Remarks by the President at a Memorial Service in Joplin, Missouri

Missouri Southern University
Joplin, Missouri

2:40 P.M. CDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  Thank you so much.  Please, please be seated.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  I love you, Obama!

THE PRESIDENT:  I love Joplin!  (Applause.)  I love Joplin. 

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  We love Joplin!

THE PRESIDENT:  We love Joplin.  (Applause.)

Thank you, Governor, for that powerful message, but more importantly, for being here with and for your people every step of the way.

We are grateful to you, to Reverend Gariss, Father Monaghan.  I’m so glad you got in that tub.  (Laughter and applause.)  To Reverend Brown for that incredibly powerful message.  (Applause.) 

To Senator Claire McCaskill, who’s been here, and Congressman Billy Long; Mayor Woolston.  To Craig Fugate.  It doesn’t get a lot of attention, but he heads up FEMA, our emergency response at the federal level.  He’s been going from Tuscaloosa to Joplin and everywhere in between tirelessly doing outstanding work.  We’re grateful for him.  Gail McGovern, the President of the National Red Cross, which has contributed mightily to the rebuilding efforts here.

Most of all, to the family and friends of all those who’ve been lost and all those who’ve been affected.

Today we gather to celebrate the lives of those we’ve lost to the storms here in Joplin and across the Midwest, to keep in our prayers those still missing, to mourn with their families, to stand together during this time of pain and trial.

And as Reverend Brown alluded to, the question that weighs on us at a time like this is:  Why?  Why our town?  Why our home?  Why my son, or husband, or wife, or sister, or friend?  Why?

We do not have the capacity to answer.  We can’t know when a terrible storm will strike, or where, or the severity of the devastation that it may cause.  We can’t know why we’re tested with the loss of a loved one, or the loss of a home where we’ve lived a lifetime.

These things are beyond our power to control.  But that does not mean we are powerless in the face of adversity.  How we respond when the storm strikes is up to us.  How we live in the aftermath of tragedy and heartache, that’s within our control.  And it’s in these moments, through our actions, that we often see the glimpse of what makes life worth living in the first place. 

In the last week, that’s what Joplin has not just taught Missouri, not just taught America, but has taught the world.  I was overseas in the aftermath of the storm, and had world leaders coming up to me saying, let the people of Joplin know we are with them; we’re thinking about them; we love them.  (Applause.) 

Because the world saw how Joplin responded.  A university turned itself into a makeshift hospital.  (Applause.)  Some of you used your pickup trucks as ambulances, carrying the injured -- (applause) -- on doors that served as stretchers.  Your restaurants have rushed food to people in need.  Businesses have filled trucks with donations.  You’ve waited in line for hours to donate blood to people you know, but also to people you’ve never met.  And in all this, you have lived the words of Scripture:

We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed;
we are perplexed, but not in despair;
Persecuted, but not forsaken;
cast down, but not destroyed;

As the governor said, you have shown the world what it means to love thy neighbor.  You’ve banded together.  You’ve come to each other’s aid.  You’ve demonstrated a simple truth:  that amid heartbreak and tragedy, no one is a stranger.  Everybody is a brother.  Everybody is a sister.  (Applause.)  We can all love one another.

As you move forward in the days ahead, I know that rebuilding what you’ve lost won’t be easy.  I just walked through some of the neighborhoods that have been affected, and you look out at the landscape, and there have to be moments where you just say, where to begin?  How to start?  There are going to be moments where after the shock has worn off, you feel alone.  But there’s no doubt in my mind what the people of this community can do.  There’s no doubt in my mind that Joplin will rebuild.  And as President, I can promise you your country will be there with you every single step of the way.  (Applause.)  We will be with you every step of the way.  We’re not going anywhere.  (Applause.)  The cameras may leave.  The spotlight may shift.  But we will be with you every step of the way until Joplin is restored and this community is back on its feet.  We’re not going anywhere.  (Applause.)

That is not just my promise; that’s America’s promise.  It’s a promise I make here in Joplin; it’s a promise I made down in Tuscaloosa, or in any of the communities that have been hit by these devastating storms over the last few weeks.

Now, there have been countless acts of kindness and selflessness in recent days.  We’ve already heard the record of some of that.  But perhaps none are as inspiring as what took place when the storm was bearing down on Joplin, threatening an entire community with utter destruction.  And in the face of winds that showed no mercy, no regard for human life, that did not discriminate by race or faith or background, it was ordinary people, swiftly tested, who said, “I’m willing to die right now so that someone else might live.” 
 
It was the husband who threw himself over his wife as their house came apart around them.  It was the mother who shielded her young son.
 
It was Dean Wells, a husband and father who loved to sing and whistle in his church choir.  Dean was working a shift at the Home Depot, managing the electrical department, when the siren rang out.  He sprang into action, moving people to safety.  Over and over again, he went back for others, until a wall came down on top of him.  In the end, most of the building was destroyed, but not where Dean had directed his coworkers and his customers. 
 
