Posted on 03/05/2006 9:09:20 PM PST by Isara
Port Deal: America's shabby treatment of imperfect allies has boomeranged in the past. Those who'd kick the UAE out of American ports should ponder what would happen if the U.S. Navy was kicked out of theirs.
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The UAE has put itself on the line in the war on terror, which is more than can be said of some of our European "friends" whom we liberated twice and protected for six decades. When Winston Churchill was asked abut his alliance with Stalin, he famously replied that he would ally himself with Satan, if the devil was fighting Hitler.
U.S. Navy warships dock at its ports, with the UAE being the No. 2 international port for the Navy. Dubai Ports World has provided services for 700 U.S. Navy ships a year at the UAE ports of Jebel Ali and Fujairah.
The U.S. Air Force uses its airbases at Al Dhafra and Abu Dhabi. U-2 spy planes and Global Hawk unmanned surveillance aircraft have been based there along with KC-10 aerial refueling planes.
Dubai Ports World is also the primary support contractor for U.S. Air Force assets at Al Dhafra.
Look at the nearby map. The UAE is the virtual epicenter of a region from Lebanon to India that contains both our greatest hopes and our greatest threats.... no accident.. Secretary.. Rice recently visited Lebanon on her way to the UAE, or that President Bush visited the world's largest democracy, India, to ink a historic strategic partnership. ...
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We have expressed certain reservations about the port deal in the past. But in the war on terror we need all the friends we can get, particularly a nation strategically situated between a struggling Iraqi democracy and a mushrooming Iranian threat. President Bush once said either you are with us or against us. The UAE is with us.
(Excerpt) Read more at investors.com ...
Ping ~~~~
Spot on!
My ship was in Jebel Ali 13 years ago, and the entire battlegroup used it for supplies, R&R, etc. It is vital that we maintain good relations with the UAE, especially w/ Iran looming. I want to know how many naysayers have been through the Straits of Hormuz, and seen the mountains of Iran on one side and UAE on the other? We need all the friends we can get right now.
yup
We have a base in Oman....Cant say what type of aircrat fly out of there but the relationship between us and them is very good. Of course, it can change in a second (or however long it takes to draw a cartoon). I've been there a few times and although the conditions sucked I was still very appreciative of the fact that the Omanis (sp) let us fly out of there.
Right after 9/11, weren't the Dems saying that it was more important to cooperate with moderate Arab states than go after Saddam?
Lets not forget who owns the port of Long Beach......There are quite a few ports owned by foreign countries and if I didnt have a few brews in me I'd look it up.
Ah, good, many thanks - always good to get info from someone Who Has Been There, Done That.
You know what amazes me?
It has taken me over a year to obtain an immigrant visa for my wife, but it took the Bush administration only 25 days to "thoroughly" investigate and approve a deal that would hand over the management of 6 major ports in the US to a country that had two participants in 9-11 attacks.
To top that off, Sen. Lugar's office had the nerve to tell me that my wifes visa had been delayed by the "horrific" events of 9-11 and the security procedures the government was forced to put into place following those events.
Oh..the irony.
It probably took them an hour to look through your wife record, but a year to get to her record.
I think it has more to do with the fact that none of our Congressman or Senators have had to endure the process - otherwise they'd be changing things pretty damn quick.
Tuesday 15 February 2005, 19:27 Makka Time, 16:27 GMT
The Oman-US accord is likely to cause friction with Riyadh
Oman is to sign a free trade agreement with the United States in July in a move likely to irriatate Saudi Arabia.
Trade and Industry Minister Maqbul bin Ali said there would be negotiations with the US in March and April although the US Embassy in Muscat refused to confirm an agreement had been made on Tuesday.
The accord is likely to cause friction with Saudi Arabia, Oman's northern neighbour, which is opposed to fellow member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council making bilateral agreements with the United States.
The agreement will become effective in 2006 if it is approved by the US Congress, Bin Ali told a meeting of Omani business executives.
The minister added that a US delegation will visit Oman between 12-14 March to discuss the accord and an Omani delegation will hold talks in Washington on 18 April.
Last year Bahrain signed a free trade agreement with the US.
Saudi Arabia complained that such accords weakened the collective bargaining power of the Gulf Cooperation Council, a loose political and economic alliance that groups Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
The Saudi government downgraded its representation at the GCC summit in December in a move widely seen as reflecting Saudi disapproval of Bahrain's pact with Washington.
