Obviously, we’ve been pretty busy these past couple of hours on the plane.
Q Do you know if the president was able to watch any of the Fox News interview that Vice President Harris did? And does —
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Yes, he —
Q — did he talk to you about how — how she did?
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Yeah, he was able to — to catch that. And he saw her performance, her interview as strong. And I think what you saw and what — and this is what he believes — is that you saw why Americans and people want to see her continuing to fight for them. And that’s what he saw last night. That’s what we all saw — many of us saw. So, I think she was strong and incredibly impressive in that interview.
Q Karine, does the president believe that his vice president would be a markedly different leader?
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: I mean, look, he talked about this on Tuesday when he was in Philly, and he — and I talked a little bit about this as well, just reit- — really reiterating what the president shared, which is that, look, she’s going to be essentially her own person, right? She is going to have her own direction, her own view of how to move forward.
And he did that, right? He was loyal to President Obama when he was vice president, but he cut his own path. And so, that’s what he expects from the vice president to do.
So, nothing — nothing new. That’s what he expects her to do — to have her own path, to have — to build on — certainly, to build on the economic successes that we have seen and continuing the — the work that we’ve been able to do.
But she’s going to cut her own path. He was very clear about that a couple days ago.
Q Karine —
Q But on student loans — you talked about the PSLF 1 million, a huge achievement for those borrowers — what’s your message for the other 40 million-plus borrowers who’ve been caught up in a lot of legal limbo over the past three years?
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Look, I’ll — I’ll say this. You know, I’m not going to speak to the legal — the legal components of this. There are legal matters that are happening, so they are ongoing. So, I’m not going to speak to that.
But I think what you can take away from what this president has — trying to do, when Republicans have continued to block him, in promising to give Americans a little bit of breathing room, to make sure that Americans who have — borrows [borrowers] who have loans and — and are squeezed by those loans are not able to, you know, buy a home, start a family.
The president was very attuned to that and very clear that he wanted to give them an opportunity — an opportunity to really, you know, be able to — to start that life that they wanted. And so, he’s been trying to do that, even though he’s been blocked and — and Republicans have gotten in the way.
I think you can see over the past — certainly, the past six months, the president continuing to try to take actions to — to make sure he kept his commitment to Americans who, again, need a little bit of breathing room.
So, I’m not going to speak to the legal matter, but I think this announcement today shows his commitment to public service workers, right? I talked about firefighters, nurses. I talked about police officers, who put so much on the line, who give so much for — for everybody, for folks who need their assistance and their help, and wanted to give them that opportunity to really be able to — to move on economically in what they want to accomplish for themselves and for their family.
All right. Anything else?
Q On the —
Q So —
Q Sorry. Go ahead.
Q Sorry.
Now going back to the funeral for a minute. Did he speak with Speaker Emeritus Pelosi? And also, she was not seen at the Italian American celebration, when she’s been front and center in the past. Was she not invited?
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: I — I don’t have anything to share with you on that. I didn’t talk to the president about that at all. But what you saw — obviously, you saw the president and the former president, Pres- — President Obama, connect, have a moment together. The president m- — very much looked forward to that. I just don’t have anything on Nancy Pelosi.
Q Just —
Q I noticed he didn’t recognize her when he recognized the other two presidents at the funeral.
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Well, he wanted it — I can say this. He wanted it to be, you know — to — to be very focused on the family. He wanted it to be, you know, brief and — and very poignant. And that’s what his focus was yesterday on his remarks.
Q On the trip. Obviously, this is a abbreviated agenda from, you know, the Ramstein summit —
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Yeah.
Q — and other things.
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Yeah.
Q But can you explain to us, what’s the reason that it’s so short? Why do we have to get out of Germany at 4:00 p.m. tomorrow? Is there a reason on the German chancellor’s schedule why we have to —
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: So, I mean —
Q Regardless of the press conference, there was also talk about maybe doing a Holocaust memorial situation. What’s —
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: No, I totally understand what — totally — as you — let’s step back for a second.
The reason that the president had to postpone his trip was because Hurricane Milton was coming, and it was — it was forecast to be a historical hurricane, and the president wanted to be in the States to deal with the response and what was needed, certainly, by the impacted region, for what folks on the ground really needed.
And so, that’s why we postponed the trip. We said that we wanted to certainly get that back on the books. We were able to do it — to your point, a truncated version, but it is a robust schedule. And we were able to work with the Germans and to be able to get done what we can on this trip.
I mean, the president has a busy schedule. He does. There’s a lot going on in the next couple days, couple weeks.
Q But he has to get back to the States for something in particular —
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: I mean, we’ll —
Q — that we don’t know about?
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: We’re certainly going to share with you what the — his — the next couple of days of his schedule is going to look like. But he wanted to — and I said this yesterday in the briefing room. He wanted to thank the chancellor for his partnership, for his leadership as well with Ukraine. Outside of the U.S., U- — the U- — German is the second — have provided the second-most resources, assistance to Ukrainians.
And so, he wanted to be, you know, thankful to him. And so, that’s what you’re seeing on this trip. He wanted to make this happen. He asked his team to make this trip happen.
And so, look, we have a busy schedule. We got a lot going on in next couple of days, next couple of weeks. And so, we tried to fit this in, and this is what we were able to do in working with the German government as well to make this happen.
Q Does the president, as the election hits its final two weeks, expect to get more aggressive in outreach and participation? Is that maybe what you’re referencing, or what’s his thinking on that?
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: So, you know I can’t speak to political trips or any- —
Q But if —
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: But wa- —
Q — you could speak on his schedule.
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Well, I — I’m just — want to get that out of there. And so, look, the president is certainly looking at — looking forward to being out there and supporting the vice president.
I just want to be super mindful. But he will — you’ll see him — you’ll see him hit the road. You’ll see him hit the road, for sure.
That’s all I got.
All right. Thanks, everybody. Sorry my voice is a little hoarse.
Q Thanks, Karine.
MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Thanks, everybody.
2:45 P.M. EDT
Source: The White House
Berlin Brandenberg International Airport
Schönefeld, Germany
10:13 P.M. CET
THE PRESIDENT: It’s a good day for the world. We got Si- — I called Bibi Netanyahu to congratulate him on getting Sinwar. He has a lot of blood on his hands — American blood, Israeli blood, and others.
And I told him that we were really pleased with his actions and, further, that now is the time to move on — move on, move towards a ceasefire in Gaza, make sure that we move in a direction that we’re going to be in a position to make things better for the whole world.
It’s time for this war to end and bring these hostages home. And so, that’s what we’re ready to do. That’s what we’re going to be — and I’m sending Tony Blinken to Israel — I guess he’s going in five days — four days — four or five days. Anyway, he’s going. And I talked with Bibi about that. We’re going to work out what — what is the day after now, what — how do we secure Gaza and move on.
So, thank you very much.
Q Do you feel more hopeful, sir, about a ceasefire?
THE PRESIDENT: I do. I do feel more hopeful.
Q Do you have a sense of when he will end the war, sir?
THE PRESIDENT: Hopefully, he — very soon.
10:14 P.M. CET
Source: The White House
President Emmanuel Macron of France, Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany, Prime Minister Keir Starmer of the United Kingdom, and President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. of the United States met today in Berlin, Germany.
