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IRAQ: East Europe Looks for its Dollar of Flesh
By Ed Holt and Martina Pisarova
BRATISLAVA, May 1 (IPS) - As the U.S. and Britain look to the spoils of the
war in Iraq, some of the countries which backed the coalition campaign
against Saddam Hussein's regime are looking for their chance to bid for
rebuilding contracts.
Many leaders in central and eastern Europe who openly supported the
military action in Iraq without a United Nations mandate, now expect reward
for that support.
President George W. Bush has promised some leaders money, and a role in
helping rebuild Iraq. But some analysts say a stronger relationship with the
U.S. will be prized as much as opportunities in reconstruction.
"The question of support was not a matter of calculation," says Alexander
Duleba, foreign policy expert at the Slovak Foreign Policy Association.
"That would be a very superficial position to take. Whether or not there
will be a couple of million dollars for backing the action against Iraq, or
whether firms from these countries get some reconstruction contracts in Iraq
were a long way down the list of reasons such a stance was taken."
The countries of central Europe, such as Slovakia, acted in their
national interest "because as small countries with a (communist) past they
are more vulnerable than the world's superpowers," he said. "It is in their
interest to be a part of strong organisations, including the EU (European
Union) and NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation)."
Ten central and east European states officially backed the U.S.-led
military action in Iraq, some providing logistic and military support by
opening airspace and allowing U.S. troops to use their airbases.
During the conflict President Bush promised money for those countries,
including Slovakia, which had supported the U.S. In a meeting with Slovak
President Rudolf Schuster in Washington April 9, Bush told Schuster that
Slovakia would have a role to play in rebuilding Iraq.
Slovakia was allocated six million dollars for its support. Slovak firms
are now hoping to bid as suppliers to some of the larger international firms
which will win contracts to help reconstruct Iraq in the coming months and
possibly years.
Other countries in the region are following suit. About 500 Polish
companies have expressed an interest in public works and oil industry
contracts. Some Polish firms want to get back more than 700 million dollars
owed to them from motorway construction in Iraq in the 1980s.
Romania wants its pre-Gulf War debts of 1.7 billion dollars paid back.
The Czech Republic is hoping for contracts to equip the Iraqi army and
police force, drawing on its experience of modernising its own Soviet-era
equipment.
The government in Slovakia has focussed on potential business for Slovak
firms. The Slovak Economy Ministry has said post-conflict contracts for
reconstruction will be a good business opportunity for them. President
Schuster has been quick to point out that any contracts would help reduce
the 17 per cent unemployment.
"We can contribute with production and development of military systems in
which we have good experience," Schuster told Bush. "A lot of jobs can thus
be created in Slovakia."
Other analysts say the country's trade can be boosted by the
reconstruction of Iraq. "Reconstruction is always a huge investment and
export opportunity," says Milan Sikuta, head of the Institute of Slovak and
World Economy at the Slovak Academy of Sciences.
But Prime Minister Mikulas Dzurinda will be looking also for less
tangible rewards for his decision to back the U.S. on Iraq - a decision that
went not only against a number of powerful states in the European Union,
which Slovakia will join next year, but against the opinion of the majority
of the country's five million people.
The U.S. is expected to recognise that. "Naturally the U.S. took note of
Slovakia's position and appreciated it," says Duleba. "If countries share
common positions in conflicts, it increases the ties between them."
The aspiring members from Eastern Europe were described as "primitive" by
French President Jacques Chirac before the war for their support for the
military action.
But their stand has almost certainly strengthened their hands in NATO,
and may have speeded the resumption of dialogue between the U.S. and Europe.
"From the U.S. point of view this stance shows them who are the allies they
have in Europe," says Duleba. (END/2003)
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