[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 38, Number 10 (Monday, March 11, 2002)]
[Pages 373-376]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks on the Situation in the Middle East and an Exchange With 
Reporters

March 7, 2002

    The President. Good afternoon. I'm deeply concerned about the tragic 
loss of life and escalating violence in the Middle East. This is a 
matter of great interest to the United States and all who want peace in 
the region and in the world.
    There is a roadmap to peace. The Tenet security work plan will bring 
parties together to reduce the violence, improve the security situation, 
and return to the path of peace. The Tenet work plan is the first step 
towards implementing the Mitchell Committee report in full and resuming 
a political process between the sides.

    I'm committed to working with our partners in the region and around 
the world in the pursuit of this goal. The United States has a vision of 
a Middle East in which all people, Arabs and Israelis, can live as 
neighbors in full peace and security.

    Recent ideas put forth by the Crown Prince Abdullah--Saudi Arabia 
have created an opening for discussing this broader peace and for the 
normalization of relations between Arab States and Israel. The United 
States is committed to exploring this opening.

    Because of our commitment to peace, I'm sending General Tony Zinni 
back to the region next week to work with Israel and the Palestinians to 
begin implementing the Tenet work plan so that the parties can renew 
their efforts for a broader peace. The United States will do all it can 
to help the Government of Israel and the Palestinian Authority restore 
hope to their people and to the region.

    I once again call upon Chairman Arafat to make maximum effort to end 
terrorism against Israel, which undermines the prospects for peace. And 
as we move forward, I'm counting on all parties in the region, Prime 
Minister Sharon included, to do everything they can to make these 
efforts a success.

    The violence and tragic loss of Israeli and Palestinian lives must 
end. Families on both sides of the conflict share this goal, and so does 
my country. Peace and stability will be an important topic of the Vice 
President's upcoming trip to the region. I've asked him to join me 
today.

    Mr. Vice President.

[At this point, Vice President Cheney and Secretary of State Powell made 
brief remarks.]

    The President. I'll answer a few questions. Morris [Dave Morris, 
Bloomberg News].

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Peace Initiatives

    Q. Mr. President, you said all along that the two sides need to 
break the cycle of violence. There's been a lot of false hopes. The 
violence continues even today. What assurances do you have, if any, that 
the two sides are now willing to take that step and break the cycle?
    The President. Well, we've had a lot of consultations over the last 
week and week-and-a-half. We've been on the phone a lot. And we believe 
now's the time for General Zinni to move back into the region. There are 
no assurances. That is not going to prevent our Government from trying, 
trying to get the parties to agree to Tenet, trying to reduce the cycle 
of violence.
    Obviously, there's a reason why, and that is because, as a result of 
consultations, we believe there's a possibility that we can have an 
impact. And so the combination of General Zinni's trip and the Vice 
President's trip may have a positive impact. We'll see.
    Yes, John [John Roberts, CBS News]. Then Terry [Terry Moran, ABC 
News].

Action To Reduce Violence

    Q. Mr. President, your Secretary of State had some rather stern 
words for Israel yesterday. Do you believe that Ariel Sharon, engaging 
in his current policies, has become an obstacle to peace?
    The President. Well, I read the Secretary's comments, and it sounded 
like he had pretty tough words for all parties. He's concerned about the 
level of violence, like I am. He made it clear that Chairman Arafat 
needs to do a better job of reducing violence, of using his leadership 
role to reduce violence. He's also deeply concerned, as am I, about the 
retaliation, the escalation. It's hard to achieve peace when violence is 
escalating. And one of the reasons why we're sending Zinni back, and one 
of the reasons why I hope the Vice President's trip will have a positive 
effect is because our message is to both sides, reduce violence.
    As I mentioned in my remarks, Chairman Arafat must do everything he 
can to reduce the violence, to stop the spread of violence. We don't 
believe he's doing enough. And so I thought that the Secretary's 
comments were wisely balanced.

Escalating Violence/Tenet Plan

    Q. Mr. President, do you believe that the continuing and escalating 
violence is an indication of failure on the part of your administration 
in the approach you've taken of refraining to send General Zinni, of not 
yourself talking to Chairman Arafat?
    The President. Oh, I think what the escalating violence shows is 
that there are people who believe in terror as a way of life, people who 
refuse to allow a peace process to go forward, people who don't want 
peace in the region. And our Government is committed to saying to those 
folks, ``We will do everything in our power to stop you from preventing 
a peace process from going forward.''
    It is--and the first step toward any political solution has got to 
be the Tenet plan. George Tenet, obviously, works for the United States 
Government; he's the person that laid out the plan. There is a roadmap 
for a peaceful solution. It's going to take a lot of effort by a lot of 
people, and we're willing to put in the effort and believe that General 
Zinni's trip can make a difference.
    Yes, Ron [Ron Fournier, Associated Press].

