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| September 15, 2003 |
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World Media Watch by Gloria R. Lalumia BUZZFLASH NOTE: Once again, these are the views and perspectives of the individual papers, not of BuzzFlash or Gloria. They offer BuzzFlash readers a way of reading what other nations are saying about the crisis, whether we like it or not. We repeat: This is not an endorsement of their viewpoints. * * * 1//The Moscow Times, Russia--BUSH SR. PAYS VISIT TO PUTIN IN SOCHI (An unidentified Kremlin official told Interfax and Itar-Tass on Saturday that a central theme of talks between Putin and the elder Bush would be the development of Russian-U.S. relations in the past decade and the opportunities presented by the upcoming summit...Bush was expected to deliver the keynote speech at a dinner hosted by the Carlyle Group, the capital management giant that is creating a $500 million private equity fund with Alfa Group.) 2//Inter Press Service, Italy--ANALYSIS: BOTH SIDES IN TERROR WAR BLOODIED, BUT UNBOWED (Both the Bush administration and al-Qaeda -- most recently through the public release Wednesday of a video and audiotape allegedly of Osama bin Laden himself -- are claiming that each has the other right where he wants him (including in Iraq) and exhorting their friends and allies to fight harder for final victory. And while few contest the notion that Washington has made substantial progress in dismantling al-Qaeda itself, its broader aim of defeating radical Islam and the ''jihadists'' who draw their inspiration from bin Laden seems as elusive as the Saudi renegade himself. As Daniel Benjamin, a senior counter-terrorism official under the Clinton administration, put it in the 'Los Angeles Times' on Thursday, the Bush balance sheet is a ''mixture of tactical success and strategic slippage''.) 3/The Japan Times, Japan--JAPAN MULLS BILLIONS IN IRAQ AID (Japan is considering pledging several billion dollars in reconstruction aid for projects in Iraq that are running behind schedule due in part to the worsening security situation there, government sources said Saturday. Despite its fiscal difficulties, Japan is prepared to make the pledge at an international conference of donors that is scheduled for late October in Madrid, the sources said...Some in Tokyo fear the government may be pressured to give around $10 billion, close to the $13 billion it contributed during the 1991 Gulf War, as it takes more time to dispatch the SDF, according to the sources.) 4//The Times of India, India--SHARING AMERICA'S PAIN IN IRAQ (Last week, defence minister George Fernandes pointed out what has been obvious but not stated since the American request first came in: Given its own overstretch, India cannot afford to send forces to Iraq...Ideally what the Americans want is a Rashtriya Rifles division, lightly armed, but experienced in dealing with proto-insurgency situations. But such a force is simply not available, not since it has become clear in the last three months that far from improving, the situation in the Kashmir valley is deteriorating... For countries thinking about sending forces, there has been a major fundamental change since May. Then the issue was all about dividing the spoils, now it is about sharing the pain. Countries like India that are being asked to provide large forces wonder just what their threshold of pain could be, or, for that matter what the American ceiling is.) 5//Gulf News Online, United Arab Emirates--VIOLENT RALLIES RULED OUT DURING BUSH VISIT (President Gloria Arroyo has ruled out violent protest rallies during the upcoming visit of US President George W. Bush, but many militant groups have vowed to push through with their scheduled 16-hour protest actions on October 18...Thirty-four days ahead of Bush's arrival, the government has already raised the alert level against foreign and Philippine-based militants. "We are prepared for any eventuality," said Bunye, adding that a joint police and military action has been in place to sanitise Metro Manila of terrorists, destabilisers, and coup plotters. The government was embarrassed when the State Department announced that the US President would shorten his visit to eight hours. Many said it was a sign that Washington could not trust the security situation in the Philippines.) * * * 1//The
Moscow Times Monday, Sep. 15, 2003. Page 1 BUSH SR. PAYS VISIT TO PUTIN IN SOCHI SOCHI, Southern Russia -- Former U.S. President George Bush, on a private visit to Russia less than two weeks ahead of his son's summit with Vladimir Putin, arrived Sunday in the Black Sea resort of Sochi and was greeted warmly at the airport by the Russian leader Bush and his wife, Barbara, traveled to Sochi on a plane provided by the Rossiya airline, which serves Putin and other Russian government figures. Putin, his black labrador dog nearby, greeted them on the tarmac in English, shaking Bush's hand and giving Barbara a bouquet of roses. Putin rarely meets even the highest-level visitors at the airport, and Bush thanked him for his "extraordinary courtesy." (SNIP) Bush said he had been in the White House before leaving for St. Petersburg last week, and spoke of his son's liking of Putin. "Our president has a great feeling not only of respect [but] of friendship for President Putin. This is not diplomatic language, this is right from the heart," he said. "I seldom represent the president's view on anything, but I'm very confident in telling you of his high regard and genuine friendship," he said. Putin returned the praise, suggesting his relationship with the younger Bush transcends politics. "When I talk with the U.S. president, our opinions do not always coincide, but the most important thing is that we have a very good rapport, very good feelings toward each other, and trust," he said. The warm words set a cordial tone for the summit, which comes as Russia and the United States seek to patch up relations after deep disagreement over the war in Iraq and persistent international debate about the postwar situation. The Kremlin said last week that the presidents will meet Sept. 26 at the American leader's Camp David, Maryland retreat. Putin told Bush that he has a "good reputation here in Russia" as "one of the founding fathers of good relations between Russia and the United States," citing nuclear arms limitation arms treaties reached with his help. An unidentified Kremlin official told Interfax and Itar-Tass on Saturday that a central theme of talks between Putin and the elder Bush would be the development of Russian-U.S. relations in the past decade and the opportunities presented by the upcoming summit. (SNIP) Bush was expected to deliver the keynote speech at a dinner hosted by the Carlyle Group, the capital management giant that is creating a $500 million private equity fund with Alfa Group.
