17 April 2002
Bush Says War Against Terror Making Progress, But Won't End Soon
(Bush also discusses Middle East in April 17 speech at VMI) (3350)
The global war against terrorism is making progress on many fronts,
President Bush said April 17 in a speech at Virginia Military
Institute in Lexington, Virginia in which he also discussed the
situation in the Middle East.
"In the days just after September the 11th, I told the American people
that this would be a different war, fought on many fronts. Today,
around the world, we are making progress on the many fronts. In some
cases, we use military force. In others, we're fighting through
diplomacy, financial pressure, or special operations. In every case,
we will defeat the threats against our country and the civilized
world," the President said.
The international coalition against the al Qaeda terrorist network "is
strong and united" he said. European nations have frozen almost $50
million in suspected terrorist assets, and many European states "are
taking aggressive and effective law enforcement action to join us in
rounding up these terrorists and their cells. We're making good
progress."
But Bush made clear that this war will not be quick and will not be
easy.
In Afghanistan itself, the battles are not over, he said.
"As the spring thaw comes, we expect cells of trained killers to try
to regroup, to murder, create mayhem and try to undermine
Afghanistan's efforts to build a lasting peace."
But "we're tough, we're determined, we're relentless. We will stay
until the mission is done."
In what he called, the second phase of the war on terror, Bush said,
U.S. military and law enforcement intelligence officers are helping
countries around the world in their efforts to crack down on terror
within their borders.
"We're working with Yemen's government to prevent terrorists from
reassembling there. We sent troops to help train local forces in the
Philippines, to help them defeat terrorists trying to establish a
militant regime. And in the Republic of Georgia, we provide temporary
help to its military, as it routes out a terrorist cell near the
Russian border. Wherever global terror threatens the civilized world,
we and our friends and our allies will respond and will respond
decisively," Bush said.
"Every nation that joins our cause is welcome. Every nation that needs
our help will have it. And no nation can be neutral. Around the world,
the nations must choose. They are with us, or they're with the
terrorists."
In the troubled Middle East, Bush said, all parties have a choice to
make.
"Every leader, every state must choose between two separate paths: the
path of peace or the path of terror. In the stricken faces of mothers,
Palestinian mothers and Israeli mothers, the entire world is
witnessing the agonizing cost of this conflict. Now, every nation and
every leader in the region must work to end terror.
"All parties have responsibilities. These responsibilities are not
easy, but they're clear. And Secretary of State Powell is helping make
them clear. I want to thank Secretary Powell for his hard work at a
difficult task. He returns home having made progress towards peace."
Bush also discussed the "grave threat" posed by a small number of
outlaw regimes who "possess and are developing chemical and biological
and nuclear weapons."
These regimes, he said, are "building missiles to deliver them, and at
the same time cultivating ties to terrorist groups. In their threat to
peace, in their mad ambitions, in their destructive potential and in
the repression of their own people, these regimes constitute an axis
of evil and the world must confront them.
"America, along with other nations, will oppose the proliferation of
dangerous weapons and technologies," said Bush. We will proceed with
missile defenses to protect the American people, our troops and our
friends and allies. And America will take the necessary action to
oppose emerging threats.
"We'll be deliberate and we will work with our friends and allies.
And, as we do so, we will uphold our duty to defend freedom.
"We will fight against terrorist organizations in different ways, with
different tactics, in different places. And we will fight the threat
from weapons of mass destruction in different ways, with different
tactics, in different places," said Bush.
"Yet, our objective is always the same: we will defeat global terror,
and we will not allow the world's most dangerous regimes to threaten
us with the world's most dangerous weapons."
Following is the White House transcript:
(begin transcript)
THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
(Lexington, Virginia)
April 17, 2002
REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
TO THE GEORGE C. MARSHALL ROTC AWARD
SEMINAR ON NATIONAL SECURITY
Cameron Hall
Virginia Military Institute
Lexington, Virginia
10:15 A.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you all very much for that warm welcome.
