WEBVTT

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Friends Uh , thank you , Secretary

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Healy . Uh , for your leadership both

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in hosting and now leading , uh , the

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UDCG , this is my first Ukraine defense

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contact group and I'm honored to join

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all of you today . And I appreciate the

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opportunity to share President Trump's

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approach to the war in Ukraine . We are

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at , as you said , Mr . Secretary , a

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critical moment . As the war approaches

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its 3rd anniversary , our message is

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clear . The bloodshed must stop ,

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and this war must end .

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President Trump has been clear with the

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American people and with many of your

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leaders that stopping the fighting and

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reaching an enduring peace is a top

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priority . He intends to end this war

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by diplomacy and bringing both Russia

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and Ukraine to the table . And the US

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Department of Defense will help achieve

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this goal . We will only end this

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devastating war and establish a durable

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peace by coupling allied strength with

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a realistic assessment of the

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battlefield . We want like you .

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A sovereign and prosperous Ukraine .

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But we must start by recognizing that

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returning to Ukraine's pre 2014 borders

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is an unrealistic objective . Chasing

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this illusionary goal will only prolong

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the war and cause more suffering . A

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durable peace for Ukraine must include

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robust security guarantees to ensure

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that the war will not begin again .

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This must not be Minsk 3.0 .

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That said , The United States

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does not believe that NATO membership

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for Ukraine is a realistic outcome of a

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negotiated settlement . Instead ,

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any security guarantee must be backed

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by capable European and non-European

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troops . If these troops are deployed

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as peacekeepers to Ukraine at any point ,

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they should be deployed as part of a

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non-NATO mission . And they should not

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be covered under Article 5 . There also

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must be robust international oversight .

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Of the line of contact , to be clear ,

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as part of any security guarantee there

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will not be US troops deployed to

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Ukraine . To further enable effective

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diplomacy and drive down energy prices

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that fund the Russian war machine .

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President Trump is unleashing American

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energy production and encouraging other

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nations to do the same . Lower energy

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prices coupled with more effective

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enforcement of energy sanctions will

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help bring Russia to the table .

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Safeguarding European security must be

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an imperative for European members of

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NATO . As part of this , Europe must

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provide the overwhelming share of

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future lethal and non-lethal aid to

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Ukraine . Members of this contact group

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must meet the moment . This means

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donating more ammunition and equipment ,

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leveraging comparative advantages ,

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expanding your defense industrial base ,

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and importantly leveling with your

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citizens about the threat facing Europe .

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Part of this is speaking frankly with

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your people about how this threat can

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only be met by spending more on defense .

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2% Is not enough . President

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Trump has called for 5% . And I agree .

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Increasing your commitment to your own

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security is a down payment for the

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future , a down payment , as you said ,

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Mr . Secretary , of peace through

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strength . We're also here today to

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directly and unambiguously express that

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stark strategic realities prevent the

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United States of America from being

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primarily focused on the security of

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Europe . The United States faces

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consequential threats to our homeland .

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We must and we are focusing on security

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of our own borders . We also face a

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pure competitor in the communist

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Chinese with the capability and intent

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to threaten our homeland and core

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national interests in the Indo-Pacific .

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The US is prioritizing deterring war

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with China in the Pacific , recognizing

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the reality of scarcity . And making

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the resourcing trade-offs to ensure

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deterrence does not fail . Deterrence

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cannot fail for all of our sakes .

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As the United States prioritizes its

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attention to these threats . European

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allies must lead from the front .

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Together we can establish a division of

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labor that maximizes our comparative

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advantages in Europe and Pacific ,

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respectively . In my first weeks as

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Secretary of Defense under President

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Trump's leadership , we've seen

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promising signs that Europe sees this

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threat , understands what needs to be

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done , and is stepping up to the task .

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For example , Sweden recently announced

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its largest ever assistance package .

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We applaud them for committing $1.2

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billion in ammunition and other needed

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material . Poland is spending 5% of GDP

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on defense already , which is a model

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for the continent , and 14 other

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countries are co-leading capability

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coalitions . These groups are doing

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great work to coordinate Europe's

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contributions of legal assistance

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across 8 key capability areas .

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These are first steps . More must still

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be done . We ask each of your countries

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to step up on fulfilling the

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commitments that you have made . And we

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challenge your countries and your

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citizens to double down and recommit

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yourselves not only to Ukraine's

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immediate security needs . But to

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Europe's long-term defense . And

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deterrent schools . Our transatlantic

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alliance has endured for decades .

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And we fully expect That it will be

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sustained for generations to come . But

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this won't just happen . It will

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require our European allies to step

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into the arena . And take ownership of

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conventional security on the continent .

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The United States remains committed to

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the NATO alliance . And to the defense

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partnership with Europe . Full stop .

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But the United States will no longer

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tolerate an imbalanced relationship

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which encourages which encourages

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dependency . Rather , our relationship

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will prioritize empowering Europe to

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own responsibility for its own security .

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Honesty will be our policy going

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forward . But only in the spirit

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of solidarity . President Trump looks

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forward to working together . To

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continuing this frank discussion

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amongst friends . And to achieve peace

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through strength together . Thank you .