US President Joe Biden on Wednesday said that the country needs more resources to reduce gun crime and it's high time to ban assault weapons again amid a rise in mass shootings.
In his first major speech to a divided Congress, after Republicans took control of the House of Representatives, Joe Biden said, "10 years ago the ban was law, mass shootings went down. After Republicans let it expire, mass shootings tripled. Let's finish the job and ban assault weapons again."
He further added by saying that the US needs more resources to fight back against the ongoing situation in the country as gun violence continues to stay on the rise.
"We need more resources to reduce violent crime and gun crime, community intervention programs...All this can help prevent violence in the first place...Ban assault weapons once and for all. We did it before. I led the fight to ban them in 1994," Biden said during the State of the Union (SOTU) address on Tuesday in Capitol Hill.
Notably, the US has been prone to mass shootings and excessive gun violence lately and people of the country have repeatedly protested for stricter gun laws.
Furthermore, Biden also highlighted the "serious challenges" America faces "across the world" and warned China that the US "will act to protect sovereignty if threatened" by China.
Biden while delivering his first major speech to a divided Congress, said, "If China threatens our sovereignty, we will act to protect our country. Let's be clear, winning the competition with China should unite all of us. We face serious challenges across the world. In the past two years, democracies have become stronger, not weaker."
The US President further spoke on the Russia-Ukraine war and stated that America will stand with Ukraine 'as long as it takes'.
The US has pledged more than USD 29 billion dollars since the war began between Russia and Ukraine on February 24th, 2022, according to the Pentagon. Biden announced the latest package worth more than USD 2.17 billion on Friday that includes longer-range missiles for the first time.
Last month, the US committed to providing Ukraine with 31 advanced M-1 Abrams tanks, a decision made in concert with European countries providing German-made Leopard 2 tanks. It was a reversal of a red line previously held by the US and other Western countries, like Germany. The tanks are powerful new tools, allowing Ukraine to go on the offensive and retake territory seized by Russia, reported CNN.
( With inputs from ANI )
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