Secretary Pompeo makes a podium announcement, September 2, 2020
Transcript
Morning, everyone could see all I want to start today Talking about multilateralism. The Trump administration wants multilateral institutions to function to actually work. But multilateralism, just for the sake of it, just to get together the room and chat doesn’t add value. That brings me to the International Criminal Court, a thoroughly broken and corrupted institution. United States has never ratified the Rome statute that created the court, and we will not tolerate is illegitimate temps of subject Americans to its jurisdiction. In June, the Trump Administration authorized the imposition of economic sanctions against foreign persons directly engaged in I. C C. Efforts to investigate US or allied personnel and those who materially assisted in those in the effort. Today we take the next step because the I C C. Continues to target Americans. Sadly, pursuant to Executive order 139 to 8, United States will designate icy Sea prosecutor Fatou Bensouda and the Icy Seas head of jurisdiction Compliment Terry in Cooperation division Jackie. So much Chucho for having material assisted prosecutor Bensouda individuals and entities that continue to materially support those individuals risks exposure to sanctions as well. Additional State Department has restricted the issuance of visas for certain individuals involved in the icy seas. Efforts to investigate US personnel on the multilateral front. Further, I look forward to seeing my ASEAN Indo Pacific counterparts. Next week, a host of virtual meetings will have discussions that will be wide ranging, including in Cove it, North Korea, South China Sea, Hong Kong and Burma’s raw cane state. Also raise Have Trump Administration’s restoring reciprocity to the U. S. China relationship and today we continue that necessary work. For years, the Chinese Communist Party has imposed significant barriers on American diplomats working inside the PRC. Specifically, the Chinese Communist Party’s implemented A system of opaque approval process is designed to prevent American diplomats from conducting regular business, attending events, securing meetings and connecting with the Chinese people, especially on university campuses and via the press and social media. Today I’m announcing the State Department has established a mechanism requiring approval for senior Chinese diplomats in the United States to visit university campuses and to meet with local government officials, Cultural events with groups, larger 50 people hosted by the Chinese Embassy and consular posts outside our mission properties will also require our approval. Additionally, we’re taking further steps to ensure that all official PRC embassy and consular social media accounts are properly identified as government accounts. Chinese government accounts have David still Lower, assistant secretary of East Asia Pacific affairs, with me today he’ll take questions. We’re simply demanding reciprocity access for our diplomats and China should be reflective of the access the Chinese diplomats in the United States have, and today steps will move us substantially in that direction. Further on China, Undersecretary Crocks send a letter recently to the governing boards of American universities, alerting them to the threats the Chinese Communist Party poses to academic freedom, the human rights and to university endowments. These threats can come in the form of illicit funding for research, intellectual property theft, intimidation of foreign students and opaque talent recruitment efforts. University governing boards can help ensure their institutions have clean investments and clean endowment funds by taking a few key steps. Disclosed all PRC companies investment and invested in endowment funds, especially those in emerging market index funds, divest from Chinese companies on the Commerce Department entity list that have contributed to human rights violations, military coercion and other abuses, and simply understand the recommendations issued by the President’s Working Group on Financial Markets, which examined the risk to investors of Chinese companies that are listed on U. S. Stock exchanges staying on China but moving beyond our borders, were hoping for a peaceful resolution. The situation on the India China border from the Taiwan Strait to the hem Elias and beyond the Chinese Communist Party is engaged in a clear and intensifying pattern of pulling its neighbors. That bowling is also evident in the South China Sea last week, the United States and post sanctions and visa restrictions on Chinese individuals and entities responsible for the ccps imperialism there, doing things such as unlawful energy surveillance activities in the economic zones for ally, the Philippines and other countries. We also remain concerned talked about this before the kid was more than 300 Chinese flagged vessels near the Galapagos, which are almost certainly engaged in illegal fishing. In light of this maritime lawlessness, it’s no surprise that Beijing’s candidate in the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea election last week received MAWR abstentions than any other candidate. China is the most flagrant violator of the law of the sea Convention and nations home across the world are registering their disapproval. We’re also concerned about Chinese actions in Tibet in light of the general secretary’s recent calls to synthesize Tibetan Buddhism and fight splittism there. We continue to call upon Beijing to enter into dialogue with the Dalai Lama or his representatives without preconditions to reach a settlement that resolves their differences. We’re also tracking the situation in Belarus closely. Deputy Deputy Secretary Begin traveled there last week. My direction. Belarusians deserve the right to choose their own leaders through a truly free and fair election. Under independent observation, we demand