US Audio Feature: Assessing Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State...and as a Presidential Candidate --- Scott Lucas with the BBC

I spoke with BBC Radio 5 Live's Morning Reports about US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, as she steps down today as Secretary of State --- and, probably, as she soon prepares a run for the Presidency in 2016.

"Clinton was most effective where she was a known quantity and where America was a known quanity. She was able to maintain a stable relationship with China, She was able to maintain a stable relationship with Europe.

Where Clinton has come up short, and indeed the entire Obama Administration --- I don't think they get it on the Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia. They keep trying to position America at the centre of what's happening, and America doesn't necessarilyn hold that power to change everything. Clinton can't wave a wand and make this a US-led world."

The discussion begins at the 17:43 mark.

China Feature: Week in Review --- From A Dispute With Japan to A Japanese Apology (Lin)

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China Objects to US Comments in Diaoyu Islands Dispute

Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang said on Sunday that Beijing is "firmly opposed" to comments made by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton about China's dispute with Japan over the Daioyu Islands.

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Algeria (and Beyond) Coverage: Hostage Situation Continues at Gas Plant

See also Mali, Algeria, and Beyond: A Beginner's Guide to the Bad Guys
Turkey Feature: 10,000s in Funeral Ceremony for Kurdish Activists "Peace Now!"
Syria Live Coverage: UN Human Rights Chief Calls for War Crimes Investigation
Friday's Algeria (and Beyond) Coverage: At Least 30 Hostages Killed in Rescue Attempt

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1435 GMT: Egypt. A criminal court has invoked a Presidential amnesty and dismissed charges against 379 people accused of taking part in clashes with police.

Almost weeks of street fighting on downtown Cairo's Mohammed Mahmoud Street in November 2011 killed 42 people, most of them slain by security forces. The demonstrators were demanding a timetable for a military Supreme Council to hand over power and hold Presidential elections.

1425 GMT: Algeria. Seven foreign hostages have reportedly been killed in the final operation by Algerian forces against the kidnappers, 11 of whom were slain.

1340 GMT: Algeria. Algerian State media is reporting that the hostage crisis is over at the In Amenas gas plant, with 11 attackers killed by Algerian forces.

The reports claims that 16 foreign hostages --- including two Americans, two German, and a Portuguese ---- have been freed.

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Syria Live Coverage: The End of the Brahimi Mission?

2024 GMT: State Department Weighs In. The US State Department spokesperson, Victoria Nuland, said that the capture of the Taftanaz airbase is a significant development:

"They are taking credit now for having taken the air base," U.S. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters Friday. "And, as you know, we consider this significant on two fronts.

"First of all, to ground some of the air assets of the Assad regime that they've been using against civilians. And, secondly, to break their ability to resupply in the north."

There is a problem with statements like these - Taftanaz was captured primarily by Jabhat al Nusra and the Ahrar al Sham brigades, two Jihadi groups, and the State Department has already place Al Nusra on the terror list.

For a 2nd day, State Dept praises rebels for air base capture without acknowledging that it was led by Nusra, the group it deems terrorists

— Hannah Allam (@HannahAllam) January 11, 2013

Meanwhile, as if to answer criticisms that the US is not doing enough to help the Syrian refugees affected by the worst weather in decades to hit the region, the State Department was pushing a summary of the humanitarian aid donated by the US government.

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US Audio Feature: John Kerry as Secretary of State --- Scott Lucas with Voice of Russia

I spoke with Voice of Russia last night about the nomination of Senator John Kerry as Secretary of State to replace Hillary Clinton. 

The line was that Kerry is a doubly "safe pair of hands". Internationally, his pragmatic approach has worked well in encounters with foreign leaders. Domestically, he will not encounter the resistance from Congress which doomed the nomination of Susan Rice this month and embarrassed the Obama Administration.

And Clinton's legacy for US foreign policy? Well, I responded, that depends if you think the Obama years have had a clear and coherent policy.

The four-minute interview is posted on Voice of Russia's website.

Iran Analysis: Why There is Much Posing --- But No Progress --- On Nuclear Talks

Nuclear negotiators Catherine Ashton & Saeed JaliliWhat is not being made explicit is that the US does not expect reciprocity from Iran. It expects those unilateral concessions.

