18 October 2001
Transcript: Powell Addresses Regional Business Leaders in Shanghai
(Reports "resounding" support for U.S. from APEC ministers) (4700)
Pacific Rim ministers gathered in Shanghai for the annual meeting of
the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum are signaling firm
support for U.S. efforts to fight global terror, Secretary of State
Colin Powell said October 18.
"I cannot tell you how pleased we are at the response we received from
the international community," Powell said in a speech to U.S. business
leaders in Shanghai. "Today, earlier this morning at the APEC meeting,
I got a resounding signal of support from all the members present, and
President Bush will get the same signal when he meets with those
leaders over the weekend."
In addition to declarations of support from organizations such as the
United Nations, NATO, the Organization of American States and the
Organization of the Islamic Conference, more than 100 countries have
committed themselves to taking action to block terrorist funding
channels, Powell said. "And more will come along as we go forward," he
added.
The secretary also reported "an enormous degree of success" with U.S.
efforts to locate terrorist networks through information-sharing with
the world's intelligence services.
Regarding the U.S.-led strikes against the Taliban regime in
Afghanistan, Powell pledged that the military campaign will continue
until the terrorists responsible for the September 11 attacks against
the United States are stopped. "But it's not just Afghanistan," he
added, "we've got to rip up all elements of the Al Qaeda network."
Powell said such a campaign "will take a long time to execute," but
made clear that the Bush Administration will not waver.
"The one thing I am absolutely sure of is that the president is
determined, and [that] he is encouraged and given greater inspiration
in his determination by the responses he has received from leaders
around the world," he said.
Powell also commented on current U.S.-China relations, which he
described as "excellent" but also "much too complex to capture in a
single term or slogan." He acknowledged ongoing bilateral
disagreements -- particularly in the areas of human rights and arms
control -- and said the United States would never shy away from
expressing its concerns.
"If there is a basis of trust, if there is a common understanding of
each other's interests, we can pursue those areas where we aren't in
agreement and make good things happen -- and when we disagree we can
disagree openly and candidly face to face," he said.
Following is a transcript of Powell's remarks:
(begin transcript)
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman
(People's Republic of China)
Remarks by
Secretary of State Colin L. Powell
At Business Event
Shanghai, People's Republic of China
October 18, 2001
INTRODUCTION BY U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE: Good afternoon ladies and
gentlemen. It's a pleasure for all of us to be here. This event never
would have happened without the full cooperation of each member of the
U.S.-APEC Business Coalition, the U.S.-China Business Council, the
Pacific Basin Economic Council, the National Center for APEC, the
U.S.-ASEAN Business Council, and the U.S. National Committee for
Pacific Economic Cooperation. The Chamber is privileged to be a member
of such a prestigious group, and I have the distinct pleasure of
welcoming a very special guest this afternoon, one of President Bush's
most trusted advisors and a leader in this world in the fight against
terrorism.
Secretary Colin Powell needs no formal introduction to the people in
this room. A Vietnam War hero, a mastermind of the quick and decisive
Persian Gulf War, Secretary Powell spent the better part of his life
protecting freedom, democracy and free enterprise. Once again, in a
time of need, the country has called upon the Secretary for his
leadership in the war against terrorism and he has not let us down. He
has demonstrated that diplomacy is every bit as important as political
issues and his intelligence in law enforcement and financial and
military tools required for this new type of warfare. The effort to
capture terrorists requires a coordinated campaign, not only within
the US government, but also with government and law enforcement
officials in countries all around the world. And only a man with the
respect and admiration that the Secretary enjoys around the world is
able to so quickly bring the different nations together in pursuit of
a common goal.
Mr. Secretary, I want to assure you that the U.S. business community
and our colleagues around the world stand one hundred percent behind
the administration's efforts to eliminate terrorism and bring these
criminals to justice. Just as business responded to the tragedy of
September 11, with donations and reconstruction efforts and relief for
victims and their families, we stand united with government in a
response to terrorism and to the strengthening of our economy. At home
the business community strongly supports the efforts to bolster
national defense and homeland security, to beef up our intelligence
capabilities and to improve airline security. Outside of our borders,
we support the deployment of US troops in the use of any and all force
required to snuff out terrorism. With President Bush, Colin Powell and
the rest of the President's cabinet leading the way, we know we can
win this battle.
