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11/07/2022 08:13 PM EST
Ned Price, Department Spokesperson
Washington, DC
2:16 p.m. EST
MR PRICE: Good afternoon, everyone.
QUESTION: Hello.
[]MR PRICE: Happy Monday. Will take your questions in just a moment, but first, last week’s African Union announcement of the signing of a cessation of hostilities between the Government of Ethiopia and the Tigrayan People’s Liberation Front, or TPLF, represents, as we’ve said, a significant step towards peace. We again commend the parties for reaching an agreement and applaud the African Union and the governments of Kenya and South Africa for helping to drive this process.
The parties are in Nairobi, in keeping with the provision that the Ethiopian National Defense Fund#post-394791-footnote-1 and the Tigrayan Defense Force#post-394791-footnote-2 would meet within five days to work out the implementation. Also, as provided by the agreement, a hotline has been established between the two senior-most commanders.
These concrete implementation steps reflect a commitment by both parties to, quote/unquote, “silence the guns.” But more work remains. We understand the agenda for the Nairobi talks will also include the urgent need to expedite humanitarian assistance and restoration of services for Tigray and adjoining affected regions of Afar and Amhara, in accordance with the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement. The talks are being presided over by the AU High Level Panel of former presidents Obasanjo and Kenyatta, the AU Commission, and with the participation of Kenyan and South African generals. The observers include the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, or IGAD, and the U.S., represented by our special envoy, Mike Hammer. Our special envoy is remaining in the region to support implementation of the Pretoria agreement. We stand ready to continue to support the parties along with the international partners on implementation of the agreement.
[] And then finally, today the U.S. Department of State, through the Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program, announced a reward offer of up to $1 million for information leading to the arrest and/or convictions of three Haitian nationals: Lanmò Sanjou, a/k/a Joseph Wilson; Jermaine Stephenson, a/k/a Gaspiyay; and Vitel’Homme Innocent.
On October 16th, 2021, the 400 Mawozo gang, of which these individuals are members, engaged in a conspiracy to kidnap 16 U.S. Christian missionaries and one Canadian missionary to hold them for ransom. The missionaries and their families were abducted after visiting an orphanage in the town of Ganthier, east of Port-au-Prince. The kidnapping victims of the 12 missionary – of the missionary group included 12 adults and five children.
The United States support the efforts of our Haitian law enforcement partners seeking to enforce rule of law in Haiti, and to combat transnational organized crime. Supporting the Haitian people is a whole-of-government effort. This reward offer complements the U.S. Department of Justice’s announcement of felony indictments against Wilson, Sanjou, and Innocent for their roles in the kidnapping. Currently, all three individuals are fugitives from justice.
With that, Matt.
QUESTION: Great. Thanks, Ned. Happy Monday.
MR PRICE: Happy Monday.
QUESTION: Before I get to a question on Russia, I just want to ask real quick – because I don’t think you’ll have a lot on this, but I just want to make sure – and that is the murder of a USAID worker in Baghdad. Have you –
[]MR PRICE: You’re right. We don’t have much to offer on this publicly just yet. We’re of course aware of these reports. We’re looking into these reports. There is a process that we would need to undertake, if and when we are in a position to confirm that an American has been killed. We would of course first notify the next of kin before making any public comment. So, we’re still looking into these reports to determine what we can regarding these allegations.
QUESTION: Okay. Well, does that mean that you’re – that you don’t even know if someone has been – has been killed in the circumstances that were described?
MR PRICE: There is no reason to doubt that someone has been killed, as the reports indicate. But we want to be thorough in determining that the victim in this case was in fact a U.S. citizen, and of course then undertaking any necessary efforts to notify next of kin.
QUESTION: Okay. And then moving on, unless anyone has more on that, I just want to ask you about this, quote/unquote, “admission” by Mr. Prigozhin in Russia that they have interfered, they will continue to interfere, in U.S. elections and what you make of it, if anything.
[]MR PRICE: Well, I suppose his own statements didn’t tell us anything we didn’t already know. His bold confession, if anything, appears to be just a manifestation of the impunity that crooks and cronies enjoy under President Putin and the Kremlin.