That offers a stark prospect for Tehran. The Islamic Republic has proclaimed loudly that it wants the renewed talks with the 5+1, accepts the January date, then it does so with the signal that it is willing to make those concessions.

Which is why I'm betting that next week, next month, and beyond January, we will be in a Groundhog's Day of this chatter --- and then the declared March "window" will close for the Iranian Presidential elections.

And then?

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Syria Live Coverage: "A Political Process to End the Crisis is Still Possible"

2040 GMT: The US decision to place Al Nusra Front on the terrorist watch list will have complicated repercussions. Since we've started covering this conflict, we've been very impressed with both McClatchy and The Institute for the Study of War. As such, we're not surprised that experts from both organizations have, even before the decision was announced, condemned the move because it will complicate the realities on the ground in Syria and potentially isolate Washington from the Syrian rebels:

Some experts warned that declaring Nusra a foreign terrorist organization was likely to hurt the anti-Assad uprising by fueling tensions between the group and other opposition units. The designation could disrupt the coordination behind recent rebel advances and even risk clashes among rebel groups.

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“I’m not saying they aren’t a terrorist group. But given the circumstances and given their cooperation with the opposition as a whole, designating them now would be disastrous,” said Elizabeth O’Bagy, an analyst with the Institute for the Study of War who recently returned from touring rebel-held areas to research Nusra and other Islamist groups.

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US War on Terror Feature: Preparing for Military Operations in Africa (Barnes/Perez)

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton presses Algeria to join intervention in Mali, 29 October 2012

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Military counterterrorism officials are seeking more capability to pursue extremist groups in Africa and elsewhere that they believe threaten the U.S., and the Obama administration is considering asking Congress to approve expanded authority to do it.

The move, according to administration and congressional officials, would be aimed at allowing U.S. military operations in Mali, Nigeria, Libya and possibly other countries where militants have loose or nonexistent ties to al Qaeda's Pakistan headquarters. Depending on the request, congressional authorization could cover the use of armed drones and special operations teams across a region larger than Iraq and Afghanistan combined, the officials said.

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Egypt, Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Morsi Gives Back His Expanded Powers

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1759 GMT: Bahrain. Activist Zainab Alkhawaja has been arrested again, according to her sister and fellow activist Maryam.

Alkhawaja, detained on several occasions and shot on another since the start of the February 2011 mass protests, was seized at Salmaniya Medical Centre as she tried to see Aqeel Abdul Mohsen, who was shot in the face by police on Wednesday.

Alkhawaja and Said Yousif Almuhafda, Head of Monitoring for the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, were allegedly harassed by police on Friday when tried to enter Mehazza village, which has been blocked for days by security forces.

Zainab was at the hospital where Aqeel's family was not being allowed access to him, she tried to take a pic Contd #Bahrain

— Maryam Alkhawaja (@MARYAMALKHAWAJA) December 9, 2012

When they stopped her she started chanting we are all Aqeel and down with Hamad, she was surrounded by police and arrested #Bahrain

— Maryam Alkhawaja (@MARYAMALKHAWAJA) December 9, 2012

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Syria Live Coverage: Is This the End for Assad?

Anti-regime protest in Binnish in Idlib Province today

See also Syria Audio Feature: Why US and Russia Suddenly Met Thursday --- Scott Lucas with Monocle 24
Syria Opinion: "The US Must Act Soon" --- James Miller in The American Prospect
Egypt (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Morsi Defies Protesters and Warns "Infiltrators"
Thursday's Egypt, Syria (and Beyond) Live Coverage: Protests and Fighting at the Presidential Palace

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2050 GMT: A curious report from the LCC:

Lattakia: Faranlaq: Fierce clashes between the FSA and regime forces amid attempts by the regime forces to storm the district and the FSA is blocking it.

What's interesting is that we did not know where Faranlaq was, nor were we able to find it on a map. The reason - Faranlaq is not a town or district, but a forest, only 5 milometers north of Lattakia city (approximate location on map).

Usually, fighting in "Lattakia" is in the mountains to the east, many miles from the city, often considered a stronghold of the Assad regime. However, this fighting is located between the city and an important naval base.

How "fierce" are the clashes? We don't know. We have also not independently confirmed the news. If true, it is becoming clear, however, even Assad's strongholds are not immune from the insurgent advance.

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