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prime minister cameron: goodafternoon, and welcome. it's great to welcomepresident obama again, on his fifth visit tothe united kingdom. barack has been presidentfor more than seven years; i've been prime ministerfor nearly six years. and our two countries havebeen working together through some of the mostdifficult and troubled global times. we faced the aftermath ofthe banking crisis, the need
to revive growth and createjobs in our economies, new threats to our security fromrussia in the east to the rise of islamist terroristsin the south, and, of course, huge globalchallenges like ebola and climate change. and through it all, thestrong and essential partnership between ournations has never been more important. when, 70 years ago lastmonth, winston churchill
first described the specialrelationship, it was not merely and enduringexpression of friendship, it was a way ofworking together. it was about two nations,kindred spirits who share the same values and, sooften, the same approaches to the many issuesthat we face. and just as for ourpredecessors, that has been true for barack and me,whether we're working to deliver economic security,national security, or new,
emerging challenges. and today, we've beendiscussing all three. on economic security, we'vesucceeded in getting our economies growing andcreating jobs for our people. the global economy stillfaces serious challenges, but last year, britain andthe united states were the two fastest-growing majoreconomies in the world. and we both know just howimportant trade deals are in driving global growth.
so barack and i remain amongthe most determined to achieve our vision ofa u.s.-eu trade deal. and we're working hard topush this forward because it would add billions to oureconomies and set the standards for the restof the world to follow. on national security,together with our partners in the eu, we've used oureconomic muscle to avoid the calamity of an iraniannuclear weapon. we've delivered sanctionsagainst russia in response
to its aggressionagainst ukraine. we've secured the first-everglobal and legally binding deal on climate change,being formally signed today by over 150 governmentsat the united nations. and we've transformed theway that we use our aid, our diplomacy and our militarytogether to make progress on some of the most difficultissues of our time. for example, in east africa,we've helped to turn around the prospects for somalia.
for instance, thanks toan eu operation, led by britain, supported byamerica, its waters are no longer a safehaven for pirates. and in west africa, britishleadership in europe secured a billion euros to supportour efforts in helping the people of the region todefeat the outbreak of ebola, with britain takingthe lead in sierra leone, the united states inliberia, france in guinea. but just as we've madeimportant progress in all
these areas, so there aremany more that need a lot more work. there's no doubt that thesituation in libya is immensely challenging,but we now finally have a government of nationalaccord with whom we can work. while in syria and iraq, weare continuing coalition efforts to defeatand degrade daesch. more than 25,000 daeschfighters have now been killed, over 600 inthe last month alone.
with the total number ofdaesch fighters, they're estimated to be at itslowest for about two years. the iraqi security forcesare steadily pushing daesch out of its territory,this week almost entirely clearing them outof the town of hit. and in syria, our partnershave liberated the last kurdish areas in thenortheast and cut off the main route betweenraqqa and mosul. we also discussed effortsto deal with the
migration crisis. this doesn't directly affectthe united states, and in the uk, we've maintained ourborders and we will continue to do so. but we both know thechallenge this poses to our friends and our allies, andto the continent of europe. this is the sort ofchallenge that can only be tackled effectively throughinternational cooperation. nato is helping to reducethe number of migrants in
the eastern mediterranean. and barack and i havediscussed how nato might now contribute to the eu'sefforts in the central mediterranean, too. we also need to do more tobreak the business model of the people smugglers,so, together with our eu partners and the libyangovernment, we'll look at whether there's more we cando to strength the libyan coast guard.
barack and i will bediscussing this further when we meet with the leaders offrance, germany and italy in hannover on monday. and this will be anotheropportunity to show how, working together,collectively, we can better protect ourselves fromthe threats that we face. we also covered a number ofnew and emerging challenges where it will be moreimportant than ever that we work together with ourinternational partners to
identify problems anddeal with them rapidly. just as we've done withebola, we now need the same international cooperation ondealing with the zika virus, on the challenge ofantimicrobial resistance, on cybersecurity and ontackling corruption. britain is holding a biganticorruption summit here in london next month, whichsecretary kerry will attend. and barack and i have talkedtoday about some of the things we wanted to achieve.
