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Excerpt of Transcipt of Joint Press Conference |
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(Source: US Department of Defense ; issued March 21, 2001)
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US Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld and
Secretary of State for Defense Geoffrey Hoon of the United Kingdom
(Washington, DC, March 21, 2001)
(Edited for space)
Rumsfeld:
Greetings. The minister and I have just had a very productive meeting with some of our associates on both sides and discussed a full range of issues that are of importance to both of our countries and to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization as well. We talked about our common interest and efforts in the Balkans and in Macedonia. We talked about missile defense and the European Defense Initiative. We talked about several other subjects which I'm sure you'll all probe and explore.
And we're happy to be here. And the minister has a statement to make. And then we'll be happy to respond to questions.
Hoon:
Thank you. I'm delighted to be back in Washington to renew our contacts with our closest ally. I was particularly pleased to meet the secretary again following our discussions in Munich last month. I also appreciated the opportunity to call on a number of old friends on the Hill. I will be seeing Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice later today.
Yesterday I had the opportunity of seeing C-17 and to be briefed on the progress of the Joint Strike Fighter. Both are key projects, as far as the United Kingdom is concerned. We're taking delivery of our first C-17s in May, giving us for the first time a dedicated strategic airlift capability. We also recently committed $2 billion to JSF development. The project will strengthen the United Kingdom and European capabilities whilst promoting cooperation and interoperability across the Atlantic and within the alliance.
In our discussions this morning, we reviewed recent developments in the Balkans and in Macedonia. I explained the efforts the United Kingdom is making to address the crisis. These include sending military advisers to assist the government in Macedonia and to assess the situation on the ground. We spoke also about missile defense and affirmed our understanding of the U.S. threat assessment. I emphasized the United Kingdom's support for the administration's wish to consult allies and promote international stability. I confirmed that the United Kingdom would want to be helpful when decisions are taken on how the U.S. intends to move forward.
On European defense, I confirmed our commitment to the approach agreed between the prime minister and the president at Camp David. I explained our determination to develop the details of European defense in a way that will reinforce the alliance, strengthen NATO's capabilities and enable Europeans to do more in crisis management, including when NATO chooses not to be engaged.
The United Kingdom's commitment on the C-17 and JSF projects demonstrates the emphasis that the United Kingdom places on the need above all else to improve military capabilities in Europe, which we will be taking forward in a second capabilities conference this autumn. It is this more than anything else, the commitment to capabilities, that guides our approach to European defense. Thank you very much.
…/…
Q: Mr. Hoon, in your discussions this morning with Secretary Rumsfeld -- you do support the Joint Strike Fighter and yet, as you know, the secretary is doing a total review of our weapons systems and capabilities. Has he expressed to you definitively, or do you understand definitively that the U.S. will go forward with the Joint Strike Fighter?
Hoon: He's here, you ask him. (Laughter.)
Rumsfeld: He has a tendency to do that. (Laughter.)
Hoon: I know. Well, I have a tendency not to respond. (Laughter.)
Q: Mr. Secretary? No answer from either one of you gentlemen?
Rumsfeld: Well, you know where we are as well as I know where we are. We're reviewing the various pieces of the Defense programs, and that's not something that we've --
Q: (Off mike.)
Rumsfeld: -- and go ahead with the JSF.
Hoon: I was very impressed with what I saw. It's an important project, as I indicated in what I said to you at the outset. It is an important project for the United Kingdom.
…/…
Q: I have a question for you with respect to JSF. Has the U.K. made a final decision on the Joint Strike Fighter for the future carrier -- what's it called? -- the future carrier-borne aircraft? And if so, has the decision been made whether the CTOL or the STOVL version? And the third part is, if the program goes forward like it is, what percentage does the United Kingdom want to weigh in on choosing the contractor?
Rumsfeld: Goodness gracious!
Hoon: (Laughs.) (…/…)
Well -- We have made it clear that the Joint Strike Fighter is our preferred option for the carriers that we are committed to building. The other questions in fact are questions that we will have to discuss once the review the United States is conducting has been completed, and once we are in a position to take forward what I believe to be an exciting joint program.
Q: What about the STOVL or CTOL version?
Hoon: That's still in the program. It's still something that has to be resolved. It's obviously subject to the review.
Staff: The gentlemen have time for about one more.
Q: Secretary Rumsfeld, given the strong support the British have laid out for the Joint Strike Fighter, can you say somewhat definitively that it's unlikely the program would be cancelled, based on the review --
Rumsfeld: If I start doing that on things that I haven't studied, now would that be prudent?
Q: Well, you could --
Rumsfeld: No.
Q: You could say nothing -- (laughter) --
Rumsfeld: It would be wrong. It would be imprudent, unwise.
Q: You have some insights, though --
Rumsfeld: We have lots of pieces of the puzzle that are moving down the train track, and we're looking at them all, and when we're ready to opine, we shall do so.
Q: Is that question, though, being looked at? (no reply) Â
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