062008f - FOREIGN PRESS REVIEW (FPR) - ‘Relevant news, views, comments and analyses for informed debate’ Compiled by Şanlı Bahadır Koç U.S. / Britain / Turkey / Magazines / Think-tanks / Blogs / Misc /Books / Quickread / Numbers / Reports - Subscribe to FPR FPR Table - H4 NYT WP GU H7 ME Isr H10 CSM IHT Eur FSU Asia H13 Times WSJ FT LAT H16 USP DT Ind H19 Mil Int Ter Wonk H21 Misc

H1 New York Times U.S. Says Exercise by Israel Seemed Directed at Iran A large-scope Israeli military exercise underscored the seriousness with which it views Iran’s nuclear program, U.S. officials said

Foreign Affairs, July/August 2008 When to Leave Iraq by Colin H. Kahl and William E. Odom,

The Economist The future of energy A fundamental change is coming sooner than you might think

A special report on the future of energy The power and the glory

The future of the European Union Just bury it It is time to accept that the Lisbon treaty is dead. The European Union can get along well enough without it

American foreign policy Imperial instincts America’s longing for an empire has a long history

FACTBOX-Obama names foreign policy panel

Time Obama: In with the Old
Obama says he wants to hire a Team of Rivals for his Cabinet. He should start by keeping Robert Gates

Foreign Affairs The New Israel and the Old Walter Russell Mead The real key to Washington’s pro-Israel policy is long-lasting and broad-based support for the Jewish state among the American public at large

Democratization and Its Discontents Eva Bellin Washington can promote political reform best by backing off.

Shortsighted StatecraftDaniel C. Kurtzer Stopping three decades of unnecessary bungling

Are We Victims of Our Own Progress? By: Trudy Rubin | Miami Herald A debate is heating up inside Iraq -- and inside Washington -- that will shape America's relationship with Iraq under the next president. The debate is over a status of forces agreement (SOFA), a broad strategic framework that will define the long-term role of the U.S. military in Iraq.

Christian Science Monitor

How Iran would retaliate if it comes to war Military analysts say the Islamic Republic would strike back in unconventional ways – targeting American interests in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Europe ratchets up its pressure on immigrants The E.U. voted to allow longer detentions for illegals and to standardize deportation rules.

Washington Post Big Oil Firms Ready to Sign Agreements With Iraq Two-Year, No-Bid Contracts Aimed at Boosting Production

Iraq, U.S. Launch Crackdown Operation in Southeastern Border City Meets Little Resistance

An Awful SOFA - Phillip Carter, Intel Dump

Reuters Adviser denies Obama showed naivete on Jerusalem

Wall Street Journal The Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty Is Obsolete
By Jane Harman The world needs new rules on peaceful atomic energy.

CFR – This CFR.org Backgrounder explains why Iraq's government has failed to devise a comprehensive oil revenue-sharing law.

In a podcast, the Nobel-laureate economist Joseph Stiglitz and Goldman Sachs' Robert Hormats discuss the total economic cost of Iraq's fluctuating oil output.

This mid-2007 briefing from the U.S. Energy Information Administration surveys Iraq's oil industry.

Talking to Iran - Tom Barnett, Thomas P.M. Barnett

CFR's Mohamad Bazzi says everyone gains if Syria returns to the center of the Arab world.

Mona Yacoubian, co-author of a new CFR Special Report on Syria, discusses how the Gaza truce fits into broader regional geopolitical movements in an interview.

IAEA Will Investigate Syrian Nuclear Mysteries By: Richard Weitz | World Politics Review A delegation from the International Atomic Energy Agency will visit Syria next week to assess recent American claims that the installation attacked by Israeli warplanes last year was indeed a nuclear reactor in the final stages of construction.

Daily Star In an editorial, the paper argues that while it is fair to attribute much of the Arab predicament to outside meddling, there is no excuse for regional ruling classes that have been almost completely devoid of genuine leadership for a generation

Hasan Suroor examines al-Qaeda's declining fortunes in Iraq and asks whether Islamism is running out of steam.

Conversation with Nasr, Gordon and Biddle

The Times Al-Mahdi Army routed without a shot fired

Last remaining stronghold of Shia gunmen is reclaimed by a huge wave of Iraqi troops and American special forces

Sarkozy aims to rescue the EU in style French 'hyper-president' determined to make the Irish vote a second time but no expense is being spared in the meantime

Independent Oil giants return to Iraq Nearly four decades after the four biggest Western oil companies were expelled from Iraq by Saddam Hussein, they are negotiating their return. By the end of the month, Royal Dutch Shell, BP, Exxon Mobil and Total will sign agreements with the Baghdad government, Iraq's first with big Western oil firms since the US-led invasion in 2003.

Why Iraq won't be South Korea Bush's last call in Iraq is an agreement that would create a US-style consumer society in the Mesopotamian sands, a demilitarized client state under benign US protection. Better yet, it could be like a 21st century version of the South Korean "tiger" miracle. The problem is, Iraqis aren't buying into it. And without an agreement, and a new US-friendly Iraqi oil law, Bush's US$3 trillion Iraq adventure will have been for nothing. - Pepe Escobar

Middle East serves US some humble pie A series of regionally negotiated settlements - most recently the Hamas and Israel ceasefire - has cast doubt on the United States' cherished role as the grandmaster of the Middle East chessboard. It may be too early to call the Middle East the graveyard of Pax Americana, but it will be up to the possible Barack Obama administration to ensure the American voice is heard again in the region, not due to fear of attack but respect for its wisdom. - Sreeram Chaulia

Al Awsat Iraq and US: the Path of the Future : Amir Taheri

Guardian From treaty to entreaties Editorial: EU leaders have at least to consider the prospect of getting on with life without Lisbon

