Administration of Joseph R. Biden, Jr., 2021

June 13, 2021

The President. Well, good afternoon. And let me start by thanking Prime Minister Johnson for the incredible hospitality and welcome that he provided for all of us at the Gâ7. I'd like to takeâthank Yael Lempert, who is our ChargÃ© at the Embassy, filling in for the Ambassadorâan Ambassador; we'll have one soon. But she did a great job supporting the entire team, and Yael is vital to keeping this U.K.-U.S. partnership going and moving smoothly as it is now.

We've just wrapped up what has been an extraordinary, collaborative, and productive meeting at the Gâ7. Everyone at the table understood and understands both the seriousness and the challenges that we're up against and the responsibility of our proud democracies to step up and deliver for the rest of the worldâthat's what the Gâ7 is all aboutâand rallying the world's democracies to meet the challenges that the world faces and deliver for our people and for people, quite frankly, everywhere.

Ending the pandemic and maintaining robust support for an equitable, inclusive global economic recovery were the top priorities of our nations as we got together. We know we can't achieve one without the other; that is, we have to deal with the pandemic andâin order to be able to deal with economic recovery, whichâas we're doing in the States, but we committed that we're going to do more for the rest of the world as well.

The fact is that weâthe U.S. contribution is the foundationâthe foundationâto work out how we're going to deal with the hundred nations that are poor and having trouble finding vaccines and having trouble dealing with reviving their economies if they were, in the first place, in good shape.

But the bottom line is: What that generated was a commitment by the rest of our colleagues at the Gâ7 that they would provide another half billion. So we're going to have a billion doses of vaccine. And, in our case, theâthis includes sharing more thanânot just the 1 billion doses overall, but we're going to provide for 200 million of those doses by the end of the year, another 300 million by the first half of next year. And so it'sâit was greeted with some enthusiasm.

And we've agreed to work together so that the world is better prepared to detect and deal with future pandemics, because there will be future pandemics. We have aâI'm sure you've seen it; if you haven't, you'll get itâa joint statement we put out of the Gâ7. You've seen it, I'm sure. And we are committed to follow on to do some significant work, including not only how we deal with the distribution and help in getting shots in arms to the rest of the world, but how we're going to deal with putting together a mechanism to anticipate and deal with and be aware of the nextâthe next pandemic when it comes along. And there will be others.

And we also agreed to take important steps that are going to support global economic recovery by laying the foundation for an equitable global economy. Critically, the Gâ7 leaders endorsed a global minimum tax of 15 percent. Too many corporations have been engaged in what are essentially tax havens, deciding that they would pay considerably less than otherâin other environs around the world. Andâbut this is going to make sure there's a minimum tax, and I'm going to haveâI'm going to move on this at home as wellâa minimum tax for corporations to pay for the profits they make anywhere in the world.

And this agreement is going to help arrest the race to the bottom that's been going on among nations attracting corporate investment at the expense of priorities like protecting our workers and investing in infrastructure.

We also made a momentous commitment at the Gâ7 to help meet more than $40 trillion need that exists for infrastructure in the developing world. I put forward an idea that was calledâ we named the "Build Back Better World Partnership," which isâwe're calling it the "B3W." The point is that what's happening is that China has this Belt and Road Initiative, and we think that there's a much more equitable way to provide for the needs of countries around the world.

And so it's beenâit's a values-driven, high-standard, transparent financing mechanism we're going to provide and support projects in four key areas: climate, health, digital technology, and gender equity. And we believe that will not only be good for the countries, but it will be good for the entire world and represent values that our democracies represent and not autocratic lack of values. By harassing the full potential of those who are harassing, we're going to have to try and change things. [*Laughter*] That's the whole idea.

But here's the deal: We're going to make sure that we are able to pull together the ability to use the development financing institutions and other development tools to expect the bold, new infrastructure investment in low- and middle-income countries over the coming years, much of it coming from the private sector, which will generate the capital put in; will generate significantly more capital from the private sector.

