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U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan Holds Press Conference. Aired 3-3:30p ET

Aired December 07, 2021 - 15:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[15:00:02]

VICTOR BLACKWELL, CNN HOST: In Honolulu, a record-setting close to eight inches of rainfall was recorded. Low elevation spots are seeing extreme runoff, and landslides are expected. Look at this.

Hawaii's governor declared a state of emergency to prepare for potential flooding damage to property.

Today marks the 80th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. President Biden and the first lady visited the World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C., this morning to commemorate the lives lost on December 7, 1941.

ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN HOST: They observed a moment of silence, and laid a bouquet to honor Jill Biden's father, who served in the Navy during the war.

Veterans and volunteers read the names of all 2, 403 service members and civilians who were killed in the attack before a ceremony marking the exact time of that attack, that it began 80 years ago today.

CAMEROTA: It's the top of the hour. Hello, everyone. I'm Alisyn Camerota.

BLACKWELL: I'm Victor Blackwell. Good to be with you.

We're just a couple of minutes away now from the White House expected to brief reporters on President Biden's two-hour call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The White House just released this photo, also a statement that says that President Biden voiced the deep concerns of the United States and our European allies about Russia's escalation of forces surrounding Ukraine, and made clear that the U.S. and its allies would respond with strong economic and other measures in the event of military escalation.

Here's the moment that President Biden greeted President Putin.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Good to see you again.

Unfortunately, last time, I -- we didn't get to see one another at the G20. I hope, next time we meet, we do it in person. (END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMEROTA: Well, satellite images on your screen show the buildup of Russian troops along the Ukraine border. A top American general said 100,000 forces are already there.

U.S. intelligence estimates that number will expand to 175,000. And, according to sources, the Biden administration is exploring ways to evacuate Americans from Ukraine if Russia invades.

Let's bring in CNN's Phil Mattingly. He's at the White House for us. CNN's Kylie Atwood is at the State Department.

But let's start with CNN's chief national security correspondent, Jim Sciutto.

So, Jim, what details do you want to hear from the national security adviser when he talks to reporters momentarily? What questions need to be answered?

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Alisyn, the White House said that President Biden told Putin that the U.S. would bring economic and other measures if Russia were to invade.

Based on CNN's reporting, we know what those economic measures or what the range might be, for instance, economic sanctions that would keep Russian energy producers out of the debt markets. That's a big deal. Cut off Russian businesses from the SWIFT international banking system. That would have consequences, but, key, going after the billions or access to the billions of people close to Putin.

That hits. That's painful. The other measures, we don't know. We know U.S. troops are not going to fight a war against Russia and Ukraine. But did Biden say that we will send more troops to the east? That's a question.

CAMEROTA: Yes. Thanks, Jim.

Sorry to interrupt you. We see Jen Psaki taking the podium there. So, let's listen in.

(JOINED IN PROGRESS)

JEN PSAKI, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: ... take some questions, and then we will proceed with a briefing after that.

With that, I will turn it over to Jake.

JAKE SULLIVAN, U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: Thanks, Jen.

And good to see everybody here today.

As you all know, President Biden held a secured video call today with President Putin. The call covered a range of issues. But the main topic was Ukraine. President Biden was direct and straightforward with President Putin,

as he always is. He reiterated America's support for Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. He told President Putin directly that, if Russia further invades Ukraine, the United States and our European allies would respond with strong economic measures.

We would provide additional defensive materiel to the Ukrainians above and beyond that which we are already providing. And we would fortify our NATO allies on the eastern flank with additional capabilities in response to such an escalation.

He also told President Putin there's another option, de-escalation and diplomacy. The United States and our European allies would engage in a discussion that covers larger strategic issues, including our strategic concerns with Russia and Russia's strategic concerns.

We managed to do this at the height of the Cold War, and we developed mechanisms to help reduce instability and increase transparency. We have done this in the post-Cold War era through the NATO-Russia Council, the OSCE and other mechanisms. There's no reason we can't do that forward -- going forward, provided that we are operating in a context of de-escalation, rather than escalation.

