AUSTRIAN MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS: April 13, 2007

UNCLAS VIENNA 000974 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR EUR/AGS, INR/EU, AND EUR/PPD FOR YVETTE SAINT-ANDRE OSD FOR COMMANDER CHAFFEE WHITEHOUSE FOR NSC/WEUROPE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OPRC KPAO AU SUBJECT: AUSTRIAN MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS: April 13, 2007 Eurofighter: SPOe Could Go It Alone ¶1. Although he had dismissed such a move earlier, emphasizing he was "loyal to the coalition," Defense Minister Norbert Darabos now says he no longer rules out his party, the Social Democrats (SPOe) could be "going it alone," if a decision is made to withdraw from the contract to purchase 18 Eurofighter jets from EADS. Darabos added this would likely mean the end of the two-party coalition of the Social Democrats and the People's Party (OeVP). The Minister is awaiting expert legal opinions on whether the government now has sufficient grounds to pull out of the deal. Liberal daily Der Standard says that some of the SPOe's heavyweights -- three provincial governors - are also pushing for a cancellation of the Eurofighter deal. Vienna mayor Michael Haeupl, Styrian governor Franz Voves and the governor of Upper Austria Erich Haider have said they want a quick withdrawal from the purchase, with Voves adding that "in his opinion the OeVP (which has so far opposed pulling out of the deal) will have no other choice, when the legal situation is made clear." Chancellor Alfred Gusenbauer has been holding back on voicing his views, and merely said a SPOe go-it-alone cancellation was a hypothetic question at this point. Centrist daily Die Presse notes there is "confusion with regard to the SPOe's stance" on the issue: Apparently, the Social Democrats are "having a hard time coming up with a joint position" on the Eurofighter deal. EADS Money for FPOe Functionary ¶2. The network of EADS lobbyist Erhard Steininger was quite extensive, Austrian media suggests, and report that the former Freedom Party communications chief Kurt Lukasek, who used to be a close aide to ex-FPOe floor leader Peter Westenthaler, has confirmed that he received 28.500 Euros from Steininger. Lukasek has indicated he is ready to testify before the Austrian parliamentary inquiry, which is looking into allegations that improper payments could have influenced the decision in favor of the Eurofighter purchase. All Austria media continue to report on the numerous payments made by EADS lobbyist Erhard Steininger to a number of persons involved in the decision process for the Eurofighter deal. Mass-circulation tabloid Kronen Zeitung speculates the business transactions that have so far been disclosed could be the "tip of the iceberg." The newspaper quotes chairperson of the parliamentary investigative committee Peter Pilz as saying that "there are no bills in the tax files for EADS funds in the amount of 1.5 million Euros which Steiniger received." Ambassador's Letter to the Editor ¶3. A letter by US Ambassador to Austria Susan McCaw to the editor of a leading daily newspaper is published as a guest commentary. Ambassador McCaw emphasizes that the United States, too, would prefer closing the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. In her letter to the editor of liberal daily Der Standard, US Ambassador to Austria Susan McCaw points to calls on President Bush to "Close Guantanamo." These statements, the Ambassador underscores, "are undoubtedly sincere, and Americans share that sentiment. As the President himself has said many times, the United States would like to close Guantanamo." Unfortunately, "a viable alternative for dealing with all of the dangerous men who are detained there" has not yet been found. But, the United States has a suggestion for countries that want to work with the US on reducing the number of Guantanamo detainees: "Accept the transfer of detainees, or work with us to convince other countries to accept them," suggests Ambassador McCaw, who adds that many of the prisoners have already been released or transferred to their home countries. Of the 385 persons that remain at the facility, "many are regarded sufficiently dangerous to the United States and other countries as to require continued detention." This is why the US is "offering our NATO allies and other countries in Europe the opportunity to make a public demonstration of their often-expressed desire to speed up the closure of Guantanamo: Help resettle these detainees who are eligible to leave Guantanamo, either by accepting them, consistent with your own laws, or by helping us work with countries which might serve as alternate destinations." Ambassador McCaw also underscores that Austrian human rights expert Prof. Manfred Nowak, who is the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture, once suggested that each EU member country agree to accept a number of Guantanamo detainees to help speed the closing of the facility. While many details would need to be agreed upon, I would like to applaud Prof. Novak's creative and constructive contribution to this very important discussion," the Ambassador concludes. Bleak Day for Iraq ¶4. The Iraqi government is to hold a special session today to discuss the unprecedented breach in security, which allowed a bomb attack in the cafeteria of the Iraqi Parliament building yesterday. Eight people, including three MPs, have been killed in the blast inside the heavily protected Green Zone. The explosion came only hours after part of a bridge in Baghdad was blown up by a car bomb Thursday morning. The US government has denied the bombing shows the ongoing security sweep in Baghdad is having little impact. Austrian media, however, comment that it was a "bleak day" for Iraq, adding that is "an open secret things are not going well for the Americans" there. They also suggest the suicide bomber in the Parliament cafeteria must have had help from inside the Green Zone, as he had apparently passed all checkpoints without the explosives being detected. All Austrian media report on the most recent attacks in Baghdad. Mass-circulation tabloid Oesterreich runs the headline "blasts shake the power center of Iraq," referring on the suicide bombing at the Parliament building. The US military suspects al Qaeda is behind the attack, the daily adds. Mass-circulation provincial daily Kleine Zeitung headlines "Death is lurking everywhere in Baghdad," and argues the explosions are a "severe setback for the ongoing US security efforts in the Iraqi capital." The heavily fortified Green Zone used to be considered as the relatively safest area in Baghdad, which is seeing insurgent attacks on a daily basis. But now, even that zone apparently cannot gurantee security any longer, the daily writes. Foreign affairs writer for centrist daily Die Presse Thomas Seifert in his commentary also suggests yesterday's suicide bombing at the Iraqi Parliament cafeteria was an "attack on the heart of the state." He believes the "US security offensive has failed: Terrorists are launching ever more spectacular attacks in Baghdad. (...) Simple whining, however, won't help the Iraqis, who have to live in this chaos, or the US, which has to find a way out of this mess in Mesopotamia. There must be a change of course as well as the recognition that it is not possible to handle the insurgency simply by military means. At the moment, there is at least a ray of hope: The regional conference which will take place in Cairo in May with the goal of bringing Iraq closer to a political solution." Call for Wolfowitz's Resignation ¶5. World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz is under increasing pressure to resign, as the bank's board is considering how to respond to his admission that he helped his girlfriend get better promotion and pay. World Bank staff representatives have suggested Wolfowitz should step down. The World Bank chief has meanwhile admitted he "made a mistake" and said he would "assume full responsibility for the details of the contract" which provided for his partner's promotion and pay rise, ORF online news writes. Compensation Payments for Civilian Victims ¶6. The American Civil Liberties Union has attained US army files which show the military has paid around 52 million US dollars in compensation for Iraqi and Afghan civilians killed by coalition forces. The payments were for people killed in non-military action. The Civil Liberties Union says the records obtained so far under the Freedom of Information Act are a very small proportion of those held by the Defense Department, reports ORF radio early morning news Morgenjournal. North Korea Deadline Approaching ¶7. The US envoy to North Korea, Christopher Hill, is in Beijing for talks, as this weekend's deadline for Pyongyang to shut down its nuclear reactor approaches. North Korea has made no public comment on whether it is satisfied with the US solution to a financial dispute that has stalled the disarmament process, however, according to ORF radio early morning news Morgenjournal. Kilner