    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2008, Book I)]
    [February 19, 2008]
    [Pages 231-238]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    The President's News Conference With President Paul Kagame of Rwanda in Kigali
    February 19, 2008

        President Kagame. President, it's my great pleasure, it's the
    pleasure of the whole country to welcome you, Mr. President, and Mrs.
    Laura Bush and your distinguished delegation. We thank you very much for
    your visit, your friendship, and your support. These have made a
    substantive difference to many lives in our country.
        President Bush. Thank you.
        President Kagame. The bilateral investment treaty that we have just
    signed is further testimony to your commitment and the good will of the
    American people. Mr. President, your visit is a reflection that the
    United States and Rwanda have shared values. We believe in investing in
    our people. We share a commitment to expanding our people's economic and
    the democratic aspirations. We believe in strong and effective
    institutions accountable to our respective citizens. But as it is well
    appreciated, different countries begin their democratic and development
    agenda from different circumstances.
        You saw for yourself there is also decades of bad politics and bad
    leadership when you visited the genocide memorial that you just saw this
    morning. The country you are visiting today was vastly different 14
    years ago, when the very survival of Rwanda as a nation was in question.
    But the Rwandan people refused to give up hope, and we have instead
    embarked on the task of healing, reconstruction, and development.
        The results of these efforts may be illustrated by our modest
    achievements in such areas as education, health, and a general
    improvement towards sustainable economic growth. Rwandans and the more--
    especially our youth--have hope in a better future. Primary school
    enrollment has risen to about 96 percent, spurred by tuition-free
    education. In our concerted effort to invest in our people, we have
    extended universal education to the very first 3 years of secondary
    education. And we intend to do more through the entire value chain of
    trade.
        In the field of health, immunization coverage has risen to 95
    percent. Thanks to American support and partnership, thousands of
    Rwandan children and mothers are alive and have hope because of the
    President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief program. Malaria has almost
    been eliminated in our country due in large part to the President's
    Malaria Initiative.
        On the economic front, today's agreement will certainly deepen our
    economic collaboration, Mr. President. Mr. President, we share a deep
    commitment to democracy and good governance. In this respect, we in
    Rwanda believe strongly in power sharing and consensus-building as a
    cornerstone of our political dispensation. This perspective has been
    made the centerpiece of our Constitution, informed by our particular
    history and the circumstances that disenfranchised communities and
    political

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    expressions, often leading to calamities. We know that governance has
    both universal and homegrown features to allow for greater relevance. We
    believe we are making progress towards a balance between these
    imperatives.
        Mr. President, the significance of your administration's record is
    illustrated by your strong leadership in many fields, including health,
    conflict resolution, promotion of investment and trade, and your
    insistence that we Africans take ownership of our own development
    challenges and processes. Permit me to thank you once again for the
    attention you've paid our continent and our country. It may be stated
    that you have raised the bar of American-African relations, a level
    which the next President of the United States will not lower.
        We are very happy and honored to have you here, Mr. President and
    Mrs. Laura Bush. This is the second time Rwanda for the First Lady, and
    we appreciate that. I thank you for the trust and the confidence you
    have placed in our country. Mr. President, I thank you very much.
        President Bush. Mr. President, thanks. We're proud--[applause]--
    we're honored to be here. Thanks very much for inviting Laura and me to join you and Mrs. Kagame for lunch today in a--what has been, so far, a very
    important stop. We had good discussions on a variety of subjects. It is
    really inspiring for us to see people who have endured such suffering
    respond with such hope.
        I really do want to congratulate you and the people in Rwanda for
    the remarkable recovery you have made. And I assure you, you have a
    steady friend in the United States. I appreciate the opportunity to
    visit with your cabinet as well. It's important for my fellow citizens
    to know that I'm dealing with a respected leader not only here at home
    but in the region.
        And so our discussions not only centered on the issues facing Rwanda
    but also how we can work together to bring peace to different parts of
    the continent of Africa. We're cooperating to address violence and
    genocide in Darfur. The Rwandan people know the horrors of genocide. I
    find it--it's not surprising at all that the first nation to step up and
    say that we want to deploy peacekeepers was Rwanda. And I thank you for
    your leadership, Mr. President. That's a--it's a strong statement on
    your part, and you remain one of the largest contributors to stability
    and peace in Darfur.
        And the United States is happy to help. We've trained--or helped
    train more than 7,000 Rwanda peacekeepers. We've provided more than $17
    million to equip and transport these forces into Darfur. The President
    mentioned something that I agree with, and that is, the role of the
    United States and others is to help African nations deal with African
    problems.
        And here's an example of a collaborative effort to help solve what
    our Nation has labeled genocide. The United States is making $100
    million available to assist African nations willing to step forward for
    the cause of peace in Darfur. And up to 12 million of those will help
    you, Mr. President, do the job that you want to do in Darfur. The United
    States appreciates the commitments to help bring peace to Darfur made by
    other African nations as well, such as Ghana, Senegal, Ethiopia,
    Tanzania, Burkina Faso, and Malawi.
        And my message to other nations is, join with the President and help
    us get this problem solved once and for all. And we will help. We will
    help through sanctions. We will help through pressure. And we'll help
    provide money to get these forces in, in an effective manner.
        The United States and Rwanda are cooperating to assure long-term
    stability in eastern Congo. We spent a lot of time talking about that
    today. I appreciate your guidance and your advice, Mr. President. I hope
    you could tell from our discussions that Secretary Rice and Jendayi Frazer--Ambassador Frazer--and other people in my administrations
    takes this issue as seriously as you do. Last month, we helped

