The Worst Change Obama Could Ask For (RUSSIA)

President Barack Obama has explained his economic recovery program in some detail to the American people, but he could not do the same for his Afghan policy. His announcement that an additional 17,000 troops are to be sent to Afghanistan -- an almost 50 percent increase over the number already serving there -- was made abruptly and with little explanation of how their deployment figures into any greater U.S. strategy. The president cited the need to stabilize the deteriorating security situation before the Afghan presidential elections scheduled for late August.

Obama's Afghan policy is still a work in progress, but he does want to receive all of the reviews and recommendations before the NATO summit in early April. He has promised to emphasize diplomatic and developmental approaches in addition to fighting forces. Testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee in late January, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said that the new administration's goals, more modest than former President George W. Bush's commitment to regional democratization, focused on "an Afghan people who do not provide a safe haven for al-Qaida, reject the rule of the Taliban and support the legitimate government that they have elected and in which they have a stake." Given the lethal intractability of Afghanistan, those goals don't seem particularly modest.

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Econ Lessons from Japan (JAPAN)

Searching the reasons for Japan's "lost decade" — the deflation and stunted growth said to have plagued Japan ever since the collapse of the "bubble economy" in the early 1990s — has long been popular among U.S. and British commentators seeking an answer to the West's current economic problems.

The interest is welcome. But some of the results are bizarre. Almost all the main U.S. media, the conservative Wall Street Journal in particular, have run articles saying the blame lies with Japan's post-bubble, Keynesian-style infrastructure spending.

Do these people have the slightest idea of what has been happening in Japan? Japan's economy prospered in the brief periods of increased infrastructure spending. It collapsed when this spending was cut. To argue that the collapse was because of the spending is like saying food is bad for you.

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Historic Chance to Strengthen Relations (RUSSIA)

In international relations, as in life, opportunity often knocks once, and it tends not to stand around waiting for an answer. A historic opportunity has emerged for U.S.-Russian cooperation based on restored trust and confidence, made possible by positive gestures and rhetoric from both sides. Given the potential benefits of enhanced cooperation on issues ranging from nuclear nonproliferation and disarmament to addressing the global financial crisis, neither Moscow nor Washington can afford to let this opportunity pass unanswered.

The key to cooperation will be for both countries to emphasize shared interests over areas of disagreement, and both will need to take steps to rebuild trust and confidence. A bipartisan policy road map should include the following recommendations:

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Mr. Aso Goes to Washington (JAPAN)

Prime Minister Taro Aso met with U.S. President Barack Obama Tuesday in Washington, just a week after U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, during her visit to Tokyo, invited him to meet with the president as the first foreign leader to be invited to the White House since Mr. Obama came to power.

The U.S. administration's solicitous treatment of Mr. Aso appears to be an attempt to quell worries in Japan that the United States under the new administration may give priority to China in its dealing with the Asia-Pacific region. But it also shows that the U.S. has high expectations that Japan will play meaningful roles in the international community in tackling various issues ranging from the world economic recession to the stabilization of Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Mr. Aso, who is suffering from low approval ratings — 13.4 percent in a recent Kyodo News poll — apparently hoped that his meeting with the U.S. president will give his administration a shot in the arm. As if to respond to his wishes, Mr. Obama called Japan "a great partner" in coping with global issues and characterized the bilateral alliance as the "cornerstone" of security in East Asia.

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It is Af-Pak-Ind, Mr. Obama (PAKISTAN)

Having declared during the election campaign that Afghanistan was the central front in the fight against terrorism – the "good" war on which America should have been focussing all along – Obama has taken some quick steps to demonstrate how serious he is about winning it. Within days of taking office, he appointed Holbrooke to execute a new Afghanistan policy and despatched him to the region. A day later, he authorised drone attacks on targets in Pakistan.

These attacks, which take place with the connivance of the Zardari government, have continued since then and their scope has been expanded to include Baitullah Mehsud and his followers, besides militants from Al-Qaeda and the Taliban. On Feb 17, Obama announced plans to send an additional 17,000 troops to the 33,000-strong contingent already there. Ultimately, 30,000 additional troops could be deployed in the coming year or so.

At the same time, the Obama Administration is moving to complete a review of its Afghan strategy before NATO holds its next summit on April 2. The new strategy will pursue a more comprehensive regional approach.

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Trade-offf a Positive Development? (JORDAN)

The Obama administration seems to be following a two-track policy on this region, starting with Syria and the Palestinians. On the declaratory track, US spokesmen and officials reiterate the timeworn mantras adopted by the Bush administration, conditioning renewal of relations on “a change in behaviour” in Damascus.

Senator Benjamin Cardin, who took part in a five-member congressional delegation that visited the Syrian capital, stated, arrogantly: “We came here to see if Syria is ready to move forward and we will be watching its actions over the next weeks and months.”

To US legislators like Cardin, “moving forward” means that Damascus must proceed down a one-way street by cutting ties to Iran, Hizbollah and the Palestinian resistance; going along with US policies in Iraq; and refraining from interference in Lebanon’s internal affairs.

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Be Fair to Hamas, Mr. Obama (PALESTINE)

Can it be true? This week in the High Court in London, lawyers acting for an independent Palestinian organization will start proceedings against the British government.

They seek a judicial review of policy decisions that have brought the UK’s relations with Israel into conflict with international law.

"The UK has clear international law obligations to do something effective to stop Israel's attacks on Palestinian civilians,” says Phil Shiner who leads the case. “It must co-operate with other states using all lawful means to bring the situation to an end and it must stop giving aid and assistance to Israel. This means that the UK's continuing policy of arms trading with Israel is completely out of bounds, as is our role in continuing with the EU preferential trading agreement. The point of this case is to make the Government focus on what it is legally obliged to do, beyond ineffective hand-wringing.”

At the same time an adviser to Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh has written to US President Barack Obama asking him to “treat Palestinians fairly and be open-minded in dealing with Hamas”.

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U.S. Changing Tone on China (TAIWAN)

Barely in office for a month, President Barack Obama has redefined the United States' China policy — no longer placing human rights concerns above pressing strategic issues.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton concluded her first official visit to Beijing Sunday, seeking help to steady the world economy and to steer North Korea back toward negotiations aimed at ending its pursuit of nuclear weapons.

Clinton barely touched on the human rights topic; and Taiwan was not even mentioned in her three-day talks. She told media in Beijing Saturday that U.S. concerns over human rights in China could not preclude her from seeking cooperation on urgent issues, from ending a recession in the U.S. to curbing climate change, terrorism and nuclear proliferation.

Pressing China's leaders on issues such as Tibet and religious freedom “can't interfere with the global economic crisis, the global climate crisis and the security crisis” in Afghanistan, for example, where China's help is indispensable, she said.

To re-establish America as a trusted great power, Washington needs to listen, learn and lead. Thus far, the report card shows that the Obama administration has underscored the importance of one of America's closest allies, Canada, with the president's first international trip last week. Obama has also acknowledged the growing role of Asia in global affairs with his secretary of state's visit to Japan, Indonesia, Korea and China, also last week.

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U.S. & Europe After Gaza (GERMANY)

The war in Gaza seems to be over even if the cease-fire is shaky. A European-American initiative could now create the conditions for something more durable, which addresses the security needs of both Israelis and Palestinians. To do so, Syria and Hamas must be engaged in the peace process.

Although the Israeli offensive in Gaza is over, conditions for a resolution have not improved. The Palestinians remain politically divided. The winter 2008-2009 conflict further weakened Fatah's Mahmoud Abbas, whom Hamas has not recognized as president since early January. Not only is Israel in the midst of an election campaign, but opinion polls predict gains for the Likud Party and the extreme right. Thus, President Obama has immediately turned his attention toward the Middle East.

However, faced with the economic crisis and other foreign policy challenges, Barack Obama is unlikely to focus all of his energy on a conflict that many American presidents before him tried-and failed-to resolve.

