(AGENPARL) – mar 27 giugno 2023 You are subscribed to Collected Releases for U.S. Department of State. This information has recently been updated, and is now available.
06/27/2023 06:09 PM EDT
Matthew Miller, Department Spokesperson
1:23 p.m. EDT
MR MILLER: Good afternoon, everyone.
QUESTION: Good afternoon.
QUESTION: Good afternoon.
MR MILLER: Thank you for answering me. Usually I feel like I’m talking to myself up here. Some brief comments before I start.
[] The United States is pleased to host Foreign Minister Mirzoyan of Armenia and Foreign Minister Bayramov of Azerbaijan to facilitate negotiations this week as they continue to pursue a peaceful future for the South Caucasus region. Secretary Blinken was honored to welcome the foreign ministers at the opening meetings this morning at the George P. Schultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center. The Secretary met both individually with each minister, and held a meeting with the two of them together, and emphasized in each meeting that direct dialogue is the key to resolving issues and reaching a durable and dignified peace.
The United States is encouraged by recent efforts of Armenia and Azerbaijan to engage productively on the peace process, and we will continue to assist them any way that we can to build on that momentum. Today was the first day of meetings that will continue through Thursday, and we will have further updates as the week goes on.
And with that —
QUESTION: That’s it?
MR MILLER: That’s it.
QUESTION: Nothing else? Okay. Let me just start by asking you if you’re aware of any developments in Yemen with the embassy employees who –
MR MILLER: I don’t have any updates. []We are monitoring the reports of the – regarding the status of detained U.S. and UN Yemeni employees. Obviously, we have been calling for their release and have been working our diplomatic efforts for some time to secure the release of staff and ensure that they are safely reunited with their families, but I don’t have any updates.
QUESTION: Thanks.
QUESTION: Could we go to the Russia-Ukraine –
MR MILLER: Sure.
QUESTION: — conflict? Belarus confirmed today that Prigozhin has come in to Belarus. First of all, is that consistent with what the United States thinks? Does the United States have any reason to doubt that assessment? But more broadly, what does this mean for the United States relationship with Belarus, and has there been any communication with the Lukashenka regime?
MR MILLER: []I will say I don’t have any United States assessment to offer about where Yevgeniy Prigozhin may be, but I also don’t have any reason to doubt the announcement made by the Government of Belarus.
With respect to communications, I also don’t have any diplomatic conversations to read out. But I would say, as I said yesterday, and as the Secretary said on Sunday, everywhere that Wagner goes, death and destruction follows in their wake. He has been a destabilizing agent. And so the decision by President Lukashenka to welcome Prigozhin to Belarus, I think, is another example of him choosing the interests of Vladimir Putin and choosing the interests of the Kremlin over the interests of the Belarusian people.
QUESTION: Could I just pursue that, just slightly? The – obviously, there is a bit of a different dynamic than, say, Mali or the Central African Republic. But the – I mean, do you think he should be persona non grata – he, meaning Prigozhin? Should – in the United States’ view, should the Lukashenka regime be welcoming him in?
MR MILLER: I would say in terms of this – the disposition of Yevgeniy Prigozhin, he’s under indictment in the United States. We would like to see him here standing trial for the crimes that he is alleged to have committed.
I will just repeat what I said, which is that the decision by Lukashenka to welcome him to Belarus does show that he continues to take steps not in the interest of his own people but in the interest of the Kremlin.
QUESTION: Just a follow-up.
MR MILLER: Yes.
QUESTION: Do you have an assessment on where Wagner fighters are? Are they back in Ukraine? Are they going to Belarus?
MR MILLER: I do not have any specific assessment to make about the – where Wagner fighters are. Consistent with what we’ve said for a long time, we’re not going to talk about developments on the battlefield or specific disposition of Russian troops in Ukraine.
I will say, as I said yesterday, we continue to closely track Wagner’s activities, both in Ukraine and in Africa, and in wherever in the world they may operate. We continue to look closely at the actions they take that are against the interests of the countries where they operate, and we will take – continue to take actions to hold them accountable. And, in fact, we will have further announcements to make on holding Wagner accountable in the very near future.
QUESTION: Can I follow up on that, please?
MR MILLER: Yeah.
