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Mr. Earnest: Good
afternoon, everybody.
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Happy Tuesday.
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As advertised, I'm going to
be joined today by
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Brett McGurk.
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Brett has been here a
couple of times before.
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Brett just left a National
Security Council meeting
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with the President.
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The President, as you know,
convenes his National
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Security Council every few
weeks to review the progress
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that we're making
against ISIL.
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Brett participated in the
meeting and is now here to
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provide an update to all
of you on that progress.
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Brett's title -- I was
asking him just before we
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walked in -- is Special
Presidential Envoy to the
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Global Coalition
Against ISIL.
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He's got a presentation that
he'll offer up and then
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he'll take some questions.
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He'll leave and then I can
take your questions on
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non-ISIL-related
topics from there.
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So with that, Brett, do
you want to take it away?
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Mr. McGurk: So
thanks for having me.
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I thought I would give an
update on the counter-ISIL
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campaign.
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The last time I was here I
think was about six months
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ago, and I have a lot of
new information, which
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I'll convey.
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The President just convened,
as Josh mentioned, his
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National Security Council
today to discuss the current
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status of the global
campaign against ISIL.
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The meeting provided an
in-depth overview of where
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we are in this campaign, and
I want to provide just an
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update overall.
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So as you know, we analyze
ISIL and focus our policy on
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destroying it in really
three dimensions -- its core
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in Iraq and Syria and
shrinking its physical
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space; its network, so
that's foreign fighters,
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finance and propaganda media
networks; and then the
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so-called affiliates, made
of affinities, affiliates
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around the world, of which
Libya has been of particular
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concern to us.
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The United States, we have
an Integrated Campaign Plan
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that incorporates our entire
government -- Defense,
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State, Treasury, Justice,
Homeland Security, and the
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intelligence community --
around specific lines of effort.
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It's called the ICP, and
it's an effort we review and
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refresh really each
quarter to help identify
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opportunities, reinforce
areas where we're having
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success and address areas
that may have fallen behind.
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The President received a
detailed update on this ICP
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this morning.
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We also, of course, lead
a global coalition of 68
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members -- this is one of
the largest coalitions of
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its kind in history -- to
relentlessly combat ISIL
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across all lines of effort.
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So, militarily, on the
ground in Iraq and Syria,
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we're supporting partners
with training, equipping,
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advising and airstrikes.
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That's 17,455 airstrikes
against ISIL terrorists as
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of this morning.
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Through law enforcement
cooperation, where we're
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sharing information to find
and disrupt plots around
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the world.
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Through intelligence,
homeland security and other
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channels to help combat the
flow of foreign fighters
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across borders.
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Through treasury and finance
to destroy ISIL's
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economic infrastructure.
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And through both governments
and the private sector to
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combat ISIL's poisonous
ideology and their
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propaganda online, their
ability to recruit.
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Our global coalition has
also provided billions of
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dollars to support
stabilization in areas
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cleared of ISIL, enabling
citizens to return.
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And this is not only a U.S.
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effort; ISIL is an enemy
that threatens the entire
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world, so we have leveraged
resources from around the
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world, including more than
$2 billion pledged for
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humanitarian, stabilization
efforts in Iraq during
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coalition meetings in July.
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But U.S. leadership matters on this.
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And that's why I want to
thank the Congress for their
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close coordination in
supporting a counter-ISIL
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budget amendment in the
recently passed
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continuing resolution.
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These funds will be
essential to help us
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accelerate the campaign and
support efforts such as
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demining that allows people
to return to their homes.
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And I'll be calling on
coalition partners to make
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similar contributions here
over the coming days.
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Let me update you briefly on
some of the update -- the
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campaigns we have ongoing
now, particularly in Sirte,
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Libya; and Raqqa and Mosul.
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In Sirte, about a year
ago ISIL controlled
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approximately 150 kilometers
of land on the
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Mediterranean coastline.
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It was using Libya as a
haven from which to plan
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attacks in neighboring
Tunisia, and ISIL leaders
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were encouraging people to
travel to Libya, instead of
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Syria, to join ISIL.
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They saw it as their
growing safe haven.
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Since that time, at the
President's direction, we've
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eliminated the mastermind
of the Tunisia attacks,
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Noureddine Chouchane; the
leader of ISIL in Libya, Abu
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Nabil, who came from Syria
to lead ISIL in Libya.
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And now we've just completed
operations to liberate Sirte
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and its surrounding areas.
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So in Operation Odyssey
Lightning, U.S.
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military forces conducted
almost 500 airstrikes in
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support of units fighting
under the authority of
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Libya's Government
of National Accord.
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And while we've still got
work to be done, this
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strategic location in the
Mediterranean is no longer
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accessible to
ISIL terrorists.
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We'll, of course, continue
to support the Government of
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National Accord as it
pursues ISIL throughout
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the country.
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In Raqqa -- Raqqa remains
ISIL administrative capital
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and it is under more
pressure now than ever before.
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Forces partnered with our
coalition have now entirely
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severed routes between Raqqa
and ISIL locations in Iraq.
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And the Syrian Democratic
Forces, a coalition of local
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Arabs and Kurds, are
steadily advancing on Raqqa
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with the aim to isolate or
really strangulate the city.
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Since this operation began
about one month ago, the SDF
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has cleared 700 square
kilometers north of Raqqa,
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and just on Saturday began a
second phase of operations
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along the new access just
to the west, and this is
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proceeding quite well.
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The pressure in Raqqa is
bearing fruit as ISIL
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leaders come out of hiding,
which allows us to kill them.
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Today we confirm the deaths
by precision coalition
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airstrikes of three
terrorist leaders in Raqqa
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-- Salah Gourmat, Sammy
Djedou, Walid Hamman.
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Gourmat was a French
Algerian, Djedou a Belgian.
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They were responsible for
planning and facilitating
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the November 13th attacks
in Paris last year.
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They were also actively
plotting attacks when they
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were killed on December 4th
in the streets of Raqqa.
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Hamman had been convicted
by a Belgian court for a
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terrorist plot in 2015, and
he was working with Gourmat
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and Djedou to
plan new attacks.
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So these three dead
terrorists in Raqqa join a
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growing list from ISIL's
what we call their external
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operations network that
we have targeted and eliminated.
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Last month, coalition forces
eliminated
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Abd al-Basit al-Iraqi.
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He was the ISIL emir for
attacks throughout the
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Middle East region and a key
facilitator for terrorist
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travel through Turkey.
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Coalition strikes also
killed Boubaker al-Hakim, an
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ISIL leader planning attacks
in France and throughout Europe.
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And a leader of all ISIL
external operations, of
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course, Muhammad Adnani, was
killed on August 30th as he
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traveled from Raqqa to Bab.
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So the point is, even as
operations continue to move
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towards Raqqa, our coalition
is relentlessly reaching
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into Raqqa to eliminate ISIL
leaders with a particular
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focus on those planning
and plotting against our
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homeland and our partners.
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For the operation to seize
and hold Raqqa, which will
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be coming, we're in close
consultation with our
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partners including Turkey.
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I was in Ankara last week
for talks on this and other
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topics and these talks
were quite fruitful.
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And the President's
authorization over the
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weekend for an additional
200 Special Operations
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Forces in Syria will help
further accelerate our
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campaign to eject
ISIL from Raqqa.
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I visited these Special
Operators several times and
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they are doing truly heroic
work to protect our homeland
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and to eliminate this
haven of ISIL in Syria.
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And I'll briefly discussed
the Mosul campaign.
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We're now in month two of
what is really the most
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complex operation to date --
the liberation of Mosul --
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and thus far we've seen a
very steady and deliberate
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advance along all axes
against ISIL terrorists,
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which are using the civilian
population in Mosul as
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human shields.
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I just visited the eastern
axis, just in the outskirts
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of Mosul, last week.
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Secretary Carter was in
Iraq, and he visited the
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Qayara airbase, south of
Mosul, over the weekend.
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And General Votel, our
CENTCOM commander, was in
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the same area just yesterday
and gave a very detailed to
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the President this morning.
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And all of us witnessed this
unprecedented cooperation
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between the Iraqi security
forces and Kurdish
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Peshmerga, which has really
been essential to this campaign.
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Our coalition since the
beginning of this campaign,
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about two years ago, we've
trained over 65,000 Iraqi
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personnel who are now
fighting professionally and
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performing heroically.
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So ISIL terrorists are
now trapped in Mosul.
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They're unable to resupply
or replenish their
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dwindling ranks.
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Throughout this campaign,
which began just a couple
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months ago now, we've
already conducted over 500
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airstrikes, destroyed about
100 car bombs, 100 tunnels,
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300 bunkers -- this is
ongoing every single day.
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We're often asked how long
this is going to take, and
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the answer is, in Mosul,
it will take as long
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as it takes.
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I think it's useful to
remember other campaigns
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against ISIL.
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Kobani, Raqqa, Baiji
oil refinery are very
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significant campaigns; each
of them took about six months.
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Some have gone faster --
Fallujah went a little
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faster than anticipated.
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And the key thing is that,
what ISIL does in these
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cities is they set up
concentric rings of
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defenses, and once you break
through the crust of that
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defense, you don't know
what's going to come next.
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Eventually they reach a
culmination point; they
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simply cannot resupply, they
run out of suicide bombers,
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and they culminate.
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And in Mosul, we don't
when that will come.
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It could come very soon; it
could come a couple months
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from now.
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But our momentum will be
sustained and we'll provide
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relentless pressure on the
enemy throughout Mosul.
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Every single operation in
Iraq that we have supported
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has succeeded, and all the
ground that has been retaken
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from ISIL in Iraq has been
held, and Mosul will
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be no different.
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Let me very briefly, in
about five minutes, just go
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through some of the
indicators that I discussed
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last time when I was here in
June -- there's about eight
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of them, but I'll go them
fairly quickly -- of how we
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track this overall campaign
and how we measure how
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we're doing.
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The first is territory.
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And we actually have a new
map here which just came out
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this morning from our
intelligence community, and
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the map demonstrates that
ISIL continues to lose
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significant ground.
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And why is this important?
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Because what has made ISIL
this global phenomenon, with
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all of these recruits from
all around the world --
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although that's rapidly
diminishing -- is this
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notion of this
homeland and caliphate.
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And all of their propaganda
used to talk about this
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00:10:27,994 --> 00:10:31,163
expanding homeland, this
expanding movement, and they
243
00:10:31,163 --> 00:10:33,666
can no longer say that
because their territory is
244
00:10:33,666 --> 00:10:36,068
now rapidly shrinking.
245
00:10:36,068 --> 00:10:38,704
So in Iraq now, about 61
percent of territory that
246
00:10:38,704 --> 00:10:41,574
had been controlled by ISIL
has now been reclaimed, and
247
00:10:41,574 --> 00:10:43,809
in Syria, about 28 percent.
248
00:10:43,809 --> 00:10:45,778
But what is most significant
-- I think the last time I
249
00:10:45,778 --> 00:10:48,714
was here there was still a
98-kilometer strip of border
250
00:10:48,714 --> 00:10:51,183
with Turkey in which ISIL
terrorists were still able
251
00:10:51,183 --> 00:10:54,620
to come in and out, and
that is where the Paris
252
00:10:54,620 --> 00:10:56,956
attackers, the Brussels
attackers transited through
253
00:10:56,956 --> 00:10:58,157
this route.
254
00:10:58,157 --> 00:11:00,426
So since then, over the last
six months, we've worked
255
00:11:00,426 --> 00:11:03,863
very closely with the Syrian
Democratic Forces, and also
256
00:11:03,863 --> 00:11:06,999
with Turkey and the moderate
opposition to close off
257
00:11:06,999 --> 00:11:07,666
that route.
258
00:11:07,666 --> 00:11:09,602
It's at the number
one in the map.
259
00:11:09,602 --> 00:11:13,005
So ISIL now has no access to
an international border, and
260
00:11:13,005 --> 00:11:15,174
this is significantly
impacted the overall
261
00:11:15,174 --> 00:11:18,877
campaign because they are
now a very isolated entity
262
00:11:18,878 --> 00:11:21,680
within Syria and Iraq, and,
most importantly, it is much
263
00:11:21,680 --> 00:11:24,483
harder for them to come in
and out, which is critical
264
00:11:24,483 --> 00:11:27,218
for them to project their
terrorist acts outside of
265
00:11:27,219 --> 00:11:29,121
Iraq and Syria.
266
00:11:29,121 --> 00:11:31,390
So territory we're
continuing to shrink as we
267
00:11:31,390 --> 00:11:33,025
speak, and that
will continue.
268
00:11:33,025 --> 00:11:34,093
Leadership.
269
00:11:34,093 --> 00:11:36,194
ISIL's leadership
ranks are dwindling.
270
00:11:36,195 --> 00:11:38,064
I already mentioned some of
the recent strikes against
271
00:11:38,064 --> 00:11:39,531
their leaders in Raqqa.
272
00:11:39,532 --> 00:11:41,534
But since the start of the
campaign we've eliminated
273
00:11:41,534 --> 00:11:44,503
nearly all of Abu Bakr
Baghdadi deputies and his
274
00:11:44,503 --> 00:11:46,205
trusted advisors.
275
00:11:46,205 --> 00:11:48,707
That includes his likely
successor, Haji Imam; his
276
00:11:48,707 --> 00:11:51,510
ministers for war, finance,
oil and gas, security, and
277
00:11:51,510 --> 00:11:53,212
external operations.
278
00:11:53,212 --> 00:11:55,814
And as these leaders are
replaced, we target and kill
279
00:11:55,815 --> 00:11:56,549
their replacements.
280
00:11:56,549 --> 00:11:59,251
And we've seen a significant
degradation in their overall
281
00:11:59,251 --> 00:12:01,353
capabilities and ranks.
282
00:12:01,353 --> 00:12:04,189
Baghdadi himself -- he
claims to be the caliph --
283
00:12:04,190 --> 00:12:08,327
we have not seen his
face in well over a year.
284
00:12:08,327 --> 00:12:11,397
He issued an audiotape about
a month ago, but issuing
285
00:12:11,397 --> 00:12:14,300
audiotapes deep in hiding
is not really a sign of a
286
00:12:14,300 --> 00:12:16,202
confident leader,
particularly in today's
287
00:12:16,202 --> 00:12:17,403
media age.
288
00:12:17,403 --> 00:12:20,005
So eventually, we will find
and eliminate him as well,
289
00:12:20,005 --> 00:12:23,776
but the leadership ranks
continue to diminish.
290
00:12:23,776 --> 00:12:26,112
Third indicator, their
overall fighting capacity,
291
00:12:26,112 --> 00:12:28,680
their overall strength,
overall fighters.
292
00:12:28,681 --> 00:12:30,749
The number of battle-ready
fighters inside Iraq and
293
00:12:30,749 --> 00:12:33,886
Syria is now at its lowest
point that it's ever been.
294
00:12:33,886 --> 00:12:36,555
We estimate about
12,000 to 15,000.
295
00:12:36,555 --> 00:12:39,925
And ISIL is unable to
replenish its ranks.
296
00:12:39,925 --> 00:12:42,194
Whereas we used to see about
a thousand foreign fighters
297
00:12:42,194 --> 00:12:44,896
in the 2014 time frame
flowing into Syria, coming
298
00:12:44,897 --> 00:12:46,999
from all around the world --
I've mentioned this before
299
00:12:46,999 --> 00:12:49,568
-- an unprecedented number
of these foreign fighters,
300
00:12:49,568 --> 00:12:52,071
these jihadi fighters coming
from all around the world,
301
00:12:52,071 --> 00:12:56,175
almost 40,000 -- it's now
down to really what is quite
302
00:12:56,175 --> 00:12:58,611
a negligible amount,
in our estimation.
303
00:12:58,611 --> 00:13:01,380
And that's really thanks,
again, to our efforts on the
304
00:13:01,380 --> 00:13:03,115
ground and our Special
Operators that have done an
305
00:13:03,115 --> 00:13:06,652
incredible job to clear out
that area of the border just
306
00:13:06,652 --> 00:13:10,656
south of Turkey, and now the
intervention from Turkey to
307
00:13:10,656 --> 00:13:12,992
protect its border, make
sure that these terrorists
308
00:13:12,992 --> 00:13:15,127
cannot get in and out.
309
00:13:15,127 --> 00:13:17,795
We are also making sure that
foreign fighters cannot
310
00:13:17,796 --> 00:13:19,165
transit across borders.
311
00:13:19,165 --> 00:13:21,634
So about 60 countries within
the coalition have really
312
00:13:21,634 --> 00:13:24,436
strengthened their laws
against the transit of
313
00:13:24,436 --> 00:13:25,671
foreign fighters.
314
00:13:25,671 --> 00:13:27,740
Plots have been disrupted in
about 15 countries,
315
00:13:27,740 --> 00:13:28,541
and this continues.
316
00:13:28,541 --> 00:13:31,544
One of the unsung efforts
of our coalition which has
317
00:13:31,544 --> 00:13:34,780
really strengthened is the
information-sharing among
318
00:13:34,780 --> 00:13:36,182
different capitals.
319
00:13:36,182 --> 00:13:38,784
This is something that has
now really accelerated, and
320
00:13:38,784 --> 00:13:42,354
it's increased our ability
to stay well ahead
321
00:13:42,354 --> 00:13:44,523
of this enemy.
322
00:13:44,523 --> 00:13:46,792
Fourth indicator,
briefly, is revenue.
323
00:13:46,792 --> 00:13:48,894
We're destroying
ISIL's economic base.
324
00:13:48,894 --> 00:13:51,263
Just last week -- it's only
one example, but last week,
325
00:13:51,263 --> 00:13:56,068
our air coalition destroyed
about 168 ISIL oil tankers,
326
00:13:56,068 --> 00:13:57,436
the largest strike
of its kind.
327
00:13:57,436 --> 00:13:59,738
And we've continued to
target their oil and gas
328
00:13:59,738 --> 00:14:02,875
infrastructure, their bulk
cash storage sites and their
329
00:14:02,875 --> 00:14:04,677
financial facilitators.
330
00:14:04,677 --> 00:14:06,045
They cannot pay
their fighters.
331
00:14:06,045 --> 00:14:07,813
The fighters come thinking
they're going to have this
332
00:14:07,813 --> 00:14:09,682
lavish lifestyle --
that is not happening.
333
00:14:09,682 --> 00:14:12,751
Their fighters are not
getting paid, and we have
334
00:14:12,751 --> 00:14:14,185
multiple
indications of that.
335
00:14:14,186 --> 00:14:15,654
And we will continue to
maintain this
336
00:14:15,654 --> 00:14:17,756
relentless pressure.
337
00:14:17,756 --> 00:14:19,824
The fifth indicator is one I
mentioned -- this was really
338
00:14:19,825 --> 00:14:21,594
critical when we started
this -- was their access
339
00:14:21,594 --> 00:14:22,828
to borders.
340
00:14:22,828 --> 00:14:26,098
Again, they were flowing in
and out by almost over 1,000
341
00:14:26,098 --> 00:14:26,966
a month.
342
00:14:26,966 --> 00:14:28,634
That is no longer happening.
343
00:14:28,634 --> 00:14:31,203
So quite significant
development to close off
344
00:14:31,203 --> 00:14:34,540
their entire access to
international borders.
345
00:14:34,540 --> 00:14:37,409
Sixth indicator,
media propaganda.
346
00:14:37,409 --> 00:14:40,446
ISIL used to have this very
slick, sophisticated media
347
00:14:40,446 --> 00:14:44,917
information apparatus, and
it was led by two people.
348
00:14:44,917 --> 00:14:46,986
One was Muhammad Adnani,
their chief spokesman and
349
00:14:46,986 --> 00:14:50,021
also their head of external
operations; and, two, a very
350
00:14:50,022 --> 00:14:54,226
sophisticated media
expert named Dr. Waeli.
351
00:14:54,226 --> 00:14:57,229
He was kind of the head of
all those slick videos they
352
00:14:57,229 --> 00:14:58,530
used to produce.
353
00:14:58,530 --> 00:15:01,333
Both of them are
no longer around.
354
00:15:01,333 --> 00:15:03,401
We also have been working
very closely with the
355
00:15:03,402 --> 00:15:05,838
private sector and within
the coalition to get their
356
00:15:05,838 --> 00:15:09,942
content off the Internet,
to make it far harder to access.
357
00:15:09,942 --> 00:15:12,511
Their overall output is
down by about 75 percent.
358
00:15:12,511 --> 00:15:14,280
If you just measure -- we
measure these things in
359
00:15:14,280 --> 00:15:18,150
12-month increments -- from
August of 2015 to August
360
00:15:18,150 --> 00:15:21,553
this year, decrease
of 75 percent.
