What German Papers Are Saying

Germany's editorial pages have fully taken up Bush's visit on Tuesday, and you can read SPIEGEL INTERNATIONAL's summary here . But there was a lot more than just commentary in the papers, as Germany prepares to host Bush in Mainz on Wednesday.

As part of a two-page spread looking at the historical relationship between the US and Europe, the Financial Times Deutschland runs a piece comparing the biographies of Bush and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, and says, "the two leaders could hardly be more different." On the one hand there is Bush, with principles formed through the excesses of alcohol followed by a Christian rebirth. On the other hand is Schroeder, for whom principles aren't the main thing. "He can work with everybody or against everybody, as long as it helps his cause," writes the paper. But in one regard the men are very similar -- "both leaders have fundamentally re-defined the foreign policy of their respective countries."

The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung carries a commentary by the European Union's foreign policy chief, Javier Solana. In opposition to many of the day's other commentators, Solana sees Bush's speech in a good light. "The intonation is refreshingly positive. And in diplomacy, the music is ultimately important, too." Bush's words and his visit mean that Bush values Europe as a partner, and Solana says Europe should accept the invitation and prove that as "a strong and unified partner, Europe is the best one that the US could find." The two need to work together, above all on Iran and the peace process in the Middle East. But the work is the key: "In the future, we should talk less about each other than to each other." The US and Europe have already achieved much in the fight against terrorism, and the success of working together in places like the Balkans shows how important it is to solidify the relationship. "President Bush's visit offers a great opportunity to once again create a trans-Atlantic partnership oriented towards acting together."

The German business daily Handelsblatt carries a big front page feature on Bush's call for a "new era of trans-Atlantic unity," followed by a full two pages on the visit. The "new era" phrase may go down in history as Bush's biggest speech in Europe, and the paper provides an interesting sidebar on the strong words and big gestures of presidents past. The list begins, naturally, with John F. Kennedy's famous 1963 "Ich bin ein Berliner" speech in support of West Berlin. Ronald Reagan got headlines in May, 1985, when he visited a military cemetery in Bitburg as part of his official visit -- not good headlines, though, as people were outraged that the president would visit a site where SS soldiers were also buried. More memorable internationally were Reagan's words during a visit in 1987, when he said during a speech in front of the Brandenburg Gate, "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" George Bush, Sr. also had his moments in Germany. During his (less heavily secure) meeting in Mainz in 1989, he described Germany as a "partner in leadership." Will any of the current president's words be remembered so long? Only time will tell.

And the Wednesday edition of Die Welt is going to carry a poll that says Germans trust Russian President Vladimir Putin more than Bush. If it came to a vote today (which would require a terrifying turn of events), 29 percent would vote for Putin, and 24 percent for Bush. Neither number is exactly overwhelming, but the situation is more interesting when you focus on formerly Communist eastern Germany, where Putin's numbers swell to 37 percent, and Bush's drop to just 16 percent.

The French Take

France's three daily papers went to town on Tuesday, commenting on the meaning of the Bush trip for Europe and for the relationship between Bush and French President Jacques Chirac. Although Chirac speaks flawless English and, like Bush, has a penchant for westerns and simple folk, the two have never really hit it off. During the first Bush administration, their relationship became downright icy as Chirac emerged as one of the staunchest critics of the Iraq war and France became the butt of countless American jokes.

The left-leaning Liberation begins its commentary with a blow by blow account of how Chirac and Bush sat on plush chairs at the home of the US Ambassador in Brussels Monday night and exchanged pleasantries for the cameras. At one point, reporters asked if Bush would finally invite Chirac to his ranch in Crawford, Texas, known in America as the "western White House" and reserved for true friends of the president's. Bush retorted with a smile "I'm looking for a good cowboy." But no invitation was proffered. For Liberation, Euro-American frictions are more about ends than means. "In a lot of cases, Europeans and Americans have the same objectives," the paper says. "They just differ in how to attain them." Both, for instance, want to deter Iran from getting nuclear weapons and to encourage Syria to pull out of Lebanon. "During their dinner, Bush and Chirac discussed the question of nuclear weapons in Iran and agreed that Iran must not be allowed to have them. The difference is, one wants to play the diplomatic card, the other doesn't." While not going so far as to talk about regime change in Damascus or Tehran, Bush does "seem tempted to use the big military stick rather than the diplomatic carrot that France and its diplomatic partners are offering," it says.

The conservative Le Figaro marvels at all the sweet talk being bandied about, saying, "listening to all of this lovely dialogue, one almost wonders what possibly could have been the 'passing disagreements'" cited. Indeed, says the paper, the candy-coating is a tad thick. "Isn't George Bush hamming it up a bit too much, sort of like a little child who realizes he's broken his favorite toy?" It is not only the "change of tone" that is "spectacular," says the paper. Suddenly, "George Bush has discovered that Europe exists. If that feat has taken him four years to achieve, one has to realize that the blame belongs to the Europeans. For their part, didn't it take them four years to accept that Americans would elect Bush?" The paper ends its editorial on a skeptical note. Although Bush is doing back flips to please Europe and to insist on how much America needs Europe as a partner, the paper is not convinced. "Does he really need Europe? Despite his reassurances, it is far from a given."

Le Monde leads with a large cartoon of a buffoonish-looking Uncle Sam trying to piece together a jigsaw puzzle of the European Union flag. He holds stars of exactly the same shape in his hand and tries to figure out which one goes where. The paper's main editorial also takes a seemingly simplistic argument, saying in truth, the French agree with many principles espoused by Bush, particularly the belief that the world will be better off if more places are governed democratically. What the French can't seem to stand is the way Bush makes his statements. Part of the problem is style, says the paper. "It's the triumphal, missionary and moralizing tone of the American president that is so unsupportable." The French also do not believe in promoting democracy through war and loathe the "absence of moral and political coherence" in the way America comports itself. In other words, America demands others to possess traits it does not always display, as the treatment of detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba makes clear, the paper says. Do these differences "create an unbreachable gap" between America and Europe? "Certainly not," Le Monde says.

Pullquotes

Finally, a few quotes from other editorials around the globe:

El Periódico in Barcelona

"The attempt at reconciliation in Brussels still doesn't eliminate the obstacles that stand in the way of re-establishing the trans-Atlantic relationship. The main question is whether NATO can again become a community of values as it was during the Cold War, or whether the divorce is definitive. The Europeans are advocating a new world order in which the United Nations takes the center stage. Meanwhile, the USA stands for the application of military force as a means of solving conflicts. US President George W. Bush is still pursuing his war against evil that Europeans disdain. NATO merely sees itself as its military arm. And the friendly choreography of Bush's visit can't hide the deep divergences."

La Repubblica in Rome

"During Clinton's time, Europeans still sought the blessing of the United States for their European integration process. Today they are demanding that Bush recognize this European integration, which can no longer be questioned by Atlantic allies. That's the tenor of the message that European leaders want to convey to Bush today, one in which each will also be speaking for all the others (in Europe). In that sense, it's a message that the American president, despite all signals of good will or openness, has so far been unwilling to understand. On Monday, he began his speech, in which he said he was happy to be in Brussels, the 'Belgian capital and the seat of the European institutions.' But it's when Bush is ready to call Brussels the 'European capital' that trans-Atlantic relations are far enough along to begin with a new basis."