The United States, as we have been for some time, is also prepared to support efforts to advance the Minsk agreement in support of the Normandy format. This could include a cease-fire and confidence- building measures that helps drive the process forward.

[15:05:05]

As I said before, the discussion between President Biden and President Putin was direct and straightforward. There was a lot of give-and- take. There was no finger-wagging, but the president was crystal clear about where the United States stands on all of these issues.

We have believed from the beginning of the administration that there's no substitute for direct dialogue between leaders, and that is true in spades when it comes to the U.S.-Russia relationship, so President Biden welcomed the opportunity to engage clearly and directly with President Putin.

Indeed, as President Biden said after his meeting in Geneva in June with President Putin: "Where we have differences, I want President Putin to understand why I say what I say and why I do what I do and how we will respond to specific kinds of actions that harm America's interests and indeed harm our allies' interests."

That's exactly what he did today.

After the call, he spoke to the leaders of France, Germany, Italy, and the U.K. to debrief them on the call and to consult on the way forward. Our team is presently debriefing embassies of NATO members, E.U. members, and key Indo-Pacific allies.

The president will be speaking shortly with the leaders of both houses of Congress and talking to them about ways in which the administration and the Congress can work together on a bipartisan basis to stand up for American interests and values and stand behind our friends and partners.

And President Biden will be speaking with President Zelensky on Thursday, following on yesterday's discussion between President Zelensky and Secretary Blinken.

In terms of next steps, the president and President Putin agreed that our teams will follow up on the issues discussed today. And the president and our Europe -- his European colleagues agreed that our teams will work together to ensure that our engagement with Russia going forward both involves and is closely coordinated with European allies and partners, so that we are all on the same page.

There's a lot of work to do in the days ahead. As we pursue diplomatic challenges, we will also prepare for all contingencies, just as we have been doing for weeks now, including through the preparation of specific responses to Russian escalation, should they be required, specific, robust, clear responses, should they be required.

That's where things stand as we speak. and with that, I would be happy to take your questions.

Yes.

QUESTION: Thank you, Jake.

Could you elaborate on what you just said about fortifying allies on the eastern flank there? Is sending U.S. troops to the region on the table here?

SULLIVAN: So, what I'm referring to there is, in the event that there is a further invasion in Ukraine, a military escalation in Ukraine, obviously, many of our partners on the eastern front, our Baltic allies, Romania, Poland, other countries, will increasingly concerned about the security and territorial integrity of their countries.

They will be seeking, we expect, additional capabilities and potentially additional deployments, and the United States will be looking to respond positively to those things in the event that there is a further encouraging into Ukraine.

QUESTION: So, is that something the American public should be bracing for, the possibility of seeing American troops on the ground in that region in the coming weeks and months if Vladimir Putin goes through with this?

SULLIVAN: I don't know if I would say bracing for, since we currently have rotational deployments in the Baltics. We conduct exercises on a regular basis in both Poland and Romania. The presence of American military service members in rotational fashion in these countries is not something new.

The question here is not that -- about whether or not the United States is going to send American service members to the territory of our NATO allies. We do that as a matter of course. The question is, what additional capabilities can we provide to ensure that they feel strong and confident in their own sovereignty and territorial integrity? It is those additional capabilities that are on the table in those countries, should Russia move in Ukraine in a more decisive way.

Yes.

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Jake, thanks so much.

In the days leading up to this call, the White House and administration officials said repeatedly their assessment so far was that Putin had not made a decision over whether to invade Ukraine. So did President Biden get clarity from him on whether or not that is his decision?

SULLIVAN: We still do not believe that President Putin has made a decision.

What President Biden did today was lay out very clearly the consequences if he chooses to move. He also laid out an alternative path, an alternative path that is fundamentally in keeping with the basic principles and propositions that have guided America in the Euro-Atlantic area for the past 70 years.

And, ultimately, we will see in the days ahead, through actions, not through words, what course of action Russia chooses to take.

COLLINS: One quick follow-up.

SULLIVAN: Yes.

(CROSSTALK)

COLLINS: Sorry.

