State Department

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Human Rights in Russia 'Under Siege': US State Dept.

(Newser) - Human rights in Russia are "under siege," and the Chinese government is engaging in "serious human rights abuses," the US State Department says. The finger-pointing, in an annual report released today, comes just a week after Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited China and downplayed...

On First Trip, Clinton Strikes a Blunt Tone
On First Trip, Clinton Strikes
a Blunt Tone
ANALYSIS
Feb 23, 2009 6:55 AM CST

On First Trip, Clinton Strikes a Blunt Tone

Diplomats split over uncharacteristic lack of tip-toeing at State

(Newser) - On her first trip as secretary of state, Hillary Clinton spoke far more frankly than her predecessors about everything from North Korean leadership to the efficacy of US sanctions against Burma. As the Washington Post writes, the Asia trip showcased a blunter, more open style of American diplomacy. But veteran...

Clinton the Campaigner Moves to State—for Good or Ill

(Newser) - As Hillary Clinton takes over the State Department, it's worth remembering that her train-wreck presidential campaign followed an "audacious 2000 run for Senate" and an excellent record as a legislator, Michael Crowley writes for the New Republic. "The question—not only for Hillary's legacy but for US...

Blackwater Ditches Name, Attempts to Change Image

Firm renames itself Xe; will focus on training and logistics support

(Newser) - Private security firm Blackwater Worldwide is hoping to shed some of the controversy that has dogged it since its bloody tenure in Iraq by renaming itself Xe (pronounced “Zee”), the AP reports. Besides the name change, the firm has altered the focus of its business from contracting out...

Iran Rebuffs US Badminton Team's Shuttle Diplomacy

Invited team denied visas in mystifying move

(Newser) - Iran has refused entry to US women badminton players invited to play in an international tournament marking the 30th anniversary of the Islamic revolution. The eight athletes and four coaches and managers were denied visas in a move that has mystified the Obama administration, reports the Washington Post. "This...

Now, Obama Awaits Overture From Iran
 Now, Obama Awaits 
 Overture From Iran 
ANALYSIS
Jan 31, 2009 10:57 AM CST

Now, Obama Awaits Overture From Iran

(Newser) - While Barack Obama is not backing away from his campaign pledge to meet Iran without preconditions, the new administration is hoping Tehran will take the first step toward détente, Politico reports. “If countries like Iran are willing to unclench their fist, they will find an extended hand from...

US Flushes Blackwater Contract
US Flushes Blackwater Contract
Jan 31, 2009 2:58 AM CST

US Flushes Blackwater Contract

State Dept. calls renewal 'moot' after Iraq denies operating license

(Newser) - The State Department said Friday it will not renew Blackwater's contract to protect American diplomats in Iraq when it expires in May. A department spokeswoman said the contract will lapse because of the Iraqi government's decision to deny Blackwater a license to operate, amid lingering outrage over a 2007 shooting...

Mitchell, Holbrooke Named Special Envoys

Former senator gets Mideast portfolio; ex-ambassador Afghanistan and Pakistan

(Newser) - President Obama and newly minted Secretary of State Hillary Clinton moved quickly today to build the administration’s diplomatic efforts, naming George Mitchell and Richard Holbrooke special envoys, Reuters reports; both appointments were expected. Former Sen. Mitchell will focus on facilitating peace talks between Israel and Palestine, while ex-UN ambassador...

Clinton Takes Over at State
 Clinton Takes Over at State 
Jan 22, 2009 10:08 AM CST

Clinton Takes Over at State

Hundreds of employees cheer her arrival

(Newser) - Hillary Clinton began her first day as secretary of state with a message for her new employees, the New York Times reports. “This is a new era,” she said as State Department workers applauded her arrival this morning. “We will make clear as we go forward that...

Bush and Condi Find Something to Celebrate

Crisis, what crisis? It's all backslapping at Foggy Bottom

(Newser) - India and Pakistan are at loggerheads, Afghanistan is a narco-state, and the Middle East is almost unspeakably troubled—so how did George W. Bush's diplomatic team see off their president? With yesterday's "Ceremony to Commemorate Foreign Policy Achievements," a State Department lovefest complete with billowing flags and commemorative...

