Bush: 'Preposterous' to suggest intelligence on Iran is wrong

Bush insists that Iran is providing weapons for Iraq




Text of President Bush on Wednesday, as transcribed by CQ Transcriptions : http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/02/14/ap3427046.html
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Bush said Wednesday he's convinced that the Iranian government is supplying deadly weapons to fighters in Iraq, even if he can't prove the orders came from the highest levels in Tehran. More important, Bush said in his first news conference of the year, is protecting U.S. troops against the lethal new threat. "I'm going to do something about it," Bush said. U.S. officials have said that Iran helped on attacks on troops in Iraq, an assertion denied by Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
Meanwhile, Bush shrugged off congressional debate on a resolution opposing his Iraq policy, noting that the measure was non-binding and mostly symbolic. But he said U.S. troops are counting on lawmakers to provide them the funds they need to win.
Bush spoke as the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives debated a measure opposing his decision to send some 21,500 additional troops to Iraq. "They have every right to express their opposition and it is a non-binding resolution," he said of the House members, who were continuing a marathon Iraq policy debate on Capitol Hill even as he spoke. In his first news conference since Dec. 20, Bush said he received a briefing earlier in the day from Iraq from newly-confirmed Gen. David Petraeus, the new chief commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, who is now in Baghdad. "We talked about the coordination between Iraqi and coalition forces," Bush said. For now, he said, that coordination appeared to be good, although Bush said much work remains. Meanwhile, Bush responded carefully when asked about Russian President Vladimir Putin's recent sharp criticism of U.S. foreign and military policy. Bush said he had a "complicated relationship" with the Russian leader. Bush also said that he and Putin have a lot they agree on, and that's what people in the United States need to understand. Chief among those common priorities, Bush said, is making sure that Iran does not develop nuclear weapons.



Putin slammed U.S. domination of world affairs at an international conference of security officials in Germany over the weekend, saying it was making the world more dangerous by overusing its military power. The depth of Putin's criticism surprised U.S. officials. Moscow and Washington drew closer together immediately after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, but more recently relations have been more strained.
Some highlights: 11:58 a.m.
Sitting down with Iran wouldn't work: The last question was why -- if the U.S. could negotiate with the former Soviet Union over nuclear weapons -- it can't sit down one-on-one with Iran. "If I thought we could achieve success I would sit down" with Iran, the president said. "But I don't think we could achieve success right now." The president said there is a better chance of success if "the whole world stays engaged" and he pointed to the multi-lateral talks with North Korea as an example of such a strategy working.11:47 a.m.Opponents are patriots too: Those who oppose his policies in Iraq are just as patriotic as he is, the president said. But he said again that lawmakers who disagree with what he's doing still need to vote to approve the funds that he says troops need to accomplish the mission he's set out for them. 11:42 a.m. ET. On "CIA leak;" no comment: Washington Post reporter Peter Baker tried several ways to get the president to comment on the "CIA leak" saga, which is in the news this week thanks to the trial of former White House aide Lewis "Scooter" Libby, who's accused of lying during the investigation of that leak. "Not going to talk about it Peter," Bush said. He offered to "recycle" Baker and give him a chance to ask a different question. Baker declined. 11:35 a.m. ET. Troop morale: Questioned about whether he has been told that the morale of U.S. troops in Iraq is weakening, the president said, "what I hear from commanders is that the place where there is concern is from the family members," not the troops. 11:28 a.m.Iran: Back on Iran and evidence that it is supplying weapons to terrorists and insurgents in Iraq, Bush responded forcefully to a question on why U.S. intelligence should be trusted. "The idea that we're somehow manufacturing the idea that the Iranians are providing (bombs) is preposterous," Bush said.


11:25 a.m.North Korea: Tuesday, former U.N. ambassador John Bolton slammed the deal reached this week with North Korea on its nuclear weapons program. Bush said Bolton and others who criticize the agreement are "flat wrong." "I changed the dynamic on the North Korean issue by convincing other people to be at the table with us ... (and) we had a breakthrough," Bush said. "Those who say the North Koreans have got to prove themselves by following through on the deal are right," Bush added, "and I'm one" who says that.11:20 a.m. On Iran: The president was asked about comments this week by Gen. Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who said he isn't sure the government of Iran has ordered that weapons be supplied to insurgents in Iraq. "Either they knew or they didn't know," that some Iranian weapons have ended up in Iraq, Bush said. "What's worse? That the government knew or that the government didn't know?"11:13 a.m.Don't prejudge Iraq plan: Of the debate underway in Congress over non-binding resolutions that oppose his plans in Iraq, the president said "it opposes our new plan before it has a chance to work." While Congress has the right to debate the policy, Bush said, it also needs to approve funding that will give U.S. troops what they need to carry out their missions in Iraq.11:07 a.m. ET. Securing Baghdad "will take time:" In his opening remarks, the president spoke about an update he got this morning from Lt. Gen. David Petraeus, the new U.S. commander in Iraq. "The operation to secure Baghdad is going to take time," Bush said, "and there's going to be violence." He is aware, the president added, that U.S. and Iraqi forces will not be able to stop all suicide bombers and others who want to disrupt progress in Iraq. But, "to step back from the fight in Baghdad would have disastrous consequences for people in America," Bush said. If "we fail there, the enemy will follow us here."

Bush was pressed repeatedly during the nearly hour-long news conference to explain an apparent contradiction between U.S. military briefers in Baghdad and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Marine Gen. Peter Pace, over Iranian government involvement in the purported supply of weapons, including high-powered explosives, that have been used against U.S. forces in deadly roadside bombings in Iraq. In a weekend briefing, reporters in Baghdad were told that the "highest levels" of the Iranian government had ordered the smuggling of the weapons into Iraq. But Pace said later it was not clear "that the Iranian government per se, for sure, is directly involved in doing this." Bush said the Quds Force, a component of Iran's Revolutionary Guards, has been "instrumental in providing these deadly IEDs [improvised explosive devices] to networks inside of Iraq" and that the Quds Force "is part of the Iranian government." He added, "What we don't know is whether the head leaders in Iran ordered the Quds Force to do what they did." He then asked, "What's worse? That the government knew or that the government didn't know?" He said in reply to a subsequent question, "There are weapons in Iraq that are harming U.S. troops" because of smuggling by the Quds Force. "Whether [Iranian President Mahmoud] Ahmadinejad ordered the Quds Force to do this, I don't know." Bush asserted, "There is no contradiction that the weapons are there and they were provided by the Quds Force." Disclosing this does not mean that he is "trying to have a pretext for war" against Iran, Bush said. "This means I'm trying to protect our troops." He repeated his previous warnings that U.S. forces "will deal with" networks and agents involved in smuggling Iranian weapons into Iraq. U.S. officials have vowed to carry out such actions inside Iraq's borders.