There was a young man named Christopher Lucas who was 26 years old.  Father of two daughters; third daughter on the way.  Just like any other night, Christopher was doing his job as manager on duty at Pizza Hut.  And then he heard the storm coming. 
 
It was then when this former sailor quickly ushered everybody into the walk-in freezer.  The only problem was, the freezer door wouldn’t stay closed from the inside.  So as the tornado bore down on this small storefront on Range Line Road, Christopher left the freezer to find a rope or a cord or anything to hold the door shut.  He made it back just in time, tying a piece of bungee cord to the handle outside, wrapping the other end around his arm, holding the door closed with all his might. 
 
And Christopher held it as long as he could, until he was pulled away by the incredible force of the storm.  He died saving more than a dozen people in that freezer.  (Applause.) 
 
You see, there are heroes all around us, all the time.  They walk by us on the sidewalk, and they sit next to us in class.  They pass us in the aisle wearing an orange apron.  They come to our table at a restaurant and ask us what we’d like to order. 
    
Just as we can’t know why tragedy strikes in the first place, we may never fully understand where these men and women find the courage and strength to do what they did.  What we do know is that in a split-second moment where there’s little time for internal reflection or debate, the actions of these individuals were driven by love -- love for a family member, love for a friend, or just love for a fellow human being. 
 
That’s good to know.  In a world that can be cruel and selfish, it’s this knowledge -- the knowledge that we are inclined to love one another, that we’re inclined to do good, to be good -- that causes us to take heart.  We see with fresh eyes what’s precious and so fragile and so important to us.  We put aside our petty grievances and our minor disagreements.  We see ourselves in the hopes and hardships of others.  And in the stories of people like Dean and people like Christopher, we remember that each us contains reserves of resolve and compassion.  There are heroes all around us, all the time.   
 
And so, in the wake of this tragedy, let us live up to their example -- to make each day count -- (applause) -- to live with the sense of mutual regard -- to live with that same compassion that they demonstrated in their final hours.  We are called by them to do everything we can to be worthy of the chance that we’ve been given to carry on.  
    
I understand that at a memorial yesterday for Dean, his wife decided to play a recording of Dean whistling a song he loved -- Amazing Grace.  The lyrics are a fitting tribute to what Joplin has been through.

Through many dangers, toils and snares
I have already come;
'Tis Grace that brought me safe thus far
and Grace will lead me home… 

(Applause.)

Yea, when this flesh and heart shall fail,
And mortal life shall cease,
I shall possess within the veil,
A life of joy and peace.

May those we’ve lost know peace, and may Grace guide the people of Joplin home.  God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.  Thank you.  (Applause.)

END
2:56 P.M. CDT

Remarks by President Obama and Prime Minister Tusk of Poland in Joint Press Conference in Warsaw, Poland

Chancellery Building
Warsaw, Poland

2:30 P.M. CEST

PRIME MINISTER TUSK:  (As translated.)  Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen, before the visit of President Barack Obama, I learned that Ralph Waldo Emerson was your favorite American thinker.  And certainly at the time I tried to search for some association, some quotations, some connections.  And out of all these ideas, the one that talks about enthusiasm -- that nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm -- it seems to be especially fit for our way of understanding the world.

When I was thinking about our understanding of the world, I’m thinking about both of us as people, but first of all, about our nations and about our states.  I want to tell you that Poland today is the place where we have lots of enthusiasm.  We have gone through the previous years, the difficult, critical years, also in the global dimension, with a faith in our own power, our strength.  And it’s faith and enthusiasm that allow us to overcome the difficulties.  It is also the effect of our cooperation. 

You Americans have invested in Poland.  But you have invested also in the whole region and with lots of your enthusiasm.  Some money, too, some other types of assistance habitually works.  But just as enthusiasm was needed to create the great Solidarity movement in Poland, it was also needed when, except for enthusiasm and freedom, we had nothing else in 1989.  But people with enthusiasm and freedom are enough when you have friends.  You have invested in the region and it works. 

We talked, amongst others, about Enterprise Fund that was so good for jobs in Poland.  But that investment was actually the investment in freedom and the related prosperity for 100 million people -- because today we are speaking about Eastern partnership, we are speaking about our cooperation that could help those nations and those people in the region that are waiting for their chance, their opportunity and their freedom.

Mr. President, I want to say what we say in Poland quite often:  It works.  When friends are ready to help, when people have enthusiasm, and when there is freedom, then it really works.

And the fact that Poles today can speak with so much pride about ourselves on the eve of the presidency in the European Union, that we were also able to show to Europe how to manage -- how to operate also under the conditions of the financial crisis, it was possible, amongst others, thanks to the fact that we together have invested in our future with so much of American and Polish enthusiasm.

