US envoy annoys Europe again
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.MICHAEL SHERIDAN
Diplomatic Editor
The skirmish - it is hardly a war - of words between the US envoy Richard Holbrooke and assorted European governments continued yesterday when Mr Holbrooke asserted that only American intervention had brought peace to the former Yugoslavia.
An embarrassed State Department in Washington has pointedly declined to endorse Mr Holbrooke's recent critical comments about Europe's performance in hours of crisis. But quiet satisfaction in the Foreign Office over this bureaucratic solidarity has been offset by the patent truth of some of the envoy's plain speaking.
Denying that he was "patronising" Europeans, Mr Holbrooke insisted that the institutions of Europe were not yet fit for the task of international order. He said it was only "when the United States ... engaged in complete concert with Britain and France that we finally began to move forward". He added that the collapse of Yugoslavia signalled "the greatest collective failure of the West since the 1930s".
Mr Holbrooke, who was due to dine with Malcolm Rifkind, the Foreign Secretary, in London last night, earlier accused the Europeans of "sleeping" through the recent crisis in the Aegean between Greece and Turkey. Mr Rifkind, annoyed, authorised a statement calling Mr Holbrooke's words on that subject "nonsense". The Turkish foreign minister, visiting London yesterday, said he was happy to confirm that Mr Rifkind had been wide awake.
European officials are seething at what they see as a consistent US effort to bolster the image of the Nato-led force in Bosnia while denigrating the efforts of the European-led administrations. Tensions between the Europeans and Mr Holbrooke also continue to undermine implementation of the Dayton accords, leading to concern that warring factions could once again exploit divisions in the international community.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments