[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 37, Number 12 (Monday, March 26, 2001)]
[Pages 474-476]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks Prior to Discussions With Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel 
and an Exchange With Reporters

March 20, 2001

    President Bush. It's my honor to welcome the Prime Minister of our 
close friend and

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ally to the Oval Office. Mr. Prime Minister, welcome.
    We've just had a very frank and good discussion. Both of us 
reconfirmed our friendship, both talked about how best to keep the 
peace.
    I assured the Prime Minister my administration will work hard to lay 
the foundation of peace in the Middle--work with our nations in the 
Middle East, give peace a chance. Secondly, I told him that our Nation 
will not try to force peace, that we will facilitate peace, and that we 
will work with those responsible for peace.
    The Prime Minister and I had met before. I took a tour of the West 
Bank by helicopter, and he was the guide. It was a pretty interesting--
it was a really interesting day for me. He's got a marvelous sense of 
history, and I learned a lot about our friend by touring the West Bank 
by chopper with you, Mr. Prime Minister.
    You didn't think you were going to be the Prime Minister, and you 
probably darn sure didn't think I was going to be the President. But 
here we are, and we've got great responsibilities to work together, and 
I look forward to doing so.
    Welcome, Mr. Prime Minister. Glad you're here.
    Prime Minister Sharon. Thank you. I would like to thank you, 
President Bush, for inviting me to the White House. We've had a very 
constructive and frank discussion of strategic issues that are of the 
interest of the United States and Israel. And we discussed the peace 
process, what can be achieved, and how. We are, in Israel, we are all 
committed to peace. As one who saw in the past all the horrors of wars, 
I believe I understand the import of peace. And in Israel, all of us are 
committed.
    But of course, the first thing and the most important one is to 
bring security to the citizens of Israel. That was the commitment that I 
took upon myself, Mr. President, and that is the first thing that we 
have to accomplish. Once we reach security, and it will be calm in the 
Middle East, I believe that we will start with our negotiations to reach 
a peace agreement.
    We shared issues of common interest, and I think it was a very good 
conversation, a very frank one, and I think that we can look forward--
can look ahead, how to achieve our common goals in the Middle East, 
together with deep cooperation and coordination.
    And I would like you for your friendship to Israel. We have friends 
here, and you have friends there in Israel, which is a democratic 
country, a stable democracy which appreciate the values of democratic 
life. I'm sure that we can do many things together. And I would like to 
thank you for the cooperation of your government, of your own, for our 
future interests in the Middle East.
    President Bush. Thank you, sir.

Jerusalem

    Q. Mr. President, the Prime Minister last night expressed his faith 
in Jerusalem as Israel's eternal, undivided capital, under Israel 
sovereignty. Mindful of your campaign statements, how do you feel about 
this statement? Is that something that has U.S. support?
    President Bush. Well, the status of Israel, I mean, the status of 
Jerusalem will be ultimately determined by the interested parties. 
During the campaign, I said we'll begin the process of moving our 
Embassy to Jerusalem.

National Economy

    Q. Mr. President, yesterday you said that you were very confident 
about the U.S. economy. Today you said that it's slowing down. Which is 
it? Are you trying to have it both ways?
    President Bush. I was talking about the long-term health of our 
economy is going to be very strong. And that's in Israel's interest, 
that our economy be strong. We've got some problems, some short-term 
problems, and if Congress were to act quickly on my tax stimulus 
package, it would make our recovery quicker.
    Q. Is there any reason to believe that it will help in the short 
term?
    President Bush. Oh, I think it will, and I think good fiscal policy 
and good monetary policy, good trade policy will help our economy. And 
we need an energy policy, too. But I hope the Congress acts quickly on a 
stimulus package that will improve our economy. People have got to know 
that I have got great faith in the American economy.

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Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat

    Q. Mr. President, do you accept the idea not to invite Yasser 
Arafat, or are you going to invite him and meet with him here?
    President Bush. Well, one of the things that the Prime Minister and 
I talked about is our engagement in the Middle East. I will do 
everything we can to help calm nerves, to encourage there to be dialog 
in a peaceful way. I haven't made up my plans on who I'm going to meet 
with yet. I do have some plans in place. I'm looking forward to meeting 
the King of Jordan, for example.
    But one of the things that I will do is use whatever persuasive 
powers I have to create an environment in which peace can flourish. I've 
got great confidence in the Prime Minister, and so do the Israeli 
people. He got 66 percent of the vote. He did a little better at the 
polls than I did. [Laughter] You know what I mean, Mr. Prime Minister.

Future Middle East Negotiations

    Q. Prime Minister Sharon, did you manage to convince the President 
Bush that you will not negotiate underfire? Do you think that this 
message is clear, and do you think that President Bush agrees with you 
about this issue?
    Prime Minister Sharon. I didn't have to talk to President Bush about 
that. I think what I understand the policy of this great democracy, the 
United States, is that one should not surrender to terror and pressure 
and violence. And therefore, I don't have to work too hard on this 
thing. I even didn't try.
    But I understand, and I believe that they do, and I appreciate that 
respect that--to that approach that one should never surrender to terror 
and that the free world should struggle against terror, local, regional, 
and international terror. And I'm sure that the United States leads such 
a struggle, and we are a partner in the struggle. I think that is in the 
interest of every democratic state, because in order to keep stability--
and I'm a great supporter of the President's policy of keeping stability 
in the Middle East--the main danger to stability is terror. And that, I 
believe, will be--should be the common goal of every democratic country 
in the free world.
    Q. Do you think that Arafat is the danger for the stability in the 
Middle East, Mr. Sharon?
    Prime Minister Sharon. I don't think that I have to add about 
Arafat. Everyone knows what are the steps of terror and who is behind 
the steps. I don't think I have to add anything about that. It's clear.

Note: The President spoke at 1 p.m. in the Oval Office at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to King Abdullah II of Jordan. A tape 
was not available for verification of the content of these remarks.