03 April 2007
U.S. Mission in Iraq Must Succeed, Says Bush
Says additional troops to secure Baghdad having positive effect
Washington – President Bush pledged continued support for the Iraqi people as they struggle to stabilize their country.
“I know there are some who have basically said it is impossible to succeed,” Bush said. “I believe not only can we succeed, I know we must succeed.”
At an April 3 White House briefing, Bush discussed the Iraq security plan, Iran's nuclear program and the plight of 15 British sailors and marines being held by Iran. The briefing followed a meeting with top military advisers, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and General Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, on the progress of the Baghdad security plan.
Two of five U.S. Army brigades are already in the Iraqi capital working along with their Iraqi partners across the capital region, Bush said, and the rest of the 21,500 troops are on track to arrive by June. (See related article.)
“The reinforcements we've sent to Baghdad are having an impact. And as more of those reinforcements arrive in the months ahead, their impact will continue to grow,” he said.
Bush said that the objective of the new security plan is to bring violence under control and set the stage for Iraq’s elected leaders to unify the country and complete critical political reforms.
But in Washington, Bush faces political opposition as the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate have passed competing versions of emergency spending bills designed to fund military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan that also impose timetables to withdraw U.S. forces from Iraq beginning in 2008.
The White House rejects the timetables, which it says will allow Iraq’s enemies to wait for coalition troops to leave, and then seize power from a government elected by 12 million free Iraqis. (See related article.)
“Members of Congress are entitled to their views and should express them, yet debating these differences should not come at the expense of funding our troops,” Bush said.
IRAN
Turning to Iran, Bush said that the “cornerstone” of U.S. policy toward Iran is international efforts to resolve peacefully the ongoing diplomatic standoff over Iran’s nuclear development program.
“I firmly believe that if Iran were to have a nuclear weapon, it would be a seriously destabilizing influence in the Middle East,” Bush said.
Bush said that the United States remains firmly committed to its peaceful diplomatic efforts to rally international support to make it clear to the Iranian people that there is a better option for them.
Commenting on ongoing efforts to free 15 British sailors and marines seized by Iranian forces in the Gulf March 23, Bush called the incident “indefensible,” saying that he stands behind Prime Minister Tony Blair’s government as it works to resolve the matter with Iranian authorities. (See related article.)
Bush added that Iranians arrested in Iraq for links to attacks on Iraqi and coalition forces would not be exchanged as part of any deal to free the captured British military personnel.
A transcript of Bush’s remarks is available from the White House Web site.
For more information, see Iraq Update.
(USINFO is produced by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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