EU concealed deal with US to allow 'rendition' flights (Telegraph)

[wookie294]

By Justin Stares in Brussels and Philip Sherwell in Washington
(Filed: 11/12/2005)

The European Union secretly allowed the United States to use transit facilities on European soil to transport "criminals" in 2003, according to a previously unpublished document. The revelation contradicts repeated EU denials that it knew of "rendition" flights by the CIA.

The EU agreed to give America access to facilities - presumably airports - in confidential talks in Athens during which the war on terror was discussed, the original minutes show. But all references to the agreement were deleted from the record before it was published.

The issue of "rendition" flights - in which terror suspects are flown to secret bases and third countries for interrogation - overshadowed last week's fence-mending visit to Europe by Condoleezza Rice, the US Secretary of State.

Asked in Parliament last week about reports of 400 suspect flights passing through British airports, Tony Blair said: "In respect of airports, I don't know what you are referring to."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2005/12/11/wrendition11.xml&DCMP=EMC-new_11122005

[drduffy]

1. Blair is such a

panty waist piece of shit. Lickin the big B's Butt.

sorry about the vulgarity..... no I take that back. BushCo and Blair are more vulgar than anything I could ever imagine to say.

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

2. This is indeed true.

However, it appears that the EU's hands aren't clean in this matter either.

[Jersey Ginny]

3. Discouraging

I'm not surprised about the EU countries, but I am discouraged. Were there any countries that said "no" to this?

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

5. It isn't exactly clear what they said "yes" to.

If it was just permission to use airport resources in a general sense, or even for transport of prisoners to/from the US and their countries of origin, that's one thing. The whole problem with the rendition program is the shipment of prisoners to thrid countries for no reason other than the ability to use harsher interrogation techniques and torture. It doesn't seem clear that the EU understood that this was what was going to happen. Of course, once it became clear that the rendition program existed, the EU was definitely in a bind.

[plasticsundance]

4. I had a sense of this

The way the European nations were so willing to let Rice off the hook. The EU is doing its best to down play this revelation, but they also realize that they have a more outspoken populace than the US. If the people see their leaders as playing along with such a disrespected leader as Chimpy-in-Chief, these same leaders know the political price.

It's always the cover-up. It also shows a sense of desperation among the Western leaders.

[htuttle]

6. I think that's the truth of it

EU leaders don't *fundamentally* disagree with the right of powerful nations to attack weaker ones. Heck, Chirac had no qualms about helping Bush to overthrow Aristide in Haiti.

But people in Europe hold their leaders to account far more than here, so they couldn't support Bush openly. The one exception I can think of in Europe is Zapetero in Spain (after Aznar was thrown out after the invasion).