Bush, Schroeder discuss Security Council reform, Iran

By Mike McCarthy Jun 27, 2005, 23:35 GMT

Washington - German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder came away from his meeting with U.S. President George W. Bush Monday satisfied that the United States does not oppose Germany's bid for a permanent seat the U.N. Security Council.

"I was very pleased, indeed, to hear that there was no opposition, - vis-a-vis Germany as such - from the president," Schroeder said through a translation during a brief press conference with the two men.

The United States has publicly supported only Japan and wants a second country to also receive permanent membership, but has not named the country. Germany wants six new permanent members added to the 15-nation council was well as four new rotating members.

"We oppose no country's bid for the Security Council," Bush said.

Other countries seeking permanent seats that could win U.S. support are Brazil and India. Some in the Bush administration, like U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, have reportedly raised concerns about German membership because it would give the European Union three votes on the powerful body, along with Britain and France.

Schroeder said he made his case for Germany by highlighting his country's stabilization efforts in Afghanistan and the Balkans and assistance with training Iraqi forces at a location in the United Arab Emirates.

"I have very much pointed out to the president what Germany does do around the world," Schroeder said.

Bush reiterated his support for the negotiations with Iran led by Britain, France and Germany aimed at preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons. The prospects for moving forward with discussions following the presidential victory of hardline Teheran Mayor Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was also discussed.

"My message to the chancellor is that we continue working with Great Britain, France and Germany to send a focused, concerted, unified message that says the development of a nuclear weapon is unacceptable and a process which would enable Iran to develop a nuclear weapon is unacceptable," Bush said.

The United States believes Iran wants to enrich uranium to build nuclear weapons and is using an energy programme to hide its intentions. Schroeder told German reporters after the meeting that everyone country had the right to develop nuclear energy. With Bush, he said that the European Union will continue being "tough and firm" in conveying a "very crystal clear" message to the Iranians about weapons.

Schroeder also emphasized that Ahmadinejad has said he's committed to the negotiations.

Prior to meeting with Bush, Schroeder said the outcome of the Iranian elections must be respected, while Washington has resoundly criticized the election because Iran's top clergy disqualified hundreds of candidates.

"It's never free and fair when a group of people, unelected people, get to decide who's on the ballot," Bush said.

The outcome of the election has raised concerns in both Washington and European capitals including Berlin that the likelihood has diminished for a resolution to the long-running concerns about Iran's nuclear ambitions.

Iran did agree to suspend uranium enrichment, an important process for building atomic weapons, in E.U. negotiations last year, but the discussion have since not produced any significant breakthroughs.

On Security Council reform, Bush said there needs to be a focus about bringing change throughout the United Nations, and Schroeder agreed on the need to introduce management and other reforms - a top priority of the Bush administration.

Schroeder, however, acknowledged there were differences over how quickly the Security Council should be expanded, saying Germany wanted to move forward at a faster pace.

Schroeder's visit comes less than three months before Germans are scheduled to go to the polls in national elections the chancellor called a year earlier than planned after his Social Democrats suffered a series of crushing defeats in state elections.

The Christian Democratic Party led by Angela Merkel is heavily favoured to unseat Schroeder, a change observers in Washington believe would be welcomed by the Bush administration.

The relationship between Bush and Schroeder as well as between the two countries was badly soured by differences over the Iraq war and Schroeder's using the issue as the focus of his 2002 re-election campaign.

But the two leaders have taken strides to put the past aside and focus on areas of cooperation, such as the negotiations with Iran.

Asked whether he wished Schroeder luck with the elections around the corner, Bush said the chancellor was "lucky" to have only a short campaign.

"The chancellor is a seasoned political campaigner," Bush said. "And if there's elections, I'm confident he knows what he's going to do out there."

Bush thanked Schroeder for his country's effort to train Iraqi police and help rebuild the country.

"The key to success in Iraq is for the Iraqis to be able and capable of defending their democracy against terrorists," Bush said. "And the training mission that the chancellor referred to is an important part of helping the Iraqis defend themselves."