VZCZCXYZ0020
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHVI #2838/01 3251431
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 211431Z NOV 07
FM AMEMBASSY VIENNA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9042
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHDC PRIORITY
RHEHAAA/WHITEHOUSE WASHDC PRIORITY

UNCLAS VIENNA 002838 
 
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: November 21, 2007 
 
 
New Video Threat against Austria 
 
¶1. All Austrian media report that a new internet video threatening 
Austria and Germany has surfaced, apparently made by militants 
associated with the "Global Islamic Media Front" (GIMF), an al Qaeda 
propaganda group. The video demands that Austria and Germany 
withdraw their military personnel from Afghanistan. It also calls 
for the immediate release of two suspected Islamic militants who 
were arrested in Austria in September, after a previous video 
warning. The Austrian Interior Ministry has said it is "taking the 
message seriously," but emphasized at the same time that it sees "no 
concrete threat" against Austria at this point. 
 
 
 
 
 
Children's Rights Not Protected by Law 
 
¶2. Organizations concerned with children's rights have criticized 
Austria for failing to fulfill its obligations to protect the rights 
of children. On Tuesday, which was International Children's Rights 
Day, the groups said organizations working with children are 
under-funded and have too few legal powers to prevent violence. The 
Children's Rights Convention was passed in 1989, recognizing that 
people under 18 need special protection. Austria signed the 
convention in 1992, but has not yet included its provisions into its 
constitution, according to a report by ORF TV's prime time news Zeit 
im Bild I on Tuesday. 
 
 
Ambassador in Television Interview 
 
¶3. In one of a series of PAS-facilitated farewell interviews, US 
Ambassador to Austria Susan McCaw outlined on Austrian television 
the highlights and challenges of her term of office. She underscored 
her efforts to reach out and explain US foreign policy to all 
Austrian audiences, and pointed to the special emphasis she has put 
on promoting and expanding student exchange programs in her effort 
to further strengthen US-Austrian relations. The most difficult 
issue during her ambassadorship, McCaw said, was the controversy 
over Austrian energy provider OMV's planned natural gas deal with 
Iran. OMV had certainly not broken any laws in concluding the deal, 
but the timing was most unfortunate, given the international 
community's ongoing efforts to reach a diplomatic solution in the 
conflict with Tehran over its nuclear program. Asked about the 
detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, Ambassador McCaw 
stressed that the United States wants to close the prison - 
something President Bush also pointed out during his visit to 
Austria in 2006. The Ambassador explained, however, that some of the 
inmates "cannot simply be released," and that the US welcomes the 
assistance of the international community in addressing the matter. 
In a PAS-facilitated television interview, which was aired on ORF 
TV's prime time evening news Zeit im Bild II on Tuesday, outgoing US 
Ambassador to Austria Susan McCaw looks back at the key issues 
marking her term of office. Ambassador McCaw is "returning early to 
the United States for personal reasons. In Austria, one of her 
priorities was to improve the poor image of the Bush 
administration," says ORF TV. But although anti-American trends are 
something "one sees everywhere" these days, Ambassador McCaw 
underscored that she had "never experienced it directed against her 
personally." She added that it is "part of my job to talk to the 
Austrians, to listen and to answer their questions." Mostly, 
Austrians' concerns and misgivings "have to do with the Iraq war, 
but I wanted to listen and speak out about American foreign policy," 
McCaw continued. Regarding the controversy over OMV's planned gas 
deal with Iran, the Ambassador stressed that "we do not only discuss 
(this issue) with Austrian government officials, but with a wide 
range of people, and we've also been engaging in a constructive 
dialogue with OMV."  The Austrian energy provider had "not broken 
any laws" in concluding the deal with Tehran, Ambassador McCaw 
conceded, but warned that OMV's actions have "undermined the spirit 
of what the UN and the international community are trying to 
accomplish in Iran." The Ambassador also emphasized that the US 
"very much does not want a war with Iran; a military option is the 
last thing we want. We want a diplomatic solution," and in order to 
achieve that the US needs all available tools, "including economic 
sanctions." Thus, companies like the OMV and the Austrian government 
are invited to "help the US to make sure a diplomatic solution can 
be reached with Iran," she said. On another controversial issue, the 
detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Ambassador McCaw said that the 
Bush administration "very much wants to close Guantanamo, but for 
that we need international support. True, that is not an Austrian 
problem, but there are a number of issues not directly connected to 
Austria that still require global support." Does the United States 
expect Austria to take on 10 to 15 Guantanamo prisoners," senior 
journalist for ORF Eugen Freund asked? "We don't expect it, but we 
would be very pleased if the Austrians were to offer that," 
Ambassador McCaw replied. 
 
 
Mideast Conference Scheduled for Next Tuesday 
 
¶4. US officials have confirmed that President George Bush will host 
a conference on Middle East peace next Tuesday. Israel, the 
Palestinians, the United Nations and key Arab states including Saudi 
Arabia and Syria are among the 50 countries and organizations 
invited. It is unclear at this point which of the Arab states will 
send delegated, though. The militant group Hamas, which is in 
control of Gaza, has not been invited to participate in the upcoming 
talks. The meeting in Annapolis, Maryland, will be the first 
large-scale gathering in seven years aiming at the creation of an 
independent Palestinian state. 
McCaw