State department briefing 2day:
QUESTION: Hi, Ned. Thanks for doing this. Hope you’re feeling better. A couple questions for you. First on Ethiopia, the seven UN staff declared persona non grata by the Ethiopian Government have left the country to ensure their safety. What action is the U.S. planning to take given the UN Security Council won’t take any? Do you have any update on if and when the new EO might be used in response to this?
And then on China’s air incursions near Taiwan, it’s a pretty unprecedented level. Does the State Department think that China is responding to the stepped-up U.S. military presence in the region?
MR PRICE: Thanks for those. I’ll start with Ethiopia, and you heard from us, from Secretary Blinken in fact, on this. But we strongly condemn the Government of Ethiopia’s expulsion of seven UN officials, and we call for an immediate reversal of this decision. The officials expelled from the country include a senior official from the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights as well as the head of both the United Nations Children’s Fund and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, whose work is so critical to the ongoing humanitarian relief efforts. And this announcement came just days after OCHA Chief Martin Griffiths warned that a man-made famine is taking hold in Ethiopia. That’s why these expulsions are counter-productive to international efforts to keep civilians safe and to deliver lifesaving humanitarian assistance to the millions in dire need.
The UN is also conducting important human rights investigations, which is why these expulsions are so troublesome. It is critical that these individuals be allowed to return to Ethiopia in order to carry out their important lifesaving work and duties.
Daphne, you referenced the EO. This was the executive order that on September 17th President Biden issued to establish a new sanctions regime that authorizes the imposition of targeted economic sanctions in connection with the crisis in northern Ethiopia. We have been very clear: We will not hesitate to use this authority or other tools to respond to those who obstruct humanitarian assistance to the people of Ethiopia or a peaceful resolution to the conflict, and we call on the international community, similarly, to employ all appropriate tools to apply pressure on the Government of Ethiopia and any other actors impeding humanitarian access. We urge the Government of Ethiopia to collaboratively work with the UN and international partners to allow – to allow and facilitate safe and unhindered humanitarian access to all in need. That has been a longstanding call of ours.