We also made a historic commitment to permanently eliminate the use of our public finance to support unabated coal projects around the world and to end them by this year. The Gâ7 agreed to that. And those who are not members, but visiting members who are participating in the Gâ7, who have coal-fired facilities have also agreed that they would work in that direction as well.

So transitioning the world to cleaner energy sources is urgentâit's essentialâif we're going to beat the climate. And there isâ[*laughter*]âone of the things Iâsome of my colleagues said to me when I was there was, "Well, the United States isâtheir leadership recognizes there is global warming." And I know that sounds silly, but you know, we had a President who lastâwho basically said it's not a problem, global warming. It is the existential problem facing humanity, and it's being treated that way. So we're going to provide up to $2 billion to support developing companyâcountries as they transition away from unabated coal-fired power.

In addition, we also agreed to tackle corruption, which is a threat to societies everywhere. I pointed out in a conversation I had withâwith one of the leaders ofâwell, actually with China. And that wasâit was a request for me not to try toâwhen I was asked what I was going to be doing after being elected, I said we're going to reestablish the strength of American relationships so we can be counted on againâalliancesâand suggested that, "Well, maybe you shouldn't get the Quad"âmeaning India, Japan, Australia, and the United Statesâ"working together, and maybe you shouldn't be pushing on strengthening the European Union to deal with the West not just to have"âand so on.

And I said, for an American President toâevery President to be sustained, or Prime Minister, has to represent the values of their country. And I pointed outâand I mean this

sincerely: We're unique as a country. We're built onâwe're unique in a sense that we're not based on ethnicity or geography or religion; we're one Nation that said we organized on an idea: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men"âand womenâ"are created equal." It sounds corny, but it's real. And any President who doesn't act consistent with what the raison d'Ã©tat for the nation is cannot be sustained thatâthe support of that country.

And so what we were able to do is: We know that corruption undermines the trust in governments, siphons off public resources, makes economies much less competitive, and constitutes a threat to our security. So we're going to work together to address issues like the abuse of shell companies and money laundering through real estate transactions. And we've agreed that we're going to work together to address cyber threats from state and nonstate actors like criminal ransomware networks and hold countries accountable that harbor criminal ransomware actors who don't hold them accountable.

And over the past few weeks, the nations of the Gâ7 have affirmed that democratic values that underpin everything we hope to achieve in our shared future, that we're committed to put them to work: One, delivering vaccines and ending the pandemic. Two, driving substantial, inclusive economic recovery around the world. Three, in fueling infrastructure development in places that most badly need it. And four, in fighting climate change.

The only way we're going to meet the global threats that we'reâis by working together and with our partners and our allies. And I conveyed to each of theâmy Gâ7 counterparts that the United States is going to do our part. America is back at the table. It'sâAmerica is back at the table.

The lack of participation in the past and full engagement was noticed significantly, not only by the leaders of those countries, but by the people in the Gâ7 countries. And America is back in the business of leading the world alongside nations who share our most deeply held values.

And so the bottom line is, I was very pleased with the outcome of the entire conference. And you know, I noticed there was a lot of coverage of myâindividual comments made by my colleagues about how we were all getting along together. But the truth of the matter is, we did. It wasn'tâI felt it wasn't about me, but it was about America. I felt a genuine sense of enthusiasm that America was back at the table and fully, fully engaged.

And now I'm going to be heading off to Brussels, to NATO. And the sameâmany of the same people are going to be at that table, andâin NATOâand to make the case we are back, as well. We do not view NATO as a, sort of, a protection racket. We believe that NATO is vital to our ability to maintain American security for the nextâthe remainder of the century. And there's a real enthusiasm.

