[Lerkfish]

CNN story

of note:

ROME, Italy (CNN) -- U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney sent a clear signal that the Bush administration wants to avoid major disagreements with traditional European partners as the postwar transition in Iraq unfolds and the U.S. presidential campaign moves into a higher gear.

But Cheney also reminded Europe of its debt to the United States by dedicating several hours of his day Monday to a stop at a U.S. military cemetery at Nettuno, near where allied forces staged the critical landing at Anzio in World War II 60 years ago this week.

On Sunday the vice president stopped briefly for photographers as he was greeted at the Borghese Palace museum. But he headed inside when a reporter asked if he had any reaction to U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell's weekend statement that it was an "open question" whether Iraq had banned weapons of mass destruction before the U.S.-led invasion.

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