I was kind of tired on the day in June when I interviewed the British ambassador to Egypt, John Sawers. While we discussed matters such as the legacy of British colonialism in Egypt and Egypt's slow pace of economic liberalization, he made a low-level quip or two. I may have mistakenly taken that as a signal that I could start saying whatever came into my mind, overlooking the fact that this diplomat is conscious of how he might be portrayed in print while serving as his country's representative in a tense region. Excerpt:
Bernard: Tony Blair, of course, has also been outspoken as being a supporter of what has been called the war on terrorism. He has been an outstanding critic of Saddam Hussein's regime. Of course, in this region, this gets you thrown into the same bag as the United States, which is, [it's] instantly assumed that you're secretly controlled by the Mossad, that you don't have credibility. Um,
Ambassador: (says something inaudible)
Bernard: What's that?
Ambassador: (With light irony) I'm sure that won't appear in your issue.
Bernard: Oh! You're right (adopting a similar ironic tone), I have the luxury of being a little more wry with my questions, knowing that I'll edit my own [words] out! But um, so uh, the the question is whether this affects uh, um whether there's some, there's some, uh whether you feel that in your work as representing Britain that you're impeded, or that you receive some sort of resistance or animosity from people in Egypt or the Arab world --
Ambassador: (Reverting to rhetorical tone) The clear answer to that is no. I find that I'm very warmly welcomed here in Egypt, as are the British people generally. On the question of the war on terror, every civilized country including Britain, including Egypt, is lined up and fully supporting the war against terror. President Mubarak has taken an important lead on that, as has Prime Minister Blair, as has of course President Bush. No one's ashamed of that nor are they embarrassed by it.
The question of our relationship with the United States, that does get raised with me here. But we're entirely comfortable and indeed proud that we're a close ally of the United States and that the United States consults with us closely on many aspects of its foreign policy. We have found that it is in Britain's interest -- which we put first -- to work closely with the most powerful country in the world and, where we can, support it in public in the knowledge that nine times out of ten, our concerns are taken into account in private before any decisions are made in Washington. We actually think that's a better way of doing business than standing on one side and carping.
Bernard: Ah, I apologize for my, the joke there. I think it --
Sawers: (interrupting) No, no, that's all right ...
Bernard: (tries to keep talking)
Sawers: (smiling) I don't mind you making a joke as long as it doesn't appear in print!
Bernard: (smiling) Yeah, yeah! No, ...
(Sawers laughs in a tension-relieving manner)
Bernard: ... it reflects my own frustration at being the object of conspiracy theories.
Sawers: You see, we don't get that. We never get that.
Bernard: Boy, I can't tell you how many ...
Sawers: People sometimes lump Britain and America together. I get it in TV interviews. But not actually people on the street. It's quite tough being an American here at the moment. There's a boycott of American goods. There isn't a boycott of British goods. It's not the same thing.
Bernard: Yes ...
Sawers: (concerned) I don't want that published either.