[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 43, Number 24 (Monday, June 18, 2007)]
[Pages 775-779]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
The President's News Conference With Prime Minister Romano Prodi of 
Italy in Rome

June 9, 2007

    Prime Minister Prodi. Good afternoon everyone. I am delighted to 
have received President Bush today, and I thank President Bush for 
having chosen to spend a couple of days in Rome for his European 
mission--a rather long European mission, I would say. And this is the 
first in his second term.
    Our talks today have been very, very interesting, indeed, very 
friendly talks. And I must say that we took the opportunity, in fact, to 
pursue some issues that we already began discussing in Heiligendamm, and 
in fact, we had a bilateral meeting today and discussed some of the 
issues, as I said, that we already went over in Germany.
    We talked about climate change, energy, our fight against poverty, 
our Africa policies. These are all very, very important decisions and 
choices that we have to make and, of course, that are going to be 
important for the future, the next generation as well.
    We briefly went over some bilateral issues. Fortunately, we don't 
have any bilateral problems, I would say, no serious problems that have 
created any divisions between our two countries. And in particular, in 
fact, we do share the same views with regard to many issues, many 
matters. And we basically agree on how the future of the world should 
look, should be.
    Now, I thanked President Bush for some symbolic gestures that he has 
shown. Our countries are becoming closer and closer. And, in fact, 
Italian, the Italian language is one of the language that can be freely 
chosen in American schools. All high schools in America offer Italian as 
a language of study. And I think that this is a wonderful step, a 
wonderful way to bring two countries closer, especially when we consider 
that the flow of immigration between our two countries has stopped; it 
stopped a long time ago.
    Now, going on to other issues, of course, we agree that we need some 
new major players, new major world players, and we have to, in fact, 
work together with China, India, Brazil, Mexico. And we agree on that 
approach.
    We also talked about some meetings that we had with Mr. Lula and 
President Hu Jintao after the end of the G-8 summit. And we realize, as 
I've said, that we've got to work more and more together. And I think 
that the progress that has been made by the United States in reaching an 
agreement, a broad agreement on climate change has been a wonderful step 
forward, and I think that this is taking us in the right direction. In 
other words, we have to work together on these issues.
    We haven't yet finalized just about the quantitative details of this 
agreement, but obviously, the underlying message is to work together, to 
cooperate. And I would say that maybe just a few months ago that seemed 
to be unlikely.
    Now, we also had a good discussion on other issues of common 
concern. We talked about Kosovo, for example, Lebanon, Afghanistan, and 
we spoke about some responsibilities that we should take on together. So 
both our countries should work together in order to restore peace and 
stability in these different areas of the world.
    We need to do more. We need to keep working together, especially 
when it comes to Middle Eastern issues. We know, of course, that we have 
not yet been able to put an end to the crisis which has been ongoing now 
for a number of years. And in Lebanon, in fact, the peace mission has 
certainly led to some positive outcomes, yet there are still tensions, 
there are still many difficulties. And that's an open-ended issue, 
therefore, that we have to continue being concerned about.
    Now, that's what we discussed today. I don't wish to add any further 
remarks. I would like to give the floor right over to President Bush. 
And I thank you so very much for having come today, and I thank

[[Page 776]]