And on a personal level, let me express my respect and my appreciation
for your support and friendship and your encouragement for the Chamber
and perhaps more important than all of this, your long encouragement
for the young people of our country. It came in a little red wagon. It
is my honor, ladies and gentlemen, to introduce the Secretary of State
of the United States, Colin Powell.
SECRETARY POWELL: Thank you very much. Thank you very much ladies and
gentlemen and thank you, Tom, for that very kind and generous
introduction and I especially thank you for the endorsement that you
gave on behalf of your colleagues to the efforts of President Bush and
the members of his team and to this grand coalition we are forming to
pursue terrorism and to win this battle, because it is a battle that
is worthy of being fought and it is a battle that we must win. I
especially thank you for your personal friendship over the years and
as you said a nice word about what I was doing for young people, you
and your organization were right there with us and I deeply appreciate
that as well.
It's very nice to look out over this audience and see so many friendly
faces and welcome to all of you and thank you for having me here for
just a short period of time. What I would like to do is just talk for
a little bit and then we'll turn it over to questions and answers for
most of the time we have available.
I'm pleased to be here as sort of the advance guard for President
Bush. He is winging his way here as we sit, and I know that
everybody's looking forward to seeing him as he makes his first visit
to Asia as President. For me to be back in Shanghai is a very exciting
experience. I first came to this city in 1973. I was a young
lieutenant colonel in the United States Army. It was a few months
after President Nixon had made his historic visit to China and I was
one of the first Army officers of the United States armed forces who
was allowed back into China. There were six military officers in my
group -- three Army, three Air Force -- and we were something of a
curiosity in China at that time as you can well imagine, and we were
very well escorted, I might also say, at that time. (laughter) But to
come back now and to land as I did last night and to drive into the
city and to see what has happened, not in the past 28 or 29 years, but
really just in the last 12 or 13 years, is absolutely remarkable. To
think back to 1973 as a young lieutenant colonel and talking to many
Chinese citizens who we had some access to and asking them what their
greatest ambition was, what their aspiration was for their families,
for their children, for their future, and they said, a sewing machine,
a bicycle, and an AM radio. That was it. They were all on bicycles.
I remember going up into the mountains way north of here and meeting
with a group of villagers who were taking this terraced hill and
fixing it, just terracing it, so they could grow a little bit of rice,
and the rains would come unexpectedly and wash it all back down, and
the next day they would start up again, just stacking rocks one on top
of the other. And then going on the other side of the mountain and
bringing soil over to this side of the mountain. This driving spirit
that was there and has been in this country for so many, many years,
waiting to be released, waiting to be turned loose, waiting for the
opportunities to do great things for this country. And to come back
here some almost 30 years later -- I've only been back once in those
intervening 30 years -- to come back here this long time later and to
see what's been accomplished is just remarkable.
It's been accomplished by enlightened political leadership. It's been
accomplished by enlightened economic policy. It's been accomplished by
the driving spirit of the Chinese people. It's been accomplished by
leaders such as you. Business leaders such as you who are willing to
come here and to see the possibilities, see the prospects, see the
opportunities, and invest. And it was also accomplished, never let us
forget, by American consumers. American consumers who need the
products that come from China. American consumers who are not in the
upper salary levels, but who are making 20, 25, 30 thousand dollars a
year and go into -- I will not name individual chains because it
always gets me in trouble, either because I have named or because I
did not name you, but -- who go into stores that cater to them and
will sell them products that they can afford that will help them make
their ends meet. And so it works both ways.
This city has been built by Chinese labor and Chinese creativity and
Chinese energy, but also because lines of trade and lines of
communication and this economic openness existed between our two
nations which allowed American consumers and consumers elsewhere in
the world to benefit from what is happening here in Shanghai and in so
many other parts of China, as well. It benefits all of us, and it has
to be pressed and pursued and continued in every possible way to make
sure that the wealth we see in Shanghai and some of the other cities
in China is expanded throughout the society.
