Bush likely to face allies' rejection
BUCHAREST, Romania -- Unflinching from a fight, President Bush said Tuesday he fully supports proposals to put ex-Soviet states Ukraine and Georgia on the road toward joining NATO despite French and German qualms it would upset relations with Moscow.
Bush's declaration laid the groundwork for an uncomfortable showdown when leaders of the 26-member military alliance gather in Bucharest for a summit today to Friday. France refused to back down under U.S. pressure.
"France will not give its green light to the entry of Ukraine and Georgia," Prime Minister Francois Fillon said. "We are opposed to Georgia and Ukraine's entry because we think that it is not the correct response to the balance of power in Europe, and between Europe and Russia."
Bush turned up the heat on allies by making a high-profile visit to Ukraine before traveling to Romania.
Soviet-era flags were carried in the streets of Kiev on the eve of Bush's arrival, the president noted. More than half of Ukraine's population, most in the Russian-speaking east and south, is deeply suspicious of the West and opposes membership, polls show.
Brushing aside doubts in Ukraine, Bush said, "Look, this is an interesting debate that's taking place and ... as every nation has told me, Russia will not have a veto over what happens in Bucharest, and I take their word for it. And that's the right policy to have."
Ukraine and Georgia are seeking a precursor to membership known as a membership action plan that spells out what they would have to do to join the alliance. Such a plan could take years to fulfill.
"I'm going to work as hard as I can to see to it that Ukraine and Georgia are accepted into MAP," Bush said. "I think it's in our interests as NATO members, and I think it's in Ukrainian and Georgian interests, as well."
To emphasize Bush's case, the White House released excerpts of a speech he will deliver Wednesday just hours before the summit opens.
Granting Ukraine and Georgia an action plan "would send a signal to their citizens that if they continue on the path of democracy and reform, they will be welcomed into the institutions of Europe," according to the speech. "And it would send a signal throughout the region that these two nations are, and will remain, sovereign and independent states."
There were backstage negotiations to resolve an argument among NATO partners about Ukraine and Georgia; U.S. officials said they were uncertain of the eventual outcome. White House press secretary Dana Perino said Bush was not looking for a compromise.
"We are working very hard to talk with our allies and make the case," Perino said. "But it could be a clarifying moment, and that's not a bad thing, either."
Bush also urged NATO allies to embrace a missile defense plan for Europe that Russia has hotly opposed. U.S. officials have raised hopes that Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin may reconcile the differences when they meet this weekend.
Bush, in the speech, quotes U.S. intelligence officials as saying Iran is moving closer to testing an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching the United States and all of Europe, if it chooses.
"Today, we have no way to defend Europe against this emerging threat, so we must deploy ballistic missile defenses here that can," Bush said.
He said the system is not aimed at Russia. "The Cold War is over. Russia is not our enemy. We are working toward a new security relationship with Russia whose foundation does not rest on the prospect of mutual annihilation."
In Ukraine, Bush told President Viktor Yushchenko the U.S. "strongly supports your request" and a similar effort by Georgia for a path into NATO.
Russia is not a NATO member and holds no veto authority over the alliance's decisions. But all NATO actions require a consensus, meaning any one of the 26 nations can blackball a potential new member. Greece, for example, is threatening to block Macedonia's membership application because of a dispute over Macedonia's name.
Bush said it was a "misperception" that the U.S. might soften its push on behalf of Ukraine and Georgia if Russia were to ease opposition to Washington's plan for the system to be based in Poland and the Czech Republic.
"There's no trade-offs. Period," Bush said, adding that is exactly what he told Russian President Vladimir Putin in a recent telephone call.
Bush and Putin, whose successor takes over in May, are meeting Sunday in the Russian Black Sea resort of Sochi. White House officials have expressed hopes the leaders could end months of sharp disagreements and strike a deal.
As if to give a last reminder of Russia's wishes, Putin's deputy foreign minister, Grigory Karasin, said Ukraine's accession to NATO would cause a "deep crisis" in relations with Ukraine and the West.
Nine former Soviet bloc countries are in NATO, and Russia opposes Ukraine and Georgia even starting the process, fearing a further loss of influence among the former Soviet sphere.
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On the Net:
NATO summit site: http://tinyurl.com/3yuwr2
White House: http://www.whitehouse.gov/infocus/nato/