ANALYSIS: BOTH SIDES IN TERROR WAR BLOODIED, BUT UNBOWED WASHINGTON, Sep 11 (IPS) - Two years after President George W. Bush vowed to take the war to the terrorists who carried out the Sep. 11 attacks on New York and the Pentagon, the fight between the two main antagonists seems to be a draw. Both the Bush administration and al-Qaeda -- most recently through the public release Wednesday of a video and audiotape allegedly of Osama bin Laden himself -- are claiming that each has the other right where he wants him (including in Iraq) and exhorting their friends and allies to fight harder for final victory. And while few contest the notion that Washington has made substantial progress in dismantling al-Qaeda itself, its broader aim of defeating radical Islam and the ''jihadists'' who draw their inspiration from bin Laden seems as elusive as the Saudi renegade himself. As Daniel Benjamin, a senior counter-terrorism official under the Clinton administration, put it in the 'Los Angeles Times' on Thursday, the Bush balance sheet is a ''mixture of tactical success and strategic slippage''. (SNIP) That al-Qaeda as an organisation has been badly hurt is beyond question. As the administration never tires of saying, two-thirds of its top leadership have been either captured or killed. The past year's capture of Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, a top operative who helped plan the Sep. 11 attacks, and, more recently, Hambali, the alleged chief of the network's operations in Southeast Asia, have been cited as major breakthroughs. Similarly, international efforts to cut off financing of al-Qaeda and similar groups are considered to have made dramatic progress. And, by ousting the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, Bush has succeeded in denying al-Qaeda headquarters, safe haven, training facilities, and other perks that came with a friendly state. But none of those accomplishments translate into anything like final victory. (SNIP) A much-cited survey of 20 countries, including eight predominantly Muslim nations, by the Pew Global Attitudes Project immediately after the war found that Washington's image in the Islamic world has fallen dramatically over the past two years, with less than 15 percent of respondents from Turkey to Indonesia reporting favourable impressions of the United States overall. The same survey found that a sharply growing percentage of Muslims see the United States as a serious threat to Islam and express ''at least some confidence'' in bin Laden to ''do the right thing regarding world affairs''. On the latter issue, solid majorities in the Palestine Authority, Indonesia, and Jordan, and nearly half of respondents in Morocco and Pakistan, voiced at least some sympathy and support for the al-Qaeda leader. Many analysts believe that the U.S. image in the Islamic world has only worsened in the four months since the polls were taken due to Washington's failure to provide security and basic services to the Iraqi population and to come up with any evidence that ousted President Saddam Hussein harboured illegal weapons or had close ties with al-Qaeda -- the two main justifications cited by Bush for going to war in the first place. ''That has clearly added to the impression in the region that this was a war of conquest carried out in the name of anti-terrorism,'' said one State Department official who declined to be identified. ''What little credibility we had (in the region) has gone up in smoke." That loss in credibility has also contributed to stretch the already deep strains between Washington and its European allies, most of which were already deeply sceptical of Bush's obsession with Iraq before the war. ''The president has much less credibility than he did before the war, and he didn't have much to begin with,'' said Charles Kupchan, the director of a high-level task force on U.S.-European ties at the Council on Foreign Relations. ''Governments that backed the war (in spite of strong public opposition) paid a political cost for sending troops. Now that many of the claims made by Bush prior to the war have been proven questionable, they will find it even more difficult to continue their support.'' Indeed, the growing consensus in Washington -- even among some Republicans -- is that the war on terrorism took a disastrous and extremely costly detour last year when the administration launched its campaign for war with Iraq. Not only did the war divert intelligence and military resources from the offensive against al-Qaeda and its allies, but it appears to have given them new life.