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Breaking the U.S.-Iran Deadlock (JAPAN)

In his attempt to find a new U.S. policy toward Iran, U.S. President Barack Obama is trying to engage the nation through direct dialogue, a move that Iran appears to have responded to rather positively. The Iraq war provided Iran with an opportunity to increase its influence on Arab nations and Mr. Obama apparently thinks that a U.S. engagement with Iran could help stabilize the Middle East situation.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of Iran's Islamic Revolution. But the diplomatic ties between Iran and the United States remain severed. The United Nations have imposed sanctions on Iran three times since 2006 over its nuclear development program. Steep drops in oil prices have also severely hit the Iranian economy.

Mr. Obama hopes to break the deadlock in U.S.-Iran relations, a legacy of the George W. Bush administration's hostile policy toward Iran.

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Obama's "Plan B" for Iran? (ISRAEL)

According to UN officials and arms-control experts, as of last Thursday, which of the following was true?

(a) Iran has enough nuclear fuel to build a bomb if it violates its international treaty obligations, kicks out inspectors and further refines its supply, as The Los Angeles Times reported;

(b) "Iran has slowed its uranium enrichment program," as Xinhua, the Chinese news agency reported; or

(c), "Iran has slowed the expansion of its uranium enrichment plant, but has built up a stockpile of nuclear fuel…," as Reuters reported.

Confused? That's probably what Iran and its international enablers want.

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Canada Remains U.S. Lynchpin Ally (TAIWAN)

President Barack Obama, reflecting recent predecessors, made Canada his first foreign destination in office with a brief visit on Thursday, Feb. 19. He and Prime Minister Stephen Harper found common environmental ground and avoided open clash on the “Buy American” provision of the U.S. economic stimulus plan.

These considerations are related to wider international relationships, both directly and indirectly. Concerning China and Taiwan, the conflict over United Nations membership is an enduring difficulty that spans both Cold War and post-Cold War relations among nations and with international organizations. At the same time, the steady growth of their bilateral trade and investment, in the context of evolving global economic relations, encourages participation of both in international organizations.

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Clinton's Ears Wide Open (CHINA)

If the point of Hillary Rodham Clinton's maiden voyage overseas in her new role as United States secretary of state was to assure and reassure, she made it.

If her four-country Asia trip was to present a fresh American approach to world affairs, she did so.

In Beijing at least, Clinton's visit delivered what is needed desperately - a sense of certainty in the diplomatic vacuum between two presidencies.

Until very recently, many had waited anxiously for the new administration's China overtures, wondering if the precious signs of stabilization in bilateral ties at the end of the Bush years could survive the new White House resident's ambitions for change. With Clinton in town highlighting common concerns, they finally received the much sought after relief.

Her reference to the ancient Chinese aphorism "tongzhou gongji," "when in one boat, help each other," received enthusiastic resonance from Premier Wen Jiabao and the average Chinese alike.

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US Turns to the Far East (UK)

Before Downing Street gets too smug over its coup in ensuring that Gordon Brown will, early next month, become the first EU leader to meet President Barack Obama, it should note two things. First, President Obama's first foreign visitor will actually be Taro Aso, the Japanese prime minister, who arrives in Washington tomorrow. This serves to confirm that the new administration's world view will focus across the Pacific rather than the Atlantic.

Hillary Clinton used her inaugural trip as Secretary of State not to visit Europe, the Middle East, or the war zones of Iraq and Afghanistan, but to take a swing through South Korea, Indonesia, Japan and China. The Far East will be Mr Obama's foreign policy priority. Second, when Mr Brown and Mr Obama do meet, we are unlikely to witness the communion of outlook that characterised the relationship of Mr Brown's predecessor with both of Mr Obama's. The President's economic stimulus package has strong protectionist elements that are anathema to the Prime Minister. There is also the potential for tensions on the security front, with some American commanders less than enthusiastic about the effectiveness of the British military both in Iraq and Afghanistan.

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Buy American Dance Goes On (KOREA)

The American stimulus bill is to be signed into law with a ``buy-American'' provision mandating that stimulus-funded programs only fund those that utilize U.S. manufactured goods.

Additionally, it makes it more difficult for banks, which received funds under the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP), to hire immigrants.

In order to appease free-trade Republicans, President Barack Obama pushed for language noting that the United States will honor its international agreements. The language doesn't change the effect this bill will have on the superpower and the world.

The United States is a country built on the notion of political and economic freedom. With vibrant and robust free market capitalism and a political system able to react quickly to changing dynamics, it has maintained one of the most prosperous societies the world has ever known.

Because of our financial crisis, opponents of free trade were able to successfully fight to include in the stimulus bill the buy-American principle and other similar provisions in order to ensure the protection of jobs in industries that are unable to compete with external competitors.

The opponents may ``save'' a few jobs, but the costs far outweigh the benefits.

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Not Our Problem: Guantanamo (LATVIA)

When U.S. President Barack Obama in his first few hours in office announced the closure of the military detention base at Guantanamo Bay, many in Europe rejoiced. It seemed that a new era of U.S. politics was upon the world, whereby the inner workings of the “war on terror” (a term used sparingly by the new president) would become more transparent and just.

Now things are becoming a bit murkier. Instead of facing the problems presented by Guantanamo Bay head on by taking responsibility for injustices, the U.S. seems to be trying to get the problem out of sight and out of mind as quickly as possible. Instead of ending the indefinite detention of all but the most extreme cases, the U.S. seems to want to simply hand off former detainees, whose legal status is still unclear in most cases, to friendly countries around the world – including the Baltics.

The situation being what it is, the Baltics are, of course, happy to help. The U.S. has been a staunch ally and when they need the Baltics to take a few “hard cases” off their hands, there is really no way to refuse – even if it is still not clear whether these so-called “hard cases” will be classified as asylum seekers, detainees or POWs.

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U.S. Policy Shift in South Asia (JAPAN)

The recent visit by U.S. Special Envoy to Afghanistan Richard Holbrooke to South Asia comes at a time of growing unease in the region and underscores the Obama administration's efforts to formulate a new strategy for winning the Afghan war.

The Taliban and al-Qaida in Afghanistan continue to make gains despite the efforts of the U.S. and North Atlantic Treaty Organization forces stationed there. The situation in Pakistan is precarious with ever-increasing swaths of Pakistani territory falling under the Taliban's control. Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari has gone on record to suggest that his country is fighting for its very survival. Meanwhile, tensions between India and Pakistan remain high following the terrorist attacks in Mumbai last November.

Washington's sense of frustration with President Hamid Karzai's leadership in Afghanistan is at an all-time high.

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Canada's Obama Envy (CANADA)

Contrarians and professional curmudgeons, mostly among chronically disgruntled right wingers, harrumph that Barack Obama is a fake, a rock star, an egomaniac, a flaming liberal in designer suits, a danger to traditional values, a wild spender and an overrated politico in every respect.

Happily, most Canadians pay no attention to these clangorous voices. They see the genuine article of Mr. Obama's intelligence that combines the gifts of listening, absorbing and exercising judgment.

So, contrarians and curmudgeons aside, Canadians suffer from Obama envy, with many saying they wish we could swap leaders, sending them Canada's stiff and brittle political commandante for the cool and cerebral American.

Before Canadians sigh too often and deeply for things that cannot be, they might recall that it has not always been this way; indeed, for the past eight years, it manifestly was not this way at all.

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Obama and Turkish Foreign Policy (TURKEY)

Newly elected US President Barack Obama may have a structural impact upon Turkish foreign policy if, as he promised in his campaign, he promotes a multilateral world, complying with international law and relying on negotiations and peaceful means rather than coercion in resolving global problems.

This impact may go beyond isolated issues, including Cyprus, Armenian genocide claims and Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) terrorism, and be rather determinative and comprehensive. Obama’s presidency may resolve the dilemma that Turkish foreign policy has had to deal with since the 1980s with respect to its Westernization policy. This may further help Turkey expand the boundaries of its foreign policy and create fertile ground for Turkish foreign policy makers where foreign policy decisions will be made smoothly.

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Beijing's Hopes for Obama (Japan)

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton this week has embarked on her first overseas trip to Asia as America's chief diplomat. While the leadership in all four capitals she visits are eager to gauge the pulse of the new U.S. government, Beijing is probably more anxious to figure out the Obama administration's thinking on China and its vision of U.S.-China relations, a subject that was substantively absent from the runup to last year's presidential election.

