In Pakistan, Taliban Tearing Apart a Culture

Pashtun Residents Say Militants Have Imposed Extremist Views on the Population, Displacing Centuries-Old TraditionsPashtun literature used to be full of romance and praise for the beauty of nature. Now it reflects the death and explosions that have filled the lives of Pakistanis.The literary trend is the lesser-known victim of the "Talibanization" in Pakistan's northwest. Militants imposed their ultraconservative brand of Islam in and around the Swat Valley until the military ousted them this summer, and they continue to hold sway throughout the tribal regions.Residents in these areas say their reign is robbing this predominantly Pashtun area of its centuries-old culture and tearing the social fabric, from poetry to dancing to community centers. Even in Swat, where residents displaced by the fighting are making their way home, many entertainers have not come back for fear the Taliban might.
"This is an attempt to Arabize the Pashtun society by attacking their culture and their highly revered institutions," says Said Alam Mehsud, a leader of the Aman Tehreek, a peace movement recently launched in Peshawar.
The Pashtuns, an ethnic group concentrated in northwestern Pakistan and southern and eastern Afghanistan, live by a revered code of conduct called Pashtunwali. Society has traditionally centered around community centers called hujras, where assemblies of elders and community leaders called jirgas are an important part of the culture.
But the militant brand of Islam brought by the Taliban has displaced the hujra and instead placed the mosque at the center of society, says Raj Wali Shah Khattak, former director of the Pashto Academy at the University of Peshawar. That has reduced the role of the jirga, leaving space for clergy to bring the Pashtun culture under a strict interpretation of religion, says Dr. Khattak, who is not related to the reporter.It has also deterred people from coming forward to organize lashkars (armies of tribal volunteers) against the militants. More than 200 tribal elders have been killed in North and South Waziristan alone since 2004, while many others have fallen victim to the militant attacks in Swat and other districts of northwest Pakistan. Community centers and mosques, often used to organize lashkars, have been targeted by suicide bombers in the past two years.
Music Under Attack
Music has also come under assault. Attacks on stores selling CDs have become common. "Music functions are integral parts of Pashtun marriage ceremonies, and even Islam allows the beating of tambourine in marriage functions, but all these things are rapidly becoming a tale of the past in face of Talibanization," says Khattak.
The wave of militancy has forced many Pashtun musicians, singers, and dancers to leave the tribal areas and Peshawar, the commercial and cultural capital of the Pashtun tribal belt.Last August the singer Haroon Bacha, a star in northwestern Pakistan and Afghanistan with more than two dozen albums, fled his homeland for the United States after receiving threats from militants.Singer Gulzar Alam survived an assassination attempt and left Peshawar early this year for Karachi. In a telling sign of Pakistan's decline, he then moved to Kabul, the capital of a country at war  Afghanistan.The famous dancer Shabana was shot in the street in Mingora, in the Swat Valley, by militants after she defied warnings to stop dancing at marriage ceremonies. Since her death, Banr Bazaar, where dancers congregated in Swat, has become vacant as dozens of dancers left for Karachi, Lahore, or other cities.
And in Peshawar, once known for its cinemas, five movie theaters have been closed and converted into commercial shopping plazas. One was attacked with a bomb, killing seven people, in May. The sole theater in Peshawar, 600-seat Nishtar Hall, has been closed since 2003, under threat from the Taliban.
Poetry Reflects Cultural Shift
The clampdown on cultural expression has been reflected in contemporary poetry and music, an important part of Pashtun culture. Young Pakistanis have responded to the trend by composing poems expressing their grief and anger and using Facebook and text messages to spread their work. One young artist recently circulated a poem called "Don't wound Peshawar," which laments:
"As the wound of Kabul is still bleeding,
You're filling a bowl of blood here
While you have yet to drink the blood-filled bowl of Kabul."
"War is going on in [the] Pashtun's land, and changing trend[s] in poetry in such a situation is a natural process," says Khattak. "We can't expect romance ... or songs for spring and flowers when there is bloodshed all around."

