July 29, 2005

World Media Watch

by Gloria R. Lalumia

BuzzFlash Note: WMW provides BuzzFlash readers foreign views and perspectives that are not usually available from the media here in the U.S. The presentation of these articles from these international publications is not an endorsement of their viewpoints.

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WORLD MEDIA WATCH FOR JULY 29, 2005

1//The Daily Star, Lebanon--DEFIANT KHATAMI TELLS EUROPEAN UNION IRAN WILL RESUME NUCLEAR CONVERSION ACTIVITIES (Iran will end a suspension of sensitive uranium ore conversion activities regardless of what proposals the European Union makes in the coming days to change its mind, President Mohammad Khatami announced yesterday. "I hope that their proposals will, as agreed, allow for the resumption of [conversion] activities at Isfahan," Khatami told reporters, referring to a key nuclear plant in central Iran. "But whether they do or not, we're going to resume the activities at Isfahan," added the outgoing reformist president. … The president gave no date for the resumption of conversion, the process that turns uranium ore into a gas as a precursor to enrichment. But Khatami said the "deadline" for ending the suspension was the end of July or beginning of August when the EU3 of Britain, France and Germany are supposed to submit a detailed package of proposals on the future of Iran's nuclear program.)

2//Inter Press Service News Agency, Italy--EXPERTS URGE MORE ATTENTION TO "NATION-BUILDING" (In light of its continuing travails in Iraq, the U.S. government, particularly the Department of Defence, must place "nation-building" on a par with war-fighting as a top priority in protecting national security, according to a major new report released here Wednesday by a bipartisan task force chaired by two former national security advisers. The task force, convened by the influential Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), credited the administration of President George W. Bush with taking some tentative steps in elevating, however belatedly in the case of Iraq, the importance of nation-building, or stabilisation and reconstruction operations, in government planning. But the 47-page report, "In the Wake of War: Improving U.S. Post-Conflict Capabilities," argues that a much more aggressive re-organisation of the relevant bureaucracies, particularly a Pentagon that has generally disdained nation-building as "social work," is required. … Leading Bush advisers charged during the 2000 campaign that the Clinton administration had squandered U.S. military power in nation-building exercises through the 1990s. In one memorable phrase, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who served as Bush's chief campaign aide and then national security adviser during his first term, said, "We don't need to have the 82nd Airborne escorting kids to kindergarten," and one of Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's first moves in office was to order the closure of the Army's Peacekeeping Institute.)

3//Asia Times Online, Hong Kong--WHY THE SAUDI ENVOY REALLY WENT HOME (The Saudi ruling family has tried to convince the world that everything is just as it should be inside the kingdom in the two months since the ailing King Fahd was hospitalized with chronic pneumonia. But the resignation this week of Prince Bandar, the Saudi ambassador to Washington for 22 years, and the announcement that he will be replaced by the current London ambassador, Prince Turki al-Faisal, heightens speculation that an announcement of the king's death is imminent. Bandar's dramatic return to Riyadh will allow him to jostle for position when Crown Prince Abdullah becomes king. … Indeed, the main reason behind the resignation of Prince Bandar is believed to be the friction-creating situation between him and Abdullah, and the latter's increasing dependence on Adel al-Jubair, his private counselor in Washington, for communicating messages to the US administration. Turki, meanwhile, is a brother of Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal, who announced Bandar's resignation in Riyadh last week, even though Bandar had issued a statement denying the fact a week before. Saud is Abdullah's closest ally. The jostling for position has clearly begun. … Those waiting in the wings who are most disciplined and determined – and desperate to seize the oil wealth and claim all the prestige that comes with the governorship of the two holy shrines – are the followers of Saudi dissident Osama bin Laden.)

4//RIA Novosti, Russia--RUSSIA TO INCLUDE CASPIAN AND BARENTS SEAS IN ITS GLOBAL CONTROL SYSTEM (Russia will include the Caspian and Barents Seas in its national system of global control in the next two years, Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov said Thursday. "We will be able to do that within two years," Ivanov said after arriving in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the administrative center of the Kamchatsk region in the Russian Far East. According to Ivanov, Russia intends to create a system of surface, underwater, and air control first in the Caspian flotilla and then in its Northern Fleet. "It is a priority for the Caspian Sea because this region, like any region in the south, causes the most concern," he said.)

