WASHINGTON - US President George W. Bush called in an interview to be broadcast Tuesday for Syria to leave Lebanon and shut down Hezbollah's offices and for the Lebanese Shiite Muslim militia to disarm.
If Damascus wants to improve relations with Washington, it must also end support for Saddam loyalists in Iraq and stop the flow of money and weapons to the insurgency there, the president told the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation.
"The United States can join with the rest of the world, like we've done, and say to Syria, get out -- not only get out with your military forces, but get out with your intelligence services, too; get completely out of Lebanon, so Lebanon can be free and the people can be free," Bush said.
The president said that Lebanon's parliamentary elections ought to be held as scheduled in May and insisted that the Syria-backed Hezbollah movement must lay down its arms.
"We put Hezbollah on the terrorist list for a reason; they've killed Americans in the past. And we will continue to work with the international community to keep the pressure on this group," said Bush.
"Ultimately, the people of Lebanon are going to decide the fate of the country. And you can't have a free country if a group of people are like an armed militia," he said.
"There needs to be police organized by the state, a military organized by the state. But citizens groups that are armed, trying to impose their will on a free society is just not the definition of a free society," he said.
At the same time, Bush acknowledged that "not every free society is capable of internal security right off the bat" and said that the international community would help Lebanon if necessary.
On the economic front, Bush said that the United States and European Finance Ministers would hope to work with international organizations like the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund "to help this country get back on its feet after occupation, help this new democracy succeed."
"There will be plenty of help," he said.
04/19/2005 18:23 GMT