    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2006, Book I)]
    [May 31, 2006]
    [Pages 1046-1048]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Following Discussions With President Paul Kagame of Rwanda and an Exchange With Reporters
    May 31, 2006

        President Bush. I want to welcome the President of Rwanda to the
    Oval Office again. He was here last year, and I'm honored to welcome you
    back.
        The President is--he's a man of action; he can get things done. I'm
    proud of your leadership. We have talked about a lot of issues. We
    talked about the Sudan, and I want to thank the President for committing
    troops in the AU mission to help deal with what I have called a
    genocide. We strategized about how we can go forward to resolve the
    situation. I thank you for your wisdom; I thank you for your concern.
        One of the interesting things about President Kagame's Government is
    there is more women in his Government than anywhere else in Africa,
    which I think speaks to the man's character and understanding about how
    societies remain strong and whole. I appreciate his commitment to
    education. And I want to thank you, Mr. President, for your
    understanding that the best way for an economy to develop is to welcome
    private capital. He's been working hard with companies here in America.
    Many companies are taking a good look at Rwanda because they realize
    it's a country where they will be treated fairly, and there is a
    transparent society. And he's had some success, which will help people
    find work. And that's, to me, a sign of leadership. So welcome back.
        I, finally, want to thank you for your commitment to fighting HIV/
    AIDS. This Government has done a really good job of using some of the
    monies that we provided to save lives. And I've always told people that
    it's one thing for the American Government--and the American people,
    more importantly--to generously write checks to help, but it requires
    strong leadership at home. And you provided that leadership.
        So I welcome you back to the Oval Office, and thank you for your
    friendship.
        President Kagame. Thank you, President. It's a great honor for me to
    be here, President, and I appreciate the discussion we have had on a
    wide range of issues--starting with bilateral discussions we have had
    about United States Government has been very helpful in its support of
    Rwanda in different areas--dealing with HIV/AIDS, to supporting the
    private sector to invest in our country, to dealing with infrastructure
    programs. And also the support we have had during the period we were
    working under the African Union mission to send our troops to Darfur.
    The United States Government, with your support, Mr. President--we have
    had our forces, our troops airlifted by the United States military to
    Darfur and continued support for the African Union mission.
        We are very grateful for--generally, the support in the area will
    bring peace to the Great Lakes region and to supporting the efforts in
    Sudan and, ultimately, that process of supporting my country to be able
    to develop and continue building on the foundation we have laid in the
    last 12 years. So we appreciate that, Mr. President.
        President Bush. Welcome. The President and I will take two questions
    a side, starting with the Americans. Nedra [Nedra Pickler, Associated
    Press].

    [[Page 1047]]

    Iraq/U.S. Armed Forces

        Q. Mr. President, what have you been told about the killings at
    Haditha? And are you worried about the impact it could have on the
    situation in Iraq?
        President Bush. I am troubled by the initial news stories. I am
    mindful that there is a thorough investigation going on. If, in fact,
    the laws were broken, there will be punishment. I know this: I've talked
    to General Pete Pace about the subject, who is a
    proud marine, and nobody is more concerned about these allegations than
    the Marine Corps. The Marine Corps is full of men and women who are
    honorable people who understand rules of war. And if, in fact, these
    allegations are true, the Marine Corps will work hard to make sure that
    that culture, that proud culture will be reinforced, and that those who
    violated the law, if they did, will be punished.

    Rwanda

        Q. I'll ask a question--I'm a journalist from Rwanda.
        President Bush. Welcome.
        Q. Can I ask you a question on the genocide of Rwanda? It's been 13
    years after the genocide of Rwanda, but many perpetrators of the
    genocide, many people who did it, who carried out the genocide are still
    at large. One estimate is about over 50 of them in Europe and the U.S.,
    others in the Congo. What's the U.S. going to do to help run--to get
    these people to----
        President Bush. The interesting thing about Rwanda today is that you
    have a President who understands that part of a successful society is
    for people to work hard on reconciliation. There's no question the
    genocide in Rwanda was a real tragedy. It's one of the most significant
    tragedies in modern history. And yet your President and his Government
    has worked hard to reconcile, help people reconcile the tragedy at all
    levels of society.
        To the extent that he wants our help in finding certain perpetuators
    of crimes, we'll be glad to do so. But the way I look at the situation
    is that Rwanda can serve as an example for other societies that are
    troubled. As you know, we're working hard in Iraq to bring a democracy--
    to help a democracy grow there. And yet there's still sectarian
    violence. People are still using violence to achieve either revenge or
    political means. And the Rwanda example shows what's possible when
    people work hard on reconciliation.
        That's why I support Prime Minister Maliki's desire to have reconciliation moves. And the President
    actually offered to help, and it may be at some point in time it makes
    sense for the new Government in Iraq to do that. But I'm very proud of
    the accomplishments that Rwanda has made over 13 years--13 years after
    the genocide.
        Kelly [Kelly O'Donnell, NBC News].

