- yesterday
State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce holds a press briefing on Wednesday.
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00:00hi everybody welcome aboard nice to see you okay good of course few announcements here at the top
00:12as well I'm Tammy Bruce the spokesperson thank you all very much for being here this week the
00:18Trump administration and the Department of State achieved significant milestones advancing peace
00:23strengthening US partnerships and realigning foreign assistance to better serve American
00:29interests the quad a partnership between the United States India Japan and Australia held
00:35their foreign ministers meeting here in Washington DC right here at State Department these officials
00:40representing 35 percent of the world's combined GDP advanced an ambitious agenda to enhance
00:47collective security and economic resilience quad countries agreed to expand maritime law enforcement
00:54cooperation across the Indo-Pacific reinforcing their shared commitment to uphold international
01:01law and freedom of navigation they also launched the quad critical minerals initiative a landmark
01:08effort to diversify and secure global supply chains in strategic sectors ensuring our economies remain
01:14resilient against coercion I can also announce the completion of a major foreign assistance reform
01:20effort Secretary Rubio remarked that the US Agency for International Development will no longer implement foreign
01:28assistance programs going forward the Department of State will take the lead on administering foreign
01:33assistance programs with a mission that directly advances our national interest accountability strategy
01:39and efficiency this restructuring puts US taxpayers and American priorities first marking a new chapter in
01:46in global leadership tomorrow President Trump will headline the kickoff of America 250 at the Iowa State Fairgrounds launching a year-long
01:57celebration of our nation's 250th anniversary under the banner a new era of American greatness the America 250 national tour will bring
02:07community focused celebrations to all 50 states and US territories finally this week Americans around the world will join in
02:16celebrating our nation's independence July 4th is a time to reflect on the freedoms and liberties we all cherish and we wish everyone a
02:25safe happy and meaningful Independence Day and with that we will take your questions the Imperial we at the end of individual I all right
02:36everyone yes sir go ahead I know just to slip through there going sorry just a quick question on Iran Iran announced today that it's
02:46suspending its co-operation with IAEA I would surprise I would like to have your thoughts comment on that yes we of course do have a little bit to say in that
03:01regard first of all and I want to get this correct here it is we'll use the word unacceptable that Iran chose to suspend
03:14cooperation with the IAEA at a time when it has a window of opportunity to reverse course and choose a path of peace and prosperity
03:23Iran must cooperate fully without further delay prior to the as will the shutting down of your phone that that has to proceed without delay
03:33prior to the United States successful military operation Iran was amassing a growing stockpile of highly enriched uranium for which there was no credible peaceful purpose and it was the only state pursuing a producing highly enriched uranium up to 60 percent that does not have nuclear weapons Iran must fully comply with its safeguards agreement required under the NPT
04:00including by providing the IAEA with information required to clarify and resolve long-standing questions regarding undeclared nuclear material in Iran as well as provide unrestricted access to its newly announced enrichment facility we look forward to further detailed reporting from the IAEA about this it is worth repeating
04:30Thank you
04:32Thank you
05:00that Trump has said Israel has agreed to does it include provisions for Israel
05:05pulling out of Gaza what I am going to the president had a message about that
05:15from last night and I'll read that for you so we just get this on the record
05:20here from the president Donald Trump my representatives had a long and
05:25productive meeting with the Israelis today on Gaza Israel has agreed to the
05:30necessary conditions to finalize the 60-day ceasefire during which time we
05:36will work with all the parties to end the war the Qataris and the Egyptians who
05:41have worked very hard to help bring peace will deliver this final proposal I hope
05:47for the good of the Middle East that Hamas takes this deal because it will not
05:51get better it will only get worse thank you for your attention to this matter as
05:58far as your question about the details I won't go into the details of what's in
06:02the uh what's in the proposal Hamas has said that Israel must pull out of the
06:06enclave how does the administration plan to reconcile this is that addressed in
06:11the proposal I will not give you the details of the proposal and we'll find
