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

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 002052 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR NEA/ARN, NEA/PA, NEA/AIA, INR/NESA, R/MR, 
I/GNEA, B/BXN, B/BRN, NEA/PPD, NEA/IPA FOR ALTERMAN 
USAID/ANE/MEA 
LONDON FOR TSOU 
SIPDIC 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
 
TAGS: KMDR JO
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION ON IRAQ 
 
                 Editorial Commentary 
 
-- "Three years after Iraq's occupation, Jordan is the 
biggest loser" 
 
Columnist Fahd Kheetan writes on the inside page of 
independent, mass-appeal Arabic daily Al-Arab Al- 
Yawm(03/21):  "If the American occupation of Iraq 
brought destruction and civil war to the people of 
Iraq, then that occupation has brought Jordan 
innumerable difficulties and losses that propaganda 
for the aggression cannot ignore now.  We, in Jordan, 
could not prevent the war, because the U.S. 
administration decided after 9/11 to strike Iraq and 
occupy it and fabricated for this purpose evidences 
and justification, which, a year after the war, the 
world learned they were nothing than lies and 
illusions to convince the world and the Americans of 
an alleged Iraqi danger threatening the world.  When 
Jordan tried to persuade the U.S. administration 
against the decision to go to war, it was met with 
anger by White House officials, and so everyone found 
themselves facing an inescapable reality.  On the eve 
of the war, the United States gave Jordan 
approximately one billion dollars in emergency 
assistance to make up for direct economic losses from 
the war, and just before the attack on Iraq, 
Washington looked the other way with regard to the 
sale of smuggled Iraq oil to Jordan and other 
countries of the Jordan.  After the occupation of 
Iraq, the U.S. administration gave special privileges 
to Jordanian companies and parties in Iraq . and in 
the past three years, Iraqi capital flowed into 
Jordan, contributing to the revitalization of the real- 
estate market and other economic sectors.  Yet, the 
benefits from the war do not at equal the losses for 
Jordan.  Economically, Jordan lost the Iraqi oil 
grant, which constituted a heavy burden on the budget, 
and despite assistance and grants from Gulf countries, 
we still find ourselves in financial problems.. 
Before the aggression, industries in Jordan were 
established on the basis of the Iraqi market and . a 
third of Jordanian exports were going to Iraq, but 
nowadays, this percentage decreased a great deal and 
most of these factories have closed down or moved to 
alternative markets.  The occupation of Iraq also 
presented an unprecedented security and political 
challenge..  Furthermore, and amidst the chaos in 
Iraq, another political challenge arose for the 
countries of the region, namely the expansion of 
Iranian influence in the south of Iraq and the rise of 
political forces that seek to break Iraq's connection 
with its Arab nation.  The strategic threat from 
Iraq's occupation, as far as Jordan is concerned, was 
represented in the Iraqi regime's potential friendship 
with Israel, which has weakened Jordan's ability to 
fight the Israeli and American projects for a new 
Middle East and lessened Jordan's geographic 
importance in the international powers struggle in the 
region.  In other words, Jordan's eastern front was 
exposed and became a source of worry as the western 
front is." 
 
-- "America's defeat" 
 
Daily columnist Rakan Majali writes on the back-page 
of center-left, influential Arabic daily Al-Dustour 
(03/21):  "American public opinion polls show that the 
popularity of President Bush went down to 34% and the 
popularity of Vice President Cheney went down to 18%. 
This is a clear indication that the repercussions of 
the war on Iraq are impacting the current U.S. 
administration..  What we would like to stress here is 
that this continuing war on Iraq, with everything it 
holds in terms of stressing the occupation and 
creating influences that shake the foundations of 
security and stability in the region is a war that has 
negative impact on all the world, America included. 
America may even be the foremost country to be 
affected negatively by this war..  Some people may say 
that our talk, as Arabs and Muslims, reflects wishful 
thinking, but the talk prevailing in the world in 
general and in America in particular confirms the fact 
of America's defeat..  While the people of the region 
wish for the defeat of the empire of evil, leading 
political thinkers and the American people are now 
certain that America's defeat is almost a concrete 
reality and this is becoming more evident every day." 
 
-- "Acknowledging failure is the beginning of 
breakthrough" 
 
Chief Editor Ayman Safadi writes on the back-page of 
independent, centrist Arabic daily Al-Ghad (03/21): 
"America will not hurt too much if it acknowledges its 
failure in Iraq.  Quite the contrary, this 
acknowledgement, if accompanied by a political 
decision to salvage what is left to salvage, will 
constitute a positive factor in the way Arabs view 
America.  Many will not forgive America's sins that 
have brought Iraq into this historical dilemma, but 
many others will respect its admittance of wrongdoing 
and will consider it a bold ethical move, something 
they have missed in the stances of the sole superpower 
of the world.  President Bush's remarks on the third 
anniversary of the war on Iraq are not convincing. 
Facts on the ground invalidate his remarks.  Iraq has 
become an importer and exporter of terrorism.  The 
Iraqis are sliding, or are being pushed towards a 
civil war whose fires would engulf all hope of 
rebuilding the countries in the near future. 
Washington must have the courage to say 'I failed' and 
call out for the help of its allies and friends in the 
region within the context of a genuine effort to save 
Iraq from the dangers that have ripped it apart and 
the injustice that has been inflicted on its people.. 
It is time for America to backtrack from the Iraqi 
file in favor of those who know better how to make 
work those efforts for saving Iraq." 
HALE