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Strategies & Market Trends : Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: mishedlo who wrote (14738)	11/3/2004 1:19:31 PM
From: ild	Respond to of 116555

Europeans Hope for Better Relations with Re-Elected Bush As US President George Bush edged closer to re-election, France, Germany and other European countries he alienated during his first four years promised today to work with the new administration. Some European leaders expressed hope that a second-term Mr Bush would reach out to the continent. But others gloomily forecast no major shift in White House policy and continued transatlantic bickering. Markets reacted with relief to the end of the long, contentious race and the possibility of a clear result for Mr Bush. Stock markets rallied across Europe and Asia and the US dollar was modestly higher today. Oil prices surged. Some allies in the US-led coalition in Iraq welcomed the possibility of a Bush re-election. Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski said “further cooperation with George Bush is good news” that would mean the continuation of strong cooperation on international issues such as the fight against terrorism. In Iraq, Deputy Prime Minister Barham Saleh said that even if Democratic challenger John Kerry scores a dramatic come-from-behind win, he expected “the general lines” of US policy in his war-torn country would remain unchanged. “Supporting Iraq and the Iraqi people against terrorism and extremism is fixed in the politics of the United States because it is demanded by the Unites States’ security and political interest,” he said on Al-Arabiya television. With the critical Ohio result not yet official, European leaders were holding back from openly congratulating a winner. But they said they would work with the new White House – even if Bush wins another term. “We have lots to do on current crises: Iraq, the Middle East, Iran, the challenges of the African continent, to rebuild, to renovate the transatlantic relationship,” said France’s foreign minister, Michel Barnier. In Germany, another staunch opponent of the Iraq war, Interior Minister Otto Schily said the US would continue to be “a very important partner, if not the most important one”. He added: “We had differences over Iraq, but we’re not looking back now – we’re looking to the future.” Russia also opposed the Iraq war, but President Vladimir Putin, warned before yesterday’s election that a Bush defeat would give “extra power” to terrorists. Denmark’s prime minister, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, also appealed for “a fresh start for the transatlantic partnership” but held firm with Mr Bush on Iraq. Denmark has 501 troops in the southern Iraqi port city of Basra, and Mr Fogh Rasmussen said: “We will stay there as long as needed so the Iraqis can be helped to become masters in their own homes.” Swedish Prime Minister Goeran Persson injected a note of gloom with a prediction that Mr Bush will not revamp his policies and that sniping between Europe and the US will continue. “This means that we could have a very dramatic situation ahead of us, not least in Iraq,” said Mr Persson, who opposed the war. “Sweden and Europe will continue to criticise Bush the same way as earlier. But I do not believe that he will be more willing to listen to it,” he added. In Indonesia, Muslim leader Syafii Maarif said a Bush win would be “a catastrophe”. “Bush has made a mess of the world over the last four years,” he said. “From our point of view, the Bush administration is a known quantity,” said Alexander Downer, the Australian foreign minister. Australia’s conservative government was one of Mr Bush’s staunchest allies and among the first to join the military coalition in the war on terror. “We’ve had a very good relationship with them for the last four years and I’m sure we’ll be able to keep building on that over the next four,” Mr Downer told Australian Broadcasting Corporation. radio. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi, another US ally in Iraq, and Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra both said their nations would have good relations with whoever wins. But Thaksin said talks on a Thai-US free trade agreement would “move forward quicker” with a Republican administration. “People worry about security because if the Republicans win, war and terrorism will escalate,” Thaksin told reporters. “I think Bush is aware of such a scenario and things will move in a better direction after the election.” Former French foreign minister Hubert Vedrine spoke for many people in Europe and around the world who had passionately hoped for a Kerry victory. “If it’s as it appears, there is a major and lasting lack of understanding between the American people and the rest of the world, in both directions,” he said. “Almost all nations, with perhaps three or four exceptions, wanted change.” news.scotsman.com