[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 39, Number 19 (Monday, May 12, 2003)]
[Pages 533-537]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
The President's News Conference With Prime Minister John Howard of 
Australia in Crawford, Texas

May 3, 2003

    President Bush. Thank you all for coming. This has been an honor for 
Laura and me to welcome Prime Minister Howard and Mrs. Howard to our 
ranch. We love coming here. It's a place for Laura and me to really 
spend some private time and spend time with a friend is--makes it even 
more special. And John Howard has been a great friend. The Australian 
Government has been a great friend to the American people. The 
Australian people are great friends with the American people as well.
    The Prime Minister is a man of courage. He is a clear thinker. He 
understands the responsibilities of freedom. America is really grateful 
for the sacrifices of the Australian people and for the leadership of 
Prime Minister John Howard.
    On September the 10th, 2001, Prime Minister Howard and I stood 
together at the Washington Naval Yard to commemorate the 50th 
anniversary of the ANZUS Treaty. The next day, Australia and America 
began writing a new chapter in the history of our alliance. On September 
the 14th, just 3 days after the terrorist attacks, Australia invoked the 
ANZUS Treaty's mutual defense provisions. Australia came to America's 
aid in our time of need, and we won't forget that.
    In nearly 20 months since September the 11th, Australian and 
American intelligence and law enforcement officials have worked very 
closely together. Our relationship has never been stronger, and that's 
good, because together we've broken up terrorist cells, we've disrupted 
terrorist plots, we've cut off terrorist financing. We brought a lot of 
terrorists to justice.
    And in Iraq, Australian and American forces have stood together once 
again. We ended the rule of one of history's worst tyrants, and in so 
doing, we not only freed the American people, we made our own people 
more secure. By getting rid of Saddam Hussein, we ended the suffering of 
a lot of people in Iraq. And at the same time, we made peace more 
possible in the world. All Australians are justifiably proud of the 
superb performance--and I mean superb performance--of the Australian Air 
Force, Navy, and Special Forces in Operation Iraqi Freedom.
    As you may know, I was on the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln 2 days ago. I 
met with Admiral Kelly. He was our highest ranking official in charge of 
joint operations. I said, ``I'm getting ready to see the Prime Minister 
in Crawford.'' I said, ``What can I tell him about the performance and 
the bravery of the Australian troops?'' He said, ``They are the best in 
the world.'' And for that, Mr. Prime Minister, we're grateful.
    We want to thank the Australian servicemen for their service, and 
particularly want to say thanks to their loved ones, who I'm sure 
agonized over the fate of their husband or son or daughter, and tell 
them that we appreciate their sacrifice as well.
    We're committed to defeating the threat of terror because we have 
both felt terror's effects. We remember the sympathy of the people of 
Australia on September the 11th, and we shared the same sympathy with 
the people of Australia after the horrible bombings of Bali. The Prime 
Minister showed he's not only a man of steel, he showed the world he's a 
man of heart as well as he dealt with the great tragedy that affected 
the Australian people.
    We won't tire in our attempts to fight terror. Nothing will deter 
us. We understand the effects of terror. We also are committed to a 
world that is more peaceful and more free. We're committed to a stable 
and democratic Iraq. We fully believe the people of Iraq are capable of 
running their own country. We will work to provide the conditions

[[Page 534]]

