THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

BACKGROUND BRIEFING
BY
SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL

July 7, 1989

The Briefing Room

11:15 A.M. EDT

MR. HALL: Good morning. We'll now begin a BACKGROUND BRIEFING on the President's trip to Poland, Hungary, the stop in Paris and the economic summit, and the stop in the Netherlands. The briefer will be covering everything except for economic issues at the summit. For your information and not for attribution, the briefer is Robert Blackwill, Senior Director at the National Security Council Staff for European and Soviet Affairs.

Q Can you tell us secrets worthy of anonymity?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Good morning. I just have a brief statement and I hope not too discursive, and then we'll be happy to take your questions.

Before and during the President's first trip to Europe, he articulated through a series of speeches a broad vision for the future of the continent. A vision endorsed in the NATO summit declaration, as you know. As part of our effort to move beyond containment in East-West relations, we seek to overcome the division of Europe and bring Eastern European countries into the commonwealth of free nations to make Europe whole and free.

Conceptually, this is a newly-vivid goal for American policymakers. In the past, the desire for an end to Europe's unnatural division seemed unapproachably distant. Recent events have now brought this ambitious objective into view. As the President goes to Poland and Hungary, as he participates in the economic summit in Paris and visits the Netherlands, he will be encouraging the dramatic transition in Eastern Europe, carrying through his commitment to a new and intensified level of American engagement in the future of this vital region.

Perhaps the most important foreign policy interest in the United States is the prevention of major conflict between East and West. Eastern Europe, as The New Yorker has put it, is where the wars come from. World War II began in Poland, the Cold War began in Poland. If the Cold War is to end, it must end in Eastern Europe. The West now has an unprecedented opportunity to help bring about a peaceful democratic transformation in this region, which historically has been a focal point for conflict.

The most important political trend of our time is the spreading power of the democratic idea. We and the rest of the world have seen what happened in China when the communist rulers sought to pursue economic reform while crushing accompanying efforts to bring democratic change. One of the strategic implications of what happened in China is that the communist world is now watching and waiting to see which model is valid -- the Chinese one of mixing reform with repression, or the Polish and Hungarian one of economic and political change peacefully accomplished. In these circumstances, the fate of the brave efforts in Hungary and Poland will have repercussions far beyond those countries for the future of democracy around the world.

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So what will we be doing about this? The President is proceeding on three broad fronts -- first, he will highlight, as he did in his Mainz speech, the common values that link the Economic Summit Seven, the values that will be instrumental in overcoming Europe's division. The economic summit will coincide, as you know, with the Bicentennial of the fall of the Bastile in 1789, a symbol of the French struggle for liberty. This is also the 200th anniversary of the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen, and of the American Bill of Rights.

If the last few years have taught us anything, it should be that ideas count. And the President will be emphasizing ours. The historical symbolism of the President's trip to Poland and Hungary and the power of a simple restatement of what we stand for will, we think, tap a great well of popular sentiment in these two countries.

As I was thinking about how to vivify it, I remembered a story which I'd like to mention to you briefly. In our society, with its fast pace of change and short attention span, we tend to underestimate the power of ideas in the East, the importance of historical memory. Incidentally, that's why the communist government's tried so hard to rewrite history -- is because there is this historical memory in the East. The Czech writer, Milan Kundera, tells the story of how, in 1948, the victorious Czech communists stood on a platform and, in a famous group picture, one of them, Klementis, lent his hat to the new president, Gottwald. Klementis was later hanged after a show trial and was erased from the photograph. Today in Czechoslovakian history, Kundera wrote, "All that is left of Clementus is his hat."

People in Eastern Europe remember that picture or, just as we saw in another country, in the events surrounding the burial of Emre Nagy, the Hungarian leader who was executed after the 1956 revolution. Memories, symbols, ideas all count in Eastern Europe to a very great degree. And that is why the very fact of the American President standing in these countries at this particular time and talking about their place in history and about freedom, about Western involvement in their future is so important.

Secondly, the President's visit to Poland and Hungary will more tangibly engage the United States in the future of those countries, based on their continued progress toward political pluralism and economic reform. Although in the end the future of Poland and Hungary will depend on the efforts of the citizens of these nations, we can and want to help. Our involvement in Eastern Europe has no political-military dimension and should not threaten anyone. We're all interested in a peaceful process of reform in which, above all, the Polish and Hungarian people determine their own destiny.

Yesterday, the President hosted a symposium which brought nearly 200 leaders from business, academia, and interested nongovernmental groups together for an unprecedented exchange of how the American private sector can help the shape of future -- future shape of Eastern Europe. As for any new measures the President might announce while in Poland and Hungary, I'm sure you'll understand I'm not going to elaborate on those today.

Q But there will be?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: I don't have anything to say about that. The President addressed that yesterday and didn't elaborate either.

Q -- addressed it ambiguously for several days.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Almost done. Almost done. Almost done. Sorry.

Third -- can I just finish and then I'll take -- okay.

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Third, at the economic summit, the President will take the lead in guiding the general approach to East-West relations including, importantly, Eastern Europe, and global political issues in addition to the economic and environmental matters there.

Finally, the President will travel to the Netherlands, the first time in history that a U.S. President has paid an official visit to that country. The President will give a policy address at Leiden which will review the trip and the economic summit, while giving special attention to the U.S. approach toward Western Europe, including the enduring commitment to NATO's collective defense as we manage the process of historic change in Europe that I described above.

So, questions. Thank you for being so patient.

Q Germany, I suppose, is your country of special interest. I'd like a candid assessment from you as to how far the United States is ahead of the other countries -- the allies -- in preaching German reunification.

And while you're being candid, is this going to be an issue or even a slight irritant? Because if you talk about eliminating the division of Europe, the next step inevitably is, what do you do about the two Germanies? There are people around town who think only the U.S. is really for a reunification of Germany -- that there are a lot of nervous countries in Western Europe that probably have a longer memory -- possibly have a longer memory than some people in this country. Can you tell us if that's a problem, and how far ahead is the U.S. of the others?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: I don't think it's a problem and I don't think we're ahead. It's not going to be a major preoccupation of this trip, of course, because of the stops involved. But the President spoke to that in the Mainz speech.

Q I was there. I was there.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Spoke to that in the -- yes, in the -- so you know --

Q He didn't speak explicitly of the unification of Germany. He's a little nervous about saying it still. But Eagleburger keeps saying it. So tell me where you stand.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: No, he said -- no, wait a minute. Well, he did actually explicitly speak to it and he --

Q -- German people -- he didn't say the Germans --

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: No, he said "ending the division of Europe and ending the division of Germany" -- was the phrase, I'm sorry. And that's our position. As for whether the other Europeans feel the same way, you should ask them. But I would note that some successive NATO summit communiques for years have called for an end to the division of Europe and of Germany.

Q It's not an issue on this trip?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: I don't think it will be a major issue on this trip, no. Our position is clear on the matter.

Q The legislation for OPIC and GSP for Hungary and Poland didn't quite make it to the Senate before they went out, but the administration has said several times it's void --

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Right.

Q -- up on the Hill. Will the President at least be willing to say he's for it while he's there?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Yes.

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Q And maybe go a little further?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, he certainly will endorse the legislation that's on the Hill and we'll go on working with the Congress to have it pass as soon as we can.

Q Will you explain that?

Q Yes, what the --

Q Those of us who don't speak in acronyms.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, basic -- this is -- I mean, can I just say -- it's in the Hamtramck speech. -- but just to say that it is -- I'm sure we can -- someone's pointing under your chair, I think. But anyway this is basically -- these steps are to increase opportunities for U.S. trade with these regions, investment guarantees and so forth.

Q Does the administration feel that Congress has to act --

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: But we can -- sorry, just to go on -- we can get you details of this -- get back to the Hamtramck speech.

Q He's not going to be able to bring this with him because it isn't done -- is that the point?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, he won't -- that's correct -- he won't be able to tell them that the legislation has been passed and signed as had been our hope because it hasn't been.

Q Does the administration feel that you need legislation to take these steps?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Yes. And that's the reason we have legislation on the Hill, which as you implicitly said, almost passed, didn't quite make it. And we'll be pushing hard to get it signed as -- passed and signed as soon as we can.

Q Well, I just want to -- pushed and passed, obviously not before the trip.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: No.

Q Why did he not push and -- what's the problem?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, we did our best. It just didn't pass. It just didn't.

Q People think that if there are demonstrations -- major demonstrations either in Warsaw or Budapest when President Bush is there that they would organized by opponents of Gorbachev inside the Soviet Union who would use them in the pretext to embarrass him or discredit him. What is your assessment of the potential for such demonstrations to take place and what would be the President's response?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, we don't expect demonstrations. We expect the President is going to get a very warm welcome by the people of both these countries.

Q It's clear that economic reforms are necessary before expanded aid can go forward to Poland. But what about political reforms? Is that an absolute precondition for any expansion of assistance?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, the political reforms are going forward very rapidly. If you just think of the period between the Hamtramck speech and Sunday night when the

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President gets off the airplane -- we've had these two rounds of the elections in Poland, we have a first freely elected Polish -- or legislative body in Eastern Europe and what have you. So they're proceeding apace.

Q But if you look at Poland and Hungary --

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: And I should say that, of course, the same thing is happening in different ways in Hungary.

Q But if you look at -- yes, if you look at Poland and Hungary, I mean, the situation is always fluid. Is there a basic set of political criteria that must be in place for any expanded aid to either country?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, we don't have a blueprint. I don't think the place for such blueprints is inside the Beltway. What we do want, as the President said in Hamtramck, is the continuation of pluralism -- the building of institutions which promote pluralism. That's happening in both countries. There's not a set Hammurabi Code for the future of these political institutions. They have to create them themselves. But you'll know it and I'll know it -- whether they're pluralistic and democratic in character.

