Disarmament Documentation
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President Bush visit to Germany, May 23
President Bush speech to the Bundestag
'Remarks by the President to a Special Session of the
Bundestag, Berlin, may 23, 2002', The White House, Office of the
Press Secretary, May 23.
On both sides of the Atlantic, the generation of our fathers was
called to shape great events - and they built the great
transatlantic alliance of democracies. They built the most
successful alliance in history. After the Cold War, during the
relative quiet of the 1990s, some questioned whether our
transatlantic partnership still had a purpose. History has given
its answer. Our generation faces new and grave threats to liberty,
to the safety of our people, and to civilization, itself. We face
an aggressive force that glorifies death, that targets the
innocent, and seeks the means to matter - murder on a massive
scale. We face the global tragedy of disease and poverty that take
uncounted lives and leave whole nations vulnerable to oppression
and terror. We'll face these challenges together. We must face them
together. Those who despise human freedom will attack it on every
continent. Those who seek missiles and terrible weapons are also
familiar with the map of Europe. Like the threats of another era,
this threat cannot be appeased or cannot be ignored. By being
patient, relentless, and resolute, we will defeat the enemies of
freedom. ...
A new Russian-American partnership is being forged. Russia is
lending crucial support in the war on global terror. A Russian
colonel now works on the staff of US Army General Tommy Franks,
commander of the war in Afghanistan. And in Afghanistan, itself,
Russia is helping to build hospitals and a better future for the
Afghan people. America and Europe must throw off old suspicions and
realize our common interests with Russia. Tomorrow in Moscow,
President Putin and I will again act upon these interests.
The United States and Russia are ridding ourselves of the last
vestiges of Cold War confrontation. We have moved beyond an ABM
treaty that prevented us from defending our people and our friends.
Some warned that moving beyond the ABM treaty would cause an arms
race. Instead, President Putin and I are about to sign the most
dramatic nuclear arms reduction in history. Both the United States
and Russia will reduce our nuclear arsenals by about two-thirds -
to the lowest levels in decades. Old arms agreements sought to
manage hostility and maintain a balance of terror. This new
agreement recognizes that Russia and the West are no longer
enemies. ...
As we expand our alliance, as we reach out to Russia, we must
also look beyond Europe to gathering dangers and important
responsibilities. As we build the house of freedom, we must meet
the challenges of a larger world. And we must meet them together.
For the United States, September the 11th, 2001 cut a deep dividing
line in our history - a change of eras as sharp and clear as Pearl
Harbor, or the first day of the Berlin Blockade. There can be no
lasting security in a world at the mercy of terrorists - for my
nation, or for any nation. Given this threat, NATO's defining
purpose - our collective defense - is as urgent as ever. America
and Europe need each other to fight and win the war against global
terror. ...
The evil that has formed against us has been termed the "new
totalitarian threat". The authors of terror are seeking nuclear,
chemical and biological weapons. Regimes that sponsor terror are
developing these weapons and the missiles to deliver them. If these
regimes and their terrorist allies were to perfect these
capabilities, no inner voice of reason, no hint of conscience would
prevent their use. Wishful thinking might bring comfort, but not
security. Call this a strategic challenge; call it, as I do, axis
of evil; call it by any name you choose, but let us speak the
truth. If we ignore this threat, we invite certain blackmail, and
place millions of our citizens in grave danger. ...
As it faces new threats, NATO needs a new strategy and new
capabilities. Dangers originating far from Europe can now strike at
Europe's heart - so NATO must be able and willing to act whenever
threats emerge. This will require all the assets of modern defense
- mobile and deployable forces, sophisticated special operations,
the ability to fight under the threat of chemical and biological
weapons. Each nation must focus on the military strengths it can
bring to this alliance, with the hard choices and financial
commitment that requires. ...
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Bush-Schroeder Press Conference
'Remarks by President Bush and Chancellor Schroeder of
Germany in Press Availability, Berlin, may 23, 2002', The White
House, Office of the Press Secretary, May 23.
Question: [Chancellor Schroeder,] do you think there
should be regime change in Iraq?
Chancellor Schroeder: Saddam Hussein is a dictator, there
can be no doubt, nothing else. And he does act without looking
after his people whatsoever. We're agreed when it comes to that.
And we're also agreed to the fact that it is up to the
international community of states to go in and exercise a lot of
political pressure in the most - possible way. The United Nations
have decided to do so, as well. We need to pressurize him so that
international arms inspectors can get into the country to find out
what weapons of mass destruction can be found in his hands. I mean,
there is no difference there between President Bush and myself when
it comes to the assessment of this situation. We then obviously
also talked about the question as to what should happen in the
future, what could happen in the future. I have taken notice of the
fact that His Excellency, the President, does think about all
possible alternatives. But despite what people occasionally present
here in rumors, there are no concrete military plans of attack on
Iraq. And that is why, for me, there is no reason whatsoever to
speculate about when and if and how. I think such speculation
should be forbidden. That, certainly, is not the right thing for a
Chancellor. And I am in this position. We will be called upon to
take our decision if and when, after consultations - and we've been
assured that such consultations are going to be happening - and
then we'll take a decision. And before that, I think we should not
speculate about serious questions like this one. ...
