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good afternoon, everyone. i'm ayman mohyeldin in new york. moments ago president biden landed at rafmildenhall, his first foreign trip since taking office. nbc news has just confirmed the president will make a major move in vaccinating the world against coronavirus. details from our reporters around the world straight ahead. later this hour, he'll speak to u.s. service members and their families before traveling to cornwall for the g7 summit. we'll bring you those remarks when they begin. this trip is also aimed at repairing relationships with european and world leaders that frayed under donald trump. he will also hold a high stakes meeting with russian president vladimir putin. the president talked about his expectations before he took off.

>> making clear to putin and to china that europe and the united states are tight. g7 is going to move. senate foreign relations committee chair robert menendez, and what he wants to see out of the president's first foreign trip. back here at home this all comes as the president's domestic agenda is in a precarious position at hour. he is looking for another path on infrastructure after talks with shelly moore-capito collapsed. as the republican leader says it's doom to fail. >> it has no chance of becoming law, but every indication, every intention of justifying reckless changes to the way the body actually operates. breaking news this afternoon. interior department's inspector general released a report on the

violent clearing of protests from lafayette square from the white house last june to clear the way for donald trump's controversial photo-op. we start this hour with the president's first foreign trip. and andrea mitchell is in falmouth, england, where the g7 will take place. also with us raf sanchez at raf mildenhall, where the president will arrive a short time from now. andrea, you just arrived in cornwall. nbc news has just learned that against the backdrop of this g7 summit, 500 million doses it has acquired for the world. tell us about the stakes of this summit and this trip. >> reporter: the stakes are so high. this is joe biden's first foreign trip. obviously, he's trying to draw a

very sharp contrast with his predecessor, donald trump. is he coming to the g7 and, of course, nato, following that the geneva summit with vladimir putin, trying to show an embrace of the atlantic alliance, the global alliance, that america is back and wants to be a world leader. hence the delivery of the covid doses as well. so, he's trying to cement all these alliances, but, of course, overshadowing all of this is this summit with vladimir putin. he could have met vladimir putin on the sidelines of upcoming g20s and other meetings. it's a risky bet of inviting putin to a summit. putin accepted. he wants to strike a hard line against putin but also show that the u.s. can engage on arms control and other issues, on iran, climate change with russia, but so far since the summit invitation, putin showed no indication to back off. to the contrary, you saw winds,

hacking of the ransomware by colonial pipeline by russian-based hackers. putin will say he has no responsibility for them. nothing happens in russia without vladimir putin's say-so even if it's not specifically from the government. also, of course, posture against ukraine. now a new threat, more recent threat to close down the last humanitarian crossroads from turkey into syria. but by vetoing an extension to the u.n. next month. a lot of things to be dealt w all of this is on the president's plate. he has to figure out how to deal with this guy, vladimir putin, who has very little to risk here. it's really joe biden to show the posture, that he's different from trump, that he can stand up to putin and try to bring back something, bring back some concessions, some indication of how to go forward with russia. >> andrea, no doubt that president biden is one of the

most experienced foreign policy presidents this country has had, given his previous years as the senate foreign relations chair as well as the vice president in dealing with so many of these issues. has the administration outlined realistic objectives in terms of what success looks like? what would they be happy with, not just on the summit with vladimir putin, but walking way from the g7 summit, walking away from the bipartisan -- excuse me, the bilateral relationships with our european allies? >> reporter: not really other than re-engaging. re-engaging with the world and not being donald trump, who was so disdainful of nato, of the g7 and who was dismissive of working globally on the world stage. that said, what he needs to do is show that he is strong against putin and show that he can deal with this and not have putin, you know, try to grandstand by, for instance,

bringing up, what about this, what about that? what about january 6th, when joe biden tries to say this is about democracy versus autocracy, which is their theme, putin will say what about what happened to george floyd? biden has to defend american interests and not let putin get away with that but not let putin spin this against the u.s. almost any other vice president, he not only knows foreign policy from being chairman of the foreign relations committee, he knows a lot of these countries around russia, mordava, ukraine certainly. that was his account. he knows all of those things. he did have a conversation with president zelensky of ukraine, just before getting ready to leave for the summit. zelensky has long wanted a one-on-one in the oval office. he's not getting that until

