In The News

North Koreans and U.S. Plan Talks in Beijing Next Week

David E. Sanger April 16, 2003
The US will begin negotiations with North Korea in Beijing – the first talk between the two governments since North Korea threw out nuclear weapons inspectors. The US had contended that it would not talk to North Korea until it gave up its nuclear arms program. Furthermore, it feared that one-on-one talks with North Korea would drive a wedge between the US and its allies. North Korea, wishing to...

Syria Harbors Iraqis and Grants Transit to Hezbollah, U.S. Asserts

Don Van Natta Jr. April 15, 2003
US Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld has accused Syria of allowing members of Saddam Hussein’s family and former leadership circle to cross the border into Syria, and members of Hezbollah to cross the other way into Iraq. Both Syria and Hezbollah deny the accusations, but the US is applying pressure because it believes Hezbollah has plans to attack American interests in the region, and...

Iraq War Ends, Not Europe's Acrimony with the US

Shada Islam April 15, 2003
British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Spain's Jose Maria Aznar have joined France and Germany in demanding that the United Nations play the central role in administering and rebuilding post-Saddam Iraq. Not only does the UN have the experience and the expertise to handle Iraq's reconstruction, it is the only body with a legal mandate to do so. UN oversight, EU leaders argue, will be...

IMF Riven by US-Europe Tiff Over Iraqi Debt

April 15, 2003
The rehabilitation and reconstruction of a post-war Iraq is quickly emerging as a complex issue of global proportions. Iraqi liabilities are estimated at over $380 billion. While the United States favors debt forgiveness, other major UN Security Council member countries, such as France, Germany and Russia are less inclined to support complete debt forgiveness. International financial...

U.S. Sharply Scolds Syria and Threatens Sanctions

David Stout April 14, 2003
Following the toppling of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, the Bush administration warned Syria to "ponder the implications" of supporting terrorism, developing chemical weapons and harboring fugitives from Saddam Hussein’s regime. Despite issuing harsh warning, the Bush Administration insists that it will explore all diplomatic and economic options in dealing with Syria. Syria has denied all...

Europe Seems to Hear Echoes of Empires Past

Richard Bernstein April 14, 2003
The United States has long been acknowledged as a world superpower. However, following the success of the US led war in Iraq, some observers in Europe argue that the United States is also becoming an imperial power, akin to the great Roman and British empires. American military victories in Afghanistan, Kosovo and the Persian Gulf War of 1991 are cited as examples of American global power and...

U.S. Search for Illegal Arms Narrowed to About 36 Sites

Don Van Natta Jr. April 14, 2003
The search for chemical, biological and nuclear weapons in Iraq continues. Though US officials have “no doubt” they will find these weapons, their search has uncovered nothing as yet. The search to establish links between a terrorist group in Northern Iraq, Ansar-al-Islam, to Al Qaeda has also come up short. In the meantime, the US is compiling scores of files, computer hard disks, and compact...