[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 38, Number 14 (Monday, April 8, 2002)]
[Pages 560-563]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks on the Situation in the Middle East

April 4, 2002

    Good morning. During the course of one week, the situation in the 
Middle East has deteriorated dramatically. Last Wednesday, my Special 
Envoy, Anthony Zinni, reported to me that we were on the verge of a 
cease-fire agreement that would have spared Palestinian and Israeli 
lives. That hope fell away when a terrorist attacked a group of innocent 
people in a Netanya hotel, killing many men and women in what is a 
mounting toll of terror.
    In the days since, the world has watched with growing concern the 
horror of bombings and burials and the stark picture of tanks in the 
street. Across the world, people are grieving for Israelis and 
Palestinians who have lost their lives.
    When an 18-year-old Palestinian girl is induced to blow herself up 
and in the process kills a 17-year-old Israeli girl, the future itself 
is dying--the future of the Palestinian people and the future of the 
Israeli people. We mourn the dead, and we mourn the damage done to the 
hope of peace, the hope of Israel's and the Israelis' desire for a 
Jewish state at peace with its neighbors, the hope of the Palestinian 
people to build their own independent state.
    Terror must be stopped. No nation can negotiate with terrorists, for 
there is no way to make peace with those whose only goal is death.

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    This could be a hopeful moment in the Middle East. The proposal of 
Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia, supported by the Arab League, has 
put a number of countries in the Arab world closer than ever to 
recognizing Israel's right to exist. The United States is on record 
supporting the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people for a 
Palestinian state. Israel has recognized the goal of a Palestinian 
state. The outlines of a just settlement are clear: two states, Israel 
and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security.
    This can be a time for hope, but it calls for leadership, not for 
terror. Since September the 11th, I've delivered this message: Everyone 
must choose; you're either with the civilized world, or you're with the 
terrorists. All in the Middle East also must choose and must move 
decisively in word and deed against terrorist acts.
    The Chairman of the Palestinian Authority has not consistently 
opposed or confronted terrorists. At Oslo and elsewhere, Chairman Arafat 
renounced terror as an instrument of his cause, and he agreed to control 
it. He's not done so.
    The situation in which he finds himself today is largely of his own 
making. He's missed his opportunities and thereby betrayed the hopes of 
the people he's supposed to lead. Given his failure, the Israeli 
Government feels it must strike at terrorist networks that are killing 
its citizens.
    Yet, Israel must understand that its response to these recent 
attacks is only a temporary measure. All parties have their own 
responsibilities, and all parties owe it to their own people to act.
    We all know today's situation runs the risk of aggravating long-term 
bitterness and undermining relationships that are critical to any hope 
of peace. I call on the Palestinian people, the Palestinian Authority, 
and our friends in the Arab world to join us in delivering a clear 
message to terrorists: Blowing yourself up does not help the Palestinian 
cause. To the contrary, suicide bombing missions could well blow up the 
best and only hope for a Palestinian state.
    All states must keep their promise, made in a vote in the United 
Nations, to actively oppose terror in all its forms. No nation can pick 
and choose its terrorist friends. I call on the Palestinian Authority 
and all governments in the region to do everything in their power to 
stop terrorist activities, to disrupt terrorist financing, and to stop 
inciting violence by glorifying terror in state-owned media or telling 
suicide bombers they are martyrs. They're not martyrs. They're 
murderers. And they undermine the cause of the Palestinian people.
    Those governments, like Iraq, that reward parents for the sacrifice 
of their children are guilty of soliciting murder of the worst kind. All 
who care about the Palestinian people should join in condemning and 
acting against groups like Al-Aqsa, Hezbollah, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and 
all groups which oppose the peace process and seek the destruction of 
Israel.
    The recent Arab League support of Crown Prince Abdullah's initiative 
for peace is promising, is hopeful, because it acknowledges Israel's 
right to exist. And it raises the hope of sustained, constructive Arab 
involvement in the search for peace. This builds on a tradition of 
visionary leadership, begun by President Sadat and King Hussein and 
carried forward by President Mubarak and King Abdullah. Now other Arab 
states must rise to this occasion and accept Israel as a nation and as a 
neighbor.
    Peace with Israel is the only avenue to prosperity and success for a 
new Palestinian state. The Palestinian people deserve peace and an 
opportunity to better their lives. They need their closest neighbor, 
Israel, to be an economic partner, not a mortal enemy. They deserve a 
government that respects human rights and a government that focuses on 
their needs, education and health care, rather than feeding their 
resentments.
    It is not enough for Arab nations to defend the Palestinian cause. 
They must truly help the Palestinian people by seeking peace and 
fighting terror and promoting development.
    Israel faces hard choices of its own. Its Government has supported 
the creation of a Palestinian state that is not a haven for terrorism. 
Yet, Israel also must recognize that such a state needs to be 
politically and economically viable.
    Consistent with the Mitchell plan, Israeli settlement activity in 
occupied territories

