Remarks by President Obama and German Chancellor Merkel in Joint Press Conference

German Chancellery
Berlin, Germany

12:46 P.M. CEST

CHANCELLOR MERKEL:  (As interpreted.)  A very warm welcome to the President of the United States, Barack Obama.  A very warm welcome indeed to Berlin.  It’s his first visit to Berlin as President of the United States -- certainly not his first visit to Germany. 
 
We have had on numerous occasions the opportunity to talk.  We have established ties of friendship based on trust.  And I would like to thank you for this.  Our cooperation is based on ties of friendship that have lasted for many, many decades between the Federal Republic of Germany and the United States.  And this is such a very good relationship because it is based on shared values.  When the President addresses the crowd in front of the Brandenburg Gate, it will be a President who can do this in front of a gate that is open.  The President had to remind us all of the wall needed to be torn down and the wall is down.  And this is what we owe to our American partners and friends.
 
But we also see that the world is changing and changing at a very rapid pace, so new challenges come to the fore.  And we want to tackle them with resolve and we want to tackle them together.
 
What looms most prominently on our agenda here in Germany, but also in Europe and, I trust, in the United States, and could be a very valued project to these two great economies of the world, the free trade agreement.  I'm very glad that we were able to conclude the negotiations leading up to the mandate.  We will throw our effort behind this fully and squarely because we think that economies on both sides of the Atlantic will very much benefit from it.  It’s going to be a win-win situation and it also is an eloquent testimony to this globalized world where we can work better together, both politically and economically.
 
So this is why I think this is a very, very important free trade agreement.  And I say this on behalf of the federal government as a whole.
 
We talked about questions of the Internet in the context of PRISM.  We talked at great length about the new possibilities and about also the new threats that the Internet opens up to all of us.  The Internet is new territory, uncharted territory to all of us.  And it also enables our enemies.  It enables enemies of a free, liberal order, to use it, to abuse it, to bring a threat to all of us, to threaten our way of life.  And this is why we value cooperation with the United States on questions of security.
 
I also outlined, however, that although we do see the need for gathering information, there needs to be due diligence also as regards the proportionality.  Free, liberal democracies live off people having a feeling of security.  And this is why an equitable balance needs to be struck; there needs to be proportionality.  And that is something that we agreed on, to have a free exchange of views on, between our staff but also the staff of the Home Secretary in the States and also the Minister of Interior here in Germany.  And this is going to be an ongoing battle.
 
We talked about a number of foreign policy issues.  We are, both of us, engaged in Afghanistan.  A new process has been initiated there of a transition of responsibility.  This is a process that we are going to tackle together, just as we tackled the greater military challenges of the past together -- building up the security forces in Afghanistan together.  We will stand together with the United States and solve outstanding problems that are very difficult, indeed, still.   
 
We also addressed Iran.  We addressed the Middle East situation as regards the peace process in the Middle East.  I think that the initiative of Secretary Kerry offers a very good opportunity to revive, revitalize peace talks.  The region needs peace.  The partners ought to take up the offer that is on the table, because it is urgently necessary to bring about negotiations.  And we will continue also to work on Iran, on the nuclear program of Iran.  That is also something that we agreed on. 
 
We had very good talks.  We had, as usual, very open and candid talks.  So, yet again, a very warm welcome to you, Mr. President.
 
PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Well, thank you very much.  Guten tag.  It is wonderful to be back in Berlin.  I’ve always appreciated the warmth with which I’ve been greeted by the German people, and it's no different today, although I'm particularly impressed with the warmth of the weather here in Berlin. 
 
And I’m also very grateful for Chancellor Merkel’s invitation, 50 years after the visit of President Kennedy.
 
The Chancellor and I are just back from the G8 summit, just one of the latest meetings that we've had together.  During my time in the White House, I've had the privilege of working with Angela on a whole host of issues.  The last time she was at the White House I had the privilege of presenting her with the Medal of Freedom, our highest civilian honor that a President can bestow.  And that speaks to the closeness of our relationship, the strength of our alliance. 
 
I know that here in Germany, sometimes there's been talk that the Transatlantic Alliance has been -- is fading in importance; that the United States has turned its attention more towards Asia and the Pacific.  And in both conversations with Chancellor Merkel and earlier with your President, I reminded them that from our perspective, the relationship with Europe remains the cornerstone of our freedom and our security; that Europe is our partner in almost everything that we do; and that although the nature of the challenges we face have changed, the strength of our relationships, the enduring bonds based on common values and common ideals very much remains. 
 
We began today talking about economic issues, following up on the discussions that we had at the G8 summit.  Overall, Germany is our largest trading partner in the EU, so we've got a profound stake in each other’s success.  We agreed that there’s more work to do.  Not only do we have to grow, but we also have to reform our economies structurally. 
 
And when you look within Europe, obviously different countries are at different stages in that reform and restructuring process.  We're going through our own need to reform, for example, our health care system, which is much more expensive than most of the developed world and largely accounts for our deficits and our debt.  The good news is, though, that we have gone through the worst recession in years and we are poised to come back stronger if we take advantage of these opportunities. 
 
One of the opportunities that we spoke about, obviously, was the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, or T-TIP.  The U.S.-EU relationship is already the largest in the world economically.  Thirteen million Americans and Europeans have jobs that are directly supported by mutual trade and investment.  And the Chancellor and I share the conviction that if we are successful in these negotiations, we can grow economies on both sides of the Atlantic, create jobs, improve efficiency, improve productivity and our competitiveness around the world.  And by doing so, we’re also raising standards for free trade around the world that will not just benefit us but benefit everyone.
 
