[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 44, Number 30 (Monday, August 4, 2008)]
[Pages 1047-1057]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Interview With Foreign Print Journalists

July 30, 2008

    The President. Thanks. Looking forward to my trip. As you all know, 
the itinerary is South Korea, Thailand, and then China. China will be a 
mix of--South Korea will be all diplomacy; get a chance to see my 
friend, the President; a good discussion about common issues. I'll see 
the Prime Minister of Thailand for a nice dinner. He'll have some 
interesting events related to Burma the next day. And then, of course, 
we go into China

[[Page 1048]]

for the Olympics, but there will be a fair amount of diplomacy while I'm 
there.
    And I'm really looking forward to it--looking forward to it because, 
one, my good wife will be going with me and I love to travel with her. 
Secondly, one of my daughters is going with me, which will be fun. And 
my brother will be going with me. And in China, I'll be meeting my 
father, who will be traveling with my sister.
    Q. A big family reunion, Mr. President. [Laughter]
    The President. It sounds that way. Anyway, I'm looking forward to 
it; I'm excited to go. Relations with the three nations that I have just 
described are good, strong. My trip will help advance them, the 
relations.
    And I'll also be giving a speech in Thailand about our foreign 
policy in the Far East, where I will be leaving this foreign policy in 6 
months. I will also remind people that I will be sprinting to the 
finish, that I will finish this job strong. And so, I want to thank you 
for coming by and giving me a chance to visit with you. We'll go a 
couple of rounds here.
    Kenneth.

Island of Dokdo

    Q. Thank you, sir. It's a long question and I'll probably--I don't 
know how to put it, but your strongest allies in Asia are Korea and 
Japan, recently on a tug-of-war game these days over this little island 
called Dokdo. And I know it's--Koreans get very upset because every 
time----
    The President. I want to make some news with you.
    Q. Pardon me?
    The President. I'll make some news for you today.
    Q. Yes, sir, that would be great--[laughter]--because, you know, 
Koreans get upset over this island because whenever the Japanese mention 
that--you know, it's like the Japanese expansionism in the region and so 
on. You know, when the U.S.----
    The President. Get ready.
    Q. Yes, so----
    The President. Are you ready for some news?
    Q. I am ready for some news, please.
    The President. First of all, this dispute will be settled by Japan 
and South Korea. As to the database, I asked Condi Rice to review it, 
and the database will be restored to where it was prior--7 days ago.
    Q. Thank you, sir. That's big news. [Laughter] It is news.
    The President. It is big news.
    Q. Right. And I think Koreans will really appreciate that, because--
--
    The President. Congratulations on breaking this. [Laughter]

U.S. Foreign Policy/President's Trip to Asia

    Q. Do you have some vision regarding to this, like, U.S.-Korea-Japan 
sort of trilateral cooperation when you go to Korea?
    The President. Between?
    Q. The U.S., Korea, and Japan.
    The President. Well, look, part of my--one of the reasons why it's 
very important for the United States to have an active presence and to 
establish good bilateral relations with the countries in the region is 
to help foster good relations between countries, whether it be South 
Korea and Japan, or Japan and China; it's essential. And it's in our 
national interest that South Korea have good relations with Japan. And I 
understand there's tensions. I listen very carefully to the respected 
leaders.
    But first of all, we can't fix certain disputes; that will be up to 
the sovereign governments. But we can help facilitate dialog. We can 
help facilitate understandings. And so I think it's very important for 
the United States to be very active and have a good, solid presence and 
have vibrant diplomacy, which is what this administration has had.
    Part of the reason that I'm stopping in South Korea prior to going 
to the Olympics--I mean, one could have attempted just to go straight to 
the Olympics, but I want to come to South Korea--I had just come from 
Japan, and it's all part of making sure that our foreign policy is 
active. I would hope that no President would ever dial us out of the Far 
East. Quite the contrary, I think it's very important for us to stay 
actively engaged in the Far East.
    And one such multilateral engagement is the six-party talks, all 
aimed at keeping--

[[Page 1049]]

dealing with a very delicate issue, but with five partners sending the 
same message to your neighbor to the north. So it's part of a foreign 
policy vision that's multilateral in nature, with strong bilateral 
relations that help create an atmosphere in which old grievances and new 
issues can be solved in a peaceful way.