one of the biggest problemsis that if you're a country that wants to take actionagainst corruption you have to go all around theglobe to lobby for help. so we'd like to see aninternational anticorruption coordination center to helplaw enforcement agencies and investigators work togetherright across different jurisdictions. and if we get internationalagreement on this next month, both britain andamerica will help contribute
to set it up. all this work we have donetogether, and at the same time, i think we've got toknow each other very well. i'm honored to havebarack as a friend. he's taught me therules of basketball. he's beaten meat table tennis. i remember very fondly thebarbecue we had in number 10 downing street, servingservicemen and women who serve our countries togetherhere in the united kingdom.
i've always found baracksomeone who gives sage advice. he's a man with a very goodheart, and been a very good friend, and always will be agood friend, i know, to the united kingdom. let me finishby saying this. in all the areas wediscussed today our collective power and reachis amplified by britain's membership of theeuropean union. let me be clear.
when it comes to the specialrelationship between our two countries, there's nogreater enthusiast than me. i'm very proud to have theopportunity to be prime minister and to standoutside the white house, listening to this man, myfriend, barack, say that the special relationship betweenour countries has never been stronger. but i've never feltconstrained in any way in strengthening thisrelationship by the fact
that we're in theeuropean union. in fact, quite the reverse. we deliver for ourpeople through all the international groupsthat we're part of. we enhance our securitythrough the membership of nato. we further our prosperitythrough the g7 and the g20. and like thoseorganizations, britain's membership of the eu givesus a powerful tool to deliver on the prosperityand security that our people
need, and to stand upfor the values that our countries share. and now i think is a time tostay true to those values and to stick together withour friends and allies in europe and around the world. thank you very much. barack. president obama:thank you, david. and as always, it iswonderful to be here in
london, and to meet with mygood friend, david cameron. i confess i've also comeback to wish her majesty the queen a very happy90th birthday. earlier today, michelle andi had the honor to join her majesty and his royalhighness the duke of edinburgh as their guestsat windsor castle, where we conveyed the good wishesof the american people. i have to say i have neverbeen driven by a duke of edinburgh before.
(laughter) and i can report that itwas very smooth riding. as for her majesty, thequeen has been a source of inspiration for me, likeso many people around the world. she is truly one ofmy favorite people. and should we be fortunateenough to reach 90, may we be as vibrant as she is. she's an astonishing person,and a real jewel to the world and not just tothe united kingdom.
the alliance between theunited states and the united kingdom is one of the oldestand one of the strongest that the worldhas ever known. when the u.s. and the uk stand together,we make our countries more secure, we make our peoplemore prosperous, and we make the world safer and better. that's one of the reasonswhy my first overseas visit as president more thanseven years ago was here to
london, at a timeof global crisis. and the one thing i knew,as green as i was as a new president, was that it wasabsolutely vital that the united states and the unitedkingdom, working together in an international forum,tackle the challenges that lie ahead. our success depended on ourability to coordinate and to be able to leverage ourrelationship to have an impact on other countries.
i met with davidon that visit. he wasn't yetprime minister. but just as our nationsshare a special relationship, david and ihave shared an extraordinary partnership. he has proven to be a greatfriend, and is one of my closest and mosttrusted partners. over the six years orso that our terms have overlapped, we have met orspoken more times than i can
count. we've shared our countries'beers with each other -- he vouches for his, ivouch for mine -- -- taken in a basketballgame in america. david i think you shouldrecall, we were actually partners in thatping-pong game. and we lost to someschool children. i can't rememberwhether they were eight or 10, but they were decidedlyshorter than we were, and
they whooped us. samantha and michelle, ourbetter halves, have become good friends as well. and it's the depth and thebreadth of that special relationship that has helpedus tackle some of the most daunting challengesof our time. around the world, our jointefforts, as david mentioned, have stopped the outbreakof ebola, kept iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon,forged a climate agreement
in paris that hopefully willhelp to protect our planet for future generations. and today, on earth day,our governments, along with about 170 others, are in newyork to sign that agreement. the u.s. is committed to formallyjoining it this year, which should help it take effectyears earlier than anybody expected. we also discussed the fullarray of challenges to our
shared security. we remain resolute in ourefforts to prevent terrorist attacks against our people,and to continue the progress that we've made in rollingback and ultimately defeating isil. our forces, as davidmentioned, are systematically degradingisil's finances and safe havens, and removingits top leaders from the battlefield.
