[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2008, Book I)]
[June 10, 2008]
[Pages 774-783]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]
The President's News Conference With European Union Leaders in Kranj,
Slovenia
June 10, 2008
Prime Minister Jansa. Good afternoon, and welcome to Slovenia.
Welcome to Brdo, where we have just concluded this year's summit meeting
between the EU and the U.S.A. I welcome in our midst the President of
the United States of America, Mr. George W. Bush, and the President of
the European Commission, Mr. Jose Barroso.
For the U.S. President, this is the eighth summit and his second
visit to Slovenia. It happened on the same spot; also, the press
conference was held here. This is a historic event. On my visit to
Washington 2 years ago, Mr. President, you welcomed us by saying that
Slovenia is a piece of heaven on Earth, and we enjoyed your excellent
hospitality. I hope we are returning that hospitality to some extent
today.
Our discussions at this summit were very good and open. We confirmed
that the transatlantic partnership is solid and dynamic. This message
carries special weight in the historic context of this summit. Sixty
years ago, the U.S. offered the ravaged and divided Europe hope through
the Marshall plan and through courage, solidarity, and vision. The first
U.S. President, George Washington, once said that there will be a united
states of Europe. This has not happened yet, but European Union has been
created, an area of freedom and progress uniting 500 million Europeans.
The European Union and the U.S. share the most important fundamental
values: democracy, free entrepreneurial initiative, respect for human
rights and fundamental freedoms, and the respect for the principles of
the rule of law. The EU and the U.S. together represent 10 percent of
the world's population. The trade in goods and services amounts to 3
billion euros a day, and they together produce almost 60 percent of the
world's GDP. And together they contribute 75 percent of development aid
to poor countries. However, they also emit the majority of greenhouse
gases.
Because of all these reasons, they also share a significant joint
responsibility impacting the key global challenges. Our views on certain
paths differ. Our views are different on, for example, the death penalty
or the mandatory restriction on CO2 emissions, but we are
openly discussing these differences and looking for solutions.
We spoke at length about the issues of climate change and energy
security. These issues affect all humanity and our well-
established habits and our way of life. We confirmed our readiness to
face this challenge together. We in the European Union consider it
necessary to define the mandatory objectives for reducing CO2
emissions and to reach a global agreement. We must cooperate in
protecting the environment, in searching new sources of energy, and in
developing new technologies.
High oil prices have forced us to intensify our search for new
energy solutions. We are on the threshold of a new industrial
revolution. Low carbon production and transport are becoming an economic
necessity in addition to an environmental one. We need the most
efficient solutions to the benefit of the present and future generations
as soon as possible. The European Union and the U.S. will lead the new
industrial revolution.
We must also create broad alliances. Several important meetings are
ahead of us this year. We have great expectations concerning the G-8
summit and the U.N. conference on climate change in Poland.
We spoke about the most topical issues of the world economy. Our
goals include a secure future, preservation of jobs, and
[[Page 775]]
combating protectionism. We are determined to cooperate in eliminating
the global imbalances and to attract to the this--to this task the new,
fast-growing economies. We are committed to continuing discussions on
the Doha development agenda within the framework of the WTO and to the
realization of the Millennium Development Goals.
We also discussed a series of regional issues. We focused in
particular on the Western Balkans. In the European Union, we value
greatly the role the U.S. played in the 1990s in putting an end to the
violence in the region. Today we are united and firm in our support of
the prospect of these countries joining the Euro-Atlantic structures.
This is the path which leads to peace and stability, as well as to the
necessary democratic and economic reforms.
We were informed of the work carried out by the Transatlantic
Economic Council. We remain committed to the elimination of barriers to
mutual trade, a process which will bring economic growth and create new
jobs. We are in favor of establishing the Transatlantic Economic Council
as a mechanism for bringing tangible results that will benefit both
consumers and producers in the EU and the U.S. The European Commission
and its President, Barroso, are making every effort to this end.
The concrete results also includes the Air Transport Agreement. The
first stage of the agreement has already entered into force. It
liberalizes conditions for mutual investment and enables a freer access
to air services. And in the middle of the former months, we launched the
negotiations on the second stage. The work on the Aviation Safety
Agreement has also been completed, and I hope it will be signed by the
end of the month.
