Saturday
Feb142009
Mr Obama's World: The Latest in US Foreign Policy (14 February)
Saturday, February 14, 2009 at 19:20
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Current Obamameter Reading: Settled with Distant Turbulence
7:15 p.m. What happened in today's meeting between US envoy Richard Holbrooke and Afghan President Hamid Karzai?
No, really, what happened?
2:15 p.m. How to Miss a Story. Reuters declares, "Lavrov welcomes U.S. signals on missile shield". Which is true, as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said, "It's not too late [to discuss the American deployment in Eastern Europe. We could sit down at the negotiating table and evaluate the situation."
The wider story, however, is Washington's attempt to link discussions on missile defence to a changed Russian position on support for Iran's nuclear programme. And Lavrov made no indication that Moscow would make such a connection.
11 a.m. Thousands of people have gathered in Martyrs' Square in Beirut to commemorate the fourth anniversary of the assassination of Prime Minister Rafiq al-Hariri.
8 a.m. GMT: Just in case you missed it late night, we've passed on the helpful warning in Human Events that "Iran is Taking Over America".
Morning Update (7:15 a.m. GMT; 2:15 a.m. Washington): Two days after US envoy Richard Holbrooke left Pakistan and amidst public confirmation that the US is using bases within the country for its missile strikes (more on that later), news is coming in of an aerial attack which has killed 25 people in South Waziristan. The US military is claiming the dead were "Al Qa'eda-linked" militants.
Diplomatic headlines are still taken up by the outline of US policy on North Korea by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Speaking on Friday before her departure to East Asia, she laid out the "unclenched fist" formula which is already being applied to Iran:
Clinton then added the warning to Pyongyang "to avoid any provocative action or unhelpful rhetoric toward South Korea".
Clinton also restated the Obama Administration's line on China: no need for tension over economic matters but the US would continue to raise the issues of the environment and human rights.
Related Post: Tarnished by the Black Water of Violence, Abuse, Murder? Change Your Brand Name….
Related Post: The “New Iraq”, Up Close and Ugly: A Report from Fallujah
Current Obamameter Reading: Settled with Distant Turbulence
7:15 p.m. What happened in today's meeting between US envoy Richard Holbrooke and Afghan President Hamid Karzai?
No, really, what happened?
2:15 p.m. How to Miss a Story. Reuters declares, "Lavrov welcomes U.S. signals on missile shield". Which is true, as Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said, "It's not too late [to discuss the American deployment in Eastern Europe. We could sit down at the negotiating table and evaluate the situation."
The wider story, however, is Washington's attempt to link discussions on missile defence to a changed Russian position on support for Iran's nuclear programme. And Lavrov made no indication that Moscow would make such a connection.
11 a.m. Thousands of people have gathered in Martyrs' Square in Beirut to commemorate the fourth anniversary of the assassination of Prime Minister Rafiq al-Hariri.
8 a.m. GMT: Just in case you missed it late night, we've passed on the helpful warning in Human Events that "Iran is Taking Over America".
Morning Update (7:15 a.m. GMT; 2:15 a.m. Washington): Two days after US envoy Richard Holbrooke left Pakistan and amidst public confirmation that the US is using bases within the country for its missile strikes (more on that later), news is coming in of an aerial attack which has killed 25 people in South Waziristan. The US military is claiming the dead were "Al Qa'eda-linked" militants.
Diplomatic headlines are still taken up by the outline of US policy on North Korea by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Speaking on Friday before her departure to East Asia, she laid out the "unclenched fist" formula which is already being applied to Iran:
If North Korea is genuinely prepared to completely and verifiably eliminate their nuclear weapons program, the Obama administration will be willing to normalize bilateral relations, replace the peninsula's long-standing armistice agreements with a permanent peace treaty and assist in meeting the energy and other economic needs of the North Korean people.
Clinton then added the warning to Pyongyang "to avoid any provocative action or unhelpful rhetoric toward South Korea".
Clinton also restated the Obama Administration's line on China: no need for tension over economic matters but the US would continue to raise the issues of the environment and human rights.