Cablegate: Media Reaction Report - U.S. Diplomacy - Iran

This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.

191242Z Jun 06

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PARIS 004183

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.

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: OPRC KMDR FR
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION REPORT - U.S. Diplomacy - Iran
PARIS - Monday, June 19, 2006

(A) SUBJECTS COVERED IN TODAY'S REPORT:

U.S. Diplomacy - Iran

B) SUMMARY OF COVERAGE:

Last evening's "passable" performance by France's World Cup team is
widely covered in editorials and on today's front pages, with the
exception of La Croix which leads with the International Court of
Justice, "progressing but still too slowly" in the eyes of victims,
and Le Monde which headlines "The Europeans Want to Resume Financial
Aid to the Palestinians." The decision in Brussels to give 100
million euros in aid without going through Hamas... was announced on
Friday. "The EU, afraid that the territories may be economically
asphyxiated wanted to find a solution to help the population while
by-passing Hamas." La Croix's question of the day, "Are the
Palestinian Territories in the Grips of a Civil War?" is answered by
an elected member of the Palestinian Authority, Hind Khoury: "This
is an exaggeration. There are military skirmishes, but political
leaders are talking to one another..."

America's foreign policy under the leadership of Secretary Rice is
the subject of a laudatory op-ed in Le Figaro entitled "Condi Rice's
Method to Widen Spectrum of U.S. Diplomacy" and is largely devoted
to her new Iran policy. Saturday's Le Figaro reports that "Beijing
is pushing Iran to Compromise." (See Part C) Le Figaro devotes a
major report to "Tension Between Ethiopia and Somalia's Islamists"
drafted from dispatches.

Liberation carries the French translation of UN Secretary General
Kofi Annan's op-ed entitled "A UN World Cup?" Annan acknowledges
that the soccer World Cup is truly "a global game, which has made
the UN jealous... It is a rare phenomenon with the same universal
reach as the UN..."

Le Figaro reports on FM Douste-Blazy's trip to Doha to promote
French business in Qatar. "Qatar is planning to invest 130 million
dollars to strengthen its infrastructures, and the FM said that
'French companies wanted to be in on the development... with
constructive partnerships, in particular in the area of
biotechnologies,' (a strongpoint of the city of which he is also
Mayor, Toulouse) and a sector which is controlled by the Americans.
This pole of excellence is of great interest to the French, who are
well positioned in weapons sales and coastal security, but are
overtaken in other economic sectors by the Americans."

Le Figaro carries an op-ed on the proposed merger between the Paris
stock exchange Euronext and the NYSE. The five signatories explain
why a marriage with the Americans is best "despite a paradox: the
agreement with Wall Street would better preserve the European
model..."

Economic news is dominated by EADS, Airbus's parent company.
La Croix's editorial recalls EADS's recent internal leadership
battle, the Clearstream scandal and the industrial difficulties it
is experiencing with the A380. Guillaume Goubert urges the
government to "Save EADS" from itself, "because EADS is one of the
greatest examples of European cooperation." Monday's La Tribune and
Saturday's Le Parisien carry interviews with EADS executive
co-president Nokl Forgeard, who maintained a defensive attitude,
expressing shock at the accusations of insider trading. In La
Tribune Forgeard said: "At the time of EADS' creation, a crisis like
the one we face today would have been enough to destroy the
enterprise. Today, our group has the maturity to face it." In Les
Echos, editorialist Gilles Senghs writes: "The Airbus' problem lies
with EADS' management: the 'double helm' system EADS has implemented
(with two co-presidents, two general directors, and two assistant
general directors) is obviously faulty and has led to the crisis."

Le Monde reports on its front page that "the war between Airbus and
Boeing is also a war of images... This has been a longstanding
practice. But today the attacks against Airbus in the U.S. are
targeting its A380 as an inadequate consumer product."

(C) SUPPORTING TEXT/BLOCK QUOTES:
"Condi Rice's Method to Widen Spectrum of U.S. Diplomacy"
Philippe Gelie in right-of-center Le Figaro (06/19): "Led by
Condoleezza Rice, a musical virtuoso since early childhood,
America's diplomacy has returned to complex chess games where pawns
make unforeseen moves... The conditional offer for a direct dialogue
with Iran stands as proof, as do the rehabilitation of Libya and the
possibility of a peace treaty with North Korea. She has moved
smoothly into the State Department, a bastion of pragmatism. And in
order to lead diplomats reluctant to follow President Bush's
revolutionary ambitions, she has surrounded herself with a
pugnacious team, which includes Robert Zoellick, and Nick Burns,
while sending hawks like Bolton away to the UN. She has widened the
spectrum of the tools at her disposal, rethought most strategies and
opened up the game in a spectacular manner... Rice, contrary to her
predecessor who did not have the President's ear..., uses all of her
influence to avoid dissension. The May 31st decision (concerning
Iran) carries her trademark... Although the new Iran strategy may
appear as an about face, it has in fact been thoroughly thought
out... Rice sets the course and adapts the means to her objectives.
Her offer for a dialogue (with Iran) aims to bring together the
international coalition which is suspicious of U.S. intentions and
which tends to decipher its diplomacy in light of the Iraqi crisis.
It also offers the advantage of testing Iran's desire for peace...
The road traveled since March 2005... is astounding. It is proof of
the considerable influence she exerts over the President... Some may
be waiting in the wings to see whether her policy succeeds or fails,
or she may truly have convinced them. Time will tell... But it is a
fact that nothing is taboo for America's diplomatic leader."

"Beijing Urges Tehran to Compromise"
Jean-Jacques Mevel in right-of-center Le Figaro (06/17): "For the
first time, Iran has looked favorably on the initiative of the Big
Five plus Germany that would lead them to suspend their nuclear
enrichment program... 'We are considering the offer as a step
forward,' said President Ahmadinejad in Beijing... Another high
placed Iranian official expressed hope for the opening of
negotiations... Ahmadinejad was in Shanghai hoping to receive
support from China in blocking any eventual western sanctions...
China, which is divided between its responsibility as a great power
and its immediate oil interests, is not ready to abandon Teheran...
But President Hu took care not to cede to the Iranian charm
offensive." STAPLETON

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