By Edward Alden, Stephanie Kirchgaessner and Demetri Sevastopulo in Washington
Published: March 9 2006 18:28 | Last updated: March 9 2006 20:32
The United Arab Emirates on Thursday bowed to growing political pressure in the US and ordered state-controlled Dubai Ports World to relinquish control of the five US port terminal facilities it has acquired as part of its take-over of P&O of the UK.
The surprise decision came amid strong signs in Washington that the Republican-controlled Congress was set to reject pleas from President George W. Bush and block the company's acquisition of the US port operations.
Edward Bilkey, the company's chief operating officer, said in a statement: "Because of the strong relationship between the UAE and the US and to preserve that relationship...DP World will transfer fully the US operation of P&O Ports North America Inc. to a US entity." He said the decision was made by Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, prime minister of the UAE and ruler of the emirate of Dubai.
The statement was read in the US Senate by John Warner, Republican chairman of the armed services committee, who helped broker the compromise.
DP World, which had insisted it would maintain control of the US ports, made the move after finalising its $6.8bn takeover of Britain's P&O on Thursday.
The US ports facilities were only a small portion of P&O's global holdings but their acquisition by an Arab company sparked a storm of protest from lawmakers who said it could endanger US security.
The action came as Republican lawmakers, including Dennis Hastert, House speaker, warned following a White House meeting on Thursday that they could not support Mr Bush on this issue. Mr Bush's popularity fell to the lowest levels of his presidency last week.
A House committee on Wednesday voted 62-2 to block the ports acquisition as part of a must-pass emergency spending bill for Iraq and Hurricane Katrina aid, and the Senate was set to consider a similar amendment yesterday. Charles Schumer, Democratic senator and critic of the deal, said he would have to examine the proposal, but added: "If the US operations are indeed fully independent in every way, that could be promising."
The US success in blocking the ports acquisition could have lasting diplomatic repercussions with the UAE, one of Washington's key allies in the volatile Middle East region.
At a Senate hearing on Thursday before the announcement, Mr Bush's national security officials warned that the statements and actions by members of Congress were harming relations with a country that Peter Pace, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, called "vital to our defence".
Donald Rumsfeld, secretary of defence, urged the Senate not to follow the House move on the Dubai deal, saying that, while he did not know how the UAE would react, the country was a critical ally in a region.
--
RSVP-Répondez s'il vous plaît,
Selv om jer lave ikke ser helst sådan emails , behage fjerne sig.
If you do not prefer such emails, please delete them.
Non-Muslims, PRACTISE EQUAL religious tolerance
Los no-musulmanes, la PRACTICA IGUALA la tolerancia religiosa,
Nicht Muslim, ÜBT GLEICHE religiöse Toleranz,
Ikke-Muslims, ØVER LIK religiøs toleranse,
Non-musulmani, la PRATICA UGUAGLIA la tolleranza religiosa
Não-muçulmanos, PRATIQUEM tolerâncias religiosas IGUAIS
Syed Imran Ali,
marketing research specialist & analyst
emails: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ; [EMAIL PROTECTED]; [EMAIL PROTECTED]
