UAE, Saudi among world's top website censors - project

by Neeraj Gangal

The UAE ranks high among countries that have blocked most websites, a recent report has revealed.

Internet users in the country reported the eleventh highest rate of blocked websites from among the countries in the world, according to the Herdict project.

Herdict is a project of the Berkman Center for Internet & Society at Harvard University. It seeks to gain insight into what users around the world are experiencing in terms of web accessibility. As on June 12, 11am UAE time, UAE users reported that 509 different webpages were flagged as “inaccessible”, the Herdict Web project statistics revealed.

China is the most reported country when it comes to website censorship, according to the report. From among the Gulf countries, Saudi Arabia ranked at No.4. and Bahrain at No.6 in the top 10 slots.

A noteworthy aspect of the report is that the Western countries were equally vigilant about restricting websites. Germany was ranked at No.2, US at No.3, France at No.7, Australia at No.8 and the UK at No.9.

According to the www.herdict.org website, Herdict is a portmanteau of 'herd' and 'verdict' and seeks to show the verdict of the users (the herd).
Speaking to the UAE’s The National newspaper, Jillian York, the social media manager for the project said that the websites that were found by UAE users to have been blocked ranged from pornography and dating websites to religious pages.

“But then, you also get some sites where you’ve got to wonder why they’re blocked – like Flickr.”

Top 10 countries that reported the most-restricted sites as on June 12, 11am, UAE time:

1. China (4,969)
2. Germany (6,972)
3. United States (5,162)
4. Saudi Arabia (2,364)
5. Iran (990)
6. Bahrain (1,004)
7. France (1,530)
8. Australia (911)
9. United Kingdom (1,237)
10. Philippines (909)

U.S.-Israeli "special relationship" damaged by Iran factor

by David Harris

JERUSALEM, May 6 (Xinhua) -- The traditionally warm ties between the United States and Israel have been strained since U.S. President Barack Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu both came into office earlier this year. The tension has increased with an apparent difference of opinion on linkage between the Palestinian issue and Iran's nuclear program.

While the two subjects are seemingly unrelated, the Netanyahu government has made clear it sees Iran as the number-one topic that needs tackling immediately. However, the Obama administration argues the two issues must be dealt with simultaneously.

Washington's bid to smooth ruffled feathers went into full gear on Tuesday, when Obama hosted his Israeli counterpart Shimon Peresat the White House. Later this month he will also meet Netanyahu.

As Peres was meeting Obama, U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden and other officials, the United States was making clear what it expects of Israel on the nuclear front.

Following the Obama-Peres parley, the White House issued a statement which included reference to an exchange of views "on the opportunities and challenges, including the pursuit of a comprehensive peace in the Middle East and Iran's nuclear program that the present moment presents to achieving our countries' shared goal of peace and security for Israel and all of its neighbors."

"When Netanyahu meets Obama, he will ask him, and justifiably so, 'you say it's advantageous to build relations with Iran. How?'" said former Israeli foreign minister Shlomo Ben-Ami.

"I don't think Obama has clear answers," said the professor, who is currently vice president of the Toledo International Center for Peace in Spain.

Believing that Iran has a secret nuclear weapons program, the Netanyahu government wants to see Washington pushing for stricter sanctions against Tehran. Ben-Ami and other Middle East watchers say that is the best Israel can hope for from the United States.

"I don't see the Obama administration opting for military action against Iran," said Ben-Ami. "If the last U.S. administration didn't go for it and specifically told Israel not to attack Iran, then I can't see it happening under Obama."

Meanwhile, speaking at the third session of the preparatory committee for the 2010 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Review Conference, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Rose Gottemoeller said on Tuesday her government expects Israel to join the NPT.

Universal adherence to the NPT itself -- including by India, Israel, Pakistan and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea -- also remains a fundamental objective of the United States, she said during the gathering at UN headquarters in New York.

This is part of the carrot and stick operation which analysts believe Obama is using in dealing with Israel; the carrot being sanctions against Iran.

As Israel continues to stress the Iranian theme, the Palestinians are urging Washington to push the Palestinian conflict to the top of the agenda.

"I am not criticizing Obama's suggestion (of dealing with the Iranian and Palestinian tracks at the same time) but we as Palestinians feel ours is a very important conflict and resolving it will help pacify the region a lot," said Muhammad Dajani, a political scientist at the Palestinian Al-Quds University.