A third member of the GCC, the United Arab Emirates is negotiating for a free trade accord with the US.
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Prince, how do you read this deal and the effect it may have on our relations in the region?
Sunday 23 January 2005, 15:26 Makka Time, 12:26 GMT
Qatar and Bahrain are two GCC countries in talks with the US
Qatar is considering a free trade agreement with the US, a local newspaper has said.
The Qatari daily The Gulf Times on Sunday published an article indicating the two countries have held initial talks on the free trade pact, which could be signed this year.
Qatar's Minister of Economy and Commerce Shaikh Muhammad bin Ahmad bin Jassim Al Thani was quoted at a recent conference as saying the government considered a free trade agreement with the US vital.
"Yes, we are definitely considering a free trade agreement," he said at the Project Opportunities in Qatar conference.
The deal would also assist Qatar's economic integration into global markets, according to government sources.
"Both sides will benefit from the agreement and they will be long-term. On our side our exports will get tax relief and protection on the strength of a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the US," the sources said.
Saudi concerns
Qatar's neighbour Bahrain has also recently agreed on an FTA with the US, raising concerns among other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) members, especially Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia has threatened to slap duties on Bahraini goods The move sparked a threat by Riyadh to slap customs duties on goods from Bahrain.
Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Abd Allah bin Abd al-Aziz had also boycotted the recent GCC summit in Bahrain apparently in protest against the trade deals with the US.
The kingdom, a regional heavyweight, had accused its smaller Gulf neighbours of weakening GCC solidarity by forging separate economic and security agreements with foreign powers.
Other GCC members such as Kuwait, Oman and the United Arab Emirates plan to sign similar deals, which could further alienate Riyadh.
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Anyone with half a brain who cares ... and who's NOT in Congress or the press with an anti-Bush agenda ... can clearly see how much work is going on behind the scenes to fortify the cooperation with friendly Arab countries that's so vital to our security and the future of the free world, and Saudi Arabia looks to be losing its monopoly as our major ally in the region. Very very savvy.
It's not rocket science to see that W, Condi, Rummy and I'm sure Cheney are working around the clock on this area .. while constantly enduring the petty slings and arrows of the ignorant, tunnel-visioned, pathetic MSM.
It would be comical if it wasn't so sick .. that they're choosing to ignore the real news .. the news that matters .. that the grownups are making, while they wet their diapers and revel in their childish playground. That could very well be W and KR's strategy. God bless W and all of them and BTT!!
Ping ~~
Ding ~~
The INS is a mess and the right hand never seems to know what the left is doing. Also, some INS offices get things done faster than others.
Oooooooooooooooo...this looks VERY promising, indeed! :-)
And look at how deftly the president and his team, are separating so many nations from the thumb of Saudi Arabia! Methinks that they, the Saudis, need to get their heads out of the sand, smell the coffee, and see which way the wind is REALLY blowing! They might soon find themselves to NOT be on the side of the good guys and looking down the barrel of America's Naval cannons.
MEFTA.
Many thanks for the alert! Great finds!
The deal over the ports is more about the process, and what kind of graft is going on. The Treasury secretary and the head of the Maritime division, have made much money in the last year or so from dealings with the UAE. They stand to make much more I am sure, for pushing this through. I am sorry, but if you look into the financial entanglements of this deal, it is as crooked as a dogs leg.
Proof of these accusations? Considering how much of the "facts" being put out by the Port Deal Critics has turned out to be lies (Turning Port over to Arabs, Arabs gaining access to sensative military cargos, turning Port Security over to terrorists etc) this accusation is another Port Deal LIE.
The Treasury Sec would have to have to put his investments in a blind trust when he accepted the position. OPPS, guess they did not look at the facts before the Port Deal Hysterics came up with THAT new PR lie.
As well, the UAE should consider the ramifications of kicking us out of their ports!
Why is the converse utterly dismissed!
No critic could do better to raise support against the deal than your distemperate words could MNJ. Keep up the great work!
And of course you'd be in port alongside Bill Clinton and Jimmie Carter. Hope you are as well-"sugared" as they are in this.
It has taken me over a year to obtain an immigrant visa for my wife, but it took the Bush administration only 25 days to "thoroughly" investigate and approve a deal that would hand over the management of 6 major ports in the US to a country that had two participants in 9-11 attacks.
