Sunday, April 14, 2013

Sunday Wrapup April 14, 2013

This is the weekly selection of news and opinion from sources outside the US mainstream media.  Today we look at Margaret Thatcher's passing and Secretary of State Kerry's travels to the Middle and Far East.  Links to the English articles are provided.


A couple of British looks at Margaret Thatcher

Margaret Thatcher died Monday April 8 at age 87. Prime Minister of the UK from 1979 to 1990, her time in office overlapped the Presidency of the similarly conservative Ronald Reagan. Her impact on the politics of Great Britain was as great as that of Reagan on the politics of the US, if not more so. Here are links to two Guardian articles. In the first, Gary Younge notes that: "Hers is a living legacy of marketisation, privatisation, economic stratification and social dislocation. Its victims and beneficiaries are not only still alive; they are still being born."

Best-selling English author and screenwriter Ian McEwan says that Margaret Thatcher "forced us to decide what was truly important." Reflecting on the change to the postwar British welfare state she brought to Britain: "We have paid for that transformation with a world that is harder-edged, more competitive, and certainly more intently aware of the lure of cash. "

China and South Korea news comments on the North Korean situation

As the US (and world) press get their collective knickers in a knot over the rhetoric emanating from North Korea, there is a calmer atmosphere closer to the blustering.

South Korean newspaper The Hankyoreh reports that "as US Secretary of State John Kerry began his visit to South Korea, China, and Japan on Apr. 12, there were signs that North Korea was adopting a more cautious stance about launching a missile." Praising Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel's decision on April 5 to delay the test-launch of a new ICBM while tensions remain high, the article speculates on how North Korea might respond to overtures for dialogue.

The Global Times, an English language Chinese newspaper published under the auspices of the People's Daily, notes in this op-ed that the air raid drills "the appearance of a few vehicles with camouflage netting" in Pyongyang are nothing new - typical of the North Korean response when the US and South Korea engage in their annual military exercises. The author concludes that "whatever its views of North Korea, which are complex and nuanced, China has consistently called for restraint from all sides. For the Chinese, the solution to the current problem is for all sides to stop raising the tension with shows of military might and return to the negotiating table. And, despite all the noises, there are signs that this might happen."


Israeli-Palestinian Peace Process


The Israeli newspaper Haaretz took the occasion of Secretary of State Kerry's most recent visit to Israel to take the Netanyahu administration to task for its position on peace negotiations with the Palestinians. The newly formed government's position is "undercutting the US peace plan." Decrying what they call Israeli "rejectionism", the editiorial notes that Israel's "demand to discuss all the core issues could possibly be construed as another way of avoiding serious negotiation....It is impossible to understand this ... position, which blocks even the possibility of being able to discuss a sketch of the map of Israel and guaranteeing its security needs. These two important issues are the basis for progress."


Russia's Pravda, providing its take on the Palestinian view of Kerry's shuttle diplomacy, is even more downbeat: "As Obama's visit, the presence of Kerry has not been greeted with optimism by Palestinian organizations and movements who have lost confidence in a U.S. commitment to a just solution to the conflict. However, the PA [Palestinian Authority] stated they would strive to 'give a chance' to American attempts and proposals, as a way to demonstrate good will."

 

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