VZCZCXYZ0006
OO RUEHWEB

DE RUEHBU #0429/01 0661053
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 071053Z MAR 07
FM AMEMBASSY BUENOS AIRES
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 7460
INFO RHMFISS/CDR USSOCOM MACDILL AFB FL//SCJ2//
RULGPUA/USCOMSOLANT

UNCLAS BUENOS AIRES 000429 
 
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: MEDIA REACTION; CHAVEZ IN ARGENTINA, MIDDLE EAST, 03/05/07; 
BUENOS AIRES 
 
 
¶1. SUMMARY STATEMENT 
 
Papers lead with Bush's up-coming trip to the region aimed at 
reinforcing a 'positive agenda' - amid Argentina's preparation of 
Chavez' mass public rally against President Bush's visit to Uruguay 
-, and the repercussions of U.S. announcement of a summit in Iraq, 
which includes Iran and Syria. 
 
¶2. OPINION PIECES 
 
- "Bush Kicks Off Unusual Latam Tour" 
 
Hugo Alconada Mon, daily-of-record "La Nacion" Washington-based 
correspondent, writes (03/05) "President Bush begins next Wednesday 
his Latam trip - which doesn't include Argentina --, and which will 
be full of gestures and messages. In practice, it will try to prove 
U.S. interest in the region, despite its obsession with Iraq, Iran 
and the rest of the Middle East, and also, all the challenges posed 
by Chavez and his allies. 
 
".... The five countries that Bush will visit were picked with a 
single purpose: underscoring 'a positive agenda' based on 'hope', 
said A/S Shannon during his hearing in Congress last Thursday. 
 
".... Bush will try to reinforce this agenda today with a speech at 
the Wilson Center, focusing on social development in the region 
within democratic institutions and everything the U.S. has to offer, 
such as the bio-fuels partnership with Brazil. 
 
".... Argentina won't be part of the tour. 'We knew there might be 
claims, but we had no other choice,' said a USG source. The Bush 
administration views President Kirchner as a distant figure, who 
didn't invite Bush to Buenos Aires, but doesn't want to break all 
its ties, even though Chavez will hold his Bolivarian rally in 
Argentina. 
 
".... Washington's first goal in this regional tour is to reinforce 
ties with their governments. With Brazil, the U.S. will nail down a 
partnership on biofuels; with Uruguay it will strengthen trade ties; 
in Colombia it will endorse the fight against drug-traffickers, 
paramilitary and guerrillas; in Guatemala, it will compensate the 
government after helping them defeat Venezuela in the fight for a 
UNSC seat, and in Mexico, it will try to develop the South and 
reinforce security in the North of the country. 
 
"But in Washington's opinion, the most important role for the White 
House will be to send 'gestures of interest' to people in those 
countries. 'The trip is a matter of diplomatic presence in the 
region. The Bush administration has been accused in Washington of 
failing in Latin America, of ignoring it and, with this trip, it 
wants to say it cares,' said the Executive Director of the Council 
of Hemispheric Affairs, Larry Birns...." 
 
- "Bush and Chavez Assess Forces in Their Latam Tours" 
 
Business-financial BAE says (03/05) "Bush will kick off his tour in 
Brazil, after conceding he 'abandoned' the U.S. back yard in the 
past years, which led to a strong anti-U.S. sentiment due to 
Washington's foreign policy; and all this, in the framework of many 
countries moving away from the neo-Liberal economic model advanced 
by the White House. 
 
"At the same time, Chavez, who maintains a strong dialectical 
confrontation with Bush, will visit those countries that were left 
out of the U.S. President's agenda: Argentina and Bolivia, with 
which he maintains strong cooperation on an issue that's attracting 
Bush to the region: energy. 
 
"With these trips, each one will try generating new areas of 
cooperation or reinforcing the existing one. These past weeks, and 
in the wake of Bush's imminent regional tour, the White House kept 
silent on critical comments coming from the region, and particularly 
those from Chavez. 
 
"But this silence only tries to avoid disturbing waters before 
landing in Latam. According to a Brazilian daily, Bush is 'obsessed' 
with Chavez, whom he believes is more dangerous than Fidel Castro, 
because 'he conquers with money what the Cuban conquered with 
ideology.' 
 
"In this context, the underlying goal of Bush's trip will be to 
recover presence in the region. But in practice, he will sign energy 
and trade deals...." 
 
- "Chavez' Rally Will Cost 600,000 Pesos" 
 
Mariano Obarrio, daily-of-record "La Nacion" political columnist 
 
writes (03/04) "Social movements, picketers and Venezuelan military 
chiefs finalized the details of the anti-Bush rally that will be 
headed by Chavez on Friday, at 6 pm., at a soccer stadium, and 
agreed that the 600,000 pesos needed for its organization will be 
controlled by the Kirchner administration, which was unable to 
impose its idea of doing it in a smaller venue. 
 
".... According to high GOA sources, Kirchner wanted to reduce the 
controversial rally to 6,000 people, in order to exercise more 
control on the attendees. 
 
"The anti-Bush rally sparked strong annoyance within the USG and the 
Jewish community, at odds with Venezuela, with whom Kirchner tried 
to maintain a difficult balance. 
 
