Author Topic: US diplomats' letter to Bush (Read 1185 times)

Staga · « **on:** May 05, 2004, 05:36:57 AM »

The full text of a letter from some 50 retired US diplomats urging President Bush to reverse his Middle East policy.

[ripsnorted]

Quote

Dear Mr President:

We former US diplomats applaud our 52 British colleagues who recently sent a letter to Prime Minister Tony Blair criticising his Middle East policy and calling on Britain to exert more influence over the United States.

As retired foreign service officers we care deeply about our nation's foreign policy and US credibility in the world.

We also are deeply concerned by your April 14 endorsement of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's unilateral plan to reject the rights of three million Palestinians, to deny the right of refugees to return to their homeland, and to retain five large illegal settlement blocs in the occupied West Bank.

This plan defies UN Security Council resolutions calling for Israel's return of occupied territories.

You have placed US diplomats, civilians and military doing their jobs overseas in an untenable and even dangerous position
It ignores international laws declaring Israeli settlements illegal.

It flouts UN Resolution 194, passed in 1948, which affirms the right of refugees to return to their homes or receive compensation for the loss of their property and assistance in resettling in a host country should they choose to do so.

And it undermines the Road Map for peace drawn up by the Quartet, including the US. Finally, it reverses longstanding American policy in the Middle East.

Your meeting with Sharon followed a series of intensive negotiating sessions between Israelis and Americans, but which left out Palestinians.

In fact, you and Prime Minister Sharon consistently have excluded Palestinians from peace negotiations.

Former Palestinian Information Minister Yasser Abed Rabbo voiced the overwhelming reaction of people around the world when he said: "I believe President Bush declared the death of the peace process today".

A return to the time-honored American tradition of fairness will reverse the present tide of ill will in Europe and the Middle East - even in Iraq
By closing the door to negotiations with Palestinians and the possibility of a Palestinian state, you have proved that the United States is not an even-handed peace partner.

You have placed US diplomats, civilians and military doing their jobs overseas in an untenable and even dangerous position.

Your unqualified support of Sharon's extra-judicial assassinations, Israel's Berlin Wall-like barrier, its harsh military measures in occupied territories, and now your endorsement of Sharon's unilateral plan are costing our country its credibility, prestige and friends.

It is not too late to reassert American principles of justice and fairness in our relations with all the peoples of the Middle East.

Support negotiations between Palestinians and Israelis, with the United States serving as a truly honest broker.

A return to the time-honored American tradition of fairness will reverse the present tide of ill will in Europe and the Middle East - even in Iraq.

Because the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is at the core of the problems in the Middle East, the entire region - and the world - will rejoice along with Israelis and Palestinians when the killing stops and peace is attained.

Signatories include

Andrew I Killgore, Ambassador to Qatar, 1977-1980
Richard H Curtiss, former chief inspector, US Information Agency
Colbert C Held, Retired FSO and author
John Gunther Dean, former Ambassador to India
Thomas J Carolan, Counsel General Istanbul, '88-'92
C Edward Bernier, Counselor of Embassy, Information and Culture, Islamabad, Pakistan
Donald A Kruse, American Consul in Jerusalem
Ambassador Edward L Peck, former Chief of Mission in Iraq and Mauritania
John Powell, Admin Counselor in Beirut, '75-'76
John Gunther Dean, last position held US Ambassador to India
Greg Thielmann, Director, Office for Strategic Proliferation and Military Affairs, Bureau of Intelligence and Research
James Akins, Ambassador to Saudi Arabia
Talcott Seeyle, Ambassador to Syria
Eugene Bird, Counselor of Embassy in Saudi Arabia
Richard H Nolte, Ambassador to Egypt
Ray Close, Chief of Station Jeddah, Saudi Arabia 1971-1979
Shirl McArthur, Commercial Attache, Bangkok
Thomas J Scotes, Ambassador to Yemen 1975-1978
Robert V Keeley, Ambassador to Greece
Edward RM Kane, CIA Deputy Chief of Station in Iraq

[/ripsnorted]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3681999.stm

ravells · « **Reply #1 on:** May 05, 2004, 06:16:24 AM »

About time.

Retired people who have served their countries in government, usually have an enormous amount of experience in their fields and ought to have a collective voice to be heard, whether in opposition to the Government of the day or in support of it. Being retired they really can speak 'without fear or favour'.

Ravs

Maniac · « **Reply #2 on:** May 05, 2004, 07:40:47 AM »

Traitors.