I made it clearâand I pointed out, and I thanked themâyou know, weâarticle 5 is, "An attack on one is an attack on all." Well, what Americans sometimesâdon't forgetâremember what happened on 9/11. We were attacked. Immediately, NATO supported us. NATO supported us. NATO went till we got bin Laden. NATO was part of the process. And I want them to know, unlikeâwhether they doubt itâthat we believe NATO and section [article]* 5 is a sacred obligation. Bottom line is, I think we've made some progress in reestablishing American credibility among our closest friends and our values.

Now, why don't I take some of your questions? And I'm told, Jonathan [Jonathan Lemire, Associated Press], I'm supposed to talkârecognize you first.

Russia-U.S. Relations/President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin of Russia

* White House correction.

Q. Well, I appreciate that, sir. Thank you very much. Mr. President, Vladimir Putinââ [At this point, a microphone was brought to Mr. Lemire.]

Q. ââthank you. Vladimir Putin, who you'll be seeing in a few days in Geneva, said just a couple of days ago that he believed that U.S.-Russia relations were at a low point. In what concrete ways could your summit change that?

And then, secondly, on the same topic: You have said previously, and in the runup to the summit, that you would be unafraid to call out Russia's disruptive actionsâlike cyber hacks, Ukraine, election interferenceâbut you're not having a joint press conference with Putin. Why not take the chance to stand side by side with him and say those things to him with the world watching?

The President. [Laughter] Well, let me make it clear: I think he's right it's a low point, and it depends on how he responds to acting consistent with international norms, which, in many cases, he has not.

As I told him when I was running and when I got elected, before it wasâI was sworn in, that I was going to find out whether or not he, in fact, did engage in trying to interfere in our election; that I was going to take a look at whether he was involved in theâa cybersecurity breach that occurred, et cetera; and if I did, I was going to respond.

I did; I checked it out. So I had access to all the intelligence. He was engaged in those activities. I did respond and made it clear that I'd respond again.

With regard toâI always foundâand I don't mean to suggest that the press should not knowâbut this is not a contest about who can do better in front of a press conference or try to embarrass each other. It's about making myself very clear what the conditions are to get a better relationship areâwith Russia.

We're not looking for conflict. We are looking to resolve those actions which we think are inconsistent with international norms, number one. Number two, where we can work together, we may be able to do that in terms of some strategic doctrine that may be able to be worked together. We're ready to do it. And there may be other areas. There's even talk there may be the ability to work together on climate.

So the bottom line is that I think the best way to deal with this is for he and I to meet, he and I to have our discussion. I know you don't doubt that I'll be very straightforwardâ[*laughter*]â with him about our concerns. And I will make clear my view of how that meeting turned out, and he'll make clear howâfrom his perspective, how it turned out.

But I don't want to get into being diverted by: "Did they shake hands? How far did theyâ who talked the most," and the rest. Now, he can say what he said the meeting was about, and I will say what I think the meeting was about.

That's how I'm going to handle it.

Q. Okay, thanks.

The President. I'm sorry, I'm going to get in trouble with staff if I don't do this the right way. Jennifer Jacobs, Bloomberg.

China/Political Status of Hong Kong/Labor Practices in Xinjiang/International Assistance to Developing Countries/China-U.S. Relations

Q. Thank you, sir. On China, youâsorryâChina seems to be to doing exactly what it wants to do with regard to Hong Kong, with regard to Xinjiang, with the South China Sea, and many other issues, despite pressure from you and from allies.

The final language in the Gâ7 communiquÃ© does have some mentions of China, which is different from past years, but I know it's not as tough as you and your team wanted it to be. We've sawâwe saw a draft of the communiquÃ©, and it's not quite as tough.

So why isn't it as tough? There isn't very much action in it. There's some calls for China to be respectful. But why isn't that communiquÃ© a little bit tougher? Are you disappointed in that? And what can you do to change some of these actions by China?

The President. Well, first of all, I think itâas you know, last time the Gâ7 met, there was no mention of China. But this time, there is mention of China. The Gâ7 explicitly agreed to call out human rights abuses in Xinjiang and in Hong Kong explicitly.

