Bush reaches out to Muslims at UN

UNITED NATIONS -- President Bush said yesterday that the United States seeks peace with Iran and respects Islam, striking a conciliatory tone in an address that spoke directly to Muslims throughout the Middle East.

``To the people of Iran, the United States respects you. We respect your country," Bush said in a speech before roughly 200 heads of state at the annual opening session of the General Assembly. ``We look to the day when you can live in freedom, and America and Iran can be good friends and close partners in the cause of peace."

Four years after he spoke before the same assembly building a case for the invasion of Iraq, Bush said that the United States ``desires peace."

``Extremists in your midst spread propaganda claiming that the West is engaged in a war against Islam," he said in the 21-minute address. ``This propaganda is false, and its purpose is to confuse you and justify acts of terror. We respect Islam, but we will protect our people from those who pervert Islam to sow death and destruction."

He sought to assure the Iranian people that the United States will use diplomacy, not war, to try to persuade the Iran ian government to give up its uranium enrichment program. Iran insists its aim is the generation of peaceful civilian power, but the United States and its European allies say the program is aimed at producing a nuclear weapon.

The president's remarks were notable because some of his most pointed comments have focused on Iran's misdeeds, including a 2002 speech that called Iran part of an ``axis of evil." Bush's speech yesterday did not mention sanctions, which US officials have raised repeatedly in recent months to push Iran to halt to its uranium-enrichment program.

``Despite what the regime tells you, we have no objection to Iran's pursuit of a truly peaceful nuclear power program," Bush said, adding that the main obstacle to a better economic future in Iran is that the country's government fuels ``extremism" and pursues nuclear weapons.

Hours later, Iran's hard-line president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, appeared to turn Bush's words against him.

``For some powers, claims of promotion of human rights and democracy can only last as long as they can be used as instruments of pressure and intimidation," he said in a speech before the assembly that cited the US invasion of Iraq and the occupation of Palestinian lands by Israel.

``Some powers proudly announce their production of second and third generations of nuclear weapons," he said, apparently alluding to the Bush administration's exploration of new types of nuclear weapons. ``All our nuclear activities are transparent, peaceful, and under the watchful of the [UN] inspectors."

But Ahmadinejad, known for such fiery rhetoric as his call to ``wipe Israel off the map," also struck a conciliatory tone at the end of his speech, calling for those who believe in monotheism -- Jews, Christians, and Muslims -- to ``transform animosities into friendship."

As the two leaders spoke, European officials softened their rhetoric against Iran, making what appears to be a last-ditch effort to coax Iran back to the negotiating table. Iran ignored an Aug. 31 Security Council deadline to suspend uranium enrichment and failed to accept a lucrative package of economic incentives this summer offered by a coalition of Germany, France, and Britain -- a plan also backed by Russia, China, and the United States.

The European-led coalition threatened sanctions if Iran rejected the package, but several of those countries appear to have shied away from such actions. President Jacques Chirac of France stated his opposition to sanctions Monday and proposed restarting nuclear talks with Iran even if Iran does not suspend its enrichment program, a condition that the coalition had demanded.

Chirac's comments, to CNN International, sparked fears that the coalition to confront Iran might be falling apart.

``This was certainly a big blow on efforts by Washington to create a united front in the West," said Nile Gardiner, a scholar with the conservative Heritage Foundation.

But yesterday morning, Bush met Chirac and took pains to highlight their agreement. Bush said the United States would give Europe more time to get Iran back to the negotiating table before pushing for tougher measures.

Perhaps to nudge Iran toward negotiations, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice reiterated yesterday her promise of high-level diplomatic contacts with Iran if the regime halts enrichment, suggesting in the most expansive terms yet that she would meet with Iran's foreign minister if that happens.

``I'll meet my counterpart anywhere, any time, when Iran has verifiably done that," Rice said on NBC's ``Today" show.

Nonetheless, Nicholas R. Burns, undersecretary of state for political affairs, told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee yesterday that Iran should expect sanctions soon -- probably starting with restrictions on dual-use nuclear items -- if it does not suspend its program.

``Should the Iranians within the next week or so not . . . agree to suspend their nuclear programs as we have requested, I do believe the coalition will stay together and pass a sanctions resolution that will be focused not on the Iranian people, but on the Iranian government and its nuclear industry," he said.

Bush's speech yesterday echoed familiar themes of touting democracy in the Middle East. In addition to Iranians, he addressed the citizens of Darfur, Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and Lebanon.

He told the people of Iraq, ``we will not abandon you" and predicted that their democracy would ``become a beacon of hope for millions in the Muslim world."

The president reserved some of his toughest words for the Sudanese government. He announced the appointment of Andrew Natsios, former USAID administrator and onetime Massachusetts transportation official and state representative, as a special envoy to help broker peace in Sudan's troubled Darfur region.

Bush said the United Nations ``must act" if Sudan continues to refuse to allow a 20,000-member UN peacekeeping force into Darfur, but he did not say what actions should be taken. Hundreds of thousands of people are believed to have died in Darfur from violence, malnutrition, and disease during the fighting between rebels, the government, and government-backed militias.

``You have suffered unspeakable violence," Bush said in remarks directed at the people of Darfur. ``And my nation has called these atrocities what they are: genocide."

But hours later, President Omar al-Bashir of Sudan showed no signs of budging. He told reporters at the UN that he ``categorically and totally rejects" a UN force in Darfur, a move he said was aimed at ``dismantling Sudan."

In a sign of a possible compromise, however, Bashir said he would allow the force of 7,000 African Union troops to continue to monitor the situation in Darfur, and to be bolstered with more troops, as long as the new troops come from Africa. The poorly financed African Union troops must leave the region by the end of the month unless their expiring mandate is extended.