06:15out but I think the president's message is clear this is one that has to be
06:19accepted because it will only get worse if they don't yes ma'am thanks Tammy a
06:24White House official told our colleagues that the Trump administration has paused
06:27certain weapons shipments to Ukraine what was the State Department's role in
06:31making this decision to pause these weapons shipments are you concerned about
06:34the advantage it gives to the Russians well traditionally of course I mean our
06:38our wheelhouse here is diplomacy we don't make decisions about the shipping of
06:44weapons or the managing of weaponry war we have the Department of Defense I would
06:50refer you to them when it comes to this kind of a decision at the same time we've got
06:57um a few things I can say to you regarding this uh it remains as you might imagine worth repeating
07:03a priority of President Trump to bring the Russia Ukraine war to an end through a durable negotiated
07:10settlement starting with an immediate ceasefire and of course just repeating referring you to the
07:16Department of Defense for more information regarding that situation regarding weapons Anna Kelly a White
07:22spokesperson also has noted this decision was made to put America's interests first following a DOD review
07:30of our nation's military support and assistance to other countries around the globe the strength of
07:37the United States Armed Forces remains unquestioned just ask Iran also from a statement by Eldridge
07:45Elbridge Colby from the second which was yesterday at the DOD that the Department of Defense quote
07:52continues to provide the president with robust options to continue military aid to Ukraine at the
07:59same time the department is rigorous rigorously examining and adapting its approach to achieving
08:04this objective while also preserving U.S. forces readiness for administration's defense priorities
08:11can I quickly ask on GHF um the State Department announced last week that you had approved 30
08:17million dollars has any of that money been dispersed yet and if so how much uh it has it has been fully
08:23approved it has not been uh dispersed there is process as you all might imagine in the building
08:28uh regarding the dispersal of any funds and uh when that happens I will let you guys will be the
08:34first ones to know Andrea Mitchell yes ma'am I just wanted to note that's my question the passing of
08:40one of your predecessors uh Richard Boucher who served six secretaries of state was an esteemed diplomat
08:47and a very highly respected spokesperson for this department yeah yes yes yes all right thank you Andrea
08:59um I want to ask you about the passing of USAID the demise of a USAID being absorbed into the State
09:07Department in a very different fashion according to the Lancet uh highly respected British medical
09:14journal USAID was responsible for saving 90 million lives over the course of two decades American aid was
09:23responsible for that Andrea I'll correct you right there USAID was a an element of the
09:29United States government dispersing taxpayer funds around the world for humanitarian aid for a
09:35variety of different projects it was the United States government and is when it comes to the aid not
09:40not a department but the nature of what this government under various administrations had
09:47approved let's keep that in mind can I can just please do but I wanted that's a very it's a it's
09:52something worth correcting and former president Bush who was responsible for pepfar with bipartisan majorities
10:03in Congress for years suggested that the saving of 25 million lives from antiretroviral drugs on HIV AIDS as
10:14well as tuberculosis is something that the USAID staff because he sent this to the USAID staff in a video
10:22and he said that you should be proud of it and God bless you all for what you did so I just want
10:28to ask you about how it is going to be reconstituted because the prep the secretaries writing on substack
10:36describes it as wasteful and not fulfilling US goals and broad categories and it is very it's contrary to
10:47what Republicans and Democrats well said in Congress for yes not it is inevitably it grew into something
10:56that was beyond what it was meant to do there's clearly some very good options and aid that was
11:03delivered and that aid was maintained but what we found was something that was unacceptable we've been
11:10discussing this transparently from beginning of the Trump administration and Secretary Rubio's State
11:16Department that this and I'll I guess I'll have to repeat that there is the past things that
11:22happened in the past certainly aid that went out that was beneficial that has been maintained and other aid
11:29that was not in line with America's priorities or what certainly the Trump administration and the Rubio State
11:35Department felt was appropriate so they've taken action in that regard it is also what I've said repeatedly
11:40is even though the mechanism has changed because it grew it grew and unable to function in a manner where
