Read the full transcript of US President Joe Biden’s final address to UN General Assembly 2024 on September 24.
Listen to the audio version here:
TRANSCRIPT:
PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: My fellow leaders, today is the fourth time I’ve had the great honor of speaking to this Assembly as President of the United States. It will be my last. I’ve seen a remarkable sweep of history. I was first elected to the office of the United States of America’s U.S. senator in 1972. Now, I know I look like I’m only 40. I know that. I was 29 years old.
Back then, we were living through an inflection point, a moment of tension and uncertainty. The world was divided by the Cold War. Middle East was headed toward war. America was at war in Vietnam at that point, the longest war in America’s history. Our country was divided and angry. There were questions about our staying power and our future.
But even then, I entered public life not out of despair, but out of optimism. The United States and the world got through that moment. It wasn’t easy or simple without significant setbacks. But we went on to reduce the threat of nuclear weapons through arms control and then go on to bring the Cold War itself to an end. Israel and Egypt went to war, but then forged a historic peace. We ended the war in Vietnam. The last year in Hanoi, I was met with Vietnamese leadership.
We elevated our partnership to the highest level. It’s a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and the capacity for reconciliation. But today, the United States and Vietnam are partners and friends. As proof, even from the horrors of war, there’s a way forward. Things can get better.
A Career of Progress
I’ve seen that throughout my career. In the 1980s, I spoke out against apartheid in South Africa. And then I watched the racist regime fall. In the 1990s, I worked to hold Milosevic accountable for war crimes. He was held accountable. At home, I wrote and passed the Violence Against Women Act to end the scourge of violence against women and girls, not only in America, but across the world, as many of you have as well.
But we have so much more to do, especially against rape and sexual violence as weapons of war and terror. We were attacked on 9/11 by al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden. We brought him justice. Then I came to the presidency in another moment of crisis and uncertainty.
I believed America had to look forward. New challenges, new threats, new opportunities were in front of us. We needed to put ourselves in a position to see the threats, to deal with the challenges, and to seize the opportunities as well. We needed to end the era of war that began on 9/11.
Ending America’s Longest War
As Vice President to President Obama, he asked me to work to wind down the military operations in Iraq. And we did, painful as it was. When I came to office as president, Afghanistan had replaced Vietnam as America’s longest war. I was determined to end it, and I did.
It was a hard decision, but the right decision. Four American presidents had faced that decision, but I was determined not to leave it to the fifth. It was a decision accompanied by tragedy. Thirteen brave Americans lost their lives along with hundreds of Afghans in a suicide bomb. I think of those lost lives, I think of them every day. I think of all the 2,461 U.S. military deaths over a long 20 years of that war. 20,744 American servicemen wounded in action.
I think of their service, their sacrifice, and their heroism. I know other countries lost their own men and women fighting alongside us. We honor their sacrifices as well. To face the future, I was also determined to rebuild my country’s alliance and the partnerships to a level not previously seen. We did. We did just that, from traditional treaty alliances to new partnerships like the Quad with the United States, Japan, Australia, and India.
Hope in the Face of Challenges
I know many look at the world today and see difficulties and react with despair, but I do not. I won’t. As leaders, we don’t have the luxury. I recognize the challenges from Ukraine to Gaza to Sudan and beyond. War, hunger, terrorism, brutality, record displacement of people, the climate crisis, democracy at risk, strangeness in our societies, the promise of artificial intelligence and its significant risk. The list goes on.
But maybe because of all I’ve seen and all we have done together over the decades, I have hope. I know there is a way forward. In 1919, the Irish poet William Butler Yeats described a world, and I quote, “Things fall apart, the center cannot hold. Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world.” Some may say those words describe the world not just in 1919, but in 2024. But I see a critical distinction. In our time, the center has held.
Leaders and people from every region and across the political spectrum have stood together, turned the page. We turned the page on the worst pandemic in a century. We made sure COVID no longer controls our lives. We defended the UN Charter and ensured the survival of Ukraine as a free nation. My country made the largest investment in climate, clean energy ever anywhere in history.
The Path Forward
There will always be forces that pull our countries apart and the world apart. Aggression, extremism, chaos and cynicism. Desire to retreat from the world and go it alone. Our task, our test is to make sure that the forces holding us together are stronger than those pulling us apart. That the principles of partnership that we came here each year to uphold can withstand the challenges. That the center holds once again.
My fellow leaders, I truly believe we’re in another inflection point in world history. The choices we make today will determine our future for decades to come. When we stand behind the principles that unite us, we stand firm against aggression. We will end the conflicts that are raging today. We take on global challenges like climate change, hunger and disease. But we plan now for the opportunities and risks of revolutionary new technologies.
I want to talk today about each of these decisions and the actions, in my view, we must take. To start, each of us in this body has made a commitment to the principles of the UN Charter to stand up against aggression. When Russia invaded Ukraine, we could have stood by and merely protested. But Vice President Harris and I understood that that was an assault on everything this institution was supposed to stand for.
