Thursday, October 18, 2001

Bush travels to China to recruit allies
By Ron Fournier
Associated Press

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — En route to China, President Bush said Wednesday he would use an economic summit in Shanghai to recruit more allies in the war against terrorism. “We are not alone in this struggle,” Bush said.

“We are supported by the conscience of the world and we are surrounding terrorists and their sponsors in a tightening net of justice,” he said.

The president spoke to California business leaders on a brief stopover during the long flight to China, his first trip abroad since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Some 3,000 people crammed the balconies and floor of Sacramento’s convention center, and behind Bush stood uniformed personnel from a search-and-rescue team that had pitched in at the wreckage of the World Trade Center last month. His backdrop: an American flag the size of a movie screen.

Bush noted that he stood 2,500 miles from New York and Washington, targets of the Sept. 11 attacks. “Yet for all of us, an American is an American, no matter where we live, no matter what our race, no matter how we pray.”

Before leaving the White House, Bush said he knew he was traveling at a difficult time for the nation but that the trip is an important part of the government’s effort to defeat terrorism and make the world a safer place.

“I think it is very important for me to go, to not only discuss our economic interests and our bilateral interests, but to continue to talk about the war on terrorism,” Bush said in an interview with Asian news editors.

The trip to the 21-nation gathering of Asian-Pacific leaders in Shanghai will take Bush out of the country for five days in the midst of U.S. airstrikes against Taliban targets in Afghanistan. Vice President Dick Cheney, who worked most of last week from a secret secure location away from the White House, walked Bush out to the South Lawn Wednesday morning to say goodbye. Congressional leaders who had breakfast with the president also saw him off.

“I leave at a very difficult time in my country because of these terrorist attacks, the recent anthrax that has made it in the news,” Bush said in the Oval Office interview Tuesday. A transcript was released by the White House on Wednesday.

“On the other hand, I think it is very important for me to go, to not only discuss our economic interests and our bilateral interests but to continue to talk about the war on terrorism,” he said.

“It’s also important for my nation to see that I leave because ... international affairs are a still very important part of making the world more safe.”

In the same interview, Bush said he understands the “political consequences of making tough decisions” such as going to war.

“You mark my words, people are going to get tired of the war on terrorism, and by the way, it may take more than two years. There’s a variety of theaters. So long as anybody is terrorizing established governments there needs to be a war. And so I’ve asked — you said one or two years — I envision something taking longer than that,” said Bush, who last week predicted the war on terrorism could last one or two years.
“Now maybe the Afghan theater will be shorter than that,” Bush said. “Who knows? But we’re patient.”

The White House said Bush would have no problem overseeing the war from afar. “Telephones work,” spokesman Ari Fleischer said. With the superb communications available to the president, Fleischer said, “He will be in frequent contact with everybody he needs to be in contact with throughout.”

Administration officials said the trip was still scheduled to run its entire course, but noted that it could be trimmed if necessary for Bush to return to Washington before Monday.

The United States remained on high alert for new terror attacks, but White House officials dismissed questions about Bush’s security at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum.

“The president has absolute faith in the Secret Service to secure his safety,” Fleischer said. “Presidents before have traveled to places that were dangerous, and Shanghai certainly does not fit that description.”

Air space was restricted over Shanghai for the summit, 10,000 police officers and security personnel were guarding the streets and more than 100 roadblocks were in place to screen people entering the city.