Marines Fight With Little Aid From Afghans

NewYorkTimes
KHAN NESHIN, Afghanistan — American Marines secured this desolate village in southern Afghanistan nearly two months ago, and last week they were fortifying bases, on duty at checkpoints and patrolling in full body armor in 120-degree heat. Despite those efforts, only a few hundred Afghans were persuaded to come out here and vote for president on Thursday.In a region the Taliban have lorded over for six years, and where they remain a menacing presence, American officers say their troops alone are not enough to reassure Afghans. Something is missing that has left even the recently appointed district governor feeling dismayed. “I don’t get any support from the government,” said the governor, Massoud Ahmad Rassouli Balouch.Governor Massoud has no body of advisers to help run the area, no doctors to provide health care, no teachers, no professionals to do much of anything. About all he says he does have are police officers who steal and a small group of Afghan soldiers who say they are here for “vacation.”It all raises serious questions about what the American mission is in southern Afghanistan — to secure the area, or to administer it — and about how long Afghans will tolerate foreign troops if they do not begin to see real benefits from their own government soon. American commanders say there is a narrow window to win over local people from the guerrillas.Securing the region is overwhelming enough. The Marines have just enough forces to clear out small pockets like Khan Neshin. And despite the Americans’ presence, Afghan officials said 290 people voted here last week at what is the only polling place in a region the size of Connecticut. Some officers were stunned even that many voted, given the reports of widespread fraud and intimidation.Even with the new operation in Helmand Province, which involves the Marines here and more than 3,000 others as part of President Obama’s troop deployments, the military lacks the troop strength even to try to secure some significant population centers and guerrilla strongholds in central and southern Helmand.And they do not have nearly enough forces to provide the kinds of services throughout the region that would make a meaningful difference in Afghans’ lives, which, in any case, is a job American commanders would rather leave for the Afghan government.Meanwhile, Afghans in Khan Neshin, the Marines’ southernmost outpost in Helmand Province, are coming to the Americans with requests for medical care, repairs of clogged irrigation canals and the reopening of schools.“Without the Afghan government, we will not be successful,” said Capt. Korvin Kraics, the battalion’s lawyer, who is in Khan Neshin. “You need local-level bureaucracy to defeat the insurgency. Without the stability that brings, the Taliban can continue to maintain control.”Local administration is a problem throughout Afghanistan, and many rural areas suffer from corrupt local officials — if they have officials at all. But southern Helmand has long been one of the most ungovernable regions, a vast, inhospitable desert dominated by opium traffickers and the Taliban.It not clear what promises of support from the Afghan government the Americans had, or whether they undertook the mission knowing that the backing necessary to complete it, at least in southern Helmand, might not arrive soon — if at all. The Americans in Khan Neshin doubt that the Afghan government promised much of anything.Governor Massoud said he personally admired the Marines here, from the Second Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, but he said many people “just don’t want them here.”He estimated that two of every three local residents supported the Taliban, mostly because they make a living growing poppy for the drug trade, which the Taliban control. Others support them for religious reasons or because they object to foreign forces.Not least, people understand that the Taliban have not disappeared, but simply fallen back to Garmsir, 40 miles north, and will almost surely try to return.Lt. Col. Tim Grattan, the battalion commander, said the local residents’ ambivalence reflected fears of what could happen to anyone who sided with the Marines, an apprehension stoked by past operations that sent troops in only for short periods.“They are on the fence,” Colonel Grattan said. “They want to go with a winner. They want to see if we stay around and will be able to protect them from the Taliban and any repercussions.”As for follow-up assistance, Colonel Grattan said the Afghan national government “has been ineffective to date.”The shortfall in Afghan government support is important not only in terms of defining the Marines’ mission here, but also because it crimps their operations. The Marines, unlike units in some other regions, answer to a NATO-led command and are under orders to defer to Afghan military and civilian officials, even if there are none nearby.For instance, Marines must release detainees after 96 hours or turn them over to Afghan forces for prosecution, even if the nearest prosecutors or judges are 80 miles away. Some detainees who the Marines say are plainly implicated in attacks using improvised explosive devices or mortars have been released.The problems are compounded by a shortage of American troops, despite the recent reinforcements. The Marine battalion, which deployed with less than 40 percent of its troops, can regularly patrol only a small portion of its 6,000-square-mile area.To do even that they have stretched: three-fifths of the Marines are stationed at checkpoints and a handful of austere outposts ringing Khan Neshin, living without air-conditioning or refrigerated water.That leaves no regular troop presence across the vast southernmost reaches of Helmand. On the Pakistani border the town of Baramcha — a major smuggling hub and Taliban stronghold — remains untouched by regular military units. American and Afghan officials say Baramcha’s influence radiates through southern Helmand, undermining Marine and British military units elsewhere. “It’s the worst place in Afghanistan,” Governor Massoud said.If the Afghan national government can provide more resources and security forces — and the Marines add more men — then the United States may be able to leave in two to three years, Colonel Grattan said.Without that, he said, it could take much longer. For now, little help is materializing.Frustrated, Governor Massoud said his “government is weak and cannot provide agricultural officials, school officials, prosecutors and judges.”He said he was promised 120 police officers, but only 50 showed up. He said many were untrustworthy and poorly trained men who stole from the people, a description many of the Americans agree with. No more than 10 percent appear to have attended a police academy, they say. “Many are just men from the streets,” the governor said.The Afghan National Army contingent appears sharper — even if only one-sixth the size that Governor Massoud said he was promised — but the soldiers have resisted some missions because they say they were sent not to fight, but to recuperate.“We came here to rest, then we are going somewhere else,” said Lt. Javed Jabar Khail, commander of the 31-man unit. The Marines say they hope the next batch of Afghan soldiers will not be expecting a holiday.In the meantime, at the local bazaar, just outside the Marines’ base, the foreign troop presence remains a hard sell.When one man, Abdul Hanan, complained that “more people are dying,” First Lt. Jake Weldon told him that the Taliban “take away your schools, they take away your hospitals; we bring those things.”Mr. Hanan remained doubtful. Some people have fled the area, fearful of violence since the Marines have arrived. He asked, “So you want to build us a hospital or school, but if nobody is here, what do we do?”

Politicians, relatives own 50pc of country’s sugar factories

ISLAMABAD - It is ironic that people are expecting the ongoing sugar crisis to be resolved by the politicians who themselves are said to be the beneficiaries of this situation since many of them own more than 50 per cent sugar mills of the country.
TheNation has reliably learnt that there were a total of 78 sugar mills in the country and the political leaders or their relatives or partners owned more than 50 per cent of these sugar mills.
“Would the politicians give favour to the masses on the cost of their profits?” is a question being frequently asked by different quarters.
The mills said to be owned by President Asif Ali Zardari’s family and PPP leaders are Ansari Sugar Mills, Mirza Sugar Mills, Pangrio Sugar Mills, Sakrand Sugar Mills and Kiran Sugar Mills. Ashraf Sugar mills is owned by PPP leader and incumbent ZTBL President Ch Zaka Ashraf.
The mills owned by Nawaz family and relatives are Abdullah Sugar Mills, Brother Sugar Mills, Channar Sugar Mills, Chaudhry Sugar Mills, Haseeb Waqas Sugar Mills, Ittefaq Sugar Mills, Kashmir Sugar Mills, Ramzan Sugar Mills and Yousaf Sugar Mills.
Kamalia Sugar Mills and Layyah Sugar Mills are also owned by PML-N leaders. Former minister Abbas Sarfaraz is the owner of five out of six sugar mills in the NWFP. Nasrullah Khan Dareshak owns Indus Sugar Mills while Jahangir Khan Tareen has two sugar mills; JDW Sugar Mills and United Sugar Mills. PML-Q leader Anwar Cheema owns National Sugar Mills while Chaudhrys family is or was the owner of Pahrianwali Sugar Mills as it is being heard that they have sold the said mills. Senator Haroon Akhtar Khan owns Tandianwala Sugar Mills while Pattoki Sugar Mills is owned by Mian Mohammad Azhar, former Governor Punjab.
PML-F leader Makhdoom Ahmad Mehmood owns Jamaldin Wali Sugar Mills. Ch Muneer owns two mills in Rahimyar Khan district and Ch Pervaiz Elahi and former Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Khusro Bakhtiar have shares in these mills.
The sources said it would be unwise to expect a right decision from these politicians cum mills owners with regard to slashing of sugar prices in the market.
“When the government says that it will catch the culprits and provide sugar to the masses on affordable rates, it is like throwing dust in the eyes of masses”, the sources further said.
Many among the bureaucrats believe that Mian Shahbaz Sharif is a good leader but if he wanted to maintain his reputation, he should sell out his sugar mills. An official said, “One’s personal business always leaves impact on one’s decisions”.
“After all who were the ultimate beneficiaries of the meetings held between sugar mills owners and the government?” they asked. “The answer to the question is the sugar mills mafia,” they observed. The sources said that in the end the millers got what they wanted and now they were authorized to sell sugar at more than Rs 55 per kilogram and that is the price prevailing in the international market.