The leaders condemned Russia’s continued war of aggression against Ukraine, discussed their plans to provide Ukraine with additional security, economic, and humanitarian assistance – including leveraging the extraordinary revenues of immobilized Russian sovereign assets, as decided at the G7 Summit –, discussed President Zelenskyy’s Victory Plan, and reiterated their resolve to continue supporting Ukraine in its efforts to secure a just and lasting peace, based on international law, including the United Nations Charter, and respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The leaders also discussed events in the Middle East, in particular the implications of the death of Yahya Sinwar, who bears responsibility for the bloodshed of the October 7th terrorist attack, the immediate necessity to bring the hostages home to their families, ending the war in Gaza, and ensuring humanitarian aid reaches civilians. The leaders also reiterated their condemnation of Iran’s escalatory attack on Israel and coordinated on efforts to hold Iran accountable and prevent further escalation. They discussed the situation in Lebanon and agreed on the need to work towards full implementation of UNSCR 1701 and a diplomatic resolution that allows civilians on both sides of the Blue Line to return safely home.
###
Source: The White House
Our forests are central to our country’s heritage, history, and economy. Forests support livelihoods across Tribal Nations, rural towns, and big cities — from foresters and loggers to mill workers and carpenters — while also sustaining the health of our environment and our communities. During National Forest Products Week, we recognize that conserving our bountiful forests is critical to sustaining our economy and ensuring that Americans can enjoy the wonder of our forests for generations to come.
As a Nation, we rely on our forests for so much — from cleaning the air we breathe and the water we drink to providing the lumber and paper we use every day. But the existential threat of climate change endangers our forests, putting those jobs, livelihoods, and critical products at risk. After decades of fire suppression and ignoring climate change, wildfire seasons have become wildfire years, burning down communities, destroying forest ecosystems, and upending people’s lives.
My first year in office, I launched the “America the Beautiful” initiative to conserve at least 30 percent of all our Nation’s lands and waters by 2030 through local, voluntary efforts across the country while empowering foresters and farmers to advance sustainable practices to keep working lands productive. These efforts will help strengthen our economy and pass on a healthier planet to our children and grandchildren.
When I came into office, I was determined to conserve our forests while protecting the people who rely on them for jobs. My Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is creating jobs managing our forests, restoring ecosystems, and preventing catastrophic fires. It is investing in the removal of overgrown vegetation near homes and power lines, preparing evacuation routes in areas at risk of wildfires, removing invasive plant species from forests that can cause fire to spread, and planting native tree species that are more resilient to the changing climate. And my Inflation Reduction Act made the largest climate investment ever, putting people to work planting trees, sustainably managing our forests, and working on fire prevention. Together, these actions are producing new jobs that help us care for our forests and keep all of us safe from wildfires.
At the same time, my Administration is working to support the American workers and rural communities producing our forest products. We have awarded millions of dollars in grants to American businesses that support forest conservation, expand the sustainable use of American wood products, and find innovative ways to use our wood waste materials, including to build strong and sustainable buildings. I also take pride in having raised the Federal firefighter minimum wage to $15 per hour — an important first step in ensuring the people who run into flames to keep all of us safe are paid what they deserve.
Conserving our forests is good for our economy, the planet, and the soul of our Nation. This week, may we recommit to responsibly stewarding our forests and the abundant resources they provide so that we may all enjoy their benefits and beauty for years to come.
To recognize the importance of the many products generated by our Nation’s forests, the Congress, by Public Law 86–753 (36 U.S.C. 123), as amended, has designated the week beginning on the third Sunday in October of each year as “National Forest Products Week” and has authorized and requested the President to issue a proclamation in observance of this week.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim October 20 through October 26, 2024, as National Forest Products Week. I call upon the people of the United States to join me in this observance and in recognizing all Americans who are responsible for the stewardship of our Nation’s beautiful forested landscapes.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighteenth day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-four, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-ninth.
JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.
Source: The White House
In the Oval Office, I sit surrounded by portraits of exceptional American Presidents and busts of inspiring American leaders. They remind me each and every day that we are a Nation of dreamers and doers, of promise and possibilities, and of ordinary Americans doing extraordinary things. Above all, we are a Nation of good people, who show our kindness and character through small acts every single day. This National Character Counts Week, we celebrate the core values of decency, honesty, dignity, and equality that have long defined the character of America.
Our Nation is strong, and our future is bright — in large part because of the upstanding character that resides within all Americans. I have witnessed it up close in educators like the First Lady, who inspire our Nation’s youth to reach for every possibility; mothers, fathers, and parental figures who raise their children with care, courage, and grit; first responders, who run toward danger to protect others; union workers, who are building America; and brave service members, who stand on the frontlines of freedom to defend our democracy. Across the country, American workers are writing the greatest comeback story we have ever known — restoring pride in our hometowns, pride in America, and pride in knowing we can get big things done when we work together.
Since I came into office, my Administration has taken large strides toward building an America that lives up to those values. The American Rescue Plan helped keep child care programs open, families in their homes, and small businesses on their feet. We set a record for Federal contract spending on small businesses. Our historic investments across the clean energy economy are helping to combat climate change and create good-paying jobs. Through the American Rescue Plan and Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, we have made significant investments in reducing crime, preventing gun violence, and saving lives, and last year, we saw one of the lowest rates of violent crime in more than 50 years. We are also ensuring that America is a Nation where everyone is respected and where we give hate no safe harbor. That is why I signed the COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act, making it easier to report hate crimes, and hosted the United We Stand Summit to counter the corrosive effects of hate-fueled violence. My Administration continues to work to counter antisemitism, Islamophobia, and hate in all its forms and ensure that everyone is treated with dignity and respect.
Under my Unity Agenda, we are tackling the opioid epidemic and mental health crisis, holding Big Tech accountable, supporting our veterans and their families, and ending cancer as we know it. We are investing more than $1 billion to help schools across the country train and hire new mental health counselors through the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, we have granted new disability benefits to over one million veterans and their families under the PACT Act, and we launched the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health to fast-track progress on how we prevent, detect, and treat cancer and other diseases.
My father taught me that our character is not measured by how many times or how hard we get knocked down but by how quickly we get back up. Even in the face of challenges ahead and obstacles in our way, Americans always get back up. It is what drives our great country forward and what makes our Nation strong. This week and every week, let us recommit to upholding our most essential values and remember that the sacred task of perfecting our Union is not just about any one of us but about “We the People.”
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim October 20 through October 26, 2024, as National Character Counts Week. Now and throughout the year, I encourage all Americans to engage in efforts that honor and express the best attributes of our character, extend a hand of fellowship to their neighbors, and unite in service to their communities.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
eighteenth day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-four, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-ninth.
JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.
Source: The White House
Our Nation’s minority-owned businesses are the glue of our communities and the engines of our economies. Investing in them is key to growing our economy from the middle out and bottom up, not the top down. When minority-owned businesses do well, everyone does well. More people get jobs, first-time business owners build generational wealth, our economy grows, and more Americans feel a sense of pride and hope in all that is possible in our Nation. This Minority Enterprise Development Week, may we celebrate the talent and ingenuity of the innovators and entrepreneurs who run our Nation’s minority-owned businesses. And may we recommit to ensuring that minority-owned businesses have access to the resources they need to thrive.