When it comes to our security, the United States and Germany are more than just NATO allies.  More American personnel are stationed in Germany than any other country outside of the U.S.  We are extraordinarily grateful for the hospitality of the German people.  One of the last times I was in Germany I had a chance to visit our facility where everyone who’s injured in the battlefield comes through, and to see the dedication, but also the hospitality that Germans are providing for our young men and women when they’ve been grievously injured I think is a strong symbol of how much this means to us.
 
Our men and women have been serving side-by-side in Afghanistan.  Germany is the third-largest troop-contributing nation there.  We’re both grateful for the sacrifices that our servicemen and women and their families have made in this common effort.  And because of those efforts, Afghanistan now has the opportunity to secure itself and determine its own destiny. 
 
We welcome President Karzai’s announcement yesterday that Afghan forces will soon take the lead for security across the country, which is an important milestone -- one that we established in our NATO summit.  Even as we wind down the war responsibly and NATO’s combat mission in Afghanistan comes to an end, we’re going to have to continue to invest in the shared capabilities and interoperability painstakingly built by the tremendous sacrifices of our troops.  And I appreciate Germany’s interest in making sure that even after our troops are no longer involved in combat operations that we can continue to see progress in Afghanistan. 
 
And many of you noted that yesterday there was an announcement about the Taliban opening an office for purpose of negotiations in Qatar.  I said yesterday, this is going to be a difficult process.  The parties there have been fighting for a very long time, even before 9/11, and we don’t expect that it will be easy, but we do think ultimately we’re going to need to see Afghans talking to Afghans about how they can move forward and end the cycle of violence there so that they can start actually building their country.
 
We also discussed the other challenges in the region, including Syria.  We are united to see a negotiated political settlement to that conflict.  We want to see a Syria that’s unified, democratic, and at peace.  Right now, we need to see an end to the bloodshed, and we have to make sure that chemical weapons are not used on the ground.  I thought we saw some progress at the G8 in reaffirming the need for a transitional governing process and a U.N. investigation of the potential use of chemical weapons there.
 
I thanked the Chancellor for Germany’s unwavering support of the search for peace between Israelis and Palestinians, and I briefed her on my Secretary of State, John Kerry’s efforts to find common ground there.
 
And finally, I want to thank Chancellor Merkel’s not only generous invitation but also the humbling privilege that I'll have to address the people of Berlin from Pariser Platz on the Eastern side of the Brandenburg Gate -- the other side of the wall that once stood there, the wall that President Reagan insisted be torn down.  A quarter century since then has been one of extraordinary progress.  We can witness this in the incredible vibrancy and prosperity of Berlin.  But one of the things I'll address today is the fact that given the extraordinary blessings that we enjoy as Americans and as Germans, we have an obligation to make sure that walls around the world are torn down.  And we can only accomplish that together.
 
So I'm grateful for our alliance.  I'm grateful for our friendship.  And I'm looking forward for an opportunity to answer some questions.
 
Am I starting off?
 
MR. CARNEY:  From the American press, Julie Pace of the Associated Press.
 
Q    Mr. President, I wanted to follow up on your comments about the Taliban talks.  When you announced those talks yesterday, you praised Afghan President Hamid Karzai as being courageous for being willing to take that step.  Yet, today, Karzai says that he is suspending talks with the U.S. in response to the Taliban negotiations.  How is it possible for you and President Karzai to be on such different pages about this key decision?  And is Karzai saying different things to you privately than he is publicly today? 
 
And, Chancellor Merkel, you mentioned that PRISM came up in your discussions today with President Obama.  Are you more reassured now about the scope of those programs following the discussions?  And did President Obama give you any reassurances that the programs don’t violate German privacy rights?  Thank you.
 
PRESIDENT OBAMA:  We had extensive conversations with President Karzai both before and after the Taliban opened the office in Doha.  As I think has been reported, there were some concerns about the manner in which the Taliban opened it, some of the language that they used. 
 
We had anticipated that at the outset, there were going to be some areas of friction, to put it mildly, in getting this thing off the ground.  That’s not surprising.  As I said, they’ve been fighting for a very long time.  There’s enormous mistrust.  Not only have the Taliban and the Afghan government been fighting for a long time, they’re fighting as we speak.  We’re in the middle of a war.  And Afghans are still being killed and, by the way, members of the international forces there are still being killed.  And that’s not abating as we speak. 
 
But what we also believe is that alongside the process in which we are training, equipping a Afghan government that can be responsible for its own security -- even as we go through some, frankly, difficult negotiations around what it would mean for the international community to have an ongoing training and advising presence after 2014, we still believe that you've got to have a parallel track to at least look at the prospect of some sort of political reconciliation. 
 
Whether that bears fruit, whether it actually happens, or whether, post-2014, there's going to continue to be fighting, as there was before ISAF forces got into Afghanistan, that’s a question that only the Afghans can answer.  But I think that President Karzai himself recognizes the need for political reconciliation.  The challenge is how do you get those things started while you're also at war.  And my hope is, and expectation is, is that despite those challenges, the process will proceed.
 
Chancellor Merkel, if you don’t mind, even though the question was directed at you, I think it would appropriate for me to go ahead and talk about the NSA issue, which obviously caused controversy back home, but also here in Europe.  And then, obviously, Chancellor Merkel will have her own views on this.
 
