Merkel calls for the Guant.Bay detention center to be closed

[MIKE BURN]

Whoever thought Chancellor Merkel would be 'softer' than Schröder:



http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,1849687,00.html



German Chancellor Angela Merkel has criticized the United States for some of its tactics in the fight against terrorism and called for the Guantanamo Bay detention center to be closed in an interview published Saturday.



Just days before she is due to visit the United States for the first time since becoming German chancellor, Angela Merkel has come out with heavy criticism of US tactics in the fight against terrorism, specifically calling for the US to close its Guantanamo Bay prison camp and find other ways of dealing with terror suspects.



Merkel, in an interview the weekly magazine Der Spiegel published on Saturday, said: "An institution like Guantanamo can and should not exist in the longer term. Different ways and means must be found for dealing with these prisoners."



The tone of her comments shows that while she has maintained that repairing the damaged transatlantic relationship is a priority of her foreign affairs agenda, the chancellor will not be shying away from speaking out on issues where disagreement exists.



Repairing damaged a relations a priority but not at any cost



Relations between Germany and the United States reached a post-war unprecedented low during the chancellorship of Merkel's predecessor Gerhard Schröder who adopted a strong anti-war stance on the issue of Iraq to win the 2002 general election. Consequent battles of will over the US-led invasion dragged the two countries into an acrimonious spat which lasted for most of Schröder's prematurely ended second term.



Merkel's comments also reflect a widespread skepticism in Germany about the way the US is fighting its "war on terror." Recent scandals centered on the CIA's "extraordinary rendition" strategy -- which had particular resonance in Germany due to the abduction and detention of German citizen Khaled el Masri -- and alleged secret prisons in Europe have injected further unease.



There has also been a long-standing opposition in Germany to the use of the Guantanamo Bay detention centre in Cuba from human rights activists and many figures in the German government.

[Galmin]