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From: "Public Affairs Section" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Tuesday, March 18, 2003 12:10 AM
Subject: Transcript: Bush Gives Saddam Hussein and Sons 48 Hours to Leave
Iraq
>
> Dear Recepients,
>
> March 17, 2003
>
> Transcript: Bush Gives Saddam Hussein and Sons 48 Hours to Leave Iraq
> ("Refusal to do so will result in military conflict," president says)
(2166)
>
> Iraq's dictator Saddam Hussein and his sons must leave Iraq within the
next 48 hours, or face military action "commenced at a time of our
choosing," President Bush told an international television audience March
17.
>
> The president's speech came hours after the United States, Britain and
Spain announced they would not put their draft U.N. Security Council
resolution on Iraqi disarmament to a vote in the council. Those on the
council who opposed the resolution "share our assessment of the danger, but
not our resolve to meet it," Bush said. "Many nations, however, do have the
resolve and fortitude to act against this threat to peace, and a broad
coalition is now gathering to enforce the just demands of the world."
>
> He added: "The United Nations Security Council has not lived up to its
responsibilities, so we will rise to ours."
>
> Action against Iraq is planned now, he said, "because the risks of
inaction would be far greater. In one year, or five years, the power of
Iraq to inflict harm on all free nations would be multiplied many times
over."
>
> The president called on Iraqi soldiers to "act with honor and protect your
country by permitting the peaceful entry of coalition forces to eliminate
weapons of mass destruction." He said they would be given clear
instructions on actions they can take to avoid being attacked.
>
> Addressing remarks to the Iraqi people, the president said that if
military action is necessary, "it will be directed against lawless men who
rule your country, and not against you." He said that as the coalition
takes control of Iraq, it will deliver food and medicine. And, he said,
"We will tear down the apparatus of terror and we will help you to build a
new Iraq that is prosperous and free."
>
> The president also outlined heightened security measures being implemented
to protect Americans against terrorist plots. The country "will not be
intimidated by thugs and killers," he said.
>
> Following is the White House transcript of the president's speech:
>
> (begin transcript)
>
> THE WHITE HOUSE
> Office of the Press Secretary
> March 17, 2003
>
> REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT IN ADDRESS TO THE NATION
> The Cross Hall
>
> THE PRESIDENT: My fellow citizens, events in Iraq have now reached the
final days of decision. For more than a decade, the United States and other
nations have pursued patient and honorable efforts to disarm the Iraqi
regime without war. That regime pledged to reveal and destroy all its
weapons of mass destruction as a condition for ending the Persian Gulf War
in 1991.
>
> Since then, the world has engaged in 12 years of diplomacy. We have
passed more than a dozen resolutions in the United Nations Security Council.
We have sent hundreds of weapons inspectors to oversee the disarmament of
Iraq. Our good faith has not been returned.
>
> The Iraqi regime has used diplomacy as a ploy to gain time and advantage.
It has uniformly defied Security Council resolutions demanding full
disarmament. Over the years, U.N. weapon inspectors have been threatened by
Iraqi officials, electronically bugged, and systematically deceived.
Peaceful efforts to disarm the Iraqi regime have failed again and again --
because we are not dealing with peaceful men.
>
> Intelligence gathered by this and other governments leaves no doubt that
the Iraq regime continues to possess and conceal some of the most lethal
weapons ever devised. This regime has already used weapons of mass
destruction against Iraq's neighbors and against Iraq's people.
>
> The regime has a history of reckless aggression in the Middle East. It
has a deep hatred of America and our friends. And it has aided, trained and
harbored terrorists, including operatives of al Qaeda.
>
> The danger is clear: using chemical, biological or, one day, nuclear
weapons, obtained with the help of Iraq, the terrorists could fulfill their
stated ambitions and kill thousands or hundreds of thousands of innocent
people in our country, or any other.
>
> The United States and other nations did nothing to deserve or invite this
threat. But we will do everything to defeat it. Instead of drifting along
toward tragedy, we will set a course toward safety. Before the day of
horror can come, before it is too late to act, this danger will be removed.
>
> The United States of America has the sovereign authority to use force in
assuring its own national security. That duty falls to me, as
Commander-in-Chief, by the oath I have sworn, by the oath I will keep.
>
> Recognizing the threat to our country, the United States Congress voted
overwhelmingly last year to support the use of force against Iraq. America
tried to work with the United Nations to address this threat because we
wanted to resolve the issue peacefully. We believe in the mission of the
United Nations. One reason the U.N. was founded after the second world war
was to confront aggressive dictators, actively and early, before they can
attack the innocent and destroy the peace.
>
> In the case of Iraq, the Security Council did act, in the early 1990s.
Under Resolutions 678 and 687 -- both still in effect -- the United States
and our allies are authorized to use force in ridding Iraq of weapons of
mass destruction. This is not a question of authority, it is a question of
will.
>
> Last September, I went to the U.N. General Assembly and urged the nations
of the world to unite and bring an end to this danger. On November 8th, the
Security Council unanimously passed Resolution 1441, finding Iraq in
material breach of its obligations, and vowing serious consequences if Iraq
did not fully and immediately disarm.
>
> Today, no nation can possibly claim that Iraq has disarmed. And it will
not disarm so long as Saddam Hussein holds power. For the last
four-and-a-half months, the United States and our allies have worked within
the Security Council to enforce that Council's long-standing demands. Yet,
some permanent members of the Security Council have publicly announced they
will veto any resolution that compels the disarmament of Iraq. These
governments share our assessment of the danger, but not our resolve to meet
it. Many nations, however, do have the resolve and fortitude to act against
this threat to peace, and a broad coalition is now gathering to enforce the
just demands of the world. The United Nations Security Council has not
lived up to its responsibilities, so we will rise to ours.