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    broker a peace agreement between the Congolese Government and several
    armed groups. We also helped broker an agreement between the Congolese
    Government and the Rwanda Government.
        And now we've got to make the agreement stick. It's one thing to
    agree on something; the most important thing is to get results for the
    agreement. And that's what we discussed today on how to help bring peace
    to this part of the world.
        We also talked about economies. Look, this bilateral investment
    treaty is important because it sends a signal to U.S. companies that
    they ought to consider investing in Rwanda. The President has--wisely
    understands that capital investment is much more effective in the long
    term than just grant money. And he understands the creation of jobs
    happens when people are able to attract capital.
        And so I was pleased to sign this investment treaty with you, Mr.
    President. It's a sign of your leadership, and it's a sign that you and
    I both understand that an agreement such as this will provide legal
    protections for investors in both our countries, including
    nondiscriminatory treatment, respect for private property, transparency
    and governance, and the international arbitration of disputes. In other
    words, this treaty is a way of saying not only is this a good place to
    look, but when you invest, there will be certain guarantees: not a
    guarantee of profit, not a guarantee of return on investment, but a
    guarantee you'll be treated fairly.
        And finally, Mr. President, thank you for mentioning our efforts to
    help you fight disease. You know, people say, why would you want to come
    to Africa at this point in your Presidency? Because I'm on a mission of
    mercy is why.
        I want the American people to understand that when it comes to
    saving lives, it's in our national interest. I firmly believe that, Mr.
    President. It's in our security interest to help alleve areas of the
    world from hopelessness. It's in our moral interests to help save lives.
    And it's precisely what we're doing, thanks to your leadership and help.
    This program wouldn't be effective if your Government wasn't committed.
        And secondly, I'm frankly not interested in, you know, spending
    taxpayers' money on governments that end up pocketing the money and not
    helping citizens live. It's one of the reasons I've come to Rwanda, is
    the record here is quite extraordinary when it comes to saving lives.
        It is irresponsible for nations, to whom much has been given, to sit
    on the sidelines when young babies are dying because of mosquito bites.
    And so the United States isn't on the sideline, Mr. President; we're
    right in the middle of the action with you and proudly so.
        The malaria initiative has helped distribute 450,000 bed nets in
    Rwanda. It's not a very sophisticated strategy, as a matter of fact,
    just a simple strategy, but when implemented, saves lives. And it starts
    with having bed nets for citizens throughout your country. And we're
    just getting started. And I want to thank you for your leadership on
    this issue.
        We've set a goal to help provide indoor spraying in more than
    350,000 homes and helped provide more than 900,000 treatments of
    lifesaving medicines. In my State of Texas, we say, here's a problem,
    and we're getting after it. That's exactly what's happening here and all
    across this continent, Mr. President. And we're proud to be your partner
    in a mission of--that is a mission of the deepest sense of humanity.
        Same with HIV/AIDS: our Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, PEPFAR, has
    helped deliver 40--antiretrovirals to 44,000 Rwandans. We've helped
    deliver services to nearly 650,000 pregnant women to help prevent
    mother-to-child HIV transmission. This is a good beginning, like, a good
    record, but it should only be viewed as a beginning. And therefore, our
    United States Congress must double our PEPFAR initiative from 15 billion
    over 5 years to

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    30 billion over 5 years, quit the squabbling, and get the bill passed.
        And finally, we'll be sending the Peace Corps back into Rwanda, Mr.
    President; first time it's been here since 1993. These are good, decent
    folks coming to your country simply to help people realize their God-
    given talents and realize the blessings of a peaceful, hopeful life.
        So I'm proud to be with you. I want to thank you for your record;
    thank you for being a personal friend.
        Moderator. Thank you, Your Excellencies. We are now ready to take
    questions from the press--four questions, two each from the local press
    and American press. We'll start with Rwandan press. Yes, Ignatius.