General Meyer, thank you. General Bunting and General Casey, Secretary
Marsh, Congressman Goodlatte, Albert Beveridge, members of the Corps
of Cadets, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen.
I want to thank you for your warm welcome and thank you for inviting
me to one of America's great institutions. (Applause.) I brought along
a little graduation present. I'm sure you'll like it; some of you will
need it. (Laughter.) As Commander in Chief, I hereby grant amnesty --
(applause). General Bunting, I'm sure you can tell who needed it.
(Laughter.) And I know you'll be generous in the interpretation of
this doctrine. (Laughter.)
I want to congratulate the winners of the George C. Marshall ROTC
Award. (Applause.) The more than 260 young men and women who represent
-- the winners represent the best of our country and the best future
for the United States Army. You stand out among the nearly 30,000
young Americans who are today enrolled in the Army ROTC; the officers
who will serve in the military of the future, and one day will lead
it.
A majority of the Army's current officers started out in the ROTC. For
nearly 90 years, this great program has developed leaders and shaped
character. Those looking for idealism on the college campuses of
America will find it in the men and women of the ROTC. ROTC's
traditions and values are a contribution and a credit to every college
and every university where they're found.
Secretary of State Colin Powell was in the ROTC at City College of New
York, an experience that helped set the course of his life. In his own
words, he said this, "The order, the self-discipline, the pride that
had been instilled in me by our ROTC prepared me well for my Army
career or, for that matter, any career I might have chosen."
Colin Powell's career has taken him from service in Vietnam to the top
rank in the military, and now on a peace mission to the Middle East.
America is fortunate and I am proud to have ROTC graduate Colin Powell
serving our country. (Applause.)
Only one other Army general has gone on to serve as Secretary of
State, and that was George Marshall, himself -- VMI's highest-ranking
cadet in the class of 1901.
As Army Chief of Staff, General Marshall became the architect of
America's victory in the second world war. He fought tenaciously
against our enemies, and then worked just as hard to secure the peace.
President Truman considered George C. Marshall the greatest man he
knew. Above all, said Winston Churchill, Marshall "always fought
victoriously against defeatism, discouragement and disillusionment."
The key to morale and to victory, Marshall said, is "steadfastness and
courage and hope." (Applause.)
And, today, we are called to defend freedom against ruthless enemies.
And, once again, we need steadfastness, courage and hope. (Applause.)
The war against terror will be long. And as George Marshall so clearly
understood, it will not be enough to make the world safer. We must
also work to make the world better.
In the days just after September the 11th, I told the American people
that this would be a different war, fought on many fronts. Today,
around the world, we make progress on the many fronts. In some cases,
we use military force. In others, we're fighting through diplomacy,
financial pressure, or special operations. In every case, we will
defeat the threats against our country and the civilized world.
(Applause.)
Our progress -- our progress is measured day by day, terrorist by
terrorist. We recently apprehended one of al Qaeda's top leaders, a
man named Abu Zabaydah. He was spending a lot of time as one of the
top operating officials of al Qaeda, plotting and planning murder.
He's not plotting and he's not planning anymore. (Applause.) He's
under lock and key, and we're going to give him some company.
(Applause.) We're hunting down the killers one by one.
We're learning a lot about al Qaeda operations and their plans. As our
enemies have fled their hideouts in Afghanistan, they left some things
behind. We found laptop computers, drawings and maps. And through
them, we're gaining a clearer picture of the terrorist targets and
their methods.
Our international coalition against these killers is strong and united
and acting. European nations have frozen almost $50 million in
suspected terrorist assets, and that's important. Many European states
are taking aggressive and effective law enforcement action to join us
in rounding up these terrorists and their cells. We're making good
progress.
Yet, it's important for Americans to know this war will not be quick
and this war will not be easy. The first phase of our military
operation was in Afghanistan, where our armed forces continue to
perform with bravery and with skill. You've got to understand that as
we routed out the Taliban, they weren't sent in to conquer; they were
sent in to liberate. And they succeeded. And our military makes us
proud. (Applause.)