11:52even auditing was something that was easy to do there was a refusal to allow an auditing at the beginning of
12:01this administration there was a sense that it was some independent organization not something associated
12:07with the with the United States government all of that is absurd it led to yes a dramatic action to
12:14look at and to review and to audit the entity we've done that a great deal of aid has remained a great deal has
12:21been suspended or cut entirely it fit well within the nature of needing to reform the government as a
12:27whole via the president's executive order to do so and to save money I'll repeat again Samantha Powers the
12:35last USAID director under the last administration at the end of 2024 complained in public statements that when she
12:43started only 7% of aid money that was assigned to various projects and groups made it to its intended destination and
12:53that's because of bureaucracy and layers of contractors and she was proud that she got it up to 10% all of us would agree that
13:02that's unacceptable and that even if you do cut the amount of money that's going out doesn't mean that
13:08the services get cut it doesn't mean that the benefits get cut it could in fact mean more services more
13:15benefits with less bureaucracy with services getting directly to the people who need it I often you you you
13:22stated a number of things that I think are unfortunate and the American people deserve to hear an answer because
13:29we've also described you asked how will this look now with this reorganization it fits within the framework
13:35of making sure that people assigned to those regions and we have those that's called bureaus here people
13:42who are assigned to look at the nature of what's happening in a certain region of the world they're the experts in
13:47that regard that foreign assistance for that region will now sit with the bureau assigned to that region as
13:54opposed to some massive bureaucracy not even housed in our building dealing with countries and regions
14:01separately without dealing with the experts here who understand what those regions might need it will be
14:07more efficient it will be more effective we are not ending foreign aid we are making it more nimble we are
14:15operating at the speed of relevancy to making sure that the millions and billions of dollars that we spend on
14:23in our own foreign aid get to where it is meant to go there is nothing to be proud of when 90% according
14:30to Samantha powers is not even making it to the people to whom it was promised these are promises
14:37Donald Trump makes promises and he keeps them promises made promises kept we will be doing that also now with
14:43foreign aid with the new structure of how this will be working we are we are of course it is in our DNA we
14:52exist in large part because of the nature of what America stands for as a beacon of hope for the
14:59future for the world we've died on that principle we live on that principle and we are giving foreign
15:06aid on that principle but it will be functional it will be auditable we will know where it's going and
15:11we will see results all right yes sir thank you Tommy I have two questions on Ukraine more press a
15:17little bit more I know you refer to the Defense Department yes but the Ukrainians you appear to
15:21have learned about it from the media this morning is there any reason behind the failure when it comes
15:28to communicating this I would argue that that is not correct obviously perhaps some Ukrainians heard
15:37about it in the news our communication lines with Ukraine have always been robust they while it was
15:45not well I will not discuss to who delivered the the news but that is a conversation clearly that is
15:53something that occurred because of the importance of this project to the United States we have been
15:59Ukraine's biggest supporter emotionally militarily financially and there's a reason for that at the
16:07same time as we've also said the president has said and the secretary that we in fact have got to make sure
16:13that because we have a global front of what matters to America and that's why we've been asking our European
16:21partners and allies and friends to also chime in because of the nature of the the fronts that we
16:29are always dealing with around the world and that is sometimes a decision at the same time the DOD statement
16:35made clear that they have robust options as we continue to work to assist Ukraine when it comes to the
16:42options that they might have that's from the DOD and I don't doubt that so we should I think be cautious
16:51about judging the nature of what has just occurred considering our commitment that remains for the for the country of Ukraine
16:58I want to take a time but the president from the get-go made it clear that his American first foreign policy objective
17:04when it comes to Russia-Ukraine war is to end the killing and these are defensive weapons that Ukraine use that for that very reason to end the killing of Ukrainians by the Russians