Two, to coordinate a common strategy to deal with China nonmarket policies that undermine competition. They've agreedâand that's underway nowâhow to do that.

Three, to take serious actions against forced labor in solar, agriculture, and the garment industries because that's where it's happening. And they've agreed we will do that.

To launchâwhat I said earlier; I really feel very stronglyâI proposed that we have a democratic alternative to the Belt and Road Initiative: the Build Back Better. And they've agreed to that, and that's underway as the details of thatâwe agreed that we'd put together a committee to do that and come up with that. And thirdly, that we are going to insist on a high-standards to beâfor a climate-friendly, transparent alternative to the Belt and Road Initiative. Andâbut, in the meantime, we're going to move forward.

Look, I think it's alwaysâlet me put it this way: I know this is going sound somewhat prosaic, but I think we're in a contest, not with China per se, but a contest with autocrats, autocratic governments around the world, as to whether or not democracies can compete with them in the rapidly changing 21st century.

And I think how we act and whether we pull together as democracies is going to determine whether our grandkids look back 15 years from now and say, "Did they step up? Are democracies as relevant and as powerful as they have been?"

And I walked away from the meeting with all my colleagues believing that they are convinced that that is correct now too. NotâI shouldn't say "now". Not just because of me, but they believe that to be the case.

And so I think you're going to see just straightforward dealing with China. And again, we're not lookingâas I've told Xi Jinping myself, I'm not looking for conflict. Where we can cooperate, we'll cooperate. Where we disagree, I'm going to state it frankly, and we are going to respond to actions that are inconsistent.

For example, we talked about trade. It's one thing to talk about whether or not our agricultural policy makes sense. It's another thing to say: "By the way, you're demanding that if I do business with your country, I've got to give you all my trade secrets and have the Chinese partner have 51 percent of that?" No. Not us.

Carbis Bay Group of Seven (Gâ7) Nations Summit CommuniquÃ©

Q. So are you saying, Mr. Presidentâare you satisfied with what came out in the communiquÃ©?

The President. Yes.

Q. Or do you wish it were tougher? Do you wish there was moreââ

The President. Yes.

Q. ââaction on China?

The President. I think there's plenty of action on China, and there's always something that you canâI'm sure my colleagues think there's things they think they can improve that they wanted. But I'm satisfied.

Steve Holland, Reuters.

China/2019 Coronavirus Outbreak in China

Q. Thank you, sir. Just to follow up on Jennifer's question: The communiquÃ© cited a variety of fronts on China, everything from human rights, the origin of the COVID virus, Taiwan. What do you think China needs to do to ease tensions?

The President. I think China has to start to act more responsibly in terms of international norms on human rights and transparency.

Transparency matters across the board. And I think the idea thatâfor example, one of the things I raised and others raisedâI wasn't the only one who raised this at the Gâ7âis that we don't knowâwe haven't had access to the laboratories to determine whether or notâand I have not reached a conclusion because our intelligence community is not certain yet whether or not this was a consequence of aâfrom the marketplace of a bat, you know, interfacing with animals in the environment that caused this COVIDâ19 or whether it was an experiment gone awry in a laboratory.

It's important to know the answer to that because we have to have accessâwe have to build a system whereby we can know whatâwhen we see another transparentâlack of transparency that might produce another pandemic. We have to have access. The world has to have access.

So we're trying to figure out, the Gâ7, whether we could put together an international basis upon which we could have a bottom line with what the transparency accounted for.

International Assistance to Developing Countries

Q. And you mentionedâyou mentioned that the argument behind the scenes, that you had not mentioned China in 3 years in one of these communiquÃ©s. What did you argue behind the scenes to try to bring people to the point where they got?

The President. To answer that questionâthere's no way to answer without sounding self- serving. Let me just say this: I just laid out what I thought was the need for us to be consistent to protect our economies and to see to it that other struggling economies, who needed help, got the help and were not held captive by other nations.