Minority-owned businesses add incredible value to our economy, generating nearly $2 trillion in revenue each year. These businesses not only provide the goods and services we need but are also sources of hope — helping people realize their American Dream, building generational wealth, and uplifting their families and communities. That is why my Administration is ensuring that minority-owned businesses have access to capital and can grow. The Small Business Administration (SBA) is lending tens of billions of dollars to small businesses that would otherwise struggle to access capital. For example, since 2020, the rate of SBA-backed loans increased by about 40 percent for Asian American-owned businesses, tripled for Black-owned businesses, and more than doubled for Latino-owned businesses. Further, my American Rescue Plan helped minority-owned small businesses keep their doors open during the COVID-19 pandemic and represents the largest-ever dedicated Federal investment to connect minority-owned small businesses to support. That law invested $10 billion to launch and expand programs that provide critical access to capital for small businesses. The American Rescue Plan also invested $500 million to fund over 100 awards for organizations working to connect entrepreneurs to resources to help their small businesses recover and thrive through initiatives like the SBA’s Community Navigators Program, the Department of the Treasury’s Small Business Opportunity Program, and the Minority Business Development Agency’s Capital Readiness Program.
My Administration has also been working to ensure that minority-owned businesses get a fair shot at success. That is why I signed an Executive Order that would increase the share of total Federal contracts going to disadvantaged businesses from 10 percent to 15 percent by 2025 — and in the last 3 years, we have spent over $208 billion on small disadvantaged businesses. My Bipartisan Infrastructure Law expanded and made permanent the Minority Business Development Agency, ensuring that minority-owned businesses have access to the resources and support they need to thrive. And with my Inflation Reduction Act and CHIPS and Science Act, we are working to make sure that minority-owned businesses are benefiting from the billions of dollars we are investing in America’s infrastructure, manufacturing, and clean energy industries here at home. In addition, Vice President Harris launched the Economic Opportunity Coalition in 2022 to provide tens of billions of dollars in investments to underserved communities.
Since Vice President Harris and I entered office, our Administration has created 16 million jobs, and American entrepreneurs have filed nearly 20 million new business applications. Wages are growing faster than prices. Unemployment remains low. Black- and Latino-owned businesses are being created faster today than they have been in years and Federal contracts with Native American-owned companies increased by over $8 billion from 2020 to 2023. I also take pride in my Administration’s investments in Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic-Serving Institutions, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions — all of which are helping launch the next generation of innovators, entrepreneurs, and business owners. These investments will ensure that their graduates will have every opportunity to lead the industries of the future and build generational wealth.
Across America — from small towns to big cities — we are seeing thousands of stories of revival, renewal, optimism, and pride. And each new business that is created is an act of hope, not just for the business owner but for the entire community. During Minority Enterprise Development Week, may we celebrate all the minority-owned businesses making our economy stronger, our Nation more competitive, and our communities more hopeful. And may we recommit to supporting their success and longevity.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim October 20 through October 26, 2024, as Minority Enterprise Development Week. I call upon the people of the United States to acknowledge and celebrate the achievements and contributions of minority business owners and enterprises and commit to promoting systemic economic equality.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighteenth day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-four, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-ninth.
JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.
Source: The White House
On October 22, President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. will host Prime Minister Robert Golob of the Republic of Slovenia for a bilateral meeting at the White House. This will be their first meeting at the White House and follows conversations that helped pave the way for the largest prisoner swap since the Cold War. The leaders will have an in-depth discussion on a range of issues of mutual interest, including energy security and cooperation, a shared approach to the Western Balkans, continued robust support to Ukraine in its defense against Russian aggression, and events in the Middle East. President Biden will underscore our appreciation for Prime Minister Golob’s leadership to bring home Americans unjustly detained by Russia and our continued cooperation on a host of other global issues.
###
Source: The White House
Riverside Park
Grand Rapids, Michigan
2:03 P.M. EDT
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Hi, guys.
Well, we’re back in Michigan, and it’s good to be back. And again, we have a situation where the former president is insulting the people of the state — this time saying that autoworkers — that their important and good and highly skilled work could be performed by a child — which is just further evidence that Donald Trump comes from a place where he really does not appreciate or understand how most people in our country work very hard for all that they have and that there is great dignity in their work.
In addition, I’ve — you know, I’ve been hearing reports that his team, at least, is saying he’s suffering from exhaustion. And that’s apparently the excuse for why he’s not doing interviews and, of course, he’s not doing the CNN Town Hall. He refuses to do another debate.
And, you know, look, being president of the United States is probably one of the hardest jobs in the world. And so, we really do need to ask: If he’s exhausted being on the campaign trail, is he fit to do the job? And I think that’s a question that is an open-ended question that he needs to answer.
Q Madam Vice —
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Thank you all.
Q Madam Vice President, there’s a lot of —
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Oh, sure.
Q You’re in a state where there’s a lot of opposition to you from pro-Palestinian voters. In light of the recent news this week in the Middle East, I mean, does your message to them change? What’s your message to them in the final few weeks?
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Well, my message remains, first of all, we have got to end this war. And I think that what has happened now with the — the killing of Sinwar creates an opportunity for us to end this war and bring the hostages home. And I think everyone wants this war to end, and this is an opportunity to actually get there.
Q Madam Vice President, can you explain why it’s — sort of the race still remains incredibly tight? I know you’ve been out campaigning. What’s your, sort of, like, thesis of the case of why it remains so tight?
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Looks, it’s — it’s an election for president of the United States. It’s not supposed to be a cakewalk for anyone. There are very important issues at play.
And I am clear and I think the people that you hear right now in the background are clear that Donald Trump is unfit for the office, he is unstable, and he, frankly, is a danger to our democracy, as has been described by his former chief of staff, secretaries of Defense, national security advisor, and former vice president.
Q The former president has been critical of you not attending the Al Smith dinner last night. As you were talking about him being exhausted, do you think that that’s one reason why he chose to go to New York City rather than come out here on the campaign trail?
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Well, I’m beyond getting into the head of Donald Trump, but I will say it should be a concern. If he can’t handle the rigors of the campaign trail, is he fit to do the job? I think it’s a legitimate question.
Thank you all.
END 2:06 P.M. EDT
Source: Government of Canada regional news
Minister of Tourism and Culture John Streicker has issued the following statement:
“The Yukon is home to fascinating and internationally significant human and natural history. Protecting, preserving and interpreting that history is a core component of the Government of Yukon’s mandate. We do all of it in collaboration with Yukon First Nations – ensuring that everyone from youth to Elders to other community members have opportunities for involvement and knowledge exchange.
Source: The White House
Riverside Park
Grand Rapids, Michigan
2:38 P.M. EDT
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Good afternoon, Michigan! Good afternoon. Can we hear it for Brian? (Applause.)
Good afternoon, Michigan. It is good — (applause) — oh, it is good to be back. It’s good to be back. (Applause.) Good afternoon. Oh — (laughs) — oh, my god. Okay. (Applause.) Okay. Thank you.
Okay, let’s get to business. Let’s get to business. Thank you. Thank you. I am very touched. (Applause.) Thank you all. Oh, it’s good to be back. Thank you all very much. Thank you. Thank you.
Okay, let’s get to work. Let’s get to work. Let’s get to work. Let’s get to work.
So, let me first thank all of you for taking time out of your very busy lives for us to all be here together this afternoon. I thank you so very much for all you do, all you have done, and all you will do over these next 18 days. Thank you all so very much. (Applause.) Thank you.