Jake, one quick follow-up. In your statement of the readout of the call, you said that the United -- that President Biden told him the United States was ready to take strong economic measures and other actions if needed.

[15:10:02]

What are those other measures that the United States is prepared to take?

SULLIVAN: I just spelled those out in my opening remarks, both the supply and provision of additional materiel, as well as the additional deployment of assets and capabilities to NATO members in the event that there's a further incursion.

(CROSSTALK)

QUESTION: Jake, can you tell us, what are the strong economic measures, and how are they different from the ones you put on Russia in 2014, which didn't deter Russia from taking Crimea?

Why will -- what are they, and why do you think they will work better this time?

SULLIVAN: I will look you in the eye and tell you, as President Biden looked President Putin in the eye and told him today, that things we did not do in 2014, we are prepared to do now.

Now, in terms of the specifics, we would prefer to communicate that directly to the Russians, to not negotiate in public, to not telegraph our punches. But we are laying out for the Russians in some detail the types of measures that we have in mind.

We are also coordinating very closely with our European allies on that at a level of deep specificity. We have experts from the Treasury Department, the State Department, and the National Security Council in daily contact with the key capitals and with Brussels to work through that package of measures.

But I think it is not profitable for us to lay out the specifics of it standing here at this podium today.

QUESTION: Thank you.

Did President Putin ask for President Biden to commit to not allow NATO -- or Ukraine to join NATO, and did President Biden make any kinds of concessions, such as a reduced U.S. presence, or any commitment on NATO and Ukraine's membership?

SULLIVAN: I'm not going to characterize President Putin's side of the conversation and -- or go into details in terms of what they discussed, because I think they need to have that space to be able to have robust exchange.

But I will tell you clearly and directly he made no such commitments or concessions. He stands by the proposition that countries should be able to freely choose who they associate with.

QUESTION: The materiel that you said you're going to send, following up on Kaitlan's question, how quickly can that be delivered?

SULLIVAN: We have an ongoing pipeline that delivers various forms of defensive assistance to Ukraine.

Indeed, there was the delivery of defensive assistance to Ukraine just very recently, and that will continue. So, it really depends on the type or form, but this should not be thought of as a circumstance in which you completely turn off the dial or turn on the dial.

There is an ongoing pipeline. Whether that pipeline needs additional supplements as we go forward will depend on how circumstances evolve.

Yes.

QUESTION: Jake, thank you so much. You have said that the administration will take action if Russia does

escalate militarily. Satellite images show that hundreds of Russian troops are amassing on the border with Ukraine. Isn't there already a military escalation under way? Why wait to take action?

SULLIVAN: So, our view on this is that the fundamental object of the policy the United States is pursuing, in lockstep with our European allies, is to deter a Russian military invasion of further territory of Ukraine.

And the measures we have put on the table are designed to show the Russian government that, should it choose to engage in such an invasion, there will be those consequences.

That, for us, is a clear and decisive lay-down. And we also believe that there should be an alternative pathway by which we can make progress on diplomacy in the Donbass through the Minsk agreement and the Normandy format, and by which we can address NATO and American security concerns and Russian security concerns through a larger mechanism consistent with the way we have operated over the course of the past 30 years.

QUESTION: And some Republicans are accusing President Putin of being too weak on President Putin. They cite the fact that sanctions were eased on Nord Stream 2 and the withdrawal from Afghanistan, which was widely criticized.

How do you respond to that criticism that President Biden is being too weak with Mr. Putin?

SULLIVAN: I would make three points.

The first is that Vladimir Putin standing behind then-President Medvedev in 2008 invaded Georgia when we had 150,000 or more troops deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan. So, the connection between our deployments in foreign wars and the calculus of Russian leaders when it comes to the post-Soviet space, there's not good evidence to support that.

Number two, when it comes to Nord Stream 2, the fact is that gas is not flowing through the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which means it's not operating, which means that it's not leverage for Putin. Indeed, it is leverage for the West, because, if Vladimir Putin wants to see gas flow through that pipeline, he may not want to take the risk of invading Ukraine.