Afghan candidates told to temper statements

Los Angeles Times
KABUL, Afghanistan -- Election officials and Western diplomats yesterday warned candidates against making premature claims of victory after aides to President Hamid Karzai said it appeared that he had won Thursday's election.

Mr. Karzai's chief rival, former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah, meanwhile, declared that if the president had received more than 50 percent of the vote -- which he would need to avoid a runoff -- it would be a signal that Mr. Karzai's supporters had committed massive fraud.

Many Western observers are concerned that the competing claims of the Karzai and Abdullah campaigns could set the stage for clashes between their backers and usher in a period of tension and instability while an official count is compiled. A final tally is not scheduled to be disclosed until early September. A partial preliminary count was initially due today, but now is not expected until Tuesday.

Afghans defied weeks of Taliban threats and a rash of pre-election violence, coming out by the millions to vote Thursday. But election officials acknowledged that turnout was lower than hoped, perhaps under 50 percent. That is well below the 70 percent turnout in Afghanistan's first direct presidential election, in 2004.

The United States and its NATO allies are heavily invested in a credible outcome to this vote. The election was a centerpiece of the Obama administration's war strategy, based on the notion that the Afghan government must be viewed by its own people as legitimate in order to make any headway against a burgeoning insurgency.

The process is slow. Ballots have begun arriving in the capital from some 6,500 polling stations -- reversing a sometimes-arduous journey before the election, when helicopters and donkeys had to be used to deliver election materials to some remote areas.

A spokesman for Afghanistan's Independent Election Commission, Noor Mohammed Noor, stressed that individual candidates had no basis for declaring themselves the winner pending the official results. "Nobody should make such a claim," he said.

A clouded aftermath to the vote raises the specter of ethnic strife, long a feature of the Afghan political landscape. Mr. Karzai's Pashtun ethnic group is the country's largest and his main base of support. But the Pashtun belt lies largely in the south and east, where violence and threats depressed the voter turnout. Mr. Abdullah is politically identified with the Tajiks, the dominant group in the north of Afghanistan. Conditions in that part of the country are more peaceful, and turnout was higher as a result, giving Mr. Abdullah an edge.

The Obama administration did not lend its support to any one candidate, and special regional envoy Richard Holbrooke, who visited polling places on election day, said the U.S. administration would take "an agnostic position" on any claims of victory until the final results are in.

"We always knew it would be a disputed election," said Mr. Holbrooke, who was briefed yesterday by election observers. "I would not be surprised if you see candidates claiming victory and fraud in the next few days. For the United States and the international community, we're going to respect the process."

Two other Western diplomats said their governments had made concerns known after Mr. Karzai's campaign spokesman, Seddiq Seddiqi, was quoted as saying it appeared the Afghan leader had garnered more than 50 percent of the vote. A similar admonition against declaring victory was delivered to the Abdullah campaign, they said.

Foreign observer groups have lauded Afghans for braving danger in order to vote and have expressed relief that the vote passed without any large-scale attacks by insurgents. But they also have described the vote as flawed by the low turnout, especially among women, and by irregularities such as the sale of false registration cards.

The campaign season and the election coincided with some of the most intense fighting of the 8-year-old conflict between Western troops and the Taliban. Military officials disclosed the deaths of three Western troops: two British soldiers killed in the south and an American who died of wounds suffered a day earlier in eastern Afghanistan.

Obama again tackles "myths" on healthcare reform

WASHINGTON - President Barack Obama hammered away at "outrageous myths" about his healthcare reform plans on Saturday, seeking again to take control of a debate that has tarnished support for his top domestic policy goal.Obama has tried for weeks to clamp down on criticism and misinformation about his healthcare plans and used his weekly radio and Internet address to address them."Today, I want to spend a few minutes debunking some of the more outrageous myths circulating on the Internet, on cable TV, and repeated at some town halls across this country," he said in the address."Let's start with the false claim that illegal immigrants will get health insurance under reform. That's not true."That idea has never even been on the table. Some are also saying that coverage for abortions would be mandated under reform. Also false."Obama expressed outrage about persistent rumors that government-run "death panels" would have a say in whether ailing senior citizens would receive life-saving care or not."As every credible person who has looked into it has said, there are no so-called 'death panels' -- an offensive notion to me and to the American people," he said. "These are phony claims meant to divide us."Obama also urged people not to get distracted by his desire to create a government-sponsored health insurance provider to compete with private companies."Let me repeat -- it would be just an option; those who prefer their private insurer would be under no obligation to shift to a public plan," he said."This one aspect of the healthcare debate shouldn't overshadow the other important steps we can and must take to reduce the increasing burdens families and businesses face."Republicans charge that Obama's plans are too expensive in the face of skyrocketing budget deficits.

Afghan Election Poses New Tests for Washington

NewYorkTimes.com
KABUL, Afghanistan — Obama administration officials hoped the Afghan election would demonstrate that eight years after the American invasion, the country was stable enough to justify an expanded commitment of money and troops from an increasingly skeptical American public.

Instead, the election did more to underscore the challenges Afghanistan faces, particularly if the election goes to a runoff, as seems increasingly likely, between President Hamid Karzai and his main challenger, Abdullah Abdullah.

Both men claimed to be winning as ballots were counted Friday, though officials said preliminary results would not be announced until Tuesday, and final results at least two weeks later.