QUESTION: Putin revealed that Russian state has been funding Wagner, and state of Russia has been engaging in terrorism sponsoring, obviously. Does it change the calculus on your end to finally saying it out loud?
MR MILLER: To say out loud —
QUESTION: That Russia is a terrorist state.
MR MILLER: Whatever you call Wagner group, I think what’s important are the steps that we take to hold them accountable. And the United States has taken another – number of steps to hold Wagner accountable in imposing sanctions, in – as I said, indicting the head of Wagner, Yevgeniy Prigozhin. And we will continue to take steps to hold them accountable. I don’t think the label is important – is as important as what we do.
And I would say stay tuned. In the very near future you will see additional steps by the United States to hold them accountable for actions they’ve taken.
QUESTION: (Off-mike.)
QUESTION: Just (inaudible) of process, what else are we needing – what else do we need here, if Putin himself goes off and talks about how he sponsors the terrorism?
MR MILLER: Again, as I said, I don’t think the label is as important as the actions we take, and we have taken actions to hold Wagner accountable and will continue to do so.
QUESTION: A follow-up after that one, please?
QUESTION: Thank you. You said very – a couple of times that there will be announcements in the very near future. What does that look like? Is that sanctions?
MR MILLER: I would just say stay tuned. They will come very soon.
QUESTION: Is that something this week?
MR MILLER: Yes, this week.
QUESTION: Just following up on that —
MR MILLER: I’ll come to you next.
QUESTION: Yeah. Over the weekend and also yesterday, your line was, along with the White House statement, was sort of like somewhere between we have nothing to do with it and we’re just trying to observe what is going on. What next from the U.S. perspective, now that we know what we know since yesterday’s statements came out from both Russian Government and Wagner leadership?
MR MILLER: Well, I would say two things in terms of what’s next. One is that we will continue to take actions to hold Wagner accountable. I just spoke to those a minute ago, and you’ll see something about that, as I said, in the very near future. But the other part of what’s next will continue to be continued U.S. support for Ukraine and continued U.S. support for the Ukrainian military’s work to repel Russian troops, whether they be Ministry of Defense troops, or whether they be Wagner forces, or whether they be whatever the next iteration, if any, of Wagner forces look like to repel those forces from Ukraine’s borders. And just as you will see actions from us in the very near future to hold Wagner accountable, you will see continued actions from us in the very near future to continue to supply the Ukrainian military with the equipment, the military equipment that it needs, to press their case on the battlefield.
[]QUESTION: Is it time to not just continue but double down your support for Ukraine, abandon the narrative that we don’t want to humiliate Putin now that we know that he actually does respond humiliation differently?
MR MILLER: I don’t even know what that question means. I don’t know how we would – I don’t know how we would support Ukraine any more than we already have.
QUESTION: I can paraphrase.
QUESTION: Can I just ask you —
MR MILLER: Yeah.
QUESTION: — about these sanctions that you say are coming on Wagner?
MR MILLER: The actions that are coming?
QUESTION: Yeah. For what, exactly? For withdrawing from Ukraine?
MR MILLER: I don’t want to —
QUESTION: Or for, like —
MR MILLER: I don’t —
QUESTION: — marching on Moscow to —
MR MILLER: These are – these are actions that we are taking against Wagner not in relation to events that happened this weekend, but for their prior activities. And you’ll see the —
QUESTION: In Ukraine or —
MR MILLER: No, in —
QUESTION: — elsewhere?
MR MILLER: In Africa.
QUESTION: Okay. Was that clear in the initial – maybe I missed it. I’m not sure that was clear.
MR MILLER: I didn’t preview —
QUESTION: In Africa, like CAR?
MR MILLER: I did not – I’m not going to say —
QUESTION: Like Mali?
MR MILLER: I’m not – I don’t want to get ahead of the announcement any further, but you’ll see it, as I said, in the very near —
QUESTION: Okay.
MR MILLER: — in the very near future.
QUESTION: But any sanctions that might be coming this week on Wagner have nothing to do with what happened over the weekend?
MR MILLER: The – I would not want to get ahead of any other announcement that we were considering taking.
QUESTION: Or for the —
MR MILLER: But the announcement I was specifically referring to relate to their actions in Africa.