This is an incredible group of incredible leaders, and your voice matters so much right now. And I think there is so much about our campaign that is about the spirit of reminding everyone that we’re all in this together. We are all in this together. (Applause.) So, thank you.
And to all the governors who are here with us today — (applause) — I’m telling you, they’re riding thick. They’re riding thick. Oh, and they are all — each one of them — such incredible leaders, both for their state and our nation, and such dear friends. And I thank you all, including, of course, Michigan’s own Governor Whitmer — (applause) — who we love as “Big Gretch.” (Applause.)
And to the governors, I want to say you’ve been traveling the country for our campaign, and I’m so deeply grateful for your support.
I also want to recognize Senator Stabenow — (applause) — a champion for Michigan; Representative Scholten, who we will reelect to the United States Congress. (Applause.) And while we’re at it, let’s send Representative Slotkin to the United States Senate. (Applause.)
All right, so we got work to do. Eighteen day — eighteen days left in one of the most consequential elections of our lifetime. And as you know, everyone here knows, this election is truly about two very different visions for our nation: Ours that is focused on the future; Donald Trump’s that is focused on the past. Ours, that is focused on bringing down the cost of living for working families, investing in small businesses, and entrepreneurs. Ours, that is about protecting reproductive freedom. (Applause.)
But none of that is what we hear from Donald Trump. Instead, it is just the same old, tired playbook. He has no plan for how he would address the needs of the American people, and he is, as we have seen, only focused on himself.
And now he is ducking debates and canceling interviews.
AUDIENCE: Booo —
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Come on.
Check this out. His own campaign team recently said it is because of exhaustion. (Laughter.) Well, if you are exhausted on the campaign trail, it raises real questions about whether you are fit for the toughest job in the world. (Applause.) Come on. Come on.
So, for all these reasons and more, we are here because we know it is time to turn the page. (Applause.) It is time to turn the page because America is ready to chart a new way forward. (Applause.) America is ready for a new and optimistic generation of leadership that is all of us — (applause) — all of us, which is why Democrats, Republicans, and independents are supporting our campaign. (Applause.)
In fact, earlier this week, over 100 Republican leaders from across the country joined me on the campaign trail, including some who even served in Donald Trump’s own administration — (applause) — the people who know him best, right?
And I believe all of this shows that the American people want a president who works for all the people. (Applause.) And that has been the story of my entire career. In my career, I’ve only ever had one client: the people — the people. (Applause.)
As a young courtroom prosecutor, I protected women and children. As attorney general of California, I fought for students and veterans. As vice president, I have stood up for workers and seniors. And as president, I will stand up for all Americans — all Americans. (Applause.)
And together, we will build a brighter future for our nation. Yes, we will. (Applause.) Because, by the way, we will win. (Applause.) We will win. We will win. Come on.
AUDIENCE: We will win! We will win! We will win!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: (Laughs.) Yes, we will.
AUDIENCE: We will win! We will win! We will win!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: We will win. We will win. And we will win.
And one of the reasons that we know we are working hard toward that win is because we believe together in building a future — in what we can do together as a nation — and a nation of people who see what we have in common more than what separates us.
We will w- — build towards a future where we have an economy that works for all Americans. We will build what I call an “opportunity economy” so that every American has an opportunity to own a home, buy a car, build wealth, and start a business. (Applause.)
In fact, do we have any small-business owners here? (Applause.) I love our small businesses. I got a plan for you. I love our small businesses. Our small businesses are part of the backbone of America’s economy. Bless you all for the work you are doing.
So, under my plan, we will also bring down the cost of housing — (applause) — and we will help entrepreneurs start and grow small businesses.
My plan will expand Medicare to cover the cost of home health care for our seniors — (applause) — so that more of our seniors can live with dignity.
And, you know, I’ll just give you a little background i- — in terms of a personal story. So, I took care of my mother when she was sick. And for any of you who have taken care of an elder relative, you know what that is, right? It’s about trying to cook something that they can eat. It’s about trying to find clothes that they can — they can handle on their skin. It’s about trying, from time to time, to think about something that will put a smile on their face or maybe just make them laugh. It’s about dignity.
But under the current system, and especially for those in the sandwich generation who are raising young kids while you’re taking care of your parents, it’s difficult. And under the current system, to get help for taking care of your seniors, unless you got the extra money sitting around, you’d have to leave your job or pay down all your savings to qualify for Medicaid. That’s not right. That’s not right.
So, my plan is about saying, let’s have Medicare cover the cost of home health care for our seniors — (applause) — which is a matter of understanding how real people are living and understanding the importance of everyone being entitled to dignity. (Applause.)
Our plan, in terms of an opportunity economy, will lower costs on everything from health care to groceries. I’ll take on corporate price gouging, because I’ve done it before and I will do it again. (Applause.)
My plan will also give middle-class tax cuts to 100 million Americans, including $6,000 tax credit for the first year of a child’s life so that our young parents — (applause) — can do what they naturally want to do, which is parent their children well, but they don’t always have the resources to be able to do it. So, let’s help them out so that they can buy a car seat, so that they can buy a crib, so that they can take care of that baby’s needs during that critical phase of their development.
We all benefit from it. We all benefit from it. (Applause.)
Dignity.
My plan also invests in American manufacturing and innovation, because I will make sure America, not China, wins the competition for the 21st century. (Applause.)
AUDIENCE: USA! USA! USA!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: That’s right. That’s right.
AUDIENCE: USA! USA! USA!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: And so, to that point and with pride, we all say: We must and we will invest in the industries that built America, like steel, iron, and the great American auto industry. (Applause.) And we will ensure that the next generation of breakthroughs, from advanced batteries to electric vehicles, are not just invented but built right here in America by American union workers. (Applause.)
And, Michigan, I know I’m going to tell you what you already know, but let us be clear for folks who are watching from different parts of the country. Contrary to what my opponent is suggesting, I will never tell you what kind of car you have to drive, but here is what I will do. I will invest in manufacturing communities like Kent County. (Applause.)
Together, we will retool existing factories, hire locally, and work with unions to create good-paying jobs — (applause) — including jobs that do not require a college degree, because here’s where I come from. I know a college degree is not the only measure of the skills and experience of a qualified worker. (Applause.)
And I intend to reexamine federal jobs, when you all elect me president — (applause) — to assess those jobs that should not have that requirement, and then I intend to challenge the private sector to do the same. (Applause.)
Now, all of this is to say Donald Trump has a different approach. He makes big promises — (laughs) — and he always fails to deliver.
So, remember he said he was the only one — you know how he talks. (Laughter.) He — the only one who could bring back America’s manufacturing jobs.
Then, America lost almost 200,000 manufacturing jobs when he was president.
AUDIENCE: Booo —
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Facts. Including tens of thousands of jobs right here in Michigan. And those losses started before the pandemic, making Donald Trump one of the biggest losers — (applause) — of manufacturing jobs in American history.
And his track record for the auto industry was a disaster. He promised workers in Warren that the auto industry would, and I’m going to quote, “not lose one plant” during his presidency. Those were his words, “not one plant.”
Then American automakers announced the closure of six auto plants when he was president, including General Motors in Warren and Stellantis in Detroit. Thousands of Michigan autoworkers lost their jobs. And Donald Trump’s running mate recently suggested that if they win, they would threaten the Grand River Assembly plant in Lansing. Okay?
