insist on transparency and accountability, and the other part of this is that the money isn't just going to go to governments. the idea is to be able to strengthen the organizations in civil society that are pushing for accountability, that are pushing for transparency, international relief organizations and domestic relief organizations, that are in a much better position to use u.s. funding in a transparent and effective way so i don't think it's the case that corruption is being ignored. on the country, i think it is front and center in the u.s. approach, but thank you for sharing those concerns. host: here is a tweet -- army pushing guatemala and mexico to a border war? -- are we pushing guatemala and mexico to a border war? guest: i don't think it's coming to that. border war suggests there are

armed people on both sides. it is really an attempt to improve border security in the region, not just hardening the border a >> we are going to take you live now to the north side of the white house. president biden is walking to the podium, where he will speak to reporters and others and give an update on his administration's response to the covid-19 pandemic. this is live coverage on c-span. pres. biden: good afternoon. this beautiful afternoon. next week, i will be laying out the path ahead to continue our fight against covid-19 to get us to july 4. this is our target date to get life in america closer to normal and begin to celebrate our

independence from the virus together with our friends and loved ones as we celebrate independence day. before that, i wanted to speak briefly today about the recent change announced by the centers for disease control and prevention, cdc. let me say first, while we still have a long way to go in this fight, a lot of work to do in may and june to get us to july 4, we have made stunning progress because of all of you, the american people. cases and deaths are down, down dramatically, from where they were when i took office on january 20 and continuing to fall. this is particularly true for a group of americans that we were most worried about when it came to the virus, senior citizens. when i took office in january, we were losing literally tens of thousands of our seniors each week.

grandparents who were loved so dearly, moms and dads, pillars of every community, gone by the thousands every day. at that time, less than 1% of seniors were fully vaccinated when i took office. today, and less than 100 days, more than 67%, two thirds of our seniors, are now fully vaccinated and more than 80% of our seniors have had at least one shot. that effort resulted in a drop of 80% in deaths among american seniors, a 70% drop in hospitalizations, so instead of losing thousands of seniors each day, we are saving thousands of lives and more and more as each day goes by. and, by the way, based on

reported data, a proportion of seniors -- data, the proportion of seniors who have been vaccinated is roughly equal between white and seniors of color. i said at the beginning that we were going to fight this virus with equity, equity for all. as a matter of fact, if i am not mistaken, there are more latino and african-american seniors that have been vaccinated as a percentage than white seniors. these numbers are a sign of progress on that front as well. now, last week, i announced that we had crossed the threshold of 200 million shots. we have now, since inauguration day, given 215 million shots. and anyone 16 years of age or older is now eligible to get the vaccine now, today come

immediately. and because of the extraordinary progress we have made in fighting the virus and our scientists have made finding out how it gets transmitted, the cdc made an important announcement. if you have been fully vaccinated and are outdoors and not in a big crowd, you no longer need to wear a mask. i want to be clear, if you are at a crowd -- if you are in a crowd, like a stadium or a conference or a concert, you still need to wear a mask even if you are outside, but beginning today, gathering with a group of friends in a park, going for a picnic, as long as you are vaccinated and the cdc is able to make this announcement, because our

scientists are convinced by the data that the odds of getting or giving the virus to others is very very low if you have both been fully vaccinated and out in the open air. the cdc also clarified which activities are safer or less safe depending on whether you have been vaccinated. the bottom line is clear. if you are vaccinated, you can do more things more safely both outdoors as well as indoors. for those who have not gotten their vaccination, especially if you are younger or think you don't need it, this is another great reason to go get vaccinated now. now. yes, the vaccines are about saving your life. but also the lives of the people around you. there also about helping us get

back to closer to normal in our living. getting together with friends, going to the park for a picnic without needing to mask up. we are back to that place now, as long as you get vaccinated. go get the shot. it has never been easier. once you are fully vaccinated, you can go without a mask when you're outside and away from big crowds. i want to thank the team at the cdc for everything they are doing to help us lead with science. and bring our communities out of this crisis safely and responsibly. i also want to thank everyone who has gotten a vaccine for doing your patriotic duty helping us get on the path to independence day which i will be discussing in more detail next week. in the meantime, i urge all americans, don't let up now. keep following the guidance.

go get your vaccination now. it is free, and it is convenient. 90% of american people live within five miles of a vaccination site. you can do this. we will do this. thank you all and god bless you and as much is the temptation is to stay outdoors on this beautiful day, i have more work to do. thank you all very very much. >> would you have any preconditions before meeting with vladimir putin? >> one at a time. >> if the risk is so low outdoors, why doesn't it apply to everyone? >> the science indicates the most certain way to assure that it doesn't spread is that both people vaccinate.

>> what message were you sending to wear a mask? >> you watch me take it off and i will put it back on when i get inside. >> do you have any preconditions before meeting with vladimir putin? >> i will discuss that another day. >> will you make it faster for them to get the vaccines that we will get soon? in india? they are suffering. >> i'm sorry, this last question i will take. then, i'm going to be in trouble. with regard to india, i spoke at length with the premised are. -- with the prime minister. we are sending to india a whole series of help that he needs, including providing for the remdesivir and other drugs that are able to deal with this and prevent or in some cases help recovery. secondly, we are sending the

actual mechanical parts that are needed for the machinery they have to build a vaccine. that is being done, as well. we are also -- i have discussed with him when we will be able to send actual vaccines to india, which would be my intention to do. the problem is right now, we have to make sure we have other vaccines like novavax and others coming on. i think we will be in the position to be able to share vaccines as well as know-how with other countries who are in real need. that is the hope and expectation. i might add, when we were in a bind at the beginning, india helped us. thank you. [indiscernible]

[indiscernible chatter] >> as he approaches his 100th day in office, president biden will give his first address to a joint session of congress wednesday night. our live coverage begins at 8 p.m. eastern.

>> a special representative for afghanistan reconciliation and a former u.s. ambassador to the u.n. testifies this afternoon before the senate foreign relations committee. that begins today at 2:30 p.m. eastern time on c-span. he is the u.s. programs director of research at the migration policy institute. he is here to talk about refugee policy. what is the official policy of letting refugees into the u.s. right now? guest: officially, the policy is if someone has been persecuted against or fears persecution due to race, nationality, religion, membership in certain social group, they can be admitteas