security as you have done for so many decades. thank you very much. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2022] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy visit ncicap.org] >> lame, the president of the united states and the prime minister of the republic of singapore.

president biden: welcome back to the white house. i'm honored to welcome prime minister li to the white house today. and i'm proud and i mean this sincerely, really proud of the partnership that -- between singapore and the united states. it's as close and as strong as it's ever been. together we are working to uphold the world based order, international order, supporting the founding principles of the united nations and advance foot taour of the indo pacific that is both free and open. as we look toward the future, prime minister li and i share a commitmentle to ocean and its centrality in all that we do. i'm looking forward to hosting the leaders here in washington,

d.c. for a special summit this spring. we also discussed a wide range of concerns for peace and stability in the indo pacific. that includes ensuring that all nations in the region, including china, uphold the principles that enable a free and open region. singapore and the united states are both committed to freedom of navigation as well as unimpeded flow of maritime commerce in the south china sea. we shared our concerns about the democratic people's republic of korea and destabilizing ballistic missile hraufrpbs. and -- launches. which are clearly in violation of multiple u.n. council resolutions, security council resolutions. we both want tphorbg torque to refrain from further provocation answer return to the negotiation for serious and sustained diplomacy. we are deeply concerned both of us by the continuing suffering

and violence in burma, following last year's military coup. the coup that caused humanitarian crisis and reversed a decade of democratic and economic progress for the people of burma. singapore and the united states agree that the military regime must urgently implement the ocean five-point consensus and return burma to its path to democratic transition. we also discussed the war in ukraine. last week in europe, the world saw the strong unity -- unified response and resolve among the nato alliance. the g-7 and the european union to answer putin's brutal and unjustified assault on ukraine. today with the prime minister's visit and singapore's strong leadership on this issue, it's clear that putin's war is unacceptable in every region of the world. not just europe but every

region. it's an attack on the core of principles that underpin peace, security, and prosperity everywhere, including in the indo pacific. today sing gentleman pore anti-united states are united and sending the message to all nations, to all nations regardless of their size or population they are equal in their rights on the global stage. they have a right to sovereignty and territorial integrity. and to determine their own future, free from violence and intimidation. mr. prime minister, our nations cooperate closely on security and counterterrorism. we have for some time. and we have deep commercial and economic ties. we also developed deep personal ties as well i must abg tphofpblgt we'll continue to deepen our partnership. and seize the opportunities to meet the challenges of the moment and to meet them together. fighting covid-19, making sure

we are prepared for the next pandemic, increasing our climate conditions, and decarbonize the shipping sector. cooperating on everything from cybersecurity to space exploration. promoting a broad-based economic growth throughout the indo pacific. including by working together to develop an indo pacific economic framework that will drive enduring prosperity across the region. so, we have a large agenda, mr. prime minister. an important agenda. a shared vision that we are jointly pursuing. a free and open indo pacific, that is connected, prosperous, and more secure and more resilient. and the u.s. partnership is essential to realize that future. thank you again, prime minister li. i always appreciate consulting with you. as i told you, both you and singapore punch way above your weight. and i value the time we spend

together and look forward to many more meetings. the floor is yours. prime minister li: thank you, president biden. thank you for those warm remarks. president biden, ladies and gentlemen, i'd like to thank the president for the very warm welcome that i and my delegation have received. we are on the sidelines in the g-20 summit but must has changed since those few months ago. international uncertainties and crisis under score the need for countries to work together with close friends and partners. and singapore deeply appreciates america's commitment to engage southeast asia and singapore despite the ongoing crisis in ukraine. we had a very good discussion with president biden this morning. we reaffirmed a long-standing and multifaceted partnership between singapore anti-u.s. and shared commitment to a stable

rules-based global order. the u.s. has played an important and constructive role in the asia pacific for more -- for nearly 80 years. singapore has consistently support add strong u.s. presence in the region through our words and actions. we have substantial bilateral cooperation on economic defense and security issues. and also strong people to people ties. singapore's the second largest asian investor in the u.s., and the u.s. is the largest investor in singapore. singapore's investments in the u.s. and u.s. exports to singapore support over a quarter million american jobs. when the defense front singapore is a major security cooperation partner of the u.s. in fact the only country with this status. for more than 30 years we have had an m.o.u. on defense cooperation signed in 1990 and recently renewed in 2019.