after putin. that was a disappointment for zelensky and the ukrainian government. certainly the president, president biden will be defending ukraine's interest as the secretary of state tony blinken did in ukraine when i was there last month, that russia cannot continue to threaten ukraine, as it continues to do on the border, taking some troops out but not all the troops. approximate again not being even invited to this meeting as a nearby neighbor to nato countries. that invitation was not forthcoming. a lot of countries around russia have a big interest. one other quick thing. there is a division among the allies. the most important european partner certainly has a huge interest in this because of the pipeline and president biden has backed down on waiving some sanctions, which is

controversial back home. that's a tricky issue. he doesn't want to offend germany and doesn't want to be soft against russia. lot at stake here. >> yeah. >> as he arrives in mildenhall, major refueling base for us. this is a very big deal for joe biden. >> and we will cross over now to mildenhall and bring in raf sanchez into the conversation. symbolism and the backdrop of where you are certainly not lost on american allies. to andrea's point about the message the president is trying to deliver our allies, talk to us about raf mildenhall, its significance to the u.s. military, bilateral relationship with the uk and what we can expect to hear and see from the president while he is there. >> yeah. ayman, this base is a key part of the u.s. military's global infrastructure. it has been since the second world war through the cold war to today. it's home to the 100th air refueling wing. this is a unit that keeps

american and allied warplanes in the air, in the skies above europe. so when president biden talks about deterring russian aggression in ukraine and in europe, it is often warplanes that are supported by aircraft from this base that are doing those patrols. now we saw a flurry of activity here on the base just after air force one. you can see humvees moving around. this base is home to 16,000 u.s. military personnel. and president biden is going to be speaking to some of them in the next 45 minutes or so. we know, of course, the president has a close relationship with military families. his son, beau, served in the united states military. he will be talking to personnel here, and then he's only going to be at this base for a couple of hours before he is flying off to cornwall in the southwest of england, where andrea is and will be getting ready for the g7

summit this weekend. his first bilateral meeting with prime minister boris johnson of the uk. britain, of course, a longstanding traditional u.s. ally. that meeting has the potential to be kind of interesting, because prime minister johnson was, in many ways, close to president trump. president biden, back when he was on the campaign trail, describes the prime minister as the physical and emotional clone of the former president, but that is going to be his first face-to-face meeting with a foreign leader overseas, and it will be part of this team of showing the world in his phrase that america is back, once again committed to multilateralism and will be the first step in the president's self-set goal to try to reinvigorate the world's democracy, show that they can deliver for their people at home and stand up to authoritarian regimes abroad. ayman? >> and perhaps a sign we're still waiting for the president

for a few more minutes. we see the troops there at raf mildenhall at ease after stand ing at attention. senator bob menendez is chair of the foreign relations committee and chair of the banking and finance committee. thank you for your time. lots to discuss here as we see this. urging the biden administration to hold russian president vladimir putin accountable for a litany of actions. you recommended imposing new sanctions, calling out russia's increased aggression in cyber space and annexation of crimea. is it possible to secure a more cooperative relationship in one meeting or do they need a course

correction here? >> i think it will take more than one meeting but we set the tone with this meeting. i hope the president will set the tone with this meeting. the reality is that i finished meeting with alexey navalny's representative visiting in washington. one point i made in my speech which is that every time president putin sees an overtur, let's build a new bridge, he sees its a sign of weakness and the only thing he really appreciates and understands is strength. and so, therefore, we already have a history -- i understand president biden's desire to have a predictable, stable relationship. that is desirable. it's desirable for every place in the world. but a predictable and stable relationship with president putin has to start off with understanding that you don't have -- it's not predictable and stable when you use chemical weapons to kill your opponents. it's not predictable and stable when you go into a country and take over part of his territory