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And then, number three, the president has shown over the course of the past eight months that he will do what he says he's going to do in response to Russian actions.

So, President Putin can count on that. He said he would impose costs for Navalny. He said he would impose costs for SolarWinds. He did those things. And if Russia chooses to take these actions in Ukraine, he will do the same. He's not doing this to saber-rattle. He's not doing it to make idle

threats. He's doing it to be clear and direct with both the Russians and our European allies about the best way forward. And we think this stands the best chance, alongside a pathway to de-escalate, to avert a potential crisis with respect to an invasion of Ukraine.

(CROSSTALK)

QUESTION: ... suggested in recent days starting talks on a new European security pact.

Did Putin bring this up, and did President Putin agree to start those talks?

SULLIVAN: Again, I'm not going to get into the details or characterize what President Putin said.

And I will say that formal agreements or formal treaties were not on the table in the conversation today. But the straightforward notion that the United States, flanked by our European allies and partners, would be prepared to talk to Russia about strategic issues in the European theater, that was on the table.

And we are prepared to do that, as we have been prepared to do that throughout both the Cold War and post-Cold War eras. What the right mechanism is for that, what the agenda is, and what comes of that, that is all to be worked out as we see how things proceed in the coming days.

(CROSSTALK)

QUESTION: ... since late October. Why hasn't the U.S. given additional materiel to Ukraine yet? This has been escalating for weeks. Why wait?

SULLIVAN: As I just pointed out in response to an earlier question, we are continuing to deliver defensive material assistance to Ukraine. We have done so just in the past few days.

QUESTION: The Kremlin readout said that President Putin proposed to President Biden that both lift all restrictions on diplomatic missions that have been imposed in recent years.

Can you say whether that's something President Biden is open to or whether it's something he spoke to on the call?

SULLIVAN: President Biden is open to creating functioning diplomatic missions in both countries, but he didn't make any specific commitments with respect to the best pathway to do that.

What he said was that, as leaders, President Biden and President Putin should direct their teams to figure out how we ensure that the embassy platform in Moscow is able to function effectively, and as we believe the embassy platform here in Washington is able to operate effectively for the Russians. QUESTION: And just to follow up on Nord Stream 2, have you sent any

message or had any meetings with the incoming German government on this issue? Are you urging the new incoming government to essentially threaten to pull support for this pipeline if there is an incursion, further incursion into Ukraine?

SULLIVAN: We have had intensive discussions with both the outgoing and incoming German governments on the issue of Nord Stream 2 in the context of a potential invasion.

I'm not going to characterize it beyond that, other than it is it an object of great priority for the Biden administration?

(CROSSTALK)

QUESTION: I'm sorry.

So, the -- obviously, the summit is being watched by a number of other adversaries, including Chinese President Xi Jinping. Some observers have described a nightmare scenario where President Putin invades Ukraine, and also simultaneously President Xi uses force to reunify Taiwan and China.

Is the U.S. prepared to deal with such a scenario?

SULLIVAN: The United States is going to take every action that we can take from the point of view of both deterrence and diplomacy to make sure that the Taiwan scenario you just described never happens, and to try to avert the invasion and deter the invasion into Ukraine. That is the object of our policy right now.

Those are the steps we are taking. That's what President Biden is doing and the messages he's sending to President Putin. And with respect to Taiwan, the sum total of the efforts we have taken over the course of the past eight months in the Indo-Pacific have also all been geared towards avoiding any kind of scenario where China chooses to invade.

(CROSSTALK)

SULLIVAN: Yes.

QUESTION: Is there any promise from the Russian side to use leverage to change Iran on its position?

SULLIVAN: The president and President Putin had a good discussion on the Iran issue. It was productive.

Russia and the United States actually worked well together, even in tense circumstances, back in the 2014-2015 period to produce the comprehensive plan of action. This is an area where Russia and the United States can continue to consult closely to ensure that Iran never acquires nuclear...

(CROSSTALK) QUESTION: Why did Ukrainian officials first deny that there was any troop buildup when Washington started putting out the information and then changed their tune after the meeting with Blinken?

