In terms of exchanges, the U.S. negotiation involved swapping two Russian nationals for every American national returned safely to the United States. While this was discussed as potentially being an unfair exchange, the cabinet assures the press that this will foster relations between both nations, as well as China. This swap also comes after the Biden administration initiated a prisoner swap with American W.N.B.A. player Brittney Griner and Russian Arms Dealer Vadim Krasikov, which was met with both ridicule and celebration within American borders.

In terms of the ship carrying oil, the cabinet ensured that it will be completing its trip to China as quickly as possible. Furthermore, the CIA Director shared that the Turkish Intelligence Agency will be investigating the contents on the ship to ensure the integrity of the delivery. This will continue previous relationships between the U.S. and Turkey, especially with having Turkey as a mediator.

The United States’ cabinet emphasized the importance of keeping lines of communication open throughout all recovery efforts. Their priorities throughout negotians were the safety of all nationals as well as Ukrainian citizens as well as gaining control of the ship. When asked if this will give an upperhand to the U.S. delegation, it was clear that this does give the United States a certain edege. This leverage would especially become relevant if the United States were to intervene in the war in Ukraine.

The U.S. stated, “We can not entertain a deal with China if they are also going to continue to entertain an oil deal or anything of the like with Russia.” After learning of the China and Russia conversations, the U.S. could no longer be apart. Then the cabinet stated, “That is ultimately what we have come to the table to present, and we have been as upfront as possible, and we do not want to negotiate with people we do not trust.”

China had a comment about this remark and ultimately stated, “I believe it is disgraceful for a diplomatic country such as the U.S. to pull out of a deal that the People’s Republic of China has already fulfilled their part of”.

At the end of the conference, no consensus was made. The Cabinet of the U.S. walked out to their national anthem the star-spangled banner, and the Cabinet of China soon followed. After no deal/signing as of yesterday, we wonder if China and the U.S. will try again and make a deal.

Yesterday, an impromptu press conference was held by the U.S. Cabinet in which the press had many questions for Biden and his administration.

Biden described yesterday’s events as a “farce”, expressing his disappointment with both the other cabinets and his own. However, perhaps the real disappointment should be levied on Biden, as his ability to veer off-topic was incredibly apparent in his answers to the press.

When asked about the Ukrainian power plant, President Biden strangely said, “why do we give plants so much power?”, a question that is neither relevant nor useful. This comes in direct contradiction to the president’s hard stance against Russia, making Fox News wonder: which president does Biden want to be? The one who goes on irrelevant tangents? Or the one who takes a stand against the enemy?

When asked about Russia, Biden stated “we [the cabinet] refuse to communicate with Russia”. While this is a valiant effort to ice out the opposing force, a halt on Russian-U.S. communication could do more harm than good.

Though the treasury secretary stated that the U.S. “cannot risk American lives”, those lives may be at risk simply because Biden’s government refuses to communicate with the Russians. Why would the administration not try its hand at diplomacy?

Putin’s war has raged for nearly a year, causing a flood of Ukrainian refugees to other countries, including the United States. The Biden administration cannot continue to flip and flop between openness and isolation, it needs to make a choice. If this indecision continues, when and how will Russia react?

In their meeting earlier today, the US cabinet proposed a groundbreaking $1.5 billion in subsidies to be dispersed to the oil giant over the next 5 years. This sum of money will ensure that Exxon has adequate funding to research and develop renewable energy sources and lower the price of oil to be more competitive with foreign nations’ prices. Exxon Mobil has already pledged $500 million of their own to research and develop biofuel, EVs, and carbon captures and plans to review their progress every six months to ensure they are “getting their money’s worth,” according to the company’s press secretary, with a possibility of renewing or increasing funding at the end of the review period. 

Everyone involved in the meeting appeared to be quite thrilled to be negotiating a deal with the other party, with the US Secretary of the Treasury proudly remarking “There’s nothing more attractive than oil!” Perhaps another reason for everyone’s joyful demeanors lies in the fact that The US government will be providing subsidies to decrease the price of oil per barrel from approximately $74 per barrel, according to Markets Insider at the time of publication, to below Russia’s cost of $71 per barrel and then slowly decrease to a goal of $65 per barrel over the five-year period. This deal allows Exxon to expand its presence into numerous other European markets, and even China, at a more affordable price than Russian oil which many nations are still forced to purchase over American oil due to its higher price and accomplishes the US’s goal of cutting Russia out of the global economy and lowering the price of oil and gasoline domestically. 

This is all great news, for Americans, not so much Russians and their secret allies, however, one member of the US cabinet made it clear that the deal’s emphasis isn’t on sustainability but won’t harm sustainability either, a confusing statement considering where the US government is planning Exxon to employ their subsidies, leaving room to wonder if there will be alternative machinations planned between Exxon and the US government.

An ExxonMobil executive who wished to remain anonymous acknowledged that protests over the private deal may erupt. “We can’t stop protests from happening,” said the executive. “So we need to address the volatility of them by working with their demands.” American secretaries have also discussed how they will address protests. “We do not want to create a monopoly with our deal,” said the CIA Director. “So if protests erupt, we’ll need to address that.” 

While Chinese leaders have openly welcomed protests, they have explained mass arrests of protestors. “We have no knowledge of unjust detaining,” said Finance Minister Liu Kun. “The only reason protestors were arrested was for sedition and treason, and we want to speak to the leaders directly.” Culture and Tourism Minister Hu Heping also outlined her concern with free press reporting on the protests. “There is a massive security issue with private press,” she said. “Government owned does not mean unfree.” 