As you know, we have sanctioned this individual, Yevgeny Prigozhin, since 2018 for his interference in the – with our election processes and institutions. In March of 2018, the Department of the Treasury designated the Internet Research Agency and Prigozhin himself. This designation targeted malicious cyber actors, including those involved in interfering with the election process and institutions.
On September 20th of 2019, Treasury, under the auspices of OFAC, also took action against Russian actors that attempted to influence the 2018 midterm elections; including previously designated person Yevgeny Prigozhin as well as the employees of the Internet Research Agency which Prigozhin himself finances.
In July of this year, we put forward a so-called Reward for Justice, or RFJ, seeking information on interference in U.S. elections by the Internet Research Agency, by []Prigozhin, and related Russian entities, offering up to $10 million for information on foreign interference in U.S. elections.
We all know, especially today but every day, the free and fair elections are a cornerstone of American society, of American democracy. We won’t tolerate interference in our elections regardless of where it comes from. We’ve demonstrated that – not only with our words, but with our deeds. In addition to the sanctions against Prigozhin, against the IRA, this administration has announced sanctions against Russia. We did so in April of 2021 in response not only to Russia’s malicious cyberattack, in the context of Solar Winds and in the context of what it had done to Mr. Navalny with the chemical weapons attack – what it was doing to Mr. Navalny’s supporters, but also in response to its interference in our elections. We’ve done the same against Iran. We are prepared to do the same against any other state or entity that would seek to interfere in our democratic processes.
QUESTION: Okay. You said that his own statements didn’t tell you anything that you didn’t already know, and then you mentioned how it demonstrates impunity – that they act with. But I mean, he’s not accused of violating any Russian law. Are you suggesting it demonstrates impunity for him violating U.S. law, and that he should fly over here and turn himself in? Is that —
MR PRICE: Clearly, Matt, these are not —
QUESTION: Well, I just – I mean, it seems like he’s boasting, right?
MR PRICE: It’s —
QUESTION: So – but I am not sure how that’s a demonstration of his impunity because —
MR PRICE: It is a demonstration of impunity that someone anywhere can boast publicly of interfering in the democratic elections of another sovereign country, and that nothing would happen to them. And far from anything having happen to him, in terms of the criminal justice system, the so-called criminal justice system in Russia, he is by all accounts a Kremlin insider. He is someone who is a prized associate of —
QUESTION: But that – but the point, I mean, do you expect Putin to act against him?
MR PRICE: Of course, we don’t —
QUESTION: Okay, all right.
QUESTION: We don’t expect President Putin to act against him, but we’d like to see the Russian Federation act against someone who so openly boasts about interfering in the elections of a sovereign country. Of course, we would expect that of a responsible law enforcement system of a responsible government; but of course we know better than to expect that of Russia.
Said.
QUESTION: Ned, just a clarification. So, you said boasting and so on. He could be just making himself a lot more important than he really is. I mean, are the Russians really involved in this thing? Do you think that he would say this without giving – being given a green light by Putin, frankly?
MR PRICE: So, I will leave it to my colleagues at the Department of Homeland Security and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to speak to what the current threat environment looks like. But what I will say is that we know that both the IRA and its benefactor Prigozhin have been involved in election interference in the past. We are very closely watching – the Department of Homeland Security is very closely watching any potential efforts to interfere, whether it’s with disinformation or misinformation or otherwise, in our upcoming midterm elections or other democratic processes in this country.
So, whether everything he has said over the past day or so is completely accurate, that’s not something I’m going to weigh in on. But what I will weigh in on is that this is an individual who has and continues to claim to be interfering in our democratic processes. And that’s something we take seriously.
QUESTION: So, do you think that it is maliciously intended, right on the eve of the midterm elections, to sow – to throw some sort of a monkey wrench if they can into this election?
MR PRICE: Look, I am not going ascribe any particular, motive to these statements, whether it was boasting, whether it was bragging, whether there was some broader strategic intent. What we do know, and we’ve spoken to this publicly a number of weeks ago now, is Russia’s efforts around the world to interfere in the election, in the electoral processes of sovereign countries. We declassified and made public at the time that Russia has invested at least $300 million in these efforts. Its efforts have been well publicized in some instances, including in the context of our elections in 2016. There is an Intelligence Community assessment that lays that out. There is a public version of that that lays that out in some detail.
