    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2005, Book I)]
    [January 10, 2005]
    [Pages 28-30]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Following a Briefing on Indian Ocean Earthquake and Tsunamis
    Disaster Relief and an Exchange With Reporters
    January 10, 2005

        The President. Mr. Secretary, welcome back. I want to thank
    Secretary Powell and Andrew Natsios and Mike Brown and Marc
    Grossman for taking the lead on behalf of
    our Government and the American people and providing relief for the
    victims of the tsunamis.
        The Secretary has given me a extensive
    briefing on what he has seen, on the unbelievable damage, particularly
    in Banda Aceh. He's also brought me up to date on the extraordinary
    efforts by the United States Government and the United States people,
    along with governments around the world, to provide much needed relief
    to those who've suffered. We're now entering a second phase of providing
    for rehabilitation to these affected societies as well as a
    reconstruction effort.
        And as the Secretary said yesterday, the
    Government of the United States is committed to helping the people who
    suffer. We're committed today, and we will be committed tomorrow. The
    outpouring of support from the citizens of our country has been more
    than heartening. It has been very strong. And I want to thank those who
    have felt like--felt the need to contribute directly to the relief
    efforts. I urge them to go to the usafreedomcorps.gov web site to make
    sure that their cash contributions are funneled to programs which are
    having the necessary effect of providing relief, eventually
    rehabilitation and reconstruction, to those who have suffered.
        And so, Mr. Secretary, I want to thank
    you. Andrew, I'm looking forward to going
    over to your headquarters to thank those NGOs who have been working hard
    as well as those in your agency who have worked so incredibly hard to
    show the compassion and decency of the American people during this time
    of extraordinary crisis.
        I'll answer a couple of questions. Jennifer [Jennifer Loven,
    Associated Press].

    Indian Ocean Earthquake and Tsunamis Disaster Relief

        Q. Thank you, Mr. President. This long-term commitment by the United
    States to

    [[Page 29]]

    the Indian Ocean region--what specifically does that mean? Does it mean
    more dollars above the 350 million? What are you prepared to do?
        The President. Well, we'll see. I think the important thing is to
    make sure that, as one person noted the other day, that the dollars are
    demand-driven. In other words, the key is to provide immediate relief,
    which we are doing, and then to work with governments and the United
    Nations to assess the needs, the intermediate-term needs and the long-
    term needs, to make sure the money that is available actually achieves a
    coordinated objective. And that's what we're in the process of doing.
        In other words, these men went in to make sure that the money that
    we had put up is being applied to provide necessary relief. And now
    we're in the process of helping to rehabilitate and reconstruct the
    societies. And they're beginning to focus--the demand is beginning to
    focus, particularly on the Banda Aceh region. That is the part of the
    world that is going to require the most intense effort by our--by the
    governments around the world.
        Rosey [James Rosen, FOX News].

    Palestinian Presidential Elections

        Q. Sir, is there a lesson--is there a lesson in the Palestinian
    elections that the Iraqi people should see? And what is this
    administration going to do to build on this election in the Middle East
    region?
        The President. Well, first, I want to offer my congratulations to
    Mr. Abu Mazen. I look forward to
    talking with him at the appropriate time. I look forward to welcoming
    him here to Washington if he chooses to come here. I look forward to
    helping to make sure that the conference in London, a conference all
    aimed at helping the Palestinians develop the institutions necessary to
    support Abu Mazen's vision of a peaceful, active, vibrant state, to
    become reality. And so we are--this is a man who has been elected by
    what appears to be a good-sized vote. I'm heartened by the elections,
    and I'm also looking forward to the Iraqi elections on January the 30th.
        This is an extraordinary year, when you think about it. In the first
    month of a new year, there will be an election in the Palestinian
    territory and there will be an election in Iraq. Who could have possibly
    envisioned an election in Iraq at this point in history? And yet we're
    going to have an election. And I'm sure there are--a lot of people are
    incredibly excited about the thought of having an election in Iraq--
    inside the Iraqi territory, except for a handful who want to stop
    democracy, because they understand what an election means.
        And so I'm--as a democrat, as a person who believes in democracy--a
    Republican democrat, I might add--as someone who believes that everybody
    has a right to live in a free society and everybody wants to live in a
    free society, the month of January 2005 is an extraordinary month.
        Steve [Steve Holland, Reuters].

    Israeli and Palestinian Roles Following Elections

        Q. Are there any steps that Israel can take to help the Abbas
    position, any confidence-building measures? And Abbas called Israel the
    ``Zionist enemy'' on the campaign trail. Was that rhetoric helpful?
        The President. I think Israel did help with the elections. I know
    the Secretary worked hard on making it clear
    to Israel that it was very important that voters in Jerusalem be allowed
    to have access to the polls. And the initial reports we got back, and on
    the briefing that the Secretary gave me today about the initial reports
    on the election, was that there was better than good movement. I mean,
    it was better than we thought a month ago, that the Israelis did
    understand the need to have an election.
        I think it's going to be very important for Israel to fulfill its
    obligation on the withdrawal from the territories that they have pledged
    to withdraw from. It is essential that Israel keep a vision of two
    states,

    [[Page 30]]

    living side by side in peace, and that as the Palestinians begin to
    develop the institutions of a state, that the Israeli Government support
    the development of those institutions and recognize that it is essential
    that there be a viable economy, that there be a viable health care
    system, that people be allowed to start building a society that meets
    their hopes and needs. And Israel can play and must play an important
    part of the development of a Palestinian state.
        At the same time, it's essential that the Palestinian leadership
    consolidate security forces, so that they can fight off those few who
    still have the desire to destroy Israel as a part of their philosophy
    and those few who fear there to be a free vote amongst the Palestinian
    people.
        Thank you all.

    Note: The President spoke at 10:20 a.m. in the Oval Office at the White
    House. In his remarks, he referred to President-elect Mahmoud Abbas (Abu
    Mazen) of the Palestinian Authority. The Office of the Press Secretary
    also released a Spanish language transcript of these remarks.