Hillary Clinton Arrives in Pakistan

[Beacool]

by Laura Rozen
October 28, 2009

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has arrived in Islamabad, Pakistan this morning, to "turn a page" on what she said has been a relationship subject to misunderstandings, and one overly focused on a security, anti-terrorist agenda.

"We hold that to be very important," Clinton said on the flight en route, referring to the the security agenda. "It remains a very high priority. But we also recognize that it's imperative that we broaden our agenda with Pakistan"

"I think it's fair to say there has been a lot of misconceptions about what the United States intends with our relationship with Pakistan," Clinton said. "And I want to make clear that the United States and Pakistan have a long history of partnership and cooperation. We have a relationship that we want to strengthen, but we don't want it to be lopsided. We don't want it just to be about security and just about our anti-terrorist agenda. ...we want to strengthen democracy, we want to strengthen civilian institutions."

http://www.politico.com/blogs/laurarozen/1009/Hillay_Clinton_ontherecord_plane_briefing.html

They kept her trip under wraps for security reasons. I wonder if they flew in her new bomb-proof limo.

:-)

[Beacool]

1. Several pics from her trip

Some nice


U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, right, shakes hands with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi at the Foreign Ministry in Islamabad, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2009.




Pakistan's Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani (R) and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (L) during a meeting at The Prime Minister House in Islamabad on October 28, 2009.


U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton addresses a news conference at the Foreign Ministry in Islamabad, Pakistan, Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2009.



:)


Some not so nice




Pakistani activists of Hizbul Threer shout slogans against the US during a protest in Lahore on October 28, 2009.

:-(

[ProSense]

2. The trip is to begin making the certifications required by Kerry-Lugar

Clinton's visit comes amid widespread Pakistani anger over a recent major U.S. aid bill for the country which, despite tripling assistance to Islamabad to some $1.5 billion per year for the next five years, has still been bitterly denounced for imposing conditions critics say violate national sovereignty.

The bill, known as Kerry-Lugar for its senatorial sponsors, mainly focuses on socio-economic development but also requires Clinton to certify to Congress that Pakistan is cooperating with efforts to dismantle nuclear weapons, combating militant groups and ensuring civilian government control over the powerful military.

"These aren't conditions on Pakistan so much as they are metrics for measuring whether we think our aid is being productive," Clinton said, noting that similar measures were used for other U.S. aid programs.

link

[Beacool]

3. So much death and destruction.

HILLARY CLINTON IN PAKISTAN
Posted: Wednesday, October 28, 2009 10:53 AM by Mark Murray

From NBC's Andrea Mitchell

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was welcomed to Pakistan by a car bomb explosion in Peshawar -- as well as word of the latest terror attacks in Afghanistan.

Just as Clinton was embarking on a trip to emphasize that the U.S. was not only focused on security and terror -- but also wanted a broader relationship with Pakistan -- the terror attacks brought home the brutal reality of Pakistan's dilemma: Under pressure from the U.S., the government has launched its long delayed attack against insurgents in tribal areas. But the extremists have responded with a spate of attacks, undermining the legitimacy of the government and angering Pakistanis frustrated by the lack of security.

At a news conference today with Pakistan's foreign minister, Clinton said that she wanted to turn the page on the U.S. relationship with Pakistan and build on mutual respect and shared responsibilities. "While we may disagree from time to time as friends and partners do" Clinton said, she vowed to do more thru people to people diplomacy.

Clinton also announced a major U.S. program to help Pakistan deal with country-wide electricity shortages.

Asked about today's attacks, and what he would say to Pakistanis who say "Is it worth it?" the foreign minister said, "We will not buckle. We will fight you. We will fight you because we want peace and security in Pakistan. You are on the run and you know that."

http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2009/10/28/2110888.aspx

Most of the dead were women and children. I too wonder if it's worth it. Not just in Pakistan, but everywhere. So many people killing their own.

What a world we live in.........

:cry:

[jbnow]

4. Hoping she has a safe, safe trip. Uneasy times. I wish her

press conference there had gotten some TV time, maybe there is some video available. Seems the only time they really showed her working was when they wanted to make controversy when she was irritated by that question. That means they have cameras there and they could show us so much more.
(I honestly don't recall if they showed much of past SOS working either. I would just like to see more of this one)

And this is not to sound petty but Sec Clinton has been wearing colors she looks great in. She really shines in dark/jewel tomes.

That bombing in Pakistan doesn't even make sense. What do they think they win by killing the innocent, killing women and children.

[Beacool]

5. CNN had snippets of her press conference.

I do wish the media would focus more on the real issues and not on nonsense like "questiongate" in the Congo. That stupid issue took the entire front page of both NY rags at the time (not the NYT, they had more sense). They barely mentioned that the DRC has the highest rate of violence against girls and women in the world. Rape is used as a weapon of war and it has affected most families. I despise the media, most of them are vultures.

As for the killing of women and children, it's a way to destroy the community (just as with the rapes in Congo).

Yes, the jewel tones look good on Hillary. She also looks good in blue because it brings out her eyes.

:-)