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June 9, 2001

Europe

Britain's Blair Wins Second Term
June 8, 2001 -- British Prime Minister Tony Blair has won a second term as his ruling Labor Party scored a landslide victory in Thursday's parliamentary elections. Opposition Conservative leader William Hague resigned his post today after a second straight crushing defeat in general elections. Hague told supporters it was time for a change in his party's leadership. With 628 races in the 659-seat House of Commons declared, Labor has won 410 seats, compared to only 162 for the Conservatives. The moderate Liberal Democrats, regional parties and independents split the remaining seats. If Blair completes his four-year term, he will become the first British Labor prime minister to serve two full consecutive terms in the party's 100-year history. Blair's victory was clouded by low voter turnout. About 60 percent of eligible voters cast ballots - the lowest percent since World War I.

During the campaign, the election rhetoric increasingly focused on Britain’s integration into the European Union. Blair has promised to bring Britain into Europe's single-currency zone. Analysts also expect him to push Britain into a more visible leadership role in European and world matters. Conservative Party leader Hague adamantly opposes Britain joining Europe's single currency zone and tried to turn Thursday's general election into a referendum on saving the British pound. Blair successfully sidelined the issue, insisting that Britain must be an integral part of Europe to help control its future.

Irish Voters Reject EU Expansion

The European Union says it will push ahead with plans to admit new members, despite Irish voters' rejection of a bloc treaty that paves the way for EU expansion. Fifty-four percent of Irish voters rejected the Nice Treaty on Friday, shocking European leaders and putting the future of EU expansion in doubt. EU leaders said they were disappointed in the results, but respect them. They hinted the treaty could be modified for a second referendum in Ireland, saying they are confident the treaty will be implemented. Treaty opponents have proclaimed the treaty dead. Opponents say the Nice Treaty would result in Ireland losing authority in the European Union and risk having to subsidize poorer countries. Ireland was the only country to hold a referendum on the Nice Treaty. Other EU nations were expected to have the accord ratified by their parliaments. The Nice Treaty sets conditions for the entry of as many as 12 new members to the European Union. All EU nations must ratify the treaty in order for the bloc to begin admitting new members.

Russia Restates Opposition to U.S. Missile Defense
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov has reaffirmed his country's opposition to U.S. missile defense plans but played down the seriousness of the disagreement. Speaking after a two-hour meeting in Brussels with U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, Ivanov said the two countries do not see eye-to-eye on every issue. The Russian official said he and Rumsfeld agreed on the nature of the host of threats they face. He said they disagree on how to deal with them. Ivanov again stressed Russia's opposition to any changes in the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty. He said his country believes any threat from long-range missiles by rogue states is a long way off. But he said Russia is ready for talks with NATO on prospects for a joint Russian-European defense system against medium-range nuclear missiles.

Although opposed to U.S. missile defense, Russia is offering to supply India with a national missile defense system. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Ilya Klebanov announced the proposal Wednesday after talks in Moscow with Indian Foreign Minister Jaswant Singh. The Russian Interfax news agency quotes Klebanov as saying the offer involves a very complex project, without giving further details. Earlier this year Russia said it was ready to develop a missile defense system for Europe in an effort to thwart U.S. plans for a national missile defense system. Russia opposes the U.S. proposal, while India has been more open to the idea. Klebanov also announced that India and Russia have signed agreements to develop a military cargo plane, which he called a plane for the 21st century.

Top EU Diplomat In Macedonia as Fighting Nears Capital
A top European Union diplomat is in the former Yugoslavia republic of Macedonia to make another effort at peace in the region, as Macedonian troops and Muslim terrorists clash just outside the capital, Skopje. EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana is meeting today with members of Macedonia's coalition government. He is expected to lend EU support to Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski's proposals to end the conflict. In a speech Friday, Trajkovski suggested political reform, an overhaul of the security forces, and an amnesty to end the crisis.