"If there's calm here, it will lead to negotiations around the Middle East and help with the dialogue with the Iranians," said Dajani, adding that Palestinians are of the opinion that Netanyahuhas adopted the Iran-first argument as "a way to buy time to further establish the occupation."

However, Ben-Ami does not believe Netanyahu is deliberately trying to create disagreements with Obama as a time-wasting exercise or for any other reason.

"The Israel of Netanyahu is not heading for confrontation with Obama," he said.

In order for that to be the case, Netanyahu will have to at least give some lip service to compromise when in Washington later this month.

Biden has already made clear the U.S. policy agenda regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He chose to do so on Tuesday when he attended the annual conference of American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), the main pro-Israel lobby in the United States.

While talking of the "bond" between Israel and the United States and advocating the Arab world makes "real gestures," he also called on Israel to "not build more settlements, dismantle existing outposts and allow the Palestinians' freedom of movement...This is a 'show me' deal -- not based on faith -- show me," he said.
Source : China view

UN chief condemns Iranian president's speech at anti-racism conference

GENEVA, April 20 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned on Monday Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's speech at the Durban Review Conference on racism.

"I deplore the use of this platform by the Iranian president to accuse, divide and even incite," Ban said in a statement.

"This is the opposite of what this Conference seeks to achieve. This makes it significantly more difficult to build constructive solutions to the very real problem of racism," he said.

"We must all turn away from such a message in both form and substance. We must join hands and work together to achieve a constructive, substantive agenda to combat racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance," he added.

The Durban Review Conference, which opened Monday in Geneva, is a follow-up meeting to the World Conference against Racism, held in 2001 in Durban, South Africa.

In his speech to the conference, the Iranian president referred to Israel as "the most cruel and repressive racist regime in Palestine."

He also said the state of Israel had been created "on the pretext of Jewish suffering" from World War II.

Dozens of European diplomats walked out of the conference room to show their protest as Ahmadinejad gave his speech.

The United States, Israel, Canada, Australia and several other European countries had already chosen to boycott the meeting even before it started due to concern that it could be used as a forum to criticize Israel.

In a separate statement on Monday, the UN's high commissioner for human rights also condemned Ahmadinejad's speech.

"I utterly deplore the speech of the president of Iran delivered this afternoon at the Durban Review Conference against racism," said Navi Pillay.

"I condemn the use of a UN forum for political grandstanding. I find this totally objectionable," she said.

But she reiterated her objection to some countries' boycotting the conference.

"The best riposte for this type of event is to reply and correct, not to withdraw and boycott the conference," she said in the statement.

Obama says U.S. is not at war with Islam

By Matt Spetalnick and Ibon Villelabeitia

ANKARA (Reuters) - U.S. President Barack Obama told the Muslim world on Monday the United States was not at war with Islam, using his first international tour to try to repair America's damaged image abroad.

Obama hammered home his support for the creation of a Palestinian state, despite the recent election of a right-leaning government in Israel, in an effort to show he was serious about reaching out to Muslims.

"Let me say this as clearly as I can: The United States is not, and will never be, at war with Islam," he said in a wide-ranging speech to Turkey's parliament.

In his first trip as president to the Muslim world, which had accused his predecessor George W. Bush of bias in favor of Israel, Obama said: "The United States strongly supports the goal of two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side in peace and security."

Chief Palestinian peace negotiator Saeb Erekat welcomed Obama's words, saying he had made a major commitment to the two-state solution. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said Israel was committed to reaching peace and would cooperate with the Obama administration to achieve that goal.

Obama is on the last leg of his first overseas trip as president. He is trying to rebuild ties with Muslims after anger at the invasion of Iraq and war in Afghanistan, made more urgent by a resurgent al Qaeda and Taliban insurgency in Afghanistan.

"Our partnership with the Muslim world is critical in rolling back a fringe ideology that people of all faiths reject," Obama said.

"But I also want to be clear that America's relationship with the Muslim world cannot and will not be based on opposition to al Qaeda. Far from it. We seek broad engagement based upon mutual interests and mutual respect. We will listen carefully, bridge misunderstanding, and seek common ground."

Obama's visit is a nod to Turkey's regional reach, economic power, diplomatic contacts and status as a secular democracy seeking European Union membership that has accommodated political Islam.