JAPAN MULLS BILLIONS IN IRAQ AID Japan is considering pledging several billion dollars in reconstruction aid for projects in Iraq that are running behind schedule due in part to the worsening security situation there, government sources said Saturday. Despite its fiscal difficulties, Japan is prepared to make the pledge at an international conference of donors that is scheduled for late October in Madrid, the sources said. Japan's policy is to fully cooperate with the rebuilding of Iraq, part of a dual-pillar policy of financial contributions and dispatching the Self-Defense Forces to help with reconstruction work. Because of the worsening security situation, however, it appears that the SDF will not be sent, under the terms of a recently passed law, in the near future. The United States, which is leading efforts to rebuild Iraq, is expected to repeat its demand that Japan provide financial assistance for the time being, the sources said. To add to the pressure on Tokyo, U.S. President George W. Bush is scheduled to visit Japan for talks with Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi in mid-October. (SNIP) In a recent TV address, Bush said he will soon submit to Congress a request for $87 billion to cover ongoing military and intelligence operations in Iraq, Afghanistan and other areas in relation to the U.S. war on terrorism. He also named Japan among countries that "should contribute" to efforts to promote freedom in Iraq and Afghanistan through funding and other forms of involvement in the campaigns. (SNIP) "There is no question that the amount (for Iraq) will be far more than the $500 million (Japan) pledged during the donors meeting for reconstruction assistance to Afghanistan" in January last year, a senior official of the Foreign Ministry said. Some in Tokyo fear the government may be pressured to give around $10 billion, close to the $13 billion it contributed during the 1991 Gulf War, as it takes more time to dispatch the SDF, according to the sources.
SHARING AMERICA'S PAIN IN IRAQ
VIOLENT RALLIES RULED OUT DURING BUSH VISIT President Gloria Arroyo has ruled out violent protest rallies during the upcoming visit of US President George W. Bush, but many militant groups have vowed to push through with their scheduled 16-hour protest actions on October 18. The policy would be strictly implemented for security reasons, said Ignacio Bunye, the presidential spokesman. "We recognise everyone's right to protest, but it is better for protesters to remain peaceful and within the law in whatever they are doing, so we do not have any violence during rallies," Bunye said. "We are not disallowing (red) banners (during protest rallies). What is prohibited is the use of violence or trying to cause disorder," Bunye said when asked about the categorical guidelines of the police and the military for protest rallies. Thirty-four days ahead of Bush's arrival, the government has already raised the alert level against foreign and Philippine-based militants. "We are prepared for any eventuality," said Bunye, adding that a joint police and military action has been in place to sanitise Metro Manila of terrorists, destabilisers, and coup plotters. The government was embarrassed when the State Department announced that the US President would shorten his visit to eight hours. Many said it was a sign that Washington could not trust the security situation in the Philippines. The government also revealed intelligence reports that the anti-US protest rallies during Bush's visit will be taken advantage of by the opposition leaders who have already lured secret rebel soldiers to their side. Earlier, the government blamed the opposition for supporting rebel soldiers who had staged a short-lived mutiny in Makati City on July 27. Meanwhile, Vice President Teofisto Guingona has confirmed his participation in a "vigil for peace" on the eve of Bush's arrival. (SNIP) "Red banners will greet Bush on his way to the presidential palace. He will be reminded that he initiated a unilateral war of aggression against Afghanistan and Iraq; that he used a wrong intelligence report as a basis for his military campaign abroad; that Osama bin Laden was never found in Afghanistan; and that Saddam Hussein was never taken from Iraq," said Wilson Fortaleza, the Sanlakas president. (SNIP) "With our campaign, all Southeast Asian leaders will realise that Bush will attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Bangkok (after the Manila visit) not to respond to the request of the developing countries for the opening of the US' agricultural market, but to promote the interests of big US corporations. He will be unmasked as a real supporter of imperialist globalisation," Fortaleza explained. All the groups that will join the anti-Bush rallies have been against the US war on Iraq. Analysts said the visit of Bush would boost Arroyo's popularity, despite her seeming reluctance to run in the May 2004 presidential race. Many said it would be his gesture of appreciation for Arroyo's staunch support for his anti-terror campaign after the terror attacks in the US on September 11, 2001. | |||||
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