Ireland face pressure to vote again on EU European leaders meet to decide how to respond to the defeat inflicted on their project by Irish voters

Oil giants to sign contracts with Iraq Iraq's oil ministry in talks with BP, Exxon Mobil, Shell and Total about renewing exploitation of vast reserves

China is back on familiar territory

Martin Jacques: As relations warm with both Taiwan and Japan, China is resuming its centuries-old position as the linchpin of east Asia

Los Angeles Times Stop Iran's nukes by bombing oil wells, neocons suggest

BABYLON & BEYOND: Why attack Iran's nuclear facilities when striking their oil infrastructure would be much more effective in the scope of a US-led preventive war, Washington Institute for Near East Policy writes

Sue OPEC By: Darren Bush, Harry First and John J. Flynn | Darren Bush, Harry First and John J. Flynn OPEC may call itself an "organization," but everyone knows that it is, pure and simple, a cartel that manipulates markets, restricts output and fixes prices. The United States and the European Union have vigorously prosecuted other multinational cartels for doing the same thing

McCain's terror errors Rosa Brooks: McCain used to champion a common-sense, values-based approach to terrorism. Now he's criticizing Obama for doing the same thing

Iraq crackdown in Amarah begins smoothly

With Muqtada Sadr's Mahdi Army pledging to cooperate, government forces meet little resistance as they arrest hundreds in the southern city

US N-Weapons Parts Missing, Pentagon Says By: Demetri Sevastopulo | Financial Times
The US military cannot locate hundreds of sensitive nuclear missile components, according to several government officials familiar with a Pentagon report on nuclear safeguards.

Daily Telegraph Can Saudi take heat out of oil prices? Saudi Arabia insist production levels are the same as a year ago, and that without the speculators' unwelcome involvement, prices would be lower, writes Con Coughlin.

Britain will have chance to lead way Conservative leader David Cameron may not have to choose between Europe and the United States, says Anne Applebaum

Allies must do more Britain's allies in Europe must start to shoulder their responsibilities in Afghanistan

Sarkozy's military reforms criticised France will leave Britain alone in Europe's military "premier league" if President Nicolas Sarkozy's defence reforms go through, a group of senior officers warned.

U.S. Policy Toward Asia - Condoleezza Rice, Heritage Foundation

Foreign Affairs A Partnership of Equals C. Fred Bergsten
Beijing is shirking its responsibilities to the global economy. To encourage better behavior, Washington should offer to share global economic leadership.

China is back on familiar territory

Martin Jacques: As relations warm with both Taiwan and Japan, China is resuming its centuries-old position as the linchpin of east Asia

Japan/China: Adjunct fellow at the Pacific Council on International Policy Andrew Horvat says Europe offers a model for Japan-China reconciliation.

Japan government fails to cut suicide rate State measures to tackle suicide a failure as figures show almost 100 people kill themselves every day

What Oil Companies Will Get in Iraq TIME

SPENCER ACKERMAN | The Washington Independent More Blood For Oil

The Economist Saudi Arabia The puzzle of oil production

H2 AK Parti kapatılırsa müzakereler durmuş olur

Alternatif oyun planı önerisi

�Müzakereyi ancak Türkiye durdurur�

AK Parti kapatılırsa şartlar değişir müzakereler durur

M Ali Birand Rüyasını erteledi

PKK’ya karşı İran’la ’tost’ harekátı

Turkey assures US over intelligence sharing with Iran

“We firmly support Turkish democracy and we certainly would expect that the Turkish courts, in looking at this issue, would consider the will of the people in making their decision.”

Kürtçe TV’nin mimarı ’çok özel’ bir bürokrat

Kongra Gel: Open Letter to Bush

Novel strategy to avoid the ‘g-word’

Kapatmanın sonuçları önemli olur

The Struggle Over Kirkuk Enters Its Decisive Phase By: Hannes Artens | World Politics Review After the battles of Basra and Mosul, Iraq's territorial integrity now faces another severe challenge on the constitutional front. With the U.N. Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) having initiated rounds of talks to save the north from a potential cross-border war, the struggle over the future status of the northern city of Kirkuk has entered its decisive phase

As U.S. Influence Fades in Mideast, Israel Looks to Turkey for Diplomatic Help

The Economist Letters Norman Stone

EU says position unchanged on AK Party closure case

Laikler ‘tekel’ olmamaya hazır mı? GrenvIlle Byford

WSJ Türk siyasetine de ‘futbol mucizesi’ gerek

LA Times Marie L. Yovanovitch, however, acknowledges atrocities by Turks and calls Armenians' suffering 'one of the greatest tragedies of the 20th century.' The nominee to be ambassador to Armenia avoids the term but acknowledges mass killings and other atrocities by Turks.

Obama'nın danışmanı AKP'li vekille görüştü

Two Kings Is No Solution For Kurdistan American Chronicle

Le Monde: Türkiye, Sarkozy'nin yazını zehir edebilir

Güler Kömürcü İsrail Büyükelçisi ile özel sohbet (2)

Guardian Publisher convicted of insulting Turkey Judge sentences publisher, Ragip Zarakolu, to five months in prison under Turkey's notorious Article 301

Kurdish government supports U.S. SOFA

Turkey to bridge Iranian gas, US reacts

Turkey's business world calls for a new constitution to ease tensıon

From the Archive Islam Takes a Democratic Turn - New York Times
Soli Ozel

İç Basında Türk Dış Politikası Dış Basında Türkiye - BBC Turkish 0700 VOA TSİ 06:30 Turkish Press Review Google News Turkey TurcoPundit

Google News Fırat News Agency KurdishMedia Kurdish Kurdish Aspect Dış Basında Irak BBC Monitoring Inter-national