Q The President hasn't said what he's going to offer there, but it's clear from what he said that it will be less than the request that's been made for something on the order of $10 billion. Is there a concern and what are you -- how do you plan to deal with it -- that because he's not going to be able to give what's been asked that there will be a disappointment factor here that could strike a sour note on this trip?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, we hope not. As you said, the President addressed himself to the question of the $10-billion document which solidarity passed to the President of France when they were there. And we don't -- at least our information is that most Poles don't expect a $10-billion package from the President or from the West, and we'll have to deal with those expectations when they're there. As you say, they are considerable, but we think we can deal with them.

Q Can you elaborate on why you feel that way? I mean, there's obviously some thinking --

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Not at the moment.

Q Do you think there is a risk here, though, that Bush's presence, given the current unsettled circumstances, could contribute to instability -- political instability in Poland?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: No, and in fact we're -- of course, we're attentive to the events in Poland, which change day by day, and we haven't gotten the slightest suggestion of that from the Polish government or any of the various parties in Poland.

Q Sir, I'm just kind of curious. The President, when he goes to Poland, is going to be dealing with some real people issues, too, including, as we understand it, trying to pave the way for some of these important discussions via Little League Baseball, which is going around the world. I'm just kind of curious as to how important are these people issues such as this, according to him, as far as paving the way to get down to more substantial issues?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, the -- as you know, when the President travels, he likes to actually interact with folks other than those that are in the government. He does it almost everyplace he goes, and you've named one example of that.

Q What does the little league baseball have to do with anything?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Have to do with

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anything?

Q No -- in Poland?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: You're not a baseball fan. What an indictment.

Q Following on the question of instability, how nervous are you that Poland, both politically and economically, is approaching the brink here? I ask that question in the context of the deep inflation.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Sorry. You're being harassed from -- sorry.

Q I ask that question in the context of the deep inflation that is going on in Poland, the slew of Western leaders, including the President, who are going to come in there and ask for even tighter economic reforms. What is your assessment of how much Poland can take, really, before the process of instability steps in?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, one, of course, nobody's crystal ball is entirely clear on this. But what I would say, if you go back to the period beginning before the roundtable and then up -- today, what is striking, at least to me, is the commitment on the part of the government, of Solidarnosc and of the Church to make this work.

What we have now after the election of the Parliament and the Parliament taking its place is a series of events which look very much like democratic consensus-building in the West as these candidates try to persuade parliamentarians -- or potential candidates to vote for them. So I think the record so far is, as I say, of a commitment on the part of all these elements of Polish society to maintain the stability that's characterized the process since the roundtable negotiations began.

One would expect to continue to read periodically in the morning paper of another event which surprises, as Jaruzelski's decision to withdraw from the presidency -- the election for the presidency was. But so far it looks as if the parties intend to work together to maintain the stability, which of course is crucial. This broad stability within the society is crucial to carrying out the reforms that they're committed to.

Q Could you comment on the political downside for Gorbachev of the President's trip to Eastern Europe -- to what extent that will guide his public statements or actions while he's there?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: What political downside do you have in mind?

Q The downside for Gorbachev back home -- politically back home in Moscow.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, the President has said a number of times, even in the last week, that the -- his visit to Eastern Europe serves no threat to Mr. Gorbachev, just as Mr. Gorbachev's various visits to Western Europe serve no threat to the West. And I think, again, what the President said is that this marks a new era in East-West relations in Europe. And Gorbachev himself, as you know, in Paris and at Strasbourg has indicated, I think, a somewhat more comprehensive view of reform in Eastern Europe than he had done before and of the importance of it proceeding at its own pace and at the direction of the peoples of those countries.

So we don't anticipate a problem in that respect.

Q But despite these assurances from you or from the President that no security threat should be perceived by Gorbachev on this trip, French officials say that Gorbachev, in private talks, has said that he felt that the President's call or suggestion that all

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Red Army troops be taken out of Poland was crossing that line. What was the thinking behind what the President said?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, the President was asked whether, in his view, Soviet troops should leave Poland, and he said yes. In the Mainz speech, you will recall there was a line that the President used which was that the Soviet perception of its security is "antique" and the decision -- those troops, of course, have been in Poland -- in Czechoslovakia since '68 and Poland longer.

Q -- American troops in Germany?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Helen, I'd be happy to address that if you want to get back to the U.S. troops in Germany, but just to say that it was seen to be a fairly straightforward answer to a straightforward question.

Q But, I mean, then is he calling for the complete demilitarization of Eastern Europe?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: What he said yesterday was that this will happen incrementally, but certainly our goal ought to be the capability of these countries to decide themselves whether they wish to have Soviet troops on their soil. If the freely-elected democratic institutions and leaders and parliaments decide they want Soviet forces on their soil, that's fine with us. But that's the point -- whether they're imposed or whether they're there because the people want them there, which distinguishes Helen, the situation from the Federal Republic of Germany and American forces there.

Q Yes, I realize that. Now, do you expect the President to repeat a call for the withdrawal of Red Army troops from Poland while he is in Poland? And since there is now -- the Russians are saying no more Brezhnev doctrine, wouldn't it make it very feasible to say such a thing?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, I'm not -- I don't want to express exactly what the President is going to say -- and he's on the record on the question of Soviet forces in Eastern Europe -- but that's not the first time he's said that. As I say, the context of our conventional arms control proposal which the President put forward at the NATO summit was precisely the idea of incrementally demilitarizing Europe, and especially at its center, where there is the greatest danger, and that will require an enormous reduction in the Soviet conventional forces on the Continent because of their --

Q Will he say so in Poland?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, we'll see. I don't want to preview exactly what he is going to say, but the point I make here is that he's repeated this view that the massive Soviet force in Eastern Europe, forward-deployed, heavy-armored, is a destabilizing fact of the current European security situation, and it ought to change.

Q Isn't there a big difference between the conventional arms proposal which seeks rough parity in forward-stationed troops and a demilitarization? I mean, you seem to be saying now what the President is saying, is, unless these Eastern European countries want the Red Army on their soil, they shouldn't be.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, but that's -- I mean, I think that's been the view of American presidents for a very long time; there's nothing new about that. What's new is that we have evolving in these countries the capability of the people to decide the matter. And, of course, we all applaud that.

Q If I could just follow this further -- my understanding of the CFE proposal was this parity in the two blocs. One might ask, why should the American President be picking which

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country in the East the Soviets should unilaterally withdraw all their troops from. I don't understand the relationship between the proposal for a unilateral withdrawal of all Soviet troops from Poland and the NATO proposal which seemed to envision equal levels that -- between the two blocs.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: No, but remember, the NATO proposal has an element of a U.S.-Soviet manpower ceiling at 275,000, which addresses the question of Soviet forces in Eastern Europe as a first step. But let me repeat -- the President was asked a question: Did he believe that the Soviets should withdraw their forces from Poland?

But as I say, I think you can find every American President being on the record on this score. Is his answer meant to be no, they shouldn't? Of course, his predecessors --

Q He was not making this as part of his -- sort of the formal structure of the CFE proposal.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Oh, no -- and he made that clear; no, he was not.

Q I have two questions. One is, how dominant do you expect China to be as an issue -- a political issue -- at the summit? There are some analysts who are saying that they see that as sort of higher than Poland and Hungary. And the second is, because Hungary is a little farther along in its economic reforms, free-market mechanisms, would you anticipate that the United States would be able to do more at this point for Hungary in terms of economic assistance?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, let me just -- as I say, I'm not going to presage what the President is going to say in those countries with respect to assistance. On China, it's going to be an important -- obviously important subject of discussion at the economic summit. As you know, the political topics are usually discussed informally over meals. It's been, obviously, a preoccupation of the President and of the European leaders. The Japanese Prime Minister will be there; the European Community has issued a statement on China. So I think it will be an important subject.

Q In what context?

Q How will it be --

Q Increasing sanctions?

Q In what way?

Q -- any farther than just we don't like what's going on there, but we hope we can maintain --

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, we'll have to see. I think it will be treated in the communique, I would expect, and we'll have to see what it says.

Q What do you mean -- you've got to amplify it a little. I mean, obviously China is on people's minds. Can you say anything more than that?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, I can say that the leaders of the Summit Seven are going to get together and talk about it and exchange views about what their respective policies ought to be. And as I say, I think there will be something in the summit communique on the subject.

Q Who's the leader on this? The President has staked out leadership positions, first at NATO on arms control; now here on environment and on economics. Is he trying to sell a China policy to the others, or is he expecting them to make requests of him? Is there some drive for united action in some way? Could you amplify a

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little?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, if the question is, will he need to explain our policy to them, I don't think so. I think they're well aware of it; indeed, in some cases, their policies have followed along behind the President.

Q I mean, this policy of measured response -- disapproval, but no strong rhetoric, and very, very measured response. Does he want the Europeans and the Japanese to follow that lead?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, we believe that that's the best way to proceed, obviously, and, indeed, that's been basically the way the West has reacted to events in China. But I don't know whether they'll go further in the communique of the economic summit or not; that's one of the things these seven leaders are going to be talking about when they're in Paris.

Q How can you say that there is no threat of a disappointed response in Poland and Hungary to Bush's economic offer when he goes there, given that Solidarity says they need $10 billion dollars and Bush is saying that economic reforms have to be a condition for aid, and economic reforms will have the effect of removing price controls from basic commodities -- such that for the average Pole, for example, the net effect of Bush's proposal will mean an increase in austerity for them?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Whatever the President might or might not propose is not yet --

Q Well, it has been stated here a number of times that economic reforms -- and that includes free-market initiatives which includes removing price controls, which have basically been the only thing that have made it possible for millions of Poles to survive --

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, as I say, I don't want to get into what -- I can't address the question of what the reaction will be without addressing the question of what the President might say or do there, which as I mentioned at the outset I'm not inclined to do. But I'd broaden it and say that my impression is -- I haven't been to Poland for 14 months and to Hungary for a year, so I'm a little out of date, but I do try to keep up -- is that both these countries understand that austerity is required in the period ahead.

