[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2002, Book I)]
[April 18, 2002]
[Pages 632-634]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Remarks Prior to a Meeting With Secretary of State Colin Powell and an Exchange With Reporters
April 18, 2002

Situation in the Middle East

    The President. I'm pleased to welcome the Secretary of State back to 
the Oval Office. Presidents and Secretaries of State have sat here for a 
long time, trying to figure out how to reduce violence and bring peace 
to the Middle East. The Secretary went over with a vision on how to do 
that.
    We talked about the two states living at peace with each other. He 
carried that message of hope and peace, that our Nation is--will work 
hard to achieve a peace. He also carried the message that people must--
must be focused and must work hard to achieve a peace. People in the 
region have got certain responsibilities.
    The short-term responsibilities are these: The Palestinian Authority 
must act on its condemnation of terror; the Israelis are withdrawing 
from Jenin and Nabulus, and they must continue their withdrawals; and 
neighbors in the region must condemn terror, cut off funding for terror, 
must make it clear that people who suicide bomb are not martyrs, that 
they kill or are murderers of innocent people.
    As well, the Secretary's trip made it clear that our Nation thinks 
beyond the shortterm, that we're serious when we talk about two states 
living side by side and that we're laying the foundations for peace, the 
structures necessary to get to peace. Progress is being made toward our 
vision. In order for that vision to be achieved, leaders must take 
responsibility; leaders in the region must be responsible citizens for a 
peaceful world.
    The Secretary delivered that message loud and clear, and I want to 
thank him for his work.
    Mr. Secretary.
    Secretary Powell. Thank you, Mr. President. I did try to deliver 
that message loud and clear that the United States does have a vision, a 
vision that leads to two states living in peace, side by side--the only 
solution to this conflict. And I talked about what the sides have to do 
with respect to restoring a sense of security so the two peoples and--
have confidence in one another and begin negotiations once again, 
essentially put down security element to our strategy. We made clear to 
the leaders in the region that we want to move forward with negotiations 
as early as possible, and we're looking at different ways to do that 
once security has been established--link the negotiations closely to 
security.
    And the third part of our framework was the humanitarian part. There 
would be a great need for humanitarian relief, for reconstruction 
efforts, and all that has to be part of an integrated strategy.
    And we can begin working quickly on that integrated strategy if the 
Palestinian Authority, if Chairman Arafat and those Palestinian leaders 
not only denounce violence, but take action to act against those who 
continue to encourage violence and perform acts of terrorism and 
violence. The terrorism, violence has to stop. I made that message very 
clear.
    I'm pleased that the Israeli Government is now continuing 
withdrawal. I hope it will be accelerated, and we will bring that to an 
end as quickly as possible, because that is one of the difficulties that 
we have now in moving forward in the integrated strategy.
    And Mr. President, we will be staying in close touch with the 
situation, by phone and with various members of the administration who 
are already in the region, such as Ambassador Bill Burns, and with the 
assets of the Department of State and other departments of Government to 
make sure that the strategy is understood and shared

[[Page 633]]

with our friends around the world who are ready to execute it.
    The President. Terry [Terry Moran, ABC News].

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel/Jenin

    Q. Mr. President, you said progress has been made toward our vision. 
Where? And secondly, do you believe that Ariel Sharon is a man of peace, 
and are you satisfied with his and his Government's assurances that 
there was no massacre in Jenin?
    The President. I do believe Ariel Sharon is a man of peace. I think 
he wants--I'm confident he wants Israel to be able to exist at peace 
with its neighbor--with its neighbors. I mean, he's told that us here in 
the Oval Office. He has embraced the notion of two states living side by 
side.
    And a progress is made, Terry, as a result of the United States and 
the Secretary of State going to the region and convincing the parties 
that we'll never get to peace if there's violence. And the situation 
prior to the Secretary's arrival was at a boiling point, and thanks to 
his hard work, he has laid out not only a vision of hope, which is 
important, but has convinced others that these terrorist acts will 
forever and constantly undermine the capacity for peace.
    As he mentioned and I mentioned, there have been withdrawals from 
the West Bank. Mr. Arafat did condemn terror, 
and we will hold him to account.
    This is a part of the world where killing had been going on for a 
long, long time. And one trip by the Secretary of State is not going to 
prevent that from happening, but one trip by the Secretary of State laid 
out the framework and the path to achieve peace. The United States has 
an obligation to do just that, and he did. And I have done that, and we 
will continue to do that.
    Q. And Jenin?
    The President. I was told by the Prime Minister last--a couple of 
days ago that they were withdrawing from Jenin, and I believe they 
will--oh, the--we'll see what the evidence says.