AUDIENCE: Booo —
THE VICE PRESIDENT: The same plant our administration protected earlier this year, saving 650 union jobs — (applause) — 650 union jobs. His running mate called those “table scraps.”
So, we fought hard for those jobs, and we believe that you deserve a president who will protect them and not insult them. (Applause.)
And make no mistake, Donald Trump is no friend of labor. Let’s be really clear about that. No matter what the noise is out there, he is no friend of labor. Just look at the record. Instead of his rhetoric, look at the record. And let’s not fall for the okey-doke. (Laughter.)
Seriously. He encouraged automakers to move their plants out of Michigan so he could pay — they could pay their workers less. Understand what that was about: so they could pay their workers less.
And when the UAW went on strike to demand the higher wages they deserved, Donald Trump went to a nonunion shop —
AUDIENCE: Booo —
THE VICE PRESIDENT: — and attacked the UAW, and he said — he said, striking and collective bargaining don’t make, quote, “a damn bit of sense” — “a damn bit of difference” is what he said exactly. That it doesn’t make a, quote — pardon my language — “a damn bit of difference,” is what he said.
AUDIENCE MEMBER: He don’t make a damn bit of sense. (Applause.)
THE VICE PRESIDENT: All right, brother. (Laughs.)
So, Michigan, you know better. Strong unions mean higher wages — (applause) — better health care, and greater dignity for union members and for everyone, whether or not you are part of a union. (Applause.) Get that straight. Get that straight.
Which is why, when I am president, I will sign the PRO Act into law and make it easier for workers to join a union and negotiate for better pay and working conditions. (Applause.)
And now Donald Trump is making the same empty promises to the people of Michigan that he did before, hoping — hoping you will forget how he let you down the last time. But we will not be fooled, because we know how to read Project 2025. For those who haven’t seen it, just google it.
You know, I just have to keep repeating, I can’t believe they put that thing in writing. I cannot beli- — they — they put it in — they put it in writing. They bound it. They — they published it, and they handed it out. (Laughter.) And now they’re trying to run from it. Come on.
And so, we’ve read it. It’s a detailed and dangerous blueprint for what Donald Trump intends to do if he were elected president. So, that’s why we know — not only because it’s what he did before — that’s why we know Donald Trump will give billionaires and corporations massive tax cuts, attack unions, cut Social Security and Medicare —
AUDIENCE: Booo —
THE VICE PRESIDENT: — get rid of that hard-fought, hard-won $35 cap on insulin for our seniors.
AUDIENCE: Booo —
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Check out what’s in it. It will make it easier for companies to deny overtime pay for workers —
AUDIENCE: Booo —
THE VICE PRESIDENT: — and impose what I call a “Trump sales tax,” which is basically — he’s talking about at least a 20 percent tax on everyday necessities, which economists have measured will cost the average family nearly $4,000 more a year.
AUDIENCE: Booo —
THE VICE PRESIDENT: And on top of this, Donald Trump intends to end the Affordable Care Act — okay? — and has no plan to replace it.
AUDIENCE MEMBER: “Concepts”!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: You watched the debate. (Laughs.) So, you remember, he has, quote, “concepts of a plan.”
AUDIENCE: “Concepts of a plan!”
THE VICE PRESIDENT: “Concepts of a plan.”
So, he’s going to threaten — he’s going to threaten the health insurance of 45 —
AUDIENCE MEMBERS: (Inaudible.)
THE VICE PRESIDENT: We need a medic over here. We need a medic over here. Let’s — let’s clear a path so they can come through, please.
AUDIENCE MEMBER: Don’t forget he’s out on bail!
AUDIENCE MEMBER: Espionage! (Laughter.)
THE VICE PRESIDENT: And we got jokes over here, grounded in reality. (Laughter.)
We okay? Okay. We’re okay. Thank you all.
So — (applause) — we’re good. Okay.
So, you know, where I was going with that is many of you may have heard me say, I do believe that Donald Trump is an unserious man, and the consequences of him ever getting back into the White House are brutally serious — brutally serious.
So, on that point about “concepts of a plan,” it’s funny. We thought it was ridiculously hilarious when we first heard it. But here’s the thing about that. He is basically going to threaten the health insurance of 45 million people based on a concept and take us back to when insurance companies could deny people with preexisting conditions. You remember what that was like?
Well, we are —
AUDIENCE: Not going back!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: — not going back. We are not going back. We’re not going back.
AUDIENCE: We’re not going back! We’re not going back! We’re not going back!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: We are not going back. We’re not going back.
AUDIENCE: We’re not going back! We’re not going back! We’re not going back!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: And we are not going back because we intend to move forward — (applause) — because ours is a fight for the future, and it is a fight for freedom — (applause) — like the fundamental freedom of a woman to make decisions about her own body and not have her government tell her what to do. (Applause.)
And we here remember how we got to this place, because then-President Donald Trump hand-selected three members of the United States Supreme Court with the intention that they would undo the protections of Roe v. Wade, and they did as he intended.
And now, in America, one in three women lives in a state with a Trump abortion ban, many of these with no exception even for rape and incest, which means you’re telling a survivor of a violation to their body that they don’t have a right to make a decision about what happens to their body next?
AUDIENCE: Booo —
THE VICE PRESIDENT: That’s immoral. That’s immoral.
And I think we all know one does not have to abandon their faith or deeply held beliefs to agree the government should not be telling her what to do — (applause) — not the government. If she chooses, she will talk to her priest, her pastor, her rabbi, her imam but not the government — not some — some people up in a state capitol — not Donald Trump.
AUDIENCE: No!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: No.
So, let me tell you, when Congress passes a bill to restore the reproductive freedoms nationwide, with your help, as president of the United States, I will proudly sign it into law. (Applause.) Proudly. Proudly. Proudly.
And across our nation, we are witnessing a full-on assault on other hard-fought, hard-won freedoms and rights — fundamental freedoms and rights. I’m traveling our country. I mean, attacks on the freedom to vote.
You know, in the state of Georgia, they passed a law that makes it illegal to give people food and water for standing in line to vote. You know, the hypocrisy abounds. What happened to “love thy neighbor”? Right?
Attacks on the freedom to join a union, attacks on the freedom to be safe from gun violence, attacks on the freedom to love who you love openly and with pride. (Applause.)
So much is on the line in this election, and you all are spending your precious time here together because we know this is not 2016 or 2020. The stakes are even higher this time for many reasons, including because, just months ago, the United States Supreme Court basically told the former president he is effectively immune no matter what he does in the White House.
AUDIENCE: Booo —
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Right. Because we know — just imagine Donald Trump with no guardrails. Just imagine. He who has vowed he would be a dictator on day one. He who calls Americans who disagree with him the “enemy from within.” You know where that language comes from? The “enemy from within,” talking about Americans. He who says he would use the military to go after them — American citizens. He who has called for the, quote, “termination” of the Constitution of the United States of America.
AUDIENCE: Booo —
THE VICE PRESIDENT: And we are clear: Someone who suggests we should terminate the Constitution of the United States should never again have the privilege of standing behind the seal of the president of the United States. (Applause.) Never again. Never again. Never again. Never again.
AUDIENCE: Never again! Never again! Never again!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: Never again.