Kurdish government supports U.S. SOFA

Kürtçe TV’nin mimarı ’çok özel’ bir bürokrat

Two Kings Is No Solution For Kurdistan American Chronicle

'CIA ajanı' kadın için yakalama emri çıkartıldı

DTP’ye savunma için 2.5 ay ek süre

PKK’lı tacizci şeyh CIA bağlantılı çıktı

Iraqi Kurdish Press Highlights 19 Jun 08

Cevdet Aşkın PKK'dan Bush'a mektup, Erbil'den casus operasyonu, TÜSİAD'dan anayasa konvansiyonu

İBRAHİM KARAGÜL

5 trilyon dolarlık kriz dalgası, ateşler içinde bir Ortadoğu…

Google News Greece Cyprus Turkish Cypriot Press ABHaber Dış Basında Türkiye-AB İlişkileri Günlük Haftalık

AK Parti kapatılırsa müzakereler durmuş olur

AB: Kapatma davası olağan değil, tavrımız değişmedi

Sarkozy'nin hayali Türkiye'nin elinde

Emin Pazarcı Yunan yapar da bizimkine ne demeli

Rauf Denktaş Yine aynı hikâye

Sami Kohen Akdeniz projesine “evet”

Hristofyas: Ankara müdahale etmemeli

Nagehan Alçı Avrupa’yla flört vakti

Erivan Büyükelçisi Tartışması

US Diplomat Grapples with Issues of Closed Borders and Frozen Conflicts in Caucasus BY JOSHUA KUCERA A US congressional hearing on the closed border between Turkey and Armenia has highlighted what is likely to be the newest legislative battle for Armenian Americans and their allies in Congress.

Sarkozy: 'Genişleme Sürecini Askıya Alalım'

Publisher convicted of insulting Turkey

Hedo Okur Tuncay Nihat Altintop

Cengiz Çandar Avrupa'da yola devam haydi Türkiye!

Washington Post 'Edge of Heaven' Comes Close To Perfection

GROWING INTERNET CENSORSHIP IN TURKEY

Experts: Maintain balance between freedoms and respect for values

'Fişli' vali yardımcısı 100 bin YTL istiyor

Havelsan'ın bir mühendisi kayıp

Agos ve Hrant'ı Google'dan öğrendik

Erdoğan: Tuzla'da ruhsatlı tersane parmakla sayılacak kadar az

İstanbul’da haftada bir töre cinayeti işleniyor

’Dink iddiasını ciddiye almadık’

İlk kadın paşa adayı Bilgehan

Türkiye ve Azerbaycan, Türk okullarıyla gurur duyuyor

20 Haziran 2008 Basın Özeti

H3 TÜSİAD: Kazananı olmayacak oyuna ilerliyoruz

Ürperten iddia: Yargıçlar ordu çizgisine çekilecek

MGK'da masaya 'rahatsızlıklar' da gelecek

Siyasete müdahale görüntüsü TÜSİAD'ı yalnız bıraktı

TÜSİAD'dan siyasetçilere ağır eleştiriler

Kemal Derviş'ten kriz öngörüleri

AKP’nin A, B, C, D, E planı var, E planında da erken seçim var

EYVAH YiNE O

'Anayasa Mahkemesi reforme edilmeli'

AP�de Yılmaz-Uras atışması

Kemal Derviş siyasete dönmeyecek

TÜSİAD Derviş'i takdim eder

TÜSİAD’dan masaya davet

Sezer ve Derviş aynı partide buluşacak

Canınızı yakarım

‘Zıkkım’a tepki büyük

Loğoğlu da Çankaya'da

Gizli oyunu TOBB bozdu

Dink cinayetinde Öz'e bir suçlama daha

Çelik'ten Özcan'a: Haddini bil

Türk siyasi tarihinde bir ilk gerçekleşiyor Derin millet demokrasi için yollara düşüyor...

TÜSİAD calls for a ‘national convention’ on a new constitution

TÜSİAD call raises suspicions among NGOs

AKP, 6 yıl içinde 280 milyar dolar yeni borç yaptı

'Ordu kışlaya dönemez' sözü şaşırttı: Bu acı bir dönüşüm

Suikasti polis 1yıl önceden biliyordu

Büyükanıt'tan veda gibi sözler

Türkiye'yi gergin buldum

Kemal Derviş: Türkiye’de büyümedeki düşüşün küresel krizle hiç ilgisi yok

ÖZDEP kararı Gül’ün aleyhine

Anayasa Mahkemesi’nin 1993 yılındaki kararı Gül’e siyaset yasağı verilebileceği yolundaki iddiaları güçlendiriyor

Gönüllü ‘ahlak polisleri’ dehşet saçıyor!

Kendilerini “ahlak polisi” olarak adlandıran sakallı bir grup, sokakta davranışlarını “sakıncalı” buldukları kadınları tekme tokat dövüyor

Son Dakika Milliyet Hürriyet Zaman

Ahmet Taşgetiren "28 Şubat Başbakanı"nın heyecanı

Ruşen - Çakır

Taha Akyol Neden böyle?

Fikret Bila Oramiral Ataç’ı duygulandıran kitap

Hasan Cemal

Murat Yetkin Akıl tutulması, kapatma davası, yeni anayasa

İsmet Berkan Başkasının aklını ödünç almayın

Fehmi Koru Şişman kediler faaliyete geçti bile

Taha Kıvanç 'Pop sosyolog' olmak da zor be!

Şamil Tayyar Ara rejim başbakanı

Ali Bayramoğlu Bir 28 Şubat polemiği

Yasemin Çongar Yargı darbesi temmuz sonunda tamamlanabilir...

