BY TIM JOHNSON

 WASHINGTON -- In a decision likely to frustrate some Cuban Americans, President Bush on Monday confirmed that he will extend for another six months a suspension of a law that would let U.S. citizens sue foreigners over their use of U.S. property confiscated after Cuba's 1959 revolution.

 Bush, who pledged last week to increase pressure on the government of President Fidel Castro, said nonetheless on Monday that he will continue to suspend a provision in a 1996 law that would allow U.S. citizens to sue over their seized properties. Former President Bill Clinton routinely blocked the lawsuits at six-month intervals.

 Bush was asked at a picture-taking session whether he plans to issue a waiver of the Helms-Burton, and he responded, ``I do.''

 Reaction to Bush's decision was muted among Republican supporters, who voiced satisfaction at the general direction of White House policy on Cuba and said they are willing to give Bush leeway on the Helms-Burton law to avoid forcing him into a serious trade confrontation with allies in Europe, Canada and Mexico.

 President Bush reached the conclusion that a trade war with Europe at the [World Trade Organization] over a single title of Helms-Burton at this time would dangerously strengthen the coalition of those seeking to eliminate the entire embargo,'' Rep. Lincoln Díaz-Balart, a Miami Republican, said in a statement.
 
 

                                    © 2001