President Joe Biden

In his Thursday night address from the Oval Office, President Joe Biden discussed the ongoing issues in Ukraine and Israel, expressing concern that disorder could escalate. He urged Congress to approve approximately $100 billion in fresh funding, a proposal that has already encountered resistance from Congressional Republicans who are cautious about allocating additional funds to Ukraine.

During his 15-minute address, Biden asserted that Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Hamas terrorist group bear responsibility for the October 7th attack on Israel. He emphasized that while they represent distinct threats, they share a common goal.

He stated their shared intention to utterly destroy a neighboring democratic nation.

Biden warned that if bad actors like Putin are left unchecked ‘would-be aggressors around the world would be emboldened to try the same.’ 

‘The risk of conflict and chaos could spread in other parts of the world, in the Indo-Pacific, in the Middle East, especially in the Middle East.’ 

He proceeded to highlight another shared element between Ukraine and Israel: Iran.

‘Iran is supporting Russia in Ukraine and it’s supporting Hamas and other terrorist groups in the region,’ Biden said. ‘And we will continue to hold them accountable, I might add.’

He continued, ‘American leadership is what holds the world together.’ 

‘American alliances are what keep us – America – safe. American values are what make us a partner that other nations want to work with,’ he said. 

‘To put all that at risk if we walk away from Ukraine, we turn our backs on Israel – it’s just not worth it.’

The president laid out that Putin’s ‘appetite for power and control’ means he won’t ‘limit himself to Ukraine,’ which could spill into a conflict where NATO countries are involved. 

If that happens, Biden warned, ‘we’ll have something that we do not seek.’

‘We do not seek to have American troops fighting in Russia, or fighting against Russia,’ he said. 

The president also made additional commitments, assuring the family members of hostages abducted by Hamas in Israel during the October 7 terror attack that “we are actively pursuing all available options to bring their loved ones back home.”

‘As president, there is no higher priority for me than the safety of Americans held hostage,’ he said. 

‘The terrorist of Hamas unleashed pure unadulterated evil in the world that sadly the Jewish people know perhaps better than anyone that there is no limit to the depravity of people when they want to inflict pain on others,’ he noted. 

Biden also advocated for the delivery of international assistance to reach Gaza, where Palestinian civilians are experiencing hardship, even as Hamas launches rockets towards Israel.

Biden mentioned that during his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv on Wednesday, they deliberated on “the crucial necessity for Israel to adhere to the principles of international humanitarian law during its operations.”

‘That means protecting civilians in combat as best they can,’ Biden said. ‘The people of Gaza urgently need food, water and medicine,’ he observed.

Biden also urged the Israeli government to avoid being consumed by anger.

The president added that following his talks with Netanyahu and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, he successfully arranged for the initial delivery of humanitarian aid from the United Nations to the Palestinian population in Gaza.

‘If Hamas does not divert or steal this shipment, these shipments, we’re going to provide an opening for sustained delivery of life-saving humanitarian assistance for the Palestinians,’ Biden said. 

He then added, ‘we cannot give up on peace. We cannot give up on a two-state solution.’  

Although his face-to-face encounter with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas was called off due to the hospital explosion in Gaza on Tuesday, Biden had a phone conversation with the leader while aboard Air Force One.

Biden said that he ‘reiterated that the United States remains committed to the Palestinian people’s right to dignity and to self-determination.’

‘The actions Hamas did don’t take that right away,’ Biden said. 

The president said he was ‘heartbroken’ by the ‘tragic loss of Palestinian life’ in Gaza, including at the hospital.

He added, ‘which was not done by the Israelis,’ doubling down on statements he made Wednesday, which assigned blame to an errant rocket launched by another terror group, Palestinian Islamic Jihad.