Myanmar Junta Threatened by U.S. With Possible UN Arms Embargo

By Bill Varner

Oct. 5 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. will seek United Nations sanctions against Myanmar, possibly including an arms embargo, unless the nation's military regime ends its crackdown against protesters and releases political prisoners, Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad said.

Khalilzad made the threat after UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and his envoy to Myanmar said they've opened the way for talks between the junta and opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi.

``A window of opportunity has opened, and it is vital that the government of Myanmar responds positively,'' Ban told the UN Security Council today, before envoy Ibrahim Gambari reported on his trip this week to the Southeast Asian nation. Ban said he urged Suu Kyi and military leader General Than Shwe to meet ``as soon as possible.''

International condemnation of Myanmar's military regime has intensified since it deployed soldiers on Sept. 26 to crush the protests. Security forces clubbed and shot at demonstrators, raided monasteries and arrested Buddhist monks. At least 30 people were killed and 1,400 others arrested, according to the Australian government.

UN envoy Gambari met with Suu Kyi, then with Shwe, and then with Suu Kyi again. He returned to New York yesterday and briefed Ban on the talks.

Than Shwe subsequently said he was willing to meet with Suu Kyi if she stops calling for international sanctions against Myanmar and urging the population to confront the junta.

Gambari told the Security Council he was ``cautiously encouraged'' by the junta's willingness to meet with Suu Kyi, provided certain conditions were met. ``The sooner such a meeting can take place, the better, as it is a first and necessary step to overcome the high level of mistrust between them,'' Gambari said.

Suu Kyi

Suu Kyi, 62, has spent almost 12 years in detention since the junta rejected the results of parliamentary elections in 1990 won by her National League for Democracy.

The Nobel Peace Prize winner will consider Than Shwe's offer ``in a positive light,'' Agence France-Presse cited NLD spokesman Nyan Win as saying from the former capital, Yangon.

Khalilzad told the Security Council that while the potential for talks between Shwe and Suu Kyi was encouraging, the conditions set by the junta were ``unrealistic.''

The U.S. demands that the junta end the crackdown on protesters, lift curfews, remove troops from around monasteries and release all political prisoners, Khalilzad said.

The top U.S. envoy to Myanmar met earlier today with Deputy Foreign Minister Maung Myint in the capital, Naypitaw, the U.S. mission to the UN said. Shari Villarosa, the acting ambassador to Myanmar, received word yesterday that the junta wanted to hold the talks.

`Meaningful Dialogue'

State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters in Washington that Villarosa would deliver the message that the regime ``needs to start meaningful dialogue with all the democratic opposition groups'' and ``stop the violent crackdown.''

Ban called the government's use of force ``abhorrent and unacceptable'' and said all political prisoners should be immediately released.

It was ``too early to measure the impact of Mr. Gambari's visit, or to label it a success or a failure,'' Ban said.

The UN has demanded the military regime reveal how many people were killed last week during the crackdown on the biggest anti-government protests in almost 20 years.

Gambari said it ``remains unclear'' how responsive the Myanmar leadership will be to messages from the U.S. and UN.

British Ambassador John Sawers said he would ask the Security Council to adopt a formal statement demanding an end to use of force against protesters and release of Suu Kyi and other detainees, and urging movement toward ``national reconciliation.''

Source : TheBloomberg

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Ahmadinejad says Iran, U.S. not headed for war: CBS

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Iran did not need nuclear weapons and his country was not heading for war with the United States, according to a television interview to be broadcast Sunday.

Asked whether Iran's goal was to obtain a nuclear bomb, he said the answer was a "firm no," according to a transcript of his interview with CBS' "60 Minutes" recorded on Thursday in Tehran.

"You have to appreciate we don't need a nuclear bomb. We don't need that. What need do we have for a bomb?" he said.

The United States accuses Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons under the cover of its civil nuclear program. Iran denies both allegations.

Asked whether Iran and the United States were heading toward conflict over Tehran's nuclear ambitions, he said: "It's wrong to think that Iran and the U.S. are walking toward war. Who says so? Why should we go to war? There is no war in the offing."

Officials of the five permanent U.N. Security Council members and Germany met on Friday for what they called "serious and constructive" talks about new U.N. Security Council sanctions aimed at trying to force Iran to halt its uranium enrichment activities.

Ahmadinejad, who was due to arrive in New York on Sunday for the U.N. General Assembly, reiterated Iran's position that its nuclear program is purely peaceful.

"Our plan and program is very transparent," he said. "In political relations right now, the nuclear bomb is of no use. If it was useful, it would have prevented the downfall of the Soviet Union. If it was useful, it would resolved the problem the Americans have in Iraq.

"The time of the bomb is passed.

