News and Document archive source
copyrighted material disclaimer at bottom of page

NewsMinewar-on-terrorunited-statesdissent — Viewing Item


Schroeder apologizes for hitler comparison

Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)
   http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/nm/20020920/wl_nm/germany_hitler_dc_7

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/nm/20020920/wl_nm/germany_hitler_dc_7

Schroeder Apologizes to US for 'Hitler Comparison'
Fri Sep 20, 4:05 PM ET
By Kevin Liffey

BERLIN (Reuters) - German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder apologized to President Bush ( news - web sites) on Friday for the offence caused by a report that his justice minister had compared Bush's methods to Hitler's.

The election-eve report in a regional daily angered a U.S. administration already upset about the center-left chancellor's voluble -- and highly popular -- opposition to a prospective U.S.-led war in Iraq.

Justice Minister Herta Daeubler-Gmelin tried to calm the transatlantic row on Friday by denying the report.

But reporters pressed her for over an hour on what appeared to be not only a breach of a German political taboo but a sharp affront to democratic Germany's long-time ally and guarantor.

White House spokesman Ari Fleischer ( news - web sites) called the remarks "outrageous and inexplicable" and Secretary of State Colin Powell ( news - web sites) rang German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer to complain.

The report said Daeubler-Gmelin had told a pre-election gathering that, by threatening to attack Iraq, "Bush wants to distract attention from his domestic political problems. That's a favorite method. Hitler did that too."

Schroeder wrote to Bush, saying: "I want to let you know how much I regret the fact that alleged comments by the German justice minister have given an impression that has offended you."

SHADOW ON RELATIONS

He said he had accepted Daeubler-Gmelin's denial and added, according to a German text provided by his office:

"Let me assure you that there is no place at my cabinet table for anyone who makes a connection between the American president and such a criminal."

Daeubler-Gmelin told reporters: "It is absurd and slanderous to connect me to a comparison between a democratically elected politician and Nazi leaders...I deeply regret that this has thrown shadows on German-American relations."

She said she had "great respect" for Bush and called U.S. ambassador Daniel Coats to say she had been misrepresented.

But it is not the first time in recent months that Coats has had to address fears of a deterioration in relations between two countries whose alliance rests on decades of Cold War cooperation against Soviet communism.

Schroeder angered Washington -- and earned opposition accusations of cheap electioneering -- by saying he would not lead Germany into a military "adventure" against Iraq and questioning whether the United States had a plan for Iraq after it had toppled President Saddam Hussein ( news - web sites).

For his part Schroeder -- who put his government on the line last year to win parliament's approval for German troops to join the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan ( news - web sites) -- has told Washington he is fed up of learning about its "changes of strategy" in the press.

U.S. officials say privately that Bush and his national security adviser Condoleezza Rice ( news - web sites) are angry and offended.

Klaus Naumann, former chairman of the military committee of the transatlantic NATO ( news - web sites) alliance, told the Tagesspiegel daily:

"I've just come from Washington, and I can tell you that relations are very badly damaged."

PRE-ELECTION MOOD

Opposition leaders demanded Schroeder sack his minister, but it remains to be seen whether the row will in any way hurt his re-election chances in Sunday's cliffhanger election.

His opposition to a military strike has touched a nerve in a nation scarred by two world wars. Many Germans are also critical of what they see as Bush's isolationism, for instance by rejecting international treaties on justice or the environment.

The daily Schwaebisches Tagblatt, which is based in Daeubler-Gmelin's constituency, admitted to being sympathetic to the minister and to some criticism of Bush.

But it said on its Web site that it had confirmed her comments with several trade unionists who attended the debate.

Editor-in-chief Christoph Mueller said the reporter had even given her the opportunity to dictate her own version of the comment, which she had approved when it was read back to her.

But he told Reuters she had later gone to see the paper to try to withdraw her comments entirely.

Daeubler-Gmelin denied having authorized any quote.

She told reporters that, in a discussion with union members, she had mentioned public debate in the United States about how foreign policy could divert attention from domestic problems: "I then said that we have known this debate since 'Adolf Nazi'."

She said she had seen that people in the group appeared to have misunderstood this, and then insisted that no comparison or connection could or should be made between Hitler and Bush.



3 04 03 yankee hphoto [jpg]
America is weakest link { May 16 2002 }
American war is great charade { July 14 2002 }
Arabs boycott US goods { July 28 2002 }
Arabs responds with mecca cola { December 31 2002 }
Argentina burned treasury secretary photo { August 6 2002 }
Armed man looking for general franks
Arrogant uncle sam needs new image { July 30 2002 }
Athletes told not to wave flag at olympics
Bags and shirts for embarrsed americans going to france
Blast rips indonesian mcdonalds { December 5 2002 }
Brazil fined american for gesture
Britain blames US for world poor { August 26 2002 }
Bush poor image overseas { February 24 2003 }
Cronkite warns ww3
Egyptians hold unfavorable view of US { July 23 2004 }
Eu furious with bush speech { February 9 2002 }
Explosions rock moscow mcdonalds { October 19 2002 }
Four marines gang stabbing attack { July 31 2003 }
French farmer ransacked mcdonalds { August 1 2002 }
Germans call US police state { May 6 2003 }
Germans place miniature US flags in dog poo
Join_war [jpg]
Lebanon mcdonalds rocked
Local soldiers attacked { April 11 2003 }
Marines attacked by gang members
Nazi US flag [jpg]
Negative feelings have grown since iraq war began { March 17 2004 }
Nkorea says treat is excuse for war spending { February 8 2002 }
Opinion of us abroad is falling { March 17 2004 }
Powell heckled summit { September 4 2002 }
Powell summit [jpg]
Powell tells europe to stop bashing american { May 18 2002 }
Probe anti americanism
Puerto rico mob attacks marines { April 23 2002 }
Rift between US and world { June 3 2003 }
Saudi boycott hits US exports
Saudi boycott of US spreads { May 14 2002 }
Schroeder apologizes for hitler comparison
Somalis cheer at blackhawk movie { January 23 2002 }
State dept seminar on anti americanism { August 30 2002 }
This war is on terrorism is bogus { September 6 2003 }
Time poll 1 17 03 great danger [jpg]
Us and israel beat axis of evil { October 31 2003 }
US approach to terrorism creates hate
Us slams german for hitler comment { September 19 2002 }
US voted of UN human rights panel
World image of US declines { December 5 2002 }
World view of US deteriorated internationally { January 23 2007 }

Files Listed: 49



Correction/submissions

CIA FOIA Archive

National Security
Archives
Support one-state solution for Israel and Palestine Tea Party bumper stickers JFK for Dummies, The Assassination made simple