But you might ask that to others. I'm not trying to be a wise guy, but Iââ

Q. Thank you, sir.

The President. And Wall Street Journal. Andrew [Andrew Restuccia, Wall Street Journal].

Global COVIDâ19 Vaccine Distribution/Global Public Health Infrastructure

Q. As you said, the Gâ7 countries committed to send 1 billion coronavirus doses overseas, but the World Health Organization says 11 billion doses are needed.

The President. Yes.

Q. How are you going to bridge that gap? Will the U.S. commit to send additional doses overseas? And given the gap, is it actually realistic to end the pandemic by 2022?

The President. It isâit may take slightâslightly longer thanâworldwide. But the United States is going to continueâI think there's a possibility, over 2022 going into 2023, that we would be able to be in a position to provide another billionâus. But that's not done yet.

I onlyâI've been very careful, as I've dealt with this pandemic, to tell you what I know and say what I thought could be done, and when I've announced that I've gone and done it. What I don't want to do is be getting too far ahead in suggesting that we can do things and I can do thingsâthe United States can do things that I don't have done yet.

So Iâthere was a clear consensus among all our colleagues at the Gâ7 that this wasn't the end; we were going to stay at it until we're able to provide forâable to provide forâthe needs of the whole world, in termsâbecause, look, it's not just the right thing to do. And from aâhow can I say it?âfrom a moral standpoint. But it is also the correct thing to do, in terms of our own health, our own security. You can't build a wall high enough to keep out new strains. You can't do that.

And so I think this is going to be a constant project for a long time. And there may be other pandemics. Weâagain, setting up a system whereby we can detectâbefore it gets out of controlâone, a pandemic, that may be on the horizonâa virusâis important.

So we are not going toâas long as there's nations in need thatâbeing able to be vaccinated, we in factânot only that: We've been engaged in helpingâwhich I've made clear, and most of ourâmy colleagues understood it. I mean, they understood itâknew it from trying it themselves. This is a gigantic logistical effort. It's one thing to send nation X, X numberâY number of vaccines. It's another thing to have the people that can actually get it in somebody's arm. And so we are also providing the ability for other countries to manufacture their vaccines. We've all agreed on that.

India has the capacity to do that. They don't have the material capacity thus far to do the manufacturing. But there's a lot going on to provideânot only to, quote, "give" vaccines, but to provide the ability of the countries in question to produce their own vaccines.

White House staffer. Last question. Last question.

The President. I'm not going to answer it. No, I'm joking. Last question. Peter Alexander, NBC News.

Russia/Libya/Syria

Q. Mr. President, thank you very much. About Vladimir Putin and your meeting this week: As you're well aware, the U.S. has been slapping sanctions on Russia for years for its malign activities, and Russia has not stopped. So what specifically will you do differently to change Vladimir Putin's behavior?

The President. Well, first of all, there's no guarantee you can change a person's behavior or the behavior of his country. Autocrats have enormous power, and they don't have to answer to a public. And the fact is that it may very well be, if I respond in kindâwhich I willâthat it doesn't dissuade him; he wants to keep going.

But I think that we're going to be moving in a direction where Russia has its own dilemmas, let us say, dealing with its economy, dealing with itsâdealing with COVID, and dealing with not only the United States, but Europe writ large and in the Middle East.

And so there's a lot going on where we can work together with Russia. For example, in Libya, we should be opening up the passes to be able to go through and provide food assistance and economicâI mean, vital assistance to a population that's in real trouble.

I think I'm going to try very muchâhard toâit isâand by the way, there's places whereâI shouldn't be starting off on negotiating in public here. But let me say it this way: Russia has engaged in activities which areâwe believe are contrary to international norms, but they have also bitten off some real problems they're going to have trouble chewing on.

And, for example, the rebuilding of Syria, of Libya, ofâyou know, this isâthey're there. And as long as they're there without the ability to bring about some order in the region, and you can't do that very well without providing for the basic economic needs of people.