Ertuğrul Özkök Velev ki zıkkım değil

YASİN DOĞAN TÜSİAD şapkadan tavşan çıkaramadı

AKP niçin kapatılmamalı?
HALUK ŞAHİN

Önce Demirel, sonra Mesut Yılmaz... ORAL ÇALIŞLAR

Zavallı Mesut Onbaşı! HASAN CELAL GÜZEL

Sakın karışmayın
MEHMET ALİ KIŞLALI

Ahmet HakanAfişler savaşında kim ne demek istiyor

M Ali Birand Rüyasını erteledi

Sabahattin Önkibar Darbe olma ihtimali var mı?

Cüneyt Ülsever

Enis Berberoğlu

Okay Gönensin Boşluk solda

Aydın Ayaydın Siyaset yeniden mi şekilleniyor?

Oktay Ekşi Özcan’ın itirafı

Tufan Türenç Bir Dışişleri Bakanı ve değişen iklim

Serdar Turgut Belanın joker Derviş’i

Özdemir İnce Batan geminin malı Türk Telekom (1)

Mehmet Y Yılmaz Dinci medyanın tümü bir Sözcü etmiyor!

Yalçın Doğan 90+2’de dün Ecevit yarın Erdoğan

TAMER KORKMAZ Demirel'in “siyasi koşusu”nu kimler başlatmıştı?

MUHARREM SARIKAYAÜç yeni parti...

ERDAL ŞAFAKKonvansiyon

[YORUM - ETYEN MAHÇUPYAN] Yoksa darbe normal mi?(2)

Savaş Süzal AKP'ye iktidar yolu senaryosu yeniden sahnede

ENGİN ARDIÇNeden değiştirmediniz?

ERGUN BABAHANZafer gecesi olsun

EMRE AKÖZ'Laiklik, bizim laiklik dediğimiz şeydir'

Umur Talu

HASAN BÜLENT KAHRAMAN

Same discussions, allegations precede military meeting
by MAZHAR BAĞLI*

NAZLI ILICAK "Kan" davası

MEHMET BARLAS Aşırı yorum farkı varken ak ile kara hiç gri olmaz ki...

Mehmet Metiner Humeyni mi Atatürk mü?

Oray Eğin Halıcıdan baş karikatüriste... Medyanın parti komiserleri

Serdar Akinan Entelektüel teşhircilik

MAHMUT ÖVÜRCHP, 'İzmir Kalesi'ni kimlerle savunacak?

YAVUZ DONATİşin doğrusu... Emine Tevfika Ayaşlı

Ekonomi

ABDURRAHMAN YILDIRIM

Kemal Derviş'in söylemediği

Ercan Kumcu Şirketlerin riski

Erdal Sağlam

Hurşit Güneş Yanlış hesap Bağdat’tan döner

Ekonominin başının hedefindeki 8 il

Şimşek: Birçok ülkede araziyi bedava veriyorlar

Derviş: Enflasyondaki artışa izin verin

IMF, WB and top CEOs give vote of confidence for Turkish economy

Güngör Uras Derviş doğruları ‘tekrarladı’...

Baykal: "Be insafsız, elini vicdanına koy"

Derviş’in konuşması
UĞUR GÜRSES

Europe Pushes Ireland to Help Save Treaty

H5 Washington Post Big Oil Firms Ready to Sign Agreements With Iraq

Two-Year, No-Bid Contracts Aimed at Boosting Production

Iraq, U.S. Launch Crackdown Operation in Southeastern Border City Meets Little Resistance

Bush's Oily Embrace By Dan Froomkin

Afghans Assert Victory Over Taliban in South

Albright Helping Obama Bridge Differences with Clinton

An Oil Epiphany By Charles Krauthammer, John McCain gets it on domestic oil drilling. Sort of.

A False Moderate? By Michael Gerson, Obama isn't exactly the post-partisan figure his supporters would have you believe.

In Gaza and Israel, a Wary Quiet

As First Day of Cease-Fire Passes, Hamas Faces Questions About Intentions

Editorial A Better Surveillance Law

Congress shows it still knows how to reach a compromise in the national interest.

A Talk With King Abdullah of Jordan Lally Weymouth

The Small-Donor Fallacy By Jay Mandle, Big-money campaign donors have an increasing stranglehold on our democracy.

Jump Ball for New Hampshire By E. J. Dionne Jr., The presidential race here is surprisingly close, which means it could be nationally as well.

Surveillance Bill Offers Protection To Telecom Firms Deal Would Extend U.S. Wiretap Power, Shield Providers Facing Privacy Lawsuits

Obama to Reject Public Funds for Election

H6 Guardian From treaty to entreaties Editorial: EU leaders have at least to consider the prospect of getting on with life without Lisbon

Ireland face pressure to vote again on EU European leaders meet to decide how to respond to the defeat inflicted on their project by Irish voters

Oil giants to sign contracts with Iraq Iraq's oil ministry in talks with BP, Exxon Mobil, Shell and Total about renewing exploitation of vast reserves

Nato must tackle the Taliban in Pakistan Letters: Without Nato action to tackle Taliban operations in Pakistan, it will be impossible to prevent the growth of the insurgency in Afghanistan

China is back on familiar territory

Martin Jacques: As relations warm with both Taiwan and Japan, China is resuming its centuries-old position as the linchpin of east Asia

Untangling Afghanistan James Denselow: It's time for a proper cost-benefit analysis of Britain's military presence in Afghanistan

Can Obama defend America? Michael Tomasky: The McCain campaign wants national security front-and-centre, and a skirmish this week suggests how the issue will play out

In the Jerusalem of the North, the Jewish story is forgotten Jonathan Steele: Three times as many people died in Lithuania under the Nazis than the Soviets, but the state is myopic about the past

Pleading ignorance on torture

Brian Beutler: The architects of the Bush administration's torture policy testified in Washington this week, but they may not be held accountable

John McCain's cynical energy policy Daniel Koffler: Offshore drilling won't end America's dependence on foreign oil

Warning that oil summit could push price up Meeting of producers and users in Saudi Arabia this weekend could propel the cost of energy higher

H7 “Language Atlas of Syria” reviewed by Nikaolas van Dam

“The Struggle for Power in Syria” by Van Dam reviewed by Josh Landis

Time Can Saudi Pumps Help Ease Prices?

