President Bush said Tuesday he fully supports proposals to put ex-Soviet states Ukraine and Georgian the road toward joining NATO despite French and German qualms it would upset relations with Moscow. Bush’s declaration laid the groundwork for an uncomfortable showdown when leaders of the 26-member military alliance gather in Bucharest, Romania for a summit Wednesday to Friday. France refused to back down under U.S. pressure. “France will not give its green light to the entry of Ukraine and Georgia,” Prime Minister Francois Fillon said. “We are opposed to Georgia and Ukraine’s entry because we think that it is not the correct response to the balance of power in Europe, and between Europe and Russia.”
Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Tuesday he would consider reopening Gaza’s border crossings if violence from the territory ceases, but defense officials warned that such a move is a long way off. The officials said Ehud Barak’s statement was aimed at bolstering the moderate Palestinian government of President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank. Barak has previously opposed opening Gaza’s borders since the Hamas militant group, which often fires rockets into southern Israel, violently seized control of the area last June.
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, returning from the southern city of Basra, claimed Tuesday that a week-old operation against Shiite militias has been a “success” despite a cease-fire that did not disarm the gunmen and left him politically battered. The Shiite leader stopped short of declaring an end to the offensive that began a week ago Tuesday in Basra, sparking retaliatory clashes in Baghdad and other southern cities, and criticism that his government was unprepared for the fierce backlash. Militia leader Muqtada al-Sadr, meanwhile, thanked his fighters for “defending your people, your land and your honor.”
The Bush administration will use its authority to bypass more than 30 laws and regulations in an effort to finish building 670 miles of fence along the southwest U.S. border by the end of this year, federal officials said Tuesday. Invoking the two legal waivers – which Congress authorized – will cut through bureaucratic red tape and sidestep environmental laws that currently stand in the way of the Homeland Security Department building 267 miles of fencing in California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas, according to officials familiar with the plan. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly about it.