What I explained to Chancellor Merkel is, is that I came into office committed to protecting the American people, but also committed to our values and our ideals.  And one of our highest ideals is civil liberties and privacy.  And I was a critic of the previous administration for those occasions in which I felt they had violated our values, and I came in with a healthy skepticism about how our various programs were structured.  But what I have been able to do is examine and scrub how our intelligence services are operating, and I'm confident that at this point, we have struck the appropriate balance.
 
Now, let me be very specific in terms of -- and this is what I described to Chancellor Merkel -- what these programs are that have caused so much controversy. 
 
Essentially, one program allows us to take a phone number that has been discovered separately through some lead that is typical of what our intelligence services do -- but we get a phone number.  And what we try to discover is, has anybody else been called from that phone.  And we have both data that allows us to just check on phone numbers and nothing else -- no content; nobody is listening in on a conversation at that point.  It's just determining whether or not if, for example, we found a phone number in Osama bin Laden's compound after the raid, had he called anybody in New York or Berlin or anyplace else.
 
If, in fact, we discover that another call has been made, at that point, in order to listen to any phone call, we would have to then go to a judge and seek information through a process that is court-supervised.  And this entire thing has been set up under the supervision of a federal court judge.
 
When it comes to the Internet and email, as Chancellor Merkel said, we're now in an Internet age and we have to make sure that our administrative rules and our protections catch up with this new cyber world.  What I can say to everybody in Germany and everybody around the world is this applies very narrowly to leads that we have obtained on issues related to terrorism or proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. 
 
So there are a few narrow categories.  We get very specific leads.  And based on those leads, again, with court supervision and oversight, we are able then to access information. 
 
This is not a situation in which we are rifling through the ordinary emails of German citizens or American citizens or French citizens or anybody else.  This is not a situation where we simply go into the Internet and start searching any way that we want.  This is a circumscribed, narrow system directed at us being able to protect our people.  And all of it is done under the oversight of the courts.
 
And as a consequence, we’ve saved lives.  We know of at least 50 threats that have been averted because of this information not just in the United States, but, in some cases, threats here in Germany.  So lives have been saved.  And the encroachment on privacy has been strictly limited by a court-approved process to relate to these particular categories.
Having said all that, what I’ve said in the United States is what I shared with Chancellor Merkel, and that is that we do have to strike a balance and we do have to be cautious about how our governments are operating when it comes to intelligence.  And so this is a debate that I welcome. 
 
What we’re going to be doing when I get back home is trying to find ways to declassify further some of these programs without completely compromising their effectiveness, sharing that information with the public, and also our intelligence teams are directed to work very closely with our German intelligence counterparts so that they have clarity and assurance that they’re not being abused. 
 
But I think one of the things that separates us from some other governments is that we welcome these debates.  That’s what a democracy is about.  And I’m confident that we can strike this right balance, keep our people safe, but also preserve our civil liberties even in this Internet age.
 
CHANCELLOR MERKEL:  For the German people, I can only say the following.  It’s important, it’s necessary for us to debate these issues.  People have concerns, precisely concerns that there may be some kind of blanket, across-the-board gathering of information.  We talked about this.  The questions that we have not yet perhaps satisfactorily addressed we will address later on. 
 
But there needs to be a balance; there needs to be proportionality, obviously, between upholding security and safety of our people and our country -- and there are quite a lot of instances where we were getting very important information from the United States, for example, the so-called Sauerland Group.  And at the same time, obviously people want to use those new, modern means of communication and technology and do so freely.  And as we learn to live and deal responsibly with other new means of technology, we have to learn and deal responsibly with this one.
 
And I think today was an important first step in the right direction, and I think it has brought us forward.
 
Q    Madam Chancellor, Mr. President.  First, a question addressed to you, Mr. President.  There were a number of hopes in the world that were in a way shattered as regards your legislative term -- for example, closing down of Guantanamo, or scrapping the death penalty throughout the whole of the United States, in all of the States.  And now, as regards Asia, are you singling out Germany because there’s a big risk here?
 
And, Madam Chancellor, the Nobel Prize winner, Obama is waging a drone war also via Germany.  And is he allowed to do that, according to German law?  
 
THE PRESIDENT: Let me see if I understood your question properly.  The first question was related to policies back home, related to Guantanamo or the death penalty.  And then you wanted to talk about drones, or did you just want to focus on the drone question?  I just want to make sure that I’m responsive to your question.
 
CHANCELLOR MERKEL:  I guess I ought to answer on the drones.   And Guantanamo, that was a question I believe addressed to you.
 
PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Okay.  Well, it continues to be my policy that I want to close Guantanamo.  It has been more difficult than I had hoped, in part because there’s been significant resistance from Congress on this, and on some issues I need congressional authorization. 
 
But about a month ago I gave a speech in which I said that I would redouble my efforts to do so.  Because 9/11 happened, and we now have been involved in one form or another in a war for over a decade.  One war, I think, in Afghanistan was necessary.  One war I disagreed with strongly.  But in either case there are dangers if we get on a perpetual war footing. 
 
The threat of terrorism remains real, and we have to be vigilant and we have to take steps to protect ourselves, consistent with our values and consistent with international law. But we also have to guard against being so driven by fear that we are not changing the fabric of our society in ways that we don’t intend and do not want for the future.  I think closing Guantanamo is an example of us getting out of that perpetual war mentality. 
 