in violation of international law. it's not predictable and stable when you have mass arrests of individuals who are simply protesting. in the history that we have. you start from there. if we start from there and if you send strength as a message, then we can change the course. >> speaking of alexey navalny, you have passed new sanctions on putin. do you think the white house will pass these sanctions for what they have done to alexey navalny? >> i believe they will. i believe the law calls for it. not discretion but calls for it i believe the president may have when would prior to his visit with putin to use it as part of his message to putin but i believe it will take place. it's part of the law in terms of chemical weapons attack, when

the perpetrator determines, that those sanctions take place. i believe it will happen. >> is there a way for you, the u.s. congress, to codify the relationship in a way that it's not vulnerable to another president trump that has frayed by european assessment the relationship, that transatlantic relationship? what should be done to make sure that that alliance is not vulnerable to another america first leader in the future. >> that's a great question. we've been thinking about it. the one thing we believe that we can do to send an absolute guarantee is that for any president to withdraw from nato, you would have to get a vote of congress. congress voted to enter the north atlantic treaty organization as a treaty. it voted for that. if any president would want to withdraw from nato, it should take congress' act as well. that would be an incredible

reassurance to the europeans. of course then we need to build upon other elements of our transatlantic alliance. and we're doing that in a parliamentary way, joining with my counterparts in great britain and other parts of europe in a way that we haven't seen in years, to build that foundation. >> let me stay on europe for one more question before we transition to a few other topics. today you met with opposition leader who has obviously given what has happened in belarus with the forced downing of that plane carrying the dissident, has really given debate about what the united states should be doing in a situation like this. how does the u.s. respond to affronts, to the rule of u.s. law with the downing of this plane without becoming the world police? what response do you think is appropriate and necessary here?

>> well, lukashenko and those who surround him, as in the case of putin, they have their oligarchs, their cronies. we can get access to their money. we can have visa denials. we can work with the european union and strongly acting against lukashenko and it should be a coordinated process. but, you know, it is not about being the world police. but it is upholding the law. it is upholding norms. it is ultimately, as you say, as the biden administration has said, we will promote human rights and democracy as a pillar of our foreign policy. these are the ultimate affronts to human rights and democracy. what's happening to journalists inside belarus is appalling. >> yeah. >> we've had not only, you know,

the main opponent do the regime but we also had radio free europe and radio liberty with us today at the hearing and what their journalists are going through, like i said, we have to send a clear message there are consequences for that. >> turning to the middle east for a moment. the u.s. and obviously the u.n., and this administration specific chi, they've spoken out forcefully against the forced expulsion of palestinians from their homes in east jerusalem and want to prevent those evictions. what could you do? what should this administration do to prevent the eviction of palestinians from their homes in east jerusalem? would you, as chair of the senate committee be there on compliance with both u.s. and international human rights law? >> well, we're going to have, i think, a new administration in israel. the first thing we should be

doing is entering into a direct conversation with them about this particular issue. and how this new administration intends to pursue the situation of the palestinian citizens living in east jerusalem. i think that's the beginning of a conversation. i'm generally not for conditioning our assistance to the state of israel, but i also believe that you can have robust diplomacy and have them understand how important this issue is. and that, in fact, they would be well served as well as the rights of palestinians living within israel afforded the same rights as any other israeli citizen. >> let me ask you about china. theory tha covid-19 may have been born out of a lab leak has gotten a lot of mainstream traction, as you know. how should the u.s. respond if that theory does turn out to be

true? what if the intelligence review requested by the biden administration finds that china concealed details about the lab leak? >> well, first of all, we have to determine was the lab leak something that was done because they intended to use it for some type of biological warfare? secondly, was it accidental? and then thirdly, if they concealed it, for example, at the world health organization, we have to question china's ability, if that took place. so multilateral forums where china is situated and is degraded because of those actions if that's what we find. then we have to think about what

other actions we would take against xi jinping as a result of the consequences of loss of life throughout the world. >> thank you so much for coming back on the program. >> good to be here. we are keeping our eye on raf mildenhall in england where the president and first lady are meeting with u.s. troops and their families. the president will be speaking there any minute now. we'll take you there live as soon as it ges under way. live s soon as it gets under way. don't wait to see your doctor. these could be symptoms of deep vein thrombosis, a blood clot which could travel to your lungs and lead to a pulmonary embolism. which could cause chest pain or discomfort, or difficulty breathing—and be deadly. your symptoms could mean something serious, so this is no time to wait. talk to a doctor right away, by phone, online, or in-person. hearing is important to living life to the fullest.