an immediate end to the violence against them and the release of all who are unjustly detained. And that includes US Citizen Batali. Shirish. We’re closely coordinate to with our transatlantic partners and are together reviewing significant targeted sanctions on anyone involved in human rights abuses and depression. Turning to the Middle East where I just got back, I’m a productive trip on where we have senior officials there. Today. The region is changing rapidly thanks to President Trump’s leadership building up ties between Israel and its neighbors. Abraham, of course, are clear proof of just that. So is the first ever direct flight from Tel Aviv to Abu Dhabi, which took place this week in the first direct life between Israel Sudan, which I was honored to make during my trip. Additionally, every stop I urge my counterparts to stand united against the Islamic Republic of Iran’s threats to the region, which leads to my next point 40 years ago. 40 years ago this month, the Iranian regime arrested nine members of the behind National Spiritual Assembly of Iran. No one has heard from them since. Sadly, we must conclude that these nine individuals met the same fate as the more than 200 other Iranian behinds who have been executed for a piece of peacefully practicing their faith. We asked the international community when will Iran’s regime be held accountable for those crimes in Africa? We welcome the news that Sudan civilian led transitional government initiated a historic peace agreement with several opposition groups. That’s good news. They suggested to me when I was visiting them that would likely occur good on them and here close at home in the Western Hemisphere, the United States candidate Mauricio Claver Carone, is the right person for the presidency of the International Development Bank. The vote currently scheduled for September 12th, should not be delayed. That should happen that day. And on Venezuela, 34 countries have not joined the growing list the growing international consensus in favour of a transitional government. More and more nations know that the fraudulent National Assembly elections scheduled for schedule by Manero 4 December sixth of this year will neither be Frayer fair nor free. We also call on free and fair elections in Haiti as soon as technically feasible. And with that, I’m happy to take a handful of questions. Uh, okay, let’s start Great. I was asking about your decision to address the RNC from Jerusalem. A. There was guidelines set to State Department stop advising against participation in a part of what message does that send to the men and women of the State Department? Also, obviously, the House Foreign Affairs Committee it has has raised this issue as art of its complaint against you. You can address all those issues in saying my role of Secretary of State. I did this in my personal capacity. All I can say in my role as Secretary State is the State Department reviewed this was lawful, and I personally felt it was important that the world here, the message of what this administration has accomplished. U. S government China Report Military trying to report came out yesterday. It said that China intends to double its nuclear warheads but in the next 10 years and grow its global on naval presence. How do you think the U. S. And its allies should respond? And what do you think is the most alarming trend of China’s military? So what was in that report yesterday doesn’t come to as news to anyone who’s been following this issue for the past year. This administration is the first one that has truly called out the Chinese Communist Party for this military aggression. This buildup that has undertaken and then of course, responded to it. We’ve done a number of things. First, presidents put the largest defense budgets in American history in front of Congress, and they’ve passed 700 plus billion dollars two years running. So we’re making sure that America has the tools it needs to respond to any threat, including threats that emanate from the Chinese Communist Party. Second, in particular pieces of this, I’ll give an example the nuclear weapons we have implored the Chinese to be part of our strategic dollar. We’ve suggested it’s in their best strategic interested are best certificates in the world’s strategic interest to reduce the risk from these most dangerous weapons systems and where productive conversations with the Russian on this various. And if the Chinese Communist Party is serious about participating on the global stage and being a nation of size and scale, that is part of this community, that it has an obligation when you build out a nuclear arsenal with kind of missile testing more missile tests in China last year than all Western nations combined. If you’re gonna be serious, you have to. You have to use those in a way that is consistent with how nations undertake their obligations under the nuclear proliferation treaties. All those obligations written, unwritten, signed and unsigned, and then they should enter. In these strategic conversations. While we want to make sure that the risk of using those weapons systems in particular is diminished and we stand ready toe, have them join this conversation with records, I hope that they will thanks A deputy to prison order Gun just said that Washington, partial lifting off arm self to Cyprus will agitate the conflict in the eastern of the Mediterranean. How do you respond to that? And how do you assess Turkey’s influence in the Middle East on on Lebanon, Sir, if I can, um the difference. President just wrapped a visit to buy root him it with all political leaders. Yet we have Assistant Secretary David Schenker in Beirut and he did not meet with any political leaders. Is this a message on? Are you coordinating with the French on any initiative? So as for 11 I work certainly in close conversations with the French, we share the same objective. Ambassador Hale was in