For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
July 6, 2006
President Bush Meets with Ambassador to Iraq Zal Khalilzad
The Oval Office
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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