Georgia, Wednesday 9 June 2004
President Bush:
Mr Prime Minister, thank you very much for your steadfast leadership, your clear vision and your friendship. Yesterday was an important day for the Iraqi people. The United Nations Security Council unanimously expressed the desire for Iraq to be free and peaceful and I want to thank you for your leadership on that issue. It is really important for leaders to have allies that they can count on, rely on and who have got good judgment, and you do. Welcome to America.
Prime Minister:
Thank you very much Mr President, and thank you for your help and support in getting the resolution through. I think it has been a really important time, and the crucial thing now is that the people of Iraq know they have got the whole of the international community on side for Iraq as a stable and democratic country and the terrorists and the fanatics and extremists who are trying to stop this democracy happening know they have got the whole of the word against them, and that is the key thing.
Question:
Mr President and Mr Prime Minister, do you think you can translate this momentum from yesterday’s vote into getting more … relief for Iraq, and also what are you looking for now as the next step in terms of NATO involvement in the process?
President Bush:
We discussed the NATO involvement over breakfast and we believe NATO ought to be involved. We will work with our NATO friends to at least continue the role that now exists and hopefully expand it somewhat. There are going to be some constraints obviously. A lot of NATO countries are not in a position to commit any more troops, we fully understand that, but I do think that NATO ought to stay involved and I think we have a good chance of getting that done.
Prime Minister:
I think that is right. I think also the key next step in this is going to be for the new Iraqi government to sit down with the multinational force and work out how, over time, the Iraqi capability for security can be established and built up. There is a capability that is there at the moment, but we know that there are gaps in that capability and we are there to help them and make sure that the Iraqis ultimately can take care of their own security, because the Iraqi Prime Minister has been saying that is the key issue and that is the one they want to deal with.
Question:
… what has gone wrong in Iraq, as well as what has gone right, is there any way that what has happened in Iraq can be a model for the rest of the Middle East given the fact that Saudi Arabia declined to come here.
Prime Minister:
I think the one thing that is interesting when you talk to the Iraqi Prime Minister and the new Iraqi government is that they do see the possibility of a democratic Iraq being a force for good in their region, as well as obviously being good for the people of Iraq. I think this is a process of change and we have got to help people manage it, and really what we are doing today is to say look sensible people sitting down and looking at the situation in the Middle East know that there needs to be a process of reform and change. Now that is not for us to dictate to people, but it is for us to help them get there and that is what this is about, and I think it is all part of the same picture which is to say to people the security challenge we face obviously has to be dealt with by security measures, but it is not just about security measures, it is not just about force. It is also about political and democratic reform and it is about helping people to get to where they know I think really that they need to be, but they need some help to get there.
Question:
Inaudible.
President Bush:
I am going to tell him we are pulling for him, and pulling for the people of Iraq, particularly those who have a deep desire to live in a free society. I am going to thank him for having the courage to stand up and lead and tell him that America will help him. I am also going to tell him that when we say transfer of full sovereignty, we mean transfer of full sovereignty. He is the President of a sovereign nation and therefore he and the Prime Minister and the rest of the Ministers must make wise decisions on behalf of the Iraqi people. I am looking forward to meeting with the man, and in one of my conversations with him he thanked me for the sacrifices of coalition troops, for which I was most grateful. The American people need to know that there are people in Iraq who are deeply grateful for the fact that our sons and daughters have died for their freedom, and I am sure that the people of Great Britain want to hear that same message and I look forward to reminding him of what he told me in that phone call.
Question:
What do you both say to the men of violence in Iraq who will probably want to take no notice of this resolution?
President Bush:
I will tell them that freedom will eventually prevail and that they are not going to drive us out of Iraq because of their random killing, that we will not be intimidated by their murderous ways.
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