    [Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 40, Number 39 (Monday, September 27, 2004)]
    [Pages 2048-2049]
    [Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

    <R04>
    The President's Radio Address

    September 18, 2004

        Good morning. Three years after the attacks of September the 11th,
    our Nation continues to confront the threats to our security. We're
    acting to protect the homeland, to track and disrupt terror networks
    across the world, and to hold to account the sponsors of terror. We're
    staying on the offensive, striking the terrorists abroad so we do not
    have to face them here at home.
        Americans also know that our long-term security requires a broader
    commitment. Our country is determined to spread hope and economic
    progress and freedom as the alternatives to hatreds, resentments, and
    terrorist violence. In hopeful societies, men and women are far less
    likely to embrace murderous ideologies. And free governments will fight
    terrorists in their midst, instead of harboring them. We know that to
    create a safer world, we must build a better world, and we are acting.
        This week, I will speak in New York to the United Nations General
    Assembly, and I will talk about the great possibilities of our time to
    improve health, expand prosperity, and extend freedom in our world.
    America and many nations are taking a bold stand in the fight against
    HIV/AIDS. My Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief will provide an
    unprecedented $15 billion over 5 years to support the fight against the
    AIDS pandemic throughout the world, with the focus on the most afflicted
    countries in Africa, the Caribbean, and Asia. These funds are already at
    work helping to prevent new infections, provide treatment and care for
    millions of victims.
        We've also joined with other nations to create the Global Fund to
    Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria. In 3 years, the fund has raised
    $5.6 billion in pledges and provided funding for projects in more than
    90 countries. And we will persist in the effort until these diseases are
    defeated.
        America and many other nations are also determined to turn the tide
    against global poverty by taking a new approach to economic development.
    It is now our policy to increase foreign aid to those governments that
    are serious about fighting corruption and improving education, health
    care, and economic opportunity for their people. Modern history teaches
    that honest governments that invest in their people and promote economic
    freedom can lift millions out of poverty and despair. And governments
    that truly serve their people deserve our help.
        The health and well-being of developing nations also depend on the
    defeat of hunger and illiteracy. We have launched an Initiative to End
    Hunger in Africa by teaching modern farming techniques and providing
    drought-resistant crops to farmers on that continent. And through our
    Africa Education Initiative, we're training teachers, distributing
    textbooks, and encouraging more school enrollment.
        America and many nations are also building a better world by
    standing with the liberated peoples of Iraq and Afghanistan as they move
    toward democracy. More than 10 million Afghan citizens have now
    registered to vote in next month's election. Iraq is approaching free
    elections in January. Terrorist enemies are trying to stop the progress
    of both those countries, and their violent and merciless attacks may
    increase as elections draw near. But all the world can be certain:
    America and our allies will keep our commitments to the Afghan and Iraqi
    people. Our long-term security--the safety of our children and
    grandchildren--will be served when the broader Middle East is home to
    stable, democratic governments that fight terror.
        At the United Nations this week, I will make some additional
    proposals to expand prosperity and accelerate the march of freedom in
    our world. Never in the history of the United Nations have we faced so
    many

    [[Page 2049]]

    opportunities to create a safer world by building a better world. For
    the sake of our common security and for the sake of our common values,
    the international community must rise to this historic moment. And the
    United States is prepared to lead.
        Thank you for listening.

    Note: The address was recorded at 7:30 a.m. on September 17 in the
    Cabinet Room at the White House for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on September
    18. The transcript was made available by the Office of the Press
    Secretary on September 17 but was embargoed for release until the
    broadcast. The Office of the Press Secretary also released a Spanish
    language transcript of this address.