http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/8409081.stm
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has called on Latin American countries not to get too close to Iran.
Mrs Clinton said countries such as Venezuela and Bolivia should "think twice" about the consequences of their ties with the Islamic Republic.
Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad last month visited Brazil, Venezuela and Bolivia which voiced support for Iran's right to a nuclear programme.
Several regional leaders, including President Evo Morales of Bolivia and Venezuela's Hugo Chavez, have pursued closer ties with Iran in recent years, as well as with Russia and China.
"We have no problem with any country, such as China, engaging in economic activities, business, commerce with any country anywhere," Reuters quoted Mrs Clinton as saying.
But we do want governments to drive hard bargains. We don't want to see corruption that benefits the fortunes of a few leaders and undermines the sustainability of the economy and the environment and the natural resources of any country."
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I have to say, Im amused by the US' patronizing and hypocritical views on this, it is no secret that ahmadinejad is a nutcase but the US has no right to determine the relations of other countries, and then hillary says "We don't want to see corruption that benefits the fortunes of a few leaders and undermines the sustainability of the economy and the environment and the natural resources of any country."?? Is this some sort of joke? isn't that what the US has done to the countries south of the border for at least the last 100 years?
Originally posted by generalissimoI think this about doing whatever is helpful in preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. It's probably not preventable anyway; but an Iran isolated from the World is more likely to compromise on the issue of developing nuclear weapons than an Iran that is isolated politically.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/8409081.stm
[b]US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has called on Latin American countries not to get too close to Iran.
Mrs Clinton said countries such as Venezuela and Bolivia should "think twice" about the consequences of their ties with the Islamic Republic.
Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadineja US has done to the countries south of the border for at least the last 100 years?[/b]
I don't think this is about "right to determine the relations of other countries." This is about encouraging countries to do things that make it more likely that Iran compromises on the nuclear issue.
The U.S. doesn't want Iran to have nukes.
Venezuela and Bolivia don't care whether Iran gets nukes and they stand to benefit from closer ties with Iran.
So, in order to have a chance to convince Bolivia and others (Venezuela probably couldn't care less what Hillary Clinton says) to play it cool with Iran, the US has to put something on the other side of the issue. A statement of American disapproval is about all Clinton can bring to the table right now.
It's simple politics. It's not about rights and morality.
Originally posted by generalissimohttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_w._bush#Foreign_policy
what exactly do you mean?
Foreign policy
Main article: Foreign policy of the George W. Bush administration
President George W. Bush, President of Mexico Vicente Fox and Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper stand in front of El Castillo in Chichen Itza, March 30, 2006
Countries visited by President George W. Bush during his terms in office.
During his campaign for election as President, Bush's foreign policy platform included support for a stronger economic and political relationship with Latin America, especially Mexico, and a reduction of involvement in "nation-building" and other small-scale military engagements. The administration pursued a national missile defense.[179] In response to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, President Bush launched the War on Terrorism, in which the United States military and an international coalition invaded Afghanistan. In 2003, President Bush launched the invasion of Iraq, which President Bush viewed as being part of the War on Terrorism.[180]
Those invasions led to the toppling of the Taliban regime in Afghanistan and the removal of Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq as well as the deaths of many Iraqis, with surveys indicating between four hundred thousand to over one million dead, excluding the tens of thousands of civilians in Afghanistan.[181][182][183]
Bush began his second term with an emphasis on improving strained relations with European nations. He appointed long-time adviser Karen Hughes to oversee a global public relations campaign. Bush lauded the pro-democracy struggles in Georgia and Ukraine.
In March 2006, a visit to india led to renewed ties between the two countries, reversing decades of U.S. policy.[184] The visit focused particularly in areas of nuclear energy and counter-terrorism cooperation.[185] This is in stark contrast to the stance taken by his predecessor, Clinton, whose approach and response to India after the 1998 nuclear tests was that of sanctions and hectoring. The relationship between India and the United States was one that dramatically improved during Bush's tenure.[186]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_w._bush
During a June 2007 visit to the mostly Islamic Eastern European nation of Albania, Bush was greeted enthusiastically. Albania has a population of 3.6 million, has troops in both Iraq and Afghanistan, and the country's government is highly supportive of American foreign policy.[326] A huge image of the President now hangs in the middle of the capital city of Tirana flanked by Albanian and American flags.[327]
Originally posted by zeeblebotYeah, it's crazy to think the Albanians would be pro-American after we ousted the Serbs in the 90's.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_w._bush
During a June 2007 visit to the mostly Islamic Eastern European nation of Albania, Bush was greeted enthusiastically. Albania has a population of 3.6 million, has troops in both Iraq and Afghanistan, and the country's government is highly supportive of American foreign policy.[326] A huge image of the Presiden ...[text shortened]... hangs in the middle of the capital city of Tirana flanked by Albanian and American flags.[327]