17:14how do you square the circle well it is it's not one doesn't need to complete the circle
17:21or square it our commitment hasn't changed the nature of how we're able to make that commitment is going to be based on what is best for America first
17:30it is the president's point of view his guiding hand about the nature of what needs to occur and it is certainly two nations at war
17:39and America has made a huge difference in that regard and the president still has worked to have people at the table that this can only be solved diplomatically
17:48that of course is the State Department's wheelhouse and that that's what he wants he has made several remarks of returning to this now with the Israel Iran situation at least managed and this is not something that the president is not not addressing it is clearly on our plate all the time and certainly he is specifically referred to the nature of the continued slaughter
18:13it is unacceptable it is unacceptable it is a horrible dynamic at the targeting of civilian areas the world knows this this has been something that's been discussed
18:22the president has expressed his fury over this issue and that has not changed so again be cautious as things move along from day to day yes sir
18:32thank you Tommy just going back to Gaza I know you said you didn't want to go into details but can you perhaps
18:37you can ask I might not answer well I'm going to ask if you can perhaps speak more more broadly then about what gives President Trump so much optimism
18:44that he can get the deal through within the next few days especially given that the parties are still so far apart with Hamas saying it wants
18:52Israeli forces out while is Israel say it wants an end to Hamas so there's a lot of daylight still between the between those two well is there
19:02okay well but you see we should not you're presuming a great deal which people do have to presume because the details of something like this of course do
19:11remain within the negotiating partners the leaders of nations of what you contend to see in the media often is just simply not true or or wishful thinking
19:21but whatever it is what I think we all have noticed and this is not giving away anything is that the Middle East changed a couple weeks ago
19:29very dramatically it changed forever and the work of the president of the United States thank God for him
19:36is going to make sure that this is not a lost opportunity we can say this simply by having watched him most of his adult life in some capacity
19:45but certainly with what he's given up and sacrificed to be the leader of this country so the Middle East changed dramatically
19:52this is an opportunity in the midst of this new world to make a different kind of decision
19:57he is optimistic the president is very honest sometimes he's pessimistic and he'll let people know
20:04it's again he's a transparent man which sometimes can be unusual we're not used to always hearing it but it's extremely helpful
20:12so while I don't know the detail of what makes him optimistic I know to trust him I know to not second-guess him
20:20I know to under that we understand that he's in the midst of something that can change every day that's also not lost on him
20:27but the changes that he's been able to bring about has been brought about by the power of his personality and leadership
20:35along with the support of an American government that is in line and embraces what he wants to accomplish
20:42I think that is why he's optimistic it is seems to be a different tone I hope it works of course again this
20:50these are all fluid situations but he knows things that we don't and I look forward to finding out if it's this week
20:58if it's next week but I'm grateful that he's the one making the decisions Nadia
21:02thank you just to go back to the Middle East is the 60-day ceasefire proposal was it the same one
21:10that Mr. Redkov proposed to both parties which includes releasing 10 I can't speak to that one way or the other
21:16I won't give you details regarding that no no I'm sorry I can't okay just now you just condemned attacks on civilians in Ukraine
21:25of course yesterday there was an attack on the beach cafe in Gaza where 24 civilians were killed including our
21:31colleagues a female journalist was killed as well the United States condemned the killing of civilians on target
21:37well we have always one of the reasons why we do what we do is because no one wants to have civilians killed
21:44either in a terrorist act in war one of the things that president has repeated as has Secretary Rubio is that the carnage has to stop
21:53we have decried the killing of civilians throughout every conflict that exists at the same time it's why war is hell
22:03it's why we want something more than a ceasefire is important but it can't be back and forth there has to be a durable end to all of these conflicts
22:13so we mourn like everyone of course the killing of civilians with whomever it is that's that's engaging in these conflicts
