No nation should be forced to negotiate with terrorists - US President

Addressing the Israeli Knesset at celebrations to mark the 60th anniversary of the founding of Israel, US President George W Bush expressed his country's belief that the right of nations to defend themselves against terrorism and extremism must not be overridden by whatever sacrifices need to be made for peace.

He appreciated the courageous decisions made by Israeli leaders to build peace as well as to eliminate terrorism and said that no nation should be forced to negotiate with terrorists.

"We believe that free people should strive and sacrifice for peace. So we applaud the courageous choices Israel's leaders have made. We also believe that nations have a right to defend themselves and that no nation should ever be forced to negotiate with killers pledged to its destruction."

"We believe that targeting innocent lives to achieve political objectives is always and everywhere wrong. So we stand together against terror and extremism, and we will never let down our guard or lose our resolve," he said.

He said that the battle against terrorism and extremism is "the defining challenge" in the modern world which goes beyond mere military action.

"It is a clash of visions, a great ideological struggle. On the one side are those who defend the ideals of justice and dignity with the power of reason and truth. On the other side are those who pursue a narrow vision of cruelty and control by committing murder, inciting fear, and spreading lies", he said.

He pointed out the necessity of providing an alternative ideology for those who blindly follow extremist ideas, to create value to the struggle against terrorism and extremism.

He said that extending the vision based on Justice, Tolerance and Freedom and Hope could create those ideologies.