25 September 2001Bush Meets with Leaders of Congress, Japan's Prime Minister, FBI Officials
(As he continues his anti-terrorism campaign) (790) By Wendy S. Ross Washington File White House Correspondent Washington -- President Bush September 25 continued to focus on building a global coalition against terrorism and on finding and bringing to justice the perpetrators of the September 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. He met in the morning at the White House with the bipartisan leadership of Congress. They discussed military planning as well as the domestic consequences of the terrorist attacks, White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer told reporters. Bush then welcomed Japan's Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to the Oval Office, followed by a joint news conference with reporters in the Rose Garden of the White House. "The Prime Minister and I had a wide-ranging discussion about ways that we can cooperate with each other to fight global terrorism," Bush told reporters. He said that he and Koizumi, the leaders of the world's largest and second largest economies, "talked about the need to work in a way" to cut off the terrorists' funding. "The Prime Minister also talked about ways that Japan will share intelligence," Bush said, noting that the United States and Japan will "work cooperatively on the diplomatic front." Bush told reporters that the mission of the worldwide coalition he is building "is to rout out and destroy international terrorism," and that "the mission won't alter" even if the duties of the coalition change. Bush said Prime Minister Koizumi "understands this requires a long-term vision, requires a patience amongst both our people." Prime Minister Koizumi said the Japanese "are ready to stand by the United States to fight terrorism." In the afternoon, Bush left the White House to visit the headquarters of the Federal Bureau of Investigation not far away. There he thanked staff members for their work against terrorism, and received a briefing on several aspects of the investigation. The September 11 terrorist attacks that killed thousands of people have "strengthened the spirit of America" and united the nation, President Bush told the employees. "We're in a war we're going to win," Bush said, detailing new measures he has proposed to Congress to aid the FBI in its work, including new surveillance tools. Over 4,000 employees of the FBI are assigned to the investigation into the terrorist attacks, as well as working to disrupt any further action that may be planned, Bush said. At his daily news briefing, Fleischer was asked if the United States wants to overthrow the Taliban regime in Afghanistan. He responded that the United States was not involved in "nation building," but that its anti-terrorist policy means that "anybody who harbors terrorism will be the target of our operations and the target of our actions. And within the Taliban, they have to decide what to do. And clearly, they are, at least from what we're hearing, making their choice that they will continue to harbor terrorists." "The issue is not to what regime do you belong, but what actions have you taken in sponsoring or harboring terrorism," Fleischer said. "If you are sponsoring or harboring terrorism, you will be a target for American action and for world action." But he added that "the Afghani people are not synonymous with the Taliban. They are different. And the Taliban, to a significant degree has come in from the outside, from other nations, from different regions of the world, and they've taken advantage of the turmoil that has existed in Afghanistan and the lack of a powerful central government in Afghanistan to make Afghanistan the breeding ground for their international terrorism." Fleischer also said the decision by the government of Saudi Arabia to cut ties with the Taliban regime is "a very significant step for the Saudi government to take. And the President, as he indicated, is appreciate of the actions that they have taken in this regard." In another development, Fleischer announced that on September 27 President Bush will travel to Chicago to meet with airline workers at O'Hare airport there. He will thank them "for their contributions in combatting terrorism by working every day and getting our airline system and our economy back on track to help keep our economy moving and to help to keep the American public moving," Fleischer said. "The President will also talk about the importance of the government and the airlines working together to address important issues of airline and airport safety. He'll address airline workers' concerns about these difficult times and the impact it's having on airline workers and their families," Fleischer said. (The Washington File is a product of the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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