we've got to keep workingto improve security and information-sharing acrosseurope, and to stem the flow of foreign fightersinto and out of syria. we discussed our efforts toresolve political conflicts in the middle east, fromyemen to syria to libya, in order to increase theprospects for stability. in libya, going forward,we have an opportunity to support a new governmentand help libyans root out extremist elements.
in syria, as challenging asit is, we still need to see more progress towards anenduring ceasefire, and we continue to push for greaterhumanitarian access to the people who need it most. we have to continue toinvest in nato so that we can meet our overseascommitments, from afghanistan to the aegean. we have to resolve theconflict in the ukraine and reassure allies who arerightly concerned about
russian aggression. all nato allies should aimfor the nato target of spending 2 percent of theirgdp on defense -- something that david has made surehappens here in the uk to meet that standard. we discussed new actionswe can take to address the refugee crisis, includingwith our nato allies. and because a strong defenserelies on more than just military spending but onhelping to unleash the
potential of others to livefreer and more prosperous lives, i want to thank thepeople of the united kingdom for their extraordinarygenerosity as one of the world's foremost donorsof humanitarian aid. we talked about promotingjobs and stronger growth through increasedtransatlantic trade and investment so that our youngpeople can achieve greater opportunity and prosperity. and, yes, the prime ministerand i discussed the upcoming
referendum here on whetheror not the uk should remain part of the european union. ultimately, this issomething that the british voters have to decidefor themselves. but as part of our specialrelationship, part of being friends is to be honestand to let you know what i think. and speaking honestly, theoutcome of that decision is a matter of deep interest tothe united states because it
affects ourprospects as well. the united states wants astrong united kingdom as a partner. and the united kingdom is atits best when it's helping to lead a strong europe. it leverages uk power to bepart of the european union. as i wrote in the op-ed heretoday, i don't believe the eu moderates britishinfluence in the world -- it magnifies it.
the eu has helped to spreadbritish values and practices across the continent. the single market bringsextraordinary economic benefits to theunited kingdom. and that ends up being goodfor america, because we're more prosperous when one ofour best friends and closest allies has a strong,stable, growing economy. americans want britain'sinfluence to grow, including within europe.
the fact is, in today'sworld no nation is immune to the challenges that davidand i just discussed. and in today's world,solving them requires collective action. all of us cherish oursovereignty -- my country is pretty vocal aboutthat -- but the u.s. also recognizes that westrengthen our security through ourmembership in nato. we strengthen our prosperitythrough organizations like
the g7 and the g20. and i believe the ukstrengthens both our collective security andprosperity through the eu. in the 21st century, thenations that make their presence felt on the worldstage aren't the nations that go it alone but thenations that team up to aggregate their power andmultiply their influence. and precisely becausebritain's values and institutions are so strongand so sound, we want to
make sure that thatinfluence is heard, that it's felt, that itinfluences how other countries think aboutcritical issues. we have confidence that whenthe uk is involved in a problem that they're goingto help solve it in the right way. that's why the unitedstates cares about this. for centuries, europewas marked by war and by violence.
the architecture that ourtwo countries helped build with the eu has provided thefoundation for decades of relative peace andprosperity on that continent. what a remarkable legacy --a legacy born in part out of what took placein this building. before we walked out, ihappened to see enigma on display. and that was a reminder ofthe incredible innovation
and collaboration of theallies in world war ii and the fact that neither of uscould have won that alone. and in the same way, afterworld war ii, we built out the internationalinstitutions that, yes, occasionally constrained us,but we willingly allowed those constraints because weunderstood that by doing so, we were able toinstitutionalize and internationalize the basicvalues of rule of law, and freedom, and democracy, thatwould benefit our citizens
as well as peoplearound the world. i think there's a britishpoet who once said, "no man is an island" -- even anisland as beautiful as this. we're stronger together. and if we continue to tackleour challenges together, then future generations willlook back on ours, just as we look back on the previousgeneration of english and american citizens who workedso hard to make this world safer and more secure andmore prosperous, and they'll
say that we didour part, too. and that's important. that's important not justhere; that's important in the united states, as well. thanks. prime minister cameron:thank you very much. all right, we'vegot some questions. we're going to start with aquestion from the british press.
