United Nations Headquarters
New York, New York

10:38 A.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT: Madam President, Mr. Secretary-General, world leaders, ambassadors, and distinguished delegates:

One year ago, I stood before you for the first time in this grand hall. I addressed the threats facing our world, and I presented a vision to achieve a brighter future for all of humanity.

Today, I stand before the United Nations General Assembly to share the extraordinary progress we’ve made.

In less than two years, my administration has accomplished more than almost any administration in the history of our country.
America’s — so true. (Laughter.) Didn’t expect that reaction, but that’s okay. (Laughter and applause.)

America’s economy is booming like never before. Since my election, we’ve added $10 trillion in wealth. The stock market is at an all-time high in history, and jobless claims are at a 50-year low. African American, Hispanic American, and Asian American unemployment have all achieved their lowest levels ever recorded. We’ve added more than 4 million new jobs, including half a million manufacturing jobs.

We have passed the biggest tax cuts and reforms in American history. We’ve started the construction of a major border wall, and we have greatly strengthened border security.

We have secured record funding for our military — $700 billion this year, and $716 billion next year. Our military will soon be more powerful than it has ever been before.

In other words, the United States is stronger, safer, and a richer country than it was when I assumed office less than two years ago.
We are standing up for America and for the American people. And we are also standing up for the world.

This is great news for our citizens and for peace-loving people everywhere. We believe that when nations respect the rights of their neighbors, and defend the interests of their people, they can better work together to secure the blessings of safety, prosperity, and peace.

Each of us here today is the emissary of a distinct culture, a rich history, and a people bound together by ties of memory, tradition, and the values that make our homelands like nowhere else on Earth.

That is why America will always choose independence and cooperation over global governance, control, and domination.

I honor the right of every nation in this room to pursue its own customs, beliefs, and traditions. The United States will not tell you how to live or work or worship.

We only ask that you honor our sovereignty in return.

From Warsaw to Brussels, to Tokyo to Singapore, it has been my highest honor to represent the United States abroad. I have forged close relationships and friendships and strong partnerships with the leaders of many nations in this room, and our approach has already yielded incredible change.

With support from many countries here today, we have engaged with North Korea to replace the specter of conflict with a bold and new push for peace.
In June, I traveled to Singapore to meet face to face with North Korea’s leader, Chairman Kim Jong Un.

We had highly productive conversations and meetings, and we agreed that it was in both countries’ interest to pursue the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. Since that meeting, we have already seen a number of encouraging measures that few could have imagined only a short time ago.

The missiles and rockets are no longer flying in every direction. Nuclear testing has stopped. Some military facilities are already being dismantled. Our hostages have been released. And as promised, the remains of our fallen heroes are being returned home to lay at rest in American soil.

I would like to thank Chairman Kim for his courage and for the steps he has taken, though much work remains to be done. The sanctions will stay in place until denuclearization occurs.

I also want to thank the many member states who helped us reach this moment — a moment that is actually far greater than people would understand; far greater — but for also their support and the critical support that we will all need going forward.

A special thanks to President Moon of South Korea, Prime Minister Abe of Japan, and President Xi of China.

In the Middle East, our new approach is also yielding great strides and very historic change.

Following my trip to Saudi Arabia last year, the Gulf countries opened a new center to target terrorist financing. They are enforcing new sanctions, working with us to identify and track terrorist networks, and taking more responsibility for fighting terrorism and extremism in their own region.

The UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar have pledged billions of dollars to aid the people of Syria and Yemen. And they are pursuing multiple avenues to ending Yemen’s horrible, horrific civil war.

Ultimately, it is up to the nations of the region to decide what kind of future they want for themselves and their children.

For that reason, the United States is working with the Gulf Cooperation Council, Jordan, and Egypt to establish a regional strategic alliance so that Middle Eastern nations can advance prosperity, stability, and security across their home region.
Thanks to the United States military and our partnership with many of your nations, I am pleased to report that the bloodthirsty killers known as ISIS have been driven out from the territory they once held in Iraq and Syria. We will continue to work with friends and allies to deny radical Islamic terrorists any funding, territory or support, or any means of infiltrating our borders.

The ongoing tragedy in Syria is heartbreaking. Our shared goals must be the de-escalation of military conflict, along with a political solution that honors the will of the Syrian people. In this vein, we urge the United Nations-led peace process be reinvigorated. But, rest assured, the United States will respond if chemical weapons are deployed by the Assad regime.

I commend the people of Jordan and other neighboring countries for hosting refugees from this very brutal civil war.

As we see in Jordan, the most compassionate policy is to place refugees as close to their homes as possible to ease their eventual return to be part of the rebuilding process. This approach also stretches finite resources to help far more people, increasing the impact of every dollar spent.

Every solution to the humanitarian crisis in Syria must also include a strategy to address the brutal regime that has fueled and financed it: the corrupt dictatorship in Iran.

Iran’s leaders sow chaos, death, and destruction. They do not respect their neighbors or borders, or the sovereign rights of nations. Instead, Iran’s leaders plunder the nation’s resources to enrich themselves and to spread mayhem across the Middle East and far beyond.

The Iranian people are rightly outraged that their leaders have embezzled billions of dollars from Iran’s treasury, seized valuable portions of the economy, and looted the people’s religious endowments, all to line their own pockets and send their proxies to wage war. Not good.

Iran’s neighbors have paid a heavy toll for the region’s [regime’s] agenda of aggression and expansion. That is why so many countries in the Middle East strongly supported my decision to withdraw the United States from the horrible 2015 Iran Nuclear Deal and re-impose nuclear sanctions.

The Iran deal was a windfall for Iran’s leaders. In the years since the deal was reached, Iran’s military budget grew nearly 40 percent. The dictatorship used the funds to build nuclear-capable missiles, increase internal repression, finance terrorism, and fund havoc and slaughter in Syria and Yemen.

The United States has launched a campaign of economic pressure to deny the regime the funds it needs to advance its bloody agenda. Last month, we began re-imposing hard-hitting nuclear sanctions that had been lifted under the Iran deal. Additional sanctions will resume November 5th, and more will follow. And we’re working with countries that import Iranian crude oil to cut their purchases substantially.

We cannot allow the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism to possess the planet’s most dangerous weapons. We cannot allow a regime that chants “Death to America,” and that threatens Israel with annihilation, to possess the means to deliver a nuclear warhead to any city on Earth. Just can’t do it.

We ask all nations to isolate Iran’s regime as long as its aggression continues. And we ask all nations to support Iran’s people as they struggle to reclaim their religious and righteous destiny.

This year, we also took another significant step forward in the Middle East. In recognition of every sovereign state to determine its own capital, I moved the U.S. Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.

The United States is committed to a future of peace and stability in the region, including peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians. That aim is advanced, not harmed, by acknowledging the obvious facts.

America’s policy of principled realism means we will not be held hostage to old dogmas, discredited ideologies, and so-called experts who have been proven wrong over the years, time and time again. This is true not only in matters of peace, but in matters of prosperity.

We believe that trade must be fair and reciprocal. The United States will not be taken advantage of any longer.

For decades, the United States opened its economy — the largest, by far, on Earth — with few conditions. We allowed foreign goods from all over the world to flow freely across our borders.

Yet, other countries did not grant us fair and reciprocal access to their markets in return. Even worse, some countries abused their openness to dump their products, subsidize their goods, target our industries, and manipulate their currencies to gain unfair advantage over our country. As a result, our trade deficit ballooned to nearly $800 billion a year.

For this reason, we are systematically renegotiating broken and bad trade deals.
Last month, we announced a groundbreaking U.S.-Mexico trade agreement. And just yesterday, I stood with President Moon to announce the successful completion of the brand new U.S.-Korea trade deal. And this is just the beginning.

