[PEN-L:34218] Blair's latest move

[Chris Burford <cburford@xxxxxxxxxx>]

> The heads of eight European states have issued a joint declaration of
> solidarity with the United States in its campaign to disarm Saddam Hussein.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/2708023.stm

This is similar to his move when the NATO alliance was about to break up in
the Kosovan war, to play on the impossibility of a public show of disunity.
The fact that today's statement sharpens the tensions with France and
Germany, is in fact quite consistent with this agenda. Blair just believes
in being robust as well as tactical.

Yesterday an expert from the French society for international relations was
fairly sure that France, as usual in the past, would in the end not veto
the US in the Security Council.

War is inevitable. The only debate is about the public perceptions of the
justness of the war.

And then according to Blair's deliberate slip in the House of Commons
yesterday, to keep the momentum always pushing forward, will come the
question of North Korea.

Meanwhile authorities have refused permission for the use of Hyde Park for
the Stop the War demonstration on Saturday 15th February, on the grounds
that up to 500,000 demonstrators would turn it into a quagmire.

http://www.stopwar.org.uk/ says they are still going there.


Chris Burford

London