VZCZCXRO1028
RR RUEHAG RUEHDF RUEHLZ
DE RUEHRL #1173/01 2650509
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 220509Z SEP 09
FM AMEMBASSY BERLIN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5264
INFO RHEHAAA/WHITE HOUSE WASHINGTON DC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC
RUCNFRG/FRG COLLECTIVE
RUEHBS/AMEMBASSY BRUSSELS 1550
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON 0243
RUEHFR/AMEMBASSY PARIS 0765
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME 2290
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO 1297
RUEHVEN/USMISSION USOSCE 0483
RHMFIUU/HQ USAFE RAMSTEIN AB GE
RHMFISS/HQ USEUCOM VAIHINGEN GE//J5 DIRECTORATE (MC)//
RHMFISS/CDRUSAREUR HEIDELBERG GE
RUKAAKC/UDITDUSAREUR HEIDELBERG GE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 BERLIN 001173 
 
STATE FOR INR/R/MR, EUR/PAPD, EUR/PPA, EUR/CE, INR/EUC, INR/P, 
SECDEF FOR USDP/ISA/DSAA, DIA FOR DC-4A 
 
VIENNA FOR CSBM, CSCE, PAA 
 
"PERISHABLE INFORMATION -- DO NOT SERVICE" 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.0. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC KMDR KPAO GM US RS IR IS XF
SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: Missile Defense, G20, Climate, UN, Mideast 
Peace Process, German Elections 
 
¶1.   Lead Stories Summary 
¶2.   Missile Defense 
¶3.   G20 
¶4.   Climate Change 
¶5.   UN General Assembly 
¶6.   Mideast Peace Process 
¶7.   German Elections 
 
¶1.   Lead Stories 
 
Primetime newscasts and several newspapers opened with stories on 
the FDP's special party congress in Potsdam, saying that the FDP 
committed itself to forming a coalition with the CDU/CSU after the 
elections on September 27 and ruled out a coalition with the SPD. 
Sueddeutsche headlined: "Obama wants to force peace talks." Most 
editorials focused on the German elections.  A few papers also 
carried commentaries on the Mideast peace process and the upcoming 
G20 summit. 
 
¶2.   Missile Defense 
 
President Obama's decision to abandon plans for a missile defense 
shield in Central Europe was the main foreign policy story in the 
weekend media, but no longer dominated the German media today. 
 
Josef Joffe said on today's front-page Tagesspiegel that the Poles 
and Czechs are right to be disappointed "because Obama treats the 
Russian rival better than his friends.  This is no way to run an 
alliance.  If Obama had only gotten something in return from Russia! 
 However, Putin and Medvedev are not even considering putting 
tougher pressure on Iran in return.  They take a gift that is more 
valuable than the renunciation of the missile defense shield, which 
could not have harmed Russia's offensive potential: a unwritten 
right to veto NATO's strategic decisions." 
 
Welt am Sonntag analyzed that "President Obama's recent decisions 
are a clear sign for the withdrawal of the West from its global 
claims," and concludes: "Obama with his shining rhetoric is the 
right man at the right time to make the renunciation of western 
positions and the beginning of a new era look like as if a 
borderless mutual understanding would overcome the toughest 
contradictions of interests and values." 
 
Sunday's Frankfurter Allgemeine commented: "It is noteworthy that 
Israeli Defense Minister Barak made a remarkable U-turn on the same 
day, saying that he does not believe that Iran threatens Israel's 
existence.  Nudge, nudge, wink, wink-could it be that Jerusalem and 
Washington are taking first steps towards a containment policy? 
Could it be that they are about to adjust to an Iran with missiles 
and bombs, not to say to live with it?" 
 
¶3.   G20 
 
While politicians expressed the need to reform the financial system 
and express optimism that they will succeed in Pittsburg, media were 
skeptical about whether the G20 will be able to reach effective 
agreements. 
 
Focus magazine highlighted that "the fight against future excesses 
in financial markets is waning.  EU leaders shy away from pushing 
the U.S. to take radical measures at the G20 summit." 
 
Sueddeutsche commented: "Unfortunately, President Obama, who was 
expected with so much hope, does not seem to be willing to tame the 
financial markets....  So far the world has heard only words from 
him and has not seen any action." 
 
FT Deutschland editorialized on its front page: "It has taken a long 
 
BERLIN 00001173  002 OF 003 
 
 
time until Europe has drawn conclusions from the financial crisis. 
Now, as the European Commission finally comes up with a strategy for 
a European oversight, Germany is putting up walls and wants to give 
Brussels as little power as possible.  This attitude is dangerous. 
The EU must take a common approach particularly in the upcoming G20 
summit if it wants to push the rest of the world towards a better 
regulation of financial markets." 
 
Handelsblatt had this recommendation: "Modern financial businesses 
are a curse and a blessing at the same time.  Careless approaches 
cause serious crises.  However, the financial system also offers 
great gains and prosperity.  Those who want to reverse financial 
globalization by financial checks and taxation must expect a loss of 
prosperity.  However, it is undisputed that financial crises are the 
other side of the coin of globalization....  We are not putting a 
stop to all air traffic when a plane crashes.  Financial watch dogs 
should take traffic controllers as a model, call for improved 
security measures and improve the oversight of the ongoing 
business." 
 