Some of the people at Guantanamo are dangerous.  Some of them did bad things.  But we cannot have a permanent outpost in which they’re being held even as we’re ending a war in Afghanistan that triggered some of these -- the capture of some of these detainees in the first place.
 
So I’m confident that we can continue to make progress on this front, although, you’re right, it has not been as fast as I would have liked.  One of the things you discover as a politician is that people don’t always do exactly what you want.  It’s shocking.  And then you have to keep on working at it.
 
One thing with respect to drone policy -- in that speech that I gave I also addressed that issue of the lethal targeting of identified terrorists.  This also is a source of controversy. We have constrained it tightly, and as we defeat al Qaeda, we have to, I think, very carefully examine how these technologies are used.  I can say, though, that we do not use Germany as a launching point for unmanned drones to go after counter -- as part of our counterterrorism activities.  And so I know that there have been some reports here in Germany that that might be the case.  That is not. 
 
CHANCELLOR MERKEL:  Let me complement by saying that the United States of America have bases here, they have soldiers here.  They fulfill a very important function, particularly in the fight against terrorism.  I think of Ramstein, for example -- and also supplies to soldiers, but also caring for wounded soldiers.
 
We as allies, as members of NATO, stand shoulder-to-shoulder here.  And we provide bases for activities, and our work is based, also, on shared values.  As I said, we have exchanges on values.  And I think it's good.  I think it's the right thing to do for the United States of America to be present here with military bases in Germany.  It's a normal thing within an alliance, and this is as it should be and as it will be, and continue to be. 
 
Q    Thank you.  Mr. President, on Syria, for the purposes of transparency, can you be specific about what military arms the United States will be providing to Syrian rebels and about which groups will be receiving them?  And on the same subject, President Putin appeared resolute and isolated on Syria at the G8.  How can a political process succeed in bringing peace if Russia continues to support Assad, both militarily and politically?
 
Madam Chancellor, if I may in German, the federal government has always argued along the lines that weapons, exports and deliveries of supplies would always lead to an escalation because they could land in the hands of terrorists.  Don’t you think that the situation is going to be exacerbated if America supplies it? Perhaps you would also comment on Mr. Putin.  Thank you.
 
 PRESIDENT OBAMA:   Well, first of all, Jeff, I'm very impressed with your German.  (Laughter.)  And I don’t know if you had to practice, but you sounded great.  Chancellor Merkel said you were just okay.  (Laughter.) 
 
I cannot and will not comment on specifics around our programs related to the Syrian opposition.  What I can say is that we have had a steady, consistent policy, which is, we want a Syria that is peaceful, non-sectarian, democratic, legitimate, tolerant.  And that is our overriding goal.  We want to end the bloodshed.  We want to make sure that chemical weapons are not used, and that chemical weapons do not fall into the hands of people who would be willing to use them.  And so we've had a consistent view in our desired outcome in Syria. 
 
It's also been our view that the best way to get there is through a political transition.  And we said that a year ago; we said that two years ago.  President Assad made a different decision and has brought chaos and bloodshed to his country and has been killing his own people.  And it is our view that it is not possible for him to regain legitimacy after over 100,000 people have been killed and millions have been displaced inside the country.
 
So the question now is just, as a practical matter -- and this is what I said to President Putin -- as a practical matter, if, in fact, Syria is to remain a unified country and the bloodshed is going to end, how do we do that?  The only way to do that is through some sort of political transition process.
 
And the good news out of the G8 meeting was -- is that you saw all the countries, including Russia, reaffirming the communiqué coming out of the first Geneva talks that said we need to create a transitional governing body with full powers. 
 
The second good thing that came out of the G8 discussions was that all of us, including Russia, said we have to investigate use of chemical weapons inside of Syria, and all the parties including the government of Bashar al-Assad have to cooperate with that investigation. 
 
We’re confident that, in fact, the government has used chemical weapons.  The Russians are skeptical.  We said, fine, let’s have the United Nations get in there but do a serious investigation of it -- because we don’t want anybody using chemical weapons.
 
Now, the issue for us is how can we continue to support a political opposition and a military opposition that becomes more capable, becomes more unified, that isolates extremists who have incorporated themselves into the opposition forces inside of Syria, so that if, in fact, and when we get a political transition, there’s somebody there who can take over and function in governing and lead to a better future for all Syrians. 
 
That’s a difficult process.  It’s not one that’s happening overnight.  But all the assistance that we are providing both to the political and military opposition is designed for that purpose. 
 
Some of the stories that have been out there publicly have, I think, gotten a little over-cranked in terms of the idea that somehow the United States is preparing to go all in and participate in another war.  What we want to do is end a war.  But the only way it’s going to end is if, in fact, we have the kind of transition that I described.
 
And although, you’re right, that at this point President Putin believes that what would replace Assad would be worse than Assad himself, what I think will become more and more apparent over the coming weeks and months is that without a different government you can’t bring peace and, in fact, you’re going to see sectarian divisions get worse and worse, and start spilling over into the other parts of the region, and that would be good for nobody.
 
CHANCELLOR MERKEL:  On the issue of arms supplies, Germany has very clear, strict rules on this, legal rules, according to which we are not allowed to supply arms into areas where there is civil strife.  And that is not specifically designed for the Syrian question; it is a general rule. 
 
But that does not mean that we do not wish, and can play, a constructive role as regards the political processes -- for example, as regards humanitarian assistance; as regards also the debate on which is the right way to go about this.  How can we strengthen the opposition, those forces that work in the best interest of the people in Syria, on the ground?  And the situation is somewhat vague as regards the members of the opposition and quite different. 
 