We also spoke about visa-free travel to the U.S. for all EU
citizens. I am pleased that we are close to seeing new countries join
the Visa Waiver Program soon. We are aware that certain restrictions are
necessary for security reasons. Nevertheless, we remain determined to
ensure that the need for enhanced security will not restrict the visa-
free travel for our citizens.
[At this point, Prime Minister Jansa continued in English.]
Mr. President, European Union and United States are most developed
democracies. Last big EU enlargement, which included Slovenia and other
center and Eastern European countries, has been one of the great--
greatest achievements in terms of promotion of democracy. Today, almost
whole Europe is free and united. This is very strong message for 21st
century. The world is now complex. Nobody alone can solve all problems.
War, peace, security, and promotion of democracy, climate change, and
fight against poverty are global challenges today. Even together, we are
not able to solve all of them, but if we don't work together and we are
not able to form even stronger alliance, then I'm afraid we won't
succeed.
I'm glad that we can conclude after last few and also after today's
EU-U.S. summit that we indeed work together. Although we might have
different approaches in some aspects, it should never overshadow the
depth and quality of our cooperation. We covered, as I said, a wide
range of issues during our talks, from foreign policy to economic
cooperation. Many strategic projects are underway. Maybe we need to
develop also a common name for them. Symbols and names are important in
the world's politics.
Mr. President, we led strongly to the rich story of your--this
time's European tour--60th anniversary of the Berlin Airlift and the
Marshall plan. United States engagement did not only bring
rehabilitation to Europe by promoting integration, it set an
irreversible process in motion. Today Slovenia is hosting EU-U.S.
summit, something that seemed impossible 60 years ago, something that
seemed impossible even 20 years ago, during the Slovenian Spring,
[[Page 776]]
when our streets were full of people fighting for freedom and democracy.
Our history teach us that we must be ambitious. It's time to be
ambitious. We have to create stronger alliance based on our democratic
values--ever to protect them, but also to share them with others.
Alliance of democracies is strong and credible toward inside and open to
outside world. Alliance able to lead, to change, and to help--a new hope
for those who suffer. Who else can start the work if the biggest and
most developed democracies can't?
Now I invite the President of United States, Mr. George Bush, to
take the floor, and then the President of the European Commission.
Thank you.
President Bush. Mr. Prime Minister, thank you. Commission President
Barroso, it's good to see you. Thank you for your time and friendship.
Let me correct the record, Mr. Prime Minister. I said, ``Slovenia was a
little slice of heaven.'' I'd like to, with your indulgence, change my
remarks. Slovenia is a big slice of heaven. [Laughter] And I'm----
Prime Minister Jansa. Thank you.
President Bush. ----honored to be back in your beautiful country.
One of these days, I'm going to come back as a tourist. As you know, I'm
close to retirement. [Laughter] And I'm looking forward to seeing more
of your beautiful country and meeting more of your really gracious and
hospitable people. So thank you very much.
This is my eighth EU-U.S. meeting. My message at the end is that
it's really important for the United States to stay close with the EU.
It's in our interest that the EU be strong, vibrant, and it's in our
interests to work hard to have a partnership that solves problems.
And we discussed a lot of problems today. First, we discussed the
freedom agenda. I find it ironic--not ironic, just interesting--that 20
years ago, Mr. Prime Minister, you were in jail--[laughter]--because of
your beliefs, because----
Prime Minister Jansa. Not very happy times. [Laughter]
President Bush. You shouldn't have been happy about it. But because
you had the courage to stand up and speak out clearly for freedom for
all people, you were put in jail. And it seems like that any time we
find people who were put in jail because they're willing to speak up for
freedom, those of us who live in free lands ought to work to liberate
them, Mr. Prime Minister.
And we spent a lot of time talking about how to help others realize
the blessings of liberty, whether it be in the Balkans, and whether it
be a Palestinian state, whether it be to use the EU as a way to
encourage people to develop the habits of reformist societies.
