Sunday, June 19, 2005

Battlelines drawn on Security Council

THE US has outlined its first detailed position on UN Security Council reform, proposing a limited expansion of the permanent membership by two nations - one of them Japan - and foreshadowing a major statement next week on specific criteria to be met by candidate countries.

At the same time, China has told India it will support its bid for permanent membership, but only if New Delhi abandons its collective lobbying with Germany, Japan and Brazil in the grouping known as the G4.

The Chinese initiative was being seen as less about backing for India and more about denying Japan's ambitions for permanent membership, which are supported by most Western nations, including Australia.

Under the US proposal, announced in Washington by Under-Secretary of State for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns, Japan would be the first cab off the rank in any Security Council expansion, although it would be denied, along with other new permanent members, the veto powers held by the existing big five: the US, Russia, China, Britain and France.

The US proposal also advocates a limited expansion of non-permanent Security Council membership from 10 to 13.

The US proposal is at odds with two options for Security Council expansion put up by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan in a report in March.

Under Mr Annan's preferred model A, the permanent membership would be increased from five to 11 nations, with two of the six newcomers coming from Africa, two from the Asia-Pacific and one each from Europe and the Americas.

But Mr Burns said it was important to look beyond geographic factors, saying military capacity and potential to contribute to UN peacekeeping operations were also important.

He said the US would outline the criteria for eligibility for permanent or non-permanent membership of the Security Council in a major statement to the UN General Assembly on Tuesday. Mr Burns indicated the criteria would include adherence to democracy and human rights, financial support for the UN and a good record on counterterrorism and nuclear non-proliferation.

On financial support for the UN, Japan ranks second to the US and has been a major contributor to peacekeeping forces.

Mr Burns said the G4 proposal to expand the Security Council from 15 to 25 members might "injure its effectiveness" and 19 or 20 would be more manageable.

The G4 countries have met the stiffest resistance from the so-called Coffee Club nations led by Pakistan, which opposes India's bid for permanent membership.

Other Coffee Club members include Italy, which is opposed to Germany, and Argentina and Mexico, which oppose Brazil.

South Korea and Eygpt, which respectively oppose South Africa's and Nigeria's permanent membership aspirations, are also Coffee Club stalwarts.

The last change to the Security Council was in 1971 when mainland China's communist government took over the country's permanent seat from the Taiwan-based Nationalist government.

In 1965, the Security Council's non-permanent membership was increased from six to 10 nations.

US Guantanamo Defenders Should Face The Hague!

US imperialists have defended the country's right to hold more than 500 suspected people in Guantanamo Bay indefinitely, as politicians examined whether the controversial detention centre should remain open and under what rules.

By David Nason posted 19 June 05

Related:

Bush's demon-aid tactic strikes again
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Zarqawi tape 'magic': ABRACADABRA
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Lying and bullshitting the same thing
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Is this our most dangerous Newspaper?
The Daily Terrorist should be managed with manacles and flown into Siberia via a jumbo jet tomorrow amid fears government fascists may attempt to use them again on someone else.

IRAQ: Washington gives up on Iraqi security forces?
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UN Dialogue among Civilizations
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BUSH ON TRIAL
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Iraqi police vent anger at US after car bombings
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UK report shows Iraq war illegal: former defence chief
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300,000 Iraqis protest occupation and genocide
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Annan calls for human rights agency revamp!
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Attacks kill 21 two years after Iraq invasion
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Wolfowitz's World Bank nomination worries Oxfam
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USA - FEELING THE HEAT FROM INTERNATIONAL FIRE:
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CALL TO ACTION of the ANTI-WAR ASSEMBLY
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Returning veterans of Iraq/Afghanistan
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The Veil of Freedom
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Iraqi women eye Islamic law
BAGHDAD - Covered in layers of flowing black fabric that extend to the tips of her gloved hands, Jenan al-Ubaedy knows her first priority as one of some 90 women who will sit in the national assembly: implementing Islamic law.

IRAQ: Shiite and Sunnis to unite against occupation?
Iraq: "I call on all religious and political powers that pushed towards the elections and took part in them to issue an official statement calling for a timetable for the withdrawal of the occupation forces from Iraq", Moqtada al Sadr, the popular young Iraqi Shiite cleric who last year led an armed rebellion against the US-led occupation, declared on February 4.

Democracy, Iraqi style
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Violence continues ahead of Iraq Shoe Sale
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US transport company pulls out of Iraq
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Rumsfeld's war, torture and occupation ideology!
War criminal Donald Rumsfeld faced critical questioning at a Washington media conference, after the announcement that it was a suicide bomber who caused the blast inside a US military base in Mosul yesterday, killing 22 people including 14 illegal militants.

Annan admits to a tough year
United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan admits he has had his worst year at the United Nations and he is looking forward to it being over.

Iraq sale to be contested by 100 buyers
A hundred buyers, blocs and independents will contest Iraq's first shoe sale, in decades, on January 30, the George Dubya Bushit - Iraqi Sales Commission (GDB/ISC) said.