Beirut several weeks back. Now he met with a number of political leaders. The objective is the same business unusual. Lebanon just is unaccepted. I think President Grown said the same thing. This this has to be, ah, government that conducts significant reforms. Real change is what the people of Lebanon are demanding, and United States is going to use its diplomatic presence and its diplomatic capability to make sure that we get that outcome. I think the French share that I think the whole world frankly sees the risk. Look the rest. There’s you in the face missile systems positioned admissions that Hezbollah holds in the south. We all remember the history 11 on everybody disarms but Hezbollah. This is the challenge that is presented. And so those people who are either part of that or are playing footsie with Hezbollah should know that that’s not productive, is not what the people of Lebanon want. And it’s not what the regional security situation demands. So I’m confident that United States, the French and all of us who are working there on the ground both to meet the immediate needs and the result has that flowed from the explosion that took place now several weeks back. This well, it’s the longer term challenges they’re presenting 11 and we’ll work on it together. Yes, about the decision we made yesterday announced yesterday. Respect to Cyprus. It’s been a long time coming. We’ve been working on this for an awfully long time way know that this decision was announced in light of heightened tensions in eastern Mediterranean. But we thought it was the right thing and so I made the decision. We would move forward with it on the timeline that our decision was reached. President Trump’s been in conversations with President Erdogan, spoken to the prime minister in Greece. We’re urging everyone to stand down to reduce tensions and begin to have diplomatic discussions about the conflicts that exist there in the Eastern Mediterranean, the security conflicts, the energy resource conflicts, the maritime conflicts. I need to sit down and have conversations about this and resolve this diplomatic. It is not useful to increase military tension in the region. Onley Only negative things can flow from that. This is okay. I’ll take a couple more, Uh, how do you justify the US not joining the W. H O lead Kovacs effort to provide a vaccine globally when more than 170 other countries have joined? There is no nation that has been or will be as deeply committed to delivering vaccines all around the world as the United States, America, not just in terms of dollars. We will dwarf every nation in terms of the financial research of the goodness of the American people to give our money to make sure that these vaccines are delivered, all of no nation will matches. It will won’t even be close up. But It is also imperative that when we do that, we need to dust, do so in a way that’s effective. It’s not political, that is science based. What we have seen demonstrate from the World Health Organization that it is not. That does it. Yes, it’s a question of Mexico. US. Energy groups have written letters to you and others in the administration expressing concerns about developments in the energy sector. In Mexico, they complain about the lack of legal certainty investors rights for U. S companies in Mexico, it taken by actions taken by the Mexican government. What is the Trump administration willing to do to defend US? Interest in Mexico in the energy sector on has been recent to the presidential level. Most apply. I’m familiar with this issue. We want American companies to have the opportunity to invest that in Mexico. It’s what the U. S. M. C. A was designed to achieve. We think there’s been real progress there, But make make no mistake. We’ve been clear. This isn’t about you talked about what we do to defend American interests down there. This is in Mexico’s best interest. It’s in Mexico’s best interest to have American investment. The technology that is brought to develop Mexican energy resource is to benefit the people of Mexico. And so we’re in constant conversations with the Mexican government about this. Certainly A to every level of the United States governments. It’s important. We think this cooperative set of agreements that was reached between that states can in Mexico can deliver on those outcomes in way that NAFTA never cooked. So we’ll continue to work on that challenge. Thank you all about one today. Thank you. Let’s try to get yeah. Do you know about the If there’s an escalation at the Indian Chinese border, the L A. C. Where does the United States stand there on It also says the Chinese foreign ministries come up with a statement saying that the U. S role and cause for Tibet is the cause for debate. How do you respond to that for the conflict in the Himalayas? Like all things especially related to the PRC’s differences of opinion with its neighbours is we advise them to return to dialogue, resolve these things peacefully without quarters and use of force that that applies Teoh the many conflicts that are going on in China’s periphery right now. You mentioned to bet sinned. Young, very concerned still about what they’re doing there. Hong Kong activities, South China Sea. I could go on and on. What we’ve seen since the since the Corona outbreak from Wuhan is it seems the Pearcey is trying to take advantage of the situation. And India, I think, is one of those examples of that. So our friends in Beijing, I would ask them to follow their commitment to resolve these things through peaceful means and dialogue, just to follow up in case there’s an escalation. Will the U. S. Share intelligence with India? Well, they assist India. We’ll defer. Defer that question to others who are more closely related to the Indian part way. Have you Can you just explain why you think this move that secretary announced is is necessary? And as you knows, one of military men, there are service