Excerpts: Promoting Obama as good for the Arab world. Iran "No!" 20 June
2008

+++AL-AHRAM WEEKLY 19-25 June '08:"If Obama wins", by Dina Ezzat
QUOTE:" potential of improving relations between Washington and Cairo and
the rest of the Arab world should Obama enter the White House"

EXCERPTS:
Promises of a friendlier US position towards Egypt, and the rest of the
region, were voiced by a supporter of the Democratic Party candidate. Dina
Ezzat heard what might happen

Bill Richardson, the governor of New Mexico, a former US presidential
candidate and a current key figure in the campaign backing Barack Obama, the
Democratic candidate for this year's presidential elections, was in Cairo
this week in an advanced attempt to promote Obama as a US president with a
will to fortify good relations with the region, including Egypt, which he
described as a country with a pivotal role for the stability of the Middle
East.
On Monday (16 June), Richardson met President Hosni Mubarak, Foreign
Minister Ahmed Abul-Gheit and Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa for
talks on the potential of improving relations between Washington and Cairo
and the rest of the Arab world should Obama enter the White House this year.
Officials say Richardson was not short on criticism of US foreign policy on
the Middle East during the past eight years of the George Bush
administration and that he appreciated Egyptian and other Arab concerns over
the situation in Iraq and the fate of the Arab- Israeli struggle. They
added, however, that Richardson shared no clear or concrete proposals to
remedy the harm done during the Bush years. Richardson was just there to
acknowledge the mistakes and to promise the determination to engage in a
concerted effort to rectify the situation, particularly in relation to what
he qualified as a too-little-too-late intervention by the Bush
administration to settle the Palestinian-Israeli problem.
"I believe that the US should have a full-time Middle East [envoy],"
Richardson stated in an address given at the invitation of the Egyptian
International Economic Forum on Monday evening. According to Richardson, the
function of such an envoy will be basic but crucial: secure a day in, day
out intervention with the parties, especially on the Israeli-Palestinian
front, to facilitate a deal. Without the US being "more aggressive in
pushing the parties towards peace", a settlement for the decades-long
struggle might remain elusive.. .
.
+++JORDAN TIMES 20 June '08:"West failed in nuclear crisis - Ahmadinejad"
TEHRAN (AFP) - President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said on Thursday(19 June) the
West has failed to break Iran's will in the nuclear standoff, days after
world powers presented Tehran with a new offer aimed at ending the crisis...
. Ahmadinejad's comments were his first statement on the nuclear crisis
since the offer was presented but it was not clear if they represented a
reaction to the proposal. The Iranian government spokesman has already said
Tehran will reject any offer demanding it suspends uranium enrichment.
===========
Sue Lerner - Associate, IMRA