So, Michigan, it all comes down to this. We know why we’re here together. We know what’s at stake. And we are here together for one of the most important of all the reasons: We are here together because we love our country. (Applause.) We love our country.
We love our country, and we know that it is one of the highest forms of an expression of love of our country, of patriotism, to then fight for our ideals, to fight to realize the promise of America. That’s what our campaign is about.
And Election Day is in 18 short days. Okay? And here in Michigan, early voting starts on Saturday, October 26th, which is one week from tomorrow. (Applause.)
So, now is the time to make your plan to vote. Make a plan. Make a plan. And if you have received your ballot in the mail, please do not wait. Fill it out and return it today.
Because, folks, the election is here. The election is here right now. And like I know everybody here knows to do, we’ve got to energize and organize and mobilize and remind our neighbors and our friends that their vote is their voice and your voice is your power.
In a democracy, while we can hold on to it, our vote is the power that each of us as an individual has. It’s an extraordinary power, and we will not give it away, and we will not let anyone suppress or silence our power. Don’t ever let anybody take your power from you. (Applause.)
So, Michigan, today I ask you, then, are you ready to make your voices heard? (Applause.)
Do we believe in freedom? (Applause.)
Do we believe in opportunity? (Applause.)
Do we believe in the promise of America? (Applause.)
And are we ready to fight for it? (Applause.)
And when we fight —
AUDIENCE: We win!
THE VICE PRESIDENT: — we win.
God bless you. And God bless the United States of America. (Applause.)
END 3:07 P.M. EDT
Source: New South Wales Government 2
Headline: Hunter and New England regions welcome new overseas nurses
Communities across the Hunter and New England are experiencing a welcome boost of new nurses, with more than 140 registered nurses recruited from the United Kingdom (UK) and Ireland.
Hunter New England Local Health District has welcomed the first of these new skilled nurses, who are now settling into the District’s hospitals and towns, following an international recruitment drive to attract staff and boost the capacity of local healthcare teams.
The incoming nurses are qualified and experienced in emergency, surgical care, intensive care, and paediatrics, with many honing their skills at specialist hospitals in the UK.
Nurses are being placed across the District’s hospitals and facilities, including 41 at Tamworth, 37 at Manning and 28 at Maitland hospitals, with dozens having already transitioned into their new roles.
As part of their welcome, the new nurses and their families are greeted at the airport by District staff, before being escorted to local accommodation.
Ongoing training and personal support are provided, including an orientation and buddy-up system to ensure the nurses feel comfortable and supported in their new environment.
The District is currently assisting the remaining overseas nurses through the visa and immigration process, and anticipates their arrival in the coming months.
The international recruitment drive is one of a range of initiatives currently underway to attract and retain nurses to HNELHD’s facilities, with other measures including the employment of more than 250 graduate nurses and midwives, the implementation of the NSW Government’s Rural Health Workforce Incentive Scheme, school-based trainee program, and tertiary study subsidies.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Regional Health Ryan Park:
“I warmly welcome these much needed and valued nurses to our Hunter and New England regions, who are bringing a wealth of experience to our facilities and communities.
“Health worker shortages in our regions is one of the biggest challenges confronting our health system.
“International recruitment drives are just one way we are helping to attract and retain health workers in our regional and rural areas. We want to ensure everyone can access high quality healthcare no matter where they live.”
Quotes attributable to Minister for the Hunter Yasmin Catley:
“It’s fantastic to welcome so many new nurses who have chosen to make the Hunter home.
“These workers will make a real difference to peoples’ lives and help deliver better outcomes for patients and their families.
“The NSW Labor Government is working hard to rebuild our public health system and the recruitment of these overseas nurses plays an important role in boosting the current workforce.”
Quotes attributable to Elizabeth Grist, Executive Director, Nursing and Midwifery, Hunter New England Local Health District:
“I am thrilled to see over 140 overseas nurses continue their healthcare careers in NSW and I want to pass on my thanks for choosing our District.”
“No two days are the same in our hospitals, and we are committed to providing these nurses with continuous opportunities for career-enhancing experiences and learning development across a variety of areas.”
Quotes attributable to Michelle Keir, Director of Nursing and Midwifery, Tamworth Hospital:
“We’ve welcomed over two dozen overseas nurses to our hospital so far, who are all settling well into the community and enjoying their new lifestyle and nursing roles.”
“The overseas recruitment drive has been an extremely rewarding initiative, which has boosted morale and wellbeing among our existing staff as well as benefiting our patients.”
“I look forward to welcoming and supporting more nurses over the coming weeks and months, as we continue to receive applications from highly-skilled nurses from across the world.”
Quotes attributable to Bindhya Thomas, Registered Nurse, Tamworth Hospital:
“I have 12 years’ experience in nursing, and I’m currently working in the acute surgical ward at Tamworth Hospital, taking care of post-surgical patients.”
“It was my dream to migrate to Australia and I’m so happy to be here, the sun is shining every day and that makes it so enjoyable.”
“My colleagues are so supportive. I feel like I’ve been here for many years and that’s a wonderful feeling.”
Source: South Australia Police
Five men have been arrested this morning after a series of searches in the Metropolitan area as part of Operation Eclipse.
Just after 8am, Tuesday 22 October, Detectives from Serious and Organised Crime Branch attended and searched six residential and business premises located at Blair Athol, Walkley Heights, Dudley Park, Sheidow Park and Morphett Vale.
Detectives were supported by 45 police from specialist areas including STAR Operations, Metropolitan Districts, Digital Evidence Section and Confiscations Section officers.
As a result of these searches, Detectives have seized numerous items of interest including tobacco products, approximately $114,500 in cash and two vehicles including a black Range Rover (pictured).
The five men were arrested for offences that police will allege relate to the ongoing conflict, associated with the illicit tobacco sales in SA and the standover and intimidation tactics that are being used by these syndicates.
All five men were refused police bail and are expected to appear in the Adelaide Magistrates Court later today.
Members of the public who are purchasing illicit tobacco products are directly supporting the organised crime syndicates who are driving the current Operation Eclipse related crime series.
South Australia Police will continue to investigate offences of violence and extortion and aim to disrupt this type of offending to ensure public safety.
Anyone who has any information in relation to any suspicious activity around business premises, specifically in the hours of darkness, is asked to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 33 000 or online at http://www.crimestopperssa.com.au – you can remain anonymous.
CO2400042543
Source: Australian Ministers 1
TASRAIL CEO, STEVEN DIETRICH: … I would like to begin the formalities with an acknowledgement of country. In recognition of the deep history and culture of this island of Lutruwita Tasmania, we would like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the land upon which we gather today, and pay our respects to elders past and present, for they hold the memories, the knowledge, and the culture and hopes of Aboriginal Tasmania.
First up today, it is my pleasure – real pleasure to introduce a great supporter of TasRail. It’s not her first visit to the site, and I’m sure she can see a vast difference to when she was last here. The old shiploader was still here that had served us well for the last 50 years, and now with our new state of the art asset in place. So I’d like to introduce the Federal Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, the Honourable Catherine King.
