US embassy cable - 05AMMAN1504

UNCLAS AMMAN 001504 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR NEA/ARN, NEA/PA, NEA/AIA, INR/NESA, R/MR, 
I/GNEA, B/BXN, B/BRN, NEA/PPD, NEA/IPA FOR ALTERMAN 
USAID/ANE/MEA 
LONDON FOR GOLDRICH 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
 
TAGS: KMDR JO 
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION ON PRESIDENT BUSH IN EUROPE 
 
 
                        Summary 
 
-- Lead story in all papers today, February 23, 
highlights King Abdullah's visit to Spain as part of a 
tour of several European countries.  Other lead 
stories highlights President Bush's visit to Europe 
and developments in the Middle East.  The earthquake 
in Iran also received front-page coverage in today's 
newspapers. 
 
                 Editorial Commentary 
 
-- "Bush's European speech" 
 
Chief Editor Taher Udwan writes on the back-page of 
independent, mass-appeal Arabic daily Al-Arab Al-Yawm 
(02/23):  "Bush's ideas are good, but his policies are 
bad.  This is what we might conclude from his European 
speech in Brussels.  When you hear him speak about a 
Palestinian state side by side with Israel, you would 
think that peace in Palestine is at hand, and yet, 
what are the mechanisms of achieving that?  On Iraq, 
the U.S. President used descriptions such as `a free 
Iraq' and `the youngest democracy in the world'.  Such 
words are a good thing coming from a president who has 
150 thousand soldiers on Iraqi soil and who controls 
Baghdad's political and economic decision-making 
process.  Yet, the mechanisms of the American presence 
are worse than bad.  The war is not over although it's 
been two years since the invasion, and we have no idea 
why Bush ignores the issue of a deadline for the 
withdrawal of his troops, although the presence of 
these troops is the reason for turning Iraq into a 
arena of confrontation between America and Al-Qaeda, 
something that contradicts all talk about a free Iraq 
and a young democracy.  Clearly, Bush's mission in 
Europe this time is different from previous visits and 
missions.  The U.S. President is trying to start a new 
era of relations with the European partner.  He is 
looking for Europe's partnership in issues related to 
the Middle East.  This turnaround did not come out of 
nowhere, for the U.S. President reaped nothing but 
failure in Iraq, as the war still goes on there, in 
fact prolonging the war on terrorism since terrorists 
now have an arena called Iraq.  Bush has finally 
abandoned his arrogance and his theories about old 
Europe and is now trying to appease Chirac and 
Schroeder.  The question is: will he succeed?  The 
answer is no, unless he changes his policies on the 
ground." 
HALE