Many nations in this hall will agree that the world trading system is in dire need of change. For example, countries were admitted to the World Trade Organization that violate every single principle on which the organization is based. While the United States and many other nations play by the rules, these countries use government-run industrial planning and state-owned enterprises to rig the system in their favor. They engage in relentless product dumping, forced technology transfer, and the theft of intellectual property.

The United States lost over 3 million manufacturing jobs, nearly a quarter of all steel jobs, and 60,000 factories after China joined the WTO. And we have racked up $13 trillion in trade deficits over the last two decades.

But those days are over. We will no longer tolerate such abuse. We will not allow our workers to be victimized, our companies to be cheated, and our wealth to be plundered and transferred. America will never apologize for protecting its citizens.

The United States has just announced tariffs on another $200 billion in Chinese-made goods for a total, so far, of $250 billion. I have great respect and affection for my friend, President Xi, but I have made clear our trade imbalance is just not acceptable. China’s market distortions and the way they deal cannot be tolerated.

As my administration has demonstrated, America will always act in our national interest.

I spoke before this body last year and warned that the U.N. Human Rights Council had become a grave embarrassment to this institution, shielding egregious human rights abusers while bashing America and its many friends.
Our Ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, laid out a clear agenda for reform, but despite reported and repeated warnings, no action at all was taken.

So the United States took the only responsible course: We withdrew from the Human Rights Council, and we will not return until real reform is enacted.
For similar reasons, the United States will provide no support in recognition to the International Criminal Court. As far as America is concerned, the ICC has no jurisdiction, no legitimacy, and no authority. The ICC claims near-universal jurisdiction over the citizens of every country, violating all principles of justice, fairness, and due process. We will never surrender America’s sovereignty to an unelected, unaccountable, global bureaucracy.

America is governed by Americans. We reject the ideology of globalism, and we embrace the doctrine of patriotism.

Around the world, responsible nations must defend against threats to sovereignty not just from global governance, but also from other, new forms of coercion and domination.

In America, we believe strongly in energy security for ourselves and for our allies. We have become the largest energy producer anywhere on the face of the Earth.

The United States stands ready to export our abundant, affordable supply of oil, clean coal, and natural gas.

OPEC and OPEC nations, are, as usual, ripping off the rest of the world, and I don’t like it. Nobody should like it. We defend many of these nations for nothing, and then they take advantage of us by giving us high oil prices. Not good.

We want them to stop raising prices, we want them to start lowering prices, and they must contribute substantially to military protection from now on. We are not going to put up with it — these horrible prices — much longer.

Reliance on a single foreign supplier can leave a nation vulnerable to extortion and intimidation. That is why we congratulate European states, such as Poland, for leading the construction of a Baltic pipeline so that nations are not dependent on Russia to meet their energy needs. Germany will become totally dependent on Russian energy if it does not immediately change course.

Here in the Western Hemisphere, we are committed to maintaining our independence from the encroachment of expansionist foreign powers.

It has been the formal policy of our country since President Monroe that we reject the interference of foreign nations in this hemisphere and in our own affairs. The United States has recently strengthened our laws to better screen foreign investments in our country for national security threats, and we welcome cooperation with countries in this region and around the world that wish to do the same. You need to do it for your own protection.

The United States is also working with partners in Latin America to confront threats to sovereignty from uncontrolled migration. Tolerance for human struggling and human smuggling and trafficking is not humane. It’s a horrible thing that’s going on, at levels that nobody has ever seen before. It’s very, very cruel.

Illegal immigration funds criminal networks, ruthless gangs, and the flow of deadly drugs. Illegal immigration exploits vulnerable populations, hurts hardworking citizens, and has produced a vicious cycle of crime, violence, and poverty. Only by upholding national borders, destroying criminal gangs, can we break this cycle and establish a real foundation for prosperity.

We recognize the right of every nation in this room to set its own immigration policy in accordance with its national interests, just as we ask other countries to respect our own right to do the same — which we are doing. That is one reason the United States will not participate in the new Global Compact on Migration. Migration should not be governed by an international body unaccountable to our own citizens.

Ultimately, the only long-term solution to the migration crisis is to help people build more hopeful futures in their home countries. Make their countries great again.

Currently, we are witnessing a human tragedy, as an example, in Venezuela. More than 2 million people have fled the anguish inflicted by the socialist Maduro regime and its Cuban sponsors.

Not long ago, Venezuela was one of the richest countries on Earth. Today, socialism has bankrupted the oil-rich nation and driven its people into abject poverty.

Virtually everywhere socialism or communism has been tried, it has produced suffering, corruption, and decay. Socialism’s thirst for power leads to expansion, incursion, and oppression. All nations of the world should resist socialism and the misery that it brings to everyone.

In that spirit, we ask the nations gathered here to join us in calling for the restoration of democracy in Venezuela. Today, we are announcing additional sanctions against the repressive regime, targeting Maduro’s inner circle and close advisors.

We are grateful for all the work the United Nations does around the world to help people build better lives for themselves and their families.

The United States is the world’s largest giver in the world, by far, of foreign aid. But few give anything to us. That is why we are taking a hard look at U.S. foreign assistance. That will be headed up by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. We will examine what is working, what is not working, and whether the countries who receive our dollars and our protection also have our interests at heart.

Moving forward, we are only going to give foreign aid to those who respect us and, frankly, are our friends. And we expect other countries to pay their fair share for the cost of their defense.

The United States is committed to making the United Nations more effective and accountable. I have said many times that the United Nations has unlimited potential. As part of our reform effort, I have told our negotiators that the United States will not pay more than 25 percent of the U.N. peacekeeping budget. This will encourage other countries to step up, get involved, and also share in this very large burden.

And we are working to shift more of our funding from assessed contributions to voluntary so that we can target American resources to the programs with the best record of success.

Only when each of us does our part and contributes our share can we realize the U.N.’s highest aspirations. We must pursue peace without fear, hope without despair, and security without apology.

Looking around this hall where so much history has transpired, we think of the many before us who have come here to address the challenges of their nations and of their times. And our thoughts turn to the same question that ran through all their speeches and resolutions, through every word and every hope. It is the question of what kind of world will we leave for our children and what kind of nations they will inherit.

The dreams that fill this hall today are as diverse as the people who have stood at this podium, and as varied as the countries represented right here in this body are. It really is something. It really is great, great history.

There is India, a free society over a billion people, successfully lifting countless millions out of poverty and into the middle class.

There is Saudi Arabia, where King Salman and the Crown Prince are pursuing bold new reforms.

There is Israel, proudly celebrating its 70th anniversary as a thriving democracy in the Holy Land.

In Poland, a great people are standing up for their independence, their security, and their sovereignty.

Many countries are pursuing their own unique visions, building their own hopeful futures, and chasing their own wonderful dreams of destiny, of legacy, and of a home.

The whole world is richer, humanity is better, because of this beautiful constellation of nations, each very special, each very unique, and each shining brightly in its part of the world.

In each one, we see awesome promise of a people bound together by a shared past and working toward a common future.

As for Americans, we know what kind of future we want for ourselves. We know what kind of a nation America must always be.

In America, we believe in the majesty of freedom and the dignity of the individual. We believe in self-government and the rule of law. And we prize the culture that sustains our liberty -– a culture built on strong families, deep faith, and fierce independence. We celebrate our heroes, we treasure our traditions, and above all, we love our country.

Inside everyone in this great chamber today, and everyone listening all around the globe, there is the heart of a patriot that feels the same powerful love for your nation, the same intense loyalty to your homeland.

The passion that burns in the hearts of patriots and the souls of nations has inspired reform and revolution, sacrifice and selflessness, scientific breakthroughs, and magnificent works of art.

