Rice defends tactics of torturing detainees [View All]

http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.html?siteSect=143&sid=6289573&cKey=1133790636000

Rice defends detainee tactics

By Saul Hudson

ANDREWS AIR FORCE BASE, Maryland (Reuters) - Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Monday defended U.S. treatment of terrorism suspects, telling European allies they should trust the United States as they cooperate in intelligence operations to prevent new attacks. snip

"It is up to those governments and their citizens to decide if they wish to work with us to prevent terrorist attacks against their own country or other countries and decide how much sensitive information they can make public. They have a sovereign right to make that choice," Rice said in a statement she read out before leaving for Berlin, her first stop.

The European Union has demanded Washington address claims of secret prisons to allay fears of illegal U.S. practices among the European public and parliaments, already critical of U.S. prisoner-abuse scandals in Iraq and Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Human rights groups say holding detainees incommunicado is illegal and often leads to torture.