Rice Begins Europe Tour Amid Detainee Allegations
6 December 2006 -- U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has arrived in Berlin for talks today with new German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
After her talks in Germany, Rice is due to travel on to Romania to sign a defense cooperation agreement clearing the way for the United States to set up military bases in the Balkan country.
As she departed on her European tour on 5 December, Rice acknowledged that the United States has flown terrorist suspects abroad for interrogation, but denied that the detainees were ever tortured in U.S. custody or knowingly transferred to other countries to be tortured.
Rice, however, refused to directly address allegations that the CIA has been operating secret prisons in foreign countries where detainees are interrogated.
Rice said the United States and its allies have cooperated in lawful operations to produce intelligence that has prevented terrorist attacks, including plots that have threatened lives in Europe.
(Reuters/AP/AFP)