Trade

    Q. Are you going to deliver the FTA message to Koreans?
    The President. Absolutely; delivered it yesterday. Went to a meeting 
of the South Korean-U.S. Business Alliance for a reason, I went in there 
to make it clear that this administration absolutely thinks it's 
essential that Congress pass the Korean FTA. And I will deliver it again 
because I know the President is concerned about whether or not--you 
know, he hears talk out of the Congress and I will assure him that this 
free trade agreement is in our interest, in South Korea's interest, and 
that we want to get it done.
    Q. Thank you.
    The President. Pichai.

U.S. Foreign Policy/Asia-U.S. Relations

    Q. Mr. President, you mentioned just now that in Bangkok you're 
going to be sending a message of U.S. commitment to foreign policy, what 
your views are, and that you're going to sprint to the finish. Just, in 
two parts, some would argue that during your Presidency, you know, 
obviously the U.S. is focused on the war on terror--Afghanistan, Iran, 
Iraq--and that meant probably in the views of some that the U.S. was 
less engaged in Asia, especially vis-a-vis countering the influence of 
China, which has grown; and that basically your foreign policy has been 
pretty much like previous administrations, which lacked more higher 
level of proactive stance, some compared it to the Shultz period. How 
would you describe your legacy under your Presidency for Asia and U.S.-
ASEAN relations?
    And point number two, looking ahead with the changes happening with 
India growing stronger, China growing stronger, that's going to change 
the dynamics of the region and the U.S. is a global player in the world. 
How do you see U.S. role in that region in the future?
    Thank you.
    The President. Let me start with the second, then you can refresh my 
62-year-old memory for the first. [Laughter]
    There's plenty of room for countries to work with--the three 
countries you mentioned with other countries in the region in a 
constructive way. In other words, I don't view the diplomacy as zero 
sum, it's got to be either this country or that country. India and China 
and the United States will provide great opportunities for 
entrepreneurs, businesses, throughout the region. And they'll provide 
great opportunities for development of services and goods that people in 
our big markets want. It provides great opportunities for capital flows 
that are--foreign direct investment, which is necessary for economic 
development. It'll provide opportunities to work collaboratively on 
strong strategic areas, security areas. One area will be--there's a 
great opportunity for all of us to cooperate on the environment.
    So I view the emergence of India and China as positives. I think 
it's going to be very important for the United States to stay engaged--
not only with the two nations. If I were Thailand, I'd be asking, ``What 
about us. Will you remember other nations?'' And the answer is, 
absolutely. And one way to do that--the reason I brought up 
multilateralism is one way to stay engaged is through the mechanisms 
like the six-party talks on the Korean issue. Our vision is, once that 
issue gets solved, if North Korea verifiably gives up its weapons, 
programs, ambitions, then the six-party talks can serve as another 
mechanism.
    ASEAN is a place where the United States can remain--should remain 
actively engaged with nations who are saying--say, ``Wait a minute, 
we're your friends, as well. Don't just focus on the big guys, think 
about us.''
    APEC is another very important group of nations where we can work in 
a way that is beneficial, mutually beneficial. And so people may say, 
``Well, okay, fine, how can you?''--I've gone to every APEC meeting, 
including the one right after September the 11th, 2001; I'm going to 
this one, even after our elections. I'll be semiretired by the time

[[Page 1050]]