members pensions that also have Chinese companies in them. And if you could address that on, then just while we have you on Taiwan eyes their support from the Department of State on a free trade agreement and those talks and Taiwan’s recent easing of beef and pork imports ease, shall we say, some internal opposition, maybe outside this building to those talks? Great questions on the Taiwan question, especially the trade aspect. I will gladly defer to USTR on that one. However, we did announce, though, that Undersecretary Crock would begin a economic dialogue with the with Taiwan to look for those areas. As you saw, we moved the TSMC chip manufacturing into Arizona or removing in that direction, which is great news both for the US and for Taiwan. So we’re early on in this thing, this new position, but it’s very welcome. Decision out of presidents I to remove one of those last obstacles assed faras tsp You heard the secretary mentioned again in letter from Keith Krach universities to better understand what your money is going into, where your endowments are being funded and understand about that need for transparency on those things. As you know, Chinese companies in investing in the U. S. Are not subject to the same audit restrictions that any other company on Then, when we tell the Chinese that they do need to submit themselves subject themselves to those requirements, they complain that they’re being treated unfairly somehow and So you know, Let’s they say, you know, make truth, seek truth from facts. Let’s clarify all this and make the words and the reality match Finally, on the announcement that sector is made about reciprocity. This is not new. We’ve been doing this since last October’s. You remember we asked the Chinese diplomats to notify us about their travels to all these locations. See governors, mayors, school boards, all these other things that we know they’re doing. And we did that in an effort not to reduce the relationship interaction, but to get them to understand that we are going to insist on getting this really shit back in balance because it is clearly way out of balance. And balance to me equates to stability and that the instability this relationship causes all of us concerned. We’re taking steps to fix that. Thanks. Here. Thank you for your answer questions. So, as you know, the Chinese pretty much always respond in kind When ever the US places sanctions or some sort of new restrictions s So what are you anticipating this time? And can you give us a sense where this is all leading? And are you already starting to prepare some particularly stiff sanctions to be enforced after September 20th. Since they’ve made it clear they will not, uh, go along with U. N. Sanctions on Iran, Let me talk to the, uh, the anticipated PRC response. I depend on you all. I mean, I mean that sincerely, to help people understand that what they’re doing is grossly out of proportion to our simple desire to read, to balance this this relationship. And so we have seen we’ve seen both. We’ve seen sometimes where they have understood that this was long overdue and there has been no response, and especially in terms of media, they have taken some very unfortunate steps of late on. They continue to do things to media in the PRC, especially those reporters who understand what’s going on, those with language skills and those who investigate issues they would rather not the world not know. Finances of elites got New York Times and Bloomberg and big trouble when I was out there in 11 4012. Most recently, the Wall Street Journal published a very balanced op ed that was titled Sick Man of Asia and that they bounced to Americans in Australian for that. And so if there’s concerns about reciprocal, what they call reciprocal retaliations a better word. Let’s make sure we paint a very clear picture of what is what they’re doing. What that really balance looks like there’s 150 orm or Chinese diplomats here. They’re Chinese state media folks who worked for the ministry propaganda here in the U. S. Operating without restriction. Onda. There’s only a handful of American journalists left in China right now. Let’s let’s paint that picture. So understands what we’re talking about. Thanks. Can you comment on the possible impact of China blocking the export of artificial intelligence and its fallout with the possible sale of the American branch of TIC Tac? And also, are you concerned about the announcement that they’re going to be increased Covad tests throughout Hong Kong? Apparently, there is concern among activists that this would be used for DNA collection. Your your second question. I can’t speak to what the intentions are in Hong Kong. I have noted folks in Hong Kong are having they have concerns as you imagine both your questions related because they do with information on China’s collection of that for an analog that I would point you back to before we had the so called vocational training centres, the the weaker interment camps. We had mass genetic testing and it was it was mast. It was portrayed as health checks for Uighurs and say they were collecting DNA on Uighurs under the guise of doing health checks so that, given that example, I think the Hong Kong people, her right concerned and then as far as the tic tac in A I, um, I’m not an expert on tech, but I do know that information is the new currency. It’s like oil. It’s It’s something everybody can use and needs and all that. But in a country that does run under the auspice of rule of law, I think people can trust that their information will be used for good things and not for nefarious outcomes. The PRC doesn’t have that reputation. We know what they do with information. They target individuals with it. It’s the greatest state security apparatus anybody’s ever seen. Anybody been there every street corner and not just one. Cameras got like eight on every corner, and so way know that we use face recognition