ExxonMobil secretaries admitted their frustration with protests nonetheless. “Protestors don’t know what they want from ExxonMobil,” said the anonymous secretary. “We know what we want.” Various Cabinet members discussed how ExxonMobil will expand drilling in untapped markets with a goal of making American markets more competitive than Russian and Chinese markets. The executive further discussed his wishes to achieve what the public desires, a sentiment echoed by executive LD DuCharme. “We want to also invest into biofuels,” she said.

In the meeting between the US government and ExxonMobil, the Treasury Secretary specifically mentioned ExxonMobil’s commitment to sustainability as the reason for working with them. “We need to keep competition up,” said the Secretary. “If Exxon violates our deal or US laws, the deal is over.”

Chinese officials have remained mum on expanding oil drilling amongst mass protests in the country. Finance minister Liu Kun explained his hesitancy on action. “We want to keep our neutrality,” he explained. “So it’s difficult to say where our oil will come from.” However, the United States Treasury Secretary was clear. “Nothing is more valuable to the US than oil,” he said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has consistently admitted to Russia’s willingness to utilize such significant weaponry if deemed necessary. This looming threat has begun to draw closer with new conflicts arising within the realm of arms control.

Trust between nations is incredibly crucial in times of high tension. The Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty II (START II) establishes a nation’s obligation to consent to inspection by foreign authorities.  Despite having agreed to the treaty, Russia refuses to comply with regulations and is actively prohibiting U.S. officials from conducting inspections on Russian nuclear weaponry. The significance of this rebuff has not gone unnoticed by the global community. Communication between these countries in regards to an issue so volatile is essential in order to avoid further escalation and conflict.

“[the United States] is committed to ensuring the safety and security of our allied countries and citizens,” the White House press secretary said. “Our dedication to maintaining peace on our globe requires us to verify that foreign states are complying with the international standards of arms control.”

The potential for nuclear catastrophe becomes increasingly serious as the Russia/Ukraine conflict continues to grow. With the violation of the START treaty, the almost 6,000 nuclear warheads that Russia possesses become a huge liability. To restore peace of mind to all, U.S. officials are pushing for Russia to simply comply with foreign inspection activities.

“[Russia’s] nuclear power serves as a very necessary deterrent to those that may wish us ill, Russia’s FSB director said. “The safety and future of our country depends on our strength; we will continue to defend our priorities and assets as necessary.”

The futures of the U.S. and Russia are not the only ones threatened by this conflict. The future of global arms control could be seriously affected. The disregard that has been displayed for the START implies that this treaty could be endangered in the future. As the only current regulation in relation to the arsenals of the U.S. and Russia, the conflict regarding the START must be quickly terminated to prevent further nuclear proliferation.

The African Union promotes their notion of an “integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its citizens and representing a dynamic force in the global arena,” where immigrants and refugees purpose this intent. However, Africa’s DRC and Congo face the struggle of food insecurity impacting a third of the country’s population, and creating a surge of internally displaced persons or IDPs. Luckily, the African countries of Gabon and Ghana open their arms to those who struggle and welcome many IDPs.

“For migration, we believe that it is necessary for a country to grow, however, safety is always in consideration,” said the representative of Ghana to the African Union.

Acceptance of migrants, refugees, and IDPs will support a growing population benefiting the country’s economy and GDP, they said.

With this in mind, the safety of the people is kept in consideration, as these immigrants bring new insight to the country.

“When it comes to the issue of immigration and asylum seekers, Gabon’s initial approach has always been to find the means to accommodate refugees while still ensuring the safety and security of official residents,” the representative from Gabon said.

Importance of understanding who is entering the country and for what reasons assures the safety
and security of the people living in it. As for the IDPs and refugees eluding hunger and war, they intend to improve their way of life. Every human being is entitled to a safe environment to live a secure lifestyle, and with the acceptance from countries for migrants, refugees, and IDPs, this lifestyle will be achieved.

Did you know that Lloyd Austin has been first in five different categories? He was the first Black secretary of defense, the first Black vice chief of staff of the Army, the first Black person to lead U.S. Central Command, the first Black person to lead an Army corps in combat, and the first Black commanding general of a U.S. Army Division. However, during his latest speech, Secretary of Defense Austin explained why governments should care about Ukraine and why they should help.

“Stability and prosperity on both sides of the Atlantic are at stake. You know, the U.S. trading relationship with the European Union is the largest in the world. So when an aggressor manufactures a huge security crisis in Europe, it hits home for everyday Americans and Canadians,” Austin remarked.

The secretary of defense’s speech at the Halifax International Security Forum brings up how the situation in Russia and Ukraine started and how everyone is reacting to this situation. 

To give some background of this major event. On Feb. 24, 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine, causing huge tensions throughout Europe for allies of Ukraine and allies of Russia. As of now, there have been more than 40,000 fatalities in the country. 

Secretary Austin has accomplished many things in his lifetime, but when trying to resolve the argument on the use of tanks in Ukraine, he failed. He also had little to no support on this matter. The reason why he failed was because every country in NATO believes they are doing enough. When the question of if Germany was doing enough, he responded, “Yes, but we can all do more.” That must be the main reason why it did not pass, countries assumed they were doing enough.

Are countries doing enough? Can the secretary of defense solve this issue?