Palace downplays Ricciardone recall

Malacañang sought to downplay yesterday the sudden recall of United States Ambassador Francis Ricciardone to Washington, DC.

The Palace said bilateral relations between the US and the Philippines remain solid despite Ricciardone’s recall by the US State Department.

Ricciardone was pulled out of his post at the US Embassy in Manila to take on a new assignment as coordinator of US efforts in Iraq. His recall comes at a crucial time for the Philippines, as the May 10 general elections approach.

Charge d’ affaires Joseph Mussomeli will handle the day-to day affairs of the embassy in Ricciardone’s stead.

Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye said the US ambassador "said goodbye" to President Arroyo "and explained the reasons" why he is being transferred to another post for the meantime.

Although Ricciardone informed the President Tuesday about his recall and reassignment by US Secretary of State Colin Powell, the Palace kept the matter under wraps until the US Embassy formally announced Ricciardone’s recall last Wednesday.

Ricciardone will work with the State Department team tasked with creating a sovereign government in Iraq.

Speaking over government-run Radyo ng Bayan, Bunye expressed the Palace’s well-wishes for Ricciardone, who quietly left yesterday for Washington.

"We consider Ambassador Ricciardone a friend of the Philippines and we are a bit saddened that he would leave," Bunye said.

"We wish him well for his new assignment, (which), if I’m not mistaken, has something to do with the Middle East, Iraq in particular," he said.

Responding to questions on whether Ricciardone’s recall boded ill for RP-US relations, Bunye said, "not at all, because our relations are not based on personalities."

While "personalities come and go," Bunye said, the bilateral relations between the US and the Philippines remain firm.

Bunye said he was one of the Philippine government officials whom Ricciardone called up to bid farewell Wednesday.

Ricciardone also called up Speaker Jose de Venecia and, presumably, Senate President Franklin Drilon and Foreign Affairs Secretary Delia Albert.

"We’re sad to see him go," Bunye said of Ricciardone, "but in the long run and in the long term, we believe this will be a beneficial relationship because Ambassador Ricciardone will be taking care of the affairs in Iraq."

Bunye added that the Philippines has "long-term projects in Iraq that we’re considering in the pipeline. I believe, in the long run, this (Ricciardone’s reassignment) will also be good for the Philippines."

In his daily press briefing, Bunye brushed aside talk that Ricciardone’s recall was spurred by the strong protest issued by the Philippine government over the US government’s alleged "harassment" of 30 Filipino telecommunications company executives.

The executives were served with subpoenas Sunday by the Federal Bureau of Investigation while they were attending a conference in Honolulu, Hawaii.

"I don’t think these two events are in any way related, so I would consider this talk as pure speculation," Bunye said.

For her part, Albert said she spoke about the diplomatic flap with Ricciardone, but said the dispute between the US and Philippine telecommunications firms that resulted in the subpoena has already been resolved.

She also denied speculations that Ricciardone was recalled over the matter, saying "there is no truth to this rumor. Ambassador Ricciardone is uniquely qualified for the job that awaits him in Iraq and is the right man for this very challenging and difficult task. I know that he will perform admirably. He has my support."

Albert also said Ricciardone "has been an effective partner in ensuring that relations between our two countries are mutually beneficial. I wish him well and hope to see him back in Manila. I understand that his stint in Washington is a temporary assignment."

She said Ricciardone told her he is leaving all of his clothes behind as a sign that he is, indeed, coming back to Manila when his stint in Iraq is over.

US State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said Powell has asked Ricciardone to return to Washington "where he’ll take up a role of leading the State Department’s Iraq policy as we move towards full restoration of Iraqi sovereignty this summer."

When asked what Ricciardone will be doing in Iraq, Boucher replied, "you name it, he’ll do it."

Ricciardone, he said, will deal with "all these issues that come up, from political issues to legal matters of the status of, you know, agreements that have to be signed regarding status of personnel or agreements between us and Iraq on security, things like that."

He also said Ricciardone’s "going to have a look at all of these things because all of them are involved in preparing for a relationship in the latter half of the year which involves a sovereign Iraqi government and a US mission that’s there working with them."

In the House of Representatives, House foreign relations committee and Negros Oriental Rep. Apolinario Lozada said there could be deeper and disturbing reasons for Ricciardone’s recall to Washington.

Lozada, of the ruling Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD) said that the reason for Ricciardone’s recall "may be out soonest."

However, Lozada also said he cannot understand why the US would "pull out an expert in crisis management from us at the time when it is perceived that the US is very much interested in the reelection of President Arroyo. Does this mean they are distancing themselves from the future events in the Philippines for reasons only they know?"

"There is no more crisis in Iraq," he said. "They have caught everybody already." Lozada was referring to key members of captured former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein’s Baath party and other Iraqi military and political leaders who supported Saddam.

"We have to watch what’s going to happen there and in the country in the coming days and, maybe, we’ll find the real reasons," Lozada said. — Marichu Villanueva, Paolo Romero