But what's happening now is that in both countries, institutions of political pluralism are being developed in which the ordinary citizen will, the evidence suggests, come to believe that his and her interests are being represented through these more democratic institutions. Efforts at austerity, especially in Poland, failed in the past because the regimes that tried to institute them had no political legitimacy. And that's -- you know the story --

*Garrick and Gomulka --

Q Solidarity is now saying that their political legitimacy is also threatened by the depth of the economic crisis. That's why they offer this $10 billion figure.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Right. And they're concerned about that. I guess all I can tell you now is that we'll see after the visit, but we're persuaded that the visits will be successful and that we can deal with the issues that you've raised.

Q At the summit, in the effort to forge some sort of unified Western response to changes in Eastern Europe, what are the main issues with the allies? Do they not agree on the same preconditions the U.S. has? What's the main thing you have to --

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, I wouldn't put it like that. There aren't any major differences, in my view. One of the things that I've been struck by, coming back to government having

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been away a while, is the intensity of the communication and consultation on the subject of Eastern Europe between and among Western governments. Virtually, no day goes by in which we don't have communication with one or more of them on developments in Eastern Europe. Almost every conversation the President has with a European -- this is high-on-the-agenda developments in Eastern Europe.

As one of you suggested in another way, Western leaders are visiting Eastern Europe, especially Hungary and Poland, with an intensity that hasn't been seen before. Mitterrand was there; the President's going; Genscher, the German Foreign Minister, was just in Budapest, and so forth. The German Chancellor will be going to Poland sometime in the next several months. So there's a great intensity of communication.

I don't discern any serious differences of view. I'd say this -- I think the reason is that everybody, as I tried to say in my opening statement, everybody understands the historical stakes that are at issue here. It's really quite different than any time in the postwar period. The opportunities are quite enormous. It's obviously a very delicate situation, and all of the leaders of the West, I think, demonstrate almost daily their determination to work very close together to be sure that their efforts to promote pluralism democracy in the market in Eastern Europe are coordinated and that one or the other doesn't go off in a way that would reduce the chances of success in those countries.

Q There's been a long-standing difference of opinion between the U.S. and the allies over what has to happen, how much aid, under what circumstances, whether or not it's concessionary rates or what kinds of things you do for them under particular scenarios.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: I have to say -- I can't speak -- I was on the Charles River before the 20th of January, so I can't speak before -- in the recent period. But I can say that since we arrived, that has not been the case. And, I mean, there have been hundreds of messages at various levels back and forth, and that really just hasn't been the case. So I just --

Q So it would be fairly easy then to coordinate --

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, we want to be sure -- of course, as always in these matters, I think that there's a commitment at the political level to do this, and now we have to be sure that it gets implemented through the bureaucracies and so forth. But I don't discern any major difference of emphasis. And I think you can see that from the public statements of the various folks -- when Mitterrand was in Poland, when Genscher was in Hungary, when Kohl spoke to this issue in the Bundestag. I think if you put them up, they're all parallel in character.

Maybe just one more.

Q Dr. Brzezinski recently proposed to set up a kind of international round consortium including Japan and the Western European countries to give aid to Poland and Hungary. Does this administration endorse this idea? He proposed also -- also talked about this idea in the summit.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Let me say that, as the President has said twice in the last week, we think that this sort of coordination I was talking about a moment ago needs to be intensified. As to the means that that occurs, we'll just have to see.

Q What's your reaction to Gorbachev --

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Sorry, can you start again?

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Q Would you give us your reaction to Gorbachev's speech yesterday, where he talked about also wanting a common European home and stated a principle of political self-determination for all of Europe, saying that neither ally nor foe should meddle in internal political affairs?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: Well, the common European home idea we spoke on often -- and the President did so again yesterday -- you have a common home, folks should be able to move from room to room, as the President put it. As for the question of the -- Gorbachev's view of transitions and the transitional process in Eastern Europe, he seemed, at least according -- I thought, to go somewhat further than he had before. But some of the language was still hedged with respect to the future of those countries.

Of course, our view is that whatever the people of Poland and Hungary and, eventually, the other nations of Eastern Europe choose for their own future is perfectly fine with us, and we'd like every other country to have the same view.

Q How do you think that comment will be received elsewhere in Eastern Europe? I mean, will it be received in a positive way that might encourage other countries to move in the direction of Poland and Hungary?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: You should ask the Poles and the Hungarians when we get there.

Q Do you see it as a backwards way to renounce the Brezhnev Doctrine?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL: I don't know. We'd like a forwards way to renounce the Brezhenev Doctrine.

Thank you very much.

THE PRESS: Thank you.

END

11:45 A.M. EDT

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE
UNTIL 7:00 A.M. EDT

SUNDAY, JULY 9, 1989

TEXT OF REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
AT DEPARTURE FOR EUROPE

Andrews Air Force Base

July 9, 1989

This morning, I depart for Europe -- my second visit in two months to a continent in the midst of change -- a time of unprecedented opportunity for peace, prosperity and freedom.

I'm especially pleased to make my trip at this time. Just five days ago, we celebrated the birth of our Nation. Just five days from now, France will celebrate its rebirth as a modern nation, the 14th of July. This year, it's a special celebration: The Bicentennial of Bastille Day.

Two hundred years ago, the democratic revolution that began here in America crossed the Atlantic. The gates of the Bastille opened onto a new era -- the era of the Rights of Man. In Europe, as in America, an idea was unleashed that would change the face of history -- an idea that is still shaping our world today. That idea is democracy.

Then and now, freedom finds its allies everywhere. Lafayette and Rochambeau, Kosciuszko and Pulaski: These names are engraved in American history -- patriots not only in their own countries, but in America as well. And the Revolution of 1789 had its roots in the Spirit of 1776. Remember what James Monroe said about the French who fought at our side for America's independence: "They caught the spirit of liberty here, and carried it home with them."

Today, that spirit of liberty remains strong, and the United States remains the friend of any nation -- any people -- who love freedom and cherish the Rights of Man.

This morning, I begin a journey that will take me to Europe -- East and West -- a journey that underscores the tremendous changes, challenges and opportunities ahead of us.

I travel first to Poland and Hungary -- nations on the threshold of a new era, nations where the spirit of freedom is strong. In both countries, we're witnessing remarkable changes -- welcome developments no one would have thought possible even a year ago. New voices are shaping the course of national affairs -- and both countries are on the path towards economic rebirth and political pluralism. My visit underscores the growing importance our Nation sees in the changing face of Central Europe.

I will travel from Poland and Hungary to France, to join leaders from the six major industrial democracies in my first Economic Summit as President. Together, we are working to spread the benefits of political freedom and economic prosperity around the world. The Summit is a unique opportunity to assess our progress. It's also an opportunity to show that we can forge a common response to new challenges, such as the need to protect the global environment.

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Our agenda at the Economic Summit will include both political and economic issues of global impact. We will review the international economic scene, and we'll identify where we can improve coordination. We'll focus on the problem of debt in the developing world. I expect Summit leaders to make a firm commitment to complete the Uruguay Round of trade negotiations by December 1990.

And we will discuss ways of dealing with a number of critical environmental issues that affect us all -- problems including global warming, deforestation, and the pollution of the world's oceans. We know there are no easy solutions. But -- provided we work together -- I'm confident we can find common solutions to problems none of us can solve alone.

And finally, before returning home, I will visit an old and honored ally: The Netherlands. Our friendship with the Dutch is older than our own Constitution -- with a nation whose long tradition of union and liberty shaped and inspired our own. Today, our two nations are partners in commerce and common defense, and the common values that bind us have never been stronger.

Europe is at a turning point. A continent cruelly divided for more than four decades now dreams of being whole and free. Our task is clear: To see that we mend old divisions, that we fulfill the decades-old dream -- and that the new Europe emerges, secure, prosperous, peaceful and free.

# # #

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary
(Warsaw, Poland)

For Immediate Release

July 10, 1989

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
AT JOINT SESSION OF PARLIAMENT

The Sejm
Warsaw, Poland

2:28 P.M. (L)

THE PRESIDENT: Chairman Jaruzelski, Marshall Kozakiewicz and Stelmachowski, Prime Minister Rakowski and senators and delegates, on behalf of the people of the United States, I am honored to greet the newly-elected representatives of the Polish Parliament. To be here with you on this occasion is proof that we live in extraordinary, indeed thrilling times.

The power and potential of this moment was first made clear to me when I saw a photo -- a worldwide photo -- flashed all around the world -- a photo of General Jaruzelski, Senator Lech Walesa shoulder-to-shoulder -- Solidarity Leader Lech Walesa -- shoulder-to-shoulder at the opening session of this Parliament -- committed to new progress in Poland. Believe me, that sent a wonderful signal all around the world.

Poland and the United States are bound, it is often said, by ties of kinship and culture. But our peoples are linked by more than sentiment.

The May 3rd Constitution of 1791 set Poland ahead of her peers -- ahead of her time -- in the pursuit of freedom and democratic ideas, just as our Constitution -- the American Constitution of 1787 set new standards for protection of the rights of the individual.

For decades, beginning with the Versailles Peace Conference, the United States has stood for Polish independence, freedom, prosperity. And we are proud of our early and longstanding commitment to Polish self-determination. As America's President, I am here today to reaffirm that proud commitment.