I want to tell you -- and this is what we declared during our conversation -- that our experience, the certainty that it worked, can be translated and we can translate this, and we do this when we think about those nations whose leaders you met yesterday -- but also those who are waiting for freedom and democracy for even longer.  I am speaking here about the region of North Africa and some of the countries of the Middle East.

So I’m really very happy that together we were able to accept this ambitious project so that the experience resulting from Enterprise Fund and other experiences that Poles and Americans could implement together give to those who are waiting for such assistance.

I also would like to thank you very much for understanding and your kind approach to the idea of another stage of this cooperation, which is an innovation fund.  And this is the idea which came into being during our conversation.  Both of us think that there will be the follow-up of this innovation fund, which here in Poland will also result in the form of modernity, new technologies and human intellectual capital.

We have been already operating in this area.  We have been spending dozens of millions of zloty for education of the most skillful managers at American universities, people of technical skills, engineers.  And I think that it will also bring results for the future.

We have confirmed our solidarity also in the context of our joint operations in the most difficult places of the world.  We spoke about Afghanistan.  For Polish security, that's important that the memorandum on the presence of the American air detachment in Poland systematically, gradually is becoming a fact of life.  And I would like to thank you very much for your readiness to finalize the project.

And shale gas -- well, for obvious reason, it was a subject of important talks -- and nuclear power.  We agreed with President Obama that these undertakings are really an excellent area for Polish-American cooperation.  And I am sure that it will bring good results.  To the Polish people, American people, it will be both joint business and joint common energy security.  And it will also be of use to a united Europe, this cooperation that will also give to Europe more stability in terms of energy.

I would like to thank you once again, Mr. President, for your visit is another help because your enthusiasm and your ability in the future is proverbial in the world, and we feel in Poland that you are one of us, thanks to the fact that we believe very strongly in our own strength and our future. 

Thank you.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Thank you very much, Mr. Prime Minister.  Once again, I just want to thank you and the people of Poland for the extraordinary welcome that I’ve received since I arrived.  And I have to tell you that my wife Michelle and the girls very much want to come back, because I’ve told them on the phone what a extraordinary country this is.

And you’re right, in some ways I am part of Poland because I come from Chicago, and if you live in Chicago and you haven’t become a little bit Polish, then something’s wrong with you. 

You know, Poland is one of our strongest and closest allies in the world -- and is a leader in a Europe.  And I believe that Poland’s story demonstrates how a proud and determined and enthusiastic people can overcome extraordinary challenges and build a democracy that represents the great strength and character of this nation, while now serving as an example for Europe and the world.

During our conversations, we reaffirmed the strength of our alliance.  Our alliance is rooted in shared history, shared values, deep ties among our people.  Our alliance is cemented through NATO and the ironclad commitment that Article 5 of NATO represents.

Of course, our alliance is also rooted in shared interests, and we, during our lunch, reviewed a wide range of issues.  I want to congratulate Poland on behalf of the United States for reaching the incredible milestone of assuming the presidency of the European Union.  This is Poland’s first opportunity to take on this leadership role since joining the EU.  And it speaks to the incredible progress that Poland has made both politically and economically during this period of time.  And we look forward to working closely with Poland as it assumes these new responsibilities.

Along those lines, we are interested and excited about Poland’s plans for the Eastern partnership as a priority of its EU presidency.  And I understand that it will host a summit this fall to raise awareness and support for Eastern Europe and the South Caucasus.  And the dinner that I had yesterday was an indication of Poland’s leadership in helping to shape a vision for the region that continues down a path that offers more opportunity and more prosperity to people.  And obviously one of the important roles that Poland can play is not just as a promoter of ideas but as a living example of what is possible when countries take reform seriously.

We’re also aiming to expand our bilateral economic relationship with Poland, as the Prime Minister mentioned.  Poland’s economy was the only economy in the EU not to fall into recession during the economic crisis, and has enormous potential for economic growth.  So far, as a consequence, this fall we will hold a high-level U.S.-Poland business roundtable, which brings together private and public sector leaders to identify and promote new opportunities to boost economic growth.  And the idea that was raised by the Prime Minister about a potential innovation fund that is a part of this fall summit I think is an excellent idea, and so we’re going to pursue that actively.

We also discussed the potential for us to cooperate on a wide range of clean energy initiatives, including how we can, in an environmentally sound way, develop natural gas in both the United States and Poland and how we can cooperate on the technology and science around that.

The United States is also fully committed to supporting safe nuclear power generation in Poland, and we’re prepared to offer our expertise of the largest and safest nuclear power industry in the world.
  
And finally we discussed the issue of how jointly we can promote democracy.  The session that I had this morning with democracy promotion experts, including many of the founders of Solidarity, who recently traveled to Tunisia to share their advice and assistance, is just a symbol of why Poland is so important.  It has gone through what many countries want to now go through, and has done so successfully.  And so the United States wants to work with Poland, and we welcome their leadership in reaching out to North Africa and the Middle East.

