Agriculture sector. They say that 40 of his food and drugs come from europe and he is really hurting the russian people. Yeah, thats right. I mean, its tragic in my view. Not least because we worked several years when i was in the government to try to increase trade and investment including food imports to russia. And at the end of the day, who is going to be hurt is the Russian Consumers both because these goods will no longer be on the russian market and because their absence will increase inflation. Thats just simple market logic. The consumers in russia are the ones that are going to be hurt, not the americans. And there are a number of ceos who have been here in washington for this africa summit. Theyre bidding on african contracts trying to counteract china which has been investing so heavily in the continent. Theyve all been largely affected because these are big global players. They say that it isnt good for their companies but they think the u. S. Is doing the right thing. I think thats right. I mean, the other piece of this, of course, is that russia tried for many, many years to get into the world trade organization. That finally was completed two years ago. And just a few years in now theyre violating the rules of the game. Theyre violating the norms that she signed up for. Thats going to make people suspicious in the longrun. That makes investors nervous and anybody making economic decisions about a longterm strategy in russia is much more cautious today than they were just 24 hours ago. Snowdens asylum in russia has been extended. I guess thats not a big surprise. But also were seeing a massing of Russian Troops along the border with ukraine and a warning today from the nato secretarygeneral warning from the polish Prime Minister yesterday that hes concerned about a russia move into the poland proper not only into ukraine. Do you really think this is going to become not just a trade war but a hot war, a military action . I still think its a low probability but a much higher probability than just ten days ago. For the simple fact that the Ukrainian Military is winning in Eastern Ukraine and putins surrogate there, these russian Intelligence Officers that are running the military campaign on his behalf, theyre losing. He doesnt have very good options left. Putin has really bad options right now. One is to admit defeat, the other is to think about an excuse to go into Eastern Ukraine. So im very concerned. Im not so concerned about him going into poland, by the way. I think our article five commitments within nato is a good deterrent there. I think its right that nato is trying to increase our commitments to that article five commitments. Im really much more worried about Eastern Ukraine. What do we see in Eastern Ukraine now, you mentioned the fact that the Government Forces are beginning to win, theyve made moves into donetsk and elsewhere, what is the balance of military power right now, between the prorussian separatists and the kiev military . The military, the kiev military, the Ukrainian Military has surrounded the major city of donetsk. Thats where the concentration of the rebels, socalled rebels, ukrainians hate it when you call them rebels. So ill call them socalled rebels. So the situation inside the city, of course, is disastrous for the civilians in terms of just sanitary conditions and Food Supplies and things like that. But the pressure is on, and you had shelling last night in the city for the first time in many weeks. Its feels like its coming to a head in donetsk which is the major city that the rebels now hold. Thank you so much, ambassador mike mcfaul. Good to see you. And president obama right now is at ft. Belvoir in virginia. Hell be making remarks before signing the Veterans Health care bill that was passed by congress before Congress Left for its recess. Hes about 45 minutes late. Theres a lot of conversation about what delayed him and if theres some other Foreign Policy issue on the table today. As some of you may know, bob headed up one of the biggest most Successful Companies in the world, but he also was a west point grad, also a also a ranger who served valiantly on behalf of his country. And this is a labor of love for him and he has hit the ground running. Hes heading out to v. A. Hospitals and clinics around the country starting with phoenix tomorrow. So thank you, bob, for accepting this charge and this challenge in making sure were doing right by our veterans. I know youre going to do a great job. Really proud of him. I want to thank all the members of congress who are here today. I especially want to thank those who led the fight to give bob and the v. A. More of the resources and flexibility that they need to make sure every veteran has access to the care and benefits that theyve earned. Senator bernie sanders, senators richard burr, representative mike misho, representative jeff miller. Give them a big round of applause, thank you. Thats some good work. Were all grateful to our outstanding Veterans Service organizations for the work they do on behalf of veterans and their families. Thank you very much to all the Veterans Service organizations. Most of all i want to thank general buchanan and major turnbull and all who served here at ft. Belvoir. For nearly a century this base has helped keep america strong and secure. 