Remarks Following Discussions With President Kenneth D. Kaunda of Zambia

October 8, 1987

President Reagan. Mr. President, it's been a real pleasure to welcome you once again to the White House and to the United States. President Kaunda is a senior and highly respected statesman of Africa and the world. As chairman of the frontline states, his counsel is especially valuable as we work together for peace and economic development in southern Africa. President Kaunda's recent election for a second term as Chairman of the Organization of African Unity attests to the high esteem in which he's held throughout that vast continent.

Our talks today covered the full range of international issues. We reaffirmed our shared determination to work for the earliest possible end of apartheid in South Africa and its replacement by a truly democratic government. The United States will continue to do everything in its power to bring about a negotiated settlement involving the independence of Namibia and the departure of all foreign forces from Angola. I told President Kaunda of my meetings this week with President Chissano and of our support for his efforts to work for peace in Mozambique. I expressed our appreciation for President Kaunda's efforts on behalf of peace in the Persian Gulf and North Africa and his support for efforts to achieve real arms reduction agreements between the United States and the Soviet Union.

Today, also, we reaffirmed the long tradition of warm and productive relations between the United States and Zambia and the other states of southern Africa and their efforts to expand trade, pursue economic reform, and develop their transportation networks. The United States has a stake in African economic progress. We've set a goal of ending the hunger that now plagues sub-Saharan Africa and to do this by the year 2000. Accomplishing this will require growth-oriented reform in Africa and assistance from the United States. We Americans are ready and willing to do our part, but setting things right will also require a commitment for tangible reform from African governments.

We welcome the opportunity to join with you, President Kaunda, in helping to build a future of peace, prosperity, and freedom for Africa and for Zambia. It was a pleasure to have you as our guest, and we wish you a pleasant time in our country for the rest of your stay.

President Kaunda. Mr. President, may I once again thank you, your government, and the people for receiving my delegation and myself so well. I have found our discussions particularly useful. I'm taking back to Africa a message of hope and promise. I'm taking back to Africa a message of cooperation and not confrontation. I'm taking back to Africa a message of love based on truth, social justice, and fairplay from this country.

We have our differences of approach, but not differences of principle. This is important in itself. I can assure you, Mr. President, that when I report back to the summit of the OAU, November 30 and December 1, God willing, of this year, it will be a message which will lend more to cooperation and not confrontation.

Once again, Mr. President, thank you for the exchange of views, which have been very, very fruitful, indeed, and have helped me a lot to appreciate the stand taken by your country on many international issues. I can only end by saying I wish you God's blessings as you come to the end of the term of your very onerous job. I must once again emphasize our gratitude to you and General Secretary Gorbachev on the recently agreed, new approach to the problems of nuclear weapons on this Earth. Again, may God bless you and guide you. Thank you, Mr. President.

Note: President Reagan spoke at 1:26 p.m. at the South Portico of the White House. Earlier, the two Presidents met in the Oval Office and then had lunch in the Residence.