[A-List] Britain/US split: West Asia

["Michael Keaney" <michael.keaney@xxxxxx>]

The Foreign Policy Centre is a very EU-oriented "think tank" which has
campaigned vociferously for British eurozone membership. It is therefore a
manifestation of a powerful, if not the dominant, tendency within the
hegemonic bloc geared towards realigning British interests away from
Washington and towards Brussels.


Britain 'must lose poodle image to win Arab trust'
By Ben Russell Political Correspondent
The Independent
26 February 2003

Britain must shed its image as America's "poodle" over Iraq to rebuild trust
with the Arab world, according to a report published today by a think-tank
close to Tony Blair.

The report said that, wherever possible, ministers should differentiate
British from US foreign policy in the Middle East - from Israel and
Palestine to the policy of engagement with Iran and Syria.

Researchers for the Foreign Policy Centre, a think-tank founded by the
former foreign secretary Robin Cook and which has the Prime Minister as its
patron, said Western governments must counter the widespread belief that the
Iraq crisis is driven by oil interests.

This is a task requiring communication with a large number of people on
difficult topics. Without it, attempts to assure security for the US and its
allies through action in the region will turn out to be as
counter-productive as its critics fear.

Mark Leonard, director of the Foreign Policy Centre and one of the report's
authors, said: "As the troops assemble and bombs prepare to fly, it might
seem an odd time to try engaging with people in the Middle East, but this is
the time for suspicion and hatred between the West and the Middle East to be
tackled with greater effort and resources."