I--[laughter]--I'll be still sprinting, but semiretired.
    And in terms of foreign policy in the Far East, it is mistaken if 
someone were to say that my preoccupation was on the war on terror. You 
bet I wanted to make sure that we protected ourselves at home. But 
that's the same sentiment other people have. Secondly, our foreign 
policy has been robust in the Far East. Our relations with your country, 
with South Korea, with Japan, and with China have never been better. And 
it took a lot of work to get relations, bilateral relations, as strong 
as they are. Not many Presidents could say, in the history of U.S. 
diplomacy, that relations with South Korea, Japan, China, and Thailand 
are strong and robust.
    A lot of times, if you're friends with one, you made it hard to be 
friends with another. So as a result of a lot of work, a lot of personal 
diplomacy, as well as a lot of active engagement throughout our 
administration, I can tell you that I am satisfied with the variety of 
relationships.
    Secondly, we've worked on common problems together. Who would have 
ever thought that Japan would have forces in Iraq? Or South Korea would 
be alongside a lot of other nations in Afghanistan?
    Q. Need to send more. [Laughter]
    The President. Yes. My only point to you is, is that--or the Taiwan-
Chinese relationship and that issue. It's a very sensitive issue for the 
Chinese Government. And people who study this very closely will see that 
the issue is in a better place. And I made it abundantly clear that 
there was some red lines for the United States on this issue, that there 
would be no unilateral declaration of independence, that our policy was 
still the same. It's very important for the President to be very 
consistent.
    And my only point to you is, is that I'm very pleased with the state 
of relations now, and I recognize it took a lot of work to get them 
there. But I feel very comfortable in telling you that if there is a 
common problem, I've got personal relationships with the leaders where I 
can sit down and say, here's my point of view; what is yours? And if we 
have a common problem, let's work it out. We've had some common problems 
and some issues that have arisen, and yet, I will tell you that 
relations are very cordial and open and honest.
    And so--anyway, good question.
    Yes, Mr. Li.

China-U.S. Relations

    Q. Yes. Thank you very much, indeed, President, for this opportunity 
and your time. And you know that it will be the 30th anniversary of 
establishment of the diplomatic relations with----
    The President. That's a true statement.
    Q. Yes. And I noted yesterday many ministers from your 
administration attended the inauguration ceremony of Chinese new 
chancellory building, Chinese embassy.
    The President. Yes.
    Q. So plus, you've made important increase in the importance of 
bilateral relations. So my question is, how do you evaluate the current 
relations, the welcome of the bilateral relations for the last part of 
30 years, especially near the 8 years under your Presidency?
    The President. Well, thank you very much----
    Q. And which areas do you think two countries could broaden and 
deepen cooperation?
    The President. I do. First, I will be dedicating a new embassy----
    Q. Oh yes, I'm sure you will preside over the new embassy.
    The President. I've got a new embassy going. So, yes, there was a 
deal here last night that people in my administration went to. But I'll 
just tell you what I'm going to. I'm going to the embassy--the new 
embassy opening in Beijing. Isn't that interesting, two new embassies 
open the same year, obviously to celebrate the 30th anniversary of what 
has been a very important relationship.
    It will be at that embassy opening that I will be joined by my 
father, who first introduced me to China in 1975. I went to visit him--
--
    Q. And so the friend of Chinese people.
    The President. Yes. And so--I spent my time riding a bicycle around 
Beijing. And there was no--there was no high-rises. So the next time I 
go as President, and it was like going into another world. It was--there 
were a lot of cars, a lot of skyscrapers.

[[Page 1051]]

    Q. And you didn't bicycle. [Laughter]
    The President. I did bicycle. I mountain biked with the Chinese 
mountain biking team, the Olympic team--I rode with the Chinese Olympic 
team. As a matter of fact, I'm going to mountain bike again on the 
Olympic--hopefully--on the Olympic course, just to get some exercise. 
[Laughter]
    And so my only point to you is that this has been an evolving 
relationship, and we're both honoring the 30th anniversary of the 
relationship. The fact that both countries are honoring the 30th 
anniversary of the relationship shows that--it's a statement about good 
relations. If we had bad relations we wouldn't be honoring the 30th. It 
would be, ``Okay, here comes the 30th anniversary, who cares?''
    But this has got a--opening new embassies in our respective 
capitals, and very fine embassies--I.M. Pei did the one here, and I'm 
not sure who designed ours, but I know it's going to be a great 
embassy--is a signal of how important the relationship is.
    I mean, we'll let the historians evaluate the difference between 
what the relationship was like in the eighties, nineties, but I can tell 
you how--my view. One, I've had good relations with--good personal 
relations with Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao. Secondly, we have worked hard 
during my time to put strategic dialogs in place that broaden and 
enhance the relationship. So Secretary Paulson has worked with his two 
counterparts to deal with economic issues that are--it's very important. 
It's very important for us; it's very important for other nations in the 
region, by the way.
    And, you know, we're working the currency issue, or trade issues, or 
international property rights--or intellectual property rights, I mean. 
And it's an opportunity for our two countries, who've got a interesting 
relationship, to be able to work through common problems and to seize 
common opportunities.
    I've been committed to broadening our defense cooperation and 
exchanges. I think it's going to be very important for--I know it's 
important for our generals and admirals to deal with their counterparts. 
And I believe, more importantly, or as importantly, we ought to be 
getting younger Chinese officers involved with younger U.S. officers. 
Why? To create a feeling of trust.
    You ask how has the relationship evolved. The crisis of my 
administration, the first crisis, was the EP-3. And it was like, ``Oh 
man, this is unbelievable.'' And it--I will tell you--and frankly, it 
took a while to get phone calls returned and we were just trying to get 
information. And I'm confident that if a incident like that happened 
now, there would be a much more immediate response because there's more 
trust between the two administrations.
    And that's good for the region. It's good for our bilateral 
relations, and good for the region. So I would tell you that ours has 
been an evolving relationship that is in good, solid shape. And that's 
not to say that--on any of these relationships, that there needs to be 
constant work. An American President has got to know two things: one, 
the nature of the person he's dealing with, and the nature of the 
government he's dealing with, and the pressures that government feels. 
And I've worked hard to be a sensitive, open-minded person to that end.
    Gregory.

