CFR- Daily Brief

TOP OF THE AGENDA: Toward a Kenya Deal
News reports indicate progress toward a reconciliation deal in Kenya, a month and a half after disputed presidential elections threw the country into turmoil. Former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who has assumed a role as mediator, addressed Kenyan parliamentarians today, seeking their backing on a deal he says he wants to finalize within the next few days (Reuters). The Kenyan paper Daily Nation says the outlines of a deal include: a possible grand coalition government, the formation of an independent committee to investigate the December 2007 elections, as well as electoral, political, judicial, and constitutional reforms.

Other reports add that new elections aren’t the country’s first priority. The BBC reports that Annan appears to believe that Kenya is too unstable for a new presidential election for at least a year, and is targeting a date in 2009. The article adds that negotiators appear to have ruled out the possibility of a recount, given the violence it might stir. More than one thousand people have been killed in Kenya since December 27, when President Mwai Kibaki was reelected in a vote that met widespread criticism from opposition leaders. The East Africa Standard reports on the comments of one Kenyan member of the reconciliation committee who says the foremost goal of a deal should be to restore a sense of citizenship for all Kenyans.

A recent CFR.org Backgrounder outlines some of the structural and demographic problems underlying Kenya’s political strife.




MIDDLE EAST: Israel Plans New Settlements
Israel’s housing minister said plans will soon be finalized for the construction of more than one thousand new homes for Jewish settlers in East Jerusalem (BBC). The Associated Press reports on the firestorm the new plans have set off among Palestinians, who envision the area as capital of their future state.

Winograd: The BBC outlines mixed Israeli media reaction to the Winograd Commission report assessing how the Israeli government handled the 2006 war with Lebanon.

Lebanon: Political tensions heightened in Lebanese parliamentary debate over the effort to install a new president. Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri accused majority leader Saad Hariri of blocking a plan to force power sharing in a new president’s cabinet (Daily Star).




ASIA: Japan-China Food Row
The Financial Times reports that the investigation of a case involving poisoned food exported from China to Japan threatens to undermine what were seen as recent improvements in bilateral relations.

East Timor: The Christian Science Monitor reports on yesterday’s assassination attempt on East Timor’s President Jose Ramos-Horta and says the attacks may actually work to undermine the power of rebels in the country.

Patents: The Chinese news agency Xinhua reports that China authorized 30 percent more patents in 2007 than in 2006 as part of an effort to liberalize its patent policy.




SOUTH & CENTRAL ASIA: Diplomat Abduction
Pakistan’s ambassador to Afghanistan has reportedly gone missing while traveling between the countries. Al-Jazeera says the envoy, Tariq Azizuddin, went missing yesterday while traveling by road through Pakistan’s tribal regions.

Afghanistan: An editorial in the Wall Street Journal examines a push by Canada and Australia to urge European countries to send more troops to join the NATO campaign in Afghanistan.

India-Russia: Russian Prime Minister Victor Zubkov met with his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh today in New Delhi. The two discussed an array of trade issues and the Economic Times reports Singh asked Zubkov to lift restrictions on Russian imports of Indian agricultural products.




AFRICA: Power Politics in Tanzania
The Economist Intelligence Unit examines a power struggle in Tanzania following the ouster of the country’s prime minister amid a graft scandal.

Kenya-HIV: The UN AIDS program says it is increasingly concerned that people suffering from HIV-AIDS in Kenya might have their treatment programs threatened by political instability (PDF).

Zimbabwe: The BBC reports that a leading rival of Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe has been expelled from Mugabe’s governing party ahead of March presidential elections.




AMERICAS: U.S. Charges 9/11 Suspects
U.S. military prosecutors say they will seek the death penalty for six suspects accused of murder and conspiracy in connection with the 9/11 attacks (LAT). The case ventures into uncharted legal territory, given recent acknowledgments that evidence against one of the accused conspirators was gathered during an interrogation process that included waterboarding (ChiTrib).

Costa Rica: NPR reports that Costa Rica has paid a price for its efforts to combat global warming. The article says the country, which has worked to develop hydroelectric power as a main energy source, has become vulnerable to variation in rainfall patterns.

Mexico-U.S.: The Wall Street Journal discusses efforts by Mexican President Felipe Calderon to move the discussion of U.S.-Mexican economic relations beyond the much discussed issue of migration.




CAMPAIGN 2008: Hitting the ‘Pause’ in Iraq
Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) joined rival Sen. Barack Obama in criticizing Defense Secretary Robert Gates' suggestion that the United States pause troop drawdown in July once an initial five brigades are withdrawn (Reuters). "It is clear that in the absence of a military solution, which I think this announcement today obviously confirms, the Iraqi government will not take the steps that were expected and even demanded," said Clinton.

Chief Clinton strategist Mark Penn argued in a blog Monday that Clinton will win the debate with Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) over national security, because "voters know she has the right policies - ending the war in Iraq, re-establishing our relations with our allies - and they know she has the strength of leadership that America's next president will need in a world that can turn dangerous in an instant."

Clinton, Obama, and McCain are all competing in their parties’ nominating races for president today in Virginia, Maryland, and Washington DC.

Former UN Ambassador John Bolton praised Sen. John McCain on Fox News Monday, saying McCain "understands we're in a long war" and has "persevered for his support against al-Qaeda in Iraq and the president's surge strategy that now appears to be winning." Bolton also called McCain's stance on Iran "realistic" and called for a "much more forceful approach" to the country.




EUROPE: Kosovo’s Economic Prospects
Deutsche-Welle reports on Kosovo’s economic prospects should the Serbian province declare itself independent in the very near future, as it is widely expected to do. The article says Kosovo would have to rely heavily on coal deposits but questions whether that can sustain its population.

France: Newsweek International reports on the tendency of French President Nicolas Sarkozy to mix messages about policy and religion and says Sarkozy has drawn fire from some of France’s traditional secularists.

Turkey: A panel of experts on PostGlobal discuss whether lifting a ban on headscarves in Turkish universities could lead to increased radicalization.