Nobody expected that 180 countries would show up in Paris with serious climate targets in hand.

We applaud the growing number of countries that have already set ambitious targets for climate action.

The thing about human ingenuity is that it responds when it gets a strong signal of what needs to be done.

We have to have an ambitious agreement.

We know that negotiations will be difficult.

I believe that a successful two weeks here could give the world that same kind of optimism that the future is ours to shape.

We recognize that delaying action on climate change will be costly in economic and human terms.

We are rightly determined to prevent terrorist attacks wherever they occur, whether in the United States or with friends and allies like France.

Rosa Parks reminds us that there is always something we can do.

Her grace, dignity, and refusal to tolerate injustice helped spark a civil rights movement that spread across America.

Most of all, we recommit ourselves to continuing their march.

The United States congratulates the people of Burkina Faso for participating in peaceful and orderly elections on November 29.