Home>News Center>World
         
 

Bush rejects German leader's suggestion to close Guantanamo prison
(AP)
Updated: 2006-01-14 08:50

President George W. Bush rejected a suggestion by Germany's new leader that the U.S. close its prison at Guantanamo Bay, saying after a first meeting with Chancellor Angela Merkel that the facility is "a necessary part of protecting the American people."

Guantanamo has become a symbol in Europe for what many see as Bush administration excesses in hunting down and interrogating terror suspects. At least one German is among about 500 foreign-born men held indefinitely at the prison camp on Cuba's eastern tip.

U.S. President George W. Bush (R) and German Chancellor Angela Merkel address a news conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington January 13, 2006. Bush said on Friday he was not going to prejudge what the United Nations Security Council would do if Iran is brought before the 15-member Council over its nuclear program.[Reuters]

"So long as the war on terror goes on, and so long as there's a threat, we will inevitably need to hold people that would do ourselves harm," Bush said at a White House press conference with Merkel.


The United States says the detainees are suspected Taliban or al-Qaida operatives or soldiers, but lawyers and rights groups say many are nonviolent victims of circumstance.

Bush and Merkel both had tough warnings for Iran over its nuclear brinksmanship.
"We will not be intimidated by a country such as Iran," Merkel said. She also condemned statements by Iran's leader challenging Israel's right to exist.

Iran threatened on Friday to end surprise inspections and other cooperation with the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency if its case goes to the U.N. Security Council over its nuclear program. The country's new hard-line president vowed his country won't be cowed by sanctions the council could impose.

Iran's tough line came as Europe and the United States were trying to build support for taking Iran's case to the Security Council. They faced resistance from China, which warned that the move could only escalate the confrontation.

"Iran armed with a nuclear weapon poses a grave threat to the security of the world," Bush said as he praised Germany for trying to help solve the crisis.

"We want an end result to be acceptable, which will yield peace, which is that the Iranians not have a nuclear weapon with which to blackmail ... or threaten the world," Bush said.

The two leaders seemed determined to get off to a good start after chilly relations between Washington and Berlin under Merkel's predecessor, the staunch Iraq war opponent Gerhard Schroeder. Their discussions also included Iraq, Afghanistan and the Balkans.

Bush was lavish in his praise of Merkel as smart, spirited and "plenty capable."
Merkel smiled but showed she is no pushover. Both she and Bush called their 45-minute, one-on-one session "candid," diplomatic code for a meeting with real debate and differences.

"We also openly addressed that there sometimes have been differences of opinion," Merkel told reporters. "I mentioned Guantanamo in this respect."

Merkel said last week that while she thinks the prison should not remain open indefinitely, she did not plan to demand its closure when she met with Bush.
"We addressed this issue openly," Merkel said. "And I think it's, after all, only one facet in our overall fight against terrorism."

That is a fight Merkel said Germany agrees is vital, although "there may sometimes be differences as to the acuteness of that danger ... and how we face up to this threat."

Neither Bush nor Merkel mentioned the outrage in Europe over reports that the CIA operated secret prisons there, where terror suspects may have been mistreated in violation of European or international human rights law.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice faced a welter of questions on that topic when she visited Berlin and other European capitals in December, and public opinion in Europe remains strongly skeptical of Washington's motives and tactics in the terror fight.

The Guantanamo prison opened four years ago, after a U.S.-led force ousted Afghanistan's Taliban militia rulers of and scattered an extensive al-Qaida terror network in the country.

Dozens of prisoners have gone on hunger strikes, which U.N. officials and rights groups is a sign that some have lost hope.

Bush challenged reporters to tour the base and see for themselves "how the folks that are being detained there are treated." Camp rules forbid any direct contact between outsiders and prisoners, which makes interviews with inmates impossible.

"These are people picked up off a battlefield who want to do harm," Bush said. He added that "a lot of folks have been released from Guantanamo."

Of the approximately 760 prisoners brought to Guantanamo since 2002, the military has released 180. Also, it has transferred 76 to the custody of other countries, such as Australia, Britain, Kuwait, Pakistan, Russia and Saudi Arabia.

Only nine have been charged with crimes, and their cases are to go before special military tribunals that many lawyers say lack basic legal protections for defendants.



Japan issues avalanche warnings after heavy snowfall
345 killed in Hajj stampede
Tokyo Auto Salon 2006 in Chiba
 
  Today's Top News     Top World News
 

Major cities eye balanced growth for next 5 years

 

   
 

Beijing's approach 'appeals to Taiwan people'

 

   
 

China's interest in Africa no 'threat' - US

 

   
 

China's forex reserves top US$800 billion

 

   
 

China may merge A-share, B-share markets

 

   
 

Thousands join campaign to name pandas

 

   
  UN Security Council powers meet on Iran atom crisis
   
  Capsule brings first comet dust to earth
   
  Pakistanis rail against deadly strike by US
   
  Japanese whaler harpoon in near-miss with protesters
   
  Turkey fights bird flu outbreak, new death probed
   
  Iraqi govt seeks to stop Saddam judge quitting
   
 
  Go to Another Section  
 
 
  Story Tools  
   
  News Talk  
  Are the Republicans exploiting the memory of 9/11?  
Manufacturers, Exporters, Wholesalers - Global trade starts here.
Advertisement
         
主站蜘蛛池模板: 国产欧美日韩一区| 成人亚洲欧美日韩在线| 亚洲国产综合人成综合网站00| 精品国产麻豆免费人成网站| 国产小视频在线观看免费| 22222色男人的天堂| 天堂8在线天堂bt| 一本一本久久a久久综合精品蜜桃 一本一本久久a久久综合精品蜜桃 | 国产精品免费看久久久| 99久久精品九九亚洲精品| 妖精的尾巴ova| 中国一级特黄毛片| 无套日出白浆在线播放| 久久国产精品免费专区| 最新无码a∨在线观看| 亚洲人成网7777777国产| 欧美日韩成人在线| 亚洲精品乱码久久久久久不卡| 男生和女生一起差差差很痛视频 | 日本在线视频WWW鲁啊鲁| 亚洲V欧美V国产V在线观看| 欧美日韩亚洲电影| 亚洲欧美日韩中文字幕网址| 激情婷婷六月天| 人人爽人人爽人人片av免费| 精品一区二区三区AV天堂| 动漫人物桶动漫人物免费观看 | 在线观看中文字幕码2023| www一级黄色片| 好好的曰www视频在线观看| 一本色道无码道dvd在线观看| 成人片黄网站a毛片免费| 中文字幕日本最新乱码视频| 无码精品日韩中文字幕| 久久久久亚洲av成人无码| 日本免费人成视频播放| 久久国产中文字幕| 日本免费中文字幕在线看| 久久久久琪琪去精品色无码| 日本人内谢69xxxx| 久久丫精品久久丫|