UK-Libya

This is the second time Tony Blair hold meeting with the Libyan leader. The UK and Libya had been hostile to each other until just few years back and the relation between those two has now transformed.This is a good example of successful diplomacy. Good diplomacy can apply to dealing with those named "axis of evil".

Suu Kyi's detention extended

Suu Kyi has spent 11 of the last 18 years under house arrest. Burma's military junta will know that oppression will not succeed in a long run and introducing democracy is the only way compatible with human progress.

 

N.Korea launches missile-test

North Korea has just launched missile-test towards the Sea of Japan. It should not be surprising as it has done so on several occasions in the past. It however makes the international community reconsider whether the regime will ever honour the February agreement. No one seems to be prepared yet, at least for now, for the worst case scenario in the Korean peninsula. This is the regime that has broken international promises on many occasions in the past and they still defy the international community. I highly doubt that the regime will comply with the February deal.

Abe on climate change

"We must create a new framework which moves beyond the Kyoto Protocol, in which the entire world will participate in emissions reduction," said Japan's PM Abe.The Kyoto protocol will expire in 2012. No initiative on climate change will be realistically effective unless the US and fast growing countries, such as China, India and Brazil, participate in it.The difficult question is not only how to reach an agreement universally on the issue but also how to support sustainable development in those fast growing countries.

 

AI reports Human Rights eroded worldwide

 

Amnesty International's annual report on human rights:

 http://thereport.amnesty.org/eng/Homepage

"The politics of fear are fuelling a downward spiral of human rights abuses in which no right is sacrosanct and no person safe," said Amnesty International's Secretary General Irene Khan. 

After the September 11, there has been widely said that the politics of fear rising in the policies of powerful governments.

Things like human rights, democracy are the most important values for which we fought to achieve in the past history and we cannot afford to lose.

This report must be taken very seriously by the policy-makers of governments and the international political institutions to reconsider strengthening of human rights protection.

 

 

North Korea

On Thursday last week, Seoul paid 80 million dollars to its north neighbour for permission to test the rail link between the two countries.North Korea desperately wants economic aid without opening its border to any outside influence as the regime fears that outside-influence will immediately undermine its totalitarian system. One of the reasons as to why the regime has been surviving in spite of its severe economic hardship is that its neighbouring countries often shows, China and South Korea, lukewarm attitudes toward Pyongyang.

The deadline for the February Agreement of the Six-Party Talks past a month ago, no one however seems to be talking about it.

Iraq, Afghanistan

Tony Blair is making a last official visit to Iraq. The 2003 Iraq War was very controversial issue and you can probably debate forever about its legality or whether it was right or wrong.But what the international community must not do is that walking-away from the still trouble regions like Iraq and Afghanistan.Security situation in Iraq is still very problematic and people often say it was better before comparing between Saddam’s era and the present days. But what they do have now and did not before is that there is now a Democratically elected government and people have a right to choose. This is a fundamental principle of Democracy and it takes longer time to flourish.I would like to believe that Democracy can grow not only on a nourished ground but also on a rough and unfertile one. Only time can tell. In the mean time, it is a responsibility of the international community to support reconstruction of those trouble regions.

Tensions not eased but increased between the EU and Russia

 

 

 

 

 

There are disputes between the EU and Russia over the status of Kosovo, energy supplies and trade. There is also major dispute between the US and Russia over US missile defence pact with East European countries. Some analysts even says “new Cold War” is emerging between the West and Russia. The fact is that in this interdependent world West and Russia need each other now more than ever before and neither can afford to make other side enemy towards one side. They do not have to be friends all the time, but the world is not willing to see “new Cold War” occurring if there is any such.

 

BBC 1 Panorama

BBC reporter John Sweeney is right! He lost his voice, but not his mind! You will see in this programme how some extreme religious group aggressively and manipulatively operates.

See it here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uw_aNIgcSQc

 

Chirac exprime sa "fierté du devoir accompli"

The outgoing French President has announced an official farewell to the nation today. France's success during his decade presidency was that he managed to strengthen France's position on international stage. He was the most prominent figure opposing the Iraq war in 2003 and believes that he was absolutely right from the beginning. This showed that France is one of the few super-powers who can stand up against the US dominated international relations. His big regret was probably that the French voter's rejection to ratification of EU constitution in 2005.

The world looks forward to how the new President will succeed the French legacy.