APS Diplomat News Service articles from June 2007

APS Diplomat News Service archives from June 2007

Lebanon, Syria, Fatah Al-Islam, Hariri & Iran Nuke Case - What's The Explosive Result?(Rafiq Hariri)
June 4, 2007... *** Since The 1970s, Hafez Al-Assad Had Done What Others In The Muslim World Thought Was An Impossibility - Such As Creating Suicide Bombers Even From The Shi'ites Of Lebanon - Today His Son Bashar Is Doing The Same But With A Focus On The...

Syria & The Neo-Salafis - The Lebanon Connection.
June 4, 2007... There has been a wide-spread belief in Lebanon and Iraq since late 2003 that leaders of many Neo-Salafi groups - by far the most violent and fanatic strain in Sunni Islam - are in close co-ordination with a mysterious "special branch" of the...

Opposite ME Reactions.(Middle East, United Nations Security Council Resolution 1757)
June 4, 2007... The Beirut-based ambassadors of Egypt, Saudi Arabia other GCC states (but Qatar is an exception - being the main base for the US in the Middle East but siding with Iran and Syria in regional politics), the US, France other EU states and other...

Hizbullah & Tehran Concerns.(United Nations Security Council Resolution 1757)
June 4, 2007... Apart from the worries of Assad's regime, Hizbullah and Tehran are concerned that a UNSC-backed tribunal could eventually open the case of Shi'ite suicide bombings and kidnappings which in 1983-85 killed many US military forces and civilians,...

What Next In Lebanon.(war in Beirut)
June 4, 2007... The rift between the rival camps in Lebanon deepened on May 31, with the opposition slamming UNSC Resolution 1757 as a "violation" of the country's constitution and sovereignty, and the ruling majority launching a national initiative to solve...

The Middle East Nuclear Arms Race - There's Enough To Destroy The Whole Region:.
June 11, 2007... *** Olmert Has Sent To Assad A Clear Message That Israel Does Not Intend To Attack Syria - He Is Giving Damascus A Signal That Peace Talks Over Golan Now Are Possible - Is Olmert Worried That Syria May Start A War From The Golan Front This...

Worrying Iranian Rhetoric.(Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad to atatck Israel)
June 11, 2007... The worrying aspect of Iran's hard bargaining with Western powers, from the standpoint of its Middle East neighbours, is the unstoppable vow of its President, Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad, to "wipe Israel off the map" - a term he has been using since...

The Wider US-Russian Issue Over Missile Defence.
June 11, 2007... President Bush on June 4 began an eight-day European tour which took him the Czech Republic, Germany for the June 6-8 G8 summit, Poland, Italy, Albania and Bulgaria. He was armed with feel-good initiatives to appeal to a European audience - and...

Atomic Power Growth.(International Atomic Energy Agency)
June 11, 2007... IAEA officials say the largest growth in nuclear power is likely to occur in China, India, Russia, the US and South Africa, with Argentina, Finland and France following close behind. The US has 103 operating plants, more than any other country,...

Syria-Israel & US-Iran Peace Feelers - A Big Change Will Result; Whatever Happens.
June 18, 2007... *** Bashar Al-Assad, Still Afraid Of The UN Tribunal In The Hariri Case, Is Accused In The June 13 Murder Of Key Hariri Aide, MP And Ex-Judge Walid 'Eido, In Beirut Through A Usual Bombing *** Fatah Al-Islam's Muhammad Mar'ei Told His...

Sen. Lieberman Backs Military Strike On Iran.(Joe Lieberman)
June 18, 2007... Senator Joe Lieberman, an outspoken Congress hawk, on June 10 proposed the US bomb Iran to stop alleged support for Iraqi militia. Lieberman, who ran independently in the Nov. 7, 2006, mid-terms after losing his Democratic Party's support, came...

The US-Syrian Track Vs Suleiman's Task.
June 18, 2007... State Department spokesman Sean McCormack on June 7 told reporters: "We're not going to dictate to the Israeli government what pathways they take in their foreign policy". But he said: "Of course we're going to point out to them the fact that...

Lebanese Tensions Rise After Sunni MP's Murder.
June 18, 2007... Sectarian tensions in Lebanon on June 14 rose again as the country buried the victims of the June 13 bomb attack which killed prominent anti-Syria MP Walid 'Eido along with his eldest son and eight others. Hundreds of irate young Sunnis...

US Tightens Sanction On Tehran; IAEA Sees Confrontation.(International Atomic Energy Agency )
June 18, 2007... The US on June 12 warned all international oil companies (IOCs) to stop their investments in Iran's energy sector or face punishment affecting their American assets. The Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA),...

Backlash To US Funding In Iran.
June 18, 2007... Leading activists in Tehran warn that the survival of Iranian non-governmental organisations (NGOs) is being threatened by the US administration's continuing attempts to fund Iran's civil society. Prominent NGOs say the US funding, and Iranian...

The Palestine Question.
June 18, 2007... The core issue being used in the confrontation between the Iran-led axis and the US-led alliance in the Middle East is the Palestine question. In this, the US-led alliance is backing the Fatah movement of PA President Abbas, while the...

Barak Wins Labour; Peres Becomes President.(Ehud Barak of Labour Party)(Brief article)
June 18, 2007... Ehud Barak, the former PM voted out of office after the 2000 collapse of the peace process with the Palestinians, was on July 13 declared winner in an election for leadership of his power-sharing Labour Party. Barak, an ex-Army chief, won by a...

The US Missile Defence Issue & Putin's Special Request Have Implications For The ME.(Vladimir Putin)
June 25, 2007... *** That The Gaza Government Takes 'Advice' From The Iran-Led Axis And Its Ramallah Rival Gets Support From The US-Led Alliance Means The Polarisation In The Middle East Has Become Clearer Than At Any Time Before *** Now The Question Is...

The Iranian Reaction.(Brief article)
June 25, 2007... Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Mohammad Ali Hosseini on June 17 said Tehran it had received indications from Putin that he would not follow through with his offer to allow the US to use the radar station in Azerbaijan. But Hosseini said...

The Azeri Option.
June 25, 2007... The following are extracts from an article by Thomas Goltz, a visiting scholar on Caucasus affairs at the University of Montana's Central and Southwest Asia Studies Program, published on June 19: "...it was in the former Soviet republic of...