Bush Praises G8 Statement on Middle East for Addressing Terror
17 July 2006
Talks with leaders of India, Brazil before second day of summit meetings
St. Petersburg, Russia -- President Bush welcomed the statement by Group of Eight (G8) leaders concerning the violence in the Middle East, saying he is pleased that he and his counterparts from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United Kingdom came together in a statement to “condemn violence,” and “honor innocent life.”
In remarks with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh July 17, before the second day of discussions at the G8 summit, Bush said the heads of state had “cobbled together a very important statement” on July 16 that blames extremist activity for the violence and recognizes Israel’s right to self-defense, while calling upon it to show restraint in its actions.
“[F]or the first time we've really begun to address with clarity the root causes of the conflict, the recent conflict in the Middle East, and that is terrorist activity -- namely, Hizballah, that's housed and encouraged by Syria, financed by Iran, are making these moves to stop the progress of peace,” Bush said, adding that the G8 leaders hope that “by addressing the conditions of this violence we could get to a situation where there was calm.”
The full text of the statement is available on the official Web site of the G8 summit.
In a related development, British Prime Minister Tony Blair and United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan, also meeting in St. Petersburg, called for international forces to be deployed into southern Lebanon in order to stop Hizballah from launching further attacks against Israel.
BUSH, INDIAN PRIME MINISTER DISCUSS STRATEGIC COOPERATION
Addressing Prime Minister Singh, the president said he is optimistic that the U.S. Congress will pass legislation that will allow and encourage civilian nuclear cooperation between the United States and India.
The Indian leader thanked the president and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice for their efforts in supporting the legislation, and said the two countries enjoy “landmark cooperation” on energy and other issues.
He said the U.S.-India Knowledge Initiative on Agriculture, agreed to in November 2005, has “initiated a second green revolution” in India, and the development of new agricultural techniques “means a great deal” to India, where 65 percent of its people live in rural areas. (See fact sheet.)
“We have identified sectors like agricultural education, food processing, [and] water management … as the key areas which will be the focus of this agriculture initiative,” Singh said.
He also praised U.S.-India cooperation in science and technology and said India will hold a summit to attract investors in late 2006.
Prime Minister Singh also thanked Bush for his expressions of solidarity following the July 11 terrorist attacks in Mumbai.
The transcript of remarks by Bush and Singh is available on the White House Web site.
For additional information, see U.S.-India: Strengthening a Global Partnership.
BUSH, BRAZILIAN LEADER DISCUSS WAYS TO ADVANCE WTO TALKS
Following his meeting with Prime Minister Singh, President Bush met with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil. The Indian and Brazilian leaders, as well as leaders of China, Mexico and South Africa had been invited to join the second day of discussions at the G8 to discuss the Doha round of the World Trade Organization (WTO) talks, among other topics.
Bush said the United States is “committed” to a successful conclusion of the WTO talks. He added that President Lula is a leader in the trade discussions, and both governments “must continue to strategize” in order for the Doha round to be successful.
The Brazilian leader said it was “extremely important” that the G8 was discussing the trade talks, which are stalled currently. “I am convinced that now is the time for us to make a political decision, whatever might it be,” he said, adding that the trade negotiators have done a lot of work to advance the talks, but now need the G8 leaders to solve the remaining issues.
Difficult agricultural trade issues have blocked movement in the negotiations, formally called the Doha Development Agenda, almost since they were launched in 2001. Little time remains to negotiate thousands of details on agriculture, industrial goods and services before the end of 2006, the goal for concluding the Doha round in line with expiration of U.S. trade negotiating authority six months later. (See USA and the WTO.)
A July 16 statement by the G8 said the talks should be revived by the end of August, calling upon WTO Director-General Pascal Lamy to facilitate an agreement “on negotiating modalities on agriculture and industrial tariffs within a month," and for all countries to commit to “concerted leadership and action” in order to have the Doha round reach a successful conclusion.
President Lula also mentioned the possibility of Brazil’s cooperation with the United States on renewable energy and fuel sources, mentioning his country’s biodiesel program, as well as plans to develop the “H-bio” fuel, made by blending oil seeds and vegetable oil with petroleum.
President Bush said he is interested in continuing the bilateral dialogue on the subject, saying Brazil “has been a leader in development of biofuels.”
The transcript of remarks by Bush and Lula is available on the White House Web site
For ongoing coverage, see G8 Summit 2006, St. Petersburg, Russia.
(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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