The battles in Afghanistan are not over. American and allied troops
are taking risks today in what we call Operation Mountain Lion --
hunting down the al Qaeda and Taliban forces, and keeping them on the
run. Coalition naval forces, in the largest combined flotilla since
World War II, are patrolling escape routes and intercepting ships to
search for terrorists and their supplies.
As the spring thaw comes, we expect cells of trained killers to try to
regroup, to murder, create mayhem and try to undermine Afghanistan's
efforts to build a lasting peace. We know this from not only
intelligence, but from the history of military conflict in
Afghanistan. It's been one of initial success, followed by long years
of floundering and ultimate failure. We're not going to repeat that
mistake. (Applause.)
In the United States of America, the terrorists have chosen a foe
unlike they have any -- they have never faced before. They've never
faced a country like ours before: we're tough, we're determined, we're
relentless. (Applause.) We will stay until the mission is done.
(Applause.)
We know that true peace will only be achieved when we give the Afghan
people the means to achieve their own aspirations. (Applause.) Peace
-- peace will be achieved by helping Afghanistan develop its own
stable government. Peace will be achieved by helping Afghanistan train
and develop its own national army. And peace will be achieved through
an education system for boys and girls which works. (Applause.)
We're working hard in Afghanistan. We're clearing minefields. We're
rebuilding roads. We're improving medical care. And we will work to
help Afghanistan to develop an economy that can feed its people
without feeding the world's demand for drugs. (Applause.)
And we help the Afghan people recover from the Taliban rule. And as we
do so, we find mounting horror, evidence of horror. In the Hazarajat
region, the Red Cross has found signs of massacres committed by the
Taliban last year, victims who lie in mass graves. This is the legacy
of the first regime to fall in the war against terror. These mass
graves are a reminder of the kind of enemy we have fought and have
defeated. And they are the kind of evil we continue to fight.
By helping to build an Afghanistan that is free from this evil and is
a better place in which to live, we are working in the best traditions
of George Marshall. (Applause.) Marshall knew that our military
victory against enemies in World War II had to be followed by a moral
victory that resulted in better lives for individual human beings.
After 1945, the United States of America was the only nation in the
world strong enough to help rebuild a Europe and a Japan that had been
decimated by World War II. Today, our former enemies are our friends.
And Europe and Japan are strong partners in the rebuilding of
Afghanistan.
This transformation is a powerful testimony to the success of
Marshall's vision, and a beacon to light the path that we, too, must
follow.
In the second phase of the war on terror, our military and law
enforcement intelligence officers are helping countries around the
world in their efforts to crack down on terror within their borders.
Global terrorism will be defeated only by global response. We must
prevent al Qaeda from moving its operations to other countries. We
must deny terrorists the funds they need to operate. We must deny them
safe havens to plan new horrors and indoctrinate new recruits.
We're working with Yemen's government to prevent terrorists from
reassembling there. We sent troops to help train local forces in the
Philippines, to help them defeat terrorists trying to establish a
militant regime. And in the Republic of Georgia, we provide temporary
help to its military, as it routes out a terrorist cell near the
Russian border. Wherever global terror threatens the civilized world,
we and our friends and our allies will respond and will respond
decisively. (Applause.)
Every nation that joins our cause is welcome. Every nation that needs
our help will have it. And no nation can be neutral. Around the world,
the nations must choose. They are with us, or they're with the
terrorists. (Applause.)
And in the Middle East, where acts of terror have triggered mounting
violence, all parties have a choice to make. Every leader, every state
must choose between two separate paths: the path of peace or the path
of terror. In the stricken faces of mothers, Palestinian mothers and
Israeli mothers, the entire world is witnessing the agonizing cost of
this conflict. Now, every nation and every leader in the region must
work to end terror. (Applause.)
All parties have responsibilities. These responsibilities are not
easy, but they're clear. And Secretary of State Powell is helping make
them clear. I want to thank Secretary Powell for his hard work at a
difficult task. He returns home having made progress towards peace.
We're confronting hatred that is centuries old, disputes that have
lingered for decades. But I want you to know, I will continue to lead
toward a vision of peace. (Applause.)
