[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 42, Number 50 (Monday, December 18, 2006)]
[Pages 2148-2149]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
The President's Radio Address

December 9, 2006

    Good morning. This week, I held important meetings at the White 
House about the situation in Iraq.
    On Monday, I met in the Oval Office with one of Iraq's most 
influential Shi'a leaders, His Eminence Abdul Aziz Al-Hakim. We 
discussed the desire of the Iraqi people to see their unity Government 
succeed and how the United States can help them achieve that goal.
    On Thursday, I had breakfast with Prime Minister Tony Blair of 
Britain. We discussed the sectarian violence in Iraq and the need to 
confront extremists inside Iraq and throughout the region. The Prime 
Minister explains it this way: ``The violence is not an

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accident or a result of faulty planning. It is a deliberate strategy. It 
is the direct result of outside extremists teaming up with internal 
extremists--Al Qaida with the Sunni insurgents and Iran with Shi'a 
militia--to foment hatred and thus throttle, at birth, the possibility 
of nonsectarian democracy.''
    The Prime Minister and I also discussed the report I received this 
week from the Iraq Study Group, chaired by former Secretary of State 
James Baker and former Congressman Lee Hamilton. Their report provides a 
straightforward picture of the grave situation we face in Iraq. The Iraq 
Study Group's report also explicitly endorses the strategic goal we've 
set in Iraq: an Iraq that can ``govern itself, sustain itself, and 
defend itself.''
    The report went on to say, quote, ``In our view, this definition 
entails an Iraq with a broadly representative government that maintains 
its territorial integrity, is at peace with its neighbors, denies 
terrorism a sanctuary, and doesn't brutalize its own people. Given the 
current situation in Iraq, achieving this goal will require much time 
and will depend primarily on the actions of the Iraqi people.''
    I agree with this assessment. I was also encouraged that the Iraq 
Study Group was clear about the consequences of a precipitous withdrawal 
from Iraq. The group declared that such a withdrawal would, quote, 
``almost certainly produce greater sectarian violence'' and lead to ``a 
significant power vacuum, greater human suffering, regional 
destabilization, and a threat to the global economy.'' The report went 
on to say, ``If we leave and Iraq descends into chaos, the long-range 
consequences could eventually require the United States to return.''
    The Iraq Study Group understands the urgency of getting it right in 
Iraq. The group also understands that while the work ahead will not be 
easy, success in Iraq is important, and success in Iraq is possible. The 
group proposed a number of thoughtful recommendations on a way forward 
for our country in Iraq. My administration is reviewing the report, and 
we will seriously consider every recommendation. At the same time, the 
Pentagon, the State Department, and the National Security Council are 
finishing work on their own reviews of our strategy in Iraq. I look 
forward to receiving their recommendations. I want to hear all advice as 
I make the decisions to chart a new course in Iraq.
    I thank the members of the Iraq Study Group for their hard work and 
for the example of bipartisanship that they have set. The group showed 
that Americans of different political parties can agree on a common goal 
in Iraq and come together on ways to achieve it. Now it is the 
responsibility of all of us in Washington--Republicans and Democrats 
alike--to come together and find greater consensus on the best way 
forward.
    As part of this effort, I met this week with House and Senate 
leaders from both parties, as well as senior members of the Armed 
Services, Foreign Relations, and Intelligence Committees. We had 
productive discussions about our shared duty to forge a bipartisan 
approach to succeed in Iraq. The future of a vital region of the world 
and the security of the American people depend on victory in Iraq. I'm 
confident that we can move beyond our political differences and come 
together to achieve that victory. I will do my part.
    Thank you for listening.

Note: The address was recorded at 7:50 a.m. on December 8 in the Cabinet 
Room at the White House for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on December 9. The 
transcript was made available by the Office of the Press Secretary on 
December 8 but was embargoed for release until the broadcast. In his 
address, the President referred to Abdul Aziz Al-Hakim, chairman, 
Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq. The Office of the 
Press Secretary also released a Spanish language transcript of this 
address.