MEDIA REACTION WAR WITH IRAQ; HARARE

UNCLAS HARARE 000622 SIPDIS DEPT FOR AF/PDPA FOR DALTON, MITCHELL AND SIMS IRAQ PF DOR SMITH, PINESS AND ROOKARD NSC FOR JENDAYI FRAZER LONDON FOR GURNEY PARIS FOR NEARY NAIROBI FOR PFLAUMER E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: IZ PREL KPAO KMDR ZI SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION WAR WITH IRAQ; HARARE ¶1. Under headline "Economic effect of war devastating" the government-controlled daily "The Herald" dedicated its March 27 editorial to denouncing the war to disarm Iraq, saying the invasion could sap the strength of the global economy for years to come. "Tougher times lie ahead unless ways are found to stop the war," the editorial warned. Excerpts: ¶2. "Markets are bleeding profusely as U.S.-led troops drop bombs in Iraq, causing major economic reverberations throughout the whole world. The Iraq invasion has so far proved disastrous, not only in terms of loss of life, but also on the global socio- economic landscape. The U.S. arrogance, which it has once again demonstrated by ignoring peaceful and diplomatic resolution to the Iraq crisis, is having serious repercussions on the entire globe. All the commodity, financial and equity markets are trembling and the global economy is already counting heavy losses, with only a week into the war. . . As a direct result of the Iraqi crisis, world oil supply will dwindle substantially and the market is already feeling the jitters as reflected by the rise in oil prices since the war began last week. . . Tougher times lie ahead unless ways are found to stop the war." SULLIVAN