President George W Bush sought to allay worries about the US
economy during a speech at the United Nations on Tuesday, while reminding the
body of its obligations to confront terrorism and promote democracy around the
world, dpa reported.
Bush was addressing the UN General Assembly amid turmoil in international
markets over the faltering economy, caused by the crisis in financial
institutions that has prompted the largest US government intervention in
history.
"Our economies are more closely connected than ever before. And I know
that many of you here are watching how the United States government will
address the problems in our financial system," Bush said in his final
speech to the UN before he leaves office in January.
"In recent weeks, we have taken bold steps to prevent a severe disruption
of the American economy, which would have a devastating effect on other
economies around the world," he said.
The Bush administration has proposed a 700-billion-dollar plan to rescue the
financial industry and buy up mortgages and other failing assets to prevent a
broader collapse of the economy and ensure borrowing credit remains available.
Returning to the theme that marked his first speech to the General Assembly only
weeks after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, Bush called on the UN to
live up to its obligations to confront extremism.
"Instead of only passing resolutions decrying terrorist attacks after they
occur, we must cooperate more closely to keep terrorist attacks from happening
in the first place," Bush said.
He said nations have a responsibility to ensure terrorists cannot find safe
haven on their soil, and called on countries to combat arms proliferation,
human trafficking and organized crime.
Terrorists reject the moral teachings of all religions and have no regard for
the value of human life, the president said. "They reject the words of the
Bible, the Koran, the Torah, or any standard of conscience or morality.
"By deliberately murdering the innocent to advance their aims, these
extremists defy the fundamental principles of international order," he
added.
Bush accused Iran and Syria of sponsoring international terrorism, and said UN
nations must enforce Security Council sanctions against Iran and North Korea
for their pursuit of nuclear weapons.
"We must remain vigilant against proliferation by fully implementing the
terms of Security Council (resolutions) and enforcing sanctions against North
Korea and Iran," he said. "We must not relent until our people are
safe from this threat to civilization."
Bush's comments came a day after North Korea took steps to resume work at its
Yongbyon nuclear facility, a move that appears to halt the implementation of a
disarmament agreement with the US and four other countries: China, Japan,
Russia and South Korea.
The US has begun discussions with permanent members of the Security Council
plus Germany about the possibility of enacting another round of sanctions
against Iran over the Islamic state's refusal to comply with the council's
demands to suspend uranium enrichment.
The US and its European allies suspect Iran is seeking the capability to build
nuclear weapons by enriching uranium, while Tehran maintains the process is
solely for producing energy.
Bush also touted the successes of toppling Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq and
the Taliban in Afghanistan, and said progress was being made to stabilize those
countries.
"Over the past seven years, Afghanistan and Iraq have been transformed
from regimes that actively sponsor terror to democracies that fight
terror," Bush said.
Bush launched the March 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq without the support of the
Security Council, which refused to endorse the mission. He said, however, that
countries must support the new Iraqi government despite his controversial
decision to invade.
"Whatever disagreements our nations have had on Iraq, we should all
welcome this progress towards stability and peace, and we should stand united
in helping Iraq's democracy succeed," Bush said.