Why Iraq won't be South Korea Bush's last call in Iraq is an agreement that would create a US-style consumer society in the Mesopotamian sands, a demilitarized client state under benign US protection. Better yet, it could be like a 21st century version of the South Korean "tiger" miracle. The problem is, Iraqis aren't buying into it. And without an agreement, and a new US-friendly Iraqi oil law, Bush's US$3 trillion Iraq adventure will have been for nothing. - Pepe Escobar

Middle East serves US some humble pie A series of regionally negotiated settlements - most recently the Hamas and Israel ceasefire - has cast doubt on the United States' cherished role as the grandmaster of the Middle East chessboard. It may be too early to call the Middle East the graveyard of Pax Americana, but it will be up to the possible Barack Obama administration to ensure the American voice is heard again in the region, not due to fear of attack but respect for its wisdom. - Sreeram Chaulia

CFR's Mohamad Bazzi says everyone gains if Syria returns to the center of the Arab world.

Al Awsat A Talk with Syrian FM Walid al-Muallem

Mona Yacoubian, co-author of a new CFR Special Report on Syria, discusses how the Gaza truce fits into broader regional geopolitical movements in an interview.

IAEA Will Investigate Syrian Nuclear Mysteries By: Richard Weitz | World Politics Review A delegation from the International Atomic Energy Agency will visit Syria next week to assess recent American claims that the installation attacked by Israeli warplanes last year was indeed a nuclear reactor in the final stages of construction.

Daily Star In an editorial, the paper argues that while it is fair to attribute much of the Arab predicament to outside meddling, there is no excuse for regional ruling classes that have been almost completely devoid of genuine leadership for a generation

Hasan Suroor examines al-Qaeda's declining fortunes in Iraq and asks whether Islamism is running out of steam.

A Thin Line Separating Islamism From Nazism? An Interview With Algerian Novelist Boualem Sansal By: Grégoire Leménager | World Politics Review A former official in the Algerian civil service and the author of four previous novels, the Algerian novelist Boualem Sansal has recently published a new book titled Le village de l'Allemand: "The German's Village."

Daily Star Hizbullah can keep Lebanon's footing solid by reaching out to its rivals

Rifts are growing in Jordan's Muslim Brotherhood By Ibrahim Gharaibeh

Whatever Palestinians discuss, the real issue is Iran By Saul Singer

H8 IraqSlogger Google News Iraq Iran Syria Mideastwire.com - NPR Iraq

Iraq troops take control in Amara Iraqi and US security forces fan out in the southern Iraqi city of Amara to drive out Shia militias and criminal gangs.

Iraq launches militia crackdown, arrests top al-Sadr official

Iran Says Ready to Negotiate on Nuclear Incentives

Assad: Meeting Olmert Now Pointless

Iraq Press Roundup

Will Sadr gain from Amarah offensive?

Pan-Arab Paper Interviews Syrian FM on Talks With Israel, Other Issues

Dual identity Will Saudi wealth put pressure on social reform?

$162 billion in Iraq, Afghanistan war funding approved by House

Gulf Source Slams Western Offer to Give Iran Regional Role - Paper

Obama and Iraqi Foreign Minister Have Different Memories of their Conversation

H9 Ha’aretz – Israel said to have held drill as prep for Iran attack U.S. officials tell New York Times more than a hundred fighter planes took part in maneuvers over Mediterranean

Barak: Only U.S. can help Israel-Syria talks; Syria: No chance of Assad-Olmert handshake

Olmert: Gaza truce is Hamas' last chance to avoid major IDF op

Marcus A gun in act one Anyone who claims there is a military solution for pushing back the rocket launchers without a protracted stay in Gaza does not know what he is talking about. But a lengthy presence, even partial, in the Gaza Strip could turn into a copy of the First Lebanon War

Editorial: A lengthy cease-fire is an achievement for Israel

Moments of calm in the cuckoo's nest Let Hamas have the ?last word? and declare its victory in the mud and gun-oil of Gaza, while Israel will live, prosper and grow, as it always does during the breaks in the clouds of war.

Report: U.S., Canada warn Hezbollah set to strike Jewish targets ABC: Intelligence agencies say sleeper cells in Canada conducting surveillance of Israel embassy, synagogues

Eldar Just make-believe Instead of conducting the talks through Abbas and letting him reap the accomplishment, Israel has turned Haniyeh into the hero of the hour.

Jerusalem Post Hamas officials: We will honor truce in West Bank too

But Islamists warn they'll retaliate if IDF targets them; PA President Mahmoud Abbas says he's ready to establish unity government

Olmert: A miracle will save my job

PM expresses confidence in interview to Der Spiegel; Barak's Labor falls to 14 seats in poll

A PM churning as fast as he can

Is Olmert's diplomatic activity easing his precarious position?

Ahmadinejad says US plotted to kill him

Iranian president's official Web site says changes to his itinerary in Iraq thwarted "enemies'" plan

'Hizbullah won't stop at Shaba'

What about seven Shi'a villages that existed in the Galilee prior to 1948?

Israel's EU upgrade

EU's engagement with the region, after all, has not always been judicious

Yedioth Ahronoth 'Israel rehearsed Iran attack'
US officials say Jewish state carried out large military exercise as rehearsal for potential bombing on nuclear facilities, NY Times reports. Pentagon source: Goal is to send clear message Israel is prepared to act militarily

Deal with the devil/ Sever Plocker Instead of refusing to talk with Hamas, Israel granted it priceless legitimacy

Daily Alert.org – Hebrew Press Editorials (2008) - Middle East Progress - EJC Israeli Press Review – Google News Israel - Palestine

Israel Offers to Begin Peace Talks With Beirut Negotiations Would Include Disputed Land

Focusing On McCain Jewish Press

Lebanon spurns Israeli overture Lebanon's PM-designate again rejects the idea of bilateral talks with Israel, saying withdrawing from occupied land is the key

Michael Jansen says the Gaza ceasefire marks a victory for Hamas.