we'll have chrisship from itv. the press: thank you verymuch, prime minister. chris ship from itv news. mr. president, you,yourself, acknowledge the controversial timing ofyour comments on the eu referendum and the spiriteddebate that we're having here. and i think you're right. in the weeks before yourarrival here, leave
campaigners have saidthat you're acting hypocritically. america would not accept theloss of sovereignty that we have to accept aspart of the eu. america would not accept thelevels of immigration from mexico that we have toaccept from the eu. and therefore, in variousdegrees of politeness, they have said to you that youshould really keep your views to yourself.
with that in mind, mr.president, do you still think it was the rightdecision to intervene in this debate? and can i ask you this --truthfully, what happens if the uk does decide in juneto leave the european union? president obama: well,firsts of all, let me repeat, this is a decisionfor the people of the united kingdom to make. i'm not coming hereto fix any votes.
i'm not castinga vote myself. i'm offering my opinion. and in democracies,everybody should want more information, not less. and you shouldn't be afraidto hear an argument being made. that's not a threat. that shouldenhance the debate. particularly because myunderstanding is that some
of the folks on the otherside have been ascribing to the united states certainactions we'll take if the uk does leave the eu. so they say, for example,that, well, we'll just cut our own trade dealswith the united states. so they're voicing anopinion about what the united statesis going to do. i figured you might want tohear it from the president of the united states what ithink the united states is
going to do. and on that matter, forexample, i think it's fair to say that maybe some pointdown the line, there might be a uk-u.s. trade agreement, but it'snot going to happen anytime soon, because our focus isin negotiating with a big bloc, the european union, toget a trade agreement done, and the uk is going to be inthe back of the queue -- not because we don't have aspecial relationship, but
because, given the heavylift on any trade agreement, us having access to abig market with a lot of countries -- rather thantrying to do piecemeal trade agreements ishugely inefficient. now, to the subject at hand,obviously the united states is in a differenthemisphere, different circumstances, has differentsets of relationships with its neighborsthan the uk does. but i can tell you this.
if, right now, i've gotaccess to a massive market where i sell 44 percent ofmy exports, and now i'm thinking about leaving theorganization that gives me access to that market andthat is responsible for millions of jobs in mycountry and responsible for an enormous amount ofcommerce and upon which a lot of businesses depend,that's not something i'd probably do. and what i'm trying todescribe is a broader
principle, which is, in ourown ways -- i mean, we don't have a common market in theamericas -- but in all sorts of ways, the united statesconstrains itself in order to bind everyone under acommon set of norms and rules that makes everybodymore prosperous. that's what we builtafter world war ii. the united states andthe uk designed a set of institutions -- whether itwas the united nations, or the bretton woods structure,imf, world bank, nato,
across the board. now, that, to some degree,constrained our freedom to operate. it meant that occasionallywe had to deal with some bureaucracy. it meant that on occasionwe have to persuade other countries, and we don't get100 percent of what we want in each case. but we knew that by doingso, everybody was going to
be better off -- partlybecause the norms and rules that were put in placewere reflective of what we believe. if there were more freemarkets around the world, and an orderly financialsystem, we knew we could operate in that environment. if we had collective defensetreaties through nato, we understood that we couldformalize an architecture that would deter aggression,rather than us having,
piecemeal, to put togetheralliances to defeat aggression afterit already started. and that principle iswhat's at stake here. and the last point i'll makeon this -- until i get the next question, i suspect -- -- is that, as david said, this magnifiesthe power of the uk. it doesn't diminish it. on just about every issue,what happens in europe is
going to havean impact here. and what happens in europeis going to have an impact in the united states. we just discussed, forexample, the refugee and the and i've told my team --which is sitting right here, so they'll vouch for me --that we consider it a major national security issuethat you have uncontrolled migration into europe --not because these folks are coming to the unitedstates, but because if it
destabilizes europe, ourlargest trading bloc -- trading partner -- it'sgoing to be bad for our economy. if you start seeingdivisions in europe, that weakens nato. that will have an impact onour collective security. now, if, in fact, i wantsomebody who's smart and common sense, and tough, andis thinking, as i do, in the conversations about howmigration is going to be
handled, somebody who alsohas a sense of compassion, and recognizes thatimmigration can enhance, when done properly, theassets of a country, and not just diminish them, iwant david cameron in the conversation. just as i want him in theconversation when we're having discussions aboutinformation-sharing and counterterrorism activity. precisely because i haveconfidence in the uk, and i
know that if we're notworking effectively with paris or brussels, thenthose attacks are going to migrate to the united statesand to london, i want one of my strongest partnersin that conversation. so it enhances thespecial relationship. prime minister cameron: letme just make, chris, one point in response to that. this is our choice; nobodyelse's -- the sovereign choice of thebritish people.
