Pelosi Received In China With Pomp And Circumstance

By Michael Combier-Talk Radio News Service

Last week’s diplomatic trip to China, the bi-partisan congressional delegation led by the U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said that the government of China was very attentive to what the delegation had to say on the environmental issue and that they were eager to find common ground policies with the United States to resolve the climate change crisis, Pelosi said

“On our way to China, we visited Alaska. And in our own country, we saw the impact of climate change and of the global warming crisis. We saw that the polar cap is melting, the thermal control of the planet is affected... It is urgent to meet the issue of global warming crisis,” said Pelosi today at a press conference in the Capitol.

Pelosi pointed out that the Chinese have observed the same kind of effect in their own country with the melting of the glacier in Himalaya which made the finding of solutions more urgent between the two country.

The focus of the trip was “on climate change and what we can do between our two countries to help reach some agreement that will help serve us all well in the multilateral decision that will be made” in the United Nations - Climate Change Conference held in Copenhagen from December 7-18, Pelosi said.

The passing on May 21 by the Energy and Commerce Committee of the American Clean Energy and Security Act had equipped the U.S. delegation “with the assurance to the Chinese that action will be taken by the Congress of the United States on this subject” and that a significant movement is already underway said Pelosi.

Another issue that was dealt by the U.S. delegation was human rights and the twentieth anniversary’s of the Tiananmen Square protest. The memory of this event was raised by a great majority of Chinese during the trip said Pelosi.

The delegation delivered a letter to the President of the People’s Republic of China, Hu Jintao, and the Chinese government “for the release of prisoners of conscience in accordance with the principles of the Chinese constitution,” said Pelosi.

Pelosi recalled how, 18 years ago, she held a banner “in memory of those who were so brave and courageous” during the Tiananmen Square protest, and now as Speaker of the House, she was able to discuss directly to the President of China and “express to him the concern in Congress on a bi-partisan basis of concern for human rights in China and Tibet.”

On the issue of North Korea, the delegation has worked with the Chinese government to “help bring North Korea back to the six-party talks. In light of the tests that happened while” the delegation was in China, “it came even more urgent for them to exercise their good offices... and to get the six-party talk moving again,” said Pelosi.

Report: U.S. Losing Leadership In 21st Century Science And Technology

By Michael Combier-Talk Radio News Service

The United States is facing the risk of losing ground on the science and technology field if no adequate funding are given to the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) and to the laboratories, according to a report by the Stimson Center’s Task Force. Entitled “Leveraging the Nuclear Weapons Laboratories for 21st Century Security”, the report shows that a more successful cooperation needs to be sought between bureaucratic entities and the laboratories dealing with nuclear technology.

“If the entities that are intended to make strategic investments have to stand in line, you are not going to get where you need to go,” said Dr.Elizabeth Turpen, co-Director of the Cooperative Nonproliferation Program at the Stimson Center.

But, Turpen said, this collaboration can not occur while significant declines in the Defense Department funding limit growth.

“The relationship between the Department of Energy (DoE), NNSA and the labs is pretty fractured, if not completely broken... Laboratories definitely feel like they are not part of the decision making progress” and that will “impact their future,” said Turpen.

The lack of funding will ultimately result in the “potential for cascading unintended consequences to the detriment of U.S. national security,” Turpen said.

The report proposed the establishment of a “new and fully autonomous agency with multiple financial sponsors to provide broad national security, science and technology mechanisms and oversight to achieve the envisioned transformation,” which will make the agency less a victim of bureaucratic authority and having a more direct link with the laboratories.

Israeli President Shouted Down By Protesters

By Michael Ruhl, University of New Mexico - Talk Radio News Service

Israeli President Shimon Peres spoke today in favor of peace in the Middle East, but some in the audience likely couldn’t hear his call, as protesters within the room shouted him down. Three eruptions of protesters in the audience were stopped by police. The protesters shouted from tabletops and waved signs saying “stop the occupation” and “free gaza.” This all transpired at the Washington DC Convention Center, at a conference led by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.