Our task is not to erase it, but to embrace it. To build with it. To draw on its ancient wisdom. And to find within it the will to make our nations greater, our regions safer, and the world better.

To unleash this incredible potential in our people, we must defend the foundations that make it all possible. Sovereign and independent nations are the only vehicle where freedom has ever survived, democracy has ever endured, or peace has ever prospered. And so we must protect our sovereignty and our cherished independence above all.

When we do, we will find new avenues for cooperation unfolding before us. We will find new passion for peacemaking rising within us. We will find new purpose, new resolve, and new spirit flourishing all around us, and making this a more beautiful world in which to live.

So together, let us choose a future of patriotism, prosperity, and pride. Let us choose peace and freedom over domination and defeat. And let us come here to this place to stand for our people and their nations, forever strong, forever sovereign, forever just, and forever thankful for the grace and the goodness and the glory of God.

Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the nations of the world.

Thank you very much. Thank you. (Applause.)

Dziękuję.  Stany Zjednoczone mają wielu znakomitych dyplomatów, ale doprawdy nie ma lepszego ambasadora naszego  kraju niż nasza wspaniała Pierwsza Dama Melania

Przybyliśmy na spotkanie z polskim narodem z bardzo ważnym przesłaniem: Ameryka uwielbia Polskę, Ameryka kocha Polaków.Poza tym, że Polacy dokonali wiele dla tego regionu, Amerykanie polskiego pochodzenia bardzo wzbogacili Stany Zjednoczone i jestem naprawdę dumny z tego, że poparli mnie w wyborach w 2016 roku.

To ogromny zaszczyt stać w tym mieście – pod pomnikiem Powstania Warszawskiego – i zwracać się do narodu polskiego, będąc w Polsce, o jakiej marzyło tak wiele pokoleń: bezpiecznej, silnej i wolnej.

Prezydent Duda i cudowna polska Pierwsza Dama Agata powitali nas z niezwykłą uprzejmością i serdecznością, z jakiej Polska słynie na całym świecie.  Dziękuję im obojgu, a także szczególnie ciepło Pani Premier Beacie Szydło.

Cieszymy się również, że jest z nami dziś były Prezydent Lech Wałęsa – znany przywódca Solidarności. W imieniu wszystkich Amerykanów chciałbym też podziękować całemu narodowi polskiemu za gościnność okazaną naszym żołnierzom w Waszym kraju.

Żołnierze ci są nie tylko dzielnymi obrońcami wolności — są też symbolem zaangażowania Ameryki w zapewnienie Polsce bezpieczeństwa i miejsca w silnej i demokratycznej Europie. Jesteśmy dumni, że są z nami tutaj żołnierze amerykańscy, polscy, brytyjscy i rumuńscy.

Uczestniczyliśmy właśnie wraz z Prezydentem Dudą w niezwykle udanym spotkaniu z przywódcami państw Trójmorza. Pragnę powiedzieć mieszkańcom tego wspaniałego regionu: Ameryka dąży do poszerzenia współpracy z Wami.

Będziemy chętnie pogłębiać partnerstwo i wymianę handlową z Waszymi rozwijającymi się gospodarkami. Zależy nam na tym, byście mieli zapewniony dostęp do alternatywnych źródeł energii, aby Polska i jej sąsiedzi nigdy więcej nie stały się zakładnikiem jedynego dostawcy energii.

Panie Prezydencie, gratuluję Panu, a także Pani Prezydent Chorwacji przywództwa w postaci historycznej inicjatywy Trójmorza.

To moja pierwsza wizyta w Europie Środkowej w roli Prezydenta — jestem zachwycony, że odbywa się ona właśnie tutaj, w tym wspaniałym kraju. Polska jest w geograficznym sercu Europy, a co ważniejsze: w polskim narodzie widać duszę Europy. Wasz naród jest wielki, bo jesteście silni wspaniałym duchem.

Przez dwa stulecia Polska padała ofiarą ciągłych, brutalnych ataków. Ale mimo że jej ziemie była najeżdżane i okupowane a państwo zniknęło nawet z mapy nigdy nie udało się wymazać Polski z historii czy też z Waszych serc. W tych mrocznych czasach nie mieliście wprawdzie swojego kraju, ale nigdy nie straciliście swojej dumy.

Dlatego mówię dziś z prawdziwym podziwem: od pól i wsi, aż po wspaniałe katedry i miejskie place Polska żyje, Polska rozwija się, Polska zwycięża. Mimo wszelkich działań, które miały zmienić czy zniszczyć Wasz kraj, mimo opresji, trwaliście i zwyciężaliście.

Jesteście dumnym narodem Kopernika, Chopina i Św. Jana Pawła II. Polska jest krajem bohaterów. Jesteście narodem, który naprawdę wie, czego broni.

Tryumf polskiego ducha na przestrzeni stuleci, które ciężko doświadczyły kraj, daje nam wszystkim nadzieję na przyszłość, w której dobro zwycięża zło, a pokój odnosi zwycięstwo nad wojną.

Dla Amerykanów Polska zawsze była symbolem nadziei – od zarania dziejów naszego narodu. Polscy bohaterowie i amerykańscy patrioci walczyli ramię w ramię w trakcie naszej wojny o niepodległość oraz w wielu późniejszych wojnach. Nasi żołnierze nadal dziś służą w Afganistanie i Iraku, zwalczając wrogów wszelkiej cywilizacji.

Ameryka nigdy nie zrezygnowała z wolności i niepodległości jako prawa i przeznaczenia polskiego narodu — i nigdy nie zrezygnujemy. Oba nasze kraje łączy szczególna więź, u podstaw której leżą wyjątkowe dzieje i charakter narodu. Tego rodzaju wspólnota występuje tylko między ludźmi, którzy walczyli, przelewali krew i umierali za wolność.

Symbole tej przyjaźni można napotkać w stolicy Ameryki. Zaledwie kilka kroków od Białego Domu wznieśliśmy pomniki upamiętniające postacie o takich nazwiskach jak Pułaski i Kościuszko. Podobnie jest w Warszawie, gdzie tabliczki z nazwami ulic przypominają o Jerzym Waszyngtonie,i gdzie stoi pomnik jednego z największych bohaterów świata, Ronalda Reagana.

Jestem tu więc dzisiaj nie tylko po to, by odwiedzić starego sojusznika, ale by wskazać go jako przykład dla innych, którzy zabiegają o wolność i którzy pragną znaleźć odwagę i wolę do obrony naszej cywilizacji. Historia Polski to historia narodu, który nigdy nie stracił nadziei, nigdy nie dał się złamać i nigdy nie zapomniał, kim jest.

Jesteście narodem o ponadtysiącletniej historii. Granice waszego państwa wymazano z map na ponad jeden wiek – i zaledwie przed stu laty granice te zostały przywrócone.

W 1920 roku, w bitwie zwanej Cudem nad Wisłą, Polska zatrzymała sowiecką armię dążącą do podboju Europy.

Dziewiętnaście lat później, w 1939 roku, znów zostaliście napadnięci – tym razem od zachodu przez nazistowskie Niemcy, a od wschodu przez Związek Radziecki. Pod podwójną okupacją naród polski przeżył nieopisaną gehennę: zbrodnię katyńską, Holokaust, warszawskie Getto i Powstanie w Getcie, zniszczenie pięknej stolicy i zagładę prawie jednej piątej ludności.

Kwitnąca żydowska społeczność – najliczebniejsza w Europie – została zredukowana niemal do zera w wyniku systematycznych nazistowskich mordów na żydowskich obywatelach Polski, a brutalna okupacja pochłonęła niezliczone ofiary.