And by the way, one subject we didn't spend a lot of time on that
I'd like to clarify the U.S. position on is, we strongly believe Turkey
ought to be a member of the EU. And we appreciate Turkey's record of
democratic and free market reforms in working to realize its EU
aspirations.
We spent a lot of time on the Middle East. Besides the Palestinian
state, we talked about Lebanon, Iran, and Syria. One thing is for
certain: If more people lived in free societies in the Middle East, the
Middle East would be a more hopeful and more peaceful place. And so we
strategized as to how to do that, Mr. Prime Minister, and I want to
thank you for that.
I thank you for your support in Iraq and Afghanistan. It's amazing
how these countries have gone from tyrannical situations to hopeful,
young democracies. And I believe it's in our mutual interest to work
hard to help these democracies survive for the sake of peace and for the
sake of human rights and human dignity.
We talked about Cuba. I want to thank very much your leadership--
both of your leadership in having the EU summit in South America.
Obviously, it's in the U.S. interest that you do so. We've got a lot
[[Page 777]]
of relations with countries in our neighborhood.
I want to thank you very much for your expressions on Cuba. They
said, before relations should go forward, all political prisoners ought
to be freed. If the Castro administration
really is different, the first way to show that difference to the world
is to free the political prisoners. That's something, Mr. Prime
Minister, that I'm sure you can relate to.
We talked about Zimbabwe, Darfur, and Burma. We talked about how to
make sure we have travel in a way that comforts our societies. I
understand the visa waiver issue very well. I spend a lot of time
talking to people that are worried about not being able to be treated
like other members of the EU. I know the problem. We're on our way to
solving it in a way that, I think, will satisfy countries as well as the
EU itself, Jose.
We spent a lot of time on Iran. And I appreciate the Foreign
Minister, Solana, going to Iran to
deliver a clear message: There is a better way for you to move forward
than a way that, so far, has led to isolation. And a--Iran with a
nuclear weapon would be incredibly dangerous for world peace. And so
we've got to continue to work together to make it clear, abundantly
clear to them, that it's their choice to make. They can either face
isolation, or they can have a--better relations with all of us if they
verifiably suspend their enrichment program.
We talked about trade and the Doha round. We're committed to a
successful Doha round. It's not going to be easy, but it's, in our
judgment, necessary that we continue to work together. I appreciate
Ambassador Schwab and Commissioner
Mandelson's cooperation in trying to get an
agreement that we all can live with. It's really important to defeat the
voices of protectionism now. And if you're truly worried about global
development, if you're worried about poverty, one of the best ways to
help poor people is through trade. And so we're committed to the global
round.
I thought our discussions today were very good. And we don't--we
spent time talking about HIV/AIDS and malaria on the continent of
Africa. The United States is--looks forward to working with EU nations
to helping alleviate folks from needless death. We've got a strategy in
place that's effective, and we look forward to having partners join us.
And then finally, of course, we talked about energy and global
climate change. I assured the leaders we have a strategy that we think
will be effective at addressing global climate change and, at the same
time, dependence on hydrocarbons, and that is through a major economies
meeting, a series of meetings, all aimed at getting the major
developing--the major economies to agree to a firm goal and to commit to
strategies to achieve that goal. The United States is more than willing
to engage in those discussions. I will just tell you that unless China
and India are at the table, unless they agree to a goal, unless they
agree to firm strategies to achieve that goal, then I don't see how any
international agreement can be effective.
And so therefore, our strategy is to be realistic and to understand
that the process is important but not nearly as important as the
results. And so we've had good engagement, Mr. Prime Minister and
Commission President Barroso. Thank you for your friendship. I'm--you
know, it's interesting, my first visit as U.S. President to Europe
included a--my first stop in Slovenia. My last visit as U.S. President
to Europe includes first stop in Slovenia. It's a fitting circle.
[Laughter]
Thank you.
Prime Minister Jansa. Thank you. Please.
President Durao Barroso. Thank you. Thank you, Prime Minister Jansa,
President Bush. I'll start by this point. I think it's very symbolic and
important that this summit, here with President Bush, the last one you
will be present as President of the
[[Page 778]]
United States, with European Union is in Slovenia, a country that, more
or less, 25 years ago was not yet free and independent. And today, it's
the Presidency of the European Council, is a member of the euro zone, is
a member of the Schengen area, and assuming full its responsibilities.
