MEDIA REACTION REPORT - GWOT - Bin Laden Video

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PARIS 000413 SIPDIS DEPT FOR INR/R/MR; IIP/RW; IIP/RNY; BBG/VOA; IIP/WEU; AF/PA; EUR/WE /P/SP; D/C (MCCOO); EUR/PA; INR/P; INR/EUC; PM; OSC ISA FOR ILN; NEA; WHITE HOUSE FOR NSC/WEUROPE; DOC FOR ITA/EUR/FR AND PASS USTR/PA; USINCEUR FOR PAO; NATO/PA; MOSCOW/PA; ROME/PA; USVIENNA FOR USDEL OSCE. E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OPRC KMDR FR SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION REPORT - GWOT - Bin Laden Video Angela Merkel to France Kosovo: Death of Ibrahim Rugova PARIS - Monday, January 23, 2006 (A) SUBJECTS COVERED IN TODAY'S REPORT: GWOT - Bin Laden Video Angela Merkel to France Kosovo: Death of Ibrahim Rugova B) SUMMARY OF COVERAGE: Domestic and European issues dominate today's front pages as Angela Merkel heads for Paris and her meeting with President Chirac. The Franco-German tandem is said to be "flailing" according to Liberation, an opinion shared by Le Journal du Dimanche. (See Part C) Le Figaro leads with the "New Tension in the Battle for Russian Gas" while all outlets report that Ibrahim Rugova's untimely death is a "setback" for Kosovo, with commentators suggesting that "nationalist movements could try to move in." (See Part C) Saturday's Le Figaro carries an op-ed by Bruno Tertrais of the Foundation for Strategic Research, defending the "virtues of French Nuclear Deterrence" and praising President Chirac's speech last Thursday. Tertrais believes that the concept of deterrence requires its credibility to be explained to public opinion, "something that had not been done since June 2001." "The legitimacy of deterrence must be maintained in public opinion and the military, especially in a context where terrorism is considered the principal danger." The global war on terror and the latest message from Bin Laden elicit two op eds in Le Figaro. General Marcel Valentin (former commander of the SFOR in Kosovo) criticizes the use of traditional military bombings to fight terrorism, while Renaud Girard depicts Bin Laden as an "ace communicator." (See Part C) Catholic La Croix devotes its lead to PM Villepin and the promises he has made. One report is devoted to his image in Great Britain, "marked by his Iraq stance." "The majority in Great Britain does not appreciate Villepin. But among the initiated, those who follow international events closely, Villepin is well known and appreciated. Most of all, his `Iraqi period' is present in every one's mind, when he led the battle against the war." (C) SUPPORTING TEXT/BLOCK QUOTES: ;GWOT - Bin Laden Video "Of Military Effectiveness in the Face of Terrorism" General Marcel Valentin (former commander of the SFOR in Kosovo) in right-of-center Le Figaro (01/23): "I do not agree with an opinion piece (in Le Figaro of January 2) promoting the French Navy as a major means to fight terrorism and turning cruise missiles into anti-terrorism prime choice instruments. While bombings are effective against traditional armies, they are not adapted to the fighting against terrorism; in such cases they may in fact be counter- productive. After the bombings of the U.S. Embassies in Nairobi and Dar es-Salaam, the U.S. bombed Khartoum and terrorist training camps in Afghanistan. Those bombings did nothing to decapitate the terrorist network they were targeting; neither did they manage to avoid 9/11. In the past 15 years, no country has been as bombarded as Afghanistan or Iraq. Yet in these two countries, terrorists have never been as numerous and terrorism as dangerous." "Bin Laden, A Master Communicator" Renaud Girard in right-of-center Le Figaro (01/23): "Bin Laden is an ace communicator. His talent resides in the mystery surrounding his life and the factual truths of his message. A message that is aimed at the politically frustrated masses in the Arab-Muslim world. One of his qualities is his great patience. His worldwide notoriety was due to Clinton and Bush when they made him America's number one enemy. In this new role. he was able to appear as an equal of the U.S. President. Making great use of diplomacy, he has just offered a truce to the U.S. Militarily speaking, Bin Laden carries practically no weight. He knows it and does not care, because he has understood that traditional military operations have become mere appendages of a more global war, which is a media war aimed at winning public opinion." Angela Merkel to France "The Star" Gerard Dupuy in left-of-center Liberation (01/23): "It is clear that the pivotal role played by the Franco-German axis cannot function properly if either of the two countries does not meet economic growth performances. But nothing proves that Merkel wishes to resurrect the special relationship that existed on both sides of the Rhine. Her East-German roots do not push her in that direction. And coincidentally, President Chirac's speech on nuclear deterrence has played against him in German public opinion. Merkel has shown, both in Moscow and in Washington that she will not let etiquette keep her from speaking her mind. During her visit to Paris, she will be scrutinized like no other German Chancellor ever before." "Chirac And Merkel Will Not Be Dining Together" Gilles Delafon in right-of-center Le Journal du Dimanche (01/22): "Behind the formal accolades the truth will not be easily hidden: the Franco-German relationship is flailing. Besides the disagreement on the domestic VAT, President Chirac's nuclear posture and his threatening message to terrorists was not to the liking of the Germans. Although Berlin has tried to diplomatically emphasize the `continuity' of the relationship, the German press blasted the French President for his sortie. The reasons for the malaise in the Franco-German relationship are due, for the most part, to the internal French political makeup. Merkel knows she is facing a waning Chirac but she is in the dark as to the outcome of the Villepin-Sarkozy rivalry.. Everyone in Germany is convinced that nothing is to be expected from the French side until ¶2007. Until then, it is difficult to see how President Chirac will be in a position to dispel the image of a country without plans for the future." Kosovo: Death of Ibrahim Rugova "Rugova's Death Upsets Talks on Kosovo's Future" Right-of-center Le Figaro (01/23): "The Balkans seem to be ill- fated. The death of Ibrahim Rugova came days before the start of talks on the future status of Kosovo. The UN has just decided to postpone the talks and no one can hide the concern rising from the situation. Not the Albanians of Kosovo, who are losing the man who embodied their hopes for a peaceful independence. And not the international community, which is calling on the Kosovars to remain calm. A period of uncertainty is beginning just when Kosovo was hoping to reach its dream of independence, through peaceful means. Beyond Kosovo, it is the entire Balkans, which has started its slow move toward the EU, which could be threatened by this period of uncertainty." STAPLETON