Latem 1944 roku armie hitlerowska i radziecka szykowały się do stoczenia w Warszawie straszliwej krwawej bitwy.  W piekle na ziemi, jakie im zgotowano, Polacy stanęli w obronie swojej Ojczyzny.

To dla mnie ogromny zaszczyt, że są obok mnie weterani i bohaterowie Powstania Warszawskiego. Oddajemy cześć Waszemu poświęceniu i przyrzekamy, że zawsze będziemy pamiętać Waszą walkę o Polskę i wolność.

Pomnik ten przypomina nam, że w straceńczej walce z uciskiem zginęło ponad 150 tys.Polaków. Po drugiej stronie Wisły wojska radzieckie zatrzymały się – i czekały.  Przyglądali się, jak naziści brutalnie zrównują miasto z ziemią, mordując okrutnie mężczyzn, kobiety i dzieci.

Chcieli na zawsze unicestwić ten naród, zabijając w nim wolę przetrwania. Ale nikomu nie udało się zniszczyć odwagi i siły, które znamionują charakter Polaków.

Polski męczennik biskup Michał Kozal dobrze to wyraził słowami:  „Od przegranej orężnej bardziej przeraża upadek ducha u ludzi”.

Przez cztery dziesięciolecia rządów komunistycznych Polska i inne zniewolone  narody Europy opierały się brutalnej kampanii, której celem było zniszczenie wolności,  Waszej wiary, Waszych praw, Waszej historii, Waszej tożsamości – wszystkiego, co stanowi istotę Waszej kultury i człowieczeństwa.

Przez cały ten czas jednak nigdy nie straciliście ducha. Ciemiężcy próbowali was złamać, ale Polski złamać nie mogli.  I kiedy nadszedł dzień 2 czerwca 1979 roku i gdy na Placu Zwycięstwa na pierwszej mszy z polskim papieżem zgromadziło się milion Polaków- tego dnia każdy komunista w Warszawie musiał zdawać sobie sprawę, że opresyjny system wkrótce się załamie. Zrozumieli to dokładnie w tym momencie,  gdy podczas kazania papieża Jana Pawła II milion Polaków – mężczyzn, kobiet i dzieci – podjęło modlitwę.

Nie prosili o bogactwa. Nie prosili o przywileje. Słowami pieśni wypowiedzieli trzy proste słowa: „My chcemy Boga”.

Tymi słowami naród polski przywoływał obietnicę lepszej przyszłości. Polacy odnaleźli w sobie nową odwagę, by przeciwstawić się prześladowcom. I odnaleźli słowa, by zapowiedzieć,  że Polska znów będzie Polską.

Kiedy stoję tu dzisiaj przed tym pełnym wiary narodem wciąż słychać tamte powracające echem głosy. Niosą przesłanie, które dzisiaj jest równie prawdziwe jak dawniej. Naród polski, naród amerykański i narody Europy wciąż wołają: MY CHCEMY BOGA.

Razem z papieżem Janem Pawłem II, Polacy umocnili swoją tożsamość jako naród poświęcony Bogu. I za sprawą tej dobitnej deklaracji, kim jesteście, zrozumieliście co należy uczynić. Złączeni solidarnością wystąpiliście przeciwko uciskowi, przeciwko działającej bezprawnie tajnej policji oraz przeciwko okrutnemu i niegodziwemu systemowi, który zubażał Wasze miasta i Wasze dusze.

I wygraliście. Polska zwyciężyła. Polska zawsze zwycięży!

W tym zwycięstwie nad komunizmem byliście wspierani przez silny sojusz wolnych narodów na Zachodzie, które przeciwstawiły się tyranii. A obecnie wśród najbardziej oddanych członków NATO, Polska powróciła na swoje miejsce jako wiodący kraj Europy, który jest silny, niepodzielny i wolny.

Silna Polska jest błogosławieństwem dla narodów Europy, o czym powszechnie wiadomo. A silna Europa jest błogosławieństwem dla Zachodu oraz całego świata.

Sto lat po przystąpieniu amerykańskich sił do Pierwszej Wojny Światowej, transatlantycka więź pomiędzy Stanami Zjednoczonymi oraz Europą jest mocniejsza niż kiedykolwiek wcześniej.

Nad tym kontynentem nie unosi się już widmo komunizmu. Ale dziś na Zachodzie wciąż stoimy w obliczu poważnych zagrożeń dla naszego bezpieczeństwa i stylu życia. I są to realne zagrożenia. Stawimy im czoło. I na pewno zwyciężymy.

Stoimy w obliczu innej opresyjnej ideologii – której celem jest eksport terroryzmu i ekstremizmu po całym świecie. Ameryka i Europa padają ofiarą jednego zamachu terrorystycznego po drugim. Powstrzymamy je.

Podczas historycznego spotkania w Arabii Saudyjskiej wezwałem przywódców ponad 50 krajów muzułmańskich, by połączyli siły dla wykorzenienia tej groźby, która zagraża całej ludzkości.

Musimy zewrzeć szyki w obliczu wspólnych wrogów, by pozbawić ich terytorium, finansowania, sieci powiązań oraz wszelkich form ideologicznego wsparcia.

I choć zawsze będziemy witali nowych obywateli, którzy podzielają nasze wartości i kochają naszych ludzi, nasze granice zawsze będą zamknięte przed terroryzmem i ekstremizmem.

Walczymy zdecydowanie z radykalnym islamskim terroryzmem. I walkę tę wygramy. Nie możemy zaakceptować tych, którzy posługują się nienawiścią, by usprawiedliwić przemoc wymierzoną w niewinnych.

Obecnie Zachód również staje w obliczu sił, których celem jest wystawienie na próbę naszej woli, zachwianie naszej determinacji i zagrożenie naszym interesom. By przeciwstawić się nowym formom agresji, w tym propagandzie, przestępczości finansowej oraz atakom cybernetycznym, musimy tak przystosować nasz sojusz, by skutecznie konkurował w nowych obszarach i na nowych polach bitewnych.

Wzywamy Rosję, by zaprzestała swoich destabilizujących działań na Ukrainie i wszędzie indziej, i przestała udzielać wsparcia wrogim reżimom – w tym Syrii i Iranowi – a zamiast tego przyłączyła się do wspólnoty odpowiedzialnych narodów w naszej walce przeciwko wspólnym wrogom i w obronie cywilizacji.

I w końcu, po obu stronach Atlantyku, nasi obywatele mierzę się z jeszcze jednym niebezpieczeństwem – z którym możemy sobie w pełni poradzić. To zagrożenie jest dla niektórych niewidoczne, ale dla Polaków – znajome. Stały rozrost rządowej biurokracji, która pozbawia ludzi woli działania i bogactwa. Zachód osiągnął wielki sukces nie dzięki biurokracji i regulacjom, ale dlatego, że ludzie mieli możliwość podążania za swoimi marzeniami i realizowania swoich dążeń.

Amerykanie, Polacy i narody Europy cenią indywidualną wolność i suwerenność. Musimy pracować razem, by przeciwstawić się siłom, niezależnie od tego czy pochodzą z wewnątrz czy z zewnątrz, z Południa czy ze Wschodu, które z czasem grożą podważeniem tych wartości i zerwaniem więzów kultury, wiary i tradycji, które stanowią o naszej tożsamości. Jeśli się im nie przeciwstawimy – siły te pozbawią nas odwagi, nadwątlą naszego ducha i osłabią naszą wolę niezbędną do obrony siebie i naszych społeczeństw.

Ale podobnie jak nasi przeciwnicy i wrogowie z przeszłości dowiedzieli się tego w Polsce – wiemy, że te siły są również skazane na porażkę.

Są skazane na porażkę, nie tylko dlatego, że nasz sojusz jest silny, nasze kraje odporne i nasza potęga nie ma sobie równych – choć wszystko to jest prawdą.

