Democratic.net: [RED DEMOCRATICA] CFR.org Daily Brief, September 29, 2009

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

[RED DEMOCRATICA] CFR.org Daily Brief, September 29, 2009

September 29, 2009

View this newsletter as a web page on CFR's website.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

-Iran says IAEA can inspect second nuclear plant soon.
- Hamas and Fatah to consider Egypt's proposal for Palestinian reconciliation.
-Head of NATO expresses support for McChrystal review, troop increase.
-Death toll in flooding in Philippines reaches 240.

Top of the Agenda: Iran Nuclear Facility to Face UN Inspection

Iranian nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi said Iran will soon tell (VOA) the UN nuclear agency when it can inspect the country's newly disclosed nuclear facility. He said the plant is being constructed in accordance with International Atomic Energy Agency regulations.

Meanwhile, Iran's Navy has launched a homemade missile boat (PRESS TV) in the Caspian Sea, and a commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guards announced Iran is producing "a new generation" of solid-fuel long-rage missiles.

EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said the Western powers, which will meet with Iran in Geneva on Thursday, are committed to continued engagement (Reuters) with Iran, even though they will likely have difficulty obtaining a guarantee from Iran that its nuclear program is peaceful.

Analysis

The Christian Science Monitor says Iran's latest missile tests may not play well among the country's populations in light of remaining tensions over the hotly contested elections last June.

Foreign Policy says Iran could also be hiding a facility to convert uranium ore into uranium hexafluoride-the material needed for feedstock in a centrifuge plant.

The New York Times says the debate over whether and the degree to which Iran has restarted its nuclear program "is a mirror image of the intelligence dispute on the eve of the Iraq war."

Background

The Wall Street Journal raises some pressing questions about the nuclear facility that could be raised in Thursday's talks between Iran and UN Security Council permanent members plus Germany.

A CFR Backgrounder details the history of sanctions implemented against Iran.

MIDEAST: Bombings in Iraq

A series of blasts across Iraq killed at least fifteen people (WashPost) on Monday, and wounded dozens more.

Hamas/Fatah: Hamas leader Khaled Meshaal said an Egyptian proposal (al-Jazeera) on a resolution to the conflict between Hamas and rival faction Fatah offers "a good basis to achieve Palestinian reconciliation." The groups have been divided since Hamas took control over Gaza more than two years ago.

PACIFIC RIM: Philippines Flooding

The death toll in flooding and landslides caused by Tropical Storm Ketsana in the Philippines has reached at least 240, and nearly forty people are still missing (ABS-CBN), according to government reports. The government said it will seek aid (Bloomberg) for the hundreds of thousands in emergency shelters.

South Korea-China: Top diplomats from South Korea and China in talks reiterated their governments' opposition (Yonhap) to North Korea's possession of nuclear weapons, and pledged to work together to convince Pyongyang to return to the Six-Party denuclearization talks. China, the host of the Six-Party talks, will send Prime Minister Wen Jiabao to Pyongyang next week, it announced.

SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA: NATO Chief Calls for Troop Increase

NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen said he agreed with General Stanley McChrystal's review of U.S. strategy in Afghanistan, and echoed McChrystal's call (LAT) for additional troops to help train Afghan security forces.

Six analysts offer their views on how President Barack Obama should respond to calls for an increase in troops.

Sri Lanka: Sri Lanka is recruiting Tamil police officers (Reuters) from the city of Jaffna for the first time since 1978, when the conflict between the government and ethnic separatist rebels began. More than 6,500 people, including four hundred women, applied for five hundred police constable job openings.

AFRICA: Guinea Violence

At least fifty-eight people were killed when government security forces fired live ammunition (WSJ) on a crowd of demonstrators protesting Captain Moussa Dadis Camara, who seized power in a December 2008 coup. The crowd, organized by opposition leaders, drew an estimated fifty thousand people in the capital city of Conakry.

Ethiopia: Oxfam launched an emergency appeal (BBC) for $15 million to reach millions of starving people in Ethiopia and other East African countries, noting that the region is facing the worst drought in a decade. Some 23 million people could be affected by the food crisis.

AMERICAS: Guantanamo Prisoners

An Obama administration task force cleared seventy-five prisoners (Reuters) at the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay for release, in a move toward President Barack Obama's stated goal of closing the camp altogether by January 2010. There are a total of 223 prisoners at Guantanamo.

Honduras: The de facto government of Honduras indicated it would back off an attempt (NYT) to limit civil liberties and freedom of speech, and to shut down two broadcasters, after congressional leaders said they would not support the decree. Interim President Roberto Micheletti, in a televised news conference, asked for "forgiveness from the Honduran people," and said he would revoke the measure "as quickly as possible."

EUROPE: Russia's NATO Envoy on Iran

Russian NATO envoy Dmitry Rogozin said Iran's latest missile tests show the missiles do not pose a threat (RIA Novosti) to the United States. Rogozin also said the United States should deploy its missile defense program in the Mediterranean Sea if it is concerned about Iran's missiles.

European Commission: European commission president Jose Manuel Barroso said the European Union should do more to fight social problems like poverty. Barroso was speaking to the Spring Alliance, a group of civil society organizations aiming to influence the commission's agenda, the EU Observer reports.

TRANSNATIONAL: Bees and Cancer

The Wall Street Journal looks at scientists' efforts to find a cancer treatment that would use bee venom to attack the affected cells.

Population: A new study by the London-based International Institute for Environment and Development found that the drastic increase in population in poor countries will not contribute significantly (Times of London) to climate change, and is a distraction from the larger issue of over-consumption in rich countries.

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