you for making it possible to cooperate together and, of course, for 
enabling this cooperation with success in the future. Thank you.
    President Bush. Buongiorno. Mr. Prime Minister, thank you. Laura and 
I are glad to be back in your beautiful country. Rome is a spectacular 
city. And I'm sorry we're disrupting traffic, but nevertheless, it is 
great to be back here. Thank you for the wonderful meal, and thank you 
for our friendship. I think it's important for the people of your 
country to know, relations between our countries are strong, and we 
intend to keep them that way. And I appreciate that; I appreciate the 
good conversation we had.
    I thank you for your commitment to the people of Afghanistan. Your 
country has been an integral part of the NATO mission. You provided a 
lot of important troops for NATO, you're involved with the PRTs in 
Afghanistan. I thank you, but no more so than the Afghan people thank 
the people of Italy. These people are desperate to live in a free 
society, and you ought to take great pride, Romano, and I know you do, 
in making a significant contribution to their freedom. I also appreciate 
your very--your strong advice in making sure that we all understand this 
is not just a military operation, that there has to be a political track 
and a reconstruction track in order for this democracy to survive. And 
so I'm looking forward to continuing to work on this important issue.
    I thank you, as well, for your leadership in Lebanon. It was a year 
ago when we were at the G-8--you remember the attacks came on Israel, 
and then all of a sudden, the situation began to look like it needed 
some help. And there was a lot of doubt in the world's mind until Italy 
stepped up and said, ``We will provide troops, and we'll be the military 
leader in Lebanon.'' And then the world followed. And I want to thank 
you for your leadership on that important issue.
    And now we've just got to make sure the Siniora Government survives. 
One of the best ways to do so is to insist that we proceed forward with 
the Hariri trial, to make sure that there are consequences for behavior 
that may affect the stability of a democracy. I don't want to prejudge 
the outcome of the trial, but I do think it's an important measure for 
all of us to see the truth in that part of the world. And I know we can 
continue to work together. It's very important that foreign influences, 
like that of Syria, not be continually disrupting the Siniora 
Government.
    I want to thank you very much for our discussions on Kosovo. This is 
a part of the world you know a lot about, and Romano made some very 
significant contributions during the roundtable discussions at the G-8 
and was, again, very eloquent today about two things: one, obviously, a 
deep concern about the Kosovars, their desire to be independent, coupled 
with making sure there is a avenue forward for Serbs through the EU and 
maybe NATO. And I appreciate you leading on this issue. It's important 
that the United States and Italy work together on common problems. After 
all, we share common values. And today's discussion just goes, at least, 
to show me how much we can do when we work in a collaborative way.
    As Romano said, the bilateral relations are pretty darn solid, and I 
appreciate that. There's a lot of Italian Americans who have got great 
pride for their homeland. They're watching this press conference--well, 
they may not be watching all of it, Romano, but they'll be watching some 
of it, and they're going to want to know, are we doing well? And the 
answer is, we are. And I'm grateful.
    Answer a couple of questions, or what do you think?
    Prime Minister Prodi. Yes.
    President Bush. Okay, yes.

Italy-U.S. Relations

    Q. Mr. President, you just said that you had lunch with Prodi today. 
Then later you'll have a coffee break with Mr. Berlusconi. What do you 
enjoy most, the lunch or the coffee break? [Laughter] Or would you have 
preferred to be on a diet today? [Laughter]
    And to Prime Minister Prodi, now, I'm perhaps not going to be so 
ironic in my question. Now, the friendship is wonderful. You've made 
progress. But I know that there have been some differences between the 
U.S. and Italy over the months, even though the friendship is solid and 
progress has been made. So President Bush is asking you to perhaps 
change your rules of engagement in Afghanistan, and even with regard to 
Iran that

[[Page 777]]

there are some differences of opinion and, in general, in the Middle 
East. So have you managed to close that gap a bit, or how do you think 
you might be doing that in the future?
    President Bush. Yes, I'm going to have coffee with the former Prime 
Minister, Prime Minister Berlusconi. I'm doing so for a couple of 
reasons. One, he is the opposition leader; two, he is a friend. And I 
mentioned this to Romano, and his attitude was, I don't blame you--it's 
the kind of thing he does when he goes to other countries. And I'm 
looking forward to seeing Silvio. One shouldn't read anything into it 
other than, we made some decisions together; we've known each other for 
a while--just like I've known Romano--actually, I've known Romano a long 
time too. He was President of the EU early on in my Presidency. And so I 
consider it an honor to have friends with two important leaders here in 
Italy.
    Prime Minister Prodi. We spoke very frankly about many of the issues 
that you've just raised in your question. And, yes, there certainly is 
an active cooperation between us. And this is with regard to problems 
we've had in Afghanistan and, of course, the very difficult situation in 
Iran. And we both share the same position, the same views with regard to 
the danger that we are running if we allow the proliferation of nuclear 
weapons, and we also agree on the course of action that should be 
followed.
    So I think that in the future we'll certainly be able to work 
together, and we'll be able to exert pressure, both of us, on the 
Iranian Government. We don't want them to exceed the limits, as it were, 
of a peaceful and monitored or controlled use of nuclear technology. So 
this is our position, and, as I said, we share the same view.
    Now, of course, we also discussed other issues on our common agenda, 
and we were able to reiterate the fact that there is an interdependence 
here and a need to work together, not only because it is helpful or 
useful, but it is a strong need that we have to focus on to restore 
peace in the world.
    Now, we spoke about climate change, about global warming in our 
meetings over the past few days. And I think that this has somehow set 
out a course of action for the future--how we can perhaps harmonize our 
production systems; how we can make sure that our political decisions 
are, in fact, in conformity with these needs. And I think, again, that 
we'll definitely be able to make huge progress together.