22:23but that is why we're so committed to Gaza to Israel's right to defend itself we were as horrified by October 7th and the slaughter of those civilians
22:33this is why it has to end there is aggressive actions where if you're in war where if you're defending yourself and these are civilian areas
22:43is horrible enough and it's another to deliberately target civilians for the sake of it and those are the monsters that we are trying to stop
22:53and that the world has tried to stop for generations now so this is why our work continues in Gaza why the ceasefire is important
23:01and why the end of war and the status quo that so many people have grown rich from has got to end Said
23:11thank you WHO the World Health Organization said that 112 Palestinian children many of them are newborn and so on
23:21are sent to whatever remains of the hospital because of malnutrition it said because the the aid is just not getting through
23:29and my question to you is that is that basically a statement or evidence that the aid that has been going in is not enough
23:38and is not sufficient that maybe it ought the aid ought to be the responsibility of those who have had a great deal of experience
23:47and doing this you know consistent with whatever with all the international organization that have stated to that
23:54Well two parts I'll answer that first of all there's one entity that has gotten food and aid into the Gaza Strip
24:00and that's the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation we know this this has been a fact of the matter
24:05and that's it I think we're now up to 56 million meals distributed so we we it's still within a war zone it's it's you know we had a ceasefire that Hamas broke
24:15I would say on the other issue when it comes to the horribleness of what happens in a war zone in this case in Gaza it is occurring
24:22because Hamas refuses it broke a ceasefire on October 7th it broke another ceasefire that was attained for the Gaza Strip
24:29it is now refusing at least up to this point prior to the change in the Middle East to continue to agree to another ceasefire
24:37they maintain their firearms they are maintaining hostages people they've kidnapped and so yes it is horrible
24:44and it's it's something that we are working to stop but I would say regarding aid you know we'll just make an admission here
24:53it will never be enough there will never be enough aid going into a war zone there will no matter how many depots the GHF the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation sets up
25:04it will not be enough because the only way you have a normal life with enough aid and enough food and being able to live your normal life is in an area that is not at war being held hostage by a terrorist group
25:19so to attempt to normalize the environment that is under this horrible cloud of terroristic monsterism of the slaughter of innocent people
25:34the using of people as human shields the using of hospitals as as a cover for your operations the using of schools as a cover for your operations
25:43it is obscene it is inhuman so it will what we do in the midst of that environment will never be enough and it is it is a key though to unlocking a door to get to a point where you can have a ceasefire assisting those who are held hostage by the terrorists and being able to get to a point where you actually have a ceasefire removing those who do not abide by the ceasefire and then begin to build a
26:13a genuinely different future for the people in that area what a concept so we we do our best we know it will never be enough because the situation is obscene and unusual and unnatural
26:28but we will do it until we also then move to change that situation for the better
26:32back to you and then to you sir
26:35two topics thank you so much number one uh with all the developments with iran and syria and gaza
26:40it's been all quiet thank goodness on the israel lebanon front but still some work to do there
26:45what are the challenges that remaining uh remain at this point in in disarming hezbollah and in enforcing
26:51resolution 1701 well you would i would direct you to the uh israeli government in that regard
26:57i think the thing that has changed the middle east beyond of course uh the damage to the uh well the
27:02destruction the obliteration of iran's uh nuclear facilities uh is the personality and power that
27:09is exhibited by donald trump and what he is willing to do what the american government and military is
27:16capable of and as a reflection of our genuine commitment for change after exhausting all diplomatic
27:23options is that he will do what else is necessary to achieve peace that is something as a message
27:29to the entire middle east including to our allies and to those who have stepped up as an example
27:35regarding the gaza strip uh the regional partners there uh willing to step in and help make a difference
27:40for the future there so the biggest issue and again for specifics you'd have to speak to the israeli
27:46government but for us um we made that decision last year in november without knowing how it would need