    2008 U.S. Presidential Election/Rwandan Elections

        Q. Thank you. My name is Ignatius Kabagambe. I work for the New
    Times newspaper here in Rwanda. My question goes to both of you,
    Presidents--2008 is a critical year, especially politically, because
    here in Rwanda, we are going to be having parliamental elections in
    September, and in the U.S., it's going to be Presidential elections.
    Presidents, what do you see--how good are your chances to your
    respective parties? [Laughter] And if you wish, you can even--your
    answers can include what you think are going to be the challenges.
        President Bush. Yes, thanks. Yes, this American press has been
    trying to get me to comment on this for, like, a couple of months. Want
    me to start? Republicans will win. [Laughter] Whoever is the President
    must understand that this mission on the continent of Africa is in our
    Nation's interests. But I think my party's nominee will win. Don't be
    listening to all these pundits here, you know, half of them sitting
    right here. [Laughter]
        You know, they--the issues in America are: Who is going to fight
    terror and protect the homeland, and who is going to keep people's taxes
    low to make sure that the economy is--grows--really, the issues. And so
    there's a lot of noise, a lot of movement, but things change rapidly in
    American politics. It will eventually get down to two people, and then
    the choice will become very clear. And we'll win.
        I don't know about your politics, Mr. President. [Laughter] It's
    probably best not to comment too specifically about it. [Laughter]
        President Kagame. President, we have something in common, and that
    is, succeed in what we are doing. So my party will, I think, win these
    elections on the basis of how this Government, and the party central to
    it, has performed well, has uplifted the living standards of our people.
    They have protected--given protection and security and brought in
    stability to the--this country and restored the rights of every
    individual citizen of this country. And economic progress is being
    registered. I think the people of this country will be wanting more of
    what we are doing.
        My prediction is that it will be fine for my party, and we'll do our
    best to continue the agenda of development of this country. And I think
    that citizens of this country are willing to give us the chance to
    continue solving them the way they have been solved. And the challenges
    are normally just in terms of organization, and it takes time, takes
    money, takes--but those are easy to overcome. So I think, Mr. President,
    we are on the same path of succeeding.
        President Bush. That's good.
        Moderator. From our side, Debbie Charles of Reuters, please.

    Cuba/Former President Fidel Castro Ruz of
    Cuba

        Q. Mr. President, can you tell us what it means for the United
    States that--for the U.S. policy--that Castro has said he's going to
    step down? And how is that going to change things for the U.S.?
        President Bush. Yes, thanks. I heard the reports, several ways: one,
    reporters yelling it at me, and then, of course, I was briefed.

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    Not saying you were yelling it at me; I'm saying----
        Q. I wouldn't----
        President Bush. ----no, no, of course not; you were very polite.
    More important--you know, the question really should be, what does this
    mean for the people in Cuba? They're the ones who suffered under Fidel
    Castro. They're the ones who were put in prison because of their
    beliefs. They're the ones who have been denied their right to live in a
    free society. So I view this as a period of transition that--and it
    should be the beginning of the democratic transition for the people in
    Cuba.
        There will be an interesting debate that will arise eventually.
    There will be some who say, let's promote stability. Of course, in the
    meantime, political prisoners will rot in prison, and the human
    condition will remain pathetic in many cases.
        I believe that the change from Fidel Castro ought to begin a period
    of democratic transition. First step, of course, will be for people put
    in these prisons to be let out. I've met with many of the--or some of
    the families of prisoners. It just breaks your heart to realize that
    people have been thrown in prison because they dared speak out.
        The international community should work with the Cuban people to
    begin to build institutions that are necessary for democracy. And
    eventually, this transition ought to lead to free and fair elections.
    And I mean free, and I mean fair, not these kind of staged elections
    that the Castro brothers try to foist off as being true democracy.
        And we're going to help. The United States will help the people of
    Cuba realize the blessings of liberty. And so those are my initial
    thoughts.
        Moderator. [Inaudible]

    U.N. Security Council Sanctions/President's Visit to Kigali Memorial
    Centre/Rwanda-U.S. Relations