Pope Benedict XVI

    Q. Thank you, sir. Can you talk about your conversation with Pope 
Benedict earlier? Did you have a fundamental disagreement over whether 
Iraq was a just war? And what of his concerns about Iraq did you take to 
heart?
    And, if I could, to the Prime Minister, what did you tell the 
President today about the trials going on here involving Americans?
    President Bush. Jennifer [Jennifer Loven, Associated Press], I'll be 
glad to share some of the private conversation with His Holy Father. 
First, I'll give you an impression. I was talking to a very smart, 
loving man. And, you know, after 6\1/2\ years of being the President, 
I've seen some unusual--I've been to some unusual places, and I've met 
some interesting people. And I was in awe, and it was a moving 
experience for me.
    We didn't talk about ``just war.'' He did express deep concern about 
the Christians inside Iraq, that he was concerned that the society that 
was evolving would not tolerate the Christian religion. And I assured 
him we're working hard to make sure that people lived up to the 
Constitution, the modern Constitution voted on by the people that would 
honor people from different walks of life and different attitudes.
    We talked about a lot of other subjects. We talked about our 
attempts to help the people in Africa deal with HIV/AIDS and malaria and 
hunger. I reminded him that we made a significant commitment to that 
end; that about 3 years ago, 50,000 people were getting antiretroviral 
drugs; now over 1,100,000 people are getting them, as a result of our 
initiative on HIV/AIDS, and that I'm going to double that commitment--or 
ask Congress to double the commitment from 15 billion to 30 billion.
    I talked to him about our malaria program, about how we intend to 
reduce malaria by 50 percent in certain countries, and that I'd continue 
to remind the world of our duty

[[Page 778]]

to work together to achieve a major goal, which is to try to eradicate 
malaria throughout Africa.
    And I talked to him about our attempts to feed the hungry, and I 
also reminded him that we've got poor people in our own neighborhood 
that need to be affected.
    He talked about immigration. He's watching the immigration debate 
very closely in America. And I told him I was a person who strongly 
supports comprehensive immigration reform, that, on the one hand, we'll 
enforce our law, on the other hand, we need to treat people with 
dignity. And we had a good discussion.
    Q. ----Pope has said----
    President Bush. What?
    Q. The Pope has said Iraq was worrisome.
    President Bush. Yes, he's worrisome about the Christians inside Iraq 
being mistreated by the Muslim majority. He's deeply concerned about 
that, and we spent a lot--spent a fair amount of time talking about it.
    Prime Minister Prodi. We did not discuss the issue that you raised 
in your question just a moment ago. And I've already clarified many 
times that Italy, of course, is a democratic country. We have very 
clear-cut rules that we follow, and we, therefore, enforce our rules. 
And I am confident that there is no conflict here, in terms of our 
friendship and our cooperation with the United States.

Italy-U.S. Relations/Kosovo/G-8 Summit in Heiligendamm, Germany

    Q. Thank you. You've just told us that you and President Bush have 
just returned from your G-8 summit. Now, the outcomes that have been 
stated on the many issues that you discussed--climate, development, and 
the missile shield--now, are those real--is that real progress, or not? 
And the deadline for the Kosovo independence----
    President Bush. What? Say that again?
    Q. Deadline for the Kosovo independence?
    President Bush. A decline?
    Q. Deadline, deadline.
    President Bush. Oh, a deadline. Beg your pardon. My English isn't 
very good. [Laughter]
    Q. Sorry. And do you wish that President Prodi will pay a visit to 
you in Washington in the next months?
    President Bush. Yes, and yes.
    Q. And on the deadline?
    President Bush. I'd love to welcome the Prime Minister. We're just 
going to have to work through our schedules, but he's invited any time. 
Listen, Italy is a great friend. There are millions of people in our 
country who love Italy because that's where their heritage is from. My 
Ambassador's grandfather was from Italy. I'm sure you know this, but the 
heritage--the Italian heritage is a powerful part of our country and its 
culture. And the Prime Minister is welcome.
    In terms of the deadline, there needs to be one. This needs to 
come--this needs to happen. Now it's time, in our judgment, to move the 
Ahtisaari plan. There's been a series of delays. You might remember, 
there was a moment when something was happening, and they said, no, we 
need a little more time to try to work through a U.N. Security Council 
resolution. And our view is that time is up.
    And so we're working with our friends and allies, and I had a long 
discussion with Vladimir Putin on the subject. To share with you my 
thoughts, what I told him there at the table was, ``It's time; it's time 
to bring this issue to a head.'' And obviously, there's deep concern 
about what that would mean, whether he'd accept it, or not. I understand 
that. But the Kosovars are eagerly anticipating a decision by the world.
    And at the same time, Romano is right, we need to make sure that the 
Serbs see a way forward. And one good way forward is through potentially 
EU membership. I don't have that much to say in it, but I can talk to 
the Serbs about economic development and can talk about a better 
relationship with the United States. And therefore, we will.
    Prime Minister Prodi. Going back to the summit, I can say that it 
has been an actual success, real progress, in other words. I mean, just 
think, people were expecting a rift, problems, arguments, and instead we 
did reach some important conclusions. Now, even the issue of global 
warming, for example, we realize that there is a predominant, a 
prevalent principle, and that is that global