[Applause]
CATHERINE KING: Thanks very much, Steve, and it is terrific to be here in Burnie today. Can I too acknowledge the traditional custodians of the lands on which we gather, and pay my respects to elders past, present and emerging? To Premier Jeremy Rockliff, a great friend who’s been terrific to work with. And it’s lovely to see you back in the Infrastructure portfolio, and we’re doing lots of great work and great things in Tasmania together. Also to Senator Anne Urquhart, again, my friend and colleague, and to the mayor of Burnie, who’s also here with us today, and the many TasRail and TasPorts workers, staff who are here with us today as well.
Look, this is a terrific day. As Steven mentioned, I was back here in 2022 with Anne. It was pouring with rain. I managed to score myself a pair of Tassie boots that have been to every single corner of the country, from the Tanami to all sorts of projects. So it’s terrific to be here again and to see the shiploader now, this – from 1968, it has served this community incredibly well.
But this next generation now of a shiploader that really is part of the export story of Tasmania. This really is about not just the shiploader, it is about the bulk export minerals facility, which we’ll see work commencing on that – very happy as part of the $82 million to provide some extra money to ensure that that project is delivered as well. But really, this is about rail freight. It’s about- alongside this and the hubs further down, getting trucks off roads here in Tasmania, getting more freight onto rail, making sure you’ve got that connected freight routes out of our port into our export markets. It is about the economic story of Tasmania, and we’re very delighted to have been part of that story. And can I commend very much the work that has been done here, to come back in 2022, to wander on with our umbrellas under the shiploader, to understand the complexity of the engineering task, to be able to continue on a functioning port, to be able to develop and deliver this project really was quite a feat. And so I do want to say congratulations to that. And now the old shiploader, I think you’ve got most of the scrap metals now off site.
So on behalf of the Albanese Labor Government, we’re really delighted to have funded the project- been part of the delivery of the project. But really, this is about the life of the next economic story for Tasmania. Very important to not just this state but the rest of the country, the work that you do here. I’m really delighted to be here today to, I think we call commission the ship loader formally. It is important to celebrate these occasions. I think when you’re working on these projects, it’s important to mark the occasion, important to celebrate that, and delighted to be here on behalf of the Albanese Labor Government, alongside Senator Urquhart, to do that today. Thank you for having me.
[Applause]
STEVEN DIETRICH: Thank you very much, Minister King. Really appreciate your kind words there. And we appreciate your support, and we also appreciate the Prime Minister’s support. The Prime Minister was here a couple of months ago and took the opportunity to climb right to the top. We thought he’d only stop halfway, but he wanted to go all the way to the top, so it was fantastic to provide him an opportunity and firsthand experience with our shiploader. So without further ado, please welcome the Premier of Tasmania, the Honourable Jeremy Rockliff.
[Applause]
JEREMY ROCKLIFF: Well, thanks very much, Steve, for the introduction. It’s fantastic to be here to celebrate new enabling infrastructure for the North West Coast of Tasmania, and more particularly, of course, our highly valuable mining industry in which I’ll come to in just a moment. Thanks Mayor Teeny for having us in your city. It’s great- always great to be in the powerhouse of the North West Coast, and indeed Tasmania, when it comes to the diverse region that we have. And we’re very lucky to have such diverse opportunities when it comes to our economic development here. Our forestry and mining industry, agriculture, aquaculture – we’ve got it all and we’re very, very fortunate, which is why it’s so important to have this investment in such key enabling infrastructure.
Catherine, thanks very much for you as Minister, being here alongside Anne as well, another very strong advocate for the North West Coast and Tasmania. It has been a pleasure to work alongside your government in recent times when it comes to putting on the agenda health infrastructure in Launceston. The Prime Minister and I were working together just last week when it comes to berth six at Macquarie Wharf – enabling, of course, a 30-year extension of Tasmania being the home to the Antarctic Gateway.
But this is cause for celebration. We very much appreciate the significant investment that the Federal Government has made into what is enabling infrastructure. And along with it, acknowledging the key players and all players here today from TasRail, TasPorts, but also the Tasmanian Minerals and Energy Council here today represented by Vanessa and others. Mining is so crucial when it comes to our economy. It is a huge part of our GDP here in Tasmania. And to have this inter-generational infrastructure, if you like, much needed.
I was infrastructure minister around 2018, and Steve and I were reflecting on that just yesterday, where we started the process going in terms of the need for a new shiploader. And here it is, with the work of TasRail and the cooperation with TasPorts. Thank you, Anthony Donald, for you being here as well, which we very much appreciate that cooperative arrangement between TasRail and TasPorts. But also, ensuring that we have not only new enabling infrastructure but infrastructure that is more efficient, infrastructure that is quicker, and infrastructure environmentally sound and also safer. And that’s why this key investment is welcomed by the State Government. Thank you again, Catherine. Thank you, TasRail, for what has been some journey. And if you’ll also indulge me as well, I’d like to commend our outgoing Member for Braddon, Gavin Pearce, for being on the journey as well alongside Anne Urquhart as well, which is fantastic.
So, thank you for enabling me to be part of the event today. Very much appreciated. And all the very best to all those that work within such a critical sector and all those employees in TasRail, TasPorts and others that work so hard as we export out of Tasmania, which creates wealth and opportunity for Tasmanians and allows us to fund those essential services that Tasmanians all care about – health, housing, and addressing the challenges of the cost of living. Thank you very much.
[Applause]
STEVEN DIETRICH: Thank you very much, Premier. We’ve got a great relationship with government, and it’s your government’s support that’s been invaluable to see a very complex, sophisticated project like this delivered on time, on budget. So we really appreciate the support. Finally, I’d like to invite the Chairman of the TasRail board, Stephen Cantwell, to come up and say a few words. Thank you, Stephen.
[Applause]
STEPHEN CANTWELL: Thanks, Steve. Minister King, Premier Rockliff, Senator Urquhart, Mayor Brumby, other important guests. Let me say it’s really good to get to this point in the delivery of a project like this when you’re in the wheelhouse and have accountability for delivery. So thank you, Minister King, and thank you, Premier Rockliff, for supporting us and trusting us in the delivery of this asset, which is such an important component of the Tasmanian resources sector supply chain. Thank you also to our customers, many of whom are represented here today, for trusting us at TasRail day in, day out, with an important part and- by integrating us into and being an important part of your business.
It’s also a great source of satisfaction and sort of worthy of comment that we were delighted at the end of a global tendering process to be in a position to award this contract to the local firm, COVA, and in doing that, opened the way for many other local businesses to participate in the delivery of this project. This asset is as good as it gets. It is state-of-the-art. By any measure, it is a world-leading piece of infrastructure. Going local and being drama-free in the delivery of a project such as this is a great demonstration of the depth of capability that we not only have here in Tasmania, but we have in the manufacturing sector in Australia. And it also reflects the value that can be had by keeping things local, so we particularly wanted to acknowledge the pride with which we’re able to say that we can do all of this locally.
Now this project, by any measure, and nowadays, projects are described both in terms of their complexity and their – how complicated and how complex they are, and this is right up there. It wasn’t easy to deliver. There were many challenges along the way. And the extent to which TasRail has been able to deliver it within the agreed budget envelope and in the timeframe promised is largely a reflection of the quality of the people inside the organisation.
As a mainlander, I’m continually amazed and inspired by the extent to which TasRail people and Tasmanians in general – I don’t know what it is, maybe it’s some sort of inferiority complex – but they always punch above their weight. And I think that’s held us in good stead in the delivery of this project. And so, I want to pay particular tribute to the quiet achievers who’ve just stepped up to the plate and got the job done. You see the product of their efforts here today. Thank you to you all indeed. This common use and asset you have created now will stand for decades for the benefit of all Tasmanians, and indeed all Australians, as we confirm to the world the credentials of our resources sector. Thank you.
