War of Words Mounts between Iran and Iraq/Jordan Times--New WMW

[Gloria]

Up now at http://www.zianet.com/insightanalytical
Tomorrow at Buzzflash.com

WORLD MEDIA WATCH FOR AUGUST 9, 2004

1//The Jordan Times, Jordan--WAR OF WORDS MOUNTS BETWEEN IRAN AND IRAQ (A war of words between Iran and Iraq intensified on Sunday, with the foreign ministry in Tehran now saying it was not prepared to discuss serious issues with Baghdad's interim authorities. In the latest blow to relations, Iran's foreign ministry said Sunday it was summoning Iraq's top diplomat here over claims that four Iranian spies have been arrested in Baghdad…Iran has yet to formally recognise the Iraqi interim government, which has been described by Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as "lackeys" of the Americans.)



2//The Sydney Morning Herald, Australia--PM STUNG BY ROARING 40 BAND OF TOP BRASS AND DIPLOMATS (John Howard was not impressed. In Samoa for the Pacific Islands forum, he was confronted with an extraordinary repudiation of his foreign policy, especially the Iraq war, by 43 of Australia's former military chiefs, department heads and senior diplomats…The statement from the "concerned group" of distinguished citizens demands truth in government, from whichever party wins power in the coming election. But it also accuses the Howard Government of deceiving the people over the war in Iraq. "It is wrong and dangerous for our elected representatives to mislead the Australian people," it says. "If we cannot trust the word of our government, Australia cannot expect it to be trusted by others. Without that trust, the democratic structure of our society will be undermined and with it our standing and influence in the world.")



3//The Philippine Daily Inquirer, Philippines--NO GREAT LOSS, SAYS LEFT-WING SOLON OF US ACTION VS RP (Representative Loretta Ann "Etta" Rosales (party-list Akbayan) shrugged off the United States' striking of the Philippines from the Coalition of the Willing in Iraq. "It's better that we have been dropped from this coalition on the basis of our willingness to save a human life and assert our national interest than risk that life and continue to support US policies and actions that were based on a lie,'' Rosales said in a statement Sunday. US Department of State spokesperson Richard Boucher said last week the Philippines was dropped from the coalition following the withdrawal of its token humanitarian contingent from Iraq as demanded by Iraqi insurgents who had captured Filipino truck driver Angelo de la Cruz and threatened to behead him.)

4//The Daily Star, Lebanon--HIGH OIL PRICES REVEAL OPEC’S FRAGILITY (The latest rumblings in the Yukos affair this week have raised more questions about OPEC's ability to control oil prices and further strengthened a widely-held view that a $50 barrel might not be too far in the future. OPEC, which has in the past been known to keep a tighter ship, has recently issued a string of contradictory statements which bring into question its ability to react to the current ructions…Analysts said there was little sign of any real let-up for several months given the imbalance between supply and demand. Indeed, demand looks set to grow sharply in the months ahead (an increase of 3.2 percent to 81.4 million barrels a day), nudged on by the recovery of the world economy and by rapid growth in India and China. Supply, on the other hand, already virtually at a standstill, will almost certainly not keep up. Experts rule out another major oil crisis, even though many now accept that the $50 a barrel price is on the cards. Adjusted to take account of inflation, rates remain well below the level they reached in the 1970s.)



5//The Mail & Guardian, South Africa--APARTHEID’S FINAL SURRENDER (The party that built apartheid and turned South Africa into a pariah state completed its march to oblivion on Saturday by deciding to merge with its one-time nemesis, the African National Congress. The New National Party, heir of a mighty movement that jailed Nelson Mandela and built nuclear bombs, said its shrunken membership would dissolve and fight future elections under the banner of the black ruling party.)

[olddem43]

1. Here's an idea - Instead of invading Iran

ourselves, why not just build up the Iraqi army and let them do the job?