US: Dubai Ports World has agreed to postpone its takeover of operations at six major American ports, giving the White House time to persuade a sceptical congress that the deal would not increase the risk of terrorist attack.
The company, which is controlled by the United Arab Emirates government, said it would go ahead with its $6.8 billion (€5.7 billion) takeover of P&O's worldwide network of port terminals next week.
The six US ports would continue to be run by P&O executives for a temporary period, the length of which was not specified.
"The reaction in the United States has occurred in no other country in the world," Dubai Ports World executive Edward Bilkley said yesterday. "We need to understand the concerns of the people in the US who are worried about this transaction and make sure that they are addressed to the benefit of all parties."
Opposition to the Arab takeover of US port operations has united Republicans and Democrats in congress, although President George W Bush has threatened to veto any congressional action to block the deal.
"People don't need to worry about security," he said. "This wouldn't be going forward if we weren't certain that our ports would be secure. The more people learn about the transaction that has been scrutinised and approved by my government, the more they'll be comforted that our ports will be secure."
New York Republican congressman Peter King, a leading critic of the deal, welcomed Dubai Ports World's postponement offer as "a positive step", but said the Bush administration must give more details of the security review it undertook before the White House approved the takeover.
Senator Hillary Clinton urged the president to conduct a broader review of terrorism risks and other Democrats dismissed the postponement offer, warning that if the White House did not call off the deal, congress would.
White House spokesman Scott McLennan said the postponement would give the administration more time to reassure congress about the safeguards that were in place to ensure that port security would not be affected by the takeover.
"We believe once congress has a better understanding of the facts and the safeguards that are in place that they will be more comfortable with the transaction moving forward," he said.
The White House has confirmed that the United Arab Emirates gave $100 million for the victims of Hurricane Katrina - more than the US has received from all other countries combined - a few weeks before Dubai Ports World sought approval for the port deal.
The administration said there was no connection between the contribution and the deal.