060608f  - FOREIGN PRESS REVIEW (FPR) - ‘Relevant news, views, comments and analyses for informed debate’ Compiled by Şanlı Bahadır Koç    U.S. / Britain / Turkey / Magazines / Think-tanks / Blogs / Misc /Books / Quickread / Numbers / Reports  - Subscribe to FPR  FPR Table - H4 NYT WP GU  H7 ME Isr H10 CSM IHT Eur FSU Asia H13 Times WSJ FT LAT H16 USP DT Ind H19 Mil Int Ter Wonk  H21 Misc

H1 Independent  US issues threat to Iraq's $50bn foreign reserves in military deal The US is holding hostage some $50bn (£25bn) of Iraq's money in the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to pressure the Iraqi government into signing an agreement seen by many Iraqis as prolonging the US occupation indefinitely, according to information leaked to The Independent

 

McClatchy Did Iranian Agents Dupe Pentagon Officials? Defense Department counterintelligence investigators suspected that Iranian exiles who provided dubious intelligence on Iraq and Iran to a small group of Pentagon officials might have "been used as agents of a foreign intelligence service ... to reach into and influence the highest levels of the U.S. government," a Senate Intelligence Committee report said Thursday

 

New York Times 2 Leaders Ousted From Air Force in Atomic Errors  Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates made the decision after an inquiry into the mishandling of nuclear weapons found systemic problems in the Air Force.

 

Bush Overstated Evidence on Iraq, Senators Report  The 170-page report accuses President Bush and other top officials of repeatedly overstating the Iraqi threat in the emotional aftermath of the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

Report Text (pdf): Intelligence Activities | Public Statements

 

Editorial The Truth About the War A new report shows clearly that President Bush should have known that important claims he made about Iraq did not conform with intelligence reports.

 

Washington Post Obama Backs Away From Comment on Divided Jerusalem Facing criticism from Palestinians, Sen. Barack Obama acknowledged yesterday that the status of Jerusalem will need to be negotiated in future peace talks, amending a statement earlier in the week that the city "must remain undivided."

 

Bush's Secret Iraq Deal By Dan Froomkin

 

Iraq May Request Extension For U.S. The Iraqi government may request an extension of the United Nations security mandate authorizing a U.S. military presence, due to expire in December, amid growing domestic criticism of new bilateral arrangements now being negotiated with the Bush administration, according to senior Iraqi officials.

 

At $4, Everybody Gets Rational By Charles Krauthammer,  When gas hits $4 per gallon, Americans start using their cars more intelligently.

 

US Security Agreements and Iraq - Council on Foreign Relations

 

Iran: Rumors of War
by Conn Hallinan

 

Amir Taheri Tehran's Three Card Trick - Asharq Alawsat  On the surface, the stage is set for a new power struggle in Tehran.

 

The Economist America at its best The primaries have left the United States with a decent choice; now it needs a proper debate about policies

 

Terrorism A radical new strategy: kill fewer Muslims Al-Qaeda is under fire from inside radical Islam; sadly, the blood may merely flow elsewhere

 

Gallup Daily: Obama Gets Slight Bounce With Clinton as VP 

 

Obama clarifies united J'lem comment 

 

Clinton, Obama meet in Washington 

 

IHT  A LEAGUE OF DEMOCRACIES Doomed to fail? By MORTON H. HALPERIN AND TED PICCONE McCain's vision of a common organization devoted to everything from relieving human suffering in Darfur to tackling our environmental crisis and sanctioning Iran is rooted in the past and doomed to failure.

 

Medvedev, in Germany, revisits Russia's tensions with West

President Dmitri Medvedev of Russia came under scrutiny for signs that he would swerve from the path of Vladimir Putin.

 

Asia Times Iran fumes as Syria nods to Arab world Syria's rapprochement with "moderate" Arab states may be the rebirth of Syrian-Arab relations and a stepping stone for dialogue between Damascus and Washington. Considering Syria's indirect talks with Israel, it is also a step away from Tehran, which is not pleased, fearing a break between Syria and Iran on one front, and Syria and Hezbollah on another. - Sami Moubayed

 

Obama already mired on Middle East road As coincidence would have it, on the day he clinched the Democratic party's nomination for the United States presidency, Barack Obama was scheduled to deliver a key address at the annual meeting of the powerful Jewish lobby in Washington. His speech on the Middle East, and Iran in particular, will have pleased his influential audience and enhanced his election chances. But it marks a backward step on the road to Obama's promises of change. - Kaveh L Afrasiabi  

