    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2007, Book I)]
    [June 11, 2007]
    [Pages 727-733]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    The President's News Conference With President Georgi Parvanov of Bulgaria in Sofia, Bulgaria
    June 11, 2007

        President Parvanov. Distinguished members of the delegation, ladies
    and gentlemen: I would like briefly to outline the results of the
    discussions we just had and just closed with the President of the United
    States, George Bush. I must say, this is a very significant visit. It is
    another proof, a very cogent proof of the fact that our two countries'
    relations are in their best state now in more than a hundred years of
    their establishment.
        I am happy we had a chance today to draw the balance sheet of what
    has happened in the interim since the meeting, our visit there in
    Washington in October 2005. And indeed, the balance sheet is definitely
    positive. The United States and Bulgaria continue to be good, reliable
    partners within NATO, within the peacekeeping missions in different
    parts of the world. This is a firm, long-term commitment. It is not
    affected by the changes and setup of the political situations in both
    countries.
        The second thing that strikes about it is the new dynamics in the
    development of our economic relations. We have either new or updated
    treaties, bilateral treaties, which give the framework of our business
    contacts. There has been a sharp trend of improving the term over, and
    the American investments in Bulgaria, and the number of U.S. tourists to
    Bulgaria also is on the increase. However, this is not the ceiling.

    [[Page 728]]

    We believe there is a much greater potential, and this is why we should
    seek and explore the avenues of promoting these trends in several
    directions: A, by presenting a better, fuller, and more adequate image
    of Bulgaria in the United States, with an emphasis on the business
    information, addressed to the businesspeople. And I hope that the newly
    setup foundation, America for Bulgaria, will promote these efforts.
        Second, in the foreseeable future, very soon we will, hopefully,
    have a positive solution on the visa regime, on facilitating, lifting
    the visa barriers. And we do appreciate everything that President Bush
    has personally been doing in the light of the negotiations within the
    United States and the European Union. And we, in turn, pledge to do our
    best to meet our commitments on the security, which is one of the major
    criteria in addressing this issue.
        I believe we should make an effort to improve the structure of trade
    and investment. And I did lay down to my guest, President Bush, the
    possibility for a more significant involvement of American businesses in
    the major energy projects, both in Bulgaria and the Balkans, in the
    infrastructure, in the defense industry. A better cooperation in this
    area, in the defense industry, could be an important incentive for the
    development of our economy as a whole. I do hope we will have President
    Bush--the support of President Bush and the United States--in our effort
    to modernize our armed forces at a faster pace, so that we could be
    effective and efficient in performing--discharging our commitments as
    allies.
        And next, I would like to thank President Bush for the support we've
    always enjoyed from the United States to our efforts to find a fair, a
    just solution to the crisis with the Bulgarian medics in Libya and for
    their release. And I was happy to hear from him this repeated support.
        At the same time, we discussed the two countries' possibilities,
    both within the--our interaction with the European Union and otherwise,
    to support and help for the treatment of the AIDS-infected children and
    their families as a longer term commitment through involvement in the
    International Fund, which is meant to streamline this process. And I did
    point out to President Bush that there are expectations both among the
    public and in the media in this country, an expectation from the major
    companies to get involved and to donate to this fund.
        We also discussed a wide range of international issues related to
    the situation in the Balkans, to our desire to play a stabilizing role
    in the Balkans, to be a factor of stability here. We also commented on
    some of the issues that are on both countries' agenda and on the agendas
    of the European Union and NATO.
        Thank you.
        President Bush. President Parvanov, thank you very much. I call him
    George. He calls me George. It's good to be here in your beautiful
    country. Laura and I are looking forward to our
    lunches together. Thank you very much.
        We are allies; we share values; and we believe in freedom. And I
    appreciate the progress your country has made toward a free society. And
    I thank you for being an ally in helping others realize the blessings of
    liberty. We have accepted our responsibilities to help defend freedom
    against terrorists and extremists, and it's hard work. And I thank the
    people of Bulgaria for understanding the stakes, the true challenges of
    the 21st century.
        We had a great discussion, and that's what you'd expect among
    friends. I am impressed by the transition that Bulgaria has made to a
    free market economy. Success is evidenced by results, by the results of
    attracting more capital. I know U.S. companies are seriously looking at
    Bulgaria, and that's because there is transparency and fairness in
    taxes. In other words, when somebody invests in a country, they expect
    to get a reasonable rate of return, and they

