25 February 2003
Bush Reiterates Call For Full Disarmament by Iraq
(Believes Saddam Hussein "will try to fool the world one more time") (1150) By Wendy S. Ross Washington File White House Correspondent Washington -- President Bush, at a short meeting with reporters at the White House February 25, repeated his call for Iraq's Saddam Hussein to fully disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction. Asked what it would take to avoid military action against Iraq, Bush replied, "The man has been told to disarm. For the sake of peace, he must completely disarm." But Bush left little doubt that he does not believe this will happen. "I suspect that he will try to fool the world one more time. After all, he has had a history of doing that for 12 years. He's been successful at gaming the system. And our attitude is it's now time for him to fully disarm. And we expect the [U.N.] Security Council to honor its word by insisting that Saddam disarm. Now is the time," Bush said. The president said he hopes the Security Council will pass the Iraq resolution offered February 25 by the United States, the United Kingdom and Spain, but he said the resolution is not required for the United States and a coalition of the willing to take military action. Asked if he has any idea how much a war with Iraq might cost and how it might affect the U.S. economy, Bush said there are "all kinds of estimates about the cost of war. But the risk of doing nothing, the risk of the security of this country being jeopardized at the hands of a madman with weapons of mass destruction, far exceeds the risks of any action we may be forced to take. "There are people who worry about the future. I understand that. And I worry about the future. I worry about a future in which Saddam Hussein gets to blackmail and/or attack. I worry about a future in which terrorist organizations are fueled and funded by a Saddam Hussein. And that's why we're bringing this issue to a head." Asked what kind of sacrifices will be asked of the U.S. troops, their families, and the American public should Bush declare war, the president said that any time troops are put in harm's way, "that in itself is a sacrifice... and that's why war is my last choice. That's why I've said all along I would hope that the world would come together to convince Saddam to make the decision to disarm. "Perhaps the biggest risk in the theater, if we were to commit our troops, is Saddam, himself. He shows no regard for human life in his own country. After all, he's gassed them, he's used the weapons of mass destruction on his own people that he now claims he doesn't have. He tortures people. He brutalizes them. He could care less about human condition inside of Iraq. "And so I think one of the biggest dangers we face -- if we go to war -- is how he treats innocent life. And it is important for the Iraqi leadership and Iraqi generals to clearly understand that if they take innocent life, if they destroy infrastructure, they will be held to account as war criminals." At his midday briefing for reporters, White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer said that President Bush sees the current time as "a chance for the United Nations to be relevant. There is no question about it. After all, if the United Nations passes a resolution that says Iraq must disarm immediately, and then the United Nations says immediately really means 12 years, what kind of signal are they sending to the next proliferator? What message are they sending about the ability of the international system to maintain the peace and fight proliferation? "And this is why the president has changed the equation in New York, and he has said it is important for the United Nations to have value and to have meaning for resolutions to be backed up. Otherwise, it's a paper society. It's not a meaningful society to keep the peace. That's what's at stake here." Asked if the Bush administration has decided that the U.N. weapons inspections have reached a dead end, Fleischer said, "No, the president has not come to the conclusion that the inspections have reached a dead end. "But the discovery of the R-400 bomb in Iraq this morning leads one to the following question: Iraq, on April 3rd, 1991, was instructed under Resolution 687 to destroy all the weapons it has ... and when they were instructed to destroy those weapons under 687, they were given 45 days to destroy them. Given the fact that another weapon has been found today, 4,294 days after they were instructed to destroy all their weapons, it does raise questions about whether Iraq ever intends to comply with disarmament or not." "It points out how the inspections don't work," he said. "We hope they can work, but it points out that in the hands of Saddam Hussein, who, by design, will thwart the inspectors, the inspections may not work. And take the case of the Al Samoud II missile. Hans Blix has said that they are prohibited weapons. They must be destroyed. And while we thought that Saddam Hussein would indeed destroy them, you know what he said yesterday." According to news reports, Saddam, in a televised interview with Dan Rather of CBS, said he would not destroy the missiles. Parts of that interview were scheduled to be broadcast in the United States the evening of February 25. Fleischer repeated what Bush has so often said, "that if Saddam Hussein does not disarm, the president will assemble a coalition to disarm him." Fleischer also said that if Bush does order military action, "you can assume that the top commanders of Iraq are going to be under the suspicion of being the ones leading the war, of course. And they should not assume they'll be safe." Under international law, he said, in war, command and control operations are legitimate targets. Fleischer also reported that Bush earlier in the day had discussed Iraq with Prime Minister Konstandinos Simitis of Greece and Prime Minister Mikulas Dzurinda of Slovakia in separate phone calls. And the president had "a very warm and cordial discussion" on Iraq in the Oval Office with the Prime Minister Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha of Bulgaria. Bulgaria, Fleischer noted, is a non-permanent member of the U.N. Security Council. "They discussed the efforts of the United Nations to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction. The president made clear his determination to disarm Iraq. The president also said he looked forward to Bulgaria's membership in NATO and welcomed Bulgaria's support and friendship. The president made clear that Bulgaria can count on the United States' friendship," 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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