Nasi przeciwnicy są skazani na porażkę, bo nigdy nie zapomnimy, KIM JESTEŚMY. Jeżeli nie zapomnimy, nikt nas nie pokona. Nie zapomną Amerykanie. Nie zapomną narody Europy.

Jesteśmy najbardziej wolną i najwspanialszą wspólnotą narodów, jaką znał świat. Komponujemy symfonie. Dążymy do innowacji.

Oddajemy cześć naszym starożytnym bohaterom, pielęgnujemy nasze odwieczne tradycje oraz zwyczaje i zawsze szukamy oraz odkrywamy nowe możliwości.

Nagradzamy błyskotliwe talenty, dążymy do doskonałości i uwielbiamy inspirujące dzieła sztuki, które oddają cześć Bogu.
Cenimy praworządność – i bronimy prawa do wolności słowa.

Wspieramy kobiety – filary naszego społeczeństwa i naszego sukcesu.
A w sercu naszego życia stawiamy wiarę i rodzinę; a nie władze i biurokrację.
Wszystko poddajemy debacie i kwestionujemy.  Chcemy poznać wszystko – żeby lepiej poznać siebie.

I przede wszystkim, doceniamy godność życia każdej ludzkiej istoty, bronimy praw każdego człowieka i podzielamy nadzieję na życie w wolności tkwiące w każdej ludzkiej duszy.

Tacy właśnie jesteśmy. Takie są bezcenne więzy, które nas łączą. Jako narody, jako sprzymierzeńców i jako cywilizację.

To, co mamy; to, co odziedziczyliśmy po naszych przodkach nie istniało nigdy wcześniej. Państwo wiecie o tym lepiej niż ktokolwiek inny, bo stoją tu z nami bohaterowie tamtych wydarzeń.  A jeśli nie uda nam się tego obronić – nie zaistnieje to nigdy ponownie. Wiec nie wolno nam przegrać.

Tę wielką międzynarodową społeczność łączy jeszcze jeden wspólny element: to NARÓD, a nie możni tego świata, stanowił zawsze podwaliny naszej wolności i kamień węgielny naszej siły.

To naród stanowił i stanowi podwaliny tych wartości tutaj w Polsce, tu w Warszawie, i, od samego początku jej istnienia stanowił podwaliny Ameryki.

Nie po to obywatele naszych państw bili się wspólnie o wolność, nie po to wspólnie przetrwali horror wojen, nie po to wspólnie stawiali opór złu, żeby teraz zaprzepaścić tę wolność przez brak poczucia dumy i wiary w wartości, które wyznajemy.  Nie dopuściliśmy i nie dopuścimy do tego.

Dopóty wiemy skąd przyszliśmy, dopóki wiemy dokąd zmierzamy.
Amerykanie są świadomi, że silne przymierze wolnych, suwerennych i niezależnych państw to najlepszy sposób na obronę naszych swobód i naszych interesów.  To dlatego moja Administracja domaga się od wszystkich członków NATO wywiązywania się w pełni ze swoich sprawiedliwie ustalonych zobowiązań finansowych.

Stanowisko to już zaowocowało dodatkowymi miliardami dolarów. Moim zdaniem te miliardy inaczej by nie napłynęły. Krytykom naszego twardego stanowiska chciałbym przypomnieć, że USA okazały nie tylko słowami, ale PRZEDE WSZYSTKIM CZYNAMI swoje nieugięte poparcie dla Artykułu 5go wielostronnych zobowiązań obronnych.  Łatwo rzucać słowa, ale liczą się CZYNY.  Dla swojego własnego dobra, EUROPA MUSI ZROBIĆ WIĘCEJ.  Musi pokazać, że wierzy w swoją przyszłość, inwestując w nią SWOJE WŁASNE PIENIĄDZE.

Właśnie dlatego przyklaskujemy decyzji Polski o zakupie od USA sprawdzonych w boju systemów obrony powietrznej i przeciwrakietowej PATRIOT. Najlepszych na świecie.  Właśnie dlatego tak cenimy naród polski, który jako jeden z nielicznych w NATO spełnia wymogi inwestycyjne we wspólną obronność.  Dzięki Polsko za to, że dla innych krajów członkowskich NATO stanowisz wzór do naśladowania.

Nasza obronność to nie tylko zobowiązania finansowe – to także zaangażowanie WOLI. Historia Polski uczy nas, że obrona Zachodu nie zależy ostatecznie od pieniędzy, a od woli przetrwania narodu.  I tu pojawia się zasadnicze pytanie naszych czasów: czy Zachód ma WOLĘ przetrwać.

Czy wystarczająco silnie wierzymy w system naszych wartości, żeby bronić ich za wszelką cenę.  Czy darzymy wystarczającym szacunkiem naszych obywateli, żeby bronić granic, w których żyją? Czy starczy nam chęci i odwagi, by bronić naszej cywilizacji w obliczu tych, którzy starają się ją podstępnie unicestwić?

Na nic zdadzą się największe gospodarki świata i broń największego rażenia, jeśli zabraknie silnej rodziny i solidnego systemu wartości. Tych, którzy zapomnieli o ich kluczowym znaczeniu zachęcam do odwiedzenia kraju, który nigdy tego nie zapomniał – niech przyjadą do Polski.

Niech przyjadą tu, do Warszawy i niech poznają historię Powstania Warszawskiego.  Niech poznają historię Alej Jerozolimskich.

W sierpniu 1944 roku, tak jak teraz, Aleje Jerozolimskie były jedną z głównych arterii przecinających miasto ze wschodu na zachód.  Kontrola nad nią miała kluczowe znaczenie dla obu stron bitwy o Warszawę.  Wojsko niemieckie chciało ją przejąć jako najkrótszą drogę przemieszczania oddziałów na front i z frontu.

Dla członków Polskiej Armii Krajowej natomiast, możliwość przedostawania się na północ i na południe przez Aleje Jerozolimskie miała zasadnicze znaczenie dla utrzymania Śródmieścia, a tym samym utrzymania przy życiu samego Powstania.
Noc w noc, pod obstrzałem broni maszynowej, Polacy znosili worki z piaskiem, by bronić swojego wąskiego przejścia w poprzek Alei Jerozolimskich. Dzień w dzień, wróg rozbijał je w drobny mak. Wtedy Polacy zrobili okop, a wkrótce – barykadę.  W ten sposób nieustraszeni powstańcy zaczęli przekraczać tę arterię.

To wąskie przejście zadecydowało o kontynuacji Powstania.  Mieszkańcy i powstańcy, ryzykując życiem, biegli tym wąskim przejściem, by nieść pomoc swojemu miastu.  „To było zaledwie kilka metrów” – wspominała młoda kobieta imieniem Greta.  „Ten śmiertelnie niebezpieczny fragment ulicy przesiąknięty był krwią posłańców, łączniczek i kurierów”.

Snajperzy brali ich na cel. Żołnierze wroga palili każdy budynek, a kiedy atakowali barykadę, wykorzystywali Polaków jako żywe tarcze dla swoich czołgów.
Wróg nie ustawał w ataku na maleńki przyczółek cywilizacji, a Polacy nie ustawali w jego obronie.

Przesmyk przez Aleje Jerozolimskie wymagał ciągłej obrony, napraw i umocnień.  Ale wola obrońców, nawet w obliczu śmierci, była niezachwiana; przejście istniało do ostatnich dni Powstania. Nigdy nie zostało zapomniane, dzięki Polakom było zawsze dostępne.

Pamięć o ofiarach tego heroicznego wydarzenia woła do nas przez dziesięciolecia, a wspomnienia o obrońcach przejścia przez Aleje Jerozolimskie należą do najbardziej żywych.

