Posted on 03/03/2006 11:05:54 AM PST by Tarnsman
A friend, usually most interested in a newspaper's business section, e-mailed his take on the Dubai Ports World issue and asked, "Is this the international equivalent of driving while black, only shipping while Arab?"
Though the ongoing debate is a complex intersection of foreign investment, homeland security and government secrecy issues, it is hard to ignore the suggestion of racial profiling or the wider implications for American policy in the Middle East.
After all, 80 percent of the ports in the United States are managed by foreign companies. A stevedorer partially owned by the Chinese government runs operations at Long Beach, Calif., the second- busiest port in the U.S., with little fanfare or concern. Other companies from Asia and Europe, some government-owned and many with huge Arab and Muslim communities and known jihadist cells, do the same on the Atlantic, Pacific and Gulf coasts.
Yet for the past two weeks not just DP World but the entire United Arab Emirates have been labeled by some as terrorist sponsors, Taliban apologists and unreliable U.S. allies. This is just wrong, according to those who deal with the Emirates on military, intelligence and national security issues and know the country to be a solid partner in the war on terrorism.
So much so that Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda have turned their sights on the UAE, threatening the country specifically for maintaining a cooperative relationship with the U.S.
What started it all were inaccurate reports suggesting an Arab company "taking over" or "buying" ports in the United States. As part of a $6.8 billion acquisition of the London-based Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co., DP World will inherit contracts to manage cargo operations at ports in Brooklyn, Newark, New Orleans, Miami, Philadelphia and Baltimore.
Commercial arrangements, union contracts, relationships with port authorities, U.S. government- required security standards, U.S. Coast Guard oversight and the people running day-to-day operations at these ports will not change. Yes, two Sept. 11 hijackers were from the UAE. But lesser known is that when the Emirates government learned two of its own were part of the attack it committed troops to fight alongside American soldiers in Afghanistan.
No rationalizing about motives, no suggesting Israeli Mossad or CIA conspiracies, no avoiding responsibility. The UAE was the only Arab and Muslim country to stand shoulder to shoulder with the U.S -- a display all too rare in the Middle East.
The UAE is now hugely helpful in tracking terrorist funds, and intelligence officials confirm that Dubai serves as a waypoint from which the U.S. can more easily identify and understand who and what al Qaeda is deploying internationally.
When the Department of Homeland Security started the container security initiative to make sure cargo was reliably screened for radiological bombs, smuggled weapons or other terror threats, Dubai was the first foreign port to sign on. The country is a high traffic port of call for U.S. Navy ships, including aircraft carriers and submarines.
If we trust UAE ports to host our nuclear-powered vessels and we trust their cities with our sailors -- plus they enforce the highest cargo security measures set by the U.S. -- we should be able to trust them with basic port services like loading and unloading ships here.
In many ways, the UAE has emerged as just the kind of country the U.S. seeks to nurture in the Arab world -- religiously tolerant, economically open, balancing modern social and business forces with traditional Islamic values and lifestyles.
Politicians, perhaps reflecting what one conservative writer called "the dogs of anti-Arab prejudice" unleashed by a White House incessantly beating the war-on-terror drums, may have forgotten that the UAE is the closest to an ideal Arab partner the U.S. can rely on today and about as pro-American as you can get in the Arab world. If we cannot do business with the UAE, the U.S. has no real hope for any success among Muslim nations.
The love-hate relationship between the U.S. and the Arab world is sometimes summed up as half the people wanting to bomb American embassies and the other half wanting visas from them. Yet instead of holding up the UAE as a beacon of prosperity and diversity for more of the Middle East to emulate, the U.S. risks humiliating an ally and grouping tolerant Dubai with darker Islamic forces we hope to isolate or enlighten.
When a solid, reliable U.S. friend in the strategically important and politically volatile Middle East can't get fair, trusting treatment in Washington, there's no hope for winning the battle for the hearts, minds and future of the Arab world that we are now waging.
Richard Klein served in the U.S. Departments of State and Commerce and is now director for the Middle East and Arabian Gulf at Kissinger McLarty Associates in Washington.
Personally, I don't like the fact that an American asset is being managed by ANY foreign company, but until our politicians step up and removed all the tax, regulation and legal hurdles that prevent US companies from competing for this type of business I guess we all have to swallow our pride and accept the fact that foreigners are going to do the job. And by all accounts DWP does an outstanding job. Sad to realize that US ports and ships are being run by foreigners, and that this didn't happen overnight. Perhaps that is where the real debate should take place: what needs to done so that American companies can get back in the game? The answer should be interesting.
This article -- and your follow up post -- are probably about the most intelligent and accurate I have read regarding this deal.
Unfortunately, there are some that simply refuse to to listen to reason, even when all of the facts are laid out. It's very sad.
Its not very sad. There hasn't been much information put out there for us to judge. Its been mostly talking points, and more talking points, from both sides of the argument.
That said, this is a good article, the kind of information I'm looking for. I would like to know more about who is presently managing our ports, what "managing" them means, how does a change of ownership affect port operations if at all. That kind of dispassionate detail would help a lot of us to make up our minds, without the need to question our intelligence.
Hell, there is strong anti-Americanism among Congressional Democrats.
Which pales in comparison to college professor and wannabe high school geography teacher.
General Franks
An excellent explanation of why we should use strategic thining, instead of hysteria, to make a decision.
Thanks for posting this.
Excellent article.
We manage our ports through the local port authorities.
Foreigners control operations at some terminals.
We control security.
Thank you.
You are welcome.
The same thing goes on at airports where foreign airlines operate their terminals but we control the airport.
They are running terminals, not the ports. That said, I agree with your sentiments whole heartedly. Maybe we should look into slowly unwinding this and getting US companies only, in charge of these operations. Give them some incentives.
Thanks for posting this article...
Kissinger Mclarty Associates? That's interesting; they are paid shills, though of course, in this case, their own corporate policy should come into play since they claim to do no work for foreign governments, only for foreign corporations.
The race card again Sigh! Maybe someone should inform the author that it is the Arab nations that harbor the terrorists who threaten to kill us and impose an Islamic theocracy on the world.
We can't discriminate against Arabs blah blah.. Yes we can and should it is where the terrorist come from! Those that can't see the difference between Arab nations and other foreign nations need to pull their heads out!
It might be a bit much to swallow, however, if we found that only the French were operating the American Airlines terminal, where US Mail comes in regularly.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.