ウィスパリング同時通訳研究会コミュのPart 2 State Department Press Briefing by Spokesperson Ned Price

Speaker 4: (18:41)
And on Syria, news report said that Secretary Blinken is considering former State Department and UN official Jeffrey Feldman as a special envoy to Syria. Is that accurate, and how do you view the way forward in Syria?

Ned Price: (18:57)
Well, I don’t have any appointments or nominations to mention at this time. When it comes to Syria, look, we will renew us efforts to promote a political settlement to end Syria’s civil war in close consultations with our allies, our partners in the UN. A political settlement must address the underlying causes that led to nearly a decade of civil war. We will use the tools at our disposal including economic pressure to push for meaningful reform and accountability, and we’ll continue to support the UN’s role in negotiating a political settlement in line with UNSCR 2254. We will also restore US leadership in providing humanitarian aid, and you’ve heard me say that a couple of times in this briefing already. Syria is a humanitarian catastrophe, and we must do more to aid vulnerable Syrians displaced within Syria as well as refugees who have fled abroad. Yes, Will?

Will Mauldin: (19:57)
Yes, sir. Will Mauldin at the Wall Street Journal. Thank you so much for having these. I wanted to follow up with what you said earlier about the …

Speaker 5: (20:03)
[inaudible 00:20:00]. I wanted to follow up with what you said earlier about the focus on like-minded allies and partners as a priority in cases like Burma and was wondering about China. Does that mean serious diplomatic efforts with China will take a back seat? Is this scenario we’re having strategic patience? As you may have seen, China’s top diplomat, Yang Jiechi, said last night in the US forum that their red lines, which is anything they consider to be a domestic issue, ranging from Taiwan to Xinjiang, Hong Kong, and Tibet. So wondering if you agree with that and if there are efforts to communicate or engage in diplomacy with Yang Jiechi or with other senior Chinese diplomats?

Ned Price: (20:42)
Well, I did take note of Yang Jiechi’s comments last night. I think we would respond by saying we urge Beijing to cease its military, diplomatic, and economic pressure against Taiwan and instead engage in meaningful dialogue with Taiwan’s democratically elected leadership. Now, when it comes to China more broadly, you have heard us talk about our strategic approach to Beijing. We are in serious competition with China. Strategic competition is the frame through which we see that relationship. We know that China is engaged in a range of conduct that hurts American workers. It blunts our technological edge. It threatens our alliances and influence in international organizations, and China is engaged in gross human rights violations that shock the conscience.
(21:36)
So we will counter China’s aggressive and coercive actions, sustain our key military advantages, defend democratic values, invest in advanced technologies, and restore our vital security partnerships. Now, at the same time, even as this relationship, we see it through the lens of competition and positioning ourselves to compete and ultimately to out-compete with the Chinese through our own sources of strength, being our alliances, our partnerships, but also our domestic sources of strength, our workforce, our technology, our supply chain security, we understand, too, that there are going to be issues for which we share a national interest, in which it is in our national interest to cooperate on a limited basis with China. Climate is going to be one of them. So I think it goes without saying that we can walk and chew gum at the same time, not to be too colloquial. You will see us doing that with China. You will see us doing that with a number of challenges going forward.

Speaker 5: (22:41)
[inaudible 00:22:41] a delay before that process starts, the interactions with China on these global issues, or is that something that’s starting immediately?

Ned Price: (22:47)
Well, I think, again, this goes back to how we are thinking about the sequencing of our foreign policy broadly. It has been no mistake that as President Elect, President Elect Biden started reaching out to our closest allies, both in Europe, in the Indo-Pacific. It is no coincidence that as President, President Biden started by reaching out to our closest allies in Europe and the Indo-Pacific. It is no coincidence that as Secretary of State, Secretary Blinken started by reaching out to our closest allies. Of course, I should add our Mexican and Canadian allies as well, but our closest allies in Europe and the Indo-Pacific. So we see our alliances, our partnerships globally as, again, this force multiplier across any range of challenges, and that includes in our relationship with Beijing. So as a first step, we want to make sure that we are in lockstep with those allies, in lockstep with those partners, and then you can expect that there will be engagement in several areas with China. Yes?
Speaker 6: (23:47)
Thank you [inaudible 00:23:47]. Wanted to follow up on Iran and [inaudible 00:23:51]’s question. Does the Special Envoy, Malley, or the secretary plan to talk to any Iranian [inaudible 00:24:01] anytime soon? Also, do you say that you’re ruling out any kind of synchronization between steps by the US and steps by the Iranians to come back in full compliance, or do you not rule out some kind of synchronization?