And let me underline this point, because it really deserves to be
underlined: That would not have been possible without European Union and
without strong transatlantic relationship, because during the cold war,
we have always had the support of the United States of America.
And this is very important to understand, for the public in Europe
and, I believe, also in United States, that the support of the United
States of America to freedom and democracy and, indeed, to the European
integration process was very, very important, and that this great
project of European integration is well and running. Fifty years ago, we
were 6 member states; now we are 27 countries. And this country where we
were was not a free country. My own country, 45 years ago, was not a
democracy. And now we have from the Atlantic to the Black Sea, from the
Mediterranean to the Baltic Sea, democratic countries living together in
peace and freedom.
This is indeed a great achievement. And this achievement was
possible thanks to the commitment of the founding fathers of the
European Union to a united Europe, but also thanks to support of the
United States of America. That's why I think it's fair to say to the
United States sometimes, ``Thank you.'' Thank you for all the support
you have been giving to the integration and progress of democracy also
in Europe.
So I believe it's important that we put all our relations in this
perspective: a community of values, a community of values not only for
our respective nations but beyond, promoting and supporting a world
based on human rights and democracy.
President Bush and Prime Minister Jansa already spoke about the main
subjects. I will not repeat what--everything they said. Let me just
underline one or two points that are more in the competence of the
European Commission.
On trade issues, we must work hard to achieve a fair and balanced
outcome to the current round of WTO talks. The deal remains there to be
done if the political will is there. I believe the deal will be good for
developing countries in terms of new opportunities. It will also give a
needed boost to the global economy, including the European Union and the
U.S. economies. Time to move is now. We have a fair and balanced deal in
our grasp that will help us face the challenges of globalization.
So I believe together the United States and European Union can make
a difference trying to bring others to a more realistic position so that
we can achieve that deal on Doha trade and development talks.
One year ago, we have adopted a framework for advancing
transatlantic economic integration, and I was proud, together with
President Bush and Chancellor Merkel--then President of the Council--to
create a Transatlantic Economic Council. We have put in place a new
working method. Today I'm happy to say that in just 1 year of existence,
this body has brought more and steadier progress on some issues than in
many years before. We have made progress on open investment, on
accounting standards, on finding alternative methods to animal testing,
on certification of electrical equipment.
This might be seen as rather technical, but all of these
developments add up to major cost savings for European Union companies
and United States companies as well. This is understood by all parties.
There were reports made by the transatlantic business community as
estimated economic benefits of the items on our TEC--on our
Transatlantic Economic Council agenda--as $10 billion in terms of
savings for business on both sides of the Atlantic.
[[Page 779]]
So it is fair to say that Transatlantic Economic Council has given
new momentum to the bilateral economic agenda. Indeed, the European
Union and the United States of America count for the largest bilateral
trade relationship in the world. Transatlantic trade in goods and
services totals over 1.9 billion euros a day, and the figures of all
bilateral trade and investment show the high degree of interdependence
of our economies. The European--the United States remains the largest
export destination for the European Union. In a time of important
challenges to our economies, we have reaffirmed our commitment to free
trade, open economies in the face of protectionist voices on both sides
of the Atlantic.
The challenging economic situation makes the partnership ever more
important. As we see with rising fuel and food prices, we, now in
Europe, are discussing what are the right policy choices to increase
energy diversification, energy efficiency, and also to improve food
management. And we believe that these developments make it even more
urgent to find a global agreement on climate change, and we spent a lot
of our time discussing this.
What we have in common? The will to come to that agreement. We need
that agreement to be global, so, of course, to add also China, India,
and others. And I believe it is important now to move ahead.
We have discussed some of the events that we are preparing, like
that major economies meeting and also the G-8 meeting. And we hope that
the United States and Europe can work even closer in this matter,
because we--European and American leadership--it's quite clear for me
that it will be easier to get that global agreement. We are trying to
get it by 2009 in Copenhagen, a United Nations agreement that could, of
course, create the right response--global response for a global problem
in terms of climate change. We need that not only because of a
responsibility towards our planet, but we need also because of energy
security concerns and also because of the rising food prices and the
pressure that those prices are putting on our economies and the
competitiveness of our economies.