In the meantime, complaints of fraud and specific episodes of ballot stuffing mounted, and they may assume increasing importance.

Western officials here expressed relief that many Afghans defied Taliban threats of reprisals and came out to vote. But they were clearly concerned on Friday that a second round of voting could extend the paralysis of a government that already barely functions and deepen ethnic tensions, in the worst case, to the point of a north-south civil war.

In addition, a runoff would leave up in the air many of the Obama administration’s Afghanistan policy initiatives — like fighting corruption and improving distribution of aid — for at least another two months, American officials said.

The new uncertainties come on top of the stiff military challenges facing the Obama administration as it sends thousands more troops to southern Afghanistan, where Taliban attacks and very low turnout on election day made clear the insurgents’ influence.

The southern province of Kandahar alone was hit by 122 Taliban rockets on election day, mainly aimed at the towns, according to one Western official. In a broad southern region — provinces like Kandahar, Helmand, Oruzgan and Zabul — turnout was as low as 5 percent to 10 percent, the official said, effectively disenfranchising the region viewed as the most crucial in the American-led military campaign.

Privately, American officials set out a number of possible ways that the election aftermath could affect their operations. During a meeting on Thursday, Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, the leader of American and NATO combat operations here, discussed how the military would have to adapt to each.

Particularly worrisome was the specter of a divisive ethnic presidential runoff between Mr. Karzai, whose power base is in the Pashtun south, and Mr. Abdullah, whose main support resides in the Tajik and Uzbek north, officials said.

Mr. Karzai himself has in the past raised the specter of ethnic violence, telling officials that if there was a runoff it could lead to a civil war, Western officials said.

“Ethnic violence is always a factor in this country,” one senior administration official said. “But,” she added, “it is not inevitable.”

“Everybody is jumping on that bandwagon looking at a Tajik leader and a Pashtun leader,” she said, referring to Mr. Abdullah and Mr. Karzai. “But this country has been through civil war, and at a time when it seemed that somebody in one of the campaigns had suggested there would be ethnic violence, it was Afghans who were the first out there saying, ‘We’re not going back to the 1990s.’ “

For all of their worry about the problems that a runoff could bring, administration officials have also made clear they are not enamored of the Karzai government, and the president’s re-election would not be risk-free, either.

Mr. Obama, during his first news conference as president, criticized the Karzai government as “detached.” And administration officials have complained of Mr. Karzai’s failure to crack down on corruption and the drug trafficking fueling the insurgency. Western officials have also criticized Mr. Karzai’s alliances with unsavory figures to try to secure re-election.

Should Mr. Karzai win, either outright or in a second round, Obama administration officials could find themselves with a president who has engaged in so much deal-making that he may well be even more beholden to warlords than before.

With potential shoals in just about every direction, American officials were taking pains to present a neutral public front.

“Our only interest was the result, fairly, accurately reflecting the will of the Afghan people,” Mr. Obama told reporters at the White House.

Richard C. Holbrooke, Mr. Obama’s special envoy to the region, who was in Kabul, described the administration as “agnostic,” although American officials took issue with statements Friday from Mr. Karzai’s camp that the president had won the vote already.

“We’ve seen these reports,” Mr. Holbrooke said. He added that only the Afghan election commission was is in a position to announce official results.

But he was braced for tensions. “We always knew it would be a disputed election,” he said. “I would not be surprised if you see candidates claiming victory and fraud in the next few days. For the United States and the international community, we’re going to respect the process.”

Mr. Holbrooke met privately on Friday with the leading candidates, he said: “We’re in a period where the outcome is unclear so everyone is kind of upbeat and spinning positively. Everyone said that they would respect the process. This is not dissimilar to an American election. I keep comparing it to Minnesota, because when an outcome is uncertain, people have different views of it. We don’t have a candidate and we don’t have a favorite outcome.”

Western diplomats said that if there was a runoff, it would be widely seen as a blow to Mr. Karzai and a boost for Mr. Abdullah. The election had more than 30 candidates, and the presumption was that many of those who did not vote for Mr. Karzai could now coalesce around Mr. Abdullah.

Mr. Abdullah’s campaign team said it had made official complaints about fraud in six provinces.

Election observers were varied in their early opinions, with some saying the low turnout was an indication of just how bad the situation is in southern Afghanistan, and others saying that just holding an election was a success.

“This was one of the most violent days witnessed in Afghanistan in the last eight years,” Rachel Reid, a researcher for Human Rights Watch in Afghanistan, said in a statement sent by e-mail.

But Western and Afghan officials avoided such bleak assessments, emphasizing the Taliban’s failure to thwart the vote, the first democratic elections ever staged by the government of Afghanistan. (Previous elections since 2001 were managed by the United Nations.)

“Before 2001, Afghan leaders were shooting each other out in the countryside and shouting at each other over the radio,” said Barnett Rubin, a senior adviser to Mr. Holbrooke. “Now they’re in Kabul, sometimes shouting at each other around the table, but working together to solve problems, and nobody wants to go back to the past.”

Air Arabia Sharjah-Peshawar flights to be diverted to Islamabad airport

As per the request of the Civil Aviation Authority of Pakistan and due to security reasons, Air Arabia stated today that its flights to Peshawar Airport will be diverted to Islamabad airport beginning August 23, 2009. Air Arabia regrets any inconvenience caused to its passengers and assures them that their safety and comfort remain the company’s highest priority.

Pakistan should invest in schools, girls: Clinton

WASHINGTON: Pakistan's fight with extremism would have been in better shape had the United States invested more in the nation's schools and girls and not just its military, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said.The United States has pumped more than seven billion dollars into Pakistan's military since the September 11, 2001 attacks, which transformed the nation from Taliban backers into frontline US ally.
In an interview with a US magazine to be published Sunday, Clinton said she had told Pakistan's former military leader Pervez Musharraf that more of the money should be going to education.She recalled a trip to a Pakistani village, where families hesitated to children -- particularly girls -- because the children would need to travel away to the closest school."When I think about the extraordinarily accomplished Pakistanis in the professions, in medicine, in education, I think it is certainly the case that if Pakistan had invested more in the education of children so that poor families would not have sent their boys off to be educated by extremists, it might well have made a difference," Clinton said."And it still can, because that's part of our approach now," she said.US lawmakers have voted to provide 7.5 billion dollars for Pakistan over the next five years -- largely in support for social development including building schools.President Barack Obama's administration has made the fight against Islamic extremism in Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan a key foreign policy priority.