Peres spoke of his commitment to the peace process, saying that one of the big challenges they all faced was to “disconnect religion from terror”, so extremists are not killing in the name of a higher power.

“History is on the side of peace... history’s on our side,” Peres said. He continued that the extremists leading Iran “are on the wrong side of history.” Peres acknowledged that most Iranians are good people whom he respects, but pointed his finger at extremists like Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as being the problem.

“Iran is not threatened by anybody,” Peres said, and continued that Iran’s new missile programs are unnecessary. He said that Iran’s missile development and nuclear program are a threat to Israel “and the global community at large.”

Peres said that he trusts President Obama to make meaningful bilateral negotiations, and to contribute significantly to the peace process.

Senate leaders want negotiations with Iran

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee heard testimony today of two experts on foreign policy dealing with Iran: Zbigniew Brzezinski, former national security adviser to President Carter, and Gen. Brent Scowcroft, former national security adviser to Presidents Ford and George H.W. Bush. Their purpose was to advise on the strategy which the United States should take when dealing with negotiations with Iran.

Dr. Brzezinski stated in his testimony that a nuclear Iran would be a “disaster,” as would a military collision with Iran. He then noted that there are two ways to approach negotiations: The first is to design the negotiation to fail, and to make Iran appear to blame. This would be achieved by setting preconditions, threatening with sanctions and force, calling for regime change and labeling the Iranian government as a “terrorist entity.” The second approach to negotiation is to, “Seek to engage the Iran in a process in which there emerges the possibility of some consentual arrangement.”

Gen. Scowcroft stated that the real threat from a nuclear Iran is the road to nuclear dissemination in the region. If Iran gets nuclear capability, Turkey, Egypt and other countries in the region will want to follow suit. He noted that in the past, the U.S. and even Israel have had good relations with Iran, and it is important not to view the current situation as permanent. When asked if he thought that negotiations would actually work, he stated, “It seems to me that it is worth a try because in the process of trying, if the United States is really sincere, we are likely to get on board people who suspect now who say we’re sitting off in the corner throwing rocks at them and asking for sanctions; not trying to solve the problem.”

Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) concluded the hearing with the sentiment of productive negotiations, stating, “We’ve got to be smart, restrained, thoughtful and skilled in our diplomacy so that we have an opportunity to really pursue every avenue with the greatest potential for success.”

Commission predicts WMD use by 2013

Commission predicts WMD use by 2013

The Commission on the Prevention of Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation and Terrorism announced that WMD will likely be used somewhere in the world by 2013, and the weapon is expected to be biological.

"The terrorists are organizationally sophisticated enough to get either the nuclear or the bio weapon, but the bio weapon would be even easier for them to get...if they isolate a pathogen, and are able to weaponize it, there's no reason they wont be able to make more than one weapon and attack more than once," said Commission co-chair Jim Talent.

However, Talent said there are steps that can be taken to mitigate the risks of both nuclear and biological attacks. In regard to nuclear proliferation, Talent recommends focusing on Pakistan.

"We decided that some time ago as a group, and the events of the last weekend just shows one of the reasons why it's important. Pakistan is the epicenter of a lot of these dangers, and not just of terrorism but also the potential use by nation states of nuclear weapons because there's a budding arms race between Pakistan and India in that area," explained Talent.

The commission outlined other steps, such as halting the use of highly enriched uranium in research reactors, putting a moratorium on manufacturing weapons usable fuels for reactors, and the controversial step of eliminating financial incentives for promoting nuclear energy.

To prevent a biological attack the commission suggested improving protection for the high containment labs where pathogens are created and fostering a community of security among biological scientists, similar to the one shared by physicists in the nuclear age.

"We have recommended that there be some standardization and a single point of accountability for the high containment laboratories in the United States. There has been a proliferation of those labs since 9/11," said Commission Chairman Bob Graham.