5//The Australian, Australia--EAST ASIA SUMMIT JUST FOR STARTERS (As architect and host of the inaugural East Asia Summit, Malaysia hopes the new regional super-grouping will kickstart the creation of a powerful economic, political and security bloc. The 10 members of ASEAN finalised the make-up of the 16-nation EAS on Tuesday night, formally endorsing applications by Australia, India and New Zealand. Japan, China and South Korea are invited as members of the ASEAN Plus Three group. Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said yesterday that officials would begin a series of meetings to set the agenda for the summit on December 14 in Kuala Lumpur. … ASEAN represents a market of 500 million people with an output of $850 billion. Its officials have suggested the EAS could eventually rival the European Union and APEC as a regional body.)

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1//The Daily Star, Lebanon Thursday, July 28, 2005
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id...

DEFIANT KHATAMI TELLS EUROPEAN UNION IRAN WILL RESUME NUCLEAR CONVERSION ACTIVITIES

By Agence France Presse (AFP)

TEHRAN: Iran will end a suspension of sensitive uranium ore conversion activities regardless of what proposals the European Union makes in the coming days to change its mind, President Mohammad Khatami announced yesterday.

"I hope that their proposals will, as agreed, allow for the resumption of [conversion] activities at Isfahan," Khatami told reporters, referring to a key nuclear plant in central Iran.

"But whether they do or not, we're going to resume the activities at Isfahan," added the outgoing reformist president.

Khatami, who hands over office to ultra-conservative Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in early August, announced the decision after a Cabinet meeting and said it had been made at an earlier gathering of top leaders of the regime.

The president gave no date for the resumption of conversion, the process that turns uranium ore into a gas as a precursor to enrichment.

But Khatami said the "deadline" for ending the suspension was the end of July or beginning of August when the EU3 of Britain, France and Germany are supposed to submit a detailed package of proposals on the future of Iran's nuclear program.

(SNIP)

The Europeans want Iraq to give up conversion and enrichment indefinitely but Iran is adamantly opposed, insisting on its right to produce its own fuel for its reactors under the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.

"Iran knows the consequences if it begins activities that have been suspended up until now, which can only be negative for Iran," said Cecile Pozzo di Borgo, deputy spokeswoman for the French Foreign Ministry.

But she added the European offer "will allow a more open perspective for new relations between Iran and Europe." Khatami reiterated Iran's contention that conversion is separate from enrichment, a position rejected by the Europeans.

"For the moment, there is no question of resuming enrichment itself. We're only talking about Isfahan but one day we will resume our enrichment activities too," he said.

The EU3 have warned Iran that if it resumes either conversion or enrichment they will back U.S. demands for it to be referred to the UN Security Council for possible sanctions.

(SNIP)

U.S. President George W. Bush has refused to rule out military strikes if necessary to stop Iran developing a nuclear weapon. Washington insists that the whole nuclear program is just a cover for weapons development.

"America threatens a lot but, with all their worries in Iraq and the world, I think they would never do anything so senseless," Khatami said.

"If America were to commit such an error, of course we would have losses but theirs would be bigger," he said, insisting he had no desire to raise tension with Washington.

"My government and I have made all the political, military and economic preparations for any such attack."

2//Inter Press Service News Agency, Italy July 17, 2005
http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=29677

EXPERTS URGE MORE ATTENTION TO "NATION-BUILDING"
Jim Lobe

WASHINGTON, Jul 27 (IPS) - In light of its continuing travails in Iraq, the U.S. government, particularly the Department of Defence, must place "nation-building" on a par with war-fighting as a top priority in protecting national security, according to a major new report released here Wednesday by a bipartisan task force chaired by two former national security advisers.

The task force, convened by the influential Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), credited the administration of President George W. Bush with taking some tentative steps in elevating, however belatedly in the case of Iraq, the importance of nation-building, or stabilisation and reconstruction operations, in government planning.

