IRAN
Arabs, Israel to attend nuclear talks, Iran uncertain
Fredrik Dahl, Reuters – November 15, 2011
Arab states and Israel plan to attend a rare round of talks next week on efforts to free the world of nuclear weapons but Iran has yet to say whether it will take part in the meeting in Vienna, diplomats said on Wednesday.
Iran’s nuclear defiance finds rare common ground in fractured country
AP (Washington Post) – November 15, 2011
Banners proclaiming Iran’s “obvious right” to nuclear technology are draped over building facades. State media describe the head of the U.N. atomic watchdog agency as an American puppet and dismiss claims about nuclear weapons advances as made-in-USA falsehoods.
Iran ready to help Turkey with nuclear plant – aide
Louis Charbonneau, Reuters – November 16, 2011
An adviser to Iran’s Supreme Leader said on Tuesday that Tehran was willing to share its controversial nuclear technology with neighboring countries, suggesting it could help Turkey build an atomic power plant.
Defense spending and Iran
The Hill – November 15, 2011
Over the last couple of weeks, there has been a lot of chatter about the possibility of Israel bombing Iran’s nuclear site, with or without U.S. participation.
NORTH KOREA
Concern grows over new NK reactor
Kim Young-jin, Korea Times – November 16, 2011
Concern is growing over North Korea’s construction of a new nuclear reactor after satellite imagery revealed rapid progress on the project that Pyongyang claims will soon be operational.
Reclusive North Korea opens its door a crack for tourists
Keith B. Richburg, Washington Post – November 15, 2011
This reclusive and secretive country is now officially open for business — the tourism business, that is.
AFGHANISTAN
Karzai outlines conditions for US bases in Afghanistan
Sardar Ahmad, AFP – November 16, 2011
President Hamid Karzai on Wednesday outlined a string of conditions for long-term US bases in Afghanistan at a major gathering of elders debating the country’s future and peace efforts with the Taliban.
IRAQ
Panetta: Iraq Ready to Fight Extremism
Viola Gienger, Bloomberg – November 15, 2011
Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, defending President Barack Obama’s decision to proceed with the U.S. military exit from Iraq, said the Persian Gulf nation is prepared to handle security threats including violent extremists and Iran’s influence.
UNITED STATES
U.S. foreign policy turns toward Asia
Washington Post – November 15, 2011
THE THEME of President Obama’s eight-day tour of Asia is what the administration describes as a foreign policy “pivot” from the messy and costly wars of Iraq and Afghanistan to a new era of engagement with the booming economies of the Far East . “The United States is, and always will be, a Pacific power,” Mr. Obama said as he opened a news conference Monday in Hawaii. The region, he added, “is absolutely vital not only for our economy but also for our national security.”
Obama Insists U.S. Does Not Fear China
Ben Feller, AP (TIME) – November 16, 2011
President Barack Obama insisted Wednesday that the United States does not fear China, even as he announced a new security agreement with Australia that is widely viewed as a response to China’s growing aggressiveness.
Pentagon Spending Cuts: Dangerous Or Just Overdue?
AP – November 16, 2011
What are taxpayers supposed to think? The Pentagon says threatened budget cuts will invite aggression, endanger national security and devastate its operations. Though that view has plenty of adherents, there also are plenty of naysayers who call the Defense Department’s predictions a scare tactic by bureaucrats desperate to protect their turf.
