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Skriven 2006-07-06 23:35:18 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (0607061) for Thu, 2006 Jul 6
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President Bush Meets with Ambassador to Iraq Zal Khalilzad
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For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
July 6, 2006

President Bush Meets with Ambassador to Iraq Zal Khalilzad
The Oval Office

President's Remarks view

˙˙˙˙˙ In Focus: Renewal in Iraq

2:12 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT: It's been my pleasure to sit here and talk to our Ambassador
from Iraq. I want -- first, Zal, I thank you for your service. I really
appreciate your family supporting you on this very important mission. I
know the Secretary of State and the National Security Advisor join me in
saying it gives us great comfort to know that we've got a man of your
caliber there. It's a hard job. And Zal has earned the confidence of the
new Iraqi government, and I was able to see that firsthand in how the Prime
Minister and other members of his administration related to him.

He brought back a report that is realistic. On the one hand, he said
they've got a good government -- goal-oriented people who are working to
achieve certain objectives. And I know that you've been impressed by Prime
Minister Maliki's determination to succeed, and his willingness to lay out
a common-sense agenda and then hold people to account.

Zal also said it's still a dangerous place, because there are people there
that will do anything to stop the progress of this new government. And you
have to ask yourself, who's afraid of democracy? I mean, why would people
be afraid of a peaceful civil society? And the answer is, people who want
to not only harm Iraq, but want to harm us.

And I've assured Zal that -- to assure the Iraqi people that when we give
our word, we'll keep our word. And we intend to work closely with the
government and to help defend the people until this government is more
capable of defending itself.

And he talked about police training. There's more work to be done in
training the police. And we talked about the training of the army, and it's
gone quite well. Zal is concerned about foreign influences in the country,
as am I.

I do appreciate your briefing on the Prime Minister's recent trip in the
neighborhood, which looked like a very successful trip. We, of course, are
concerned that some in the neighborhood may want to derail the progress of
a free Iraq. And that is troubling and something that we'll work on.

But, Mr. Ambassador, you represent our country with a lot of class and
dignity. And so, thank you. You may want to say a few comments.

AMBASSADOR KHALILZAD: Thank you, Mr. President. I came today to also wish
the President a happy birthday. Happy birthday, Mr. President. And it's an
honor to serve the United States in Iraq. Under your leadership, we're
working very hard to make sure Iraq succeeds because Iraq is the defining
challenge of our time. And what happens in Iraq will shape the future of
the Middle East, and the future of the Middle East will shape the future of
the world.

So it's an honor to see you again. And happy birthday, Mr. President.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, sir. Thank you all.

END 2:15 P.M. EDT
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