But the 47-page report, "In the Wake of War: Improving U.S. Post-Conflict Capabilities," argues that a much more aggressive re-organisation of the relevant bureaucracies, particularly a Pentagon that has generally disdained nation-building as "social work," is required.

"Stability and reconstruction needs to be understood and treated as a mission as important to America's security as high-intensity combat operations," according to the task force, which was chaired by Brent Scowcroft and Samuel Berger, top national security aides to Presidents George W. Bush and Bill Clinton, respectively.

"For this message to take hold, it must come unambiguously from the top, beginning with the president and reinforced by the secretary of defence," stated the report, which called for an immediate directive defining SRO as a "core military mission" that requires the same attention and priority as combat operations.

The task force, which consisted of 24 experts in addition to Scowcroft and Berger, also called for the State Department, which was largely sidelined by the Pentagon both in the planning leading to and the immediate aftermath of the 2003 Iraq invasion, to lead all SRO civilian efforts in the future and for the National Security Council (NSC) to coordinate civilian-military issues and policy-making in post-conflict situations.

And it said Washington should rely more on multilateral institutions, including the United Nations, in carrying out SROs. It called, in particular, for the U.S. to push to create a standing multilateral reconstruction Trust Fund capitalised at about one billion dollars under the auspices of the Group of Eight (G8) industrialised nations but overseen as well by representatives of the U.N., the World Bank, and other donor countries. Such a Fund would be able to provide immediate support in urgent situations.

The Bush administration, which came into office in 2001 seemingly determined to reduce U.S. involvement in nation-building operations, such as in the Balkans, was far more focused on "transforming" the U.S. military into a smaller, faster, more hi-tech, and more lethal force capable of deploying virtually anywhere on the globe at a moment's notice and deploying overwhelming force against any enemy.

Leading Bush advisers charged during the 2000 campaign that the Clinton administration had squandered U.S. military power in nation-building exercises through the 1990s.

In one memorable phrase, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who served as Bush's chief campaign aide and then national security adviser during his first term, said, "We don't need to have the 82nd Airborne escorting kids to kindergarten," and one of Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's first moves in office was to order the closure of the Army's Peacekeeping Institute.

(MORE)

3//Asia Times Online, Hong Kong Jul 29, 2005
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/GG29Ak02.html

WHY THE SAUDI ENVOY REALLY WENT HOME
By John R Bradley
John R Bradley's book, Saudi Arabia Exposed: Inside a Kingdom in Crisis, has just been published.

The Saudi ruling family has tried to convince the world that everything is just as it should be inside the kingdom in the two months since the ailing King Fahd was hospitalized with chronic pneumonia.

But the resignation this week of Prince Bandar, the Saudi ambassador to Washington for 22 years, and the announcement that he will be replaced by the current London ambassador, Prince Turki al-Faisal, heightens speculation that an announcement of the king's death is imminent. Bandar's dramatic return to Riyadh will allow him to jostle for position when Crown Prince Abdullah becomes king.

The long-anticipated death of Fahd has given the al-Saud plenty of time to plan for the consequences, and the immediate succession of Abdullah is unlikely to be controversial. But subsequent successions are unlikely to be so smooth.

In many ways, the succession question could not have come at a better time: Saudi Arabia is flush with oil money and Abdullah recently completed a successful visit with President George W Bush. Abdullah is popular among the Saudi masses. He has positioned himself as a strong Muslim leader by showing respect and providing funding for the pious, and uniting the kingdom's warring factions.

He has an undeniable bond with, and concern about, the impoverished and disenfranchised in Saudi society, even visiting slums to hear the concerns of their inhabitants. He is known for having a personal commitment to reform – albeit measured, limited and slow. And his close relationship with the US is balanced by his willingness to criticize American policies - and mores.

But Abdullah is only a short-term answer. Seventy-nine years old, his good health cannot be relied on. The al-Saud have taken this into account, having named Defense Minister Prince Sultan – Prince Bandar's father – as next in line; he will assume the title of crown prince when King Fahd dies.

But Sultan is 76, and while Abdullah is a half-brother of King Fahd, Sultan is a full brother and shares the same mother. Family matters and jealousies always lurk in the background, and it is conventional wisdom that they loath one another. With succession again in question, background may come into the open.

