Tuesday, February 12, 2002

G7 ... optimistic note [re] the prospects for renewed expansion in the industrial world. ...  progress on many of the issues facing the international financial community was limited." "there was ... the prospect of 'resumed expansion'. ... went on to identify a host of problems affecting the world economy as a whole ... as well as the continuing threat of international financial instability ... " "the economic outlook for the G7 ... glibly optimistic. ... America ... big question- marks over the willingness of American consumers to continue to prop up demand. The high debt burden of many Americans, coupled with expected further rises in unemployment ..." " ... efforts to boost European competitiveness have been lacklustre at best ... structural problems ... deregulation and labour-market flexibility." " ... apparent absence of any discussion of Japan’s problems. ... shows no sign of tackling its deep-rooted problems. ... little sign of a readiness to confront the longstanding troubles of the banking sector." ... [more] 2:59:32 PM    comment  []

Washington Post series on Saudi Arabia: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 "The sharing of power between the secular and religious authorities of Saudi Arabia ... " "The Saudis have made an ongoing effort to prevent Americans from understanding them, particularly their politics." "The ruling House of Saud is particularly sensitive to the views of its Ulema because it depends on their support for its legitimacy." "Saudi religious leaders were pursuing their own agenda throughout the Muslim world ... " "Saudi religious leaders [are] pursuing their own agenda throughout the Muslim world ... In this situation ... it is likely that the religious establishment will gain a relatively larger share of power and, therefore, represent a greater challenge to the U.S." "The two countries no longer share the same evaluation of the strategic situation in the Middle East. Saudi Arabia has achieved a new detente with its traditionally hostile neighbor, Iran, which the United States still considers a hostile power. The Saudis do not believe a weakened Saddam Hussein can threaten them, while Americans debate whether to invade Iraq (a move Saudis say would cause a crisis in relations with the United States). And the Saudis are staunch defenders of Yasser Arafat, the Palestinian leader, and his cause." "In the face of persistent differences ... U.S. administrations and Saudi governments have created a veneer of comity that tends to hide small and large disagreements alike. 'When there are disagreements, they go unresolved because resolving them would require contention and debate and argument ... What we have is a relationship that is based not on shared values, but on shared interests' -- security, and oil." 2:20:32 PM    comment  []

Advice to a Superpower By MARGARET THATCHER "America  ... has proved to itself and to others that it is ... the only global superpower, indeed a power that enjoys a level of superiority over its actual or potential rivals unmatched by any other nation in modern times." "  ... the Western world and its values are still under deadly threat ... Islamic extremism today ... is an armed doctrine." "The first phase ... a military assault on the enemy in Afghanistan" "The second phase ... should be to strike at other centers of Islamic terror" "The third phase is to deal with those hostile states that support terrorism and seek to acquire or trade in weapons of mass destruction." (Iran, Syria, Libya, Sudan, North Korea, Saddam Hussein) " ... freedom demands eternal vigilance. And for too long we have not been vigilant." ... [more] 2:01:09 PM    comment  []