but as we make that choice,it surely makes sense to listen to what our friendsthink, to listen to their opinion, to listento their views. and that's what barack hasbeen talking about today. but it's also worthremembering as we make this choice, it's a britishchoice about the british we're not being asked tomake a choice about whether we support the german styleof membership, or the italian style of membership.
britain has a special statusin the european union. we're in the single market;we're not part of the single currency. we're able to travel andlive and work in other european countries, butwe've maintained our borders, because we're notin the schengen no-border zone. and on this vital issue oftrade, where barack has made such a clear statement, weshould remember why we are
currently negotiating thisbiggest trade deal in the whole world, and in thewhole world's history, between the european unionand the united states -- is because britain played anabsolutely leading part in pushing for thosetalks to get going. indeed, we announced them atthe g8 in northern ireland, when britain was in thechair of that organization. we set the agenda for whatcould be an absolutely game-changing trade dealfor jobs, for investment,
because we were partof this organization. so i just want to addthose important points. i think we have a u.s. question now. president obama:justin sink. the press: thanks,mr. president. following on that, do youthink that between brexit and the migration issue,european unity is at a crisis point?
what do you hope leadersgathering in germany can concretely do about it? and do you expect thosenations to militarily support, including thepossibility of ground troops, the new governmentin libya to keep that situation from furtherstraining europe? while we're talking aboutfuture summits, i'm also wondering if maybe you couldtalk about whether you plan to go to hiroshima whenyou visit japan, and --
president obama:oh, come on, man. you're really stretching it. the press: this one is forprime minister cameron, and it's short. i promise. prime minister cameron, thepresident has come here to tell the uk that, as afriend, and speaking honestly, they shouldstay in the eu. as a friend and speakinghonestly, what would you
advise american votersto do about donald trump? president obama: thatwas so predictable. prime minister cameron: i'lllet you take the first six -- president obama:yes, exactly. prime minister cameron: --and then i'll pick up that last one. president obama: i wouldn'tdescribe european unity as in a crisis, but i wouldsay it is under strain. and some of that just has todo with the aftermath of the
financial crisis and thestrains that we're all aware of with respectto the eurozone. i think it is important toemphasize, as david points out, that the uk is not partof the eurozone, and so the blowback to the britisheconomy has been different than it is on the continent. but we've seen somedivisions and difficulties between the southern and thenorthern parts of europe. that's created some strains.
i think the migration crisisamplifies a debate that's taking place not just ineurope, but in the united states as well. at a time of globalization,at a time when a lot of the challenges that we face aretransnational, as opposed to just focused on one country,there is a temptation to want to just pull up thedrawbridge, either literally or figuratively. we see that played out insome of the debates that are
taking place in the u.s. presidential race. and that debate i thinkis accelerated in europe. but i'm confident thatthe ties that bind europe together are ultimately muchstronger than the forces that are trying topull them apart. europe has undergone anextraordinary stretch of prosperity -- maybeunmatched in the history of the world.