The Chinese leadership cannot rest and we cannot rest along with them
until what we see here really is reflected throughout the entire
society of 1.2 or three billion people. And what they have learned,
and what we have known all along, is that when you generate wealth,
when you create wealth, that wealth can be used not only to build
great cities, but to provide an education for rural children, to
provide a roof over someone's head, a school, a well, an opportunity
to perhaps put in a more efficient crop or rotate crops. All kinds of
things can happen but only if you have the wealth that will allow you
to do that.
And so I congratulate you for what you have done, and I certainly
congratulate the Chinese leadership for what they have accomplished in
these years. We have an excellent relationship with China right now
and I think as a result of President Bush's visit the relationship
will grow and improve and thrive. He is very much looking forward to
meeting with President Jiang Zemin tomorrow. And people have tried to
capture this relationship in one or two specific terms. Are they an
enemy to be? Are they a strategic competitor? And what I discovered
early on in my tenure as Secretary of State, I think all of us in the
Administration now understand, the relationship is much too complex to
try to capture in a single term or slogan that everybody can use say,
aha, that's it. No, that is not it. Much too complex. The basis of the
relationship, I think, is increasingly of an economic nature. When
people say to me, what's the most important thing going on with China
right now? Forty percent of their exports are coming through the
United States of America. That is something that they will think twice
about with respect to putting that at risk. Does that mean that all is
well, that we share all their values, and we have no disagreements
with them? 'Course not. It means that two strong, powerful nations,
both of which have a place in this world, both of which are
Asia-Pacific nations, can talk to one another, and if there is a basis
of trust, if there is a common understanding of each other's
interests, we can pursue those areas where we aren't in agreement and
make good things happen, and when we disagree we can disagree openly
and candidly face to face. And so we are not reluctant to say to the
Chinese government that we have concerns about human rights issues in
China. And we will always express those concerns to you because that's
part of our value system and we would not be Americans if we did not
try to convey to you what we feel strongly about, what our value
system's about. And we also are going to talk to you about issues
having to do with proliferation of certain kinds of materials or
weapons to other nations where we think this is not in the best
interest of our relationship, not in the best interest of the world
community. And it would be irresponsible of us to be reluctant to
speak to you candidly about that if we are going to have the kind of
relationship that allows us to move forward as two responsible nations
moving forward.
So there is no reason for us to become enemies. The United States is
not looking for enemies. We don't want any enemies, don't need any
enemies. By heavens when they show up we will protect ourselves and we
will defend ourselves and we will defeat our enemies.
We meet at an interesting time, some five weeks after the tragedy that
took place in New York and Washington and in a field in Pennsylvania.
Five weeks after we saw thousands of our fellow Americans killed, but
we also saw hundreds and hundreds of non-Americans killed at the World
Trade Center. It was a World Trade Center. And some 80 countries lost
citizens. Five hundred Muslims were killed in the World Trade Center
on the 11th of September. And for anyone to say, well it was just at
attack against America. Wrong. It was an attack against the world. It
was an attack against civilization. It was an attack against the
values that we believe in -- those basic human values. Anybody
perpetrating such an act cannot be seen as a hero, cannot be seen as
someone who believes in a faith or is practicing any known faith.
There is no faith on the face of the earth that tolerates such action
and would endorse such action. America and the grand coalition that
has formed around President Bush's leadership, is making this case to
the world. I think we are making it rather effectively.
We've known about terrorism before. We have seen it as something that
happens elsewhere -- happens in the Middle East all the time -- and we
saw it tragically happen again yesterday. It happens in far away
places and we can see it on our television sets and then it started to
get a little closer to home. It happened in Oklahoma City, and it
wasn't some foreigner, it was one of our own. An American who did that
and killed so many of his fellow Americans out of some weird sense of
lack of accountability. Who knows what went through Timothy McVeigh's
mind as he went through the process of deciding this is something that
he should do. We will defend ourselves, and we will defeat our
enemies. We saw it also at the World Trade Center back in 1993. This
time it was foreigners who were coming to us, but we have never seen
anything quite like this. We have never seen anything quite like this
which brought it home to us in such a powerful and tragic way, and
which had effect beyond, well beyond just the incident. Who would have
thought that a terrorist act, or three terrorist acts on that one day
could effect the entire world's economy? Yet that is what is
happening.
