Germany and the US in agreement over Iran

And not a roast pig in sight.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and US President Barack Obama have condemned the Iranian government for cracking down on citizens who have questioned the results of the June 12 presidential election, which President Mahmud Ahmadinejad is said to have won.

The two leaders were speaking at a joint news conference on June 26.

"Today we speak with one voice," Obama said. "The rights of the Iranian people to assemble, to speak freely, to have their voices heard -- those are universal aspirations. And their bravery in the face of brutality is a testament to their enduring pursuit of justice. The violence perpetrated against them is outrageous. And despite the government’s efforts to keep the world from bearing witness to that violence, we see it, and we condemn it."

Merkel, speaking in German, seconded Obama’s statement, adding, "We will not forget this."

No Apologies

Obama said he and Merkel want Iran to uphold what he called "international principles" of permitting peaceful dissent, and he ridiculed the idea that he should apologize to Ahmadinejad for criticizing the crackdown.

On June 25, Ahmadinejad was quoted on Iranian television as urging Obama to "show [his] repentance" for promising change during his campaign for the presidency but then, in the Iranian leader’s view, taking the same approach of his predecessor, George W. Bush.

On June 26 Obama said, "I don’t take Mr. Ahmadinejad’s statements seriously about apologies, particularly given the fact that the United States has gone out of its way not to interfere with the election process in Iran. And I’m really not concerned about Mr. Ahmadinejad apologizing to me. I would suggest that Mr. Ahmadinejad think carefully about the obligations he owes to his own people."

The US leader suggested that Ahmadinejad turn his attention to the families of demonstrators who have been "beaten or shot or detained."

Merkel said her government would make an effort to identify the victims of Iran’s crackdown, and the treatment they’ve faced. She said, "Iran cannot count on the world turning a blind eye."

Nice to finally have adults in charge...

Oh, this should be good....

Headline: Putin proposes alternate site for US missile shield.

Merkel: I don't care where he told you to stick it, you will not bomb his mother's house!


(pic stolen from watertiger)

But it pays one of Bush's cronies a load of money

So everything is fine. (my bold):

In the Clinton administration, Philip E. Coyle was in charge of weapons testing and evaluation. SPIEGEL spoke with the 72-year-old about Bush's planned missile defense system, why Russia feels threatened and how shooting down missiles is like playing golf.

...SPIEGEL: During Bill Clinton's presidency you were responsible for evaluating the technical feasibility of the project. Why did the President decide against it?

Coyle: He decided not to deploy the system because it could not do what it promised. One of President Clinton's criteria was to be able to shoot down an accidental launch of a nuclear missile from Russia or China rather than immediately starting World War III. In those days, we were not so worried about Iran and North Korea. The Bush Administration has not really set any criteria as to what the missile defense system actually has to be capable of doing.

SPIEGEL: But why does the US spend so much money for a system which, as you say, does not work?

Coyle: That is a good question. If you add it all up, the administration since 2002 has spent over $10 billion annually. The Pentagon has never before tried to build such a difficult system -- it is much more complex than any ship or aircraft. I support the research, but I am against deploying defense systems that do not work under realistic operational conditions.

SPIEGEL: Russia is sharply critical of the missile defense plans and feels threatened. Justifiably?

Coyle: If Russia were installing missile defense systems in Canada or Cuba, we would react pretty much the same way. We are surrounding them and getting closer to their territorial boundaries.

Putin is pissed off at the missile defense system, Merkel tells Bush to talk to allies. And to illustrate where the mindset of the Bush administration is, Condi Rice refers to the Russians as the Soviets while trying to reassure Putin of our intentions. Good job, Condi!!

The Germans are unimpressed with our super duper deflector shield

And the moat with sharks with lazers on their foreheads:

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is urging the US government to engage in a broader discussion about the missile defense shield it plans to erect in Poland and the Czech Republic to protect it from enemy missiles.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has urged the US to refrain from acting unilaterally with its plans to erect a missile defense shield in Poland and the Czech Republic.

"We should always make sure that we discuss everything in a spirit of trust to avoid rifts," Merkel said in a speech to a conference on trans-Atlantic economic cooperation in Berlin. "No one can master the new challenges on their own." She said that applied to the European Union as well as the United States. The German chancellor was in Poland on Friday and Saturday to press its leaders to back a broader discussion on the missile shield within NATO.

I think she's just cautious about being in a contained area with Georgie....

How To Lead 101

Bush needs to pay more attention in class:

European Union leaders have agreed on a series of new policies aimed at putting Europe at the forefront of global efforts to curb climate change.

Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, who chaired a two-day summit, put forward the key compromise to secure agreement to set a legally binding target for renewable fuels.

The deal sets binding targets for slashing greenhouse gas emissions, develops renewable energy sources and uses biofuels.

Leaders accepted the target of 20 per cent of renewable sources in EU energy consumption by 2020 in return for flexibility on each country's contribution to the common aim.

Update: Spiegel Online interviews Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen:

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Internationally, nuclear energy seems to be approaching a renaissance. Is it, as France sees it, the new green energy?

Rasmussen: No. And it is not part of our energy policy. First and foremost, I want to stress that it is a basic principle of EU policy that it is national responsibility to decide the energy mix. We do not interfere with other countries' decisions concerning nuclear energy. But I do not consider it a renewable energy.

SPIEGEL ONLINE: Greenland, where the ice sheet is rapidly melting, is part of Denmark, and large parts of your country are below sea level. Meaning Denmark is one of the first to be affected by climate change. How high of a priority is climate change for Denmark?

Rasmussen: Our long-term vision is to make Denmark independent of fossil fuels. For now, we are in a very comfortable position: We have oil and gas fields in the North Sea, so we are independent for our energy needs and we are the only net exporter of energy in the EU. I want Denmark to be completely independent in the future as well, meaning after the reserves in the North Sea have been emptied. To that end, we have to further develop renewable energy.

Angela Merkel wants to help solve the Israeli-Palestinian conundrum

""We want to take on responsibility in the Middle East process even if we're aware that it is an extremely difficult political area," the chancellor told the Guardian in an interview at the chancellery in Berlin. "We know that the issue of the two-states solution is of the greatest importance for many other conflicts in the region."

My god, how strange. A politician who actually wants to stop wars.