Fallujah refugees in desperate need of aid: UN
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UN panel proposes criteria for legitimate military action
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Indonesians rally against Fallujah assault
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UK politicians launch Blair impeachment bid
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'This One's Faking He's Dead' 'He's Dead Now'
Fallujah: Video shows US soldier killing wounded insurgent in cold blood
by Andrew Buncombe in Washington.

US: Very superstitious? Writing's on the wall!
The US military says it has discovered close to 20 torture sites in the course of its massive attack against the resistance in the Iraqi city of Fallujah?

World Vision Aust pulls out of Iraq
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US Senator slams !!! 'dysfunctional, rogue' CIA
Influential US Republican Senator John McCain blasted the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) as a "dysfunctional" and "rogue" organisation that needs to be reformed.

Civilian death toll to rise in Fallujah
The attack on the Iraqi city of Fallujah has taken its toll on Iraqi civilians no doubt including children and young babies. Iraqi's have witnessed civilian casualties. Yesterday during the assault on the main hospital nurses and patients were blindfolded after the US/Iraq militia stormed the main hospital and took control.

Illusionary demons blamed for US led Attack Iraq, Fallujah
In the name of an illusionary figure thought up by US militants suggests that Al Qaeda's? ally "Abu Musab al-Zarqawi" has called on Muslims to take up arms against their US enemy as American militia attacked the Iraqi city of Fallujah? Just a coincidence or just good timing?

Full-scale attack on Fallujah begins
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US/Iraqi militants storm Fallujah hospital
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US warplanes and artillery attack Fallujah!
Journalists [in-bed] with the US military say warplanes fired at suspected resistance targets around Fallujah as night fell on Sunday, while artillery shells pounded a nearby town.

State of emergency: Allawi 'killer of saints'
The US puppet, Iyad Allawi otherwise known as "Sock" killer of saints has declared a state of emergency for 60 days to quell violent resistance gripping the country ahead of January's shoe sale.

US Empire Votes For Pre-Emptive War!!!
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Saddam's family dismiss lawyer
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Who's counting the dead in Fallujah? CARE?
In distress: CARE says it is deeply concerned about the wellbeing of Mrs Hassan. But who's counting the dead in Fallujah?

Iraqi civilian deaths put at 100,000
Tens of thousands of Iraqis have been killed in violence since the US-led invasion last year, according to public health experts who estimate there were 100,000 "excess deaths" in 18 months.

Unknown News Update - 2009
More than 103 times as many people have been killed in these wars and occupations than in all terrorist attacks in the world from 1993-2004. About 241 times as many people have been killed in Afghanistan and Iraq than in the ghastly attacks of September 11, 2001.

Bushite group threatens civil liberties in Iraq
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US secretly moved prisoners out of Iraq for questioning: report
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Weapons inspectors missed WMD in Iraq
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US accused of breaching international law
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Allies 'planned' Iraq war despite denials
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UN warns of Iraqi malnutrition
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Jordan's king doubts Iraqi elections possible
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Annan tells world leaders to respect law
United Nations (UN) secretary-general Kofi Annan has made an impassioned plea to bring about the rule of law across the globe today. Mr Annan told world leaders to respect international law at home and abroad.

CO-OFFENDERS DO NOT REBUFF UN ON 'ILLEGAL WAR'
The 'coalition of the killing's' complicities - the US, Britain and Australia - have insisted that their countries' military action in Iraq was legal after they have committed war crimes against humanity.

Iraq war illegal, says Annan
United Nations secretary-general Kofi Annan says the United States decision to invade Iraq in March 2003 was "illegal". Australia was a key supporter of the war on Iraq and sent troops to join the United States-led invasion last year.

Bush team 'knew of abuse' at Guantanamo
Evidence of prisoner abuse and possible war crimes at Guantanamo Bay reached the highest levels of the Bush administration as early as autumn 2002, but Donald Rumsfeld, the defence secretary, chose to do nothing about it, according to a new investigation.

Journalists ordered to leave Najaf as fighting continues
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Enemy Mortars attack opening of Iraqi summit
US Enemies have fired mortars at a meeting where Iraqi puppet government leaders met to pick an interim national assembly, killing at least two people.

Iraqi Women in the Occupation Prisons As Material and Means of Violations It is important to say at the beginning that there are many psychological, social and cultural obstacles for Iraqi women to talk openly about what they actually went through inside the occupation prisons.

Ancient Babylon ruined by foreign troops: Iraqi minister
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Whatcha Gonna Do, When They Come For You? Bad boy!
Former Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein was a threat and sought to possess weapons of mass destruction, United States President George W Bush reaffirmed when asked why no such weapons had been discovered in Iraq.

Saddam trial US propaganda
Saddam Hussein's trial will play an important part in the US election no doubt and for that to work at its potential just put a "women" behind it "She called the trials". Then add some "cleansing" like she's just doing the dishes and then some "reconciliation" by slaying Hussein during a US election. Now you can go and tell everyone you're reversing the trauma but really you're killing two birds with one Saddam.