While it is still too early to enunciate the substance of Obama's China policy, it might be useful to predict the future of Sino-American relations in the context of historical patterns. One theory generalizes that U.S. foreign policy is characterized by alternative periods of introversion and extroversion, with each lasting about a quarter century.

The last "offensive" episode began in the 1980s with the Reagan administration. It featured the "second cold war" and climaxed with the Soviet collapse. One can argue that after some 25 years of expansion, U.S. foreign policy may enter another period of strategic contraction under the Obama administration.

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Obama, Osama and Medvedev (HONG KONG)

For those who harbored any doubts, the Barack Obama administration's adoption of the George W Bush framework of the "war on terror" - it does feel like a back-to-the-future "continuity" - here are two key facts on the ground.

Obama has officially started his much-touted Afghanistan surge, authorizing the deployment of 17,000 US troops (8,000 marines, 4,000 army and 5,000 support) mostly to the Pashtun-dominated, southern Helmand province. Justification: "The situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan demands urgent attention." The marines start arriving in Afghanistan in May. Their mission is as hazy as it is hazardous: eradication of the poppy culture, the source of heroin (which accounts for almost 40% of Afghanistan's gross domestic product). There are already 38,000 US troops in Afghanistan, plus 18,000 as part of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's 50,000 contingent.

Obama administration nominees, in confirmation testimony that seemed to have disappeared in a black hole, stressed they are in favor of continuing the Central Intelligence Agency's extraordinary rendition practices and detaining - ad infinitum - "terror" suspects without trial, even if they were captured far, far away from a war zone.

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OP-ED: It's All About Canada (CANADA)

I like to believe I'm a nationalist and a realist. By definition, that makes me a believer that national interests should shape Canada's future. What are the most important things for us? What must we understand as vital for our existence, and what must we be prepared to fight for at the negotiating table and, if necessary, on the battlefield?

Our interests are very easy to state, and I doubt anyone would quarrel with this list:

-We must protect our territory, the security of our people, and our unity;

-We must enhance our independence and sovereignty;

-We most promote economic growth to support our prosperity and our welfare;

-We must work with our friends and allies to protect, promote and enhance freedom around the world.

There can be subheadings, qualifiers, additions and changes in wording, but everyone's list would include these national interests. These are the essentials that determine our survival, success and security.

What is immediately clear is that the United States figures deeply in all these interests.

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Start of a Beautiful Friendship (AUSTRALIA)

The economic news out of Japan is catastrophic. Our biggest export market saw its gross domestic product decline at an annual rate of more than 12 per cent in the December quarter.

But the good news is that new US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has just visited Japan and signalled the US's deep commitment to Asia, and to the Pacific alliance system, of which Japan is the key.

Apart from the fact that she is not coming to Australia, Clinton's visit to Asia is everything Canberra could possibly want. There was a fear in Asia that Barack Obama - the "first post-Cold War president", in Kim Beazley's telling phrase - would not understand the importance of the US's Asian alliances and would be focused on the Middle East and Europe at Asia's expense.

Clinton's trip, and her speech to the Asia Society, are designed to answer that concern. She declared: "The US is committed to maintaining our historic security alliances in Asia and building on those relationships to counter the complex global threats we face."

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Clinton's view of Japan (JAPAN)

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton met with Foreign Minister Hirofumi Nakasone on Tuesday and agreed that the Japan-U.S. alliance is the cornerstone of peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region. She also met with Prime Minister Taro Aso and the Democratic Party of Japan chief Ichiro Ozawa. She invited Mr. Aso to meet with U.S. President Barack Obama in Washington on Feb. 24; Mr. Aso will be the first foreign leader to be invited to the White House since Mr. Obama took office.

Ms. Clinton apparently chose Japan as the first stopover in her first overseas trip as secretary of state to reassure Japan that the United States is not giving priority to its ties with China. But the U.S. regards Japan-U.S. ties as part of its large strategy toward the Asia-Pacific region. Japan needs to carefully study the Obama administration's strategy. The U.S. may call for more Japanese contributions to the stabilization of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Japan should develop its own approaches to the issue based on its own principles and clearly present them to the U.S. before being told by Washington to do something.

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Time to Listen, Hillary (QATAR)

The new US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in Japan as part of her Asian tour. This is a departure from the hallowed diplomatic tradition of paying the first visit to Europe.

As part of President Obama’s foreign policy agenda, the high-profile top diplomat is seeking “partnerships” with allied states and “engaging” with even those that are in conflict or opposed to US interests. China, South Korea and Indonesia are the other countries that are on Clinton’s itinerary.

No wonder the current economic crisis figures high on her agenda for talks. The wider objective of the visit is to hold key talks on issues such as mutual economic recovery, trade, prevention of nuclear weapons proliferation and reversing the global warming trend. In the run up to her Asian visit, Clinton had delivered a key note address at the New York-based Asia Society where the main thrust of her speech was the new administration’s keenness to “develop a broader and deeper relationship with Asia — a region that has felt overlooked by the US, despite its growing global importance”.

There are some issues that are expected to dominate her trip. North Korea’s warning to scrap the peace agreement with South Korea over the rise of tensions forced Secretary Clinton to warn North Korea even before her departure that it could only achieve a permanent, stable pace with the US as long as its regime pursues disarmament and does not engage in aggression against South Korea. She has called its nuclear programme “the most acute challenge to stability in North East Asia.”

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Moscow's Optimisism about America (GERMANY)

In a Spiegel interview, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, 58, discusses positive diplomatic signals from the Obama administration, the possibility of nuclear disarmament and opportunities for cooperating in the conflict with Iran.


SPIEGEL: Mr. Minister, it looks as if after a phase of tense relations the United States and Russia want to reach out to each other again. Could 2009 be "a year of new beginnings," as your German counterpart Frank-Walter Steinmeier says?

Lavrov: The global financial crisis is forcing all countries to focus on the real problems. It's actually a simple task.

SPIEGEL: Really?

Lavrov: We can no longer afford the luxury of little geopolitical games, because we all face challenges that directly affect our citizens. So we should no longer ideologize problems, we should instead honestly express our own national interests, understand the legitimate interests of our partners, and have no more hidden agendas, where one thing is said while something else is done behind someone's back. The signals that we are receiving indicate that our Western partners are aiming for the same objectives.

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Clinton's Bypass A Snub? (AUSTRALIA)

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is making Asia her first destination as America's top diplomat. That she is skipping Canberra on a trip that includes stops in Tokyo, Jakarta, Seoul and Beijing is not a slight. But it should provoke some strategic thinking in Australia and the US about the future of a long and unique relationship.

First, it is important to understand that Clinton's trip is more about diplomatic turf in Washington than it is about new diplomatic initiatives.

Canberra need not worry about being left out of a tour that is meant to define a portfolio for the new secretary, who must compete against a bevy of other foreign policy luminaries in the Obama administration.

An unspoken reason for the trip is one of Washington's endless bureaucratic struggles, in this case recovering the China account for the State Department, which had been forced to cede it to the Treasury in the previous administration. The need for this arose as other top-billed diplomatic missions in the Obama administration were assigned to high-profile special envoys. Clinton also must compete for turf against Vice-President Joe Biden, who previously chaired the Senate's foreign policy committee, and a White House national security adviser and UN ambassador who have plenty of their own ideas on foreign policy.

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US and Russia: A Common Cause (HONG KONG)

Harvard professor and author Joseph Nye, who coined the idea of "smart power" in international relations, visualizes United States President Barack Obama as a consummate politician and statesman. Nye wrote recently that Obama is gifted with the right "contextual intelligence" to combine soft power with hard power in variable mixes to suit different situations to produce successful combinations.

"Contextual intelligence," Nye elaborated, "is the intuitive diagnostic skill that helps a leader align tactics with objectives to produce smart strategies in different situations." From all indications, Obama's "contextual intelligence" was trained on the Kremlin last week. The Russians are thrilled.