Look what else has happened that causes us to tremble and be
concerned. We all worry about cyber-terrorism. If I went around the
room and asked each and every one of you, how much have you spent on
protecting yourself from cyber-terrorism? -- I'm sure I'd come up with
a figure that was in the hundreds of millions of dollars. And what did
they get us with? The mail system. The mail system! Anthrax or just
talcum powder. It causes panic. The mail system doesn't need the
airways to get to you, and it goes to every single home, every single
office, every single place on earth. Now we are concerned about that.
And so, we are in a new era of terrorism.
The eleventh of September will always be known as a unique day in
history. It was before 9/11 and after 9/11. I was in Lima, Peru when
it happened. I was with President Toledo getting ready for a meeting
of the Organization of American States when the note was handed to me,
I looked at it and realized that this was not an accident. Got on my
plane and flew back to the United States, arriving seven hours later
and meeting with the President immediately. And by the middle of the
next day we knew that we had to respond to this terrible, terrible day
not just by going after the perpetrators of events of that day, but by
going after terrorism. And President Bush understood early on that
once we started down this road we had to stay on this road, and we
have to go after terrorism wherever it existed around the world. It
couldn't just be the terrorism that came to America on that day, it
had to be the terrorism that exists throughout the world. And the
coalition he's pulling together is for that purpose.
I cannot tell you how pleased we are at the response we received from
the international community. Today, earlier this morning at the APEC
meeting, I got a resounding signal of support from all the members
present, and President Bush will get the same signal when he meets
with those leaders over the weekend. I'm enormously pleased about the
way in which the United Nations responded, almost immediately, with a
resolution out of the Security Council and a resolution out of the
General Assembly, saying that this is unacceptable, we condemn it, and
we will now take action against it. NATO, for the first time in its
history, invoking Article 5, which says that an attack against one is
an attack against all, and we will all respond in a manner that each
of us finds appropriate. The Rio Treaty invoked, the ANZUS Treaty
invoked, the Organization of African Unity, the Organization of
Islamic Conference just the other day. Fifty-six Islamic countries
coming together and condemning this, not saying that it is some
manifestation of Islam, it's saying quite the contrary, Islam does not
support anything like this, Usama bin Laden is a criminal and is to be
seen as a criminal, not as some sort of a hero or freedom fighter. And
so this coalition came together, and then the work began, and the work
began with, let's make sure that we understand we're going to attack
on a broad front. It's going to be financial, go after the money that
funds these people, start to cut it off. The UN responded quickly, the
President signed an executive order and that work is well underway.
Some one hundred countries have now committed themselves to doing what
is necessary to stop terrorist funding, and more will come along as we
go forward. There's a legal aspect to it; making sure that we have
laws in place that bring these kinds of people to justice quickly, and
that we have empowered our law enforcement officials so that they can
take on this new threat. There's an intelligence component to this
campaign, making sure that all the nations of the world that have
information about these individuals start to share it in a more
effective way, and I can tell you that after one month we have seen an
enormous, enormous degree of success with this; with people being
picked up, people being stopped. People that we didn't know about
suddenly being identified for us by other nations and allowing us to
take action against them. Many of these stories I cannot describe to
you because of the way in which they were done. Maybe later, but not
right now. And so there's been a great response on the
intelligence-sharing aspect of it. Public diplomacy, political action
and of course military action.