But Russia’s efforts to subvert democratic processes are of course not confined to the United States. They’re not confined to any one country. What we will do is to respond, and to respond decisively, to any country – any actor that seeks to interfere in our elections.
Alex. Or – sure.
QUESTION: On this line, given who he is, is it your assessment that his actions have been sanctioned by President Putin himself? And when you talk about impunity —
MR PRICE: Sanctioned as in authorized?
QUESTION: Authorized, yes.
MR PRICE: Okay, because we have sanctioned him.
QUESTION: Yes, yes.
MR PRICE: Look, it is – it’s difficult to say. I think what is clear is that someone of this stature, someone who is making these sorts of claims, would not be in a position to do so, going back to Matt’s question, if the Kremlin at some level didn’t approve of it. The lack of action against an individual like this is itself a pretty telling action. It is an indication that he has, at least, some degree of tacit permission from senior officials in the Russian Government.
What we do know about – and this goes back to the publicly released intelligence assessment from a number of years ago now – is that when it comes to Russia’s previous interference in our elections, it was approved at the highest levels of the Kremlin. But again, when it comes to what is the threat we may be facing now from Russia or from any other state actor, that is something that I would refer you to the Intelligence Community or to DHS.
QUESTION: And when you talk about impurity, is the U.S. Government ready to sanction President Putin himself for —
MR PRICE: We have sanctioned President Putin himself.
QUESTION: Election – in terms of violating, interfering with U.S. election process?
MR PRICE: We have sanctioned President Putin himself for the actions he’s taken in recent months. Of course, I’m not going to preview what might happen in this upcoming midterm election or what could happen going forward but suffice to say that we will respond. And we will respond decisively to any country, to any entity, to any individual that seeks to interfere in our elections.
QUESTION: And in terms of his actions in recent months, can I get your comment on the reported talks with the Russians? Are there different camps inside the administration in terms of how to deal with Russia at this point?
[]MR PRICE: There is both in this administration and with our European allies a firm recognition of the principle that has animated our efforts since before February 24th, and that is nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine. That is something that we have all subscribed to. It is something that you’ve heard from this administration; it’s something that you’ve heard from our partners as well.
More recently, you’ve heard from the United States and from our partners, including in the G7 statement that was just released at the conclusion of the ministerial in Münster – there was a reference to this in the leaders statement some weeks back – that we believe, as do the Ukrainians, in a just peace – a just peace that respects the UN Charter’s principles of territorial integrity and sovereignty, that would safeguard Ukraine’s ability to defend itself in the future, that would ensure Ukraine’s recovery, its reconstruction, and would provide for accountability for Russia’s assault on Ukraine and its commission of war crimes.
If Russia is ready for that negotiation, it should stop its bombs. It should stop its missiles. It should stop attacking and killing Ukrainian civilians – pursuing infrastructure, including civilian infrastructure. But of course, the Kremlin is doing the opposite. It is continuing to escalate this war rather than to offer any sort of real signal that it is ready for or open to negotiations.
If Russia wants to negotiate, why then did it walk away, even if temporarily, from the Black Sea Grain Initiative? That was perhaps the one forum where Russians and Ukrainians spoke and now speak, directly, on a daily basis. If it wants to demonstrate a serious commitment to de?escalation, Russia could start by committing to renew this Black Sea Grain Initiative when it comes up for renewal later this month.
But it is not just us saying this. You’ve heard this as well from our Ukrainian partners. President Zelenskyy gave an address over the weekend. He said, quote, “We are ready for peace, for a fair and just peace, the formula of which we have voiced many times. The world knows our position. This is respect for the UN Charter, respect for our territorial integrity, respect for our people.” He has said a number of times that this war can only end through dialogue and diplomacy. We feel exactly the same. Our European allies feel exactly the same.
But it is incumbent upon Russia to signal its willingness and its readiness to sit down to engage with the Ukrainians. Instead, the only signal Russia has sent is one of death, is one of destruction, is one of continued brutality.
Daphne.