"Given Turkish activity and credibility in the wider region stretching from Afghanistan to the Middle East, passing over energy transit routes, Obama wants to give new blood to a real strategic partnership with Turkey," said Cengiz Candar, a leading Turkish commentator and Middle East expert.

ARMENIA BREAKTHROUGH?

NATO member Turkey is a transit route for U.S. troops and equipment going to Iraq as well as Afghanistan. As Washington reduces its troops in Iraq, Incirlik air base is expected to play a key role and Obama discussed this with Turkish leaders.

Obama urged the foreign ministers of Turkey and Armenia during a meeting later on Monday to complete talks aimed at restoring ties between the two neighbors, a U.S. official said.

Ankara and Yerevan are engaged in talks to end nearly a century of hostility, including reopening the border -- a move which could help shore up stability in the volatile Caucasus.

Touching on a highly sensitive subject, Obama told reporters he stood by his views on mass killings of Armenians by Ottoman Turks in 1915, which he has termed genocide, but said he expected a breakthrough in talks between Turkey and Armenia.

"I want to be as encouraging as possible around those negotiations which are moving forward and could bear fruit very quickly, very soon, so as a consequence what I want to do is not focus on my views right now," Obama said, trying to strike a balance over the issue while adding to pressure on the talks.

Turkey accepts that many Christian Armenians were killed by Ottoman Turks during World War One but denies that up to 1.5 million died as a result of systematic genocide.

MUSLIM AMERICANS

The U.S.-Turkish relationship suffered in 2003 when Ankara opposed the invasion of Iraq and refused to let U.S. troops deploy on its territory. Turkey has also criticized Washington for allowing Kurdish separatists to be based in northern Iraq.

Obama drew on his personal background to emphasize his conciliatory message to Muslims.

"The United States has been enriched by Muslim Americans. Many other Americans have Muslims in their family, or have lived in a Muslim-majority country. I know, because I am one of them," Obama said in his speech to parliament.

Obama also said he sought engagement with Iran, but added: "Iran's leaders must choose whether they will try to build a weapon or build a better future for their people."

Obama offered to improve cooperation in the fight against PKK separatist rebels and backed Turkey's troubled EU bid.

"Turkey's greatness lies in your ability to be at the center of things. This is not where East and West divide, it is where they come together," Obama said.

(Additional reporting by Caren Bohan; Writing by Paul de Bendern and Ibon Villelabeitia; editing by Jon Boyle)

Obama follows Bush path on Iran

Agencies

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama yesterday extended one of the many levels of sanctions against Iran, imposed in 1995 over claims Tehran dealt in terrorism and sought weapons of mass destruction.

The sanctions, prohibiting US companies from aiding the development of the Iranian oil industry and halting trade, export/import and investment ties with Iran, were imposed by the Bill Clinton administration and have been extended on an annual basis by successive presidents. They would have expired without Obama’s formal action to extend them.

“The actions and policies of the government of Iran are contrary to the interests of the United States in the region and pose a continuing unusual and extraordinary threat” to US national security and the US economy, Obama said in a message to Congress.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad dismissed the US move as “childish.”

“If you (world powers) had not blocked the road, Iran would not have become a nuclear power and would not have had a presence in space,” Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying by the official IRNA news agency in Assalouyeh.

“They thought that through such childish and harassing moves they can stop a great nation’s scientific path toward perfection,” he added while inaugurating a gas refinery there.

“You take your decisions, and we do our work ... Knowingly or unknowingly, you have opened our nation’s path to progress ... You are too small to block our path,” he said.

The Iranian president described yesterday’s commissioning of Phases 9 and 10 of the South Pars field, Iran’s single biggest natural gas deposit, as a “happy gift” for the Iranian nation, which is also the world’s fourth-largest oil producer.

The investment amounted to about $4 billion, media said.

“This grand achievement happened under conditions in which some in the world with immorality and misbehavior did not fulfill their promises,” Ahmadinejad said.

“They signed contracts to provide equipment and spare parts but ... some of the equipment and spare parts remained aboard ship and were taken back,” he said, in an apparent reference to Western firms scaling down their investment plan in Iran.

The sanctions are one portion of the large range of punitive US, United Nations and international measures imposed against Iran, for various reasons, including Tehran’s alleged nuclear drive.