At the same time, as Prime Minister Tusk mentioned, here in this neighborhood we still have challenges.  We discussed in particular the unacceptable situation in Belarus.  President Lukashenko has shown a total disregard for democratic values, the rule of law, and the human rights of his own people.  And his brutal crackdown included the conviction and sentencing of presidential candidates who challenged him in the presidential election, and the repression and imprisonment of members of the free press, including one of the Polish press. 

So since this crackdown has begun, Poland and the United States have coordinated closely on Belarus, both bilaterally and through the EU.  We appreciate Poland’s leadership on this issue, including the strong support of Belarusian civil society and the generosity to its people.  We are looking forward to strong cooperation on this front.

Last point I guess I would make, we discussed our respective relationships with Russia.  And I am a strong believer that the reset between the United States and Russia has benefitted this region, as well as the United States and Russia, because it’s reduced tensions and has, I think, facilitated genuine dialogue about how each country can move forward.

We very much appreciate Poland’s pragmatic approach to their relationship with Russia.  I applaud the Prime Minister for his determination to continue these efforts, even if it is not always the most politically popular thing to do. 

We both believe that we cannot compromise on our most cherished principles and ideals, but we should also seek to cooperate where we can -- for example, in areas like counterterrorism, counternarcotics, the spread of nuclear weapons and materials, and the support of our joint operations in Afghanistan.

So this has been an excellent visit.  It’s fitting that I conclude my trip here in Poland.  At each stop I’ve affirmed the fact that America’s transatlantic alliance is the cornerstone of our engagement in the world.  It’s indispensable to the peace and prosperity of the world.  It helps to uphold the principles of rule of law and individual liberty around the world.  And I think that Poland is a leader on all these issues.

So, congratulations, Mr. Prime Minister, for your outstanding leadership.  And to the Polish people, thank you so much for your incredible hospitality.

PRIME MINISTER TUSK:  Thank you very much. 

And now I would like to ask -- get a question from the Polish Press Agency.

Q    Good afternoon.  We know that the American administration plans to liberalize the visa system for the Polish people.  What are the ideas?  When can they come into force?  In other words, when will the people of Poland will be able to do shopping at Fifth Avenue in New York? 

And my second question is how do you see the cooperation in the area of energy security between Poland and America, and between America and the European Union?  And my third, last question is did you talk about political repressions in Belarus, and as far as the arrest of journalist of Gazeta Wyborcza, Andrezej Poczobut?

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Well, I’m going to try to remember all those questions.  (Laughter.)   

With respect to the visa issue, this is a topic that was brought up by your President when he visited the White House.  And I promised at that time that we would begin to try to find a solution. 

The problem has to do with the existing law that had a very specific criteria for who gets the waiver visa system, and that criteria was based on the rejection rate of visas.  Poland didn't qualify under that law and I could not simply waive the law.  But what I’ve now done is put my support behind legislation in Congress that would change the criteria so that we're looking at the overstay rate of visas, and our expectation is, is that by this change in the law, we can be in a position to resolve this issue in a way that is satisfactory to Poland, but also meets the security concerns of the United States.

We very much want you to shop on Fifth Avenue and anywhere else in the United States.  (Laughter.)   

With respect to -- see, I've already forgotten the other questions.  (Laughter.)  It was Belarus, energy --

Q    Yes --

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  As I mentioned earlier, we had an extensive discussion about both shale gas and nuclear power.  I think Prime Minister Tusk and I both believe that it is important for us to diversify our energy sources.  The United States doesn't want to be energy-independent [sic] on anybody.  And Poland doesn’t want to be energy-dependent on anybody.  And what that means is that there has to be a broad set of energy approaches. 

Shale gas is an opportunity; it has to be developed in an environmentally secure and sensitive way.  We believe that there is the capacity technologically to extract that gas in a way that is entirely safe, and what we want to do is to be able to share our expertise and technology with Poland in a fully transparent and accountable way -- because we think that consumers,  environmentalists, everybody should be able to look at the data and say this is something that can actually work.

With respect to nuclear power, similarly, we have to do it in a way that is safe and secure.  Obviously, all of us are mindful of what happened in Japan.  And we have a great track record and enormous expertise in the United States of developing nuclear power in a way that is safe and secure.  And we are happy to consult with the Polish government, and have our companies consult with the Polish government, in terms of how to approach that.

That does not eliminate the need for us in both countries and all around the world to continue to develop other clean energy sources like solar, like wind, biomass.  And we are putting a lot of basic research dollars into this clean energy space because we think it’s going to be important not only for our individual countries but for dealing with greenhouse gases and climate change.

And the final point, with respect to Belarus, we had, as I indicated, a very extensive conversation.  I am familiar with the case of the journalist that you just mentioned, and we agreed that we have to apply as much pressure as we can on Belarus to change its practices.  And that's going to require close coordination between the United States and Poland, but also between the United States and all of Europe.  And I think Poland is uniquely situated during its presidency to be able to show extraordinary leadership on this issue.