They don't know much about "smart power" and habitually trust "hard power", but they are au fait with tactics and strategy. The Kremlin is warming to Obama. But detractors ranging from hardliners in the US to "New Europeans" and Iranians have cause to worry. They dread that if Obama pursues this obscure Marxist-Leninist track to its logical conclusion, he and the Kremlin leaders might enter into trade-offs and it could be at their expense.

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The Afghan Surge (AUSTRALIA)

Very soon the US administration will put real pressure on Kevin Rudd to send more troops to Afghanistan. That will pose a real problem, because the Prime Minister has adopted a strange and ultimately untenable position on this ugly and difficult war. His words do not match his deeds, and they probably do not match his convictions either.

On the one hand, he has talked up the importance of the conflict, the depth of Australia's interest in a successful outcome, and the need for the international community to send more troops to make it work. He even went to a NATO summit in Bucharest last year to lecture NATO leaders on the need to do more. On the other hand, he has no plans to send any more Australians. The 1000 troops committed by the Howard government is only about 2 per cent of the total coalition.

It's not hard to see how Rudd has got himself into this position. He talked big about Afghanistan before the election in 2007, to show that his promise to withdraw from Iraq didn't mean he was soft on national security. Once in power, he was eager to show the Bush administration that he was a loyal ally, and happily accepted their deal: they would not complain about his withdrawal from Iraq if he would help pester NATO members about doing more in Afghanistan.

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Iran-U.S. Share Security Interests (IRELAND)

The diplomatic dance has begun, but since it has been over 30 years since the partners managed a public tango, they need to avoid treading on each others’ toes. A week ago, US President Barack Obama told a Washington press conference that his administration was “looking at areas where we can have constructive dialogue” with Iran. A day later Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad responded, telling crowds celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Iranian revolution: “Our nation is ready to hold talks based on mutual respect and in a fair atmosphere.”

Since President Obama traveled by train to his inauguration, he could do worse than bone up on the Trans-Iranian railway story before honing his Tehran pitch for its story remains central to the Iranian psyche. When the first Pahlavi Shah, Reza Khan, came to power in a British-facilitated military coup in 1921, he set out to modernize Iran. The Trans-Iranian railway was his premier project. London had long sought to prevent its construction, viewing it as a potential threat to the sacrosanct passage to India.

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Pakistan "Scares" Obama (SOUTH AFRICA)

President Barack Obama's special envoy arrived in Islamabad this week as his administration tackles what may be its greatest foreign policy challenge: a nuclear-armed country hurtling towards chaos.

Obama's aides say Pakistan really "scares" him. The country is threatened by growing Islamist insurgency, economic collapse and a crisis of governance as it struggles to establish democratic rule. Obama believes it is the key to pacifying Afghanistan and countering al-Qaeda and has appointed pugnacious diplomatic troubleshooter Richard Holbrooke as his special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan.

"We often call this situation Afpak," said Holbrooke at a conference before flying to Islamabad. "A new and fragile democracy has emerged [in Pakistan] ... but the situation requires attention and sympathy."

Leaks of a US military review conducted under David Petraeus, the American general in charge of the region, suggest Pakistan, not Iraq, Afghanistan or Iran, is Obama's most urgent foreign policy issue.

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The Drones Are Here! (PAKISTAN)

The disclosure by United States Senator Dianne Feinstein, chairwoman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, that CIA’s unmanned Predator aircraft striking targets in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas are flown from an airbase inside Pakistan is going to prove politically wrenching for Islamabad.

The disclosure dovetails with a statement by Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi that Pakistan and the US are soon going to discuss a new strategy regarding drone attacks because these attacks are “not acceptable” to Islamabad.

On her part, Senator Feinstein, at a hearing, is said to have expressed surprise at Pakistan’s protests, saying, “As I understand it, these are flown out of a Pakistani base”. In other words, the US senator is saying, “What’s the fuss about when they are in on it?” The Central Intelligence Agency has declined to comment on the statement, which is noteworthy for lack of outright denial.

Senator Feinstein’s statement also becomes credible because undisclosed former US intelligence sources, according to the report, have confirmed that the account is accurate.

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Interview: Hamid Karzai (QATAR)

Hamid Karzai, the Afghan president who has been a major ally of the US in its "war on terror", has admitted there is tension between his government and Washington.

In an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera's David Frost, Karzai said that he has never spoken to Barack Obama, the US president, since he took office.

The following are highlights of the interview with Al Jazeera's David Frost on issues that have caused friction between Kabul and Washington:

Al Jazeera: Last night Richard Holbrooke, president Obama’s envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, arrived in Kabul. Have you met with him yet?

Hamid Karzai: I will be meeting with him tomorrow. He is busy today meeting with other Afghans.

Al Jazeera: You had a very good relationship with president Bush. Are you hopeful of having a similar relationship - maybe without the video conferences - with president Obama?

Hamid Karzai: Of course, why not? I had a very good relationship with President Bush who was a great friend of mine and a man that helped Afghanistan so much. All that we have here today is because of the help that President Bush and his administration and the American people offered and that help is continuing.

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Netanyahu Useful to Obama (GERMANY)

Obama's team would prefer to see Zipi Livni become the new Israeli prime minister. Netanyahu's hardline views on Iran, however, could actually help the new US administration, Middle East expert David Pollock tells SPIEGEL ONLINE.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Who will be the next prime minister in Israel?


Pollock: It looks like Benjamin Netanyahu will have the edge, even though it is not a sure thing. I think the right wing clearly has an advantage in putting a coalition together. It is very clear, however, that Netanyahu does not want to rely on a a narrow, completely right-wing majority even though that would be possible arithmetically. We will rather see a mixed government, a centre-right administration.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: In terms of the peace process, does it actually matter? Or is any new government so weakened that no new initiative can be expected anytime soon?

Pollock: Every new Israeli government will be officially committed to the peace process and a two-state solution -- but won't be able to do much about it any time soon.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: So, hopes rest on the new Obama administration.

Pollock: There will be a steady push from the US government, and rightly so. The key word is "steady," not "major." You don't want a big Obama speech or conference which will not solve anything -- what you want is to work hard and patiently on the practical issues. The signs are that the Obama team is going to do exactly that. They have already announced that special envoy George Mitchell will go back late this month. That shows he wants to keep that effort going steadily.

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A New Dawn? (PAKISTAN)

A few months from now, words alone will not be enough; America will be judged by its actions, not by its promises. Indeed, these ambitious promises of change will make the judgment even harsher

US Vice President Joe Biden unveiled America’s new foreign policy at the 45th Munich Security Conference, held January 6-8. Key events preceding the conference underscored the challenging atmosphere that the US faces in the world today.

Just few days before the event, Iran launched its first homemade satellite into orbit, advertising the rapid development of its rocket/ballistic capabilities. Iran, a state that has now emerged as America’s principal international rival, is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its Islamic revolution, which ended American imperial control of Iran’s politics, and most recently is pushing to end American hegemony in the Middle East.

For thirty years, the US has imposed sanctions against Iran, threatened it with war and worked diligently to overthrow its regime, without much success. Iran is a reminder of the continuing failure of US foreign policy.

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A Divided Vote in Israel and US (UAE)

Israel’s elections have thrown up a divided verdict with no clear winner in sight. Both Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, the prime ministerial hopeful of the governing Kadima Party, and former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Likud have claimed victory.

However, none of them appears to have the magic number that would take them past the post.

Even though Livni’s Kadima Party has a slight edge over Likud in numbers, it’s Netanyahu who is likely to come out top of the heap and form the government with the help of the Yisrael Beytenu party of Avigdor Lieberman. In fact, if there’s a clear winner of this unclear electoral outcome, it’s Lieberman who has emerged as the kingmaker with his 15 seats in the Knesset, even ahead of Defence Minister Ehud Barak’s Labour party.