Washington has steadily upped sanctions against Iranian entities in hopes of pressuring Tehran to pull back on its nuclear program — which the US says is aimed at developing nuclear weapons.

The United States says Iran must also halt its alleged support for groups Washington has labeled “terrorist,” including Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Palestinian groups.

Obama came to power promising to offer diplomatic engagement to US foes, including Iran, to test if there might be scope for negotiated solutions to conflicts.

That was a clear shift from President George W. Bush, who rejected talks unless Iran halted uranium enrichment, the process which makes fuel for nuclear power plants but can also be used to produce the core of an atomic bomb.

In January, Obama said: “If countries like Iran are willing to unclench their fists, they will find an extended hand from us.”

Afghan summit could bring U.S. and Iran to table

By Mark Landler

BRUSSELS: Setting up the prospect of its first face-to-face encounter with Iran, the Obama administration proposed a conference on Afghanistan later this month, which is likely to include Iran among the invited participants, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Thursday.

"We presented the idea of what is being called a big-tent meeting, with all the parties who have a stake and an interest in Afghanistan," Clinton said at a meeting of NATO foreign ministers here.

"If we move forward with such a meeting, it is expected that Iran would be invited, as a neighbor of Afghanistan," she said in a news conference at the end of the meeting.

The Netherlands is being considered as a host for the conference, which would take place March 31 and be chaired by the United Nations. Iran did not say whether it would accept an invitation.

Clinton's proposal underscores that Afghanistan may prove to be the most promising avenue for opening a channel to Iran - something President Barack Obama has made a theme of his foreign policy. On Wednesday, Clinton noted that Iran consulted frequently with the United States in the early days of the American-led war to oust the Taliban in 2001.

At the same time, she kept up an unyielding tone toward Iran, noting that the American plan to install a missile defense system in Eastern Europe is driven by the threat of regimes like that in Iran, which possess long-range missiles and are seeking nuclear weapons.

"There's an ongoing debate about what the status of Iran's nuclear weapons production capacity is," Clinton said. "But I don't think there is a credible debate about their intentions."

Prodded by the United States, NATO also agreed to resume high-level consultations with Russia, six months after they had been suspended following Moscow's military offensive against Georgia.

Clinton called for a "fresh start" with Russia, even though Washington refuses to recognize two breakaway Georgian territories that prompted the war and reject Russia's assertion of "spheres of influence."

"It is time to move ahead, not wait in place with illusion that things will change on their own," she said. "It is time for realism, as well as hope."

Clinton said there were areas where NATO and Russia could work together, including Afghanistan, fighting the drug trade, and confronting nuclear proliferation, particularly in Iran and North Korea.

On Afghanistan, Clinton said, "We hope that this meeting could provide an opportunity to reach a common set of principles."

The French foreign minister, Bernard Kouchner, said, "I do hope that Iran will be present this time," noting that Iran declined an invitation to a conference on Afghanistan held in Paris in December.

The United States, which has called for a "reset" in relations between the United States and Russia, worked to achieve a consensus among NATO members on resuming talks with Russia.

American diplomats persuaded Lithuania, the last holdout among NATO members, to go along rather than demand further debate at a NATO summit meeting in early April.

The NATO secretary-general, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, said the resumption of high-level consultations did not mean that the alliance would drop its objections to Russia's plan to build military bases in Abkhazia and South Ossetia, the two breakaway territories of Georgia.

"It's not a fair-weather forum and the weather is certainly not fair," de Hoop Scheffer said, referring to the NATO-Russia Council.

De Hoop Scheffer declined to comment on Obama's proposal to the Russian president, Dmitri Medvedev, that the United States drop its deployment of a missile defense system in Eastern Europe if Russia agreed to cooperate in the campaign against Iran's nuclear program.
Russia welcomes NATO thaw

Russian officials immediately welcomed NATO's decision to resume ties, news agencies reported from Brussels.

"We need to get down to business fast to ensure stability and security in Afghanistan," said Dmitri Rogozin, Russia's envoy to NATO. Russia had already demonstrated its willingness to help the war effort by arranging for the first overland transport of supplies for NATO troops in Afghanistan, he added.

Before the NATO meeting, Russia had said it would allow transit of non-lethal U.S. military supplies for Afghanistan. With its supply lines under pressure from militant attacks, NATO hopes that in future such help could be extended to air transit, air lift and routes for lethal aid.