I understand something of the work you are commencing, for I began my own public service in the American Congress. Democratically-chosen legislatures are among mankind's greatest forums for debate and dialogue. And while I've been to Poland before, I did not expect to return so soon -- nor to such altered circumstances in your country. And so, too, perhaps many of you didn't expect to be here -- serving in this, or any Polish parliament. And your achievement has surpassed all expectation and has earned all our admiration.

Our meeting today bears witness to the character of our age.

Some 450 years ago, when the Polish astronomer Copernicus came to understand the natural order of the planets -- and had the courage to question accepted wisdom -- the world was changed forever. From this year forward, as Poland works to reaffirm the natural order of man and government, so too will Poland be changed forever.

For today the scope of political and economic change in Poland is indeed Copernican. A fundamental change in perspective

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that places the people at the center. A new understanding that the governed are the true source of lasting social peace and economic prosperity -- around which government revolves, and exists to serve.

Poland has a rich democratic heritage. The May 3rd Constitution was a stroke of genius. Today, at the dawn of that document's third century, you're called upon to match its genius with contemporary action -- to make a peaceful transition toward political and economic renewal -- through representative government that expresses the will of the people. (Applause.)

I said a few weeks ago here in Europe that East and West have arrived at the end of one era, and at the beginning of another. Chairman Jaruzelski recently said of Poland that "the life of the nation has undergone deep changes -- society has the full right to ask when a ray of sun will shine over Poland." In truth, this applies not just to Poland, but to the entirety of relations between East and West.

A profound cycle of turmoil and great change is sweeping the world from Poland to the Pacific. It is sometimes inspiring, as here, in Warsaw. And sometimes it's agonizing, as in China today. But the magnitude of change we sense around the world compels us to look within ourselves -- and to God -- to forge a rare alloy of courage and restraint.

The future beckons with both hope and uncertainty. Poland and Hungary find themselves at a crossroads. Each has started down its own road to reform, without guarantee of easy success. The people of these nations -- and the courage of their leaders -- command our admiration. The way is hard. But the moment is right, both internally and internationally, for Poland to walk its own path.

On the day Solidarity was restored, I spoke of my support and admiration for the political experiment just getting underway in Poland. You've since proceeded further along that road -- including holding the remarkable elections that produced this Parliament. And let us consider what your experiment may mean, not just for Poland, but for Europe and for the entire world.

The divided world of the modern age began here -- right here -- in Poland, 50 years ago this summer. Your country -- and then nearly all of Europe -- was first besieged and then occupied by totalitarian, despotic forces. A courageous Poland was our ally. And in that fearful time, Franklin Roosevelt and Winston Churchill devised the Atlantic Charter which outlined principles on which we hoped to build a better world -- including freedom from want and fear, and the right of peoples to choose the form of government under which they will live.

But as you know better than anyone, the world that we sought then was not to be. Stalinist systems were imposed over a third of a continent. The Cold War began. The countries of the West organized themselves in defense of democratic principles. And we proposed that the Marshall Plan include Eastern Europe. But again, that was not to be.

The Western strategy -- our strategy of containment -- was a means, but was never an end in itself. It was no substitute for a free and united Europe. And we did not forget the frustrated and lost hopes of 1945, nor the promise of a better world. Neither did the Polish people. You have been a crucible of conflict. You're now becoming a vessel for change.

Poland is where the Cold War began -- and now the people of Poland can help bring the division of Europe to an end. The time has come to move beyond containment to a world too long deferred -- a better world. And now, at long last, two developments have allowed us to redeem the principles of the Atlantic Charter for which the United States and Poland fought as allies. One is the manifest

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failure of the classic Stalinist system. And the other is the
indomitable will of the people -- through leaders in Poland and
Hungary, who are working to overcome the mistakes of the past with
honesty, creativity and, yes, courage. The world watches in
admiration.

And now, in part because of what you are doing here, the
genuine opportunity exists for all of us to build a Europe which many
thought was destroyed forever in the 1940s. That Europe -- the
Europe of our children -- will be open, whole, and free.

We can make it so in two ways. First, a new East-West
relationship must rest on greatly reduced levels of arms. I notice
what General Jaruselzki said on that point, and I support him. We in
the West have proposed dramatic reductions in conventional armed
forces in Europe, reductions that promise to transform the military
map of Europe and diminish the very threat of war. The new
willingness in Moscow to accept this Western framework for reductions
in troops and tanks and aircraft and other categories of weapons
gives us hope that the negotiations in Vienna will succeed. A good
beginning has been made. Constructive proposals are being offered on
both sides. We are determined to push hard for an early and
successful conclusion to these talks.

Second, reductions in military forces will go further and
be more sustainable if they take place in parallel with political
change. Excessive levels of arms, we believe, are the symptom and
not the source of political tensions. In Europe, those tensions
spring from an unnatural and cruel division.

Poland's decision to embrace political reform -- and
Hungary's movement in the same direction -- thus have great
importance beyond their borders. By creating political structures
legitimized by popular will -- by that, your reforms can be the
foundation of stability, security, and prosperity -- not just here,
but in all of Europe, now and into the next century.

Mikhail Gorbachev has written, "universal security rests
on the recognition of the right of every nation to choose its own
path of social development and on the renunciation of interference in
the domestic affairs of other states. A nation may choose either
capitalism or socialism. This is its sovereign right." In
principle, I agree. But I might well have said that the people of a
nation may freely choose either a free market economy, or socialism.
That is their right.

And so the West works not to disrupt, not to interfere,
not to threaten any nation's security, but to help forge closer and
enduring ties between Poland and the rest of Europe.

As a result of the Roundtable Accords, Poland's fate lies
more than ever in Polish hands. And there it must ever remain.

Your responsibility for your country's future is immense.
Poland's friends, including the American people, want Poland to be
free, prosperous, democratic, independent -- true to the best
tradition of your nation's past. (Applause.) And this regime is
moving forward with a sense of realism and courage, in a time of
great difficulty and challenge. Lech Walesa and Solidarity are
deeply committed to institutions in Poland that will serve all its
people. This Parliament, by its very existence, is advancing
pluralism. And the Church has served as a source of spiritual
guidance and unity in turbulent times. But above all, there are the
people of Poland -- people who are steadfastly working toward
productive change.

And yet, even under the best circumstances,
representative government has its own challenges. It requires
patience, tolerance, and give-and-take between political opponent.
But its virtue is that it grants legitimacy to leaders and their

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policies. It gives governments and societies the mandate to make
hard choices. And through their involvement, it gives the people a
stake in the choices that are made.

For over 200 years, Americans have wrestled over
political and economic interests, over individual and civil rights,
and the role of a loyal opposition. Democracy is not a conclusion,
it's a process -- and perfecting it never ends. But history has
taught Americans one very clear lesson. Democracy works.

We understand in my country the enormous economic
problems you face. Economic privation is a danger that can threaten
any great democratic experiment. And I must speak honestly.
Economic reform and recovery cannot occur without sacrifices. Even
in an economy as productive as ours, we still debate the roles and
limits of government -- how to regulate the private sector without
discouraging innovation, how to reduce our own enormous budget
deficit, how to balance workers' needs and industrial efficiency, how
to handle the painful disruptions of change -- for the sake of
productivity, the sake of progress, for the sake of prosperity.

The reform of the Polish economy presents an historic
challenge. There can be no substitute for Poland's own efforts. But
I want to stress to you today that Poland is not alone. Given the
enormity of this moment, the United States stands ready to help as
you help yourselves.

In Hamtramck, Michigan, three months ago, I outlined a
policy of support for the reforms then just beginning in Poland. I
proposed specific steps, carefully chosen to recognize the reforms
underway here and to encourage reforms yet to come. It is a policy
built on dynamic interplay of progress in Poland and Western
engagement -- and not on unsound credits made without regard to
necessary reforms. That was the record of the 1970s. Poland and the
United States need not repeat that. Our efforts will be carefully
targeted in support of an emerging new Poland.

We've made progress on the steps announced at Hamtramck,
and this is where we stand.

Legislation is well underway that will help Polish
exporters compete more effectively in the U.S. market through
generalized systems of preferences, and that will authorize our
Overseas Private Investment Corporation to operate in Poland,
providing investment insurance and setting up missions to stimulate
U.S. investment and joint ventures here.

The United States is proposing a private business
agreement that will promote contacts between Poland's growing private
business sector and its American counterparts. We hope to conclude
an agreement soon, to build on what promises to be an unprecedented
opportunity.

There is great interest and excitement in the United
States about what you're doing in Poland and a clear-cut desire to
help the reform process. I hosted a White House Symposium on July
6th to bring together citizens of my country interested in promoting
investment, trade and academic exchange with Poland and Hungary. And
I can assure you that, more than ever before, the American people
will be involved in your democratic experiment.

I've said that as Poland reforms itself, the U.S. will
respond. Much has happened even in the short time since Hamtramck.
So today, I'm pleased to announce that we plan to do more and go
farther for the sake of a stable and prosperous Poland.

First, I will propose at the upcoming economic summit in
Paris that the nations of the summit -- that Summit Seven --
intensify their coordination and concerted action to promote
democratic reform in Poland and Hungary, and to help manage

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compassionately the process of change. We will work with our partners at the summit, moving quickly with increased Western aid and technical assistance. This concerted action will complement existing institutions like the World Bank, the Paris Club, and IMF; and address needed economic reforms, credits, management and training initiatives, social safety nets, housing, and other issues important to Poland.

Second, I will ask the United States Congress to provide a $100 million fund to capitalize and invigorate the Polish private sector -- and we will encourage parallel contributions from other nations of the economic summit.

Third, I will encourage the World Bank to move ahead with $325 million in economically viable loans to help Polish agriculture and industry reach the production levels they are so clearly capable of.

And fourth, I will ask my counterparts in the West to support an early and generous rescheduling of Polish debt. This could provide deferral of debt payments amounting to about $5 billion this year, if our allies and friends in the Paris Club agree to join us in offering liberalized terms. I plan to discuss this issue with my colleagues at the Paris summit.