 

US sees a friendlier face in Iran
While the George W Bush administration has opposed direct contact with the Iranian executive branch, Tehran bears overwhelming responsibility for the failure to initiate parliamentarian dialogue with United States lawmakers. The new speaker of Iran's parliament, Ali Larijani, could change that, with clear benefits for both countries. - Trita Parsi

 

International Crisis Group - Georgia and Russia: Clashing over Abkhazia
  

CNAS Finding Our Way: Debating American Grand Strategy (pdf) (Art, Ikenberry, Kagan, Posen et al.)

 

Making America Grand Again: Toward a New Grand Strategy (pdf)

 

A Strategy for American Power: Energy, Climate and National Security   (pdf)

 

Tony Karon US Calls a Straw Poll in Iraq: It May Not Like the Result

The Times Barack Obama could win a landslide There's only one problem - he has to convince the American public of his patriotism by Dick Morris

 

Bob Dylan says Barack Obama is 'changin America

 

The Democratic Gamble - Ronald Brownstein, National Journal

 

Historic Odds Favoring Obama in '08 - Mort Kondracke, Roll Call

 

Clinton denies seeking VP spot, but allies say she wants it

 

Financial Times The world wants a vote in an epic presidential contest Barack Obama is a once-in-a-generation politician; John McCain a worthy opponent. The winner must break with the delusions of the past seven years. That is why the election is more closely watched beyond US shores than any I can think off, writes Philip Stephens

 

The risks of Russia The uncertainties still inherent in doing business in Russia have been amply demonstrated by BP’s problems in dealing with the Russian authorities and with its oligarch partners in the TNK-BP joint venture

 

Dollar not a dirty word for Bernanke The US Federal Reserve chairman’s comments may be an effective way to send a coded message about monetary policy. But real, non-verbal intervention may yet be needed

 

Medvedev takes tough line on global security The Russian leader warns Nato that further expansion into eastern Europe would be ‘very damaging’ to relations with Moscow while floating the idea of a new security pact

 

Rand The Challenge of Nuclear-Armed Regional Adversaries To improve the United States' military and political leverage in situations involving nuclear-armed adversaries, a great deal more needs to be done to develop field capabilities, such as multilayered theater missile defenses and improved surveillance and target-tracking capabilities, that can prevent the enemy's use of nuclear weapons

 

From Foreign Policy, a breakdown of the countries where being born female can be a cruel fate; why do some countries succeed when others struggle?

 

Jonathan Karl / ABCNEWS:
Obama's Evolving Position on Iran

 

Iran and the American election , Paul Rogers

 

 Gates ousts Air Force leaders in historic Pentagon shake-up

 

Der Spiegel Does NATO Have a Future?: For Better or For Worse

 

GuardianThe unpromised land

Ian Williams: Obama's eagerness to placate the Israel lobby shows the Democratic nominee in a poor light

 

Holy city, unholy mess Adam LeBor: In trying to please ultra-Zionists, Barack Obama is ignoring Israel's long-term interests

 

Hindering the hungry Alexander Woollcombe Rich nations may not have caused the food crisis, but their policies add to the suffering of the poor and starving

Salon Arming Our Own Enemies in Iraq by Gareth Porter

 

H2 NYT Turkey’s High Court Overturns Headscarf Rule

 

Remarks WithTurkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan After Their Meeting

 

Guardian Fears for Turkish ruling party as court overturns headscarf law Decision a blow for ruling justice and development party, who could possibly be outlawed in a separate case

 

Turkey and Iran Unite to Attack Kurdish Rebels

 

Military says working with Iran on PKK strikes

 

ABD'den AKP'ye hep destek tam destek ABD'den AKP'ye tam destek geldi: Türkiye meselelerini demokratik yolla çözer. Mükemmel çalışma ilişkileri bulduğumuz ve ortak değerlere sahip olduğumuz bu hükümetle çalışmayı sürdüreceğiz

 

ABD: Türkiye�nin kendi iç meselesi

 

'İran'la istihbarat paylaşımı yapıyoruz'

 

FT Turkish court upholds headscarf ban Turkey’s secular establishment won an important battle on Thursday after the country’s top court struck down a move to allow girls to wear the Muslim headscarf at university

 

Turkey’s headscarf wars Slideshow: Few countries are as exercised over what women should wear on their heads, causing constitutional, social and educational problems

