Click here to visit the mobile version of winnipegfreepress.com

Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

It's been a good week for...

Hamid Karzai

... confirmed as president of Afghanistan after his election rival bowed out. To the relief of the U.S. and the rest of NATO, there will be no corruption-ridden and bullet-ridden election to cast further focus on the failings of their man in Kabul. Karzai, for his part, will pay lip-service to demands for cleaner politics. He's betting the U.S. will not pull out and leave him to his enemies, which was the fate of his predecessor, the Soviet puppet Najibullah.

Aung San Suu Kyi

... the Nobel laureate imprisoned for her opposition to Burma's ruling military junta. She met U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell at his lakeside hotel on one of the rare times she has been allowed to leave her house in years. The U.S. is taking a new tack with Burma, acknowledging that the previous policy of political and economic sanctions has been ineffective. The high-level meeting with Suu Kyi is a hint that the generals will have to become less thuggish with their opponents if they are to get the hand Washington is extending.

Hillary Rodham Clinton

... the U.S. secretary of state. On a visit to Islamabad, Clinton voiced disbelief that the Pakistani government can't find and strike al Qaida operatives. Pakistan's coziness with the Taliban in Afghanistan has long been an irritant to Washington, but Pakistan has never heard the exasperation so clearly expressed by so high-placed an official. The Obama administration has been drawing criticism for wheel-spinning of late, and Clinton's laying down of the law to the Pakistanis may serve to upgrade the image.

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition November 7, 2009 H4

  • Rate this Rate This Star Icon
  • This article has not yet been rated.
  • We want you to tell us what you think of our articles. If the story moves you, compels you to act or tells you something you didn’t know, mark it high. If you thought it was well written, do the same. If it doesn’t meet your standards, mark it accordingly.

    You can also register and/or login to the site and join the conversation by leaving a comment.

    Rate it yourself by rolling over the stars and clicking when you reach your desired rating. We want you to tell us what you think of our articles. If the story moves you, compels you to act or tells you something you didn’t know, mark it high.

0 Commentscomment icon

The comment period for this story has ended.

letters

Make text: Larger | Smaller

Special coverage

Poll

Should the province spend $3.1 million to keep Greyhound inter-city bus service in Manitoba?

View Results

View Related Story