"Finally, the Bolivarian leader will address an audience of 40,000 
people. Around 300 Venezuelan military will be in charge of the 
rally's security and pro-Kirchner picketers will assign 1,000 of 
their men to mingle with the crowd in prevention of clashes. 
 
".... Chavez's speech will strongly criticize Bush on the same day 
he's in Uruguay, meeting with Tabare. The U.S. was concerned by 
Kirchner's gesture, but the USG clarified that bilateral relations 
are good on the issue of cooperation in the fight against 
drug-trafficking and terrorism. 
 
"According to a high GOA source, 'Kirchner and Chavez' idea was, 
since the beginning, to send a strong gesture of rejection of Bush's 
regional tour', and the bottom-line of the message will be 'Welcome 
Chavez, for Latam unity. Bush, out!" 
 
"And a social leader said 'Chavez' 300 military will try to 
counteract the 1,200 men that Bush will bring to Uruguay'...." 
 
- "U.S. Drastic U-turn: Iran Confirms There Have Been Contacts" 
 
Ana Baron, leading "Clarin" Washington-based correspondent, opines 
(03/04) ".... Even though the White House has been denying all sorts 
of contacts with Iran, FM spokesman Hosseini assured that the U.S. 
tried 'through several channels' to establish direct dialogue with 
Tehran precisely on Iraq's security. Hosseini added that Iran is 
analyzing Washington's proposals. 
 
"Allegedly, one of those channels is former President Rafsanjani, 
who is exercising growing influence in Tehran, according to former 
Arab League representative at the UN Clovis Maksoud. 
 
".... With the inclusion of Iran and Syria at the March 10 summit in 
Baghdad, announced by Secretary Rice, the White House confirms its 
determination to sit at a negotiating table with these two 
countries, when only a couple of weeks ago it had rejected such 
possibility. 
 
"What's the reason for this U-turn? What will be its range? 
 
"According to Maksoud, it's an attempt to include the focus of the 
Baker report on Iraq, without really implementing it. It's also an 
acknowledgement that he no longer has the liberty he had before the 
Democrats recovered the majority in Congress. 
 
"The U-turn began with the appointment of a member of that group - 
Robert Gates - as Secretary of Defense... And the first evidence of 
this change was the nuclear agreement with North Korea...." 
 
- "Hawks" 
 
Marcelo Cantelmi, leading "Clarin" international editor, opines 
(03/04) "...George W. Bush and Mahmud Almadinejah have a lot in 
common and so will have their political fate. Both have lost the 
support of their government structures... In the case of Iran, it's 
hard to tell how Ahmadinejad will survive without the iron-clad 
back-up of the supreme leadership. Like Bush, he will experience a 
drastic U-turn towards a diplomatic way out, viewed more like a last 
resort than a victory. Only their enemies will benefit from that 
change. But if this is good news, reality isn't as good. Their 
situation is so complex that it seems too little and too late a move 
to succeed..." 
 
- "Iran Agrees to Negotiate, but Imposes Conditions on U.S." 
 
Leading "Clarin" says (03/05) "Iran's regime reiterated yesterday 
that the U.S. did in fact propose direct dialogue during the 
regional conference on Iraq that will take place next weekend in 
Baghdad, but made clear that, for now, those contacts will take 
place within a multilateral meeting. According to Iranian FM 
spokesman Hosseini, his government doesn't plan to hold face-to-face 
talks with Washington. 
 
 
 
"The official said Tehran is analyzing U.S. proposals of direct 
talks, but so far, the issue is not on Iran's agenda...." 
 
¶3. EDITORIALS 
 
- "Iran vs. International Community" 
 
An editorial in daily-of-record "La Nacion" reads (03/03) "Despite 
serious warnings by the UNSC, Iran continued with its nuclear 
program. This leads us to think that a confrontation with the 
international community might be inevitable. 
 
".... The five permanent members of the UNSC, plus Germany, are 
actively discussing the possible sanctions they may impose on a 
country that refuses to abide by UN charter obligations. Given that 
Russia and China are reluctant to impose these sanctions, due to 
their close trade ties with Iran, the task won't be easy. 
 
"In this context, it's not hard to witness some 'war games', as well 
as all kinds of warnings converging on Iran, which are also 
disturbing for all, given that a new conflict in the Gulf might lead 
to a global crisis of absolutely unforeseeable consequences. 
 
".... This is why the positive response to the recent request by 
Iraq of a regional conference aimed at designing a policy to put an 
end to the sectarian civil war that is ravaging the country, sheds a 
light of hope. This is an opportunity for diplomatic dialogue 
between Iran and the international community that ought to be 
expanded, rather than overlooked. 
 
".... With realism, the U.S. seems to have decided, similarly to 
what took place with the North Korean crisis, to give another chance 
to diplomatic dialogue with third party States. This is an 
instrument without which, it's always difficult to eradicate 
violence." 
 
To see more Buenos Aires reporting, visit our 
classified website at: 
http://www.state.sqov.gov/p/wha/buenosaires 
 
WAYNE