By Khaled Schmitt, IOL Germany Correspondent

BONN, February 7 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) – U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld 's remarks in which he associated anti-war German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder with Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and Cuban President Fidel Castro drew fire from German political circles.

The spokesman for German government dismissed as nonsense Rumsfeld's remarks and reiterated his intention to continue working with French President Jacques Chirac to avert a U.S.-led war on Iraq and give U.N. inspectors more time to conclude their mission.

On Thursday, February 6, Rumsfeld placed Germany in the same category with Libya and Cuba as states that would not be helpful in any international effort to topple Iraqi President Saddam Hussein.

Rumsfeld's remarks came just days after he angered Germany and France by labeling them as part of an "old Europe."

But German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer downplayed the U.S. official's words, saying they are not indeed representing the stance of U.S. President George W. Bush administration.

Rumsfeld's remarks also infuriated Edmund Stoiber, the conservative Bavarian governor and leader of the Christian Social Democrats Party who narrowly failed to unseat Schroeder in last year's elections.

Also, the former German defense minister, who doubles as a member of the opposition party, branded the remarks as irresponsible.

He accused Rumsfeld of turning a blind eye to Germany's support to Washington in several cases, citing the war against Afghanistan as a clear example.

Rumsfeld's comments also came two days after the head of U.S. State Department defense policy council lashed out at the German government and claimed it did not represent the German people.

German papers quoted the American official as threatening to deal with Berlin as a hostile state to Washington in the event of voting against a fresh U.N. Security Council mandate authorizing a military offensive against Iraq.

The U.S. ambassador to Germany also joined in by accusing Schroeder of helping Chirac in easing pressures on Saddam Hussein.

In an interview with a German newspaper, the diplomat claimed that the German-French stance increased the chances of waging war on Iraq.

The American accusations were met by calls for protests in Munich where Rumsfeld is to address the international security conference on Saturday, February 8.