R 261433Z JAN 09
FM AMEMBASSY BERLIN
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INFO WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON DC
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UNCLAS BERLIN 000094 
 
 
STATE FOR INR/R/MR, EUR/PAPD, EUR/PPA, EUR/AGS, INR/EUC, INR/P, 
SECDEF FOR USDP/ISA/DSAA, DIA FOR DC-4A 
 
VIENNA FOR CSBM, CSCE, PAA 
 
"PERISHABLE INFORMATION -- DO NOT SERVICE" 
 
E.0. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC KMDR KPAO GM US IS RS CH
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: U.S. FOREIGN POLICY, GITMO, MIDEAST, CHINA, 
ECONOMY, RESEARCH, RUSSIA 
 
¶1.   Lead Stories Summary 
¶2.   U.S. Foreign Policy 
¶3.   Guantnamo Prisoners 
¶4.   U.S. Policy on Middle East 
¶5.   U.S.-China Relations 
¶6.   U.S. Economic Policy 
¶7.   Aftermath Of Markelov trial 
¶8.   U.S. Stem Cell Research: 
 
 
 
¶1.   Lead Stories Summary 
 
Editorials focused on a study that identified Turks as the immigrant 
group that is least integrated into German society; the Greens party 
congress; and the Pope's decision to rehabilitate four conservative 
bishops, all of whom oppose the Vatican II reforms and one of whom 
is accused of denying the Holocaust.  ZDF-TV's early evening 
newscast Heute opened with a report on the fate of the Guantnamo 
prisoners, and ARD-TV's early evening newscast Tagesschau opened 
with statements by leading German politicians on whether Germany 
should accept Guantnamo prisoners. 
 
¶2.   U.S. Foreign Policy 
 
Sueddeutsche commented: "America is sending top diplomats to the 
front lines and is thereby signaling that it is embarking on a new 
foreign policy....  Obama promised personal engagement.  In 
comparison with his predecessor, this is great progress.   It took 
George W. Bush seven years to understand that the Mideast conflict 
cannot be resolved without U.S. engagement and that Israelis and 
Palestinians alone will never find the path to peace.... Obama is 
rethinking [policies]; he is risking his personal prestige in the 
Mideast and is redirecting America's civilian and military power to 
Afghanistan and Pakistan....  In Afghanistan, America is not 
dreaming of some kind of peace; instead, it wants victory." 
 
Under the headline "Return to Diplomacy," Frankfurter Rundschau 
remarked in an editorial: "Already in his first days in office, the 
young President has met many promises he had made to his nation and 
the world.  As if someone has opened a window after many years, 
light and air are refreshing America's policy.  Crusts break and 
things are moving.  Particularly in foreign and security policy, 
Obama has set signals of change.  He wants to put a stop to the blot 
on America, Guantanamo, special military tribunals and torture.... 
The break with the past is tougher, stricter and more fundamental. 
A failed ideology has been wiped out.  The neoconservative 
experiment has come to an end.  America no longer claims to have 
simple responses for a complex world." 
 
Nordbayerischer Kurier of Bayreuth opined: "Now men who are older 
than 60 are to solve the problems: the young U.S. president is 
pinning his hopes on the rich experience of Richard Holbrooke, who 
is 67, and George Mitchell who is 75.  As expected Obama isn't 
wasting any time and is tackling the greatest problems.  His envoys 
must now pass the test in the most difficult regions in the world. 
Obama's holistic approach makes sense.  He must now accomplish 
'Mission Impossible.'  Obama must really be Superman with a super 
brain in order to come to terms with the tasks.  Good luck!" 
 
¶3.   Guantnamo Prisoners 
 
Frankfurter Allgemeine (1/23) argued: "Washington's partners will 
certainly be satisfied with Obama's most recent decision as they are 
about the announced closure of Guantnamo, but although it is easy 
to order the closure, it will not be easy to answer the question of 
the future of the detainees, among them (alleged) terrorists and 
(alleged) innocent people." 
 