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>> after negotiations with shelly moore-capito collapsed, hopes now rest with a small group of senators from both parties. one of them west virginia democrat joe manchin. he told my colleague, garrett haake, that he is still optimistic about an agreement. watch. >> they had a good meeting last night. it was productive. it was three hours long. and her input was invaluable. >> reporter: are you confident that leader schumer would support any agreement y'all come to? >> new york i have not had any conversations. >> reporter: if this doesn't work, would you be willing to go it alone with a democrat-only option? >> i never give up. never give up. >> leighann caldwell and

punchbowl news and msnbc contributor. getting frustrated with ongoing negotiations over infrastructure that simply aren't going anywhere. new york congresswoman alexandria ocasio-cortez tweeted out president biden and senate democrats should step back and ask themselves if playing pattycake is really worth dismantling voting rights, allowing massive corporations and the wealthy not to pay their fair share of taxes, et cetera. if president biden can't reach a deal in talks with one republican senator, should we be optimistic that this small group of senators, 20 or so, would be able to save the day?

>> i'm pretty nopt optimistic i guess. there are ten, 20 senators meeting at some point. senator mitch mcconnell talking about how he's in a watch mode right now, this is not as if these lawmakers come together on an agreement that it means you'll find agreement among many of the other republicans that aren't part of this group. so i throw a little cold water here much they're continuing the conversations. talking is good. that means basically, though, that chuck schumer doesn't have the votes on his own and so as much as i think a lot of democrats, you see that tweet by aoc, who is trying to push pressure on democrats to move, go it alone, at this point, they don't have the votes. they don't have senator joe manchin saying okay, i'm willing to go it with just democrats

only. >> speaking of joe manchin, today a number of democratic senators joined with activists in front of the u.s. supreme court to push for the senate to pass the for the people act to protect voting rights. that's the bill manchin said earlier this week he could not support. we met earlier in the week with civil rights leaders to discuss the bill. he still hasn't changed his mind on this. you spoke to the lawmakers who attended this event. how are they trying to get joe manchin over to their side? >> yeah, ayman. there's an entire rally put on to try to convince senator joe manchin. that wasn't the only reason but that was a big reason, to put public pressure on the issue and subsequently on senator joe manchin. now, one of the people who did speak at that rally, senator raphael warnock of georgia, i asked him as you mentioned, what is his message to joe manchin? how are you trying to change his mind? listen to what he had to say. >> i talked to joe manchin as a

colleague. and not only him but other members of the caucus, and we're having important and productive conversations on both sides of the aisle. there will be some back and forth, some sausage making, but in the end, if the people can't have their voice in a democracy, it's not a democracy. and i'm not about to allow that to happen in our country without a fight. >> one of the things that democrats are trying to do is figure out what exactly they can change in the legislation to get senator joe manchin on board, something that senator manchin hasn't been clear about. the only thing he has really cited for his opposition is the fact that it is partisan legislation. there's no republicans supporting it. it's clear, though, that it's going to be very slim chances to get any republican to back this legislation. so that's the threshold for manchin. i don't see him coming around any time soon. >> let me ask you, leighann,

quickly about a couple of big issues. you have gun control and police reform. bring us up to speed on both of those. >> two bipartisan talks happening and two going in opposite directions. let's talk first about the bad news. gun reform legislation and talks. those seem to have broken down at this point, talks between senator chris murphy and senator jon cornyn on expanding the universe of people who have to receive background checks to purchase guns have fallen apart. senator cornyn told me they haven't talked in the past couple of weeks. they couldn't come to any sort of meaningful compromise. on the better news, there's police reform, where sources are telling me that they have reached mostly an agreement on this idea of qualified immunity, one of the biggest sticking points. i'm also told recently that they're circulating texts of the legislation. so those are two very, very positive signs to reaching a big

