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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 PARIS 008525 
 
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; USVIENNA FOR USDEL OSCE. 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC KMDR FR
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION REPORT - WTO and EU Agreements 
Iran 
PARIS - Monday, December 19, 2005 
 
 
(A) SUBJECTS COVERED IN TODAY'S REPORT: 
 
WTO and EU Agreements 
Iran 
 
B) SUMMARY OF COVERAGE: 
 
The agreements at the WTO and in Brussels are prominently 
featured on today's front pages and all editorials, national 
as well as regional are devoted to these two sets of 
compromises.  Editorialists applaud the agreements, which in 
the case of Hong Kong "saves the WTO." But as Liberation 
points out, "the question is what is the tie-in between the 
agreements in Brussels and in Hong Kong?" La Croix comments: 
"The Brussels agreement helped Hong Kong." But for Le Figaro, 
the agreement reached in Hong Kong will have "important 
consequences" for France's agriculture in 2013. (See Part C) 
 
President Bush's new stance towards torture is a major story 
in Le Figaro. Reporting from New York, Jean-Louis Turlin 
comments on President Bush's "new stance:" "This weekend he 
had to sign a text banning torture he did not want to sign. On 
Saturday, instead of talking about Iraq, he devoted his radio 
talk exclusively to the telephone tapping controversy: 
President Bush confessed but went on the offensive." 
Liberation's report is titled: "Bush Proud of His Big Ears." 
 
Iran and Syria are the two major international stories 
eliciting commentaries. An op-ed by Renaud Girard in Le Figaro 
is titled "The Calculated Provocations of Iran's President." 
Girard contends that Ahmadinejad's remarks are part of a plan. 
"The regime has decided to play up to the Arab-Muslim masses 
rather than to the regimes." Le Monde's editorial on Saturday 
was also titled: "Provocations" and called the international 
community to act. (See Part C) Le Journal du Dimanche 
interviews Iran's Emadeddin Baghi who was recently awarded 
France's Human Rights Award: "Ahmadinejad's remarks are meant 
to provoke. But his goal is meant as domestic propaganda." 
 
The UN vote resolution 1644 is reported in Le Figaro: 
"Damascus is relieved about the nature of the resolution. 
which did not say Damascus was not cooperating, but that it 
was just slow in cooperating. Syrian officials are saying, `if 
we are slow, it means we are cooperating.'" A separate report 
mentions Al-Assad's new `religious' terminology in his 
speeches. "Normally secular, the Baath party is trying to 
garner support from the religious base." 
 
Kosovo's independence is the basis for a page-long report in 
Le Figaro which interviews Serbia's President Boris Tadic who 
is in Paris. "Contrary to the international community which 
supports Kosovo's independence, Tadic is more in favor of 
autonomy." says the report. 
 
On the domestic front, Sunday's Le Journal du Dimanche carries 
an opinion poll showing that President Chirac and PM Villepin 
both lose two percentage points, but Villepin remains ahead by 
18 percentage points: 33 percent of respondents back Chirac 
while 51 back Villepin. 
 
(C) SUPPORTING TEXT/BLOCK QUOTES: 
 
WTO and EU Agreements 
 
"The Countdown for Agriculture" 
Philippe Reclus in right-of-center Le Figaro (12/19): "More 
than the content of the agreement, what counts is the gesture 
made by the Europeans in Hong Kong. Europe understands the 
importance of developing exchanges; it also understands how 
crucial it was not to block the talks. But for France's 
agriculture, this weekend will go down in history as the start 
of an unavoidable countdown." 
 
"A Last Minute Agreement" 
Gerard Dupuy in left-of-center Liberation (12/19): "In 
negotiations like those of the WTO, everyone thinks about 
one's own interests. With this in mind, the unanimous 
agreement reached in Hong Kong is a small miracle. and marks a 
break with previous failures. One more failure and the WTO may 
not have survived. The compromise marks the official birth 
declaration for emerging nations and their rise to power. 
Ultra liberalism had to back off some in Hong Kong, but the 
final agreement is a move towards liberalism. There remains a 
question: to what extent are the agreements reached in 
Brussels and Hong Kong tied?" 
 
"Regulation or Solidarity?" 
Francois Ernenwein in Catholic La Croix (12/19): "Is the glass 
half full or half empty? Considering the risks for the EU, we 
must salute the Brussels agreement. Despite the meager 
tangible results, the agreement salvages the principle of 
compromise. This was essential so that Europe can move 
forward. This positive dynamic was immediately beneficial in 
another part of the world. The Brussels agreement helped the 
one in Hong Kong. It is clear that this move towards 
organization through negotiated agreements is a sign of 
progress: an open world requires regulations. But what of the 
glass half empty? This applies to Europe and the WTO. Although 
the step-by-step policy has its virtues, it soon reaches its 
own limitations. Regulation is effective only if it can widen 
its goals: it must promote solidarity. And today, this is not 
obvious in Europe. Neither is it obvious at the WTO." 
 
"Selfishness at Work" 
Pascal Aubert in centrist La Tribune (12/19): "Certain 
successes have the bitter taste of failure. In Brussels, 
everyone is relieved because everyone is convinced that the 
worst has been avoided. But no one believes that the last 
minute agreement answers the expectations of solidarity 
between the wealthy and less wealthy Europeans. National 
selfishness has once again triumphed. At the other end of the 
world, another battle of selfishness has deprived 2 billion 
human beings of hope. In Brussels, as in Hong Kong, solidarity 
was once again heralded and forgotten." 
 
"Making Trade More Human" 
Paul Burel in regional Ouest France (12/19): "An agreement 
made in Hong Kong is not only good for trade and growth, it is 
also good for democracy and peace. On condition that those who 
signed the agreement go the next step and act on what they 
have agreed. But this is something no one can guarantee. It 
seems that Europe has made much more painful sacrifices than 
its partners. In this game of make believe, the U.S. gets the 
top award. Despite the generous offers made for window 
dressing, the Americans keep protecting the heavy subsidies 
they grant their farmers. China offers a good example: it 
reminds us that to regulate commerce it is not enough to 
liberalize it. It means to make it more just and more moral: 
in a word, more human. There is still lots of work ahead." 
 
Iran 
 
"Provocations" 
Left-of-center Le Monde's editorial (12/17) comments: "How can 
the West, and most particularly the U.S. and France, react to 
the bloody provocations of assassinated figures in Lebanon? 
They want to continue to work through diplomacy and a UN 
resolution. They feel this is the most appropriate way. Maybe. 
On condition that the text is not too toned down... In certain 
instances the need for international unanimity is contrary to 
the principle of effectiveness. The same goes for Iran and its 
president, who has been making repeated verbal provocations 
against Israel... All the while, the Mullah's regime continues 
with its uranium enrichment program, which should in the 
fullness of time lead Iran to the nuclear bomb. The Europeans, 
in concert with the Americans, are trying to dissuade Tehran 
with the threat of a UN vote on sanctions. But each time Iran 
flouts them, they step back with the hope of safeguarding the 
unity of the international community, united in its inaction. 
The alternative does not lie between indecision and the 
promotion of a changing of the regime, or even as the 
Americans see it, an armed intervention. But the Europeans 
should know through experience that to appease is not enough 
to eliminate the danger." HOFMANN