Standing with Ukraine
And so at my direction, America stepped into the breach, providing massive security and economic and humanitarian assistance. Our NATO allies and partners and 50 plus nations stood up as well. But most importantly, the Ukrainian people stood up. I asked the people of this chamber to stand up for them.
The good news is Putin’s war has failed. And he’s failed at his core aim. He set out to destroy Ukraine, but Ukraine is still free. He set out to weaken NATO, but NATO is bigger, stronger, more united than ever before with two new members, Finland and Sweden.
But we cannot let up. We all now have another choice to make. Will we sustain our support to help Ukraine win this war and preserve its freedom or walk away? Let aggression be renewed and a nation be destroyed?
I know my answer. We cannot grow weary. We cannot look away and we will not let up on our support for Ukraine. Not until Ukraine wins.
Managing Competition with China
We also need to uphold our principles as we seek to responsibly manage the competition with China so it does not veer into conflict. We stand ready to cooperate on urgent challenges for the good of our people and the people everywhere. We recently resumed cooperation with China to stop the flow of deadly synthetic narcotics. I appreciate the collaboration. It matters for the people of my country, many others around the world.
As a matter of conviction, the United States is unabashed in pushing back against unfair economic competition, against military coercion of other nations in the South China Sea. And maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits and protecting our most advanced technologies. So they cannot be used against us or any of our partners.
At the same time, we’re going to continue to strengthen our network of alliances and partnerships across the Indo-Pacific. These partnerships are not against any nation. They’re building blocks for a free, open, secure and peaceful Indo-Pacific.
Seeking Peace in the Middle East
We’re also working to bring greater measure of peace and stability to the Middle East. The world must not flinch from the horrors of October 7th. Any country, any country would have the right and responsibility to ensure that such an attack can never happen again. Thousands of armed Hamas terrorists invaded a sovereign state, slaughtering and massacring more than 1,200 people including 46 Americans in their homes and at a music festival.
Despicable acts of sexual violence. 250 innocents taken hostage. I’ve met with the families of those hostages. I’ve grieved with them. They’re going through hell. Innocent civilians in Gaza are also going through hell. Thousands and thousands killed including aid workers. Too many families dislocated, crowding in tents, facing a dire humanitarian situation. They didn’t ask for this war that Hamas started.
I put forward with Qatar and Egypt a ceasefire and hostage deal. It’s been endorsed by the U.N. Security Council. Now is the time for the parties to finalize its terms. Bring the hostages home and secure security for Israel and Gaza free of Hamas’ grip. Ease the suffering in Gaza and end this war.
Since October 7th, we’ve also been determined to prevent a wider war that engulfs the entire region. Hezbollah, unprovoked, joined the October 7th attack, launching rockets into Israel. Almost a year later, too many on each side of the Israeli-Lebanon border remain displaced. A full-scale war is not in anyone’s interest.
Even as the situation has escalated, a diplomatic solution is still possible. In fact, it remains the only path to lasting security, to allow the residents from both countries to return to their homes on the border safely. And that’s what we’re working tirelessly to achieve.
As we look ahead, we must also address the rise of violence against innocent Palestinians on the West Bank and set the conditions for a better future, including a two-state solution where Israel enjoys security and peace and full recognition and normalized relations with all its neighbors, where Palestinians live in security, dignity and self-determination in a state of their own.
Addressing Global Conflicts
Progress toward peace will put us in a stronger position to deal with the ongoing threat posed by Iran. Together, we must deny oxygen to its terrorist proxies, which have called for more October 7th and ensure that Iran will never, ever obtain a nuclear weapon.
Gaza is not the only conflict that deserves our outrage. In Sudan, a bloody civil war unleashed one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises. Eight million, eight million on the brink of famine. Hundreds of thousands already there. Atrocities are rife elsewhere. The United States has led the world in providing humanitarian aid to Sudan.
Diplomatic Efforts and Humanitarian Aid
And with our partners, we’ve led diplomatic talks to try to silence the guns and avert a wider famine. The world needs to stop arming the generals. To speak with one voice and tell them, stop tearing your country apart. Stop blocking aid to the Sudanese people. End this war now.
But people need more than the absence of war. They need a chance, a chance to live in dignity. They need to be protected from the ravages of climate change, hunger and disease.
Our administration has invested over $150 billion to make progress on other sustainable development goals. It includes $20 billion for food security, over $50 billion for global health. We’ve mobilized billions more in private sector investment. We’ve taken the most ambitious climate action in history.
Climate Action and Global Health
We moved to rejoin the Paris Agreement on day one. Today, my country is finally on track to cut emissions in half by 2030. On track to honor my pledge to quadruple climate financing to developing nations with $11 billion thus far this year. We’ve rejoined the World Health Organization, donating 700 million doses of COVID vaccine to 117 countries.