Fidel Reported to Be Close to Death

Castro is gravely ill, sources say

(Newser) - Fidel Castro may be nearing the end of his life, reports the Miami Herald. It's been almost two months since Castro has been photographed in public. No images were released of his November meeting with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and he was a no-show at the Jan. 1 celebrations of...

Clinton to Outline Vision for Reinvigorated State

Will speak on Hill as confirmation hearings begin today

(Newser) - Secretary of State-designate Hillary Clinton marches into her Senate confirmation hearings today armed with sweeping plans to retake the ground State lost to the Defense department under President Bush, the Wall Street Journal reports. Clinton will advocate using “smart power,” a wide variety of economic and social diplomatic...

Al-Sadr Urges 'Revenge' Attacks Against US for Gaza

Cleric tells militia to hit American targets in Iraq

(Newser) - The anti-American cleric Moqtada al-Sadr has urged radical Shi’ite militants to strike American targets in Iraq as retaliation for US support of Israeli’s attack on Gaza, the Times of London reports. Al-Sadr also called on nations with Israeli consulates to close those missions in solidarity with Palestine. A...

USS Pueblo Crew Awarded $65M

Judge awards damages against North Korea for torture

(Newser) - In a distant echo of the Cold War, a federal judge has ordered north Korea to pay $65 million in damages to four crewmen from a US ship captured in 1968, reports AP. The USS Pueblo was seized by North Korea on an intelligence-gathering mission, and crew members were severely...

White House Frets Over Gaza Fighting

Administration pressuring Israel to end attacks

(Newser) - A deeply worried Bush administration is privately pushing Israel to settle on a Gaza exit strategy, despite the White House's public support of the offensive, insiders tell the Los Angeles Times. Amid rising international pressure to end the fighting, administration officials fear that rather than crushing Hamas, Israel's assault could...

Clinton Moves to Beef Up State
Clinton Moves
to Beef Up State
Dec 23, 2008 8:20 AM CST

Clinton Moves to Beef Up State

Bigger budget, expanded role sought for department that withered under Bush

(Newser) - Hillary Clinton is already working to restore some of the strength sapped from the State Department under the Bush administration, the New York Times reports. Clinton is seeking a bigger budget for the department and wants to restore the role played by high-profile special envoys. Officials say Clinton also wants...

Fire Blackwater: State Dept. Panel

Security firm's contract should not be renewed, advisory group says

(Newser) - The US military should stop using contractors from Blackwater Worldwide, concludes a report by a State Department advisory panel, obtained by the AP. In light of numerous allegations of violent misconduct, Blackwater’s contract to defend American diplomats should not be renewed when it expires next year, the panel recommends....

Portugal Offers to Take Gitmo Detainees

Move may help close prison

(Newser) - Portugal is willing to resettle some detainees freed from Guantanamo Bay, and it urged its fellow European countries to do likewise. It’s a diplomatic breakthrough that could help close the controversial US prison, the New York Times reports. Of the 250 detainees still in Guantanamo, 60 have been cleared...

Team of Rivals Starting to Crack

Separate visits to State Dept by Rice, Clinton suggest competition

(Newser) - Separate visits to the State Department by Hillary Clinton and Susan Rice yesterday suggest that the rift between Barack Obama’s two highest-level diplomats may not have healed, reports the AP. Rice, the incoming UN ambassador, bucked her former Clinton administration bosses to support Obama in the primaries. Now she’...

Guard: Blackwater Baghdad Massacre Was Unprovoked

Chilling details emerge in indictments of five guards in deaths of 17 Iraqis

(Newser) - Five guards working for the Blackwater security company in Baghdad opened fire without provocation and massacred Iraqi civilians on a busy Baghdad intersection in 2007, according to chilling indictments filed against the men. The guards, protecting a convoy, used automatic weapons and grenade launchers to fire on cars, houses, a...

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