VZCZCXYZ0005
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHVI #0960/01 1021350
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 121350Z APR 07
FM AMEMBASSY VIENNA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6984
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/WHITEHOUSE WASHDC PRIORITY

UNCLAS VIENNA 000960 
 
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: OPRC KPAO AU
 
SUBJECT: AUSTRIAN MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS: April 12, 2007 
 
 
Eurofighter Delivery Postponed 
 
¶1. Defense Minister Norbert Darabos of the Social Democrats says the 
planned mid-year delivery of the first Eurofighter jets for the 
Austrian armed forces will be delayed "until November at best." He 
said the required software for the navigation system from the United 
States should arrive by then. Earlier Darabos asked legal experts to 
examine whether the most recent developments regarding the 
Eurofighters would provide grounds for withdrawing from the 
two-billion-Euro contract to buy the planes. He added he will 
consider their assessment "highly binding"; it is expected to be 
presented later this month. However, the Defense Minister stressed 
there will be no "go-it-alone" cancellation of the deal; such a step 
would only be taken in cooperation with the SPOe's coalition partner 
OeVP. 
Like all Austrian media, ORF radio reports on the postponed 
Eurofighter delivery, resulting from the formal applications for the 
necessary software licenses being filed too late. ORF radio reports 
the Pentagon confirmed it received the official requests only last 
month, but "will try to issue the licenses as quickly as possible. 
Estimated date for the delivery is, indeed, November 2007, the 
Pentagon's statements shows: The delay was caused by Austria's 
waiting too long with its (...) formal application, which only 
arrived in Washington in March and usually needs about four months 
to be processed. Provided the Pentagon approves the application, the 
US government then needs to conclude a bilateral agreement on how 
Austria guarantees it will not pass on any of the software system's 
secret military information to third parties or the general 
 
SIPDIS 
public." 
Meanwhile, independent provincial daily Salzburger Nachichten runs 
the front-page headline "Russians and Americans offering Austria 
less expensive jets," and writes that the producers of interceptor 
jets are currently lining up in Vienna: Ever since it emerged that a 
withdrawal from the Eurofighter contract could be an option, 
international companies have jumped at the potential chance of a new 
deal. Russia and the US in particular have presented alternative 
offers, Defense Minister Darabos has confirmed. 
 
 
Criticism of Job Market Plan 
 
¶2. There has been sharp criticism of Social Affairs Minister Erwin 
Buchinger's idea to partially open up Austria's job market to 
foreign workers to fill vacant positions. The Social Democrat 
Minister said that, in cases where there is a lack of qualified 
Austrians for a job, the market could be opened in certain sectors. 
The Austrian unions, the Alliance for the Future of Austria (BZOe) 
and the FPOe have all come out against the idea. 
Semi-official daily Wiener Zeitung, reporting on criticism of 
Minister Buchinger's plan to partially open up Austria's job market 
to foreign workers, writes that Richard Leutner, secretary general 
of the unions, said there was no question of launching the opening 
of the job market earlier than planned. The unemployment rate must 
first be lowered, he added. Peter Westenthaler, head of the BZOe, 
said it would be an attack on Austrian employees, and 
Heinz-Christian Strache, leader of the FPOe, complained he couldn't 
interpret the reasoning behind the Social Affairs Minister's idea of 
opening the labor market to people from the new European Union 
countries. Currently, workers from the new member countries have 
only limited access to the Austrian job market until 2009, the daily 
explains. Originally, plans called for an extension of the 
restrictions until 2011, but Austria faces resistance from other EU 
countries. 
 
 
Dramatic Financial Problems 
 
¶3. In a meeting with EU Foreign Relations Commissioner Benita 
Ferrero-Waldner, Palestinian Finance Minister Salam Fayyad alerted 
the European Union representative to the Palestinians' dramatic 
financial crisis. 
Finance Minister Salam Fayyad warned that the "Palestinians are in 
the midst of a severe financial crisis" and "short of one billion 
Euros," when he met with the EU's Foreign Relations Commissioner on 
Wednesday. The EU and the Palestinian authority are currently 
working toward gradual normalization of their relations, the daily 
notes, adding that Commissioner Ferrero-Waldner confirmed she would 
push for assistance in getting the Palestinians on a par with 
international financial procedures and standards. Still, there will 
be no direct payments for the time being, as the Palestinians first 
need to meet a number of requirements: Renouncing violence, 
recognizing Israel's right to exit, a commitment to existing peace 
accords and "transparent and comprehensible" financial performance. 
 
 
 
Car Bombs Explode in Algiers 
 
¶4. In Algeria, officials now put the death toll from yesterday's two 
car bomb attacks in Algiers at 23. About 160 others were injured in 
the explosions, one near the Prime Minister's office and another 
near a police station close to the international airport. A person 
claiming to represent a regional branch of Al Qaeda told an Arabic 
TV channel his group carried out the attacks, but there has been no 
independent verification of the claim. 
On ORF television's prime time news Zeit im Bild I, head of the 
international desk Peter Fritz suggests the alleged al-Qaeda 
connection of the group claiming responsibility for the Algiers 
blasts "may in part be propaganda only." Nonetheless, Fritz argues 
the "consecutive attacks in Morocco and Algeria suggest cooperation 
of terrorist groups across the borders of Northern African states is 
a fact." In addition, "both blasts occurred in countries that 
traditionally have entertained close ties with Europe," which 
according to Fritz could be a "deliberate signal." 
In centrist daily Die Presse, security affairs writer Burkhard 
Bischof in an analysis describes the Northern African Maghreb as a 
"breeding ground for the new generation of terrorists." Sufficient 
numbers of "volunteers for the 'fight' against their hated 
governments and against the 'ungodly Western devils' can easily be 
recruited in the slums of Algerian and Moroccan cities. The first 
wave of Maghreb Islamists were those who fought the Soviets in 
Afghanistan in the 1980s, but these days fanatic youths from 
Northern Africa are looking for combat experience in Iraq. According 
to US sources, about 20 percent of the 800 to 2,000 foreign 
insurgents in Iraq are of Algerian origin, but they are also 
fighting alongside Moroccans, Libyans and Tunisians now." When they 
return to their home countries one day, "these Iraq veterans pose a 
considerable threat also for Europe," Bishop quotes from a study. 
 
 
US Extends Troops' Tour of Duty 
 
¶5. US troops will now serve up to 15 months in Iraq and Afghanistan 
instead of the present 12-month tours under new Defense Department 
rules. The move is designed to help the US military supply enough 
troops for ongoing operations. The extended tours apply to troops 
currently in Iraq and those about to be deployed, Defense Secretary 
Robert Gates said, announcing the decision. "US forces are 
stretched," Gates conceded, "there is no question about that." 
ORF online news notes the Defense Department's decision to extend US 
soldiers' tours of duty is aimed at guaranteeing necessary troop 
levels can be maintained. President George Bush's new strategy for 
Iraq includes increasing troop levels by about 30,000 - a move with 
which the US President hopes to curb violence particularly in 
Baghdad, according to ORF online news. 
Kilner