Question: [Mr. President,] you meet with President Putin
tomorrow. How are you going to talk him into ending nuclear
cooperation with Iran?
President Bush: Well, that's a - that's going to be a
topic. One way to make the case is that if you arm Iran, you're
liable to get the weapons pointed at you; that you've got to be
careful in dealing with a country like Iran. This is a country that
doesn't - it's not transparent, it's not open. It's run by a group
of extremists who fund terrorist activity, who clearly hate our
mutual friend, Israel. And, you know, it's very unpredictable. And,
therefore, Russia needs to be concerned about proliferation into a
country that might view them as an enemy at some point in time. And
if Iran gets a weapon of mass destruction, deliverable by a
missile, that's going to be a problem. That's going to be a problem
for all of us, including Russia. So that's how I'm going to make
the case. We've got a lot of work to do with Russia. I will
continue to make the case. As you know...I have brought that
subject up ever since I've started meeting with Vladimir Putin. The
good news is...our relationship is a friendly relationship; that I
view President Putin as a friend, I view Russia as a friend, not as
an enemy. And therefore, it's much easier to solve these difficult
issues, an issue like proliferation, amongst friends. ...
Question: Mr. President, the Chancellor just said that
your government does not seem to be very specific right now when it
comes to plans to attack Iraq. Is that true, sir? And could you,
nevertheless, try to explain to the German people what your goals
are when it comes to Iraq? ...
President Bush: First, what the Chancellor told you is
true. ... Look, I mean, he knows my position, and the world knows
my position about Saddam Hussein. He's a dangerous man. He's a
dictator who gassed his own people. He's had a history of
incredible human rights violations. And...it's dangerous to think
of a scenario in which a country like Iraq would team up with an al
Qaeda-type organization, particularly if and when they have the
capacity, had the capacity, or when they have the capacity to
deliver weapons of mass destruction via ballistic missile. And
that's a threat. It's a threat to Germany, it's a threat to
America, it's a threat to civilization itself. And we've got to
deal with it. We can play like it's not there, we can hope it goes
away. But that's not going to work. That's not going to make us
safer. And I told the Chancellor that I have no war plans on my
desk, which is the truth, and that we've got to use all means at
our disposal to deal with Saddam Hussein. And I appreciate the
German Chancellor's understanding of the threats of weapons of mass
destruction. And they're real. Now, I know some would play like
they're not real. I'm telling you, they're real. And if you love
freedom, it's a threat to freedom. And so we're going to deal with
it, and we'll deal with it in a respectful way. The Chancellor said
that I promised consultations. I will say it again: I promise
consultations with our close friend and ally. We will exert a
unified diplomatic pressure. We will share intelligence. We love
freedom, and so does the Chancellor, and we cannot allow these
weapons to be in a position that will affect history. Listen,
history has called us to action. I don't want to be in a position
where we look back, and say, why didn't they lead, where were they
when it came to our basic freedoms? And we are going to lead.
...
Question: On the subject of weapons of mass destruction,
the strategic arms agreement you'll sign in Moscow does not address
what many people say is now the greatest threat posed by the
Russian arsenal of weapons of mass destruction, that's
proliferation to terrorists or rogue states because of insufficient
security. What specific plan do you have to address that issue with
President Putin? Do you believe the Russian government is doing a
good job securing those weapons? And what do you say to critics of
this arms deal who say that by taking the material off the
warheads, you provide more opportunities for terrorists to get
them?
President Bush: Well, I guess I'll start with the
critics. I say, would you rather have them on the launchers? Would
you rather have the warheads pointed at people? I would think not.
Secondly, this issue about the so-called loose nuke issue has been
around for quite a while. This isn't anything new. This is a
problem that we are jointly working on. As you know...we've got
what's called Nunn-Lugar, which is a significant expenditure of
taxpayers' money to help Russia dispose of and dismantle nuclear
warheads, which we're willing to do. As a matter of fact, the '03
budget is nearly a billion dollars toward that end. We're working
with Chancellor Schroeder on what's called 10-plus-10-over-10: $10
billion from the US, $10 billion from other members of the G7 over
a 10-year period, to help Russia securitize the...dismantled
nuclear warheads. And President Putin understands that. He
understands the need to work closely with all of us. And he
understands that a loose nuke could affect his security as it
affects somebody else's security. He's a wise man, he's aware of
the issues that we confront. That's why he's one of the best
partners we have on the war against terror. He understands the
implications and consequences of terror. And he also recognizes
that a nightmare scenario is a dirty bomb, or some kind of nuclear
bomb in the hands of...any kind of terrorist organization.
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© 2002 The Acronym Institute.
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