Ecke-109- · « **Reply #3 on:** May 05, 2004, 07:47:08 AM »

Will not last long and you will see their photos, e-mail adress and telephone numbers here in.
And a request to 'have fun' with them.

Ecke

lazs2 · « **Reply #4 on:** May 05, 2004, 07:51:58 AM »

hmm... I allways thought that retired people were just people out of touch with what was happening...

Truth be told... most of em were pretty much out of touch several years before their official retirement.

lazs

GRUNHERZ · « **Reply #5 on:** May 05, 2004, 07:55:36 AM »

"to deny the right of refugees to return to their homeland"

The inclusion of this statement makes the letter very suspicious to me. If the Palestenian refugees were allowed to return to their old homes from the 1940s that would likely mean the end of the state of Israel as a Jewish nation. Thats hardly an impartial or nuanced statemt from these diplomats and is very much in contrast to the reasonable calls for US policy moderation elsewhere in the letter.

Staga · « **Reply #6 on:** May 05, 2004, 08:14:39 AM »

So Grun supports "Lebensraum"-ideology?
Somehow I'm not surprised

Staga · « **Reply #7 on:** May 05, 2004, 08:21:51 AM »

Guess who wrote this:

Quote

Without consideration of "traditions" and prejudices, it must find the courage to gather our people and their strength for an advance along the road that will lead this people from its present restricted living space to new land and soil, and hence also free it from the danger of vanishing from the earth or of serving others as a slave nation.

Quote

For it is not in colonial acquisitions that we must see the solution of this problem, but exclusively in the acquisition of a territory for settlement, which will enhance the area of the mother country, and hence not only keep the new settlers in the most intimate community with the land of their origin, but secure for the total area those advantages which lie in its unified magnitude.

Sounds like it came from Ariel Sharon's pen, doesn't it?

Surprise; it's from "Mein Kampf"; written by certain corporal.
Funniest thing is that US is supporting a country which acts almost like nazi-germany in thirties.

ravells · « **Reply #8 on:** May 05, 2004, 08:34:50 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by lazs2
hmm... I allways thought that retired people were just people out of touch with what was happening...

Truth be told... most of em were pretty much out of touch several years before their official retirement.

lazs

Bit of a generalisation there, Lazs. Many retired people do some very good work. It may be a cultural difference between us, but older people often have wisdom and experience that younger people lack.

I'm surprised you have the information available to say they were 'out of touch' before their retirement. Diplomats, when they are in service, usually play very essential roles that are 'low key' as far as public appearances and statements are concerned.

Or are you just stirring the pot?

Ravs

Duedel · « **Reply #9 on:** May 05, 2004, 08:39:45 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by Staga
Guess who wrote this:

Sounds like it came from Ariel Sharon's pen, doesn't it?

Surprise; it's from "Mein Kampf"; written by certain corporal.
Funniest thing is that US is supporting a country which acts almost like nazi-germany in thirties.

Please be carefull with such statements. Even though I'm not a friend of Isreal politcs it is totally wrong to compare this to Nazi Deutschland and u surely know why.
I hate those comparism (they only work with Bush and Hitler

). Isreal is Isreal and Nazis are Nazis.

Staga · « **Reply #10 on:** May 05, 2004, 08:50:48 AM »

... and Israel is practising "Lebensraum"-ideology thought I'm quite sure they don't call it with that term.

Duedel · « **Reply #11 on:** May 05, 2004, 09:05:22 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by Staga
... and Israel is practising "Lebensraum"-ideology thought I'm quite sure they don't call it with that term.

That doesnt make them to Nazis.

lada · « **Reply #12 on:** May 05, 2004, 09:24:08 AM »

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Originally posted by Duedel
That doesnt make them to Nazis.

sure not
it makes them on "like" nazi in eyes of msny people.

anyway how did Blair&Bush react on those letters?

im wondering nobody call them terrorist lovers yet

GRUNHERZ · « **Reply #13 on:** May 05, 2004, 09:30:26 AM »

And staga supports the holocaust against the Jewish people... You just want all those awful Jews gone, that puts a twinkle in your cold blue eyes, dont it aryan boy?

Somehow I'm not surprised.....

Duedel · « **Reply #14 on:** May 05, 2004, 09:48:04 AM »

Quote

Originally posted by GRUNHERZ
And staga supports the holocaust against the Jewish people... You just want all those awful Jews gone, that puts a twinkle in your cold blue eyes, dont it aryan boy?

Somehow I'm not surprised.....

Is this a joke or another proof of ur malfunction?