[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 42, Number 47 (Monday, November 27, 2006)]
[Pages 2073-2074]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks Following a Lunch With Prime Minister Shinzo Abe of Japan in 
Hanoi

November 18, 2006

     President Bush. Mr. Prime Minister, thank you very much for your 
time. We just had a very frank and full discussion. I admire the Prime 
Minister's intellect; I'm very comfortable with his style, and I'm very 
confident we'll be able to work together for the common good.
     The relationship between Japan and the United States is strong, and 
we will keep it that way. And a strong relationship between our two 
countries is good for the security of the East. We talked a lot of 
issues. And we spent time talking about North Korea and our common 
commitment to see that the six-party talks succeed. We spent a lot of 
time talking about bilateral issues. And one of the most interesting 
issues we discussed was our common desire to continue to cooperate on a 
ballistic missile defense.
     I told the Prime Minister he needs to get over to the United States 
quickly. I'm looking forward to hosting you. And thank you for your 
time.
     Prime Minister Abe. I was able to spend a very meaningful and 
wonderful time with

[[Page 2074]]

the President today. So thank you very much, Mr. President.
     Japan and U.S. share an alliance which is based on fundamental 
values, such as freedom, democracy, basic human rights, and the rule of 
law. And we agreed with each other that strengthening our alliance would 
be a good in maintaining peace and security of not just Japan and the 
region surrounding Japan but the entire world.
     Also concerning North Korea, as the President mentioned, we agreed 
that we would take a coordinated approach to reach a final resolution of 
the issue and also to achieve some concrete results at an early stage. 
We also agreed to strengthen and accelerate our cooperation concerning 
ballistic missile defense, and we will instruct our foreign ministers 
and defense ministers to conduct consideration concerning this matter.
     We are faced with many difficult issues, like North Korea, the 
fight against terror, and also Iraq. But we agreed that we will be 
utilizing the alliance we have between Japan and the United States for 
the good of the world and the region for a long time.
     And I'm looking forward to visiting the United States sometime next 
year and seeing the President. Thank you.

Note: The President spoke at 12:47 p.m. in the Sheraton Hanoi. Prime 
Minister Abe spoke in Japanese, and his remarks were translated by an 
interpreter.