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must stop. And the occupation must end through withdrawal to secure and 
recognized boundaries consistent with United Nations Resolutions 242 and 
338. Ultimately, this approach should be the basis of agreements between 
Israel and Syria, and Israel and Lebanon.
    Israel should also show a respect--a respect for and concern about 
the dignity of the Palestinian people who are and will be their 
neighbors. It is crucial to distinguish between the terrorists and 
ordinary Palestinians seeking to provide for their own families. The 
Israeli Government should be compassionate at checkpoints and border 
crossings, sparing innocent Palestinians daily humiliation. Israel 
should take immediate action to ease closures and allow peaceful people 
to go back to work.
    Israel is facing a terrible and serious challenge. For 7 days, it 
has acted to root out terrorist nests. America recognizes Israel's right 
to defend itself from terror. Yet, to lay the foundations of future 
peace, I ask Israel to halt incursions into Palestinian-controlled areas 
and begin the withdrawal from those cities it has recently occupied. I 
speak as a committed friend of Israel. I speak out of a concern for its 
long-term security, a security that will come with a genuine peace.
    As Israel steps back, responsible Palestinian leaders and Israel's 
Arab neighbors must step forward and show the world that they are truly 
on the side of peace. The choice and the burden will be theirs. The 
world expects an immediate cease-fire, immediate resumption of security 
cooperation with Israel against terrorism, an immediate order to crack 
down on terrorist networks. I expect better leadership, and I expect 
results.
    These are the elements of peace in the Middle East, and now we must 
build the road to those goals. Decades of bitter experience teach a 
clear lesson: Progress is impossible when nations emphasize their 
grievances and ignore their opportunities. The storms of violence cannot 
go on. Enough is enough.
    And to those who would try to use the current crisis as an 
opportunity to widen the conflict: Stay out. Iran's arms shipments and 
support for terror fuel the fire of conflict in the Middle East, and it 
must stop. Syria has spoken out against Al Qaida. We expect it to act 
against Hamas and Hezbollah as well. It's time for Iran to focus on 
meeting its own people's aspirations for freedom, and for Syria to 
decide which side of the war against terror it is on.
    The world finds itself at a critical moment. This is a conflict that 
can widen or an opportunity we can seize. And so I've decided to send 
Secretary of State Powell to the region next week to seek broad 
international support for the vision I've outlined* today. As a step in 
this process, he will work to implement United Nations Resolution 1402, 
an immediate and meaningful cease-fire, an end to terror and violence 
and incitement, withdrawal of Israeli troops from Palestinian cities, 
including Ramallah, implementation of the already agreed-upon Tenet and 
Mitchell plans, which will lead to a political settlement.
    * White House correction.
    I have no illusions; we have no illusions about the difficulty of 
the issues that lie ahead. Yet, our Nation's resolve is strong. America 
is committed to ending this conflict and beginning an era of peace.
    We know this is possible, because in our lifetimes we have seen an 
end to conflicts that no one thought could end. We've seen fierce 
enemies let go of long histories of strife and anger. America itself 
counts former adversaries as trusted friends: Germany and Japan and now 
Russia.
    Conflict is not inevitable. Distrust need not be permanent. Peace is 
possible when we break free of old patterns and habits of hatred. The 
violence and grief that trouble the Holy Land have been among the great 
tragedies of our time. The Middle East has often been left behind in the 
political and economic advancement of the world. That is the history of 
the region, but it need not and must not be its fate.
    The Middle East could write a new story of trade and development and 
democracy. And we stand ready to help. Yet, this progress can only come 
in an atmosphere of peace. And the United States will work for all the 
children of Abraham to know the benefits of peace.
    Thank you very much.

[[Page 563]]

Note: The President spoke at 11 a.m. in the Rose Garden at the White 
House. In his remarks, he referred to Chairman Yasser Arafat of the 
Palestinian Authority; President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt; and King 
Abdullah II of Jordan.