        Q. Thank you so much. My name is--[inaudible]--from the Reuters news
    wire.
        President Bush. Yes. Wait a minute, back to back--wait a minute.
    This is a little--[laughter]--there seems to be a monopoly here.
    [Laughter]
        Q. [Inaudible]
        President Bush. That's right, yes. [Laughter]
        Q. Mr. President, you made what I would describe as an emotional
    talk or speech on the genocides of Rwanda, especially when you were
    visiting the memorial. But unfortunately, the perpetrators of the
    killings are still holed up in several parts of the country--also
    several parts of the world, especially the Congo. And you just mentioned
    that we need to see results being done--results being seen, and the
    civil arguments have been made. So I'm wondering, Mr. President, what is
    the U.S. going to do about these perpetrators that remain at large and
    are walking freely?
        President Bush. Yes.
        Q. And then my other brief question for President Kagame is, what
    are the details of--can you give us some details about the investment
    treaty you've just signed with President Bush? What's contained in this
    treaty, and what's so special about it? Thank you.
        President Bush. Yes, just a couple of reactions--thank you very much
    for that. To specifically answer your question, we support U.N. security
    sanctions--U.N. Security Council resolutions targeting those who
    perpetuated the violence and have made our position publicly known. And
    we'll continue to support.
        Secondly, the museum was a profound--it had a profound effect on me.
    You can't help but walk in there and recognize the--you know, that evil
    does exist and, in this case, in such brutal form that babies had their
    skulls smashed. And so the question

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    is, what does the world do to prevent these kinds of incidences? And I
    came away with two lessons. I'm sure there's many more. One was, we've
    got to work to prevent it from happening in the first place; when we see
    issues, that people need not--need to pay attention to the warning signs
    and prevent crises like this from happening.
        We're obviously trying to prevent such a crises from happening in
    Kenya. Condi Rice briefed the President and
    me on her meetings yesterday, and we strongly support Kofi
    Annan's efforts there. Now I'm not suggesting
    that anything close to--in Kenya has happened--is going to happen--
    anything close to what happened here is going to happen in Kenya. But I
    am suggesting there's some warning signs that the international
    community needs to pay attention to. And we're paying attention to it,
    as is Kofi Annan, and I know the AU will as well.
        And secondly, that when you want--when the people decide to respond,
    that you go in with enough force that has the proper mandate. In a
    situation such as that, you don't want to send people in who are
    observers, you need to send people in who will help deal with the
    situation. That's why the mandate in Darfur is very important, and we're
    pleased with the mandate in Darfur. Now we just got to get people in
    place to be able to save lives.
        But those are the lessons I left with. The other thing I came away
    from, just so you know, is, is how amazing your country has performed
    given the horror of the genocide. I mean, it is--I just can't imagine
    what it would have been like to be a citizen who witnessed such horrors
    and then had to try to gather themselves up and live a hopeful life. And
    so thanks for your question.
        President Kagame. For your question, you asked about the treaty
    we've just signed. I think central to that treaty, and very importantly,
    is the fact that it's an invitation to the investors, and information
    that when they come here, their investments will be protected, will be
    in good hands. And when they are in Rwanda, they should be able to reap
    their returns. Of course, what that means--it means that Rwandans
    benefit from the capital flows that will be there. They will benefit
    from technologies that come with such investments. It benefits our laws
    of employment of a citizen of this country and the skills that will be
    applied also along with that.
        And it's also a commitment by the President and his administration
    to seeing investors from United States come to Rwanda. And it's also an
    assurance to them that they will be standing with them, as they come to
    make investments here, invest adequately. The most important thing to
    talk about will be this bilateral treaty.
        Moderator. All right, last one for us. Sheryl Stolberg with the New
    York Times, please.

    U.S. Role in Africa/Darfur

        Q. Thank you. Mr. President, Bill Clinton came here and said he
    regretted that he wasn't able to do more to stop the genocide here. You
    have seen the memorial here today, and I'm wondering, what would you
    tell your successor about America's obligations and also its ability to
    stop genocide?
        And to you, Mr. President, did you raise the issue of Darfur with
    President Bush? Did you ask him for any further commitment by the United
    States? And if so, what was it? Thank you.
        President Bush. I would say, it's like--as I explained to this
    fellow here--that one of the lessons of the genocide in Rwanda was to
    take some of the early warning signs seriously.
        Secondly, a clear lesson I learned in the museum was that outside
    forces that tend to divide people up inside their country are
    unbelievably counterproductive. In other words, people came from other
    countries--I guess you'd call them colonialists--and they pitted one
    group of people against another. And an early warning sign was--