Ci bohaterowie przypominają nam, że Zachód został ocalony dzięki krwi patriotów, że każde pokolenie ma w tej obronie do odegrania swoją rolę. I że każda piędź ziemi, każdy centymetr naszej cywilizacji jest tej obrony wart.

Nasza walka w obronie Zachodu nie zaczyna się na polu bitwy – zaczyna się od naszych umysłów, naszej woli, naszych dusz.

Dzisiaj, więzy spajające naszą cywilizację mają znaczenie nie mniejsze – i wymagają nie mniej zaciekłej obrony – niż ta piędź ziemi, na której skupiała się nadzieja Polski na istnienie.  Nasza wolność, nasza cywilizacja, i nasze przetrwanie zależą od tych właśnie więzi historii, kultury i pamięci.

I dziś, tak, jak zawsze, Polska jest w naszych sercach, podczas gdy jej naród walczy.  Ogłaszam dziś światu, że tak, jak nie udało się złamać woli Polski, NIE UDA SIĘ NIGDY ZŁAMAĆ WOLI ZACHODU.

System naszych wartości ZWYCIĘŻY. Nasze narody ROZKWITNĄ.  A nasza cywilizacja ZATRIUMFUJE.

Więc walczmy wszyscy jak Polacy – O RODZINĘ, O WOLNOŚĆ, O OJCZYZNĘ I O BOGA.

Dziękuję Wam. Niech Bóg Was błogosławi.  Niech Bóg błogosławi Naród Polski.  Niech Bóg błogosławi naszych sprzymierzeńców.  Niech Bóg błogosławi Stany Zjednoczone Ameryki.

James S. Brady Press Briefing Room   

1:21 P.M. EDT

AIDE:  Hi.  Just want to restate the ground rules.  Today’s briefing is off camera, on the record, and the audio is not for broadcast.  It is embargoed until the end of the briefing. 

And with that, I will turn the podium over to --

Q    Can you make this on -- can you make the audio available?  Because it puts radio at a disadvantage. 

AIDE:  It is off camera, not for broadcast.  Those are the ground rules. 

And now I’m going to turn it over to General H.R. McMaster and Gary Cohn.  Thank you.

GENERAL MCMASTER:  Good afternoon, everybody.  Next Wednesday, President Trump will depart on the second foreign trip of his administration.  He will travel first to Warsaw, Poland to meet that country’s leaders and speak to the Polish people.  He will continue on to Hamburg, Germany for the G20 and for meetings with many world leaders.

While this trip is short, the agenda is packed.  I’ll run through the objectives and the schedule, and then turn it over to Gary, who will walk you through the President’s agenda for the G20.

First of all, the primary objectives are three:  To promote American prosperity, to protect American interests, and to provide American leadership.  These three objectives tie together every engagement President Trump has with foreign leaders, whether here in the White House, as you saw with the strengthening of our strategic partnership with India during Prime Minister Modi’s visit on Monday and we’ll see tonight and tomorrow with the strengthening of our alliance with South Korea during President Moon’s visit.

Additional objectives for the trip include, first, to strengthen American alliances.  America First, as Gary and I have stressed in the past, does not mean America alone.  President Trump has demonstrated a commitment to American alliances because strong alliances further American security and American interests. 

While there are no official NATO meetings on this trip, the President will meet with many NATO leaders, and he will reiterate both America’s commitment to NATO’s common defense and his expectation that all countries share responsibilities and burdens for that defense.  We’ve seen countries strengthen their defense budgets in response to the President’s call.  When we all do more, our alliance becomes stronger and our countries are all more secure.

Second is to reassert who we are.  Traveling to Europe, especially to Central Europe, which had its identity forcibly submerged for so long, is a great way to demonstrate what binds us together not just as an alliance, but as people.  America has been influenced by many nations, but we share Europe’s commitment to liberty and rule of law in particular.

Third is to continue to forge a common understanding of threats.  We saw the President make great progress in Saudi Arabia on denying terrorists safe havens, cutting off their funding, and discrediting their perverted ideology.  He’ll continue to build on that work while also addressing other threats, including attempts by revisionist powers to subvert the global order that undergirds our common security and economic prosperity.

The fourth is to develop a common approach to Russia.  As the President has made clear, he’d like the United States and the entire West to develop a more constructive relationship with Russia.  But he’s also made clear that we will do what is necessary to confront Russia’s destabilizing behavior. 

Fifth is to expand economic opportunity for Americans.  Did I skip -- I think I skipped -- no, okay.  Again, I’ll let Gary cover most of this, but from a foreign policy perspective the President’s goal will be to make clear, even to our allies, that America cannot tolerate unfair trade and economic practices that disadvantage our workers and our industries.  We’re prepared to act where necessary, but we hope to resolve our differences in ways that benefit all sides and are based on really a drive toward reciprocal trade and economic relationships.

The sixth is energy.  We want to create robust, open and fair markets that drive economic growth and leave no countries hostage to energy-market manipulation.  We are committed to the energy security of our allies and partners, and to the diversification of energy sources, supplies and routes.  The President’s America First energy plan will help us achieve all of these objectives. 

The seventh is environment and climate, which Gary will cover as well.

Now, just a brief look at the schedule.  In Poland, the President will meet with President Duda, the leader of a staunch NATO ally and of a nation that remains one of America’s closest friends.  He will speak to 12 Central European, Baltic, and Western Balkan leaders at the Three Seas Conference.  His remarks will focus on infrastructure development and energy security, highlighting, for instance, the first shipments of American LNG into Poland earlier this month.  He will also meet with Croatian President Grabar-Kitarović who is the co-host of the Three Seas Conference. 

Then he will give a major speech to the Polish people at Krasiński Square, epicenter of the 1944 Warsaw uprising against the brutal Nazi occupation.  He will praise Polish courage throughout history’s darkest hour, and celebrate Poland’s emergence as a European Power.  And he will call on all nations to take inspiration from the spirit of the Poles as we confront today’s challenges.  He will lay out a vision, not only for America’s future relationship with Europe, but the future of our transatlantic alliance and what that means for American security and American prosperity. 

I’ll let Gary cover the details of the G20.  I’ll just note that while in Hamburg, the President will meet with many world leaders, including Chancellor Merkel of Germany, the host of the G20, Prime Minister May of the United Kingdom, Prime Minister Abe of Japan, President Moon of South Korea, President Xi of China, President Putin of Russia, President Peña Nieto of Mexico, President Jokowi of Indonesia, and Prime Minister Lee of Singapore, among others.

With that, I’ll turn it over to Gary. 

MR.COHN:  Thank you.  Thank you, H.R. 

Let me go through the G20 quickly, because there’s a lot of overlap with what H.R. just talked about.  I won’t go through the individual meetings but I’ll touch on the major broad themes here.

The President’s primary objectives of these meetings is to work with our partners to jumpstart the world economy.  Economic growth around the world has been far too weak for far too long.  It’s important that leading economies of the G7 take steps in their own countries to strengthen economic growth, but also to work together to address economic challenges that cross all of our borders. 

Here at home, the President has embarked on a strong pro-growth agenda featuring deregulation, tax reform, and infrastructure investment.  On the trip, he will support G20 countries continuing to proactively use all the tools at their disposal -- monetary, fiscal, and structural -- to strengthen growth in their countries.  Importantly, the G20 also needs to do more to address global imbalances, especially from overcapacity in industrial sectors. 

Which brings me to trade, and I’ll repeat something H.R. said: On trade, no less than on alliances, America First does not mean America alone.  The goal of U.S. trade policy is to expand trade in a way that are free and fair.  Insisting on fair trade is the best way to ensure the long-term strength of the international trading system.  We look forward to engaging in free and fair trade with the G20 economies.  The United States stands firm against all unfair trading practices, including massive distortions in the global steel market and other non-market practices that harm U.S. workers.  We ask the G20 economies to join us in this effort and to take concrete actions to solve these problems.  But let us be clear:  We will act to ensure a level playing field for all.

