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For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
February 12, 2008
President Bush Meets with Mali President Amadou Touré
Oval Office
In Focus: Global Diplomacy
10:33 A.M. EST
PRESIDENT BUSH: It's been a honor and a pleasure to welcome the President
of Mali here to the Oval Office.
We discussed a variety of issues. I was touched by the President's concern
about the life of the average citizen in Mali. We are partners with the --
with the President and the people of Mali, through the Millennium Challenge
Account. And one reason we worked with the government is because they've
agreed to fight corruption, and support the education and health of its
citizens. This is a country that's committed to the rights of its people,
and we're proud to be standing side-by-side with you.
Two issues that are very important to this administration, Mr. President,
were the issues that my wife, Laura, discussed when she came to your
country. One is literacy, and two is the eradication of malaria. And I
assured the President that our commitment remains strong to both important
issues. And I thank him very much for his hard work in helping his
citizens deal with HIV/AIDS.
And finally, the President and I spent a fair amount of time talking about
the dangers of radicals and extremists associated with groups like al
Qaeda. And we talked about the need for close cooperation to protect the
innocent people from those who murder the innocent in order to achieve
their dark political vision.
So it's been my honor to welcome a good man here to the Oval Office.
PRESIDENT TOURÉ : (As translated.) First of all, I would like to convey to
the President of the United States the sympathies and solidarity of the
people of Mali because of the destruction --
PRESIDENT BUSH: Thank you.
PRESIDENT TOURÉ -- caused by the tornados in some of the southern states of
the United States.
And then I told Mr. President that we were sensitive and impressed by the
impression that we had from the visit of Mrs. Laura Bush to Mali sometime
ago. Also, thank the President for the -- our friendship between the
people of the United States and the people of Mali, and the cooperation
between Mali and the United States that we do entertain on both sides since
the independence of Mali in 1960.
But I could also come to the United States just to tell Mr. President,
thank you, because the President had some initiatives not only for Mali,
but also for Africa, which we believe are historical initiatives, and which
we do have the Millennium Challenge Corporation, the greater participation
against the fight against AIDS through the Global Fund, the initiative on
the eradication of malaria, and not to forget the presidential initiative
on literacy in Africa, which is very important in our view, because when
you want to develop you need to also improve basic education.
PRESIDENT BUSH: That's right.
PRESIDENT TOURÉ : So I emphasized to the President that -- and I reaffirm
-- that Mali signed and Mali averred to all different initiatives on the
fight against terrorism. So it is humanly inadmissable, unacceptable to
see or to assist or to be indifferent to the suggestion that we are seeing
to some practices which really do not deserve to exist.
So we had a fruitful exchange of views on our cooperation.
So I said to Mr. President that I would like to thank him and also to
convey all the gratitude of the people of Mali, but I emphasized also the
fact that may God save Mali and the United States. President, thank you
very much.
PRESIDENT BUSH: Thank you, sir.
END 10:42 A.M. EST
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