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Lucia A Keegan  09/05/2006 05:30:42 PM  From  DB/Inbox:  Lucia A Keegan

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UNCLAS        PARIS 05926

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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 PARIS 005926 
 
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DEPT FOR INR/R/MR; IIP/RW; IIP/RNY; BBG/VOA; IIP/WEU; 
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SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION REPORT - Lebanon - Turkey in UNIFIL 
Darfur Afghanistan - NATO - Drug Trafficking September 11 - 
East-West: Dialogue or Confrontation 
PARIS - Tuesday, September 05, 2006 
 
 
(A) SUBJECTS COVERED IN TODAY'S REPORT: 
 
Lebanon - Turkey in UNIFIL 
Darfur 
Afghanistan - NATO - Drug Trafficking 
September 11 - East-West: Dialogue or Confrontation 
 
B) SUMMARY OF COVERAGE: 
 
Although French domestic stories dominate today's front pages, 
several international stories receive wide coverage: Le Croix leads 
with "the forgotten Christians in Lebanon" while the editorial in Le 
Figaro sees Turkey's participation in UNIFIL as a "test" with 
"positive impact" on the debate about its EU membership. (See Part 
C) Le Figaro interviews Brussels think-tanker Kristy Hughes, who 
authored a report on the EU-Turkey negotiations: "Undeniably, 
Turkey's involvement will remind Europe that Turkey is an important 
ally." 
La Croix, TF1 and FR2 note that Qatar is the first Arab country to 
participate in the international force. FR2 reported that 200 to 300 
soldiers will be sent in the next few days, whereas La Croix reports 
that "despite the Israeli blockade, the first Doha-Beirut flight ran 
as scheduled yesterday. The Qatari authorities want to increase 
their presence in the region." 
 
La Croix carries two op-eds on the new "East-West Antagonism" and 
the relationship between Orient and Occident, "dialogue or 
confrontation." Regional La Presse de La Manche devotes its 
editorial to 9/11, "a war unlike any other in the history of the 
world." (See Part C) 
 
Le Figaro analyzes Darfur and the tug of war between Khartoum and 
the international community, commenting that the "Sudanese 
government is making economic calculations" and that "the Janjawids 
wants to increase Arab influence in the province." The report 
mentions U.S. envoy Jendayi Frazer's efforts to "convince the 
Sudanese government of accepting a UN-led force."  In La Croix, one 
report contends that "Khartoum wants to resolve the crisis by 
itself." (See Part C) 
 
La Croix reports on NATO's offensive in Afghanistan against the 
Taliban and notes that "18 soldiers from the Atlantic Alliance died 
over the weekend." The same report explains the "one of the roles of 
the ISAF is to gain the confidence of the local population in order 
to help support Hamid Karzai's government." (See Part C) The front 
page of Le Monde announces that in 2006, Afghanistan will produce 
92% of the opium in the world according to the findings of the UNODC 
and "in spite of the 2 billion dollars spent by the international 
community to fight drug trafficking in Afghanistan." The editorial 
underscores the "failure of the international community's efforts." 
(See Part C) 
 
Economic Les Echos leads with the changes at the helm of Airbus and 
its parent company EADS and the impact on the A380 program. After 
two major changes this summer at EADS, a new director was named on 
Monday for the A380 program, Mario Heinen, who previously led the 
A320 program. 
 
Financial La Tribune devotes its lead to the tension brewing at the 
Paris stock exchange about several controversial mergers: at the 
international level, Euronext and the NYSE, and Alcatel and Lucent, 
and in France, GDF with Suez. 
 
(C) SUPPORTING TEXT/BLOCK QUOTES: 
 
Lebanon - Turkey in UNIFIL 
 
"Turkey: The Road to Europe Passes Through Lebanon" 
Laure Marchand in right-of-center Le Figaro (09/05): "Kofi Annan's 
presence today in Ankara will give the Turkish government the 
support it needs as the Turkish Parliament debates on the mission 
its soldiers will undertake as part of UNIFIL... Despite the 
opposition of the conservative Islamic party, the Turkish PM is 
hopeful to avoid a repeat of what happened in March 2003 at the 
start of the Iraq war... Torn between domestic dissension and 
pressing appeals from the international community, the Turkish 
government is giving priority to diplomatic imperatives and is 
siding with Brussels... The presence of Turkish soldiers in the 
Middle East will consolidate Turkey's wish to become a 'bridge 
between civilizations.'" 
"Lebanon, a Test for Turkey" 
Pierre Rousselin in right- of-center Le Figaro (09/05): "Turkey's 
participation in UNIFIL can have a positive impact on the European 
debate about its EU membership... Turkey's decision is doubly 
meritorious. First because Turkey's Ottoman past has left a negative 
imprint in the region. Second, the decision was made by a moderate 
Islamic regime which is taking the risk of upsetting its base... But 
the good relations which Turkey has with Iran and Syria as well as 
Israel make its contribution priceless. This is the first positive 
argument in favor of Turkey's EU membership. Geo-strategic reasoning 
says it is better to have this great Muslim country with us than 
against us... and that this bridge will help avoid a shock between 
civilizations. The Lebanese crisis is a first test... While this 
participation changes nothing with the controversial issues, such as 
Cyprus, that will need to be resolved, it can improve things by 
giving a different image of Turkey: that of a nation ready to help 
Europe play its role in the world." 
 
