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| November 17, 2003 |
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World Media Watch by Gloria R. Lalumia BUZZFLASH NOTE: Once again, these are the views and perspectives of the individual papers, not of BuzzFlash or Gloria. They offer BuzzFlash readers a way of reading what other nations are saying about the crisis, whether we like it or not. We repeat: This is not an endorsement of their viewpoints. * * * WORLD MEDIA WATCH FOR NOVEMBER 17, 2003 1//The Telegraph, UK--'NEO-CONS' UNFAZED DESPITE WAR IN IRAQ (Doveish remarks by Mr Bush last week appeared choreographed by Downing St to cool tempers on London's streets. But Mr Perle suggests that Europe should not presume that America is doing an about-turn and adopting the less confrontational style of his father, George Bush Sr...There may be no war next year in the countdown to the presidential election, but if Mr Bush is re-elected - or even if a Democrat takes office - battle could be rejoined...the president said we will not distinguish between those who committed the acts of terrorism and the countries that harboured them and supported them. And that is now the first principle of American policy," said Mr Perle...So, does this entail a risk we will find ourselves in conflict . . . with other governments? Sure, it does.") 2//The Guardian, UK--BLAIR ALLY IN POLL THREAT TO BUSH (On the eve of Mr Bush's state visit to Britain, Mr Byers, an arch-Blairite, will set out proposals to help Democrats in key swing states if the White House refuses to abandon punitive trade sanctions against the UK. Acting with the tacit approval of Blair supporters, who were enraged when Mr Bush imposed tariffs on imports of British steel to shore up his vote, the former trade and industry secretary will call for sanctions to be imposed on four key marginal states which the president will need to win.) 3//The Jordan Times, Jordan--KURDS CALL ON TURKEY TO TALK, BUT KEEP GUNS (The rebel People's Congress of Kurdistan - the former PKK and KADEK - said Saturday it was no longer fighting for self-rule in Turkey and urged Ankara to open dialogue. But Zubeyir Aybar, 42, who was appointed the leader of the Congress told AFP the group would still not disarm. "The arms will stay as long as there is no solution to the Kurdish issue ... for self-defence," he said... The State Department said the decision to rename itself would make no difference to US policy. "Through its recent actions, the (PKK/KADEK) appears to be making an effort to evade responsibility for its terrorist acts by changing its name," deputy spokesman Adam Ereli said in a statement.) 4//B92, Serbia and Montenegro--SHOCK RESULTS IN ELECTION (Preliminary unofficial results of today's Serbian presidential election indicate that Radical Party of Serbia candidate Tomislav Nikolic has taken a convincing lead over DOS candidate Dragoljub Micunovic. However it is now certain that the elections have failed to produce a result, with voter turnout well below the fifty per cent required to validate the election...The Radical Party was a coalition partner of Slobodan Milosevic's Socialist Party of Serbia. It's leader, Vojislav Seselj is in jail in The Hague awaiting trial on war crime charges. RELATED: SERBIA'S FAILURE, SAYS MICUNOVIC (Speaking to
journalists after the results of the elections became apparent
this evening, he put the failure of the election down to
a split within the democratic forces in the country.) * * * 1//The
Telegraph November 17, 2003 'NEO-CONS' UNFAZED DESPITE WAR IN IRAQ (SNIP) It has been a topsy-turvy year for Washington's neo-conservatives, whose muscular vision of reshaping the world has dominated America's foreign policy since the September 11 attacks. Back in April when Saddam fell, they were hailed as visionaries. But as the rebuilding of Iraq proves bloodier and more difficult than they had hoped, their enemies in Washington are circling. Yet in his residence in Washington - a classic East Coast clapboard suburban home - Mr Perle appears unfazed. "I haven't noticed that we are keeping our heads down," he commented drily. Doveish remarks by Mr Bush last week appeared choreographed by Downing St to cool tempers on London's streets. But Mr Perle suggests that Europe should not presume that America is doing an about-turn and adopting the less confrontational style of his father, George Bush Sr. There may be no war next year in the countdown to the presidential election, but if Mr Bush is re-elected - or even if a Democrat takes office - battle could be rejoined. "On September 11 2001, the president said we will not distinguish between those who committed the acts of terrorism and the countries that harboured them and supported them. And that is now the first principle of American policy," said Mr Perle. "Of course he is going to stick with that principle, because it is fundamental to fighting and winning the war against terror . . . So, does this entail a risk we will find ourselves in conflict . . . with other governments? Sure, it does." In Europe, neo-conservatism is shorthand for a unilateralist and crude abuse of American power. Yet its philosophy is rooted in traditions of liberal idealism, dating back to Woodrow Wilson. It was later honed in the era of President Ronald Reagan as he faced down the Soviet Union. Mr Perle came of political age in the 70s working for the Democratic Senator Henry "Scoop" Jackson, a vigorous anti-Soviet crusader. (SNIP) During the war, Mr Perle - who is also on the board of Hollinger International, the Telegraph's parent company - stepped down as chairman of the Defence Policy Board amid accusations of a conflict of interest. He was formally cleared over the weekend, and remains hugely influential in conservative circles. (MORE)