China/U.S. Foreign Policy

    Q. Yes.
    The President. How are you, lad?
    Q. Good, thanks.
    The President. Good.
    Q. A lot of people in Hong Kong talk about this. Looking ahead, do 
you think it's important for the American people to sort of view China 
mostly as a strategic competitor or more as a partner?
    The President. I would call it a--I would--I think as we look ahead 
I would view it as a management of a complex relationship, where 
sometimes our national interests are aligned and sometimes our national 
interests are not aligned. They could--and let me just talk about the 
economy, for example. And one reason I call it a complex relationship is 
that here in America, trade with China is not necessarily universally 
accepted as good. It is universally accepted as good in this 
administration. I mean, free and fair trade is good for the world, and I 
believe it's good for this relationship. But it is a--some in America 
view the advent of Chinese

[[Page 1052]]

manufacturing, particularly at the lower end of the economic scale, as 
direct competition with their own livelihood, thereby making the 
relationship complex.
    Energy--what's very interesting is that if you view China as a 
market, you want them to become more robust and more prosperous. But in 
order to do that, China is going to have to have more energy, and as 
China demands more energy, it creates more global demand relative to a 
slower growing supply, means higher prices for us all.
    It is a very interesting and important relationship made complex by 
globalization, and their constantly changing internal situation, 
particularly when it comes their economy.
    I'm sure you've been reading about the Doha discussions. On the one 
hand, we've got very good relations. On the other hand, it was hard to 
find common ground to get the Doha deal closed. And so it's--your 
readers have got to know that there's opportunity and there's 
challenges. So it's hard to label the relationship one way or the other.
    I will tell you this: An American President is going to have to pay 
very close attention to relations with not only China but the region. 
And I say the region because if it ever--if the perception is ever that 
the United States is fixated only on China, then you're going to have 
issues with long-time allies, people that have been counting on the 
American support for a period of time.
    And so never can the foreign policy be viewed as zero sum. It's 
always got to be viewed as additive. And my worry for America over time 
is that we've become isolationist and protectionist. I've spoken about 
this quite frequently. Protectionism will be bad for our own economy and 
our world economy, in my judgment. Isolationism will create a lot of 
concern.
    And so the United States has got a forward-leaning foreign policy in 
the Far East, and we have. When people take an objective look at this 
administration, we have been very much engaged. And I believe I'll be 
leaving office with the Far East in as good as shape as it can be from a 
U.S. perspective.
    Kenneth. You've already had six questions. [Laughter]

