US FENCE BILL; THE AMIA CASE; AMBASSADOR EARL ANTHONY

UNCLAS BUENOS AIRES 002435 SIPDIS STATE FOR INR/R/MR, I/GWHA, WHA, WHA/PDA, WHA/BSC, WHA/EPSC CDR USSOCOM FOR J-2 IAD/LAMA SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: KPAO OPRC KMDR PREL MEDIA REACTION SUBJECT: US FENCE BILL; THE AMIA CASE; AMBASSADOR EARL ANTHONY WAYNE; US ELECTIONS; 10/27/06; BUENOS AIRES 1.SUMMARY STATEMENT Key international stories today include the US fence bill; Argentina's judicial investigation into the AMIA case; and the arrival of US Ambassador Wayne to Argentina in November. Business-financial, center-right "InfoBae" reports on October 25 press encounter with INL DAS Christy McCampbell, at the US Embassy in Buenos Aires. The paper highlights that she "praised cooperation between the US and Argentina in the struggle against drug trafficking." ¶2. OPINION PIECES - "Bush approves legislation authorizing to build a wall between the US and Mexico" Hinde Pomeraniec, on special assignment in Miami for leading "Clarin," writes (10/27) "Only eleven days away from US legislative elections, which could deprive the G.O.P. from its legislative control, US President George W. Bush approved legislation authorizing to build a wall on the US-Mexican border... "In this way, Bush approved legislation setting forth that by the end of 2008 the third part of the huge border between the US and Mexico will have high fences, in an attempt to prevent illegal immigrants from entering the US in search of the 'American dream.' "As Paul Krugman sardonically wrote for 'The New York Times', 'Republicans have two positions about immigrants - those who want to expel them and those who want to exploit them.' You choose which side the man in the White House favors." - "The (Argentine) Government is reported to back sanctions against the Iranian nuclear program" Daniel Santoro, political columnist of leading "Clarin," writes (10/27) "The Argentine Foreign Ministry is waiting for Federal Judge Rodolfo Canicoba Corral to decide whether he accepts or not Prosecutor Alberto Nisman's charges against Iran for the criminal attack against the AMIA headquarters before assuming a position. The Argentine FM is concerned about the Iranian nuclear program. "... Argentina, which will be a non permanent member of the UN Security Council until December 31, will back the search for a diplomatic solution until the last minute. However, if this fails, it could end up voting in favor of imposing sanctions against Iran until the country lets IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) inspectors check its facilities in order to verify that it is not manufacturing a bomb. "Vice FM Roberto Garcia Moritan told 'Clarin' that the Foreign Ministry is 'concerned' about Iran's refusal to allow IAEA checkups. He added that 'all the countries have to let IAEA inspectors visit our nuclear facilities and, therefore, honor the Non Proliferation Treaty.'" - "Return to the departure point" Ricardo Kirschbaum, leading "Clarin's" general editor, writes (10/27) "The return to the 'Iranian track' in the investigation of the ferocious attack against AMIA is a return to what dismissed Judge Galeano was investigating with the support from most of the Jewish community and Israeli and US secret services. "The information is not of lesser importance and neither is the fact that the 'Syrian track,' which was encouraged by Senator Kirchner and others, has been abandoned. "... The Bush administration made statements in support of this new accusation against Iran and it also praised Argentina's efforts to clarify and bring to justice those who are responsible for what it labeled 'the deadliest anti-Semitic action since the end of the Second World War.'" - "US: the new Ambassador arrives" Daily-of-record "La Nacion" reports (10/27) "Earl Anthony Wayne, the new US Ambassador to Argentina, will arrive in Buenos Aires within ten days to take charge of the US-Argentine bilateral relationship, which is vascillating between cordiality and coldness. "According to diplomatic sources, Ambassador Wayne will arrive in Buenos Aires on November 6. According to Foreign Ministry sources, FM Jorge Taiana is expected to welcome him at the credentials submission ceremony. "Wayne's nomination was approved by the US Senate last June after a long political battle set off by the opposition of powerful US Cuban lobbyists. "Wayne's arrival coincides with US Assistant Secretary of State for Latin America Tom Shannon's attempt to improve diplomatic ties between the US and Argentina in the aftermath of the strong public disagreement between Presidents Nestor Kirchner and George W. Bush at the Mar del Plata Summit last year. "... Wayne is a career government official, who served as US Assistant Secretary for Economic and Business Affairs. "He is an expert in international finances, energy resources and trade policy, with no previous experience in Latin America. He still does not speak fluent Spanish - however, he studies the language several hours a day and expects to arrive at the post having the greatest possible command of the language." - "Wayne is getting ready" Left-of-center "Pagina 12" reports (10/27) "After considerable back and forth movement, Earl Anthony Wayne will arrive in Buenos Aires next November 5 to assume his role as US Ambassador to Argentina. Wayne was nominated by George W. Bush last February and the Argentine Government granted him its 'agrement' on the following day, but a difficult negotiation on Capitol Hill has detained him until now... "In spite of the extra months he had, Wayne has not managed to make much progress with his Spanish language, as Nestor Kirchner himself was able to verify when they greeted each other last month at the Council of the Americas dinner, in New York. "Instead, he informed himself on political issues and turned his discourse to the Argentine Government's desires - he promised that his priorities will include enhancing the investment climate and expanding bilateral trade. "... From the meetings Wayne has held with Argentine Government officials so far, he does not seem to have a conflictive agenda once he is in his position. Just like Bush's expert in the region, Tom Shannon, (Wayne) asserted that he does not see a difficult horizon in the bilateral relationship between the US and Argentina. However, the Kirchner administration's relationship with Venezuelan Hugo Chavez will surely be one of his concerns. In addition to this, Wayne has said that the (revival and) expansion of 'buried' FTAA will appear among his priorities." ¶3. EDITORIALS - "An important step forward in the AMIA case" Daily-of-record "La Nacion" editorializes (10/27) "... An important step forward has been made in the clarification of the AMIA case... "Nevertheless, one should acknowledge that there is still a lot to be done to clarify this attack... "... When assigning responsibility for the delays in clarifying this terrorist attack, one should point out that the USG and its intelligence services, as well as those of Israel, have not always granted as much support to our authorities as they provided in the last three years. Geopolitical reasons should not justify this fact... "It seems clear that the relationship between Argentina and Iran cannot remain unchanged and also that the Argentine Government should handle this situation carefully." - "US elections" Weekly "El Economista" editorializes (10/27) "US legislative elections will be held in November. "The world is neither a better nor a safer place ever since Bush took office although we should also acknowledge that the September 11 attacks changed the entire scenario. "From the economic perspective, fiscal and foreign disequilibria are still worrisome and FTAs with countries having small economies cannot hide the lack of leadership to carry out multilateral negotiations in the framework of the WTO Doha Round. "The world's image of the US has declined. And this is not good news because, regardless of the questioning that democratic leaders can make about Bush's several policies, the worst remaining dictators in the world are nurtured of an anti-US feeling. "In this scenario, a political change in the US (although limited) seems necessary to open a debate on new roads and alternatives in domestic policy. It will also be refreshing for the world because it will lead the only superpower to open itself to the possibility of changing its view about some central aspects of its global agenda." To see more Buenos Aires reporting, visit our classified website at: http://www.state.sqov.gov/p/wha/buenosaires MATERA