US embassy cable - 05PARIS6315

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PARIS 006315 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
DEPT FOR INR/R/MR; IIP/RW; IIP/RNY; BBG/VOA; IIP/WEU; AF/PA; 
EUR/WE /P/SP; D/C (MCCOO); EUR/PA; INR/P; INR/EUC; PM; OSC ISA 
FOR ILN; NEA; WHITE HOUSE FOR NSC/WEUROPE; DOC FOR ITA/EUR/FR 
AND PASS USTR/PA; USINCEUR FOR PAO; NATO/PA; MOSCOW/PA; 
ROME/PA; USVIENNA FOR USDEL OSCE. 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC, KMDR, FR 
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION REPORT - UN Summit Afghanistan Katrina 
PARIS - Friday, September 16, 2005 
 
 
(A) SUBJECTS COVERED IN TODAY'S REPORT: 
 
1. UN Summit 
2. Afghanistan 
3. Katrina 
 
B) SUMMARY OF COVERAGE: 
 
A variety of stories dominate today's front pages, with Le 
Figaro devoting its lead to the threat of an Avian flu 
epidemic. President Bush's call at the UN for the sharing of 
information between nations and Villepin's similar preventive 
appeal made from the UN are noted. Today's major international 
stories include the elections in Afghanistan: for Liberation, 
although "democracy in Afghanistan will not look like our 
western democracies, we cannot deny the benefits of a 
democratic ballot." In Le Figaro, defense correspondent Arnaud 
de La Grange writes about the different American and French 
perceptions of the operations in Afghanistan. (See Part C) 
Another major story, which continues to elicit commentary, is 
the UN Summit, with a majority of the reports concentrating on 
PM De Villepin's performance and his "return to the scene of 
the crime." For France Soir, Villepin is "increasingly looking 
like a Presidential candidate." Le Monde headlines: "Bush 
Surprises the UN By Pleading for the Poor." Its editorial is 
devoted to the usefulness of the organization. (See Part C) 
 
The German elections are also a major story. The report in 
France Soir is titled: "Merkel Hostile to Turkey's EU 
Membership" and concentrates on the Turkish immigrant 
population's intention to vote for the SPD. Le Figaro 
interviews U.S. political expert Gary Schmitt, Director of the 
Project for the New American Project. Schmitt asserts that 
Merkel "will break with the SPD's anti-American stance" and a 
policy based on "mistrust of the U.S." He contends that in 
France, Sarkozy "echoes her vision." "If Merkel and Sarkozy 
are elected, it will impact quickly and significantly on trans- 
Atlantic and intra-European relations." 
 
Right-of-center weekly Le Point devotes its editorial to 
Katrina and the "Lessons of a Pre-Programmed Disaster." (See 
Part C) In Les Echos, commentator Paul Fabra writes: "Between 
the modern military doctrine of eliminating reserves and the 
negligence of the authorities in bringing timely assistance to 
the New Orleans refugees there is more than a simple analogy." 
 
(C) SUPPORTING TEXT/BLOCK QUOTES: 
 
UN Summit 
 
"Dear UN" 
Left-of-center Le Monde in its unsigned editorial (09/16): 
"The summit ended without firm decisions about the expected 
reforms due to the divergences between North and South. But 
the UN has the merit of existing. and offering a venue for 
debate and at times confrontation. There is an undeniable `UN 
effect,' which has operated a change on President Bush: he 
gave a speech very different from past ones and acknowledged 
that `anger and despair' could fuel terrorism.' Villepin's 
`reality as it is' approach may have impacted on the U.S. 
President. The calamitous situation in Iraq as well as the 
incompetence of the authorities after Katrina have probably 
led President Bush to be less arrogant." 
 
"350 Treaties Awaiting the Signature of the U.S." 
Anne Bauer in right-of-center Les Echos (09/16): "In many 
Embassies around the world, and at NGO headquarters, annoyance 
with America's unilateralism and its scorched earth tecnique 
is obvious. By questioning the final declaration. John Bolton 
opened the floodgates to a river of amendments from countries 
which oppose the UN. Yet America's unilateralism is nothing 
new. This attitude is a major stumbling block within the 
organization. Whatever Europe's efforts to restore 
international law, which is what the UN represents, nothing 
will be possible without the U.S. In this respect, the summit 
cannot be viewed as a total failure: President Bush took part 
in it and emphasized his priorities in international 
cooperation: the fight against terrorism, health, trade and 
development. Which is better than nothing, even if social 
rights, the environment, culture and disarmament were 
noticeably absent." 
Afghanistan 
 
"Dangers" 
Patrick Sabatier in left-of-center Liberation (09/16): 
"Democracy cannot be decreed, it must be built. And in 
Afghanistan, this can be done only slowly. In spite of the 
semblance of peace, Afghanistan is still at war, with the 
Taliban still terrorizing a large portion of the population. 
The Americans, who are fighting them, have this year suffered 
the most losses since 2001. Karzai is dependent upon the 
Americans and international aid. He has bought his stability 
through tolerance for the poppy industry, which represents 60 
percent of the nation's GNP. Afghan `democracy' will have very 
little to do with what we mean by democracy. But we must not 
deny the benefits of a democratic ballot. that will change the 
status of women and give voters the first opportunity in 
Afghanistan's history to voice their views. The danger lies in 
the West's impatience: too eager or too discouraged, the West 
wants to disengage from Afghanistan. This has become clear in 
the debate that opposes the U.S. to its NATO allies. Even if 
imperfect, Afghanistan's democracy needs to be helped and 
defended. There is no other alternative to terror and chaos." 
 
"Franco-American Differences on NATO Mission" 
Arnaud de La Grange in right-of-center Le Figaro (09/16): "The 
Americans would love to enroll more allies in Afghanistan. to 
stabilize the country. This question has triggered new 
friction between the U.S. and France, although the 
confrontation is softer and not as frontal as the one over 
Iraq. Yet the conflict is real. The French Defense Minister 
has reiterated her opposition to a merging of the missions in 
Afghanistan. even if she insists that France is not opposed to 
a rapprochement of the operations. which have different 
objectives: one is a peace- keeping mission, while the other 
remains a war operation. The French insist there is no 
ideological confrontation. While some believe that Washington 
wants the missions to merge in order to begin a disengagement 
from Afghanistan." 
 
Katrina 
 
"Lessons of a Pre-Programmed Disaster" 
Claude Imbert in right-of-center weekly Le Point (09/16): 
"America never does anything in half measures. Both 9/11 and 
Katrina were huge tragedies. But those tempted to gloat over 
America's misery should look at the exceptional nature of 
Hurricane Katrina., even if the tragedy was in the cards. The 
negligence regarding preventive work on levees and the failure 
to properly evacuate its population are the causes for 
America's humiliation. But will this tragedy, which has 
destroyed New Orleans, destroy the Bush Presidency? Hardly. 
After the initial lack of efficiency, both the federal 
government and the private sector have bounced back. 
Nevertheless, the overconfidence and euphoria of the Bush 
administration, which has often times come close to 
impertinence, have suffered. The American model has not been 
shattered, but it does come out somewhat tarnished." STAPLETON