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Rumsfeld irate over secret plan on Iraq
UPI ^ | February 8, 2003 | Pamela Hess

Posted on 02/08/2003 12:53:34 PM PST by Indy Pendance

MUNICH, Germany, Feb. 8 (UPI) -- U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld Saturday warned Germany and France -- the most vociferous critics of the U.S. hard-line toward Iraq -- they risk isolating themselves rather than the United States if they continue their resistance to forcing Iraq to disarm.

"There is more difference among Europeans than there are between the United States and Germany," Rumsfeld said, referring to a recent letter of support signed by eight European countries for a tough stance toward Iraq. It was followed this week by another signed by 10 more nations.

"I sense there's a lot of wisdom in Europe," he said.

In what is likely his last opportunity to engage the European allies face to face before a probable war with Iraq, Rumsfeld came out swinging, warning the defense ministers gathered in Munich for the 39th annual Werkunde security conference it is not just the United Nation's credibility on the line, it is now the 50-year-old alliance itself fighting for relevance.

Rumsfeld blasted the "two or three" NATO members -- including Germany and France -- who are blocking a NATO proposal to direct the Strategic Allied Commander Europe to prepare a Patriot missile battery, a surveillance plane and chemical and biological detectors to protect Turkey from a possible attack from Iraq. His remarks came in a speech Saturday to the alliance defense ministers gathered here for a security conference.

"It is beyond comprehension to me how in the world can a NATO country," he began, and was interrupted by thunderous applause. "To prevent just the planning I think is inexcusable," he continued.

"Those preventing the alliance from taking even minimum measures to prepare to do so risk undermining the credibility of the NATO alliance," he warned. "If they won't live up to that, what next might they not live up to?"

Rumsfeld said if NATO does not approve the protective measures for Turkey, the United States will do it independently.

"Turkey will not be hurt. The United States (and others) will go right ahead and do it, let there be no doubt," he said. "What will be hurt is NATO."

A senior defense official told reporters Saturday afternoon he expects NATO to approve the proposal on Monday. So "confident and comfortable" was NATO Secretary-General Lord George Robertson that he put the proposal under a "break-silence procedure," meaning if no NATO member objects, it will go into effect.

The United States proposed NATO send Patriot missiles, an AWACS plane and chemical and biological weapons detection equipment to Turkey three weeks ago. The proposal has been stalled because of Germany and France's objections, the senior defense official said.

Turkey could invoke Article IV of the NATO charter to secure the protective measures, the official said, but at this point it has opted not to.

"It is a fairly major step for a country to invoke the treaty. This was a desire to move this forward quickly and without invoking the treaty."

It was also a way for the United States to involve and consult with NATO, a gesture it was accused of ignoring after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the United States, the defense official said.

Turkey shares a border with Iraq and already hosts more than 1,000 American troops at Incirlik Air Base, from where raids on Iraqi air defense are conducted. As many as 15,000 Army soldiers could be based in Turkey in advance of a war. Turkey is within Scud missile range of Iraq.

Rumsfeld was not alone in singling out Germany and France for criticism. U.S. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said the opposition to the Turkish proposal "exposed the sneering in (Paris and Berlin) about the impulsive cowboy in the White House for the vacuous posturing and obvious misdirection that it is," and also exposed "the myth that France and Germany speak for Europe."

McCain also accused them of "America-bashing to rally their people and other European elites to the call of European unity."

Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn., took a more conciliatory tone, saying he understood part of the reason for the rift: the Bush administration's balking at the Kyoto global climate change treaty, the international criminal court and the abrogation of the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty with Russia.

"I fear during the last two years our administration has not listened to Europe," said Lieberman, who has declared his presidential candidacy for the United States.

Rumsfeld also blamed the European leaders for the popular opposition to a U.S.-led war in Iraq, saying "if they pounded in" their misgivings often enough, the public would oppose it too.

Rumsfeld then launched a broad attack on the United Nations for allowing Libya to head a human rights commission and Iraq to head a disarmament commission.