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welcome back, everyone. i want to cross over to raf mildenhall where the first lady and president have just been introduced. let's take a listen. ♪♪ >> and now, teammates, family members, please join me in welcoming to the stage the daughter of chief master sergeant and senior master sergeant miss sydney glascock, first lady jill biden and president of the united states, joe biden. ♪♪ [ hail to the chief ]

♪♪ [ hail to the chief ] >> what a warm welcome and thank you and melissa for all you've done to lead and serve at this base and congratulations on your new post at the u.s. transportation command. it's wonderful to be here at mildenhall. and for all the little kids

here, i hope you enjoyed your movie. did you? yeah? okay. you know, we're so grateful to disney and to pixar for -- who helped us find a way to celebrate you through this movie. and joe and i are always excited to visit with our troops and their families. you know, you can sit down. i don't want you to stand throughout -- >> joe, pay attention. as the daughter of a navy signalman in world war ii and mother of a major who was in the delaware army national guard and served a year in iraq, and now as your first lady, i am so proud to be here with all of

you, to begin our first overseas trip. for those of you who have served more than 20 years to the youngest military kids that i see in the crowd, you are our ambassadors to the world. and thank you for representing us with dignity and pride. our military families may not wear a uniform, but you are as crucial to our military as radar is to a fighter jet. in the united states, we have an all-volunteer force, and it continues only because generations of americans see the honor, dignity and patriotism of military service. when you serve, your families serve, too. that's why supporting the physical, social and emotional

health of our military families is a national security imperative. and the leadership here at mildenhall understands this, too. in preparation for our visit, colonel panagnon wrote this about you, and i quote. you may be familiar with the term military dependence, but i will tell you over the past 15 months, it became abundantly clear just who exactly was dpent depending on whom. our military families already versed in sacrifice are the true, unsung heroes. end quote. [ applause ]

and the colonel is right. you are heroes. and your commander in chief and i believe that as well. and that's why supporting you is so personal to us, and one of my top priorities. through our white house initiative to support military families called joining forces, we're going to work on military spouse employment and entrepreneurship, make sure that you can get quality child care when you need it, and provide the education that your children deserve. finally, no one has more strength and grit and resilience than our military families.

but you can't do this alone. we have to help you carry this weight by improving access to mental health resources, ensuring everyone could put food on the table and supporting caregiving families and survivors. joining forces will expect every government agency to step up and be part of this effort. we are going to make sure that the families of our service members and veterans, caregivers and survivors have what they need to survive, to thrive. our military is a community bound together by love. love for our country. love for the men and women who serve beside you. your husbands and wives, your moms and dads. and love for the communities that you build together.

and it's our obligation to match that. may god bless our troops and their families. i'm excited to announce our next speaker, someone who understands what it means to be part of a military family, sydney glascock. sydney, i know growing up as the child of two service members comes with challenges, but it's also helped you to become the person you are today, someone with a broad and beautiful perspective of the world, who is able to weather change and uncertainty. i hope that you know how special

you are. and we're so grateful for you and your family's service. so, sydney? [ applause ] >> thank you, dr. biden, for the introduction, all the support you've shown for our families and your maying words tonight. let's give her another round of applause. [ applause ] >> good evening, i'm sydney glascock. i can appreciate what the words military family really mean with both my parents serving in the military, my mom as a command chief and my dad currently

deployed i understand it involve s more than just my family unit but rather everyone in this room. even if those of us here tonight don't share the same last name or blood line we always step up for one another the any given time. that's what makes each of you so special. that's what defines us as a military family. and that's what makes me incredibly proud to share this community with our next guest. ladies and gentlemen, let us welcome our commander in chief, the president of the united states, joe biden. [ cheers and applause ] >> hello, mildenhall.