all those things, too affect your social credit score, Teoh affect your ability to get a job. Switchers kids into school. So I think the Hong Kong people are right rightfully concerned just to try and, uh, get tic tac specifically, I know that there’s only so much you can say, but is can’t mention that Chinese changed the export rules over the weekend. And it seems that may stop a sale to a U. S. Company. Do you believe that the Chinese were trying, or do you believe it will stop a sale to a U. S. Company in the sense that the new rules essentially require bite Dance, the parent company to seek approval First, there’s two forces at play here. Obviously, the Chinese desire to prevent the US from protecting itself by making sure that this software operates. I mean, we’re not the first one. Remember, India led off with this with, and I think they’re over 60 right now. APs that are not available for use in India for the right reasons. I will point to the irony, though, of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson using Twitter to say it’s it’s completely out of bounds for the US to block, you know, APS, Chinese APS in the US on our own Twitter account. But all that is to note that again, I can’t speak to the exact details. But there’s an economic versus security balance here that we all have to deal with. And allowing the sale would allow you know, the profits and all that to continue. Where is blocking the sale? See, there’s a financial loss, but a for the Chinese that should hopefully damp in there. Their decision. Thank you. Thank you very much. Doing this call just to go back to the potential of the Taiwan feels it’s the administration with some very bored with it. What kind of bad quest would you anticipate from the Chinese regime on that second question about Chinese response that it’s all about Beijing’s decision matrix. But our job is to obviously think through what those are. Anticipate them. And if you look at the language from the Three Communiques and the Taiwan Relations Act, the announcement we made earlier this week the economic relationship, cultural exchanges, all those things are fully allowed that there’s nothing that prohibits those things, and so they should. There should be no lashed back. The three efforts to increase prosperity between two countries should have no effect. Bigger camp on from J. T. V. C, South Korea, the TV news channel. Let me ask you about No SKoreans. So you a State Department, the shooter in this industry or the rice cereal in those Korea Ballistic Mr Procurement Yesterday. Yesterday I would like to know the background debate. Have you find any specific signal such as North Korea trying to export their techniques? Or is it just a warning before? Is a warning comment broadly on North Korea? Can I leave that to the special? Representative Steve Bigon and Alex Wong Definitely poison questions if you want specifics on that. But I would note that this administration has done Mawr. My first tour is a military going in. Korea was in 1981. I’ve been involved in this for quite a long time, and this administration has gone far further than any other in taking strong actions to let North Korea know that they’re going to have to negotiate. They can’t just sit back and threaten and launch an all things they’ve been doing. And so this is another step in that direction is to demonstrate to North Korea that there is a brighter future for your people. But you’re gonna have to step up and negotiate and talk about these things rather than remain isolated right here soon. You have a phone? Yeah. I have a question about the five security threat from North Korea. So three days ago, just cover Manisha several advisory against in the Korean cyber threats. So how your system is Korean Cyber threat in the way I think we all remember the Sony Pictures hacked from 2014. Um, that was operation denied Christmas For me and my family, where you spent every day thinking through that one. It is a clear threat. As you know, a lot of those cyber actors are operating in other places in a dispersed manner. Getting at this is going to be difficult, you know, we’re I’ll defer to the folks in Homeland Security and who deal with the cyber threat specifically. But again, there is strong evidence that they do operate in that in that regard. And the goal I find is to get currencies to get funding to continue with missile procurement and the rest of the quicker we can slow or stop that, the better off we’ll all be safer. Will be anybody right when asked about annexation. So probably your best qualified to answer. My question is that we are a little bit confused on the U. S. Position on annexation of the West Bank. Because Mr Kushner says one thing. Mr Netanyahu says one thing and the secretary had not really clarified. So can you explain to us your position on annexation? Is it? You know, as a result, off rapprochement normalisation between you A and Israel is it then put off indefinitely. I look exactly what we what we said, but I believe that the government of Israel and on the Secretary and Kushner, when we talked about the Abraham Records said that it had, I think, the word that we had uses postponed, um, haven’t given a timeline, but would just say that, you know, we still fundamentally believe the vision for peace that we put out in February. I think it waas is the right vision for peace for the Middle East, and we’ve seen by the first agreement between Arabs and Israelis in 25 years that This is the positive way for that. We hoped for everybody in the Middle East, Israelis, Palestinians. And we hope the Palestinian leadership will come to the table. And so we will see we’re making progress. And it was a secretary said earlier it was quite an honor and experience to be on the first flight last week, the first non stop flight from Israel to Sudan. So that was a great moment. Okay, big site. Thanks, Everybody. Have a great day.