Beyond Gaza Israelis ponder the challenges of Hamas and Iran

The Hamas Interest in the Tahdiya (Temporary Truce) with Israel - Jonathan Dahoah Halevy (Institute for Contemporary Affairs/Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs)

Boston Globe Editorial The cease-fire in Gaza

Fragile ceasefire holds in Gaza A truce between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza is holding, despite widespread scepticism

Cyberhate What can be done
to combat it?

H10 Christian Science Monitor

How Iran would retaliate if it comes to war Military analysts say the Islamic Republic would strike back in unconventional ways – targeting American interests in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Europe ratchets up its pressure on immigrants The E.U. voted to allow longer detentions for illegals and to standardize deportation rules.

On U.S. coasts, a rethink on oil drilling? High gas prices may soften the opposition of some states to offshore drilling

ASIA

U.S. Policy Toward Asia - Condoleezza Rice, Heritage Foundation

Foreign Affairs A Partnership of Equals C. Fred Bergsten
Beijing is shirking its responsibilities to the global economy. To encourage better behavior, Washington should offer to share global economic leadership.

China is back on familiar territory

Martin Jacques: As relations warm with both Taiwan and Japan, China is resuming its centuries-old position as the linchpin of east Asia

Japan/China: Adjunct fellow at the Pacific Council on International Policy Andrew Horvat says Europe offers a model for Japan-China reconciliation.

Japan government fails to cut suicide rate State measures to tackle suicide a failure as figures show almost 100 people kill themselves every day

Still In the Fight The Economist
Even NATO officials gave grudging respect to the audacity of the Taliban raid that sprang the entire population of the main prison in the southern city of Kandahar on the night of Friday 13th June. But the ensuing speculation that the Taliban may be about to take Kandahar and mount a serious challenge in the south to the Afghan government seems overblown.

India takes up incursions issue with China

The rise of another Red army
Since the Tiananmen protests in 1989, the overhauled People's Liberation Army has been reluctant to be the main arm called on to enforce domestic stability in China. This has become the duty of the People's Armed Police, an 800,000-strong force that some call the Communist Party's "army". Besides enforcing social order, the police are also known to preserve the power of some party officials - incompetent, corrupt or otherwise

Taliban raise a storm in Kandahar As the United States admits, the Taliban "can raise a lot of dust at any given moment", as they are doing now in Afghanistan's southern province of Kandahar, drawing a massed response from North Atlantic Treaty Organization and Afghan army forces. More than dust is being raised, though. Kandahar is just one aspect of the Taliban's military and political plan, which they hope will bring on a sandstorm. - Syed Saleem Shahzad

H11 IHT Israel's broad American base By WALTER RUSSELL MEAD Religious and secular Americans have long seen a unique bond with the Jews.

China and Africa By HANY BESADA In its dealings with Africa, Beijing has behaved no differently than other great powers acting in their own self-interest

Europe pushes Ireland to help save treaty European leaders have given the Irish government four months to try to find a way out of the crisis precipitated by Ireland's rejection of the Lisbon Treaty in a referendum last week.

Russia warns Georgia on 'provocations' Medvedev issues a warning after peacekeepers in breakaway Abkhazia region are seized and then released

Danish court rejects defamation lawsuit over cartoons The appeals court, asked to rule on cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad, said terror acts had been carried out in the name of Islam and that it was not illegal to make satirical drawings to illustrate that

EUROPE European press review

The Economist Charlemagne Democracy in Europe How Europe's leaders respond when voters give the wrong answer

The western Balkans A June tide

Time Dealing with Ireland's No

By CHARLES GRANT Ireland's rejection of the European Union's plan for reform leaves its members with unpalatable options

EU warned: No treaty, no growth

French President Nicolas Sarkozy says the EU will not be able to expand without ratification of the Lisbon treaty.

Mardell's Europe Lisbon Treaty? Let's not call the whole thing off

Time Sarkozy Makes Eyes at NATO

Analysis: Kosovo's Rocky Road To Statehood

The EU Must Go On, With or Without Ireland By: Uffe Ellemann-Jensen | The Japan Times Ireland should do the rest of Europe a favor and withdraw from the European Union. That seems to be the only tenable solution to the situation created by the Irish "no" to the Lisbon Treaty. The Irish have created a problem for themselves. They should not let it be a problem for others

What's Europe's Next Move? By: David Howell | The Japan Times
The Irish have spoiled the party and signaled to the political and social elites that ordinary citizens want their voices heard

Foreign Affairs Building a New Atlantic Alliance James P. Rubin
How the United States can restore its relationship with Europe

Presidential Adviser Sees Lack of Long-Term Planning As Poland's "Achilles Heel"

Le Monde L'Europe après le non irlandais, par Hubert Védrine

Les identités troublées des Européens, par Thomas Ferenczi

H12 RFE/RLU.S. Official Details Policy On Frozen Conflicts

Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Fried tells lawmakers that U.S. policy should help Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Armenia achieve the same freedoms and democracies that their western neighbors enjoy

EDM MOSCOW READY FOR MAJOR CONFRONTATIONS WITH PRO-WESTERN GEORGIA AND UKRAINE

- GEORGIAN OPPOSITION RIVEN BY MULTIPLE SPLITS AS NEW PARLIAMENT OPENS

- MODUS VIVENDI AGREED WITH MODERATE OPPOSITION IN THE GEORGIAN PARLIAMENT

Google News Azerbaijan

From Vancouver to Vladivostok By: Fyodor Lukyanov | The Moscow Times President Dmitry Medvedev has made a number of foreign policy statements since taking office. His speech at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum has drawn the most attention, although it was lacking something new in content.

