MEDIA REACTION: CLIMATE, MIDEAST, IRAN U.S.-INDIA,

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 BERLIN 001499 STATE FOR INR/R/MR, EUR/PAPD, EUR/PPA, EUR/CE, INR/EUC, INR/P, SECDEF FOR USDP/ISA/DSAA, DIA FOR DC-4A VIENNA FOR CSBM, CSCE, PAA "PERISHABLE INFORMATION -- DO NOT SERVICE" SIPDIS E.0. 12958: N/A TAGS: OPRC KMDR KPAO KGHG XF IR IN ECON SUBJECT: MEDIA REACTION: CLIMATE, MIDEAST, IRAN U.S.-INDIA, ECONOMIC;BERLIN ¶1. Lead Stories Summary ¶2. (Climate) Copenhagen Summit ¶3. (Mideast) Israel-Palestinian Conflict ¶4. (Iran) Nuclear Conflict ¶5. (U.S.-India) Singh in Washington ¶6. (Economic) Financial Crisis ¶1. Lead Stories Summary Print media led with many different stories this morning, ranging from the discussion over whether the government's child allowance should be handed out as a cash payment or as a voucher (Frankfurter Rundschau), an increase in rents in Berlin (Tagesspiegel) and on growing resistance by the LQnder to the federal government's plan to lower taxes (FAZ, Sueddeutsche). Editorials focused on Foreign Minister Westerwelle's visit to Israel and the EU talks about the future of Opel. ZDF-TV's early evening newscast heute and ARD-TV's early evening newscast Tagesschau opened with a story on the discussion in the EU over subsidies for Opel. ¶2. (Climate) Copenhagen Summit In a report headlined: "EU Warns U.S. Against Failure of Climate Summit," Handelsblatt (11/24) wrote: "Almost two weeks before the beginning of the climate summit in Copenhagen, the EU has increased pressure on the United States and other nations such as India and China. At their meeting on Monday, the EU environment ministers said that the Copenhagen summit must approve clear reduction targets with respect to greenhouse gases as well as financial commitments for climate protection measures in the Third World. They said that noncommittal announcements would not be enough. With this statement, the EU is now embarking upon a collision course with the United States which has thus far only planned national climate protection measures. At the same time, the Europeans are increasing their expectations in the summit. German Environment Minister Norbert RQttgen said no country should evade climate protection. He added that, with its legislation, the United States would move in the right direction and that is why it would be wrong to blame the Americans for negative developments. But he also said: 'The extent, the degree, and the intensity [of U.S. environmental legislation] are still not enough.' He said: 'We want the United States to do justice to its leading role.' He also warned that, if the Copenhagen conference did not produce a result, this would have 'disastrous consequences.'" Financial Times Deutschland (11/24) reported that "the EU environment ministers agreed on a defensive tactic at their meeting in Brussels on Monday. They only want to make concessions if the Americans also finally move. German Environment Minister RQttgen said that the domestic debate in the United States would not go fast enough." Regional daily MQrkische Allgemeine of Potsdam (11/24) argued: "Indeed, we must warn against excessive expectations in the BERLIN 00001499 002 OF 004 Copenhagen climate summit. The understanding and good will are at best underdeveloped in the political arena - if they exist at all. Of course, the Western demands are justified that the rest of the world allows a look into their economic balance sheets and that no one obscures their emissions with economic tricks. We all in the North will have to pay the billions for climate protection and the impact of climate change. That is why the use of these funds must be clearly laid down and controlled to protect it from disappearing in dark channels, but will resulted in the desired effect. If an agreement on fair emissions quotas and financing modalities can be reached, then a lot will have been achieved." ¶3. (Mideast) Israel-Palestinian Conflict All papers reported on a possible Israeli deal with Hamas on the exchange of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. FAZ (11/24) headlined: "Netanyahu: No Agreement Yet," and wrote that "Prime Minister Netanyahu denied reports that Israel had reached a deal with Hamas on the exchange of prisoners." Sueddeutsche reported of a possible cease-fire between Hamas and Israel and wrote: "The sudden soft tone of Hamas and its combat brigades may have many reasons - Israeli superiority or the exhaustion of the people caused by the war and the blockade. But currently the radicals in the government could primarily be interested in not jeopardizing negotiations mediated by German negotiators about the release of kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. On Monday, a Hamas delegation travelled to Cairo to fine-tune the talks. One day before, Israel's President Shimon Peres was in Cairo. Some even expect a release in the coming days, but this was expected often over the past three years. Die Welt (11/24) headlined: "Will Hamas Release Israeli Hostage Gilad