Three Years of Progress in the War on Terror

Republican National Committee ^ | July 12, 2004

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In a speech today at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, President Bush outlined our country's strategy for winning the War on Terror and detailed the progress made over the last three years.

• Three Commitments in Our Strategy for Peace: To overcome the dangers of our time, America is also taking a new approach in the world. The administration is determined to challenge new threats - not ignore them, and simply wait for future tragedy. The strategy for peace has three commitments:
  
• First, defending the peace by taking the fight to the enemy - confronting them overseas so America does not have to confront them here at home by destroying the leadership of terrorist networks in sudden raids; disrupting their planning and financing; and shrinking the space in which they can freely operate by denying them territory and the support of governments.
  
• Second, protecting the peace by working with friends and allies and international institutions to isolate and confront terrorists and outlaw regimes. America is leading a broad coalition of nations to disrupt proliferation. The administration is working with the United Nations, the International Atomic Energy Agency, and other international organizations to take action in common security.
  
• Third, extending the peace by supporting the rise of democracy - and the hope and progress that democracy brings - as the alternative to hatred and terror in the broader Middle East. In democratic and successful societies, men and women do not swear allegiance to malcontents and murderers; they turn their hearts and labor to building better lives. And democratic governments do not shelter terrorist camps, or attack their peaceful neighbors.

Three Years of Progress: The administration has followed this strategy - defending the peace, protecting the peace, and extending the peace - for nearly three years, and the results are now clear for all to see.

• Afghanistan: Three years ago, the nation of Afghanistan was the home base of al-Qaida - a country ruled by the Taliban, one of the most backward and brutal regimes of modern history. Today, a presidential election is scheduled for this fall, the terror camps are closed and the Afghan government is helping us to hunt the Taliban and terrorists in remote regions.
  
• Pakistan: Three years ago, Pakistan was one of the few countries in the world that recognized the Taliban regime, and al-Qaida was active and recruiting in Pakistan without serious opposition. Yet the United States was not on good terms with Pakistan's military and civilian leaders - the very people we would need to help shut down al-Qaida operations in that part of the world. Today, the United States and Pakistan are working closely in the fight against terror, and Pakistani forces are rounding up terrorists along their nation's western border. President Musharraf is a friend of our country, who helped us capture Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the operational planner behind the 9/11 attacks.
  
• Saudi Arabia: Three years ago, terrorists were well established in Saudi Arabia. Inside that country, fundraisers and other facilitators gave al-Qaida financial and logistical help - with little scrutiny or opposition. Today, after attacks in Riyadh and elsewhere, the Saudi government knows that al-Qaida is its enemy. Saudi Arabia is working hard to shut down the facilitators and financial supporters of terrorism, and they have captured or killed many first tier leaders of the al-Qaida organization in Saudi Arabia - including one last month.
  
• Iraq: Three years ago, the ruler of Iraq was a sworn enemy of America, who provided safe haven for terrorists, used weapons of mass destruction, and turned his nation into a prison. Saddam Hussein was a proven mass murderer who refused to account for weapons of mass murder.

vThe Bush Administration, Members of Congress, and the United Nations Security Council looked at the intelligence on Iraq and saw a threat. The previous Administration and the Congress looked at the intelligence - and made regime change in Iraq the policy of our country.
vIn 2002, the UN Security Council yet again demanded a full accounting of Saddam Hussein's weapons programs. As he had for over a decade, Saddam Hussein refused to comply. So a choice had to be made: Either take the word of a madman, or take action to defend America. Faced with that choice, President Bush will defend America every time.
vAlthough stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction have not been found, it was right to go into Iraq. A declared enemy of America, who had the capability of producing weapons of mass murder, and could have passed that capability to terrorists bent on acquiring them, was removed. In the world after September 11th, that was a risk America could not afford to take.
vToday, because America and our coalition helped to end the violent regime of Saddam Hussein, and because we are helping to raise a peaceful democracy in its place, the American people are safer.

• Libya: Three years ago, Libya, a longtime supporter of terror, was spending millions to acquire chemical and nuclear weapons. Today, thousands of Libya's chemical munitions have been destroyed and nuclear processing equipment that could ultimately have threatened the lives of hundreds of thousands is stored in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.
  
• Weapons Proliferation: Three years ago, a private weapons proliferation network, operated by Pakistani nuclear scientist A. Q. Khan, was selling nuclear plans and equipment to countries like Libya, Iran, and North Korea. Today, the A. Q. Khan network is out of business, ending one of the most dangerous sources of proliferation in the world, and the American people are safer.

Breaking this proliferation network was possible because of outstanding work by the CIA. Dedicated intelligence officers were tireless in obtaining vital information, sometimes at great personal risk. Our intelligence services do an essential job for America.

The Senate Intelligence Committee has identified some shortcomings in our intelligence capabilities - and the Committee's report will help us in the work of reform. President Bush believes that intelligence reform efforts should: 1) increase the number of intelligence agents to cover the globe; 2) invest in the best, cutting-edge technology to listen and look for dangers; and 3) result in better coordination among intelligence services.

More Work to Do

Homeland Security: To protect our people, the administration and military are staying on the offensive against threats within our own country -- using the Patriot Act to track terrorist activity and break up terror cells; sharing information between intelligence and law enforcement officials as never before; transforming the FBI to focus on preventing terrorism. It is not possible to guarantee perfect security in our vast, free Nation - intelligence, national security, homeland security, and law enforcement professionals are working around the clock, doing everything they can to protect this country.

Working with International Partners: We remain a nation at risk - and we remain a nation at war. There is still more work to do: working with responsible governments and international institutions to address the nuclear ambitions of North Korea and Iran; helping governments fight poverty and disease so they do not become failed states and future havens for terror; encouraging reform and democracy through the Broader Middle East Initiative; working to build a free and democratic Palestinian state, which lives in peace with Israel and adds to the peace of the region; and keeping our commitments to the people of Afghanistan and Iraq as they build the world's newest democracies. Delivering these nations from tyranny has required sacrifice and loss - and we will honor that sacrifice by finishing the great work we have begun.