Muslim terrorists burst into the town of Aracinovo Friday, only 6 miles from Skopje. At least 1,500 civilians fled the town. Macedonian troops have blocked nearly all entrances and exits to Aracinovo. Control of the town puts the gunmen within mortar range of Skopje's edge. Macedonian civilians are fleeing the northern suburbs of the capital, Skopje. Civilians streamed out of the suburb of Aracinovo amid mortar fire. The terrorists say they now control at least part of Aracinovo. The terrorists say they are fighting for the rights of Macedonia's Muslim minority. The government accuses them of trying to annex Muslim populated regions to Kosovo, a quasi-autonomous province of the Yugoslavian republic of Serbia. Both the Macedonian Muslims and the Kosovo Muslims are Albanians. Many believe that the eventual goal of the terrorists is to unite both Kosovo and the Muslim parts of Macedonia to Albania.

Rumsfeld Says NATO Troops Still Needed in Balkans
U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says the continued presence of NATO-led forces in Kosovo and Bosnia is important for stability in the Balkans. Rumsfeld also told a news conference in Greece on Wednesday that his just completed visit to the region has convinced him that U.S. troops are important to the peacekeeping mission. But the Defense Secretary said that, while peacekeepers are needed now, he hopes that those who live in the Balkans will find ways to live in peace without the presence of foreign soldiers. Tuesday, Rumsfeld visited U.S. troops in Kosovo, near the Macedonia border. NATO-led forces in the area are trying to help stop the smuggling of weapons to Muslim terrorists in Macedonia. Rumsfeld also met with the Macedonian Defense Minister in the capital, Skopje, and expressed support for his government's efforts to deal with the Muslim terrorists.

Violence in Spain Continues
Spanish police are attributing fresh violence in the country's Basque region to separatist activities. Police say terrorists wearing masks set fire Tuesday to two buses in the town of Bilbao, injuring no one but destroying both vehicles. The incident follows a weekend clash between Basque terrorists and police in the town of Bergara. About 50 supporters of the terrorist group ETA set up barricades in the street and set nearby buildings on fire. More than 800 people have been killed in the group's 32-year campaign for creation of an independent Basque state in northern Spain and southwestern France.

Belgium Jails Rwandans for Their Roles in Genocide
A Belgian court has sentenced four Rwandans to prison for their roles in the 1994 Rwandan genocide, but it rejected prosecutors' demands for life sentences. Instead, the court imposed sentences of 12 to 20 years on former Rwandan Transportation Minister Alphonse Higaniro, physics professor Vincent Ntezimana, and two Catholic nuns known as Sister Gertrude and Sister Maria Kisito. A Belgian jury had a day earlier found the four guilty of war crimes. The decision was the first time in which a citizens' jury in one country has judged suspected war criminals for crimes committed in another country. The two nuns were found guilty of handing over as many as 7,000 ethnic Tutsi refugees in their southern Rwandan convent to Hutu mobs. The Hutu militiamen then burned and butchered to death their victims. The accused fled to Belgium, the former colonial power in Rwanda, after the fall of the Hutu regime. Extremist Hutus carried out the three-month genocide against ethnic Tutsis and moderate Hutus before losing power in July 1994. As many as 800,000 people were killed.

Middle East and Africa

Palestinian Ceasefire in Israel?
Palestinian security officials say they have begun steps to implement a ceasefire ordered by Palestinian terrorist leader Yasser Arafat. Arafat's order on June 2 came in the wake of a devastating Palestinian suicide attack in Tel Aviv that killed 20 Israelis. After the attack, the government of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said that Israel's policy of restraint would remain in effect, in an effort to see whether the international community can bring pressure to bear on Palestinian terrorist leader Yasser Arafat to stop the violence. Sharon said Sunday that Israel's restraint after Friday's suicide bombing should not be misinterpreted as a sign of weakness. "Even restraint is part of strength," Sharon told a press conference after visiting the wounded at Tel Aviv's Ichilov Hospital. But Israel officials warned Arafat he had only a limited time to prove he is serious about halting terrorist attacks. To prevent more violence, Palestinian officials say joint units of all Palestinian security agencies will patrol areas of confrontation with the Israelis to stop any clashes or shooting.
See "Eye on Israel" feature for expanded news coverage of Israel.