North Korea/Six-Party Talks

    Q. One other issue on this North Korea nuclear deal. I understand 
it's a headache and you're sprinting as fast as you can, but the North 
Koreans doesn't seem like they're keeping up with the pace. [Laughter] 
So maybe you could give me some more breaking news on this end. 
[Laughter] What about the delisting of North Korea from the terrorist 
list, what about the verification process, what about the North Korea--
--
    The President. No, no, no, no, no. Sprinting is one thing; 
undermining good policy is another. And multilateral diplomacy is the 
best way to peacefully solve an issue such as the nuclearization or the 
weaponization or the desire to have a nuclear weapon program by the 
North Koreans. I will do nothing to undermine the six-party structure, 
the credibility of the six-party structure, and our partners.
    And therefore, to answer your question, we are very clear that in 
order to move forward in the phase that we're now in--and this is a 
phased-in deal--that there must be verification that we're all happy 
with, a verification mechanism on not only plutonium, but also highly 
enriched uranium, as well as proliferation.
    Q. ----weapons program as well.
    The President. Yes, right. And we will obviously consult very 
closely with our partners. This will be a subject of discussion with the 
President. And I will be sprinting, but patient; sprinting, but 
realistic.

Freedom Agenda/North Korea

    Q. Okay. Is the North Korean human--North Korean refugees, human 
rights issues will be discussed?
    The President. Absolutely. As you know, I'm a believer in human 
dignity and human rights. I discuss it with all leaders. And I am--for 
example, when it comes to China, we have constantly asked China not to 
send people back into North Korea. I want to thank the South Korean 
people for welcoming their brothers and sisters who have been able to 
escape.
    Q. It's what they need to do.
    The President. Yes, I know.
    Q. We thank you for----

[[Page 1053]]

    The President. It's not easy. We need to open up--we have opened up 
our doors. And the first step--the two things on my mind now in North 
Korea are getting rid of the nuclear weapons program, which, as you 
know, can be very destabilizing; when North Korea fires rockets or 
tests, it creates reverberations around the immediate area. And 
secondly, is to recognize--constantly keep in mind the human rights 
violations that take place there.
    Pichai.

Burma/Vietnam

    Q. Mr. President, again, back to Bangkok, you were going to mention 
something about Burma, questions on Burma.
    The President. I did, yes.
    Q. Obviously it's an issue with human rights. Burma is a concern for 
the U.S. It's also a concern for quite a number of members of ASEAN. But 
there is a view again that that's one issue that's hindering a more 
advanced cooperation between U.S. and ASEAN as an organization. What's 
your view on this, your take on that?
    The President. I don't think so. I don't think so. I think--I don't 
think--matter of fact, I think our relations are very strong. I think 
they've been strong on counterterrorism and the economy. There's a 
difference about how hard people should push for democracy in Burma. I'm 
at one end of the ledger. And we'll continue to press hard.
    And I do want to thank the Thai Government for its understanding of 
the refugee issue, particularly as relates to the border policy. I think 
it's been very wise and very humane. My message is going to be one 
directed to the people in Burma when I meet with some of the activists, 
and Laura is going to be meeting with some of the people that she got to 
know.
    Tell you an interesting story. I included Burma in my last United 
Nations address, and it was a pretty strong statement. And she was in 
the audience there at the U.N. And just as soon as the speech ended she 
got an email from one of the activists she had met, a person that was 
trying to help deal with human suffering.
    And I just thought it was interesting world we're in, in which the 
speech finishes; the word gets out; they email back to Mrs. Bush, or 
Laura, to thank me as I walked off the podium. Now, it's--my only point 
to you is that it is very important for us to--I understand pressures on 
countries, and I understand different interests. And I always try to put 
myself in the other person's shoes. But as I do so, I never forget 
certain basic fundamental values. And so we will be--I will be, and 
Laura, will be expressing our opinion in a way that is, I hope, very 
clear and hopeful to people. Thailand is a democracy.
    Q. We're having some problems.
    The President. Democracy is not easy, right?
    Q. Right.
    The President. On the other hand, it is a democracy, and they'll 
work through an issue, no question about it. The country next door to 
you is not and wants to hear that people remember them. See, one of my 
concerns is that we--that America gets so comfortable they say, ``Who 
cares; what does it matter whether or not somebody has got HIV/AIDS?''
    One of the things on ASEAN you ask about is that part of our AIDS 
initiative that I'm going to go sign a bill this afternoon, which is a 
firm commitment to dealing with disease is in Vietnam. Isn't that 
interesting?
    And my only point will be that we are a compassionate country 
amongst a lot of other things. We are an idealistic country. We act 
for--you know, we act--at least this administration has--not afraid to 
make tough decisions if needed, particularly given the world in which we 
live, in which there are people that are willing to kill the innocent to 
achieve their political objectives.
    But we're also a very compassionate nation. And it's interesting 
that a nation--you asked about ASEAN relations and bilateral relations--
it's interesting that a nation with which this country had been at war 
is now a country that is receiving HIV/AIDS help to help deal with a 
human catastrophe.
    My trip to Vietnam, by the way, was a fascinating experience when I 
went. And it's an interesting marketplace economy that's beginning to 
grow.
    Q. It is.