(SNIP)

Ensconced in power, jealous of their privileges, suspicious as any who has worn the crown, faced with challenges to their positions, various princes may fight to maintain their roles.

Indeed, the main reason behind the resignation of Prince Bandar is believed to be the friction-creating situation between him and Abdullah, and the latter's increasing dependence on Adel al-Jubair, his private counselor in Washington, for communicating messages to the US administration.

Turki, meanwhile, is a brother of Foreign Minister Saud al-Faisal, who announced Bandar's resignation in Riyadh last week, even though Bandar had issued a statement denying the fact a week before. Saud is Abdullah's closest ally. The jostling for position has clearly begun.

But the kingdom needs change, and the strong leadership of a single-minded prince, to overcome its severe social and economic problems. Time is not on their side. Those waiting in the wings who are most disciplined and determined – and desperate to seize the oil wealth and claim all the prestige that comes with the governorship of the two holy shrines – are the followers of Saudi dissident Osama bin Laden.

4//RIA Novosti (Russian News and Information Agency), Russia 22:27 28/07/2005
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20050728/41050710.html

RUSSIA TO INCLUDE CASPIAN AND BARENTS SEAS IN ITS GLOBAL CONTROL SYSTEM

PETROPAVLOVSK-KAMCHATSKY, July 28 (RIA Novosti) - Russia will include the Caspian and Barents Seas in its national system of global control in the next two years, Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov said Thursday.

"We will be able to do that within two years," Ivanov said after arriving in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, the administrative center of the Kamchatsk region in the Russian Far East.
According to Ivanov, Russia intends to create a system of surface, underwater, and air control first in the Caspian flotilla and then in its Northern Fleet.

"It is a priority for the Caspian Sea because this region, like any region in the south, causes the most concern," he said.

A similar control system has been deployed in the Pacific fleet for about two years and is regularly used during exercises conducted by the defense ministry, interior ministry, and the FSB. The system provides a way to monitor the situation in the region from the Bering Strait to Japan.

The system that will be deployed in the Caspian and Barents Seas will have a dual purpose (civilian and military).

(SNIP)

The implementation of the GLONASS federal target program will have an additional effect, Ivanov said. The program envisions all means of transportation being equipped with the Global Navigation Satellite System (similar to the GPS system in the U.S.).

The deployment of both systems will have an enormous positive impact on the Russian economy, Ivanov concluded.

5//The Australian, Australia July 28, 2005
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/...

EAST ASIA SUMMIT JUST FOR STARTERS
John Kerin

As architect and host of the inaugural East Asia Summit, Malaysia hopes the new regional super-grouping will kickstart the creation of a powerful economic, political and security bloc.

The 10 members of ASEAN finalised the make-up of the 16-nation EAS on Tuesday night, formally endorsing applications by Australia, India and New Zealand. Japan, China and South Korea are invited as members of the ASEAN Plus Three group.

Malaysian Foreign Minister Syed Hamid Albar said yesterday that officials would begin a series of meetings to set the agenda for the summit on December 14 in Kuala Lumpur.

Mr Hamid hoped its agenda would evolve in the same way as the ASEAN Plus 3 group, which had started by discussing "matters of mutual interest."

"Of course, after (the nations) gain confidence with each other then it can be expanded to other areas such as security, strategic (issues)," he said.

(SNIP)

Mr Hamid said that while ASEAN nations would remain "very much in the driver's seat," the involvement of economic powerhouses China and India was important.

"India is starting to show some political clout and China is an important economic partner in the region," he said.

There were already plans to stage meetings every two years, despite an early resolution that they be held every three.

"There is a view that a meeting every three years is too wide a gap," he said.

Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said Australia's invitation to the EAS was "an enormous step forward in terms of our engagement with Asia." He said it would dovetail with efforts by Australia and New Zealand to develop a free trade area with ASEAN nations.

ASEAN represents a market of 500 million people with an output of $850 billion.

Its officials have suggested the EAS could eventually rival the European Union and APEC as a regional body. "It's very important to be there at the beginning because it's very hard to get into these things once they get under way," Mr Downer said.