US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that he would like to discuss New Zealand's efforts to address violence and extremism with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern given their experience with the issue in the wake of the Christchurch mosque shootings in 2019
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 31st May, 2022) US President Joe Biden said on Tuesday that he would like to discuss New Zealand's efforts to address violence and extremism with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern given their experience with the issue in the wake of the Christchurch mosque shootings in 2019.
"Your leadership has taken on a critical role on this global stage, it really has, galvanizing action on climate change, the global effort to prevent violence, extremism, and online like happened in Christchurch (sic)... I want to work with you on that effort, and I want to talk with you about what those conversations are like," Biden said during remarks alongside Ardern at the White House.
The Biden administration in May 2021 joined the so-called Christchurch Call - a global pledge by governments and technology partners to address terrorist and violent extremist content online, launched by Ardern after the Christchurch mosque shootings.
Gunman Brenton Tarrant received a life sentence without parole, the first ever in New Zealand's history, for killing 51 people and injuring 40 others during an attack on a mosque and Islamic center in Christchurch, New Zealand in 2019. The shooter live-streamed the attack on social media and he had posted a racist manifesto online shortly before committing the crime.
The New Zealand parliament following the incident passed legislation tightening access to semi-automatic firearms and other gun accessories
Biden requested the conversation with Ardern on violence and extremism after a number of recent shootings in the US, including an elementary school shooting in Texas that left 21 people dead and a supermarket shooting in Buffalo, New York that killed 10, sparked renewed discussion on the matter.
The supermarket shooting was allegedly carried out by a teenager who expressed white supremacist beliefs in a manifesto, including use of the Black Sun - a Nazi symbol frequently displayed by neo-Nazi groups such as Ukraine's Azov Battalion, as well as Tarrant in his own manifesto.
Biden following his remarks also said that he will meet with the US Congress on gun policy, but did not provide any specific date for the meeting.
Ardern's visit to the White House is the first by a New Zealand prime minister since 2014. Ardern's itinerary while in the United States also included stops in New York, Boston, San Francisco, and Seattle.
