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Tuesday April 30, 2:36 AM Haider wants to unite Europe's far-right, but without Le Pen Austrian far-right leader Joerg Haider called for a pan-EU far-right party to fight European parliament elections in 2004, but snubbed France's Jean-Marie Le Pen as too racist. A joint far-right electoral platform is "conceivable" and even "necessary" said Haider in an interview with the Austrian weekly Profil, calling for a "counter-program to the bureaucratic stupidities of Brussels." "All it would take would be a few well-known names standing as candidates in their countries under the name New Europe, he said, adding that there was "enormous potential in Denmark, Holland and Italy." But he distanced himself from Le Pen, the National Front leader who has caused a political earthquake in France by winning through to May 5 run-off presidential elections against incumbent head of state Jacques Chirac. "Le Pen has racist positions in his program," said Haider, who nevertheless said last week that Le Pen's first-round success was a "victory for democracy" in France. Haider's aides appear more pragmatic than the far-right leader himself. "Political wisdom requires us to make contact rapidly with the National Front," said Andreas Moelzer, one of Haider's closest aides, in the latest issue of the weekly News magazine. "It would be absurd to launch a European-wide list without that party," he added. Le Pen used an interview with the same magazine to call for a meeting with Haider, whom he praised as an "anti-Socialist wizard," saying he had always liked the Austrian's "ambitious" politics. The French far-right leader, catapulted into Haider's seat as Europe's most notorious far-righter by the April 21 success, has also expressed interest in a Europe-wide far-right alliance, tentatively called "Euronats." Both Haider's and Le Pen's offers have drawn a mixed reception from Europe's far-right parties. In Italy, Umberto Bossi's Northern League and Gianfranco Fini's Northern Alliance, both in Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's government, have ruled out any collaboration with the Austrian or French far-righters. "There is not the slightest possibility of collaborating either with Le Pen's party or with Haider's" said a National Alliance spokesman in Rome. "We have absolutely nothing in common with them," said a Northern League official. In Denmark the Danish People's Party which informally supports the right wing government, said it had had no contacts with Haider and "even less" with Le Pen. "We have deliberately refused all contact with far-right parties" said its deputy leader Peter Skaarup in Copenhagen. Skaarup told AFP his party had no interest in suporting Haider's proposal. "We defend Danish interests and we have no plans to create a pan-European party even though we have denounced the Brussels bureaucracy." In the Netherlands the party of colourful populist Pim Fortuyn said it "does not want to associate with people like Le Pen or Haider." On the other hand Belgium's Vlaams Blok "would have no objection to an alliance with the Freedom Party," said Marc Spruyt of the Flemish daily De Morgen. "Contacts already exist," said the journalist. Experts say Haider's reluctance over contact with Le Pen was more tactical than fundamental. Email this story Printer friendly version --------------------------- ANTI-NATO INFORMATION LIST ==^================================================================ This email was sent to: archive@jab.org EASY UNSUBSCRIBE click here: http://topica.com/u/?a84x2u.a9617B Or send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] T O P I C A -- Register now to manage your mail! http://www.topica.com/partner/tag02/register ==^================================================================