Administration's Approach to Middle East Peace

    Q. Mr. President, why are you personally only talking to one side in 
this conflict? Why don't you reach out to Chairman Arafat?
    The President. Oh, I believe the administration speaks with one 
voice, and we've got ample amplification to both parties. And our 
strategy is a well-thought-out strategy. It's one that reminds both 
parties there's an obligation to seek peace.
    I fully understand the Israelis' perspective that they want to 
defend themselves. That's why I've constantly called on Mr. Arafat to do 
a better job of reining in those who would wreak havoc on Israel. I also 
agree with the Secretary of State that it is going to be very hard to 
achieve a peaceful settlement if there is a tendency to want to 
constantly find a reason to escalate. And we hope that the Zinni mission 
will help get to Tenet, and that's where our focus is. Our focus is to 
get the parties into a process that the world agrees is a good process.

[[Page 375]]

Saudi Peace Initiative

    Q. Mr. President, how is the Saudi plan an opening if it's based on 
things that the Israelis have long rejected?
    The President. Well, first of all, they cannot reject the notion of 
Crown Prince Abdullah that says, ``We recognize Israel's right to 
exist.'' I think that's an important opening, and I think that's an 
important statement by Crown Prince Abdullah.
    Secondly, it's a position that I took as well at the United Nations, 
when I said that there ought to be a Palestinian state--the borders of 
which, by the way, ought to be negotiated between the two parties--but 
both states recognize each other's right to exist.
    And it's an opening. The Crown Prince's decision to make that 
statement provides an opening. And that's another reason why the Zinni 
mission is going forward.
    Jim [Jim Angle, FOX News].

Israel-U.S. Perspectives

    Q. Mr. President, you've consistently called on Mr. Arafat to make, 
as you said today, a maximum effort. What seems to be new this week is 
the administration's skepticism about Mr. Sharon. Are you worried, sir, 
that retaliation seems to be the only policy that he has in mind?
    The President. First of all, I fully understand a nation's wanting 
to defend herself, and I appreciate that. After all, we're in defense of 
ourself right now. And I can understand the strong desire to enhance 
security for a people, and I believe that.
    I believe what we're saying, though, is that there's got to be a 
vision for peace. There's got to be more than security, that there's got 
to be an attempt to achieve a lasting peace. And I hope that my friend, 
the Prime Minister Sharon, agrees with that assessment. I think he does. 
I think he recognizes that you can't achieve peace by allowing violence 
to escalate or causing violence to escalate.
    So on the one hand, I fully understand his need to protect the 
people of Israel, and on the other hand, we look forward to working with 
him to get into the Tenet plan. He thought the Tenet plan was a good 
plan. He agreed that the Mitchell plan is the proper course of action. 
And now we've got to work hard to get into it.
    Kelly [Kelly Wallace, Cable News Network].

Corporate Management Reform

    Q. Mr. President, can I ask you about the corporate responsibility 
measures you put forward?
    The President. Yes.
    Q. Some Democrats are saying that they kind of fall far short of 
what's needed, and they say your own Treasury Secretary, Paul O'Neill, 
was pushing for stronger measures, lowering the bar for punishment for 
corporate leaders.
    The President. I think what they ought to do is look at my 
proposals, take a good, hard look at them. They were very sound, solid 
proposals. It's the first formal package laid out for the American 
people to analyze about how to reform corporate governance.
    I think it's also very important to make sure that, as we reform 
corporate governance, we don't encourage frivolous lawsuits. I think 
it's very difficult to have a vibrant society in the free enterprise 
sector that is riddled with massive lawsuits all the time. And so I want 
to have a balanced plan, and I put one out. I'm proud of it. And it 
would make a lot of sense, and I hope Congress acts on it.
    Patsy [Patricia Wilson, Reuters].

National Economy

    Q. Mr. President, is the recession over now? And looking back, do 
you think we actually ever really had one?
    The President. Well, that's a trick question, Patsy, and I 
appreciate you throwing that out there. [Laughter] See, I actually read 
clips from other parts of the world before I came out here today. So, 
nice try.
    There's no question our economy was hurt by the attacks on 9/11. 
We'll let the statisticians define what happened or what didn't happen. 
But our economy went through a massive slowdown. And people's lives were 
badly affected, and a lot of people were laid off.
    And that's why the House did the right thing today, and the Senate 
now needs to act. The House passed a very good bill. It's a bill that 
not only takes care of unemployed

[[Page 376]]

workers; it is a bill that has got some economic stimulus as a major 
part of it. And now the Senate needs to do something. The Senate needs 
to act and get the bill to my desk, and I look forward to signing it.
    But we've had too much--too much non-movement on this important 
issue. And it's time to go. It's time to get a bill, and it's time for 
me to end the press conference. [Laughter]
    Thank you.

Note: The President spoke at 4:15 p.m. in the Rose Garden at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle 
East Gen. Anthony Zinni, USMC (Ret.); Chairman Yasser Arafat of the 
Palestinian Authority; and Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel. The 
President also referred to the Tenet plan, the Israeli-Palestinian 
ceasefire and security plan of June 13, 2001, negotiated by Director 
George J. Tenet of the Central Intelligence Agency; and the Mitchell 
report, the Report of the Sharm el-Sheikh Fact-Finding Committee, issued 
April 30, 2001. The transcript released by the Office of the Press 
Secretary also included the remarks of Vice President Cheney and 
Secretary of State Powell.