Right now we are watching as our proud men and women in uniform both
from the United States, the United Kingdom and other nations joining
the military part of the campaign are taking the battle to Al Qaeda
and Usama bin Laden in Afghanistan, and taking the battle to the
Taliban regime which has given them haven, which has given them
support, which has given them the friendly sea they needed in which to
swim. These people are invaders in Afghanistan. They didn't come to
Afghanistan to help the people of Afghanistan, they didn't come to
Afghanistan so they could bring money to Afghanistan, and then use
that money to help impoverished Muslims in other parts of the world,
no, they came to Afghanistan for one single purpose; to invade that
country, be a foreign presence, a hostile presence in Afghanistan so
they could conduct terrorist activities around the world. And they've
got to be stopped. The military campaign will be pursued until we do
that. But it's not just Afghanistan; we've got to rip up all elements
of the Al Qaeda network. And we're going to do that. But it's going to
take time. As President Bush has said repeatedly, he intends to be
patient, he intends to be persistent, he understands that this is a
battle that is going to take a long time to unfold. It is a campaign
that will take a long time to execute. It is a war in which we have to
have patience. Sometimes there will be immediate great successes, and
sometimes there will be quiet successes you know nothing about. But
the one thing I am absolutely sure of is the President is determined,
and he is encouraged and given greater inspiration in his
determination by the responses he has received from leaders around the
world.
In this tragedy there are also opportunities, and we are going to try
to make the best of those opportunities. Nobody's calling us
unilateral anymore. That's kind of gone away for the time being; we're
so multilateral it keeps me up twenty-four hours a day checking on
everybody (laughter); nobody accuses us of that anymore. They can see
that America is prepared to be a leader in this new campaign against a
threat that is against all of civilization. But you know, we will come
back from this, we will prevail. And we can't let this kind of
activity hold us back or hold us down. We're better than that, we're
stronger than that; we have spines of steel. We've been challenged
before and overcome those challenges and we'll overcome those
challenges now. And you have to do your job. We have to restore
confidence in our economies, we have to make sure our people
understand that they have to get on with life, we can't walk around
afraid, we're not an afraid people. And so it is so important for you
to keep doing what you're doing; keep investing, keep opening up
avenues of opportunities for increased trade, keep destroying
barriers, let's move quickly. We want to see China and Taiwan enter
the World Trade Organization. We need to see the next round get
started or launched; we need to keep moving forward, we need to
restore confidence in the world's economies, but especially in the
American economy. We have a strong economy; it will come back. It may
take a little bit of time, but it will come back. It will come back
because of who we are; people who believe in themselves, people who
believe in the promise of democracy and the free enterprise system,
and believe in the fundamental values of human rights and human
dignity. A value system that is increasingly being copied by nations
around the world, at their own pace and in their own manner, and
consistent with their own history and culture over time.
China has seen what can happen when you start to move in this
direction, and I am one of those who firmly believe the more they see
of it, the more they will gain an appreciation for the rule of law and
fundamental human rights for all citizens, and they will be encouraged
to continue moving in that direction. The nations of the world that
adopt these values, consistent with their own history and culture,
respecting the rights of their people, taking care of their people,
investing in their people, getting ready for this twenty-first century
world, those nations will progress and move forward. Those that do
not, the Iraqs of the world, the North Koreas of the world, remaining
transfixed in some past life, will find themselves being left further
and further behind.
The Russian president will be coming this weekend. Yesterday he
announced that they're going to get rid of the listening station in
Cuba, and their base in Cam Ranh Bay. Not only is the Cold War over,
the post-Cold War period is also over. As part of the new strategic
opportunity, there's a new strategic opportunity to work with Russia.
And so I think at this time of tragedy, at this time of anxiety, we
should see the promise that is before us. And I'm absolutely convinced
that to achieve this promise will require the work not just of
politicians and diplomats, not just of strong-bodied workers around
the world, but of creative leaders such as you, who are continuing to
spread the word about free-market economics, spread the word about
free trade, spread the word about dropping barriers, spread the word
about what good can come from open access to information, to markets,
and the ability to take a chance, the ability to take risk, the
ability to go as far as you can go, limited only by your own ambitions
and your willingness to work. That's what we hope for all societies,
and I can assure you that America will continue to try to be that
model for the world -- as my old boss and buddy Ronald Reagan used to
say, "that shining city on the hill," an inspiration for all nations
who wish to share in the kind of success and wealth that we have
enjoyed.
Thank you very much.
(end transcript)
(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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