Canada Can Bid on Next Round of Iraq Contracts, Bush Says
By ELISABETH BUMILLER
Photo
MONTERREY,
Mexico, Jan. 13 — President Bush reversed his administration's policy
today and said Canada would be allowed to bid on billions of dollars in
American-financed Iraqi reconstruction projects, bringing to an end a
bitter dispute with a major ally.
Mr. Bush made the announcement with the new Canadian prime minister, Paul Martin, after a breakfast meeting the two held during a conference of 34 leaders from the Western Hemisphere. Late last year, the Bush administration barred companies from nations that opposed the war — including Canada, France, Germany and Russia — from from bidding on the lucrative Iraq contracts.
But Bush administration officials said repeatedly in recent weeks that they were open to negotiations with Canada, which has pledged millions of dollars in Iraq aid. Mr. Bush cited that support in announcing his decision, which gives Canada the right to bid on a second round of contracts worth some $4.5 billion. The first round, which excluded Canada, amounted to $5 billion.
"They want Iraq to succeed, they want Iraq to be free," Mr. Bush said, sitting next to Mr. Martin at the Presidente Intercontinental, where he stayed overnight during a one-day trip to this northern industrial city in the Sierra Madre. "They understand the stakes with having a free country in the midst of the Middle East."
Mr. Martin said that "it actually does show that working together you can arrive at a reasonable solution." Mr. Martin then repeated his remarks in French, while Mr. Bush sat silently.
It was unclear on Tuesday if Canada had done something besides pledging aid that put it back into the administration's good graces, or if Mr. Bush was merely cleaning up a major diplomatic mess from December, when the Pentagon announced in a directive that it was limiting the bidding on Iraq contracts to companies from the 63 countries that had given political or military aid in the Iraq war.
Although White House officials had approved the policy, they were angry about the tone and the timing of the Pentagon's directive. Pentagon officials were in turn fuming that they were being blamed by the White House for something the White House endorsed.
Either way, Canada at that point had already pledged more than $225 million in Iraq aid, including some $80 million at a conference of major Iraq donors in Madrid. Canadian officials were shocked at their treatment, and particularly incensed by the Pentagon's explanation in a memorandum that the restrictions were required "for the protection of the essential security interests of the United States."
In the weeks since then, Mr. Bush spoke to the outgoing Canadian prime minister, Jean Chrétien, and also to Mr. Martin on his first day in office. Canada, meanwhile, pledged no additional money to Iraq, but it did move rapidly on starting projects it had announced in its aid package, including the training of 30,000 Iraqi police officers.
"What's helpful is that we're getting this done as quickly as possible," said Bernard Etzinger, the spokesman for the Canadian embassy in Washington.
Canada also has 2,000 troops in Afghanistan and has been commanding the multinational force there since August.
Sean McCormack, a spokesman for the National Security Council, said today that Mr. Bush made his decision "to recognize the important contributions of Canada and other nations at the Madrid conference in our efforts to help the Iraqis to build a better future for themselves."
Bush administration officials would not say today if France, Germany and Russia, which more actively opposed the war, would also be eligible for contracts in the future. But they left open the possibility that a major commitment of money and manpower would work in their favor.
"If they want to join our efforts on Iraq, the circumstances can change," Mr. McCormack said.
The New York Times