Future Involvement in the Middle East

    Q. Mr. President, you said yesterday that you plan to stay engaged 
in the Middle East. What is the next step? Do you send Mr. Tenet to the 
region? And specifically, do you support an international peace 
conference?
    The President. Well, let's make sure everybody understands that we 
have been engaged from the beginning of this administration. It's a--the 
Mitchell plan came into being as a result of the mission that President 
Clinton called together. But as a--the Secretary of State and myself and 
the administration embraced the Mitchell plan. It is a way to achieve 
peace. All parties signed on to it. We worked to get them to sign on to 
it.
    The Tenet plan, as a result of this administration sending George 
Tenet to the region to lay out a security 
cooperation agreement--and so when you--not reading into your question, 
I just want to make it clear that the history of this administration 
shows that the Middle East is an incredibly important part of our 
foreign policy.
    I went to the United Nations, spoke clearly about two nations living 
side by side. And so not only have we been, as they say, engaged--of 
course, we will be engaged. It is essential that we continue to work to 
fight terror. There will never be peace in parts of the world unless 
we're willing to rout out terror.
    And as I said in my speech yesterday, that this war against terror 
is a part of making sure the world is not only safer but, eventually and 
as importantly, better. And as the Secretary said, that there must be a 
humanitarian aspect to peace in the Middle East, that people must have 
hope, that the hope doesn't come from killing; the hope comes from an 
ability to realize what all of us want, which is to raise our children 
in a peaceful and secure environment, hope they get educated, and people 
can realize their entrepreneurial dreams.

[[Page 634]]

    And that is exactly where our vision is. And that's why we will be 
engaged not only there but around the world where we fight terror. This 
is the calling of our time, to fight terror. And this Government will be 
strong in our battle against terror.
    Patsy [Patricia Wilson, Reuters].

Israeli Withdrawal From Palestinian Territories

    Q. Mr. President, does it trouble you that Israel hasn't withdrawn 
without delay, as you requested? And does the demand still stand for a 
full and immediate withdrawal?
    The President. Well, Israel started withdrawing quickly, after our 
call, from smaller cities on the West Bank. History will show that they 
responded. And as the Prime Minister said, told 
me--he gave me a timetable, and he's met the timetable.
    In Ramallah, there is an issue with the ``Zeevi five'' killers. 
They're housed in the basement where Colin visited with Mr. 
Arafat, and we will work with the Israelis to 
figure out a solution to the ``Zeevi five.'' These people are accused of 
killing a Cabinet official of the Israeli Government. And I can 
understand why the Prime Minister wants them 
brought to justice. They should be brought to justice if they killed 
this man in cold blood.
    And so I can--the situation in Ramallah is based upon that 
particular part of the problem. In terms of the Church of the Nativity, 
hopefully progress is being made. Once the people are out of the Church 
of the Nativity, Israel will leave--pull back out of Bethlehem. This is 
good progress. I'm convinced that the Secretary of State's trip helped 
achieve this progress.
    Listen, thank you all.
    Q. Mr. President, can I ask one question on the Middle East?
    The President. You had your shot.

Note: The President spoke at 10:54 a.m. in the Oval Office at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to Chairman Yasser Arafat of the 
Palestinian Authority; and Israeli Tourism Minister Rehavam Zeevi, who 
was killed October 7, 2002. The Secretary of State referred to U.S. 
Ambassador to Jordan and Amman William J. Burns. The President also 
referred to the Tenet plan, the Israeli-Palestinian cease-fire and 
security plan of June 13, 2001, negotiated by Director of Central 
Intelligence George J. Tenet; and the Mitchell report, the Report of the 
Sharm el-Sheikh Fact-Finding Committee, issued April 30, 2001. A tape 
was not available for verification of the content of this exchange.