Fifth, economic progress should not come at the expense of our common heritage -- our common inheritance -- the environment. In fact, sound ecology and a strong economy can and must coexist. Air and water pollution know no boundaries. And this concern is worldwide. Almost two years ago I visited Krakow, your former Royal Capital -- a city recognized by UNESCO as an international treasure. Today, Krakow is under siege by pollution. Its priceless monuments are being destroyed. Krakow must be reclaimed. And the United States will help. (Applause.) And I'll ask the Congress for $15 million for a cooperative venture with Poland to help fight air and water pollution there.

Sixth, and finally, when I began my remarks, I mentioned the shared cultured heritage of our two nations. (Applause.) Today, I'm proud to announce that the United States will establish a Cultural and Information Center in Warsaw, and we'll ask Poland to establish a similar center in the United States. This will be the first time that either of our two countries will be able to conduct educational and cultural programs outside of our embassies and consulates.

The elections which brought us -- all of us -- together here today mean that the path the Polish people have chosen is that of political pluralism and economic rebirth. The road ahead is a long one, but it is the only road which leads to prosperity and social peace. Poland's progress along this road will show the way toward a new era throughout Europe, an era based on common values and not just geographic proximity. The Western democracies will stand with the Polish people, and other peoples of this region.

Democracy has captured the spirit of our time. Like all forms of government, though it may be defended, democracy can never be imposed. We believe in democracy. For without doubt, though democracy may be a dream deferred for many, it remains, in my view, the destiny of man.

Two hundred years ago, democratic constitutions were adopted by three nations, embodying the powerful influence of the enlightenment, as a testament to ideas that endure.

The American Constitution was first, and has stood the test of history for the over 200 years of our existence as a republic. Constitutional democracy in France began two centuries ago this summer. And in a few days, leaders from all over the world will be in Paris to celebrate the anniversary of its birth.

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On May 3, 1991, the Polish constitution will also be 200 years old. Your constitution of 1791 was crushed, but never forgotten. And now, this generation's calling is to redeem the promise of a free Polish republic. Poland has not been lost so long as the Polish spirit lives. (Applause.)

America wishes you well as you face the tough problems today. I salute General Jaruzelski for his leadership and his extraordinary hospitality to me. I salute the leaders and members of these two great legislative bodies. God, in His infinite wisdom and love, is with us in this chamber. May God bless you and your efforts. Long live Poland. Long live Poland. Thank you very, very much. (Applause.)

END

2:58 P.M. (L)

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary
(Gdansk, Poland)

For Immediate Release

July 11, 1989

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
AT SOLIDARITY WORKERS' MONUMENT

Lenin Shipyard Gates
Gdansk, Poland

2:32 P.M. (L)

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. Hello Lech Walesa; hello Solidarnosc; hello Polska. (Applause.) And congratulations on what you've done since I last visited -- the first free elections in modern Polska. (Applause.)

Poland has a special place in the American heart -- and in my heart. And when you hurt, we feel pain. And when you dream, we feel hope. And when you succeed, we feel joy. It goes far beyond diplomatic relations -- it's more like family relations. And coming to Poland is like coming home. (Applause.)

This special kinship is the kinship of an ancient dream -- a recurring dream -- the dream of freedom. "They are accustomed to liberty," wrote a Byzantine historian about the Slavic people more than a thousand years ago. And the spirit of the Poles has been conveyed across the centuries and across the oceans -- a dream that would not die.

That dream was severely tested here in Gdansk. Fifty years ago this summer, the pre-dawn quiet of this peaceful Baltic harbor was shattered by the thunder from the 15-inch guns of Nazi warship Schleswig-Holstein. Within the hour, iron panzers rolled across the Polish frontier. And Europe was plunged into darkness that would engulf the world.

For Poland the choices were few: Surrender to tyranny -- or resist against impossible odds. And in the brutal fighting that followed, you set a standard for courage that will never be forgotten. (Applause.) In World War II Poland lost everything -- except her honor, except her dreams.

Before Poland fell, you gave the allies "Enigma" -- the Nazi's secret coding machine. Breaking the "unbreakable" Axis codes saved tens of thousands of allied lives -- of American lives -- and for this you have the enduring gratitude of the American people. (Applause.) And, ultimately, Enigma and freedom fighters played a major role in winning the Second World War.

But for you, the war's end did not end the darkness. The Cold War brought a long and chilly night of sorrow and hardship. And the dream was again denied.

And yet, there were glimmers of the long-awaited dawn. In the summer of 1980, you occupied the shipyards where we stand. And a patriotic electrician clambered over these iron gates -- and emerged as one of the heroes of our times -- Lech Walesa. (Applause.)

And above your streets a graceful monument rose -- in the tradition of our own Statue of Liberty -- to become a symbol recognized around the world as a beacon of hope.

But the hope -- like the dawn -- proved fleeting. For

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under cover of darkness, the electrician was arrested and your movement outlawed. And in the icy cold of a savage winter, a modern nation was sealed off from the outside world. (Applause.)

But still the dream would not die. In the wintry darkness, candles appeared in silent protest, lighting the windows of your villages, of your cities. And as the years unfolded and as the world watched in wonder, you -- the Polish people -- and your leaders -- turned despair into hope -- turned darkness into dreams. (Applause.)

Hope and hard work were the foundation of Poland's resurrection as a state in 1918. Against enormous odds, confidence and determination made that dream a reality. And these same qualities have brought you to this new crossroads in history. Your time has come. It is Poland's time of possibilities. It's time of responsibilities. It is Poland's time of destiny. (Applause.)

A time when dreams can live again. Solidarity reborn. Productive negotiations between the government of Poland and the Polish people. And the first fruits of democracy -- elections. At another time, in another city where the human spirit was being tested, a great American President spoke eloquently about the struggle for liberty. Today the world watches the inevitable outcome of that struggle.

Today to those who think that hopes can be forever suppressed, I say, let them look at Poland. (Applause.)

To those who think that freedom can be forever denied, I say, let them look at Poland.

And to those who think that dreams can be forever repressed, I say, let at Poland. For here in Poland, the dream is alive. (Applause.)

Yes, today the brave workers of Gdansk stand beside this monument as a beacon of hope, a symbol of that dream. And the brave workers of Gdansk know Poland is not alone. America stands with you. (Applause.)

THE AUDIENCE: President Bush. President Bush.
President Bush.

THE PRESIDENT: Because Americans are so free to dream, we feel a special kinship with those who dream of a better future. Here in Poland, the United States supports the Roundtable Accords, and applauds the wisdom, tenacity and patience of one of Poland's great leaders -- Lech Walesa. (Applause.) And again --

THE AUDIENCE: Lech Walesa. Lech Walesa. Lech Walesa.

THE PRESIDENT: And we cheer a movement that has touched the imagination of the world. That movement is Solidarnosc. And we applaud those who have made this progress possible -- the Polish people. (Applause.) We recognize, too, that the Polish government has shown wisdom and creativity and courage in proceeding with these historic steps.

Poles and Americans share a commitment to overcome the division of Europe and to redeem the promise that is the birthright of men and women throughout the world. Poles and Americans want Europe to be whole and free. (Applause.)

A more democratic Poland can be a more prosperous Poland. The Roundtable provisions -- as they continue to be carried out -- can liberate the energy of a dynamic people to work together to build a better life.

We understand the legacy of distrust and shattered dreams as Poles of all political complexes travel together down the path of negotiation and compromise. Your challenge is to rise above

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distrust and bring the Polish people together toward a common purpose.

Speaking before the new Parliament and the Senate -- your freely-elected Senate -- I outlined steps that America is prepared to take to assist Poland as you move forward on the path of reform.

It will not be easy. Sacrifice and economic hardship have already been the lot of the Polish people. And hard times are not yet at an end. Economic reform requires hard work and restraint before the benefits are realized. And it requires patience and determination. But the Polish people are no strangers to hard work, and have taught the world about determination.

So I say follow your dream of a better life for you and for your children. You can see a new and prosperous Poland. Not overnight -- not in a year. But yes, a new and prosperous Poland in your lifetime. (Applause.)

It has been done by Polish people before. Hopeful immigrants came to that magical place called "America" -- and built a new life for themselves in a single generation. And it can be done by Polish people again. But this time, it will be done in Poland. (Applause.)

Just before I left a few days ago, I was asked in my beautiful Oval Office in the White House by one of your journalists if I would leave Poland and go to America, were I a young Pole. And I answered that in this time of bright promise, of historic transition, of unique opportunity, I would want to stay in Poland and be a part of it, help make the dream come true for all the Polish people. (Applause.)

The magic of America --

THE PRESIDENT: The magic of America is not found in the majesty of her land; and yes, our country has been blessed. But Poland, too, is a land of natural beauty -- ample timber and ore and water and coal -- abundant agriculture potential -- and a talented, creative people that is determined to succeed.

No, the magic of America is in an idea. I described it in my first moments as President of the United States.

"We know what works: Freedom works. We know what's right: Freedom is right. (Applause.) We know how to secure a more just and prosperous land for man on Earth."

And today, you can rediscover a new land -- a land of your dreams -- a land of your own making. A Poland, strong and proud.

Poland is where World War II began. And Poland is where -- and why -- the Cold War got started. And it is here, in Poland, where we can work to end the division of Europe.

It is in your power to help end the division of Europe. I can think of no finer or more capable people with whom to entrust this mission. And just as a son of Poland has shown the world the heights of spiritual leadership in the Vatican, so the people of Poland can show the world what a free people with commitment and energy can accomplish. (Applause.)

A new century is almost upon us. It is alive with possibilities. And in your quest for a better future for yourselves and for those wonderful children that I saw coming in from the airport -- in that quest America stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the Polish people in solidarity. (Applause.)

