Before the Bundestag, Bush described the new arms deal with Russia as the most dramatic of its kind. "Old arms agreements sought to manage hostility and to maintain a balance of terror. This new agreement recognizes that Russia and the West are no longer enemies," he said.
US Secretary of State Colin Powell had said in advance that Bush would not avoid the subject of Iraq in his talks with Schroeder. But chances of significant headway were dashed when German Defense Minister Rudolf Scharping suggested yesterday that Germany did not have the resources to participate in any such operation against Saddam.
"There is no military planning for Iraq, even if this country presents a real problem for international security," Scharping told German television. "We have no room for a new engagement."
Schroeder has tried to position himself as a staunch anti-terrorism ally without embracing tough action against Iraq. In a German TV interview, he said Iraq was a threat, "and that's why we are together exerting pressure so that Saddam Hussein lets international observers into the country."
Some 20,000 anti-war demonstrators took to the streets as Bush arrived in Berlin late Wednesday. And while the protests were mostly peaceful, violence broke out among groups of hooded youths and pro-Palestinian demonstrators.
An American flag was burned, and demonstrators pelted police in riot gear with bottles and stones. Police said 58 people were arrested.
The demonstrators were kept far away from Bush and his entourage by some 10,000 police officers, the largest police operation in Berlin since World War II.
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