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PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHVI #0638/01 1291450
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 081450Z MAY 08
FM AMEMBASSY VIENNA
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0157
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RHEHAAA/WHITEHOUSE WASHDC PRIORITY

UNCLAS VIENNA 000638 
 
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: May 08, 2008 
 
Still No Final Word on AUA Deal 
 
¶1. Negotiations continue between Austrian Airlines (AUA) and Saudi 
businessman Sheikh Mohammed Bin Issa Al Jaber on a potential 
150-million-Euro investment in the airline. There is still no 
agreement on whether Al Jaber, who has accused AUA of having been 
misled about its financial viability, will stick to the planned deal 
or pull out. Meanwhile, the CEO of Austrian Airlines, Alfred Oetsch, 
has come under massive criticism from investors for his role in the 
affair. AUA continues to stress the importance of having Al Jaber as 
a strategic partner for the airline. 
 
 
Sex Crime Laws Toughened 
 
¶2. In the wake of the Amstetten incest case, the Austrian government 
has agreed to toughen laws on sexual crimes. At Wednesday's cabinet 
meeting, the coalition partners SPOe and OeVP agreed to keep sex 
crimes on record for thirty years instead of the current fifteen, 
and to allow anyone with a conviction to be banned from certain 
professions. Adoption procedures are also to be made more 
difficult. 
Meanwhile, Justice Minister Maria Berger (SPOe) has admitted police 
were too quick to believe Josef F., the suspect in the Amstetten 
case, who claimed his daughter ran away to join a cult. Berger 
conceded the statement was not sufficiently questioned at the time. 
Her comments are the first acknowledgement from Austrian officials 
of shortfalls in the investigation into daughter Elisabeth F.'s 
disappearance, writes ORF online news. 
 
 
Next National Bank Chief Named 
 
¶3. The former chief of the BAWAG bank, Ewald Nowotny, has been named 
as the next Director General of the Austria National Bank. Nowotny 
takes over his post from incumbent Klaus Liebscher on September 1, 
according to ORF radio Oe1 news. 
 
 
"Missile Defense Increasingly Sophisticated" 
 
¶4. ... headlines centrist daily Die Presse, publishing a 
PAS-facilitated interview with John Rood, Under Secretary for Arms 
Control and International Security. Regarding the US plans for a 
missile defense shield in Poland and the Czech Republic, Rood said: 
"I am optimistic we will be able to conclude successfully the 
negotiations with Poland on a base to station ten missiles. A few 
issues remain that have to be addressed in this matter. We have 
concluded the talks with the Czech Republic on putting up a radar 
system; the only thing that's left to do is sign the contract. 
Centrist daily Die Presse publishes a PAS-facilitated interview with 
John Rood, Under Secretary for Arms Control and International 
Security, who explains US defense and security policies, including 
the plans for a missile defense shield in Poland and the Czech 
Republic. According to Rood, "spending in the United States for 
missile defense has remained more or less constant during the past 
years. But it's true that in the defense budget as a whole, missile 
defense is occupying a significant place, because we have become 
aware of a new vulnerability, which, naturally, we want to counter. 
The threat emanating from missiles and the proliferation of weapons 
of mass destruction is, unfortunately, growing constantly. 
Meanwhile, missile defense systems are gaining in acceptance as a 
means to address that ever growing threat. An increasing number of 
states are supporting missile defense projects." 
 
 
EU Lifts Import Ban on GM Corn 
 
¶5. The EU Commission has lifted Austria's ban on the import of two 
types of genetically modified corn. Officials said the lifting of 
the ban did not affect Austrian prohibitions on planting the GM 
crops. EU environment ministers were unable to agree last year on 
extending the ban on imports, so that the decision went 
automatically to the EU Commission. The Austrian Environment 
Minister, Josef Proell, has expressed his disappointment over the 
ruling. He said the EU had given in to pressure from the United 
States and the World Trade Organization, ORF TV's prime time news 
Zeit im Bild I reported on Wednesday. 
 