if you think about the 20thcentury and you think about the 21st century, 21stcentury europe looks an awful lot better. and i think the majority ofeuropeans recognize that. they see that unity andpeace have delivered sustained economic growth,reduced conflict, reduced violence, enhanced thequality of life for people. and i'm confidentthat can continue. but i do believe that it'simportant to watch out for
some of these fault linesthat are developing. and in that sense, i dothink that the brexit vote -- which, if i'm a citizenof uk, i'm thinking about it solely in terms of how isthis helping me, how is this helping the uk economy, howis it helping create jobs here in the uk -- that's theright way to think about it. but i do also think thatthis vote will send a signal that is relevant aboutwhether the kind of prosperity that we'vebuilt together is going to
continue, or whether theforces of division end up being more prominent. and that's why it's --that's part of the reason why it's relevant to theunited states, and why i have had the temerityto weigh in on it. what were your fourother questions? i've got to figure i'veknocked out two through that answer. the press: libya --president obama: with
respect to libya, bothdavid and i discussed our commitment to try to assistthis nascent government. and it's a challenge, butthere are people in this government of nationalaccord that are genuinely committed to buildingback up a state. that's something wedesperately want, because both the united states andunited kingdom, but also a number of our other allies,are more than prepared to invest in helping createborder security in libya,
and helping to drive outterrorists inside of libya, and trying to make sure thatwhat could be a thriving society -- a relativelysmall population, a lot of resources -- this is not anissue where we should have to subsidize libya. they're actually muchbetter-positioned than some other countries that we'vebeen helping, if they can just get their act together. and we want to help providethat technical assistance to
get that done. there is no plans forground troops in libya. i don't thinkthat's necessary. i don't think it wouldbe welcomed by this new government. it would sendthe wrong signal. this is a matter of canlibyans come together. what we can do is toprovide them our expertise. what we can do isprovide them training.
what we can do is providethem a road map for how they can get basic services totheir citizens and build up legitimacy. but i do think that the onearea where both david and i are heavily committed is, asthis progresses, we can't wait if isil is startingto get a foothold there. and so we are workingnot just with the libyan government but a lot of ourinternational partners to make sure that we're gettingthe intelligence that we
need and, in some cases,taking actions to prevent isil from having anotherstronghold from which to launch attacks againsteurope or against the united states. and i think you have to waituntil i get to asia to start asking me asia questions. prime minister cameron: thequestion you asked me -- this is not ageneral election. this is a referendum.
and as barack has explained,it's a referendum that affects, of course, thepeople of the united kingdom very deeply, but it alsodoes affect others in the european union; it affectspartners like america, or canada, or australia,or new zealand. and as i look around theworld, it is hard to find -- so far, i haven't found one-- a country that wishes britain well that thinks weought to leave the european union.
and i think that's --again, it's our choice. we'll make the decision. we'll listen toall the arguments. people want the facts. they want the arguments. they want to knowthe consequences. and i'll try to lay thoseout as prime minister as clearly as i can. but listening to ourfriends, listening to
countries that wish us well,is part of the process and is a good thing to do. as for the americanelections, i've made some comments in recentweeks and months. i don't think now is amoment to add to add to them or subtract from them. but i think, just as a primeminister who's been through two general electionsleading my party, you always look on at the u.s.
elections in awe of thescale of the process and the length of the process, and imarvel at anyone who is left standing at the end of it. president obama:fortunately, we're term-limited. so i, too, can lookin awe at the process. prime minister cameron:we have another british question from laurakuenssberg from the bbc. the press: thank you.
mr. president, you've madeyour views very plain on the fact that british votersshould choose to stay in the eu. but in the interest of goodfriends always being honest, are you also saying thatour decades-old special relationship that's beenthrough so much would be fundamentally damagedand changed by our exit? if so, how? and are you also -- do youhave any sympathy with
people who think this isnone of your business? and, prime minister, toyou, if i may, some of your colleagues believe it'sutterly wrong that you have dragged our closest allyinto the eu referendum campaign. what do you say to them? and is it appropriate forthe mayor of london, boris johnson, to have brought uppresident obama's kenyan ancestry in thecontext of this debate?
