Readwrotes Blog

By David Gollust Bangkok 21 July 2009 US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton listens to questions from reporters during press conference in Bangkok,21 July 2009 Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says the United States is open to a productive partnership with Burma if the military government there ends the mistreatment of democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi and addresses other international concerns. She spoke in Bangkok on the eve of joining a political dialogue with ASEAN foreign ministers. Clinton said the Obama administration has wide-ranging concerns about the Burma going well beyond the Aung San Suu Kyi case, including army mistreatment of women, repression of minorities, and possible Burmese military cooperation with North Korea. But as she prepared to join in a dialogue Wednesday with members of ASEAN, including Burma, in the Thai resort island of Phuket, the secretary sounded a conciliatory note,...

By VOA News 21 July 2009 Iraqi officials say a series of bombings killed at least 18 people in Baghdad and Ramadi Tuesday, three weeks after Iraqi forces formally assumed security responsibilities in urban areas. Iraqi Interior Ministry spokesman General Abdul Karim Khalaf told VOA that Iraqi forces can handle their security duties without the assistance of the U.S. combat troops that withdrew from the cities on June 30. In violence Tuesday, police say at least 15 people were killed and more than 100 others were wounded in multiple bombings in and around Baghdad. Three of those blasts occurred in the Shi'ite neighborhood of Sadr City. The deadliest attack involved a series of bombings at a popular market, in Husseiniya just north of the capital that killed five people and wounded almost 30 others. Elsewhere, in Ramadi, the provincial capital of Anbar, three people died in a double bombing near a restaurant. Parts o...

By Al Pessin The Pentagon 21 July 2009 A 22 Jun 2009 photo released by US Navy shows an F-22 Raptor during a supersonic flyby in the Gulf of Alaska The U.S. Senate voted Tuesday to end funding for the most sophisticated U.S. fighter jet, supporting President Barack Obama on one of the most controversial issues to come before the Congress since he took office six months ago. President Obama had threatened to veto his own defense budget if the Congress added $1.75 billion to produce more F-22 Raptor aircraft. But he did not have to do that, as the Senate voted down the funding 58 to 40. The F-22 is the most sophisticated jet fighter in the world and the U.S. Air Force will complete the original plan to field 187 of them. But on the advice of Defense Secretary Robert Gates and senior military leaders, President Obama decided that no more are needed for national defense. Some members of Congress disagree, and wa...

By Jeff Seldin Washington 21 July 2009 Ben Bernanke delivers a report on the country's economic and financial health before the House Financial Services Committee, on Capitol Hill in Washington, 21 Jul 2009 The chairman of the U.S. Federal Reserve, the nation's central bank, says there are signs that the world's largest economy is starting to stabilize. But he warns that the success of an economic recovery still depends on government action. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke says aggressive actions taken by the United States and many other nations "may well have averted the collapse of the global financial system." But he also says it is too early for the U.S. to change course. "Despite these positive signs, the rate of job loss remains high and the unemployment rate has continued its steep rise," said Bernanke. "Job insecurity, together with declines in home values an...

By VOA News 21 July 2009 Jewish Settlement Israel is facing international pressure over its settlement activity, with both the European Union and Russia saying such activity threatens the chance for Mideast peace. The EU issued a statement Tuesday calling on Israel to stop what it called provocative actions in East Jerusalem, including home demolition and evictions. The EU said such actions are illegal under international law. Israeli authorities are planning to build some 20 new apartments in East Jerusalem's Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood. Russia also weighed in on the issue, with a foreign ministry spokesman calling for an end to settlement construction in line with the roadmap for peace. Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon responded to the criticism Tuesday, saying Israel has the right to build anywhere in Jerusalem. Israel has rejected repeated U.S. calls for a total halt to all settlement activity. Tuesda...

By VOA News 21 July 2009 The moon cast a shadow at the sun in a partial solar eclipse in Manila, Philippines on 26 Jan 2009 Millions of people in India and China will be looking to the skies Wednesday as the moon passes between the sun and Earth in what is being described as the longest solar eclipse of the 21st century. Astronomers say the sun will be completely obscured by the moon for about six minutes and 39 seconds at the peak of the eclipse, which will take place at 01:37 UTC. The Earth will not experience an eclipse this long again until the year 2132. Forecasters are predicting stormy weather in parts of China and India. Despite the forecast, people are lining up for special solar viewing glasses and staking claim to wide open spaces to view the event. The eclipse will pass over India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Burma, China, Japan, Indonesia and the Marshall islands. It begins at 00:25 UTC and ends at 03:03 UTC...

By Andre de Nesnera Washington 21 July 2009 Iran's nuclear power plant at Bushher Iran's nuclear weapons ambitions were discussed during the recent summit in Moscow between U.S. President Barack Obama and his Russian counterpart, Dmitri Medvedev. The United States and the European Union believe Iran's uranium enrichment program is designed ultimately to build nuclear arms. Tehran says it only wants to use its enriched uranium for peaceful purposes, such as generating electricity. In an effort to counter potential threats from countries such as Iran, the Bush administration proposed a missile defense system made up of 10 missile interceptors in Poland and a radar facility in the Czech Republic. President Obama is more cautious about the project and his administration is in the process of reviewing it. Russian officials have been strongly critical of the proposal, saying it is targeted aga...