    [[Page 729]]

    expect government to not interfere but, in fact, to expedite the flow of
    capital. And so therefore, when the President talks about more capital
    coming to your country from the United States, it means that the
    government has made reforms necessary to attract capital.
        My call, of course, is to continue to make reforms and, if you find
    corruption, rout it out. People of Bulgaria expect their government to
    be open and honest, and so do those who spend capital in countries. And
    the President is committed to that; I know.
        We talked about the energy diversification program for Bulgaria.
    America has got to diversify its energy too. We're too dependent on
    foreign sources of energy. So, we share a common goal about
    diversification of energy supply. We're in the process of spending a lot
    of money on new technologies that will enable us to diversify our energy
    supply and, at the same time, be good stewards of the environment. And I
    look forward to sharing those technologies with countries, once they
    become fully developed.
        I appreciate very much the reforms you made so that the EU is
    comfortable in accepting Bulgaria as a member state, and I congratulate
    you on those accomplishments. And of course, we're proud to stand with
    you in NATO. These are big achievements for this country, and the people
    of Bulgaria ought to be proud of the achievements that they have
    achieved.
        We discussed, of course, Iraq. And I thank the President and I thank
    the people of Bulgaria for supporting those in Iraq who long to live in
    a free society. The fight's tough in Iraq, and I know some of your
    families have suffered. And on behalf of our Nation, I extend our
    condolences and prayers to the families who have lost a loved one
    against these extremists and murderers.
        I thank you for your commitment to Afghanistan. And I appreciate so
    very much your willingness to do the hard work necessary to enable young
    democracies to survive in the face of significant opposition from
    ideologues who use murder as a weapon to achieve their objectives. Mr.
    President, I firmly believe the commitments that we're making are laying
    the foundations of peace for generations to come.
        I thank you for your advice on Kosovo. We spent some time talking
    about Kosovo. The time is now to move the Ahtisaari plan. We--America believes that Kosovo ought to be
    independent, and I sought the President's advice. One of the things he
    made clear is something I agree with, and that is, is that as we seek
    independence for Kosovo, we've also got to make it clear to the--Serbia
    that there's a way forward, maybe in NATO, maybe in the EU, and
    definitely in better relations with the United States. So, I thank you
    for your sound judgment and your solid advice.
        We talked about the Bulgarian nurses. This is not the first
    conversation I've had with the President on this subject. He's deeply
    concerned about the fate of the nurses. We spoke in person about it at
    the White House, we have had phone calls on the subject, and of course,
    today again he emphasized his deep concern for the nurses and their
    families. And I appreciate your compassion, Mr. President.
        We strongly support the release of the Bulgarian nurses in Libya.
    That's the position of the United States. They should be released, and
    they should be allowed to be returned to their families. We will
    continue to make clear to Libya that the release of these nurses is a
    high priority for our country.
        Our hearts also go out to the children who have been infected by
    HIV/AIDS. Together with the EU, the United States is contributing to a
    fund to provide assistance to the Libyan children suffering from this
    disease and to their families. My hope is that this issue gets resolved
    quickly.
        We talked about visa reform. I assured the President, what I said in
    the past is

    [[Page 730]]

    what I still believe, and that is: We need to reform our visa system.
    The system is stuck in the past. It can be reformed to work better for
    the citizens of this country. And I'm working with Congress to get it
    done. We're in the middle of an immigration debate, as well, in America.
    I hope that my country understands that it's in our interest to treat
    people with respect and to treat people fairly. And so I told the
    President that we'll continue to work with Congress to resolve this
    issue in a satisfactory way. I've laid out a way forward, and I'm
    committed to seeing it through.
        And so, George, thanks for having me. It's been a good visit. I'm
    looking forward to lunch. And I guess we'll answer some questions.

    Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales/
    Immigration Reform

        Q. Good morning, Mr. President. You've had quite a week in Europe,
    and I wonder, as we head home, if I could ask you to turn to some
    domestic issues. Your Attorney General is under fire in the Senate.
    General Pace has had a setback. The immigration reform bill seems not to
    be moving very quickly. And I won't even mention the latest polls. So,
    I'm just wondering, sir, as you head home, to what extent do you still
    have the political clout and capital to get some of these issues done?
    Do you have any left? If you do, how do you intend to use it?
        President Bush. First of all, we've had a great trip, Ed [Edwin
    Chen, Los Angeles Times]. It's a chance for America to talk about a
    liberty agenda and a chance to talk to our allies about how we can
    advance it and what we can do together to make our respective countries
    better off.
        Listen, the immigration debate is a tough debate. I'm under no
    illusions about how hard it is. There are people in my party that don't
    want a comprehensive bill; there are people in the Democrat Party that
    don't seem to want a comprehensive bill. I was disappointed that the
    bill was temporarily derailed.
        I frankly find it interesting that a so-called important subject
    they need to get to would be to pass a political resolution on my
    Attorney General that's going to have no bearing on whether he serves in
    office or not.
        I believe we can get an immigration bill. Now, it's going to require
    leadership from the Democrat leaders in the Senate, and it's going to
    require me to stay engaged and work with Republicans who want a bill.
        Last--earlier in this trip, I called three members of the Senate
    from the Republican Party and said: ``What can we do together to get the
    bill back up? What do we need to do to work with Senators like Senator
    Ted Kennedy, who is strongly committed to
    a comprehensive bill?'' And tomorrow I'll be going to the Senate to talk
    about a way forward on the piece of legislation.
        It's important that we address this issue now. And I believe we can
    get it done. Listen, there was--a lot of progress was made between
    people in both parties making hard decisions necessary to move a
    comprehensive plan. It's in the Nation's interest to get a comprehensive
    bill done. So the political process sometimes isn't pretty to look at
    it. There's two steps forward, one step back. We made two steps forward
    on immigration, we took a step back, and now I'm going to work with
    those who are focused on getting an immigration bill done and start
    taking some steps forward again. I believe we can get it done. I'll see
    you at the bill signing.