prime minister cameron:well, let me -- this is a british question- let me go first. i mean, first of all,questions for boris are questions for boris. they're questions for boris,they're not questions for me. i don't have some specialpower over the president of the united states. barack feels strongly aboutthis and has said what he's
said. and, as i said, it's ourdecision as a sovereign people, the choice we makeabout europe, but i think it's right to listen to andconsider the advice of your friends. and just to amplify one ofthe points that barack made, we have a shared interest ofmaking sure europe takes a robust approach torussian aggression. and if you take those issuesof the sanctions that we put
in place through theeuropean union, i think i can put my hand on my heartand say that britain played a really important role,and continues to play an important role, in makingsure those sanctions were put in place andkept in place. i'm not sure it would havehappened if we weren't there. now, if it's in our interest-- and it is in our interest -- for europe to be strongagainst aggression, how can
it be an interest notto be at that table and potentially to see thosesanctions not take place? and i think it's been thatworking between britain and the united states over thisissue that has helped to make a big difference. i would just say about thespecial relationship, to me -- and i'm passionate aboutthis, and i believe it very, very deeply, for all thereasons of the history and the language and theculture, but also about the
future of our country --and the truth is this: the stronger britain is, and thestronger america is, the stronger thatrelationship will be. and i want britain to beas strong as possible. and we draw our strengthfrom all sorts of things that we have as a country --the fifth largest economy in the world; amazing armedforces; brilliant security and intelligence forces --that we were discussing about how well they worktogether; incredibly
talented people; brilliantuniversities; the fact that we're members of nato,the g7, the g20, the commonwealth. but we also draw strength,and project strength, and project power, and projectour values, and protect our people, and make our countrywealthier, our people wealthier by being inthe european union. so i want britain to beas strong as possible. and the stronger britain is,the stronger that special
relationship is, and themore that we can get done together to make surethat we have a world that promotes democracy and peaceand human rights and the development that we wantto see across the world. so, to me, it's simple:stronger britain, stronger special relationship --that's in our interest, and that's in the interestof the united states of america, as well. president obama: letme start with
winston churchill. you know, i don't know ifpeople are aware of this, but in the residence, on thesecond floor, my office, my private office iscalled the treaty room. and right outside the doorof the treaty room, so that i see it every day,including on weekends, when i'm going into that officeto watch a basketball game -- -- the primary image isee is a bust of it's there voluntarily,because i can do anything on
the second floor. i love winston churchill. i love the guy. now, when i was elected aspresident of the united states, my predecessor hadkept a churchill bust in the oval office. there are only so manytables where you can put busts -- otherwise it startslooking a little cluttered. and i thoughtit was appropriate, and i
suspect most people here inthe united kingdom might agree, that as the firstafrican american president, it might be appropriate tohave a bust of dr. martin luther king in my office toremind me of all the hard work of a lot of people whowould somehow allow me to have the privilege ofholding this office. that's just onwinston churchill. i think people should knowthat, know my thinking there. with respect to the specialrelationship, i have a staff
member, who will not benamed -- because it might embarrass her a littlebit -- who, generally, on foreign trips, does notleave the hotel or the staff room because she'sconstantly doing work making this happen. she has had one request theentire time that i have been president, and that is,could she accompany me to windsor on the off-chancethat she might get a peek at her majesty the queen.
and, gracious as she is, hermajesty actually had this person, along with a coupleof others, lined up so that as we emerged from lunch,they could say hello. and this staff person, whois as tough as they come, almost fainted -- -- which was -- i'm glad shedidn't because it would have caused an incident. that's the specialrelationship. we are so bound togetherthat nothing is going to
impact the emotional andcultural and intellectual affinities betweenour two countries. so i don't come here,suggesting in any way that that is impacted by adecision that the people of the united kingdom maymake around whether or not they're members ofthe european union. that is there. that's solid. and that will continue,hopefully, eternally.
and the cooperation in allsorts of ways -- through nato, through g7, g20 -- allthose things will continue. but, as david said, if oneof our best friends is in an organization that enhancestheir influence and enhances their power and enhancestheir economy, then i want them to stay in it. or at least i want to beable to tell them, you know, i think this makes youguys bigger players. i think this helpsyour economy.
i think this helpsto create jobs. and so, ultimately,it's your decision. but precisely because we'rebound at the hip, i want you to know that beforeyou make your decision. margaret brennan. the press: thankyou very much, sir. mr. president, vladimirputin hasn't stopped assad, as he led you to believe hewould, and the ceasefire in syria appears tobe falling apart.
will you continue to bet onwhat looks to be a losing strategy? mr. prime minister, the uktoday warned its citizens traveling to north carolinaand mississippi about laws there that affecttransgender individuals. as a friend, what do youthink of those laws? mr. president, would youlike to weigh in on that? and, sir, if you'd indulgeus -- president obama: indulge -- what do you mean?
the press: well, indulge allof us back in the u.s., sir, prince passed away. you were a fan. you had invited him toperform at the white house. can you tell uswhat made you a fan? president obama: i'm tryingto figure out which order to do this. maybe i'll startwith north carolina and mississippi.