 
100,000 Feared Dead In Myanmar 
 
¶6. The death toll from the cyclone that ravaged the Irrawaddy delta 
in Myanmar earlier this week may exceed 100,000, a senior US 
diplomat warned Wednesday. The figure is almost five times as high 
as the one the Myanmar military regime has estimated, and observers 
are concerned the country's repressive government may be trying to 
downplay the full extent of the catastrophe. Aid groups and 
countries offering disaster relief continue to complain about their 
lack of access, and the regime is facing growing international 
concern over its delay in accepting foreign aid for the cyclone's 
victims. 
 
 
Clinton Soldiers On 
 
¶7. Democratic presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton has vowed to 
continue her campaign despite losing ground in the latest primary 
contests and her financial problems. Clinton beat her rival Barack 
Obama by two points in Indiana's primary, while he won by 14 in 
North Carolina. Liberal daily Der Standard comments: "It seems out 
of the question that Clinton will quit. Commentators from her camp 
suggested she might even risk a legal battle in order to secure her 
share of the delegates' votes from Michigan and Florida. However, 
some Democrats are complaining 'the problem is that Hillary has a 
killer instinct, and Obama doesn't.' Which means it is not unlikely 
she is going to kill her own party this time." 
 
All Austrian media analyze the Indiana and North Carolina primaries, 
with the majority agreeing that the results have further boosted 
Barack Obama's campaign and have delivered a serious blow to Hillary 
Clinton's chances at being nominated as her party's candidate. 
Mass-circulation tabloid Oesterreich runs the headline "Obama wins 
the race," and says after the Tuesday primaries "it is virtually 
certain: Barack Obama will be the Democrats' presidential 
candidate," as "no-one is a serious threat to his nomination any 
longer."  Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton has said "she will not give up, 
despite the fact that she has lost her last chance in the fight for 
the nomination." There is "no chance, though, she can catch up with 
Obama," and "US media are already speculating on: Who will break the 
news to her that it is over?" 
 
Similarly, centrist daily Die Presse headlines "Barack Obama is on 
the home stretch."  He has already "changed his tactics from running 
a primary race to fighting a presidential election campaign," the 
daily says. Thus, in his speech following the Tuesday primaries, 
Obama attacked his likely rival in the contest for the White House, 
Republican candidate John McCain: "He must not be given the 
opportunity to serve out George Bush's third term," the daily quotes 
Obama. 
 
According to liberal daily Der Standard, "Obama is getting closer to 
the nomination." With his "impressive victory in North Carolina he 
has put Senator Hillary Clinton, who secured an only narrow victory 
in Indiana, under massive pressure." She does not want to quit, 
though: "It remains an open question, if and when Hillary Clinton 
realizes she can no longer win. The pressure is increasing: Behind 
the scenes the super delegates are having some serious talks with 
Clinton" [on when she will give up], the daily says, and quotes one 
of the most prominent ones, former Vice-President Al Gore as saying 
he does "not believe she will do something that runs contrary to the 
wishes of the party base." 
 
Mass-circulation tabloid Kronen Zeitung says "after a narrow 
victory, Clinton is fighting a losing battle." From a "psychological 
point of view," Hillary Clinton "would have needed a clear victory. 
There's no way she could have caught up with Obama anyway, so her 
only chance are the super delegates, [...] who will hardly be 
impressed with her performance in Indiana." 
 
The headline in independent provincial daily Salzburger Nachrichten 
reads: "The end of the fight is near." The daily believes the "race 
for the Democratic nomination is over."  The newspaper also refers 
to "insiders," who have suggested "one of the key reasons for why 
Hillary Clinton is having such a hard time admitting defeat is her 
disastrous financial situation. She has already poured at least five 
million dollars from her private assets into her campaign. According 
to rumor, the Clintons are trying to get Obama to agree to cover her 
campaign debts in exchange for her pulling out of the race." 
Foreign affairs writer Thomas J. Spang comments:  "Obama has not 
only neutralized Hillary's latest victories in Pennsylvania and 
Ohio, but he has in fact expanded his lead. ... Thus, the last big 
primary day has probably sealed the candidate's lot. It is now for 
her to enable the Democrats to rally behind the victor. Anything 
else would harm the legacy of the Clintons, their political future 
and the prospects of their party in the presidential elections in 
November. If Hillary decides to pursue a strategy of scorched earth, 
the super delegates will prevent her from doing so - or else her 
donors, who no longer send her campaign dollars. The end of a long 
election battle is near." 
Kilner