US more diplomatic towards Zimbabwe: report

US more diplomatic towards Zimbabwe: report
Philip Murombedzi
Tue, 03 Feb 2009 00:35:00 +0000

THE OBAMA administration has adopted a more diplomatic approach towards Zimbabwe than that of his predecessor, George W Bush, in a move seen as a continuation of the trend of reversing Bush administration policy.

A report by Reuters quotes unnamed U.S. administration officials saying that the Obama administration has toned down U.S. rhetoric against President Robert Mugabe, dropping a public demand for him to step down.

The Bush administration in its final days took a hard-line stance on Zimbabwe saying they could no longer support a deal that left President Mugabe as Head of State.

U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Jendayi Frazer, announced the new policy position in South Africa in December. “The power sharing agreement ... needs to be implemented with someone other than Robert Mugabe as president,” she said.

The policy shift attracted criticism from the Government of Zimbabwe which described it as “jungle politics”. The Government added that it “had no time” for then US President George Bush’s “diplomatic flute”.

The Obama administration will be “less forceful” than Bush’s administration, according to the Reuters report.

“The goal, they said, was to give southern African nations breathing space in dealing with Mugabe who has agreed on a power-sharing arrangement with Zimbabwe's opposition,” says Reuters.

President Barack Obama is yet to appoint his team of high-level African experts at the State Department and the White House.

On Friday during a daily press briefing, State Department Acting Spokesman Robert A. Wood was quizzed on whether it was still the U.S. view that President Mugabe must quit. Wood avoided calling for the ouster saying: “The key is always implementation.”

“What Robert Mugabe needs to do is to do what’s best for the people of Zimbabwe; and an effective power-sharing arrangement, one that is equitable, fair, and in line with the will of the Zimbabwean people, that’s what needs to happen,” said Wood.

Wood was asked whether the Obama administration was reviewing assistance to Zimbabwe and considering the lifting of economic sanctions.

“The Administration will be looking at our policy toward Zimbabwe. We obviously – we want to see what, if anything, comes out of this recent agreement that was reached. If and when there is a government in place in Zimbabwe … the United States will then look to see what we can do to continue to help the Zimbabwean people,” he said.

“The (Obama) administration will be looking to see what more we can do with regard to giving a jump start, a boost to the economy. But let’s wait and see what happens before we go forward...”

Reuters said a State Department official, who declined to be identified, said the plan was to let most of the pressure for change to come from African leaders, adding that there was fear of the consequences if President Mugabe was forced out ‘very fast’.

"If he goes precipitously his supporters may feel threatened and they are the ones with the guns," the official was quoted as saying.

Critics say the Obama administration which took over the White House in the middle of a global financial crisis and renewed conflict in the Middle East is likely to concentrate its efforts on tackling those issues and delivering on election promises to the American people. Hence, the plan to let African leaders deal with the crises in Zimbabwe and the region.

The Reuters report is in direct contrast to recent media reports which said that the Obama administration was planning to take the issue of Zimbabwe to the U.N. Security Council.

A report in The Times newspaper last week claimed that Obama has had a meeting with his ‘top Africa advisers in recent weeks’ and “the central idea they focused on was taking the issue of Zimbabwe before the UN Security Council, but for the first time to combine such a move with an intense diplomatic effort to persuade Russia and China not to block the initiative.”