Which is bad news for the so-called Middle East peace process. Because both Netanyahu and Lieberman have long been known for their rabid views and posturing on peace with the Palestinians as well as relations with other Arab and Muslim neighbours. If Netanyahu has repeatedly promised bombing of Iran, Lieberman is known for his calls to abduct and assassinate Hamas leaders and Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Let’s hope, however, better sense will prevail once these hawks are in power. The exigencies and demands of power should hopefully see more reasonable and responsible behaviour by Israel’s new leaders. The Palestinians and Arabs have no option but prepare themselves to deal with the incoming Israeli leadership. Even though there’s little hope that there will be any real and meaningful progress in the peace process under the incoming regime in Israel, the Palestinians and Arab leaders must continue to press US President Barack Obama to keep his promises on the Middle East.

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New Formulae of Obama's Peace (KOREA)

The analyst of American foreign policy say that America does not change its main policies regarding defense, foreign or finance, what so ever party may be in office either Democrats or republicans and who so ever the president be there. At the same time it must be kept in mind that the analysts are giving opinions about that America that has taken a new and unexpected step by electing a non-white president. That may represent a change in the basic principle.

At present Obama has the challenge to face economic depression, to fight terrorism at world level, to deal with Israel- Palestine problem and to form a good image before the Muslim world. All these external challenges are directly related to the American economy. Obama is very well aware of all these issues. That is why, last day, during his one of the important decisions he made a cut of 30percent in the aid being given to Pakistan. America will be able to do a handsome saving by closing the Guantanamo bay jail. Obviously when Obama has taken such a decision in the first fortnight of assuming his office, it is not wrong to think that keeping in view of its economic condition, America can rethink about its foreign and defence policies.

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Clinton's #1 Mission: Reassure Allies (JAPAN)

We welcome the news that Hillary Clinton's first overseas trip as U.S. secretary of state will be to Japan, Korea, Indonesia and China. While her visit to Beijing will likely garner the lion's share of attention and her visit to Indonesia will generate the most speculation (can a visit by President Barack Obama be far behind?), her visits to Tokyo and Seoul are equally if not more important.

As we discovered during a recent visit, anxieties about the Obama administration's Asia policy are running high among government officials and foreign policy elites in both capitals. A certain amount of anxiety is present every time a new administration takes power, but Obama ran on a platform of "change" and it is not clear what changes, if any, his administration has in store for East Asia.

There is also a great deal of anxiety about current trends, which many in Tokyo and Seoul fear will not be reversed and might even be accelerated.

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Grim Resolve Replaces Soaring Oratory (NEW ZEALAND)

No drama with Obama. No joking with Obama.

In his first prime-time news conference yesterday, Americans saw a determined, deadly serious President Barack Obama make his case for a historically huge economic recovery plan - pledging to push it through Congress in record time, even if he and fellow Democrats must steamroll Republicans to do it.

No more blind bipartisanship with Obama, either. He'll watch the Super Bowl with Republicans. He'll visit them on Capitol Hill. He'll put Republicans in his Cabinet. "What I won't do," Obama told reporters assembled in the East Room, "is return to the failed theories of the last eight years that got us into this fix in the first place".

It was a thin line in the sand - and a veiled slap at Republicans - that won't be lost on Obama's liberal supporters. Many are growing restless with a Democratic-controlled Congress that is slashing tens of billions of dollars to schools, states and other valued constituencies from the Obama-backed stimulus bill.

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Obama Reaches Out to Muslim World (TURKEY)

President Barack Obama has moved quickly to follow up on his inaugural statement: "To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect." He appointed and sent his special envoy to the Middle East, George Mitchell, to the region on an eight-day trip.

Then, on Jan. 28, Obama, on Al Arabiya, the prominent Arab satellite TV network, addressed the Arab and Muslim worlds in his first televised interview from the White House.

For many Muslims, eight years of the Bush administration's war against global terrorism has looked more like the use of terrorism, weapons of mass destruction and then the promotion of democracy to legitimate a neo-colonial design to redraw the political map of the Muslim world. Conscious of the popular perception and fear that the US has been fighting a war against Islam and Muslims, President Obama sought to counter soaring anti-Americanism and reassure Muslims that "the Americans are not your enemy." Signaling a shift from the global perception of US arrogance and interventionism, Obama declared that, while "we sometimes make mistakes," America is not a colonial power and expressed his hope for a restoration of "the same respect and partnership that America had with the Muslim world as recently as 20 or 30 years ago."

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A U.S.-Russia Nuclear Pact? (RUSSIA)

The Cold War ended nearly two decades ago, yet U.S. and Russian nuclear doctrines and capabilities remain largely unchanged. Washington and Moscow are no longer enemies, yet today each country still deploys at least 2,200 strategic nuclear weapons, many of which are primed for a quick launch to deter a surprise attack by the other.


To be sure, arms control agreements have reduced excess nuclear stockpiles and provided greater predictability and stability. The landmark 1991 Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, or START, slashed each nation's strategic warhead deployments from about 10,000 to less than 6,000, and it limited each country to no more than 1,600 strategic delivery systems.

Since then, however, U.S. and Russian leaders have missed opportunities to achieve deeper, irreversible cuts in warhead, missile and bomber stockpiles. The 2002 Strategic Offensive Reductions Treaty, or SORT, calls for no more than 1,700 to 2,200 deployed strategic warheads by 2012. But the agreement expires the same day that the warhead limit takes effect. Unlike START, SORT does not require the elimination of excess missiles and bombers. Worse still, it failed to establish new verification mechanisms, relying instead on those contained in START, which is due to expire on Dec. 5.

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The Remaking of America (PAKISTAN)

No African came in freedom to the shores of the New World. He was brought in irons. Today an African American is the President of the United States of America.

For millions of people all over the world, including Pakistan, Inauguration Day was a day for hope. President Obama told the Muslim world that he wants "a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect." Obama was the first president to use the word "Muslim" in the inaugural address. He is also said that some of his relations were Muslims.

"Our security," he said, "emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint." It was a day for radical departure from the failed policies of George W Bush. It also offers opportunities for bold initiatives and truly new beginnings. Unfortunately, Obama's actions, so far, do not match his rhetoric. The remaking of America began with the bombing and killing of innocent men, women and children in Waziristan. So, where is the change?

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New Formulae of Obama's Peace (KOREA)

The analyst of American foreign policy say that America does not change its main policies regarding defense, foreign or finance, what so ever party may be in office either Democrats or republicans and who so ever the president be there. At the same time it must be kept in mind that the analysts are giving opinions about that America that has taken a new and unexpected step by electing a non-white president.

That may represent a change in the basic principle. Obviously the new thoughts of the American public behind this change cannot be ignored. Surprisingly, on the one side the so called 'struggle of culture' in the world is in full swing and at the same time, during all these, the American public has elected Barak Hussein Obama as the president of America. So naturally Barak H. Obama is morally responsible to fulfil the promises done to the American people and to give solid forms to the hopes that American people have from him. Among the hopes are to save America from the economic depression, to fight unemployment prevalent there, to establish world peace and to improve the American image.

At present Obama has the challenge to face economic depression, to fight terrorism at world level, to deal with Israel- Palestine problem and to form a good image before the Muslim world. All these external challenges are directly related to the American economy.

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Ahmadinejad Ready for Talks with Obama (JORDAN)

Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Tuesday that his country is ready to talk to the United States in a climate of equality and mutual respect. "The Iranian nation will welcome true changes and is ready for dialogue in a climate of equality and mutual respect," he said in a speech to mark the 30th anniversary of the Islamic revolution.

"It is clear that the change must be fundamental and not tactical," he told a mass rally at Tehran's Azadi (Freedom) Square.

US President Barack Obama on Monday renewed his call for a direct dialogue with Iran, saying he hoped to create the conditions to "start sitting across the table, face to face" in the coming months. "My expectation is, in the coming months, we will be looking for openings that can be created where we can start sitting across the table face-to-face with diplomatic overtures that will allow us to move our policy in the new direction," Obama said on Monday.

"I officially announce that Iran today is a real and true superpower," Ahmadinejad said on Tuesday, according to AFP.
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New Salesman, Same Old Merchandise (EGYPT)

The Middle East peace process never depended on the personality of the occupant of the White House. Had it, we might have seen some progress over the past few decades. Some presidents have tried to solve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict; others have ignored it under various pretexts. All have one thing in common: no one ever tried to impose a solution, and the current president, Barack Obama, is no exception.

