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Skriven 2006-11-18 23:31:06 av Whitehouse Press (1:3634/12.0)
Ärende: Press Release (061118) for Sat, 2006 Nov 18
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President's Radio Address
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For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
November 18, 2006

President's Radio Address


ÿÿÿÿÿ Audio ÿÿÿÿÿ President's Trip to Southeast Asia ÿÿÿÿÿ APEC 2006 ÿÿÿÿÿ

THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This week I'm visiting Singapore, Indonesia,
and Vietnam, where I'm attending the annual summit of the Asia Pacific
Economic Cooperation Forum. On this trip, I am carrying a message for the
people of this region. America will remain engaged in Asia because our
interests depend on the expansion of freedom and opportunity in this vital
part of the world.

Asia is important to America because prosperity in our country depends on
trade with Asia's growing economies. Today, America's trade across the
Pacific is greater than our trade across the Atlantic, and we need to
continue opening up markets in this part of the world to American goods and
services.

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My position is clear: As long as the playing field is level, America's
farmers, small businesses, and workers can compete with anyone, so America
will continue to pursue free and fair trade at every level with individual
countries across whole regions and through the World Trade Organization. By
opening new markets for American goods and services, we help create new
customers for our products abroad and jobs and opportunities for our
workers and small businesses at home.

Asia is also important to America because our nations face common
challenges like energy and disease that transcend borders. Our growing
economies are too dependent on oil, and we have a common interest in
pursuing affordable, reliable energy alternatives. So we're working with
our partners in this region to develop new energy technologies that will
make us less dependent on oil, including clean coal and ethanol, bio-diesel
and hydrogen fuel cells.

We are also working with our partners in the region to address the threat
of diseases like Avian flu, which has the potential to claim many lives and
inflict terrible damage on our societies if not detected and stopped
quickly -- so we're sharing information and putting wise preparedness plans
in place to help ensure that we can contain the spread of Avian flu and be
ready if a pandemic ever occurs. By coming together to address these and
other challenges, we're helping build more hopeful societies in Asia and
stronger partners for America.

Finally, Asia is important to America because we face common threats to our
security. The people of this region understand the terrorist threat because
they have been targets of terrorist violence. Since September the 11th, the
terrorists have attacked a nightclub in Bali, a hotel in Jakarta, a ferry
packed with passengers in Manila Bay, a school full of children in Russia,
Australia's embassy in Indonesia and many other targets. The killers who
committed these acts of terror are followers of a clear and focused
ideology that hates freedom, rejects tolerance -- and their stated goal is
a radical Islamic empire stretching from Europe to Southeast Asia.

The greatest danger in our world today is that these terrorists could get
their hands on weapons of mass destruction and use them to blackmail free
nations or kill on an unimaginable scale. This threat poses a risk to our
entire civilization, and we're working with our partners in the Asia
Pacific region to defeat it.

In my meetings with leaders in the region, we discussed the threat of
proliferation from North Korea. After North Korea's recent nuclear test,
the United Nations Security Council passed a unanimous resolution imposing
sanctions on North Korea's regime, and America is working with our partners
to enforce those sanctions. We will also continue working with Japan,
China, South Korea, and Russia through the Six-Party talks. Our nations are
speaking with one voice: North Korea must abandon its nuclear weapons
programs, and we will not tolerate North Korea's proliferation of nuclear
technology to hostile regimes and terrorist networks.

In the long run, the surest path to security is the expansion of freedom.
History shows that free societies are peaceful societies, so America is
committed to advancing freedom and democracy as the great alternative to
repression and radicalism. And by standing with our allies in the Asia
Pacific region, we will defend our free way of life, confront the
challenges of a new century, and build a more hopeful, peaceful, and
prosperous future for our children and grandchildren.

Thank you for listening.


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