We will continue to remind folks they have responsibilities in the
short run to defuse the current crisis. The Palestinian Authority must
act, must act on its words of condemnation against terror. (Applause.)
Israel must continue its withdrawals. And all Arab states must step up
to their responsibilities. (Applause.)
The Egyptians and Jordanians and Saudis have helped in the wider war
on terrorism. And they must help confront terrorism in the Middle
East. (Applause.) All parties have a responsibility to stop funding or
inciting terror. (Applause.) And all parties must say clearly that a
murderer is not a martyr; he or she is just a murderer. (Applause.)
And all parties must realize that the only vision for a long-term
solution is for two states -- Israel, Palestine -- to live side by
side in security and in peace. (Applause.) That will require hard
choices and leadership by Israelis, Palestinians, and their Arab
neighbors. The time is now for all to make the choice for peace.
(Applause.)
And, finally, the civilized world faces a grave threat from weapons of
mass destruction. A small number of outlaw regimes today possess and
are developing chemical and biological and nuclear weapons. They're
building missiles to deliver them, and at the same time cultivating
ties to terrorist groups. In their threat to peace, in their mad
ambitions, in their destructive potential and in the repression of
their own people, these regimes constitute an axis of evil and the
world must confront them. (Applause.)
America, along with other nations, will oppose the proliferation of
dangerous weapons and technologies. We will proceed with missile
defenses to protect the American people, our troops and our friends
and allies. And America will take the necessary action to oppose
emerging threats.
We'll be deliberate and we will work with our friends and allies. And,
as we do so, we will uphold our duty to defend freedom. (Applause.) We
will fight against terrorist organizations in different ways, with
different tactics, in different places. And we will fight the threat
from weapons of mass destruction in different ways, with different
tactics, in different places.
Yet, our objective is always the same: we will defeat global terror,
and we will not allow the world's most dangerous regimes to threaten
us with the world's most dangerous weapons. (Applause.)
America has a much greater purpose than just eliminating threats and
containing resentment, because we believe in the dignity and value of
every individual. America seeks hope and opportunity for all people in
all cultures. And that is why we're helping to rebuild Afghanistan.
And that is why we've launched a new compact for development for the
Millennium Challenge Account. And that is why we work for free trade,
to lift people out of poverty throughout the world.
A better world can seem very distant when children are sent to kill
other children, and old hatreds are stoked and carefully passed from
one generation to another, and a violent few love death more than
life. Yet hatred, fanaticism are not the way of the future, because
the hopes of humanity are always stronger than its hatreds.
(Applause.)
And these hopes are universal in every country and in every country --
in every culture. Men and women everywhere want to live in dignity to
create and build and own, to raise their children in peace and
security.
The way to a peaceful future can be found in the non-negotiable
demands of human dignity. Dignity requires the rule of law, limits on
the power of the state, respect for women, private property, equal
justice, religious tolerance. No nation owns these principles. No
nation is exempt from them.
Sixty years ago, few would have predicted the triumph of these values
in Germany and Japan. Fifteen years ago, few would have predicted the
advance of these values in Russia. Yet, Americans are not surprised.
We know that the demands of human dignity are written in every heart.
The demands have a power and momentum of their own, defying all
pessimism. And they are destined to change lives and nations on every
continent. America has acted on these hopes throughout our history.
General George Marshall is admired for the war he fought, yet best
remembered for the peace he secured.
The Marshall Plan, rebuilding Europe and lifting up former enemies,
showed that America is not content with military victory alone.
Americans always see a greater hope and a better day. And America sees
a just and hopeful world beyond the war on terror. (Applause.)
Many of you will help achieve this better world. At a young age,
you've taken up a great calling. You'll serve your country and our
values. You'll protect your fellow citizens. And, by your effort and
example, you will advance the cause of freedom around the world. And
so I'm here to thank you for your commitment and congratulate you on
the high honor you have received.
May God bless you all, and may God bless America. (Applause.)
10:46 A.M. EDT
(end White House transcript)
(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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