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Brown picks Iraq war critics for Cabinet

Oakland Tribune, Jun 29, 2007 by David Stringer, Associated Press

LONDON -- New Prime Minister Gordon Brown appointed some critics of the Iraq war to his youthful circle of senior Cabinet ministers Thursday, underlining his ambition to heal rifts over the conflict and win back support of the disenchanted.

Brown has pledged to examine Britain's role in Iraq -- a subtle shift in language from his predecessor and perhaps his first diplomatic challenge in his relationship with the Bush administration, which considered Tony Blair its closest ally.

David Miliband, who at times criticized Blair's Middle East policy, was named foreign secretary -- an eye-catching appointment by the new prime minister.

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"The opportunities and challenges of the modern world requires, in my view, a diplomacy that is patient as well as purposeful -- which listens as well as leads," said Miliband, a rising star in the Labor Party who at age 41 is the youngest British foreign secretary in three decades.

Both he and Jack Straw, who was appointed justice secretary and lord chancellor, criticized Blair for not insisting on an immediate cease-fire when Israel went to war last summer with the Islamic militants of Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Miliband, the son of leftist Jewish academics who is married to an American violinist, voted to support participation in the Iraq war, but has voiced concerns about the conflict.

Brown also gave posts to John Denham, a former minister who quit the government in 2003 to protest the Iraq invasion, and Mark Malloch-Brown, a former deputy U.N. secretary-general who clashed with American neo-conservatives.

Malloch-Brown, now a lord, had fierce spats at the United Nations with then U.S. Ambassador John Bolton, who accused the Briton of discrediting the world body with his criticisms of the White House.

As deputy to U.N. chief Kofi Annan, Malloch-Brown derided President Bush for what he called "megaphone diplomacy" on Darfur by trying to persuade Sudan's government to accept a U.N. peacekeeping force in Darfur, but refusing to defend the organization to Americans.

Malloch-Brown's appointment to a junior role as minister for Africa, Asia and the United Nations could be an attempt by Brown to distance Britain from the Bush administration, said analyst Alex Bingham at the Foreign Policy Center think tank.

Denham, the war critic, also got a relatively minor post, secretary for innovation, universities and skills.

Brown wants to win back the trust of voters who bitterly opposed the Iraq war, and invited families of soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan as he made his first leadership speech Wednesday. He also plans to reverse restrictions on Iraq war protests around Parliament.

Despite the addition of war critics, Miliband, the youngest foreign secretary since 38-year-old David Owen took the job in 1977, will be expected to maintain good relations with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice.

Brown picked Jacqui Smith, a 44-year-old Amnesty International member, to be Britain's first female home secretary, one of the top Cabinet posts, with responsibility for policing and tackling crime and terrorism.

A former economics teacher, Smith is considered a party loyalist and will be unlikely to stray from Brown, who backed Blair's tough stance on pursuing suspected terrorists.

A trusted Brown ally, Ed Balls, 40, takes an education post as secretary for children, schools and families. The education portfolio was split into two parts, with the other looking at innovation and promoting new skills.

Miliband's younger brother, Ed, 37, will oversee Britain's Cabinet office, the department that enforces government policy.

"It's a radical reshuffle from Brown, and by promoting his party's bright young things he's demonstrating that this is a huge change from the days of Blair," said Julian Astle, director of the Center Forum, a liberal London think tank.

But some old hands did win senior posts. Alistair Darling, the current trade and industry secretary, was named Treasury chief, considered the No. 2 job on the Cabinet and the post Brown held for 10 years under Blair.

Shaun Woodward, a defector to Labour from the opposition Conservative Party in 1999, was picked as Northern Ireland secretary.

Dozens of junior posts would be announced Friday, Brown spokesman Michael Ellam said.

Brown, who became prime minister Wednesday, plans to offer some junior roles to opposition legislators -- much as new French President Nicolas Sarkozy did -- as part of sweeping changes to break with Blair's era.

Brown picks Iraq war critics for Cabinet

Oakland Tribune, Jun 29, 2007 by David Stringer, Associated Press

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