QUESTION: An Italian paper is reporting that NATO and the EU are discussing possible talks with Russia after Ukraine liberates Kherson. Can you confirm this, and are you viewing that as a sort of turning point?
MR PRICE: Yeah, the notion is that the Ukrainians would begin?
QUESTION: That NATO and the EU are discussing possible talks with Russia after Ukraine ??
MR PRICE: So, I would have to refer to NATO and to the EU for any plans they have. But I feel confident in stating, as I just did a moment ago, that we are firmly of the belief, NATO is firmly of the belief, and the EU is firmly of the belief that there can be nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine.
So, certainly, it is not the case that – and again, without speaking for NATO or the EU, but I am confident in saying that it is not the case that NATO and the EU would separately engage with Russia to determine the future of Ukraine and determine how this conflict ends. That is only something that Ukraine can do with Russia. These are decisions that the Ukrainian Government is going to have to make as the democratically elected representative of the Ukrainian people. It is something that President Zelenskyy has said he is committed to pursuing. He has said that this war will only end through dialogue and diplomacy; it can’t end decisively on the battlefield. It won’t end decisively on the battlefield. But ultimately, this is going to have to be a process between Ukraine and Russia.
In the interim, we are going to continue the process that we have had underway since before February 24th, and this is also something we’ve done in close coordination with the EU and with NATO, and that is to continue providing Ukraine with the security assistance it needs, the economic assistance it needs, and the humanitarian assistance it needs so that when that negotiating table develops, Ukraine will be in the strongest possible position. Nobody wants this war to end more than the Ukrainian people. No one has been more brutalized and battered than the Ukrainian people, of course. So, they have every incentive to see this war come to a close, but what we want to see is that they are in the strongest position – despite what Russia is doing to them day in, day out – to try to weaken them, to try to break them. And we’re going to continue providing our Ukrainian partners with what they need not only to withstand this aggression but to emerge strong and capable at the negotiating table.
Yeah.
QUESTION: But Ned, that could go on for a very long time, as you know. In the meantime, the war is going on. Nobody seems to be winning. Despite all the claims that the Ukrainians are making progress, the Russians going back – but anyway, they’re there. They’re not going anywhere anytime soon. So, you have to be looking at backdoor channels to have some sort of – not necessarily at this moment negotiations per se, but you have to be looking at other options because this could go on forever. So, what do you say to that? There has been contacts or – of course, Jake Sullivan was in Ukraine. There’s been contacts with the Russians and what have you. So, what – under what conditions could you be open to some sort of diplomatic solution besides saying that obviously Russia stop the war, because that’s not going to happen?
MR PRICE: Well, there seem to be a couple elements to your question. One has to do with the modalities of a negotiation, two has to do with the timing of any potential negotiation, and three pertains to any contacts on the part of the United States. So, I’ll take those in turn.
The first two, really the answer is the same: It is up to the Ukrainians to determine what those negotiations look like. And we’re – when we’re talking about negotiations in this context, I’m referring to negotiations between – it has to be – Russia and Ukraine, regarding the end to the war. It is up to Ukraine to determine who exactly is involved in this process, what precisely this process looks like. Of course, the United States and Ukraine’s many partners around the world stand ready to assist and to offer counsel and advice, but ultimately these are going to have to be decisions that the Ukrainians themselves make.
When it comes to the United States – again, I want to be very clear – there is no moving – there is no budging from our bottom-line position that there is nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine. At the same time, the United States, as a responsible country, we have an obligation to maintain channels of communication with Russia. We have been very clear about this; in some instances, in spite of efforts of the Russians to make our diplomatic efforts, including those in Moscow, more difficult. But we have been emphatic in the belief that lines of communication and channels of dialogue are important even in times of tension. But they are especially important in times of conflict. So, we have been very intentional and deliberate about seeing to it that those – that existing lines of communication are not closed.
And you’ve seen us exercise those lines of communication. We don’t broadcast every conversation we have of course, but Secretary Blinken picked up the phone some months ago now because there were issues of great bilateral concern, including the status of Paul Whelan and Brittney Griner, the two wrongfully detained Americans in Russia. He wanted to send a very stark and clear warning to Russia at the time regarding our knowledge of what it planned to do. More recently, Secretary Austin, Chairman Milley, they’ve picked up the phones to their counterparts. Those have been the principal level engagements. But the fact is – and of course the White House has read out a conversation that Jake Sullivan has had with a Russian official, a number of months ago. But the fact is, those are all principal level engagements.