The period between Obama's official inauguration and the present moment has not yet witnessed any developments in terms of US policy on the peace process. Although Washington was quick to dispatch its new envoy, George Mitchell to the region, the statements and foreign policy principles declared so far reveal a lot and confirm the above-mentioned paradigm.

The first indicator can be seen in the new US administration agenda as published on the White House webpage under "Foreign Policy — Renewing American Diplomacy". This states that on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, "Obama and Biden will make progress ... a key diplomatic priority from day one. They will make a sustained push — working with Israelis and Palestinians — to achieve the goal of two states, a Jewish state in Israel and a Palestinian state, living side by side in peace and security."

To see the new US administration state from the start that it intends to assist and work with Israelis and Palestinians toward a Jewish state in Israel and a Palestinian state reflects clear US support for the Israeli position against the right of return of Palestinian refugees to their homes and properties inside Israel.

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Obama Similar to Bush? (LEBANON)

It is too early to evaluate the direction the Mitchell mission is taking. Mitchell's preliminary visit, immediately after the war in Gaza and just days before Israel's elections, can only be defined as an orientation tour. Hence, at this early date we can address the Mitchell mission only in terms of the direction George Mitchell appears to be headed.

Based on this first foray into the region, Mitchell's mission can already be characterized as one enveloped in a paradox: He is not addressing all those Middle East actors who will have to be addressed if progress is to be achieved and if the principles laid out by President Barack Obama for dealing with the Middle East are to be honored.

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New Washington, Old Europe (TURKEY)

During the Bush years, "old Europe" had a convenient excuse to blame the cowboy diplomacy of the United States for almost all the problems under the sun. From Iraq to Guantanamo, from waterboarding to Kyoto, the US president personified reckless behavior.

All these wrongs transformed America into a pariah state in the eyes of progressive and liberal Europeans. These days are no more. Now that Bush is gone and Washington has a much more appealing new face, Europeans should be mindful of what they have wished for.

This is no longer about high expectations in Europe but similar expectations in Washington. Much has been said over the last couple of months, since the historic election of the first African-American president, about the need to manage global expectations. It was a mostly one-sided debate about high hopes in Europe and the potential for disappointment for those awaiting a drastically different American superpower. Strangely absent from these discussions are high expectations of Europe in a post-Bush Washington. Therefore, today if we are to talk about disappointment, it is worth asking on which side of the Atlantic such frustration might set in first.

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American Dream Endangered (Japan Times, JAPAN)

"The American dream in reverse." That is how U.S. President Barack Obama responded to news about the sinking American economy. His remarks are no exaggeration. One major U.S. company after another has announced job cuts and layoffs. And the evidence is more than anecdotal: According to the Commerce Department, the U.S. economy has registered its worst performance in 25 years. The need for action is clear. While there are understandable concerns about ensuring that stimulus measures are used effectively, this is not the time to be overly focused on deficits. Delay will only compound the current pain and increase the burden to be borne by future generations.

The U.S. economy shrank at a 3.8 percent annual rate in the last three months of 2008. The decline — an initial estimate that may change as more data come in — comes on the heels of a 0.5 percent drop in gross domestic product in the previous quarter. For all of 2008, the U.S. economy grew just 1.3 percent. That is the weakest performance since 2001, when the terror attacks of Sept. 11 and the collapse of the technology-industry stock bubble contributed to anemic 0.8 percent growth.

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Showdown with Iran (UAE)

President Barack Obama’s administration has lost little time in announcing that it will seek direct talks with the Iranian government.

This means, at the very least, a tough confrontation over Iran’s quest for a regional strategic advantage in the form of a nuclear weapon. There is more at stake here than coming up with the right set of incentives and threats to change the Iranians’ minds. Rather, the time has come to approach the nuclear question in its full regional context rather than piecemeal and operationally.

The entire world knows the risk posed by a nuclear Iran: a drastically altered balance of power in the Middle East and Central Asia, with Iran able to exert far more regional leverage – both overt and implicit — than it now possesses in pursuit of its interests.

Moreover, nearby states are likely to launch or further their own nuclear programmes in response, leading to a protracted nuclear arms race in one of world’s most volatile regions. It is not in the interest of the US or Europe for any of the states at the head of the list – Egypt, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Algeria — to have its own nuclear weapons capability.

While neither outcome is certain, each remains likely. There is considerable domestic pressure in each of these countries — as there has been in Israel and Pakistan, currently the region’s only nuclear states — to secure the presumed benefits in power and prestige of possessing nuclear weapons.

Such pressure is magnified when rivals and neighbours are perceived to have any kind of strategic advantage.

Yet each of the region’s states has important security concerns and vulnerabilities. Iran, a multiethnic state whose rulers have struggled to advance national cohesion, is no different.

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Engaging Russia at Highest Level (RUSSIA)

The odds are increasing that U.S.-Russia relations could be rebooted as both sides send positive signals to each other. On a visit to Germany, Prime Minister Vladimir Putin spoke enthusiastically about Moscow's hope for the new U.S. administration, pointing to positive signals from Obama on plans to reconsider missile defense and that the security of Ukraine and Georgia could be ensured through mechanisms "other than their membership in NATO."

In addition, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that if Obama canceled plans for a missile-defense system in Central Europe, there would be no deployments of Iskander missiles in Kaliningrad.

In all likelihood, Obama will freeze missile defense. "At a time of another Great Depression, Obama cannot justify giving Poland $20 billion for hosting a missile-defense system that does not really work," a Washington colleague told me.

It is unclear how Obama will handle Russia structurally. It is unlikely that he will appoint a "Russia-policy tsar," such as Strobe Talbott, former deputy secretary of state. This would elevate Russia to a list of high-priority regions, such as Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Middle East, which would require its own special envoy. There are simply not enough issues on the U.S.-Russian agenda to warrant such a high-level appointment.

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OP-ED: Dubya's Greatest Gift (The AUSTRALIAN)

A couple of years ago a reader sent me a marvelous little gadget that counted down to the end of the Bush administration. In days, hours, minutes and hundredths of a second. I used to read out the figures on my wireless program – though for the past year or so the dancing digits seemed to be slowing to a glacial pace. As though the great day would never come.

But despite Bush’s denial of climate change, glaciers are melting at an unprecedented rate and, suddenly, the end – his end – was nigh. Whereupon the figures became faint and, with the premature death of the battery, faded to black. When the blackness should have shrouded him! The bloke who gave us an entire Dark Age in just eight years – the eight endless years of his obscene incumbency.

To make matters worse I missed out on the inauguration of Barack Obama, something I’d yearned for for so long. His swearing-in – and the banishment of Bush, the greatest buffoon in modern political history – occurred while I was 10,000m over the Middle East. Please forgive this belated response to a great event, but until I read these words I won’t believe it’s finally happened.

My distinguished colleague Frank Devine mourns Bush’s passing. Having been devoted to GWB and all his causes, Frank spoke for fellow pundits – at least a dozen disciples without a single Doubting Thomas – when he insisted that history will judge Bush a great president. That explains all the winged pigs I saw out the plane window.

The judgment of history? I’d prefer the judgment of a War Crimes Tribunal for the lot of them – Bush, Cheney and the repugnant Rumsfeld.

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Iran and US: United over Afghanistan? (Asia Times, HONG KONG)

The annual Munich Security Conference, which brings together a dozen world leaders and about 50 top diplomats and defense officials, starts on Friday for the 45th time with one item paramount on its agenda: the United States-led world order, given the troubles in Afghanistan and Iraq and the ongoing impasse with Iran.

The US has sent a high-ranking delegation led by Vice President Joe Biden and the special representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan, Richard Holbrook. They are expected to seek informal dialogue with Iran, represented by Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki and parliament speaker Ali Larijani.

This contact on the event's sidelines will likely focus on the Iranian role in Iraq and the need for Tehran's cooperation over Afghanistan, especially in allowing the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's (NATO's) non-military supply lines to pass through the Iranian port of Chabahar on the way to Afghanistan.