The U.S.A. Is Looking For a Spare Rocket Airfield in Lithuania By: Vladimir Vodo and Sergey Strokan | Kommersant A possible deployment of the American anti-missile defense system in Lithuania, rather than in Poland, caused quite a scandal yesterday

RUSSIA-GEORGIA: Russia warned Georgia that efforts to detain Russian peacekeepers accused of smuggling weapons out of the breakaway Georgian province of Abkhazia could result in bloodshed (RIA Novosti).

H13 The Times Al-Mahdi Army routed without a shot fired

Last remaining stronghold of Shia gunmen is reclaimed by a huge wave of Iraqi troops and American special forces

Sarkozy aims to rescue the EU in style French 'hyper-president' determined to make the Irish vote a second time but no expense is being spared in the meantime

Obama accused of funds 'betrayal'

Decision to decline public funds means Barack Obama will no longer be constrained by strict caps on campaign financing

Which is worse, inflation or recession? Central banks are confused. But despite the risk of job losses, stagnation is better than stagflation Gerard Baker

There is no clear answer to the ‘Irish problem’ — except to carry ...

Brown hailed as saviour as Dublin pressure builds European leaders tell Brian Cowen, the Irish Prime Minister, to come back in October with a plan to solve the impasse

Wall Street Journal The Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty Is Obsolete
By Jane Harman The world needs new rules on peaceful atomic energy.

A Life's Lesson By Peggy Noonan Declarations:
Tim Russert teaches us what the world really values

Farewell, New Democrats By Kimberley A. Strassel
Potomac Watch: Barack Obama looks poised to end the Democratic experiment with ideological centrism.

Military-Industrial Complications
U.S. soldiers wait while contractors, and a bumbling Air Force, duke it out. Review & Outlook

Being Farouk Hosni
The double life of the would-be Unesco head. Review & Outlook

East China Sea Sense
China and Japan agree to cooperate in offfshore drilling.
Review & Outlook

Losing Hope, Glory and Assets
By Martin Rubin Bookshelf: Money had a lot to do with empire's end. Britain had trouble feeding its own people, let alone bearing colonial costs.

China Raises Fuel Prices

China raised its base price for gasoline by 17%, a move that global oil traders concluded would diminish the country's appetite for fuel; benchmark crude fell 3.5%. The decision marks Beijing's largest increase in fuel prices in four years.

H14 Financial Times Saving the planet will be difficult, but do not despair Philip Stephens wonders whether it is coincidental that so many of the sceptics on global warming are old enough to know they can never be proved wrong. In place of their denial, we should focus on how the burden of adjustment might be shared between rich and emerging nations

Diplomacy eases Mideast tensions

The Israel-Hamas deal, the first truce since the militant group took full control of Gaza last year, follows the revival of Syrian-Israeli contacts. It also comes after a rare accord between Lebanese political factions, which pulled the country back from the brink of civil war

Iraq forces launch crackdown in Amara Iraqi security forces have launched a crackdown on Shia militias in the southern city of Amara, the latest drive in Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s campaign to restore order to Iraq

Sarkozy takes flak over forces plans

President Nicolas Sarkozy’s plans to modernise France’s armed forces and rejoin Nato’s military command have triggered strong opposition from within the defence establishment and his party

Merkel rejects ‘two speed’ EU after Irish vote The European Union cannot afford to waste time in pursuing greater integration and must move ‘as quickly as possible’ to decide on the future of the Lisbon treaty, according to the German chancellor, Angela Merkel

Why the Irish were right to say No If Germany, France and others want to go ahead on their own, a multi-speed Europe would be fine, writes Samuel Brittan

Afghanistan backlash Gideon Rachman’s blog: Is Britain about to sour on the Afghan war in a big way? Plan A isn’t working, but there’s no plan B

Reject sovereign funds at your peril

Hostility is dangerous because we are reaching a stage in the global economy where SWFs have other options, says Stephen Schwarzman

The conundrum of financial stability

Central banks have been retooled as monetary analysts, yet they remain banks, they retain responsibility for the stability of other banks.The result is a tension.

Israel and Hamas take the peace road The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas is warmly to be welcomed. Both sides must work to deepen the truce

Last clashes fuel doubts on Gaza ceasefire Israel’s ceasefire with the Islamist group Hamas came into effect on Thursday morning preceded by some last-minute clashes that added to doubts about how long lasting it might be

WORLD NEWS: Venezuela to snub Saudi Arabia over call for Opec summit

FT REPORT - ISLAMIC FINANCE 2008: The next frontier

FT REPORT - ISLAMIC FINANCE 2008: Covering risk puts a premium on growth

Brussels plans onslaught on online retailing Moves to break down national borders in internet retailing so that customers can take advantage of prices offered by companies in different countries are to be championed by the EU’s consumer protection commissioner

Shell shuts oilfield after gun attack

Gunmen in powerboats sped across more than 100km of open sea to attack a giant oil production vessel off Nigeria yesterday, forcing Royal Dutch Shell to shut down one

Tentative agreement on anti-terror spy bill Under the possible accord, a federal court could immunise a company by ruling it had been given written assurances that its participation domestic spying program was legal

Obama reverses policy on using public funds Barack Obama became the first American presidential candidate since Richard Nixon to rely solely on private money to sustain his White House bid when he declared that he would opt out of the Watergate-era public financing system

US food producers urge ethanol rethink US meat, dairy and poultry producers urged regulators to re-examine ethanol mandates, which are tightening limited grain supplies and forcing a run-up in feedstock prices that threatens their livelihoods

