Reconstruction is something that not just Iraq needs. George Bush's advisers are still warily surveying the damage the row about the Iraq war has done to America's relations with some of its ex-friends. France, self-appointed opposer-in-chief of America's decision to go to war, is already on notice that there will be consequences for its blocking actions at the UN. Germany and Russia, which supported France, seem to have dropped out of the administration's direct line of fire. So has hapless Turkey, which refused to let America use its bases for sending troops into Iraq. It lost influence and aid as a result and, officials feel, has already been punished pretty effectively. Now the challenge is to bring the UN and NATO into a helpful alignment with American goals.
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