[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 38, Number 19 (Monday, May 13, 2002)]
[Pages 744-745]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks Prior to Discussions With President Jose Maria Aznar of Spain 
and an Exchange With Reporters at Camp David, Maryland

May 3, 2002

    President Bush. Laura and I are honored to welcome our friend the 
President and First Lady of Espana to Camp David. It's an opportunity 
for us to share some private time together, to talk about issues of 
concern between our countries as well as opportunities we can have to 
work together for world peace. We've got great relations with Spain; 
Spain is a very close friend. And I've got good--very strong personal 
relations with Jose Maria.
    So it's such an honor to welcome you here, Senor Presidente. And 
it's great to see the First Lady as well.
    Quiere habla?

[At this point, President Aznar made brief remarks in Spanish, and no 
translation was provided.]

    President Bush. A couple of questions.

Russia-U.S. Nuclear Arms Agreement

    Q. Mr. President, the Russian Foreign Minister today, after he left 
the meeting with you today, said there's a very high probability for a 
U.S.-Russian nuclear deal in time for your trip. Do you think prospects 
are that good for an agreement?
    President Bush. Espero que si. I hope so. We've been spending a lot 
of time with Russia to reach an agreement that will codify that which 
I've told our country and told Mr. Putin--that we're going to 
substantially reduce our offensive nuclear weapons. I hope so. It's--the 
Secretary of State is optimistic. There's some work that remains to be 
done. I'm looking forward to my trip. I look forward to getting--to 
continue working closely with President Putin. Jose Maria has got the 
same intentions. And what's interesting is, right after I leave, el va a 
Russia to visit with Mr. Putin as well.

Upcoming Meetings With Middle East Leaders

    Q. Mr. President, on Tuesday you will meet with Prime Minister 
Sharon. It will be the fifth meeting. You've talked to him a number of 
times on the phone. And people might say this weekend showed what a 
difference that makes. But you haven't really interacted with Chairman 
Arafat as much, and I wondered about that. Do you feel as though it 
really wouldn't make that big a difference? Or is there a strategic 
reason for not engaging him?
    President Bush. I'm looking forward to my meeting with Prime 
Minister Sharon. I'm looking forward to my meeting with King Abdullah. 
We have got, obviously, a lot of activity, a lot of discussions, a lot 
of interface with the different people in the region, the different 
interested parties. And there's going to be a lot more discussion going 
on.
    As you know, Secretary of State Powell talked about a ministerial 
meeting. It's just a series of ongoing discussions to help solidify the 
visions that have been expressed by not only the United States but the 
Europeans--but, more importantly, the visions expressed by Israel, the 
Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. And so there's going to be a lot 
of discussions and a lot of meetings. And I've had a lot already, and 
I'm going to have more.

Unemployment Rate

    Q. The unemployment rate today, 6 percent--is that just a bump in 
the road, or is that a sign of some reversal?
    President Bush. No, that's--listen, I've been saying all along that 
the growth number of the first quarter of this year was very positive, 
but I said--listen, I'm not confident;

[[Page 745]]

we've got more work to do. So long as anybody is looking for work, we've 
got a problem, as far as I'm concerned. And that number shows that--
backs me up.
    We need long-term growth, and that's why we need a trade bill, and 
that's why we need terrorism insurance that doesn't provide a vehicle to 
enrich personal injury trial lawyers. And that's why we've got to make 
sure that Congress doesn't overspend.
    So we've had mixed news. One week we had positive growth in the 
first quarter, although a lot of that, of course, was attributable to 
inventory build-back, as you and I discussed, and based upon consumer 
demands. I'm concerned that there's not enough business investment. But 
we'll see how it goes. But Congress must get us some legislation.

President Aznar's Visit to Camp David

[A reporter began a question in Spanish, and no translation was 
provided. He then concluded his question in English.]

    Q. What do you think of this invitation, and what do you expect--
trip to Camp David?

[President Aznar answered in Spanish, and no translation was provided. A 
reporter began a question in Spanish, and no translation was provided. 
He then concluded his question in English.]

    Q. What are you especially interested in stressing during your 
conversations with the President?
    President Aznar. I'm sure that as soon as you allow us to do so, we 
will make maximum use of our time. Because what we intend to do here is 
be able to continue our discussions in a relaxed atmosphere, because 
there's a lot of work to be done, and we intend to get down to work and 
do it. And we appreciate the invitation.
    President Bush. Gracias.

President's Dog

    Q. Where is Barney?
    The First Lady. Barney is back at the house.
    President Bush. He's at the cabin. We were afraid Barney would 
disrupt the press conference.

Note: The President spoke at 6:11 p.m. In his remarks, President Bush 
referred to President Aznar's wife, Ana Botella; President Vladimir 
Putin of Russia; Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel; and King 
Abdullah II of Jordan. A reporter referred to Minister of Foreign 
Affairs Igor Sergeyevich Ivanov of Russia; and Chairman Yasser Arafat of 
the Palestinian Authority. A tape was not available for verification of 
the content of these remarks. This item was not received in time for 
publication in the appropriate issue.