i want everybody here in theunited kingdom to know that the people of north carolinaand mississippi are wonderful people. they are hospitable people. they are beautiful states,and you are welcome and you should come andenjoy yourselves. and i think you'll betreated with extraordinary hospitality. i also think that the lawsthat have been passed there
are wrong and shouldbe overturned. and they're in response topolitics, in part; in part, some strong emotions thatare generated by people -- some of whom are good peoplebut i just disagree with when it comes to respectingthe equal rights of all people, regardless of sexualorientation, whether they're transgender orgay or lesbian. and although i respect theirdifferent viewpoints, i think it's very importantfor us not to send signals
that anybody istreated differently. and i think it's fair to saythat we're not unique among countries where --particularly under a federal system in which power isdispersed, that there are going to be some localitiesor local officials that put forward laws that aren'tnecessarily reflective of a national consensus. but if you guys cometo north carolina or mississippi, everybodywill be treated well.
the second questionwith respect to syria. i am deeply concerned aboutthe cessation of hostilities fraying and whetherit's sustainable. now, keep in mind that ihave always been skeptical about mr. putin's actionsand motives inside of syria. he is -- along with iran --the preeminent backer of a murderous regime that ido not believe can regain legitimacy within hiscountry because he's murdered a lot of people.
having said that, what ialso believe is, is that we cannot end the crisis insyria without political negotiations and withoutgetting all the parties around the table tocraft a transition plan. and that, by necessity,means that there are going to be some people on oneside of the table who i deeply disagree with andwhose actions i deeply abhor. that's how oftentimes youresolve conflicts like this that are taking an enormoustoll on the syrian people.
the cessation of hostilitiesactually held longer than i expected. and for seven weeks we'veseen a significant reduction in violence insidethat country. and that gave somerelief to people. i talked to putin on mondayprecisely to reinforce to him the importance of ustrying to maintain the cessation of hostilities,asking him to put more pressure on assad,indicating to him that we
would continue to try to getthe moderate opposition to stay at the negotiatingtable in geneva. but this hasalways been hard. and it's going tokeep being hard. and what david and idiscussed in our meeting was that we will continue toprosecute the war against daesh, against isil. we are going to continueto support those who are prepared to fight isil.
and we're going tocontinue to target them. we're going to continueto make progress. but we're not going to solvethe overall problem unless we can get thispolitical track moving. i assure you that we havelooked at all options. none of them are great. and so we are going toplay this option out. if, in fact, the cessationfalls apart, we'll try to put it back together againeven as we continue to go
after isil. and it's my belief thatultimately russia will recognize that, just asthis can't be solved by a military victory on the partof those we support, russia may be able to keep the lidon, alongside iran, for a while, but if you don't havea legitimate government there, they willbe bled, as well. and that is not -- that'snot speculation on my part. i think the evidence allpoints in that direction.
and finally with respectto prince, i loved prince because he put out greatmusic and he was a great performer. i didn't know him well. he came to perform at thewhite house last year and was extraordinary, andcreative and original and full of energy. and so it's aremarkable loss. and i'm staying atwinfield house, the u.s.
ambassador's residence. it so happens our ambassadorhas a turntable, and so this morning we played "purplerain" and "delirious" just to get warmed up before weleft the house for important bilateral meetingslike this. prime minister cameron: asa fan of great music, the ambassador has brought alot of brilliant talent. president obama: absolutely. prime minister: let me justanswer, i've been to north
carolina many yearsago and enjoyed it. i have not yet made it tomississippi, but one day i hope to. the guidance that we putout, the foreign office, gives advice on travel, andit obviously deals with laws in situations as they are,and it tries to give that advice dispassionately,impartially. but it's very importantthat it does so. it's something that a lotof attention is given to.
our view on any of thesethings is that we believe that we should betrying to use law to end discrimination rather thanto embed it or enhance it. and that's something we'recomfortable saying to countries and friendsanywhere in the world. but obviously, the lawspeople pass is a matter of their own legislatures. but we make clear our ownviews about the importance of trying to enddiscrimination, and we've
made some important stepsforward in our own country on that front, whichwe're proud of. with that, thankyou very much. president obama: thankyou very much, everybody. (applause)