It also hopes to see Russian cooperation in encouraging Central Asian states to allow the passage of NATO supplies, and in keeping open bases used by NATO forces, one of which is about to be closed down by Kyrgyzstan.

Clinton is set to hold her first substantive talks with Russia's foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, in Geneva on Friday and agreement on resuming ties with NATO will help the atmosphere.

Lithuania, like Georgia a former Soviet republic that gained independence in 1990, argued at the NATO meeting Thursday that the Russia move required more discussion and should have awaited a NATO summit meeting April 3-4 in France, according to a senior U.S. official who revealed details of the private talks on condition that he not be identified.

Lithuania's foreign minister, Vygaudas Usackas, said it was "a bit premature" to reward Russia with restored relations with NATO.

Clinton and the others seemed to have underestimated the depth of feeling among the Lithuanians, who forced Clinton and the other foreign ministers to prolong the meeting and huddle in minister-only negotiations that dragged on well into the afternoon. The Lithuanians were finally persuaded to join the consensus.

Clinton has doubts that Iran is open to discussions

By MARK LANDLER

JERUSALEM:

Expressing doubts about one of the Obama administration's key diplomatic initiatives, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton told an Arab foreign minister on Monday that she did not expect Iran to respond positively to an American offer of direct negotiations.

The comments, made by Clinton in a meeting with the foreign minister of the United Arab Emirates, Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan, stole some of the attention at a conference devoted to the reconstruction of Gaza.

"We're under no illusions; our eyes are wide open," Clinton said, according to a senior State Department official.

This was not the first time Clinton has privately expressed pessimism about Tehran's receptivity to the United States. American officials say a negative Iranian reaction could be useful because it would put Tehran on the defensive in its dealings with the international community.

But Clinton's reference to it in talks with an Arab state was noteworthy because it offered an international audience an early glimpse into the calculations of the Obama administration.
Clinton also sought to open a new American chapter in the Middle East, declaring to an audience of Arab and European leaders that the United States was "committed to a comprehensive peace between Israel and its Arab neighbors, and we will pursue it on many fronts."

The United States pledged more than $900 million in aid to the Palestinians, $300 million of which is for humanitarian relief to Gaza. The donors' conference, held in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el Sheikh, raised a total of $4.28 billion, according to the Egyptian hosts.

Clinton did not signal any shifts in American policy, but the broad scope of her remarks suggested that the Obama administration was open to new approaches toward an intractable problem. "Time is of the essence," she said. "We cannot afford more setbacks and delays, or regrets about what might have been."

The speech, with its expansive tone and lack of new policies, underscored the dilemma the Obama administration faces in its early days. The White House is eager to show a new face abroad. But on a host of sensitive issues - like whether to deal with a Palestinian unity government that includes the militant group Hamas - the United States is not ready to shift course.

Clinton reaffirmed that the United States would deal only with a Palestinian unity government that renounced terrorism and recognized the right of Israel to exist. That would appear to exclude Hamas, which, she noted, continues to fire rockets at Israeli towns.

The U.S. aid money, she said, would go only to the Palestinian Authority and would have strings attached to guarantee it "does not end up in the wrong hands" - another reference to Hamas.

Some European countries are more receptive to dealing with a unity government, even if it includes Hamas. Europeans have also pressed Israel harder than the United States to open border crossings to Gaza, something it has refused to do out of fear that it would strengthen Hamas.

After a day of meetings, European officials seemed confident that Washington would increase its pressure on Israel when Clinton meets with Israeli leaders Tuesday in Jerusalem.

"She will certainly make the case for that, that we are making," said Benita Ferraro-Waldner, the EU commissioner for external relations. "We are not yet satisfied with the openings."

The Egyptian foreign minister, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, said a unity government could be composed of technocrats rather than political figures and should be acceptable to the United States and Europe. "We expect the international community will deal with this government," he said at a news conference.

The U.S. aid was not the only money with strings. Arab countries donated more than $1 billion to the Palestinians, but directed that the money be channeled through the Gulf Cooperation Council, a group of six states. The restriction angered the Palestinian Authority, which had previously received aid directly from their Arab neighbors.

At her meetings with Palestinian leaders in the West Bank on Tuesday, Clinton will hear anger over Israel's continuing construction of settlements on occupied Palestinian land there.