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    and it's hard to have seen it, I readily admit, but I'm talking earlier
    than 1994 and earlier than the nineties--was the fact that it became a
    habit to divide people based upon, you know, in this case, whether they
    were Tutsi or Hutu, which eventually led to exploitation.
        Secondly, I would tell my successor that the United States can play
    a very constructive role. I would urge the President not to feel like
    U.S. solutions should be imposed upon African leaders. I would urge the
    President to treat our--the leaders in Africa as partners. In other
    words, don't come to the continent feeling guilty about anything, come
    to the continent feeling confident that with some help, people can solve
    their problems.
        You know, as I told you, I made--yesterday--I made a decision not to
    unilaterally send troops into the Sudan. And I still believe it was the
    right decision. But having done that, if you're a problemsolver, you put
    yourself at the mercy of the decisions of others; in this case, the
    United Nations. And I'm well known to have spoken out by the slowness of
    the United Nations. It is--like, seems very bureaucratic to me,
    particularly with people suffering. And one reason I'm so proud to be
    standing here with this President is that he didn't wait. He said, ``We
    want to help.'' And so we're trying to get forces in, and we'll help.
        And the third thing is, is that the U.S. will provide--you know, can
    provide money and help and training. And we have. We've trained their
    forces--helped train their forces. They're good forces to begin with,
    and they just need a little added value, and we helped.
        So I guess to answer to your questions--it's kind of a long-winded
    approach--to take problems seriously before they become acute and then
    recognize that there's going to be a slowness in the response if you
    rely upon international organizations.
        Q. Are you worried that you might have regrets?
        President Bush. No, I made a decision. I stand by it. I'm now
    worried that the rest of the world needs to move as expeditiously,
    quickly. Therefore, we're--as I've told you in this little address here,
    we've got $100 million to help move people into Darfur. And nor am I
    regretful of the fact that we put serious sanctions on leaders in Sudan
    and companies owned by certain actors in Sudan. It was the right thing
    to do.
        I am trying to get other people to join. As you know, getting a
    universal sanction regime can be difficult. People sometimes have got
    different interests, different commercial interests. Our position is, is
    that human suffering ought to be--preempt commercial interests. And so
    I'm comfortable with the decision I made. I'm not comfortable with to
    how quickly the response has been.
        And nevertheless, there is a--we'll continue dealing with the issue.
    Every stop I made, I've talked about Darfur. And the President talked
    about it too. I've talked so long you probably forgot her question to
    you. [Laughter]
        President Kagame. I still remember, President. Certainly, we
    discussed Darfur, as we discussed other problem areas, especially on our
    continent. And I do want to agree with the President; problems are
    there. But I think the best approach is, indeed, to help Africans
    develop their capacity to deal with these problems. And more
    importantly, as the President said, we probably also have to invest our
    time and even resources in the monitoring and also preventing problems
    coming up, as they keep coming up in different places.
        But it is important to understand that, indeed, today we'll have
    Darfur; maybe tomorrow there will be another problem area, God forbid.
    But it's important that these problems are not to be seen as if they
    have to be resolved, attended to, by the United States. They must be
    attended to by the international community. They must also be attended
    to by people, if it is in

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    Africa, by Africans. Primarily, they must develop this capacity. And
    they should be supported to develop this capacity so that we can prevent
    and we are prepared to prevent. Then you should be able to cope with
    these challenges, resolving the problems.
        So I think the approach taken by President Bush were realistic, in
    the sense that you also do not want to see every problem, United States
    being called upon to be the answer of that problem. And of course, we--
    the backlash, also, in the sense that, at the same time, they also start
    blaming the United States, that they are rushing everywhere solving
    problems and, of course, reading through that to mean they have other
    interests and so on and so forth.
        So I think that will lead the way of helping the people to solve
    their own problems, but of course, with the support of the United States
    with its huge capabilities in different areas. And walking together with
    the rest of the international community is perhaps more important than
    just blaming the United States, saying, ``Why didn't you go in and solve
    the problem?'' The problems and the solutions to those problems should
    not be taken away from the responsibilities of their action, should not
    be taken away from places where they're taking place and the people in
    those places.
        I think that is the best way I could--but we did talk about that.
    And we did talk about our own contribution and to how that can be
    enhanced. And the President is willing to support us--support has always
    been coming--so that we continue to move forward.

    Note: The President's news conference began at 12:20 p.m. at the
    Presidency--VIP Building. In his remarks, he referred to Jeannette
    Nyiramongi, wife of President Kagame; President Raul Castro Ruz of Cuba;
    and former Secretary-General Kofi Annan of the United Nations.