So those were two of the subjects that we have discussed--economic--
more in detail: the economic and trade and investment relations and also
climate change. There were many others that President Bush and Prime
Minister Jansa also referred, but let me congratulate you, Prime
Minister Jansa, for a very successful meeting and for the high quality
of the debate and the open debate that you had today.
Prime Minister Jansa. Thank you. Now we have time for a few
questions.
EU-U.S. Relations
Q. Hello, Mr. President, here I am--Slovenian public television. Mr.
President, as you mentioned before, this is probably your last visit in
Slovenia and Europe.
President Bush. As President. [Laughter]
Q. As President, of course. With your past experience of last, let's
say, 8 years, how can you see the future of the European Union and its
relations with United States? There are certain problems.
President Bush. Yes, there are problems. On the other hand, there is
much more that unites us than divides us. Of course, there is going to
be problems and differences. That's normal.
First of all, there's going to be differences within the EU. You
got--you have 27 nations all trying to come together to forge a common
agenda. That's why I'd much rather have my job than Jose's job.
[Laughter] But there will be differences. But somehow they managed to
forge a common position on a lot of key issues, and that's where we
discuss these issues.
And--but the thing that unites us--and this is important for all of
us to realize--is that we share common values. And people say, oh,
that's just corny, that doesn't mean anything. It means a lot if you
believe in human rights and human dignity and
[[Page 780]]
rule of law and freedom to speak and freedom to worship. That's a lot.
That's a foundation for a very firm and lasting relationship.
And so I am confident that whoever succeeds me as President will
understand the importance of the EU in regards to United States foreign
policy and will work hard to make sure ties, you know, remain strong.
But make no mistake about it, there will be differences of--on how to
approach certain issues, and that's okay, just so long as we let those--
don't let those differences divide us permanently, and I don't believe
they possibly can.
Press Secretary Dana Perino. All right, we'll take a question from
the American side, Steven Lee Myers of the New York Times, please.
Iran
Q. Thank you, gentlemen. I wonder if I could ask about your
statement on Iran and the communique today. And you described a
combination of incentives as well as additional measures that you might
take. And I wonder if you think that that is enough--the idea of the
prospect of future action is enough or sufficient to get the Iranians to
change their point of view?
And for you, President Bush, sir, are you frustrated at all by the
pace of the diplomatic negotiations underway, particularly in light of
the IAEA findings and Iran's insistence that it's going to continue to
enrich? Thank you.
President Bush. I'll start. We've always made it clear to the
Iranians there's a better way forward, that if they want to have a
relationship with the EU-3 and the United States and other countries,
they--all they've got to do is verifiably suspend their enrichment
program. And the reason why that's important is that they learn to
enrich, it means they've learned to--a key part of developing a nuclear
weapon. And if they end up with a nuclear weapon, the free world's going
to say, why didn't we do something about it at the time, before they
developed it? And so now is the time for there to be strong diplomacy.
You know, the fundamental question is not ours to make; it's theirs
to make, and that is, are they going to continue on their path of
obstruction? Will they continue to isolate their people? Are they going
to continue to deny the people of Iran a bright future by basically
saying, we don't care what the world says.
And that's the position they're in. I'll leave behind a multilateral
framework to work this issue. I think the Prime Minister said it's--you
know, one country can't solve all problems. I fully agree with that. A
group of countries can send a clear message to the Iranians, and that
is, we're going to continue to isolate you; we'll continue to work on
sanctions; we'll find new sanctions if need be if you continue to deny
the just demands of a free world, which is to give up your enrichment
program.
They've ignored IAEA in the past, and therefore, they can't be
trusted with enrichment. And I thought we had a very fruitful
discussion. We're on the same page. And I want to thank both leaders up
here and Foreign Minister Solana as
well.
Iran/Israel/Environment
Q. [Inaudible]
President Bush. This is ``Ask George'' day. [Laughter]
Moderator. A question from the European side.
