VZCZCXYZ0000
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHVI #0411/01 0461419
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 151419Z FEB 07
FM AMEMBASSY VIENNA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6362
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/WHITEHOUSE WASHDC PRIORITY

UNCLAS VIENNA 000411 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/AGS, INR/EU, AND EUR/PPD FOR YVETTE SAINT-ANDRE 
 
OSD FOR COMMANDER CHAFFEE 
 
WHITEHOUSE FOR NSC/WEUROPE 
 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KPAO AU OPRC
 
SUBJECT: AUSTRIAN MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS: February 15, 2007 
 
 
Elsner Flight Risk 
 
¶1. Former Bawag boss Helmut Elsner is back in Vienna and in 
detention while awaiting trial. For the time being, however, Elsner 
is in the Wilhelminenspital where his medical condition is being 
monitored. For months, the former head of Bawag had escaped 
extradition claiming a heart condition. According to doctors, 
however, Elsner's heart problems are not overly serious. The trial 
will probably begin by summer. His first chance for release on bail 
comes in two weeks, when his remand will be reassessed. On Friday, 
Elsner will probably have to appear before the committee 
investigating the bank scandal. 
Whether Helmut Elsner will be very forthcoming in giving out 
information with regard to his involvement in the Bawag scandal is a 
matter of doubt. At any rate, his extradition means that all nine 
culprits in the Bawag scandal can be tried at the same time, writes 
independent daily "Der Standard."  All culprits are charged - albeit 
not to the same degree - with infidelity, severe fraud and forgery 
of balance sheets. The financial damage amounts to 1.5 billion Euros 
altogether and if found guilty, the accused are facing prison 
sentences of up to 10 years. In the meantime, Helmut Elsner's 
attorney Wolfgang Schubert, in an interview with "Der Standard" 
insists that there is no flight risk and that he would file for a 
lift of the remand detention. Schubert asserted further that Helmut 
Elsner will not make a confession of guilt in the Bawag affair. His 
client was chiefly responsible for making Bawag a flourishing 
enterprise. Elsner's job at Bawag ended in April 2003 and he was 
therefore not responsible for any loses which the bank incurred 
afterwards, Schubert maintained. He also pointed out that a 
potential testimony of Elsner would incriminate investment banker 
Wolfgang Flttl, who is rumored to have donated money to the BZOe to 
ensure that he received mild treatment in the Bawag trial, writes 
"Der Standard." 
 
US Ambassador About Steyr Weapons in Iraq 
 
¶2. In an interview with mass circulation daily "Kurier," US 
Ambassador Susan McCaw discusses reports of possible 
Steyr-Mannlicher weapons in Iraq, the security situation there and 
problems with Iran. 
With regard to the Austrian weapons deliveries to Iran and the 
alleged appearance of some of these weapons in neighboring Iraq, 
Ambassador McCaw said that she was "still waiting for confirmation." 
The whole issue was "profoundly disturbing" and showed that export 
control had to be closely monitored. Asked about a possible US 
attack on Iran, McCaw said that the US did not want war and was 
working hard to make the diplomatic efforts work, adding that "we 
definitely need more assistance from our European partners with 
regard to sanctions." "The respective UN resolution was important," 
McCaw underlined, "but even more important would be its 
implementation. We are hoping to encourage the Iranians to return to 
the negotiation table. In this respect, the US Ambassador referred 
to North Korea, where sanctions had also been successful. Asked 
about her recent trip to Northern Iraq, McCaw asserted that she had 
enjoyed being there as part of an Austrian economic delegation and 
that the region was very stable and secure. Northern Iraq, a Kurdish 
province, was currently the only part of the country where it was 
possible to invest, McCaw pointed out. The rest of the country was 
as yet not sufficiently stable, but if the opportunities in 
Kurdistan were used, this might also help with investments in other 
regions once they are secure, McCaw showed herself optimistic. 
 
Reprimand for Secret CIA Assistance 
 
¶3. The European Parliament in Strassbourg has charged several EU 
governments with supporting the CIA in illegal activities. On 
Wednesday, a majority of parliamentarians agreed to a report of the 
CIA special investigation committee of the EU Parliament. According 
to this report, there were about 1,245 CIA flights within European 
air space between September 11, 2001 and the end of 2005. Some 
flights involved stopovers at European airports. 
Among the nations that came in for their share of the blame are 
Italy, Germany, Britain, Sweden and Portugal. Austria was criticized 
that it did not do enough to prevent the illegal kidnapping of two 
Africans that were living in the country and were kidnapped in 
Jordan in 2003, reports centrist daily "Die Presse." The EU 
parliamentarians could not confirm whether there had been secret 
prisons in Poland, Romania, or in Kosovo, respectively. With regard 
to other charges, the parliamentarians likewise backpedaled:  the 
charges against German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier and 
the former German administration to have rejected a US offer to 
release Guantanamo detainee Murat Kurnaz were mitigated. Likewise, 
there will be no direct sanctions for those member states that 
assisted the CIA, writes the daily. 
 
Madrid Terror Attacks Trial to Begin 
 
¶4. Madrid's "trial of the century" will begin Thursday, when 29 
suspects are to appear before the court that will try them for 
involvement in the bloody terror attacks of March 11, 2004, when 191 
commuter train passengers were killed and another 2,000 injured. The 
official charges fill 90,000 pages and the prosecution has filed for 
an aggregate prison sentence of 38,656 years. 
 
Bush Decrees Military Tribunals 
 
¶5. US President George W. Bush has removed the last formal hurdle to 
establishment of military tribunals. On Wednesday, the White House 
issued an order providing for tribunals to deal with charges against 
"foreign enemy combatants." After a prolonged legal tug-of-war, the 
first Australian Taliban David Hicks, the Canadian Omar Khadr, and 
the former chauffeur of Usama bin Laden, Ahmed Salim Hamdan, will 
appear before these tribunals, all of which are authorized to pass 
death sentences. 
ORF online reports that last year, the US Supreme Court had refused 
to endorse the setting up of such special tribunals - claiming that 
Bush needed congressional consent to make such a move. After a 
respective law had been signed off, the now published rules and 
procedures have once again triggered outrage among parliamentarians 
and the lawyers of the detainees. It is legal for a culprit to be 
sentenced on the basis of indirect witness statements and enforced 
testimonies, writes ORF online. 
 
No Proof of Iranian Weapons Deliveries to Iraq 
 
¶6. President Bush has renewed his charge that Iran supplies the 
insurgents in Iraq with weapons, but admits that there is as yet no 
poof that the deliveries were ordered by the government in Teheran - 
all that is known so far is that Iranian revolutionary guards have 
smuggled weapons into Iraq. The US military, displaying the weapons 
parts Sunday, declared that the weapons had been delivered on order 
from the highest levels of the Iranian government. 
In a press conference held on Wednesday, President Bush declared 
that the sees progress in the international efforts to get Iran to 
abandon its controversial nuclear program, but also expressed his 
conviction that direct bilateral talks between the US and Iran would 
not be helpful. "We will be more successful in achieving our goals 
when others are also involved," centrist daily "Die Presse" quotes 
from the President's explanation of the US strategy. In this regard, 
he referred to the multilateral talks with the North Koreans that 
had also produced a "breakthrough." Former Iranian President 
Rafsanjani has meanwhile indicated that Teheran was prepared to 
remove existing obstacles for direct US-Iranian talks, if Washington 
showed goodwill, the daily writes. 
McCaw