Could Bermuda shorts have altered the course of world history?

A transcript of a conversation between US president George Bush and Spanish President Jose Maria Aznar refers to the items of men's clothing as a determining factor in the pre-Iraq War summit of March 16, 2003.

According to a memorandum by Spanish Ambassador Javier Ruperez, printed in El Pais newspaper, the summit was moved from Bermuda to the Azores because the image of Bermuda shorts was deemed inappropriate for such a decisive moment in history.

The summit between Bush, Aznar and British Prime Minister Tony Blair followed the failure to obtain a second resolution for war from the United Nations Security Council.

El Pais reports: "The failure of this legal coverage for the imminent war led Bush, with Blair and Aznar, to agree to a summit meeting in the Azores on March 16, 2003, a place suggested by Aznar as an alternative to Bermuda for a reason he explains to Bush: 'Just the name of these islands suggests an item of clothing that is not exactly the most appropriate for the seriousness of the moment in which we find ourselves'".

Was Aznar nervous that international leaders would have been more inclined to 'Feel The Love' and forgotten about war altogether? There may well have been more 'shock and awe' at just how well tailored our menswear is (although the tastefulness of some of the colours is down to personal opinion).

On March 17, the day after the Azores summit, the United Kingdom ambassador at the UN announced the withdrawal of the second resolution. Two days later the allies invaded Iraq, and the rest is history.