Q. Yes. I would have a question for both of--President and the Prime
Minister.
President Bush. Which President? [Laughter] Let me guess.
Q. The President of the United States.
President Bush. Yes, all right. [Laughter] Sorry, Jose. Just trying
to work you in the deal here, you know? [Laughter]
Q. As you said, he's the Commission's President.
President Bush. Okay, fine.
Q. On Iran, I would like to ask you, Mr. President, there is--seems
to be an emerging debate in Israel about a military
[[Page 781]]
option against the nuclear installations in Iran. How do you see that
debate?
And, Prime Minister Jansa, I would like to ask you on climate
change, how do you rate the chances that in the following years there
will be an agreement with the U.S. on this issue?
President Bush. First of all, if you were living in Israel, you'd be
a little nervous too if a leader in your neighborhood announced that
they--he'd like to destroy you. And one sure way of achieving that means
is through the development of a nuclear weapon. Therefore, now is the
time for all of us to work together to stop them. There's a lot of
urgencies when it comes to dealing with Iran, and the Israeli political
folks--and if you go to Israel and listen carefully, you'll hear that
urgency in their voice--one of many urgencies. And I'm hopeful we can
get it done.
And by the way--I don't want to preclude the Prime Minister's
answer--I think we can actually get an agreement on global climate
change during my Presidency, just so you know.
Prime Minister Jansa. I believe in a global agreement for a joint
fight against climate change. This is, as a matter of fact, the only
solution. An agreement or a self-commitment of the most developed or
industrial countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions is not enough,
especially because some developing countries are developing really fast.
China will, in a few years, become the first in terms of the greenhouse
gas emissions. And a global agreement without the developing countries
would be a short-term solution.
So, as a matter of fact, we really need that everybody who is a key
stakeholder sits at the table. And I have mentioned already in my
introduction, those who are most developed should take the leading role.
And therefore, this alliance, these agreements, these discussions on
bringing closer the standpoints is of such significance.
As President Bush has mentioned, the commitment of the most
developed economies--which is mandatory to reduce emissions by a certain
deadline--this is a key commitment: how individual economies this reach
is less important. However, the goals must be set, and we must have
mandatory goals, and this is of key importance. And in this way, we will
reduce the threat of climate change.
And of course, we should also attract to this task the other
countries. Without the leading role of the European Union and the United
States of America and without close cooperation, it is not possible to
reach a global agreement in short term. Therefore, this discussion is of
extreme importance. And the G-8 summit in Japan in next month should
represent an important step forward if we wish, in time, before the U.N.
conference in Copenhagen, reach this agreement. There is not much time
left. The time is running out.
Press Secretary Perino. All right, we'll take the last one from John
McKinnon of the Wall Street Journal.
President Bush. It's called technology. [Laughter]
Q. Thanks again.
President Bush. Yes. [Laughter] Glad to help out, you know.
U.S. Monetary Policy/European Economy/EU-U.S. Relations
Q. I'd like to ask each of you leaders about economic issues. For
President Bush, will the United States intervene to support the dollar
if your current efforts to talk it up don't succeed? And what also is
your reaction to the Saudi Arabian proposal for a summit on energy
prices?
For Prime Minister Jansa, what effects are you feeling in Eastern
and Central Europe from the rising energy prices and the rising value of
the euro? Did those factors pose a risk to growth and integration for
those countries, for your countries?
And for President Barroso, given the proliferation of disputes
between Europe and
[[Page 782]]
the United States over food safety issues, is there a concern that the
EU is being too restrictive on those issues?
President Bush. Okay, John, interesting idea by the--His
Majesty, the King of
Saudi Arabia. Secondly, I articulated a policy that I had been
articulating ever since I have been the President. It's the same policy,
which is, we believe in a strong dollar and that relative value of
economies will end up setting the proper valuation of the dollar.
Prime Minister Jansa. Past growth, or growth with little comparison
in the history--this is the growth of energy and food prices. And the
food prices are going up due to high cost of energy or oil, and this has
a significant effect on the economy in Slovenia and throughout Europe.