[[Page 779]]

issues have to be dealt with globally. In fact, we all talk about the 
Kyoto Protocol, for example, and we said that this was the first step 
towards international cooperation in this field, in this sector.
    Now, again, we still have some technicalities to work out; some 
little pieces there are missing, as it were. But definitely there is a 
clear-cut will to move forward. We have a resolve there--India, China, 
Brazil, Mexico, everyone has shown the same resolve. There were other 
countries in addition to these; even though they're not G-8 members, 
they're all there to work on global solutions because this is the only 
way we can possibly reach some kind of equilibrium in the future.
    Now, with regard to the other issues--Kosovo, for example, and our 
relations with Russia--well, I would say that during our meeting, there 
was a certain ambiance. We talked about interdependence. I think that's 
a good way of putting it. We didn't feel any tensions, but rather we 
were all seeking a way to strengthen our interdependence. And I think 
that this is something that should be guiding us in our relations with 
Russia, and this is how we can build up a peaceful system for the 
future.
    Those are the goals of the G-8. In fact, G-8 summits don't always 
have technical agendas that are predefined, predetermined. That's not 
how it works. We need to meet and to freely discuss some of these long-
term issues. So we were able to do that very freely, very openly. And I 
must say that we all agreed on our future course of action, and I think 
that we couldn't have hoped for any better than that.
    Now, with regard to Kosovo, again, now we know how to move forward, 
after our discussions there. And I think that that, basically--I mean, 
we couldn't have hoped for any better outcome than that there.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff

    Q. Thank you, sir. Mr. President, General Pace, an Italian American, 
Pace, as you know, is leaving--a distinguished marine, with a lengthy 
career, somebody that all indications are, you and Secretary Gates 
enjoyed working with a great deal--is on his way out. And I wonder what 
this says about the political climate in Washington, that it was decided 
that maybe it would be better to have a new Chairman of the Joint 
Chiefs, rather than have a bruising battle on Capitol Hill.
    President Bush. Pete Pace is a fine man and a great general. And I 
think the fact that Secretary Gates made the recommendation not to move 
forward with a renomination speaks to the U.S. Congress and the climate 
in the U.S. Congress.
    Pete Pace always gave me candid advice. Pete Pace is an excellent 
strategic thinker. And the interesting thing about Pete Pace--even 
though he had four stars on his shoulder, always talked about the 
private. He speculated out loud about Private Pace, what would Private 
Pace think of this decision, what would Private Pace's family think 
about a decision that he was recommending to me.
    And so the decision has been made, and I'm going to miss him. And 
the country owes him a great debt of gratitude for years of service, 
first at Vice Chairman and then as Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of 
Staff.
    Thank you all.
    Prime Minister Prodi. Thank you.

Note: The President's news conference began at 3:48 p.m. at Chigi 
Palace. In his remarks, he referred to Prime Minister Fuad Siniora of 
Lebanon; former President Martti Ahtisaari of Finland, United Nations 
Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for the Future Status Process of 
Kosovo; President Vladimir Putin of Russia; and Secretary of Defense 
Robert M. Gates. Prime Minister Prodi referred to President Luiz Inacio 
Lula da Silva of Brazil; and President Hu Jintao of China. Prime 
Minister Prodi spoke in Italian, and his remarks were translated by an 
interpreter.