    Bulgarian Nurses Held in Libya

        Q. President Bush, you have already voiced your support in favor of
    our medics and their release. We appreciate that. Although, despite the
    fact that our fellow country people are still in prison--absolutely
    innocent, as you well know--I would like to ask you, as a part of the
    general effort to solve this drama, which has been

    [[Page 731]]

    going on for more than 10--8 years now, my question is: Would you commit
    yourself to lobbying in front of the U.S. Congress and doing so that
    some of the funds under your 5-year program for fighting HIV/AIDS can go
    to supporting the children infected with AIDS and their families?
        And, President Parvanov, I would be happy to hear your view on the
    Libya issue, and, notably, how would you comment the fact, or rather the
    Bulgarian media's idea, who are covering the trial in Libya, to send a
    letter to the hundred most influential representatives of the economy
    and business, according to the Forbes ratings, and call on them to
    donate to the building of modern, up-to-date medical center where
    children, all people, with HIV/AIDS could be treated?
        President Bush. There's a fund into which we're contributing money.
    And I don't think you ought to be concerned about the source of the
    funding. What you ought to be focused on is whether or not the U.S. is
    willing to commit funds, along with the EU. And we are. And at the same
    time, we're willing to send messages to the Libya Government that we
    expect the release of the nurses. We've been very much in concert with
    your Government. This is an issue that we care about. And so--but we do
    agree with the strategy that there ought to be some compensation for the
    Libyan children and their families.
        President Parvanov. Ladies and gentlemen, many of you know that I
    have visited Libya; I have visited the hospital in Benghazi. I've spoken
    with the parents and the infected children, and I'm clearly aware of the
    great drama they're suffering, they're going through, and how much it
    needs to be done in order to invest in this hospital and in order to
    relieve the pain and suffering of both the children and their kin, and
    their families and friends.
        This is a Bulgarian; this is a European; this is a commitment of the
    entire democratic public, worldwide. By all means, Bulgaria and, I
    believe, our friends from the United States and the European Union
    consider this not a one-off, not a temporary--an attempt to release the
    nurses, and then we quit. For us--and I'm happy that this was--we went
    along with George on this. For us, this is a long-term commitment. This
    is a commitment we take in respect of the both those suffering in
    Benghazi, but also everyone suffering of AIDS, not just in Benghazi, but
    in the whole of Africa. Let's remember G-8 and their decision: $60
    billion were allocated to this policy by the world democratic community
    a few days ago.
        I, for one, 6 months ago, in addressing the European Parliament, I
    said--and I appealed to the big players, so to speak, worldwide, in the
    businesses worldwide, to take a more--a firmer commitment to this fund,
    to donate more, contribute more to this fund. In this sense, I join my
    voice and I welcome and I do support the appeal which the Bulgarian
    media have issued. I hope their voice will be heard. I know, whenever
    the media speak, their voice is heard more clearly than that of
    politicians.

    Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales/
    Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

        Q. Mr. President, I want to take you back to domestic issues again.
    You say the no-confidence vote has no bearing as to whether Alberto
    Gonzales remains as Attorney General. How can he continue to be
    effective? And it seems like you're not listening to Congress when it
    comes to Gonzales, but you are listening to Congress when it comes to
    Peter Pace.
        President Bush. Yes, it's an interesting comment about Congress--
    isn't it?--that, on the one hand, they say that a good general shouldn't
    be reconfirmed, and, on the other hand, they say that my Attorney
    General shouldn't stay. And I find it interesting. I guess it reflects
    the political atmosphere of Washington. And they can try to have their
    votes of no confidence, but it's not going to determine--make the
    determination who serves in my Government.