[[Page 1054]]

    The President. Vibrant. And it provides great opportunities for 
people in the neighborhood.
    Yes, sir, Mr. Li.

China-U.S. Relations

    Q. Yes. President, just a followup question to my first question. 
And you know the bilateral relations between China and the United States 
had been improved under your Presidency, and now it's--[inaudible]. But 
what would be your expectation and predictions of the future bilateral 
relation under the new American administration, Republican or Democrat?
    President Bush. Yes, thank you. Well, the only thing I can tell you 
with certainty is what it's going to be like for the next 6 months--
sprinting to the finish. [Laughter]
    Our relations are becoming more and more interwoven and--our 
economic relations are very, you know, intricate and--you know, there's 
dependency in a way; there's a lot of capital gain invested; there's 
marketplaces; as I mentioned, a strategic dialog that Secretary Paulson 
set up--it's constantly evaluating different opportunities dealing with 
the current problems, but also dealing with strategic opportunities.
    I would predict to you that whoever follows me will have a--will be 
a combination of an active engagement with a constant reminder of our 
belief in human freedom and human liberty.

Olympic Games/President's Trip to China

    Q. My second----
    The President. That's your third question. [Laughter]
    Q. ----the Beijing, again, is a very important event, not only for 
China but also for the whole world. So your stance against politicizing 
the Olympic games is highly--[inaudible]--by Chinese people. So what you 
would like to convey, your messages and wishes to the 29th Beijing 
Olympic games and nothing special to Chinese people, because Chinese 
people has made tremendous efforts to ensure the Olympic games is a 
successful event--even sometimes they make some sacrifices.
    The President. Yes. Well, our message is, is that I personally and 
America respects the Chinese people--respect your history, respect your 
tradition, and I'm honored to have been invited to the games. And I make 
the case to people that by going to the games and respecting the people, 
it gives me a--it gives me credibility with the Government so that we 
can deal with common opportunities and common problems.
    And I'll have a bilateral with Hu Jintao, which I'm looking forward 
to. I enjoy the man. I find him to be a straightforward guy; I'm very 
comfortable in his presence, and we will talk about the kinds of issues 
we always talk about.
    So, for me it's going to be a real pleasure to see the Olympics. I'm 
a sportsman; I love sports. As I mentioned, I'm looking forward--I hope 
I'll be riding my mountain bike on the mountain bike trail. I'll 
probably be taking the easiest route, because the hills looked quite 
steep the last time I was there.
    And I'm going to go to see some of the events. As I understand it, I 
think we've got a chance to go see the United States basketball team 
versus China, which ought to be a pretty interesting event. I bet it's 
pretty noisy, as I understand the great Yao Ming--[laughter]--who plays 
for my old hometown, Houston--the Houston Rockets--foot is healed. I 
hope so, because it will make it a very interesting contest.
    I look forward to watching the fan reaction and to seeing good 
healthy competition. I am fascinated by the Chinese Olympics teams' 
efforts to capture the most medals. I think good competition is very 
healthy. They're going to--and so it'll be fun to watch, and it'll be 
really interesting to see not only the sports and to feel the atmosphere 
of the Olympics--I've never been to a summer Olympics before--but also 
to cheer on my team, because our objective is to get more medals than 
anybody. That's what competition is about.
    And if we do we'll be gracious in victory, and if we don't we'll be 
humble in defeat. But I will be there as the President of the country 
cheering the team when it comes in the Olympic stadium, going by 
different venues, and, just letting them know America is cheering for 
them. And so that's going to be exciting.

[[Page 1055]]

    And as I say, there will be diplomacy. We're opening a new Embassy. 
I'll have a bilateral dinner, a lunch with the President--a meeting, and 
then I think his wife and my wife will join us, so it'll be a nice 
social occasion. And then there will be the Olympic committees and all 
the stuff you're supposed to do.

