Text 290, 141 rader
Skriven 2005-01-10 23:32:58 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0501103) for Mon, 2005 Jan 10
====================================================
===========================================================================
President Briefed on U.S. Assistance for Tsunami Affected Regions
===========================================================================

For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
January 10, 2005

President Briefed on U.S. Assistance for Tsunami Affected Regions
The Oval Office

President's Remarks
"); //--> view

˙˙˙˙˙In Focus: Tsunami Relief

10:20 A.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT: Mr. Secretary, welcome back. I want to thank Secretary
Powell and Andrew Natsios and Mike Brown and Marc Grossman for taking the
lead on behalf of our government and the American people, and providing
relief for the victims of the tsunamis.

The Secretary has given me a extensive briefing on what he has seen, on the
unbelievable damage, particularly in Banda Aceh. He's also brought me up to
date on the extraordinary efforts by the United States government and the
United States people, along with governments around the world, to provide
much needed relief to those who've suffered. We're now entering a second
phase of providing for rehabilitation to these affected societies, as well
as a reconstruction effort.

And as the Secretary said yesterday, the government of the United States is
committed to helping the people who suffer. We're committed today, and we
will be committed tomorrow. The outpouring of support from the citizens of
our country has been more than heartening. It has been -- it has been very
strong. And I want to thank those who have felt like -- felt the need to
contribute directly to the relief efforts. I urge them to go to the
usafreedomcorps.gov website to make sure that their cash contributions are
funneled to programs which are having the necessary effect of providing
relief, eventually rehabilitation and reconstruction, to those who have
suffered.

And so, Mr. Secretary, I want to thank you. Andrew, I'm looking forward to
going over to your headquarters to thanks those NGOs who have been working
hard, as well as those in your agency who have worked so incredibly hard to
show the compassion and decency of the American people during this time of
extraordinary crisis.

I'll answer a couple of questions. Jennifer.

Q Thank you, Mr. President. This long-term commitment by the United States
to the Indian Ocean region, what specifically does that mean? Does it mean
more dollars above the $350 million? What are you -- what are you prepared
to do?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, we'll see. I think the important thing is to make sure
that, as one person noted the other day, that the dollars are
demand-driven. In other words, the key is to provide immediate relief,
which we are doing, and then to work with governments and the United
Nations to assess the needs -- the intermediate-term needs and the
long-term needs -- to make sure the money that is available actually
achieves a coordinated objective. And that's what we're in the process of
doing.

In other words, these men went in -- in to make sure that the money that we
had put up is being applied to provide necessary relief. And now we're in
the process of helping to rehabilitate and reconstruct the societies. And
they're beginning to focus -- the demand is beginning to focus,
particularly on the Banda Aceh region. That is the part of the world that
is going to require the most intense effort by our -- by the governments
around the world.

Rosey.

Q Sir, is there a lesson -- is there a lesson in the Palestinian elections
that the Iraqi people should see? And what is this administration going to
do to build on this election in the Middle East region?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, first, I want to offer my congratulations to Mr. Abu
Mazen. I look forward to talking with him at the appropriate time. I look
forward to welcoming him here to Washington if he chooses to come here. I
look forward to helping to make sure that the conference in London, a
conference all aimed at helping the Palestinians develop the institutions
necessary to support Abu Mazen's vision of a peaceful, active, vibrant
state, to become reality. And so we are -- this is a man who has been
elected by what appears to be a good-sized vote. I'm heartened by the
elections, and I'm also looking forward to the Iraqi elections on January
the 30th.

This is an extraordinary year, when you think about it. In the first month
of a new year, there will be an election in the Palestinian territory and
there will be an election in Iraq. Who could have possibly envisioned an
election in Iraq at this point in history? And yet we're going to have an
election. And I'm sure there are -- a lot of people are incredibly excited
about the thought of having an election in Iraq inside the Iraqi territory,
except for a handful who want to stop democracy, because they understand
what an election means.

And so I'm -- as a democrat, as a person who believes in democracy -- a
Republican democrat, I might add -- as someone who believes that everybody
has a right to live in a free society and everybody wants to live in a free
society, the month of January, 2005, is an extraordinary month.

Steve.

Q Are there any steps that Israel can take to help the Abbas position? Any
confidence-building measures? And Abbas called Israel the "Zionist enemy"
on the campaign trail. Was that rhetoric helpful?

THE PRESIDENT: I think Israel did help with the elections. I know the
Secretary worked hard on making it clear to Israel that it was very
important that voters in Jerusalem be allowed to have access to the polls.
And the initial reports we got back, and on the briefing that the Secretary
gave me today about the initial reports on the election, was that there was
better than good movement. I mean, it was better than we thought a month
ago; that the Israelis did understand the need to have an election.

I think it's going to be very important for Israel to fulfill its
obligation on the withdrawal from the territories that they have pledged to
withdraw from. It is essential that Israel keep a vision of two states,
living side by side in peace, and that as the Palestinians begin to develop
the institutions of a state, that the Israeli government support the
development of those institutions, and recognize that it is essential that
there be a viable economy, that there be a viable health care system, that
people be -- that people be allowed to start building a society that meets
their hopes and needs. And Israel can play, and must play, an important
part of the development of a Palestinian state.

At the same time, it's essential that the Palestinian leadership
consolidate security forces, so that they can fight off those few who still
have the desire to destroy Israel as a part of their philosophy and those
few who fear there to be a free vote amongst the Palestinian people.

Thank you all.

END 10:27 A.M. EST
===========================================================================
Return to this article at:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2005/01/20050110-3.html

 * Origin: (1:3634/12)