QUESTION: Thank you.
QUESTION: Can I – oh, go ahead. I’m just wondering, just based on that question, is there any reason that there would be a U.S. cost imposed on Wagner for what did happen over the weekend? I mean —
MR MILLER: So I wouldn’t want to – again, I never want to preview a sanctions announcement before it happens, other than the one that’s coming in the very near future because it’s a short enough timeframe. But the way that we will – the most effective way the United States continues to hold Wagner accountable and continues to hold Russian military forces accountable is to supply Ukrainians with the very equipment they need to repel Wagner forces and repel the Russian army from their borders. And we will continue to do that.
Any more on Russia before we – go ahead, Janne.
QUESTION: No, not Russia, China. And I have two questions, China and Korea. And thank you, Matt. Chinese Government announced that its espionage law punishment for journalists, scholars, and businessmen to take effect next month. In particular, surveillance of photo media will be strengthened. What can you say about the fact that freedom of press and expression has become more discouraged in China?
MR MILLER: []So I’m not – I haven’t reviewed that specific law that you refer to, but I will say we have long expressed concerns about the lack of freedom of expression in China. We’ve expressed concerns broadly about human rights in China. The Secretary made those concerns clear both in his meetings with Chinese officials when we were there, and in his public comments before he left Beijing and since he returned, and will continue to do that.
QUESTION: Just as Russia arrest an American journalist for espionage, can this law be seen as an act to block media that keeps China in check?
MR MILLER: As I said, I’m not familiar with the specific provisions of this law, so I wouldn’t want to comment on what the implications might be.
QUESTION: Last question. U.S. and South Korea Mongolia talks. Do you have any detail of this?
MR MILLER: I do not. I can take that back.
QUESTION: Thank you.
QUESTION: Can I ask you briefly, on China?
MR MILLER: Yeah.
QUESTION: On Deputy Secretary Sherman’s call, I know you released a readout just a few minutes ago. Was there any discussion of planning a visit by the foreign minster, Foreign Minister Qin, to Washington?
MR MILLER: I don’t want to get into the specifics that were discussed beyond what we said in the readout. But as you know, the Secretary, when he was in Beijing, invited the foreign minister to come to Washington. The foreign minister accepted that. We’ve had – continue to have talks with the government in Beijing about when that visit might occur and what it might look like, but we’ve come to no final determinations yet, or they have come to no final determinations yet about when that might be scheduled.
QUESTION: So – but this call, was it – I’m sure it was substantive, but it was – she’s step – she’s retiring in a couple days. Was this more of a kind of —
MR MILLER: No, this was a substantive – this was a substantive call. It was to follow up on the Secretary’s visit. There are a number of conversations that are happening at the – at the subcabinet level now about following up on some of the issues that the Secretary discussed.
QUESTION: Okay.
QUESTION: (Off-mike.)
MR MILLER: Any – any more?
QUESTION: On China.
MR MILLER: I’ll try to – yeah, China.
QUESTION: Has the department come to a decision on who will replace Rick Waters as head of China House, or when can we expect an announcement?
MR MILLER: We have not come to a decision, and I don’t have any announcements to make about when we will make that announcement.
Any more on China before I move – okay. Do you have – oh, do – if you want to – yeah, we’ll go back, and then I’ll – yeah.
QUESTION: Since you mentioned that the U.S. follow the Wagner’s Group operation in Africa, in your point of view, how can the revolt of Wagner affect the security strategy against the militias groups in Central Africa and in Mali?
MR MILLER: []So I would say, with respect to Wagner, we would continue to urge any governments who have considered inviting Wagner to operate inside their borders, who have considered security arrangements with Wagner, who have considered any sort of cooperation with Wager at all – we would continue to urge them to not pursue those arrangements.
The Secretary spoke to this on Sunday; I spoke to it yesterday. We believe that everywhere that Wagner goes, they leave death and destruction in their wake. They hurt local populations; they extract minerals and extract money from the communities where they operate. And so we would continue to urge governments in Africa and elsewhere to cease any cooperation with Wanger and not pursue any further.
QUESTION: So in February, the French President Emanuel Macron, he described the deployment of Wagner Group troops in Africa as he mentioned, and I quote, “life insurance of failing regimes in Africa that will only sow misery.” Does the United States agree with this statement?