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THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary
(Budapest, Hungary)

For Immediate Release

July 12, 1989

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
AT KARL MARX UNIVERSITY OF ECONOMICS

Aula Hall
Karl Marx University of Economics
Budapest, Hungary

1:35 P.M. (L)

THE PRESIDENT: Mr. President and Mr. Prime Minister and Mrs. Nemeth, ladies and gentlemen, Dr. and Mrs. Csaki. It is a great pleasure for Barbara and me to be back in Budapest. And I am very proud to be the first American president to visit Hungary. (Applause.) Some might find it ironic that I am speaking at a university named after Karl Marx. (Laughter.) If you don't find it ironic in Hungary, try it on for size in the United States. But the fact that I am here today is less a cause for surprise than proof that America welcomes the unfettered competition of ideas. And I understand that 50 or so of the faculty from this great university have been as either students or teachers in the United States of America. And that is a very good thing for my country and I'm glad you came our way.

The University's principal task is to promote a competition -- an unfettered competition of ideas. And that is the spirit that brings us together -- a spirit that guided a great teacher at Karl Marx University, whose name was Imre Nagy.

As his funeral proceeded in Heroes Square a few weeks ago, the rising voice of Hungary was heard reciting the Szozat. And in this simple, somber ceremony, the world saw something more than a dignified act, an act of reconciliation. We witnessed an act of truth. It is on this foundation of truth, more solid than stone, that Hungarians have begun to build a new future -- a generation waited to honor Imre Nagy's courage; may a hundred generations remember it.

While Hungary rediscovers its natural role in the affairs of Europe, the world again looks to you for inspiration. A popular non-fiction book in my country today is entitled "Budapest 1900". Dr. John Lukacs lovingly describes the Budapest of memory, with its proud stock exchange and great opera; a time when Europe's first electric subway ran underneath the handsome shops of Andrassy Avenue.

A city that rivaled Paris in its splendor, Vienna in its music, London in its literature. A center of learning that enlightened the world and gave America one kind of genius in Joseph Pulitzer, another in Bela Bartok. But for four decades, this great city, this great nation, so central to the continent in every respect, has been separated from Europe and the West.

And today Hungary is opening again to the West -- becoming a beacon of light in European culture. And I see people in motion. Color, creativity, experimentation. I see a new beginning for Hungary. The very atmosphere of this city, the very atmosphere of Budapest is electric and alive with optimism.

Your people and your leaders -- government and opposition alike -- are not afraid to break with the past, to act in the spirit of truth. And what better example of this could there be than one

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simple fact: Karl Marx University has dropped "Das Kapital" from its required reading list.

Some historians argue that Marxism arose out of a humane impulse. But Karl Marx traced only one thread of human existence, and missed the rest of the tapestry -- the colorful and varied tapestry of humanity. He regarded man as hapless -- unable to shape his environment or destiny. But man is not driven by impersonal economic forces. He's not simply an object acted upon by mechanical "laws" of history.

Rather, man is imaginative and inventive. He is artistic, with an innate need to create and enjoy beauty. He is a loving member of a family, and a loyal patriot to his people. Man is dynamic, determined to shape his own future.

The creative genius of the Hungarian people, long suppressed, is again flourishing in your schools, your businesses, your churches. And this is more than a fleeting season of freedom. It is Hungary returning to its normal, traditional values. It is Hungary returning home.

Voices long stilled are being heard again. An independent daily newspaper is now sold on the streets. Commercial radio and television stations will broadcast everything from the news to the music of Stevie Wonder. And Radio Free Europe is openings its first Eastern European Bureau right here in Budapest.

Along your border with Austria, the ugly symbol of Europe's division and Hungary's isolation is coming down, as the barbed wire fences are rolled and stacked into bales. For the first time, the Iron Curtain has begun to part. And Hungary, your great country, is leading the way. (Applause.)

The Soviet Union has withdrawn troops, which I also take as a step in overcoming Europe's division. And as those forces leave, let the Soviet leaders know they have everything to gain, and nothing to lose or fear, from peaceful change. We can -- and I am determined that we will -- work together to move beyond containment, beyond the Cold War.

One of the key steps in moving beyond containment is easing the military confrontation in Europe. To this end, the NATO allies joined, at the May summit meeting, in my proposal of a comprehensive conventional arms control initiative -- an initiative that would cut the number of tanks, armored troop carriers, artillery, combat aircraft, attack helicopters, as well as United States and Soviet troops stationed on foreign soil in Europe -- all to lower, equal levels.

The issues may be complex, but we're working, day and night, to get a solid, historic agreement to strengthen stability in Europe and reduce the risk of war. And we are determined to get it soon. (Applause.)

No, there is no mistaking the fact that we are on the threshold of a new era. And there's also no mistaking the fact that Hungary is at the threshold of great and historic change. You're writing a real constitution -- and you're moving toward democratic, multi-party elections.

And this is partly possible because brave men and women have formed opposition parties. And this is possible because Hungarian leaders are going to show the ultimate political courage -- the courage to submit to the choice of the people in free elections. (Applause.)

But to succeed in reform, you'll need partners -- partners to help promote lasting change in Hungary. And I am here today to offer Hungary the partnership of the United States of

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America. (Applause.) Three vital spheres stand out in our partnership -- economics, the environment, and democratic and cultural exchange.

The United States believes in the acceleration of productive change, not in its delay. So this is our guiding principle -- the United States will offer assistance not to prop up the status quo, but to propel reform.

Of course, the weight of the past still burdens Hungarian enterprise. There are remnants of the Stalinist economy -- huge, inefficient industrial plants and a bewildering price system that is hard for anyone to understand; and the massive subsidies that cloud economic decisions -- all of this slows what you could otherwise achieve. It's an economic Rubik's Cone that defies solution.

To make the transition to a productive economy will test your mettle as a people. The prices of some commodities may rise. Some inefficient businesses and factories will close. But the Hungarian government is increasingly leaving the business of running the shops to the shopkeepers, the farms to the farmers. And the creative drive of the people, once unleashed, will create momentum of its own. And this will bring you a greater treasure than simply the riches you create. It'll give each of you control over your destiny -- a Hungarian destiny. (Applause.)

And, as I said, the United States will be your partner in this transformation to a successful economy.

Last Thursday at the White House, I invited leaders from business, education, labor and other fields -- to come to the White House and discuss the new private sector opportunities opening up in Hungary. And their response was enthusiastic. This was especially true of Hungarian-Americans, so proud to be building a bridge between their new country and their motherland. As long as our two governments ease the way, the people of America and Hungary can do the rest -- the people can do the rest.

And it is in this spirit that I want to announce the following measures.

First, as I said in Warsaw, I will propose at the Paris Economic Summit concerted Western action for Poland and Hungary, to back your reforms with economic and technical assistance from the summit partners. (Applause.) Of course, our efforts for Hungary will be targeted to your needs.

And second, I will ask the United States Congress to authorize a $25 million fund as a source of new capital to invigorate the Hungarian private sector. I'll also encourage parallel efforts from the other nations of the economic summit.

And third, once your Parliament passes the new emigration legislation proposed by your Council of Ministers, I will inform our Congress that Hungary is in full compliance with the Jackson-Vanik Amendments to our 1974 trade law. No country has yet been released from the restrictions of this amendment. So I am pleased to tell you that Hungary will be the first. (Applause.) And this action will give Hungary the most liberal access to the American market for the longest terms possible under our laws. (Applause.)

Fourth, America is prepared to provide your country with access to our Generalized System of Preferences, which offers selective tariff relief. Simply put, these last two measures will allow you to take advantage of the largest single market in the entire world.

And fifth, we've concluded a draft agreement to authorize the Overseas Private Investment Corporation -- OPIC we call it -- to operate in Hungary. And once our Senate passes the enabling

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legislation, OPIC will be able to provide insurance to encourage American investment in private enterprises in Hungary. Through OPIC, American business executives will see first-hand the great opportunity of Hungary.

Private investment is critical for Hungary. It means jobs, innovation, progress. But most of all, private investment means a brighter future for your children; a brighter future for Hungary.

And yet economic progress cannot be at the expense of the air we breathe and the water we drink. Six weeks ago, in Mainz, I proposed cooperation between East and West on environmental issues. And that is why I will ask the United States Congress to appropriate $5 million to establish an International Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe, to be based right here in Budapest, which will bring together private and government experts and organizations to address the ecological crisis. (Applause.) After all, our shared heritage is the Earth, and the fate of the Earth transcends borders; it isn't just an East-West issue.

Hungary has led Eastern and Central Europe in addressing the concerns of your citizens for cleaner air and water. And now you can do even more, working with the West to build a bridge of technical and scientific cooperation.

Along these lines, I am also pleased to announce that the United States has proposed an agreement between our two countries to establish scientific and technical cooperation in the basic sciences and in specific areas, including the environment, medicine and nuclear safety.

It is my hope that this visit will also lead to a wider exchange between East and West, so our scientists, our artists and our environmentalists can learn from one another -- so that our soldiers and statesmen can discuss peace and our students -- God bless them -- can discuss the future. (Applause.)

But to discuss anything requires a common language. The teaching of the English language is one of the most popular American exports. And as students, you know that English is the lingua franca of world business, the key to clinching deals from Hong Kong to Toronto. So to open the global market to more Hungarians, I am pleased to announce that the Peace Corps will, for the first time, operate in a European country. And our Peace Corps instructors will come to Budapest and all 19 counties to teach English. (Applause.)