It is our task also, as we see it, that those who wish for a good future for Syria who are not linked with terrorists get a chance to achieve full legitimacy -- because Germany, too, is of the opinion that Assad has certainly lost that legitimacy.
 
The Russian President, as I understand him, says not so clearly what I said just now, that the Syrian President namely has lost his legitimacy.  But we have found common language in the sense that we wish to work for a transition government.  And the question also has to be asked, what is going to come after that? And that is a question we need to address, and we did so.  And in the language of the communiqué of the G8 it says, we, all of us, reject terrorist forces in Syria because they would, again, exacerbate the suffering of the people there.
 
Now we have to see to it that, step by step, all of these different strands are brought together because, unfortunately, as yet, there is no common U.N. position because Russia so far was not on the side of the others.  But we must leave no stone unturned in trying, as we did during the G8, to find a common basis on which we can also speak with Russia. 
 
And there are certain areas where we obviously differ, but our political responsibility is to, time and again, seek to bring this matter forward in the right direction.  And since the situation -- if we look to Jordan, if we look to other countries in the vicinity -- becomes more and more unstable, what with the flow of refugees and all, I think it’s worth every effort to try, all of us to try to do something, based on the language of the communiqué of yesterday, to do something in the interest of the people in Syria.
 
Q    Mr. President, in the past, there were some different points of view about the best way out of the global financial crisis.  Chancellor Merkel stands for a policy of cutting back budgets to reach that of financial stability throughout the eurozone to win back trust of the markets.  Did you talk about this issue?  And what’s your position on that? 
 
And, Madam Chancellor, same question addressed to you -- has there been a discussion on the eurozone, and do you wish to abide by the policy, in view of the problems that the countries in the south have?
 
CHANCELLOR MERKEL:  Maybe I will just start with something because your question insinuates something that we don’t want.  We want prosperity.  We want competitiveness.  We want economic strength in order to bring about reduction of unemployment.
 
We talked about this at some length.  And I also said Germany in the long run will only be able to live well if Europe as a whole is doing well.  So it would be a very wrong tack for our policy to take if we were pursuing a kind of policy where we weaken those countries into which we, after all, wish to export our goods.  I think the world is changing, however, and Europe is not competitive enough in all areas.  And budget consolidation is one piece of the mosaic.  Structural reforms have to come into this. 
 
And the Italian Prime Minister addressed this issue at some length during the G8.  What does this mean for young people?  What does it mean for jobs for young people?
 
But still the task is, if 90 percent of growth globally is generated outside of Europe, than we need to produce goods that are so competitive -- as competitive for other markets to actually buy them.  And this is something that we need to undergo.  We need to draw down red tape, bureaucracy.  We need to be more open for research and development.  We need to have structural reforms.  We need to have, for example, affordable energy.  If I look at the energy price development in the United States, all of this needs to be done.  And part and parcel with that also is, particularly in a continent that is growing ever older, that we are able to reduce our budget deficits so that we don’t leave at the expense of future generations. 
 
That is what this is all about.  This is what I am fervently asking for and working for.  Europe can only help that is strong. And so a future without Europe is something that I cannot envisage for Germany.  It's two sides of one and the same coin.  On the one hand, Germany needs and wants to be competitive, and we also want others to be competitive and improve their competiveness.  And we all belong together.  This is why we showed solidarity time again, and this is, too, something that we addressed. 
 
 PRESIDENT OBAMA:   Well, as Angela said, all of us want the same thing.  We want to have an economy that is growing, where people, if they're willing to work hard, are able to succeed, and can find jobs that pay a living wage, and can retire with some dignity, and can send their children to good schools, and have health care that is affordable.  And we have to do all those things in a way that’s fiscally prudent so that we're not mortgaging our future or burdening our children and our grandchildren.
 
And I think all developing countries -- or all more developed countries have been going through some of the same challenges.  And we just went through the worst recession in many years.
 
The good news is, is that we've seen some progress.  In the United States, we fixed our banks, which was the source initially, the trigger for some of these major problems.  So we have a much stronger banking system now, with much tighter supervision.  The housing market has begun to recover.  We've now grown for close to four years -- three and a half years -- and we’ve created 7 million new jobs.
 
But we still have some reforms that we have to do.  We've got to improve the skills of our workforce.  We've got to improve our infrastructure.  We have to continue to invest in research and development.  In all countries around the world, you're seeing growing inequality, and so we have to find ways to make sure that ladders of opportunity exist for those at the bottom, and that profits and increased productivity all does not just benefit those at the top. 
 
And so what's true in the United States is also true in Europe.  Europe has different sets of problems.  Part of the challenge of the eurozone is that you have countries at different stages and levels of productivity and are further or less far along on this path of restructuring and reform. 
 
So we’ve been discussing this -- this has been a four-year conversation that we’ve been having, and I don’t think there’s a perfect recipe.  All of us have to make sure that our budgets are not out of control.  All of us have to undergo structural reforms to adapt to a new and highly competitive economy.  What’s true is, though, all of us also have to focus on growth, and we have to make sure that in pursuit of our longer-term policies, whether it’s fiscal consolidation or reforms of our overly rigid labor markets, or pension reforms, that we don’t lose sight of our main goal, which is to make lives of people better. 
 
