US President George W. Bush met with visiting German Chancellor
Angela Merkel in the White House on Thursday and they discussed
issues including Iran, the Middle East peace process, Afghanistan,
Lebanon and others.
"We talked about Iran. And I thanked Chancellor Merkel's strong
support for a Chapter 7 Iranian resolution -- a Chapter 7 United
Nations Security Council resolution on Iran," Bush said at a press
conference after their meeting.
The UN Security Council passed a resolution in December to
impose sanctions on Iran for its defiance over its nuclear
programs. Germany has been a key player in negotiating the
resolution.
"We're going to continue to work together on the Iranian issue.
It's important for us to follow through in order -- on this Chapter
7 resolution in order to solve this issue peacefully," Bush
said.
Bush said he also discussed the Israeli-Palestinian issue with
Merkel and he agreed with her to convene the quartet, or the United
Nations, the United States, Russia and the European Union, at an
appropriate time.
The United States is committed to a two-state solution with
Israel and Palestine living side by side in peace, Bush said.
For her part, Merkel hailed the cooperation between the two
sides.
The visit "is clearly an expression of the fact that we share
values, that there are a lot of common interests between our two
countries, and that there is also a lot of need for enhanced
cooperation between the European Union and the United States of
America," Merkel said.
Germany has been an important US ally and relations have been
greatly improved since Merkel took office in late 2004.
(Xinhua News Agency January 5, 2007)
