Iraq Becomes a Campaign Issue

In recent days, German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder has repeatedly made it clear that Germany is opposed to a U.S. attack on Iraq.

"We are prepared to show our solidarity," he said. "But this nation will not be available for an adventure while under my leadership."

This would even be the case if the United Nations passed a mandate for an attack on Iraq, Schröder added. Germany would also not participate financially in supporting the military operation.

"The times of checkbook diplomacy are over for good," he said over the weekend.

Schröder's conservative challenger Edmund Stoiber has accused the Chancellor of drawing the Iraq issue into the election campaign for tactical purposes.

Yet Stoiber's own foreign policy advisor Wolfgang Schäuble also contributed to the debate by stating over the weekend that Germany would "participate appropriately" in a military assault on Iraq should the U.N. pass a mandate.

Schäuble also criticized Schröder for making Iraq a campaign issue at a time when the world community should be pressuring Baghdad to open up to weapon inspections by U.N. monitors.

Tit for tat

Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer claims Schäuble got the ball rolling by making these statements.

"I had hoped for more restraint on his part," he said. Now, the debate is on the agenda and needs to be addressed objectively, Fischer added.

This led Chancellor Schröder to state that "the German people had the right to know what political leaders in the country want, what they are willing to do and what they don't want."

After all, the next NATO summit will be held on September 23 - just one day after German elections - and will lead to key decisions on further action in the Gulf region, Schröder said.

Fischer (photo), the leading figure of the junior coalition Green party, said the federal government had held back on detailed statements regarding Iraq for a long time.

Only Schäuble's "rush" to claim Germany's participation in an attack had made a response necessary. He said it was a "rash commitment" by Schäuble and went against the goal of allowing Europe to speak with one voice on the issue.

Stoiber for his part stressed that Schäuble had not spoken of actually sending combat troops to Iraq.

War versus peace

Schäuble said the Social Democrats (SPD) were "abusing a serious issue". Schröder's statements only served to push the conservatives into a "warmongering corner", he claimed, while the SPD presented itself as "the party of peace".

Guido Westerwelle, head of the opposition liberal market Free Democrats (FDP), Stoiber's possible coalition partners, said it was irresponsible to profit from the fear of a conflict in the Gulf region.

The party's general secretary, Cornelia Pieper, accused the red-green coalition government under Schröder of wanting to divert the attention from "domestic failure" by concentrating on foreign policy issues.

The timing of the Iraq debate does indeed seem to point in this direction, considering that no decision is imminent on the issue. After potential Pentagon attack plans were leaked to the American press last week, administration officials assured reporters there were no plans for any action before US Congressional elections this Fall.

But the big question is whether Schröder stands to win any points with German voters on his foreign policy stance.

With unemployment expected to top 4 million in the next week, the sluggish economy appears to be much more of an immediate concern.