Pre-dawn attack on U.S. patrol in Iraq kills five; three still missing

BAGHDAD - U.S. and Iraqi troops searched house-to-house and combed fields with their bare hands Saturday after American troops and their Iraqi interpreter came under attack in the notorious "triangle of death" south of Baghdad, leaving five dead and three missing.

The military said the patrol was struck in a pre-dawn explosion near Mahmoudiya, about 30 kilometres south of Baghdad - an al-Qaida area where two U.S. soldiers were found massacred after disappearing at a checkpoint nearly a year ago.

A nearby unit heard the blast and the search was launched after communication could not be established with the patrol, the military said. Shortly after the blast, a drone observed two burning vehicles.

An emergency response unit arrived at the scene and found five members of the team dead and three others missing.

Checkpoints were established throughout the area, while helicopters and jets buzzed overhead. AP Television News footage showed Iraqi soldiers picking through cattails and other weeds as they searched fields and canals for clues.

Lt.-Col. Christopher Garver, a U.S. military spokesman, said the search would continue throughout the night.

The military refused to specify whether the Iraqi interpreter was among those killed or missing and would not give more details about where the bodies were found.

An Iraqi army officer who was familiar with the search said he saw five badly burned bodies inside a Humvee at the site, suggesting the remains may not have been recognizable. The officer spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to disclose the information.

He also said joint U.S.-Iraqi forces had sealed off the area and were conducting house-to-house searches, rounding up dozens of suspects. The military declined to comment on detentions but said troops were looking for suspects.

The Iraqi officer said U.S. troops singled out seven suspects out of as many as 50, including a wounded man who was hiding in a house and confessed to participating in the attack. He said most of the houses searched near the attack contained only women and children because the men had fled, fearing arrest.

"I was in my cucumber field when I heard a big explosion followed by shootings. I ran toward my house because I was afraid that I would be arrested if spotted in the field," Mizaal Abdullah, a 37-year-old farmer who was in the custody of the Iraqi army, said by telephone. "This is the third time that I have been arrested. Each time, the real attackers flee the area and innocent people like me get arrested."

The attack occurred at 4:44 a.m. about 20 kilometres west of Mahmoudiya, a town of about 65,000 in a Sunni area dubbed the "triangle of death" for the frequent attacks against Shiite civilians and U.S. and Iraqi forces.

Also Saturday, the military announced the death of an American soldier from a bomb attack Friday near Iskandariyah, 48 kilometres south of Baghdad.

At least 30 Iraqis were reported killed or found dead elsewhere in Iraq, including a Sunni physician shot to death on his way home from work in the northern city of Mosul.

Seventeen bullet-riddled bodies showing signs of torture - apparent victims of so-called sectarian death squads usually led by Shiite militias - also turned up on the streets in Baghdad.

All but two were found on the predominantly Sunni western side of the Tigris River that divides the capital where sectarian violence appears to be on the rise.

More than 3,380 members of the U.S. military have died since the Iraq war started in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count. But few have been kidnapped, due largely to strict military procedures for those on patrol or at checkpoints.

U.S. troops in Iraq travel in groups of armoured vehicles, usually Humvees, and procedures are in place to keep track so no one is left behind.

The last U.S. soldier known to have been captured was Ahmed Qusai al-Taayie, an Iraqi-born reserve soldier from Ann Arbor, Mich., who was abducted while visiting his Iraqi wife on Oct. 23 in Baghdad.

Sgt. Keith Maupin of Batavia, Ohio, was taken on April 9, 2004, after insurgents ambushed a fuel convoy. Two months later, a tape on Al-Jazeera purported to show a captive U.S. soldier being shot, but the army ruled it was inconclusive proof of Maupin's death.

Both are still listed as missing.

Capt. Michael Speicher, a navy pilot, also has been missing since the 1991 Persian Gulf War.

Source :

© Associated Press 2007

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US urges N Korea to shut reactor

The US has urged North Korea to fulfil its pledge to shut down the Yongbyon nuclear reactor, as Pyongyang missed a key deadline for closing the plant.

North Korea should "immediately" invite nuclear experts to begin sealing the facility, the US state department said.

But the US said it remained committed to the landmark 13 February agreement.

Under the deal, North Korea agreed to close Yongbyon within 60 days in return for aid. But a row over funds frozen in Macau has stalled progress on the deal.

US State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said it was time for North Korea "to make its move so that all of us can move forward".

In Beijing, US nuclear negotiator Christopher Hill said that North Korea's failure to meet the 14 April deadline was cause for concern.

But he said that Chinese officials had urged the US to show patience and to wait "a couple more days" for Pyongyang to comply.

"They said the lines of communication were open... if it is going to get resolved it certainly should be able to get resolved very soon," he said.

Money row

The implementation of the deal - aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear programme - has been delayed by a row over $25m (£13m) of North Korean money held in a Macau bank.