necessary for security, repair the infrastructure, make sure that the 
life of the average Iraqi citizen is back to normal, and then encourage 
the Iraqi people to decide their own fate and run their own Government. 
We agree the U.N. Security Council should move swiftly to lift the 
economic sanctions on Iraq.
    We'll continue to work together to make the world more safe and 
free. Today we discussed the Korean Peninsula. We discussed my 
commitment to move the Middle Eastern peace process forward. We 
discussed a lot of key issues. I was comfortable in so doing because I 
value the advice of John Howard. I trust his judgment, and I appreciate 
his friendship.
    Mr. Prime Minister.
    Prime Minister Howard. Well, thank you very much, Mr. President. Can 
I first, for Janette and myself, thank George and Laura very much for 
inviting us to a piece of American soil that I know has a special place 
in the President's heart.
    To come to the United States is always an experience and an 
opportunity as Prime Minister to renew the links and the friendship and 
the affection between our two nations and our two peoples. But to come 
to the heart of Texas and to be a guest of the President and his wife in 
this wonderful hideaway--although it doesn't appear to be very well 
hidden away with this large gathering today--is a special opportunity.
    Can I thank the President for the kind words that he's expressed 
about the Australian military participation in Iraq. We too in Australia 
are immensely proud of the way in which the men and women of the 
Australian Defence Force discharged their duties. But can I, Mr. 
President, congratulate you on the leadership that you gave to the 
world, at times under very great criticism, at times fighting very great 
obstruction. But you had a resolute, clear view of what had to be done, 
and we were very pleased and very proud and very determined when the 
final decision was taken to be part of that.
    I think what was achieved in Iraq was quite extraordinary from a 
military point of view. I think the military textbooks will be replete 
with the experiences of Operation Iraqi Freedom for many years to come. 
And the leadership of the United States, with the support of its 
coalition partners, Great Britain, Australia, Holland, and others, I 
think has sent a very important message not only to the region but also 
to the rest of the world.
    I welcome very much the personal commitment that you have given to 
the securing of a peaceful outcome in the long-running and bloody saga 
of relations between Israel and the Palestinians. As the leader of a 
nation which has been a staunch and unapologetic friend of Israel ever 
since its foundation, we also support very strongly the establishment of 
an independent Palestinian state. And we see progress on this issue as 
being very important to consolidating what has been achieved in Iraq and 
building on the message of freedom that came out of the operation in 
Iraq.
    Our bilateral relationship is very close indeed, in so many ways. 
There is a strategic and political closeness. But more important than 
that, there is a very deep affection between our two nations. We have 
shared a lot of experiences. You recalled that very emotional moment at 
the naval dockyard on the 10th of September, the first time we met, and 
the next day, of course, the world changed so dramatically. And I can 
remember returning by courtesy of the United States Air Force from 
Andrews Air Force Base to Hawaii and discussing with our Foreign 
Minister Alexander Downer the invoking of the ANZUS Treaty, in 
consequence of what had occurred the day before in New York and 
Washington.
    Australia and America are close friends because, above all, we have 
similar values. In the end, the thing that binds nations together more 
than anything else is the commonality of their values. And we have a 
view of the world that puts freedom and individual liberty, a belief in 
market outcomes, where appropriate, at the center of the activities of 
both our nations.
    Mr. President, I'm very honored to be here. Janette and I have 
greatly enjoyed your hospitality. We wish you well. We respect very much 
the leadership that you, personally, and your administration brings to 
the affairs of the world. We think the world is a safer, more optimistic 
place as a result of our joint efforts in Iraq, and we think that is a 
message which is resonating around the

[[Page 535]]

world. And we too have one aspiration for the Iraqi people, that they 
can live in freedom, and they can run their own affairs, and they can 
benefit from the great civilization and the great resources which, 
unhindered, are at their disposal.
    President Bush. Good. Thank you, John.
    We will answer a couple of questions, two per side. Barney, do you 
have a question? [Laughter] He doesn't have one? Then we'll start with 
Patsy [Patricia Wilson, Reuters]. Patsy is a fine Australian, as you 
know. Tomorrow is her birthday. [Laughter]
    Go ahead and ask a soft question, then, now that I've set it up. 
[Laughter]

Iraqi Weapons of Mass Destruction

    Q. Sir, in honor of your guest, I'll ask it in Australian, if that's 
all right. [Laughter] Is there a possibility that you may never find 
weapons of mass destruction in Iraq? And how would that square with your 
rationale for going to war?
    President Bush. Yes--the question is about weapons of mass 
destruction. Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. The United 
States--United Nations Security Council voted 1441, which made the 
declaration it had weapons of mass destruction. It's well known it had 
weapons of mass destruction, and we've also got to recognize that he 
spent 14 years hiding weapons of mass destruction. I mean, he spent an 
entire decade making sure that inspectors would never find them. Iraq's 
the size of the State of California. It's got tunnels, caves, all kinds 
of complexes. We'll find them, and it's just going to be a matter of 
time to do so.

Australia-U.S. Free Trade Agreement

    Q. Mr. President, if I could ask, the Prime Minister has also said 
that Australian-American ties have never been stronger than at the 
moment. What impact will that have on Congress when it considers an FTA 
for Australia? And what sort of timeline are you thinking of for an FTA?
    President Bush. Right. Well, I appreciate you asking that. I'm 
firmly committed to an FTA with Australia. I am hopeful that the 
Congress feels the same way I feel.
    We discussed the matter. I asked the Prime Minister, are we making, 
from the U.S. side, a strong enough effort to move the process along? Is 
Ambassador Zoellick doing what he's supposed to be doing in terms of 
getting this trade agreement done? And the Prime Minister assured me 
that was the case. And so that made me feel good. The idea is to try to 
get this thing done by the end of the year and then, of course, get it 
to our Congress in '04. It's--I believe we can get it done, and I think 
it's an important--will be an important step in our relationship.
    Prime Minister Howard. Amen to that.

