PressInfo 2006

On 8th May the Iranian government’s spokesman revealed that the Iranian president had sent a letter [translation here] to President George Bush suggesting new ways of resolving the differences between the two countries. The 18-page long letter does not contain any new suggestions on Iran’s nuclear file, but has criticised some of the United States recent policies in the Middle East. US officials have summarily dismissed it as ‘rambling’ and not addressing the nuclear standoff. They have also indicated that they do not intend to respond to the letter. Ahmadinezhad’s letter is most significant However, the very fact that the hard-line Iranian president who had declared only a short time ago that there was no need to talk to the United States has decided to take this unusual step is of enormous significance, at least as a reflection of Iran’s internal politics. This is the first time in more than...

Of course, we all breathe a bit easier with the news of a ceasefire in Lebanon even if its prospects for stemming the violence altogether are not favorable at this time. And after dithering for 34 days while the bombs dripped and the rockets flew we need to acknowledge that the United Nations, for all of its weaknesses, plays indispensable roles in a wide array of international conflict situations. It is notable in this instance that despite Israel’s discomfort with UN authority, and the reluctance of the United States to accept any UN interference with its foreign policy priorities, as in Iraq, both countries were forced to turn to the UN when Israel’s war against Lebanon ran up against the unexpectedly strong Hezbollah resistance. At the same time this is certainly not a moment to celebrate the UN for fulfilling its intended role as dedicated to war-prevention and the defense...

For several decades now the world has been living with the illusion that the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) established a functioning treaty regime that has spared the world from nuclear danger. It is an illusion partly because three nuclear weapons aspirants (Israel, India, Pakistan) have kept clear of the treaty, and suffered no adverse consequences when they developed nuclear arsenals. On the contrary, President Bush’s proposed nuclear deal with India must be understood as a major diplomatic reward in spite of India’s crossing the nuclear weapons threshold. And Israel has been allowed to develop a formidable nuclear weapons arsenal while the West kept completely silent. But this is not the only concern. The NPT has generated a new set of pretexts for launching aggressive war. The invasion of Iraq in 2003 was mainly vindicated, in public at least, because of Baghdad’s stockpile of weapons of mass destruction and its covert nuclear...

Muhammad (1) Freedom of Suppression Muhammad (2) But there is a context ! Muhammad (3) We must learn to see our own cultural blindness If something leads to the worst political crisis since 1945 in an otherwise stable, democratic country such as Denmark, it should be worth asking some deeper questions: What is this about? Can those leading and living in Denmark learn something from it both as Danes and as Westerners? Can other Westerners? And can we do things differently in the future? If we ask such questions, we also invite those who have burned Danish flags and embassies to reflect on whether there could be better methods to show their legitimate disagreement. As things stand today, extremists on both sides do nothing but confirm the worst images of “the other” and thus an uncontrolled spiral of hate and monologue threatens civilisation. Worst images lead to worst case scenarios,...

Hvis en begivenhed udvikler sig til den værste politiske krise siden 1945 i et ellers stabilt og demokratisk land som Danmark, turde det være på sin plads at stille nogle mere grundlæggende spørgsmål: Hvad handler det hér om? Kan de der leder og lever i Danmark lære noget af det både som danskere og som vesterlændinge? Kan andre i Vesten? Og kan vi gøre tingene bedre i fremtiden? Hvis vi selv stiller sådanne spørgsmål inviterer vi også andre, inklusive dem der brænder flag og ambassader, til at tænke over om der måske findes bedre metoder til at udtrykke deres nok så legitime uenighed. Som tingene står nu gør ekstremister på begge sider intet andet end at bekræfte de værste billeder af “den anden” og således kan der skabes en ukontrolleret spiral af had og monologer, der truer vores fælles civilisation. Der er nok af negativ energi på vores jord. Men...

Muhammad (1) Freedom of Suppression Muhammad (2) But there is a context ! Muhammad (3) We must learn to see our own cultural blindness Denne artikel på dansk Om något leder till den värsta politiska krisen sedan 1945 i ett annars stabilt, demokratiskt land som Danmark, borde det föranleda att man ställer en del djupare frågor. Vad handlar detta om? Kan de som leder och lever i Danmark lära sig något av det, både som danskar och västerlänningar? Kan andra västerlänningar? Och kan vi göra någonting annorlunda i fortsättningen? Om vi ställer frågor sådana som dessa, inbjuder vi också dem som brände danska flaggor och ambassader till att reflektera över om det kan finnas bättre metoder att visa sitt legitima missnöje. Som saken står i dag, bekräftar extremister på bägge sidor bara de värsta bilderna av “den andre” och civilisationen hotas så av en okontrollerad spiral av hat och monolog....

