    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2007, Book II)]
    [July 17, 2007]
    [Pages 976-978]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Following a Meeting With Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon of the United Nations
    July 17, 2007

        President Bush. Mr. Secretary-General, welcome. Thanks for coming.
    We've just had a wide-ranging and full discussion on a lot of issues.
    First, Mr. Secretary-General, I appreciate you, one, taking on this job;
    two, working extremely hard; and, three,

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    doing a fine job. I admire the values you hold dear to your heart, and I
    appreciate the chance to share some thoughts with you.
        We discussed a lot of issues. We have discussed Darfur. We discussed
    proliferation. We discussed the potential trial for--on the--about
    Hariri. The Secretary-General and I talked about the speech I gave
    yesterday on the Middle East. We have talked about Afghanistan and Iraq.
        And one of the things I briefed the Secretary on was my views about
    extremism and these radicals that will do anything to disrupt the goals
    set by the United Nations and/or disrupt the advance of democracy in
    peaceful societies. Al Qaida is strong today, but they're not nearly as
    strong as they were prior to September the 11th, 2001. And the reason
    why is, is because we've been working with the world to keep the
    pressure on, to stay on the offense, to bring them to justice so they
    won't hurt us again, to defeat them where we find them.
        And now we find them in Iraq. These killers in Iraq, people who will
    kill innocent life to stop the advent of democracy, people who are
    trying to get on our TV screens on a daily basis to drive us out, have
    got ambitions and plans. These people have sworn allegiance to the very
    same man who ordered the attack on September the 11th, 2001, Usama bin
    Laden. And they want us to leave parts of
    the world, like Iraq, so they can establish a safe haven from which to
    spread their poisonous ideology. And we are steadfast in our
    determination to not only protect the American people but to protect
    these young democracies. And I appreciate your interest in the subject.
        Al Qaida is--would have been a heck of a lot stronger today had we
    not stayed on the offense. And it's in the interest of the United States
    to not only defeat them overseas so we don't have to face them here but
    also to spread an ideology that will defeat their ideology every time,
    and that's the ideology based upon liberty.
        So, Mr. Secretary-General, we're proud to have you here, and thank
    you for your leadership.
        Secretary-General Ban. Thank you very much, Mr. President. This is
    my second time to have--for meeting with you in this Oval Office. I
    appreciate your strong support and active participation of the United
    States in the United Nations. And I'm very much grateful for all the
    strong support for peacekeeping operations.
        In addition to what the President Bush has just mentioned on the
    issues we have covered, I'd like to mention just a few of importance, in
    my--from my perspective. First of all, I welcome the interest which you
    have announced yesterday for the comprehensive Middle East peace
    process. As a member of the Quartet, I am prepared to work very closely
    to see expedited the peace process in the Middle East.
        As for Iraqi situation--and this is a problem of the whole world.
    And as far as the United Nations is concerned, we are prepared to
    contribute to Iraqi Government and people to help them overcome this
    difficulty, in close coordination with the MNF and including the United
    States. We are going to help their political facilitation as well as
    economic and social reconstruction. And we also are going to continue
    the international compact process for Iraq, as well as expanded--
    [inaudible]--foreign ministers meeting. This will provide good
    opportunity for Iraqi people and international community to work
    together for peace and security in Iraq.
        In Darfur situations, we have made considerable progress. And we are
    going to step up the political process. We have made a positive
    development yesterday in Tripoli through the meeting chaired by United
    Nations and African Union. We are going to have negotiation,
    prenegotiation in Arusha, Tanzania, in early August. We are also going
    to facilitate humanitarian assistance. I'm going to step up efforts to
    deploy

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    hybrid operations as soon as possible in Darfur to resolve this issue as
    soon as possible. In that regard, I appreciate U.S. Government strong
    support in this matter.
        On climate change, which is a very important issue for all
    humankind, I appreciate President Bush's initiative during Heiligendamm
    G-8 summit meeting.
        President Bush. Thank you.
        Secretary-General Ban. I extended an official invitation to
    President Bush today to attend, to participate in a high-level U.N.
    debate on climate change, which will be held on September 24th. Your
    participation will be very much appreciated, and I'm looking forward to
    welcoming you----
        President Bush. Thank you, sir.
        Secretary-General Ban. ----in New York.
        Lastly, on North Korean nuclear issue, I appreciate the U.S.
    Government initiative and flexibility in promoting development of these
    issues. I'm encouraged and I welcome the recent development of
    situation. I hope that the parties concerned, including DPRK, will take
    necessary measures to implement this joint statement to realize the
    denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula as soon as possible.
        Thank you very much for your hospitality.
        President Bush. Thank you, sir. Thank you all.

    Note: The President spoke at 2:16 p.m. in the Oval Office at the White
    House.