Re: Europe insists on Arafat's authority

[Chris Burford <cburford@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Surprisingly, of course with qualifications, a unanimous resolution has
gone through the Security Council calling for Israel to withdraw from
Palestinian towns and cities.

And Bush decided he has better go to the trouble of making some telephone
calls.

As the Guardian carried it:

> The flurry of calls contrasted with his public silence Friday when he
> monitored developments from his Texas ranch as Israeli troops laid siege
> to Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's headquarters in the West Bank after
> 30 Israelis were killed in a week.
>
> ``The president discussed with each leader the situation in the Middle
> East and reiterated that (U.S. envoy) Gen. (Anthony) Zinni will remain the
> region, and reaffirmed that the United States remains committed to getting
> back into the peace process,'' White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe said.
>
> Later, Johndroe said he meant that the administration is ``committed to
> hopefully moving it forward.'' He knew of no plan to send Vice President
> Dick Cheney back to the region.
>
> Bush spoke to King Abdullah II of Jordan, Egyptian President Hosni
> Mubarak, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, Prime Minister Jose Maria
> Aznar of Spain and Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah, who has offered a leading
> peace initiative.
>
> Johndroe did not indicate what Bush heard from the leaders.


Aznar was probably nominated as the acceptable voice of Europe but behind
the scenes much stronger things must have been said.

I am not saying anything about having faith in one imperialist bloc versus
another, but pointing out that such contradictions will occur, even though
they will be covered up because of the nature of modern global capitalism.

Nor do I doubt that the USA is comprehensibly stronger than Europe, but it
cannot rule the world alone, and Europe has its own reasons to want to tame
the USA.

Besides Europe knows the plot, and Bush does not.

Chris Burford

London