    [[Page 732]]

        Pete Pace was going to go up for confirmation; that's the
    difference. I have--I had confidence in Pete Pace. But people view this
    as an opportunity to make statements, and upon the recommendation of
    Secretary of Defense Gates, I agreed to send
    up another nominee.
        And as to Al Gonzales--first of all, this process has been drug out
    a long time, which says to me it's political. There's no wrongdoing. You
    know, he--they haven't said: ``Here's--you've done something wrong,
    Attorney General Gonzales.'' And therefore, I ascribe this lengthy
    series of news stories and hearings as political. And I'll make the
    determination if I think he's effective or not, not those who are using
    an opportunity to make a political statement on a meaningless
    resolution.

    Missile Defense System/Energy

        Q. President, clearly the relations between our two countries,
    politically, have been very good. How could we achieve the same in the
    area of security, in the context of the antimissile shield, our common--
    our cooperation in using common sites, and also in respect of the trade
    investment?
        President Bush. Do you want me to start on the missiles? The
    proposed missile shield is aimed at long-range missiles, missiles that
    would fly over Bulgaria. There are missile systems and defense systems
    available that would deal with intermediate-range missiles. And so just
    because Bulgaria is not a part of the longer range missile shield
    doesn't mean that there won't be equipment and help available for
    intermediate range. That's how I can answer that question.
        I know this creates some concerns around Europe, this missile
    shield, because of Russian objections. And so I had a meeting with
    President Putin in Germany at the G-8 and
    explained to him what I've been saying publicly, is, the missile shield
    would be developed to deal with a rogue regime that would try to hold a
    free nation hostage, or free nations hostage; that it's not aimed at
    Russia.
        I talked to Vladimir Putin a lot about
    our relations and made it clear that I simply do not view Russia as an
    enemy. I view Russia as a country with whom we should have and can have
    good relations to solve common problems.
        One such problem is Iran. Another problem is proliferation. There
    are areas we can work together, and he
    brought an interesting proposal. He said: ``I have an idea. Why don't we
    jointly use a radar in Azerbaijan to help deal with a potential
    threat?'' And I said: ``That's a good idea. I don't know how--whether
    it's technologically feasible; I'm not an expert. I've got experts in my
    Government, however, who could analyze your proposal, and I'd like for
    you to maybe--not maybe--I'd like for you to assign some experts in your
    Government to analyze my proposal.''
        And that's where we left it in Germany. So we're going to have a
    group of people come together from the State Department, Defense
    Department, and the military to discuss how to deal with the true
    threats of the 21st century.
        And I would hope that would help explain some of the rhetoric that
    people in your country have seen coming out of the G-8, that there's a
    process where we can collaborate and share information in a very
    transparent way, which I think will be beneficial. And I would hope that
    the Russians would see the meetings as beneficial and out of the
    meetings realize our true intent, and hopefully, design systems that
    protect us all.
        President Parvanov. I would like to begin by saying that we welcome
    the strategic dialog, and it was described as a strategic dialog by both
    leaders, both by President Bush and by Putin, a dialog which started
    within the framework of G-8. We Bulgarians would accept any solution
    that

    [[Page 733]]

    would provide more guarantees, more security guarantees, more guarantees
    of the indivisibility of the security of the Euro-Atlantic space, any
    solution that has been achieved, hammered out through dialog and in
    transparency, and any solution that is not directed against a third
    country, notably Russia in this case.
        I would take the liberty of paraphrasing something that was said in
    Prague--hopefully, my source was reliable; the President would correct
    me if I'm wrong or imprecise--the Bulgarians mustn't choose between
    their friendship with the United States and that with Russia. The
    Bulgarians should and can maintain friendly relations with both
    countries. Just as I am a friend with George and a friend with Vladimir,
    we could maintain, within the context of our Euro-Atlantic orientation,
    friendly relations with both without diluting the things, without losing
    sight of our strategic priorities. We should maintain relations with
    everyone who thinks likewise.
        This means the same approach would apply to the energy, the
    infrastructure sphere. This is why Bulgaria maintains--has maintained
    active relations with Russia on the major infrastructure, or rather
    energy projects.
        I myself, earlier today, offered to President Bush a clearer, firmer
    commitment by American companies to the energy project. Chevron, in
    respect of Bourgas-Alexandroupolis, or AMBO--I'm not going to list them
    all here--this is an investment in peace and the security of the region.
    This is a geostrategic contribution. And I'm saying this both as the
    President of Bulgaria, but also as a citizen of the Balkans, a region
    for whose fate and future I feel responsible.
        President Bush. Thank you.

    Note: The President's news conference began at 10:35 a.m. at the
    National Museum of Archaeology. In his remarks, he referred to former
    President Martti Ahtisaari of Finland, United Nations Special Envoy of
    the Secretary-General for the Future Status Process of Kosovo. President
    Parvanov and some reporters spoke in Bulgarian, and their remarks were
    translated by an interpreter.