[Applause]
STEVEN DIETRICH: Thank you, Chairman. Thank you for those words. And I would just like to acknowledge the Chairman and the whole TasRail board of directors for their support and trust in this project. I remember putting this Board paper up, one, first putting in the shovel ready justification to the Federal Government to enable a project, knowing that we had an old shiploader that needed to be replaced to provide certainty for decades to come through the North West and the mining industry. But putting a business case up, working it through with the Board and them putting their trust in myself, our Key Project Director Stephen Kerrison, and the entire Shiploader project team was really, really appreciated, and we delivered.
So, this machine takes us to 2,000 tonnes per hour. the original machine probably operated at 1,000 tonnes per hour, so more efficient, more productive- the latest safety and environmental features. It also will facilitate future expansion of larger vessels. Most of our vessels at the moment are what you classify as Handymax type style vessels, and we’ll be able to accommodate Panamax vessels into the future. It’s a great asset built by Tasmanians. Can you believe an asset like this was built in Tasmania by Tasmanians?
CATHERINE KING: Absolutely.
STEVEN DIETRICH: It’s fantastic. The Haywoods engineering, the engineering company at Somerset, the SAGE Automation people, IF&S – the technology that’s gone into this unit is just amazing. I won’t lie, there was a couple of nervous moments when we put the first tonne of dirt on and there was a couple of teething problems, and to be expected, but what a wonderful asset. We’ve got a couple of things to work through. COVA Haywood’s have been a fantastic contractor and we’ve got an asset here that will deliver for decades to come, enabling the industry a fully integrated supply chain that will take industry forward.
And once we expand the bulk minerals bulk minerals export facility, currently we can hold 130,000 tonnes and we’ll be able to go to 150,000, enabling more mines to be able to grow in Tasmania and get their product out efficiently.
So, I’m getting the wind up now, I’m conscious of time. Now, we do have some gifts for our political visitors which Kirsten and Samantha, I think they’re almost sure that we give those once the medias had some opportunity for questions. And we’re going to go and do some photography – we’re allowed to go for a walk out onto the berth and right up to the shiploader to platform one and have a look at the cabin, and we’d like to get a group photo up at platform one.
So, thank you again. Really appreciate you coming here today and investing the time. It’s a momentous occasion for us, but it’s a momentous occasion for all Tasmanians and it’s an asset all Tasmanian’s can be proud of. Thank you very much.
UNIDENTIFIED SPEAKER: Thank you.
[Applause]
CATHERINE KING: Questions if you want, but over here with Anne.
JOURNALIST: I guess the last [indistinct] lasted 50 years. Do you know how long this one’s meant to last?
CATHERINE KING: Well, let’s hope- it certainly is expected to last another 50 years. What an extraordinary investment. A 1968 facility now being replaced by a state-of-the-art shiploader which is much more efficient, will be able to load much more quickly. And also, it’s much quieter which is terrific, obviously, for the people of the Burnie, and we’ve obviously got ships often loading late at night.
But, as I said, it’s not just about the shiploader. We’re about to see the project commence for the bulk mineral export facility. So, this old shed, again it is pre-1960s, to be replaced with the, again, a state of the art export facility here. But of course, we’ve also got the hub, which is a rail hub, an [indistinct] intermodal hub where we can also transport goods from there, which is really about getting more of our commodities, more of our minerals onto rail so we’re not seeing so many trucks onto the roads here.
So this is a great freight story, but it’s also a great story for the economy here. I’m so delighted to hear just how many local companies have been involved in building this project – built by Tasmanians, for Tasmanians – really showing the complex engineering capability of the companies here in this community, and it’s something we should be incredibly proud of.
JOURNALIST: Why is it important that we do keep jobs within the state?
CATHERINE KING: Well, of course, because Tasmania is important not just to the state but to the economy of the whole country. You produce some beautiful products from here in your agriculture and aquaculture sector that are showcases to the rest of the world. Your minerals are exported all over the world as well. You’ve got an incredibly important economy here. I love coming down here. I love hearing the innovation and the – all of the new things people are doing. And really what this common user infrastructure, this shiploader here is doing, is providing that opportunity to continue to provide those mineral exports to the world.
JOURNALIST: Apologies if this is, you know, common knowledge, but I guess I was reading the release from your office a couple- an old one, and it was saying the operational- it was meant to be operational by mid-2023. Why was there a delay?
CATHERINE KING: Well, these are complex projects to build. As you know, trying to make sure that we’ve- a, we’ve got supply chain issues, but also trying to make sure the port continues to be operational so that there’s limited downtime to continue to be able to do that. So it’s complex to build, and so that’s really what happens with these facilities. So it started in May 2022 and here we are in 2024, finally commissioned, operational, loading ships today.
Any other questions? Yeah.
JOURNALIST: Do you agree with Lidia Thorpe’s actions yesterday? Is she exercising free speech?
CATHERINE KING: Look, I think it was disappointing to see what happened yesterday. We were all there. You know, it’s important that, regardless of your views about a whole range of issues, to show respect to our institutions and our traditions. And I do think it was disappointing yesterday, but it was a very small, small part of what has been a really successful visit by Their Majesties, the King and the Queen, over the last couple of days. And I know that they were really delighted to be received and warmly welcomed by the Australian people.
JOURNALIST: Sprit of Tasmania are part of the Federal and National Highway 1 essentially. From a Federal perspective, what is your view then of the debacle that’s been engulfing Tasmania in recent months?
CATHERINE KING: Well look, really that’s a matter for the Tasmanian Government, and I don’t think it’s appropriate for me to comment there. TasPorts comes under the State Government, and I’m sure Premier Rockliff will be happy to answer questions there. We’re obviously, as part of the Federal Government, really proud to partner with the Tasmanian Government to deliver infrastructure such as the shiploader that you’re seeing here today.
JOURNALIST: How can the Federal Government have confidence Tasmania will deliver projects on time and on budget, when that’s not what’s happened here?
CATHERINE KING: Well, we’ve seen, with the shiploader, the incredible, great work that TasRail and TasPorts have done together to deliver this project. Our expectation of all our co delivery partners, whether it’s here in Tasmania or it’s on the mainland, is that they do work very closely with my department about the delivery of those. And this project, where we’ve been funding it, is been an important- it’s important to see that delivered and important that all levels of government, particularly when we’re working on mega projects, projects that are big and complex, that we do those gateway reviews, that we do keep an eye on the progress of those. That’s all?
JOURNALIST: Just one more, sorry, if you [indistinct]…
CATHERINE KING: Yes, of course.
JOURNALIST: Should Lidia Thorpe resign from the Senate given she’s pledged allegiance to the King?
CATHERINE KING: Can I just say really clearly, I think that what happened yesterday was disappointing and I think that it shouldn’t overshadow what has been a fantastic visit by Their Majesties. I think we saw them warmly welcomed all across the places that they visited, other than the alpaca sneezing on them – but I’m sure that will be memorable as well. I understand, from alpaca’s that’s a sign of affection. So really, I don’t think that that should overshadow it, and, really, what Lidia does is a matter for her.