By KUNA
Washington : US President George W. Bush has expressed optimism that the development of a vision of what a Palestinian state would look like “will come into being by the time (he) left office.” This came in a roundtable discussion with Arab media representatives in the White House late Friday. The meeting was attended by Kuwait’s former Information Minister Dr. Saad bin Tifla Al-Ajmi.
He said that his tour of the Middle East — which starts January 8 and will take him to Israel, the West Bank, Kuwait, the UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt — would be an opportunity for asserting the commitment of the US to the peace process.
Bush added that the Annapolis Conference “is the beginning of serious discussions, a serious attempt by the United States to encourage the Israelis and the Palestinians to develop a vision of what a Palestinian state will look like. And I am very optimistic that such a vision will come into being by the time I leave office.” The reason behind his belief was that he believed both the Palestinian and Israeli leaders “are committed to a two-state solution and both understand that in order for that state to come into being, subject to the road map, that there has to be more than just words, there has to be clarity in what a Palestinian state will look like.” The president added that he was also looking forward to sitting down with “friends and allies” to assure them of his commitment to Middle Eastern peace and “to work with them to make sure they’re committed to Middle Eastern peace; that I will remind them that we’ve got a three-track strategy — one is the vision, two is the implementation of the road map — in other words, the United States chairs a committee with the Palestinians and the Israelis to deal with road map issues — and three, a commitment by the United States and others to build the institutions necessary for a Palestinian democracy to thrive.” He said that in other words, “there’s got to be a recognition that we need institution-building, there needs to be work.” Bush would also be asserting the “strong commitment” of the US to regional security, and “that the United States is engaged and will remain engaged in the security of the region.”
On the Iranian nuclear file, Bush said the National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) report ” ought to be viewed as a clear signal that Iran is a threat to peace,” as it indicated that the Persian state “had a covert military nuclear weapons program, and that international pressure caused them to suspend the program.” The president said there were three elements to a nuclear weapons program: One, the ability to enrich uranium that can be converted into the basis of a bomb; secondly, the know-how to be able to assemble that enriched material into a bomb; and third, the capacity to deliver the weapon through rocketry.
“As far as we know, two of those programs still are ongoing. One is the rocketry program. Two, there is a civilian enrichment program. And the danger of a civilian enrichment program is once that knowledge is gained, that it could be easily transferred back to a covert military program,” he explained.
Thus, he said the NIE “should be a clear signal to all of us that Iran is a threat to peace. And they’re a threat to peace because they have been non-transparent. They have not lived up to their obligations under the IAEA. They have not been truthful about their program.” He said, however, that “we (the US) have a plan to deal with it (the nuclear issue) in a diplomatic way. It’s important for the people in the region to know that while all options remain on the table, that I believe we can solve this problem diplomatically, and the way to do that is to continue to isolate Iran in the international community.” As for the role of Saudi’s King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, Bush said he admired the monarch “because he is a man who commands a lot of respect from me, personally, and a lot of respect in the region. When he speaks, people listen. It’s not to say that other people don’t listen, as well, but Saudi Arabia is geographically important, is the guardian of holy sites, and he’s a well-respected man.” He said that in terms of the Middle Eastern peace process, the fact that King Abdullah sent his foreign minister to Annapolis “sent a very strong message, that Middle Eastern peace is going to require the participation of more than just the United States and Israel and the Palestinians; that a true peace is going to require a commitment in the neighborhood of supporting two states living side by side in peace — two democratic states living side by side in peace.” He added that the Saudi monarch “has laid out his own (peace) initiative in the past; it commanded great respect. It is a commitment to a process. And so I value him as — I view him as invaluable in the process.” He also noted that Saudi Arabia “recognized that murderers threaten not only other parts of the world, but threaten the Kingdom’s own security. And the security forces there have done a magnificent job of using intelligence to find the few that would murder the many. I have been impressed, and any objective observer would be impressed, by Saudi Arabia’s commitment to finding those people that use murder as a weapon.” Bush added that he was “satisfied” with US-Saudi cooperation and that he appreciated the efforts that the intelligence community inside Saudi had been making to deal with extremists.
As for the issue of the four Kuwaitis detained in Guantanamo, President Bush said the issue of their transference back to Kuwait was being looked into.
“We’ll look at it. Our strategy, by the way, is to transfer as many Guantanamo detainees back to their countries of origin as possible, subject to the no torture agreement … I just will have to look into this.” He explained that some Guantanamo detainees “are going to need to be tried in our court system. The crimes were such that we believe they ought to be brought to justice in a US court system, which is — it’s having a little trouble getting started because we’ve had a few court challenges for our court system. The whole purpose of the exercise was to send people home, and try those who remain. And I just have to check on the four.” Asked about Iran and regional peace, Bush said, alluding to Iraq, that “now on the Iranian border exists a democracy, with a constitution that is the most modern constitution written in the Middle East; a democracy that is beginning to grow in confidence; a democracy that will recognize the rights of all citizens within its border; a democracy that will be responsive to the people, which stands in stark contrast to the system of government in Tehran that’s not a democracy, it is in many ways a theocracy.” He added that within Iran there was “a different attitude of the Shia. There’s a quietus school; there’s a school that says religion definitely has a part in society, but religion isn’t going to run government, which is a — it’s just an interesting way to view the neighborhood.” And in Afghanistan there was “now a democracy, a functioning democracy.” He wondered, “Are these easy situations? No, they’re difficult situations. Democracy takes a while to grow and flourish. But nevertheless, there is a competing form of government in Afghanistan, a different kind of form of government in Afghanistan.” He noted that Russia was very much engaged in the region. “Russia has been helpful with Iran. Russia has supported the UN Security Council resolutions.” And it put forth an “interesting” proposal to provide the fuel for Iran.
Bush reminded that he had repeatedly said that Iran had “a sovereign right to have a civilian nuclear program. The problem is, because this nation did not level with the IAEA, they are to be not trusted with the capacity to enrich, because once you learn to enrich, you could easily transfer that to a covert military program.” He reiterated that his country would “remain active in the region” and “will be working with friends and allies on developing a security plan … That’s one of the main purposes of the trip, to talk about US commitment to the region.”