27:52to be applied but it's also because of the american people that we're able to send this message to the
27:57world that we are still here we are still the the team you can count on america matters we know it
28:05and we're we're going to defend our country which is what it needs to exist in order to have this hope
28:10for the future sorry yeah yes eric uh wanted to ask about um i understand the uh the decision on which
28:20weapons to provide to ukraine being one taken at the pentagon but from a diplomacy standpoint um does
28:28pausing the weapon deliveries for ukraine uh make it more difficult to get russia to come to the table
28:36in terms of a peace agreement or a ceasefire because it somehow relieves potential pressure on
28:42them that it's a very good question but it's a it's good that it's not going to be a factor because
28:49we haven't paused sending weapons to ukraine this is one aspect one situation one event that has been
28:57changed as you heard from the dod there are multiple robust other options and efforts regarding
29:06the ukrainian situation with weapons again i don't speak for the dod i would refer i can only refer to
29:11their statement and to what they've stated very bluntly the president has also indicated his remaining
29:17commitment regarding patriot missiles uh this is not i will reinforce this this is not a cessation of us
29:25assisting ukraine or of providing weapons this is one event in one situation uh and uh we'll discuss
29:34what else comes up in the future but be wary of painting too broad a brush there all right
29:40another uh sorry one more you uh just a few minutes ago put out a statement about the uh about secretary
29:47rubio's um phone call with the foreign minister of mexico juan ramon de la fuente um in which uh they spoke
29:56about uh issues relating to transnational crime um uh terrorist organizations of which the the mexican
30:04cartels were declared on the for in the first days of this administration we were busy
30:10yes i was wondering if you could talk about um the the importance of the relationship with mexico but in
30:15particular the designation by uh the treasury department of mexican banks that were involved in
30:23money laundering and whether that was part of the discussion uh between the secretary and his
30:27counterpart well other than what was on the readout and for americans watching this uh you too can see
30:33the reports of phone calls and meetings that we have we put out things called readouts which give us
30:38some detail of a phone call not everything it's not a transcript but you can go to state.gov here i go
30:44and you can subscribe and you have a lot of different options you can get statements by the secretary you
30:49can get schedules you can get just all kinds of things and i encourage everyone to do that uh but
30:54i would say that it's clear that we have an excellent relationship with mexico uh we have uh and they've
31:00been very helpful regarding the border um the conversations are good of course we've made some
31:07designations which uh helped this country but also the world in recognizing uh certain foreign terrorist
31:13organizations for being such and certainly criminal cartels uh so it's i won't give you any more
31:19details about the call than what was uh publicly uh uh distributed for the most part but um i can tell
31:27everyone that our relationship is excellent uh and this of course is part and parcel of the secretary's
31:33theory regarding diplomacy is that it's about people and it's about relationships and we reinforce
31:39that all the time i have a feeling i will never again hear from matt lee if if he if i don't call
31:45out on him because you seem to maybe you have a shoulder issue that you can't raise your hand
31:49it did you did you have like i had torn rotator cuff surgery once and it was very difficult to raise my
31:54hand well that's because you're sitting with your elbows on the table not raising your hand
32:01what can i do for you sir well actually i have a very easy question um is do you know is is secretary
32:07going to be joining the president and prime minister netanyahu at the white house on monday or does
32:12he have uh other plans the secretary schedule i can't discuss at this point sorry it is it was an
32:18easy question and an easy answer is that is that the depth of it yeah all right sure all right all
32:25right now wait hold on a second user and then you'll go go ahead question on iran uh as you mentioned
32:31iran's nuclear program has been shattered by the us and israeli has been past tense but yes but go ahead
32:37uh the iranian foreign minister has asked for assurances from the u.s that there will be no
32:42attack on iranian soil if the talks are going to be resolved if there's going to be a resumption of
32:49talks between iran and the u.s what's the u.s stance on this well again i'm not going to get ahead of my
32:55skis here and preview for you what the secretary or the president might decide because it certainly is
