Speaking to the nation from the Oval Office on Friday, US President Joe Biden said that both Hamas and Russia are trying to “destroy” democracies.
“The terror and tyranny of Hamas and Putin pose different threats, but both want to completely wipe out their neighboring democracy,” Biden said.
Biden said that if international aggression continued, “conflict and chaos could spread to other parts of the world.”
The US president said he would ask Congress on Friday to approve massive aid funding for Ukraine and Israel. He argued that it was an investment in the future of the United States as a global leader.
“It’s a smart investment that will pay off for American security for generations,” Biden said from the Oval Office. “American leadership is what holds the world together. American alliances are what keep us, America, safe. American values make us a partner with whom other nations want to work.”
Biden’s rare address to the nation comes days after he visited Israel on an urgent mission to prevent the war between Tel Aviv and Hamas from spiraling into a wider regional conflict and to boost the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Palestinians.
The US president also said in his speech that his priority is the safety of Americans who have been captured by Gaza.
“As president, there is no higher priority for me than the safety of Americans who are being held hostage,” he said. “In Israel, I have seen people who are strong, determined, resilient, and also angry, in shock, and deep, deep pain.”
Image Source: Sky News