colonel thank you for that introduction and your service in leading this team at such a difficult time. we know it's the whole family that serves. i also want to thank melissa. i know your next assignment as u.s. transportation command starts soon. so, congratulations and thank you thank you, thank you. sydney, you're 14 years old. when i was 14 if you it shall please, at ease. i keep forgetting, i'm president. when i was 14 years old, i would have been -- i mean this sincerely, scared to death to stand up in front of a microphone in front of a large crowd or small crowd. as a child i used to stutter, for real. i had great difficulty speaking in front of people. so i expect that when you're

president, you'll remember me. you'll remember me. you're really quite a polished young woman. thank you. i know it's got to be hard to have your dad deployed in afghanistan and i also know how proud you are of him, and your mom, chief master sergeant for being part of the leadership team here. our son, beau, served as a u.s. attorney for a while in kosovo for a while. matter of fact, they erected a war monument for him. he went on, attended the national guard, gave up his job as attorney general in the state of delaware to go with his unit to iraq for a year. he got promoted to major. i said, beau, you're now a field grade officer. in iraq and afghanistan about 28 times. i said you are now a field grade officer. he said dad, i have no illusions. i know who runs the military,

chief master sergeants. so i want you to know, we know. >> thank you for your incredible dedication to service. i want to thank all of you, all your families for the sacrifices they've made. congratulations there's a proud history at this base. the royal air force pilots fighting to defend their nation. i'm sure everyone here knows the history just six hours after britain and france declared war on germany, three bombers took off from mildenhall and bombed nazi battleships. over the course of world war ii, this base raf, bombers dropped nearly 28,000 tons of bombs on

nazi, germany, flying more than 8,000. this base has been a significant source of british air power. a proud, proud history of a proud nation. there's also an awful lot of american pride in this air force tonight. world war ii is when the air force formed the 100th bombardment group. by the way, just so you know, my uncle, who has killed in world war ii in new guinea, was the army air corps. he got shot down in reconnaissance fight. and he's looking down, thinking all these years, my god, what this air force has become is incredible. the 100th already ran more than 8,000 in the territory and supported operations from d-day to the battle of the bulge where another uncle mine served. and when they first arrived in

'43, the unit took such heavy losses it earned the moniker that has been passed down to this day, the bloody hundredth. the bloody hundredth. let me hear it for the 100th refueling wing known as the bloody hundredth. [ cheers and applause ] and what about 352nd special operations wing? [ cheers and applause ] team reconnaissance. members of the air mobility command. do we have any folks here from the 48th wing raf? [ cheers and applause ] by the way, the 501st support wing from raf. [ cheers and applause ] and this may be an historic

first from an air force base but i hear there just might be a few members from the united states army here with us. [ cheers and applause ] come on, man. for all of you airmen and soldiers, i want to say thank you. we owe you. we're so damn proud of you. so proud. and i only wish my major was here to thank you, as well. thank you for everything you do, for everything you are. there's nothing that jill and i enjoy more than spending time with our troops and families wherever we go in the world. i was in afghanistan and iraq well over 27, 28 times. i think jill's the only second lady in american history that gone into a war zone, into baghdad with me, as well. you're the best, you're did best of our country. that's not hyperbole.

you are the ones that sign up and run toward danger when duty calls. less than 10% of americans make the choice that you make. that you made. but the rest of us, the 99% owe you. we owe you big. i've long said that as a nation we have many only gases but we only have one truly sacred obligation. only one. and that's to properly prepare and equip the men and women we send into harm's way and to care for you and families when you are deployed and home. and now as your commander in chief i believe that even more strongly. i want to giver an extra special thank you to all the families. as you heard from jill, we bidens are a proud military family. we know there's not just the person that wears the uniform who serves.

