*EPF403 06/24/2004
White House Report June 24: Immunity, North Korea, Leak Investigation, NATO
(Immunity for coalition personnel in Iraq to extend past June 30, U.S. continues on six-party talks with North Korea, Bush interviewed in White House leak investigation, NATO can play useful role in training Iraqi forces, Bush discusses Iraq with congressional leaders) (1100)

IMMUNITY FOR COALITION PERSONNEL TO BE EXTENDED

U.S. officials told reporters June 24 that the United States will extend immunity from Iraqi prosecution to U.S. and other coalition troops and personnel in Iraq beyond the handover of power on June 30.

"We have been discussing this closely with the interim government in Iraq. We, our coalition partners, and the Iraqis agree in principle on this issue and we are working out the details of an arrangement," White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan said.

Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) Order 17, issued June 27, 2003, by CPA Administrator L. Paul Bremer, gives all foreign personnel in the CPA immunity from local courts and any form of arrest or detention other than by persons acting on behalf of their parent states.

"The coalition will make sure that our troops have proper immunities. That is high priority," McClellan said, "We have similar arrangements around the world in countries wherever U.S. forces are employed, or diplomats are present to ensure that there are proper legal protections for our personnel."

According to news reports, there are about 140,000 U.S. troops in Iraq and nearly 25,000 troops from other countries in the security coalition. They will remain indefinitely after the handover to provide security against terrorist attacks.

When asked about the immunity agreement, McClellan responded, "I would remind you that we have a strong system of justice in place in this country. It is a strong system and it holds people accountable for wrongdoing. That would include people in our military. They face justice from our system. We're talking about parts of the world where due process may not be guaranteed."

"The president wants to make sure that our troops are protected," the press secretary said.

U.S. CONTINUES NEGOTIATIONS ON SECOND DAY OF NUCLEAR TALKS

U.S. delegates at multilateral talks in Beijing "are putting forward a series of practical steps that will lead to the complete, verifiable, and irreversible dismantlement of North Korea's nuclear programs," the White House spokesman said.

This stage of the six-party talks, which began June 23, is the third round of nuclear discussions among China, Japan, North and South Korea, Russia and the United States since North Korea's 2002 decision to operate a secret nuclear weapons program in violation of a 1994 agreement.

According to McClellan, the U.S. proposal would provide North Korea with non-nuclear energy assistance and security guarantees in exchange for the dismantling of its nuclear programs.

"U.S. negotiators proposed the new plan after working with South Korea and Japan on possible ideas," the spokesman said.

"Under the plan, when North Korea commits to dismantling its nuclear weapons program", McClellan said, "plans for a detailed implementation will move forward and other parties will take steps to ease [North Korea's] political and economic isolation."

He noted there would be a short preparatory period involved as North Korea moves forward on dismantlement, including disabling its nuclear programs, and that period would be followed by the complete dismantlement of all nuclear programs.

According to news reports, U.S. officials in Beijing believe that it might be several days before North Korea responds to the detailed proposal.

"Obviously we expect all parties to take some time," said the spokesman, "we will see what the response is."

BUSH INTERVIEWED IN WHITE HOUSE LEAK INVESTIGATION

President Bush was questioned for 70 minutes by a U.S. attorney in the investigation into leaks that revealed the name of a Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) operative, married to a U.S. ambassador, the White House spokesman said.

According to news sources, Department of Justice investigators are trying to determine the identity of the sources for columnist Robert Novak's revelation in 2002 that Ambassador Joseph Wilson's wife, Valerie Plame, was a covert CIA operative.

Revealing the name of a CIA operative is a crime in the United States

"The President directed the White House to cooperate fully with those in charge of the investigation. He was pleased to do his part to help the investigation move forward. No one wants to get to the bottom of this matter more than the President of the United States," McClellan said.

The spokesman said, "The President was pleased to share whatever information he had with the officials in charge, and answer their questions."

NATO CAN PLAY USEFUL ROLE IN TRAINING IRAQI FORCES

"We believe that NATO can play a useful role in the training of Iraqi forces," the press secretary said when asked if President Bush planned to request NATO troops for Iraq at the upcoming summit.

McClellan said, "We want to increase the troop levels, but we want to increase the troop levels of Iraqi security forces because they are the ones who will ultimately provide for their own security."

When asked about recent bombings in Turkey, the spokesman said, "This attack was intended to disrupt our preparations for the upcoming NATO summit. Nothing has changed."

According to news reports, bombs exploded June 24 in Ankara and Istanbul killing three people and injuring at least 18 others. Turkish officials told reporters the bomber in the commercial capital of Istanbul was a woman carrying the device in her lap when it exploded on board a bus. A small explosive device went off outside the Hilton Hotel in Ankara where Bush is scheduled to stay on Saturday before he leaves on Sunday for Istanbul.

President Bush will attend the NATO summit in Istanbul, Turkey, June 28-29.

PRESIDENT BUSH DISCUSSES IRAQ WITH CONGRESSIONAL LEADERS

President Bush met with bipartisan congressional leaders at the White House to discuss the current situation in Iraq.

"They had a good discussion about the progress that they are making in Iraq and the challenges that remain as we move forward to help the Iraqi people live a free and peaceful future," McClellan said.

According to the spokesman, other topics covered in the meeting included "the spirit of cooperation within the international community," the upcoming NATO summit and the role that NATO could play in training the Iraqi troops.

"It's important to keep Congress informed of the progress that we are making and also to discuss that challenges that remain," said McClellan.

(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

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