Obama drops visit to wounded U.S. troops in Germany

By Caren Bohan

PARIS (Reuters) - U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama dropped a plan to visit wounded U.S. troops in Germany on Friday amid concerns the stop would be viewed as a political event.

Planning for a stop at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center had been in the works for three weeks. But an Obama adviser said he was told in recent days by the Pentagon that the military would consider it a campaign event.

"Senator Obama had hoped to and had every intention of visiting our troops to express his appreciation and gratitude for their service to our country," said retired Maj. Gen. Scott Gration, who advises Obama on national security matters.

"Senator Obama did not want to have a trip to see our wounded warriors perceived as a campaign event when his visit was to show his appreciation for our troops and decided instead not to go," Gration said.

Obama was to have stopped at Landstuhl after visiting Berlin on Thursday. He flew to Paris on Friday and will wrap up his trip abroad in London before heading back to the United States on Saturday.

Obama's trip abroad, rare for a presidential candidate, is aimed at burnishing his credentials on foreign policy. His rival in the November election, Republican John McCain, has labeled the first-term U.S. senator as too inexperienced to lead on foreign policy.

The 46-year-old Obama has also visited Iraq, Afghanistan, Kuwait, Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian territories.

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