WASHINGTON, Oct. 14 (UPI) -- President George W. Bush on Monday said that despite the recent terrorist attacks in Bali, Kuwait and Yemen, an Iraq armed with weapons of mass destruction is an equal danger and the United States can contend with both.
"We've got plenty of capacity to fight the war against al Qaida, which is going to take a while. We just learned a lesson this weekend: it's going to take a while to succeed," Bush said, speaking to reporters in the White House Rose Garden. "And at the same time, the United Nations hopefully will show their strong desire to disarm Saddam and we can get after it, get him disarmed before he hurts America. And I'm absolutely confident we can achieve both objectives."
Bush said he believed that the explosion at a nightclub on Bali that killed more than 180 persons at the weekend was perpetrated by the al Qaida network and "that the attacks on the French vessel in Yemen is connected with this type of terror, that they're related. I believe that the attack on our Marines in Kuwait reflect the international nature of these cells, these killer cells," Bush said.
Bush made his comments on Iraq and the recent events in Bali, Kuwait and Yemen before boarding Marine One on his way to a political fundraiser in Michigan. Bush also urged the United Nations to issue a firm resolution demanding Iraq disarm and stressed that the United States could fight a two-front war against terrorism.
The president countered the position of Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Bob Graham, D-Fla., that other groups such as Hezbollah posed a greater threat to the United States than Iraq. Bush said that if Hussein was not disarmed, he would become "more and more dangerous."
"Anything we do must make it very clear that Saddam must disarm or there'll be consequences," Bush said during the impromptu news conference.
Bush said that the United States was making "great progress" in its war against terrorism, but stressed again that it would be a long war and that it would take " a while" to fully rout out al Qaida. He said he did not know whether al Qaida leader Osama bin Laden was dead or alive, but emphasized that the group was still dangerous.
"I am very firm in my desire to make sure that Saddam is disarmed. Hopefully, we can do this peacefully. The use of the military is my last choice, is my last desire," Bush said. "But doing nothing, allowing the status quo to go on, is unacceptable, particularly since we've got a new war on terror that was launched on September the 11th, 2001; particularly since oceans no longer protect America from people who hate us."
Bush said he planned to make it clear to Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri that they need to work together to find out who was responsible for the attacks and bring them to justice.
"I hope I hear the resolve of a leader that recognizes that anytime terrorists take hold in the country it's going to weaken the country itself. And there has to be a firm and deliberate desire to find out -- find the killers before they kill somebody else," Bush said.
He went on to say: "These are nothing but cold-blooded killers. They do not value life the way we value life in the civilized world. They take no care for innocent life. They just blow up in the name of a religion which does not preach this kind of hatred or violence."