"That these acts of irresponsibility could happen now, at this moment in history, is breathtaking," leaving no doubt that in his mind the United Nations has already lost its credulity, Rumsfeld said.

"Those acts will be marked in the history of the United Nations as either the low point of that institution in retreat, or the turning point when the U.N. woke up, took hold of itself and moved away from a path of ridicule to a path of responsibility."

German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer made a passionate, defensive response to Rumsfeld's charges.

"We are doing better than the others are!" he said, referring to the German troop contribution to Afghanistan, which now numbers 3,000, he said. Germany is also slated to take over command of the international peacekeeping force with the Netherlands.

Fischer said he personally had pushed Germany, after years of non-militarism, to join the war in Kosovo, and then in Macedonia and then in Afghanistan. But he sees a clear distinction between those situations and Iraq.

"It wasn't just force. It was a last resort," he said.

Germany is not shy of using force when it is necessary, Fischer said from the podium but directly to Rumsfeld, who was now seated in the audience.

"Why this priority now? Why now? We've all known what we've known (about Iraq) for years," he said. "We owe our own democracy to America," he conceded, recalling World War II, "but we have to be convinced."

"Excuse me," he shouted, switching to English, "I'm not convinced!"

With so many difficulties in that region of the world, including Afghanistan which still struggles to establish itself, the continuing search for al Qaida, the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, now is not the time to take on a new conflict in Iraq, Fischer declared. He predicted a war in Iraq will be followed by "decades" of military occupation.

"Is the United States ready for a long-term presence?" he asked. "The idea (Iraq) will suddenly blossom into a democracy, I do not share."

NATO chief Lord George Robertson attempted to play down the conflict between the United States and Germany and France.

"This makes good political theater but does not amount to a breakdown in the alliance," he said.

Werkunde continues through Sunday. Rumsfeld is to depart Saturday night after bilateral meetings with the German, Russian, Georgian, Norwegian and Indian defense ministers, among others.


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Front Page News; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: rumsfeldpinglist
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1 posted on 02/08/2003 12:53:34 PM PST by Indy Pendance
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To: *Rumsfeld ping list; lawgirl; Howlin; mystery-ak; mtngrl@vrwc; kayak; swheats; ladyinred; ...
To find all articles tagged or indexed using Rumsfeld, click below:
  click here >>> Rumsfeld <<< click here  
(To view all FR Bump Lists, click here)

2 posted on 02/08/2003 12:57:50 PM PST by Hipixs
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To: Indy Pendance
"I fear during the last two years our administration has not listened to Europe," said Lieberman, who has declared his presidential candidacy for the United States.

What is the first principle of patriotic bipartisanship? "Politics ends at the water's edge." Well, that principle vanished during the clinton regime, and it's obvious that the Democrats and the liberal press no longer respect it.

It's bad enough to play politics with delicate international matters and our country's security interests, but to undermine an elected administration in the context of a NATO meeting in Europe is unconscionable.

3 posted on 02/08/2003 1:02:53 PM PST by Cicero
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Comment #4 Removed by Moderator

To: Indy Pendance
>>"I fear during the last two years our administration has not listened to Europe," said Lieberman<<

Disgusting.

Who gives a rat's ass?

5 posted on 02/08/2003 1:04:22 PM PST by Jim Noble
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To: Indy Pendance
"ridicule"

Ouch. That'll leave a mark.

6 posted on 02/08/2003 1:06:46 PM PST by witnesstothefall
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To: Cicero
The Germans DID NOT have to be forced to bomb Christian Serbs when the Serbs were fighting the kla muslim extremists KLA in Kosovo!! They did it with GLEE!! Even bombed Belgrade on Easter( Pascha) Sunday,1999... just as they did during WWII.
7 posted on 02/08/2003 1:11:30 PM PST by crazykatz
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To: Jim Noble
Let's move our 70,000 troops out of Germany and get out of NATO.
8 posted on 02/08/2003 1:12:44 PM PST by nygoose
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To: Jim Noble
In the last two years no one has listened to Lieberman.
9 posted on 02/08/2003 1:20:06 PM PST by hgro
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To: Indy Pendance
This is not the take I got from Lieberman when I saw his clip of remarks on MSNBC but if this is what he said afterward -- fine with me -- putting Party over Country once again would be LIE's agenda.