361
00:15:21,553 --> 00:15:24,423
Twitter -- just one example
-- have taken down 400,000
362
00:15:24,423 --> 00:15:26,825
pro-ISIL Twitter handles.
363
00:15:26,825 --> 00:15:29,895
And the ratio of anti-ISIL
information to pro-ISIL
364
00:15:29,895 --> 00:15:32,531
information has totally
flipped from where it was
365
00:15:32,531 --> 00:15:33,665
two years ago.
366
00:15:33,666 --> 00:15:35,134
And we'll keep this going.
367
00:15:35,134 --> 00:15:36,635
This is also a
global effort.
368
00:15:36,635 --> 00:15:38,904
So ISIL tries to recruit
with different messages
369
00:15:38,904 --> 00:15:40,572
around the world.
370
00:15:40,572 --> 00:15:43,776
So in the UK, we have the UK
leading an effort to really
371
00:15:43,776 --> 00:15:46,545
target those who might
be recruited in Europe.
372
00:15:46,545 --> 00:15:48,613
In the Gulf region, we're
working very closely with
373
00:15:48,614 --> 00:15:49,281
the UAE.
374
00:15:49,281 --> 00:15:53,419
I met them -- really
incredible young people who
375
00:15:53,419 --> 00:15:56,954
are working 24/7 to counter
the toxic ideology and
376
00:15:56,955 --> 00:15:59,091
poisonous messages of ISIL.
377
00:15:59,091 --> 00:16:01,393
Saudi Arabia is helping
quite a bit with that.
378
00:16:01,393 --> 00:16:03,529
And even in Southeast
Asia, Malaysians and other
379
00:16:03,529 --> 00:16:05,964
critical partners within our
coalition are helping to
380
00:16:05,964 --> 00:16:07,966
counter the message in
that part of the world.
381
00:16:07,966 --> 00:16:09,635
Very different messages
in different parts of the
382
00:16:09,635 --> 00:16:12,438
world, and we work
to adapt to that.
383
00:16:12,438 --> 00:16:16,809
Seventh indicator, briefly,
is what we call global cohesion.
384
00:16:16,809 --> 00:16:19,278
ISIL had sought to be a
global organization with
385
00:16:19,278 --> 00:16:23,415
direct links, financial
fighters, leaders, between
386
00:16:23,415 --> 00:16:25,016
its core in Iraq and
Syria to these
387
00:16:25,017 --> 00:16:27,186
so-called affiliates.
388
00:16:27,186 --> 00:16:29,188
So in response, we've
strengthened a global
389
00:16:29,188 --> 00:16:32,491
coalition to find and
sever all of those links.
390
00:16:32,491 --> 00:16:34,760
The result has been a
weakening of their so-called
391
00:16:34,760 --> 00:16:36,095
affiliates across the board.
392
00:16:36,095 --> 00:16:38,764
I mentioned Libya, but also
Boko Haram in the Lake Chad
393
00:16:38,764 --> 00:16:42,534
Basin, and Afghanistan --
all of these entities are
394
00:16:42,534 --> 00:16:45,504
being significantly
degraded.
395
00:16:45,504 --> 00:16:48,540
Importantly, our coalition
also includes multinational
396
00:16:48,540 --> 00:16:51,377
organizations, such as
INTERPOL and Europol, to
397
00:16:51,377 --> 00:16:54,912
help develop a global
database of ISIL-affiliated
398
00:16:54,913 --> 00:16:58,517
fighters to stop, again,
their transit across borders.
399
00:16:58,517 --> 00:17:00,285
My deputy, Lieutenant
General Wolfe, was at the
400
00:17:00,285 --> 00:17:02,621
INTERPOL annual meeting last
month to try to strengthen
401
00:17:02,621 --> 00:17:05,858
these relationships and make
sure that we are sharing the
402
00:17:05,858 --> 00:17:08,993
information we need to
stay ahead of this threat.
403
00:17:08,993 --> 00:17:11,429
So as ISIL's global
cohesion weakens, ours is
404
00:17:11,430 --> 00:17:15,567
strengthening with
cooperation across the globe.
405
00:17:15,567 --> 00:17:16,969
I would just say in
conclusion -- and I
406
00:17:16,969 --> 00:17:19,405
mentioned this last time --
we are having tremendous
407
00:17:19,405 --> 00:17:21,039
success against this enemy.
408
00:17:21,039 --> 00:17:22,174
It is accelerating.
409
00:17:22,174 --> 00:17:24,343
We are now putting pressure
on its two so-called
410
00:17:24,343 --> 00:17:28,080
capitals of Mosul and Raqqa
-- simultaneous,
411
00:17:28,079 --> 00:17:28,847
relentless pressure.
412
00:17:28,847 --> 00:17:30,048
That will continue.
413
00:17:30,048 --> 00:17:31,083
We are killing
their leaders.
414
00:17:31,083 --> 00:17:33,385
We're taking off their
ability to finance and
415
00:17:33,385 --> 00:17:34,887
resource themselves.
416
00:17:34,887 --> 00:17:36,621
But this remains an
unprecedented threat.
417
00:17:36,622 --> 00:17:38,891
The fight is not over.
418
00:17:38,891 --> 00:17:41,093
This will remain a
multiyear effort.
419
00:17:41,093 --> 00:17:43,929
But we have developed a
campaign that is global, and
420
00:17:43,929 --> 00:17:45,898
I hope I've demonstrated
the overall breadth
421
00:17:45,898 --> 00:17:47,765
of the campaign.
422
00:17:47,766 --> 00:17:50,235
I also just want to say,
since we've been doing this
423
00:17:50,235 --> 00:17:52,204
for a couple of years, and I
visit our guys in the field
424
00:17:52,204 --> 00:17:55,706
all the time, we've lost
five Americans in this campaign.
425
00:17:55,707 --> 00:17:58,110
Five of our military
personnel have been killed
426
00:17:58,110 --> 00:17:59,678
in this campaign.
427
00:17:59,678 --> 00:18:02,681
And it's important to keep
in mind, because I saw with
428
00:18:02,681 --> 00:18:05,284
my own eyes the casualty
collection points just
429
00:18:05,284 --> 00:18:08,086
outside Mosul of the
Iraqis who are fighting.
430
00:18:08,086 --> 00:18:10,088
We are advising them to
fight and retake their
431
00:18:10,088 --> 00:18:13,258
territory, similar to
our Syrian partners.
432
00:18:13,258 --> 00:18:16,361
And their casualties
are very high.
433
00:18:16,361 --> 00:18:18,964
An operation in Manbij,
Syria, for example, which
434
00:18:18,964 --> 00:18:21,899
was really important to
protect us -- Manbij is
435
00:18:21,900 --> 00:18:23,769
where the foreign fighters
were flowing through.
436
00:18:23,769 --> 00:18:26,238
It's where they were
planning external operations.
437
00:18:26,238 --> 00:18:29,274
And the Syrian Democratic
Forces in that operation had
438
00:18:29,274 --> 00:18:31,310
over a thousand casualties.
439
00:18:31,310 --> 00:18:34,012
Similar in Mosul, the Iraqi
security forces that we are
440
00:18:34,012 --> 00:18:36,081
training, advising and
enabling are
441
00:18:36,081 --> 00:18:36,948
fighting heroically.
442
00:18:36,949 --> 00:18:39,251
They are taking casualties
and continuing to advance.
443
00:18:39,251 --> 00:18:41,687
And I think we're all very
proud to work with them
444
00:18:41,687 --> 00:18:42,353
and grateful.
445
00:18:42,354 --> 00:18:45,057
And it's also just a
reminder of the different
446
00:18:45,057 --> 00:18:48,494
mode of operation we have
here -- enabling, advising
447
00:18:48,494 --> 00:18:51,897
local partners to take back
the ground that they have lost.
448
00:18:51,897 --> 00:18:54,233
And I think it is
significant that all the
449
00:18:54,233 --> 00:18:57,402
ground we have taken as a
coalition, working with
450
00:18:57,402 --> 00:19:00,739
locals, everything we've
taken back from ISIL --
451
00:19:00,739 --> 00:19:04,009
that's over 60 percent in
Iraq, 28 percent in Syria --
452
00:19:04,009 --> 00:19:06,445
none of it ISIL has
been able to retake.
453
00:19:06,445 --> 00:19:10,014
And that is because before
we do any of this we have a
454
00:19:10,015 --> 00:19:12,885
tremendous effort --
sometimes months long,
455
00:19:12,885 --> 00:19:15,120
sometimes shorter --
to prepare the ground
456
00:19:15,120 --> 00:19:18,122
politically, economically,
to get the stabilization
457
00:19:18,123 --> 00:19:20,459
resources in place to help
make sure people can return
458
00:19:20,459 --> 00:19:23,095
to their homes, and make
sure that the defeat of ISIL
459
00:19:23,095 --> 00:19:24,863
is a lasting one.
460
00:19:24,863 --> 00:19:27,833
So it is significant that to
date ISIL has not retaken
461
00:19:27,833 --> 00:19:30,435
any of the ground it has
lost in operations we
462
00:19:30,435 --> 00:19:31,136
have enabled.
463
00:19:31,136 --> 00:19:33,972
And we're going to make
sure it continues that way.
464
00:19:33,972 --> 00:19:36,575
That's quite a different
approach, I will just say in
465
00:19:36,575 --> 00:19:38,510
closing, than the Russians.
466
00:19:38,510 --> 00:19:42,014
The Russians have really had
one counter-ISIL mission --
467
00:19:42,014 --> 00:19:43,447
they claim to be fighting
ISIL -- they've had one
468
00:19:43,448 --> 00:19:47,119
counter-ISIL mission
and that was Palmyra.
469
00:19:47,119 --> 00:19:48,553
And they made a big
deal about that.
470
00:19:48,554 --> 00:19:51,390
They had a big concert and
they invited members of the
471
00:19:51,390 --> 00:19:52,824
media to come see it.
472
00:19:52,824 --> 00:19:55,294
And ISIL has now
retaken Palmyra.
473
00:19:55,294 --> 00:19:58,163
In our operations, ISIL
has not retaken a speck of
474
00:19:58,163 --> 00:19:59,798
ground that we have
taken from them.
475
00:19:59,798 --> 00:20:03,335
And I think it is fairly
significant that the one
476
00:20:03,335 --> 00:20:06,071
operation the Russians
touted as a counter-ISIL
477
00:20:06,071 --> 00:20:09,474
operation ISIL
has now retaken.
478
00:20:09,474 --> 00:20:10,775
We're not pleased
about that.
479
00:20:10,776 --> 00:20:13,879
We want to wipe ISIL
entirely off this map.
480
00:20:13,879 --> 00:20:16,380
The point of the map -- as
I have explained before,
481
00:20:16,381 --> 00:20:18,951
everything that's in color
on this map used to be
482
00:20:18,951 --> 00:20:20,652
controlled by ISIL.
483
00:20:20,652 --> 00:20:23,722
So the summer of 2014,
everything there was part of
484
00:20:23,722 --> 00:20:25,857
the caliphate.
485
00:20:25,857 --> 00:20:28,594
Everything in green has been
retaken, and everything in
486
00:20:28,594 --> 00:20:32,230
dark green is just what has
been retaken in the last month.
487
00:20:32,230 --> 00:20:35,067
The dark red splotches in
the southwest are areas that
488
00:20:35,067 --> 00:20:37,069
actually ISIL has gained
over the last two years --
489
00:20:37,069 --> 00:20:39,671
very small areas and areas
that we primarily
490
00:20:39,671 --> 00:20:41,707
do not operate.
491
00:20:41,707 --> 00:20:44,242
And I'll just say finally on
the situation, of course, in
492
00:20:44,242 --> 00:20:46,912
Aleppo -- this was discussed
briefly in the meeting this
493
00:20:46,912 --> 00:20:50,282
morning, and there is a very
active effort going on to
494
00:20:50,282 --> 00:20:51,149
try to resolve this.
495
00:20:51,149 --> 00:20:54,252
The Security Council, of
course, will be convening
496
00:20:54,252 --> 00:20:55,654
later today.
497
00:20:55,654 --> 00:20:58,790
But of course, we've said a
lot what we think about the
498
00:20:58,790 --> 00:21:03,095
tactics the Russians, the
regime are using -- tactics
499
00:21:03,095 --> 00:21:06,198
that are totally different
than anything we do against
500
00:21:06,198 --> 00:21:07,466
ISIL in Mosul.
501
00:21:07,466 --> 00:21:10,901
We are cognizant of every
single innocent life in Mosul.
502
00:21:10,902 --> 00:21:13,472
We're fighting an enemy that
is using human shields, and
503
00:21:13,472 --> 00:21:15,774
we're acting with
tremendous precision.
504
00:21:15,774 --> 00:21:18,075
And if you see what the
Russians are doing with the
505
00:21:18,076 --> 00:21:21,546
regime in Aleppo, it could
not be any different.
506
00:21:21,546 --> 00:21:24,049
So the contrasts I
think are quite stark.
507
00:21:24,049 --> 00:21:27,319
With that, I will
leave it there.
508
00:21:27,319 --> 00:21:30,088
And I think overall, the
campaign here against ISIL
509
00:21:30,088 --> 00:21:31,123
has momentum.
510
00:21:31,123 --> 00:21:33,492
We're always looking for
ways to accelerate it and
511
00:21:33,492 --> 00:21:35,860
we're always talking about
that, and we will not stop
512
00:21:35,861 --> 00:21:36,962
until we destroy this enemy.
513
00:21:36,962 --> 00:21:38,563
Mr. Earnest: Thanks, Brett.
514
00:21:38,563 --> 00:21:39,998
Mark, do you want to start?
515
00:21:39,998 --> 00:21:40,599
The Press: Sure.
516
00:21:40,599 --> 00:21:45,037
Can you say how you hand
over an operation as complex
517
00:21:45,037 --> 00:21:48,206
as this to a new
administration?
518
00:21:48,206 --> 00:21:52,110
And have you yet briefed any
Trump transition personnel?
519
00:21:52,110 --> 00:21:54,846
Mr. McGurk: It's
a great question.
520
00:21:54,846 --> 00:21:56,181
We were just
talking about this.
521
00:21:56,181 --> 00:21:59,184
So just in my own
experience, I was here in --
522
00:21:59,184 --> 00:22:02,320
I was senior director for
Iraq and Afghanistan in the
523
00:22:02,320 --> 00:22:03,187
Bush administration.
524
00:22:03,188 --> 00:22:06,925
It was the first transition
in wartime in 40 years.
525
00:22:06,925 --> 00:22:10,729
And we worked very hard
with President Bush and the
526
00:22:10,729 --> 00:22:12,631
incoming President-elect,
President Obama, to have a
527
00:22:12,631 --> 00:22:14,800
very seamless transition,
given the importance of a
528
00:22:14,800 --> 00:22:16,635
transition in wartime.
529
00:22:16,635 --> 00:22:19,104
So this is similar -- a
transition in wartime.
530
00:22:19,104 --> 00:22:20,505
It's complex.
531
00:22:20,505 --> 00:22:22,674
And the direction very
clearly from President Obama
532
00:22:22,674 --> 00:22:24,643
is to make sure were doing
all we can to ensure it can
533
00:22:24,643 --> 00:22:26,445
be a seamless transition.
534
00:22:26,445 --> 00:22:28,112
There, of course, will be
a lot of continuity on the
535
00:22:28,113 --> 00:22:30,849
military side, and so we're
doing all we possibly can to
536
00:22:30,849 --> 00:22:31,750
support that effort.
537
00:22:31,750 --> 00:22:32,551
I'll leave it there.
538
00:22:32,551 --> 00:22:36,053
The Press: Have you
conferred with Trump officials?
539
00:22:36,054 --> 00:22:39,024
Mr. McGurk: I think there's
constant transition meetings
540
00:22:39,024 --> 00:22:41,359
going on, particularly
in the State Department.
541
00:22:41,359 --> 00:22:42,694
I think those meetings
are ongoing now.
542
00:22:42,694 --> 00:22:43,528
The Press: Have you yet?
543
00:22:43,528 --> 00:22:46,465
Mr. McGurk: I won't talk
about the individual
544
00:22:46,465 --> 00:22:47,131
meetings were having.
545
00:22:47,132 --> 00:22:48,867
Those meetings are
ongoing constantly.
546
00:22:48,867 --> 00:22:49,634
Mr. Earnest: Justin.
547
00:22:49,634 --> 00:22:50,769
The Press: On a few things.
548
00:22:50,769 --> 00:22:52,504
First was Libya, and I
know you outlined a
549
00:22:52,504 --> 00:22:54,606
lot of progress.
550
00:22:54,606 --> 00:22:58,910
The estimates have been that
there were between 5,000 and
551
00:22:58,910 --> 00:23:01,279
8,000 ISIL fighters there.
552
00:23:01,279 --> 00:23:04,850
Obviously they weren't all
killed, and so there's I
553
00:23:04,850 --> 00:23:07,886
think a kind of outstanding
question about if those
554
00:23:07,886 --> 00:23:10,989
estimates were high, or if
not, if they've escaped in a
555
00:23:10,989 --> 00:23:13,759
way that they could regroup
and pose a problem later.
556
00:23:13,759 --> 00:23:16,361
And the other question
was about oil revenues.
557
00:23:16,361 --> 00:23:18,497
You talked about that a lot
the last time we saw you.
558
00:23:18,497 --> 00:23:23,168
And I'm wondering if the
rise in oil prices globally
559
00:23:23,168 --> 00:23:28,139
could help ISIL in a way
that sort of counteract some
560
00:23:28,140 --> 00:23:29,341
of the gains that you
outlined here, or if you
561
00:23:29,341 --> 00:23:34,279
feel like they're cut off at
this point from the global oil.
562
00:23:34,279 --> 00:23:34,746
Mr. McGurk: Thanks.
563
00:23:34,746 --> 00:23:35,814
Two very good questions.
564
00:23:35,814 --> 00:23:39,184
So in Libya, it's hard to
get a precise estimate of
565
00:23:39,184 --> 00:23:39,684
how many.
566
00:23:39,684 --> 00:23:41,286
We think most of them were
probably killed in Libya --
567
00:23:41,286 --> 00:23:44,523
or in Sirte in
that campaign.
568
00:23:44,523 --> 00:23:47,091
But they really holed up --
I mentioned this is what
569
00:23:47,092 --> 00:23:49,494
they do -- this is
their defense strategy.
570
00:23:49,494 --> 00:23:52,129
They have these kind of
rings of defense and then
571
00:23:52,130 --> 00:23:53,965
they have a little citadel
in the middle where they try
572
00:23:53,965 --> 00:23:54,666
to hole up.
573
00:23:54,666 --> 00:23:57,601
And in Sirte, they did that
for some months in a little
574
00:23:57,602 --> 00:24:00,472
final area of the city.
575
00:24:00,472 --> 00:24:02,941
Our Ambassador, Peter Bodde,
our Ambassador to Libya, is
576
00:24:02,941 --> 00:24:05,377
in discussions with Prime
Minister Sarraj about the
577
00:24:05,377 --> 00:24:07,913
next steps in this campaign
and what support the Libyans
578
00:24:07,913 --> 00:24:08,580
might want.
579
00:24:08,580 --> 00:24:10,348
And of course, we'll be
discussing that with him.
580
00:24:10,348 --> 00:24:13,185
We want to make sure, in
our view, that ISIL and
581
00:24:13,185 --> 00:24:15,352
extremist groups cannot have
safe haven and sanctuary
582
00:24:15,353 --> 00:24:17,589
anywhere in Libya.
583
00:24:17,589 --> 00:24:19,858
On the oil trade, we have
significantly reduced their
584
00:24:19,858 --> 00:24:22,394
ability to generate any
serious revenue from oil.
585
00:24:22,394 --> 00:24:24,696
Of course, though, it does
continue, but it's all
586
00:24:24,696 --> 00:24:25,831
self-generated.
587
00:24:25,831 --> 00:24:29,033
I mean, they cannot get any
oil out of their little
588
00:24:29,034 --> 00:24:30,635
self-contained entity.
589
00:24:30,635 --> 00:24:32,671
There is definitely trade
going on between different
590
00:24:32,671 --> 00:24:34,573
groups -- this is a
very chaotic situation,
591
00:24:34,573 --> 00:24:37,976
particularly in Syria -- but
their ability to replenish
592
00:24:37,976 --> 00:24:40,712
their resources is just
significantly degraded.
593
00:24:40,712 --> 00:24:44,216
And whenever we find where
they are extracting oil we
594
00:24:44,216 --> 00:24:45,583
make sure that we
eliminate that.
595
00:24:45,584 --> 00:24:48,920
The Press: The concern seems
to be, though, that fighters
596
00:24:48,920 --> 00:24:50,055
were able to escape.
597
00:24:50,055 --> 00:24:51,489
And you're discounting that?
