29 January 2003
Bush: Have to Deal with Saddam Hussein "Before It Is Too Late"
(But spokesman says "diplomatic window" still open for consultations) (880) By Wendy S. Ross Washington File White House Correspondent Washington -- President Bush January 29 rejected arguments by war opponents and some allies that United Nations weapons inspectors can contain Saddam Hussein, warning that the Iraqi dictator has been fooling the inspectors and could join with terrorists to attack America "and never leave a fingerprint behind." "In my judgment you don't contain Saddam Hussein," Bush said in a speech in Grand Rapids, Michigan, mostly devoted to his domestic agenda. "We're having an honest debate in this country, and we should, about peace and how to achieve the peace," Bush said. "It should be clear to you now, though, that in my judgment you don't contain Saddam Hussein. You don't hope that therapy will somehow change his evil mind." "Saddam Hussein has terrorized his own people. He's terrorized his own neighborhood. He is a danger not only to countries in the region, but as I explained last night, because of al Qaeda connections, because of his history, he's a danger to the American people. And we've got to deal with him. We've got to deal with him before it is too late," Bush said. "I'm convinced that this still can be done peacefully. I certainly hope so. The idea of committing troops is my last option, not my first. I understand the terrible price of war. I understand what it means to put somebody into combat. I know what it means to hug mothers and wives. But I've got to tell you something. I've thought long and hard about this. The risks of doing nothing, the risks of assuming the best from Saddam Hussein, it's just not a risk worth taking," he said. The role of the U.N. weapons inspectors, the president said, "is not to play hide-and-seek with Saddam Hussein in a country the size of California. There's 108 inspectors running around a country trying to stumble into something, 108 people who are being misled by a person who's made a history of fooling inspectors." Bush called upon the world "to come together and insist that this dangerous man disarm. But should they choose not to continue to pressure Saddam, and should he continue to defy the world, for the sake of our peace, for the sake of the security, this country will lead a coalition of other willing nations and we will disarm Saddam Hussein. "If need be, if war is brought upon us like I said last night, I want to assure you, particularly those who wear the uniform and those who have a loved one in the military, we will commit the full force and might of the United States military. And for the name of peace, we will prevail." Bush said that if military action is necessary, "we will also go in to make sure that those who are hungry are fed, those who need health care will have health care, those youngsters who need education will get education. But most of all, we will uphold our values. And the biggest value we hold dear is the value of freedom." Earlier in the day, White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer told reporters on Air Force One en route to Michigan that "we are now entering the final phase" regarding Iraq and "during this final phase, what is about to unfold is a diplomatic window. "The president takes seriously the importance of consultations with our European allies. The president takes seriously the importance of consulting with the United Nations and the United Nations Security Council. You will see an increase in meetings and phone calls by the president." Secretary of State Powell is to brief the Security Council on February 5 at the request of the United States. "The purpose of his presentation," Fleischer said, "is to provide as much as possible without jeopardizing methods or sources. And that represents careful judgments that have to be made so that information can be shared and sources and methods can be protected. "The president is sending him there for a reason -- he wants the world to have information. But I also submit to you, in the president's judgment, there's already a Mt. Everest of information, high enough to know that Saddam Hussein has weapons and is willing to use them. From the president's point of view, making Mt. Everest higher is not necessary to disarm Saddam Hussein." Fleischer said "there will be many conversations taking place at both the presidential and the secretarial level. The president still believes that if diplomacy results in strong and powerful expressions of unity towards Saddam Hussein, so that Saddam Hussein receives as powerful a message as possible that he needs to disarm, then this can be resolved peacefully. "The president continues to hold out that hope. And that's why he is launching this effort now through this diplomatic window. If Saddam Hussein does not get that message, though, there can be no mistaking the president's resolve that a coalition will disarm Saddam Hussein if he doesn't do it himself. So that's the phase that we're entering into now, in this final phase." (The Washington File is a product of the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