PRIME MINISTER TUSK:  One sentence only for me to refer to the three issues raised by you.  As far as the last one is concerned, I stated with satisfaction that our views we are one hundred percent aligned.  There is no future for such dictatorships as the one which is represented today by Lukashenko in Belarus. 

Both the United States and Poland will be ambitiously setting forth -- the conduct for the international community so that the Belarusian people do not have to pay too high a price and for too long a period.  I also informed President Obama about our interpretation of the events in the Belarusian economy.

Talking about the arrests of the regime, including our journalists -- whether your journalists or our journalists -- and your colleague, Mr. Poczobuta -- already President Komorowski and myself, too, both informed President Obama about this particularly Polish problem. 

Talking about the visa waiver and Fifth Avenue, what is, and what should be important in Poland is that more and more Polish people make enough money to be able to afford shopping on Fifth Avenue.  And that means that it is in the interest of the United States to make sure that as many Polish people as possible could get to not just the shops on Fifth Avenue, but all over the United States, in the easiest possible way.  Because this is bad business for both parties.

I want to already say, Mr. President, that there are many other places in the world where you can buy things and where you can spend your money, so I'm really very glad that there are very clear signs and your personal engagement, Mr. President, in this will most probably also let American people to make more money on Polish tourists and Polish buyers.

Talking about national security, this is a breakthrough moment.  And I'm not talking about our conversation here, but it is simply that reconfirmation of the fact that we are approaching, or that we are participants of the energetic breakthrough.  It’s literally joking anymore, or kidding -- we are speaking about technological cooperation.  We are talking about joint investments.  And we are talking about political cooperation of the two nations, out of which one is an absolute leader in the area of technology, and the other one, Poland, turned out to be one of the leaders in terms of deposits, resources. 

That is why it was with a great satisfaction that I received the words of the United States that in the United States, people think very seriously about cooperation.  We want to combine our ideas about innovative cooperation and technological cooperation with the sectors that will be cooperating in real terms with each other.  It’s mainly about power sector.

And we also want to reconfirm the full will of the Polish party to be fully open in the area of nuclear power.  American people will be a very valuable partner to us as a country, which is really experienced and with goodwill.

MR. CARNEY:  For the American press corps, Scott Horsley of National Public Radio.

Q    Thank you.  Mr. Prime Minister, can you tell me if Poland today feels reassured about the U.S. commitment to Poland’s security, and if coming into this meeting you felt that reassurance was required?

And, Mr. President, you’ve talked a lot this week about inspiration -- inspiration in Northern Ireland for the Middle East peace process; inspiration in Eastern Europe for the Arab Spring.  I wonder if you take home with you also some cautionary lessons about the challenges in the experience here and in Northern Ireland, and what you can do as President to maintain that Emersonian enthusiasm at a time of fiscal austerity in the U.S. and Europe?

PRIME MINISTER TUSK:  Well, these were my first words during the meeting with President Obama.  I spoke about the security of Poland.  The security of Poland has different dimensions.  People every day feel safer and more secure if they do not have to pay too high prices.  This dimension of security will be achieved by us when we have energy independence and when both of us act effectively for stability and peace in different regions of the world.

Risk, danger, high living costs -- they are born or conflicts are born, while speculation feeds on unrest and war.  And that’s why this dimension of security of both Poland and the United States requires our cooperation so that we could stabilize the situation in the world, especially in the regions which are really very much suffering from the conflicts.

Talking about the direct security of Poland, I have to tell you that it is a very important sign for us to reach an agreement which will be finalized by the signing of the memorandum of understanding, the memorandum that in the future will mean the presence of American troops on the Polish soil.  The order of magnitude is not really large, but the gesture is very significant.

Secondly, we spoke about the future of the installation, the so-called missile defense.  (Inaudible) -- informed also public opinion in -- well, in Poland long time ago.  And I want to stress very strongly that the words that I heard from him today give us the sense that together we work also for the sake -- for the purpose of Polish security.  These words, that NATO is to defend NATO, these words are very much binding, binding for all the members of NATO.  And I also wanted to thank for these words.

Definitely after this meeting, with absolutely pure conscience I can tell you that our cooperation with the United States, both bilaterally and within NATO, leads to the fact that every year Poland becomes a country which is more and more secure.  And our political cooperation, as was mentioned by President Obama, leads to the point when perhaps never in the future we will have to use arms in this part of Europe. 

Both of us focused very much on political methods of conflict resolution and solving threats, and I believe that this is the best way to guarantee security to Poland.  But, you know, you have to be cautious and you have to be ensured.  That is why we always speak also about the military aspects of security.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Just a point about security.  As I said, Poland is one of our closest and strongest allies.  That’s been demonstrated time and again.  Really what we did here today was simply to reconfirm what Prime Minister Tusk and I have discussed before, which is that NATO is the strongest alliance in history, primarily because it has a very simple principle, and that is we defend each other.  That’s what Article 5 is all about.

