Schröder ready to fight parliament over China

FAZ NET ^ | 01. April 2005 | Unknown

[elhombrelibre]

Schröder ready to fight parliament over China Chancellor says issue is his responsibility

01. April 2005 F.A.Z. Weekly. Chancellor Gerhard Schröder says he is prepared to overlook the views of the German parliament in his effort to get the European Union to lift its embargo on weapons sales to China. ”I take every vote by the parliament seriously,” Schröder said in an interview that appeared on Wednesday in the weekly newspaper Die Zeit. ”But the constitution is clear. … The constitution says that foreign policy is conducted by the federal government.”

The Social Democrat's comments focused on an issue that pits him not only against the United States once again but also against his junior coalition partner, the Greens.

The issue attracted additional attention last month after the Chinese introduced a policy that essentially preauthorizes military action if Taiwan moved to become independent.

The United States has a legal commitment to Taiwan's security. It views the issue so seriously that it has threatened to tighten the transfer of military technology to Britain, its most loyal ally in Europe, and other European countries if the embargo is lifted, the International Herald Tribune has reported. The embargo was imposed after the Chinese violently crushed a democracy movement at Tiananmen Square in 1989.

In Berlin last month, three opposition parties in the German parliament introduced a resolution aimed at blocking EU leaders from lifting the embargo. The parties hope the resolution will also attract coalition members who also oppose Schröder's effort.

On Wednesday, one of the Greens' parliamentary leaders reiterated the party's opposition to Schröder's efforts. Katrin Göring-Eckardt said China did not meet the requirements for the embargo to be lifted. ”In China, human rights continue to be blatantly abused,” she said.

In the interview, Schröder defended his position by examining the reasons why the embargo was imposed. He said it was imposed because countries wanted to protest the crackdown and not ”because people thought that China would pursue an aggressive, militarily supported foreign policy.”

He also noted that nearly 16 years had passed since then. ”I'm betting on the further development toward liberalism,” he said.

[elhombrelibre]

This man is a moral midget. When will the German people throw him out?

[keithtoo]

"Schröder ready to fight parliament over China"

Schroder wants to go with the flower pattern and parliament wants the nuovo modern set.

Either way eggshell will be the primary color.

[elhombrelibre]

Schroeder is willing to sell Germany's soul for a little bit of money.

[elhombrelibre]

Ping

[Dog Gone]

I think they get the chance in late 2006.

[BobS]

"Schroeder is willing to sell Germany's soul for a little bit of money."

Well, half the U.S. Army is in Germany drinking bier and pinching frauleins.

Condi and Rumsfeld should tell Shroeder if he deals to China, they will all be learning new words for beer and women.

[Malcolm]

The flip side to the absorption of East Germany will be a succession of leftist governments. Why would anyone in their right mind want to sell weapons to the commie Chinese? There's no legitimate reason. They were on the road to democracy in 1989 when they reverted to true commie form. I believe the Tiannemem Square thing precipitated the downfall of all the East European Soviet satellites late that same year. But there is no valid reason to sell them weaponry; they have too many weapons as it is. The Central Military Commission runs the country, not the civilian government. Remember that fact the next time you feel a weakness to make some cash selling those true fascists anything other than toilet paper. Verstehen Sie, Shroeder?

[longjack]

German ping.

Thanks to elhombrelibre

longjack

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Sounds like they're in a hurry to sell something.
We'd best watch our own back when it comes to people like this.

[Zeppelin]

Yeah and I was actually leaning toward moving our troops out of Germany, but it looks like this lunacy requires our military presence for a while, until they get regime change.

[elhombrelibre]

Oh, Schroeder was keen to sell them plutonium in 2003. He's a dangerous rogue man and not an ally of America. He'd have been happier to have Saddam in power too than the Iraqi people. So what's that tell us? This man is a friend of tyrants.

[hermgem]

Schroeder in spite of 12.6% unemployment still is going to run for reelection.
China's arms sales he figures, will just do the trick of generating jobs.
An eternal optimist and at the same time it shows how deep the German media is aligned with Socialism in general and this Socialist in particular.

[longjack]

Schroeder came back from China last year with a deal for Siemens to dismantle the Hanau plutonium processing plant and move it to China. The pre-deal negotiations hadn't hadn't been made public and took the German government by surprise.

The plant had never been brought on-line, due to the efforts of Joschka Fischer in the late 80's or earlier 90's, who led protests over Greens' environmental issues, I believe. Those protests were Fischer's springboard into politics when he won a seat in the Hesse government due to the publicity he gained from it..

Fischer, in a decision that took the prize for 'hypocrisy deemed humanely unattainable', signed off on the Schroeder Hanau deal and left his Greens party fluttering in the wind.

The deal has been stopped, in the meantime, although I can't remember on what grounds. I think German courts may have been involved.

Schroeder would sell his grandmother if it were politically expedient, and apparently, arms to dangerous regimes if it means reduced unemployment numbers.

longjack

[kenavi]

Yeah and I was actually leaning toward moving our troops out of Germany, but it looks like this lunacy requires our military presence for a while, until they get regime change.

I'm thinking the opposite, that this latest German action supports Rummy's policy to move our troops OUT of ungrateful allies (e.g. Germany, S. Korea).

[BobS]

Poland and Hungary and others would welcome our bases in their countries with rice and flower petals. Germany is too expensive and is being choked by government. Just tell Shroeder we're pulling the feeding tube if he can't dance:):) Like Leo Sayer- 'I can dance' LOL.

[BobS]

Correction:

" Like Leo Sayer- 'I can dance' LOL."

Should be: Leo Sayer - "Long Tall Glasses"

That's better. Let's see Shroeder dance like Fred Astaire:):)

[Zeppelin]

Good point. Plus, a pullout would push their economy further down crapper. =P

In an aside, I only drink American and Australian wines, American beer (and Corona), and buy American cars. =P

[kenavi]

I only drink American and Australian wines, American beer (and Corona), and buy American cars.

Remember, most Camrys and Corollas are made here, and Honda Civics. BMW and Mercedes make some SUVs here as well.

The U.S. has plenty of friends around the world, who admire us more than they do their own governments.

[SaltyJoe]

What you bring up is a real possibility for the Koreans.

South Korea continues to hone its industrialized skills. Soon, China will throw North Korea off at the South Koreans and DEMAND unification to the South's horror. South Korea will have to carry the northern half through a very trying period.

If we learn from East & West Germany reunification, we can mitigate many of the problems. I sincerely hope we have thousands of containers filled with MREs (meals ready to eat). The containers can be converted in to offices and homes upon delivery.

I'm sure that Japan and America are working up reunification budgeting & contingency plans the same way that the 31st MEU has been ready for a Humanitarian Missions for years/decades (which finally came to Sri Lanka after the tsunami).

I'm positive that Koreans will pull through quite nicely. I pray that it won't take a war to do it. I'll wager that the more business South Koreans take from China, the more Communist Beijing will want to unload the North's woes onto the South half of the peninsula.

The only worry I have is Korea's pride. They cannot pull off a reunification totally on their own. If they perceive that it's all upon their strength, they might think (similar to how the North is extremely xenophobic) that they are a juggernaut of power. For East Asia, pride is a killer. But then again, pride is a weakness for us all.