Speaking at a Commencement Ceremony for the Naval Academy today, Vice President Joe Biden warned graduates that they would have to be prepared for the devastating effects of climate change.

“We’ll rely on you, the United States Navy, to lead in solving these emerging problems,” he said, pointing to the massive devastation caused by a major typhoon in the Philippines.

The United States Navy, he explained, “filled the void” in the humanitarian efforts after the major natural disaster.

“Our presence, your presence, matters,” he said.

Biden directly quoted President Obama’s Coast Guard Academy address warning of more extreme storms as a result of climate change.

“Our forces will have to be ready, you remain indispensable,” he stated. “America’s command of the oceans is the measure and the symbol of our diplomatic and military primacy in the world.”