[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1996, Book II)]
[September 14, 1996]
[Pages 1566-1567]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



The President's Radio Address
September 14, 1996

    Good morning. Today I know the thoughts and prayers of every 
American are with our men and women in uniform serving in the Persian 
Gulf, standing up for America's interests. I want to speak with you 
about why 10 days ago I ordered our Armed Forces to strike Iraq, what we 
have accomplished, and where we go from here.
    America's vital interests in the Persian Gulf are constant and 
clear: to help protect our friends in the region against aggression, to 
work with others in the fight against terrorism, to preserve the free 
flow of oil, and to build support for a comprehensive Middle East peace. 
Any group or nation that threatens the stability of the region threatens 
those interests.
    For the past 5 years, Saddam Hussein has repeatedly threatened the 
stability of the Persian Gulf and our allies Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. 
Time and again, he has lashed out recklessly against his neighbors and 
against his own people. America's policy has been to contain Saddam, to 
reduce the threat he poses to the region, and to do it in a way that 
makes him

[[Page 1567]]

pay a price when he acts recklessly. That is why when Saddam sent his 
troops into the Kurdish city of Irbil in northern Iraq 2 weeks ago, we 
responded strongly, immediately, and strategically.
    If we had failed to answer Saddam's provocation, he would have been 
emboldened to act even more recklessly and in a manner more dangerous to 
our interests. That is why we did respond and why we did so in a way 
that made our interests more secure. We acted in southern Iraq, where 
our interests are the most vital and where we had the capacity to 
increase the international community's ability to deter aggression by 
Saddam against his neighbors.
    I ordered the attacks in order to extend the no-fly zone in Iraq, 
the air space through which Iraq's military is not allowed to fly. Now 
we control the skies over Iraq from the border of Kuwait to the southern 
suburbs of Baghdad. This action tightened the strategic straitjacket on 
Saddam, making it harder for him to threaten Saudi Arabia and Kuwait and 
easier for us to stop him if he does. In so doing, we advanced America's 
fundamental interests in the region.
    Of course, our interests also must include protecting the safety of 
our own pilots who are patrolling the expanded no-fly zone. That is why 
our cruise missiles struck the bulk of Saddam's air defense system in 
southern Iraq. The United States will take whatever steps are necessary 
to protect our pilots as they enforce the expanded no-fly zone and to 
defend our strategic interests. I have ordered sufficient forces to the 
region to give us that capability.
    On another note, let me say that I deeply regret the very week our 
Armed Forces advanced America's interests halfway around the world, here 
at home, the Senate missed an historic opportunity to make our soldiers 
and citizens safer by failing to vote on the Chemical Weapons 
Convention. The fact that our troops are facing off against Saddam 
Hussein, who once amassed stockpiles of chemical weapons and still seeks 
to develop them, should have underscored the importance of this treaty. 
But the treaty seems to have gotten caught up in election-year 
politicking.
    It's been nearly 4 years since the Bush administration signed the 
Chemical Weapons Convention and 3 years since I submitted it to the 
Congress. We've been at this a long time, and I have no intention of 
letting this treaty die. Our military supports it; leaders of our 
Nation's foreign policy, both Democrats and Republicans, including 
President Bush, General Colin Powell, and Senator Dick Lugar, support 
it.
    We all agree that we should be sending a strong message as a united 
country that America will do its part to banish poison gas from the 
Earth. And meanwhile, we must do everything we can to protect our 
soldiers and to keep such weapons out of the hands of terrorists. The 
Chemical Weapons Convention will clearly help us to do that.
    So I want the American people to know that I will work with the 
Senate to pass the Chemical Weapons Convention when a calmer political 
climate prevails. We cannot afford to play partisan politics with 
America's security. Our troops who are doing such an outstanding job in 
the Gulf and all around the world and all the American people deserve 
better than that.
    Thanks for listening.

Note: The address was recorded at 9:25 p.m. on September 13 in the Map 
Room at the White House for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on September 14.