Iran's Reformist President Wins Easily, Calls Democratic Reform 'Irreversible'
Early election results in Iran indicate reformist President Mohammed Khatami is on his way to a landslide victory for a second and final four-year term. The results show the incumbent receiving about 75 percent of the votes. The reformist president, who won his first term with nearly 70 percent of the vote in 1997, had been widely expected to win re-election. Interior Ministry officials extended voting three times because of heavy turnout. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said the large turnout indicates there is what he called a great desire for freedom, openness, and the rule of law in Iran.

Political analysts say the size of the turnout and the margin of Khatami's victory will be crucial for advancing the reform movement against conservative opposition. Despite his dominating victory four years ago, many of his reforms have been blocked by hardliners in control of the judiciary. The conservative Guardian Council also has veto power over laws passed by the reform-dominated parliament. Nearly 40 publications have been shut down, and dozens of democracy activists have been jailed. Monday, Iran's supreme spiritual leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned against taking democracy too far and urged the country to vote to protect Islam.

During the campaign, Khatami said there would be "no surrender" in the fight for democratic reform. Speaking to reporters in Tehran Tuesday, Khatami described the process of reform in Iranian society as "irreversible." However, he called on those eager for change to exercise patience and moderation when confronted by conservative hardline Islamic authorities.

Iraq Cuts Oil Exports in Protest of Sanctions
Iraq has carried out a threat to suspend oil exports. The suspension is to protest a United Nations Security Council decision extending Iraq's oil for food program by just one month instead of the customary six months. The shorter extension was approved Friday at the request of Britain and the United States, which are seeking a new sanctions package against Iraq. British and U.S. officials want the Council to alleviate restrictions on civilian trade while tightening a weapons ban on Baghdad. The current Security Council president, Anwarul Chowdhury of Bangladesh, says he hopes talks on a new sanctions package will be completed this month. Two permanent Council members with veto power, Russia and China, have said they needed time to review the new proposals. Meanwhile, Iraq wants the sanctions lifted completely. On Monday Baghdad halted the flow of the more than two million barrels a day Iraq pumps under the oil for food program. The move does not affect exports to Jordan and Turkey.
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OPEC Output Stays Same For Now
Prior to Iraq’s decision to stop pumping oil, Saudi Arabia had already said it could make up any Iraqi shortfall in production. But, OPEC ministers meeting in Vienna have decided not to increase oil production at this time. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries has pledged to increase oil production if Iraq's decision to halt its oil exports puts upward pressure on world prices. But OPEC’s president, Chakib Khelil, says global oil supplies are high and there is no present need for any more production. OPEC ministers have decided to meet again on July 3 review the situation.
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Iraq Signs Free-Trade Agreement
Iraq has signed a free-trade agreement with three other Arab countries at the conclusion of an Arab Economic Union meeting in Baghdad, the first there since 1991. The accord was signed Thursday by trade ministers from Iraq, Egypt, Syria and Libya. Officials say the free trade agreement is the first step towards establishing a common Arab market. Iraq is still under United Nations economic sanctions imposed after its 1990 invasion of Kuwait. Earlier this year, Iraq signed bilateral free trade agreements with Egypt and Syria.

Jordan Begins Flights to Baghdad
Jordan's national carrier, Royal Jordanian, has flown to Baghdad, beginning what the company says will be twice-weekly scheduled flights from Amman to the Iraqi capital. Jordan, Iraq’s only ally during the 1991 Persian Gulf War, claims the air travel to Iraq does not violate UN sanctions imposed after Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait. The Jordanian carrier plans to provide flights on Tuesdays and Fridays, in light of increased demand. Last month, the airline provided a weekly flight to Baghdad on a trial basis.

