Reuters | Latest Financial News / Full News Coverage U.S. Cold Shoulder Likely for Iraq War Opponents
Mon April 14, 2003 03:26 PM ET
By Randall Mikkelsen
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush, famous for remembering slights, is unlikely to reach out to mend diplomatic ties frayed in the debate over war on Iraq, and opponents such as France and Germany could feel the sting of retribution.
U.S. officials in recent days have said Washington is willing to repair relations. But their comments also show the Bush administration has a long memory, and is looking for opponents to show a change in attitude.
The likely result is that those who opposed the U.S. effort in Iraq won't have a significant voice in the country's political transition, could take a back seat when a new Iraqi government hands out business such as valuable oil contracts, and may be left out of the discussion in future international crises.
"Americans have a memory like an elephant for certain things," the U.S. ambassador to NATO-member Belgium, Stephen Brauer, said last week in suggesting Belgium's opposition to war could endanger its claim to NATO's headquarters in Brussels.
Bush has long had a reputation for being unforgiving to disloyalty or personal slights, going back to his role as an "enforcer" during the presidency of his father, George Bush.
A day after the younger Bush and Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien put off a planned May 5 meeting in Canada -- citing the demands of Iraq and denying tensions over Canada's opposition to the war -- the White House said the president would host "strong ally and close friend" Prime Minister John Howard of Australia at his Texas ranch May 2-3.
"That's what this administration is really good at. The president is the kind of person who values loyalty highly," said Brookings Institution security analyst Ivo Daalder. "John Howard gets his special visit at the ranch and people who haven't supported him, they get the cold shoulder."
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Russia may not get a full blast of retribution, as Bush has had strong personal ties with President Vladimir Putin and the importance of keeping arms treaties and a broad international agenda on track may make Washington more conciliatory.
U.S. national security adviser Condoleezza Rice earlier this month visited Moscow for fence-mending meetings with Putin and other officials.
Bush has not spoken to French President Jacques Chirac or German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder since well before the war.
Mon April 14, 2003 03:26 PM ET
By Randall Mikkelsen
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush, famous for remembering slights, is unlikely to reach out to mend diplomatic ties frayed in the debate over war on Iraq, and opponents such as France and Germany could feel the sting of retribution.
U.S. officials in recent days have said Washington is willing to repair relations. But their comments also show the Bush administration has a long memory, and is looking for opponents to show a change in attitude.
The likely result is that those who opposed the U.S. effort in Iraq won't have a significant voice in the country's political transition, could take a back seat when a new Iraqi government hands out business such as valuable oil contracts, and may be left out of the discussion in future international crises.
"Americans have a memory like an elephant for certain things," the U.S. ambassador to NATO-member Belgium, Stephen Brauer, said last week in suggesting Belgium's opposition to war could endanger its claim to NATO's headquarters in Brussels.
Bush has long had a reputation for being unforgiving to disloyalty or personal slights, going back to his role as an "enforcer" during the presidency of his father, George Bush.
A day after the younger Bush and Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien put off a planned May 5 meeting in Canada -- citing the demands of Iraq and denying tensions over Canada's opposition to the war -- the White House said the president would host "strong ally and close friend" Prime Minister John Howard of Australia at his Texas ranch May 2-3.
"That's what this administration is really good at. The president is the kind of person who values loyalty highly," said Brookings Institution security analyst Ivo Daalder. "John Howard gets his special visit at the ranch and people who haven't supported him, they get the cold shoulder."
>>
Russia may not get a full blast of retribution, as Bush has had strong personal ties with President Vladimir Putin and the importance of keeping arms treaties and a broad international agenda on track may make Washington more conciliatory.
U.S. national security adviser Condoleezza Rice earlier this month visited Moscow for fence-mending meetings with Putin and other officials.
Bush has not spoken to French President Jacques Chirac or German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder since well before the war.
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