Ned Price: (24:18)
Well, when it comes to Special Envoy Rob Malley, he just started in the role late last week on Friday. So he is now what, three days into the job? I can say, however, that he has hit the ground running. He has begun engaging on important work and is in the early stages of calls with allies, partners, as well as members of Congress. When it comes to the propositions that have been put on the table, I would just go back to the proposition that we’ve put on the table, that President Biden on the campaign trail and more recently President Biden as President of United States, Secretary Blinken as Secretary of State have set. When it comes to the JCPO way, we are prepared to walk the path of diplomacy if Iran presumes that full compliance.

Speaker 6: (25:03) Any contact with Iranians sometime soon?

Ned Price: (25:08) Again, our first focus is on engagement, partnership discussions with our allies, partners, members of Congress. Kylie?

Speaker 7: (25:17)
I just want to go back to Navalny for a second. Just to clarify, are you saying that the entire policy review, the entire intelligence review of all of the concerning actions by Russia, the bounties on US soldiers there, SolarWinds hack, the election interference, all of that entire review has to be done before the Biden administration does anything on Navalny’s sentencing today?

Ned Price: (25:44)
No, I’m not going to rule anything out. Obviously, we’ve already spoken out very forcefully about the sentencing of Mr. Navalny, including from the Secretary of State. My point was that there is a holistic review of our relationship with Russia that takes into account the full range of Russia’s malign activity. President Biden has been very clear. Secretary of State Blinken had been very clear. We’re not going to countenance the sorts of things that we’ve seen from the Russians in recent years, and that’s exactly what this review is intended to do, to review those and to help inform an appropriate policy response.

Speaker 7: (26:18)
Okay. Then just one more follow-up on Iran. Has news in the recent days, over the last few weeks of Iran beginning to enrich uranium at a larger number of advanced centrifuges or planning to curb short-term notice to IEA inspections, has any of that impacted how quickly the Biden administration sees the need to get the US and Iran back into compliance with the JCPOA?

Ned Price: (26:45)
Well, it has undergirded our belief that this is a challenge we have to tackle immediately, and I’m not referring to the JCPOA. I’m referring to the broader challenge of ensuring that Iran is not in a position to develop a nuclear weapon. Again, it’s just another indication that this is a challenge that cannot wait. We’ve spoken to the diplomatic path that President Biden first detailed on the campaign trail, but we know that we have to act with some urgency here, given some of the circumstances that you just outlined. Yes, Nick?

Speaker 8: (27:24)
Can I go back to Myanmar and Russia and combine them? This will get, I think, to how you see leverage and how you see sanctions. So in Myanmar, are you considering sanctioning further sanctions on the Myanmar military? Do you believe that you can impose a cost that would change the military’s behavior? On Navalny, Navalny’s aides are calling for a specific set of sanctions that they released this weekend. I think it was 35 on senior aides around Putin. Do you believe that, or are you considering that, and do you believe that kind of action might actually affect Russian government behavior?

Ned Price: (28:01)
Well, I think the connective tissue there is that sanctions can in the right circumstances be an effective policy tool. We have used them with good effect in both cases, Burma and Russia. When it comes to Burma, the members of Burma’s military, junta, are already under significant sanctions. There are many Russian actors who are sanctioned quite heavily for their various misdeeds in recent years. When it comes to additional sanctions against the Burmese military, as President Biden has said, the United States will take action against those responsible, including through a careful review of our current sanctions posture. So it’s something we’re closely reviewing. When it comes to Russia, the president has directed his DNI to undertake this review precisely so that we can have a holistic picture of what the Russians have been up to in recent years so that we can ensure our policy options, which would include sanctions, but not necessarily be the extent of it, are calibrated appropriately.