And when I came into office I indicated to all the NATO members that there’s no such thing as a new NATO member or an old NATO member; there are just NATO members.  And everybody is the same and everybody has the same rights and the same responsibilities.  And as a consequence, one of the things that I initiated was making sure that we have actual contingency plans for each country, including those in Eastern Europe and Central Europe that obviously are coming out of a fairly recent and difficult history of security issues.

Now, as the Prime Minister mentioned, that evolution of our security relationship continues to evolve.  The aviation detachment that is being finalized will be significant, and we’re proud that we’ve gotten that completed.  Our missile defense plans that we have laid out that involve Poland will allow us to deal with shared threats.  And what we want to do is to create an environment in this region in which peace and security are a given.  That’s not just good for this region; it is good for the United States of America.  And we will always be there for Poland.

Now, I wasn’t sure, because it was such a clever question, what exactly cautionary notes you wanted me to address.  Were you referring to cautionary notes about what’s happening around the world?  Were you talking about cautionary notes and any reflections I have about what’s taking place back home?  So I want to make sure I answer your question.

Q    The endpoint in Northern Ireland and Eastern Europe is a happy endpoint, but in terms of the process, the length of time, the obstacles, the challenges, the patience that was required -- if there’s something you learned on this trip that you take home that maybe gives you some thoughts about how you will approach that as President, and maintain the interest in a country where our attention spans are short and our resources are limited.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  I think it’s an excellent question, and this has been something that I've been reflecting on throughout this trip.

Keep in mind what the purpose of this trip was, from my perspective.  In addition to reestablishing a wonderful conversation with strong friends and allies, I wanted to make sure that everybody in our country, but everybody around the world, understands that the transatlantic alliance remains a cornerstone, a foundation stone for American security.

We share ideals.  We share values.  And we have taken on consistently leadership on some of the toughest challenges that face the world.  And part of that leadership has always been the promotion of freedom and democracy in different regions. 

I was struck by something that the president of the Senate or the head of the Senate here in Poland mentioned during our democracy forum, that he had lived through three waves of revolutionary transformation in his lifetime.  He saw the shift from military rule to democracy in Latin America.  He saw those changes then take place with incredible speed when the Berlin Wall came down and the Iron Curtain was pulled asunder.  And now he’s seeing what’s happening in North Africa the Middle East.

And in each of these cases, what you have is a process that's not always smooth.  There are going to be twists and turns. There are going to be occasions where you take one step forward and two steps back -- sometimes you take two steps forward and one step back.

What’s required I think is, number one, understanding that you have to institutionalize this transformation.  It’s not enough just to have the energy -- the initial thrust of those young people in Tahrir Square, or the initial enthusiasm of the Solidarity movement.  That, then, has to be institutionalized and the habits of countries have to change. 

It’s not sufficient just to have elections.  You then also have to have a process to establish rule of law and the respect of the rights of minorities, and a constant vigilance when it comes to do with freedom of the press and freedom of speech and freedom of religion.  And you have to, then, broker a whole set of potential ethnic conflicts that may arise.  And sometimes those may flair into violence. 

So part of the lesson is that you have to institutionalize change.  And that is a hard process, and it’s a long process. 

Number two is that countries on the outside cannot impose this change, but we can really help.  We can facilitate.  We can make a difference.  And the testimony of I think the people that I’ve spoken to here in Poland -- as is true when I had conversations about the resolution of the Northern Ireland conflict -- was that American participation, American facilitation of dialogue, our investment in civil society, our willingness to do business, our openness to ultimate membership in international institutions like NATO -- all those things made a difference.  It solidifies, it fortifies people’s impulse that change is possible.

And so to the American people, even at a time when we have fiscal constraints, even at a time where I spend most of my day thinking about our economy and how to put folks back to work and how to make sure that we’re reducing gas prices and how we stabilize the housing market and how we innovate and adapt and change so that we are fully competitive in the 21st century and maintain our economic leadership, I want the American people to understand we’ve got to leave room for us to continue our tradition of providing leadership when it comes to freedom, democracy, human rights. 

And in the dinner last night, I thought something very interesting was said -- these are Central European leaders and presidents from all across the region.  One of them said, there were those who said we could not handle democracy, that our cultures were too different.  But America had faith in us.  And so now we want to join with America and have faith in those in the Middle East and in North Africa.  Even if some don't think that they can handle democracy, or that their cultures are too different, our experience tells us something different.

And I think that's a good lesson for all of us to remember. And I think that Poland can play an extraordinary role precisely because they have traveled so far, so rapidly, over the last 25 years. 

We’re looking forward to being a strong partner with them because when we work together, that's a force multiplier.  The more we have strong leaders like Poland working alongside us, the more successful we can be in dealing with North Africa and the Middle East, and encouraging the best impulses in that region. And that's going to be good for all of our security.