Olympic Games/China-U.S. Relations

    Q. But what kind of specific events you would like, you and Mrs. 
Laura Bush would like most, and you will watch during the----
    The President. Yes. Well, I like a lot of sports. Unfortunately, 
we're not going to be there--the most exciting in many ways for kind of 
a baby boomer like me is the track and field. That's like--that's it, to 
watch the sprinters and the different big events and----
    Press Secretary Dana Perino. Get some tips, get some sprinting tips.
    The President. Yes--[laughter]--sprinting tips. That's Kenneth. 
[Laughter] We're not going to be there for that. So, you know what, 
we'll see. I'm pretty relaxed about it. Not every single minute of every 
day has to be totally organized, and so I'll be with a lot of my family 
and they're fun to hang around with. I'm sure we'll walk around the 
different venue sites and just get a sense for the whole atmosphere of 
people from all around the world coming to Beijing to compete in the 
Olympic games. That's going to be a proud moment for the Chinese people.
    And I made a decision not to politicize the games; this is for 
athletics. There's plenty of time for politics, and I'm confident I'll 
have time for politics and, you know--look, I've met with the Chinese 
President a lot. This isn't like once every 4 years you sit down with 
the man. I meet with him all the time, it seems like, at these different 
forums where the United States is at the table with a lot of other 
nations in the region.
    And I have got very cordial relations, and it's important to be able 
to have those kind of relations, because he's got to tell me what's on 
his mind and I've got to tell him what's on my mind in order to be able 
to deal with problems. And I think when people study my Presidency and 
find out how Bush conducted foreign policy, they'll see I don't shy away 
from things; I am not a shy person. And if we have a problem, we can 
discuss it. And so the first time I met with your President at Camp 
David, first South Korean President to ever go to Camp David, he came. I 
knew there was some potential problems. And I wanted to put him in a 
frame of mind, in an atmosphere where he'd feel comfortable.

President Lee Myung-bak of South Korea

    Q. Well, you have a knack to charm other leaders, and he was 
fascinated, actually.
    The President. He's an interesting guy.
    Q. Yes.
    The President. He told me a fabulous story about his--you know, he's 
an elder of a huge church, and they asked him to be an elder. And he 
said, ``No, I need to park cars to prove to myself and others that I 
deserve it in the first place.'' A very interesting story, I thought.

Air Quality in China

    Q. Are you worried about the air quality in Beijing? [Laughter]
    The President. Am I worried about it?
    Q. Yes, do you worry about it? [Laughter]
    The President. I'm sure I can adjust. I don't know. I'm going 
anyway. I mean, I will be there. And I don't know what it's like. The 
only way to find out is to go. I'm sure there's all kinds of stories.
    I've read the paper today that the air quality was down. Who knows 
what it's going to be like? We'll deal with it.
    Yes, last question. I've got to go to the electronic media, with 
people who have got beautiful faces. [Laughter]

Chinese Leadership/China-U.S. Relations

    Q. Well, continuing to talk about the leaders, the Chinese leaders, 
what has surprised you about your dealings over the last 8 years with 
Chinese leadership?
    The President. That's an interesting question. One thing that 
interests me is to watch China's leaders deal with the benefits and 
challenges of a marketplace. In other words, this is a country that has 
got a lot of mouths to feed and a lot of people to employ.
    And they are committed to, in many ways, marketplace principles, 
particularly as they have invited in foreign capital. And it's been

[[Page 1056]]