598
00:24:51,489 --> 00:24:55,827
You think sort of the -- our
allies were able to sort of
599
00:24:55,827 --> 00:24:57,896
fully encapsulate the city?
600
00:24:57,896 --> 00:24:59,764
Mr. McGurk: We don't
get into numbers.
601
00:24:59,764 --> 00:25:01,832
We think we eliminated quite
-- the vast majority there
602
00:25:01,833 --> 00:25:02,901
in Sirte.
603
00:25:02,901 --> 00:25:06,338
But if they try to regroup,
I'm certain we'll find a way
604
00:25:06,338 --> 00:25:06,805
to deal with that.
605
00:25:06,805 --> 00:25:08,106
Mr. Earnest: Mark.
606
00:25:08,106 --> 00:25:10,575
The Press: The
information-sharing with the
607
00:25:10,575 --> 00:25:13,645
Turks, it's been really
strained on the diplomatic
608
00:25:13,645 --> 00:25:19,216
level -- obviously the whole
question of cooperation with
609
00:25:19,217 --> 00:25:23,521
the coup and the allegations
and the request for the
610
00:25:23,521 --> 00:25:26,658
return of the fellow that
they think was involved in
611
00:25:26,658 --> 00:25:27,324
the coup.
612
00:25:27,325 --> 00:25:28,627
Has that been reflected
at all in the cooperation
613
00:25:28,627 --> 00:25:31,428
you've seen in the
counter-ISIL campaign?
614
00:25:31,429 --> 00:25:33,565
Mr. McGurk: Obviously it's
a complex relationship.
615
00:25:33,565 --> 00:25:36,801
I was in Ankara about four
or five days ago, had very
616
00:25:36,801 --> 00:25:39,604
good, very detailed meetings
in Ankara about the
617
00:25:39,604 --> 00:25:41,306
overall situation.
618
00:25:41,306 --> 00:25:44,709
And the Turks have done an
awful lot here over the last
619
00:25:44,709 --> 00:25:47,312
year, very close cooperation
with us in the counter-ISIL
620
00:25:47,312 --> 00:25:50,282
fight, and I felt very good
coming out of those meetings
621
00:25:50,282 --> 00:25:52,951
about the way forward.
622
00:25:52,951 --> 00:25:55,220
General Dunford is
in regular contact.
623
00:25:55,220 --> 00:25:57,188
The day before I was in
Ankara he was in Incirlik
624
00:25:57,188 --> 00:25:59,257
meeting his counterpart,
General Akar.
625
00:25:59,257 --> 00:26:03,028
So our communications with
Turkey is extremely close.
626
00:26:03,028 --> 00:26:05,263
They are doing an operation
now -- just south of that
627
00:26:05,263 --> 00:26:07,999
green splotch here, near
Al-Bab -- and obviously
628
00:26:07,999 --> 00:26:12,804
we're looking for ways to
try to help them defeat ISIL
629
00:26:12,804 --> 00:26:15,273
in that particularly
sensitive area.
630
00:26:15,273 --> 00:26:17,141
It's also a sensitive area
of the country because you
631
00:26:17,142 --> 00:26:18,810
have a number of different
forces converging.
632
00:26:18,810 --> 00:26:21,780
So a lot of what we do every
single day is try to make
633
00:26:21,780 --> 00:26:25,283
sure that we deescalate any
tension between non-ISIL
634
00:26:25,283 --> 00:26:28,687
affiliated forces that we
have relationships with so
635
00:26:28,687 --> 00:26:31,121
everybody is focused
on the same enemy.
636
00:26:31,122 --> 00:26:32,891
This is extremely hard.
637
00:26:32,891 --> 00:26:34,960
And that's why I mentioned
there's another model for
638
00:26:34,960 --> 00:26:37,262
doing this -- we can send in
the 82nd Airborne to go in
639
00:26:37,262 --> 00:26:38,929
and do all this
kind of stuff.
640
00:26:38,930 --> 00:26:41,733
We do not think that
that would be a lasting,
641
00:26:41,733 --> 00:26:43,467
sustainable way to do it.
642
00:26:43,468 --> 00:26:45,303
We think what is
sustainable, particularly in
643
00:26:45,303 --> 00:26:47,939
something as complex
as Syria, is advising,
644
00:26:47,939 --> 00:26:49,240
assisting, enabling.
645
00:26:49,240 --> 00:26:51,076
And I think the record of
what we've been able to
646
00:26:51,076 --> 00:26:53,078
clear out proves that.
647
00:26:53,078 --> 00:26:55,146
But it makes it complex,
because we're trying to
648
00:26:55,146 --> 00:26:57,081
encourage our partners that
were working with on the
649
00:26:57,082 --> 00:27:00,919
ground, you guys need to go
that way, when sometimes
650
00:27:00,919 --> 00:27:02,253
they want to go
a different way.
651
00:27:02,253 --> 00:27:05,357
So this is what the daily
communication and constant
652
00:27:05,357 --> 00:27:07,826
discussions are with the
Turks and different actors
653
00:27:07,826 --> 00:27:08,727
on the ground.
654
00:27:08,727 --> 00:27:11,162
But I was very encouraged by
my meetings in Ankara last
655
00:27:11,162 --> 00:27:13,098
week that we have a shared
way forward, and it's going
656
00:27:13,098 --> 00:27:14,699
to continue.
657
00:27:14,699 --> 00:27:17,335
The Press: They're fighting
the ISIL forces as much as
658
00:27:17,335 --> 00:27:18,136
they want to
fight the Kurds?
659
00:27:18,136 --> 00:27:20,004
Mr. McGurk: Well, right
now they are engaged in a
660
00:27:20,005 --> 00:27:23,708
hostile fight against ISIL,
and Turkey soldiers have
661
00:27:23,708 --> 00:27:24,709
taken casualties.
662
00:27:24,709 --> 00:27:27,145
And I think we have to
extend our condolences to them.
663
00:27:27,145 --> 00:27:28,913
I did that when I was there.
664
00:27:28,913 --> 00:27:30,515
They are engaged in a fight
against ISIL on the
665
00:27:30,515 --> 00:27:31,883
ground, definitely.
666
00:27:31,883 --> 00:27:32,684
Mr. Earnest: Michelle.
667
00:27:32,684 --> 00:27:34,853
The Press: About a week ago,
there were reports in Syria
668
00:27:34,853 --> 00:27:37,255
the ISIS leadership or
what's left of it was
669
00:27:37,255 --> 00:27:41,126
meeting to try to pick a
al-Baghdadi successor.
670
00:27:41,126 --> 00:27:42,160
What do you know about that?
671
00:27:42,160 --> 00:27:46,064
Do you think al-Baghdadi is
wounded or incapacitated in
672
00:27:46,064 --> 00:27:46,765
some way?
673
00:27:46,765 --> 00:27:49,801
And even if he were taken
out of the picture, how much
674
00:27:49,801 --> 00:27:52,270
of an effect would that
have on their strength?
675
00:27:52,270 --> 00:27:54,039
Mr. McGurk: So it's
a great question.
676
00:27:54,039 --> 00:27:56,875
I saw those reports,
which we can't confirm.
677
00:27:56,875 --> 00:27:58,743
I would say any ISIL
leaders have a pretty good
678
00:27:58,743 --> 00:28:00,979
succession plan because
we're removing them at a
679
00:28:00,979 --> 00:28:02,947
pretty fast clip.
680
00:28:02,947 --> 00:28:05,382
Baghdadi is unique because
he's the guy that rose in
681
00:28:05,383 --> 00:28:08,520
the Grand Mosque in Mosul
and declared a caliphate,
682
00:28:08,520 --> 00:28:11,756
which I think I mentioned
this the last time I was
683
00:28:11,756 --> 00:28:13,625
here -- but I travel now
all around the world to
684
00:28:13,625 --> 00:28:15,994
countries in which their
young men, and in many
685
00:28:15,994 --> 00:28:17,695
cases, young women, have
been attracted to
686
00:28:17,695 --> 00:28:19,431
this movement.
687
00:28:19,431 --> 00:28:21,433
And when you say what is
it that has attracted your
688
00:28:21,433 --> 00:28:23,435
young people to this
movement, there's a number
689
00:28:23,435 --> 00:28:25,970
of different answers, but
there's a common denominator
690
00:28:25,970 --> 00:28:29,441
-- this notion of a
homeland and a caliphate.
691
00:28:29,441 --> 00:28:32,043
And Baghdadi claims to have
a unique -- this phony
692
00:28:32,043 --> 00:28:36,447
unique claim to
being a caliph.
693
00:28:36,448 --> 00:28:40,085
This is all a total fraud,
but he claims to have this
694
00:28:40,085 --> 00:28:41,886
unique lineage that
makes him a caliph.
695
00:28:41,886 --> 00:28:44,689
So I definitely think
that when we do eliminate
696
00:28:44,689 --> 00:28:47,025
Baghdadi it will make a
significant difference.
697
00:28:47,025 --> 00:28:50,161
I also think it is
significant that he tried to
698
00:28:50,161 --> 00:28:53,598
be a kind of new type of
terrorist leader -- giving
699
00:28:53,598 --> 00:28:56,734
public speeches, going to
the Grand Mosque and giving
700
00:28:56,734 --> 00:29:00,138
this sermon in the summer
of 2014 -- and he is now in
701
00:29:00,138 --> 00:29:01,906
deep, deep hiding.
702
00:29:01,906 --> 00:29:03,975
And we have not heard from
him until he issued this
703
00:29:03,975 --> 00:29:06,543
audiotape a couple months
ago, and it was a very
704
00:29:06,544 --> 00:29:07,579
defensive message.
705
00:29:07,579 --> 00:29:10,682
It basically said, for all
of the fighters in Mosul,
706
00:29:10,682 --> 00:29:12,617
stay and fight to the death.
707
00:29:12,617 --> 00:29:14,619
But all the indications
we're getting is that many
708
00:29:14,619 --> 00:29:17,688
did not take that message
well because where is Baghdadi?
709
00:29:17,689 --> 00:29:20,358
He is somewhere in hiding.
710
00:29:20,358 --> 00:29:24,629
And we also know he hides
with slaves and all sorts of
711
00:29:24,629 --> 00:29:26,197
terrible things.
712
00:29:26,197 --> 00:29:29,533
This guy is one of the most
despicable we've ever seen.
713
00:29:29,534 --> 00:29:31,536
So we're doing all we can
to find and eliminate him.
714
00:29:31,536 --> 00:29:34,005
As I mentioned, all of his
deputies -- nearly all of
715
00:29:34,005 --> 00:29:35,373
his deputies have
been eliminated.
716
00:29:35,373 --> 00:29:37,675
And it's a matter of
time before we find him.
717
00:29:37,675 --> 00:29:40,578
I do think it will make a
significant difference on
718
00:29:40,578 --> 00:29:43,114
ISIL as an organization,
as a movement, once he's
719
00:29:43,114 --> 00:29:46,417
eliminated, but it will
not eliminate this kind of
720
00:29:46,417 --> 00:29:48,218
global jihadi terrorist
threat, obviously.
721
00:29:48,219 --> 00:29:49,888
Mr. Earnest: Ron.
722
00:29:49,888 --> 00:29:53,725
The Press: Given all the
progress, does ISIS still
723
00:29:53,725 --> 00:29:57,529
have the ability to plot and
orchestrate attacks against
724
00:29:57,529 --> 00:30:00,899
the United States and our
allies from the territory
725
00:30:00,899 --> 00:30:01,933
that they have remaining?
726
00:30:01,933 --> 00:30:04,335
And will President Obama
leave office with that
727
00:30:04,335 --> 00:30:06,804
ability apparently
still intact?
728
00:30:06,804 --> 00:30:09,674
And on Aleppo, you said
it was discussed briefly.
729
00:30:09,674 --> 00:30:12,543
There are reports that there
are scores of civilians
730
00:30:12,544 --> 00:30:16,381
being massacred by the
advancing Syrian army.
731
00:30:16,381 --> 00:30:19,083
There are also reports
of a ceasefire.
732
00:30:19,083 --> 00:30:21,085
Did those issues come up,
and was there any response
733
00:30:21,085 --> 00:30:23,655
to that from the President?
734
00:30:23,655 --> 00:30:26,891
Mr. McGurk: So in terms of
plotting, this is what they
735
00:30:26,891 --> 00:30:28,426
want to do.
736
00:30:28,426 --> 00:30:31,763
ISIL wants to attack us,
and they want to attack
737
00:30:31,763 --> 00:30:32,864
our partners.
738
00:30:32,864 --> 00:30:36,100
And they're very
sophisticated -- the Paris
739
00:30:36,100 --> 00:30:39,003
attacks, the Brussels
attacks, those were planned
740
00:30:39,003 --> 00:30:40,038
in Raqqa.
741
00:30:40,038 --> 00:30:41,539
They ran through some
of these other towns I
742
00:30:41,539 --> 00:30:44,442
mentioned and they would
deploy their operatives to
743
00:30:44,442 --> 00:30:46,311
carry out attacks.
744
00:30:46,311 --> 00:30:49,112
We think we significantly
degraded their ability
745
00:30:49,113 --> 00:30:49,781
to do that.
746
00:30:49,781 --> 00:30:54,552
But they do have operatives
in a number of places in
747
00:30:54,552 --> 00:30:56,486
which they are planning
external attacks.
748
00:30:56,487 --> 00:30:59,557
This is something that is
the primary focus of ours,
749
00:30:59,557 --> 00:31:01,092
to eliminate what I call
that external
750
00:31:01,092 --> 00:31:02,760
operations network.
751
00:31:02,760 --> 00:31:04,762
So the head of it
was Mohammad Adnani.
752
00:31:04,762 --> 00:31:08,533
That's why targeting
him was so significant.
753
00:31:08,533 --> 00:31:10,968
Most of this is also being
done in Raqqa, but I think
754
00:31:10,969 --> 00:31:15,840
we have demonstrated these
three I mentioned today that
755
00:31:15,840 --> 00:31:19,543
were eliminated just a few
days ago were part of this
756
00:31:19,544 --> 00:31:21,746
very sophisticated
terrorist plotting network.
757
00:31:21,746 --> 00:31:24,349
So every single opportunity
we get we are degrading this
758
00:31:24,349 --> 00:31:26,484
network, but it
still exists.
759
00:31:26,484 --> 00:31:28,453
This is still a threat.
760
00:31:28,453 --> 00:31:31,155
They are trying to
recruit -- not planned,
761
00:31:31,155 --> 00:31:32,924
sophisticated attacks --
they're trying to do that,
762
00:31:32,924 --> 00:31:35,093
but they're also trying to
recruit deranged individuals
763
00:31:35,093 --> 00:31:37,762
from all over the world
to act in their name.
764
00:31:37,762 --> 00:31:40,598
And that is something that
is very hard to stop, which
765
00:31:40,598 --> 00:31:42,100
is why the
information-sharing and
766
00:31:42,100 --> 00:31:44,401
everything we're doing kind
of behind the scenes as a
767
00:31:44,402 --> 00:31:47,038
coalition is so critical.
768
00:31:47,038 --> 00:31:49,140
I can't speak to what's
happening in Aleppo right now.
769
00:31:49,140 --> 00:31:51,376
I will just say, as I think
I mentioned at the outset,
770
00:31:51,376 --> 00:31:53,011
this is a horrific
situation.
771
00:31:53,011 --> 00:31:57,482
I think it demonstrates once
again the tactics that the
772
00:31:57,482 --> 00:32:01,386
Russians are using in
support of the regime are
773
00:32:01,386 --> 00:32:03,655
something that is truly
beyond the pale, could not
774
00:32:03,655 --> 00:32:06,024
be any different than the
types of tactics that
775
00:32:06,024 --> 00:32:07,391
we utilize.
776
00:32:07,392 --> 00:32:10,728
And I've also seen these
reports of the ceasefire and
777
00:32:10,728 --> 00:32:13,398
a potential agreement, but
I can't confirm any of that
778
00:32:13,398 --> 00:32:14,932
because this is all
fairly late-breaking.
779
00:32:14,932 --> 00:32:16,868
But I understand the
Security Council will be
780
00:32:16,868 --> 00:32:18,669
convening later
today to discuss it.
781
00:32:18,670 --> 00:32:19,971
Mr. Earnest: Andrew.
782
00:32:19,971 --> 00:32:22,307
The Press: I wanted to
follow up on your trip
783
00:32:22,307 --> 00:32:23,241
to Ankar.
784
00:32:23,241 --> 00:32:25,543
What did you hear from the
Turks that made you so
785
00:32:25,543 --> 00:32:29,179
confidant, vis-à-vis what
they planned in Al-Bab and
786
00:32:29,180 --> 00:32:32,583
with regards to
what you just said?
787
00:32:32,583 --> 00:32:34,218
Mr. McGurk: Well,
I'd just say this.
788
00:32:34,218 --> 00:32:39,991
Turkey is at war
against ISIL.
789
00:32:39,991 --> 00:32:42,126
There's no question
about that.
790
00:32:42,126 --> 00:32:44,062
They are fighting on the
ground, they are
791
00:32:44,062 --> 00:32:45,862
taking casualties.
792
00:32:45,863 --> 00:32:49,233
And ISIL is a significant
threat to Turkey, and that
793
00:32:49,233 --> 00:32:55,139
is something that they see
very clearly, and so we're
794
00:32:55,139 --> 00:32:58,443
working through various ways
in which we can help them.
795
00:32:58,443 --> 00:33:01,312
We do have disagreements,
of course, in terms of some
796
00:33:01,312 --> 00:33:03,648
things going on in Syria,
which we also have very
797
00:33:03,648 --> 00:33:05,850
candid discussions about.
798
00:33:05,850 --> 00:33:09,153
When it comes to Raqqa, we
want to get ISIL out of
799
00:33:09,153 --> 00:33:12,123
Raqqa as soon as possible,
but this will be a
800
00:33:12,123 --> 00:33:13,791
sequence campaign.
801
00:33:13,791 --> 00:33:14,826
That's the only
way to do it.
802
00:33:14,826 --> 00:33:16,761
So we're in the isolation,
kind of the strangulation
803
00:33:16,761 --> 00:33:17,995
phase now.
804
00:33:17,995 --> 00:33:21,399
And then we have to identify
the force to actually move
805
00:33:21,399 --> 00:33:22,632
in and seize and
hold the city.
806
00:33:22,633 --> 00:33:24,502
There are a few
options for that.
807
00:33:24,502 --> 00:33:26,303
One of the options, of
course, is working very
808
00:33:26,304 --> 00:33:28,573
closely with Turkey, and
we are having a detailed
809
00:33:28,573 --> 00:33:30,575
discussion with
them about this.
810
00:33:30,575 --> 00:33:33,578
But the most significant
thing when I was in Turkey
811
00:33:33,578 --> 00:33:36,114
was just their threat
perception of ISIL as a
812
00:33:36,114 --> 00:33:37,715
significant threat to
Turkey, which it is.
813
00:33:37,715 --> 00:33:41,218
Turkey has suffered more
casualties in ISIL attacks
814
00:33:41,219 --> 00:33:43,921
than almost any of our
other coalition partners.
815
00:33:43,921 --> 00:33:47,425
And so while we've had some
disagreements over the
816
00:33:47,425 --> 00:33:49,427
years, I thought we had
a pretty good shared
817
00:33:49,427 --> 00:33:50,328
way forward.
818
00:33:50,328 --> 00:33:52,830
Not to say there isn't
some tension, obviously.
819
00:33:52,830 --> 00:33:55,265
The Press: I also
wanted to ask, are U.S.
820
00:33:55,266 --> 00:33:58,236
forces embedding with the
Popular Mobilization Forces?
821
00:33:58,236 --> 00:34:01,005
Mr. McGurk: Embedding with
popular -- I think you're
822
00:34:01,005 --> 00:34:03,374
talking about a report in
which there was a photograph
823
00:34:03,374 --> 00:34:07,545
of some training of -- so
Popular Mobilization Forces
824
00:34:07,545 --> 00:34:10,548
are known as being primarily
Shia militia forces, many of
825
00:34:10,547 --> 00:34:12,449
which operate outside the
command and control of the
826
00:34:12,449 --> 00:34:15,152
Iraqi government, which is
a significant problem, not
827
00:34:15,152 --> 00:34:17,687
only to us but also to
the Iraqi government.
828
00:34:17,688 --> 00:34:19,857
But under the umbrella of
the Popular Mobilization
829
00:34:19,857 --> 00:34:23,494
Forces, there are local
forces from these areas to
830
00:34:23,494 --> 00:34:27,064
hold the ground after
operations conclude.