Nearly 300,000 Israelis live in such settlements, in addition to 250,000 in East Jerusalem, also on land seized in the 1967 war. The Palestinians hope to build their state on that land and argue that the settlement building drives that goal further and further away.

Peace Now, an Israeli group that opposes settlements and monitors their building, issued a report Monday alleging that tens of thousands of new settlement housing units were in the planning stage. The report, issued to coincide with Clinton's arrival, says that 6,000 new units had been approved and an additional 58,000 were awaiting approval. "If all the plans are realized," the report says, "the number of settlers in the territories will be doubled."

Source : Herald Tribune

Six-Nation Meeting on Iran Stresses Diplomacy

Senior diplomats from five permanent members of the UN Security council met with their German counterparts to talk over a common strategy toward Iran. The carrot, they think, is a better option than the stick.

The diplomats from the United States, China, Russia, Britain, France and Germany convened in the city of Wiesbaden on Wednesday, Feb. 4. It's the first such meeting since Barack Obama took over from George W. Bush as US president.

In a joint statement after the conference, the participants said the group had "welcomed the willingness of the US administration, as expressed by President Obama, to engage in talks with Iran."

Obama's predecessor refused to speak with Tehran directly about its nuclear program, which Washington, and other European capitals, fears could be aimed at producing atomic weapons.

The group emphasized their commitment to a "diplomatic solution" and urged Iran to cooperate with the UN's nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency.

In an interview with the Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, encouraged Tehran to "seize the chance" for direct talks.

At the same time, a foreign ministry spokesman said it would be a "miscalculation" for Iran to interpret Obama's willingness to talk as a "sign of weakness."

US Under-Secretary of State William Burns said the Obama administration was reviewing America's policy toward Iran and would keep the other countries apprised of any changes.

Acute concerns

The group said Iran's launching of its first home-built satellite on late Monday did not affect the substance of the talks.

But that launch, which first became widely public on Tuesday, has stirred up old fears about Tehran's intentions and that Iran could master rocket technology necessary to fire ballistic missiles.

"This action does not convince us that Iran is acting responsibly to advance stability or security in the region," White House press secretary Robin Gibbs told reporters.

"Efforts to develop missile delivery capability, efforts to continue on an illicit nuclear program, or threats that Iran makes toward Israel and its sponsorship of terror are of acute concern to this administration," Gibbs added.

Many fear that Iran, if it did develop nuclear weapons, would use them against Israel since leading members of the current Iranian government have called for the destruction of the Jewish state.

Source : Deutsche Welle

Iran not to hold talks with U.S. in Munich conference

TEHRAN, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Iran would not hold talks with U.S. in Munich conference, Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said on Sunday.

"Iranian delegation will not hold talks with any U.S. representative at the 45th Munich Security Conference slated to begin on Friday," the official IRNA news agency quoted Mottaki as saying.

The Munich gathering is an annual meeting of government officials, foreign and defense policy experts and journalists which is set for Feb. 6-8.

The Iranian delegation to the conference will include the Majlis (parliament) speaker, the foreign minister and a number of officials and "talks between Iran and the U.S. at Munich Security Conference is not on the agenda," said Mottaki.

He added that "resumption of relations with the U.S. under the new circumstances is of prime importance and we are now studying the change of attitude and U.S. policies to make our views known but we have no (immediate) plan to do so."

Also on Sunday, Iran's Intelligence Minster Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Ejeie denied any secret negotiations with the U.S.

"To date, there have been no official negotiations with the Americans ... and there would be no negotiations between Tehran and Washington unless the U.S. changes its aggressive policies towards the country," Mohseni-Ejeie stressed.

He made the denial following some claims that new U.S. President Barak Obama's top advisers and Iranian officials have over the past year met each other for several times.

In a recent interview with Dubai-based Al-Arabiya television, Obama said "if countries like Iran are willing to unclench their fist, they will find an extended hand from us."

Observers said Iran's expectations of "change" would be viewed as the preconditions set for the new U.S. officials ahead of earnest, direct and vigorous diplomacy.

The United States severed its ties with Iran in 1980. Since then, Washington has been trying to beef up its sanctions against Tehran for allegedly developing secretly nuclear weapons and for being involved in anti-U.S. coalition forces activities.

Iran denied the charges and insisted that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only.

