WEST POINT – President Joe Biden delivered the commencement speech at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point’s graduation ceremony at Michie Stadium on Saturday, amid conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza.
West Point graduated approximately 1,000 cadets and commissioned them as second lieutenants. During his speech, Biden emphasized the critical role of U.S. support to allies throughout the world, including Israel, Ukraine and the Indo-Pacific.
He told the audience on a sun-splashed morning that U.S. soldiers are “working around the clock” to support Ukraine in its effort to fight a Russian invasion that began two years ago. Biden stood by his commitment to keep U.S. troops off the front lines during the battle.
“There’s never been a time in history when we’ve asked our military to do so many different things in some many different places around the world, all at the same time,” said Biden, during his 22-minute speech. Biden added: “Hold fast to your values that you learned here at West Point.”
As vice president, Biden twice addressed a graduating class of cadets at the academy, but this was his first time to deliver the speech as Commander-in-Chief. Donald Trump was the last president to speak at West Point commencement in 2020. Vice President Kamala Harris spoke at the West Point graduation last year.
