Posted on 09/24/2008 11:47:09 PM PDT by bruinbirdman
Russia disrupted the key meeting of the foreign ministers of six mediators for Iran. The meeting was supposed to be held to discuss the passing of the fourth resolution of the UN Security Council, a spokesman for the General Assembly said.
A US diplomat said that the ministers representing six countries participating in the talks for the solution of the Iranian nuclear program were supposed to gather in New York. However, Russia considered the meeting inappropriate. Neither Russia, nor China were ready to start the discussion of another decision requiring the introduction of sanctions against Iran.
The US official said that Russia’s decision to boycott the meeting was largely motivated with Condoleezza Rice’s speech, in which the US Secretary of State said that Russia was nearing its own isolation on the international arena.
In the meantime, Iran's president told the U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday that "the American empire" is nearing collapse and should end its military involvement in other countries.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said terrorism is spreading quickly in Afghanistan while "the occupiers" are still in Iraq nearly six years after Saddam Hussein was ousted from power in Iraq.
"American empire in the world is reaching the end of its road, and its next rulers must limit their interference to their own borders," Ahmadinejad said.
He accused the U.S. of starting wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to win votes in elections and blamed a "few bullying powers" for trying to undermine Iran's nuclear program.
Ahmadinejad's hardline rhetoric came as no surprise and offered little in the way of compromise at the U.N., where he faces a new round of sanctions if no agreement is reached on limiting Iran's nuclear capabilities.
While he reiterated that the country's nuclear program is purely peaceful, the U.S. and others fear it is aimed at producing enriched uranium to make nuclear weapons.
Iran already is under three sets of sanctions by the U.N. Security Council for refusing to suspend uranium enrichment. Washington and its Western allies are pushing for quick passage of a fourth set of sanctions to underline the international community's resolve, but are likely to face opposition from Russia.
"A few bullying powers have sought to put hurdles in the way of the peaceful nuclear activities of the Iranian nation by exerting political and economic pressures against Iran," he said.
Ahmadinejad also lashed out at Israel on Tuesday, saying "the Zionist regime is on a definite slope to collapse, and there is no way for it to get out of the cesspool created by itself and its supporters."
The Iranian president is feared and reviled in Israel because of his repeated calls to wipe the Jewish state off the map, and his aggressive pursuit of nuclear technology has only fueled Israel's fears.
Ahmadinejad accused "a small but deceitful number of people called Zionists ... (of) dominating an important portion of the financial and monetary centers as well as the political decision-making centers of some European countries and the U.S."
Israeli President Shimon Peres reacted angrily to Ahjmadinejad's criticism. "It is again a repetition of the darkest accusations in the name of Hitler and almost anti-Semitism," Peres later told journalists.
In discussing the U.S. war in Iraq, Ahmadinejad said, "Millions have been killed or displaced, and the occupiers, without a sense of shame, are still seeking to solidify their position in the ... region and to dominate oil resources."
He suggested that the presence of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan has contributed to a sharp rise in terrorism and a huge increase in the production of narcotics.
He predicted that the alliance would not be successful.
"Throughout history every force that has entered Afghanistan has left in defeat," Ahmadinejad said.
His speech came just hours after President George W. Bush made his eighth and final appearance before the U.N. General Assembly, urging the international community to stand firm against the nuclear ambitions of Iran and North Korea.
"A few nations, regimes like Syria and Iran, continue to sponsor terror," Bush said. "Yet their numbers are growing fewer, and they're growing more isolated from the world. As the 21st century unfolds, some may be tempted to assume that the threat has receded. This would be comforting. It would be wrong."
At one point during Bush's 22-minute speech, Ahmadinejad turned to Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki and gave a thumb's down.
As in past years, the United States only had a low-level note-taker present for the Iranian president's address, said Richard Grenell, spokesman for the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. The U.S. and Iran do not have diplomatic relations.
During interviews ahead of his speech Tuesday, Ahmadinejad blamed U.S. military interventions around the world in part for the collapse of global financial markets.
"The U.S. government has made a series of mistakes in the past few decades," Ahmadinejad said an interview with the Los Angeles Times. "The imposition on the U.S. economy of the years of heavy military engagement and involvement around the world ... the war in Iraq, for example. These are heavy costs imposed on the U.S. economy.
"The world economy can no longer tolerate the budgetary deficit and the financial pressures occurring from markets here in the United States, and by the U.S. government," he added.
>> Isn’t that headline just a little over-dramatic?
Nah, that’s about normal for the New York Times.
...
...oh wait a minit...nevermind
LatelineNews: 2001-9-8] WASHINGTON - Russian, North Korean and Chinese "entities" supplied fresh ballistic missile-related equipment and know-how to Iran last year, moving it toward self-sufficiency in long-range missile production, CIA Director George Tenet told Congress on Friday.
Leaders of a six-nation security bloc led by Beijing and Moscow called for a deadline to be set for the withdrawal of US forces from bases in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.
The presidents of the six-nation Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), which comprises Russia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and China, signed a declaration calling for deadlines to be set on the closure of airbases used by US forces in Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.
... ...oh wait a minit...nevermind..."
Same parent organization, so you were inadvertently correct.
I'm thinking of one Pravda thread a night for a change of pace.
yitbos
Once had a roommate in the Army names Paul Muzi. From Bronx if IIRC.
yitbos
It’s registered in St. Louis, but it also appears to do a lot of Asian news.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.