[15:20:04]

SULLIVAN: So, I'm not going to characterize the decision-making of the Ukrainian government, only to say that we are in daily contact with senior officials in the Ukrainian government.

I'm in nearly daily contact with my counterpart in the Ukrainian government. And we believe that we are seeing a common threat picture here. And our message to our friends in the Ukrainian government, as our message was today to President Putin, is that the United States supports the Minsk process, wants to see progress made towards a cease-fire, towards confidence-building measures, and that is the best way forward.

(CROSSTALK)

QUESTION: Is the world safer today after that conversation between the two leaders or less safe? And then I have a follow-up as to your answer.

SULLIVAN: So, all I will say is that the ultimate metric for whether the world is safer or not is facts on the ground and actions taken, in this case by Russia.

Let's see. We are prepared to deal with any contingency, as I said at the outset, and I'm not going to make predictions or characterizations. I'm only going to say that President Biden will continue to do all of the necessary prudent planning for a variety of different pathways that can unfold in the weeks ahead.

(CROSSTALK)

QUESTION: There's an impression in the Middle East that this administration is going to redo the Obama deal, lifting sanctions, unfreeze millions of dollars to the regime that's going to be spread through the proxies like Hezbollah.

Hezbollah became stronger and stronger from the money that Obama gave to this particular militia. So, is this going to happen? Are you going to address the proxies of Iran this time at the table of the negotiation?

SULLIVAN: So, I would made three points in response to that.

Since Donald Trump made the decision to pull the United States out of the Iran nuclear deal in 2018, Hezbollah has continued to menace Lebanon and the region. Iran's proxies in Iraq and Syria and Yemen have continued to move forward. So not being in the nuclear deal has hardly been a solution to the proxies.

Second, nothing about the nuclear deal stops the United States' capacity to deal with those proxies. And we are prepared to do so. In fact, in response to attacks on American forces in Iraq, the United States has twice under President Biden taken action, direct military action, in response to those proxies, in addition to undertaking sanctions.

And, third, ultimately, an Iran with a nuclear weapon is going to be a greater menace in partnerships with its proxies than Iran without one, and so it is our determination to ensure they never get a nuclear weapon, and diplomacy is the best way...

(CROSSTALK)

SULLIVAN: Yes, .

QUESTION: Can I follow up on Iran, please?

You know the Iranians announced that they're going back to negotiations on Thursday. The administration criticized them last week and they said they were not serious. In fact, they reversed the progress.

What makes you think that -- apart from hope, that actually they are serious this time? And how much over time are you willing to do it? And secondly, your counterpart -- you negotiate with your allies and you coordinate with them. Your counterpart in the UAE is visiting Tehran as we speak.

So, is this a unilateral effort from the Emirates to do it, or to (OFF-MIKE) or do you think this is a coordinated effort through the United States?

SULLIVAN: I will put this quite simply.

The more Iran demonstrates a lack of seriousness at the negotiating table, the more unity there is among the P5-plus-one, and the more they will be exposed as the isolated party in this negotiation. So, really, the ball is Iran's court as to whether it wants to show up and demonstrate that it's going to be serious or not.

(CROSSTALK)

QUESTION: Looking forward to the meeting with -- or the conversation with President Zelensky later this week, are there any steps or compromises Ukraine might be able to make to find a way to end this peacefully?

SULLIVAN: So, again, as I mentioned before, we're in constant contact with senior levels of the Ukrainian government.

Secretary Blinken just spoke with President Zelensky yesterday. I'm not going to characterize the specifics of their proposals, but they have come forward with constructive ideas for how to move the diplomacy forward.

We're encouraging that. Those are steps they are taking. They're asking the United States to support them in trying to get towards a cease-fire and then ultimately get down the track of diplomatic resolution. We believe that that is good and positive, and I believe that President Biden and President Zelensky will discuss that diplomatic pathway when they speak...

(CROSSTALK)

QUESTION: Can I just you about Nord Stream 2?

You said Putin should -- if he wants to risk the pipeline not being turned down. Have you made clear to allies that you will in fact sanction the remaining entities that are involved in that project if there is an invasion?

