U.S. allies tread lightly amid abuse scandal

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The Bush administration said yesterday that its diplomatic efforts in Iraq remained on track despite the abuse of Iraqi prisoners, but that the scandal has made its negotiating partners more cautious.

Such strains were obvious at a meeting yesterday between Secretary of State Colin L. Powell and German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer, who said the affair had cost the United States its "moral leadership" in the world.

The administration appears to be relying on the vigorous prosecution of those responsible for the abuse and humiliation of Iraqi detainees to regain the respect and confidence of other nations.

U.S. embassies around the globe have been instructed to publicize all comments by senior U.S. officials on the subject, as well as every measure that the administration, Congress and the military are taking to determine the facts and punish those responsible, the State Department said.

In Baghdad, there was confusion about the progress toward the scheduled turnover of sovereignty to Iraqis, when U.S. officials did not confirm a statement by the head of an Iraqi tribunal that Saddam Hussein and members of his regime would be transferred to Iraqi custody for trial before June 30.

A new U.S.-appointed governor in the southern city of Najaf, meanwhile, offered to defer murder charges against Sheik Muqtada al-Sadr if the radical cleric disbands his Mahdi's Army militia.

At the State Department, spokesman Richard Boucher said the administration is trying "to make foreign publics, foreign governments aware of the position, the strong stand" taken by President Bush against the prison abuses in Iraq.

In particular, it wants foreign governments to understand U.S. officials' "determination to make sure that any criminal abuse that has occurred is punished [and] that any problems are fixed," he said.

Mr. Boucher said the United States also was reminding other countries that it has "a larger agenda for the Middle East," including commitment to the "road map" for Israeli-Palestinian peace, encouraging political and economic reforms in the region and the June 30 transfer of power in Iraq.

But he acknowledged there has been a "strong reaction" to the "very disruptive" and "graphic" images of acts performed by American soldiers.