McCain was really mad at the Germans and French.

As for Rumsfeld -- what can I say? I love the guy and his plain speaking manner -- tells it like it is!
10 posted on 02/08/2003 1:27:33 PM PST by PhiKapMom (Bush/Cheney 2004)
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To: Cicero
... that principle vanished during the clinton regime...

Sorry, but that's one thing Clinton can't be blamed for. 'Politics' became a routine factor in foreign policy during Vietnam. It has never stopped being one.

11 posted on 02/08/2003 1:34:17 PM PST by Grut
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To: Indy Pendance
Lieberman is such a complete bastard.
12 posted on 02/08/2003 1:36:08 PM PST by ffusco (sempre ragione)
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To: ffusco
Lieberman is such a complete bastard.

My sentiments, exactly. I hope his remarks get back to the President in very short order.

13 posted on 02/08/2003 1:44:37 PM PST by Wait4Truth (God Bless our President!)
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To: Jim Noble
Yes, Lieberman is that - disgusting. However, Rumsfeld is magnificent! I watched Fox News interviewing some American soldiers in Italy, while waiting for Mr. Rumsfeld to make a speech. The love of these soldiers for Mr. Rumsfeld was quite overwhelming and when Mr. Rumsfeld finally appeared it was to thunderous applause. Rummy's love for our military is equally apparent.

I remember reading that when Clinton was President and was going to make a speech before American military personnel, they simply did not want to attend. They had to be "ordered" to show up. I guess if Lieberman became President they would have to hold guns to our military to make them attend. Lieberman as POTUS is unthinkable and as Commander-in-Chief laughable. As for Hillary, our military would all probably go absent without leave, and who could blame them.
14 posted on 02/08/2003 1:46:25 PM PST by maxwellp
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To: Grut
the principle Cicero is talking about is that if you are a politician you don't take swipes at an opposing administration (even one you despise) while you are overseas. At least as far as Republicans are concerned, that principle still holds.
15 posted on 02/08/2003 1:48:54 PM PST by vbmoneyspender
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To: nygoose
German Foreign Minister Fischer - "Why this priority now? Why now?" 9/11, that's why.
16 posted on 02/08/2003 1:55:40 PM PST by maxwellp
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To: Indy Pendance
"We owe our own democracy to America," he conceded, recalling World War II, "but we have to be convinced."

"Excuse me," he shouted, switching to English, "I'm not convinced!"

The only thing surprising here is Rummy didn't stand right up and bitch-slap this little communist pissant!

17 posted on 02/08/2003 1:57:04 PM PST by Gritty
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To: Indy Pendance
Rumsfeld irate over secret plan on Iraq

I think that this title is misleading. The media likes to describe President Bush and his people of being "angry", "furious", and "irate" at any opportunity.

Whenever I saw Rumsfeld talking about Germany and France in press conferences, he never seemed angry and irate to me. I think that he was matter-of-factly giving his honest assessment of the situation and I love him for doing it. I'm sick of the Klinton method of trying to buy off and pander to any country in the world that has something bad to say about us.

18 posted on 02/08/2003 1:59:01 PM PST by Excuse_My_Bellicosity
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To: Indy Pendance
Sic em Rummy.
19 posted on 02/08/2003 2:03:30 PM PST by cynicom
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To: Excuse_My_Bellicosity
I'm sick of the Klinton method of trying to buy off and pander to any country in the world that has something bad to say about us.

Yes, that method worked so well with North Korea. /sarcasm

20 posted on 02/08/2003 2:08:41 PM PST by Norman Arbuthnot
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