SECRETARY OF DEFENSE PETE HEGSETH: Just a few remarks off the top. To both the defense minister and foreign minister, welcome. It's great to see you both and your entire team here from the wonderful country of Peru. Welcome to the Pentagon. We also want to thank your ambassador for being here also. Mr. Ambassador, thank you very much sir for your work here.
Under President Trump's leadership, we're working hard across the world to achieve peace through strength, and we're very grateful for Peru's partnership in that regard. As we have said, putting America first also means we're putting the Americas first considering what we're up against. We share a lot of the same challenges and common threats that require a very serious response.
We're making progress on things like trafficking and migration and violent criminal enterprises. Folks that are threatening and brutalizing our communities. We also recognize with very clear eyes the threat that China poses to our countries, to our people and to peace in the region. Beijing is investing and operating in the region for unfair economic gain and together, in order to prevent conflict, we need to robustly deter China's potential threats in the hemisphere. So, we look forward to being partners with you in that regard.
We also understand that Peru is committed to hosting the Conference of Defense Ministers of the Americas next year. And when the dates are finalized, we hope to be able to attend. So, we look forward to a more peaceful and prosperous region and to a fruitful discussion this morning. Over to you. Thank you for being here.
MINISTER OF DEFENSE WALTER ASTUDILLO: Thank you very much. Thank you.
MINISTER ASTUDILLO (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): So, thank you very much, Mr. Secretary Hegseth, for your invitation to the Pentagon. We are very excited to be participants in this very important dialog with you. You said in Latin America, all of the countries here face serious problems, and these problems are things such as migration. Our country also is a victim of this type of problem.
This leads to organized crime, trafficking in persons, drug trafficking, and we additionally also have a problem of illegal money. This really affects our security and development, and this is a common problem to all the countries in Latin America as well. That is why we need all of the countries of the hemisphere to come together and define a strategy to effectively respond to these transnational problems.
That is the main reason for our visit here. We want to be partners, and we believe that we are a country that is seeking peace so that we can in turn, turn this into development and security for the countries of the region.
MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS ELMER SCHIALER: Yes, thank you, Mr. Secretary. Thank you very much for having us this morning here at the Pentagon. Let me start by stating that this in a year, this month's time, in May next year, we will celebrate 200 years of bilateral diplomatic relationships and we do have, right now, a so-called strategic relationship which I'd like – I aspire to upgrade it to a comprehensive or integral strategic relationship with the United States.
We do have a historic, longstanding relationship which has been in a very positive way for both of our countries. I have to underscore that the Peruvian foreign policy is such that, one, we are absolutely aware that we do belong to the Western Hemisphere, that our values are from the Western world I would say, and we are friends to every single nation in the world.
But we will not be part of or a cause of unduly damage or injustice to any of our friends. And the United States of America is one of a very, very important friend of ours, a very good ally also, a historic ally in many things, not only in things that are concerning development and progress of the peoples and the wealth and welfare of the people, something that, of course, we all long for the American people and of course, for Peruvians.
But also in matters regarding defense and security. You just mentioned, Mr. Secretary of Defense, the two or three things that unite us. We are also, let's say, a target of illegal immigration, of illegal mining, illegal, also felling of trees. All those things that are also important for the United States of America are important for Peru. Our strategic and defense cooperation, we look forward to strengthening that. And that's, like the Minister of Defense said, the reason why we're here. Thank you very much for having us today, Mr. Secretary.
SECRETARY OF DEFENSE PETE HEGSETH: Very good. Thank you.