H15 Los Angeles Times Stop Iran's nukes by bombing oil wells, neocons suggest

BABYLON & BEYOND: Why attack Iran's nuclear facilities when striking their oil infrastructure would be much more effective in the scope of a US-led preventive war, Washington Institute for Near East Policy writes

Sue OPEC By: Darren Bush, Harry First and John J. Flynn | Darren Bush, Harry First and John J. Flynn
OPEC may call itself an "organization," but everyone knows that it is, pure and simple, a cartel that manipulates markets, restricts output and fixes prices. The United States and the European Union have vigorously prosecuted other multinational cartels for doing the same thing

McCain's terror errors Rosa Brooks: McCain used to champion a common-sense, values-based approach to terrorism. Now he's criticizing Obama for doing the same thing

Iraq crackdown in Amarah begins smoothly

With Muqtada Sadr's Mahdi Army pledging to cooperate, government forces meet little resistance as they arrest hundreds in the southern city

Afghan clashes point to larger problems

The fighting near Kandahar, though brief, disrupted lives of villagers in a nominally secure area, and raised concerns about communication gaps between Afghan and Western allies

The real McCain By Eric Alterman and George Zornick The media portray him as a GOP maverick. He's really a die-hard conservative

Oil crisis fuels blame game With the stakes high and the issue complex, speculators, consumers, Saudi Arabia, environmentalists, the Bush administration and congressional Democrats have all come under fire

Islamic law plays a role in British legal system

Muslims can seek rulings on family or property issues from Sharia councils, which work in cooperation with the civil courts

U.N. Security Council says sexual violence akin to war crimes

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice introduced the resolution, saying rape and other sexual violence are a security issue and belong on the council's agenda

China to raise fuel, electricity prices; global oil market takes notice

Subsidized retail gas and diesel prices will be allowed to rise, and the announcement appears to have an immediate effect. Crude falls to $131.93 a barrel

H16 American Politics

Obama Remarks on Detainees and Afghanistan

Farewell, New Democrats - Kimberley Strassel, Wall Street Journal

Obama declines public funds, gains spending advantage

Analysis: Obama chose winning over his word

realclearpolitics memeorandum ABC’s The Note – US News Political Bulletin Early Bird GovExec Swamp Gas The Swamp

A review of Madam Speaker: Nancy Pelosi's Life, Times, and Rise to Power by Marc Sandalow

Inside McCain's Town-Hall Campaign Unlike Barack Obama, John McCain isn't a great speechmaker. But he has mastered the art of the town-hall meeting. How it could help him win

H17 Daily Telegraph Can Saudi take heat out of oil prices?

Saudi Arabia insist production levels are the same as a year ago, and that without the speculators' unwelcome involvement, prices would be lower, writes Con Coughlin.

Britain will have chance to lead way Conservative leader David Cameron may not have to choose between Europe and the United States, says Anne Applebaum

Allies must do more Britain's allies in Europe must start to shoulder their responsibilities in Afghanistan

Sarkozy's military reforms criticised France will leave Britain alone in Europe's military "premier league" if President Nicolas Sarkozy's defence reforms go through, a group of senior officers warned.

Obama 'won't martyr bin Laden'

Senator pledges to put the top terrorist in the dock

H18 Independent Oil giants return to Iraq Nearly four decades after the four biggest Western oil companies were expelled from Iraq by Saddam Hussein, they are negotiating their return. By the end of the month, Royal Dutch Shell, BP, Exxon Mobil and Total will sign agreements with the Baghdad government, Iraq's first with big Western oil firms since the US-led invasion in 2003.

EU gives Irish ultimatum - find a solution to 'no' vote

European Union leaders last night gave Ireland just four months to produce a way out of the crisis over the Lisbon Treaty caused by its rejection by the Irish people in last week's referendum.

Denis MacShane: Europe needs to speak with one voice

H19 Military Intelligence Terrorism

Foreign Affairs Does Osama Still Call the Shots? Marc Sageman and Bruce Hoffman Debating whether the real terrorist threat is top-down or bottom-up.

US N-Weapons Parts Missing, Pentagon Says By: Demetri Sevastopulo | Financial Times
The US military cannot locate hundreds of sensitive nuclear missile components, according to several government officials familiar with a Pentagon report on nuclear safeguards.

The nuclear network of A.Q. Khan A hero at home, a villain abroad

Will the New Fences Along the Mexican Border Work? (Cover Story)
In a huge public-works project few Americans will ever see, the U.S. is erecting miles of new fences along much of the Mexican border. Can a barrier stop the tide of illegal aliens?

US Joint Forces Command Forms IW Center

Don't mess with KBR

A Pentagon contract manager learns the risks of confronting the Bush administration's most favored defense contractor. In the end, Goliath wins.

H20 Slate

U.S. International Transactions: First Quarter 2008 — Current Account
Source: Bureau of Economic Analysis

H21

The Games That Bring Us Together Sports and games are hurdling borders as never before, in the process breeding fresh champions, creating new wealth, and changing forever the lives of individuals and the destiny of nations

Lower men wallow in pity as swine do in mud, their pity for others being the same as their pity for themselves. Thus spake Nietzsche... more»

Mrs. Thatcher viewed Ferdinand Mount as “an idle and effete youth.” But she came to admire his powers as a wordsmith. Right she was... more»

Much of the best literature of the 19th century can’t be grasped without knowing the position of women and women writers: their views of the world and their literary preferences... more»

Why I hate second-hand books

Why women really do love self-obsessed psychopaths Bad boys, it seems, really do get all the girls. Women might claim they want caring, thoughtful types but scientists have discovered what they really want – self-obsessed, lying psychopaths.

Special report: Bangladesh is set to disappear under the waves by the end of the century

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