"Absolutely I think that under different circumstances they could have turned it into a big issue in their relationship, and we could have seen mutual accusation and a lot of hysteria on both sides."

VOA: standard.2010.07.09

But the frenzy of mutual accusation which this scandal has thrown up - in which the port authority and the ministry of transport are each blaming the other - indicates some of the problems of a government of national unity.

BBC: Ivory Coast protester