Strategic Campaign Extended

Fri Oct 22, 2004 06:21 AM ET

Washington DC (RBN)

The US government has extended its strategic communication campaign to remind "Old"-Europeans of the danger of terrorism. The advertising and influence campaign, which has be running for one year, recently launched into a new phase.

"We need to get more determination to actively fight the war on terror into the European mind" a senior administration official said. "There is no way we will ever have German or French troops in Iraq or Iran if we can not stir up the popular fervour," he added.

The campaign with the slogan "There is no future in terrorism" began in November 2003 with full page advertisements in leading newspapers in ten Western European countries. Additional newspaper ads were launched in March 2004 and in October. New committed funds now allow for 30 seconds TV spots with powerful scenes of nuclear, biological and explosive attacks to be broadcasted.

The advertisement campaign is supervised by VALE International LTD, a group of international professional advertising and public relation consultants under the leadership of Norman Vale, a long time professional in international marketing.

VALE International has established a European entity under the label of "European Security Advocacy Group". The website www.esag.info promises "sustained effort to change people's attitudes and behaviour" and to "raise people's concern about the disastrous threat terrorism poses to world peace".

The strategic communication effort is estimated to have cost $20 million. "We intend this to get us at least one division of European troops into Iraq. That could save us a billion a month," one official said. "It is the cheapest imaginable way to free our troops for other commitments."