14 December 2005
State's Fried Urges Europe To Support Fully Iraq's New Government
U.S. diplomat also discusses Iran and allegations regarding detainees
By Vince Crawley
Washington File Staff Writer
Washington – A U.S. diplomat is calling on Europe to fully support the next elected government of Iraq.
However, allegations of secret CIA detention centers for terror suspects could undermine the past year’s significant gains in trans-Atlantic cooperation, according to Daniel Fried, assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs.
“Let me acknowledge that the detainee issue is challenging and remains serious to people in this country and in Europe,” Fried said December 14 at the American Enterprise Institute, a nonpartisan, nonprofit policy research institute. His remarks were followed by a question-and-answer session with journalists and embassy staff members.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has refused to confirm or deny the existence of secret detention centers overseas, but she has discussed the concerns extensively during her four-country visit to Europe earlier this month, stressing that the United States does not condone or practice torture. (See related article.)
“The handling of the detainee issue by many in the European media is also disturbing,” Fried said. “I am concerned by the reluctance on the part of some to recognize that the problem [of global terrorism] is real … and the consequences of failure to take seriously the menace of terrorism can be fatal.”
The United States and Europe share the same strategic goal of fostering global democracy, Fried said. He cited a German Marshall Fund poll that found 74 percent of Europeans support joint efforts by the United States and Europe to advance democracy in the world.
Also, many European governments are beginning to recognize they need to support a stable and democratic Iraq, regardless of whether they supported the 2003 military action against former dictator Saddam Hussein, Fried said.
“Whatever our differences with some European governments -- let’s be frank, it was mostly France and Germany – about the decision to remove Saddam Hussein from power, European governments are coming to realize that democracy’s failure in Iraq would be a grave blow to our common security,” he said.
The new Iraqi government being elected December 15 “will be fully democratic” and deserves the full support of every European nation, Fried said. (See related article.)
Asked what kind of support the United States expects of its European allies, Fried replied that “it depends on the country.”
“There are some countries like Germany … who have made clear they cannot send armed forces to Iraq, and we aren’t asking the impossible,” he said. “We think every European country, whether they’ve had some troops in Iraq or not, should support the next government there. There are various ways countries can do so.”
An important aspect of the elections will be “to remove this lingering sense that Iraqi democracy is somehow suspect because of disagreements over the removal of Saddam Hussein,” Fried said. “It’s really time to remove the brackets around Iraq. It’s time for Europe to get behind the next Iraqi government.”
Turning to Iran, Fried also said the United States and Europe should recognize that the new Iranian government – which has voiced radical views toward Israel and hostility to the West – does not reflect the views of the majority of Iranians. He said the United States and Europe should work together to create an “agenda of hope” for Iran.
“By the agenda of hope, I mean an agenda which is directed at support for the Iranian people and Iranian society for what we believe are universal aspirations, and therefore shared by the Iranian people and Iranian society, for freedom and democracy,” Fried said. “The Iranian should not be assumed to share the rather exotic views being uttered now every other day it seems by [Iran’s new president] Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.”
A video file of Fried’s remarks is available on the American Enterprise Institute Web site.
(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
|
NEWSLETTER
|
| Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list |
|
|
|
