[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 40, Number 24 (Monday, June 14, 2004)]
[Pages 1019-1020]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
The President's Radio Address

June 5, 2004

    Good morning. This has been an important week for the future of 
Iraq, for the Middle East, and for America's security. On Tuesday in 
Baghdad, Iraq's new Prime Minister, Ayad al-Alawi, and United Nations 
Special Envoy Lakhdar Brahimi announced the members of Iraq's new 
interim government. Iraq's President is Sheikh Ghazi al-Yawr, an 
engineer from northern Iraq. There will also be two Deputy Presidents 
and a 33-member Cabinet.
    This interim government reflects new leadership drawn from a broad 
cross-section of Iraqis. The new government brings together men and 
women of varied backgrounds who represent Iraq's ethnic and religious 
diversity. Five were regional officials; six are women; and all are 
Iraqi patriots dedicated to building a brighter future for their 
country.
    Naming this new government advances our five-step plan to help Iraq 
achieve democracy and freedom as a united and Federal nation. It brings 
us closer to realizing the hope of millions of Iraqis, a fully sovereign 
nation with a representative government to protect their rights and 
serve their interests. It brings us closer to seeing a Middle East that 
knows the blessings of liberty, and it brings us closer to defeating a 
ruthless enemy that has killed thousands of innocents and still 
threatens the peace of the world.
    This new government will follow the political process outlined in 
the transitional administrative law and prepare Iraq for a national 
election no later than January of next year. And while the enemy will 
continue to spread violence and fear, our coalition will work in full 
partnership with the new Iraqi government to provide the security that 
will make that election possible. In that election, the people of Iraq 
will choose a transitional national assembly, the first freely elected, 
truly representative national governing body in Iraq's history.
    Iraq is on the path to democracy and freedom, and the international 
community is helping Iraq complete the journey. We're working with 
allied Governments and with Iraq's new leaders on a new United Nations 
Security Council resolution that will express international support for 
Iraq's interim government, reaffirm the world's security commitment to 
the Iraqi people, and encourage other U.N. members to join in the effort 
of building a free Iraq.
    And this month, I am traveling to foreign capitals and international 
summits to discuss with world leaders our common responsibility to help 
a free Iraq succeed. Yesterday I was in Italy, where I met with the Holy 
Father. I also met with Prime Minister Berlusconi and joined in marking 
the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Rome. Today in France, I will 
meet with President Chirac, and on the 6th of June, I will join him in 
commemorating the D-day landings at Normandy. From France, I will go 
directly to this year's G-8 Summit in Sea Island, Georgia. This month, I 
will also attend the U.S.-EU Summit in Ireland and the NATO Summit in 
Turkey. These meetings provide an opportunity for world leaders to show 
our solidarity with the Iraqi people as they build a free and democratic 
government.
    The challenges of our time extend beyond Iraq. The war on terror is 
being fought on many fronts, and since September the 11th, we have seen 
terrorist violence from Morocco to Indonesia. Yet the center of this 
conflict remains the Middle East. If that region is abandoned to 
dictators and terrorists, it will be a constant source of violence and 
alarm, exporting killers of increasing sophistication and destructive 
power. If that region grows in democracy, prosperity, and hope, the 
terrorist movement will lose its sponsors,

[[Page 1020]]

lose its recruits, and lose the festering grievances that keep 
terrorists in business. It is our work to win this struggle.
    We're now about 3 years into the war against terrorism. We've met 
great challenges, and there are more ahead. This is no time for 
impatience or self-defeating pessimism. We have work to do in the 
defense of our country and for the good of humanity, and by doing our 
duty and holding firm to our values, this generation will give the world 
a lesson in the power of liberty.
    Thank you for listening.

Note: The address was recorded at 12:40 p.m. on June 4 at the U.S. 
Ambassador's Residence in Rome, Italy, for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on 
June 5. The transcript was made available by the Office of the Press 
Secretary on June 4 but was embargoed for release until the broadcast. 
In his remarks, the President referred to Lakhdar Brahimi, Special 
Adviser to the U.N. Secretary-General; Deputy Presidents Ibrahim al-
Jafari and Rowsch Shaways of the Iraqi interim government; Pope John 
Paul II; Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi of Italy; and President 
Jacques Chirac of France. The Office of the Press Secretary also 
released a Spanish language transcript of this address.