Highlights of Bush's trip to the Mideast
By The Associated Press, Associated Press
Last update: January 5, 2008 - 10:53 AM
Highlights of President Bush's upcoming trip to the Middle East, according to the planned schedule as outlined by the White House:
Jan. 9
Arrives in Israel. Meets with Israel's prime minister, Ehud Olmert, and president, Shimon Peres.
Jan. 10
Visits the West Bank to meet with the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, and prime minister, Salam Fayyad, at their headquarters in Ramallah.
Jan. 11
In Israel to meet with former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, now a Middle East peace envoy. Lays a wreath at the Israel's official Holocaust memorial, Yad Vashem. Travels to Kuwait to meet with the emir, Sheik Sabah Al Ahmed Al Sabah.
Jan. 12
In Kuwait to meet with U.S. troops at Camp Arifjan and receive updates on the situation in Iraq from the top U.S. commander, Gen. David Petraeus, and the U.S. ambassador to Iraq, Ryan Crocker. He also meets with Kuwaiti women. Travels to Bahrain to meet with King Hamad bin Isa al-Khalifa.
Jan. 13
Visits the U.S. Navy's 5th Fleet, based in Bahrain. Travels to the United Arab Emirates to meet with the president, Sheik Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan, and gives a speech in Abu Dhabi on freedom in the region.
Jan. 14
Visits Dubai and then travels to Saudi Arabia to meet with King Abdullah.
Jan. 15
In Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, for meetings.
Jan. 16
In Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, to meet with President Hosni Mubarak before returning to Washington.
Interview of President Bush by Hisham Bourar, al Hurra TV
Contact: White House, Office of the Press Secretary, 202-456-2580
WASHINGTON, Jan. 6 /Standard Newswire/ -- The following text is of an interview of President Bush by Hisham Bourar of al Hurra TV:
Map Room January 4, 2008 4:22 P.M. EST
Q Thank you, Mr. President, for taking the time to do this interview on Al Hurra TV. Big trip to the Middle East. What are your objectives, and why now?
THE PRESIDENT: Now because I believe that it's possible to advance the Annapolis agenda; now because I believe it's just going to be -- that it will be a chance to be effective on my trip. I'm going to advance three things: one, the vision of two states, Palestinian-Israel, living side by side in peace; two, to convince our friends and allies in the region that it is in their interest to support the peace process; and three is to remind people that the United States is committed to helping secure the region, that we have a active presence in the Middle East and that presence is not going to wane, that we're committed to helping people realize -- deal with the threats and the problems of the 21st century.
Q What can you do, personally, to press both sides, the Israelis and the Palestinians, to reach an agreement this year?
THE PRESIDENT: Well, first of all, the agreement -- they must decide they want to reach agreement. In other words -- and so the first thing I can do is to make sure there's a sincere desire on the parts of President Abbas and Prime Minister Olmert to achieve an agreement. I believe that desire exists. The Annapolis Conference was a success because they wanted it to be a success. And it's to give them confidence and encourage them to come up with what a state will look like, to define that state so that people there in the region can have hope that this kind of a longtime conflict will finally come to an end, and the first step is the definition of a state.
I can press when there needs to be pressed; I can hold hands when there needs to be -- hold hands. And so I'm -- I will go to encourage them to stay focused on the big picture. There's going to be all kinds of distractions, and people will be trying to throw up roadblocks and people will be trying to cause these gentlemen to -- not to -- lose sight of what's possible. And my job is to help them keep a vision on what is possible.
Q Do you still believe that your vision of a Palestinian state can be achieved before you leave office?
THE PRESIDENT: I think the outlines, the definition of a state can be achieved. The implementation of a state will be subject to a road map. In other words, there's a lot of work that has to be done. Palestinian security forces have to be reformed -- which we're helping with, by the way. The entrepreneurial class of people has to be encouraged with new capital. The institutions of government need to be strengthened. And so the state will come into being, subject to, but the first step is to -- here's what a state will look like. And I believe we can get that done by the time I leave office.
Q Will you be asking Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia, to normalize relations with Israel?
THE PRESIDENT: I'll be reminding the Gulf countries, including Saudi Arabia, that in order for this to be successful, in order for this process to work, there has to be strong support for both the Palestinians and the Israelis in the neighborhood. And that's why the Annapolis Conference -- another reason it was an important conference, because in that room were -- my friend, the King of Saudi Arabia, kindly sent his Foreign Minister to that Annapolis meeting. I thought it was a strong signal. And so both sides are going to need to know that they'll have support from the neighborhood.
Q Recently there has been some rapprochement between Gulf countries and Iran. Do you feel that the last NIE report makes it difficult for you to convince these countries that Iran still poses a threat to national security?
THE PRESIDENT: I'm sure this subject will come up, and I will remind them that the NIE said that, one, Iran had a military covert program. They suspended the program. I will also remind them that a regime that once had a program could easily start the program up again, and that the key ingredients to having a weapons program is, one, the capacity to enrich uranium; secondly, the ability to take that uranium and make a bomb; and thirdly, the ability to deliver the bomb by rockets.
Well, the rocket program still exists. As you know, they say they, only for civilian purposes, they're learning to enrich. Well, if you can learn to enrich for civilian purposes, you can easily transfer that knowledge to military purposes. And therefore, Iran is a threat. And so that will be my message.And my other message will be, we've got a strategy to deal with it, and that is to prevent them from learning how to enrich. And I'll explain to them the different types of sanctions and international efforts we're making, and how they can help, as well.
Q Recent visits to Damascus by U.S. lawmakers, like a recent one by Senator Arlen Specter, Republican, and Senator Kennedy, do they help or undermine your position toward Syria?
THE PRESIDENT: That's an interesting question. I don't know. But President Assad must understand that if he wants better relations with the United States -- and frankly, better relations in the region -- the first thing he's got to do is stop interfering in the Lebanese presidential process. And I would hope that those representatives sent that message to President Assad.
I don't know how he interprets these meetings, but one thing he can't be mistaken about is the position of the U.S. government, the White House. And our position is, is that you can have better relations, a better way forward with the United States, but you have got to get out of Lebanon, in terms of the presidential elections, and stop harboring Hamas, stop letting suiciders go into Iraq, and there's a better way forward.