Military operation to continue till writ of government fully restored: President Zardari

Military operation to continue till writ of government fully restored: President Zardari
ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari has said that the extremists in the country’s northwest have been defeated and dissipated but the military operation will continue till the writ of the government is fully restored.In an interview with the Chinese news agency Xinhua before leaving for China, the President said, “We expect the military operation to continue till the writ of the Government has been fully restored. The internally displaced people are being resettled,” he said answering a question by Xinhua.

“Democracy is always a format of dialogue. But no body would be allowed to take law in their hands and extremism would not be tolerated,” he said, adding “now all the Pakistanis are of the same opinion that they would not tolerate extremism. And the tolerance message which the political forces of the day and the people of Pakistan want is to cohabit and live with each other in harmony and peace.”
President Zardari said that the social and administrative infrastructure has been restored and the normalcy is returning to the areas in Swat, Malakand and Buner in Pakistan’s North West Frontier Province.

“The process of development has been initiated. The economic activity is picking up gradually,” he said, adding that the schools and hospitals have started functioning in the areas and utilities have been restored.

However, he said, the army will continue to remain in the area to assist the civil authorities and to eliminate the pockets of resistance in remote areas.

The President also said that Pakistan’s leadership, the security institutions and people are firmly resolved to fight militancy and eliminate extremism from all parts of the country.

“It is a fight for the survival and we must win it,” he said.

Talking about the country’s economy, Zardari said that it had significantly lost growth momentum and the real GDP grew by modest two percent in 2008-09 on the back of strong performance of the agriculture sector.

But he said that this modest growth seems to be satisfactory when viewed in the backdrop that the domestic environment is affected by the intensification of war on terror and volatile security situation while external environment is affected by the deepening of the global financial crisis which penetrated into domestic economy through the route of substantial decline in Pakistan’s exports and a visible slowdown in foreign direct inflows.

He pledged that the focus of the government policies is to revive economic growth in a stable environment.

Talking about his vision of Pakistan, Zardari said, “I feel Pakistan has a great future. We have all the fundamentals to become much a larger economy than we are today, which would translate into betterment of our people, our growth can be much more. So my vision is to take Pakistan to the same level as your (China’s) growth.”

About the presidential elections in Afghanistan and the two neighbours’ cooperation in war on terror, President Zardari said that it is the choice of the Afghan people as far as who is going to be the new president.

“Pakistan and Afghanistan are already cooperating on war on terror. We have many bilateral meetings, many trilateral meetings with the Afghan government,” he said.

Zardari said that there is much more trust between Pakistan and Afghanistan with setting up of special centers on the border.

“So if we can manage to overcome our difficulties and that in turn will automatically help Afghanistan, give them the advantage of getting over their difficulties,” he said.

About China’s economic progress, President Zardari said that China’s economic and social prosperity will contribute to the international peace and prosperity.

The President wished Pakistan’s northern neighboring state all the success in economic and social fields.

On bilateral relations, Zardari said Pakistan and China enjoy excellent relations which have evolved into a multi-faceted, strategic cooperative partnership.

“China is Pakistan’s all-weather and time-tested friend. We greatly value our cherished friendship and have complete trust on all bilateral, regional and global issues,” he said.

In a message to the Chinese nation which will mark the 60th anniversary of the founding of their country on October 1, the President said, “The people of Pakistan are proud of you and proud of your achievements. Being an example in the region to all the nations which have been brought to turmoil, that inspires all of us.”

Zardari said, “We have seen a growth of double digit since last 20 years in China, and that is transcended into economic growth of the individual. Today every Chinese is feeling the advantage and benefiting from the progress that China has made.”

On his fourth visit to China, Zardari said, “The reason that I keep going to China is to learn and educate myself, then transfer what I can experience and see, and then translate that success to Pakistan and accordingly hope to do better for my nation.”

On measures taken by the Chinese government to deal with the riots in Urumuqi in early July, President Zardari said Pakistan supports China’s position on all issues.

“We are glad that the situation in Urumuqi has been brought under control. We believe that China’s policy of social harmony and development is producing great results for all Chinese people,” he said.

He said the economic development in China is unprecedented and all ethnic groups in China would benefit from it.

Sri Lanka to train Pakistani army

Sri Lanka's army has said it will be happy to give training to members of the Pakistani military.It says Islamabad has requested the training because of the country's success in defeating the Tamil Tigers.In May, the government announced the end to a decades-long war with the rebel group.The army's new commander told the BBC that Pakistan had already asked if it could send its military cadets to train in counter-insurgency operations."We'll give a favourable response," Lt Gen Jagath Jayasuriya said of the request.He said the Sri Lankan military envisaged specialist courses lasting up to six weeks, directed towards small groups from interested armies.Lt Gen Jayasuriya said there was external interest in how the military had defeated the rebel group in practical terms.The army now wished to construct a written military doctrine in English.
Mutual support
He said Sri Lanka had offered similar training, through diplomatic channels, to other countries including the United States, India, Bangladesh and The Philippines.
He dismissed reports that the Pakistanis might receive military training in newly recaptured parts of northern Sri Lanka, saying it would be more likely in the south-east.But he did say new permanent military bases would be set up in those northern areas including the rebels' former headquarters, Kilinochchi.
Sri Lanka and Pakistan have long enjoyed warm relations.
In late May, Pakistan - like India, China and Russia - helped Colombo defeat a motion at the UN which would have criticised both the government and the rebels for allegedly violating humanitarian law during the war.But India, which is highly influential here, might well be uncomfortable at this news of the Pakistanis' interest in being trained.

Martha's Vineyard abuzz about the Obamas

USA TODAY
MARTHA'S VINEYARD, Mass. — Souvenir shops sell "Summer White House 2009" T-shirts.
The Offshore Ale Co. has a new "Presidenti Ale" brew.

