Mr. President, we're so honored to be here. We want to thank you for your invitation. We want to thank you for the hospitality that you and the First Lady have shown us. And we want to thank you all for coming.
I want to thank my friends the President of Colombia y de Bolivia y tambien el Vice Presidente de Ecuador. Thank you all for being here as well.
I have come to Peru to congratulate the President and the people of Peru for embracing the institutions of democracy. It is such an important example for the world to see. I have come to Peru to thank the people of Peru and the President of Peru for the condolences that you sent to mi pais on September the 11th. We appreciate your prayers; we appreciate your condolences; and we appreciate your firm stand in the fight against terror.
And I bring with me the condolences of the American people for those lives and the families whose lives were affected as a result of the cowardly bombing that took place in Lima last week.
I come in the spirit of respect and cooperation, respect for the people of Peru and the desire to cooperate to advance trade and commerce and prosperity and education and health. I see a great future in our relationship, and I see a great future for the great country of Peru.
So it's my honor to be here tonight to toast my friend el Presidente, the First Lady, and the people of this gran pais.
NOTE: The President spoke at 8:41 p.m. in the Presidential Palace. In his remarks, he referred to President Toledo's wife, Eliane Karp Toledo; President Andres Pastrana of Colombia; President Jorge Fernando Quiroga Ramirez of Bolivia; and Vice President Pedro Pinto Rubianes of Ecuador. A tape was not available for verification of the content of these remarks.
George W. Bush, Remarks at a Dinner Hosted by President Alejandro Toledo of Peru in Lima Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/215511
