2 June 2003

Fact Sheet: Bush Praises G-8 Initiatives on Terror, Famine Relief

President Bush is welcoming a series of initiatives taken by leaders of the
Group of 8 (G-8) countries on issues ranging from terrorism to global
famine relief, the White House said in a June 2 fact sheet. The G-8
countries are Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United
Kingdom, the United States and Russia.

Following is the fact sheet:


THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary
(Evian, France)
June 2, 2003

FACT SHEET

U.S. Actions at the G-8 Summit: Day Two

"Today our alliance of freedom faces a new enemy -- a lethal
combination of terrorist groups -- outlaw states seeking weapons of
mass destruction -- and an ideology of power and domination that
targets the innocent and justifies any crime. This is a time for all
of us to unite in defense of liberty, and step up to the shared duties
of free nations. This is no time to stir up divisions in a great
alliance." -- President George W. Bush, May 31, 2003

Presidential Action

President Bush today urged increased G-8 action to spur global
economic growth, and welcomed agreements on a series of new G-8
initiatives to combat terror and the proliferation of weapons of mass
destruction. The G-8 leaders also endorsed action plans on science and
technology, famine relief, and water, which build on U.S. policies.

GLOBAL ECONOMY

Promoting Global Economic Growth: The G-8 Leaders expressed confidence
in the growth potential of their economies. President Bush highlighted
his recently enacted Jobs and Growth Plan to generate jobs and spur
increased growth in the U.S. economy. He encouraged his G-8 colleagues
to take similarly decisive action to create multiple engines of global
economic growth.

Trade: The G-8 Leaders stressed that trade represents the optimum path
to global growth. They issued an Action Plan on Trade, reaffirming
their commitment to ensuring the success of the Doha WTO trade
negotiations by end-2004, and to ensuring that the Cancun Ministerial
meeting in September takes the decisions necessary to achieve that
goal.

Preventing and Resolving Financial Crises: Achieving a key U.S.
priority, the G-8 Leaders agreed to "promote the widespread adoption
of collective action clauses" in developing country debt offerings.
These clauses, which have already been incorporated into debt
offerings by Mexico, Uruguay, Brazil, and South Africa, ensure a more
orderly restructuring of sovereign debt.

Transparency and Anti-Corruption: The World Bank has identified
corruption as the single greatest obstacle to economic growth and
development. The United States has been a leader in fighting foreign
official corruption. Today, President Bush and his G-8 colleagues
endorsed agreement on a G-8 Transparency and Anti-Corruption Action
Plan, which commits the G-8 to, among other things:

-- Seek to deny safe haven to corrupt leaders and their assets;

-- Push for accelerated and effective implementation of the OECD
Anti-Bribery Convention; and

-- Establish pilot projects on public finance and procurement
transparency in developing countries with large extractive industry
sectors.

SECURITY

Enhancing Security of Civil Aviation: The G-8 adopted a U.S.-driven
Action Plan to enhance civil aviation security by reducing the
proliferation of shoulder-launched missiles (Man-Portable Air Defense
Systems, or MANPADS). The Action Plan commits the G-8 to:

-- Adopt strict national controls over inventories and exports of
MANPADS and key components;

-- Ban transfers of MANPADS to non-state end-users;

-- Provide assistance to countries that wish to dispose of excess
MANPADS stocks but lack the means to do so;

-- Exchange information on countries that are not cooperating in the
efforts to control stockpiles of these weapons; and

-- Examine feasibility of development for newly produced MANPADS of
specific technical performance or launch control features that would
preclude unauthorized use.

Counterterrorism Action Group: President Bush and the other G8 Leaders
agreed to establish a Counterterrorism Action Group (CTAG) of donor
countries to increase counterterrorism assistance and training for
countries with the will but not the skill to fight terror. CTAG will
focus on assistance needs in areas such as terrorist financing,
customs and immigration controls, illegal arms trafficking, and law
enforcement. CTAG will also support efforts of the UN Counterterrorism
Committee in implementing UN Security Council Resolution 1373.

Broadening the Global Partnership Against Weapons of Mass Destruction:
In a significant step forward, the G-8 Global Partnership Against the
Spread of Weapons and Materials of Mass Destruction, which was
launched at last year's Kananaskis Summit, has been broadened to
non-G8 countries, including Finland, Norway, Poland, Sweden, and
Switzerland. The United States is the leading supporter of the Global
Partnership, having pledged $10 billion over 10 years, one-half of the
total G-7 commitment.

Action on Nonproliferation: President Bush underscored the growing
threat from the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The G8
Leaders issued a strong statement stressing that this "global
challenge requires a multifaceted solution" and noting their
determination "to tackle it individually and collectively -- working
together and with other partners." The Leaders' Statement addressed
the challenge posed by North Korea and Iran's nuclear programs:

-- The Leaders urged North Korea to "visibly, verifiably and
irreversibly dismantle any nuclear weapons programs."

-- G-8 Leaders said they "will not ignore the proliferation
implications of Iran's advanced nuclear program." They stressed "the
importance of Iran's full compliance with its obligations under the
Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty", and offered their "strongest support
to a comprehensive IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency)
examination of [Iran's] nuclear program."

Reducing the "Dirty Bomb" Threat: With U.S. encouragement, the G-8
launched a major new initiative to improve the security of radioactive
sources and prevent their use by terrorists in so-called "dirty
bombs." The initiative complements International Atomic Energy Agency
programs and commits the G-8 to:

-- Track sources and cooperate to recover "orphan sources";

-- Improve export controls;

-- Increase physical protection;

-- Ensure safe disposal of spent sources; and

-- Offer assistance and technical support to other countries.

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Action on New Technologies to Improve Environment and Health: G-8
Leaders agreed today on an Action Plan on Science & Technology
designed to care for our environment while growing our economies. The
G8 Action builds directly on U.S. initiatives to develop
transformational technologies for:

-- More affordable, more proliferation-resistant nuclear technologies
for the near future;

-- Cleaner coal for global deployment within a decade; and

-- Cost-competitive hydrogen fuel cell vehicles within 20 years. The
U.S. is leading by example and investing $1.7 billion in the
development of hydrogen fuel cell technology and the hydrogen-powered
"Freedom Car."

Action on Famine Relief: The G-8 Leaders endorsed a U.S.-driven Action
Plan on famine, which calls for:

-- Responding to the current food crisis;

-- Recognizing famine signs more quickly and responding more
efficiently; and

-- Helping countries increase agricultural productivity through
improved technologies, including biotechnology.

Water Action Plan: The G-8 leaders endorsed a Water Action Plan that
builds on the principles and goals of President Bush's $1 billion
Water for the Poor Initiative. The Action Plan includes two components
of the Water for the Poor Initiative: point-of-use technologies
(chlorine-based solutions and filters used in the household), which
are demonstrably effective in combating disease and saving lives, and
revolving funds, which allow communities to finance capital-intensive
water infrastructure projects over an affordable period of time at
competitive rates.