interesting to watch them deal with a combination of the need for raw 
material versus the--from the foreign policy implications of dealing 
with a country that has a lot of raw material. The classic case is Iran, 
where I have spent a lot of time with the Chinese President talking 
about the dangers of Iran having a nuclear weapon, knowing full well 
that they need fuel in order to meet their own internal pressures.
    And I'll repeat to you, Hu Jintao has been very open in many ways 
about his concerns and the pressures he feels, as have I. And I feel 
comfortable. And by the way, that's not easy when there is a language 
barrier. And yet, I can report to you that we do have cordial, relaxed 
conversations in spite of the fact that we both have interpreters. It's 
much easier when you are dealing with a person that speaks your own 
language. Since the only one I speak is English, it's important to have 
English speakers.
    But here is a man who I have had some--I feel comfortable talking 
about his family, and he asks about mine. And that may sound trite to 
you, but nevertheless it's a part of getting comfortable with each 
other. So I guess what's interesting is to--just understanding the 
tensions that an emerging economy can feel, and particularly given 
Chinese--the Chinese role in international affairs, for example, their 
presence in the U.N. Security Council, Perm 5, which creates interesting 
tensions.
    I would say that there's been a--it's just been interesting to 
watch, and interesting to participate with people. I mean, the Taiwan 
issue was a very touchy issue for a while, causing me to say in the Oval 
Office--that which is now well-chronicled--that the United States does 
not support a unilateral declaration of independence. Because I wanted 
to make sure that our message was clear, but also that the relationship 
was in a way not our relationship, but others' relationship with China 
was in a way that it could evolve peacefully and constructively.
    Okay, guys.

Six-Party Talks/Freedom Agenda/Trade

    Q. Mr. President, you mentioned about sprinting. Bullet points: what 
if you could guard--just three points, what is left to be done in the 
sprint?
    The President. There is a lot left to be done. One, make sure that 
the six-party talks continue to--are you talking about the Far East, or 
just in general?
    Q. Yes, the region. The region. Six-party talks, what else?
    The President. It was--like, total agenda? There's a lot.
    Q. Sure. But I'm just saying----
    The President. But in the Far East--absolutely. Six-party talks is 
one. Go to APEC and have a successful conclusion. Meet with ASEAN 
nations to leave the relationship in a solid way. Continue pressing hard 
on the human rights agenda, human freedom agenda, a religious freedom 
agenda. There's three issues right there.
    Ms. Perino. Your free trade agreement.
    The President. Yes, free trade agreement. Absolutely. Concluding a 
relationship with--continuing to work with Japan on their defense forces 
posture, particularly given OEF. I mean, there's a lot to be done.
    And just to make sure that people understand, the bilateral 
relationships are vital. Let's see, I've been to Japan three times as 
President. South Korea is going to be my second time; China, four times. 
I mean, I have been there a lot. Is that right, four times to China? 
Yes.
    National Security Council Senior Director for East Asian Affairs 
Dennis C. Wilder. And this is your ninth trip to Asia.
    The President. Ninth trip to Asia.

South Korean Athletes

    Q. But still you will come----
    The President. I'm looking forward to it. You know the thing that 
amazes me? The South Korean women golfers. [Laughter] Look at a 
women's--have you ever looked at the scoreboard?
    Q. Yes, sure.
    The President. It's unbelievable.
    Q. I don't know----
    The President. Yes, you're supposed to know. If you look at the 
scoreboard, it's phenomenal. You talk about an excellent athletic 
program.
    Q. It's actually a Korean-born, American-trained.

[[Page 1057]]

    The President. You think so? I'm not sure. I know the woman who won 
the LPGA, is that what it was--won the Open is Korean-born, American-
trained. But I'm not so sure----
    Q. Mostly they come--like they go to--school in Florida or Arizona, 
or something like that. So they----
    The President. All of them?
    Q. Like, I would say 80 percent. They come to U.S. They work out----
    The President. Okay. But they have got a pretty--they must have a 
young girls' program that's pretty active too, to get people interested 
in the first place.
    Q. Yes, I think Korean women are much more disciplined than Korean 
men. [Laughter]
    Ms. Perino. That's not just in Korea. [Laughter]
    The President. Thank you all greatly.
    Q. Thank you.
    The President. Enjoyed it. Thank you, buddy.

Note: The interview began at 1:20 p.m. in the Roosevelt Room at the 
White House. In his remarks, he referred to Prime Minister Samak 
Sundaravej of Thailand; architect I.M. Pei; former President Jiang Zemin 
of China; President Hu Jintao of China and his wife Liu Yongqing; Yao 
Ming, center, Houston Rockets; and golfer Ji-yai Shin, winner of the 
2008 women's British Open. A reporter referred to former Secretary of 
State George P. Shultz. The transcript was released by the Office of the 
Press Secretary on July 31. A tape was not available for verification of 
the content of this interview.