70 years ago troops from here, the 29th infantry division, the blue and gray, were some of the first to storm omaha beach. In recent years many of you have deployed to iraq and afghanistan, and youve risked your lives on multiple tours to defend our nation. And as a country, we have a sacred obligation to serve you as well as you served us. An obligation that doesnt end with your tour of duty. Every day hundreds of thousands of dedicated Public Servants at the v. A. Help us honor that commitment. At v. A. Hospitals across america, youve got doctors and nurses who are delivering world class care to americas veterans. You got millions of veterans and their families who are profoundly grateful for the great work that is done at the v. A. , and as commander in chief, im grateful, too. But over the last few months, weve discovered some inexcusable misconduct at some v. A. Health care facilities. Stories of our veterans denied the care they needed, long wait times being covered up, cooking the books. This is wrong. Its outrageous. And working together we set out to fix it and do right by our veterans across the board no matter how long it took. Weve already taken the first steps to change the way the v. A. Does business. Weve held people accountable for misconduct. Some have already been relieved of their duties and investigations are ongoing. Weve reached out to more than 215,000 veterans so far to make sure that were getting them off wait lists and into clinics both inside and outside the v. A. System. Were moving ahead with urgent reforms including stronger management and leadership and oversight and were instituting a critical culture of accountability. Rebuilding our Leadership Team starting at the top with secretary mcdonnell. And his first acts is that hes directed all v. A. Health care facilities to hold town halls to hear directly from the veterans that they serve to make sure that were hearing honest assessments about whats going on. Now, in a few minutes well take another step forward when i sign into law the l. A. Reform bill that was passed overwhelmingly with bipartisan majorities and that doesnt happen often in congress. Its a good deal. This bill covers a lot of ground, from expanding Survivor Benefits and Educational Opportunities to improving care for veterans struggling with traultic brain injury and for victims of sexual assault. But today i want to focus on the ways this bill will help us insure that veterans have access to the care that theyve earned. First of all, this will give the v. A. More of the resources that it needs. It will help the v. A. Hire more doctors and more nurses and staff more clinics. As a new generation of veterans returns home from war and transitions into civilian life, we have to make sure the v. A. System can keep pace with that new demand. Keep in mind that i have increased funding for the v. A. Since i came into office by extraordinary amounts, but we also have extraordinary numbers of veterans coming home. So the demand, even though weve increased the v. A. Budget is still higher than the resources that weve got. This bill helps to address that. Second, for veterans who cant get timely care through the v. A. , this bill will help them get the care they need someplace else. And its particularly important for veterans who are in remote areas and rural areas, if you live more than 40 miles from a v. A. Facility or if v. A. Doctors cant see you within a reasonable amount of time, youll have the chance to see a doctor outside the v. A. System. Finally, were giving the v. A. Secretary the authority to hold people accountable. Weve got to give bob the authority so he can move quickly to remove Senior Executives that fail to meet the standards of conduct and competence that the American People demand. If you engage in an unethical practice, if you cover up a serious problem, you should be fired, period. It shouldnt be that difficult. And if you blow the whistle on an unethical practice or bring a problem to the attention of higherups, you should be thanked. You should be protected for doing the right thing. You shouldnt be ignored. You shouldnt be ignored. And you certainly shouldnt be punished. To care for him or her who shall have borne the battle, thats the heart of the v. A. s motto. Thats what the bill im about to sign will help us achieve. But i want to be clear about something. This will not and cannot be the end of our effort. Implementing this law will take time. Its going to require focus on the part of all of us. Even as we focus on the urgent reforms we need at the v. A. Right now, particularly around waitlists and the health care system, we cant lose sight of our longterm goals for our Service Members and our veterans. The good news is weve cut the disability claims baglo backlocd now by half but now lets eliminate the backlog. Lets get rid of it. The good news is weve poured major resources in improving Mental Health care, but now lets make sure our veterans actually get the care they need when they need it. The good news is weve helped to get thousands of Homeless Veterans off the street, made an unprecedented effort to end veterans homelessness. We should have zero tolerance for that. But weve got still more work to do in cities and towns across america to get more veterans into the homes they deserve. Weve helped more than a million veterans and their spouses and children go to college through the post9 11 gi bill. But now weve got to help more of them earn their educations and make sure theyre getting a good bargain in the schools they enroll in. Weve rallied companies to hire hundreds of thousands of veterans and their spouses. Thats the good news. With the help of jill biden and michelle obama, two pretty capable women. They know what theyre doing. And nobody says no to them including me. But now weve got to help more of our highly skilled veterans find careers in this new economy. So america has to do right by all who serve under our proud flag. And Congress Needs to do more also. I urge the senate once again to finally confirm my nominee for assistant secretary for policy of the v. A. , linda schwartz. My nominee to lead the board of veterans appeals constance tobias, my nominee for cfo, helen tierney, theyve been waiting a month or more for the vote. In constances case