WSJE(2/3) Column:The Birth Of The `Letter' That Shook Europe
03 Feb 00:32
By Michael Gonzalez
(Editor's Note: Mr. Gonzalez is deputy editor of The Wall Street Journal
Europe's editorial page.)
The letter we published last week from eight European leaders in support of
U.S. policy toward Saddam Hussein created a major storm in Europe. Some media
figures in France and Germany, bitter that the rest of Europe is no longer
following the lead of Jacques Chirac and Gerhard Schroeder, allege that the
inspiration for our journalistic effort came from George W. Bush.
---
Let's be done with that right away. The Journal is an independent newspaper
and doesn't carry water for any government. Our editorial pages take forthright
positions and we happen to believe that the Bush administration is right in
focusing on Iraq as a source of terrorism and a potential source of biological
and chemical weapons. As to the letter from the European leaders, we initiated
it. President Bush commands an effective diplomatic corps and doesn't need
journalists to do his work for him.
But clearly readers would like to know the genesis of the letter and how it
came to appear on our editorial pages in Europe, the U.S. and Asia. Indeed,
since it became known that we at The Wall Street Journal Europe had
commissioned this piece my phone hasn't stopped ringing. Therese Raphael,
editor of the WSJE editorial page, has also been beset with inquiries.
So here's what happened. About two weeks ago, I placed a call to a source in
the Italian government. I asked right away, "So are you going to let the French
and the Germans speak for all of Europe? Why doesn't Silvio Berlusconi write us
a piece with his views?" His response was very Italian, "Geez, Mike. That's it?
No happy New Year or nothing?" So we talked.
I was referring to the fact that, about a week earlier, Mr. Chirac had
performed one of his famous mid-air pirouettes and had landed firmly behind
Germany's pacifist chancellor, Mr. Schroeder. This is the same man who, about a
week before that, had told his troops to get ready for war in Iraq.
After that I dialed a source at the Spanish government and put the idea to
him too. Out of those conversations the idea emerged of having an article
written by the prime ministers of Spain, Italy and the U.K.
Terri Raphael, whose office is in London, sent an e-mail to Mr. Blair's media
"guru," Alastair Campbell. His answer was a let-down: "I regret that due to
other media commitments at this stage, the prime minister won't be able to do
this. Sorry to send a disappointing reply."
So on Jan. 25, I was at a museum, trying to ease my disappointment with a
dose of Brueghel and Rubens, when my wife's cellphone rang. Someone in Madrid
had been frantically trying to reach me. I called back dejectedly, to tell my
source that we'd been turned down by Mr. Campbell. But his news was different.
"The prime ministers are working on a first draft," he said. "When [Prime
Minister Jose Maria Aznar] called Blair yesterday they decided that it would be
good to bring in other people too." I gulped.
The next days were frantic, with Terri and I calling sources in the three
capitals every day to get the status of the project. The eagle finally landed
on Wednesday, when nearly identical drafts arrived from Madrid and London. We'd
been told there might be six signatures. When Vaclav Havel of the Czech
Republic came in at the last moment, there were eight. Two other governments,
Slovakia and Latvia, have added their support since we published the letter.
I don't mean to sound condescending, but it's been amusing to read French and
German journalists, notably in Liberation and the Frankfurter Allgemeine
Zeitung, speculate that the White House put the Journal up to this. A TV
journalist asked me if that were true, repeatedly, on Belgium's main afternoon
news show. I suggested that the improbability of her theory was proved by the
fact that a U.S. government official called us Thursday morning and had asked
how the letter came about. The anchorwoman shot back, "So you do admit that
Washington has contacted you?" Oh brother, I thought.
The Greek government, which holds the presidency of the European Union, was
supposedly miffed that he wasn't consulted on the letter. Prime Minister Costas
Simitis and Foreign Minister George Papandreou are admirable statesmen. But
after our initial request, the project took on a life of its own under the
guidance of the three prime ministers.
Our role was as a facilitator. Our request struck a chord with national
leaders who'd become aware that Messrs. Schroeder and Chirac had been widely
portrayed in the press as speaking for Europe. The leaders of Europe who don't
share their views hadn't had their fair share of this discussion.
---
Our motives were entirely journalistic. I had just come back from a vacation
in the States and one of the things that struck me was how misinformed
Americans are about European support. Many Americans had been convinced by the
political opponents of Mr. Bush that Europeans hate America. I hope the letter
we printed informed Americans that the prevalence of "anti-Americanism" among
Europeans has been grossly exaggerated. The leaders who signed it took a stand
on principle, but as politicians they are attuned to the political currents in
their countries. We can only assume that they were speaking on behalf of their
electorates.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
02-03-03 0032ET |
