Administration of Joseph R. Biden, Jr., 2024

June 9, 2024

The President. Every marine I know knows about the battle in Belleau Woods. There were over 2,029â229 buried here. And, inside that chapel, there's names of 1,000 missing. They never recovered the bodies.

And the idea that we should come to Normandy beach, celebrate and show reverence for those we lostâI'm probably not speaking loudly enough. I apologize.

Theâand not come hereâyou know, the ideaâGeneralâColonelâexcuse me, Captain Williams, when they arrived here to stop the Germans, the other team decided they had to retreat. And his comment was: "Hell no. We just got here. We just got here." They stopped the Germans. They stopped the Germans.

And the idea that we were able to avoid being engaged in major battles in Europe is just not realistic. That's why it's so important that we continue to have the alliances we have, continue to beef up those alliances, continue to keep NATO strong, continue to do what we've been able to do for the lastâsince the end of World War II.

And so I just wanted toâJill and I wanted to come and pay our respects. And it matters a lot.

The President's Visit to the Cemetery

Q. How does it feel to be here, sir?

The President. You know, I don't want toâI don't want to make this personal, but every time I show up at a military site where veterans are buried, it brings back memories of hearing my grandfather and my mother talk about the loss of their son and brother in the South Pacific. And I think about my son Beau after a year in Iraq.

And so itâyou know, I think itâas a measure of a country's support for democratic values, that they honor those who've risked their lives and lost their lives. And think about it. You had thisâthey were on their way to ParisâGermans. They stopped them here. They stopped them here, just like the Americans on Normandyâthe Normandy beach stoppedâturned the war around. And gives you both a sense of pride and, in my caseâand my guess is you as wellâa sense of reverence for what they did.

And so, any rate.

Q. You talked aboutââ

Aisne-Marne American Cemetery

Q. Why this particular cemetery, sir?

The President. This is the mostâmore Americansâmore marines were lost here than any battle until the middle of World War II. The idea that I'd come to Normandy and not make the short trip here to pay tributeâand it's the same story. Think about it. America showed up.

America showed up to stop the Germans. America showed up to make sure that they did not prevail. And America shows up when we need it, just like our allies show up for us.

Q. You've criticized President Trump for not coming here on his trip. What message are you hoping to send to voters by being here right now?

The President. Any other questions?

Pointe du Hoc in Cricqueville-en-Bessin, France

Q. Mr. President, what's been the most memorable part of this trip so far?

The President. I think the most memorable part of the trip was Pointe du Hoc. I think that was the most memorable because I've been there several times, and the last time I was here was a long while agoâin Normandy. And we came in on a landing craft. We got off a destroyer and got on a landing craft. And you're coming in and look at theâthe depth of that beach and those cliffs behind it. You know, these guys justâhow many of them drowned just getting off theâoff the landing craft because they sank into the water with the heavy packs and got stuck.

But they kept going. They did not quit. There's no quit in America. None. None. There's no quit in America. And that's what it shows me.

United States Foreign Policy

Q. Mr. President, what do you hope Americans take away from you coming on this trip?

The President. The knowledge that the best way to avoid these kinds of battles in the future is to stay strong with our allies. Do not break. Do not break.

Q. Do you feel that Americansââ

Q. Did anything surprise you on this trip, sir?

United States Leadership in Global Affairs

Q. ââare slipping? Do you think that Americans are not holding that view anymore, that there's aââ

The President. No, I don't.

Q. ââslippage?

The President. I think the Americans hold the view. I think there's a newâa rise in a sense of some within theâin the country wanting to let that slip.

The idea that we become semi-isolationists now, which some are talking aboutâI mean, the idea we had to wait all those months just to get the money for Iraq [Ukraine; White House correction] that weâbecause we were waiting. I mean, it justâit justâit's not who we are. It's not who America is.

Q. Oneâone policyââ

Q. Sir, did anything surprise you on this trip?

Q. One policy question, for you, sir. DidâI'm sorry. Go ahead. Go ahead, Michelle [Michelle Jamrisko, Bloomberg].

Q. Anything surprise you on this trip that you heard?

The President's Visit to France

The President. Even though I've been here before, it surprised me how much it awakened my sense of why it's so valuable to have these alliances, why it's so critical. That's the way you stop wars, not start wars.

The President's Meetings With President Emmanuel Macron of France

Q. One policy question. Did you discuss the Russian asset issue with President Macron yesterday? And did you come up with an agreement on how to use them?

The President. Yes, and yes. Thank you.

NOTE: The President spoke at 4:04 p.m.

Categories: Interviews With the News Media : Exchanges with reporters, Belleau, France. Locations: Belleau, France.

Names: Trump, Donald J.

Subjects: France, Aisne-Marne American Cemetery in Belleau; France, Pointe du Hoc in Cricqueville-en-Bessin; France, President Biden's visit; France, relations with U.S.; News media, Presidential interviews; North Atlantic Treaty Organization; Russia, U.S. and international sanctions; Ukraine, U.S. assistance.

DCPD Number: DCPD202400502.