831
00:34:27,063 --> 00:34:30,467
Many of these are locals
from Nineveh Province -- so
832
00:34:30,467 --> 00:34:32,670
Sunnis, Christians, all
sorts of -- it's a very
833
00:34:32,670 --> 00:34:33,905
diverse province.
834
00:34:33,905 --> 00:34:35,440
I'll give you an example.
835
00:34:35,440 --> 00:34:37,708
In Anbar Province, under
the umbrella of the Popular
836
00:34:37,708 --> 00:34:41,212
Mobilization Forces, about
15,000 local Anbari tribal
837
00:34:41,212 --> 00:34:43,514
fighters mobilized
to fight Daesh.
838
00:34:43,514 --> 00:34:48,152
That is one reason why, from
the four to the five, all of
839
00:34:48,152 --> 00:34:49,487
that is green.
840
00:34:49,487 --> 00:34:52,190
We cannot do that only with
the Iraqi security forces.
841
00:34:52,190 --> 00:34:55,426
We needed the tribes
to be mobilized.
842
00:34:55,426 --> 00:34:57,261
So those are all
Sunnis from Anbar.
843
00:34:57,261 --> 00:34:59,297
They're being paid by the
government to fight ISIL,
844
00:34:59,297 --> 00:35:01,365
and we're, of course,
supporting them.
845
00:35:01,365 --> 00:35:02,399
Mr. Earnest: Richard.
846
00:35:02,400 --> 00:35:05,770
The Press: Could you tell
us a little more about the
847
00:35:05,770 --> 00:35:07,338
coalition partners?
848
00:35:07,338 --> 00:35:09,807
Are they just as
resolute as the U.S.
849
00:35:09,807 --> 00:35:11,042
in continuing further?
850
00:35:11,042 --> 00:35:14,278
And can you tell us -- the
operation themselves, how --
851
00:35:14,278 --> 00:35:19,383
what's the percentage of the
operation being done by the
852
00:35:19,383 --> 00:35:21,752
U.S., and the coalition
-- the percentage by the
853
00:35:21,752 --> 00:35:22,420
coalition partners?
854
00:35:22,420 --> 00:35:25,323
Besides Turkey?
855
00:35:25,323 --> 00:35:29,426
Mr. McGurk: So a
very good question.
856
00:35:29,427 --> 00:35:31,762
I've been at this from the
beginning, the inception of
857
00:35:31,762 --> 00:35:35,766
the coalition, when we had
about 15 countries, and
858
00:35:35,766 --> 00:35:37,835
there was always a question
of what will this grow into.
859
00:35:39,837 --> 00:35:42,707
In the last three weeks, we
had all 68 -- ambassadors
860
00:35:42,707 --> 00:35:44,741
from all 68 members at the
State Department, and we
861
00:35:44,742 --> 00:35:47,111
also held what's called
kind of the small group of
862
00:35:47,111 --> 00:35:50,548
coalition countries, over 20
countries, in Berlin, just a
863
00:35:50,548 --> 00:35:51,314
couple weeks ago.
864
00:35:51,315 --> 00:35:54,485
And what is fairly
extraordinary about this is
865
00:35:54,485 --> 00:35:58,122
the sense of international
consensus about the need to
866
00:35:58,122 --> 00:36:01,424
basically destroy this
enemy, and the sense of
867
00:36:01,425 --> 00:36:02,360
burden-sharing.
868
00:36:02,360 --> 00:36:04,795
As I mentioned, the United
States will not do this --
869
00:36:04,795 --> 00:36:07,732
we cannot succeed
in this alone.
870
00:36:07,732 --> 00:36:10,434
And the coalition remains
extremely strong.
871
00:36:10,434 --> 00:36:13,070
So Secretary Carter will be
seeing his counterparts in
872
00:36:13,070 --> 00:36:15,006
London here in a few days.
873
00:36:15,006 --> 00:36:17,975
And the overall cohesion of
the coalition across all
874
00:36:17,975 --> 00:36:19,710
these multiple lines of
effort -- the military gets
875
00:36:19,710 --> 00:36:21,646
a lot of the focus, but
it is counter-finance,
876
00:36:21,646 --> 00:36:26,017
counter-propaganda,
counter-foreign fighters,
877
00:36:26,017 --> 00:36:28,618
and everything kind of
working together -- that we
878
00:36:28,619 --> 00:36:30,721
have coordinating mechanisms
throughout the coalition.
879
00:36:30,721 --> 00:36:33,324
It is working
extraordinarily well.
880
00:36:33,324 --> 00:36:35,960
And the international
consensus behind this effort
881
00:36:35,960 --> 00:36:38,763
is something I think we have
to continue to build upon,
882
00:36:38,763 --> 00:36:41,432
because it is something
that's quite extraordinary.
883
00:36:41,432 --> 00:36:44,569
In terms of overall effort,
I mentioned there's been
884
00:36:44,569 --> 00:36:47,605
about -- over 17,000
airstrikes now.
885
00:36:47,605 --> NaN:NaN:NaN,NaN
I think if you add them up,
about 4,500 or so have been
886
00:36:47,572 --> 00:36:48,239
coalition airstrikes.
887
00:36:48,239 --> 00:36:53,744
So, definitely U.S.
888
00:36:53,744 --> 00:36:56,614
military forces are doing
the bulk of the airstrikes.
889
00:36:56,614 --> 00:36:58,482
There's a reason for that --
we have the best military in
890
00:36:58,482 --> 00:36:59,684
the world.
891
00:36:59,684 --> 00:37:01,953
But the number of coalition
partners operating to
892
00:37:01,953 --> 00:37:03,721
support that effort
is quite significant.
893
00:37:03,721 --> 00:37:05,556
And, of course, we couldn't
do this without flying out
894
00:37:05,556 --> 00:37:07,758
of Incirlik Airbase, flying
out of some other areas
895
00:37:07,758 --> 00:37:09,660
within the region.
896
00:37:09,660 --> 00:37:11,428
And we're obviously
very grateful for that.
897
00:37:11,429 --> 00:37:15,066
Without the coalition, we
would not be able to defeat
898
00:37:15,066 --> 00:37:15,866
this enemy.
899
00:37:15,866 --> 00:37:17,134
Mr. Earnest: We probably
have time for two more and
900
00:37:17,134 --> 00:37:18,769
then we're going
to let Brett go.
901
00:37:18,769 --> 00:37:19,403
Kevin.
902
00:37:19,403 --> 00:37:20,171
The Press: Thanks, Josh.
903
00:37:20,171 --> 00:37:22,038
I just want to sort of
follow up, especially as it
904
00:37:22,039 --> 00:37:24,141
relates to the
coalition and strikes.
905
00:37:24,141 --> 00:37:26,410
There's been some reporting,
Brett, that the U.S.
906
00:37:26,410 --> 00:37:28,846
needed to use the
Australians to conduct
907
00:37:28,846 --> 00:37:31,649
strikes against some of
the Paris attackers, and I
908
00:37:31,649 --> 00:37:33,284
wonder if you can sort
of help me unpack the
909
00:37:33,284 --> 00:37:36,454
complications as it relates
to the chain of command that
910
00:37:36,454 --> 00:37:40,057
the United States might have
in conducting airstrikes and
911
00:37:40,057 --> 00:37:42,827
having to utilize coalition
partners like Australia
912
00:37:42,827 --> 00:37:43,494
and others?
913
00:37:43,494 --> 00:37:46,998
And second, I wanted to ask
you about Saudi Arabia.
914
00:37:46,998 --> 00:37:49,133
That story has come out
today and I wondered if you
915
00:37:49,133 --> 00:37:51,968
could sort of help unpack
this idea that the U.S.
916
00:37:51,969 --> 00:37:55,072
is limiting military support
for the Saudis because of
917
00:37:55,072 --> 00:37:56,974
what's been happening
vis-à-vis civilian
918
00:37:56,974 --> 00:37:58,142
casualties in Yemen.
919
00:37:58,142 --> 00:38:02,279
Mr. Earnest: I can take
the Yemen one, Brett.
920
00:38:02,279 --> 00:38:03,214
Mr. McGurk: So let me --
I'll just say about the --
921
00:38:03,214 --> 00:38:07,451
and I defer to my DOD
colleagues who work this
922
00:38:07,451 --> 00:38:10,254
every single day -- this has
been the most precise air
923
00:38:10,254 --> 00:38:11,288
campaign in history.
924
00:38:11,288 --> 00:38:13,691
I mean, I think it will be
studied in the future and
925
00:38:13,691 --> 00:38:17,194
people will -- the most
precise air campaign in history.
926
00:38:17,194 --> 00:38:21,666
And all of our airstrikes go
through a common structure
927
00:38:21,666 --> 00:38:24,335
in terms of validating
the targets.
928
00:38:24,335 --> 00:38:27,271
And it is really moving
at an incredible clip.
929
00:38:27,271 --> 00:38:29,306
I can't get into the details
of sometimes who does a
930
00:38:29,306 --> 00:38:30,941
strike and everything.
931
00:38:30,941 --> 00:38:33,843
What I will say is, when I
mentioned today -- and this
932
00:38:33,844 --> 00:38:36,047
was mentioned also by
Secretary Carter earlier
933
00:38:36,047 --> 00:38:39,417
today -- eliminating these
external plotters in the
934
00:38:39,417 --> 00:38:44,321
streets of Raqqa,
painstaking, tireless work
935
00:38:44,321 --> 00:38:47,725
by coalition actors, our
military forces, our folks
936
00:38:47,725 --> 00:38:49,727
on the ground, our
intelligence apparatus --
937
00:38:49,727 --> 00:38:52,730
all working as one team.
938
00:38:52,730 --> 00:38:54,932
And it doesn't always work
that well, but it is working
939
00:38:54,932 --> 00:38:56,067
quite, quite well.
940
00:38:56,067 --> 00:38:59,537
But I just can't get into
in terms of who does what.
941
00:38:59,537 --> 00:39:02,839
But it is the most precise
air campaign in history.
942
00:39:02,840 --> 00:39:05,676
We're very proud of it,
and that will continue.
943
00:39:05,676 --> 00:39:07,444
I'll just say about Saudi
Arabia -- I was in Saudi
944
00:39:07,445 --> 00:39:12,383
Arabia a couple weeks ago
to meet with Deputy Crown
945
00:39:12,383 --> 00:39:13,651
Prince Mohammad bin Salman.
946
00:39:13,651 --> 00:39:16,754
I've seen him a number of
times, including also with
947
00:39:16,754 --> 00:39:17,855
Muhammad bin Nayef.
948
00:39:17,855 --> 00:39:20,825
And Saudi Arabia also
is in this fight.
949
00:39:20,825 --> 00:39:23,861
I mean, ISIL is a
fundamental threat to
950
00:39:23,861 --> 00:39:25,362
Saudi Arabia.
951
00:39:25,362 --> 00:39:27,398
If you read ISIL's
propaganda, if you read what
952
00:39:27,398 --> 00:39:30,434
Baghdadi writes, he's
obsessed with Saudi Arabia
953
00:39:30,434 --> 00:39:31,936
and striking in
Saudi Arabia.
954
00:39:31,936 --> 00:39:35,106
So we are working very
closely with the Saudis in a
955
00:39:35,106 --> 00:39:38,509
whole range of areas in
order to help degrade ISIL,
956
00:39:38,509 --> 00:39:40,845
particularly on a lot of the
counter-ideological fights.
957
00:39:40,845 --> 00:39:42,212
So they're very much
in this as well.
958
00:39:42,213 --> 00:39:44,181
And I'll let Josh address
the Yemen question.
959
00:39:44,181 --> 00:39:46,183
Mr. Earnest: Gardiner, I'll
give you the last one.
960
00:39:46,183 --> 00:39:49,453
The Press: John Brennan has
suggested that the campaign
961
00:39:49,453 --> 00:39:52,323
on the ground and the
campaign against ISIL
962
00:39:52,323 --> 00:39:55,359
globally are going in
two opposite directions.
963
00:39:55,359 --> 00:39:57,795
He said this summer, we
still have a ways to go
964
00:39:57,795 --> 00:39:58,929
before we're able to say
that we've made some
965
00:39:58,929 --> 00:40:00,097
significant progress.
966
00:40:00,097 --> 00:40:03,534
And he warned that the
trajectories for this ISIS
967
00:40:03,534 --> 00:40:06,971
religious state or caliphate
and global violence point in
968
00:40:06,971 --> 00:40:08,105
opposite directions.
969
00:40:08,105 --> 00:40:10,941
"As the pressure mounts on
ISIL," he said, "we judge
970
00:40:10,941 --> 00:40:13,577
that it will intensify its
global terror campaign to
971
00:40:13,577 --> 00:40:16,514
maintain its domination
of the global terrorism agenda."
972
00:40:16,514 --> 00:40:18,582
You're sort of saying
the opposite thing.
973
00:40:18,582 --> 00:40:21,618
You're saying that these
two campaigns are going in
974
00:40:21,619 --> 00:40:24,355
exactly the same directions
instead of opposite
975
00:40:24,355 --> 00:40:27,291
directions, and you're
pointing to the three deaths
976
00:40:27,291 --> 00:40:31,095
recently of these external
plotters as evidence of that.
977
00:40:31,095 --> 00:40:33,596
Tell me why there's such
a difference between what
978
00:40:33,597 --> 00:40:37,535
you're saying and what some
other intelligence people in
979
00:40:37,535 --> 00:40:39,203
the administration
are saying.
980
00:40:39,203 --> 00:40:42,339
Why are you so convinced
these two things are going
981
00:40:42,339 --> 00:40:44,942
together while other say
it's sort of like squeezing
982
00:40:44,942 --> 00:40:47,745
a balloon -- if you squeeze
it here, they're going to
983
00:40:47,745 --> 00:40:48,578
show up someplace else?
984
00:40:48,579 --> 00:40:50,481
Mr. McGurk: I don't
think it's so much of
985
00:40:50,481 --> 00:40:51,782
a disagreement.
986
00:40:51,782 --> 00:40:55,820
In fact, all of our
intelligence assessments
987
00:40:55,820 --> 00:40:59,056
inform the way we obviously
discuss this and prosecute
988
00:40:59,056 --> 00:41:00,558
the campaign.
989
00:41:00,558 --> 00:41:03,794
I said this will be
a multiyear effort.
990
00:41:03,794 --> 00:41:05,296
Be very clear about that.
991
00:41:05,296 --> 00:41:08,031
The number of foreign
fighters, the number of
992
00:41:08,032 --> 00:41:10,201
people indoctrinated into
this ideology is something
993
00:41:10,201 --> 00:41:13,737
that will not be overcome
for a number of years.
994
00:41:13,737 --> 00:41:17,775
And while the notion of the
caliphate is what kind of
995
00:41:17,775 --> 00:41:20,978
led to this explosive growth
of ISIL -- that is why
996
00:41:20,978 --> 00:41:26,283
shrinking the caliphate is
so important -- but their
997
00:41:26,283 --> 00:41:30,254
desire to inspire attacks
around the world as they
998
00:41:30,254 --> 00:41:32,857
lose their territory is
something that we expect
999
00:41:32,857 --> 00:41:34,625
will probably increase.
1000
00:41:34,625 --> 00:41:35,993
How do they want
to stay relevant?
1001
00:41:35,993 --> 00:41:39,395
They're trying to spark and
inspire attacks around
1002
00:41:39,396 --> 00:41:40,564
the world.
1003
00:41:40,564 --> 00:41:43,533
That's why they used to say
-- Muhammad Adnani's last
1004
00:41:43,534 --> 00:41:45,269
statement was
very interesting.
1005
00:41:45,269 --> 00:41:47,303
If you read of Muhammad
Adnani, the spokesman, all
1006
00:41:47,304 --> 00:41:50,474
of his propaganda, again, it
used to be about, come to
1007
00:41:50,474 --> 00:41:54,445
the homeland, or retain
and expand the caliphate.
1008
00:41:54,445 --> 00:41:56,480
Most of their propaganda
were these sundrenched
1009
00:41:56,480 --> 00:41:59,183
scenes of children and
families and a very
1010
00:41:59,183 --> 00:42:02,853
optimistic
message, actually.
1011
00:42:02,853 --> 00:42:04,989
His last message before his
death was very different.
1012
00:42:04,989 --> 00:42:07,791
It actually said, we might
lose all of our territory,
1013
00:42:07,791 --> 00:42:10,227
but we'll still be around,
and, in fact, if you can't
1014
00:42:10,227 --> 00:42:12,029
come -- because you can't
because it's hard to get in
1015
00:42:12,029 --> 00:42:14,698
here now -- stay home, pick
up a knife, and attack
1016
00:42:14,698 --> 00:42:15,566
someone down the street.
1017
00:42:15,566 --> 00:42:17,500
It was a very
different message.
1018
00:42:17,501 --> 00:42:19,837
It's a message that does not
appeal to a broad segment of
1019
00:42:19,837 --> 00:42:20,571
the population.
1020
00:42:20,571 --> 00:42:21,906
It's a message that
appeals to really
1021
00:42:21,906 --> 00:42:23,741
deranged individuals.
1022
00:42:23,741 --> 00:42:26,043
But they are trying to
remain relevant as they lose
1023
00:42:26,043 --> 00:42:29,146
their homeland -- what they
call their homeland -- by
1024
00:42:29,146 --> 00:42:30,648
trying to inspire
these attacks.
1025
00:42:30,648 --> 00:42:32,449
And that is something
that will continue.
1026
00:42:32,449 --> 00:42:35,352
And that is why one thing
we've done in the coalition,
1027
00:42:35,352 --> 00:42:38,022
we talk about even as we
degrade their ability to
1028
00:42:38,022 --> 00:42:41,491
have territory in Iraq and
Syria, we need to adapt as a
1029
00:42:41,492 --> 00:42:43,928
coalition to increase
our ability to share
1030
00:42:43,928 --> 00:42:47,665
information, our hubs of
sharing information, to be
1031
00:42:47,665 --> 00:42:49,366
able to stay ahead
of the threat.
1032
00:42:49,366 --> 00:42:51,168
So that's something as a
coalition I think will
1033
00:42:51,168 --> 00:42:52,937
continue for some time.
1034
00:42:52,937 --> 00:42:55,372
So the military-focused
coalition of taking back
1035
00:42:55,372 --> 00:42:58,241
these cities, which we will
do, will evolve into a
1036
00:42:58,242 --> 00:43:00,678
coalition focused on the
information-sharing, the
1037
00:43:00,678 --> 00:43:03,547
patterns of interaction
among capitals, among
1038
00:43:03,547 --> 00:43:05,182
intelligence communities,
among law
1039
00:43:05,182 --> 00:43:06,783
enforcement communities.
1040
00:43:06,784 --> 00:43:08,585
It's something we have to
continue to expand
1041
00:43:08,585 --> 00:43:09,653
upon and grow.
1042
00:43:09,653 --> 00:43:10,520
The Press: But, Brett,
that's a much less
1043
00:43:10,521 --> 00:43:16,493
optimistic, even frightening
message for those of us in
1044
00:43:16,493 --> 00:43:19,330
this part of the world,
because it's suggesting that
1045
00:43:19,330 --> 00:43:22,866
your success there only
increases the dangers here, no?
1046
00:43:22,866 --> 00:43:25,569
Mr. McGurk: No, because what
they can do inside of Iraq
1047
00:43:25,569 --> 00:43:28,138
and Syria are these big
spectacular attacks.
1048
00:43:28,138 --> 00:43:29,473
Make no mistake,
these are terrorists.
1049
00:43:29,473 --> 00:43:31,909
It's an international
terrorist organization that
1050
00:43:31,909 --> 00:43:35,779
has the same ideology as
Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda.
1051
00:43:35,779 --> 00:43:38,882
The only difference between
ISIL and al Qaeda is that
1052
00:43:38,882 --> 00:43:41,752
ISIL said, let's do a
caliphate now, whereas al
1053
00:43:41,752 --> 00:43:43,620
Qaeda said, well, we'll do
a caliphate down the road.
1054
00:43:43,620 --> 00:43:45,189
That's the key difference.
1055
00:43:45,189 --> 00:43:48,524
But they aspire to do
massive spectacular attacks
1056
00:43:48,525 --> 00:43:51,695
around the world, and in
order to do that, they need
1057
00:43:51,695 --> 00:43:54,198
territory to plan and
plot and resource.
1058
00:43:54,198 --> 00:43:56,133
And so we're making sure
that they are on their heels
1059
00:43:56,133 --> 00:43:58,702
every single day, but I
would never get up here and
1060
00:43:58,702 --> 00:44:01,338
say this threat is something
that is going to go away or
1061
00:44:01,338 --> 00:44:04,942
something that we cannot
remain absolutely vigilant on.