Darfur 
 
"Khartoum Challenges the UN" 
Tanguy Berthemet in right-of-center Le Figaro (09/05): "Peace has 
never appeared so elusive in Darfur... Once again Khartoum is 
challenging the international community and rejecting the UN 
resolution, leading some to fear a renewal of massacres between 
'Arab' and 'African' militia in the region... The Sudanese regime is 
afraid that the arrival of UN troops will lead to the arrest of 
Sudanese high officials for war crimes... Because of the Sudanese 
opposition, the UN, led by the U.S., has decided to force its way, 
hoping the see the Sudanese government bend to a fait accompli. But 
Khartoum is resisting what it calls a 'foreign presence.' According 
to the International Crisis Group, the UN resolution has little 
chance of succeeding unless it is accompanied by coercive measures. 
It could even have disastrous effects... because meanwhile, Khartoum 
is said to be amassing its soldiers in certain areas of Darfur..." 
 
"The Darfur Genocide: Economic Calculations of the Sudanese 
Government" 
Pierre Prier in right-of-center Le Figaro (09/05): "President Bush's 
envoy Jendayi Frazier was unsuccessful in her mission to convince 
the Sudanese government of accepting the deployment of UN troops... 
The Islamic rhetoric used by Sudan, which has proclaimed it would 
'welcome the presence of foreign troops like Hezbollah welcomed the 
Israelis' hides a conflict which has nothing to do with religion... 
The conflict between Muslims is about land, water and the sharing of 
the wealth... This is a war of the poor because the resources are 
scarce. It is a war that is spilling over onto neighboring 
countries... The Arab tribes, the 'Janjawids' which the Sudanese 
government is using as its militia in Darfur are accused of wanting 
to widen 'Arab' influence in the province... making the conflict 
more political... and spilling over to Chad... Despite the 
reconciliation between Chad and Sudan under the aegis of Ghadafi, in 
Darfur, the conflict opposes everyone against everyone. And the end 
of the rainy season could accelerate a generalized war for power, 
the only entity that dispenses the wealth." 
 
Afghanistan - NATO - Drug Trafficking 
 
"NATO's Offensive Against the Taliban Continues" 
Emeline Henique in Catholic La Croix (09/05): "Despite NATO's 
initial encouraging results, the forces of the transatlantic 
alliance are paying a heavy price, with 18 soldiers killed over the 
weekend... leading the new commander, Richard Dannat to say that his 
forces are taking too much heat... Since their fall in 2001, the 
Taliban have never relented their attacks in the hopes or 
re-conquering Kandahar. Meanwhile NATO's objective is to secure a 
region which is key to its 'development' phase, which includes 
gaining the confidence of local populations to support the 
government's efforts." 
"Afghan Opium" 
Left-of-center Le Monde in its editorial (09/05): "The UNODC has 
declared that opium is Afghanistan's number one employer, its 
largest source of wealth and the basis for its economy. The country 
has become once again a drug state, as it was five years ago under 
the Taliban, and before the U.S.-led war to topple and vanquish 
Al-Qaeda. What is even worse is that the figures given by UNODC mark 
the failure of the international community in this sector as well as 
in securing the country. The international community has proven 
itself incapable of promoting security, normalizing the economy and 
establishing a lucrative agricultural alternative to opium... The 
situation cruelly underscores the impasse that the US and the 
international community find themselves in five years after the 
intervention in Afghanistan." 
 
September 11 - East-West: Dialogue or Confrontation 
 
"A War Unlike Any Other" 
Jean Levallois in regional La Presse de La Manche (09/05): "On 
9/11/2001, an event of extraordinary magnitude took place. A war had 
been declared unlike any other in the history of world wars. It was 
not a state or a people against another, but Al-Qaeda, a terrorist 
organization challenging the world's major power and striking it at 
its core. This is a war of religion that does not say its name, a 
war of ideology without mercy because it is fed by fanaticism... 
This war, by its nature, cannot be fought like other wars. Herein 
lies the tragedy for George W. Bush, who waged a war against Iraq 
when in fact Al-Qaeda is the enemy, hence the fiasco that ensued. On 
9/11/2001, airplanes full of civilians turned into bombs which blew 
up many of our beliefs. Five years later the solution has yet to be 
found." 
 
"New Antagonisms Rising" 
Pierre de Charentenay in Catholic La Croix (09/05): "... Terrorism 
demonstrates an opposition between those who have been enriched by 
globalization and individuals, who, in the Muslim world, are seeking 
their identity. But it is not a confrontation between 
civilizations..." 
 
"Orient - Occident: Confrontation or Dialogue" 
Joseph Yacoub in Catholic La Croix (09/05): "The West, if taken 
globally, is more sensitive to democracy, to institutions and human 
rights. In the East, national and identity issues are primordial. 
Collective, community and spiritual rights dominate... But what 
unites men together is stronger than what separates them. The West 
needs the East and the East needs the West. These two worlds are 
complementary... because civilizations are not abstract entities. 
They are tied in space and time, find their way within power 
struggles and are influenced by the men that lead them, and who are 
themselves moved by their ambitions and desire to dominate. Yet 
these civilizations have always interacted and influenced each other 
for the better." STAPLETON