MEDIA REACTION REPORT - President Bush to India

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SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION REPORT - President Bush to India
PARIS - Friday, March 03, 2006


(A) SUBJECTS COVERED IN TODAY'S REPORT:

President Bush to India

B) SUMMARY OF COVERAGE:

The "folly" of the French public reacting to the threat of
Avian Flu leads several dailies to bemoan France's "hysterics"
as their cover stories.

But today's lead international story is the nuclear deal
signed by the U.S. with India. Le Figaro headlines "American
Green Light to Nuclear India" and calls the agreement
"historic." Bruno Tertrais of the Foundation for Strategic
Research is interviewed in Le Figaro: "The difference in
treatment can be explained by two sets of differences,
political and legal. Iran has signed the NTP, India has not.
And France and the U.S. consider that for the time being,
India's ambitions are in accordance with their own."
Liberation notes on its front page: "India in the Nuclear
Club" and interviews a regional expert on "America's interest
in India:" "The U.S. considers India a natural ally and the
White House secretly rejoices over its growing international
role. whereas with China, relations are more constrained. The
U.S. is afraid that China might want to marginalize America's
role in Asia. But the nuclear agreement with India is not part
of a plan against China. It is not in the interest of either
the U.S. or India. The U.S. government is convinced that the
balance of economic power is shifting towards Asia." Several
editorials in regional outlets comment on this "historic"
deal, on double standards, Pakistan and Iran. (See Part C)

Agence France Presses wires report President Chirac welcomed
the U.S.-India civilian nuclear cooperation agreement signed
on Thursday. He sees it as representing "progress for non-
proliferation" and for "the fight against global warming."

Le Monde, reporting on the most recent Council of Europe
report on CIA renditions, points to its "reserved"
conclusions. "Without being able to confirm the existence of
the CIA's secret detention sites in Europe, which the
Washington Post had posited in November 2005.... the report
denounces the lack of control on foreign secret agents in
Europe." In France, a judicial inquiry has been opened to
investigate whether a CIA plane transited the Bourget airport
in July 2005.

Agence France Presse wires briefly report that Interior
Minister Sarkozy met with U.S. Attorney General Gonzales to
discuss the war on terror as well as biometric passports. The
two men raised "transatlantic relations, bilateral
cooperation...in intelligence matters on terrorism and various
forms of trafficking," said a member of Sarkozy's office.

(C) SUPPORTING TEXT/BLOCK QUOTES:

President Bush to India

"Goodbye Nehru."
Olivier Picard in regional Les Dernieres Nouvelles D'Alsace
(03/03): "Calling the nuclear deal between Indian and the U.S.
`historic' is not out of place. This is indeed a spectacular
rapprochement between America and a former non-aligned nation.
The agreement signals the pragmatism which is marking the
start of this new century. The White House is ready to make
concessions in order to establish its new international order
in this region of the world. The fact that it also helps to
promote American products is obviously a plus. These
advantages are well worth closing one's eyes to the fact that
India has not signed the NPT, whereas Iran and North Korea
have. The Bush administration is not hearing comments about
nuclear double standards. But how will President Bush be able
to keep Pakistan from demanding similar treatment?"

"Counter Model"
Patrick Sabatier in left-of-center Liberation (03/03): "In
signing this historic agreement, President Bush has killed two
birds with one stone. He is reminding all that in nuclear
matters, double standards are the rule. We can and we must
grant India what we refuse Iran and Pakistan. In so doing, he
has granted India a special role as the counter model to
China. While India shares China's demographic development,
it has assets which China does not have, such as civil
liberties. In the battle between totalitarianism and democracy
on the road to power and prosperity in Asia, the choice is in
favor of the Elephant, as everyone waits for the Dragon to
slough its skin."

"India's Appeal"
Jean-Marcel Bouguereau in regional La Republique du Centre
(03/03): "If India is so appealing it is because it is
becoming one of the world's major powers, and is a newly
arrived member of the UNSC. But mostly it is the only nation
that can in time be a counterweight to the Chinese
dictatorship, which America mistrusts so completely. India,
contrary to China, is a stable democracy, and by signing
yesterday's historic agreement with the U.S. it has taken one
more step towards its dreams of power."

"Double Standards?"
Joseph Limagne in regional Ouest France (03/03): "New Delhi
has the bomb, but has not signed the NPT; Iran which has
signed it, does not have the bomb yet. India has not made
improper use of the bomb, and continues to deserve its
reputation as the world's largest democracy, while Iran's
stance raises serious doubts. It is good that India has ceased
to be a rogue state and accepts its nuclear program to be
scrutinized. But this small step in one direction carries its
own perverse consequences: Pakistan is demanding the same
treatment. And while Pakistan may be an American ally in the
fight against terrorism, it does not offer the same security
as India in nuclear issues. And of course Iran and North Korea
will soon join the chorus using the argument of double
standards."

"From India to Iran"
Jean-Christophe Ploquin in Catholic La Croix (03/03): "George

W. Bush is going all out to counter China's growing power.
India is part of Washington's strategy to counter Chinese
military and economic expansionism. Yesterday's agreement
appears to be a good thing for both parties as well as for
France, which hopes to sell several nuclear reactors to India.
And Iran is among the nations that will feel encouraged by the
agreement." STAPLETON