    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2008, Book I)]
    [April 2, 2008]
    [Pages 461-463]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks Following a Discussion With Secretary General Jakob Gijsbert
    ``Jaap'' de Hoop Scheffer of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in
    Bucharest, Romania
    April 2, 2008

        President Bush. Thank you for your time, and thank you for
    organizing the Bucharest summit. I appreciate your service very much to
    the cause of world peace, and I want to thank you for your briefing.
    I'm, like you, optimistic that this is going to be a very successful
    summit.
        We came in with some objectives in mind. One was to get NATO to
    continue to support Afghanistan's democracy. And I feel good about what
    I'm hearing from my fellow leaders about their desire to support
    Afghanistan. And I think if tomorrow we get clarification on troop
    support, I think the people of Afghanistan--the way you indicated it may
    be--the people of Afghanistan are going to be more than grateful. And
    the people who--whose nations are represented in NATO will be supporting
    a cause that is worthy, a cause for peace.

    [[Page 462]]

        Secondly, you and I discussed the need for a comprehensive missile
    defense regime out of NATO. And it looks like to me that the ingredients
    are coming together where that could be a distinct possibility. And that
    would be a very important statement because NATO could assure its
    members and the people within NATO that there will be defenses available
    to prevent a Middle Eastern nation, for example, from launching a strike
    which could harm our security.
        We've also talked obviously about enlargement. And we'll see, on
    enlargement. There's an issue with one country, in particular, but it
    look--I'm optimistic that this will get solved. And finally, of course,
    Ukraine and Georgia is a very difficult issue for some nations here;
    it's not for me. I think that these nations are qualified nations to
    apply for membership application. And I said so on Ukrainian soil. I
    also said so in the Oval Office with the President of
    Georgia. And I haven't changed my mind,
    because it's--one of the great things about NATO is it encourages the
    kind of habits that are necessary for peace to exist.
        And today in a press conference, I was asked, Mr. Secretary General,
    about Russia's reactions. I said--I have always told Vladimir
    Putin, my friend--that it's in his
    interest that there be democracies on her border, and that he doesn't
    need to fear NATO; he ought to welcome NATO because NATO is a group of
    nations dedicated to peace. And so I appreciate your hard work, and I'm
    excited about tomorrow's--about tonight's meeting and tomorrow's
    meetings as well.
        Secretary General de Hoop Scheffer. Mr. President, thank you for
    having us and your Afghanistan position. I can share your and echo your
    optimism, I think, on NATO's key operational priority, which is
    Afghanistan. We will do well. We will do well in the political sense
    because we will publish a vision document, as we call it, which is a
    clear sign of our commitments not only of NATO but of the whole
    international community; long-term commitment vis-a-vis Afghanistan,
    which is important for them, for the Afghan people, but is also
    important for the reason that said we should not forget that we are on
    one of the frontlines in a fight against terrorism in Afghanistan. And
    that is a major argument and a major reason that we cannot afford not to
    prevail. And we are prevailing in Afghanistan. So I think that's good
    news. And President Karzai, to whom I spoke this morning, reconfirms
    that good news.
        I'm optimistic about enlargement, Mr. President. I think that
    enlarging the NATO family of democratic nations, this value-based
    organization, is a plus. And I hope that tomorrow will see invitations.
        I also hope that we'll see a positive and constructive meeting with
    the--President Putin and the NATO-Russia Council, with the right tone
    and the right ambition for practical cooperation.
        I'm like you, Mr. President, optimism about--optimistic about
    missile defense. I think the alliance will take a clear position on
    missile defense, recognizing the threat and working on the answers to
    that recognized threat.
        And last but not least, Mr. President, you mentioned another issue
    which readily will be discussed: Membership Action Plan for Ukraine and
    Georgia. I think this can never be a question of ``whether.'' The
    ``whether'' is not questionable. If these nations fulfill the criteria
    and if they would enter--want to enter themselves through NATO's open
    door, I think that door should be open. So that is a discussion that
    certainly--we certainly are going to have.
        We have a large agenda; we have a full agenda. It will be not only
    NATO's biggest summit ever, but it will also be a very interesting
    political summit with, I think, very good results.
        Mr. President, once again, thank you for having us.
        President Bush. Thank you, sir.
        Secretary General de Hoop Scheffer. Thank you.
        President Bush. Thank you.

    [[Page 463]]

    Note: The President spoke at 5:15 p.m. at the JW Marriott Bucharest
    Grand Hotel. In his remarks, he referred to President Mikheil
    Saakashvili of Georgia; and President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia.
    Secretary General de Hoop Scheffer referred to President Hamid Karzai of
    Afghanistan.