And if, for example, we start seeing youth unemployment go too high, then at some point we’ve got to modulate our approach to ensure that we don’t just lose a generation who may never recover in terms of their careers.  And that’s the struggle that I think all of us are going through.  That’s the discussion we had at the G8.  That’s a discussion that Angela and I had here today. 
 
I’m confident that Germany will succeed in this process.  I’m confident that Chancellor Merkel cares about maintaining the eurozone and the European project.  And she, I think, is confident that the United States wants to do everything we can to get Europe through this difficult patch so that it can be a force for growth and prosperity well into the future. 
 
Thank you very much, everybody.
 
CHANCELLOR MERKEL:  Danke schön.
 
PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Danke schön.
 
END
1:32 P.M. CEST

Remarks by President Obama and President Putin of Russia After Bilateral Meeting

Lough Erne Resort
Lough Erne, Northern Ireland

8:33 P.M. BST
 
PRESIDENT PUTIN:  (As interpreted.)  I’ve had detailed talks with the President of the United States on almost all the matters.  We began with economy and we had detailed discussions.  We’ve agreed to launch new mechanisms of cooperation in this domain, including at the levels of the Chairman of Government of the Russian Federation and the Vice President of the U.S.
 
We have spoken in detail about the matters of security -- of strategic security between the two countries and the world as such.  I believe that we have an opportunity to move forward on most sensitive directions. 
 
We also spoke about problem spots on the planet, including Syria.  And, of course, our opinions do not coincide, but all of us have the intention to stop the violence in Syria, to stop the growth of victims, and to solve the situation peacefully, including by bringing the parties to the negotiations table in Geneva.  We agreed to push the parties to the negotiations table.
 
I hope that after the elections in Iran there will be new opportunities to solve the Iranian nuclear problem.  And we’ll be trying to do that bilaterally and in the international negotiations process. 
 
We also spoke about the problem of North Korea, and we agreed to emphasize our interaction on all the directions. 
 
And I am very grateful to the U.S. President for the detailed discussion and for the frank exchange of opinions on these matters.
 
PRESIDENT OBAMA:   Well, I had a very useful conversation with President Putin, and I began by thanking him again for the cooperation that they've provided in dealing with the tragedy of the bombing at the Boston Marathon.  We have a shared interest in countering terrorist violence, and we are continuing to strengthen our cooperation on this issue, including as we welcome Russia hosting the Winter Olympics in Sochi. 
 
 As President Putin indicated, we had extensive discussions about how we can further deepen our economic and commercial relationships.  With Russian accession to the WTO, the removal of Jackson-Vanick, I think we're poised to increase both trade and investment between our two countries.  And that can create jobs and business opportunities, both for Russians and Americans.
 
Our discussions on North Korea and Iran were very productive, and we both agreed to consult closely on the North Korean issue.  And in Iran, we both accept -- expressed cautious optimism that with a new election there, we may be able to move forward on a dialogue that allows us to resolve the problems with Iran's nuclear program.
 
And with respect to Syria, we do have differing perspectives on the problem, but we share an interest in reducing the violence; securing chemical weapons and ensuring that they're neither used nor are they subject to proliferation; and that we want to try to resolve the issue through political means, if possible.  And so we have instructed our teams to continue to work on the potential of a Geneva follow-up to the first meeting. 
 
And finally, we had a discussion about the fact as the two nuclear superpowers, we have a special obligation to try to continue to reduce tensions, to build on the work that we did with New START, and to lead the world in both nuclear security issues and proliferation issues.
 
And one of the concrete outcomes of this meeting is that we’ll be signing here the continuation of the cooperation that was first established through the Nunn-Lugar program to counter potential threats of proliferation and to enhance nuclear security.
 
And this I think is an example of the kind of constructive, cooperative relationship that moves us out of a Cold War mindset into the realm where, by working together, we not only increase security and prosperity for the Russian and American people, but also help lead the world to a better place. 

And finally, we compared notes on President Putin’s expertise in judo and my declining skills in basketball.  (Laughter.)  And we both agreed that as you get older it takes more time to recover. 
 
PRESIDENT PUTIN:  (As interpreted.)  The President wants to relax me with his statement of age.  (Laughter.) 
 
PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Thank you.  Thank you very much, everybody.
 
END 
8:45 P.M. BST

Remarks by President Obama, U.K. Prime Minister Cameron, European Commission President Barroso, and European Council President Van Rompuy on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership

Lough Erne Resort
Lough Erne, Northern Ireland

3:23 P.M. BST

PRIME MINISTER CAMERON:  Well, good afternoon and welcome, everyone.  Welcome to Lough Erne.
 
I always said that the whole point of this meeting in Lough Erne is to fire up our economies and drive growth and prosperity around the world -- to do things that make a real difference to people’s lives.  And there is no more powerful way to achieve that than by boosting trade.  And there’s no better way than by launching these negotiations on a landmark deal between the European Union and the United States of America -- a deal that could add as much as a £100 billion to the EU economy, £80 billion to the U.S. economy, and as much as £85 billion to the rest of the world.
 
And we should be clear about what these numbers could really mean:  2 million extra jobs, more choice and lower prices in our shops.  We’re talking about what could be the biggest bilateral trade deal in history; a deal that will have a greater impact than all the other trade deals on the table put together. 
 
When we last met at Camp David in the G8 and we first suggested we could reach this moment here in Lough Erne, many doubted it would be possible.  Everyone knows these trade deals are difficult.  Some take years to get off the ground, and some never happen at all.  So it’s a testament to the leadership and the political will of everyone here that we’ve reached this point.  We must maintain that political will in the months ahead.  This is a once-in-a-generation prize and we are determined to seize it.
 
