[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 42, Number 9 (Monday, March 6, 2006)]
[Pages 372-373]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at a Dedication Ceremony for the New United States Embassy in 
Kabul

March 1, 2006

    Thank you for the warm welcome. I thought I'd just drop in to cut a 
ribbon. [Laughter] Ambassador, Laura and I are honored to join you. And 
Mr. President, thank you for joining us.
    The President just hosted a great Afghan lunch. The hospitality of 
the Afghan people is well known, and I enjoyed that hospitality, Mr. 
President. Thank you.
    I appreciate the Secretary of State joining me. I'm proud to call 
Condi Rice friend; America is proud to call her Secretary of State. I 
appreciate Ron Neumann's service. There's nothing wrong with a son 
following in his father's footsteps. [Laughter] When we

[[Page 373]]

rolled by the old Embassy, he told me that it was his dad that cut the 
ribbon as the Ambassador from the United States to Afghanistan. And here 
we are about to open a brand new Embassy with a proud son and a great 
representative of our country, Ambassador Ron Neumann, cutting the 
ribbon.
    History sometimes spins an interesting tale, doesn't it, and such a 
tale is being spun today of public service. I want to thank all of my 
fellow citizens for working so far away from home on an incredibly 
important mission. I want to thank the Embassy personnel, as well as our 
United States military personnel for being on the frontline of freedom's 
march. I know it's a hard job, away from your families--a long way from 
your families, having just flown 17 hours to get here.
    But it's a vital mission. It's historic in its nature. This is the 
kind of mission that someday, the Secretary of State will be speaking to 
Foreign Service officers and relaying the stories and the tales and the 
toils of those who served in Afghanistan in 2006. And so I congratulate 
you on your hard work, and I thank you on behalf of a grateful nation.
    I also want to thank the Foreign Service nationals who are here as 
well, those citizens of Afghanistan who are helping our folks to 
accomplish a big mission. I am struck by the story that our Embassy was 
kept open and guarded during the days of the Taliban. And when 
Afghanistan was liberated, there were Afghan nationals here to turn over 
the keys to the Embassy. For those of you who are guarding our Embassy, 
thank you. For those of you who carry on their legacy, I thank you as 
well. We welcome your help; we're honored with your presence today.
    I've been honored to welcome Afghan citizens to Washington on a 
fairly regular basis. Laura and I have hosted brave men and women, who 
are dedicated to democracy and freedom, in Washington. One thing they 
always ask me--they ask me with their words, and they ask me with their 
stares, as they look into my eyes--is the United States firmly committed 
to the future of Afghanistan? That's what they want to know. My answer 
is, ``Absolutely.'' It's in our Nation's interest that Afghanistan 
develop into a democracy. It's in the interests of the United States of 
America for there to be examples around the world of what is possible. 
That it's possible to replace tyrants with a free society in which men 
and women are respected, in which young girls can go to school to 
realize their full potential, in which people are able to realize their 
dreams.
    And so my message to the people of Afghanistan is, take a look at 
this building. It's a big, solid, permanent structure, which should 
represent the commitment of the United States of America to your 
liberty. I firmly believe the work that we're doing together is laying 
the foundation of peace for generations to come. And I want to thank you 
for sharing that mission.
    May God bless America and you and your families, and may God's 
blessings rain on the good people of Afghanistan.

Note: The President spoke at 3:31 p.m. In his remarks, he referred to 
President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan.