International

The Dark Side

Filed under: International

John Radsan, former assistant general counsel to the CIA, discusses Iran

The timing for John Radsan's lunchtime talk at Solera today was more than a bit awkward. The speech, sponsored by the conservative thinktank the Center of the American Experiment, was billed as a call for America to "go over to the dark side" in its dealings with Iran. But this saber rattling seemed a bit misplaced following the revelation this week that the U.S. now believes Iran suspended its nuclear weapons program in 2003.

Although born in the U.S., Radsan is of Iranian descent. He was formerly president of the Iranian-American Bar Association and a consultant with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's American-Iranian Council. Radsan is also a former federal prosecutor and served as assistant counsel to the CIA from 2002 to 2004. He's now a professor at William Mitchell College of Law.

Despite the recent re-appraisal of Iran's nuclear ambitions, Radsan was unambiguous in characterizing the menace that he believes the Islamic nation poses. "It's been said that Al-Qaeda is our number one threat," he stated at the beginning of the talk. "If we take terrorism to be a problem for our interests, our security, I'm here to tell you that Al-Qaeda is the minor leagues compared to the Islamic republic."

Despite that ominous assessment, Radsan didn't endorse attacking Iran. "We will unify the country by any military action," he noted. And he criticized the Bush administration for lumping the country into the "axis of evil" with Syria and North Korea. "By coming too openly against Iran, we made it difficult for any of the dissidents within that country to work against the regime," he said. "The regime is unpopular, but the regime is firmly in control of the levers of power."

What Radsan proposed instead was a "smorgasbord" of covert operations intended to destabilize and alter the Islamic regime. He suggested ratcheting up propaganda programs, such as newspapers and television programs, aimed at Iraqi citizens. Radsan also argued that the U.S. should increase support for dissident groups within the country, such as Kurds working to create an independent state. In addition, he suggested the U.S. should covertly work to sabotage the Iranian economy. "It can hurt them because the Iranian economy is a state-run economy," he said. "If you go after some government ministries or their central bank, they'll know somebody's messing with them."

Most importantly, in Radsan's view, the U.S. must act with credibility. "If we're going to draw a line, we should all be confident that it's a line that we can hold," he told the audience. "Sometimes its better to do tough things without talking."

Posted by Paul Demko at December 4, 2007 5:21 PM | Comments (1)

 

Norwegian Consulate Leaving Stings

Filed under: International

The coming closure of the Norwegian consulate has caused consternation in Minneapolis, particularly among the sons and daughters of Norway. Today, the Grey Lady has a piece covering response from local residents of Norwegian descent. Quoting customers of Ingebretsen's, the NYT delivers the goods. Short version: there's a whole lot of miffed going around.

Excerpts:

“This is a bit of a slap in the face,” Janet Rog, 74, said of Norway’s recent announcement that it would shut its career consulate here next year and send the diplomats home.

“We’re very proud of our roots, and we’ve tried really hard to preserve them,” said Shirley Hansen, another knitter at a table bursting with the bright geometric patterns Norway is known for. “Norway is near and dear to us, but now we feel like maybe they haven’t considered us quite so important.”

Response from the Norwegian government hasn't exactly calmed the waters.

Wegger Christian Strommen, the recently appointed Norwegian ambassador, said no one was abandoning the Midwest. “We’re not going to leave,” Mr. Strommen said in a telephone interview from his Washington office. “We are going to take all these things forward, in a slightly different way.”

Yeah. The highway.

The other three Norwegian consulates in the U.S., in case you were wondering, are in New York, San Francisco, and in that noted hotbed of Scandinavian culture, Houston. It might not be as steeped in Norwegian tradition, but I hear it looks a lot like Block E.

Posted by Jeff Shaw at November 20, 2007 2:19 PM | Comments (0)

 

Final Refuge: Expanded Web Content

Filed under: International

Originally from Burma, the Karen of St. Paul fled human rights abuses at the hands of the Burmese government and are now the largest population of Karen outside of Southeast Asia. In "Final Refuge," Rhena Tantisunthorn takes you inside their world. Read the story and view our two photo galleries, one from Burma and one from St. Paul. After reading the story and looking at the photos, check out our web-exclusive audio below.

But first, maybe you can help one of the community members mentioned in the story make a connection.

Paw Nay Bu taught Internally Displaced People with an American woman named Elizabeth on the eastern border of Karen State. She doesn't haven't any more information about the woman, but would like to get in touch with her. This is Paw Nay Bu, photographed by Nick Vlcek:

If you have any information, you can reach Paw Nay Bu through writer Rhena Tantisunthorn.