Die Welt also emphasized that "security has its price," and 
commented: "If you take the announcements of politicians seriously, 
the financial world would have to adjust to completely new 
surroundings after the G20 summit at the end of this week in 
Pittsburgh.  High bonuses and risky financial transactions would 
belong to the past....  However, despite the demonstrative 
determination Obama, Merkel and Co are showing, this is not what 
will happen.  The verbal unity of the leaders is deceptive-their 
interests are too different.  This is even true for the topic of 
bonuses, which would be effective as a powerful message to the 
public.  Anyway, the assumption that restricting bonuses would stop 
risky deals is naove because the suspected greed of managers was 
fueled by the expectations of investors and shareholders.  This made 
the incentives possible in the first place." 
 
¶4.    Climate Change 
 
Sueddeutsche commented ironically: "The negotiators have done a 
great job: the recent draft for a new climate agreement contains 
7,120 brackets marking unresolved issues, questions, exceptions and 
exceptions of these exceptions.  Three months prior to the essential 
conference in Copenhagen, it remains unclear, like the outcome of 
the German elections, whether the world will see a new and better 
climate agreement...  In the long run, reliable climate protection 
needs a reliable foundation.  The countries must set the first 
foundation stone this year.  Otherwise the project will fail." 
 
Handelsblatt opined: "The most important condition for a successful 
fight against climate protection is that the negotiations in 
Copenhagen do not fail.  This will depend on U.S. behavior.  If it 
boycotts a post-Kyoto agreement with internationally binding goals 
to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, it would inevitably result in an 
erosion of the process.  Obama's speech [at the UN] can therefore 
not be overestimated." 
 
Berliner Zeitung editorialized: "Obama will remain unclear in 
international negotiations because there will be no U.S. climate law 
this year.  The U.S. Congress could annul any commitment.  As a 
result, the U.S. might again, like in the Bush years, become the 
greatest obstacle for the UN climate conference in Copenhagen in 
December." 
 
¶5.   UN General Assembly 
 
In a one-page feature on U.S.-UN relations, FT Deutschland wrote: 
"Since the change of power in Washington, the White House is moving 
closer to the UN.  U.S. Ambassador to the UN Rice is embodying this 
changeover.  However, the U.S. still continues to negotiate 
 
BERLIN 00001173  003 OF 003 
 
 
explosive topics outside of the UN." 
 
Sunday's Tagesspiegel commented: "President Obama will take a 
timeout from domestic policies for an entire week.  As of Monday, he 
will spend three days in New York at the United Nations, and on 
Thursday he will travel on to G20 summit in Pittsburgh.  This 
generous usage of the President's most valuable good-his personal 
time-illustrates what has changed since George W. Bush.  Bush also 
said no nation is any longer powerful enough to solve international 
problems on its own, but his solo runs in his first presidency ended 
only when the failure in Iraq forced him to cooperate.  Obama's 
Ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice, told the press at the White House 
on Friday the new policy....  Many of her words sounded like slaps 
into the face of her predecessor John Bolton....  Under Obama, the 
U.S. government has not turned into a real fan of the UN.  Rice also 
names flaws of the institution, but notes that one could improve 
them only by cooperation, not a refusal to engage.  Symbolically, 
Obama will be the first President to head a meeting of state leaders 
on the Security Council-to prevent nuclear weapons from being 
proliferated." 
 
¶6.   Mideast Peace Process 
 
Under the headline "Handshake without consequences," Sueddeutsche 
commented:  "U.S. Special Envoy Mitchell tried to persuade the 
Palestinians and Israelis for four days to reach a compromise as if 
the future of the Mideast region depended on it.  He met Netanyahu 
and Abbas four times and was told a categorical no to the idea of a 
summit in New York because the differences were too great.  Mitchell 
therefore returned to Washington empty-handedly.   However, there 
suddenly was a miracle and a summit will now take place.  President 
Obama is insisting on it and the unsuccessful envoy Mitchell is 
trying to sell the surprising summit as a sign of the intensive U.S. 
engagement in the Mideast peace process.  This is only about a photo 
and a symbolic starting shot.  However, a handshake between the 
Palestinian president and an Israeli prime minister will get the 
Mideast anywhere.... Peace talks should take place outside of the 
public eye, not with flashing lights." 
 
¶7.   German Elections 
 
In a whole-page editorial, FT Deutschland is recommending to voters 
to elect a coalition between the Chancellor Merkel's CDU/CSU and the 
Greens. "The 2009 election campaign is almost over without having 
really started.  Citizens can cast their votes this Sunday, but it 
has remained unclear what kind of political alternatives there 
are...  If the FT Deutschland could form a coalition, it would be 
the CDU/CSU and the Greens: a government under Chancellor Merkel 
that is driven by the smaller party to implement ecological 
innovations.  At the same time, the larger partner makes sure that 
financial policies remain sound....  We vote for Chancellor Merkel, 
hoping that the 'climate chancellor' will dare something after her 
embarrassingly soft election campaign." 
 
MURPHY