>
> In recent days, some governments in the Middle East have been doing their
part. They have delivered public and private messages urging the dictator
to leave Iraq, so that disarmament can proceed peacefully. He has thus far
refused. All the decades of deceit and cruelty have now reached an end.
Saddam Hussein and his sons must leave Iraq within 48 hours. Their refusal
to do so will result in military conflict, commenced at a time of our
choosing. For their own safety, all foreign nationals -- including
journalists and inspectors -- should leave Iraq immediately.
>
> Many Iraqis can hear me tonight in a translated radio broadcast, and I
have a message for them. If we must begin a military campaign, it will be
directed against the lawless men who rule your country and not against you.
As our coalition takes away their power, we will deliver the food and
medicine you need. We will tear down the apparatus of terror and we will
help you to build a new Iraq that is prosperous and free. In a free Iraq,
there will be no more wars of aggression against your neighbors, no more
poison factories, no more executions of dissidents, no more torture chambers
and rape rooms. The tyrant will soon be gone. The day of your liberation
is near.
>
> It is too late for Saddam Hussein to remain in power. It is not too late
for the Iraqi military to act with honor and protect your country by
permitting the peaceful entry of coalition forces to eliminate weapons of
mass destruction. Our forces will give Iraqi military units clear
instructions on actions they can take to avoid being attacked and destroyed.
I urge every member of the Iraqi military and intelligence services, if war
comes, do not fight for a dying regime that is not worth your own life.
>
> And all Iraqi military and civilian personnel should listen carefully to
this warning. In any conflict, your fate will depend on your action. Do
not destroy oil wells, a source of wealth that belongs to the Iraqi people.
Do not obey any command to use weapons of mass destruction against anyone,
including the Iraqi people. War crimes will be prosecuted. War criminals
will be punished. And it will be no defense to say, "I was just following
orders."
>
> Should Saddam Hussein choose confrontation, the American people can know
that every measure has been taken to avoid war, and every measure will be
taken to win it. Americans understand the costs of conflict because we have
paid them in the past. War has no certainty, except the certainty of
sacrifice.
>
> Yet, the only way to reduce the harm and duration of war is to apply the
full force and might of our military, and we are prepared to do so. If
Saddam Hussein attempts to cling to power, he will remain a deadly foe until
the end. In desperation, he and terrorists groups might try to conduct
terrorist operations against the American people and our friends. These
attacks are not inevitable. They are, however, possible. And this very
fact underscores the reason we cannot live under the threat of blackmail.
The terrorist threat to America and the world will be diminished the moment
that Saddam Hussein is disarmed.
>
> Our government is on heightened watch against these dangers. Just as we
are preparing to ensure victory in Iraq, we are taking further actions to
protect our homeland. In recent days, American authorities have expelled
from the country certain individuals with ties to Iraqi intelligence
services. Among other measures, I have directed additional security of our
airports, and increased Coast Guard patrols of major seaports. The
Department of Homeland Security is working closely with the nation's
governors to increase armed security at critical facilities across America.
>
> Should enemies strike our country, they would be attempting to shift our
attention with panic and weaken our morale with fear. In this, they would
fail. No act of theirs can alter the course or shake the resolve of this
country. We are a peaceful people -- yet we're not a fragile people, and we
will not be intimidated by thugs and killers. If our enemies dare to strike
us, they and all who have aided them, will face fearful consequences.
>
> We are now acting because the risks of inaction would be far greater. In
one year, or five years, the power of Iraq to inflict harm on all free
nations would be multiplied many times over. With these capabilities,
Saddam Hussein and his terrorist allies could choose the moment of deadly
conflict when they are strongest. We choose to meet that threat now, where
it arises, before it can appear suddenly in our skies and cities.
>
> The cause of peace requires all free nations to recognize new and
undeniable realities. In the 20th century, some chose to appease murderous
dictators, whose threats were allowed to grow into genocide and global war.
In this century, when evil men plot chemical, biological and nuclear terror,
a policy of appeasement could bring destruction of a kind never before seen
on this earth.
>
> Terrorists and terror states do not reveal these threats with fair notice,
in formal declarations -- and responding to such enemies only after they
have struck first is not self-defense, it is suicide. The security of the
world requires disarming Saddam Hussein now.
>
> As we enforce the just demands of the world, we will also honor the
deepest commitments of our country. Unlike Saddam Hussein, we believe the
Iraqi people are deserving and capable of human liberty. And when the
dictator has departed, they can set an example to all the Middle East of a
vital and peaceful and self-governing nation.
>
> The United States, with other countries, will work to advance liberty and
peace in that region. Our goal will not be achieved overnight, but it can
come over time. The power and appeal of human liberty is felt in every life
and every land. And the greatest power of freedom is to overcome hatred and
violence, and turn the creative gifts of men and women to the pursuits of
peace.
>
> That is the future we choose. Free nations have a duty to defend our
people by uniting against the violent. And tonight, as we have done before,
America and our allies accept that responsibility.
>
> Good night, and may God continue to bless America.
>
> (end transcript)
>
> Best regards,
> -------
> Public Affairs Section
> Jalan Medan Merdeka Selatan 4 Jakarta 10110
> Telephone: (021)3435-9500, Ext. 9566 Fax: (021)381-0243
> e-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
> US Embassy Homepage: http://www.usembassyjakarta.org
>
>
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