Powell Fails To Change German Opposition On Iraq

Germany's leaders, having listened attentively to U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell's arguments against the Iraqi leadership at the U.N. Security Council, said on Thursday that they remained unconvinced that the government should change its opposition to any war against Iraq.

The spokesman for Chancellor Gerhard Schröder said the government "welcomed" the extensive information presented by Powell on Wednesday. "Germany is just as concerned as others about the indications that Iraq continues to possess weapons of mass destruction," Béla Anda said in an statement.

Together with the majority of Security Council members, Germany demands that the presented facts be handed over to the U.N. weapons inspectors to be verified, he said. Anda stressed that the inspectors needed the "required time and necessary measures" for their work. "The German government will continue with all of its powers to speak for a peaceful settlement of the conflict," Anda said.

Opposition Presses Schröder

But members of Germany's opposition parties expressed renewed disagreement with Schröder and his pledge to have a German vote against any resolution in the U.N. Security Council that authorized a war on Iraq. "The German chancellor was the only one to jump the gun and isolate the country," said Angela Merkel, the chairwoman of Germany's biggest opposition party, the Christian Democratic Union. "I think this self-imposed isolation is wrong because it does not serve Germany's interests."

Powell's calm, factual presentation on Wednesday was accompanied by another blast of harsh anti-German rhetoric from Defense Minister Donald Rumsfeld. Referring to a possible coalition that would join a war on Iraq, Rumsfeld told a House committee: "Then, there are three or four countries that have said they won't do anything. I believe Libya, Cuba and Germany are ones that have indicated they won't help in any respect."

Even though Rumsfeld said the Germans were not helping, they are actually providing support. Germany is assigning 2,600 soldiers to guard 95 U.S. bases and facilities within the country, and Schröder has promised the Americans that they could use these bases to conduct any war .

The U.S. ambassador in Berlin, Daniel Coats, attempted to tone down Rumsfeld's statements, which came two weeks after he said Germany and France belonged to the "old Europe". In an interview with the daily newspaper Berliner Zeitung, Coats said the defense secretary was not speaking for the U.S. government.

But Coats said the German government, together with France, had weakened the pressure on Saddam Hussein. "What an irony: the two countries that had persistently pressured the U.S. to refrain from using violence became active in a manner which makes the use of military force more likely," he said. "This is extremely frustrating."

More time for inspectors sought

Chancellor Gerhard Schröder and France's President Jacques Chirac demanded more time for the U.N. weapons inspectors shortly before chief inspector Hans Blix presented his report at the end of January.

According to Coats, Germany should be worried about the consequences. "Serious doubts have arisen in the American public whether Germany is still a dependable partner," he said. "This harms our relations and it certainly harms Germany."

He added that this could also have economic repercussions. "There is always the possibility that behavior in other areas could also influence economic relations."

Angelika Beer, the co-leader of the Greens party, played down Rumsfeld's comments. "I don't take them so seriously," said Beer, whose party is the junior coalition partner in the German government.

Additional dialogue urged

But she said the comments indicated that both countries needed to intensify their dialogue. "The more critical a relationship is, the more important a dialogue is," she told the news agency Reuters.

During his presentation, Powell urged Security Council members to demand more forcefully that Baghdad quickly provide evidence about its weapons programs. But the 15-member council remains sharply divided over rushing to war. While the United States and Britain said time was fast running out for Iraq to fully cooperate with U.N. inspectors, France, Russia, China and many other council members called for continued inspections and a peaceful resolution of the crisis.

Powell's anxiously awaited presentation to the Security Council used newly declassified intelligence, including satellite photos and radio intercepts, to support the U.S. case that Iraq has defied all demands that it disarm and has links to al-Qaida and other terrorist groups.

He warned that Iraq's weapons of mass destruction threaten the world and urged the council to move against Saddam or face "irrelevance."