LMBC NEWS — Amid the surge of violent crimes in the United States, President Joe Biden convened law enforcement and local leaders on Monday to tackle the administration’s strategy.

“It seems like most of my career I’ve been dealing with this issue. While there’s no “one-size-fit-all” approach, we know there are some things that work, and the first of those that work is stemming the flow of firearms used to commit violent crimes,” the president said.

A fact sheet from the White House cited that the country has seen a surge in violence over the past year and a half with homicides increased by 30 percent and gun assaults in huge cities by 8 percent.

Compared to the first quarter of 2020, this year’s number of homicides in the same period was higher by 24 percent.

Last month, the Biden-Harris administration also unveiled its comprehensive strategy.

Biden reiterated the strategies Monday, including the establishing of zero tolerance for rouge gun dealers that defy federal law.

“It includes the Justice Department creating five new strike forces to crack down on illegal gun trafficking (inaudible) supplying weapons to cities of New York — from New York to the Bay Area,” Biden said.

He also mentioned the usage of funds from the Rescue Plan to assist local governments arm its  police officers with resources, training, and accountability to render their duties.

Furthermore, he said investing in community violence and intervention is also part of the plan, citing that violence intervention programs have led to the reduction of crime by 60 percent in some cities.

“This will make us all safer.  The American Rescue Plan funds programs to help get job training, apprenticeships, and work experience so they can gain stability and security and a chance for a better life,” he said.

During the meeting, the president also committed for his administration to help Cuba, where protests for freedom from an authoritarian regime broke out; and Haiti, with the political unrest worsened further by the assassination of its President.

“The United States stands firmly with the people of Cuba as they assert their universal rights.  And we call on the government — the government of Cuba to refrain from violence or attempts to silence the voice of the people of Cuba.,” he said.

For Haiti, he said he already deployed “a high-level, expert delegation” to evaluate the state of affairs and see how the US can help.