[15:25:00]

And have you received any assurances from Germany? When Chancellor Merkel was here, there was discussion about what to do if Russia weaponized those gas supplies, that nothing came of that, even though there were some pretty -- some saber-rattling by the Russians in recent months.

Have you received assurances from Germany they will in fact not proceed with that?

SULLIVAN: So, in response to an earlier question, I said I wasn't going to get into the specific sanctions, measures that we intend to impose, although we will be communicating those directly to our Russian counterparts, and we will be working through that detail by detail with our European counterparts.

What I will tell you is that the subject of the future of Nord Stream 2 in the context of an invasion of Ukraine by Russia in the coming weeks is a topic of utmost priority. It has been discussed thoroughly. I'm going to leave it at that for today.

(CROSSTALK)

QUESTION: Mr. Sullivan, how the tensions between the United States and Russian can affect African countries, and my second question is how do you summarize this meeting? It was productive? It was good or not?

SULLIVAN: It was a useful meeting. It was useful in the sense that it allowed President Biden to lay out in clear and direct and candid terms where the United States stands on this issue and to do so having coordinated closely with his allies and partners beforehand, and also to talk about a potential way forward.

Now, on the question of African partners, this is true of the world over. The attempt to change the territories of another country by force should be vigorously opposed by every country in the world, including every country in Africa.

I will just take one more question.

(CROSSTALK)

QUESTION: What was Putin's demeanor over the course of the two hours? Did he signal any willingness to back down?

SULLIVAN: Again, I just make it a practice not to characterize the other side's position. He can speak for himself.

I would say that his demeanor, like President Biden's demeanor, was direct and straightforward. And, again, as I said in my opening remarks, this was a real discussion. It was give-and-take. It was not speeches. It was back and forth.

And President Putin was deeply engaged. And I'm going to leave it at that in terms of trying to characterize where he is.

All I can tell you is, there is a tasking coming out of that meeting by the two presidents to their teams to start talking about how we might think about the diplomatic path.

The president made clear throughout that diplomacy has to come in the context of de-escalation, rather than escalation, and now we will watch what unfolds in the coming days.

(CROSSTALK)

SULLIVAN: And I will thank you, guys.

(CROSSTALK)

CAMEROTA: OK.

We have been listening there to Jake Sullivan, the national security adviser, talking about this conference call that President Biden had with President Putin today.

There were a lot of headlines, I think, in there. Basically, he categorized it as a useful meeting, but said that President Putin, they don't believe, has made any decision yet as to whether or not he will move forward with more aggressions towards Ukraine.

BLACKWELL: Yes, 100,000 Russian forces on that border with Ukraine.

Jake Sullivan described the call as having no finger-wagging, but being crystal clear. And one thing they made sure to relay to the Russian president is that U.S. and allies would respond with strong economic and other measures -- we will get into those conversations coming up -- in the event of a military escalation.

CAMEROTA: OK, let's bring in CNN senior White House correspondent Phil Mattingly, CNN's Kylie Atwood at the State Department, and senior international correspondent Matthew Chance. We also have with us former U.S. Ambassador to NATO Ivo Daalder, and Jill Dougherty, CNN's former Moscow bureau chief and adjunct professor at Georgetown University.

OK, Jill, let me start with you.

What were the big headlines to you? JILL DOUGHERTY, GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY: I think the big headline is,

it -- today, right now, it does not look as if there will be an invasion.

However, obviously, the United States and the allies in Europe are on alert. But I would point out one thing that really -- if Vladimir Putin were listening to that conference, and his people certainly are, I would point out that Vladimir Putin goes into that wanting wider talks about the future of European security.

And that really definitely involves the future of Ukraine. And if you listened to what Jake Sullivan said, he said, we can address larger strategic concerns if, provided we are operating in a climate of de- escalation.

So I think what the White House really did, what Biden did was to say, OK, we hear you, we see your troops, we know you're serious about this, and we're willing to talk about the things that really bother you. But you can't invade. And, if you do, we are ready.

And Nord Stream, you know, we will get into energy, but energy is crucial.

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