President Obama's scheduled arrival Sunday for his first week-long vacation since taking office has this island near Cape Cod in a dither. Some worry about traffic, but business owners hope the visit will draw tourists in a year that has been slower than usual.

READ MORE: Celebrities fit right in on Martha's Vineyard
"People are excited about this president and that he's coming in his first year," says Nancy Gardella, executive director of the Martha's Vineyard Chamber of Commerce. The elite retreat favored by Democrats has hosted presidents before, notably Bill Clinton (a return visitor since 1993). Obama has vacationed here before.

He is due to stay with his family at Blue Heron Farm, a secluded estate with tennis court, pool, golf tee and basketball court. Similar properties rent for $30,000 and up a week.

The pricey rental in hard times has drawn criticism. "The president is paying for his family's vacation," deputy press secretary Bill Burton says.

Obama has addressed the question. "Do I think every single day about the hardships that people are going through? Absolutely," he said in an interview with Katie Couric. "Do I think the American people think that because of those hardships I shouldn't spend some quality time with my daughters? I don't think that's what the American people think."

Supporters of the getaway include Hugh Taylor, owner of the Vineyard's The Outermost Inn.

Says Taylor, brother of singer James Taylor: "They should just take a walk on the beach, get squirted in the face by a clam, watch an osprey. What I would like to see (Obama) do is just enjoy this place with his children."

Australia tries to heal ties with China

Australia insisted yesterday that its ambassador to China didn't rush home a day earlier for crisis-management consultations amid soured bilateral ties between the two major regional trading partners.

Putonghua-speaking Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said Ambassador Geoff Raby often returns from Beijing this time of year, downplaying the trip's significance.

But he conceded to reporters in Canberra that, "Obviously, it's a good time to take stock of the relationship and how we move forward."

Raby canceled engagements in Beijing to return to Canberra yesterday for "emergency meetings," the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper reported.

"He hasn't been rushed back to Canberra; he comes back on a regular basis," Foreign Minister Stephen Smith told ABC Radio yesterday, adding that it was "a very good time" for Raby to return.

Jill Collins, counselor for public affairs and culture at the Australian embassy in China, told the Global Times that the envoy "is away from Beijing at the moment," declining to comment further on his agenda.

The embassy does not have a practice of commenting on details of the ambassador's schedule, Collins noted.

Bilateral relations appear to have chilled following the arrest of Australian mining giant Rio Tinto's Shanghai executive, Stern Hu, an Australian passport-holder, for his alleged involvement in commercial bribery. Also not helping ties was Canberra's decision to allow a visit by the US-based Uygur exile Rebiya Kadeer. The Chinese government has accused Kadeer of masterminding the July 5 riot in Urumqi that caused almost 200 deaths.
Beijing this week reportedly canceled a planned September visit to Australia by Vice Foreign Minister He Yafei in response to Canberra's decision to issue Kadeer a visa.

The Foreign Ministry wasn't available to comment on the issue yesterday.

Negotiations between Chinese steel mills and the world’s giant miners, including Australia's BHB Billiton, Rio Tinto and Brazil's Vale, have long exceeded their annual June 30 deadline for iron ore price-setting.

But there has been good news, as PetroChina this week signed a $41.3 billion deal with Exxon Mobil to purchase liquefied natural gas mined Down Under, Bloomberg said.

Australian Resources and Energy Minister Martin Ferguson hailed the agreement as a "landmark in our relationship with China."

Han Feng, deputy director of the Institute of Asia-Pacific Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times, "The Rio Tinto case and iron ore price talks are mainly examples of conflicts of commercial interest, and they won’t influence Sino-Australian relations by a large margin."

Trade ties between China and Australia are mainly characterized by large energy deals, he said, adding that they are still in need of long-term and stable trust to improve political ties.

"The row … is not likely to affect the economic exchange of both countries," Zhang Liangui, a professor of international political strategy at the Party School of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, told the Global Times.

"Both countries are just making gestures, without any substantial gain or loss," Zhang said.

Zhang said that some Western countries see Kadeer as leverage to contain China, which is enjoying rapid development.

"It does no good for China to quarrel with Western countries over and again," Zhang said. "China must learn how to open dialogues with foreign countries; nationalism will only cause confrontations."

"Western nations are cautious about China's rapid growth and try to make trouble for China," Zhang said. "And the Chinese should also learn to talk with other countries to express our fundamental interests."

Karzai, Abdullah Campaigns Each Claim Victory in Afghanistan

VOA REPORTING
Campaign teams for the two leading Afghan presidential candidates are both claiming victory in the country's second-ever presidential election. Incumbent President Hamid Karzai's campaign chief Deen Mohammad said that initial results show Mr. Karzai with a substantial lead and that a run-off vote will not be necessary.But a spokesman for former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah - considered by observers to be Mr. Karzai's closest challenger - dismissed the claim and said Abdullah had a definitive edge in the vote count..
Afghanistan's Independent Election Committee (IEC) said all the presidential ballots had been counted but refused to confirm either claim, urging the candidates to wait for the release of official results.Millions of Afghans braved the threat of Taliban attacks to vote Thursday. Violence in Kabul, Kandahar, and other major cities killed at least 26 people. IEC Deputy Chief Zekria Barakzai said Friday that 40 to 50 percent of eligible Afghan voters went to the polls.The turnout is markedly lower than the 70 percent turnout during country's first democratic election in 2004. Observers said some voters appeared to have been scared away, especially in the southern regions where the Taliban has its stronghold. There are concerns low voter turnout will damage the election's credibility and undermine support for the winner. And election authorities say they are investigating reports of ballot-stuffing and faulty voting equipment. Still, they are calling the election a success. IEC Deputy Chief Barakzai said election officials in each of the country's provinces had finished counting votes in the presidential election and that those results were being sent to the capital. He said ballots for the provincial elections were still being counted.Mr. Karzai was considered the frontrunner in a field of more than 30 presidential candidates, although his once-comfortable lead shrank as election day neared.