1062
00:44:04,942 --> 00:44:08,078
And which is why, as I
mentioned, it's not just DOD
1063
00:44:08,078 --> 00:44:10,913
and State; it's our entire
government working as part
1064
00:44:10,914 --> 00:44:13,584
of this integrated campaign
plan to stay ahead of it
1065
00:44:13,584 --> 00:44:14,518
because it's
different tools.
1066
00:44:14,518 --> 00:44:17,254
It's military, law
enforcement, intel, and
1067
00:44:17,254 --> 00:44:18,522
counter messaging.
1068
00:44:18,522 --> 00:44:20,958
So we need to stay at it
every single day and remain
1069
00:44:20,958 --> 00:44:23,327
vigilant for a
long time to come.
1070
00:44:23,327 --> 00:44:25,195
Mr. Earnest:
Thank you, Brett.
1071
00:44:25,195 --> 00:44:26,063
I appreciate it.
1072
00:44:26,063 --> 00:44:35,372
Mr. McGurk: Okay, thank you.
1073
00:44:35,372 --> 00:44:37,040
Mr. Earnest: Okay, we can
go back to our regularly
1074
00:44:37,041 --> 00:44:37,775
scheduled programming now.
1075
00:44:37,775 --> 00:44:39,309
(laughter)
1076
00:44:39,309 --> 00:44:40,144
Kevin, do you want to start?
1077
00:44:40,144 --> 00:44:40,843
The Press: Sure.
1078
00:44:40,844 --> 00:44:47,017
Josh, I did want to ask
about laying the blame for
1079
00:44:47,017 --> 00:44:52,022
Palmyra to Russia, but now
that it has been retaken, or
1080
00:44:52,022 --> 00:44:54,825
partially been retaken,
what is the strategy
1081
00:44:54,825 --> 00:44:55,893
going forward?
1082
00:44:55,893 --> 00:45:00,531
Is the U.S. going to be involved
in that operation?
1083
00:45:00,531 --> 00:45:03,267
It would seem to be a ripe
target now that you have
1084
00:45:03,267 --> 00:45:06,403
these forces there
that we know about.
1085
00:45:06,403 --> 00:45:09,573
Or are we going to leave
that to the Russians
1086
00:45:09,573 --> 00:45:10,641
to deal with?
1087
00:45:10,641 --> 00:45:13,977
Mr. Earnest: Well, as Brett
mentioned, this obviously is
1088
00:45:13,977 --> 00:45:15,446
something that we're
concerned about.
1089
00:45:15,446 --> 00:45:20,451
I do think that it exposes
the failed strategy, or at
1090
00:45:22,619 --> 00:45:24,655
least calls into question
the integrity of those who
1091
00:45:24,655 --> 00:45:25,656
are describing
their strategy.
1092
00:45:25,656 --> 00:45:30,094
Their strategy, as they
stated, is to be focused on
1093
00:45:30,094 --> 00:45:33,363
ISIL and to be focused on
extremists and terrorists.
1094
00:45:33,363 --> 00:45:35,098
But the truth is the real
consequence of their
1095
00:45:35,099 --> 00:45:38,802
strategy, which appears
to be an intense focus on
1096
00:45:38,802 --> 00:45:42,573
bombing innocent civilians
into submission so that the
1097
00:45:42,573 --> 00:45:49,179
Assad regime can enjoy some
tactical gains, actually
1098
00:45:49,179 --> 00:45:53,350
results in fueling the kind
of extremism that we know
1099
00:45:53,350 --> 00:45:56,353
extremists rely
on to thrive.
1100
00:45:56,353 --> 00:46:06,997
It also is exhibit A when
you consider this is an
1101
00:46:06,997 --> 00:46:09,633
example of Russia taking
their eye off the ball when
1102
00:46:09,633 --> 00:46:11,067
it comes to terrorists.
1103
00:46:11,068 --> 00:46:13,937
That they did have this one
limited successful operation
1104
00:46:13,937 --> 00:46:16,140
against Palmyra -- one that
the United States was not
1105
00:46:16,140 --> 00:46:20,310
involved in but one that we
were obviously pleased, and
1106
00:46:20,310 --> 00:46:24,515
we said so at the time, that
this was territory that had
1107
00:46:24,515 --> 00:46:29,853
been taken away from ISIL --
but the strategy that Russia
1108
00:46:29,853 --> 00:46:32,389
has employed has caused them
to take their eye off the
1109
00:46:32,389 --> 00:46:34,825
ball, allow ISIL to make
some gains, but it also
1110
00:46:34,825 --> 00:46:39,562
continues to fuel the kind
of extremism that only makes
1111
00:46:39,563 --> 00:46:44,568
Syria a haven for terrorist
organizations that plot
1112
00:46:46,837 --> 00:46:48,572
violence not just in the
region but around the world.
1113
00:46:48,572 --> 00:46:53,310
The Press: You've left that
particular battle to Russia,
1114
00:46:53,310 --> 00:46:57,814
and I guess the question
now going forward, is that
1115
00:46:57,814 --> 00:46:59,316
strategy going to change?
1116
00:46:59,316 --> 00:47:01,952
Will the U.S. get involved in the fight for this?
1117
00:47:01,952 --> 00:47:04,655
Mr. Earnest: Well, I don't
have any operational updates
1118
00:47:04,655 --> 00:47:08,392
at this point, so I can't
tell you sort of where this
1119
00:47:08,392 --> 00:47:11,194
will fall in terms of any
planned military operations
1120
00:47:11,195 --> 00:47:13,363
on the part of
our coalition.
1121
00:47:13,363 --> 00:47:15,098
But it's obviously a
situation that we're
1122
00:47:15,098 --> 00:47:16,033
watching closely.
1123
00:47:16,033 --> 00:47:18,602
Ayesha.
1124
00:47:18,602 --> 00:47:23,640
The Press: Iran today
ordered its scientists to
1125
00:47:23,640 --> 00:47:26,676
start developing
nuclear-powered marine
1126
00:47:26,677 --> 00:47:31,348
vessels for what it said
as a response to a U.S.
1127
00:47:31,348 --> 00:47:33,984
violation of
the atomic deal.
1128
00:47:33,984 --> 00:47:39,456
So I was wondering, how much
of a concern is this, this
1129
00:47:39,456 --> 00:47:44,461
kind of maybe tit for tat,
the idea that Iran is now
1130
00:47:44,461 --> 00:47:48,765
saying that it's responding
to actions taken by Congress
1131
00:47:48,765 --> 00:47:54,437
by building these
nuclear-powered vessels?
1132
00:47:54,438 --> 00:47:57,574
Is there a concern that this
is going to be an ongoing
1133
00:47:57,574 --> 00:47:59,810
thing and that there's going
to be kind of back and
1134
00:47:59,810 --> 00:48:02,179
forth now?
1135
00:48:02,179 --> 00:48:06,883
Mr. Earnest: Well, I would
agree with your assessment
1136
00:48:06,883 --> 00:48:11,421
that the timing of this
announcement to coincide
1137
00:48:11,421 --> 00:48:15,192
with the President's signing
of the Iran Sanctions Act is
1138
00:48:15,192 --> 00:48:20,897
not likely a coincidence,
but we've been clear even
1139
00:48:20,897 --> 00:48:24,534
through much of the
congressional debate in
1140
00:48:24,534 --> 00:48:28,205
Congress about the Iran
Sanctions Act that the
1141
00:48:28,205 --> 00:48:30,073
President would not sign
into law a piece of
1142
00:48:30,073 --> 00:48:33,644
legislation that undermined
the international agreement
1143
00:48:33,644 --> 00:48:37,180
to prevent Iran from
obtaining a nuclear weapon.
1144
00:48:37,180 --> 00:48:39,915
The extension of the Iran
Sanctions Act does not
1145
00:48:39,916 --> 00:48:43,253
undermine the international
agreement to prevent Iran
1146
00:48:43,253 --> 00:48:44,588
from obtaining a
nuclear weapon.
1147
00:48:44,588 --> 00:48:48,992
And we've -- that's been our
position from the beginning.
1148
00:48:48,992 --> 00:48:51,528
We've explained that quite
clearly in public and we've
1149
00:48:51,528 --> 00:48:53,529
explained that in
private to the Iranians.
1150
00:48:56,400 --> 00:48:58,669
At the same time, the
announcement from the
1151
00:48:58,669 --> 00:49:03,406
Iranians today does not run
counter to the international
1152
00:49:03,407 --> 00:49:04,941
agreement to prevent Iran
from obtaining a
1153
00:49:04,941 --> 00:49:07,209
nuclear weapon.
1154
00:49:07,210 --> 00:49:12,282
We continue to be able to
watch closely Iran's nuclear
1155
00:49:12,282 --> 00:49:18,655
program, starting in the
uranium mills and throughout
1156
00:49:18,655 --> 00:49:22,459
the nuclear supply chain.
1157
00:49:22,459 --> 00:49:27,263
That is an unprecedented
insight into any country's
1158
00:49:27,264 --> 00:49:29,333
nuclear program, and allows
us to verify their ongoing
1159
00:49:29,333 --> 00:49:31,735
compliance with
that program.
1160
00:49:31,735 --> 00:49:36,073
And our expectation is that
as they undertake these
1161
00:49:36,073 --> 00:49:40,477
kinds of
research-and-development
1162
00:49:40,477 --> 00:49:42,212
efforts, that they will do
so consistent with their
1163
00:49:42,212 --> 00:49:44,214
international obligations.
1164
00:49:45,415 --> 00:49:48,552
And we have the ability,
because of the cooperation
1165
00:49:48,552 --> 00:49:51,321
with the Iranians under the
agreement, to verify their
1166
00:49:51,321 --> 00:49:52,889
ongoing compliance
with the agreement.
1167
00:49:52,889 --> 00:49:54,891
The Press: But does this
kind of -- going forward,
1168
00:49:54,891 --> 00:50:02,399
should this be something of
a warning to Congress or to
1169
00:50:02,399 --> 00:50:06,370
the next administration that
there could be repercussions
1170
00:50:06,370 --> 00:50:09,705
for pursuing more sanctions,
or anything like that?
1171
00:50:09,706 --> 00:50:12,776
Mr. Earnest: No, I wouldn't
be particularly concerned
1172
00:50:12,776 --> 00:50:13,509
about that.
1173
00:50:13,510 --> 00:50:17,114
There are a range of Iranian
activities that are a source
1174
00:50:17,114 --> 00:50:20,884
of concern to the
international community and
1175
00:50:20,884 --> 00:50:23,653
to President Obama
outside the scope of the
1176
00:50:23,653 --> 00:50:25,488
international agreement to
prevent Iran from obtaining
1177
00:50:25,489 --> 00:50:26,456
a nuclear weapon.
1178
00:50:26,456 --> 00:50:29,426
The reason that we pursued
that international agreement
1179
00:50:29,426 --> 00:50:35,432
is because Iran's ability
to get access to and
1180
00:50:35,432 --> 00:50:38,267
potentially use a nuclear
weapon was the number-one
1181
00:50:38,268 --> 00:50:41,037
concern of the United States
and the international
1182
00:50:41,037 --> 00:50:43,740
community with
regard to Iran.
1183
00:50:43,740 --> 00:50:47,511
So we've taken that top
concern off the table
1184
00:50:47,511 --> 00:50:50,547
without firing
a single shot.
1185
00:50:50,547 --> 00:50:52,549
And this is something that
even the harshest critics of
1186
00:50:52,549 --> 00:50:55,018
the deal acknowledge
has been accomplished.
1187
00:50:57,087 --> 00:50:59,656
It didn't eliminate all of
our concerns with Iran, but
1188
00:50:59,656 --> 00:51:02,526
it did eliminate our
number-one concern about
1189
00:51:02,526 --> 00:51:05,761
Iran, and that's
ultimately the point.
1190
00:51:05,762 --> 00:51:08,064
There are other concerns
that we have about Iran's
1191
00:51:08,064 --> 00:51:10,634
behavior that include their
support for terrorist
1192
00:51:10,634 --> 00:51:13,036
organizations and other
destabilizing elements in
1193
00:51:13,036 --> 00:51:15,372
the Middle East,
like Hezbollah.
1194
00:51:15,372 --> 00:51:18,341
We are concerned about the
way that Iran continues to
1195
00:51:18,341 --> 00:51:21,011
menace Israel, and we
continue to be concerned
1196
00:51:21,011 --> 00:51:24,047
about the Iranian regime's
lack of respect for basic
1197
00:51:24,047 --> 00:51:25,715
universal human rights.
1198
00:51:25,715 --> 00:51:29,419
And we have a variety of
ways of countering all of
1199
00:51:29,419 --> 00:51:31,354
that activity -- some of
that involves additional
1200
00:51:31,354 --> 00:51:32,556
financial sanctions.
1201
00:51:32,556 --> 00:51:34,858
Some of that involves
close cooperation with our
1202
00:51:34,858 --> 00:51:35,725
partners in the region.
1203
00:51:35,725 --> 00:51:42,031
But the number-one objective
of the international
1204
00:51:42,032 --> 00:51:43,733
agreement to prevent Iran
from obtaining nuclear
1205
00:51:43,733 --> 00:51:46,837
weapons was to prevent Iran
from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
1206
00:51:46,837 --> 00:51:50,207
And that objective
has been achieved.
1207
00:51:50,207 --> 00:51:54,377
And because of our ability
to monitor Iran's nuclear
1208
00:51:54,377 --> 00:52:01,284
program, we can verify the
ongoing success of that effort.
1209
00:52:01,284 --> 00:52:04,354
And it certainly is
something that makes the
1210
00:52:04,354 --> 00:52:05,388
world a safer place.
1211
00:52:05,388 --> 00:52:07,656
It enhances the national
security of our closest ally
1212
00:52:07,657 --> 00:52:08,992
in the Middle East, Israel.
1213
00:52:08,992 --> 00:52:11,795
It enhances the national
security of our NATO
1214
00:52:11,795 --> 00:52:13,897
partners in -- NATO
allies in Europe.
1215
00:52:13,897 --> 00:52:17,801
And it enhances the national
security of the American
1216
00:52:17,801 --> 00:52:20,569
people, and it will be an
important part of President
1217
00:52:20,570 --> 00:52:23,039
Obama's foreign
policy legacy.
1218
00:52:23,039 --> 00:52:23,707
Justin.
1219
00:52:23,707 --> 00:52:25,542
The Press: The Energy
Department said today that
1220
00:52:25,542 --> 00:52:27,410
it wasn't going to be
turning over names of
1221
00:52:27,410 --> 00:52:30,046
individual employees
involved in the President's
1222
00:52:30,046 --> 00:52:34,216
climate change efforts to
the transition team, the
1223
00:52:34,217 --> 00:52:38,088
Trump transition team, and
said that the request left
1224
00:52:38,088 --> 00:52:39,756
employees unsettled.
1225
00:52:39,756 --> 00:52:43,827
I'm wondering if you can
explain if that was the only
1226
00:52:43,827 --> 00:52:49,065
reason that that was made,
and why this doesn't sort of
1227
00:52:49,065 --> 00:52:51,668
-- if it was information
that the Trump transition
1228
00:52:51,668 --> 00:52:54,170
team wanted -- violate the
President's sort of edict
1229
00:52:54,170 --> 00:52:57,040
for helping them as much as
they can to smooth over
1230
00:52:57,040 --> 00:52:58,308
the transition.
1231
00:52:58,308 --> 00:53:00,243
Mr. Earnest: Well, we do
continue to work closely
1232
00:53:00,243 --> 00:53:02,245
with the transition team
to ensure a smooth and
1233
00:53:02,245 --> 00:53:03,145
effective transition.
1234
00:53:03,146 --> 00:53:07,083
And that is work that is
going on across a variety of
1235
00:53:07,083 --> 00:53:11,655
federal agencies, including
at the Department of Energy.
1236
00:53:11,655 --> 00:53:15,425
But there were reports about
what certainly could have
1237
00:53:15,425 --> 00:53:21,831
been an attempt to target
civil servants, career,
1238
00:53:21,831 --> 00:53:24,801
federal government
employees.
1239
00:53:24,801 --> 00:53:26,136
The kinds of people that
we're talking about at the
1240
00:53:26,136 --> 00:53:29,973
Department of Energy are
scientists and lawyers and
1241
00:53:29,973 --> 00:53:36,446
other experts who are
critical to the success of
1242
00:53:36,446 --> 00:53:39,816
the federal government's
ability to make policy.
1243
00:53:39,816 --> 00:53:44,486
And their work transcends
the term of any one President.
1244
00:53:44,487 --> 00:53:45,555
That's by design.
1245
00:53:45,555 --> 00:53:48,658
That's to ensure the
continuity of the federal
1246
00:53:48,658 --> 00:53:51,661
government and to
ensure that effective
1247
00:53:51,661 --> 00:53:57,434
decision-making and policy
planning is undertaken
1248
00:53:57,434 --> 00:54:00,203
regardless of which
political party is in charge
1249
00:54:00,203 --> 00:54:00,904
of the Oval Office.
1250
00:54:00,904 --> 00:54:04,274
If we had to replace the
entire Department of Energy
1251
00:54:04,274 --> 00:54:07,509
every time a new President
was elected, that is
1252
00:54:07,510 --> 00:54:10,513
certainly going to undermine
the ability of those at the
1253
00:54:10,513 --> 00:54:12,515
most senior levels to
implement a coherent and
1254
00:54:12,515 --> 00:54:15,618
effective energy policy.
1255
00:54:15,619 --> 00:54:18,788
Our principle -- and this is
a principle that Presidents
1256
00:54:18,788 --> 00:54:21,791
in both parties have long
abided by -- is that we
1257
00:54:21,791 --> 00:54:24,861
should observe the
protections that are in
1258
00:54:24,861 --> 00:54:29,866
place that ensure that
career civil servants are
1259
00:54:32,035 --> 00:54:37,007
evaluated based on merit
and not on politics.
1260
00:54:39,109 --> 00:54:41,077
And I'm sure that the
President-elect used the
1261
00:54:41,077 --> 00:54:44,114
same kind of criteria when
choosing his new Department
1262
00:54:44,114 --> 00:54:46,916
of Energy Secretary as well.
1263
00:54:46,916 --> 00:54:47,817
Don't you think?
1264
00:54:47,817 --> 00:54:48,885
(laughter)
1265
00:54:48,885 --> 00:54:51,354
The Press: Well, I'll let
you interpret that one.
1266
00:54:51,354 --> 00:54:52,022
Mr. Earnest: Okay.
1267
00:54:52,022 --> 00:54:53,189
(laughter)
1268
00:54:53,189 --> 00:54:56,826
The Press: But the President
mentioned in his "Daily
1269
00:54:56,826 --> 00:54:58,428
Show" interview last night
that he planned to do some
1270
00:54:58,428 --> 00:55:01,031
speeches after leaving
office, and seemed to
1271
00:55:01,031 --> 00:55:03,700
purposefully delineate those
from political speeches that
1272
00:55:03,700 --> 00:55:07,470
he might give if Donald
Trump and his administration
1273
00:55:07,470 --> 00:55:11,441
did something politically
that he disagreed with.
1274
00:55:11,441 --> 00:55:13,643
So assuming that these are
paid speeches -- I mean,
1275
00:55:13,643 --> 00:55:17,213
this is something that maybe
is on your mind, as well --
1276
00:55:17,213 --> 00:55:19,883
I'm wondering if the
President is going to be
1277
00:55:19,883 --> 00:55:23,319
putting any sort of
self-imposed restrictions on
1278
00:55:23,319 --> 00:55:24,988
who -- you know, this was a
big campaign issue in
1279
00:55:24,988 --> 00:55:26,122
Wall Street.
1280
00:55:26,122 --> 00:55:29,692
Education, foreign
governments, that sort of
1281
00:55:29,693 --> 00:55:31,561
thing -- if those sort of
things are being set
1282
00:55:31,561 --> 00:55:32,495
out already.
1283
00:55:32,495 --> 00:55:33,863
Mr. Earnest: I would
anticipate that there will
1284
00:55:33,863 --> 00:55:37,299
be significant interest
in hearing from former
1285
00:55:37,300 --> 00:55:38,802
President Obama once
he's left office.
1286
00:55:38,802 --> 00:55:41,271
So he'll have an opportunity
to be choosy about which
1287
00:55:41,271 --> 00:55:45,041
invitations he accepts.
1288
00:55:45,041 --> 00:55:49,946
And I don't have any
criteria to lay out for you
1289
00:55:49,946 --> 00:55:53,583
at this point about how
he will choose which
1290
00:55:53,583 --> 00:55:56,386
invitations to accept, but
I'm confident that there
1291
00:55:56,386 --> 00:55:59,154
will be a high standard
that he'll observe.
1292
00:55:59,155 --> 00:56:00,090
Kevin.
1293
00:56:00,090 --> 00:56:01,491
The Press: Thanks.
1294
00:56:01,491 --> 00:56:02,125
Can I circle back on Yemen?