Sueddeutsche Zeitung (1/23) opined: "The disgraceful camp in 
Guantnamo will be closed, special trials against terror suspects 
will be suspended, secret CIA prisons to be closed, and torture be 
banned.  These are big decisions following the dumb battle cries of 
the eight years under George W. Bush.  But this magic can quickly 
disappear if the next terrorist attack occurs." 
 
According to FAZ Sonntagszeitung, "President Obama has broken an era 
in the first 100 hours in office.  With three signatures under 
decrees, he has ended the 'war on terror' at the 'resolute Desk' in 
the Oval Office.  He has ordered the closure of Guantnamo with a 
year, the CIA is no longer allowed to have secret prisons abroad, 
and the CIA is no longer allowed to use harsh interrogation methods. 
 With these three strokes of a pen, he has suspended three 
instruments of the war which was forced upon the United States by 
the 9/11 terrorist attacks." 
 
Frankfurter Allgemeine argued in a front-page editorial: "The SPD 
and the Greens, who joined forces in the past when the issue was 
'America-bashing,' are all of a sudden excelling each other when it 
comes to demonstrating their friendship with the U.S.   Foreign 
Minister Steinmeier's advances towards Washington have a clearly 
recognizable background: as former closest aide to ex-Chancellor 
Schroeder, Steinmeier has to get rid of the image as an uncertain 
ally.  The Greens, too, want us to forget one thing: when they 
governed, President Bush tried in vain to prompt Germany to accept 
Chinese prisoners.  We will see whether the Greens and the SPD 
[which favor accepting Guantnamo prisoners] will continue to 
compete for the honor of being the best friend of the United States 
if President Obama confronts the Germans with less harmless 
requests." 
 
Rhein-Neckar-Zeitung of Heidelberg argued: "Obama is taking 
advantage of the greatest possible experience he has available: the 
staff from the Clinton era.  This is the most obvious in the 
Guantnamo case.  But the well known change has its limits. The 
grandiloquent promise to close the disgraceful camp within 100 days 
can no longer be kept.  But torture will be stopped, and the issue 
now is to turn the special tribunals into regular proceedings.  This 
cannot happen overnight but the scandalous circumstances in the camp 
do not mean that only innocent people have been detained there.  But 
what speaks against accepting innocent people in Germany, too?" 
 
Regional daily Westfaelischer Anzeiger had this to say: "Of course, 
the closure of Guantnamo raises questions that cannot simply be 
answered by referring to the Bush administration and its authorship 
of this unjust camp.  Quite a few of the 245 prisoners are innocent. 
 The Obama administration will openly address this issue and it will 
pass on the problem only after it is convinced that it needs 
assistance.  The German partner should be prepared for this.  But 
the sober preparatory work should happen behind the scenes." 
 
¶4.   U.S. Policy on Middle East 
 
Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung editorialized: "Obama, who 
promised to make active and aggressive efforts to create peace in 
the Mideast, set another signal by his 'phone policy'.  Before he 
called Israeli Prime Minister Olmert, Obama called Palestinian 
President Abbas.  Obama's special envoy Mitchell comes from an 
Irish-Lebanese family.  This will make it easier for Obama to be 
seen by the Arab world as an 'honest broker' instead of a supporter 
of Israel." 
 
Regional daily Mannheimer Morgen argued: "In the past, Israel 
profited from U.S. foreign policy, but Obama cannot afford a 
one-sided siding with Israel because he would then lose his 
credibility.  He also needs it to wage the fight against terror not 
only with soldiers.  A good foreign policy may lead to the fact that 
al Qaida would be unable to recruit the people from such a great 
army of suicide bombers.  To put it differently: the terrorist may 
lose an enemy image." 
 
Wiesbadener Kurier (1/23) noted: "President Obama considers the 
Palestinian problem to be the root of the unrest in the Middle 
Eastern region.  He also clearly aims at the war in Afghanistan 
because the Holbrooke mission also includes Pakistan, thus giving 
the entire mission a greater regional context.  But time will tell 
whether he will put Medvedev's offer for cooperation to the test. 
As he said in his inauguration address, the president wants to reach 
out his had to all those who open their fist." 
 
