IRAN
Iran threatens U.S. Navy as sanctions hit economy
Parisa Hafezi, Reuters – January 3, 2012
Iran threatened Tuesday to take action if the U.S. Navy moves an aircraft carrier into the Gulf, Tehran’s most aggressive statement yet after weeks of saber-rattling as new U.S. and EU financial sanctions take a toll on its economy.
The Very Definition of Blowing Smoke, Tehran Edition
Jeffrey Goldberg, The Atlantic – January 3, 2012
Iran will take action if a U.S. aircraft carrier which left the area because of Iranian naval exercises returns to the Gulf, the state news agency quoted army chief Ataollah Salehi as saying on Tuesday.
Oil jumps to above $101 in Europe on concerns rising Iran tensions may threaten crude supplies
Washington Post (AP) – January 3, 2012
Oil prices jumped to over $101 a barrel Tuesday amid concerns that rising tensions between Western powers and Iran could lead to crude supply disruptions.
NORTH KOREA
South Korea’s Lee calls on North to end nuclear activities
Jack Kim, Reuters – January 2, 2012
South Korean President Lee Myung-bak called on North Korea’s new leader to seize the opportunity and return to dialogue, saying he was prepared to offer help to revive the North’s shattered economy if it suspends nuclear activities.
Analysis: N.Korea’s missile-maker seen in key role in new regime
Raju Gopalakrishnan, Reuters – December 30, 2011
During the funeral ceremonies for North Korean leader Kim Jong-il this week, the man in charge of the isolated state’s missile program and possibly its nuclear plans, paid a quiet visit to the mausoleum where the body lay in state.
PAKISTAN
Pakistan, US assume less cooperation in future
Anne Gearan, AP – January 2, 2012
In what could be the biggest change in a decade in a relationship that has been a mainstay of U.S. military and counterterrorism policy since the 9/11 terror attacks, the United States and Pakistan are lowering expectations for what the two nations will do together and planning for a period of more limited contact.
UNITED STATES
Panetta to Offer Strategy for Cutting Military Budget
Elisabeth Bumiller & Thom Shanker, NYT – January 2, 2012
Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta is set this week to reveal his strategy that will guide the Pentagon in cutting hundreds of billions of dollars from its budget, and with it the Obama administration’s vision of the military that the United States needs to meet 21st-century threats, according to senior officials.
The $450 Billion Question: Remains Unanswered
Mark Thompson, TIME Magazine (Blog) – January 3, 2012
So this is the week where Defense Secretary Leon Panetta is going to give us a peek into where he wants to cut $450 billion in military spending over the coming decade. It’s the lead story in the New York Times Tuesday morning, but, alas, it really doesn’t tell us anything we don’t already know. That’s not reporters Elisabeth Bumiller and Thom Shanker’s fault – they’re real pros.
Happy Caucus Day!
Ben White, Politico – January 3, 2012
After a dozen debates, seven lead changes, $10 million in ad spending and 7.4 billion Tweets, the citizenry of Iowa (or at least a narrow slice of it) will take part in the deeply transgressive act of casting actual votes in the race for the GOP presidential nomination.
GOP candidates vie for voters’ trust in fluid Iowa
Kasie Hunt, AP – January 3, 2012
In the kickoff contest of the 2012 presidential race, Republican candidates argued up to Tuesday’s finish line in Iowa over which candidate is a conservative that voters can trust and who they can count on to defeat President Barack Obama.
