President Bush and Chancellor Merkel of Germany Participate in a Joint Press Ava

PRESIDENT BUSH: Thank you for coming. The Chancellor and I had a series of discussions on important subjects, starting with a dinner we had last night. And then we got up this morning and had the wonderful opportunity to walk across some of the ranch. It was a glorious morning. The sun was beginning to rise, the birds were beginning to chirp. And we were able to have a meaningful discussion on a lot of issues. And then we completed our discussions here in what is my office., Madam Chancellor, I'm really glad you gave me an excuse to come down to Texas. And I'm really glad you and Professor Sauer came. You can imagine how conducive it is to have meaningful, strategic discussions in an environment outside of our respective capitals. And that's what we did.,We discussed Afghanistan. I do want to thank the German people for their strong support of this young democracy. And I appreciate the German troops who are far from home who are helping people realize the blessings of liberty.,We discussed Iran and our deep desire to solve this important issue diplomatically. And I believe we can solve it diplomatically, and it is more likely we do so when the United States, Germany, and other nations work collaboratively to send a common and firm message to the Iranians that it is -- the free world does not think you should have the capacity to be able to make a nuclear weapon. And we will work according -- together accordingly.,We talked about Iraq. I want to thank Chancellor Merkel for understanding that success in Iraq is important for Middle Eastern peace. I fully understand that our nations have had difference of opinion on this issue, but now that this Iraqi democracy is emerging, I really appreciate the fact that Germany has been a constructive partner in the Compact -- constructive partner with Iraq in the Compact. And I appreciate very much the fact that the German government is committed to help train police in the UAE.,I want to thank the Chancellor for her clear vision on issues such as Kosovo and Burma and Lebanon. We discussed the Middle Eastern peace. The upcoming Annapolis conference is an important moment as we head toward two states living side by side in peace.,We had a very good discussion on Doha, and the need for Germany and Europe and the United States to work closely together with developing nations such as Brazil and India to advance the Doha Round. I appreciated very much the Chancellor's briefing on her trip to India. It helps a lot for those of us who are engaged in international politics to get advice from people who have seen firsthand the attitudes and -- of important players such as India.,And finally, we had a meaningful and long discussion on climate change. And once again I assured Angela that I care deeply about the issue; that the United States is willing to be an active participant and try to come up with solutions that bring comfort to people around the world; that it is possible to have the technologies necessary to deal with this issue without ruining our economies. It's hard to deal with the climate change issue if you're broke. It's easier to deal with the climate change issue if you've got the revenues and finances that enable you to invest in new technologies that will change how we live, and at the same time enable us to grow our economies, and at the same time enable us to be good stewards of the environment., And so, Madam Chancellor, the mic is yours.,CHANCELLOR MERKEL: (As translated.) Well, yes, thank you very much, Mr. President, dear George. First of all, allow me to thank you very warmly for the possibility to meet with you here in Texas and to have this exchange of views. I would also like to extend this word of gratitude to you on behalf of my husband, who accompanies me here to this, what we also in Germany would call a very beautiful spot, a very beautiful part of this planet, of this world. It enables us to appreciate a little bit the vastness of the territory here, and also the beauty and the sheer variety of species that you have here.,So we again were able to see this for ourselves this morning. Thank you again for making this possible to have this stroll with you and to appreciate the beauty of this part, and to have again an exchange of views on a number of subjects.,PRESIDENT BUSH: Jawohl. (Laughter.),CHANCELLOR MERKEL: (Translation continues.) Let me say, first of all, that we did make the best possible use of our time to exchange our views on a number of issues. We did talk about Afghanistan, as the President already said, where we just recently were, and where we say that together with the Afghan government, we need to do more in order to help them continue to build up the police and to continue to also build up the army there, improve that, and go on with the training that we have already embarked on.,We addressed the issue of Iran. We were at one in saying that the threat posed through the nuclear program of Iran is indeed a serious one. We both share this view, but that we also were of the opinion that we think that this issue can be solved through diplomatic means; that the next step, then, obviously, would be a resolution. There is already work underway to prepare for this next step.,We have also been very clear in saying that if the talks with the representatives of Iran and Mr. Solana, as the representative on