On energy, the President remains committed to working with world leaders and private sectors on sound environmental policies and on innovative technologies.  We have been mindful of the fact that, while renewables have a role to play, we cannot achieve the growth or anti-poverty agenda we want without strong contributions from clean fossil fuel technologies which, in the United States, is a global leader. 

On climate, the President looks forward to discussing his decision to leave the Paris Agreement with the other G20 leaders.  He’ll make clear that he has decided to leave the agreement because it was a bad deal for the United States, but that he is open to reengaging in the agreement or a new agreement if it makes sense for the American people. 

Another focus of the G20 will be famine and other global crises.  We are focused on the crisis in South Sudan, Nigeria, Yemen, and Somalia, and recently announced that the United States would provide more than $329 million in additional humanitarian assistance in this crisis -- bringing the total U.S. humanitarian assistance here to nearly $1.2 billion in fiscal year 2017.  The United States is one of the largest donors of humanitarian assistance here.  The assistance we provide represents the best of Americans' generosity and goodwill.  It will also improve our national security by helping to stabilize insecure regions while building strong relations with nations and people around the world. 

Finally, the United States is pleased that the G20 will have a focus on women’s economic empowerment.  We believe that gender equality and women’s empowerment is vital in today’s labor market.  We are advocating for more equality and equal access to the workplace, financial services, and the labor market with quality employment for women and men all throughout the world.

With that, General H.R. McMaster and myself are happy to take your questions.  

Well, that was quick.  (Laughter.)

Q    Hey, Gary.  A couple of questions for both of you.  One on Russia and one on climate.  Can you talk about the meeting with President Putin?  What are the President's objectives in that meeting?  And will he bring up Russia's interference in the 2016 election?  Either of you.

GENERAL MCMASTER:  Well, there's no specific agenda.  It's really going to be whatever the President wants to talk about.  And that's -- and he will talk with many other leaders during the conference as well.

Q    And does he want to talk about election interference?  Is that something he plans to bring up?

MR. COHN:  We don't have an agenda set up for these meetings right now.  As you know, these meetings are a week away.  We're still finalizing schedules.  So agendas for meetings have not been set up at this point.

Q    Just on climate, I want to get you on that.  Because Angela Merkel is now saying that she is not going to overlook tensions with the U.S. when it comes to the Paris Agreement.  You noted just now, and the President has noted, he wants to renegotiate this Paris climate deal.  In what concrete ways does he expect to do that, given what it took to get the deal in the first place?

MR. COHN:  Well, look the President has been very clear on climate and on Paris.  He cares very much about the climate.  He cares about the environment.  But he has to enter into a deal that's fair for the American people, the American workers.  He's done everything he's done based on job creation, economic growth in the United States.

Q    Then what will he ask for?

MR. COHN:  He's going to ask for a fair and level playing field.  We cannot be in a position where the United States is cutting and cutting emissions while other countries continue to grow until 2030.  That doesn’t seem like it's a fair and level playing field.  We want a level playing field, just like everything else.  We're looking for fairness across the board in the agreement.

Q    Can I ask you about the Russia meeting a little bit, to follow up on that?  Do you see that as a full-fledged meeting, as a bilateral, like we've been reading that the President wants?  Or is it just a pull-aside?  What's the format of the meeting?

MR. COHN:  Well, look, in the G20 meetings as a whole, the world leaders are gathered.  We will have pull-asides, we'll have bilaterals.  As I said, the schedule is being formalized right now.  We would imagine that the countries that H.R. talked about, we would be planning on bilateral meetings.  But they're during the G20 meetings.  So these are not long, long meetings.  These are bilateral pull-asides during the G20.

Q    I want to follow up.  Gary, in that sense -- because Merkel, May, Abe, Moon -- they all fall into a category where the President has had meetings with them before.  I would assume you would have a formal agenda.  Putin is different from that.  Is the Putin one going to be a separate bilateral -- 10, 20, 30 minutes -- not just something that is a chance encounter in the context of the G20?  That’s what we're trying to drive at, that it doesn’t fit into this other category.  You have to --

GENERAL MCMASTER:  Indonesia is in that.

MR. COHN:  Indonesia is in it.  Singapore is in there.  There's countries at the G20 that, yes, we have met with before, some we'll meet with tonight for the first time, and there's other that we will have a second or third meeting with, and they're the countries that are important to us because of economic relationship, military relationship, a lot of different reasons for us having meetings with them.  There will be a more formal schedule as we get closer.  But I think you should assume that most of these countries we're going to have sort of bilateral meetings set up in advance -- probably not a formal agenda of what's on the schedule, but a formal agenda of what time these meetings will happen in a bilateral situation.

Q    -- for Russia, as well?

MR. COHN:  Yes, yes.

Q    So the President has laid out to NATO countries some of the things they need to do vis-à-vis meeting their 2 percent GDP investment in defense.  Does he have a similar set of things to ask Moscow, to ask Putin -- to say, we need to see you do these trust-building measures before we can normalize relations?

GENERAL MCMASTER:  Well, our relationship with Russia is not different from any other country in terms of us communicating to them, really, what our concerns are, where we see problems in the relationship, but also opportunities.  Secretary Tillerson, obviously as he does with all countries in the world, has the lead for that and has been engaged in a broad, wide-ranging discussion about irritants, problems in the relationship, but also to explore opportunities -- where we can work together in areas of common interest.

So it won't be different from our discussions with any other country, really.

Q    Given the assaults on press freedom by the ruling party in Poland, the Law and Justice Party, is the President concerned about assaults on a free press, and former communist countries backsliding as it were?  And do you think that making this the first -- making Warsaw the first stop on the President's trip to Europe might send the wrong message, that he endorses such assaults on a free press?

GENERAL MCMASTER:  I don’t think there's a danger of that at all.  I think Poland is a clear choice for a number of reasons.  First of all, it's one of our staunchest allies.  It is a NATO ally that will meet and exceed its pledge to go over 2 percent from the Wales conference.  It is in many ways a front-line NATO nation in connection with threats on the Eastern flank.  It is a country that has partnered with us and had been a great ally during combat missions in Afghanistan and in Iraq, as well.  And so this will be -- the President will emphasize themes about the past, what Poland has gone through as a nation, what they've achieved to fight to be part of Europe.  He’ll talk about what Poland is doing now and how our relationship can be strengthened in that context.

But what he’s really going to talk about I think is also the future -- the future of America’s relationship with Poland, with Europe, the importance of transatlantic relationships generally.  In the economic context, what Gary has talked about, which is free and fair trade, access to energy.

And so there are a lot of important things for us to emphasize in connection with the future of our relationship with Poland and with Europe.

Q    Does any of that have to do with attacks on free press and free expression in Poland?

MR. COHN:  So let me just answer the question in G20 terms as well, because it’s interesting -- in the G7 as well as the G20, we go through these arduous communiqué writings.  And we as Americans have fought very vigorously to protect intellectual property rights and to protect freedom of speech in Internet.  And we’ll continue to do that.  We’ll continue to defend that.  We did it in the G7 communiqué; we’re going to do it in the G20 communiqué.

So that’s just where we stand.

You back -- the young lady.  Yeah, you.

Q    Thank you.

MR. COHN:  No, behind you.  The young lady.

Q    I wanted to ask you about this -- the comments you made about steel.  As you know, they were expecting an omnibus trade deficit report by the end of the week, and there’s also this ongoing 232 investigation by Commerce and Treasury.  That seems to tee you up perfectly for a conversation with China and Japan about trade deficits.  Do you plan on releasing that information ahead of the G20 and presenting it there?

