[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 42, Number 31 (Monday, August 7, 2006)]
[Pages 1419-1420]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
The President's Radio Address

July 29, 2006

    Good morning. This week, the international community continued to 
build a political and security framework to confront the crisis in the 
Middle East, a crisis that began with Hizballah's unprovoked terrorist 
attacks on Israel. Secretary of State Rice traveled to Lebanon, Israel, 
and Europe, and met with key leaders to discuss a way forward. In Rome, 
she met with representatives of more than a dozen nations and 
international organizations. Our Governments agreed to provide relief to 
the people of Lebanon, using corridors for humanitarian aid that Israel 
is opening. We pledged to support Lebanon's revival and reconstruction. 
And we agreed to continue to work for a sustainable cease-fire that will 
stop the current violence, end the suffering of people in Lebanon and 
Israel, and move us toward a lasting peace.
    Yesterday I met with Prime Minister Tony Blair to discuss our 
strategy to achieve these shared goals. We agreed that Lebanon's 
democratic Government must be empowered to exercise full authority over 
its territory. Militias in Lebanon must be disarmed; the flow of illegal 
arms must be halted; and the Lebanese security services should deploy 
throughout the country. We also agreed that a robust multinational force 
must be dispatched to Lebanon quickly. An effective multinational force 
will help speed delivery of humanitarian relief, facilitate the return 
of displaced persons, and support the Lebanese Government as it asserts 
full sovereignty over its territory and guards its borders. In addition, 
Iran must end its financial support and supply of weapons to terrorist 
groups such as Hizballah, and Syria must end its support for terrorism 
and respect Lebanon's sovereignty.
    Secretary Rice will return to the region this weekend, and she will 
work with the leaders of Israel and Lebanon to seize this opportunity to 
achieve lasting peace and stability for both countries. Next week, the 
United Nations Security Council will also meet. We will work with our 
allies to adopt a resolution that establishes a framework to end the 
violence quickly and mandates the multinational force. This approach 
will demonstrate the international community's determination to support 
the Government of Lebanon and defeat the threat from Hizballah and its 
foreign sponsors. And this approach will make possible what so many 
around the world want to see: the end of Hizballah's attacks on Israel; 
the return of Israeli soldiers taken hostage by terrorists; the 
suspension of Israel's operations in Lebanon; and the withdrawal of 
Israeli forces.
    As we work to resolve this current crisis, we must recognize that 
Lebanon is the latest flashpoint in a broader struggle between freedom 
and terror that is unfolding across the region. For decades, American 
policy sought to achieve peace in the Middle East by promoting stability 
in the Middle East, yet these policies gave us neither. The lack of 
freedom in that region created conditions where anger and resentment 
grew, radicalism thrived, and terrorists found willing recruits. We saw 
the consequences on September the 11th, 2001, when terrorists brought 
death and destruction to our country, killing nearly 3,000 innocent 
Americans.
    The experience of September the 11th made it clear that we could no 
longer tolerate the status quo in the Middle East. We saw that when an 
entire region simmers in violence, that violence will eventually reach 
our shores and spread across the entire world. The only way to secure 
our Nation is to change the course of the Middle East by fighting the 
ideology of terror and spreading the hope of freedom.
    So we have launched a forward strategy for freedom in the broader 
Middle East, and that strategy has set in motion a transformation that 
is changing millions of lives

[[Page 1420]]

for the better. From Kabul to Baghdad to Beirut and beyond, we've seen 
the birth of democratic governments that are striving to serve their 
people, reject terror, and work for peace. We're also seeing those who 
oppose democracy fighting its progress with all the destructive power 
they can muster. We see this in Hizballah's attacks on Israel, in the 
suicide bombings that kill innocent Iraqis, and in Al Qaida's campaign 
of terror across the world.
    The enemies of freedom have shown their ability to set back our 
efforts with deadly attacks, but ultimately they will fail. They will 
fail because courageous leaders in the region have stepped forward to 
defend freedom and set the Middle East on a better course. And they will 
fail because millions of people who have suffered decades of oppression 
and violence will choose to live in peace with their neighbors.
    In Iraq, we will help Prime Minister Maliki's unity Government 
defeat the terrorists, insurgents, and illegal militias and establish a 
democracy in the heart of the Middle East. In Lebanon, we will stand 
with the democratic Government in its efforts to rid the country of 
terrorists and foreign influence and bring about a better life for the 
Lebanese people. In the Palestinian Territories, we will work with 
President Abbas to support the forces of moderation and achieve our 
shared vision of two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, living 
side by side in peace and security.
    This moment of conflict in the Middle East is painful and tragic, 
yet it is also a moment of opportunity for broader change in the region. 
Transforming countries that have suffered decades of tyranny and 
violence is difficult, and it will take time to achieve. But the 
consequences will be profound--for our country and the world. When the 
Middle East grows in liberty and democracy, it will also grow in peace, 
and that will make America and all free nations more secure.
    Thank you for listening.

Note: The address was recorded at 2 p.m. in the Cabinet Room at the 
White House for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on July 29. The transcript was 
made available by the Office of the Press Secretary on July 28 but was 
embargoed for release until the broadcast. In his address, the President 
referred to Prime Minister Tony Blair of the United Kingdom; Prime 
Minister Ehud Olmert of Israel; Prime Minister Fuad Siniora of Lebanon; 
Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki of Iraq; and President Mahmoud Abbas (Abu 
Mazen) of the Palestinian Authority. The Office of the Press Secretary 
also released a Spanish language transcript of this address.