Spreading Freedom and Democracy the Best Way to Defeat Radicalism – Bush
BBC: US President George W Bush has warned of the dangers he says are posed by Iran, in a speech in its Gulf neighbour, the United Arab Emirates.

Mr Bush said Iran threatened the security of all nations and should be confronted "before it's too late".

In a speech in Abu Dhabi on the latest leg of a Middle Eastern tour, he also urged the region to embrace democracy.

Meanwhile the UN's atomic watchdog said Iran had agreed to clear up questions about its past nuclear activities.

The statement by the IAEA said Tehran would provide details in the next four weeks.

'Human capital'

Mr Bush's address in Abu Dhabi was described by his aides as the keynote speech of his regional tour.

He told delegates at the Emirates Centre for Strategic Studies and Research (ECSSR) that more open societies would foster the Middle East's immense "human capital".

He said there had been advances in the region, but also setbacks.

Without fair elections and freedom of speech, "you cannot expect people to believe in the promise of a better future", he added.

Mr Bush said spreading freedom and democracy was the best way to defeat radicalism. Confront Iran danger early – Bush >>>

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Bush says Iran sponsors terror

Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)

Bush Tries to Rally Gulf ‘Allies’ Against Iran
THE SUNDAY TIMES: President Bush urged America's Gulf allies to back his campaign against Iran today, saying that the safety of the world was at stake.

Speaking in a lavish, gold-encrusted hotel in Abu Dhabi, Mr Bush used the signature speech of his tour of the Middle East to denounce Tehran as the "world's leading sponsor of state terror".

His stern message came amid simmering tensions over last week's face-off between Iranian and US naval vessels in the nearby Strait of Hormuz, the most strategic oil-trading route in the region.

"Iran's actions threaten the security of nations everywhere," Mr Bush said. "So the United States is strengthening our long-standing security commitments with our friends in the Gulf, and rallying friends around the world to confront this danger before it's too late," he said.

But it was unclear how the United Arab Emirates – a staunch ally of the United States – would react to Mr. Bush's request that it play a bigger role in regional security.

Leaders of this oil-rich Gulf State are increasingly wary of Iran's growing influence and see their stability as intimately linked to the US.

However, the UAE's booming economy is closely tied to Iran, its biggest trading partner. Nearly half a million Iranians live in the Emirates, with about 10,000 Iranian firms operating in its commercial capital of Dubai.

When Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian President, visited last year, he was greeted with warm embraces from local rulers. George Bush tries to rally Gulf allies against Iran >>> By Sonia Verma in Abu Dhabi

Mark Alexander (Paperback)
Mark Alexander (Hardback)