which has provided the u.s. military access to singapore's air and naval bases. we are also expanding our cooperation into new areas, including cybersecurity, digital economy, sustainable development, and even space. singapore deeply appreciates president biden's leadership and strength yenning in the region. we welcome his intention to host a special summit here soon. it's a strong affirmation of american commitment to southeast asia. the president and i discussed the importance of the u.s. growing strategic and economic stakes in the asia pacific. it's important to advance a positive economic agenda that's open, inclusive, up-to-date, and flexible. we therefore welcome america's proposed indo pacific economic framework which will strengthen america's engagement in the

evolving regional economic architecture. i discussed with the president his recent sreus to the europe and the ongoing crisis in ukraine. singapore is a staunch supporter of international law and u.n. charter which prohibits acts of aggression. that's why we strongly condemn the unprovoked attack by russia on ukraine. the sovereignty and independent and territorial integrity of all countries big and small must be respected. the unpropoked military invasion of a sovereign country under any pretext is unacceptable. we cannot condone any country arguing that another country's independence is the result of historical roars -- errors and clerical decisions. i shared with president biden the measure singapore has taken to sustain russia's compass to

the conduct war against ukraine. our actions are based on principles that are fundamental to our survival and existence as an independent sovereign nation. we have upheld these principles and voted in accordance with them at the u.n. in successive crisis over many decades involving different countries. the war in ukraine has implication force the asia pacific -- implications for the arab sha pacific. there are flash points and issues in our region, too. which if not managed well could escalate to open conflict. conflicts with interests in the region need to pursue all efforts to set disagreements through peaceful means. so that we can avoid reaching a point of no return. it's important to keep open channels of dying log between countries, including at the highest level. this will help to manage development in order to avoid conflict and prevent misreading each other's intentions.

we also need to create inclusive constructs to bridge differences and encourage cooperation and interdependence in the asia pa seufpblgt for example, the apec leaders meeting and the proposed indo pacific economic framework. the u.s. has enduring strategic interest in the asia pacific, and many friends in the region who want to stay actively and consistently engaged. i'm confident within this regional context, singapore's only own relationship with the u.s. will continue to grow from strength to strength. thank you very much. president biden: thank you. now we each agreed we would take one question. as i recognize someone first. darlene, associated press. reporter: thank you, mr. president. what is your view of russia's announcement today that it will, quote, fundamentally scale back its military operations near kyiv and another northern city

in ukraine? do you see this as possibly the war beginning to come to an end? or do you see this as russia trying to bide time and recalculate pwra*eut for a new military -- recalibrate for a new military stphefrt president biden: we'll see. i don't read anything into it until we see their objections. we -- actions. we'll see with a-f they follow through. their negotiations that continue today. one in turkey and others. hi a meeting with the heads of state of four allies in nato. france, germany, the united states, and great britain. there seems to be a consensus that lit's see what they have to offer. we'll find out what they do. in the meantime, we'll continue to keep strong sanctions. we are going to continue to provide the ukrainian military with their capacity to defend themselves. and we are going to continue to keep a close eye on what's going

on. thank you. reporter: good afternoon, mr. president. good afternoon, mr. prime minister. prime minister, you advocated the benefits for the united states to develop a bipartisan consensus on asia. that asia depends upon a predictable u.s. policy towards the region. how assured are you, though, that what you have seen would ascend u.s. engagement has the ability to move the needle on shared objectives in the asia pacific towards the fundamentals that we all need to live by. peace, prosperity, and economic development and basically how well is president biden doing in this regard? prime minister loong: there is

consensus in the united states on the direction of the policy in asia pacific. they want to engage china. they are developing -- trying to develop a stable, predictable relationship with china. and at the same time engaging other countries in the region, not just on strategic and security issues, but also economic cooperation and trade and other investment and environmental and sustainability. very broad level i think the consensus is there. as a level of specific policies, each administration launches new initiatives. i'm quite convinced, having seen several administrations, that this one is completely focused on achieving something lasting in asia. we in singapore will do our best to help to make sure that proposals work and will take root and will continue to grow for many years to come.