Speaker 8: (29:03)
Sorry, just on the specific sanctions that Navalny’s aides called for, can you commit that you’re at least considering them or [crosstalk 00:29:10]?

Ned Price: (29:10)
As a general rule and I would say as a rule, I can’t imagine an exception to this, we’re not going to speak to any sanctions before we enact them. If we were to do so, of course, it would allow individuals who might otherwise be subject to the sanctions to try and evade them and give them an escape route.

Speaker 5: (29:26)
On Navalny, just a quick follow-up. Today, Foreign Minister Lavrov said it was a trumped-up theatre, that the Germans should share with the Russians whatever data on poison and so on. Do you have any reaction to that?

Ned Price: (29:40) I’m sorry. It was a-

Speaker 5: (29:41)
Lavrov suggested that the whole thing is a trumped-up theatre and the Germans are refusing to share whatever analysis data on the poison.

Ned Price: (29:50)
Right. So, again, this was one of those elements that is under review by the Director of National Intelligence. I think, obviously, we do not agree with that assessment. I think if you ask our German allies, they would not agree with that assessment, but I assume- (30:03)
… ask our German allies, they would not agree with that assessment. But I assume we’ll have more to say when that review is conducted. Maybe one final question? [crosstalk 00:30:08]

Speaker 1: (30:07) Can I just making a logistical suggestion? And feel free to tell me to go to hell or whatever you want to say, but it is-

Ned Price: (30:13) Stick on one topic at a time? Is that where you’re going.

Speaker 1: (30:16)
Yes, exactly. I mean, when we used to have these more frequently, I think you’ll find it easier. It’s certainly easier for people to follow if we exhaust one subject other than bouncing back and forth between all of them all the time. In that spirit, I’ve got [inaudible 00:30:30] questions about Navalny, the statement, and why, if a conscious decision has been made to separate the case of Navalny, who is actually a Russian, and American citizens who were detained in Russia, Trevor Reed, Paul Whelan. Are you guys going to be speaking to those? I believe Mr. Reed has a court hearing coming up very soon. And why have you decided to keep them separate if we’re not-

Ned Price: (30:54)
Well, the question came to me in the form of Mr. Navalny. So I was speaking to Mr. Navalny. When it comes to Trevor Reed and Paul Whelan, we continue to be seriously concerned over the treatments of American citizens, Paul Whelan and Trevor Reed. Both men traveled to Russia as tourists, were arrested, and were then convicted without credible evidence. We hope Russia will do the right thing and return them to their families in the United States. They have been deprived of their freedom for far too long. We’ll continue to speak out on behalf of those cases.

Speaker 1: (31:19)
I guess the point is that when you’re calling for the immediate release of a Russian opposition figure, why do you choose not to make the same call for American citizens that you believe to be unlawfully-
Ned Price: (31:33) I think I just did. The question-
Speaker 1: (31:35) No, I meant at the same time.
Ned Price: (31:36) Got it.

Speaker 1: (31:36)
And then the, secondly, you mentioned the Kosovo Israel agreement. The secretary has said that he welcomes and thinks of the Abraham Accords were a good thing and that you would try to build on them. I’m just wondering why. Are you prepared to give the previous administration credit for the Kosovo Israel deal for the other Abraham Accords? And do you think that that credit should extend to being considered for a Nobel Peace Prize?

Ned Price: (32:06)
Well, I am enjoying my new role here at the State Department. That new role does not give me control over who gets awarded a Nobel Peace Prize.

Speaker 1: (32:12) No, no. Do you think it’s worthy to be considered for?

Ned Price: (32:15)
I’m not going to weigh in on that question. I’m going to leave that to the, I believe it is the Swedish Parliamentarians who are charged with … Norwegian, I’m sorry. Norwegian parliamentarians who are charged with that.

Speaker 1: (32:24) Good, there’s your first international incident right there. Scandinavians.

