Thread: What Happens at the U.N. When Bush and Clinton Collide

http://time-blog.com/allen_report/2006/ ... brush.html

September
2010:29 am

Clearing the Diplomatic Brush: What Happens at the U.N. When Bush and Clinton Collide

Posted by Mike Allen
Former President Bill Clinton was holding court in a hallway at the soul-deadening United Nations complex in Manhattan on Tuesday when his Secret Service agents started to stir. Another Secret Service detail was coming down the elevator, accompanying his successor.

"Look who's here!" President George W. Bush called out merrily. The William J. Clinton foundation is based in New York, and No. 42 is taking over a Sheraton this week for the second annual edition of his Clinton Global Initiative, which aims to change the world by focusing the attention of 50 heads of state, a smattering of celebrities and other leaders on energy and climate change, global health, poverty alleviation, and mitigating religious and ethnic conflict. First Lady Laura Bush helps him kick off the three-day gathering Wednesday, an invitation that came partly in reciprocation for asking him to speak last year at the Texas Book Festival, which she founded.

So Clinton had a few things on his mind but he roared a friendly greeting to No. 43. The President was dashing out of a luncheon early and heading back to his hotel for a meeting with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani, who was hitching a ride in the White House motorcade.

"Have you met Talabani?" Bush asked Clinton, using a casual shorthand that might be startling if you weren't used to the President's gregarious approach to personal diplomacy. The discouraging news about Iraq continues, including the statement by Gen. John Abizaid, who oversees the U.S. Central Command, at breakfast with defense reporters on Tuesday that the number of American soldiers in-country – now up to 140,000 -- is unlikely to go down before next spring.

But at least for an hour, the President got to bask in adulation from Talabani, who saluted him before cameras as "the hero of liberation of Iraq." Talabani went on to say his people "very much appreciate the sacrifice of brave American army, those who gave their life to liberate our country from the worst kind of dictatorship." Bush had introduced him to reporters by saying: "History will judge you kindly, Mr. President, when they look back and realize that under your leadership a new democracy began to flourish in the heart of the Middle East, called Iraq."

In keeping with White House custom, they were appearing before a pair of Iraqi flags and a pair of U.S. flags, meeting cameras after the non-public part of the meeting, which included about eight delegation members and translators on each side. Aides later revealed that Bush and Talabani had a brief one-on-one as well.

Meghan O'Sullivan, Deputy National Security Advisor for Iraq and Afghanistan, told reporters later that the two had begun talking through an Arabic interpreter. "But I'd say about 20 minutes into the meeting, Talabani sort of leaned forward in his seat, and the President kind of leaned forward in his seat, and they just started talking in English," O'Sullivan recalled. "I think they were feeling that the pace of their exchange and what they wanted to say was being slowed down by the translation."

O'Sullivan was then asked about a statement the President had made during his availability with Talabani. "I spoke today at the United Nations, and in my speech I spoke directly to the people of Iraq," he said. " … I want them to know we appreciate their courage. And I want them to know that the United States of America stands with them, so long as the government continues to make the tough choices necessary for peace to prevail."

Reporters perked up their ears when they heard the "so long as" part. Olivier Knox of Agence France-Presse drew laughter from the press corps when he told O'Sullivan that "sounds like conditional love to me."

"That's something that has been in a lot of the President's comments," O'Sullivan replied, suggesting this was not new news, but also not disabusing him of his interpretation. "And I think it reflects the reality that the Iraqis have a lot of difficult decisions to do, these are hard decision to make, and that we need to both encourage and urge them to take on these decisions. … We look at the security situation and recognize that part of this has a security solution, but a security solution won't be the whole solution. It's got to be a political one, as well, it has to be an economic one, as well."

Jim Rutenberg of The New York Times followed up by asking if there is a "kind of if/then … that if they don't rise to the challenge, the U.S. will be less inclined to continue helping?"

"There was no 'if/then' in the conversation that happened today," O'Sullivan responded. "I don't think there was anything threatening about it. It was constructive." The President was headed back to Washington in late morning after a meeting with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas

Talabani leaned over and said, “George you are mispronouncing my name again”.

Dixie