Dresdner Neueste Nachrichten judged: "If Obama wants to bring 
movement into the Middle East conflict, then the new U.S. president 
can't help it but make a new beginning.  There is latitude for this. 
 It is based on a support for Israel's existence with a simultaneous 
end to issuing blank checks for all Israeli actions.  The president 
will succeed only under two conditions: He must open the view in 
Israel that the main reason for instability in the Middle East is 
the occupation policy.  And he must make clear to the Palestinians 
that violence even in a miserable situation is neither the only nor 
the most promising possibility of a reaction." 
 
¶5.   U.S.-China Relations 
 
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung noted: "China is probably the only 
country that feels sorry that President Bush had to leave office. 
With him, Beijing had only few difficulties.  That is why Beijing is 
now reacting in a nervous way to the first remarks from the Obama 
administration.  Treasury Secretary Geithner accused China of 
'currency manipulation.'  China does not like to hear such tones, 
especially not if there is an element of truth in it.  In addition, 
Beijing wants to demonstrate with its public disproval to the new 
U.S. government that it is not possible to strike such a tone 
towards an emerging superpower.  That is why the Sino-U.S. exchange 
of views has something of a showing off.  Each side wants to get a 
good starting position for the coming years.  But Beijing has 
greater problems because Obama is faced with a wave of support and 
second, because China has not improved its reputation due to 
scandals over the past few years." 
 
¶6.   U.S. Economic Policy 
 
Berliner Zeitung commented: "Barack Obama is not yet a week in 
office but he has already chased away Bush's spirit....  Obama 
determinedly approaches the economic crisis.  The first thing he 
does is to fight against the causes by introducing stricter checks 
on financial markets.  In addition, he is lobbying in Congress for a 
heavy stimulus package.  If Obama pursues this as smart as he set 
the course in foreign policy in recent days, he could succeed in 
persuading Republicans and begin to invest in America's 
infrastructure soon." 
 
FT Deutschland noted in an editorial that "rescuing the U.S. economy 
is more urgent than regulation questions" and criticized Treasury 
Secretary-designate Geithner's statement on China: "It is 
understandable that Geithner clearly tells China that his country 
will not accept currency manipulation.  However, such a verbal 
attack as the first act of a new government towards another global 
economic power sends a disastrous signal.  This is not the much 
promised necessary cooperation to fight the economic crisis." 
 
Handelsblatt commented on Treasury Secretary-designate Geithner's 
Senate confirmation, saying that "nothing will stand in its way 
today.  Then, at the latest, the period of grace for Obama and his 
financial team will end.  They will not be given the usual 100 days. 
 If Obama does not quickly present his plan, insecurities in the 
markets will increase by the day." 
 
¶7.   Aftermath Of Markelov trial 
 
Regional daily Badische Neueste Nachrichten of Karlsruhe opined: 
"The seed of fear that has been sowed with the many political 
killings in Russia has now borne fruit.  Fewer and fewer Russian 
papers dare to openly criticize the system.  The state-controlled 
Russian TV has long since turned into the reporting model of Soviet 
times.  And fewer and fewer people have the courage to take to the 
streets and call for their rights." 
 
¶8.   U.S. Stem Cell Research 
 
Tagesspiegel commented: "U.S. President Barack Obama had not been in 
office for a week when the American stem cell research was greatly 
boosted.....  President Bush's blockade of research has finally 
reached and end; although nobody will publicly admit that the FDA 
was under pressure from above and therefore had not given its 
permission earlier....  The freedom of research in America has been 
reestablished.  It now remains to be seen whether the stem cell 
research can met the high expectations." 
 
Die Welt editorialized: "The German debate about embryonic stem cell 
research is facing a turning point after the United States became 
the first democracy that allowed a clinical study on embryonic human 
stem cells." 
 
KOENIG