Ned Price: (32:29)
When it comes to the Abraham Accords, and to your question, I believe this was something that Secretary Designate Blinken has spoken to, and he has spoken to the Abraham Accords as something that was welcome during the previous administration, something that indeed we hope to build on. The United States will continue to urge other countries to normalize relations with Israel. And we’ll look for other opportunities to expand cooperation among countries in the region. While we support normalization between Israel and countries in the Arab world, it’s also not a substitute for Israeli Palestinian peace, and that’s very important. We hope that as Israel and other countries in the region join together in a common effort to build bridges and create new avenues for dialogue and exchange, these efforts contribute to tangible progress towards the goal of advancing a negotiated peace between Israelis and Palestinians.

Speaker 9: (33:22)
Can you just clarify … Sorry to interrupt. The economic embargo that used to exist on Myanmar is restoring that. Is that part of the review of sanctions that’s undergoing now?

Ned Price: (33:39)
We have only recently come to the conclusion that this was in fact a coup, and that is why the assessment of our policy response, including potential sanctions, is just now underway. I wouldn’t want to get ahead of hat process. Rich?

Rich: (33:52)
Thanks [inaudible 00:33:53]. A couple for you. The first on Iran, with the secretary talking about the physical material, I know he was citing public reports and not intelligence there, when the administration considers the JCPOA, does it view the JCPOA as the Obama Administration did, to be negotiated almost in a box, that nuclear issues are to be taken care of separately, and then with the potential of building on? Or is this administration looking to bring other issues? And then separately, does the state department leadership take issue with comments from the deputy spokesperson about police being seen as a threat?

Ned Price: (34:31)
Rich, on that second question, we provided you with a statement. I don’t have any more to say on that. On the first … Sorry, remind me what the precise question was.

Rich: (34:44) So does the administration view the JCPOA negotiation as a separate issue?

Ned Price: (34:49)
Oh, yes. Yes. Right. So, as we have said, the proposition on the table, as President Biden has said, is that if Iran resumes full compliance with the JCPOA, we will be prepared to do so. We seek to use, if Iran takes those steps and as a far cry is quite a ways away from those steps right now, but if Iran does take those steps and we reenter the JCPOA, we would seek to use the JCPOA. We would seek to lengthen and strengthen, including the nuclear terms of the agreement. And then to use that as a platform for follow on agreements that would take on other areas of concern. And we all know them, ballistic missiles, [inaudible 00:35:31] proxies, a number of other issues are included in that. But the proposition that’s on the table, the JCPOA is a start. Our hope, if Iran is willing to make those commitments, is to lengthen and strengthen that agreement and then pursue follow on agreements regarding other areas of concern.

Ned Price: (35:48) I know we’ve gone on for quite some time. We’re going to do this every day. I promise we’ll take … Well, we’ll do this just about every day. And so we’ll take one last question.

Tracy Wilkinson: (35:57)
Tracy Wilkinson from The LA Times. In your opening comments, you said that the career women and men, you see them as the driving force of American diplomacy and in this building, but as you probably know, there’s already some grumbling among the rank and file that a lot of the top positions so far have gone to political appointees, particularly people who participated in Biden’s campaign and so forth. Can you comment on that? And what would be the appropriate ratio of political to career?

Ned Price: (36:29)
So Tracy, when it comes to nominations have been put forward by the president, I believe there’ve been five today. So we’re talking about a very small sample size. When Secretary Blinken address the workforce on his first day in the building last Wednesday, he spoke to the women and men in the department, said they were in fact our greatest asset, aid his intention was to recruit, retain and promote a senior state department workforce that looks like the country we all represent. So I can assure you that as we make additional announcements, as the President issues additional nominations, as the Secretary of State puts forward additional appointments, that you will see a number of respected career officials assume some of the most senior positions in this building. There’s no doubt about that. Thank you very much everyone. We’ll-

Nick: (37:17)
[inaudible 00:37:17] Open Skies [inaudible 00:37:20] that Russia would return to Open Skies if the US would. Would the Biden Administration consider returning to Open Skies?

Ned Price: (37:29)
So Nick, we’re studying the issue. We’ll take a decision in due course. To the best of our knowledge, Russia is still not in full compliance with the treaty. Thank you very much. [crosstalk 00:37:42]
Speaker 10: (37:42) Putting daily back in the briefing here, but every day, will it be common practice that we wait until after the White House-