Mugabe Calls for More Land Siezures
Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe has called for an intensification of the seizing of white-owned farms as a tribute to the man who started the program. Speaking Friday, to a crowd of thousands at the funeral of war veterans' leader Chenjerai Hunzvi, President Mugabe said there could be no greater tribute to the controversial militant than to continue the occupations and seizures of white-owned farms he had started. Hunzvi, who died Monday of malaria at age 51, led a group of self-styled war veterans in the forced take over of hundreds of white-owned farms last year. Mugabe said he should be given a halo for his efforts on behalf of landless black Zimbabweans. Hunzvi, who sometimes went by the nickname Hitler, was given a state funeral and buried as a national hero.

Asia

Bush Orders Resumption of Talks With North Korea
President Bush says the United States will resume stalled security talks with communist North Korea. In a written statement late Wednesday, Bush said his administration has completed a review of U.S. policy towards North Korea and that he has directed his staff to undertake broad and serious discussions with Pyongyang. U.S. officials say the talks will focus on North Korea's missile program and its heavy troop deployments near the demilitarized zone between North and South Korea. Bush said the new U.S. approach will offer North Korea the opportunity to demonstrate the seriousness of its desire for improved relations. Bush also said if Pyongyang responds affirmatively and takes appropriate action, the United States will help the North Korean people, ease sanctions, and take other political steps. Bush had halted talks with North Korea - begun by former president Clinton - pending the outcome of the policy review. In March, Bush told visiting South Korean President Kim Dae-Jung that North Korean dictator Kim Jon-Il could not be trusted to keep agreements.

While security talks may soon resume, the United States is warning North Korea that improvement of relations between the two countries will be blocked if Pyongyang scraps a moratorium on tests of long range missiles. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher made the comment Monday after North Korean officials reportedly said they would lift the two-year ban if Washington refused to seek normal relations with Pyongyang. Boucher says failure of North Korea to maintain its moratorium on the launch of long-range missiles would block any potential progress.

North Korea is warning that a landmark accord with the United States to freeze Pyongyang's nuclear program is close to collapse. For the second time in less than a month, North Korea threatened to pull out of the 1994 accord, in which then-President Bill Clinton agreed to help build two nuclear reactors in North Korea, in exchange for Pyongyang's promise to freeze its nuclear program. North Korea's official news agency accused Washington of not living up to its commitments under the agreement and demanded compensation for delays in construction. In the 1994 deal, Clinton agreed to have the U.S. head an international consortium that would provide financing and technology to build two light-water reactors. In return, Pyongyang promised not to use spent fuel from its existing reactors to develop nuclear weapons. The two light-water reactors were to be completed by 2003. But international experts believe the project may not be finished until at least 2008.

South Korea says it sent warships to chase away three North Korean commercial ships that violated its territorial waters last Saturday. The Defense Ministry said Sunday the sea alert began late Saturday morning local time when three cargo vessels sailed into South Korean waters from the east. Two were chased away, but a third headed west, sailing slowly between Korea's southern coast and the resort island of Cheju. Foreign cargo vessels are allowed through the sea lane, but North Korean ships are banned because the two Koreas remain technically at war.

Japanese Foreign Minister Pushes to Reconsider U.S. Alliance
Japanese Foreign Minister Makiko Tanaka, already under fire for making controversial remarks about the U.S. missile defense plan, has insinuated that Japan needs to depart from its decades-old security alliance with the United States, Japanese government sources said Tuesday. The allegation came in the latest round of mudslinging between Foreign Ministry bureaucrats and Tanaka, who accuses ministry officials of waging a smear campaign by leaking to the media her comments with foreign diplomats. Sources said that on May 25 in Beijing, Tanaka told Joschka Fischer, German foreign minister, that it was "necessary" for Japan to become more independent in light of its economic power, but "reactionary political mentality prevents a change." The U.S.-Japan security arrangement has been in effect since 1952.
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Eight Children Murdered in Knife Attack at Japanese School
A man armed with a knife has gone on a rampage in western Japan, killing eight children and slashing at least 20 other pupils and three teachers. Japanese authorities say the man forced his way into an elementary school on Friday and began attacking children and teachers in the middle of morning classes. About 700 children attend the school located in the town of Ikeda, a suburb of Osaka. Police arrested the killer at the scene. Authorities said he had taken an overdose of a tranquilizer and was incoherent. He reportedly has a history of mental problems.

