Spain open to accepting Guantanamo prisoners

Spain has told the United States it is open 'in principle' to accepting prisoners from the U.S. prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos said Wednesday.

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Some Small, Notable Changes in U.S. Policy Towards Israel

In four weeks, the Obama administration has demonstrated a willingness to show more objectivity and balance towards Israel than Bush showed in eight years.
From Glenn Greenwald;
This is a mildly encouraging report, from Haaretz:
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has relayed messages to Israel in the past week expressing anger at obstacles Israel is placing to the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip. A leading political source in Jerusalem noted that senior Clinton aides have made it clear that the matter will be central to Clinton's planned visit to Israel next Tuesday.
Ahead of Clinton's visit, special U.S. envoy to the Middle East George Mitchell is expected to issue a sharply worded protest on the same matter when he arrives here Thursday.
"Israel is not making enough effort to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza," senior U.S. officials told Israeli counterparts last week, and reiterated Washington's view by saying that "the U.S. expects Israel to meet its commitments on this matter."
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US to have 'vigorous' Iran talks

The new US envoy to the United Nations says Barack Obama's administration will make Iran's nuclear plans a diplomatic priority and pursue direct talks.

Susan Rice told reporters she looked forward to "vigorous diplomacy that includes direct diplomacy with Iran".

Under George W Bush, there were no direct US nuclear talks with Iran.

The UN has urged Tehran to halt uranium enrichment, amid fears it could be used for military purposes. Iran says its nuclear programme is entirely peaceful.

In the run-up to his inauguration last week, Mr Obama promised a "new approach" in the dispute.

Last month he called for "tough but direct diplomacy", offering Iran economic incentives to end its nuclear programme or face tougher sanctions.

Iran dismissed the move as "unacceptable".

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Obama reaches out to Muslim world on TV

Fantastic! President Obama is reaching out to the Muslim world, something no other president has been able to do. I'm really happy that the US will no longer be 'dictating' what the middle east should do. The US has no clue what it must be like for the people of the middle eastern countries.

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama gave his first formal television interview as president to an Arabic cable TV network, saying that when it comes to Middle East matters "all too often the United States starts by dictating."

Obama taped the interview with the Dubai-based Al-Arabiya network Monday as his envoy to the Middle East, former Sen. George J. Mitchell, set out for an eight-day trip to the region and elsewhere. The interview complemented the new administration's first efforts to reach out to Arab leaders in the region, who have been wary at best of U.S. efforts to broker peace between Israel and the Palestinians.

Noting that he has lived in Muslim countries and has Muslim family members, Obama said: "My job to the Muslim world is to communicate that the Americans are not your enemy."

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The State of 9.9 Million Refugees Worldwide [Infographic]

Wars, famine, and natural disasters are just a few of the reasons people are forced to leave their homes and flee their countries. Around the world, millions of refugees are waiting, sometimes for a lifetime, to return home. Here is a look at who they are.

View Seeking Refuge: A Glance at Refugees Worldwide





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Obama Must Get Tough With Israel to Achieve Peace

In Search of the High Ground: In July, Obama got a bird's-eye view of the Holy Land with Livni (right) and Defense Minister Ehud Barak

By Aaron David Miller NEWSWEEK
Published Jan 3, 2009
From the magazine issue dated Jan 12, 2009

Jews worry for a living; their tragic history compels them to do so. In the next few years, there will be plenty to worry about, particularly when it comes to Israel. The current operation in Gaza won't do much to ease these worries or to address Israel's longer-term security needs. The potential for a nuclear Iran, combined with the growing accuracy and lethality of Hamas and Hizbullah rockets, will create tremendous concern. Anxiety may also be provoked by something else: an Obama administration determined to repair America's image and credibility and to reach a deal in the Middle East.
Don't get me wrong. Barack Obama—as every other U.S. president before him—will protect the special relationship with Israel. But the days of America's exclusive ties to Israel may be coming to an end. Despite efforts to sound reassuring during the campaign, the new administration will have to be tough, much tougher than either Bill Clinton or George W. Bush were, if it's serious about Arab-Israeli peacemaking.
The departure point for a viable peace deal—either with Syria or the Palestinians—must not be based purely on what the political traffic in Israel will bear, but on the requirements of all sides. The new president seems tougher and more focused than his predecessors; he's unlikely to become enthralled by either of Israel's two leading candidates for prime minister—centrist Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, or Likudnik Benjamin Netanyahu. Indeed, if it's the latter, he may well find himself (like Clinton) privately frustrated with Netanyahu's tough policies. Unlike Clinton, if Israeli behavior crosses the line, he should allow those frustrations to surface publicly in the service of American national interests.

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Biden in Afghanistan:Can We Have 2 VPs at a Time?

KABUL (Reuters) - Vice President-elect Joe Biden met Afghan President Hamid Karzai and military leaders on Saturday in Afghanistan, which will become a top foreign policy priority of the new administration. The Obama administration is justifying their silence on Gaza saying it "can be only 1 President at a time", how come this doesn't apply here?

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Gaza: Peace in the Middle East

By ajgasper - Last week, the United Nations, United States, European Union, and Russian called for a cease fire between Israel and Hamas [1]. Considering what has been happening since 2005 [2], [3], [4], [6], one has to assume this is either a face saving exercise or political maneuvering. Where there is a lack of a comprehensive foreign policy, situations degenerate to a state that exists in Gaza today. Unfortunately, the situation in Gaza has deteriorated to a point of armed hostilities, and the introduction of the military. Not as an extension of Foreign Policy, but as a substitute for Foreign Policy.
To have Foreign Policy one must have some form of diplomacy. To have diplomacy infers being able to communicate effectively. If one can’t communicate (as in having a two way conversation) [5] the stage is set for knee jerk reactions [1]. The aspect of refusing to deal with Hamas is pure 100%, unadulterated, polyunsaturated, homogeneous incompetence and/or criminal negligence at best. However, without having a framework on which to base decisions, we end up on wild goose chases that degenerate into quagmires of indifference, ineptness, callousness, and lethargic decision making.

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