'Magic is over' for U.S., says French foreign minister

The magic might be over, but it is not the French who will take over.

'Magic is over' for U.S., says French foreign minister - International Herald Tribune: "Asked whether the United States could repair the damage it has suffered to its reputation during the Bush presidency and especially since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, Kouchner replied, 'It will never be as it was before.'

'I think the magic is over,' he continued, in what amounted to a sober assessment from one of the strongest supporters in France of the United States.

U.S. military supremacy endures, Kouchner noted, and the new president 'will decide what to do - there are many means to re-establish the image.' But even that, he predicted, 'will take time.'

Kouchner began the 90-minute event with a speech that emphasized that 'there is not just a new diplomacy; there is a new world.'"