the European Union side, do not yield any results, then further steps will have to be made. Also, if the reports remain unsatisfactory that the International Atomic Energy Organization puts on the table, unsatisfactory, we need to think about further possible sanctions. And we do not only need to think about them, but we also have to then talk and agree on further possible sanctions, if all of these conditions are [not] met., We then also said that Germany needs to look somewhat closer at the existing business ties with Iran. There are certain companies that have business with Iran. We have already done that. And we need to look, as the situation unfolds, whether we have to have a closer look again at that, and possibly need to work together with our German business community. I will talk with them again on further possible reductions of those commercial ties, as we have already launched that in that tendency already now.,We then addressed the issue of the Middle East. And I said that it is in the interest of the German government, and we will indeed do everything we can to support all of the efforts that the American administration is making in order to turn the upcoming conference in Anapolis into a success. We want the peace process to make progress, and we think that the conference, the upcoming conference in Anapolis is indeed a possibility to bring this success about.,We then had an exchange of views on the current situation in Lebanon. Germany having a contingent there, serving with the UNIFIL mission, obviously has a very great interest in seeing the situation there stabilizing and progress being made in that country. And also we assured the government of Mr. Siniora of our continued support. We would like to -- for his government to be a strong one, and we think it is in our interests, in both of our interests that this situation remains stable.,On Kosovo, we did discuss this issue, as well. There are currently talks going on, and indeed those talks are heading into a crucial phase. We call at this point in time on both the Kosovo side and the Serbian side to try their utmost to bring about a sensible solution to the problem there -- and what we can do to foster that, we will do.,We did discuss also -- the President raised this issue also with me of the world trade round. We then discussed also the issue of the United Nations reform of the Security Council, and there we do think that it will be necessary to have further exchanges on that particular issue, and we do hope that -- some progress has been made already in this respect, and we hope further progress will be underway. We're going to continue to talk about that.,We then obviously also discussed the issue of the upcoming climate conference in Bali. And I think that this is a very good chance of turning this conference into a success. There are a lot of things where the U.S. and the European Union share views, where we are at one, and where I think that possibilities for cooperation may unfold. There are still -- there are also areas where we do not completely agree yet, where there are differences of opinion, but I think that this is a very crucial time to really set the agenda for a post-Kyoto regime. And we do hope and we will do everything we can in order to turn this conference in Indonesia into a success.,PRESIDENT BUSH: Two questions a side. John Yang.,Q Mr. President, this morning, Benazir Bhutto said that the Pakistani people's passion for liberty is threatening to explode. First, have you had any more further discussions with General Musharraf? And are you concerned that the continuing unrest within Pakistan is distracting that country's leadership and military from the struggle against the Taliban and al Qaeda?,PRESIDENT BUSH: First on al Qaeda, we do share a common goal, and that is to eradicate al Qaeda. That goal obviously became paramount to the American people when al Qaeda killed 3,000 innocent souls on our soil. And since then, the United States of America, along with strong allies and friends, has been in pursuit of al Qaeda.,I vowed to the American people we'd keep the pressure on them. I fully understand we need cooperation to do so, and one country that we need cooperation from is Pakistan. That cooperation has been made easier by the fact that al Qaeda has tried to kill leaders in Pakistan several times. And so we share a common goal.,Secondly, we share a goal with the Pakistani people, and that is to live in a free society. I haven't spoken to President Musharraf since I did earlier this week, but he knows my position, and he knows the position of the U.S. government. I do want to remind you that he has declared that he'll take off his uniform, and he has declared there will be elections, which are positive steps.,We also believe that suspension of the emergency decree will make it easier for the democracy to flourish. And so our message is consistent and clear. Our message is also clear to al Qaeda: We will find you and we'll bring you to justice before you can hurt innocent people.,Q Mr. President --,PRESIDENT BUSH: It's good to see you again.,Q Thank you very much.,PRESIDENT BUSH: You're looking like a cowboy.,Q Yes, well, I try. The boots are missing.,PRESIDENT BUSH: Yes, okay. (Laughter.),Q But, Mr. President, is it right to say that you have much more a multilateral approach towards the solutions of the problems of the world than you had maybe two years ago?