VZCZCXYZ0001
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHBU #1705/01 2131613
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 011613Z AUG 06
FM AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5413
INFO RHMFISS/CDR USSOCOM MACDILL AFB FL//SCJ2//
RULGPUA/USCOMSOLANT

UNCLAS BUENOS AIRES 001705 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR INR/R/MR, I/GWHA, WHA, WHA/PDA, WHA/BSC, 
WHA/EPSC 
CDR USSOCOM FOR J-2 IAD/LAMA 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KPAO OPRC KMDR PREL MEDIA REACTION
SUBJECT: WAR IN THE MIDDLE EAST; US-PERUVIAN FTA; 
MERCOSUR-VENEZUELA; WTO; 08/01/06 
 
 
¶1. SUMMARY STATEMENT 
 
Local newspapers report on diplomatic negotiations to find a 
solution to the war in the Middle East; Peruvian president-elect 
Alan Garcia and the US-Peru FTA; ties between Mercosur and 
Venezuela; and failed WTO negotiations. 
 
¶2. OPINION PIECES AND KEY STORIES 
 
- "The US will promote a 'lasting solution' at the UN" 
 
Daily-of-record "La Nacion" reports (08/01) "The US announced 
yesterday that it would submit its own draft resolution on the 
situation in Lebanon, which would compete with another one which was 
submitted by France last week... 
 
"The French draft resolution asks for an immediate ceasefire, which 
is rejected by the US based on lack of guarantees for a 'lasting 
solution.' 
 
"According to the Bush administration, a 'lasting solution' would 
involve the return of sovereignty to the Lebanese government over 
its entire territory and the deployment of a supporting 
multinational force as soon as possible. It would also demand Iran 
and Syria stop supporting Hezbollah." 
 
- "Bush asks Iran and Syria to stop supporting terrorism" 
 
Conservative "La Prensa" reports (08/01) "US President George W. 
Bush asked Iran and Syria to stop supporting Hezbollah and refused 
again to pressure for an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East as 
long as conditions are not ready for a 'lasting' peace in the 
region. 
 
"US President Bush pointed out that 'Iran should put an end to its 
financial support and weapons supply for terrorist groups like 
Hezbollah, and Syria should stop supporting terror and respect 
Lebanon's sovereignty.' 
 
"... Bush believes that this crisis 'was sparked with Hezbollah's 
attacks against Israel' and 'is part of a broader struggle between 
forces of freedom and terror.'" 
 
- "Bush, again on the defensive" 
 
Hugo Alconada Mon, Washington-based correspondent for 
daily-of-record "La Nacion," comments (08/01) "As happened three 
years ago, when the invasion of Iraq turned out to be a 'marsh' for 
the White House, US President George W. Bush remained on the 
defensive both in and outside of the US due to his isolated support 
for Israel's offensive against Lebanon. He has been criticized by 
Democrats, Republicans, analysts and Europeans in front of the 
eloquent silence of the conservative majority. 
 
"Bush insisted yesterday that the UN Security Council should approve 
a ceasefire if a lasting peace is to be obtained while he repeats 
the dogmatic terms that were typical of his discourse in the weeks 
following the September 11 attacks. 
 
"... Senator Chuck Hagel, one of the most prominent Republican 
figures on Capitol Hill, said that 'President Bush should call for 
an immediate ceasefire.' While he labeled the US-Israeli 
relationship as 'special and historic,' he warned that 'it cannot be 
so in detriment of the US ties with Arabs and Muslims.' 
 
"According to some other voices, the Bush administration is starting 
another diplomatic 'chaotic situation,' which will isolate it even 
further from the international community and will leave it in an 
increasingly weaker position vis-`-vis other challenges, like the 
regimes of Iran and North Korea." 
 
- "An offensive that some view as a confrontation between the Islam 
and the West" 
 
Oscar Raul Cardoso, international analyst of leading "Clarin," 
writes (08/01) "Oz Almog is an Israeli academician in sociology who 
gave a detailed explanation in Yediot Aronot newspaper on why the 
current military operation in Lebanon is only a battle. 
 
"According to Almog, this (battle) will end in some sort of Israeli 
victory, but it will only serve to open an impasse that will lead to 
the real burst of what he considers the inevitable future war - 
Islam versus the 'free world.' 
 