President Barroso -- Jose Manuel, over to you.
 
PRESIDENT BARROSO:  Thank you.  Thank you, David.
 
Today is a special day for the relation between European Union and the United States.  Today we announce we will start negotiations of a comprehensive Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership agreement.  Very frankly, two years ago, very few would have bet that today we’d be in the position to launch negotiations of an ambitious European Union-United States free trade agreement.
 
And when the teams of the European Commission and United States will meet for the first round on the negotiations next month, it will be the start of a joint undertaking of real strategic importance.  Our joint endeavor is part of our overall agenda for growth and jobs to both sides of the Atlantic by boosting trade and investment.  It is also a powerful demonstration of our determination to shape a open rules-based role.
 
We intend to move forward fast.  We can say that neither of us will give up content for the sake of speed, but we intend to make rapid progress.  I’d rather see the core challenge, moving our regulatory regimes closer, and addressing the harmful effect of behind-the-border trade barriers.  Huge economic benefits are expected from reducing red tape, avoiding divergent regulations for the future. 
 
I’d rather have our companies invest in you, in overseas products and services and job creation, than in double-testing, or multiple inspections, or even separate manufacturing lines.  Our regulators need to build bridges faster and more systematically.  The current economic climate requires us to join forces and to do more with less.  More importantly, in doing so, we will remain strong global players who set the standards for the 21st century. 
 
Therefore, I call on our legislatures, European -- especially European Parliament, our regulators, our civil society to play a constructive and engaged part in these negotiations.
 
The business communities on both sides of the Atlantic, in particular, have been a strong advocate of free trade and investment between Europe and the United States.  And this is also good for the rest of the world.  Given the integrated supply chains in today’s global markets, everyone can benefit from this agreement. 
 
Integrating two of the most developed, most sophisticated, and certainly the largest economies in the world can never be an easy task, but we will find convincing answers to legitimate concerns.  We will find solutions to thorny issues.  We will keep our eyes on the prize, and we’ll succeed.  So even if these negotiations may not always be easy, I’m sure they will be worth it for the sake of the jobs it creates and because of the strategic dimension of what we are doing -- to write the next chapter of what is our common history also forged by the sense that we share the same principles and values, the principles and values of open economies and open societies.
 
PRIME MINISTER CAMERON:  Thank you very much, Jose Manuel.  President Obama -- Barack.
 
PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Thank you very much, David.  And good afternoon.  It is wonderful to be here in Lough Erne.  And thank you so much to the people of Northern Ireland for their warm hospitality.  And, Prime Minister Cameron, thank you for all the outstanding arrangements.
 
Among the things we’ll discuss here are promoting new growth and jobs on both sides of the Atlantic.  And I’m pleased to join these leaders to announce the launch of negotiations on a new trade agreement that will help us do just that -- the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, also known as T-TIP.
 
I want to thank not only the gentlemen on this stage, but also President Hollande, Chancellor Merkel, Prime Minister Letta, and Taoiseach  Kenny.  We just had an excellent meeting.  And I’m proud to say that America will have the opportunity to host the first round of negotiations next month in Washington.
 
As has already been mentioned, the U.S.-EU relationship is the largest in the world.  It makes up nearly half of global GDP.  We trade about $1 trillion in goods and services each year.  We invest nearly $4 trillion in each other’s economies.  And all that supports around 13 million jobs on both sides of the Atlantic. 
 
And this potentially groundbreaking partnership would deepen those ties.  It would increase exports, decrease barriers to trade and investment.  As part of broader growth strategies in both our economies, it would support hundreds of thousands of jobs on both sides of the ocean.
 
So I’m pleased to hear that this negotiation enjoys the support not only of the countries that are here today, but also the broader EU membership.  I can tell you that it has been warmly received in the United States as well, both in our Congress and in our business community.
 
And that broad support, on both sides of the Atlantic, will help us work through some of the tough issues that have already been mentioned.  There are going to be sensitivities on both sides.  There are going to be politics on both sides.  But if we can look beyond the narrow concerns to stay focused on the big picture -- the economic and strategic importance of this partnership -- I’m hopeful we can achieve the kind of high-standard, comprehensive agreement that the global trading system is looking to us to develop. 
 
America and Europe have done extraordinary things together before.  And I believe we can forge an economic alliance as strong as our diplomatic and security alliances -- which, of course, have been the most powerful in history.  And, by doing that, we can also strengthen the multilateral trading system.
 
So this Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership is going to be a priority of mine and my administration.  It is important that we get it right -- and that means resisting the temptation to downsize our ambitions or avoid tough issues just for the sake of getting a deal.  And then make sure also -- it’s important that we also make sure that it’s part of an overall plan to do what it takes to promote growth and jobs.  Trade is critical but it is not alone a silver bullet; it has to be part of a comprehensive strategy that we pursue on both sides of the Atlantic.  That’s what our people deserve. 
 
I very much look forward to working with my fellow leaders to make it happen.  We’re going to give a strong mandate to our negotiators, but occasionally I suspect we’re going to have to intervene and break through some logjams.  Nevertheless, I’m confident that we can get it done.
 
So thank you very much.
 
PRIME MINISTER CAMERON:  Thank you, Barack.  And thank you very much for that.  Now, we’re going to hear from the President of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy -- Herman.
 
