President Biden says Gaza ceasefire deal 'on the brink' of being agreed, in final foreign policy speech
13 January 2025, 20:38 | Updated: 14 January 2025, 06:04
US President Joe Biden said a Gaza ceasefire deal is "on the brink of fruition" as he reflected on his presidency in his final foreign policy speech.
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President Biden said a ceasefire deal in Gaza is 'on the brink of fruition' as his presidential term enters its final days.
He said he is "pressing hard" to get a ceasefire over the line as he gave his final policy speech at the State Department on Monday.
“We’re pressing hard to close this. The deal we have … would free the hostages, halt the fighting, provide security to Israel and allow us to significantly surge humanitarian assistance,” Biden said.
It had recently been reported that a ceasefire agreement was 'closer than ever', amid frequent meetings between Palestinian and Israeli representatives.
In recent weeks, the US, Qatar and Egypt have resumed their mediation efforts and reported greater willingness by both sides to reach a deal, after more than a year of negotiations.
The president added: “To the Palestinians who suffered terribly in this war that Hamas started, they’ve been through hell.
"So many innocent people have been killed, so many communities have been destroyed.
"The Palestinian people deserve peace and the right to determine their own futures."
"Israel deserves peace and real security, and the hostages of their families deserve to be reunited, and so we’re working urgently to close this deal.”
Both nations have been trying to hammer out a deal, with Israel continuing to demand the return of 96 Israeli hostages before U.S. President-elect Donald Trump comes to power.
The most recent final draft agreement proposed by Qatar stipulates that Hamas release 33 Israeli hostages, along with injured Israeli soldiers.
In return, Israel would release 3,000 Palestinian detainees, around 200 of which are serving a life sentence.
More than 100 hostages have been freed through negotiations or Israeli military rescue operations but 96 are still held in Gaza. 62 are assumed by Israel to still be alive.
For months, there has been broad agreement between the two parties to stop fighting to the fighting premised on a release of hostages by Hamas in return for the release of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
But since the start of negotiations, Hamas has insisted that a ceasefire should bring about a permanent end to the war and a full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.
Israel, meanwhile, said it will not stop the war until Hamas is dismantled.
During his speech, Biden reflected on his administration's foreign policy achievements from the last four years.
Gaza ceasefire talks nearing another 'breakthrough' ahead of Trump inauguration
The outgoing president claimed that America is 'winning the worldwide competition' after his presidential term, and stressed the importance of its global partnerships.
Biden said: "Today, I can report to the American people, our sources of national power are far stronger than they were when we took office,” and that America's enemies including Russia and Iran are “weaker than they were when we came into this job four years ago.”
Biden also defended his controversial decision to withdraw from Afghanistan in 2021. 13 US troops were killed in a terrorist attack during the chaotic evacuation that ensued, and Biden's approval ratings slumped as a result.
In his speech today, Biden defended the withdrawal, and said he is “the first president in decades who’s not handing a war in Afghanistan to a successor.”
He said the US “got Bin Laden during the Obama-Biden administration” and “the primary objective of war had been accomplished”.
“And I believe that going forward, the primary threat of al-Qaida would no longer be emanating from Afghanistan, but from elsewhere. And so we don't need to station sizeable number of American forces in Afghanistan,” he added.
Biden also spoke about Ukraine, and said Putin 'failed' in his war on the country.
“When Putin invaded Ukraine, he thought he conquered Kyiv in a matter of days. The truth is, since that war began, I’m the only one that stood in the centre of Kyiv, not him,” Biden said.
Finally, the president issued a stark warning to Donald Trump's incoming administration on the climate crisis, and called members of the president-elect's team who deny its existence 'dead wrong'.
“I know … some in the incoming administration are skeptical about the need for clean energy. They don’t even believe climate change is real.
"I think they come from a different century. They’re wrong. They are dead wrong. It’s the single greatest existential threat to humanity,” Biden said.
He added that China is ahead of the US in the transition to clean energy, and that "the United States must win that contest."
This speech is one of a number of events planned to celebrate Biden's final week in office, which will mark the end of more than 50 years of public service for the 82-year-old president.