1295
00:56:02,125 --> 00:56:02,826
Mr. Earnest: Yes.
1296
00:56:02,826 --> 00:56:04,561
The Press: The United
States' support for the
1297
00:56:04,561 --> 00:56:07,864
Saudis, at least bringing
it back, I'm understanding,
1298
00:56:07,864 --> 00:56:10,967
because in part of the
civilian casualties in Yemen.
1299
00:56:10,967 --> 00:56:13,703
Can you give me sort of an
update on why that decision
1300
00:56:13,703 --> 00:56:15,538
was made and what that
means moving forward?
1301
00:56:15,538 --> 00:56:17,307
Mr. Earnest: Kevin, we have
long expressed some pretty
1302
00:56:17,307 --> 00:56:20,743
significant concerns about
the high rate of civilian
1303
00:56:20,744 --> 00:56:23,012
casualties in Yemen.
1304
00:56:23,012 --> 00:56:29,285
And many of those casualties
have been as a result of
1305
00:56:29,285 --> 00:56:34,824
operations carried out by
the Saudi-led coalition in
1306
00:56:34,824 --> 00:56:35,859
the region.
1307
00:56:35,859 --> 00:56:37,761
Not all of them -- there
have also been civilian
1308
00:56:37,761 --> 00:56:41,431
casualties as a result of
operations carried out by
1309
00:56:41,431 --> 00:56:43,199
their adversaries, as well.
1310
00:56:43,199 --> 00:56:46,436
But of course, the United
States is playing a role in
1311
00:56:46,436 --> 00:56:48,905
supporting the
Saudi-led coalition.
1312
00:56:48,905 --> 00:56:51,508
And in light of the high
rate of civilian casualties,
1313
00:56:51,508 --> 00:56:54,176
there was -- the President
ordered a review of the kind
1314
00:56:54,177 --> 00:56:59,249
of assistance that the
United States provides to
1315
00:56:59,249 --> 00:57:01,584
the Saudis as they
undertake this effort.
1316
00:57:01,584 --> 00:57:06,022
That review is ongoing, but
there are a couple of steps
1317
00:57:06,022 --> 00:57:12,295
that the United States is
prepared to take to change
1318
00:57:12,295 --> 00:57:14,330
some of the assistance
that we provide.
1319
00:57:18,535 --> 00:57:23,506
That includes refocusing
our efforts to support the
1320
00:57:26,109 --> 00:57:29,312
Saudis when it comes to
enhancing their border
1321
00:57:29,312 --> 00:57:31,714
security and their
territorial integrity.
1322
00:57:31,714 --> 00:57:33,650
The concerns that the Saudis
have expressed, which is
1323
00:57:33,650 --> 00:57:37,854
entirely legitimate, is that
you have an organization
1324
00:57:37,854 --> 00:57:40,924
that has overthrown the
government of Yemen and has
1325
00:57:40,924 --> 00:57:47,130
menaced Saudi Arabia, on a
number of occasions even
1326
00:57:47,130 --> 00:57:49,465
breaching their borders.
1327
00:57:49,465 --> 00:57:52,235
So Saudi Arabia's concerns
about this I think are
1328
00:57:52,235 --> 00:57:53,536
entirely legitimate.
1329
00:57:53,536 --> 00:57:56,139
And so we are going to focus
our efforts on helping the
1330
00:57:56,139 --> 00:58:00,844
Saudis protect their border.
1331
00:58:00,844 --> 00:58:04,814
We also are going to
undertake steps to refocus
1332
00:58:04,814 --> 00:58:09,586
our information-sharing and
the responsibilities of our
1333
00:58:09,586 --> 00:58:16,091
personnel in Saudi Arabia to
be focused on this effort.
1334
00:58:16,092 --> 00:58:28,504
In addition, we've also
decided to -- well, I think
1335
00:58:28,504 --> 00:58:29,172
that covers it.
1336
00:58:29,172 --> 00:58:31,307
And I think this is
reflective of the fact that
1337
00:58:31,307 --> 00:58:33,343
we have these
longstanding concerns.
1338
00:58:33,343 --> 00:58:35,111
This review has
been ordered.
1339
00:58:35,111 --> 00:58:38,214
And these are some changes
that we've made, but this
1340
00:58:38,214 --> 00:58:41,084
review is ongoing.
1341
00:58:41,084 --> 00:58:45,654
And as this process moves
forward, I wouldn't rule out
1342
00:58:45,655 --> 00:58:48,658
additional steps that we may
take to address the concerns
1343
00:58:48,658 --> 00:58:49,325
that have been raised.
1344
00:58:49,325 --> 00:58:50,792
The Press: Just a couple
more, really quickly.
1345
00:58:50,793 --> 00:58:52,862
A number of electors, you
were told yesterday, were
1346
00:58:52,862 --> 00:58:55,899
requesting an intelligence
briefing, and you said you
1347
00:58:55,899 --> 00:59:00,435
hadn't had a chance to sort
of look over that letter.
1348
00:59:00,436 --> 00:59:01,804
Have you had a chance
to look that over?
1349
00:59:01,804 --> 00:59:03,172
And what's your
reaction to that?
1350
00:59:03,172 --> 00:59:04,507
Mr. Earnest: I've seen
some more of the
1351
00:59:04,507 --> 00:59:05,174
published reports.
1352
00:59:05,174 --> 00:59:09,178
Look, when it comes to the
Electoral College, we're
1353
00:59:09,178 --> 00:59:14,584
talking about some of the
more esoteric aspects of the
1354
00:59:14,584 --> 00:59:15,652
functioning of
our democracy.
1355
00:59:15,652 --> 00:59:16,786
The Press: Yeah, we are.
1356
00:59:16,786 --> 00:59:18,988
Mr. Earnest: But it
certainly is important that
1357
00:59:18,988 --> 00:59:20,323
individuals who are
entrusted with that
1358
00:59:20,323 --> 00:59:25,595
responsibility do so with
a seriousness of purpose.
1359
00:59:25,595 --> 00:59:29,031
So at this point, I don't
have a formal response to
1360
00:59:29,032 --> 00:59:31,234
the letter to put forward.
1361
00:59:31,234 --> 00:59:35,305
The Press: But would you
support that idea of having
1362
00:59:35,305 --> 00:59:38,374
the report sent to electors
prior to them casting
1363
00:59:38,374 --> 00:59:39,408
their votes?
1364
00:59:39,409 --> 00:59:41,644
Mr. Earnest: Well, look,
I know that some of the
1365
00:59:41,644 --> 00:59:44,314
request was for classified
information, and it's not
1366
00:59:44,314 --> 00:59:47,683
clear that all of the
electors -- and I'm sure
1367
00:59:47,684 --> 00:59:49,986
most of them don't --
they don't have
1368
00:59:49,986 --> 00:59:51,154
security clearances.
1369
00:59:51,154 --> 00:59:53,957
So this is an unusual
request, maybe
1370
00:59:53,957 --> 00:59:55,158
even unprecedented.
1371
00:59:55,158 --> 00:59:58,027
I'm not a historian, but
it's hard to imagine a
1372
00:59:58,027 --> 01:00:02,265
scenario where a
similar question arose.
1373
01:00:02,265 --> 01:00:06,069
So we'll let you know if we
have more of a response.
1374
01:00:06,069 --> 01:00:07,904
The Press: Last one.
1375
01:00:07,904 --> 01:00:11,007
Is the White House aware of
post-election intelligence
1376
01:00:11,007 --> 01:00:15,812
that actually shows anything
to do with the hackers' intent?
1377
01:00:15,812 --> 01:00:18,014
We've talked a bit about
that, because there have
1378
01:00:18,014 --> 01:00:20,016
been widely differing
assessments.
1379
01:00:20,016 --> 01:00:22,552
I'm just wondering if
the White House remains
1380
01:00:22,552 --> 01:00:25,722
confident that the
intelligence has not in fact
1381
01:00:25,722 --> 01:00:26,389
been politicized.
1382
01:00:26,389 --> 01:00:29,092
Mr. Earnest: The President
is certainly confident.
1383
01:00:29,092 --> 01:00:33,696
And he insists that the
intelligence that he is
1384
01:00:33,696 --> 01:00:35,398
provided as the
Commander-in-Chief by our
1385
01:00:35,398 --> 01:00:39,002
intelligence agencies is
not clouded by political
1386
01:00:39,002 --> 01:00:41,770
politics or
partisan politics.
1387
01:00:41,771 --> 01:00:43,940
He insists that that
material, that that
1388
01:00:43,940 --> 01:00:47,577
intelligence that he is
provided is not clouded by
1389
01:00:47,577 --> 01:00:52,682
the pursuit of an agenda,
a political agenda or otherwise.
1390
01:00:52,682 --> 01:00:57,419
The President can only
make good decisions -- the
1391
01:00:57,420 --> 01:00:59,188
Commander-in-Chief, any
Commander-in-Chief can only
1392
01:00:59,188 --> 01:01:02,191
make good decisions when
they have information that
1393
01:01:02,191 --> 01:01:04,926
is accurate, that is timely,
and that is reliable.
1394
01:01:04,927 --> 01:01:06,996
And that's what the
President insists on.
1395
01:01:06,996 --> 01:01:09,665
And that also means that the
President wants to hear the
1396
01:01:09,665 --> 01:01:10,967
unvarnished truth.
1397
01:01:10,967 --> 01:01:12,301
He doesn't want
anything shaded.
1398
01:01:12,301 --> 01:01:16,005
He doesn't want any
intelligence professional to
1399
01:01:16,005 --> 01:01:19,075
fear retribution for
presenting bad news to the
1400
01:01:19,075 --> 01:01:20,743
President of the
United States.
1401
01:01:20,743 --> 01:01:22,511
In some ways, that's
actually the basic job
1402
01:01:22,512 --> 01:01:23,980
description of an
intelligence professional
1403
01:01:23,980 --> 01:01:27,917
who's briefing a principal,
and that is to be able to
1404
01:01:27,917 --> 01:01:31,554
give an unvarnished
assessment, even if it's bad
1405
01:01:31,554 --> 01:01:35,058
news, without fear
of any retribution.
1406
01:01:35,058 --> 01:01:37,060
And the President has
confidence that that's the
1407
01:01:37,060 --> 01:01:43,366
kind of guidance and
information that he's been
1408
01:01:43,366 --> 01:01:46,069
provided by the
intelligence community.
1409
01:01:46,069 --> 01:01:49,005
The Press: Any intelligence
as to the intent of the hackers?
1410
01:01:49,005 --> 01:01:52,909
Mr. Earnest: I don't have
any updated assessment to
1411
01:01:52,909 --> 01:01:56,546
share at this point, but
there certainly seem to be a
1412
01:01:56,546 --> 01:02:00,348
not insignificant number of
intelligence professionals
1413
01:02:00,349 --> 01:02:03,786
who appear to be sharing
their opinion with all of
1414
01:02:03,786 --> 01:02:06,222
you on an anonymous basis.
1415
01:02:06,222 --> 01:02:09,525
I obviously don't have the
luxury of doing that, but
1416
01:02:09,525 --> 01:02:11,427
when there is a formal
assessment to share from the
1417
01:02:11,427 --> 01:02:14,897
intelligence community, and
if that's something that can
1418
01:02:14,897 --> 01:02:17,933
be shared publicly, that's
something that we'll try to do.
1419
01:02:17,934 --> 01:02:21,704
The President does
believe that we should --
1420
01:02:21,704 --> 01:02:24,974
particularly when it relates
to something as central to
1421
01:02:24,974 --> 01:02:28,578
our democracy as the conduct
of a national election, the
1422
01:02:28,578 --> 01:02:30,513
President does believe that
we should share as much
1423
01:02:30,513 --> 01:02:32,048
information as possible
with the public.
1424
01:02:32,048 --> 01:02:35,151
And that is why the
intelligence community, on
1425
01:02:35,151 --> 01:02:38,053
October 7th -- more than a
month before the election --
1426
01:02:38,054 --> 01:02:41,090
issued a statement that
represented the unanimous
1427
01:02:41,090 --> 01:02:45,795
assessment and conclusion
of all 17 national security
1428
01:02:45,795 --> 01:02:48,364
agencies that have
an intelligence arm.
1429
01:02:48,364 --> 01:02:53,536
And they concluded that
Russia was engaged in
1430
01:02:53,536 --> 01:02:56,873
malicious activity in
cyberspace that was aimed at
1431
01:02:56,873 --> 01:02:58,508
destabilizing our elections.
1432
01:02:58,508 --> 01:03:02,178
And we made -- the President
made clear, we made clear
1433
01:03:02,178 --> 01:03:07,049
that a proportional response
to that was appropriate.
1434
01:03:07,049 --> 01:03:09,018
But the President's first
concern and the first steps
1435
01:03:09,018 --> 01:03:10,086
that were undertaken
by the U.S.
1436
01:03:10,086 --> 01:03:18,227
government were to ensure
that the equipment and
1437
01:03:18,227 --> 01:03:23,633
systems that were used to
register voters, allow
1438
01:03:23,633 --> 01:03:25,433
voters to cast ballots and
to ensure that those ballots
1439
01:03:25,434 --> 01:03:29,872
were counted were protected.
1440
01:03:29,872 --> 01:03:32,040
And the intelligence
community has assessed --
1441
01:03:32,041 --> 01:03:34,443
and this is something that
they've also said publicly
1442
01:03:34,443 --> 01:03:38,014
-- that they did not observe
an increase in malicious
1443
01:03:38,014 --> 01:03:41,317
cyber activity from the
Russians on Election Day
1444
01:03:41,317 --> 01:03:43,953
that could have disrupted
the casting and accurate
1445
01:03:43,953 --> 01:03:44,820
counting of ballots.
1446
01:03:44,820 --> 01:03:50,793
But for a more detailed
assessment about what
1447
01:03:50,793 --> 01:03:53,896
Russia's motives are, or
what else Russia may have
1448
01:03:53,896 --> 01:03:56,899
been engaged in in the
context of the election, are
1449
01:03:56,899 --> 01:03:58,868
a series of questions that
will be considered in this
1450
01:03:58,868 --> 01:04:01,037
review that President
Obama has ordered.
1451
01:04:01,037 --> 01:04:04,707
Our expectation is that
this is a review from the
1452
01:04:04,707 --> 01:04:07,777
intelligence community that
will be completed in advance
1453
01:04:07,777 --> 01:04:09,312
of January 20th.
1454
01:04:09,312 --> 01:04:12,748
And we're going to make
public as much of that
1455
01:04:12,748 --> 01:04:14,350
review as possible.
1456
01:04:14,350 --> 01:04:15,051
Michelle.
1457
01:04:15,051 --> 01:04:16,552
The Press: Will the
President talk a little bit
1458
01:04:16,552 --> 01:04:20,690
about the hacks, since he
announced the review last night?
1459
01:04:20,690 --> 01:04:26,195
And he said that it was
nothing fancy; that we saw
1460
01:04:26,195 --> 01:04:29,732
-- it's been happening,
coming from Russia, seeming
1461
01:04:29,732 --> 01:04:32,835
to put it into a
bigger perspective.
1462
01:04:32,835 --> 01:04:35,605
And he also talked about how
he felt that the emails were
1463
01:04:35,605 --> 01:04:38,241
the things that became the
obsession, not the fact that
1464
01:04:38,241 --> 01:04:40,576
this was coming from Russia,
even though he just said
1465
01:04:40,576 --> 01:04:42,311
that was really nothing
new in the same breath.
1466
01:04:42,311 --> 01:04:47,016
But it seems like what we
should be identifying there
1467
01:04:47,016 --> 01:04:51,354
is the poor state of
cybersecurity in this country.
1468
01:04:51,354 --> 01:04:53,856
The fact that we're even
sitting here talking about
1469
01:04:53,856 --> 01:04:58,261
this being a possibility,
and the strong possibility
1470
01:04:58,261 --> 01:05:01,397
that the election could have
been influenced by this,
1471
01:05:01,397 --> 01:05:06,102
doesn't that really point to
the fact that our defenses
1472
01:05:06,102 --> 01:05:08,437
-- whether they're
government systems or
1473
01:05:08,437 --> 01:05:13,009
campaign systems -- the
strength of them pales in
1474
01:05:13,009 --> 01:05:16,512
comparison to the ability of
a state actor like Russia to
1475
01:05:16,512 --> 01:05:18,714
affect things here?
1476
01:05:18,714 --> 01:05:23,819
Mr. Earnest: Well, let me
start by acknowledging at
1477
01:05:23,819 --> 01:05:25,788
least one aspect of your
premise that I think we can
1478
01:05:25,788 --> 01:05:31,394
agree on, which is that
cybersecurity should be, and
1479
01:05:31,394 --> 01:05:33,763
is, a critical national
security priority of the
1480
01:05:33,763 --> 01:05:34,964
United States.
1481
01:05:34,964 --> 01:05:40,703
And President Obama has
spent a significant portion
1482
01:05:40,703 --> 01:05:46,709
of his presidency trying to
strengthen the defenses of
1483
01:05:46,709 --> 01:05:47,942
the United States.
1484
01:05:47,943 --> 01:05:50,880
And we've made important
progress in doing so.
1485
01:05:50,880 --> 01:05:53,683
Some of his proposals for
doing so -- increasing our
1486
01:05:53,683 --> 01:05:56,519
investments in cybersecurity
-- have unfortunately fallen
1487
01:05:56,519 --> 01:05:58,053
on deaf ears in Congress.
1488
01:05:58,054 --> 01:06:00,823
And you'll recall that there
was a substantial increase
1489
01:06:03,292 --> 01:06:04,927
that was included in the
President's budget for
1490
01:06:04,927 --> 01:06:08,130
cybersecurity that
Republicans in Congress
1491
01:06:08,130 --> 01:06:09,632
refused to even consider.
1492
01:06:09,632 --> 01:06:10,966
They wouldn't even
hold a hearing.
1493
01:06:10,966 --> 01:06:13,234
This was the first time in
40 years that Republicans in
1494
01:06:13,235 --> 01:06:14,904
the Congress wouldn't even
hold a hearing on the
1495
01:06:14,904 --> 01:06:16,339
President's budget.
1496
01:06:16,339 --> 01:06:18,841
And there wasn't the kind
of robust consideration in
1497
01:06:18,841 --> 01:06:24,080
Congress, let alone a vote,
on the substantial increase
1498
01:06:24,080 --> 01:06:26,282
in cybersecurity resources
that President Obama
1499
01:06:26,282 --> 01:06:26,949
had identified.
1500
01:06:26,949 --> 01:06:31,420
So when it comes to
ensuring that the U.S.
1501
01:06:31,420 --> 01:06:34,223
government is focused on
cybersecurity, that is a
1502
01:06:34,223 --> 01:06:36,425
message that apparently
has not been received by
1503
01:06:36,425 --> 01:06:39,028
Republicans in Congress,
and, yes, that makes the
1504
01:06:39,028 --> 01:06:41,731
United States of America
more vulnerable to a wide
1505
01:06:41,731 --> 01:06:42,531
range of threats.
1506
01:06:42,531 --> 01:06:44,100
And that is something that
the President continues to
1507
01:06:44,100 --> 01:06:45,735
be deeply concerned about.
1508
01:06:45,735 --> 01:06:47,136
The other thing that the
President has done is
1509
01:06:47,136 --> 01:06:50,973
ordered this review by a
bipartisan Blue Ribbon Panel
1510
01:06:50,973 --> 01:06:55,177
to help the incoming
administration formulate and
1511
01:06:55,177 --> 01:06:58,714
take additional steps to
implement an enhanced
1512
01:06:58,714 --> 01:07:01,116
cybersecurity strategy.
1513
01:07:01,117 --> 01:07:03,552
And that's a report that the
President received just
1514
01:07:03,552 --> 01:07:05,121
last week.
1515
01:07:05,121 --> 01:07:06,856
And that's one that we'll
be passing on to the next
1516
01:07:06,856 --> 01:07:11,293
administration, and should
position them for success.
1517
01:07:11,293 --> 01:07:14,797
But it's going to require
the Republican White House
1518
01:07:14,797 --> 01:07:17,032
being more persuasive with
Republicans in Congress to
1519
01:07:17,032 --> 01:07:18,367
actually pay attention
to this issue.
1520
01:07:18,367 --> 01:07:20,736
Because there's been a
tendency on the part of
1521
01:07:20,736 --> 01:07:25,473
Republicans in Congress
to ignore or reject every
1522
01:07:25,474 --> 01:07:27,610
proposal that we've put
forward, even when it comes
1523
01:07:27,610 --> 01:07:31,814
to something as apolitical
and central to our national
1524
01:07:31,814 --> 01:07:34,450
security as cybersecurity.