U.S. Trade Representative Backs China's WTO Entry
The top U.S. trade negotiator has signaled President Bush's formal support for China's entry into the World Trade Organization, but says its too early to say when the entry will be granted. Speaking in Shanghai, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Zoellick said he sees what he called a good-faith commitment on all sides to resolve issues currently blocking China's accession into the trade organization. After meeting with senior Chinese trade officials, Zoellick stressed that Beijing must take significant steps to end a dispute over farm subsidies if it wants to gain entry into the WTO by the end of the year. Beijing is reportedly concerned that hundreds of millions of poor Chinese farmers will suffer if cheaper foreign food imports are allowed under WTO rules. China wants to subsidize up to 10 percent of its agricultural output. Washington and other governments want the subsidy rate set at the WTO's five percent limit for developing countries.

Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says he cut off nearly all direct contacts with China's military after the crew of a U.S. spy plane grounded in China on April 1 was detained. The U.S. defense chief said it was inappropriate to conduct business as usual with China while the crew of the spy plane was detained there. Rumsfeld made the comments Monday on his way to Ukraine. Rumsfeld says since the release of the crew after 12 days of detention and China's agreement to release the aircraft, he has approved a number of future contacts with the Chinese military. Defense officials say Rumsfeld is personally deciding which contacts should be allowed and has rejected a majority of them.

President Bush Urges Normal U.S. Trade with Vietnam
June 8, 2001 -- President Bush has asked Congress to ratify an agreement to normalize U.S. trade with Vietnam. The president sent the agreement negotiated in the last year of the Clinton administration to Congress Friday. In his message to Congress, Bush said ratification would continue the historic process of normalizing overall ties between the former enemies. Bush noted that the agreement would increase opportunities for U.S. business by requiring Vietnam to remove a wide range of trade barriers. The agreement would also put Vietnamese exports on the same tariff basis as the majority of U.S. trading partners. The president said the agreement has strong support in Congress and among Vietnam War veterans.

Nepal Investigates Last Week's Royal Massacre
Nepal's new king, Gyanendra, says investigators probing last week's royal palace massacre will be allowed to search the palace in Kathmandu and speak with survivors and doctors who examined the victims. A Royal Palace communique issued late Wednesday said the king also set a new deadline of Sunday for the investigators to end their probe. The monarch named the investigative committee, headed by Chief Justice Keshav Prasad Upadhyay, earlier this week. But the probe was delayed because of differences among members of the committee on how to proceed. Last week's royal palace shooting in Kathmandu claimed the lives of 10 members of the royal family, including King Birendra. Initially, Nepalese officials said then-Crown Prince Dipendra shot his parents and the others during a dispute and turned the gun on himself. Later, the new king described the shooting as "accidental" gunfire. Mobs in Nepal's capital Kathmandu took to the streets during the week demanding a clear explanation for Friday's mysterious palace shooting. Protesters say they don't believe that the popular heir to the throne would kill his family and accuse the new king of involvement in the massacre.