 

Ha’aretz Turkey: U.S. backs mediation bid for Syrian-Israeli peace Turkish FM 'happy' over what he says is U.S. support for indirect peace talks between Jerusalem, Damascus

 

Turkish Court Rejects Islamic Headscarf Law in Blow to Erdogan
Bloomberg

 

Military says working with Iran on PKK strikes

 

AP Turkish court upholds college head scarf ban

 

Reuters Court annuls Turkish headscarf bill in blow to government

 

Reuters: AKP'ye büyük darbe indirildi

 

Bush Ankara'ya yeni ABD elçisi atıyor

 

Rice'la görüştü: Dünyanın gözü kapatma davasında

 

BBC Court annuls Turkish headscarf reform

 

Veiled tensions Turkey faces difficult times after headscarf ruling

 

The Times Judges defy Government to uphold Turkey headscarf ban

Turkey: The Headscarf Ban and the Struggle Over Secularism | Stratfor

 

EDM TURKISH PUBLIC PROSECUTOR CALLS FOR INVESTIGATION OF ALLEGED COUP PLOT

 

Court Rules Against Turkish Government TIME

 

 'İlişkimiz mükemmel'

 

Kurdish Writer Warns USA of Turning Iraq into Battleground With Neighbours

 

İran ile koordineli operasyon

 

Sami Kohen Türkiye işe el atınca...

 

‘Post-seküler toplum’ ne demektir? Jürgen Habermas

 

Babacan Bilderberg Konferansına katılacak

Geçen sene İstanbul'da düzenlenen toplantı sansasyon yaratmıştı

 

İç Basında Türk Dış Politikası  Dış Basında Türkiye - BBC Turkish 0700 VOA TSİ 06:30 Turkish Press Review Google News Turkey TurcoPundit      

 

 

Google News Fırat News Agency KurdishMedia Kurdish Kurdish Aspect Dış Basında Irak  BBC Monitoring Inter-national

 

İşte Türkiye'deki Kürt nüfüsü

 

Baykal: Parçalanarak hayırlı sonuç çıkmaz

 

MAHMUT ÖVÜR "CHP'siz Kürt sorunu çözülmez"

 

Deal may defuse Kirkuk time bomb
For the first time, a Kurdish official says Kurds are willing to break their decades-old stalemate over the fate of oil-rich Kirkuk province in Iraq. Any such deal would improve Kurdish ties with Turkey, convince the Baghdad government to make concessions to its Kurds - and may prevent a civil war

 

İran ile koordineli operasyon

 

Başbuğ: İran’la işbirliği yapıyoruz

 

Şark cephesinde değişen bir şey var

 

Southeast likely to disappoint CHP in upcoming elections

 

Private banks rediscover eastern Anatolia

 

Turks and Kurds [3]: We need more than good faith by ABDÜLBAKİ ERDOĞMUŞ*

 

Kürtleri seviyoruz

 

Türkiye evrakı gönderdi mahkeme yetersiz buldu

 

Org. Saygun: PKK’da ast-üst birbirine girdi

 

'Kürtçe konuştular, ceza yediler'

 

Turkish army working with Iran on PKK strikes

 

Report: Iran, Turkey coordinate Iraq strikes

 

İran ordusu 12 PKK'lıyı öldürdü

 

Cevdet Aşkın

 

Etyen Mahçupyan Looking for politics in the Southeast

 

Ece Temelkuran Şeref ve iftihar

 

US report: Turkey still behind in fight against human trafficking

Tuğluk, gerekirse zorla getirilecek

 

 

‘Rozerin’e yeterli gerekçe gelmedi’

 

The Golan looms over Lake Kinneret
Jerusalem Post  All three sides are reportedly intrigued by the possibilities of the blueprint, based on an ambitious Turkish scheme first raised in the 1980s, dropped when

 

Saygun: PKK dağılıyor

 

İBRAHİM KARAGÜL

 

 

YASİN DOĞAN

 

 

Kurdish Youth Soccer Team in Netherlands to Play with Turkey, Israel and Colombia

 

Diyarbakırlıların yumurtalı tepkisi

 

DTP'li Kurtulan: Akan kan durdurulmak istenmiyor

 

Almanya’nın iade ettiği PKK’lı İltaş'a beraat

 

Dışişleri Bakanlığı'ndan 'Ayfer Kaya' açıklaması