[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 38, Number 15 (Monday, April 15, 2002)]
[Pages 576-577]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
The President's Radio Address

April 6, 2002

    Good morning. This weekend, Laura and I are hosting the British 
Prime Minister, Tony Blair, and his family at our ranch in Crawford, 
Texas. America has no better ally in our war against terrorism than 
Great Britain.
    Six months ago, when the United States launched military strikes 
against Al Qaida training camps and the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, 
British forces were right by our side. And the success of Operation 
Enduring Freedom owes much to the strong support from allies like Great 
Britain. Yet, the war against terrorism is far from over. It will 
continue in Afghanistan and beyond.
    The world has been brutally reminded these past 2 weeks of the price 
exacted by terror. Prime Minister Blair and I will spend much of our 
time this weekend discussing the tragic outbreak of violence in the 
Middle East. 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. The United States is strongly committed to finding a 
just settlement in the Middle East. That

[[Page 577]]

settlement must lead to two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by 
side in peace and security.
    This goal can never be realized through terrorism. It can only be 
realized through a political process. Arab governments, the Palestinian 
leadership, and the Palestinian people must recognize that suicide 
bombings are jeopardizing the very possibility of an independent 
Palestinian state. This week, I called upon the Palestinian leadership 
to order an immediate and effective cease-fire and a crackdown on 
terrorist networks.
    Israel, too, faces hard choices. America will always be a committed 
friend of Israel, and we recognize Israel's right to defend itself 
against terror. Yet, to lay the foundations of future peace, I've asked 
Israel to halt incursions into Palestinian-controlled areas and begin 
withdrawing from those cities it has recently occupied.
    Next week, Secretary of State Powell will travel to the Middle East 
to seek broad international support for these principles and to work 
towards a cease-fire that will lead to a political settlement. I have no 
illusions about the difficulty of this mission. Yet, our determination 
is strong. We'll work closely with nations in the region and with close 
allies such as Great Britain to end this conflict and to begin an era of 
peace.
    This could be a hopeful moment in the Middle East. A number of Arab 
leaders have endorsed a proposal that brings them 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. And Israel has recognized the goal of a Palestinian 
state.
    I believe the region could write a new story of democracy and 
development and trade and join the progress of our times. Yet, progress 
requires an atmosphere of peace, and peace requires acts of leadership, 
not acts of terror.
    Thank you for listening.

Note: The address was recorded at 10:20 a.m. on April 5 at the Bush 
Ranch in Crawford, TX, for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on April 6. The 
transcript was made available by the Office of the Press Secretary on 
April 5 but was embargoed for release until the broadcast. The Office of 
the Press Secretary also released a Spanish language transcript of this 
address.