Miranshah: Three killed in suspected US drone attack

MIRANSHAH: At least three people were killed in suspected US drone strike in the Danday Darpa Khel area of Miranshah early on Friday before dawn, meanwhile following the drone attack, the suspected militants carried out attacks on various security forces check posts set up in the area, Geo news reported.According to sources, a missile was fired from a US drone plane, killing three miscreants which enraged militants who late on, launched attacks on security forces check posts located near Miranshsh airbase namely; Ameen check post, Colony check post, and Ghulam Khan Road check post.The security forces retaliated militants’ attack while the exchange of fire between security forces and miscreants was continued as per latest information, sources said.Curfew for an indefinite period has been clamped in Miranshah following the incident, sources claimed.

Bomb wounds 7 close to Pakistan capital

RAWALPINDI, Pakistan — A bomb exploded at a security checkpoint close to the Pakistani capital late Thursday, wounding seven people.
Pakistan is battling Islamist militants blamed for scores of bloody bombings over the last two years.
Authorities have been bracing for attacks after the reported death of Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud in an Aug. 5 CIA missile strike in a tribal region close to the Afghan border.
The blast took place at police checkpoint in Rawalpindi, a large garrison city 8 miles (13 kilometers) from the capital Islamabad.
Police officer Rana Shahid said four police and three civilians were wounded. The extent of their injuries was not known.
Shahid said the bomb had apparently been hidden close to the checkpoint and detonated by remote control or timer.
A white car belonging to a police officer was badly damaged in the attack.

Obama: Afghan Election 'Successful'

U.S. President Barack Obama says Afghanistan's elections appear to have been successful, despite attempts by the Taliban to disrupt them with violence.He made the comment in a U.S. radio interview Thursday with host Michael Smerconish on Philadelphia's WPHT. Mr. Obama also promised the U.S. military will keep up the pressure on insurgents in Afghanistan to drive them out of their safe havens.With Thursday's voting completed, Afghani officials are calling the election a success. But scattered violence killed at least 26 people across the country, it is not clear how many people voted, and there are reports of voting irregularities.The victims include nine civilians, nine police officers and eight Afghan soldiers. Attacks were reported in Kabul, Kandahar and other major cities.Election workers are now counting the votes, a process that could take several days before initial results are known.
In Kabul and in northern Afghanistan, voting was steady in some polling centers throughout the day. In the south and east, where fears of Taliban attacks were strongest, there were reports of very low participation.A low voter turnout could damage the election's credibility and undermine support for the winner.Deputy chief electoral officer Zekria Barakzai says officials will investigate all claims of fraud that have been made. Presidential candidates have accused one another of stuffing ballot boxes, printing fake voter cards and tampering with the indelible ink that marks voters fingers to prevent them casting multiple ballots.Incumbent President Hamid Karzai is the frontrunner in a field of more than 30 presidential candidates, although his once-comfortable lead shrank as election day neared. Former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah is considered his closest challenger.Other leading candidates are former Finance Minister Ashraf Ghani and Ramazan Bashardost, a popular lawmaker from Kabul. Candidates must get more than 50 percent of the vote to avoid a run-off. Voters Thursday also cast ballots for advisory provincial councils. Security was tight, involving hundreds of thousands of Afghan soldiers and police.

Counting Starts After Afghans Defy Militant Threats to Vote

KABUL, Afghanistan — Defying Taliban warnings and scattered attacks, Afghans voted Thursday in an election that has become a critical benchmark of the nation’s progress for both the Afghan government and the Obama administration.

The polls closed at 5 p.m. in Afghanistan, and the vote-counting began immediately. Despite the apparently low turnout in the south and complaints from some candidates about fraud, Afghan and American officials were quick to congratulate Afghans for voting despite the violence.

“On the basis of what we’ve seen so far, it seems clear that the Taliban utterly failed to disrupt these elections,” said Richard C. Holbrooke, the American special envoy to the region, in an interview after he toured four polling stations in Kabul.

President Hamid Karzai, at a news conference at the presidential palace as the polls were closing, said there had been 73 episodes of violence in 15 provinces.

“The Afghan people dared bombs, rockets and intimidations, but came out and voted,” Mr. Karzai said. “Let’s see what the turnout was.”

Mr. Karzai’s main opponent, the former foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah, called the low turnout in Kabul, “unsatisfactory.” He added that his supporters were lodging complaints of fraud, in particular from the southern province of Kandahar.

But even though it was too early to tell, Mr. Abdullah said preliminary results were hopeful, and he called the day a victory for the people of Afghanistan.

“Despite all the difficulties, despite all the security problems and other problems, people went to the polls, and they participated in this day,” he said at a news conference in the garden of his home. “And in fact they stood up to those who wanted to take away the people’s right to choose their destiny.”

Insurgents in the south threw up makeshift roadblocks in one area to warn off voters, and in Kandahar, witnesses said, insurgents hanged two people because their fingers were marked with indelible ink used to denote that they had voted.

“I know the Taliban threaten people not to vote, but I am coming and using my vote,” said Bakht Muhammad, 24, after he voted in Kandahar. “I want change. I want security. I want to live my life in our country.”

Even as officials from the Obama administration, on hand to monitor the elections, expressed reserved optimism that the voting was transparent, they fretted about whether the ballot counting would be equally so.

Mr. Holbrooke, speaking to reporters at one of the polling stations in Kabul cautioned: “The test is going to be in the counting. If the will of the electorate is going to be thwarted, it will happen in the counting.”

The polls opened at 7 a.m. As early as 8 a.m. in Kabul, officials at the American Embassy were hearing complaints of fraud. Ashraf Ghani, the former finance minister who is one of the presidential candidates, e-mailed American officials to say that he had reports that his opponents were stuffing ballot boxes. Other presidential candidates were making similar complaints to American officials, who referred them to the national election body.

“All the candidates and the rivals sent their complaints to the Independent Election Commission,” Mr. Karzai said, adding: “There is another commission called the Complaint Commission and they will evaluate and assess the complaints and I will not talk about it.”

As the suspicions of election fraud continued throughout the day, there were reports of sporadic violence that began in the morning as polls opened.

In Kabul, the Afghan police fought a gun battle on Thursday with three men who took over a house overlooking police headquarters in the Kart-e-Now district of the capital, killing two of them and capturing one, a police official said at the scene as bystanders applauded the officers who had fought the insurgents. The men were suspected of being suicide attackers sent by the Taliban.

