 | Yup. Back on the side of thugs. By the way, NONE of the officials 'quoted' here spoke on the record. |
BANGKOK -- On her second trip to Asia as U.S. secretary of state, Hillary Rodham Clinton is carrying a no-nonsense message about American intentions. "The United States is back," she declared Tuesday upon arrival in the Thai capital.
By that she means the administration of President Barack Obama thinks it's time to show Asian nations that the United States is not distracted by its wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and intends to broaden and deepen its partnerships in this region.
| And to ignore human rights in Burma ... |
Clinton says she would, as previously announced, sign ASEAN's seminal Treaty of Amity and Cooperation, a commitment to peacefully resolve regional disputes that has already been signed by more than a dozen countries outside the 10-nation bloc. The U.S. signing will be by the executive authority of Obama and does not require congressional ratification, said a senior administration official.
| So it's a treaty but it doesn't have to be ratified by the Senate. Um, okay ... |
The administration of President George W. Bush had declined to sign the document; Obama sees it as a symbolic underscoring of the U.S. commitment to Asia.
| Clearly, President Obama's theory is that Senate ratification is only necessary for treaties which he deems substantive. President Bush held that all treaties are substantive, whether intended to be so or not. But then, his resume contains running a business, not just posturing for the cameras on the courthouse steps and in front of earnest but callow law students. |
On her arrival here Tuesday, Clinton reiterated Obama administration concerns that North Korea, already a threat to the U.S. and its neighbors with its history of illicit sales of missiles and nuclear technology, is now developing ties to Myanmar's military dictatorship.
| Not that we're doing anything about that ... |
Clinton held out the possibility of offering North Korea a new set of incentives to return to negotiating a dismantling of its nuclear program if it shows a "willingness to take a different path." But she admitted there is little immediate chance of that. A Clinton aide said the United States and its allies are looking for a commitment by North Korea that would irreversibly end its nuclear weapons program. The aide said there is no sign that North Korea intends to make such a move, keeping the U.S. focus on enforcing expanded U.N. sanctions.
| The Norks have no intention of ending its weapons program. So we're going to keep asking them to do it. Something about the definition of insanity fits here. |
In her remarks about a possible Myanmar-North Korea connection, Clinton did not refer explicitly to a nuclear link but made clear that the ties are disconcerting. "We know there are also growing concerns about military cooperation between North Korea and Burma which we take very seriously," she said at a news conference in the Thai capital.
"It would be destabilizing for the region, it would pose a direct threat to Burma's neighbors," she said, adding that as a treaty ally of Thailand, the United States takes the matter seriously.
Later, a senior administration official said that Washington is concerned about the possibility that North Korea could be cooperating with Myanmar on a nuclear weapons program, but he added that U.S. intelligence information on this is incomplete.
| No kidding. It's always incomplete. |
Clinton spoke to reporters after meeting with Thai Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva at the outset of a three-day visit to Thailand.
Clinton sharply criticized the military rulers of Myanmar for human rights abuses, "particularly violent actions that are attributed to the Burmese military concerning the mistreatment and abuse of young girls."
| But we're not going to do anything about it, because the 'Treaty' (which doesn't require Senate ratification, according to Bambi) pledges us to 'non-interference' in the internal affairs of the other signing nations. That means we have to shut up about human rights. |
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