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Obama’s Other Task: Stimulating Equality (Jakarta Post, INDONESIA)

With unemployment climbing in the US and other OECD countries, job creation is a key objective for policymakers. President Obama recently proposed to increase public spending by about $600 billion over the next two years to create an additional four million jobs. But Obama is also concerned with reversing a sharp rise in income inequality. Is it possible for leaders to do both at the same time?

The answer is unequivocally yes, but only if they focus on government spending rather than reforming their tax systems. America’s tax system has surprisingly little redistributional punch. Using a measure of “comprehensive income” – money income, total capital gains on wealth, imputed rent on owner-occupied housing, non-cash government benefits, and public consumption – income taxes are generally progressive.

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Britain No Longer Special to America? (Telegraph, UK)

Britain's relationship with its greatest ally is already showing signs of strain under Barack Obama, but it is vital for our future, argues Con Coughlin.

One minute, David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, is waxing lyrical about the enduring strength of the special relationship between Britain and the United States. The next, he finds himself with his back to the wall in the House of Commons trying to defend Washington's latest bully-boy tactics.

Earlier this week, Miliband had enjoyed the enviable diplomatic distinction of becoming the first foreign envoy to meet with Hillary Clinton, the new US secretary of state. But within 24 hours of concluding his ground-breaking visit to Washington, Miliband was giving a rapidly-arranged statement to MPs defending Washington's allegedly high-handed treatment of requests from Britain's judiciary for details concerning the arrest and detention of former Guantanamo detainee Binyam Mohamed.

Two senior British judges, hearing a case brought by Mohamed to obtain details relating to his detention, were critical of Miliband. The Foreign Secretary had decided that intelligence reports relating to the case had to remain secret because the US was threatening to stop sharing intelligence on terror-related issues with Britain.

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What Obama Could Learn from Germany (Der Spiegel, GERMANY)

The United States is experiencing its worst crisis in decades. Obama is trying to fight it by preparing one gigantic economic stimulus program after the other. But the hangover is inevitable, and if the desired economic miracle doesn't materialize, it will be a massive one.

The most attractive thing about globalization is that it has enabled us to develop international tastes in our shopping. Our wine comes from France, our flat-screen televisions from Korea and our elegant shoes from Italy.

But you can also find good ideas for governing by shopping for them around the world. The catalogue of ideas is packed. Indeed, many countries have answers to the question on everyone's mind these days: "How do I rescue my economy?"

But the new US president prefers American-made products. And even if the Senate has watered down the internationally contested protectionist provisions in the US economic stimulus package, "Buy American" remains a popular term in the heartland as Washington navigates the muddy waters of this crisis. For Obama, the obvious course was to opt for an XXL-sized stimulus package complete with a job-creation program, even if that meant a huge deficit. It is a concept that was developed and tested by former US President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the 1930s and 1940s.

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Obama and Climate Change (Daily Star, LEBANON)

As Barack Obama spends his first days in office, it is worth contemplating a passage from his book "Dreams from My Father." It reveals a lot about the way we view the world's problems.

Obama is in Kenya and wants to go on a safari. His Kenyan sister Auma chides him for behaving like a neo-colonialist. "Why should all that land be set aside for tourists when it could be used for farming? These wazungu care more about one dead elephant than they do for a hundred black children." Although he ends up going on safari, Obama has no answer to her question.

That anecdote has parallels with the current preoccupation with global warming. Many people - including America's new president - believe that global warming is the pre-eminent issue of our time, and that cutting carbon-dioxide emissions is one of the most virtuous things we can do. To stretch the metaphor a little, this seems like building ever-larger safari parks instead of creating more farms to feed the hungry.

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EU Accuses US of New Protectionism (Radio NETHERLANDS)

The European Union and Canada have voiced fierce criticism over new plans by US President Barack Obama to save the American economy. The economic rescue package, worth 800 billion US dollars, contains a clause which stipulates that American investors should use only US-made iron, steel and manufactured goods in projects funded by the package. A clear case of protectionism, the EU and Canada say.

The EU and Canada have already called upon the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to take action against this so-called "Buy American" clause in the package. Protectionism is not in line with the rules set by the WTO, of which the USA is a high profile member.

Disappointment
The EU has already expressed its disappointment with the clause, afraid that it might affect European exports to the US. The European Parliamentary Committee for International Trade (INTA) issued a statement on Monday, urging President Obama to withdraw the clause.

Vice-chairwoman of the INTA is Dutch MEP Corien Wortman of the conservative EPP-ED group in the European Parliament. She hopes the WTO will summon the US to change its mind:

"This is not according to international rules of the game. If [the Americans] do go ahead with it, I'm really afraid that we will get a kind of protectionism not only in America, but that it will also feed protectionism in Europe, China and Africa as well. We should keep the Americans to their obligations in the WTO framework".

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Unclenching Fist in Iran and Syria (Khaleej Times, UAE)

In an interesting development, the White House has sought to distance itself from reports that some advisers to President Barack Obama had held ‘discreet’ talks with ‘very, very top’ Syrian and Iranian officials during his transition.

In fact, some of those talks were reportedly held even before Obama’s election on November 4. The talks were held with Syrian President Bashar Al Assad in Damascus and included Ellen Laipson, a former White House adviser and a member of the Obama transition team. That meeting took place as recently as January 11.

More important, some nuclear non-proliferation experts have had contacts in the last few months with top Iranian leadership. Now the White House spokesperson insists Obama had made it clear to his team of advisers that there would be no contacts with foreign governments. This however does not change the fact that the incoming president had indeed initiated or 
sanctioned engagement with Teheran and Damascus.

In fact, we see no reason why the Obama administration should get defensive about establishing direct contacts with the two countries that have been at loggerheads with the US for the past several years. The US friction with these two countries has dangerously destabilised the entire neighbourhood. As if the US didn’t have enough problems with Iran, the Bush administration managed to alienate Syria, forcing it into the welcoming arms of the Iranians. This policy had not been inspired by the US national interest but under pressure from Israel. Which is why all Syrian efforts to patch up with Washington ran into a blind wall. The hostility to Iran was also largely driven by the Israeli factor, rather than by mutual US-Iran interests.

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Afghanistan: Obama's Vietnam? (Japan Times, JAPAN)

You aren't really the U.S. president until you've ordered an airstrike on somebody, so Barack Obama is certainly president now: two in his first week in office. But now that he has been bloodied, can we talk a little about this expanded war he's planning to fight in Afghanistan?

It's not a question of whether the intelligence on which the attacks were based was accurate. The question is: Do these killings actually serve any useful purpose? And the same question applies to the entire U.S. war in Afghanistan.

Obama may be planning to shut Guantanamo, but the broader concept of a "war on terror" is still alive and well in Washington. Most of the people he has appointed to run his defense and foreign policies believe in it, and there is no sign that he himself questions it. Yet even 15 years ago the notion would have been treated with contempt in every military staff college in the country.

That generation of American officers learned two things from their miserable experience in Vietnam. One was that going halfway around the world to fight a conventional military campaign against an ideology (communism then, Islamism now) was a truly stupid idea. The other was that no matter how strenuously the other side insists that it is motivated by a world-spanning ideology, its real motives are mostly political and quite local (Vietnamese nationalism then, Iraqi and Afghan nationalism now).

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Obama Backing Down on China (China Post, TAIWAN)

The Obama administration backed away from a confrontation with China after Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner said during confirmation hearings that “President Obama — backed by the conclusions of a broad range of economists — believes that China is manipulating its currency.”

China immediately hit back, denying that it manipulated its currency to get an unfair trade advantage. Within days, Vice President Joe Biden said on television: “There's been no judgment based in the administration that there has been a manipulation.” That word, he explained, “triggers within trade agreements certain responses.”

And President Obama himself telephoned Hu Jintao to give his Chinese counterpart further reassurances. Obama has received much advice on the importance of China, including making that country the destination of his first foreign trip, but he has rejected it, deciding instead to visit Canada instead. Even where telephone calls are concerned, he followed tradition by first calling Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso before calling President Hu.

According to the White House, in the telephone conversation the two leaders pledged to “build a more positive and constructive U.S.-China relationship.” They discussed a wide range of issues, including global trade imbalances, and agreed to work together to stimulate economic growth and to smooth credit flows. They agreed to meet in April in London for summit talks on the economic crisis. Other issues discussed include the North Korean nuclear weapons program as well as Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan, counter-terrorism and climate change.