And in such exchanges, we want to help you in your quest for a new beginning as a democratic Hungary. So the United States is also committing more than $6 million to cultural and educational opportunities in Eastern Europe. We will make available funds for a series of major new U.S.-Hungarian exchange programs -- among Congressmen and legislative experts, among labor and business leaders, among legal experts, among community leaders, educators and young people. We are creating dozens of fellowships to enable Hungarians to study at American universities. And we will fund endowed chairs in American studies at your universities, and books -- many thousands of them -- to fill the shelves of your new International Management Center and the libraries of schools and universities across Hungary. (Applause.)

And the United States will also open, within the next several years, an American House in the center of Budapest. (Applause.) Today, the celebrated American architect, Robert Stern, is releasing his design for this center, which will be an open house of books, magazines and video cassettes -- an open house of ideas.

And so, in conclusion, in economic reform and democratic change, in cultural and environmental cooperation, there are great opportunities and great challenges. Hungary has a lot of work ahead;

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and so do the United States and Hungary, working together to build
this better future -- dynamic future.

Your challenge is enormous and historic: To build a
structure of political change and decentralized economic enterprise
on the ruins of a failed Stalinist system.

And given the opportunity to show your characteristic
initiative, creativity and resourcefulness, I believe that the
Hungarian people will meet the challenge. You stand on the threshold
of a new era of economic development and, yes, political change.

And I believe with all my heart that you are ready to
meet the future. (Applause.) I see a country well on the way. I
see a country rich in human resources -- rich in the moral courage of
its people. I see a nation transcending its past and reaching out to
its destiny. I congratulate you for having come so far.

And let us be equal to the opportunity that lies before
us. Let us have history write of us that we were the generation that
made Europe whole and free.

Thank you all. God bless each and every one of you.
Thank you very much. (Applause.)

END

2:01 P.M. (L)

SUMMIT OF THE ARCH

4-5 JULY 1980

DECLARATION ON EAST-WEST RELATIONS

1. We, the leaders of our seven countries and the representatives of the European Community, reaffirm the universal and supreme importance which we attach to freedom, democracy and the promotion of human rights.

2. We see signs of this same desire for greater freedom and democracy in the East. The people there, including the young people, are reasserting these values and calling for a pluralist democratic society. Some of their leaders are aware of the positive contribution that greater freedom and democracy can make to the modernisation of their countries and are starting to make changes to their laws, practices and institutions. Others are still endeavouring to resist this movement by taking repressive measures which we strongly condemn.

3. We hope that freedom will be broadened and democracy strengthened and that they will form the basis, after decades of military confrontation, ideological antagonism and mistrust,

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for increased dialogue and cooperation. We welcome the reforms underway and the prospects of lessening the division of Europe.

4. We call upon the Soviet Government to translate its new policies and pronouncements into further concrete action at home and abroad. Military imbalances favouring the Soviet Union, both in Europe and in Asia, remain an objective threat to each of us. Our Governments must therefore continue to be vigilant and maintain the strength of our countries. For the foreseeable future, there is no alternative for each of us, within existing alliances, to maintaining a strategy of deterrence based upon an appropriate mix of adequate and effective nuclear and conventional forces. In order to hasten the advent of a world in which the weight of arms and military strength is reduced, we recommit ourselves to the urgent pursuit of a global ban on chemical weapons, a conventional forces balance in Europe at the lowest possible level consistent with our security requirements, and a substantial reduction in Soviet and American strategic nuclear arms.

5. We offer the countries of the East the opportunity to develop balanced economic cooperation on a sound commercial basis consistent with the security interests of each of our countries and with the general principles of international trade. We have noted developments of relations between the EEC and countries of the East, in particular the conclusion of an agreement with Hungary, the progress already achieved during

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the current discussions with Poland and the opening of negotiations with the Soviet Union.

6. We welcome the process of reform underway in Poland and Hungary. We recognize that the political changes taking place in these countries will be difficult to sustain without economic progress. Each of us is prepared to support this process and to consider, as appropriate and in a coordinated fashion, economic assistance aimed at transforming and opening their economies in a durable manner. We believe that each of us should direct our assistance to these countries so as to sustain the momentum of reform through inward investment, joint ventures, transfer of managerial skills, professional training and other ventures which would help develop a more competitive economy.

Each of us is developing concrete initiatives designed to encourage economic reforms, to promote more competitive economies and to provide new opportunities for trade.

We agreed to work along with other interested countries and multilateral institutions to concert support for the process of reform underway in Hungary and Poland, in order to make our measures of support more effective and mutually reinforcing. We will encourage further creative efforts by interested governments and the public and private sectors in support of the reform process.

Concerning concerted support for reform in Poland and Hungary, we call for a meeting with all interested countries

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which will take place in the next few weeks. We underline, for
Poland, the urgent need for food in present circumstances.

To these ends, we ask the Commission of the European
Communities to take the necessary initiatives in agreement with
the other Member States of the Community, and to associate,
besides the Summit participants, all interested countries.

7. We are in favour of an early conclusion of the negotiations between the IMF and Poland. The strengthened debt strategy is applicable to Poland, provided it meets the conditions. We are ready to support in the Paris Club the rescheduling of Polish debt expeditiously and in a flexible and forthcoming manner.

8. We see good opportunities for the countries of West and East to work together to find just solutions to conflicts around the world, to fight against under-development, to safeguard the resources and the environment and to build a freer and more open world.

July 15, 1989

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary
(The Hague, The Netherlands)

For Immediate Release

July 17, 1989

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
TO THE RESIDENTS OF LEIDEN

The Pieterskerk
Leiden, The Netherlands

3:46 P.M. (L)

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Your Majesty and Your Royal Highness, Barbara and I thank you and the people of The Netherlands for the warm welcome that has been given to us.

I'm not sure about some of those signs I saw coming in. It reminded me of my own university, however.

I'm glad to be back with my cousins because we fondly remember Aunt Abigail back there those many years ago. (Laughter.) And I want to first thank Mr. DeWolff and that magnificent orchestra, and the choir from here with that superb solo by Ms. Zedelius -- an outstanding performance. (Applause.)

And Mayor Goekoop, thank you so much for that Medallion, which we will treasure forever.

The Netherlands is an old friend and honored ally of the United States. And the friendship between our nations is older than the American Constitution -- and the United Provinces were one of the models that our founders looked to in creating a nation from 13 sovereign states.

And it's a pleasure to visit Leiden -- a city whose very name has symbolized for centuries Dutch determination and the struggle for freedom against the forces of occupation. And for Americans, too, Leiden is a special city, a place where we trace our origins.

So many of the individuals who shaped the modern world walked the cobbled streets of Leiden. And it was here that Hugo de Groot -- known to the world as Grotius, the father of modern international law -- studied in the nation that is today the home of the International Court of Justice. And it was here that Rembrandt lived and worked and created a world of beauty that moves us still today.

And it was here to Leiden that the Pilgrims came to escape persecution -- to live, work and worship in peace. In the shadow of Pieterskerk, they found the freedom to witness God openly and without fear. And here, under the ancient stones of the Pieterskerk, the body of John Robinson, the Pilgrims' spiritual leader, was laid to rest.

And it was from this place the Pilgrims set their course for a new world. In their search for liberty, they took with them lessons learned here of freedom and tolerance. And the Pilgrims faced a dangerous passage. But carried on the winds of hope, they arrived. And on the rocky coast of New England -- at the edge of a wild and unsettled continent -- they planted the seeds of a new world -- a world that became America.

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And today, as when the Pilgrims left this city, a new
world lies within our reach.

Our time is a time of great hope and a time of enormous
challenges. The new world we seek is shaped by an idea -- an idea of
universal appeal and undeniable force, and that idea is democracy.

The power of the democratic idea is evident everywhere --
in the halls of government, in the hearts of people around the world.
In the words of Victor Hugo: "No army can withstand the strength of
an idea whose time has come." And, ladies and gentlemen, freedom's
time has come.

We, the people of the United States and the people of The
Netherlands, are fortunate. The freedoms that others are struggling
for are freedoms that we enjoy. But freedom never comes without
struggle -- and no struggle is without sacrifice. Americans and the
Dutch both know that the cost of freedom is high.

And that's why both of our nations are partners in an
alliance of free nations that spans the ocean that the Pilgrims
crossed. Our alliance, the NATO Alliance, connects two continents --
unites a hemisphere. But what connects us isn't merely a fact of
geography. Ours is an alliance forged on common values -- rooted in
a shared history and heritage; it's a common kinship and culture, as
well.

We are part of the commonwealth of free nations. All
most two months ago, I came to Europe to celebrate the fruits of our
alliance: four decades of peace, prosperity and freedom. At the
time of NATO's founding -- amid the airlift to besieged Berlin -- few
would have predicted a peace so strong and lasting. Here in The
Netherlands and elsewhere some people expected war to come again
within their lifetimes. Instead, the NATO era has brought the
longest period of peace that Europe has known in the modern age. And
let me assure you, Americans know that to keep the peace in Europe is
to keep the peace for America.

And today, the Atlantic Alliance -- formed to contain the
threat of Soviet expansionism -- is creating new opportunities to
ease tensions, to build a new world, to build an enduring peace. And
thanks to NATO's strength and unity, we now have the opportunity to
move beyond containment -- to integrate the Soviet Union into the
community of nations.

Thanks to NATO's steadiness of purpose and its commitment
to maintain strong deterrent forces, the way is now open to real
reductions in the level of arms that has long cast a shadow over this
continent, the most heavily militarized on Earth.

And seizing these opportunities -- reaching that new
world -- depends on the unity and strength of the entire Alliance --
not on the actions of one nation alone. The revival of the Western
European Union -- in which The Netherlands played a vital role -- the
growing cooperation on security issues between West Germany and
France; British and French resolve to modernize their own nuclear
forces: each of these developments is a sign that Europe sees the
wisdom of sustaining the collective strength that has kept the peace.

The lesson of our postwar experience is this: strength
has kept us safe and has created opportunities for change. And from
these opportunities, we can create a new era of enduring peace.

