European allies seek to bolster Powell

By Paul Taylor

LONDON (Reuters): European governments are making a concerted effort to bolster U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell in the hope that his moderate foreign policy line will prevail in a divided Bush administration, officials say.

Powell told the European allies just what they wanted to hear on the contentious issues of Iraq, missile defense, the Balkans, relations with Russia and European defense at his first meetings in Brussels last week.

But officials in several EU governments, speaking on condition of anonymity, said they were not sure how far Powell spoke for the whole administration and were keen to support his position against hardline Republican ideologues.

"We liked what Powell said, but at times it sounded almost too good to be true. Are we getting the whole story? Is everyone in the Bush team on board?," one European policymaker said.

A senior official in another EU capital said his government wanted Europeans to rally behind Powell's proposed policy of "smart sanctions" on Iraq because "it is bound to come under fire in the United States for being too soft and dovish".

On his maiden trip to the Middle East and Europe, Powell soothed allies' fears that the Republican administration would be trigger-happy on Iraq, seek an early exit from the Balkans, rush ahead to build missile defenses disregarding European and Russia objections, and oppose a European rapid reaction force.

He assured his interlocutors he wanted to ease the plight of the Iraqi people while refocusing sanctions to prevent President Saddam Hussein rebuilding weapons of mass destruction.

In a clear message that Republican campaign rhetoric about leaving Balkan peacekeeping to the allies can be relegated to history, he said the U.S. and European allies went into the Balkans together "and we will come out together".

Powell promised close allied consultations, and talks with Russia and China, before the United States decides on any missile defense system, and he endorsed EU plans to create a force to tackle crises that NATO does not want to handle.

"It was music to the Europeans' ears," an EU foreign policy official said.

"But I think we still have a degree of uncertainty about U.S. policies, which are still being formulated. Powell is perceived as the man in charge. The Europeans want to support him -- not necessarily because they feel he is in a minority but because they like what he is saying," the official said.

U.S. officials have since confirmed that Iraq policy is still under review and that the removal of sanctions on civilian goods mooted by Powell was only part of the likely policy mix.

President George W. Bush gave his personal blessing to the European rapid reaction force when British Prime Minister Tony Blair visited him at Camp David last month.

But EU officials are not sure that means Washington will be willing to lean on non-EU member Turkey to drop its veto on the European force having automatic access to NATO assets.

Some European officials said they were concerned Powell was apparently not involved in the decision to launch U.S.-British air strikes on targets near Baghdad last month. They fear that hardliners in the Pentagon, White House and Congress have not said their last word on Iraq, or on European defense.

Vice President Dick Cheney, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and his deputy, Paul Wolfowitz, have all in the past endorsed the aim of arming and actively supporting Iraqi opposition groups trying to overthrow Saddam.

"The game isn't over yet, but these guys are realists. The Iraqi opposition is so weak that I don't believe they will risk committing U.S. forces in pursuit of regime change," a senior European government official said.

The Europeans did not agree with everything Powell said, diplomats noted. Few believe it is safe or realistic for the United States to pull back from energetic involvement in Israeli- Palestinian peace negotiations.

France still has objections to the whole idea of missile defense, which it sees as endangering strategic stability. Germany and Britain are inclined to bow to what they see as the inevitability that Washington will develop such a system and try to influence the process to safeguard European interests.

Several European officials expect battles with the Bush administration on trade and environment policy, even if they are reassured on security issues.

A former senior Clinton administration official said the Europeans probably had good grounds to feel reassured, since signs were that the Republican ideologues were having more sway on policy towards Asia than on Europe or the Middle East.

He said the Bush team was looking at Asia with an "outdated Cold War mentality" and could make serious mistakes.

Apparently overruling Powell, Bush this week ruled out an early return to talks with North Korea on curbing its ballistic missile program, questioning whether the secretive Communist state would honor any agreement.

The former official said the Republicans were likely to step up rhetoric against China, sell more advanced weapons to Taiwan and put pressure on Japan to rearm and play a larger role as junior partner to the United States in Asian security.