This is one of the key questions being dealt with at the national level
and at the level of the European institutions, as has been mentioned by
President Barroso. This is a serious problem. It will, on the one hand,
make us search long-term solutions. I have mentioned this in part
before. And on the other hand, it will make us search short-term
solutions, and one of these is energy efficiency.
We have also discussed this at today's summit, and this is a strong
message. The investment in research and development, the investment into
what the economy can do, an economy that is less dependent on carbon,
less dependent on fossil fuels, this will have a long-term strategic
effect on the price.
So the key is the technology. I remember the President of the United
States saying 2 years ago at the summit meeting in Vienna that the key
thing is investment in the development of new technologies. This is the
key strategic reply to these challenge. And as far as the euro is
concerned, on the one hand, we are satisfied and happy that euro is a
strong currency. And since the 1st of January of last year, Slovenia is
also part of the euro zone. And I can say that in the majority, the
effects are positive. When calculating the high prices of oil in
dollars, this slightly mitigates this jump. And on the other hand, this
is also a problem for importers in the European Union. We wouldn't like
to see a weak euro and a strong dollar.
Moderator. The press conference is nearly completed.
President Durao Barroso. Honestly, I don't see the proliferation of
difficulties with the United States on food. On the contrary, some of
the issues that we have been discussing for some time have now known
some progress. What I believe is that on food and energy in general,
there are issues that we have to address together. And some of those
challenges are really global by nature, and we need to have a structured
responses to them.
There will not be quick fixes. Some of those developments are long-
term structural challenges. What is important, by the way, is that in
the short term, we do not take measures against what is the long-term
solution for those problems--namely, once again, we need a global
agreement on climate change, is best way to fight some of the problems
of energy prices and also to address some of problems of food security,
namely in some developing countries.
But I don't see a proliferation of specific problems now on United
States regarding food. On the contrary, I see a very cooperative
position, and negotiations on the specific issues are going on with a
very constructive mood.
Moderator. Thank you very much. The press conference has finished.
And now I give the concluding words to the Prime Minister, Mr. Janez
Jansa, the President of the Council of the European Union.
Prime Minister Jansa. Mr. President, before we conclude this press
conference, let me repeat once again how much we appreciate your visit
here after 7 years, concluding the circle, as you said. And our
bilateral meeting, which we had in this morning, confirmed that Slovenia
and the
[[Page 783]]
United States have established sound foundations for building excellent
relations. And I want just to repeat the words from the President of the
European Commission, that without the vital support of United States for
this positive changes in Europe, before the fall of Berlin Wall and
after it, maybe we wouldn't be here today at Brdo. And I surely wouldn't
be here in this capacity. [Laughter]
But I also want to say thank you because of one other thing. Sir,
hundreds of thousands of Slovenes driven from homeland by the economic
and political hardship of our history have found open hands and hearts
in the United States. Some of them are making great contributions their
walks of life in the United States. We are proud of them here in
Slovenia. We are also pleased that the progress that Slovenia has made
since independence gives them pride. And I'm sure that today, as we host
this summit, there is a lot of proud Slovenes in the States.
President Bush. Yes, sir.
Prime Minister Jansa. Mr. President, this was your eighth EU-U.S.
summit. During this last 8 years, our EU-U.S. strategic partnership has
developed significantly. It has faced also some serious challenges,
which we have successfully overcome. Today, we are closer to common
position to our most important global challenges than ever. It is not
too early, but it's not too late either. Thank you, Mr. President, for
your leadership.
President Bush. Thank you, sir. Thank you. I appreciate you. Good
job.
Note: The President's news conference began at 2:35 p.m. at Brdo Castle.
Participating in the event were Prime Minister Janez Jansa of Slovenia,
in his capacity as President of the European Council; and President Jose
Manuel Durao Barroso of the European Commission. President Bush referred
to President Raul Castro Ruz of Cuba; Foreign Minister Javier Solana
Madariaga and Commissioner for Trade Peter Mandelson of the European
Union; and King Abdallah bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia.
President Durao Barroso referred to Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany.
Prime Minister Jansa spoke partly in Slovenian, and those portions of
his remarks were translated by an interpreter.