MR MILLER: Well, as I just said, that we believe that death and destruction follows in their wake. That would certainly equate with sowing misery.
Michel.
QUESTION: Yeah. What was behind the Troika meeting on Sudan and South Sudan? And should we expect any measures against military leaders in Sudan and against the Government of South Sudan?
MR MILLER: []So the meeting of the Troika was to continue to discuss the situation in Sudan. We continue to be concerned by the parties’ frequent violations of the most recent and past ceasefires, their return to fighting after the ceasefire expired. I will just say, as we’ve said before, that we believe there’s no acceptable military solution to the conflict. Facilitators, including the United States, stand ready to reconvene formal talks in Jeddah, but only once the parties demonstrate their commitment to upholding the terms of the Jeddah Declaration. And the interim – we will continue to monitor the situation and continue to consider whether there are other steps that we can take to hold the parties accountable, but I don’t have any specific announcements to make. Obviously we’ve imposed sanctions in the past and won’t hesitate to do so in the future, should it be appropriate to do so.
QUESTION: Thanks.
MR MILLER: Said.
QUESTION: Can I switch topics and – to talk about your favorite topic: settlements. Now both major Israeli newspapers yesterday or today reported that, in fact, the U.S. is not going back to viewing settlements as being illegal. Is that the position, settlements are not illegal?
MR MILLER: []The position I stated yesterday is that we have not changed the policy. We continue to view the expansion of settlements as an impediment to peace, made that position clear on a number of occasions, and we’ll continue to do so.
QUESTION: But both UN Security Council Resolution 242 and 336, which you are a signatory on – in fact, sponsor of – state very clearly that settlements are illegal, everything east of the Green Line is illegal. So you’re not subscribing to that anymore? Certain settlements are legal and certain settlements are illegal – is that the understanding?
MR MILLER: I will say that the United States has not changed its policy. I don’t have any announcements on that front. But our views have been clear and consistent that the expansion of settlements undermines the geographic viability of a two-state solution; it exacerbate tensions; it further harms trust behind the parties. We strongly oppose the advancement of settlements and urge Israel to refrain from that activity.
QUESTION: What about the sort of legal outposts – there were seven illegal outposts announced I think last week or established by the settlers. Are you aware of that? Did you issue any statement on that?
MR MILLER: We have issued a number of statements about the expansion of settlements in the past few weeks.
QUESTION: But on this – okay.
MR MILLER: I’m – speaking to it now that our views are clear, our views are consistent. I think I’ve asked – spoke – I spoke to this yesterday. I spoke to it this last time I was at the podium —
QUESTION: Okay. Okay —
MR MILLER: — that we believe these expansions of settlements are —
QUESTION: But still there seems to be some confusion.
MR MILLER: — an impediment to a two-state solution.
QUESTION: Okay. If you just allow me, indulge me, just two more questions. One on that status of the —
MR MILLER: Always, Said. Always.
QUESTION: Thank you. I appreciate it. And I thank my colleagues as well.
MR MILLER: Yeah. It’s their indulgement. Yeah, it’s not mine.
QUESTION: So on the office of the Palestinian – I mean, the American envoy to the Palestinians, has there been any change in the status of that office? There has been calls by certain congressmen to actually abolish that office. Are you aware of that?
MR MILLER: I have seen those calls. And I will say that that office does very important work on our diplomatic efforts in the region, and we think it’s important that it continue to be allowed to advance that work.
QUESTION: And lastly, I want to ask about the visa waiver. I know you spoke about this exhaustively, but bear with me, because —
MR MILLER: Not exhaustively enough, apparently.
QUESTION: Apparently not, no. (Laughter.) There’s always something new. Anyway – so the confusion on – I know that all citizens must be – all American citizens must be treated equally and so on upon entry. What about travel within the West Bank? What is happening, because there are checkpoints and so on.
MR MILLER: So we made clear that, with respect to the Visa Waiver Program, that we continue to work with Israel towards fulfilling all of the requirements.
QUESTION: Right. Right.
MR MILLER: That includes extending reciprocal privileges to all U.S. citizens and nationals, including Palestinian Americans, to travel to and through Israel.