US embassy cable - 03ABUDHABI2223

UNCLAS ABU DHABI 002223 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR NEA/ARP; NEA/PPD; NEA/RA; INR/R/MR; PA; 
INR/NESA; INR/B; IIP/G/NEA-SA 
WHITE HOUSE FOR PRESS OFFICE; NSC 
SECDEF FOR OASD/PA 
USCINCCENT FOR POLAD 
LONDON FOR GOLDRICH; PARIS FOR O'FRIEL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OIIP, KMDR, TC 
SUBJECT:  MEDIA REACTION:  IRAQ AND THE ROADMAP 
 
 
1.  SUMMARY:  PRESIDENT BUSH'S NOMINATION OF AMBASSADOR PAUL 
BREMER TO LEAD THE RECONSTRUCTION OF IRAQ, THE ROADMAP, AND 
ISRAEL'S DEMAND FOR SANCTIONS ON SYRIA DOMINATED COVERAGE IN UAE 
PRINT AND ELECTRONIC MEDIA.  UAE COLUMNIST, DR. ABDULKHALEQ 
ABDULLA NOTED IN "AL KHALEEJ" HOW SHAMEFUL IT IS THAT IRAQIS HAVE 
MORE FREEDOM TO PURSUE LIBERTY THAN ARABS IN OTHER ARAB 
COUNTRIES.  IN "AL ITTIHAD," DR. SHAMLAN AL EISSA CRITICIZED THE 
DOUBLE STANDARD OF GCC COUNTRIES DEMANDING AN END TO THE U.S. 
PRESENCE IN IRAQ WHILE ALLOWING TROOPS IN THEIR COUNTRIES.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
2.  COMMENTING ON THE FORTHCOMING UN CONFERENCE ON WMD IN GENEVA 
AND ISRAEL'S ADMINISTRATION OF THE CONFERENCE, DUBAI-BASED 
BUSINESS-ORIENTED ARABIC DAILY "AL-BAYAN" EDITORIALIZED 5/07: 
 
"... THIS ENTITY (ISRAEL) REFUSES TO SIGN AN AGREEMENT FOR 
LIMITING THE SPREAD OF WMD AT A TIME WHEN BOTH SYRIA AND EGYPT 
SUGGEST THE IMPORTANCE OF SUCH AN AGREEMENT TO CLEAR THE MIDDLE 
EAST OF THESE WEAPONS.  REGRETTABLY, WASHINGTON REFUSED THIS 
SUGGESTION.  THE SUPERVISION OF THE ZIONIST ENTITY AT THE GENEVA 
CONFERENCE FOR REMOVING WMD IS AN INTERNATIONAL COMEDY THAT MAKES 
THE UN NOT ONLY LOSE ITS CREDIBILITY, BUT ALSO ITS VISION, SINCE 
IT CAN'T SEE WHAT IS RIGHT AND WHAT IS WRONG IN AN ERA OF 
AMERICAN EXPANSION." 
 
3.  CLAIMING THAT THE IRAQI PEOPLE IN U.S.-OCCUPIED IRAQ ARE MORE 
FREE TO PURSUE THEIR LIBERTY THAN THE ARAB PEOPLE IN INDEPENDENT 
ARAB COUNTRIES AND LABELING THIS A SHAMEFUL REALITY, UAE 
COLUMNIST DR. ABDULKHALEQ ABDULLA WROTE IN SHARJAH-BASED PAN-ARAB 
DAILY "AL KHALEEJ" ON 5/06: 
 
"... THE IMPORTANT THING FOR ARABS IS THAT THE IRAQI EXAMPLE DOES 
NOT REOCCUR.  THE PAINFUL EXPERIMENT IN IRAQ SHOULD NOT REOCCUR 
IN ANY OTHER COUNTRY IN THE ARAB WORLD.  THE EQUATION OF LIBERTY 
DURING OCCUPATION EQUALED BY TYRANNY DURING INDEPENDENCE COULD 
LEAD TO THE REAPPEARANCE OF THIS EXPERIMENT IN IRAQ.  THE BEST 
WAY TO STOP THIS IS THROUGH INTERNAL POLITICAL REFORM, IN 
ADDITION TO IMPLEMENTING LIBERTY AND DEMOCRACY, SOMETHING THAT 
SHOULD BE ON THE TOP OF THE LIST OF NATIONAL PRIORITIES IN THE 
PERIOD AFTER THE WAR ON IRAQ." 
 
4.  CRITICIZING THE GCC COUNTRIES' POLICIES DEMANDING AN END TO 
THE U.S. PRESENCE IN IRAQ WHILE ALLOWING U.S. TROOPS IN THEIR 
COUNTRIES, COLUMNIST DR. SHAMLAN AL EISSA WROTE IN ABU DHABI- 
BASED SEMI-GOVERNMENT "AL ITTIHAD" 5/06: 
 
"... WHAT WE REALLY REFUSE IS THE GCC COUNTRIES DOUBLE STANDARD 
POLICY TOWARDS IRAQ.  ON ONE HAND THEY ACCEPT THE AMERICAN- 
BRITISH-WESTERN PRESENCE IN THEIR COUNTRIES, WHILE ON THE OTHER 
HAND, THEY REQUEST THAT THE U.S. TROOPS LEAVE IRAQ AS SOON AS 
POSSIBLE.  WHY IS IT OKAY FOR THE GCC COUNTRIES TO HAVE U.S. 
TROOPS TO PROTECT THEM WHILE IT IS FORBIDDEN FOR IRAQ TO HAVE ANY 
OF THESE TROOPS ON ITS LANDS, ALTHOUGH IRAQ TODAY IS IN NEED OF 
THE U.S. PRESENCE MORE THAN ANY OTHER COUNTRY BECAUSE OF ALL THE 
CHAOS AND INSECURITY IN MOST CITIES IN IRAQ ..." 
 
WAHBA