India, Iran and U.S. nuclear hypocrisy   PressInfo # 238  March 29, 2006 By David Krieger, TFF Associate*   The Bush administration has approached nuclear nonproliferation with Iran and India by two very different measures. Iran, a party to the Non-Proliferation Treaty, has been threatened with sanctions, if not actual violence, for its pursuit of uranium enrichment, although there is no clear evidence that Iran is pursuing a nuclear weapons program. India, on the other hand, has now been offered U.S. nuclear technology, although India is not a party to the Non-Proliferation Treaty, is known to have tested nuclear weapons and is thought to possess a nuclear weapons arsenal of 60 to 100 weapons. The Non-Proliferation Treaty, which entered into force in 1970, is at the heart of worldwide nuclear nonproliferation efforts. The United States was one of the original signers of the treaty and was one of the major...

Also posted by JUSTInternational Movement for a Just WorldVol. 6, # 2, 2006 See Associate David Krieger’s TFF PressInfo 236 – a different angle on the same issues  There is a dangerous game underway in the Middle East that could erupt at any point in the form of a devastating regional war if urgent diplomatic steps to head it off are not taken immediately. There are growing signs that Israel is pushing the United States to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities partly by threatening (or bluffing) to attack itself and partly by using its leverage in Washington to pressure the U.S. Government to harden their stance on Iran’s nuclear program. Among the warning signs are dramatic public statements by Israeli military and political leaders, including Sharon, the Defense Minister, Shaul Mofaz, the Chief of Staff, Daniel Halutz, all to the effect that Iran poses an intolerable threat to Israeli security that cannot...

See also Associate Richard Falk’s TFF PressInfo 237 – a different angle on the same issues. Iran has been accused of secretly pursuing a nuclear weapons program. Although Iranian leaders claim to be enriching uranium only for peaceful nuclear energy purposes, these claims have been treated with derision by the West. Despite the fact that most experts believe that Iran is still years away from developing a nuclear weapon, there are media reports suggesting that Israel and the US are making plans to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities, should Iran not give up its uranium enrichment program.  Given this possible military scenario, and the recent vote by the Board of the International Atomic Energy Agency to report Iran to the United Nations Security Council, what is Iran likely to do?   First, Iran will continue to assert its right under Article IV the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) to pursue a peaceful nuclear...

• TFF PressInfo is a major opinion-former. • Reach more about 20,000 individuals by e-mail in government, civil society organisations, business, education, research and media around the world. • Alertyou to international conflicts and the future world (dis)order, including civil society organizations, the UN, NATO, and OSCE, covering the local and the global. • Advocate learning about the human dimensions of conflicts, from prevention to post-conflict normalization, reconciliation and peacebuilding – based on non-violence. • Explore ideas and visions for the future in an action-oriented manner. • Never resemble what comes out of mainstream thinking, organizations and media… Send us your comments on anything on your mind. 2006 PressInfo 241, August 15, 2006Assessing the United Nations after the Lebanon War 2006The UN has become in these situations, sadly, more of a geopolitical instrument than an instrument for the enforcement of international law. This regression betrays the vision that the guided the architects of the UN back in 1945, chief among whom...

The general media coverage in the West focuses on the 12 caricatures of the Prophet in the Danish daily Jyllands-Posten. This focus is too narrow in both time and space; it makes the outrage in the Arab “street” incomprehensible and exaggerated. The Danish Television and other media have now angled the affair in a particular direction: Denmark and the Danish government is almost innocent, Denmark has been misunderstood and is a victim of mean propaganda; the reaction is unreasonable and the protesters throughout the Muslim world are uneducated mobsters while their moderate leaders actually understand the situation and want co-operation, Danish export goods and stability. We are told, so too on CNN, how Denmark’s diplomacy is working 24/7 to make it all good again, George W. Bush supports Denmark and soon the case will – it is implied – hopefully be forgotten and business resume again. Just a couple of...

Af Jan Øberg, TFF direktør8. februar, 2006 Engelsk versionSvensk version Muhammed-karikaturerne (1): UndertrykkelsesfrihedMuhammed-karikaturerne (2): Men der er jo en større sammenhængMuhammed-karikaturerne (3): Vi må lære at se vor egen kulturelle blindhed Jylland-Postens tegninger er karikaturer med en klar tendens. De forbinder Profeten med terrorisme, kriminalitet og undertrykkelse af kvinder. Ingen af dem kan på nogen måde tjene til at fremme dialog, fælles forståelse eller en nok så nødvendig udveksling af almenviden mellem danskere og muslimer overalt. I deres ensidighed må de opfattes som krænkende. Måske kan intensiteten i de negative reaktioner overraske. Men betragtet i konteksten af vor samtidshistorie og globaliseringen bliver offentliggørelsen af dem både tankeløs og formålsløs. Den afslører en forbløffende mangel på almendannelse og journalistisk kvalitetssans. Den danske regering har tabt sagen på gulvet Værre er, at regeringen hverken synes at have forstået selve sagen eller behovet for tidlig skade-minimering. Statsminister Fogh Rasmussen afviste appeller om dialog...