Amid WikiLeaks uproar, Clinton heads to Central Asia

[Turborama]

Source: Reuters

Amid a global uproar over WikiLeaks' release of sensitive U.S. diplomatic cables, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton begins a trip to Central Asia and the Middle East on Monday, during which she may personally feel some heat from affronted allies.

The State Department on Sunday formally announced Clinton's trip, which takes take her first to Kazakhstan where world leaders including Russian President Dmitry Medevedev and German Chancellor Angela Merkel are also expected to attend a summit of the 56-nation Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).

In an illustration of the potential awkwardness, one cable is reported by Britain's Guardian newspaper as describing Medvedev as being in a partnership with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin in which he "plays Robin to Putin's Batman."

=snip=

Clinton's November 30-December 3 trip was planned before Sunday's release of sensitive U.S. diplomatic communications provided by whistleblowing website WikiLeaks, which revealed sensitive U.S. views on foreign leaders, terrorism and nuclear proliferation in an embarassing blow to U.S. diplomacy.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE6AR3RD20101128

[Name removed]

1. Deleted message

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[denem]

2. "Willy Leaks"? You're on the wrong site

IMO

[Autumn]

3. Welcome to DU

Did your reading comprehension fail you? This trip was planned before the leaks. Willy? Where have I seen that before? On edit Thank you Mods

[gateley]

4. For about the third time today I'm saying I wouldn't want her job

for anything.

[RaleighNCDUer]

5. Seems to me that if we treated honestly with our allies we wouldn't have

"affronted allies" to deal with.

[NBachers]

6. Well, maybe Medvedev actually does play Robin to Putin's Batman . . . I could see it

[Ghost Dog]

11. Mr. Medvedev is no Robin, believe me.

And Mr. Putin, sure as hell, is indeed a Batman.

:evilgrin:

[Blue State Bandit]

7. I don't know, it's kind of endearing...

I don't think Putin would mind the analogy. Medvidev might, but it could have been worse.

It could have been Shaggy and Scooby.

[SaveAmerica]

8. Laverne and Shirley

[bjobotts]

9. State department corruption was widely known long before wiki leaks

[bjobotts]

10. Cybil Edmonds was exposing them years ago before she was gagged.

[jberryhill]

12. What is "corrupt" about someone having the opinion that Medvedev is not in charge?

I'm fascinated by some of the reactions.

So, if there were a Russian staffer who said "Obama is a tool of corporate interests" they would be corrupt?

Heck, they'd be an honored member of DU

[jberryhill]

13. Omg how tremendously corrupt to say that about Medvedev

The entire State Department should be frog marched off to prison because someone called Medvedev Putin's "Robin".

That is the most insanely corrupt thing I've ever heard!