Now, back to your regularly scheduled web content.

In the audio clip below, First Baptist Church of St. Paul Karen congregants sing a traditional hymn which translates loosely as "I love you with the love of the Lord." Many Karen converted to the First Baptist church when missionaries from the United States brought the bible to their region over two hundred years ago. Today, the Baptist churches in St. Paul provide support and resources and operate as community space for Karen refugees. Hear their song in the Karen language: download the MP3 of the hymn.

ELSEWHERE ON THE WEB
Free Burma Rangers
Karen Human Rights Group

Burma Issues

Posted by Jeff Shaw at November 13, 2007 5:48 PM | Comments (0)

 

Local businessman vying to lead Somalia

Filed under: International

Abdurahman Ali Osman, a longtime St. Paul resident who emigrated from Somalia, has announced his interest in being appointed prime minister of his homeland. Outgoing PM Ali Mohamed Gedi resigned late last month amid long-simmering tensions with the country's president.

Given the strife and general lawlessness that has marred Somalia since civil war broke out in 1991, it's an unenviable job.

Incidentally, if you're interested in stories along these lines, Mshale, a locally-based African diaspora newspaper, is a good source.

Posted by Jonathan Kaminsky at November 8, 2007 1:25 PM | Comments (0)

 

Gorbachev: Time for perestroika in US

Filed under: International

The United States is in need of its own dose of perestroika, or restructuring, Mikhail Gorbachev, the man who brought such reforms to the Soviet Union, said Tuesday....

"The world will not accept dictatorship or domination. We need dialogue," he said, speaking through a translator.

--AP

Posted by Steve Perry at October 20, 2005 11:47 AM | Comments (0)

 

Telegraph of Calcutta: US officials say they'll invade Iran

Filed under: International

Top-ranking Americans have told equally top-ranking Indians in recent weeks that the US has plans to invade Iran before Bush's term ends. In 2002, a year before the US invaded Iraq, high-ranking Americans had similarly shared their definitive vision of a post-Saddam Iraq, making it clear that they would change the regime in Baghdad.

Read the story. (via Sam Smith's Undernews)

Posted by Steve Perry at October 4, 2005 10:59 AM | Comments (0)

 

SARS Mystery As Game Of Clue: It was the feces of the Chinese horseshoe bat in the asthma medication

Filed under: International

Two different scientific research teams have determined that the source of the SARS virus, which has killed at least 774 people worldwide thus far, is the Chinese horseshoe bat.

According to a story in today's New York Times, the each team arrived at its conclusion that the horseshoe bat was the culprit independently. "In Asia, many people eat bats or use bat feces in traditional medicine for asthma, kidney ailments, and general malaise."

By the way, there are no Chinese horseshoe bats in the United States.

Posted by Britt Robson at September 30, 2005 3:17 PM | Comments (0)

 

India offers U.S. expertise in large scale disasters

Filed under: International

The Telegraph reported yesterday that India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has offered the United States five million dollars, a Russian-built military transport plane loaded with large water purification systems both for households and communities and critical medical supplies, as well as their expertise in dealing with large-scale disasters. India's ambassador to the U.S., Ronen Sen, stated: "We recall the very close cooperation between India and the U.S. to provide succour and support to the tsunami-affected countries in the Indian Ocean region."

Posted by Corey Anderson at September 5, 2005 11:58 AM | Comments (0)

 

The Ugly American

Filed under: International

It didn't take long for United Nations Ambassador John Bolton to remind us all why even a Republican-dominated Congress refused to confirm him, compelling President Bush to ram him down the throats of the people of the world via a recess appointment. In his first public initiative in his new job, Bolton wants sudden, major, and wholesale revisions in a draft document of U.N. reforms that have been the subject of intense negotiations for nearly a year.

According to a piece in today's N.Y. Times, among the things Bolton objects to-- speaking to the world's diplomats as the representative of you, me, and the rest of the American people--are support for the Kyoto Protocol on global warming, the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty, and an emphasis on disarmament rather than nonproliferation.

If we are ever going to declare victory and get out of Iraq with even a smidgen of national dignity remaining, we are going to need the goodwill of many in the international community who might consider the whole Iraqi thing a tad hubristic and would like nothing better to see us hoist on our own petard. Putting an ass like John Bolton in the mix, demanding that the rest of the world officially acknowledge the right of American empire to destroy the ozone and to stockpile nukes while denying them to others; well, it probably won't help "the reality on the ground" when we haul our tails out of Baghdad come 2006 or 2007.

Posted by Britt Robson at August 24, 2005 11:55 PM | Comments (0)