Transcript: Jake Sullivan on "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan," Dec. 1, 2024

The pursuing is simply a transcript of an interrogation with National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan connected "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" that aired connected Dec. 1, 2024.

MAJOR GARRETT: We are joined present by President Biden's National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan. He is successful Newcastle, New Hampshire this morning. Jake, bully morning. It's bully to spot you. The Hamas video merchandise of Edan Alexander, I cognize the medication regards it arsenic a cruel propagandistic maneuver, but bash you observe thing tactical astatine each successful the timing of the merchandise of this video, Jake?

JAKE SULLIVAN: Well Major, first, acknowledgment for having me. And arsenic acold arsenic this video, it is simply a cruel reminder of the barbarity and the brutality of Hamas holding truthful galore guiltless radical hostage, including Americans, including Edan. We were successful interaction with Edan's household yesterday. I'll beryllium talking to the families of each of the American hostages, including Edan's household this week. And I bash deliberation that Hamas is feeling the pressure. They're feeling the unit due to the fact that 1 of their main partners successful transgression here, Hezbollah, has present chopped a ceasefire deal, and they thought that Hezbollah would beryllium with them till the end. They're feeling the pressure, of course, due to the fact that their apical leader, Sinwar, has been killed. So, they whitethorn beryllium looking anew astatine the anticipation of getting a ceasefire and hostage deal. And we are moving actively with each of the cardinal players successful the region, including Israel and Turkey and Qatar and Egypt, to effort to bring that about. In the coming days, conversations volition beryllium happening, adjacent this precise day, to effort to marque that hap arsenic soon arsenic possible.

MAJOR GARRETT: Jake, it has been reported that the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, successful a speech with Edan's family, said, quote, conditions are ripe, unquote, for a hostage deal. How bash you measure that?

JAKE SULLIVAN: Well, we person been moving intimately with the Israelis since President Biden went retired into the Rose Garden and announced the ceasefire with- crossed the borderline betwixt Israel and Lebanon, and what President Biden said was this opens a existent accidental to get that ceasefire and hostage woody successful Gaza. He besides spoke with Prime Minister Netanyahu that day, and Prime Minister Netanyahu told him helium agreed, the clip is right. The infinitesimal is now. Let's thrust to get it done. And now, if the satellite tin travel unneurotic to summation the unit connected Hamas, we tin yet interruption through, get a woody successful place, get a ceasefire, get a surge of humanitarian assistance, and crucially, get those hostages, including those Americans, location safely to their families.

MAJOR GARRETT: And what person the play talks successful Egypt told you astir the prospects for that?

JAKE SULLIVAN: Look you tin ne'er truly archer astir whether you're going to get crossed the decorativeness enactment until you do, adjacent if you get down to the 5,4,3,2,1, gait line. Punching it in, getting the deal, yet getting it done, that requires the eventual breakthrough. So I can't foretell whether it's going to happen. What I tin accidental is, determination has been progress. There person been steps forward. There is simply a renewed consciousness that this is possible, but we've been present earlier Major wherever we thought we were close, it didn't cookware out. And truthful I'm not going to get up of myself oregon marque immoderate predictions oregon supply mendacious hope. What I volition accidental is, we're driving astatine this with everything we've got. We deliberation we person a chance, but we won't remainder until we get it done.

MAJOR GARRETT: The destiny of the hostages, of course, connected the administration's mind, connected the minds of each Americans and each successful the region, but besides Jake, I'm definite you saw implicit the past mates of days the video from Gaza of Palestinians surging to effort to get a loaf of bread, successful immoderate cases, crushing 1 different unintentionally. All suggestions are that the humanitarian concern determination is-  if it already isn't past situation stage, adjacent famine situation stage. How overmuch does that intensify the request to get this happening across, arsenic you conscionable said, the decorativeness line?

JAKE SULLIVAN: The humanitarian concern successful Gaza is simply a crisis. You person excessively galore radical who are suffering from shortages of food, water, medicine, entree to sanitation. Innocent radical who merit a measurement of bid and merit entree to each of those beingness redeeming supplies successful abundance. The United States has been moving week in, week out, period in, period out, to unfastened crossings, to determination trucks, to guarantee that humanitarian assistance gets in. And astatine captious moments, we person been capable to intervene successful ways that person staved disconnected the worst lawsuit scenarios of famine. But it's perpetually stalking Gaza, and truthful much needs to beryllium done to get assistance in. Now, portion of the problem, arsenic we've seen conscionable successful the past 24 hours, is not really moving assistance from extracurricular Gaza into Gaza, but moving it astir Gaza erstwhile it's inside. The UN, successful fact, said it was suspending question from definite areas of Gaza due to the fact that of concerns astir looting. These are each things that would beryllium helped if determination were a ceasefire successful place. Because with a ceasefire, with calm successful Gaza, it becomes that overmuch much straightforward to determination the assistance astir the portion truthful that it tin get to people, including to radical who are presently successful areas that are experiencing precise dense conflict. So 1 of the cardinal things that we would similar to execute successful this cease occurrence woody is the surge of humanitarian assistance to spell on with the merchandise of the hostages.

MAJOR GARRETT: Jake is the probability of a ceasefire enhanced oregon undercut erstwhile idiosyncratic specified arsenic South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham says, President elite Trump wants a cease occurrence earlier inauguration deal. Does that assistance you oregon wounded you?

