A rchive Date
[ 24-09-2002 ]
Category
[ International Relations ]
sub-Categoy
[ Germany ]
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[http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/usgermany_sep23-ap.html
U.S.-German relations deteriorate
By GEORGE GEDDA - Associated Press
Monday, September 23, 2002
WASHINGTON (AP) - U.S.-German relations sank to perhaps their lowest point in decades Monday as American leaders groused over Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder's opposition to U.S. policy on Iraq and a top German official's comparison of President Bush's tactics to those of Adolf Hitler.
Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld, speaking hours after the victory of Schroeder's governing coalition in national elections, said the tone of his campaign had the effect of poisoning the bilateral relationship.
While officials in Washington grumbled over the quick deterioration in relations with one of the closest U.S. allies, Schroeder showed eagerness to restore the German-American link to a more normal footing.
A senior official said the administration was displeased about Schroeder's repeated expressions of opposition not only to U.S. policy on Iraq but also those on global warming, the death penalty and the International Criminal Court as well as U.S. restrictions on free trade. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said another contributing factor was a letter Schroeder wrote to President Bush last Friday.
The letter was aimed at calming the furor over remarks by German Justice Minister Herta Daeubler-Gmelin, who was reported by a provincial newspaper as having compared Bush's methods to those of Hitler. Specifically, she is reported to have said that Bush was giving priority to Iraq to distract the country from economic difficulties, diverting the people's attention outward as Hitler did.
In the letter, Schroeder denied that Daeubler-Gmelin had made the remarks, but the senior U.S. official maintained Monday that the media accounts of her remarks indeed were accurate.
On Monday, Schroeder suggested that the relationship was strong enough to overcome the new tensions. He noted that the United States and Germany have differed in the past on topics such as global warming, farm subsidies and U.S. steel tariffs.
"We have always carried those out in a friendly way without ever getting into such an excited debate," Schroeder said. "That's why I think that the basis of U.S.-German relations is so secure that the fears that bubbled during the election campaign in Germany are unfounded."
He also stressed that unlike some of his aides, he never attacked Bush personally. "Disagreement on an issue must never be personalized," Schroeder said.
Ivo Daalder, of the Brookings Institution, said he holds Bush primarily responsible for the downturn in relations. "Unilateralism is coming home to roost," Daalder said. "You can only ignore your friends and allies' views for so long."
Schroeder played the Iraq card during his close election campaign against a conservative opponent. He raised questions about the legitimacy of U.S. unilateral intervention in Iraq and about the cost of Iraq's rehabilitation should the Americans oust President Saddam Hussein.
Veteran observers of U.S.-German relations said there has been no comparable deterioration since the early 1980s when the government of then-Chancellor Helmut Schmidt opposed deployment of U.S. intermediate range nuclear missiles in West Germany.
The conflict ended in 1982 with the election of a new government that supported the deployment, which began the next year.
One issue that could be a tonic to the current relationship is Afghanistan. Germany has emerged as a leading candidate to take command of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan after Turkey's tenure ends in December.
Such a role would give the United States and Germany an opportunity to work together on an issue of a high priority in Washington.
By late Monday, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher seemed inclined to lower the rhetoric in the U.S.-German contretemps.
"Obviously, we welcome a democratic election," Boucher said. "Voters of Germany have spoken clearly through a democratic process, and we look forward to working with the German government on issues of common interest."
He said Secretary of State Colin Powell conferred with German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer.
 World Fact Book (CIA)]
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