US National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice has indicated that the United States is ready to act alone against Iran and North Korea if European countries do not cooperate in stopping them from developing nuclear weapons, the Daily Telegraph reported on Friday. âIf we do not want a âMade in Americaâ solution, letâs find out how to resolve the issues of North Korea and Iran,â the paper quoted Rice as saying during a visit to London on Thursday.
| That's diplotalk for... ummm... That's not diplotalk. It's a polite way of saying "defecate or decommode." |
Rice sought to play down the prospect of a war against Iran, saying: âWe do not ever want to have to deal with the proliferation issue as we did in Iraq.â However, according to the Telegraph, her comments had echoes of the blunt talking that surrounded the debate before the Iraq war. Rice accused Iran of seeking secretly to build nuclear weapons, and vowed that North Korea would not be allowed to blackmail the world with threats to resume its nuclear programme. But she said the US sought international cooperation and that Iranâs programme was best dealt with by convincing Tehran to agree to intrusive inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency. Addressing the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London, Rice said North Korea was best addressed by regional powers exerting pressure. But she did not rule out military action. âThe avoidance of war is not in itself a final goal,â she said. âSometimes one has to fight wars to deal with tyrants.â Later she added: âWe want a multilateral solution. But we do want a solution."
| "The avoidance of war is not itself a final goal"... That's a statement of the obvious that's managed to escape both the UN and the EU. And some of our own diplos... |
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