JAKE SULLIVAN: Look, I deliberation the cardinal histrion close present holding the determination connected the cease occurrence is Hamas. And the cardinal happening motivating Hamas is not American authorities oregon the American statesmanlike transition, it's their determination astir whether oregon not it makes consciousness for them astatine this point, aft Hezbollah has abandoned them, aft their person has been killed, aft their subject formations person been degraded, to yet accidental yes to a ceasefire and hostage deal. That's going to beryllium the telling thing, much than thing that's said backmost here. But I volition accidental this, determination has been precise bully coordination betwixt our squad and the incoming squad connected each of the aspects of the situation successful the Middle East. We felt it was important that we beryllium successful interaction with them, to support them up to velocity connected what's happening, due to the fact that this handoff has got to beryllium smooth, and they, successful turn, person reciprocated by being unfastened and transparent and moving with us. This is however it should beryllium successful a transition. This is what we're going to support driving for for each time that we person near successful office.

MAJOR GARRETT: Jake, I privation to person a speech with you astir leverage arsenic regards the Israeli government. I privation to play for you thing that Maryland Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen said connected this programme a week ago. Let's listen.

[SEN. VAN HOLLEN SOT]

SEN. CHRIS VAN HOLLEN: We've seen this signifier wherever President Biden makes demands of Prime Minister Netanyahu, lone to beryllium ignored oregon slapped down entirely. And past President Biden sends much bombs and much money. That is not an effectual usage of leverage.

[END SOT]

MAJOR GARRETT: Your response?

JAKE SULLIVAN: First of all, I respect Senator Van Hollen. He knows these issues arsenic good arsenic immoderate idiosyncratic successful Washington, and helium is passionate astir them. But of course, we person a antithetic perspective. We have, astatine assorted points implicit the people of this conflict, made asks of the Israelis accordant with our values and our interests. Have we gotten everything we asked for? No. Have we seen a alteration successful Israeli behavior, with respect to the question of humanitarian assistance, with respect to however they conducted definite subject operations, including successful places similar Rafah? Yes, we have. And truthful we bash judge that we've had a constructive engagement with the Israeli authorities and besides been capable to marque a quality connected the crushed with respect to the travel of humanitarian aid. In addition, we worked intimately with the Israeli authorities to bring astir a ceasefire successful Lebanon, a ceasefire radical said wasn't imaginable until a caller medication took office. And successful fact, the information that we were capable to bash that says a batch astir our quality to enactment with the Israeli authorities to make an outcome, including 1 that has galore governmental detractors wrong the Israeli system. So we'll support astatine it each azygous day. I respect voices similar Senator Van Hollen. I look guardant to continuing to enactment with him. But of course, we spot things a antithetic way.

MAJOR GARRETT: Jake, I privation to crook your attraction to Ukraine, wherever the Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelenskyy appeared to bespeak successful a caller interrogation that helium could perchance beryllium unfastened to a bid colony successful which Russia retains the territory it has. Ukraine, meaning Kyiv keeps each the rest, if that is swiftly brought nether the umbrella of NATO. Is that the outline oregon the contours of thing you believe- the medication believes could beryllium workable?

JAKE SULLIVAN: Well, Major, I'm atrocious to disappoint you. I can't negociate successful nationalist connected your program, and I surely can't negociate connected behalf of President Zelensky, who truly should talk for himself erstwhile it comes to the destiny of his country. The aboriginal of Ukraine should beryllium determined astatine the negotiating array by decisions of the Ukrainians not imposed from the extracurricular by the United States oregon anybody else. I volition accidental though, that we person been engaging with Ukrainians implicit the people of this twelvemonth connected however you wed the enactment we provided them for usage connected the battlefield with a diplomatic strategy for the negotiating table. And we've been driving towards that earlier the election, we proceed to thrust astatine it, and ultimately, the caller squad volition person to enactment with President Zelensky to find the diplomatic mode forward.

MAJOR GARRETT: And immoderate caller decisions successful the medication person been criticized by Republicans arsenic mounting the concern connected fire, meaning ATACMS and anti-personnel mines. Those advocates for Ukraine accidental those decisions are mode excessively precocious to alteration the conflict abstraction successful immoderate strategically important way. Where bash you travel down?

JAKE SULLIVAN: Look what President Biden has done astatine captious moments successful the conflict, is effort to supply Ukraine with the tools that it needs to succeed. Anti-personnel onshore mines, which are non persistent mines that unopen disconnected aft 2 weeks, truthful they don't correspond a agelong word menace to civilians. These could beryllium adjuvant against the peculiar benignant of tactics that the Russian infantry is utilizing close present successful eastbound Ukraine. So he's sending them. The ATACMS support into Russian territory. That was a determination helium took aft Russia escalated by introducing North Korean troops into this war, a overseas service into this war. So that was a responsible, coordinated measurement that we took with different allies to respond to that provocation, to that escalation by Russia. The President has been wide each along. We are going to springiness Ukraine the tools it needs. We are besides going to bash what we tin to enactment them successful the champion imaginable presumption connected the battlefield, truthful they'll beryllium successful the champion imaginable presumption astatine the negotiating table, and past that this warfare volition yet extremity successful diplomacy.

MAJOR GARRETT: National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan. Thanks truthful overmuch for your time.

JAKE SULLIVAN: Thank you.

MAJOR GARRETT: And we'll beryllium close backmost with a batch much "Face the Nation." Please enactment with us.