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" BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) � Europe's foreign affairs chief, adding his
voice Thursday to criticism of Washington, called the U.S. decision to
bar opponents of the war in Iraq from reconstruction contracts
"gratuitous and unhelpful" when unity is needed.
But the British government said Washington was fully entitled to
limit construction contracts in Iraq to countries that were part of the
U.S.-led coalition.
The White House said the ban was not up for reconsideration,
though it told critics the Bush administration "will welcome the
opportunity to talk to them and explain to them about why this decision
was made."
Amid the furor, the United States postponed a conference that was
to have taken place Thursday for companies seeking reconstruction
contracts in Iraq. The conference, at which the contract requests were
to have been made public, is now scheduled for Dec. 19 at a hotel near
Washington Dulles International Airport. The delay was blamed on
scheduling conflicts.
The White House says countries wanting a share of the $18.6
billion in reconstruction contracts in the 2004 U.S. budget must
participate militarily in the postwar effort.
The European Commission called the contract ban a "political
mistake," and said it would examine the contracts to see if Washington
had violated its commitments to the World Trade Organization.
"This is a gratuitous and extremely unhelpful decision at a time
when there is a general recognition of the need for the international
community to work together for stability and reconstruction in Iraq,"
Chris Patten, the European Union's commissioner for international
relations, said through a spokesman.
French President Jacques Chirac, German Chancellor Gerhard
Schroeder and Russian President Vladimir Putin all raised the
contracting issue during previously scheduled telephone calls with
President Bush on Wednesday.
However, Britain, which says it will award contracts on merit and
has not excluded any countries, expressed support for the U.S. policy.
Foreign Secretary Jack Straw said it was up to the United States to
decide how it spent its tax revenue.
"The United States Congress is fully entitled to say the tax
dollars are spent in one way, which in this particular case is contracts
limited to those active allies in Iraq, rather than another way," said
Straw. "We have talked to them about it but the decision is for them,
not ours."
-Gel
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