33:00in the president's hands uh you heard my remarks regarding their uh rejection of uh the iaea and
33:07and those uh that situation of course uh that is unfortunate and again it's a very bad decision
33:14so they seem to be not surprisingly making bad decisions but it's going to the president as we've
33:19seen is also a very generous man he he cares about all the people and he knows iran can be great again
33:25and uh yet that's going to be up to the iranian people but uh so far i i can't uh discuss what
33:32they may or may not do in that regard uh but uh it's uh well i'm sure we'll hear from the president
33:37as well all right yes ma'am in the back thank you very much uh i have a question on the west bank
33:42israeli justice minister yariel levyu today said that the time has come time has come to
33:49next the occupied west bank do you have any reaction to this and what is this administration
33:55position on a potential on israeli annexation of the west bank well i think that is specifically
34:01something that the white house uh would be able to answer for you but i also know that
34:06our position regarding israel the choices it's make is that we stand with israel and its decisions
34:11and how it views its own internal security um is the uh you know two states solution to the israeli
34:18palestinian conflict still an official policy of the u.s government uh what i can say there
34:25is that um president trump is realistic about the current state of affairs clearly gaza is an
34:33uninhabitable place it needs to be rebuilt with the help of arab partners i think he has said previously
34:40uh that uh the nature of what has happened and what we have to get to we we don't have a ceasefire
34:47yet hopefully that will change uh but that is getting quite ahead of uh the dynamic in general so
34:53that is what the president's focused on all right yeah you're there and then we'll go to you sir but
34:57go ahead yeah thank you tammy um two questions uh the first one on israel um is this department or the
35:05u.s government trying to have any direct talks to hamas or just going through the qatari and the
35:11egyptians i won't discuss the nature of the choices in a diplomatic effort like this okay and
35:17the second one if this department believe that there's not going to be any uh potential ceasefire
35:23between russia and ukraine maybe until after uh the summer uh looking at putting position in 50 000
35:32troops well again i'm not going to i'm not going to speculate uh but the commitment i know by
35:37president trump and the secretary uh is that things uh have to happen quickly um we've seen deadlines set
35:44we've seen statements regarding waiting weeks versus days uh for uh the parties to do some certainly for
35:51russia to give an indication whether it was serious or not so the we are not an administration
35:57obviously that is going to let things go for months or a year uh but i certainly am not going to
36:02speculate on what the timeline might be for a ceasefire which the president stays focused on thank you
36:07all right and you sir in the net yeah the the beige jacket yes sir thank you uh how does the start
36:13department uh rocky uh interpret uh uh prime minister uh statement uh that this agreement between baghdad
36:24and washington could undermine the relationship between both sides and can you comment on have
36:32to take that we're gonna have to take that back but go ahead for a second one can you uh comment on
36:37reports that iraq has moved to accelerate a radar system deal with south korea in light of recent regional
36:47developments we're we're going to take that back as well if you don't mind sir when we say again for
36:51americans watching when we take something back we get an answer for that reporter and we get the
36:55answer right back to you sir and we will do that for sure what all right yes go ahead
37:00usaid given that the official closure of it happened this week sure um will state or the administration
37:07be releasing a breakdown of how much it has cost to shut down usaid for the taxpayer to to be able to
37:15see that for example how much does it cost to bring some 2 000 usaid uh officers back from the field to
37:23the u.s including their family members um how much does it cost to to pay to do payment settlements for
37:29contracts and grants how much does it cost to to sever local staff i love that there's now questions
37:34about how much things cost we know we're not used to those kinds of questions i i would well i am not
37:41i don't direct the nature of the choices that are made about what's what's conveyed but i think that
37:47what obviously is underlied all of this and what we know when it comes to the saving of money is that
37:53we are saving americans a lot of money and i know it's going to be in the interest as i will argue uh to
37:59share with the american people and we tend to share how much money we're saving them now in the midst of
38:06us doing our work there's also expenditures there always is so it costs money to run this building