PRESIDENT VAN ROMPUY:  Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen.  This is a special moment.  At the last EU-U.S. summit with President Obama, we jointly decided to see if launching such historic negotiations would be possible.  It was.  And now we can already start the talks.  A year and a half ago, we were not even sure the place had a door, and now we are entering the negotiating room together.  
 
It's a sign of the strong political will on both sides.  This February, in the European Council, our European heads of state and government reiterated their support for a comprehensive trade and investment deal with the United States.  A political signal formalized last Friday by ministers and the Irish presidency formally gave the EU negotiators the green light to start the talks.
 
It shows the political will to work together -- to work together with our long-standing and most trusted partner on the essential objective for governments on either side of the Atlantic -- growth, jobs, and prosperity.  We both know there are no magic solutions.  Recent economic turbulence underlines this.  But we cannot expect to harvest new jobs today; we can plant the seeds for the jobs of tomorrow.  And that’s exactly what the trade agreement is about.
 
Together, Europe and the United States are the backbone of the world economy.  Opening up that space further for opportunities for business and consumers is simply common sense.  Not just our own economies, but also those of our trading partners will benefit.  The positive ramifications will even go beyond the economy as such.
 
We are making our economies all over the world more interdependent, and this will make the world safer.  What is at stake with the transatlantic free trade area is to enshrine Europe and America's role as the world's standard-setters, beyond product specifications, by setting a positive forces and shaping the way we work and the way we live our daily lives.  This is of key strategic significance.
 
Ladies and gentlemen, the Atlantic is not the past; it is also the future.  And that’s why we are impatient to start, although we know that negotiations won't be a smooth ride.  Obviously, there are and will be sensitive issues on each side.  With flexibility, open-mindedness and some creativity, the greatest asset for negotiators and statesmen, I'm confident we will find solutions.  There is too much at stake. 
 
We will find these solutions not only because we know the great benefit it will bring, not only because we share the same rules-based approach at home and abroad in these matters, but also because trade is one vital part of our overall relationship.  It will link our transatlantic destinies even closer together. 
 
The longer the negotiations, therefore, stand for our continued common commitment to engage with each other in order to engage with the world.  The EU and its member states are ready to engage and look forward to the new trade landscape we will shape together.
 
Thank you.
 
PRIME MINISTER CAMERON:  Thank you very much, Herman.  We'll be now welcoming the other guests to the G8, and we'll be taking questions at the end of the G8 at the end of our discussions.
 
Thank you very much, indeed.
 
END  
3:35 P.M. BST

WEEKLY ADDRESS: Celebrating Father's Day Weekend

WASHINGTON, DC— In this week's address, President Obama reflected on Father’s Day and said that nothing substitutes for the love and support of the presence of a parent in a child’s life.  The President knows that for many people like him, being a good parent is a critically important job, and that personal successes matter less than being a source of comfort and encouragement to our kids.  President Obama wishes all dads a Happy Father’s Day and everyone a great weekend. 

The audio of the address and video of the address will be available online at www.whitehouse.gov at 6:00 a.m. ET, June 15, 2013.

Remarks of President Barack Obama
As Prepared for Delivery
The White House
June 15, 2013

Hi, everybody. This Sunday is Father’s Day, and so I wanted to take a moment to talk about the most important job many of us will ever have – and that’s being a dad.

Today we’re blessed to live in a world where technology allows us to connect instantly with just about anyone on the planet.  But no matter how advanced we get, there will never be a substitute for the love and support and, most importantly, the presence of a parent in a child’s life.  And in many ways, that’s uniquely true for fathers.

I never really knew my own father.  I was raised by a single mom and two wonderful grandparents who made incredible sacrifices for me.  And there are single parents all across the country who do a heroic job raising terrific kids.  But I still wish I had a dad who was not only around, but involved; another role model to teach me what my mom did her best to instill – values like hard work and integrity; responsibility and delayed gratification – all the things that give a child the foundation to envision a brighter future for themselves.

That’s why I try every day to be for Michelle and my girls what my father was not for my mother and me.  And I’ve met plenty of other people – dads and uncles and men without a family connection – who are trying to break the cycle and give more of our young people a strong male role model.

Being a good parent – whether you’re gay or straight; a foster parent or a grandparent – isn’t easy.  It demands your constant attention, frequent sacrifice, and a healthy dose of patience.  And nobody’s perfect.  To this day, I’m still figuring out how to be a better husband to my wife and father to my kids. 

And I want to do what I can as President to encourage marriage and strong families.  We should reform our child support laws to get more men working and engaged with their children.  And my Administration will continue to work with the faith and other community organizations, as well as businesses, on a campaign to encourage strong parenting and fatherhood.

Because if there’s one thing I’ve learned along the way, it’s that all our personal successes shine a little less brightly if we fail at family.  That’s what matters most.  When I look back on my life, I won’t be thinking about any particular legislation I passed or policy I promoted.  I’ll be thinking about Michelle, and the journey we’ve been on together.  I’ll be thinking about Sasha’s dance recitals and Malia’s tennis matches – about the conversations we’ve had and the quiet moments we’ve shared.  I’ll be thinking about whether I did right by them, and whether they knew, every day, just how much they were loved.

That’s what I think being a father is all about.  And if we can do our best to be a source of comfort and encouragement to our kids; if we can show them unconditional love and help them grow into the people they were meant to be; then we will have succeeded.

Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there, and have a great weekend.

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