00:00consent that the motion to reconsider with respect to the Sullivan nomination
00:04be considered made and laid upon the table and the president be immediately
00:08notified of the Senate's actions. Without objection. Mr. President, today on World
00:15Refugee Day, I'm here to honor the tens of millions of people worldwide who have
00:21been forced to flee their homes. World Refugee Day was first held in June of
00:272001 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the 1951 Refugee Convention and to
00:34shine a light on the needs and rights of refugees while giving voice to their
00:39aspirations. At that time in 2001, the number of forcibly displaced persons
00:46globally was close to 20 million. Today that number stands at a hundred and
00:53twenty million people, according to the UN Refugee Agency. This staggering figure,
01:00the highest in recorded history, means that 1.5 percent of the entire world's
01:06population has been forced to flee their homes as a result of persecution,
01:10conflict, violence, or natural disasters like drought, crop failures, or famine. In
01:17the past 10 years, the number of forcibly displaced persons has more than doubled
01:23as new conflicts have arisen and long-standing crises have gone unresolved,
01:28made worse by the impacts of climate change, food insecurity, and poverty. Of
01:35this hundred and twenty million, there are more than 31 million refugees who
01:39have crossed international borders to seek safety in another country. 31
01:45million people who are not safe from prosecution in their own country of
01:50origin. There are more than 68 million internally displaced persons, the
01:55majority of whom are women and children, forced from their homes but still within
02:00the country's borders. In every region of the world, we see people pushed from their
02:05homes. In Sudan, where the brutal and altogether avoidable conflict between
02:11the Rapid Support Forces and Sudan Armed Forces has forced more than 9 million
02:16people to flee their homes. Without a ceasefire and sustainable peace
02:21agreement, these numbers will only continue to grow. In Ukraine, where Putin's
02:27illegal full-scale invasion has pushed nearly 10 million Ukrainians from their
02:31homes, including more than 6 million refugees. In Gaza, where approximately 75
02:38percent of the population, 1.7 million people, has been displaced and displaced
02:43multiple times since last October. And in Haiti, where widespread violence has
02:50uprooted more than 360,000 people in the past year. Even as crises fades from the
02:57headlines, the impact of people's lives do not. For nearly 14 million displaced
03:04Syrians, representing over half the country's population, to the estimated 6.5
03:10million Afghan refugees around the world, to the more than 6 million
03:15Venezuelan refugees. The long tail of conflict and crisis has left millions
03:21displaced year after year. Behind every number is a story of a life uprooted. But
03:29there's also the story of courage, of resilience and hope for a brighter
03:33future. The hope of a refugee mother for a child to receive an education. The hope
03:39of a refugee woman to someday become a doctor. The hope of a family caught in
03:45the crosshairs of war to return to their homes and live in peace. Achieving this
03:50brighter future requires urgent and sustained support from the United States
03:55and the international community. Massive cuts proposed by House colleagues to the
04:01Migration and Refugee Assistance Accounts for FY25 would turn our back
04:07and imperil the lives of those most at risk. That is why this day I will be
04:12introducing, along with 21 of my Senate colleagues, a resolution reaffirming the
04:18importance of promoting the safety, health and well-being of
04:23refugees and displaced persons in the United States and around the world. This
04:27means upholding the United States' long history of welcoming people from around
04:32the world who have been oppressed and persecuted. Our U.S. refugee admissions
04:37program, established in 1980, remains a life-saving pillar for resettling the
04:42most vulnerable refugees. It means further tapping into the deep
04:46generosity of Americans, as demonstrated by the United States government's
04:51Welcome Corps, through which private citizens are supporting newly arrived
04:55refugees themselves. It means supporting host communities, particularly in low and
05:00middle-income countries, where 75% of all refugees are hosted, while advocating
05:07for refugee inclusion. It means continuing U.S. leadership by the State
05:12Department, USAID and NGO partners in responding to displacement crises with
05:18humanitarian assistance and ensuring protection for forcibly displaced
05:22persons that are at risk of gender-based violence, human trafficking and other
05:28human rights abuses. It means working in partnership with the international
05:33community to resolve conflicts, to address climate change that is
05:37destroying lands and livelihoods, and to hold human rights abusers accountable so
05:43that people can return to their homes. In taking these steps, we will not only
05:50uplift the lives of vulnerable people around the world, we will also promote
05:55regional stability and strengthen U.S. national security. So, Mr. President, on
06:01World Refugee Day, let us all join together to mitigate the causes that
06:07have forced refugees to leave their homes and help these individuals
06:13who are displaced to have an opportunity for a peaceful future. I yield the floor.
Comments