    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2006, Book II)]
    [July 18, 2006]
    [Pages 1417-1419]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Following a Meeting With Congressional Leaders and an Exchange
    With Reporters
    July 18, 2006

        The President. I just had the pleasure of briefing the key Members
    of the House and the Senate on my trip to St. Petersburg and to Germany.
    Thank you all for coming.
        You know, prior to my traveling to St. Petersburg, I thought the
    issue was going to be whether or not we could bring the world together
    to deal with North Korea and Iran. And by the way, during my stay there,
    we did get an unanimous United Nations Security Council agreement on
    North Korea. And it was my pleasure to be able to thank the Chinese and
    the Russians and the Japanese and our European friends for

    [[Page 1418]]

    voting favorably for that resolution. But instead, a lot of the
    discussion was on the Hizballian attacks into Israel.
        What was really interesting was that--and I briefed this to the
    Members--that we were able to reach a very strong consensus that the
    world must confront the root causes of the current instability. And the
    root cause of that current instability is terrorism and terrorist
    attacks on a democratic country. And part of those terrorist attacks are
    inspired by nation-states like Syria and Iran. And in order to be able
    to deal with this crisis, the world must deal with Hizballah, with
    Syria, and to continue to work to isolate Iran.
        I strongly believe every nation ought to be able to defend herself
    from terrorist attacks. We're also mindful--and I talked to the
    Members--about the need to make sure the Government of Lebanon does not
    collapse. It's in our interest that Lebanon be free and the
    Siniora Government succeed.
        We also talked about the evacuation of U.S. citizens in Lebanon. And
    Condi briefed the Members about the joint
    plan with the Defense Department to make sure there's enough
    transportation to expeditiously provide transportation for those who
    want to leave. And we're in the process of doing that.
        All in all, it was a very positive visit there in the G-8. We dealt
    with significant problems. Sometimes it requires tragic situations to
    help bring clarity in the international community. And it is now clear
    for all to see that there are terrorist elements who want to destroy our
    democratic friends and allies, and the world must work to prevent them
    from doing so.
        With that, I'll be glad to answer a couple of questions. Let's see,
    here. Yes.

    Situation in the Middle East

        Q. In trying to defuse the situation in the Middle East, is the
    United States trying to buy time and give Israel a chance to weaken
    Hizballah militarily?
        The President. Well, we have made it very clear that Israel should
    be allowed to defend herself. We've asked that as she does so, that she
    be mindful of the Siniora Government. It's very
    important that this Government in Lebanon succeed and survive.
        Everybody abhors the loss of innocent life. On the other hand, what
    we recognize is that the root cause of the problem is Hizballah. And
    that problem must be addressed, and it can be addressed through--
    internationally by making it clear to Syria that they've got to stop
    their support to Hizballah.
        Listen, Syria is trying to get back into Lebanon--it looks like to
    me. We passed United Nations Resolution 1559, and finally this young
    democracy--or this democracy became whole--by getting Syria out. And
    there's suspicions that the instability created by the Hizballian
    attacks will cause some in Lebanon to invite Syria back in, and it's
    against the United Nations policy, and it's against the U.S. policy.
        Q. There's a Deputy Army Chief of Israel who said that for this
    offensive to reach its goal will take weeks. Are you comfortable with
    that kind of timeframe? Are you comfortable with letting the offensive
    go on for weeks?
        The President. I want the world to address the root causes of the
    problem, and the root cause of the problem is Hizballah. I also--and
    we've been, of course, in touch with Israel. Condi spoke to Prime Minister Olmert yesterday on the airplane flying back. And we're never
    going to tell a nation how to defend herself, but we are urging caution
    when it comes to the survival of the Siniora
    Government. It's essential that the Government of Lebanon survive this
    crisis.
        We've worked hard to free--and ``we'' being the international
    community--worked hard to free Lebanon from Syrian influence. And
    there's a young government there. And it's in our interest that Syria
    stay out of Lebanon and this Government

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    survive. And so in our consultations with countries in the neighborhood,
    we have urged all to address the problem--that would be Hizballah and
    its terrorist attacks on Israel.
        Remember, this started--this crisis started when Hizballah captured
    two Israeli soldiers. They were unprovoked, Hizballah were unprovoked,
    and they then took hostages. Imagine how the United States would react
    if somebody provoked us with that kind of action, and secondly, started
    firing rockets. And it's this provocation of Hizballah that has created
    this crisis, and that's the root cause of the problem.
        All right, thank you all.

    Note: The President spoke at 3:57 p.m. in the Cabinet Room at the White
    House. In his remarks, he referred to Prime Minister Fuad Siniora of
    Lebanon; and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel. A reporter referred
    to Maj. Gen. Moshe Kaplinsky, Deputy Chief of the General Staff, Israel
    Defense Forces.