38:12as we are also saving money in other ways with things that were wasteful programs so we will
38:17certainly the american people will see the results of the fruitfulness of this work will that will
38:22that part be public or not well i i think uh certainly as they've been public in the past certainly
38:28the trump administration is public about money that's already been saved through a variety of
38:33work including doge's work uh i don't um i don't know how that will look and i'm not going to
38:38uh get ahead of that uh but i would think that yes obviously they're going to be proud of the
38:43nature of the money that is saved and uh in order to make sure the american people know uh what that
38:49effort has gotten to us yes ma'am in the pink um two questions um first question about the um
38:56a delivery to uh gaza since there were so many palestinians killed or injured during uh getting
39:02this is ghf looking at all into another dynamic another way to deliver aid into gaza and the second
39:09question um president trump said many times that he wants he has another vision for the middle east he
39:15wants a permanent solution for gaza this is a deal for 60 days is this could we look at this as a he's
39:22laying the ground for a permanent ceasefire in gaza or is this just another attempt what he does he does
39:33because he expects it to work and it leads to what he wants to accomplish this is uh in any dynamic and
39:40certainly in this framework as we've even said about russia and ukraine you can't discuss anything
39:45else until the shooting stops you you can't discuss what what will what the peace will look like until
39:52you stop killing people that's uh clearly i think a very basic dynamic in this case of course i think
40:00that there's a when you've got to get a ceasefire and then you can begin to look at what the next
40:05steps will be uh and if there's a ceasefire uh obviously it's it's elements that uh everyone has agreed
40:11to uh which would also then lead to what president trump's vision is at the end uh it's obviously
40:19that will be peace it's not going to be the world's longest ceasefire it's going to be peace that's
40:25achieved fundamentally by the changes on the ground which we have already seen implemented over the last
40:31couple of weeks and the aids and the well again we're dealing with i i'll just say this one more
40:41time we're moving aid into a live war zone it still exists because hamas will not put down its weapons
40:49won't stop killing people it's it has an interest in in the aid getting to the people it has an interest
40:56in that to stop their strength has been to control the food to steal the food to use food as as a to
41:05make money uh to use food to to keep the gaza people at bay um reliant only on them it is dangerous
41:13to have people who are getting food who are getting their meals who realize that something else can help
41:21them other than the monsters who have been running their lives so they have an interest in uh creating
41:28a horrible environment it is a war i think considering we've got again a 56 million meals to date
41:35and that if that is a dynamic i i would suspect that like with every endeavor uh there's adjustments
41:44that are made based on the situation um i don't have those details but considering the success so far
41:50we should all be proud of the nature of what's happened as we continue because it will not be
41:56enough to go to a ceasefire and then to a durable peace as guided by president donald trump all right
42:03yes sir you in the red time this will be it thank you uh with the voa persian uh question um are you
42:11able to confirm reports that uh americans uh have been arrested trying to leave iran i do and i'm glad
42:21you asked that um because we heard about that very early on um so well i we can't remark on individual
42:31reports of course uh we have long warned u.s citizens not to travel to iran and that is especially
42:38true now anyone with a u.s connection in iran including dual u.s iranian nationals are at
42:45significant risk of arrest and unjust detention by the regime if you are not currently in iran do not go
42:55if you're in iran please see our most recent security alert and make plans to safely depart
43:02we understand that the iranian american diaspora in the u.s may especially feel the need to go we are
43:10not immune from that desire you go visit family members or loved ones do not go don't do it
43:19you cannot help your loved ones from jail so i think that's that's our position i appreciate the
43:28question um and that's going to be it for today all right everyone have a a wonderful uh independence
43:36day fourth of july and um we will see you all be here next week tuesday and thursday for more and
43:42remember state.gov whether you're at home here's reporters sign up for all of our alerts and also
43:49keep an eye on things as eric does with the readout of the mexican phone call there thank you everyone
43:54thank you thank you and i i hope your shoulders it gets better matt