Bush Thanks NATO for Helping Defend USUS President George W. Bush on Wednesday expressed his appreciation to visiting NATO Secretary-General George Robertson for sending surveillance aircraft to patrol US sky.Appearing in the White House Rose garden with Robertson, Bush called NATO's deployment of surveillance planes to patrol the United States "an unprecedented display of friendship." "This has never happened before -- that NATO has come to help defend our country. But it happened in this time of need, and for that we're grateful," Bush said. He said NATO nations are acting together in a broad campaign against terror following the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States. "Britain is side by side with us in Afghanistan," Bush said. " The nations of NATO are sharing intelligence, coordinating law enforcement, and cracking down on the financing of terrorist organizations." "Some NATO members will provide logistic support for military operations, and others have offered to fight if we deem necessary, " Bush said. "Together we're building a very strong coalition against terror, and NATO is the cornerstone of that coalition." For his part, Robertson reaffirmed that NATO stands "shoulder to shoulder" with the United States in the war against terrorism. "These terrorists are not 10 feet tall. They are not insuperable. They are not unvanquishable. But we are, and we can win, and we certainly will win," Robertson said. "We stand shoulder to shoulder in a new kind of struggle, and a struggle tat we have to win," he added. The NATO secretary-general then met U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell at the State Department. Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Powell said the Bush administration has no plans to take military actions beyond Afghanistan and al Qaeda. "As the president said, this is a campaign against al Qaeda and the al Qaeda network, which is located in many countries, and the head of al Qaeda, Osama bin Laden. But it is also a campaign against terrorism, wherever it may exist in the world," Powell said. "The first phase is directed against al Qaeda. And we will see what we're able to flush out as a result of intelligence activity, as a result of law enforcement, and financial activities. But there are no plans that are about to come down the pipe with respect to the kinds of actions beyond Afghanistan," he said. |
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