Let me say clearly, a stronger Europe, a more united
Europe is good for my country; it's good for the United States of
America. And it's a development we welcome -- a natural evolution
within our Alliance -- the product of true partnership 40 years in
the making.

This trend toward closer cooperation isn't limited to

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collective security alone. Around the world, countries are now recognizing that no nation, no nation can prosper in economic isolation. And that's why we look forward to the single European market and a more integrated European Community. The world's major industrial democracies must work to maintain an open trading system to preserve sustained economic growth.

And our progress at this recently-concluded economic summit in Paris brought us closer to a more coordinated and common approach across a wide spectrum of critical global issues. The key is concerted action -- bringing the collective strength of the West to bear on our common concerns.

Concerns like the environment. Global warming, acid rain, and pollution of the world's oceans -- these are problems that know no borders, that no line on a map has the power to stop. And pollution crosses continents and oceans. And it's time for nations to join forces in common defense of our environment.

The United States of America will do its part. A little over a month ago in the United States I announced a series of sweeping changes to our Clean Air Act -- changes meant to ensure that every American, in the space of one generation, will breathe clean air.

And shortly after I get back to the United States -- after I return home -- we will send our Clean Air legislation to Congress. And last week in Poland and Hungary, I announced initiatives to work with those two countries to combat their pollution problems. And the next step is clear. We must work together -- take concerted action to combat this common problem -- clean up our environment for ourselves and for our children.

And the summit underscored the fact that it's time we take the next step in solving the debt problem -- to encourage conditions for global growth that will benefit the industrialized nations and the developing world alike. We must make progress on this because it's more than a matter of economic development. Democracy is at stake. Freedom can nourish the barren soil of poverty, just as the Pilgrims landed upon a desolate rock and laid the foundations of the freedom and prosperity that we know today.

Economic and democratic development go hand-in-hand. And the steps we've taken towards a common strategy on debt will sustain a favorable climate for growth -- and for the flourishing of democracy in the developing world.

And there's Eastern Europe. Let me explain the approach that I take towards reform in Eastern Europe. We will never compromise our principles. We will always speak out for freedom. But we understand as well how vital a carefully calibrated approach is in this time of dynamic change.

The Soviet Union has nothing -- nothing to fear from the reforms that are now unfolding in some of the nations of Eastern Europe. We support reform -- in Eastern Europe and in the Soviet Union. And we're seeing dramatic changes. General Secretary Gorbachev's recent letter two days ago to the economic summit is only the latest example of the Soviets moving in our direction -- coming our way. I've said it many times -- that I want to see perestroika succeed. I want to see the Soviet Union chart a course that brings itself into the community of nations.

And my visits these last two months demonstrate how closely the United States is linked to Europe. For half a century, America has been deeply involved in the future of this continent. And U.S. involvement will be a strategic fact the next century, as it has been for this one. We will play a constructive role in Eastern Europe's economic development, in the development of political pluralism, and in creating an international climate in which reform

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can succeed. And that is why America's relations with the Soviet Union are so important. Improved relations with the USSR reduce pressure on the nations of Eastern Europe -- especially those on the cutting edge of reform.

The new world we seek is a commonwealth of free nations working in concert -- a world where more and more nations enter a widening circle of freedom.

In the pulpit here at the Pieterskerk, one year after peace was restored in Europe, Winston Churchill spoke to the people of Leiden. The allies had triumphed over tyranny. The occupation was over. After six years of war and devastation, Churchill said, "The great wheel has swung full circle." And Europe then stood at the threshold of a new era -- an era whose hope Churchill expressed in a single, simple phrase. "Let freedom reign."

And we all know what followed. Half of Europe entered that new era -- and half of Europe found its path blocked, walled off by barriers of brick and barbed wire.

The half of Europe that was free dug out from the rubble, recovered from the war and laid the foundations of free government and free enterprise that brought unparalleled prosperity, and a life in peace and freedom.

And the "other Europe" -- the Europe behind the wall -- endured four decades of privation and hardship and persecution and fear.

And today that "other Europe" is changing. The great wheel is moving once more. And our time -- the exciting time in which we live -- is a time of new hope -- the hope that all of Europe can now know the freedom that you all -- that The Netherlands has known, that America has known, and that the West has known.

Our hope is that the unnatural division of Europe will now come to an end -- that the Europe behind the wall will join its neighbors to the West, prosperous and free.

Poland and Hungary are on the cutting edge -- they're on the forefront of this reform. And they've travelled far these past 12 months, farther than any of us once would have thought possible. In Warsaw, I spoke to the new Polish Parliament that includes 100 new freely-elected Senators -- elected to office in Eastern Europe's first truly free election in the post-war era. And in Hungary, I addressed the students and faculty of Karl Marx University -- the university where the lessons of the free market are replacing the old teachings of Das Kapital.

At the shipyards of Gdansk and at the statue of the great Hungarian hero Kossuth, tens of thousands of people -- literally tens of thousands filled the streets -- new voices, full of new hope. And theirs were the faces of Pilgrims on a journey -- fixed on the horizon, on the new world coming into view.

And they know, as we do, that ultimately, whatever the odds, freedom will succeed.

It's a lesson the world has learned several times this century -- a lesson that you know so well -- that the Dutch know so well. The Netherlands will never -- I was talking at this lunch today with your able Prime Minister -- The Netherlands will never forget the nightmare of occupation. Some of you here today suffered through those long years.

And even then freedom endured. Pieterskerk -- behind these walls, above the rafters -- resistance fighters, university students took refuge from the forces of occupation and found safe haven in this church.

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Daily acts of heroism -- the church sexton who brought them food, the neighborhood grocer who collected extra ration stamps -- kept them alive, kept the spirit of dignity and human decency alive throughout The Netherlands' dark night.

And why? Why would people endanger themselves to save others? They did it for the simplest, most human of reasons. In the words of Jan Campert, poet of the Dutch resistance, they acted because "the heart could not do otherwise."

Freedom can never be extinguished -- not then, not now. Even in the Europe behind the wall, the dream of freedom for all Europe has never died. It's alive today -- in Warsaw and Gdansk, in Budapest, and yes, across the Soviet Union.

So the challenge that we face is a very clear one. We must work together toward the day when all of Europe -- East and West -- is free of discord, free of division. A day when people in every city and every town across this continent knows the freedoms that we enjoy.

And here in Leiden, where the pilgrims dreamed their new world, let us pledge our effort to create a new world in Europe, whole and free, a new world now within our reach.

Once again, thank you, God bless The Netherlands, God bless the United States of America, and the friends of freedom everywhere in the world. Thank you very, very much. (Applause.)

END

4:01 P.M. (L)

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release

July 18, 1989

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
UPON ARRIVAL FROM
EUROPEAN TRIP

The South Lawn

2:52 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you for this warm welcome home. Barbara and I are delighted to be back and we thank you for this warm welcome back. And I know you've seen some of what we experienced during this trip, but let me just share with you now some of the memorable moments of the last 10 days that will certainly stay in my mind: The open arms of the people of Poland; American flags waving in the square at the Lenin Shipyard in Gdansk; the faces of the people who lined the streets, greeting us with such joy; the thousands who endured a driving downpour in Budapest to welcome us to Hungary; the students I spoke to there -- the hope of Hungary's future -- and images we won't forget. The warmth Barbara and I felt is a reflection of the warmth the people of Poland and Hungary feel for America and for our ideals.

And then there was Paris, celebrating the bicentennial of the revolution that brought forth the rights of man. And how satisfying it was to witness the unity of purpose that emerged from the summit, ranging from East-West relations to the environment. And finally, The Netherlands and that church at Leiden -- spiritual home of the pilgrim fathers and American ideals.

But of all these special moments, I want to share one with you that is truly special in its message. It's a story told by a Polish woman at a luncheon meeting that I hosted in Warsaw. Around the table sat members of Poland's Communist Party and members of Solidarity -- in some cases, men and women who had been imprisoned on the party's orders not so long ago and who were now elected members of the Polish Parliament. And it was remarkable proof of how far Poland has come.

But in Poland and in Hungary as well, progress hasn't come without heroic efforts -- a heroism that comes from deep within the heart. And this woman, who'd worked at personal risk for the release of many who had been jailed, was asked: How is it possible, after such a short time, to break bread with the men who ordered those imprisonments -- why the absence of bitterness? And she said, "Our joy at what is now happening is more powerful than memory." And those are the words of someone who means to build a better future -- the desire to move forward towards a better life -- a life of freedom. It's a source of tremendous strength.

It's the strength that enabled the government and Solidarity to sit down at the roundtable to negotiate new political progress for Poland, the strength that enabled Lech Walesa and General Jaruzelski to sit side-by-side at the opening of the new Polish Parliament. And it's a strength that in Hungary is enabling the government and an emerging opposition to find a common ground in reform -- to sit together in writing a new constitution and in planning truly free elections.

And we must not forget that is was the strength and cohesion of our Western Alliance that has helped make these dramatic changes possible. Everywhere -- in Warsaw, Gdansk and Budapest, among the leaders of the summit nations in Paris and then in The

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Netherlands -- I found an enormous amount of excitement -- excitement at the times in which we are living and the possibilities they offer -- the chance we have in our lifetimes to move beyond containment to end the division of Europe to make that continent truly whole and free. Everywhere people seem to sense that we live at a moment when positive change is possible.

And, as I said yesterday in the Dutch city of Leiden, history's great wheel is turning once again. And just as the wind of hope carried the Pilgrims to a new world, we, too, now find a new world within our reach -- a world where the yearnings for freedom overcomes discord and confrontation -- where freedom and democracy flourish for others, as they have for this great country of ours.

Thank you for this welcome home. It is good to be back. And God bless the United States of America. Thank you very much. (Applause.)

END

2:57 P.M. EDT