Source : ChinaView.com

German Foreign Minister Presses Iran to Accept US Offer on Talks

Germany's foreign minister Friday warned Iran against rebuffing US President Obama's offer to hold direct talks as diplomats from six nations trying to push Tehran to curb its nuclear ambitions meet next week in Berlin.

Speaking in the German parliament on Friday, Jan 20, Frank-Walter Steinmeier urged Iran not to snub new US President Barack Obama's offer to open direct talks with Tehran on the country's controversial nuclear program, saying diplomacy was the only way to solve the problem.

"It is good that Obama extended his hand and showed willingness to hold direct talks with Iran," the German foreign minister said. "That's why I'm calling on the Iranians to be sensible and be open to the US offer."
It should be done for the people in Iran who "are suffering from the isolation and confrontation resulting from the policies of Tehran and many are also going hungry," Steinmeier added.

Germany to scale back trade with Iran

His comments came as a German official confirmed on Friday that senior diplomats from six world powers trying to persuade Tehran to halt its nuclear program would meet in Berlin next week.

German foreign ministry official Jens Ploetner said that diplomats from the UN Security Council's permanent members -- Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States -- plus Germany will meet on Wednesday near the western city of Frankfurt.

The six countries have offered Tehran a set of economic and energy incentives in exchange for halting its uranium enrichment program which the West suspects is being used as a cover to develop nuclear weapons.

Germany said this week it had drastically cut its export guarantees for companies trading with Iran.

Berlin's move came amid increased criticism, notably from the United States and Israel, over Germany's growing trade with Iran.

German exports to Iran rose 10.5 percent in the first 11 months of 2008 to reach 3.6 billion euros ($4.6 billion), according to government statistics.

US-Iran talks "long overdue"

Next Wednesday's meeting in Berlin of the six world powers on the Iranian nuclear program will mark the first gathering since Barack Obama took office on January 20.

In one of the biggest foreign policy reversals since taking the reins, Obama this week told Arab broadcaster Al-Arabiya he was willing to talk directly with Iran and map out a new future for US relations with Iran after a three-decade diplomatic freeze.

Washington is also at odds with Iran over its threats to destroy Israel as well as Tehran's support of the militant groups Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in the Palestinian territories. The US broke off diplomatic relations with Iran after hard-line students stormed the US Embassy in Tehran in 1979.
At the same time, Obama's administration has refused to rule out any options -- including military strikes -- if Tehran refuses to abandon its uranium enrichment program.

The head of the UN nuclear watchdog welcomed Obama's overtures and called for direct talks without conditions.

"It is the way to go. It is long overdue," Mohamed ElBaradei, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said on Thursday on the sidelines of the Davos summit. "The security issue will not be resolved without direct dialogue between Iran and the US."

On Thursday, Iran, which insists its nuclear program is peaceful and solely geared toward electricity generation, promised a positive response if the United States makes genuine policy changes.

But earlier this week, Iran's hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad demanded Obama apologize for past US "crimes" against the Islamic republic.

Source : Deutsche Welle

Iran hopes for positive U.S. policy change

By Stella Dawson and Emma Thomasson

DAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - Iran promised a positive response on Thursday if the United States makes genuine policy changes and held out hopes of a breakthrough in a long-running dispute over its nuclear ambitions.

Tehran's comments brought international security to the fore on the second day of the World Economic Forum, which has been dominated by fears over financial instability in the worst global economic crisis in 80 years.

In new signs of the deepening economic woes, Turkey and the International Monetary Fund failed to break an impasse over a loan deal in talks at Davos, and Russian state bank VEB said Russian companies had asked it for $90 billion in aid.

Britain's Guardian newspaper reported U.S. officials were drafting a letter to Tehran from President Barack Obama aimed at unfreezing relations and opening the way to direct talks.

The U.S. State Department has been working on drafts of the letter since Obama was elected in November, the report said. It was a response to a letter of congratulations sent by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad after Obama's victory.

"Most parts of the Islamic world unfortunately have been suffering because of past U.S. administrations," Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchechr Mottaki told delegates in Davos.

"If President Obama is determined to change these policies certainly he will face the welcome of the Islamic world."

He said he hoped the U.S. stance on Iran's nuclear program would be among Obama's changes of policy.

DIRECT DIALOGUE?

Western powers fear Iran wants to develop nuclear weapons under the cover of a civilian atomic program. Tehran says its program is intended only for peaceful power generation.

