Bush defends goal to slash Mideast oil dependency

0 Comments | AFP, February, 2006

RIO RANCHO, United States (AFP) — US President George W. Bush insisted that the United States could sharply decrease its dependency on oil from the politically volatile Middle East.

"With research, and development and technology," the United States "can become less dependent on unstable sources of energy overseas," Bush said in the New Mexico town of Rio Rancho, Friday, reacting to skeptical comments about a proposal he made earlier in the week.

In his State of the Union speech Tuesday, Bush set a goal of reducing US imports of Middle East oil by 75 percent by 2025.

"If we want to be the leader in the world, we've got to do that," the president said during a visit to a factory owned by semiconductor giant Intel Corp. "It's a goal that can be achieved, it's a...