Thank you very much.

END
3:03 P.M. CEST

Remarks by President Obama and President Komorowski of Poland after Bilateral Meeting in Warsaw, Poland

Presidential Palace
Warsaw, Poland

11:52 A.M. CEST

PRESIDENT KOMOROWSKI:  (As translated.)  Mr. President, I would like to express my satisfaction and my gratitude because of your presence at our summit of Central and Eastern European states.  It was an important event for the leaders of my region of Europe, our region of Europe.

Your words were also very important, when you said that in the process of European integration you can see an opportunity to reenforce the world of Western values.  Other words were also very important -- the words about keeping up an open character of both NATO and the European Union.  I know that these words go very deeply to the hearts and minds of many of the leaders of this part of Europe. 

This part of Europe has its successes; it also has its problems.  And I'm very glad that there was also a meeting directly between you and the President of Ukraine.  I would like Ukraine to be a country which consistently, perhaps not very spectacularly, but still consistently striving at deepening its relations with the Western world. 

I'm very happy that we could exchange our opinions about the engagement in the construction of democracy in the environment of Europe, both to the East -- for example, in Belarus, where there was a dramatic collapse of democratic processes.  So we are having to deal with the arrests and convictions of the combatants or the opposition to the current presidential elections and we also saw the harassment of the correspondent of the Polish press in Belarus.  I'm also very glad that our views are absolutely identical as far as a very firm presentation of problems of civil and human rights in Belarus. 

I also would like to point out very clearly the issues connected to the security -- for the security policy.  And with satisfaction, I would like to note that the arrangements that were made in Lisbon are fully reflected in that practice of political actions taken up by the United States and NATO as a whole.

I mean here, first of all, the -- prospect of NATO missile defense program, which will take into account the possibility of cooperation with Russia, but it will continue to be an element or the tool of the alliance that will also be capable of performing tasks connected to Article 5 of the Washington Treaty.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Let me once again thank President Komorowski for his wonderful hospitality, and to the Polish people, thank you for the warmth and generosity with which you’ve greeted me. 

Yesterday was a excellent day.  I was glad to be able to commemorate the extraordinary sacrifices of the Polish men and women in uniform, to meet some of the veterans from previous wars; to go to the memorial of the Warsaw ghetto uprising, which was extraordinarily moving, and to meet some of the survivors of that period, and to see the enormous investment that the city of Warsaw and the Polish people have made in remembrance that I think will end up being a site that is important not only for Polish history but will end up being an attraction for people from around the world who need to know the history of that period and before.

The dinner last night I thought was excellent.  It was a good, frank conversation with leaders from throughout the region. As the President indicated, what I emphasized was that a strong, integrated Europe is very much in the security and economic interests of the United States.  And we want to encourage that process as much as we can. 

We want to make sure that NATO and EU membership remain open.  We think that’s important.  We think that Poland, because of its extraordinary success, both as a democracy and as a market-based economy, is a model and example for the region.  And the incredible transformation that’s taken place over the last 25 years here in Poland is now making it a leader in Europe -- as we look forward to an EU presidency for Poland, that’s an example of the leadership that it’s taking -- but also as countries like Ukraine look to Poland, and Poland I think exerts a very helpful influence in showing a pathway for modernization and democratic reform.

In our meetings today, as the President noted, a country like Belarus is backsliding, and it’s important that we work together, as we’ve already committed to doing, to encouraging civil society, encouraging reformist trends within Belarus.  The kind of depressive actions that we’ve seen in Belarus can end up having a negative impact over the region as a whole, and that makes us less safe and makes us less secure.

We had an extensive discussion about our respective relationships with Russia.  I’m very proud of the reset process that has helped to stabilize relations between the United States and Russia, and President Medvedev I think has been an important partner in this process. 

As I indicated at the Lisbon Summit and I reiterated over the last two days, we believe that missile defense is something where we should be cooperating with the Russians because we share external threats, and this would not be a threat to the strategic balance that Russia is concerned with.  But as you just heard from the President, we think it’s very important that NATO remains in charge of NATO defense capabilities.  That's one of the central principles of NATO.

We also discussed how we can strengthen Polish and American commercial ties.  President Komorowski presented some interesting ideas that we will be pursuing on that front.  We discussed how we can more regularize the visa process between our two countries, and I indicated to him the work that we are doing in the United States to be able to achieve that.

And we also discussed NATO operations both in Afghanistan, as well as in Libya.  And I want to again thank the Polish people and the Polish armed forces for consistently meeting their responsibilities. 

In sum, I think the relationship between our two countries has never been stronger.  I am very proud to come here in order to say thank you to the Polish people for their friendship and to assure them that there are millions of Americans who understand that Poland is one of our closest and strongest allies. 