"It is interesting to note that this thought is not new - it is in 
the basis of the statements made by (US President) George W. Bush 
and Israeli PM Ehud Olmert. The latter's role in the crisis 
 
increasingly resembles that of a mere representative of Washington's 
interests in the 'war on terror.' 
 
"... One of the interesting arguments of the article 'Islam versus 
the world' is that everything that is happening today is similar to 
a previous moment in history. According to Almog, 1933 is the year 
to be compared - this is when Adolph Hitler took over in Germany. 
 
"... Almog's story is not new - his view can also be tracked in the 
chaotic war of civilizations envisioned by Samuel Huntington over a 
decade ago. The problem is whether the world is willing to advance 
on this delirium." 
 
- "Unjustified anti-Semitism" 
 
Left-of-center "Pagina 12" carries an opinion piece by Sergio 
Widder, Latin American representative at Simon Wiesenthal Center, 
who opines (08/01) "It is not about war. It is not about the 
 
Palestinian cause, or the struggle against terrorism. It is the most 
elementary anti-Semitism. During last Sunday's TV program "Hora 
clave" (Key time), there was a debate about the painful situation in 
the Middle East, and I had the feeling that I was in the time tunnel 
visiting the Middle Ages... 
 
"According to Sheik Mosen Ali, Israelis daily seek 'their ration of 
blood and flesh.' It comes down neither to a territorial or 
religious dispute but to the fact that Jews need their daily dosage 
of blood and flesh. 
 
"On the eve of the war in Iraq, I listened to many analysts saying 
that 'Americans go there for oil.' While it is not a friendly view 
of the US, it is at least interpreted as a conflict of interests. No 
one said that 'Americans need their dosage of blood and flesh.' 
 
"This reminds me of the Middle Ages, when Jews were chased and 
massacred because they were accused of practicing a ritual crime... 
 
"... Many views of the conflict in the Middle East are inevitable, 
but it is unacceptable that the conflict is used to promote 
anti-Semitic hatred." 
 
- "Worthy of a Peru?" 
 
Liberal, English-language "Buenos Aires Herald's" executive editor 
Michael Soltys writes (08/01) "If film buffs assure us that sequels 
are never any good..., what are we to make of Alan Garcia's return 
to power in Peru? 
 
"... The new government can look forward to a political honeymoon 
despite some fierce criticism... 
 
"... Perhaps the most important question facing Garcia in the rest 
of this year is whether the US Congress will ratify the FTA between 
the US and Peru... Will Garcia lobby as hard for that ratification 
as Toledo? At least Garcia has taken a stern line against drugs." 
 
- "The future of past" 
 
Daily-of-record "La Nacion" carries an op-ed piece by Carlos Perez 
Llana, professor of International Relations at Siglo 21 and Torcuato 
Di Tella universities, who writes (08/01) "... During the '90s 
Mercosur turned out to be a paradox - while progress was being made 
in trade, this was not the case as far as integration was 
concerned... 
 
"... While Brazil was devoted to world diplomacy, there appeared a 
competitive leadership in the sub-region, which was led by Chavez... 
Brasilia was not aware of the fact that 'containing' the Bolivarian 
leader is not feasible because a populist regime that is prone to 
destabilizing the regional order through an anti-US discourse may 
not favor a regional agenda for integration..." 
 
- "The cost of the WTO's failure" 
 
Leading "Clarin" editorializes (08/01) "The failure of WTO 
negotiations made clear the industrialized countries' intransigence 
as regards their farm policy and seriously damages international 
trade. 
 
"... During negotiations, the US and Europe introduced new topics to 
the commercial agenda, such as service liberalization, IPR 
acknowledgement, and  liberalization of foreign investment regimes 
and governmental purchases. But, at the same time, they 
systematically refused to make convincing changes in their 
questioned farm policies. 
 
"... Commercial liberalization will continue advancing through 
 
bilateral and regional deals. However, the paralyzed multilateral 
liberalization will affect the commercial opportunities of many 
productive sectors that matter to developing countries, thereby 
impairing their growth." 
 
To see more Buenos Aires reporting, visit our 
classified website at: 
http://www.state.sqov.gov/p/wha/buenosaires 
 
MATERA