Philippine Terrorists Threaten to Behead U.S. Hostages
Philippine Muslim terrorists have threatened to behead Americans held captive on a southern island unless the Manila government allows a Malaysian representative to negotiate in the hostage crisis. A spokesman for the Abu Sayyaf rebel group made the threat in a phone call to a local radio station, giving the government until noon local time to respond to the demand. The deadline passed with no word of any action by the terrorists. Officials say the terrorists, who took 20 hostages when they stormed an island resort May 27, are currently holding three Americans and at least 10 Philippine nationals on Basilan Island. The terrorists have said one of the Americans was wounded in a prolonged firefight last Sunday with Philippine military forces. The fleeing rebel force escaped a military cordon early Sunday on Basilan, using hostages as human shields. Officials are quoted as saying the rebels may have taken more hostages during their escape. In Manila, President Gloria Arroyo says government forces will not stop the hunting for the terrorists until all of the hostages are freed. Authorities say at least 16 soldiers and an undetermined number of rebels have been killed since the abductions.

Three Arrested in Connection with Bangladesh Church Bombing
Police have detained at least three people in connection with the bombing of a church in southwestern Bangladesh that left 10 people dead. The explosion occurred last Sunday during a Roman Catholic church service. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack. However, Islamic terrorists have been accused of other bombings in recent months. Security has been tightened in churches across the country.

Latin America

OAS General Assembly Wraps Up Democracy Talks
Organization of American States wrapped up its General Assembly meeting in San Jose, Costa Rica Tuesday after failing to reach a consensus on a proposed democratic charter. Delegates from 34 member-nations at the 31st annual General Assembly debated the charter that would clearly define democracy for the hemisphere and allow for sanctions against countries that violate it. But several nations, including the 14-member Caribbean Community (Caricom), questioned the effectiveness of incorporating sanctions into such a document. Venezuelan delegates also came out against a democratic charter, saying representative democracy in its current form in Latin America breeds violence and corruption. In its San Jose meeting, the OAS Assembly was also considering an offer from Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide to hold new elections next year in exchange for millions of dollars in aid. Last year's legislative elections in Haiti were widely condemned as fraudulent. The OAS has sent a mission to Port-au-Prince to try to resolve a delicate political impasse.

Toledo Victorious in Peru
Centrist Alejandro Toledo has won Peru's presidential election and declared his victory a triumph for democracy after the administration of scandal-plagued former President Alberto Fujimori. Toledo received 52 percent of the votes cast on Sunday to become the Andean nation's first freely-elected president of Indian origin. His leftist rival, former President Alan Garcia, had 48 percent. In his victory speech in Lima late Sunday, Toledo pledged to be president of all Peruvians and to leave behind what he called the corrupt dictatorship of the past. In a concession speech, Garcia called on all Peruvians to support their new president. Toledo rose from childhood poverty to become a U.S. trained economist. He gained political prominence in challenging former President Fujimori, who was forced from office last year in a corruption scandal and lives in exile in Japan. Toledo's inauguration is July 28.

Argentinian Ex-President Menem Arrested
Argentine authorities have placed former President Carlos Menem under house arrest as part of an investigation of a weapons smuggling ring that illegally gave arms to Croatia and Ecuador in the early 1990s. Prosecuting Judge Jorge Urso accuses Menem of helping run a government-sponsored smuggling ring that provided 6500 tons of rifles, cannons, shells and other weapons to Croatia and Ecuador. At the time of the alleged sales, both countries were under an international arms embargo. Menem made a brief appearance at a federal courthouse in Buenos Aires Thursday before being flown by helicopter to an undisclosed location on the outskirts of the Argentine capital. Hundreds of supporters were on hand at the courthouse to greet the former president. If found guilty, the 70-year-old Menem could face up to 10 years in prison.

Communist Ortega Leads Polls Ahead of Nicaragua Election
A new poll reveals communist leader Daniel Ortega leading ahead of Nicaragua's November 4 presidential election. The poll, released Friday, shows 34 percent of voters support Ortega, compared to 29 percent for Enrique Bolanos of the ruling Constitutionalist Liberal Party. Noel Vidaurre of the Conservative Party stands third at 14 percent. About 23 percent of voters surveyed are undecided. Ortega seized power as the communist dictator of Nicaragua before being ousted in an election in 1990.

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