1525
01:07:34,450 --> 01:07:38,453
So that all being said,
I don't think anybody
1526
01:07:38,454 --> 01:07:40,723
envisions a scenario in
which the federal government
1527
01:07:40,723 --> 01:07:44,393
of the United States steps
in to assume responsibility
1528
01:07:44,393 --> 01:07:48,164
for the cybersecurity of a
national political party or
1529
01:07:48,164 --> 01:07:50,166
of an individual
political operative.
1530
01:07:54,003 --> 01:07:55,371
I don't think there's
anybody that thinks that
1531
01:07:55,371 --> 01:08:00,376
that would be appropriate
or even effective.
1532
01:08:04,647 --> 01:08:06,615
Is this a lesson for all
of us to try to be more
1533
01:08:06,615 --> 01:08:09,685
conscientious about
our cyber hygiene?
1534
01:08:09,685 --> 01:08:10,352
Yes.
1535
01:08:10,352 --> 01:08:15,357
But state actors have
substantial capabilities.
1536
01:08:18,027 --> 01:08:20,429
Russia has substantial
capabilities.
1537
01:08:20,429 --> 01:08:22,498
They're not as significant
as the capabilities that are
1538
01:08:22,497 --> 01:08:27,202
wielded by the United States, but they are substantial.
1539
01:08:27,203 --> 01:08:30,439
And establishing rules for
the road -- rules of the
1540
01:08:30,439 --> 01:08:35,911
road for effective and
acceptable conduct in
1541
01:08:35,911 --> 01:08:40,816
cyberspace is an important
challenge, and one that
1542
01:08:40,816 --> 01:08:42,484
we've made some progress on.
1543
01:08:42,484 --> 01:08:46,287
For example, the President
last fall, a little over a
1544
01:08:46,287 --> 01:08:50,225
year ago now, worked with
the Chinese to reach an
1545
01:08:50,225 --> 01:08:55,930
agreement about at least
one norm that should be
1546
01:08:55,930 --> 01:09:00,001
observed, which is that
state actors should not be
1547
01:09:00,002 --> 01:09:03,138
engaged in cyber-enabled
theft for commercial
1548
01:09:03,138 --> 01:09:04,473
purposes or for
commercial benefit.
1549
01:09:04,473 --> 01:09:11,412
That had been a previous
activity on the part of the
1550
01:09:11,412 --> 01:09:13,515
Chinese government that
had attracted significant
1551
01:09:13,515 --> 01:09:15,584
concerns, not
just by the U.S.
1552
01:09:15,584 --> 01:09:16,551
government but also by U.S.
1553
01:09:16,551 --> 01:09:18,053
businesses, I think
for obvious reasons.
1554
01:09:18,053 --> 01:09:23,058
And that is one norm that we
have made a lot of progress
1555
01:09:25,928 --> 01:09:27,729
in establishing
in cyberspace.
1556
01:09:27,729 --> 01:09:30,799
But we clearly have
more work to do.
1557
01:09:30,799 --> 01:09:33,736
But I don't think there's
anybody who thinks that the
1558
01:09:33,736 --> 01:09:37,673
answer to this situation is
for the federal government
1559
01:09:37,673 --> 01:09:39,241
of the United States to
be responsible for the
1560
01:09:39,241 --> 01:09:40,743
cybersecurity of the
Democratic and
1561
01:09:40,743 --> 01:09:41,410
Republican Parties.
1562
01:09:41,410 --> 01:09:43,645
The Press: But by the same
token, it seems like we're
1563
01:09:43,645 --> 01:09:49,451
seeing that the weakness of
individuals' email systems
1564
01:09:49,451 --> 01:09:52,855
collectively, in the sense
that a foreign state could
1565
01:09:52,854 --> 01:09:57,825
come in and try or succeed
in affecting an election, is
1566
01:09:57,826 --> 01:10:01,530
almost a threat to national
security, or at least a
1567
01:10:01,530 --> 01:10:05,467
threat to the functioning of
democracy in this country.
1568
01:10:05,467 --> 01:10:10,673
So has the weakest link kind
of become an individual's
1569
01:10:10,673 --> 01:10:11,340
email account?
1570
01:10:11,340 --> 01:10:13,642
Mr. Earnest: No, I don't
think so, because I don't
1571
01:10:13,642 --> 01:10:20,683
think that's what the
President has identified.
1572
01:10:20,683 --> 01:10:27,122
This is going to be a
challenge for our democracy
1573
01:10:27,122 --> 01:10:30,059
as the American people
consume information in the
1574
01:10:30,059 --> 01:10:32,061
modern age.
1575
01:10:36,065 --> 01:10:41,202
The fact that this
information that was leaked
1576
01:10:41,203 --> 01:10:44,573
from a variety of places,
including John Podesta's
1577
01:10:44,573 --> 01:10:50,679
Gmail account, that was the
source of intense media
1578
01:10:50,679 --> 01:10:55,317
interest, primarily because
of the gossip that may or
1579
01:10:55,317 --> 01:10:58,153
may not be contained in
those emails -- not because
1580
01:10:58,153 --> 01:11:01,690
of the fact that Russia was
releasing that information
1581
01:11:01,690 --> 01:11:07,196
as a transparent effort
to, at a minimum, erode
1582
01:11:07,196 --> 01:11:09,465
confidence in our democracy.
1583
01:11:09,465 --> 01:11:14,336
And I think that there are
obvious questions about
1584
01:11:14,336 --> 01:11:16,772
cybersecurity that I covered
in response to your
1585
01:11:16,772 --> 01:11:17,706
first question.
1586
01:11:17,706 --> 01:11:20,709
I think what the President
is raising is the need for
1587
01:11:20,709 --> 01:11:25,714
careful evaluation about our
public debate, about the way
1588
01:11:25,714 --> 01:11:28,050
that these views are
communicated -- or the way
1589
01:11:28,050 --> 01:11:31,987
this news is communicated
and the way that it is
1590
01:11:31,987 --> 01:11:34,089
consumed by people all
across the country.
1591
01:11:34,089 --> 01:11:39,728
And if we lose the
ability as a democracy to
1592
01:11:39,728 --> 01:11:44,733
acknowledge generally
accepted facts, basic facts,
1593
01:11:47,202 --> 01:11:50,539
or if we lose the ability
-- or at least norms are
1594
01:11:50,539 --> 01:11:55,544
eroded, such that you have
Republicans cheering for
1595
01:11:59,448 --> 01:12:03,619
Russians to hack their
political opponents.
1596
01:12:03,619 --> 01:12:05,688
And what's troubling about
this situation is it wasn't
1597
01:12:05,688 --> 01:12:08,323
just any old Republican who
was doing that, it was the
1598
01:12:08,323 --> 01:12:10,459
Republican nominee for
President who was doing that.
1599
01:12:13,062 --> 01:12:14,496
That's problematic.
1600
01:12:14,496 --> 01:12:17,433
That doesn't have anything
to do with cybersecurity.
1601
01:12:17,433 --> 01:12:20,769
It has something to do very
basically, though, with the
1602
01:12:20,769 --> 01:12:26,275
kind of political debate
and political discourse and
1603
01:12:26,275 --> 01:12:27,543
democracy that
we want to have.
1604
01:12:27,543 --> 01:12:30,646
The Press: And we're hearing
some pushback, strong
1605
01:12:30,646 --> 01:12:32,915
pushback today from
some Democrats on the
1606
01:12:32,915 --> 01:12:34,717
President-elect's picks
for Secretary of State and
1607
01:12:34,717 --> 01:12:38,019
Deputy Secretary of State --
ties to Russia, deals with
1608
01:12:38,020 --> 01:12:42,658
Russia, views on sanctions,
among other things.
1609
01:12:42,658 --> 01:12:46,428
Do you have anything to add,
even in a general sense, on
1610
01:12:46,428 --> 01:12:48,464
those choices?
1611
01:12:48,464 --> 01:12:51,233
Mr. Earnest: I think what I
would say generally is that
1612
01:12:51,233 --> 01:12:56,271
throughout his campaign, the
President-elect indicated
1613
01:12:56,271 --> 01:13:00,709
his intent, if elected
President, to pursue warmer
1614
01:13:00,709 --> 01:13:02,911
relations with Russia.
1615
01:13:02,911 --> 01:13:04,980
So what better way to do
that than to choose somebody
1616
01:13:04,980 --> 01:13:07,683
who has been awarded the
Order of Friendship by
1617
01:13:07,683 --> 01:13:10,753
Vladimir Putin to be
your Secretary of State?
1618
01:13:10,753 --> 01:13:14,490
So this is not a
particularly surprising or
1619
01:13:14,490 --> 01:13:16,492
even unexpected development.
1620
01:13:20,062 --> 01:13:24,833
I suspect that there will be
many members of Congress in
1621
01:13:24,833 --> 01:13:30,472
both parties that have
some questions about that.
1622
01:13:30,472 --> 01:13:33,742
I've previously stated the
principle that President
1623
01:13:33,742 --> 01:13:35,644
Obama believes that any
President should have some
1624
01:13:35,644 --> 01:13:41,450
latitude in assembling his
team, but there is a process
1625
01:13:41,450 --> 01:13:45,354
for members of the Senate to
consider the nomination of
1626
01:13:47,623 --> 01:13:49,691
people who will
serve in the Cabinet.
1627
01:13:49,691 --> 01:13:53,762
And, look, Mr. Tillerson
is a seasoned business
1628
01:13:53,762 --> 01:13:58,733
executive and he's got some
skills in answering tough
1629
01:13:58,734 --> 01:14:01,937
questions in public, and I
suspect he'll have to put
1630
01:14:01,937 --> 01:14:06,407
them to use in the spring.
1631
01:14:06,408 --> 01:14:07,009
Chris, go ahead.
1632
01:14:07,009 --> 01:14:07,910
The Press: Thanks.
1633
01:14:07,910 --> 01:14:10,813
It was only until President
Obama signed an executive
1634
01:14:10,813 --> 01:14:13,582
order in 2014 barring
federal contractors from
1635
01:14:13,582 --> 01:14:15,217
discriminating against
federal workers that
1636
01:14:15,217 --> 01:14:20,355
ExxonMobil adopted a policy
to prohibit discrimination
1637
01:14:20,355 --> 01:14:22,958
against their employees who
are gay, lesbian, bisexual,
1638
01:14:22,958 --> 01:14:24,058
or transgender.
1639
01:14:24,059 --> 01:14:28,764
And the shareholders of
that company, prior to that
1640
01:14:28,764 --> 01:14:31,533
annual meetings had rejected
such a policy 17
1641
01:14:31,533 --> 01:14:33,135
consecutive times.
1642
01:14:33,135 --> 01:14:37,873
Given the practices of that
company, does that raise
1643
01:14:37,873 --> 01:14:40,107
concerns about, first of
all, whether the President's
1644
01:14:40,108 --> 01:14:43,545
adaption of LGBT human
rights as part of foreign
1645
01:14:43,545 --> 01:14:45,347
policy will be in jeopardy
in the next administration,
1646
01:14:45,347 --> 01:14:47,416
as well as the
non-discrimination policy
1647
01:14:47,416 --> 01:14:50,819
that he's put in place
for federal contractors?
1648
01:14:50,819 --> 01:14:53,455
Mr. Earnest: Well, let
me start by making an
1649
01:14:53,455 --> 01:14:58,961
observation, Chris, which is
that we have often talked
1650
01:14:58,961 --> 01:15:04,500
about how disappointed we've
been that at various stages
1651
01:15:04,500 --> 01:15:09,504
Congress has not made
progress on a range of
1652
01:15:11,740 --> 01:15:14,742
issues that the President
has prioritized, including
1653
01:15:14,743 --> 01:15:19,047
ensuring that we treat LGBT
Americans fairly and not
1654
01:15:19,047 --> 01:15:20,715
discriminate against them.
1655
01:15:20,716 --> 01:15:23,485
And we haven't seen as
much legislation passed by
1656
01:15:23,485 --> 01:15:25,654
Congress as we would like to
see that would ensure that
1657
01:15:25,654 --> 01:15:27,456
those protections
are in place.
1658
01:15:27,456 --> 01:15:31,894
So the President has turned
to using the executive
1659
01:15:31,894 --> 01:15:34,096
powers at his disposal
to try to advance
1660
01:15:34,096 --> 01:15:34,763
those policies.
1661
01:15:34,763 --> 01:15:36,398
And we have acknowledged
at every turn that those
1662
01:15:36,398 --> 01:15:38,867
executive actions are not a
substitute for
1663
01:15:38,867 --> 01:15:39,768
legislative action.
1664
01:15:39,768 --> 01:15:41,870
And there's been a
skepticism expressed by
1665
01:15:41,870 --> 01:15:46,041
some, most of them
Democrats, who say that,
1666
01:15:46,041 --> 01:15:52,581
well, an executive action
isn't as forceful or as
1667
01:15:52,581 --> 01:15:54,216
broad as legislation.
1668
01:15:54,216 --> 01:15:56,418
They're right about
that of course.
1669
01:15:56,418 --> 01:15:59,054
But you have highlighted,
actually, a good example
1670
01:15:59,054 --> 01:16:01,323
where the President taking
executive action hasn't just
1671
01:16:01,323 --> 01:16:06,361
had an impact in the
government, but it's also
1672
01:16:06,361 --> 01:16:10,766
had an impact in the
private sector as well.
1673
01:16:10,766 --> 01:16:15,771
So I think this is just
one example of how the
1674
01:16:18,240 --> 01:16:21,843
President's judicious use of
executive authority has been
1675
01:16:21,843 --> 01:16:26,581
effective in changing minds
and practices not just
1676
01:16:26,581 --> 01:16:27,916
inside the federal
government, but in the
1677
01:16:27,916 --> 01:16:31,053
private sector as well.
1678
01:16:31,053 --> 01:16:36,023
More broadly, I think it's
hard to tell exactly what
1679
01:16:39,328 --> 01:16:43,465
this particular personnel
announcement says about the
1680
01:16:43,465 --> 01:16:47,002
kinds of policies that
President Trump will pursue
1681
01:16:47,002 --> 01:16:52,007
once he is in office with
regard to ensuring that
1682
01:16:54,776 --> 01:16:56,178
Americans are not
discriminated against
1683
01:16:56,178 --> 01:16:58,180
because of their sexuality.
1684
01:17:00,182 --> 01:17:06,088
And I think, to put it
generously, we've gotten
1685
01:17:06,088 --> 01:17:09,691
some mixed signals
publicly about what the
1686
01:17:09,691 --> 01:17:12,094
President-elect's intent is.
1687
01:17:12,094 --> 01:17:16,732
So as with so many other
issues that are important,
1688
01:17:16,732 --> 01:17:19,601
we'll have to wait and see
what policy he
1689
01:17:19,601 --> 01:17:21,068
intends to pursue.
1690
01:17:21,069 --> 01:17:22,304
Ellen.
1691
01:17:22,304 --> 01:17:26,041
The Press: My question
is, how is the President
1692
01:17:26,041 --> 01:17:29,945
planning on integrating
the fact that -- into this
1693
01:17:29,945 --> 01:17:32,481
security report -- the fact
that Julian Assange from
1694
01:17:32,481 --> 01:17:34,816
WikiLeaks and the former
British ambassador to
1695
01:17:34,816 --> 01:17:37,085
Uzbekistan says it wasn't
Russia at all, that they met
1696
01:17:37,085 --> 01:17:40,689
with the person that leaked
this, it was an inside job,
1697
01:17:40,689 --> 01:17:42,357
et cetera?
1698
01:17:42,357 --> 01:17:46,428
Mr. Earnest: Well, I have
not seen reports citing the
1699
01:17:46,428 --> 01:17:50,632
British ambassador to
Uzbekistan, so I compliment
1700
01:17:50,632 --> 01:17:53,902
you on the breadth
of your reading.
1701
01:17:53,902 --> 01:18:01,143
What I will just say is
the view that Russia was
1702
01:18:01,143 --> 01:18:09,818
actively involved in cyber
activity that was aimed at
1703
01:18:09,818 --> 01:18:15,857
eroding public confidence in
our political system is the
1704
01:18:15,857 --> 01:18:20,629
unanimous, high-confidence
conclusion of all 17
1705
01:18:20,629 --> 01:18:23,331
intelligence agencies
in the United States.
1706
01:18:23,331 --> 01:18:24,866
That is not a
recently known fact.
1707
01:18:24,866 --> 01:18:27,669
That is not a recently
disclosed conclusion.
1708
01:18:27,669 --> 01:18:31,273
That is a conclusion and a
finding and an assessment
1709
01:18:31,273 --> 01:18:33,275
that was released a month
before the election.
1710
01:18:34,843 --> 01:18:37,579
So I know that the
President-elect himself has
1711
01:18:37,579 --> 01:18:39,915
raised doubts about
that assessment.
1712
01:18:39,915 --> 01:18:44,319
Apparently, the British
ambassador to Uzbekistan has
1713
01:18:44,319 --> 01:18:47,222
made common cause with the
President-elect to raise
1714
01:18:47,222 --> 01:18:47,889
those doubts.
1715
01:18:47,889 --> 01:18:51,827
But the American people will
have to judge for themselves
1716
01:18:51,827 --> 01:18:54,296
whether they have more
confidence in the ability of
1717
01:18:54,296 --> 01:18:56,531
the United States
intelligence community to
1718
01:18:56,531 --> 01:18:59,568
unanimously reach the same
conclusion on this matter,
1719
01:18:59,568 --> 01:19:04,573
or if they trust the
conclusion of the British
1720
01:19:07,676 --> 01:19:10,512
ambassador to Uzbekistan.
1721
01:19:10,512 --> 01:19:11,713
Maggie.
1722
01:19:11,713 --> 01:19:12,581
The Press: Circling back,
back to the Department of
1723
01:19:12,581 --> 01:19:15,517
Energy, is this the first
time that the administration
1724
01:19:15,517 --> 01:19:18,220
has flat-out denied a
request made by the Trump
1725
01:19:18,220 --> 01:19:22,290
transition team?
1726
01:19:22,290 --> 01:19:24,326
Mr. Earnest: Look, I think
it's an entirely
1727
01:19:24,326 --> 01:19:25,060
legitimate question.
1728
01:19:25,060 --> 01:19:28,630
I don't think I can get into
all of the conversations
1729
01:19:28,630 --> 01:19:30,765
that are taking place at
federal agencies all across
1730
01:19:30,765 --> 01:19:34,069
this town and all across the
country to ensure a smooth
1731
01:19:34,069 --> 01:19:35,704
and effective transition.
1732
01:19:35,704 --> 01:19:37,938
I can tell you that, in
general, the administration
1733
01:19:37,939 --> 01:19:42,511
has worked hard to
diligently provide as much
1734
01:19:42,511 --> 01:19:46,681
information as possible
to the incoming team.
1735
01:19:46,681 --> 01:19:49,951
And that is not the kind of
work that you can do just at
1736
01:19:49,951 --> 01:19:51,186
a moment's notice.
1737
01:19:51,186 --> 01:19:53,155
This is a lot of work that
requires months and months
1738
01:19:53,155 --> 01:19:56,023
of planning, and this
administration has planning
1739
01:19:56,024 --> 01:19:59,694
since the beginning of the
year to compile and prepare
1740
01:19:59,694 --> 01:20:04,065
materials for the review of
the incoming administration.
1741
01:20:04,065 --> 01:20:08,570
And obviously we envisioned
a different kind of process
1742
01:20:08,570 --> 01:20:13,275
and a different kind of
transition, but we remain no
1743
01:20:13,275 --> 01:20:16,611
less committed to ensuring
that the incoming
1744
01:20:16,611 --> 01:20:18,680
administration can hit
the ground running.
1745
01:20:18,680 --> 01:20:23,018
And that means providing
extensive information to the
1746
01:20:23,018 --> 01:20:28,123
incoming administration, and
that effort will continue
1747
01:20:28,123 --> 01:20:30,959
through Inauguration Day.
1748
01:20:30,959 --> 01:20:33,394
The Press: Since you brought
it up earlier, care to
1749
01:20:33,395 --> 01:20:36,097
elaborate on your thoughts
on President-elect's pick
1750
01:20:36,097 --> 01:20:38,233
for Energy Secretary?
1751
01:20:38,233 --> 01:20:39,234
Mr. Earnest: I think I've
said enough about that.
1752
01:20:39,234 --> 01:20:41,002
(laughter)
1753
01:20:41,002 --> 01:20:41,803
Andrew.
1754
01:20:41,803 --> 01:20:42,737
The Press: Thanks, Josh.
1755
01:20:42,737 --> 01:20:45,740
I wanted to ask what the
President's thoughts are
1756
01:20:45,740 --> 01:20:49,644
today regarding Aleppo and
what the fall of the city
1757
01:20:49,644 --> 01:20:50,679
means for his legacy?
