Biden stopped at JBER on his way back from the G20 summit in India and a diplomatic visit to Vietnam.
He spoke for more than 15 minutes in a hangar filled with Alaska-based military members and their families, as well as more than a dozen politicians and policymakers, including Gov. Mike Dunleavy, U.S. Congresswoman Mary Peltola and Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson.The president said though JBER was thousands of miles away from the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, the distance “did not dull or diminish the pain.
Biden decried terrorism — not only foreign, but domestic and ideological violence as well. He also used the remembrance to call for national unity. “We’re both from Scranton, Pennsylvania,” Biden said. “I wish I had him playing in my high school ball club when I was playing. I could’ve been an All-American having you in front of me.”
“Parts of Alaska are just 2.4 miles away from one of our nearest neighbors, Russia,” Dunleavy said. “Servicemen and women here at JBER intercept Russian fighters on a regular basis. Alaska is also within reach of Korean missiles, and Chinese warships ply the waters just off our coast.”Rep. Peltola spoke ahead of the president’s remarks as well.