We must now move quickly to face the Mpox outbreak in Africa. We’re prepared to commit $500 million to help African countries prevent and respond to Mpox and to donate 1 million doses of Mpox vaccine now. We call on our partners to match our pledge and make this a billion-dollar commitment to the people of Africa.
Global Infrastructure and Investment
Beyond the core necessities of food and health, the United States, the G7, and our partners have embarked on an ambitious initiative to mobilize and deliver significant finance to the developing world. We’re working to help countries build out their infrastructure, to clean energy transition, to the digital transformation, to lay new economic foundations for a prosperous future. It’s called the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment. We’ve already started to see the fruits of this emerge in Southern Africa and Southeast Asia and in the Americas. We have to keep it going.
I want to get things done together. In order to do that, we must build a stronger, more effective, and more inclusive United Nations. The UN needs to adapt and bring new voices and new perspectives. That’s why we support reforming and expanding the membership of the UN Security Council.
Our UN ambassador just laid out our detailed vision to reflect today’s world, not yesterday’s. It’s time to move forward. A security council like the UN itself needs to go back to the job of making peace, of brokering deals to end wars and suffering. And to stop the spread of the most dangerous weapons, of stabilizing troubled regions from East Africa to Haiti, to a Kenya-led mission that’s working alongside the Haitian people to turn the tide.
The Future of Technology and AI
We also have a responsibility to prepare our citizens for the future. We’ll see more technological change, I argue, in the next two to ten years than we have in the last 50 years. Artificial intelligence is going to change our ways of life, our ways of work, and our ways of war. It could usher in scientific progress at a pace never seen before, and much of it could make our lives better.
But AI also brings profound risks, from deep fakes to disinformation, to novel pathogens, to bioweapons. We’ve worked at home and abroad to define the new norms and standards. This year, we achieved the first-ever General Assembly resolution on AI to start developing global rules, global rules of the road. We also announced a declaration on the responsible use of AI, joined by 60 countries in this chamber.
But let’s be honest, this is just the tip of the iceberg, what we need to do to manage this new technology. Nothing is certain about how AI will evolve or how it will be deployed. No one knows all the answers. My fellow leaders, it’s with humility I offer two questions.
First, how do we as an international community govern AI? As countries and companies race to uncertain frontiers, we need an equally urgent effort to ensure AI’s safety, security, and trustworthiness. As AI grows more powerful, it also must grow more responsive to our collective needs and values. Benefits of all must be shared equitably. It should be harnessed to narrow, not deepen, the digital divide.
Second, will we ensure that AI supports rather than undermines the core principles that human life has value and all humans deserve dignity? We must make certain that the awesome capabilities of AI will be used to uplift and empower everyday people, not to give dictators more powerful shackles on the human spirit. The years ahead, there may well be no greater test of our leadership than how we deal with AI.
Closing Remarks: The Power of “We the People”
Let me close with this. Even as we navigate so much change, one thing must not change. We must never forget who we’re here to represent, we the people. These are the first words of our Constitution, the very idea of America. They inspired the opening words of the UN Charter. I made the preservation of democracy the central cause of my presidency.
This summer, I faced a decision whether to seek a second term as president. It was a difficult decision. Being president has been the honor of my life. There’s so much more I want to get done. As much as I love the job, I love my country more. I decided after 50 years of public service, it’s time for a new generation of leadership to take my nation forward.
My fellow leaders, let us never forget, some things are more important than staying in power. It’s your people. It’s your people that matter the most. Never forget, we are here to serve the people, not the other way around.
Because the future will be won by those who unleash the full potential of their people. To breathe free, to think freely, to innovate, to educate, to live and love openly without fear. That’s the soul of democracy. It does not belong to any one country.
I’ve seen it all around the world. And the brave men and women who ended apartheid, brought down the Berlin Wall, fight today for freedom and justice and dignity. We saw that universal yearning for rights and freedom in Venezuela, where millions cast their vote for change that hadn’t been recognized. But it can’t be denied. The world knows the truth. We saw it in Uganda. LGBT activists demanding safety and recognition of their common humanity. We’ve seen citizens across the world peacefully choosing their future.
From Ghana to India to South Korea, nations representing one quarter of humanity who will hold elections this year alone. It’s remarkable the power of “We the People” that makes me more optimistic about the future than I’ve ever been. Since I was first elected to the United States Senate in 1972, every age faces challenges. I saw it as a young man. I see it today. But we are stronger than we think. We’re stronger together than alone. And what the people call impossible is just an illusion.
Nelson Mandela taught us, and I quote, “It always seems impossible until it’s done.” It always seems impossible until it’s done. My fellow leaders, there’s nothing that’s beyond our capacity if we work together. Let’s work together.
God bless you all, and may God protect all those who seek peace. Thank you.
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