Russia and US trade angry words over Iran at UN dinner

The American secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice, and her Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, traded barbs during bad-tempered talks at a foreign ministers' summit in New York on Iran's nuclear programme. The exchanges provided a candid introduction to diplomacy for Margaret Beckett, the new Foreign Secretary, who attended the tetchy session at the end of her first full day in the job. The row, which further undermines hopes of a diplomatic solution to the Iran crisis, reflects deepening rifts between the United States and Russia.

Tension surfaced at a private meeting hosted by Ms Rice in the Waldorf Hotel for the Russian, British, French, German and Chinese foreign ministers, and spilt over into a much-delayed dinner. One official in Washington said: "It was a pretty extraordinary session and everyone's been talking about it in private since. It was certainly quite an introduction to the rough and tumble of the new job for Mrs Beckett." Mr Lavrov arrived at the Waldorf for the meeting seething about a speech on Kremlin policies delivered by Dick Cheney, the vice-president, the previous week in Lithuania.

The Russian repeatedly complained about the comments and then threatened to veto a Security Council resolution, drafted by Britain and France and backed by the US, that would force Iran to abandon enrichment of uranium.
Although Moscow has made clear that it opposes any use of mandatory powers, the other ministers were left in no doubt that Mr Lavrov's approach reflected fury over the Cheney speech. As the mood worsened, Mr Lavrov accused the Americans of seeking to undermine efforts by Britain, France and Germany to solve the crisis. He singled out Nicholas Burns, the State Department's number three, for particular flak, complaining about his criticism of Russian involvement in Iran's. Bushehr nuclear plant.

Already frustrated, Ms Rice, a Russia expert, took exception to his remarks about Mr Burns and curtly told her guest: "This meeting isn't going anywhere." The gathering in Ms Rice's suite had been intended as a 30-minute chat before dinner but turned into a two-hour session. By the time the foreign ministers sat down to eat at 10.30pm, their sea bass was shrivelled and, to Mrs Beckett's surprise, the bickering continued in front of senior officials. The next day, John Sawers, the Foreign Office political director, and colleagues from the other five nations worked to smooth over the row. They came up with a new proposal for incentives on trade deals, security guarantees and civilian nuclear technology for Iran if it halts enrichment.


more
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/05/14/wrice14.xml&DCMP=EMC-new_14052006

that Iraq was.

diplomatically, internationally, multilaterally, militarily

they bomb

that's all they do well

B1 or B2 bomber?

You cant take these people anywhere!

It is so passe. :nopity:

then go talking about how great the main man in Kazakhstan (sp) is, and the Russians weren't going to even notice?...

:rofl: :cry: :crazy: :grr: :nuke:

The US's geopolitical nightmare
By F William Engdahl









....there is much more at the link...a great read
F William Engdahl is the author of A Century of War: Anglo-American Oil Politics and the New World Order, Pluto Press Ltd. He may be contacted at www.engdahl.oilgeopolitics.net.


http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/HE09Ad01.html

The neocons have brought calamity to the world and their policies, or rather the failures of their policies, will have the unintended consequences of bringing about the death of American imperialism. If any good ever comes out of evil, this would be one of those instances!

Well, they have certainly done that. The problem is that their "own reality" happens to suck.

To think that there was a candlelight vigil held in Tehran on the aftermath of 9-11 in remembrance of the victims. How much damage have they caused to this nation!

what fucking monsters.

They should all be in prison, at the least. I'd prefer they all hang from lampposts.

Way to go, Condi, you are "doin a heckofajob"!

By the time the foreign ministers sat down to eat at 10.30pm, their sea bass was shrivelled
I wish I had been a fly on the wall and heard all the bickering, but then, Condi would have caught me with her lizzard tongue and eaten me.

to notice any flys!

Way to go! You have got almost the whole world united against the U.S..

I wonder if Foreign Secretary Beckett had a chance to meet Amb. Bolton during her first full day on the job. If she had, she may be thinking that she is not being paid enough.

Imagine if this had been a bunch of immature people with poor self-control ...

...and Russia since the Cold War Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962.

This kind of crap just makes it harder not to believe that the NeoCons are gunning for Armageddon, and the sooner the better. That would help explain why they don't seem to care where the U. S. economy is headed, nor how many countries they piss off.

This is not going in a very direction at all.

A fight! This reminds me of WWF....with China standing off to the side. Then, at the opportune moment, she reaches into the ring, and trips one of the wrestlers.

Go Condi! I'd love to see them jumping on the beds in the hotel room, throwing things at each other.

Russia has had it with this Bush or should I say Cheney regime!!!

Setting aside the criminal behaviour of the Bush regime, this is the biggest collection of incompetents to have ever run the country.

''this is the biggest collection of incompetents to have ever run the country.''

good enough to repeat.

I'm so old, I remember when Secretaries of State were expert counselors to the president, and the top diplomat representing America.

Condi is using all of her talent and ability to be the top apologist for Bush/Cheney's wackyassed and disastrous foreign policies. I have seen no evidence of independent or critical thinking on her part. Her judgements have been breathtakingly incompetent.

Better that she would have stuck with the piano or figure-skating, than be part of the force that would engulf our planet in unending, horrific war.

and they know who is running the country and its Cheney!!!