So I'm hopeful that we can find an accommodation thatâwhere we can save the lives of people inâfor example, in Libya, thatâconsistent with the interest ofâmaybe for different reasonsâbut reached it for the same reasonâthe same result.

Russia-U.S. Relations/Cyber Attacks

Q. I want to ask you about a comment that Vladimir Putin said today. But why do you think he hasn't changed his behavior in spite of everything the U.S. has done to this point?

The President. [Laughter] He's Vladimir Putin.

Q. Butââ

The President. I'm not going to get into much more than that, because I've got to sit down with him. And I'll be happy to talk to you after that. Butââ

Q. But he saidâthen, just to concludeâtoday, he said that Russia would be ready to hand over cyber criminals to the United States if the U.S. would do the same to Russia and an agreement came out of this meeting coming up. So are you open to that kind of a trade with Vladimir Putin?

The President. Iâyes, I'm open toâif there's crimes committed against Russia that, in fact, areâand the people committing those crimes are being harbored in the United StatesâI'm committed to holding them accountable. And I'mâI heard that; I was told, as I was flying here, that he said that. I think that's potentially a good sign and progress.

Thank you all very, very much. Thank you.

U.S. Leadership in Multilateral Affairs/Tariffs

Q. May I ask, sirâ[inaudible]. The European alliesâcan I ask a question about the European allies?

The President. [Laughter] I'm going to get in trouble with my staff. Yes, go ahead. But pretend that I didn't answer you.

Q. Thank you very much, sir. You have often said repeatedly that "America is back."

The President. Yes.

Q. At the same time, you've kept in play some Trump-era steel and aluminum sanctions. And I wanted to ask you: When you're having these conversations with European allies who are very concerned about these sanctions, how do you justify that? And what are your plans forââ

The President. A hundred and twenty days. Give me a break. [Laughter] Need time. Thanks.

Q. Say hi to the Queen, sir.

NOTE: The President's news conference began at 2:52 p.m. at the Cornwall Airport Newquay. In his remarks, he referred to former President Donald J. Trump; and President Xi Jinping of China.

Categories: Interviews With the News Media : News conferences :: June 13. Locations: St. Mawgan, United Kingdom.

Names: Johnson, Boris; Lempert, Yael; Putin, Vladimir Vladimirovich; Trump, Donald J.; Xi Jinping.

Subjects: Agriculture : Domestic production, strengthening efforts; China : 2019 coronavirus outbreak; China : Hong Kong, political status; China : Human rights issues; China : President; China : Relations with U.S.; Commerce, international : Group of Seven (Gâ7) nations; Communications : News media :: Presidential interviews; Coronavirus pandemic, international cooperation efforts; Defense and national security : Cybersecurity :: Cyber attacks; Developing countries : Government corruption; Developing countries : International assistance ; Developing countries : International assistance; Diseases : Coronavirus, domestic prevention efforts; Economy, national : Strengthening efforts; Energy : Alternative and renewable sources and technologies :: Promotion efforts; Environment : Climate change; Foreign policy, U.S. : Cyber crime, international coordination efforts; Foreign policy, U.S. : Democratization; Foreign policy,

U.S. : Diplomatic efforts, expansion; Foreign policy, U.S. : Foreign aid policies and funding; Foreign Policy, U.S. : Open government and transparency, promotion efforts; Infrastructure, national improvement efforts; Libya : International assistance; Libya : Reconstruction efforts; North Atlantic Treaty Organization; Russia : President; Russia : Relations with U.S.; Russia :

U.S. elections, interference; Syria : Reconstruction efforts; Taxation : Corporate tax rates; Terrorism : Counterterrorism efforts; Terrorism : September 11, 2001, attacks; United Kingdom : President Biden's visit; United Kingdom : Prime Minister; United Kingdom : Relations with U.S.

DCPD Number: DCPD202100500.