Iraq's 55 Most Wanted/Saddam Hussein's Regime

    Q. Sir, you guys now have in custody 18 of the 55 most wanted----
    President Bush. Yes.
    Q. ----including several senior members, Tariq Aziz and others. What 
are you learning about where Saddam might be----
    President Bush. Right.
    Q. ----what his status is, or also about weapons?
    President Bush. The question is about--you know, we've captured 18 
of the 55, I think you said. And we're still looking for Baghdad Bob, I 
want you to know. [Laughter] Anyway--what are we learning? Well, we're 
learning that, for example, that Tariq Aziz still doesn't know how to 
tell the truth. He didn't know how to tell the truth when he was in 
office. He doesn't know to tell the truth when he's been--as a captive.
    And the--but we will find out a lot about the nature of the Hussein 
regime as time goes on because, you know, more and more people will come 
forward. It may not be the Aces, Kings, and Queens, and Jacks that do 
the talking. It may be those who were doing the--carrying the water for 
the Aces, Kings, Queens, and Jacks that do the talking.
    And we will learn a lot when the Iraqi people--as the Iraqi people 
continue to come forth. And when we feel like sharing the information 
with you, we will. It's--you'll probably learn it before I will in 
certain cases. But what we're going--the world will find is, the man had 
a program to develop weapons of mass destruction, that he had terrorist 
connections, and that he was, by far, one of the most brutal dictators 
in the history of the world.

[[Page 536]]

    People in Australia and America can't imagine what--when John and I 
say how brutal this guy is. This is a guy that cut the tongues out of 
dissidents and let them bleed in town squares. That's just--that's 
beyond the imagination of the Australian people to think that could 
possibly happen. It happened. And more and more people will find out the 
nature of this regime as time goes on. I don't know whether the Aces 
will talk. I don't know whether the Kings will talk. But many Iraqi 
citizens will talk, and the more we learn, the more the world will find 
out about the true nature of the Iraqi regime.

Prime Minister Howard's Visit

    Prime Minister Howard. Leigh. Leigh Sales and ABC [Australian 
Broadcasting Corporation].
    Q. President Bush, can you give us an idea of the sorts of things 
that you and the Prime Minister did at the ranch last night and this 
morning? And when do you plan to visit Australia?
    President Bush. Yes, as soon as possible. I don't know what that 
means, though. So it's kind of what we--that's called a ``dodge.'' 
[Laughter] I'd love to come to Australia.
    We--so I get out a coffee--of course, got Laura some coffee first 
thing in the morning. And I look out my window, and there's the Prime 
Minister ready to go for a stroll. So I hustled and got dressed, and we 
went for a good walk. And I'll tell you something, the guy--I'm a pretty 
good athlete--he walks a good clip. I was breathing hard, and Barney was 
breathing harder. [Laughter] We had trouble keeping up with him.
    But one of my favorite things to do is to show this place to 
friends. And so the Prime Minister and Mrs. Howard and Laura and I 
went--traveled the ranch. And I took him to my favorite spot, which is 
this canyon, and there's a waterfall. It rained a couple of days ago--
actually last night--so the water was moving pretty good. And it's just 
a special part of the ranch.
    We've got a lot of different variety of hardwood on this ranch. It's 
hard to tell it from this spot, but north of here, and--there's a creek 
and intersection to a river, and there's some just fantastic trees in 
these bottoms. And John and I went and spent some time down there.
    We visited a lot about our mutual interests. He's obviously very 
knowledgeable about a lot of the world. And we spent a lot of time 
talking about Indonesia and the threats that emanate out of Indonesia 
and what the Australian Government is doing to work with the Indonesian 
Government to make Australian people--and America, for that matter--more 
secure.
    We had a pretty good dinner last night--a little beef. And 
fortunately, the Prime Minister wanted to go to bed early, because I did 
too. [Laughter] And we had a great visit. We'll go and have a lunch--one 
more tour of the ranch and have a lunch. The one thing I regret is he 
didn't go fishing with me yesterday afternoon. He wanted a little rest, 
but I love having him here.
    I can't tell you what a comfort it is to talk to him on the phone. 
He's steady. You know, times get tough when you make tough decisions, 
and we both made a tough decision, but there was never any doubt in his 
mind. He was steady under fire. He stood his ground when he needed to 
stood his ground, because he understands the difference between right 
and wrong. And he knows the difference between slavery and freedom. And 
I'm honored to call him friend, and really am glad he's here.
    Thank you all very much. Hope you enjoy your stay in this part of 
the world. By the way, they tell me Australia and Texas, they've got a 
lot in common. Having to watch this man perform, I agree. [Laughter] The 
biggest compliment you can pay to somebody, at least in this part of the 
world, is you're kind of like a Texan. [Laughter] Thank you.
    Prime Minister Howard. Thank you.
    President Bush. Okay, Barney, come on. Quit showing off. [Laughter]

Note: The President's news conference began at 11:17 a.m. at the Bush 
Ranch. In his remarks, he referred to former President Saddam Hussein 
and former Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz of Iraq.

[[Page 537]]