We have a functioning embassy in Moscow. We speak to the Russians via the embassy virtually every day, if not in fact every day. We speak consistently via the – we pass messages via the Russian embassy here in Washington. So, there are a number of ways for us to convey messages of bilateral importance to Russia. And I emphasize that word bilateral because we are not discussing with the Russians what a negotiated peace might look like, what the contours of a peace agreement between Russia and Ukraine might look like.
We are discussing issues that have a profound importance in our bilateral relationship. Whether that is the status of the two wrongfully detained Americans, whether that’s the status of our embassy in Moscow, whether that is the imperative that the United States has to send a very clear signal to Russia of the enormous costs of escalation, or – God forbid, nuclear use, those are the types of conversations that we’re in a position to have day in, day out. Some of those conversations are routine, are prosaic; others are perhaps more strategic and significant. But the fact is that we believe it’s very important for us to have those conversations.
Janne.
QUESTION: Thank you. At —
MR PRICE: Anything else on Russia-Ukraine before we – Kylie? Sure.
QUESTION: I’m just wondering if you would – there’s been a lot of conversation about diplomacy, and when or if the Biden administration will push for that. Would you say that the Biden administration right now is doing everything that you guys can to urge Russia towards a diplomatic solution?
MR PRICE: Of course, and we’re doing that in a number of ways. One is our messaging, and the very simple message that this war has to end diplomatically; it has to end through dialogue. The Ukrainians are doing this as well.
Consistent with that message is actually what we’re doing in terms of our provision of support to the Ukrainians. There is not going to be a decisive victory on the battlefield, yet we have provided billions of dollars in security assistance to Ukraine. It’s more than $18 billion since the start of the conflict – since the start of Russia’s war on February 24th. We’re providing that to our Ukrainian partners so that they can defend themselves against this all-out Russian aggression, but so too that they can be in a stronger position on – at the negotiating table when it develops. We see an interconnection between what happens on the battlefield and what we are in a position to do to provide the sort of security assistance our Ukrainian partners need to defend themselves on that very battlefield and what ultimately happens at the negotiating table.
Same with our economic assistance. President Putin might have thought that he could starve Ukraine into submission, that he could bomb Ukraine into the depths of winter, into darkness. We have supported our Ukrainian partners with billions of dollars in economic assistance, including direct budgetary support, so that they can have an economically viable country, they can have a functioning government, they can provide their citizens with the basic services that they need to do – even while they are under this brutal assault from Russia.
So, we have signaled both in our messaging, in our words, but also in our actions, including the support to Ukraine, that we believe deeply in the necessity of dialogue and diplomacy. Unfortunately, the Russians have signaled – certainly in their actions – that, at the moment, they are focused on escalation. They are not focused on de-escalation. They are even less so focused on dialogue and genuine diplomacy. It’s our goal to help the Ukrainians shift that calculus.
QUESTION: And just one follow-up. There was a line from President Zelenskyy last month that got some pick-up after Washington Post reporting over the weekend where he said, “We are ready for…dialogue with Russia, but with another president of Russia.” What is the Biden administration’s response to that comment? Do you agree with that sentiment?
MR PRICE: So, you’re asking about the modalities of a negotiation, and obviously what – the details of what a negotiation between Russia and Ukraine would look like, that will have to be worked out between Russia and Ukraine. The Ukrainians will determine who their representatives will be, if and when a negotiating table develops. They will determine those individuals they’re willing to speak with, so we’re not going to weigh in on that. But I think what is much more important is what we’ve heard repeatedly now from President Zelenskyy, his fervent belief – something he has repeated in – even in recent days – that this war will be ended through dialogue and diplomacy.
QUESTION: But do you think there can be a diplomatic solution without regime change in Russia?