And then, secondly, on LNG, if you could just talk about -- will the President be offering or brokering any additional deals to backstop European needs in that respect to get them independent from Russia and a reliance on Russian energy?

MR. COHN:  So I’m not sure when the Commerce Department is going to release their final report on the steel industry and what’s been going on there.  They have been working on it for quite some period of time, so it’s in draft or final drafting forms.  They will be delivering it to the White House at some point.

But the premise of that report will -- we will use that as an opportunity to talk with many of our trading partners around the world.  What’s going on in steel -- I mentioned steel in my remarks specifically, because if you look at the G7 communiqué, there has been consensus among our G7 allies that there is overcapacity and there’s dumping in steel.  So I think there’s uniformed consensus among all of our G7 allies that we do need to deal with the steel problem specifically.

On LNG, what the President is committed to do is the President is committed to have a deregulated environment here in the United States where LNG facilities can get licensed, we can license more pipeline systems so we can be in the business of exporting LNG.  It’s not the President’s job to broker LNG supply contracts.  It’s the President’s job to make sure that the U.S. authorizes facilities to be built in the United States because they need federal approval.  And then once those facilities are built, hopefully those facilities enter into long-term supply contracts around the world.  Because, uniquely, the rest of the world needs something we have, which is our huge supply of LNG.

Eamon, in the back. 

Q    Thanks, Gary.  If you could, could you give us your sense of the state of the relationship between the United States and Germany right now?  We’ve had a couple of smallish flash points recently.  We see reports that Chancellor Merkel might be preparing to press the U.S. on Paris.  We see this moment where Secretary Ross was cut off in mid-speech.  How do you see the relationship right now between the United States and Germany?

GENERAL MCMASTER:  Okay, the relationship with Germany is as strong as ever.  And, of course, there are going to be differences in relations with any country, and we’ll talk frankly about those differences.  The President enjoys those conversations.

But what we should remember about a relationship with Germany and other allies is that we agree on 95 -- at least -- percent of the key issues, and we’re cooperating every day on those issues.  That cooperation, I think, is stronger than ever, and really our common concerns in security in economic development -- in our relationships economically.

So I think that -- to answer your question, the relationship is as strong as ever.

Q    Do you see that as a snub of Secretary Ross?

Q    Yes.  In terms of --

MR. COHN:  We’ll get you next.

GENERAL MCMASTER:  We’ll get you next.  Go ahead, sir.

MR. COHN:  Go ahead.

Q    So in terms of the North Korean question, what more do you think that the President and this administration can do to pressure China?  It seems like you have come to the point where you’re realizing that China is not going to do more without more coercion, so what more can you do on that front? 

And then a second question, with regards to Russia:  Do you feel like the President is taking seriously the question of Russian meddling in the 2016 election?  And do you think -- and what has he done to actually address that issue, which a number of senior U.S. officials have raised as a threat on U.S. democracy?

GENERAL MCMASTER:  So, first of all, on North Korea and China’s relationship with us and with others and working on the North Korea problem -- there are really three key things that came out of the Mar-a-Lago summit that I think are critical for us to build on.

It shouldn’t really be about pressuring China, it should be about working with China in our common interests.  The first big thing that came out of Mar-a-Lago was a recognition that a nuclear-armed North Korea with long-range missile capabilities is a threat not only to the United States, not only to South Korea and Japan, but also to China.  And there was clear acknowledgement by both parties, the United States and in China on that. 

The second is a recognition that while China’s political influence with the regime might be limited, that they have tremendous coercive power in connection with the economic relationship and the trade relationships with North Korea.  So China acknowledged that there is a lot that they can do in connection with convincing the North Korean regime that it’s in their interest to denuclearize. 

And the third is critical -- is that we agreed on a joint objective of denuclearization of the Peninsula.  That’s a solid basis to work together on.  There’s a lot more to be done, however.  The President has told all of us -- he has said that he will not tolerate a North Korean regime that can target the United States, that can reach the United States with a nuclear weapon.  He just won’t tolerate it. 

So what we have is a commitment to deliver to him a broad range of options and to do our best to work with everyone, including China, on this.  So it’s not a question of pressuring China.  It’s a question of working with China to do more about this problem so it doesn’t get to everybody wants to avoid.

Q    Are we doing enough?

GENERAL MCMASTER:  Well, I mean, none of us are doing enough.  I don’t think China is doing enough now because the problem is not resolved.  So the question is, how much more must we do together to address this, short of a military solution.  So that’s the kind of discussions that we’ll continue to have with Chinese leadership as we work together with them -- not pressuring them -- but working with them.

On the second point on Russia.  The President has asked us to work together across all departments and agencies to do, really, three things:  to confront Russia’s destabilizing behavior -- whether it’s cyber threats, whether it’s political subversion here in Europe and elsewhere -- in the Balkans now.  So confront Russia’s destabilizing behavior and to come up with a strategy to do that.

The second is to deter Russia, right?  Because the worse thing -- nobody wants a major power war, right?  And so what is it that we have to put in place to be able to deter conflict.

And then the third thing is to foster areas of cooperation.  What are the areas that we can identify in which we can work together with Russia, which is clearly in both of our interests?  And there are a lot of problems in the world that fall into that category.  North Korea, for example, is one of them; the fight against transnational terrorist organizations is another.  So the need to deescalate the Syrian civil war, to defeat ISIS there, and to end that humanitarian catastrophe. 

And so these are areas of discussion, again being led extremely well by Secretary of State Tillerson, and that will continue to be the focus of our Russia policy and strategy. 

Q    Okay, thank you, sir.  You mentioned that the President will be speaking with the President of Poland.  Will he also meet with other leaders of Polish political scene?  And this speech in Warsaw is really highly anticipated.  So what is the main message the President wants to deliver to the people of Poland?

GENERAL MCMASTER:  Yeah, the main message is that America is with you, America understands that its interests align with the interests of the Polish people, and we are determined to do our best to work together on our common priorities and our common interests. 

Across the three areas -- the three main themes that I mentioned at the beginning -- which is, first, to protect our security -- this is Polish security, American security, our common security; to promote prosperity in terms of economic growth and development, and economic growth and development in a way that protects the environment, that advances our interests in the economic energy realm.  And the third is to provide American leadership -- American leadership to help connect Poland broadly, to keep Poland connected to what they fought for for so long, which is to be part of Europe.  And for American leadership to be associated with the Polish-American relationship, the American-European relationship, and transatlantic relations generally. 

MR. COHN:  And, yes, he’s speaking to other Polish leaders.  I’ve got to run to Energy Week.  I’m on a panel at 2:00.  I can take one last question.

Right there.

Q    Thank you, Mr. Cohn. 

MR. COHN:  You're welcome, sir.

Q    Very quickly, is the IMF going to come up at all when the meeting is held?  During the IMF World Bank meeting earlier this year there was considerable discussion that there’s been nothing said from the administration about the IMF and whether the U.S. would continue the same policy which directly connects us to the bailout in Greece.

MR. COHN:  Look, I don’t think the IMF directly will come up during the G20.  The IMF will be there.  They’re one of the participants at the G20.  That said, I’m having discussions with IMF leadership, and we’ve got very amicable discussions with IMF going on. 

Q    Madam Lagarde?

MR. COHN:  Yes.  Okay, thank you, everyone.

GENERAL MCMASTER:  Thanks, everybody.
 
END
1:48 P.M. EDT

The Declaration of war by France and the United Kingdom was given on 3 September 1939, after German forces invaded Poland. Despite the speech being the official announcement of both France and the United Kingdom, the speech was given by the British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, in Westminster, London.