1758
01:20:50,679 --> 01:20:56,885
Mr. Earnest: Listen, Andrew,
as Brett alluded to, the
1759
01:20:56,885 --> 01:21:00,055
situation in Aleppo remains
deeply troubling, and the
1760
01:21:00,055 --> 01:21:03,325
innocent loss of life there
that has persisted for years
1761
01:21:03,325 --> 01:21:06,228
at the hands of the Assad
regime, enabled by the
1762
01:21:06,228 --> 01:21:10,465
Russians and Iranians,
is deplorable.
1763
01:21:10,465 --> 01:21:13,468
And the United States has
played a leading role in the
1764
01:21:13,468 --> 01:21:15,804
international community
to try to facilitate a
1765
01:21:15,804 --> 01:21:20,709
diplomatic resolution to the
situation there, at least to
1766
01:21:20,709 --> 01:21:23,411
just try to reduce the
violence and increase the
1767
01:21:23,411 --> 01:21:28,216
consistent flow of
humanitarian relief.
1768
01:21:28,216 --> 01:21:31,653
And I understand that at
some point later today, and
1769
01:21:31,653 --> 01:21:33,622
maybe even right now, the
United Nations Security
1770
01:21:33,622 --> 01:21:37,792
Council is meeting to
consider such a proposal.
1771
01:21:37,792 --> 01:21:43,798
Obviously, if this ends up
being a proposal that will
1772
01:21:43,798 --> 01:21:47,736
result in a reduction in the
violence and an increase in
1773
01:21:47,736 --> 01:21:49,838
the provision of
humanitarian assistance,
1774
01:21:49,838 --> 01:21:52,706
then it's something that the
United States will not just
1775
01:21:52,707 --> 01:21:56,278
enthusiastically support but
we're going to be actively
1776
01:21:56,278 --> 01:21:59,180
encouraging all parties to
support it, and actively
1777
01:21:59,180 --> 01:22:02,684
encouraging all sides to
implement it effectively so
1778
01:22:02,684 --> 01:22:05,887
that the people in Aleppo
who have been suffering in
1779
01:22:05,887 --> 01:22:08,723
unthinkable circumstances
can finally get some measure
1780
01:22:08,723 --> 01:22:09,424
of relief.
1781
01:22:09,424 --> 01:22:11,559
The Press: You talk about
the Syrians, and the
1782
01:22:11,559 --> 01:22:14,496
Russians, and the Iranians
and what they've done, but a
1783
01:22:14,496 --> 01:22:16,498
lot of the anger over what's
happened in Aleppo is
1784
01:22:16,498 --> 01:22:18,500
directed at this White
House and this presidency.
1785
01:22:18,500 --> 01:22:21,069
Do you think that's fair?
1786
01:22:21,069 --> 01:22:23,471
Why do you think that is?
1787
01:22:23,471 --> 01:22:28,476
Mr. Earnest: Well, first of
all, I think I'm going to
1788
01:22:28,476 --> 01:22:30,779
refrain from criticizing
people who are having an
1789
01:22:30,779 --> 01:22:34,683
emotional reaction to the
terrible violence that they
1790
01:22:34,683 --> 01:22:35,350
have faced.
1791
01:22:35,350 --> 01:22:40,355
And their feelings of anger
and frustration I think are
1792
01:22:46,461 --> 01:22:48,697
entirely understandable
given what they've been through.
1793
01:22:51,866 --> 01:22:56,871
And I think it would be
inappropriate and maybe even
1794
01:22:56,871 --> 01:23:00,175
immoral for me to stand
here and criticize them.
1795
01:23:00,175 --> 01:23:02,777
What I will say is something
that you've heard me say
1796
01:23:02,777 --> 01:23:08,149
before, which is that
President Obama has -- and
1797
01:23:08,149 --> 01:23:13,588
Secretary Kerry -- have been
at the leading edge of a
1798
01:23:13,588 --> 01:23:16,558
tireless effort to try to
bring that violence to an
1799
01:23:16,558 --> 01:23:20,595
end, or at least reduce it
enough that humanitarian
1800
01:23:20,595 --> 01:23:23,331
assistance can get to those
people that need it the most.
1801
01:23:27,769 --> 01:23:29,337
And this administration and
this President certainly
1802
01:23:29,337 --> 01:23:33,074
makes no apologies for that
tenacious pursuit of the
1803
01:23:33,074 --> 01:23:36,009
kind of solution that
would bring relief to the
1804
01:23:36,010 --> 01:23:38,780
suffering people of Aleppo.
1805
01:23:38,780 --> 01:23:41,549
And it's not particularly
surprising to me, given this
1806
01:23:41,549 --> 01:23:46,388
long-running, bloody
conflict, that the people of
1807
01:23:46,388 --> 01:23:53,061
Aleppo are angry that this
hasn't been solved more quickly.
1808
01:23:53,061 --> 01:23:58,133
The Press: Related to the
rest of the world -- I mean,
1809
01:23:58,133 --> 01:24:00,934
I guess the question is,
why do you think that U.S.
1810
01:24:00,935 --> 01:24:04,339
military action in Iraq can
bring out millions of people
1811
01:24:04,339 --> 01:24:07,709
onto the streets around
the world, but Russian and
1812
01:24:07,709 --> 01:24:14,849
Iranian actions in Aleppo
don't have the same response?
1813
01:24:14,849 --> 01:24:19,988
Mr. Earnest: Well, look, I
think it's hard to paint
1814
01:24:23,158 --> 01:24:25,960
with a broad brush about how
the international community
1815
01:24:25,960 --> 01:24:28,463
is responding to
this situation.
1816
01:24:33,101 --> 01:24:38,039
I think that you have seen
many moral consciences
1817
01:24:38,039 --> 01:24:43,745
aroused by the violence in
this part of the world, and
1818
01:24:43,745 --> 01:24:48,950
it shows itself in
a variety of ways.
1819
01:24:48,950 --> 01:24:55,190
Sometimes it is the
photograph of a small boy in
1820
01:24:55,190 --> 01:25:00,195
the back of an ambulance who
has barely escaped a Syrian
1821
01:25:02,764 --> 01:25:05,133
government bomb.
1822
01:25:05,133 --> 01:25:08,269
There was a pronounced
public reaction to
1823
01:25:08,269 --> 01:25:10,271
that photograph.
1824
01:25:11,339 --> 01:25:15,477
These kinds of images do tug
at the conscience of people
1825
01:25:15,477 --> 01:25:16,376
around the world.
1826
01:25:16,377 --> 01:25:19,481
It certainly tugs at the
conscience of everybody in
1827
01:25:19,481 --> 01:25:21,282
the Obama administration,
and that's why the Obama
1828
01:25:21,282 --> 01:25:24,986
administration has pursued
so tirelessly the kind of
1829
01:25:24,986 --> 01:25:30,325
diplomatic solution that
would bring that violence to
1830
01:25:30,325 --> 01:25:31,025
an end.
1831
01:25:31,025 --> 01:25:33,995
And that's what we're
seeking, and hopefully we'll
1832
01:25:33,995 --> 01:25:35,163
be able to make some more
progress on that at the U.N.
1833
01:25:35,163 --> 01:25:36,865
Security Council today.
1834
01:25:36,865 --> 01:25:38,233
Yes, ma'am, I'll give
you the last one.
1835
01:25:38,233 --> 01:25:40,268
The Press: Hi, Rosslyn
Jordan with Al Jazeera,
1836
01:25:40,268 --> 01:25:41,970
following up on his
point on Aleppo.
1837
01:25:41,970 --> 01:25:43,071
Mr. Earnest: Nice
to see you, Rosslyn.
1838
01:25:43,071 --> 01:25:45,073
The Press: Hi,
nice to see you.
1839
01:25:45,073 --> 01:25:47,442
The civil war in Syria has
been going on for almost
1840
01:25:47,442 --> 01:25:48,142
six years.
1841
01:25:48,142 --> 01:25:49,043
Mr. Earnest: It has.
1842
01:25:49,043 --> 01:25:50,678
The Press: The estimates
between the U.N.
1843
01:25:50,678 --> 01:25:53,915
and various human rights
groups is that at least
1844
01:25:53,915 --> 01:25:57,785
400,000 to 470,000
Syrians have been killed.
1845
01:25:57,785 --> 01:26:00,255
At least 32,000 of those
people have been killed
1846
01:26:00,255 --> 01:26:02,056
in Aleppo.
1847
01:26:02,056 --> 01:26:04,826
Some of those people have
been on social media.
1848
01:26:04,826 --> 01:26:06,561
They've been able
to go on TV today.
1849
01:26:06,561 --> 01:26:09,764
They fear they are living
the last days or hours of
1850
01:26:09,764 --> 01:26:10,431
their lives.
1851
01:26:10,431 --> 01:26:13,067
And they are asking:
Where is the world?
1852
01:26:13,067 --> 01:26:16,204
In particular, where
is the United States?
1853
01:26:16,204 --> 01:26:18,673
And the question is --
and I understand that the
1854
01:26:18,673 --> 01:26:23,210
President did not want to
launch a regional war -- but
1855
01:26:23,211 --> 01:26:26,814
if ever there were an
argument -- say, human
1856
01:26:26,814 --> 01:26:30,218
rights advocates -- to act
on the responsibility to
1857
01:26:30,218 --> 01:26:34,022
protect, Syria is
that situation.
1858
01:26:34,022 --> 01:26:36,324
Why did not the
administration intervene
1859
01:26:36,324 --> 01:26:38,960
militarily in the
Syrian civil war?
1860
01:26:38,960 --> 01:26:41,696
Mr. Earnest: Rosslyn, the
answer is simple, and it's
1861
01:26:41,696 --> 01:26:44,732
one that we've said on a
number of occasions: There's
1862
01:26:44,732 --> 01:26:48,002
no military solution to
the civil war in Syria.
1863
01:26:48,002 --> 01:26:50,738
The Press: But how can
(inaudible) the job?
1864
01:26:50,738 --> 01:26:53,575
Mr. Earnest: But, Rosslyn,
what is the military
1865
01:26:53,575 --> 01:26:55,677
proposal that has been
tabled that would
1866
01:26:55,677 --> 01:26:59,714
effectively prevent
those deaths?
1867
01:26:59,714 --> 01:27:01,883
Is the suggestion that
somehow the United States
1868
01:27:01,883 --> 01:27:04,952
should just occupy
the nation of Syria?
1869
01:27:04,953 --> 01:27:07,822
Do we really think that's
going to reduce the violence
1870
01:27:07,822 --> 01:27:09,791
in Syria?
1871
01:27:09,791 --> 01:27:11,726
I don't think there's any
evidence to substantiate
1872
01:27:11,726 --> 01:27:15,196
that claim, even if that's
one that is being made.
1873
01:27:15,196 --> 01:27:17,899
I haven't heard any other
sort of suggestion.
1874
01:27:20,535 --> 01:27:23,371
The only solution is a
diplomatic one, and no
1875
01:27:23,371 --> 01:27:25,940
country in the world has
expended more of an effort
1876
01:27:25,940 --> 01:27:27,775
to pursue that diplomatic
solution than the United
1877
01:27:27,775 --> 01:27:28,476
States of America.
1878
01:27:28,476 --> 01:27:31,411
The United States has a
special responsibility
1879
01:27:31,412 --> 01:27:34,048
because we have the most
influential, strongest
1880
01:27:34,048 --> 01:27:35,550
country in the world.
1881
01:27:35,550 --> 01:27:37,819
And we readily accept the
responsibility, certainly
1882
01:27:37,819 --> 01:27:39,420
under President Obama's
leadership -- we've readily
1883
01:27:39,420 --> 01:27:41,623
accepted responsibility
for working through the
1884
01:27:41,623 --> 01:27:44,058
international community and
using that influence to try
1885
01:27:44,058 --> 01:27:45,393
to bring that
violence to an end.
1886
01:27:45,393 --> 01:27:47,261
The United States is the
largest bilateral donor of
1887
01:27:47,261 --> 01:27:48,796
humanitarian assistance.
1888
01:27:48,796 --> 01:27:51,466
We've provided substantial
resources to try to meet the
1889
01:27:51,466 --> 01:27:54,369
basic humanitarian needs
of Syrians who are fleeing
1890
01:27:54,369 --> 01:27:58,072
violence, and there has been
a substantial U.S.-military
1891
01:27:58,072 --> 01:28:01,643
commitment to organizing the
international community to
1892
01:28:01,643 --> 01:28:06,180
try to address some of the
consequences of the chaos in
1893
01:28:06,180 --> 01:28:10,184
Syria, and that is the
extremism that has fueled so
1894
01:28:10,184 --> 01:28:14,355
much terrorism in that
region of the world.
1895
01:28:14,355 --> 01:28:17,625
But when it comes to
addressing and solving the
1896
01:28:17,625 --> 01:28:21,396
underlying violence and
chaos, that is ultimately a
1897
01:28:21,396 --> 01:28:25,800
political question and a
political that's needed.
1898
01:28:25,800 --> 01:28:28,102
It's the failed political
leadership of Bashar
1899
01:28:28,102 --> 01:28:30,905
al-Assad that has
brought us to this point.
1900
01:28:30,905 --> 01:28:34,776
And it's resolving that
political problem that will
1901
01:28:34,776 --> 01:28:39,180
be necessary to definitively
end the violence and ensure
1902
01:28:39,180 --> 01:28:41,049
that the people of Aleppo,
who have been under siege
1903
01:28:41,049 --> 01:28:43,518
for years, can
get some relief.
1904
01:28:43,518 --> 01:28:46,821
The Press: But the question
has to be raised: Given how
1905
01:28:46,821 --> 01:28:51,025
often Secretary Kerry has
personally lobbied the
1906
01:28:51,025 --> 01:28:53,695
Russian government, has
personally lobbied the
1907
01:28:53,695 --> 01:28:56,998
Foreign Minister, Mr.
Lavrov, as recently as
1908
01:28:56,998 --> 01:29:01,001
this weekend, and yet, oh,
this isn't the right time to
1909
01:29:01,002 --> 01:29:03,671
have a ceasefire, the United
States is simply protecting
1910
01:29:03,671 --> 01:29:08,443
the rebels who are holed up
in Aleppo -- at some point,
1911
01:29:08,443 --> 01:29:10,611
shouldn't this
administration be calling
1912
01:29:10,611 --> 01:29:14,949
Moscow's bluff and actually
forcing them to do what they
1913
01:29:14,949 --> 01:29:17,719
have promised to do, which
is to call back the Syrian
1914
01:29:17,719 --> 01:29:20,822
military and prevent them
from committing what some
1915
01:29:20,822 --> 01:29:22,924
are now alleging are
human rights violations?
1916
01:29:22,924 --> 01:29:26,194
Mr. Earnest: Well, as we've
indicated before, the United
1917
01:29:26,194 --> 01:29:30,064
States strongly supports and
would support an effort to
1918
01:29:30,064 --> 01:29:34,569
ensure that the Assad
regime, and those who are
1919
01:29:34,569 --> 01:29:37,371
culpable for the Assad
regime's actions,
1920
01:29:37,371 --> 01:29:40,575
accountable for the tactics
that have been used inside
1921
01:29:40,575 --> 01:29:42,175
of Syria.
1922
01:29:42,176 --> 01:29:45,847
Far too many innocent lives
have been lost, women and
1923
01:29:45,847 --> 01:29:51,652
children included,
and we believe in
1924
01:29:51,652 --> 01:29:53,721
some accountability.
1925
01:29:53,721 --> 01:29:57,058
And hopefully that is
something that the next
1926
01:29:57,058 --> 01:30:03,297
administration
will continue.
1927
01:30:03,297 --> 01:30:09,070
But when it comes to Russia,
they've spent significant
1928
01:30:09,070 --> 01:30:13,974
amounts of credibility in
trying to describe to the
1929
01:30:13,975 --> 01:30:15,943
international community
their response to
1930
01:30:15,943 --> 01:30:18,279
this situation.
1931
01:30:18,279 --> 01:30:21,449
And as we discussed earlier,
as Brett referenced, the
1932
01:30:21,449 --> 01:30:23,718
Russians regularly like to
say that they are focused on
1933
01:30:23,718 --> 01:30:27,789
taking ISIL fighters off the
battlefield in Syria, but
1934
01:30:27,789 --> 01:30:30,657
the truth is they've taken
their eye off that ball, and
1935
01:30:30,658 --> 01:30:33,995
the one measurable gain that
they've previously been able
1936
01:30:33,995 --> 01:30:39,066
to point to against ISIL
has now been rolled back.
1937
01:30:39,066 --> 01:30:41,936
So I think it is very
difficult not just to
1938
01:30:41,936 --> 01:30:47,375
justify, but even to explain
what sort of strategy Russia
1939
01:30:47,375 --> 01:30:49,377
is trying to pursue
inside of Syria.
1940
01:30:52,046 --> 01:30:53,948
Well, maybe I should say
it this way: It's hard to
1941
01:30:53,948 --> 01:30:56,918
reconcile their explanations
about what they're doing
1942
01:30:56,918 --> 01:31:00,021
inside of Syria
with the truth.
1943
01:31:00,021 --> 01:31:01,789
The truth of the matter is,
they're focused on propping
1944
01:31:01,789 --> 01:31:03,825
up the Assad regime, and the
Assad regime is trying to
1945
01:31:03,825 --> 01:31:06,160
bomb civilians into
submission so that he can
1946
01:31:06,160 --> 01:31:08,329
try to get control
over his country again.
1947
01:31:08,329 --> 01:31:10,197
He's lost control over
his country, he's lost
1948
01:31:10,198 --> 01:31:11,666
legitimacy to lead.
1949
01:31:11,666 --> 01:31:14,168
And the concern from the
United States isn't just
1950
01:31:14,168 --> 01:31:16,637
about the humanitarian
situation there, it's about
1951
01:31:16,637 --> 01:31:20,474
how that chaos has fueled
extremism and given life to
1952
01:31:20,474 --> 01:31:22,810
terrorist organizations that
threaten the United States
1953
01:31:22,810 --> 01:31:24,178
and our interests
around the world.
1954
01:31:24,178 --> 01:31:26,214
So this is a complicated
problem, but we're attacking
1955
01:31:26,214 --> 01:31:26,948
it from every angle.
1956
01:31:26,948 --> 01:31:29,383
And you heard from Brett
the efforts that we're
1957
01:31:29,383 --> 01:31:31,853
undertaking and that are
making significant progress
1958
01:31:31,853 --> 01:31:33,588
against ISIL.
1959
01:31:33,588 --> 01:31:36,891
But the role for diplomacy
and the leading role that
1960
01:31:36,891 --> 01:31:39,427
the United States has played
in pursuing that diplomacy
1961
01:31:39,427 --> 01:31:42,295
to address the political
situation in Syria is
1962
01:31:42,296 --> 01:31:44,098
something that we've been
pursuing for years and
1963
01:31:44,098 --> 01:31:45,132
continues to this day.
1964
01:31:45,132 --> 01:31:48,635
The Press: Is this
administration considering
1965
01:31:48,636 --> 01:31:52,907
in its final weeks any
punitive actions against
1966
01:31:52,907 --> 01:31:55,176
Vladimir Putin's government
because of its ongoing
1967
01:31:55,176 --> 01:31:59,046
support -- militarily,
financial, diplomatic -- for
1968
01:31:59,046 --> 01:32:01,482
Bashar al-Assad's
government?
1969
01:32:01,482 --> 01:32:05,119
Mr. Earnest: Well, there are
a range of steps that we
1970
01:32:05,119 --> 01:32:06,888
have been considering.
1971
01:32:06,888 --> 01:32:10,925
And the truth is, because of
some of Russia's actions in
1972
01:32:10,925 --> 01:32:13,527
Ukraine, violating the
territorial integrity of
1973
01:32:13,527 --> 01:32:16,330
that country, they're
already facing significant
1974
01:32:16,330 --> 01:32:20,300
isolation that has eroded
their status diplomatically
1975
01:32:20,301 --> 01:32:21,769
and has hurt their economy.
1976
01:32:21,769 --> 01:32:29,210
So Russia is already
suffering the consequences
1977
01:32:29,210 --> 01:32:33,714
of the kind of international
behavior that has been
1978
01:32:33,714 --> 01:32:39,687
repudiated by the
international community, but
1979
01:32:39,687 --> 01:32:43,190
I wouldn't rule out
potentially applying
1980
01:32:43,190 --> 01:32:47,361
additional steps because
of the way that they have
1981
01:32:47,361 --> 01:32:50,064
behaved in Syria, as well.
1982
01:32:50,064 --> 01:32:50,731
Thanks, everybody.
1983
01:32:50,731 --> 01:32:51,331
We'll see you tomorrow.