MR PRICE: Regime change is not our goal. It is not the goal of our Ukrainian partners. Our goal is to bring an end to President Putin’s war. It is to bring an end to it, to help the Ukrainians bring an end to it with a just peace, a just peace that reflects the principles of the UN Charter in terms of sovereignty, in terms of territorial integrity, in terms of a Ukraine that is at peace, that is free, that is stable, that’s economically viable, and that’s able to defend itself going forward.
QUESTION: Just so we are on same page here, given the report that was just mentioned of the Post, can you explicitly say that nothing that the U.S. Government has done last week or weekend that would suggest that you have been pressuring, advising, recommending Ukrainians talk to the war criminal Putin?
MR PRICE: We’re not pressuring our Ukrainian partners. Our Ukrainian partners don’t need any pressure to incentivize them to see this war come to an end. No one has suffered more than the Ukrainian people. No one wants to see this war end more than the Ukrainian people and the Ukrainian Government. So, it is neither our place for us to pressure the Ukrainians, nor would we need to do such a thing. They have every incentive. It is the Russians that are sending a very different signal.
Janne.
QUESTION: Thank you. Last weekend at the UN, a Security Council resolution, China and Russia again opposed adoption of condemnations of North Korea, and China and Russia shifted the blame to the United States. What is the next – U.S. next step to do?
[]MR PRICE: Well, the fact is that we have a slew of sanctions imposed against the DPRK, the United States does. There are a series of UN Security Council resolutions with costs associated with them and measures associated with them, and we’ve called on all UN member-states, but especially members of the Security Council, especially members of the Security Council that have a solemn obligation to uphold the principles of the UN Charter, the principles of the UN system, the tenets of the international order. Unfortunately, there are two members of the Security Council, the two you named, that have consistently shirked their obligations, that have stood in the way of the ability of the international community to impose additional costs, at least through this venue, on the DPRK for its continued and dangerous and destabilizing provocations that it has mounted in recent weeks and in recent months.
We have condemned the DPRK’s most recent ballistic missile launches, including the ICBM launch earlier this month, the reckless launch of a missile that landed dangerously close to the Republic of Korea. Every single one of these launches threatens regional global peace – threatens regional and global peace and stability – and is a violation of numerous UN Security Council resolutions that were unanimously adopted by the council. So, members, permanent members especially, of the Security Council, have a special obligation. We’re especially concerned by the DPRK’s increasingly dangerous and irresponsible rhetoric – even went so far as to describe its recent missile launches and related activities as, quote/unquote, “practice runs” for the use of tactical nuclear weapons against the ROK, against the United States as well.
We will seek to continue to impose costs on the DPRK for its dangerous and destabilizing behavior even as we continue to seek serious and sustained diplomacy with the DPRK. We’ve called many times now for the DPRK to abandon its provocative behavior and to engage in that meaningful dialogue that we have put forward, but our commitment to the defense of our treaty allies, the ROK and Japan, it’s ironclad. We’ll continue to work closely with our allies to limit the DPRK’s ability to advance its unlawful WMD and ballistic missile program that threatens regional security.
When it comes to the Security Council, we heard from multiple UN Security Council members, including all of the elected members – the 10 elected members of the UN Security Council, just how crucial it is to address the advancing threat of the DPRK. And I call out the statement on the part of the 10 elected members of the Security Council because, of course, the two members of – permanent members of the Security Council have so far been silent. They have been unable or unwilling, for various reasons, to lend their voices to condemn what is objectively destabilizing and dangerous activity.
We’ll continue to engage with partners at the Security Council and continue to make the point to them, both in public and private, that a DPRK that feels that it can act with impunity and faces watered-down condemnation from the rest of the international community is not in the interest of China. It’s not in the interest of Russia. It is profoundly against the interests of the global order.
QUESTION: Today, North Korean military commander has released a statement saying it will take ruthless counterretaliation against South Korea and the United States. How would you response on this?
MR PRICE: Our response is what you’ve heard from us throughout this series of provocations: our commitment to the defense and to the security of our treaty allies, Japan and the ROK in this case, is ironclad. We have taken a number of steps when to increase our defense and our deterrence posture, and we’ll continue to calibrate our approach and our activities appropriately.
QUESTION: Do you think – quick – do you think North Korea’s continued provocation is simply set the stage for the dialogue with the United States? Or do you see it is – as an actual clash?