In 2005 the US accused Banco Delta Asia (BDA) of acting as a conduit for money earned by Pyongyang from illegal activities, and the accounts were frozen.

After the February deal, the US unblocked the funds but finding a way to transfer the money took several days. However, the US now says the dispute has been resolved.

North Korea - which insists that progress on implementing the deal is contingent on getting the money back - said on Friday that it would "confirm soon" whether the funds had been released.

Mr McCormack said that if North Korea allowed International Atomic Energy Agency experts in to begin sealing Yongbyon, other countries could then move forward with the provision of heavy fuel oil as agreed under the deal.

A senior US official told journalists that the US was prepared to give North Korea more time.

"Our patience is not infinite... but we feel that given that the kind of unexpected complexities that did arise in connection with some of the banking issues that it's probably prudent to give this thing a few more days," Reuters news agency quoted the official as saying.

On Friday, North Korean foreign ministry official Kim Son-gyong told AFP news agency that Pyongyang would "respect our commitment" to the deal.

"There is no reason to be pessimistic. We will be faithful to this agreement if the Americans respect its clauses," he said.

The deal followed heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula after North Korea test fired a new long-range missile in July and then held its first nuclear test in October.

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Britain seeks to build diplomatic pressure on Iran in attempt to free captive personnel

Top Stories

Julian Borger and Ewen MacAskill in Washington and Ian Black in Riyadh
Friday March 30, 2007
The Guardian

Britain was attempting yesterday to isolate Iran over its week-old detention of 15 marines and sailors, but there were no immediate signs that the diplomatic offensive had brought their release any closer. British diplomats were hopeful that international solidarity would force Iran's rulers to rethink and focused on rallying the international community to Britain's cause.

In New York last night, the UN security council issued a statement of rebuke for Iran's seizure of the British naval patrol last Friday. The statement, which expressed "grave concern" at the capture of the sailors, called on Tehran to allow consular access to the captured Britons and for an early resolution of the dispute and their release.

The wording, produced after four hours of debate, was less forceful than Britain had wanted. Russia balked at calls for the immediate release of the navy personnel, and for language saying they had been seized in Iraqi waters. But diplomats said they were satisfied the statement sent a clear message to Tehran.

Britain hopes a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Bremen today will issue a sharper statement. It was encouraged by France's decision to summon Iran's ambassador to Paris to the foreign ministry to demand the Britons' swift release. The EU's foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, took a tough line yesterday, calling for an end to the "illegal" detention. "What Iran has to do is to liberate immediately all the soldiers," Mr Solana told reporters. "We want to have good relations with Iran, and this does not help."

In meetings at an Arab League summit in Riyadh, Arab diplomats and the UN's secretary general, Ban Ki-Moon, also added pressure on Iran to free the captives. British officials said they were pleased with the level of Arab support and said some Gulf states were concerned about a recent rise in Iranian naval incursions into their own territorial waters.

Mr Ban raised the fate of the detainees with Iran's foreign minister, Manouchehr Mottaki. A UN statement said he had expressed his wish "to see an early resolution of this problem".

Hoshyar Zebari, Iraq's foreign minister, also raised the issue of the captives in talks with Mr Mottaki. "We had a good meeting with the Iranian minister," Mr Zebari said. "I passed on a message asking for the release of the soldiers. They are working at our invitation - they are part of the MNF [multi-national force in Iraq]. Our information is that they were detained in Iraqi territorial waters. But really I felt a sense that they [Iran] want to resolve the issue." Saud al-Faisal, the Saudi foreign minister, said last night: "This is a very unfortunate incident. We are afraid it's going to add to the tension that exists in the Gulf ..."

"Some of us who have relations with Iran are in contact with Iran but I wish I had good news that they will be released. We don't need any added inflammatory incidents in the Gulf and we feel for the families of those soldiers." The unexpectedly quiet voice in yesterday's international chorus of disapproval was America's. The White House has deliberately played down the stand-off at Britain's request. The US and British governments discussed whether it would be helpful to cancel military exercises in the region but the conclusion was to go ahead.

US officials said there was no prospect of a swap of six Iranians arrested in Iraq for the 15 British personnel and Britain had not asked for this. But the Americans could raise their profile as the crisis continues. The expectation in Washington is that the stand-off, unlike a similar one two years ago, could be protracted.

Nicholas Burns, under-secretary of state, testifying before the Senate's foreign affairs committee, said he hoped Iran would reach the right decision. He told the committee that the US approach to Iran in recent months, a combination of diplomacy and economic squeeze, was helping to unnerve the Iranian government. He said the two US carrier battle groups on exercises in the Gulf were "not to provoke Iran but to reassure our friends in the region".

Joe Biden, the Democratic chairman of the committee, said an otherwise minor incident could quickly spiral into military confrontation. "If there is anything worse than a poorly planned intentional war, it is an unplanned, unintentional war."

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