nearly a year. Theyre ready to get to work. Its not that hard. It didnt used to be this hard to just go ahead and get somebody confirmed who is well qualified. Nobody says theyre not. Its just senate doesnt seem to move very fast. As soon as the senate gets back in september, they should act to put these outstanding Public Servants in place. Our veterans dont have time for politics. They need these Public Servants on the job right now. So let me wrap up by saying, two months ago i had the chance to spend some time with some of americas oldest veterans at omaha beach. Some of you may have seen on television the celebration, the commemoration of those incredible days, the 70th anniversary of dday. This was my second visit to democracys beachhead, the second time id gone as president. Its a place where its impossible not to be moved by the courage and the sacrifice of free men and women who volunteered to lay down their lives for people theyd never met. Ideals that they cant live without. Thats why theyre willing to do these things and some of these folks that you met, they were 18 at the time. Some lied about their age. They were 16. Landing either at the beach or sometimes behind the lines. The casualty rates were unbelievable. Being there brought back memories of my own grandfather who marched in pattons army and then came home, and like so many veterans of their generation, they went to school and got married and raised families and he eventually helped to raise me. And on that visit to normandy, i brought some of todays Service Members with me because i wanted to introduce them to the veterans of dday and to show the veterans of dday that their legacy is in good hands, that theres a direct line between the sacrifices then and the sacrifices that folks have made in remote places today. Because in more than a decade of work, todays men and women in uniform, youve answered every mission weve asked of you. Today they continue to serve and risk their lives in afghanistan. It continues to be a difficult and Dangerous Mission as we were tragically reminded this week in an incident that injured our troops anded took the life of a dedicated soldier, major Harold Greene. Our prayers are with the Greene Family as well as with those who sacrifice so much for our nation. Four months from now our combat mission in afghanistan will be complete. Our longest war will come to an honorable end. In the years to come, many from this generation will step out of uniform and their legacy will be secure. Whether or not this country properly repays their heroism, properly repays their patriotism, their service and their sacrifice, thats in our hands. Im committed to seeing that we fulfill that commitment because the men and women of this generation, in 9 11 generation of Service Members are the leaders we need for our time, as Community Leaders and Business Leaders, i hope maybe some leaders in our politics as well. From the greatest generation to the 9 11 generation, americas heroes have answered the call to serve. I have no greater honor than serving as your president and commander in chief and no greater privilege than the chance to make sure that our country keeps the promises that weve made to everybody who signs is up to serve. As long as i hold this office, were going to spend each and every day working to do right by you and your families. Im grateful to you, god bless you, god bless america. About that im going to sign this bill. Thank you very much, everybody. And as we watch president obama is now going to be signing the veterans bill. Ive just mentioned going into his speech that he was delayed. We now know we believe why. The New York Times is reporting that he had a National Security meeting to discuss the plight of as many as 40,000 iraqi religious minorities trapped, dying from heat and starvation on a mountaintop in iraq and surrounded by isis militants. And that the u. S. Is considering, the president is considering air drops or air strikes against the isis militants. Air drops of food and humanitarian relief supplies and or air strikes against the isis militants which would be the first aerial action if it were decided against those militants in iraq. Well be reporting more on that as well. Standing by at the white house is the undersecretary of treasury and the point person for those sanctions against russia. Thank you for waiting while your boss, the president , was speaking on his delayed spoech at ft. Belvoir. But i want to ask you about the effect of putins retaliation against the economic sanctions. Weve been reporting that it will hurt russia economically more than it hurts american companies, but what is the next step here as we get into a potential trade war with russia . Well, good afternoon, andrea. I think youre exactly right. These retaliatory steps that russia has announced will have an utterly insignificant impact on the u. S. Economy. Our food exports to russia are Something Like onetenth of 1 of our economy. Russia on the other hand imports Something Like 40 of all of its food from abroad. So what the russians have done here really is essentially impose sanctions on their own people. And theres a cruel irony to this. That in all of our sanctions programs including our sanctions programs against russia, against iran, anywhere else in the world, we never target food, medicine, medical devices. Our sanctions dont go after access to food. What the russians have done here by banning the imports of some food is really to impose sanctions on sort of the very basics of russian life, access to food. Its going to drive up prices in a way for the Russian Consumers who are already suffering from really significant inflation. So this will not have much of an impact if at all on the u. S. Economy. It will and it really sort of very unfortunate way, the