the whole family has to step up. the whole family makes sacrifices. there's a family poet that said they only serve and wait. i watched beau in kosovo and that year he was in iraq. she would stand at that sink leaving for sink drinking the coffee and see the lips move hoping you never got that phone call. and that's even more true this past year in the lockdowns and saferty precautions. to curb the spread of covid-19. everyone in this room knows that the military families are essential, essential to our strength. it's the key reason jill relaunched joining forces to make sure we are doing everything with ek to support the military spouses and children and their mothers and fathers, as well. just like they support all of

you. you not only did an amazing job keeping covid-19 under control on the base you took care of each other and mental health throughout the initiatives like your spouse to spouse connection and the wellness advocacy team. thank you! thank you. as you all know this is a team sport. my mother killed me if she was here. joe, i should turn around and apologize for my back to you. folks, thousands of hours spent volunteering to make sure everyone got through this. was so important. i know that the last 15 months added a lot of new pressure but all of you rose to the task together as one team.

a team mildenhall. and you never let up. on your mission. i'm so proud to be here with all of you to kick off my first overseas trip as president. ichb here in many times. i visited well over 100 countries as vice president or chairman of the foreign relations committee. i'm heading to the g7 and then the nato ministerial and meeting with mr. putin to let him know what i want him to know. and -- at every tonight along the way we're going to make it clear that the united states is back and democracies of the world are standing together to tackle the toughest challenges and the issues that matter most

to our future, that we are committed to leading with strength, defending our values and delivering for our people. america's better positioned to advance the national security and economic prosperity when we bring together like minded nations to stand with us. these nations that have shed blood alongside of us in defense of our shared values. our unrivaled network of alliances and partnerships that are the key to american advantage in the world and have been. they've made the world safer for all of us. and they are how we are going to meet the challenges of today which are changing rapidly. we're going to meet it from a position of strength. our alliances weren't built by coercion or maintained by threats. it's a shared vision of the

future and where every voice matters. where the rights -- where the rights of all people are protected. it's the same reason so many of you signed up to serve. proudly defend and honor the democratic values that are the well-spring of our national strength. if our british friends will excuse me quoting the declaration of independence, america is unique in all the world. in that we are not formed based on geography or ethnicity or religion. but on an idea, an idea. the only nation in the world founded on the notion of an idea. we hold these truths to be self every dent that all men and women are created equal. endowed by they should creator

will certain inail enable rights including life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. we mean it. no nation can defeat us as long as we stick to our values why it is our american creed. it's what makes us who we are. and what draws friends and partners to our side. and for hundreds of years american patriots have fought and sometimes died defending those values. folks, look. i'm auburn quoted by the prez as saying america leads not by the example of its power but by the power of our example. all of you are service members stationed around the world. you are the solid steel spine of america. around which alliances are built and strengthened year after year. these partnerships have hardened and have been hardened in the

fire of war. and generations of americans and service members who fought them. like the original bloody 100th and the rfa pilots and the shared mission to world war ii flying, fighting, winning. it's done together. these bonds of history and shared sacrifice run deep and are strong based on values. and they endure. the connections and comradery between our troops, this community of american citizens, stationed in the uk, u.s. visiting forces and families, 20,000 strong. are not only warriors. you're diplomats. and you're bridge builders. you are the essential part of what makes up this special relationship between great britain and the united states. over the next few days as i said

i'll be participating in meetings with many of the closest partners at the g7 in cornwall. and then on to brussels and nato summit. of the eu and the summit. this diplomacy is essential because no single nation acting alone can meet all the challenges we face tofd because the world is changing. another irish poet said the world changed, utterly. a terrible beauty is born. we are in a different place than ten years ago. better positioned but a different place. we have to build the shared future we seek. a future the nations are free from coercion, dominance by more powerful states. where the global commons, the seas, the air, the space and space, will remain open and accessible for the benefit of all. to tackle the century's most

pressing challenges we have to do it together. we have to end covid-19 not just at home which we are doing but everywhere. there's no wall high enough to keep us safe from this pandemic or the next biological threat we face. it requires coordinated multilateral action. we must all commit to an ambitious climate action if we're going to prevent the worst impacts of climate change and limit global warming no more than 1.5 degrees celsius and lead the global transition to clean energy technology. when i went over in the tank in the pentagon first elected vice president, with president obama, military sat us down to let us know what the greatest threats facing america were, the greatest physical threats why this is not a joke. you know what the joint chiefs told us the greatest threat facing america was? global