BLAIR ALLY IN POLL THREAT TO BUSH George Bush will be served notice today that the deep hostility towards him in Britain has reached the Blair inner circle, when the former minister Stephen Byers launches a bid to destabilise the president's re-election campaign next year. On the eve of Mr Bush's state visit to Britain, Mr Byers, an arch-Blairite, will set out proposals to help Democrats in key swing states if the White House refuses to abandon punitive trade sanctions against the UK. Acting with the tacit approval of Blair supporters, who were enraged when Mr Bush imposed tariffs on imports of British steel to shore up his vote, the former trade and industry secretary will call for sanctions to be imposed on four key marginal states which the president will need to win. The states - and the exports to be targeted - are: · Florida and its citrus products. The state was the scene of the "hanging chad" saga in the 2000 presidential election, after Mr Bush and Al Gore virtually tied there; · Wisconsin and its apples and paper. Mr Gore won this state by a tiny margin; · Tennessee and its chemicals. Mr Bush scored a narrow victory in Mr Gore's home state; · Iowa and its agricultural equipment. This state will play a key role when the nominations battle starts in January. Mr Byers also calls for tariffs to be imposed on exports of textiles, which would hit states across the American south. (MORE)
KURDS CALL ON TURKEY TO TALK, BUT KEEP GUNS IRAQ-IRAN BORDER (AFP) - The rebel People's Congress of Kurdistan - the former PKK and KADEK - said Saturday it was no longer fighting for self-rule in Turkey and urged Ankara to open dialogue. But Zubeyir Aybar, 42, who was appointed the leader of the Congress told AFP the group would still not disarm. "The arms will stay as long as there is no solution to the Kurdish issue ... for self-defence," he said. Aybar said he hoped the United States would help mediate the opening of a dialogue between the rebaptised Kurdish group and Turkey. "We are not in a state of war with Turkey, but in a state of self-defence. The end of the war should be declared by the two parties," he said. The Congress is the direct successor of the Turkish Congress for Democracy and Freedom in Kurdistan (KADEK), which as the Kurdish Workers' Party (PKK) had waged a 15-year separatist war on Ankara until 1999. The decision to change the party's name and structure came in a congress attended by 360 delegates from around the world at Qandil, northern Iraq, between October 27 and November 6. On Tuesday, KADEK announced in Iraq that it was disbanding in order to set up a more democratic Kurdish organisation. (SNIP) Both Turkey and the United States have dismissed the groups' decision to disband. The State Department said the decision to rename itself would make no difference to US policy. "Through its recent actions, the (PKK/KADEK) appears to be making an effort to evade responsibility for its terrorist acts by changing its name," deputy spokesman Adam Ereli said in a statement. (MORE)
SHOCK RESULTS IN ELECTION BELGRADE -- Sunday - Preliminary unofficial results of today's Serbian presidential election indicate that Radical Party of Serbia candidate Tomislav Nikolic has taken a convincing lead over DOS candidate Dragoljub Micunovic. However it is now certain that the elections have failed to produce a result, with voter turnout well below the fifty per cent required to validate the election. The Centre for Free Elections and Democracy announced a short time ago that according to results from a representative sample of 332 polling stations, Nikolic has taken 46.6 per cent of votes, well ahead of Micunovic's 33.1. The Radical Party was a coalition partner of Slobodan Milosevic's Socialist Party of Serbia. It's leader, Vojislav Seselj is in jail in The Hague awaiting trial on war crime charges. RELATED: BELGRADE -- Sunday - DOS presidential candidate Dragoljub Micunovic described today's unsuccessful attempt to elect a president as "Serbia's failure". Speaking to journalists after the results of the elections became apparent this evening, he put the failure of the election down to a split within the democratic forces in the country. Micunovic, who is the speaker of the federal parliament, said that he would continue fighting for the democratisation of Serbia until the country finds itself among the other democratic states of Europe. (MORE) //The
Independent 17 November 2003 SERBS FAILURE TO ELECT A PRESIDENT FOR THIRD TIME HERALDS POLITICAL CRISIS (SNIP) An ultra-nationalist with close ties to Slobodan Milosevic led the ballot, underlining Serbians' discontent with the pro-Western government that ousted the dictator in 2000. His success also indicated a drift to Milosevic's nationalism that triggered the Balkan wars in the 1990s. (MORE) 5//The
Moscow Times Monday, Nov. 17, 2003. Page 1 OLIGARCHS BOW TO PUTIN'S NEW DEAL President Vladimir Putin on Friday offered the nation's leading executives a new deal that few are likely to refuse: share your wealth or risk losing it. The state, Putin told nearly 800 business leaders from across the nation, will work to strengthen property rights and reduce bureaucracy, but businesses must "fully recognize their social duties" by sharing their wealth and helping to reduce poverty. "[Businesses] must aim their efforts at developing a system of new social guarantees for the population in line with the new demands of the time," Putin told a packed Hall of Columns in the House of Unions that included at least five billionaires. "[We must join] forces to make the lives of people economically sound so that they have plenty to live on." The meeting, organized by RSPP, the nation's biggest business lobby, was first requested in the hours after the Oct. 25 arrest at gunpoint of Yukos founder Mikhail Khodorkovsky. At the time, RSPP said that Russia would face a potentially calamitous crisis of confidence in the economy if Putin didn't meet with top executives to clarify his position on the legal assault on Yukos. Putin flatly rejected the offer. Since then, however, Khodorkovsky has been denied bail, Deputy Prime Minister Alexei Kudrin has trumpeted "the end of the oligarchy," unrelenting prosecutors have publicly warned all businessmen to toe the line, and the leading pro-business voice in the Kremlin, Alexander Voloshin, has been replaced. The result has been that the once-heated rhetoric coming from the so-called union of oligarchs has given way to cowed deference. In fact, neither Putin nor executives mentioned Khodorkovsky or Yukos by name during the union's annual congress Friday. (MORE) |
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