In Berlin, the German Foreign Ministry said senior officials from the United States, Russia, Britain, France, Germany and China would discuss the nuclear dispute in Germany next week.

The head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog welcomed Obama's overtures and called for direct talks without conditions.

"It is the way to go. It is long overdue," Mohamed ElBaradei, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said in Davos. "The security issue will not be resolved without direct dialogue between Iran and the U.S.."

But Israel doubted Iran's intentions, blaming them for the recent crisis in Gaza. President Shimon Peres said: "The problem is the Iranian ambition to rule the Middle East."

Former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, front-runner ahead of a February 10 election was even more blunt.
"The biggest issue facing our time is not the extent of the current financial crisis," he said.

"If there is one mission we have to put before us it is to prevent the arming of Iran with nuclear weapons, that would also enable us to neutralize Iran's proxies."

FEARS OF PROTECTIONISM

The overall mood at the annual Davos meeting of policymakers and business executives is gloomy.

India's trade minister, Kamal Nath, said the global economic crisis could fuel protectionism to safeguard national industries and jobs. Such protectionism, if it led to retaliation, would intensify the downturn, he said.

"We do fear this because one must recognize that at the heart of globalization lies global competitiveness, and if governments are going to protect their non-competitive production facilities it's not going to be fair trade," Nath told Reuters.

The crisis, which stemmed from a collapse in the U.S. housing market and led to a credit freeze, has prompted billions of dollars to be spent on bank bailouts and economic stimulus packages.

It has also led the IMF to prop up a number of particularly hard-hit countries.

Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan said he had long discussions with IMF First Deputy Managing Director John Lipsky on Wednesday but he cast doubt on prospects of a swift deal.

Official talks were suspended on Monday for 10 days to try to clear obstacles to a stand-by deal, expected to amount to about $25 billion, to help Turkey weather the crisis.

FIXING THE SYSTEM

Policymakers are working behind the scenes in Davos on ways to fix the financial system, ahead of a summit of the G20 group of leading developed and developing countries in April and a G8 summit in July.

Russian markets have been among the hardest hit as foreign investors have fled. Russian companies have made bids for about $90 billion in help from state corporation VEB to restructure foreign debts, VEB chairman Vladimir Dmitriev told reporters.

For full coverage, blogs and TV from Davos go to www.reuters.com/davos

(Writing by Timothy Heritage; editing by Guy Dresser and Erica Billingham)

Indonesia joins race to host 2018, 2022 World Cup

The Indonesian football federation officially expressed interest in staging one of the tournaments to FIFA late Tuesday, becoming the sixth potential host to show interest ahead of Monday's deadline.

England, Japan, Qatar, Russia and a joint Spain-Portugal candidacy have already declared intentions to bid.

Other contenders including Australia, a combined Belgium-Netherlands-Luxembourg proposal, Canada, China, Mexico and the United States are expected to enter the first stage of a two-year selection process before the cutoff.

Though its team is currently No. 14 in the FIFA world rankings, Indonesia fulfills one major requirement of hosting the world's most-watched sports event - it has a stadium capable of holding at least 80,000 spectators for th opening match and final.

The government-owned Bung Karno Stadium in the capital Jakarta has a capacity of 88,000 and staged the 2007 Asian Cup final, when Iraq beat Saudi Arabia 1-0.

Indonesia has previously made World Cup history.

It became the first Asian nation to play at a World Cup, at the 138 tournament in France under its colonial name of the Dutch East Indies. The team lost 6-0 to eventual runner-up Hungary in a first-round match at Reims.

Indonesia was quickly knocked out of qualifying for the 2010 World Cup being played in South Africa. It advanced through the Asian first round when oppoent Guam withdrew, then lost 11-1 to Syria in a two-legged series in November 2007.

FIFA began the process of choosing the 2018 and 2022 World Cup hosts two weeks ago. It will issue official bid forms next month, which must be returned by March 16.

Candidates capable of providing around 12 stadiums eac holding at least 40,000 fans can apply for either the 2018 or the 2022 tournament, or for both.

FIFA said no South American country can apply for either tournament because Brazil is hosting the 2014 edition. African countries can bid only for the 2022 event because South Africa is hosting next year.

The hosts will be chosen by FIFA's 24-man executive committee in December 2010.

If successful, Indonesia would be the second World Cup host from Asia. The 2002 tournament was played in Japan and South Korea.
Source : The Associated Press