MEDIA REACTION; HOUSE SPEAKER PELOSI'S TRIP TO SYRIA;

UNCLAS BUENOS AIRES 000632 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: MEDIA REACTION; HOUSE SPEAKER PELOSI'S TRIP TO SYRIA; US-ARGENTINE BILATERAL RELATIONSHIP; US-LATIN AMERICAN TIES; 04/04/07 ¶1. SUMMARY STATEMENT Today's local papers focus on the alleged irritation triggered in the White House by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's trip to Syria; a predicted overhaul in the US-Argentine bilateral relationship; and possible implications of the US-Brazilian bio-fuels deal on US-Latin American ties. Leading "Clarin's" Washington-based correspondent reports that former Army Major Guillermo Barreiro was arrested yesterday in Virginia. ¶2. OPINION PIECES - "Bush is irritated over a Democratic delegation's trip to Syria" Leonardo Mindez, on special assignment in Washington DC for leading "Clarin," penned (04/04) "The dispute between US President George W. Bush and Capitol Hill, which is dominated by the Democratic opposition, is getting worse by the day. The White House's Head harshly criticized yesterday the trip made by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Syria... "According to Bush, 'We make it clear to high-ranking government officials, whether Republicans or Democrats, that traveling to Syria conveys a confusing message.' "The US President added that 'photo-opportunities or encounters with President (Bashar) Assad lead him to think that Syria is part of the international community when in fact it is a country harboring terrorists.' "...There was a new episode in the spat between the US President and Capitol Hill over the war in Iraq yesterday when Bush urged legislators to suspend their two-week spring break, put an end to their 'dangerous political dance' and immediately approve an additional 100-billion-dollar budget for war expenditures, which he requested about two months ago... "The White House asked Capitol Hill to authorize the expenditures without any condition whatsoever. And this is precisely the problem, because both the House and the Senate did approve both draft bills grantin funds, but conditioned them to a series of achievements that should occur in Iraq and set a troop withdrawal schedule that should take place sometime between March 31, 2008 (according to the Senate) and August 31, 2008 (according to the House)." - "Buenos Aires and Washington - a New Direction" Juan Gabriel Tokatlian, professor of International Relations at University of San Andres, opines (04/04) "In the event Buenos Aires and Washington decided to revisit their ties, they would do it for political rather than economic reasons. "... The Major Non NATO Ally (MNNA) status should be strictly assessed in order to understand its importance in the US foreign and defense policy and its extent for the country that is granted such a status... "First and foremost, not every country has the same importance for the US... Secondly, there is no parallel between being granted the MNNA status and receiving some kind of military equipment. Third, when assessing regional dynamics, one sees how the US strategic preferences work... In the case of Argentina, the greatest military deployment in the UN framework was closely tied to the end of authoritarianism, the Armed Forces' overhaul, the importance granted to the human rights issue and a political willingness to more actively commit to the UN (purposes). Fifth, the tangible benefits coming out from the MNNA status are not noteworthy... "Bearing in mind all this and due to the frictions following the 2005 IV Mar del Plata Summit, and Hugo Chavez's latest rally in Ferro, we should expect Washington and Buenos Aires to revisit the immediate future of the US-Argentine bilateral relationship. These days, the US is frustrated with most of the governments, whether near or far. Nevertheless, the Argentine case is one of the most complex ones. The prevailing annoyance in the US Department of State with the Kirchner administration is unlikely to impact economic issues. U/S Nicholas Burns may feel very frustrated, but he would hardly ask the US private sector to invest less in the country or creditors not to come to terms to collect what is owed to them. "... For its part, the Kirchner administration has not taken any important step against US investment, and nothing indicates that it is planning to nationalize US corporations or seize their assets. Neither Peronism nor Kirchner is socialist or anti-US. They are both pragmatic... "Therefore, the redefinition of the US-Argentine relationship, if it happens, will be political. In this regard, the MNNA status could be, as it was in the '90s, symbolically relevant. "Will Washington want to show its relative irritation with the current government by withdrawing the MNNA status it granted to it?... Will it use such a step to impact other Latin American countries as a sign that from now on the US will not accept any more hesitation in handling the Chavez phenomenon? "Or, just the opposite, will the Kirchner administration want to notify Washington that it is no longer interested in keeping such a status?.. "... If both the White House and the Argentine Government decide not to agitate the waters, we could be entering a special 'modus vivendi' between the US and Argentina - neither intimate nor minimal relations, but cautiously practical ones." - "The Road to Isolation" Daily-of-record "La Nacion" carries an op-ed page by Jorge Castro, head of the Strategic Planning Institute, who comments (04/04) "The critical statements made by the number three at the US Department of State, Nicholas Burns, about the Argentine Government's support for Hugo Chavez's anti-Bush rally... reflect the change in the US foreign policy on Latin America... "... Following the September 11 attacks, Latin America as a whole, and particularly South America, stopped being a strategic priority for Washington in its struggle against transnational terrorism. This favored Chavez's progress in the region. "... Washington is now revisiting its ties to South America and, for this purpose, it is rehearsing a new scheme based on a strategic deal with Brazil on bio-fuels in the framework of a 180-degree turn in its post September 11 foreign policy. This deal with Brazil is vital for the US national security because a good amount of the oil the US receives from abroad comes from unstable or hostile countries in the Middle East, Africa and Latin America (Venezuela). "... Obviously enough, the country (Argentina) has a gigantic potentiality in the development of bio-fuels... If, through a confrontational rhetoric, the country abstains from it, it will deepen its international irrelevance and isolation from the world... Burns' statements reveal that, following the November 6 elections, the US has again focused on South America, and this is why incidents that until recently would have passed unnoticed by the White House, are now politically relevant." To see more Buenos Aires reporting, visit our classified website at: http://www.state.sqov.gov/p/wha/buenosaires WAYNE