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Uncle Sam Out of Patience? (Globe & Mail, CANADA)

As President Barack Obama's visit to Canada draws near, Canadians should realize that how the war in Afghanistan will be conducted on the ground will change little, if at all, under his leadership.

Changes already put in train by the Bush administration following the recommendations of General David Petraeus will continue on schedule. Gen. Petraeus, the new head of U.S. Central Command and responsible for the Iraq and Afghan campaigns, was previously the commander of U.S.-led coalition forces in Iraq. As such, he was the architect of the troop "surge" and the concept of paying local tribes in the Sunni communities in Anbar province to become part of the security solution rather than the problem. The dramatic reduction in violence has given the concept some credibility.

In the past few years, it became painfully obvious that most of the 26 NATO member countries were unwilling to honour their obligations under the NATO Charter to provide adequate boots on the ground to defeat the Afghan insurgents. As a result, Gen. Petraeus successfully persuaded the Bush administration to reinforce the U.S. troop contribution to NATO's International Security Assistance Force by some 30,000 troops over the next year. He also proposed to organize local defence committees throughout Afghanistan to assist in providing security to local populations.

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Hillary's Challenge to China (Taipei Times, TAIWAN)

Buried in US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s testimony in her confirmation hearing before Congress two weeks ago was a subtle challenge to China wrapped in an evident preface to US President Barack Obama’s emerging policy toward Beijing.

Shortly after, and almost on cue, Beijing published a White Paper on defense that pointed warily to what they saw as an increase in US power in Asia. The US, the White Paper said, has been “consolidating its military alliances, adjusting its military deployment and enhancing its military capabilities” in the Asia-Pacific region.

Clinton, who was confirmed as secretary the day after Obama’s inauguration on Jan. 20, told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee: “We want a positive and cooperative relationship with China.” She said, however, that “this is not a one-way effort. Much of what we will do depends on the choices China makes about its future at home and abroad.”

In a written report, Clinton answered earlier questions from the committee and elaborated on what the US expects. “We can encourage them to become a full and responsible participant in the international community — to join the world in addressing common challengers like climate change and nuclear proliferation — and to make greater progress toward a more open and market-based society. But it is ultimately up to them,” she said.

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Berlin Squabbling Over Obama (Der Spiegel, GERMANY)

US President Barack Obama is driving a wedge between the parties in Germany's grand coalition government. Angela Merkel is keeping her distance while Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier is making overtures to the new president -- and ruffling feathers in the process.

Barack Obama grew up knowing that there were two Germanys. Then the Berlin Wall fell, and he became accustomed to the idea that there was only one Germany. Now that he is president he has discovered, during his first few days in office, that Germany is divided once again.

But this time the country is not divided into East and West Germany, but between Merkel's Germany and Steinmeier's Germany. And when it comes to their relationship with the new America, these two Germanys could not be more different.

Chancellor Angela Merkel takes a reserved view of Obama, waiting to see what his administration's policies will look like. There is not even a trace of enthusiasm for the man on whom the world's hopes are now pinned. Merkel is not prepared to quickly accommodate the Americans on the first concrete issue for trans-Atlantic relations, namely the acceptance of detainees from Guantanamo.

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Obama in Discreet Talks with Iran and Syria (Daily Times, PAKISTAN)

Nuclear non-proliferation experts had several ‘very, very high-level’ contacts with Iranian leaders in last few months.
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U.S. President Barack Obama has already used experts within the last few months to hold high-level but discreet talks with both Iran and Syria, organisers of the meetings told AFP.

Officially, Obama’s overtures toward both Tehran and Damascus have remained limited. In an interview broadcast on Monday, Obama said the United States would offer arch-foe Iran an extended hand of diplomacy if the Islamic Republic’s leaders “unclenched their fist”. Meanwhile, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton warned that the Israeli-Syrian track of the Middle East peace negotiations took a back seat to the Israeli-Palestinian track, especially because of the recent war in Gaza. However, even before winning the November 4 election, Obama unofficially used what experts call “track two” discussions to approach America’s two foes in the region.

High-level contacts: Nuclear non-proliferation experts had several “very, very high-level” contacts in the last few months with Iranian leaders, said Jeffrey Boutwell, executive director for the US branch of the Pugwash group, an international organisation of scientists which won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1995.

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U.S. and the Muslim World (Irish Times, IRELAND)

Every new president flatters himself that he, kinder and gentler, is beginning the world anew. Yet, when Barack Obama in his inaugural address reached out to Muslims with “to the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect,” his formulation was needlessly defensive and apologetic.

Is it “new” to acknowledge Muslim interests and show respect to the Muslim world? Obama doesn’t just think so, he said so again to millions in his al-Arabiya interview, insisting on the need to “restore” the “same respect and partnership that America had with the Muslim world as recently as 20 or 30 years ago”. Astonishing. In these most recent 20 years – the alleged winter of our disrespect of the Islamic world – America did not just respect Muslims, it bled for them. It engaged in five military campaigns, every one of which involved – and resulted in – the liberation of a Muslim people: Bosnia, Kosovo, Kuwait, Afghanistan and Iraq.

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Beyond Obama's Skin Color (Jakarta Post, INDONESIA)

Many of Americans are not unaware that Barack Obama's mother was a white woman from Kansas. Nor do I think that Americans need a wake up call, with the invasive ring tone "Obama is not black!"

Obama's victory is worthy of being referred to as "historical." Moreover, not only is his achievement novel, it is also significant because of the fact that the United States of America is a country wherein just decades ago, the color of one's skin, determines whether one is inferior/superior to another.

The fact is that skin color is salient, and it used to be of consequence in the history of the United States. So when the day came that I saw a man of a color moving beyond the impasse, proving that humanity can progress, my heart was moved.

And forgive me if I rushed and bought newspapers and magazines the morning after the election to get myself a piece of history. I do not think anyone consciously intends to repeat racial stereotypes by referring to Barack Obama as the first "black" president.

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Obama Magic Unlikely to Work with India (Japan Times, JAPAN)

While the rest of the world swoons over the new U.S. president, India is conspicuous by the discomfort that the new political dispensation is generating in the corridors of power in New Delhi.

After eight great years under George W. Bush, U.S.-India relations may be entering another tumultuous era. Barack Obama, to the extent that his views on issues that impinge on Indian interests are known, is coming to office with a very different set of priorities. Earlier indications of these priorities do not bode well for the future of U.S.-India relations.

Obama took a very tough stand against outsourcing during the campaign and talked of a tax agenda that punishes companies that "ship jobs overseas." Instead, he underscored the need to give tax benefits to companies that invest in the United States itself, those "who will keep jobs at home."

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Talking to Gaza (Haaretz, ISRAEL)

"Hamas is responsible for everything that goes on in the Gaza Strip," Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said. "Hamas is responsible for planning the [recent bombing] attack and perhaps even more," Defense Minister Ehud Barak told us, adding that Hamas is responsible for both harming civilians and for Gilad Shalit's well being.

But Hamas is not only "responsible" - it is playing a central role in the ongoing talks in Egypt to extend the cease-fire and to reopen the border crossings. Hamas will set the conditions for a reconciliation with the Palestinian Authority; Europe is reevaluating its policy toward the group; Turkey believes it should become a political organization that "does not carry weapons," and Hamas is suggesting that U.S. President Barack Obama negotiate with it.

On the face of it, history can now rejoice. It has taught the same lesson to nearly every leader confronting a national movement. The IRA in Ireland was a terrorist group until it became a partner to the peace talks; the United States administration in Iraq struck an alliance with "terrorists" to restore order and even supported incorporating such groups into the new Iraqi army; senior army officers in Afghanistan favor deals with tribal chiefs who once acted as the heads of terrorist groups, because the central government lacks power and authority in the periphery of the country; some Islamic terrorist groups in Egypt were embraced by the regime for seeing the "light," and the PA, Israel's partner in the diplomatic process, was once seen as a terrorist organization that should be contained.

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