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Bush shrugs off objections to port deal
(AP)
Updated: 2006-02-22 10:00 Brushing aside objections
from Republicans and Democrats alike, President Bush endorsed the takeover of
shipping operations at six major US seaports by a state-owned business in the
United Arab Emirates. He pledged to veto any bill Congress might approve to
block the agreement.
An unidentified
official guards a shipping container storage area at the Port of Miami
Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2006. President Bush said Tuesday that a deal allowing
an Arab company to take over six major US seaports, including New York's,
should go forward and that he would veto any congressional effort to stop
it. [AP] |
The president on Tuesday defended his administration's earlier approval of
the sale of London-based Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co. to Dubai
Ports World, despite concerns in Congress it could increase the possibility of
terrorism at American ports.
The sale — expected to be finalized in early March — would put Dubai Ports in
charge of major shipping operations in New York, New Jersey, Baltimore, New
Orleans, Miami and Philadelphia. "If there was any chance that this transaction
would jeopardize the security of the United States, it would not go forward,"
Bush said.
"It sends a terrible signal to friends around the world that it's OK for a
company from one country to manage the port, but not a country that plays by the
rules and has got a good track record from another part of the world," Bush
said.
To assuage concerns, the administration disclosed some assurances it had
negotiated with Dubai Ports. It required mandatory participation in US security
programs to stop smuggling and detect illegal shipments of nuclear materials;
roughly 33 other port companies participate in these voluntarily. The Coast
Guard also said Tuesday it was nearly finished inspecting Dubai Ports'
facilities in the United States.
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