To top that off, Sen. Lugar's office had the nerve to tell me that my wifes visa had been delayed by the "horrific" events of 9-11 and the security procedures the government was forced to put into place following those events.
Oh..the irony.
You're talking to people that have a short memory insofar as this goes. It's funny, the article points out that "The UAE has put itself on the line in the war on terror, which is more than can be said of some of our European "friends" whom we liberated twice and protected for six decades." Yet, the fact that those countries are really no longer our allies apparently can only apply to them, but no, not the UAE or any other country. LOL I guess they're exempt.
As well, Saudi Arabia we were told what a marvelous friend of ours they were and are. We have airbases there too, yet we know today that they are, with assistance from their government, and having operated behind our backs for years, a hornet's nest of terrorist activity including training from the ground up including hating us.
But no, this can't possibly happen again if you ask the people you're arguing with. No, they know better! They're too intelligent and wise to the world to be fooled doncha know.
After all, it's business above reality. This single deal threatens to derail the world's economies! Yep! If the UAE doesn't get to operate our ports, make your doomsday plans now. Scurry along and run out and buy food and water for years to come! Sell your house, buy a tent, get all your camping gear, your survival gear, books on how to live off of the land, because you're going to need it if this deal doesn't go through soon!
; )
Oh, the irony and the humor is right!
Zenophobia has a long a shameful history in this nation.
It is shocking how little it has changed over the years.
You know what else is hysterical DM, is that we've been treated to notions that the UAE is all about business. But how much do they make off of us in their ports from sailors on shore leave to contracts for work not to mention port lease and docking fees, etc.?
Yet, we're to believe now, that all of a sudden their "shrewdness" for business goes flyin' out the window if this deal is not consummated.
Honestly, how can one not simply laugh at the folly of the arguments here.
It happens from time to time. He did sign the welfare reform bill and I agreed with that.
More hysteria coming from Johnnie. It's RNC hacks like you that are going to cause the GOP to lose Congress. The American people in both parties are overwhelmingly against this deal and your constant insults and haranguing aren't going to bring them to your side. They're a little bit smarter than you apparently give them credit for.
I read somewhere yesterday that the Chinese own the port at Long Beach, CA. The Dems thought it was just fine that we allowed the ChiComs to own one of our ports.
When Jimmah Carter gave the ChiComs the Panama Canal, Hitlery's people said that it was great with them.
******The Treasury secretary and the head of the Maritime division, have made much money in the last year or so from dealings with the UAE***
I am astounded by the ease with which you libel a member of the President's cabinet WITHOUT posting facts to prove your claim.
Lots of talk on the part of the naysayers who get their "facts" from the commies at the MSM.
Suppose you'd like to provide some links about how 100% of our containers are being inspected as you constantly imply? Nope probably won't see it except for the ususal hot air and hysteria, which is all we get from MNJohnnie who refuses to answer the question: if Bill Clinton were president and was pushing for this deal could we expect him to be so vocal in his support?
Stupidity that polls well is still stupid. CFR, No Child Left Behind and Medicare Drug Plan polled well, they are still dumb ideas. Leadership often means bringing people to where they need to be not responding to every passing new Govt expanding Legislation every time the DNC sends out a talking point.
David Sanborn, who runs DP World European and Latin operations, was an exectuve for CSX, was picked by Bush to run the Maritime administration. Madeline Albright is lobbying for this, as is Bob Dole. This deal stinks, on the surface it is a political payoff, and I am ashamed that someone can sell their "good name" for access to our country. This is something the Clintons were good at, and it seems our President is not so bad at either.
You reply made no sense at all, we're talking about the port deal. Are any of them being taken over by UAE in Minnesota as they are here in NY? This state has been hit twice with major terrorist attacks so excuse those common folk who aren't so quick to jump on the bandwagon of those who say this is all so harmless. And btw I have absolutely no doubt after reading your posts and the extreme political nature of them that if Clinton were president pushing for this nonsense you'd be jumping all over him like the rest of us.
Are you disputing the fact that the Treasury secretary benefitted from dealings with the UAE, or that Sanborn did also? A blind trust is a joke, like he did not know the players, and wasn't aware that they should have recused themselves from any decisions having to do with this deal. The facts are easily checked, they happened, the people are in the seats of power that are in control of this move, and blind trusts or not, they would KNOW that any decision they made that improved the company they previously dealt with, would improve their position financially.
:-)
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