We congratulate Poland for its extraordinary successes under your leadership, Mr. President.  And we trust that the next 25 years are going to be bringing as much extraordinary progress to this great country as the previous 25 years, and again, thank Poland for the leadership it’s taking not just in the region but around the world when it comes to promoting democracy not just through word but also by example.

END
12:01 P.M. CEST

Remarks by President Obama and Prime Minister Kan of Japan Before Bilateral Meeting in Deauville, France

Hotel Royal Barriere, Deauville, France

6:12 P.M. CEST

     PRESIDENT OBAMA:  I just want to, very briefly, say how glad I am to have an opportunity to discuss important issues with Prime Minister Kan once again.  As I’ve said so often, we have one of the strongest alliances that has made both the United States and Japan safer and more prosperous for half a century now. 

     And obviously all of us were heartbroken by the extraordinary devastation that took place recently as a consequence of the tsunami and the earthquake and the nuclear crisis in Japan.  I repeatedly expressed to Prime Minister Kan that the U.S. will stand by Japan for as long as it takes to help recover.  And we are confident that Japan will emerge from these difficult times stronger than ever.

     In the meantime, we're going to continue to work together on a whole range of international and bilateral issues.  Japan has been a huge contributor to our efforts to deal with Afghanistan, to increase development there.  They have been a strong supporter and contributor to Pakistan and its efforts to improve government services in that country, development in that country. 

     We've worked together on issues like Iran sanctions.  We've worked together on a range of international development opportunities.  And obviously we continue to work together very closely in terms of security in East Asia, whether that's issues of how North Korea operates and making sure that they actually implement a denuclearization process, or thinking about the long-term security structures in East Asia.

     We've also had the opportunity to work together closely on trade issues, and we're both committed to making sure we're continually expanding opportunities for trade and commerce in the Asia Pacific region.

     So we have no better friend than the Japanese people.  We are deeply respectful of the outstanding leadership that Prime Minister Kan has provided during a time of great crisis in his country.  And we want to emphasize to the Japanese people that we will be with them throughout the rebuilding process, and are very confident that Japan will continue its role as a global leader.

     I apologize to the translator for not breaking that up into its component parts.  (Laughter.)

     PRIME MINISTER KAN:  (As translated.)  This is the first opportunity to meet President Obama after the earthquake disaster, and I would like to reiterate my sincere gratitude for the United States and its support.  And right after the disaster of the earthquake, we received a call from President, and since then, we have three times had a telephone conversation.  Right after the disaster the United States sent an aircraft carrier, the Ronald Reagan for its activity -- the U.S.-Japan’s activity under Operation Tomadachi.

     And as for the nuclear reactor accident, the United States provided us with the human resources and experts, and also the equipment, without hesitation.  And through this series of actions shown by the United States, and particularly President Obama, we fully and deeply recognize the depth of the Kizuna, or the bonds of friendship, between Japan and the United States.  And Japanese people are deeply grateful for what the United States has done.

     As for the assistance provided from the United States, Japan will definitely recover and reconstruct itself so that we will be participating, together with the United States, in various agenda in the global fora, and we would like to further increase our capability to do so, and I'm sure that we can do that. 

     Even since before the earthquake and the disaster, we have been working on the rebirth of Japanese economy and fiscal conservation and reform in Japan’s social security and those various challenges.  And the work on those agenda came to a halt right after the earthquake.  But along with our efforts on reconstruction from the disaster, we will be working on those challenges which have been pointed out even since before the earthquake.

     Japan has been planning its policy of a third opening of Japan after the Meiji Restoration and the era right after the Pacific war.  And the third opening was to open the country again to the world by proactively working on its economic and trade liberalization and deepening its ties with the world.  And we will be working hard again on these issues.

     And in our efforts to liberalize this trade liberalization there is this issue of TPP, and our original intention was to make a decision on the negotiations -- our stance on the negotiation for a TPP in June.  And that has been our policy that there has been a delay in the schedule because of the disaster.  But I would like to make the policy in the near future -- not so late in the near future.

     And we are fully aware of the various issues in the world such as the Middle East and North Africa, and Iran and Syria, and Afghanistan and Pakistan.  And Japan will continue to pursue our efforts in those areas, including in our assistance to Afghanistan and Pakistan.  And where we can, we will provide assistance and we would like work together with the United States on these issues.

     And, of course, we will be working together on the situation in East Asia, which deeply relates to the security of Japan.  And we have the issue of North Korea and its nuclear development, and how to stop their nuclear development is a challenge.  And also we have this issue of abduction by North Korea, and we will continue to pursue its resolution with the assistance of the United States.  And we will also work to ensure the denuclearization of North Korea.

     In any case, we will first work on the reconstruction of the Japanese economy so that it will be revitalized and enable us to make efforts on these issues in a proactive manner.  And we have been receiving a lot of assistance from the United States, and we will continue to ask for your cooperation.

END 6:29 P.M. CEST