    Iran

        Q. Mr. President, Secretary Rice is outlining a change in U.S.
    position toward Iran today, after so many years of not engaging directly
    with them. Why now? And will you respond directly to the letter from the
    President?
        President Bush. I believe it's very important that we solve this
    issue diplomatically, and my decision today says that the United States
    is going to take a leadership position in solving this issue. And our
    message to the Iranians is that, one, you won't have a weapon, and two,
    that you must verifiably suspend any programs, at which point we will
    come to the negotiating table to work on a way forward.
        I thought it was important for the United States to take the lead,
    along with our partners, and that's what you're seeing. You're seeing
    robust diplomacy. I believe this problem can be solved diplomatically,
    and I'm going to give it every effort to do so.
        I've talked on the telephone in the last couple of days with Jacques
    Chirac and Angela Merkel, and I spoke to Tony Blair when
    he was here about this issue; I spoke to Prime Minister
    Koizumi. I'm on the

    [[Page 1048]]

    phone a lot talking to--and President Putin, by the way--and I'm on the phone a lot talking to our
    folks that share the same concern I share, and say, ``Look, let's get
    this solved diplomatically,'' but there must be a united international
    front that shares the same message, and that is, is that we will work
    collaboratively to prevent the Iranians from developing a nuclear
    weapon.
        I also want to make it very clear that we have--we respect the
    Iranian people, and we respect their heritage and their history, and we
    hope their Government listens to the international demands and doesn't
    isolate itself from the world and doesn't foolishly spend money on a
    weapons program that takes away the capacity--the ability for the
    Iranian economy to grow so people are able to put food on the table and
    find work.
        Final--anybody else from Rwanda?

    Situation in Sudan

        Q. Yes, Mr. President, I come from Rwanda. I heard the President of
    Rwanda thanking you for the assistance you are giving on Darfur, but in
    spite all that you've been doing, it has persisted. Are you planning to
    up your support in that regard, Mr. President?
        President Bush. To support the Rwanda troops in Darfur? I will. As a
    matter of fact, we had a very good discussion about this subject. The
    President is concerned about whether or not the United States will honor
    its commitments. We will honor our commitments, but the United States
    Congress must pass the supplemental with the money in there for the
    Sudan. See, part of the money in a supplemental request that's working
    its way through a conference committee now is to help repay a country
    like Rwanda that's putting troops on the ground.
        And so I told the President that sometimes the Congress doesn't move
    as quickly as I'd like on issues, but I'm confident they'll get the
    supplemental passed when they come back from their Memorial Day break.
    That supplemental must, one, meet the financial conditions that I talked
    about--in other words, I'm going to veto the bill if they spend more
    money than I requested--and it's got to set--it's got to meet priorities
    as well. And one of the priorities is our own troops who are in harm's
    way. And another priority is helping the Katrina victims. And a third
    priority in that bill that we've submitted is to help in Sudan. I told
    the President I'm confident they'll pass that bill and that his troops
    will get reimbursed.
        Thank you all very much.

    Note: The President spoke at 11:43 a.m. in the Oval Office at the White
    House. In his remarks, he referred to Gen. Peter Pace, USMC, Chairman,
    Joint Chiefs of Staff; Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki of Iraq; President
    Mahmud Ahmadi-nejad of Iran; President Jacques Chirac of France;
    Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany; Prime Minister Tony Blair of the
    United Kingdom; Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi of Japan; and President
    Vladimir V. Putin of Russia.