President Bush Welcomes German Chancellor Schroeder to White House
Remarks by President Bush and German Chancellor Schroeder in a Photo Opportunity
The Oval Office
PRESIDENT BUSH: There will be opening statements. We'll take two
questions per side, alternating.
Mr. Chancellor, welcome back. It's good to see you. We've just
had a really constructive dialogue about our mutual interests, our
mutual desires to work together. When Germany and America work
together, the world is a better place. We're both committed to
freedom; we're both committed to peace; we're both committed to the
prosperity of our respective people. And this is an important visit,
and I'm glad you're here. And I appreciate our ability to work
together on a lot of fronts.
I told the Chancellor I was particularly grateful for German
presence in Afghanistan. They're making a very constructive -- playing
a constructive role and making sure that country is able to survive in
a -- as a free nation. And it's important that Afghanistan succeed,
and we really appreciate it.
We talked about Iraq, and we talked about the Middle East, and we
talked about North Korea. We discussed a lot of subjects.
And so, Mr. Chancellor, welcome back.
CHANCELLOR SCHROEDER: (As translated.) Thank you, Mr. President.
Indeed, I'm very pleased to be here once again. And, indeed, we talked
about -- not about the past; we very much agreed on that. We have to
talk about the present and the future now. We both have a great
interest in seeing a stable and democratic Iraq develop.
And you're right, you mentioned the important part that Germany is
playing in Afghanistan. It is a contribution that we make. It is a
contribution that we also make in the fight against international
terrorism, and we intend to continue to make that contribution.
We also talked about international issues, especially a settlement
of the Middle East, the problems and the conflicts there. We very much
agreed on that. Whenever one pursues a border outline and a border
approach here, one has not to lose sight of the fact that a settlement
of the conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians is necessary
if one wants to bring peace to this region.
It was, indeed, a very good meeting, Mr. President, and we very
much agreed on that we now have to face up to the challenges of the
21st century.
PRESIDENT BUSH: Jennifer.
Q Thank you, sir. I'd like to ask you about gay marriage.
What do you believe same-sex weddings -- how do they actually threaten
the institution of marriage, in general? And also, are you concerned
at all about being considered on the wrong side of the civil rights
issue?
PRESIDENT BUSH: This is a -- yes, this is a difficult issue here
for a lot of people in America. I believed it was important to act
because the institution of marriage was being changed by courts. And
it's an issue that's very sensitive. And the voice of the people needs
to be heard, and the constitutional process was the best way to do
such.
I believe that marriage has served society well, and I believe it
is important to affirm that, that marriage between a man and a woman is
the ideal. And the job of the President is to drive policy toward the
ideal. This is a sensitive debate and it is important that people hold
true to their beliefs without condemning anybody else. And so,
therefore, I call upon all sides in the debate to conduct themselves
with dignity and honor and respect.
But this is a debate that the nation must have. And the people's
voice must be heard in the debate.
Q Mr. President, you're father mentioned Germany as partner in
leadership. Is this still the case? And how would you describe the
personal relationship between Chancellor Schroeder and yourself?
PRESIDENT BUSH: The Chancellor has got a good sense of humor, and
therefore, he is able to make me laugh. And a person that can make me
laugh is a person who is easy to be with. And a person who is easy to
be with means I've got a comfortable relationship with him.
We have differences in the past. But there's nothing wrong with
friends having differences. And we have both committed to put the
differences behind us and move forward. Germany is an important
nation. And Germany occupies an important place in Europe. And it's
essential that America have good relations with Europe. Not only do we
share values, we share economic interests. We have the capacity to
help keep the peace. And so I would say our relations are good.
Q Partner in leadership?
PRESIDENT BUSH: Partner in leadership, that's right. We're
partnering in leadership in Afghanistan. We're partnering when it
comes to dealing with disease --
CHANCELLOR SCHROEDER: The Balkans.
PRESIDENT BUSH: The Balkans.
There's no question we differed on Iraq. We don't differ on
whether Iraq ought to be free and peaceful. And so, no, I look forward
to good relations -- continued good relations with Germany and Gerhard
Schroeder.
Steve.
Q Mr. President, would it help settle things in Haiti if
President Aristide were to resign?
PRESIDENT BUSH: The Secretary of State has made -- made some
comments. Let me follow up on those by saying that we're interested in
achieving a political settlement, and we're still working to that
effect. We're also, at the same time, planning for a multinational
force that would go in and make sure that if aid needed to be
delivered, or there needed to be some stability, that it could go in,
dependant upon a political settlement.
Q Mr. President, what do you expect Germany's cooperative role
to be in the Middle East initiative that you plan to do at the G-8
Summit?
PRESIDENT BUSH: I think it's -- the Chancellor and I were talking
about the need to help promote the institutions for free societies to
develop. We both understand that the office we hold is always bigger
than the occupant. And whether it be in the Palestinian territories or
elsewhere in the Middle East, it is essential, first and foremost, to
put institutions in place that survive the whims of men and women.
And so we share this common belief that it's important to get the
structure right in order for free societies to develop. That's why the
Bonn Conference, for example, relating to Afghanistan, was so
important, because it began the process of putting the institutions in
place for a free Afghanistan to exist. And the Chancellor understands
that.
There's a lot of work we can do. There's some skepticism as to
whether or not people in the Middle East can self-govern. I strongly
reject that skepticism, and I might call it criticism if people hold
that attitude, because I believe that freedom is inherently a part of
every soul, and that if given the proper structure and proper
institutions, people can self-govern. And a self-governing Middle
East, one based upon freedom and democracy, will make the world more
peaceful. It's a legacy that we need to work on in order to help
change the habits of violence and fear and frustration that had spawned
terror in the Middle East.