Shalit?" and wrote: "A breakthrough in the secret talks on an exchange of prisoners between Israel and Hamas could result in the release of Israeli soldier Gilat Shalit this week or next week. Following a meeting between Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak, Israeli President Shimon Peres said that 'there is no doubt important progress in the Shalit matter, but the details should be kept behind the scenes for the time being.' ¶4. (Iran) Nuclear Conflict Berliner Zeitung (11/24) analyzed Iran's policy under the headline: "Survival Instinct Determines Iran's Course," and argued: "The Iranian leadership is not giving an inch. It has now rejected the compromise proposal of the international community on the enrichment of uranium. In addition, the trials against opposition politicians continue, and BERLIN 00001499 003 OF 004 on Sunday, the biggest-ever maneuver began in which the armed forces are testing the defense against air strikes on nuclear power plants. With this attitude, Iran seems to justify the view of all those in Israel and the West who consider talks with Iran a waste of time and see the regime in Tehran as a threat to the West and Israel in particular. But representatives of this view are provoking the things they want to prevent: an escalation and thus a danger for peace. They totally ignore the reasons for Iran's attitude.... Such talks can be successful only if one knows the views and fears of the other side. From Tehran's point of view, the situation is threatening. The United States has militarily encircled Iran, its forces are in Iraq and Afghanistan, the Persian Gulf and the Indian Ocean, and the U.S. allies nearby, Pakistan, India and Israel have nuclear weapons. In the case of Iran, there has been no evidence that it wants to build the bomb. And second, there is no apparent reason why Iran should use the bomb, given the military situation in the region. Opposition politicians, who are under pressure, are asking the West not to intensify sanctions or attack Iran. The pressure of sanctions resulted in Ahamdinejad becoming president. The regime uses this as a pretext to eliminate the opposition and discredit them among many Iranians." ¶5. (U.S.-India) Singh in Washington Frankfurter Allgemeine's (11/24) Washington correspondent Matthias Rb reported under the headline: "A little Bit of Nostalgia," and wrote: "People in Washington are generous with symbols, even if this results in stretching the protocol. High-ranking U.S. government officials told the media that this was the first state banquet President Obama has given for a state visitor since coming to office in January. But the fact that Washington is showering India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with all kinds of affection laid down in the protocol should not be considered something to cheer him up. Of course, Delhi knows that Obama only recently returned from a trip to East Asia whose main focus was China. In India, many commentators are worried that a cooling down will take place in Indian-U.S. relations under President Obama following the almost spectacular development in relations under President Bush. In Delhi, the main concern is that, under Obama, the security policy focus in the region could transfer to the fight against al-Qaida and the Taliban and that Washington, in the conflict between Pakistan and India, could take side with Islamabad. For India, for instance, clear U.S. support for India's desire for a BERLIN 00001499 004 OF 004 seat on the UNSC would be a more obvious sign of the significance of the partnership with India than general assurances. Delhi is reacting very sensitively, when Washington and Beijing express their joint concern about an escalation of the Indian-Pakistani conflict -- as if China should play the role of a mediator. But Washington will try to dispel these concerns. For quite some time, however, Prime Minister Singh is likely to feel some degree of nostalgia for ex-President Bush for the U.S.-Indian nuclear agreement, which can be considered a milestone and a personal legacy of Bush and Singh for U.S.-Indian relations." ¶6. (Economic) Financial Crisis Regional daily KQlner Stadt-Anzeiger (11/24) argued: "The previous crisis is not even over when we hear warning about the next crisis. Fears that another bubble could soon burst at the financial markets cannot be ignored. Incredible amounts of liquidity are available on a global scale. This is money that seeks possibilities to invest. This has little to do with the economic game of supply and demand, but this is primarily money to speculate. Neither politicians nor central bankers, let alone the banks, have used the time to build in securities. A new crisis will become even worse as ECB President Trichet is rightfully warning. The central banks must begin to make money more expensive. This is a tightrope act, but they must do it. It is their main task to find ways and means on how to get unfounded speculation, which is called greed in this crisis, under control." MURPHY