The owner of the house, Naser, who like many Afghans uses only one name, was leaving to go vote when the gunmen stormed inside. “I went out with my boys to go to the polling station,” he said. “As soon as I got out of my house I saw two armed people enter it.” Naser said the gunmen told him to go away, and he soon witnessed the exchange of gunfire.

A Taliban spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, told Reuters earlier that three Taliban guerrillas were involved in the shooting, which seemed to be part of a strategy to disrupt an election that is proving tighter than expected.

In Kandahar, there were few people on the streets after nine rockets were fired. But when the rocket fire eased, people slowly began making their way to the polling stations.

Sharina, a 30-year-old voter in Kandahar, said she was “scared of bombs and suicide bombers, but I have to take all this risk and participate in the election.”

But Bismillah Jan, 30, said he had told his family not to vote. “I am not afraid of the Taliban’s warning, but I am afraid of bombs and suicide explosions, so I will not let my family participate in the elections,” he said.

In the province of Wardak, an hour’s drive south of Kabul, there were more security officials than voters at many polling stations after a barrage of six rockets fell just before the polls opened and three more followed soon afterward.

A mechanic, Qudratullah, 32, who like many Afghans has only one name, said he encountered Taliban representatives on the road from Narkh District, just over a mile from the provincial capital of Wardak. “They were standing on the road telling people not to vote,” he said. “Of course I am scared,” he said. But he voted nonetheless. “We want to see change and a younger generation in a better condition.”

In Kabul, Zahir Azimi, a spokesman for Defense Ministry, said on television that the voting process was proceeding better than expected. In the southern province of Paktia, he said, two would-be suicide bombers were shot to death before they could detonate their explosives. Some 300,000 security personnel members from Afghan and NATO forces were deployed to guard the polls, he said.

But residents of Kabul said the turnout seemed lower than in previous elections in 2004 and 2005. At one polling station, Mitra Hemat, 24, an election worker, said the turnout was significantly down. “There are very few people,” she said. “People are afraid, I can tell.”

The major question at the election, diplomats and analysts said, is whether President Karzai will succeed in winning over 50 percent of the vote in the first round, securing a victory, or be pushed into a second, more unpredictable round of voting.

A vast field of 34 opponents and a last-minute surge by his main challenger, Abdullah Abdullah, as well as Taliban intimidation in the volatile south, which is Mr. Karzai’s base, threatened to chip away at the president’s support.

The election unfolded under high expectations among some Afghans that it would bring change. “I am happy to use my vote, and I hope things will change and peace will knock at our door,” said Zainab, a 40-year-old voter in Kandahar. “I am telling the world we want peace and stability in Afghanistan, I am telling the next president to restore peace and give Afghans the chance to work, I am telling the next president to stop this killing and bombing,” she said.

Musliha, 70, said: “If I sit at home and everyone sits at home, there will be no change, we can’t achieve what we want. We need to choose the right person.”

Afghans vote despite sporadic violence

KABUL - Millions of Afghans went to the polls on Thursday, defying Taliban threats of violence and sporadic attacks across the country to choose a president in the midst of a worsening war.

Two Taliban insurgents were killed in a gunbattle in the capital and rockets fell on several towns, mainly in the south and east. But the United Nations said there were also encouraging signs of high turnout in many areas.

"The vast majority of polling stations have been able to open and have received voting materials," said Aleem Siddique, spokesman for the U.N. mission in Kabul. "We are seeing queues forming at polling stations in the north, also in the capital, as well as, encouragingly, in the east."

President Hamid Karzai cast his ballot under tight security at a high school near his presidential palace in Kabul. He told reporters it would be "in the nation's interest" if the election was decided in a single round.

He faces an unexpectedly strong challenge from former foreign minister Abdullah Abdullah. Polls suggest Karzai may not get enough votes to avoid a second round run-off, likely in October. Preliminary results are not expected for at least two weeks.

The election is also a test for U.S. President Barack Obama, who has ordered a massive troop build-up this year as part of a strategy to reverse Taliban gains.

Obama's envoy for the region, Richard Holbrooke, toured polling stations in Kabul and said the voting he'd seen was "open and honest". "So far every prediction of disaster turned out to be wrong," Holbrooke said.

KABUL SHOOTOUT

As he spoke, two Taliban fighters were engaged in a shootout with Afghan forces in the capital. Abdullah Uruzgani, a police battalion commander, told Reuters the two were later killed. A Reuters team was allowed inside to film their bodies.

Attacks have increased in the run-up to the poll, with fighters mounting two big suicide car-bomb strikes and a building siege inside the normally secure capital in the past week.

In a series of statements before the election, Taliban fighters claimed they had infiltrated the capital with 20 suicide bombers and would close all the country's roads.

Concern over turnout has especially focused on southern areas, the Taliban's stronghold and also the core of Karzai's support. The president's half brother, Ahmad Wali Karzai, provincial council chief in the southern province of Kandahar, told Reuters people were turning out briskly in spite of threats.

"A rocket landed close to my house, killing a little boy and injuring his mother seriously," he said by telephone. "But despite all these warnings, people don't listen to the Taliban. Kandahar people are used to war."

Bill Gallery, senior program director for Democracy International, a group monitoring the poll, said some of its observers in the south were "surprised at how many people were turning out. It exceeded their expectations". But he added that it was too early to draw full conclusions about participation.

Many Afghans said attacks would not keep them from voting.

"The Afghan people are used to living under the worst circumstances of insecurity and fighting, why should they be afraid to come out and vote?" said Sayed Mustafa, a Kabul student, showing an ink-stained finger that proved he had voted.

In northern Baghlan province, Taliban guerrillas attacked a police post, killing a district police chief.

Rockets hit the cities of Kandahar, Lashkar Gah, Ghazni and Kunduz, where two election observers were wounded at a polling station. In the eastern city of Gardez, a police official said two suicide bombers on motorcycles blew themselves up but caused no casualties.

More than 30,000 U.S. troops have arrived in Afghanistan this year, raising the size of the international force above 100,000 for the first time, including 63,000 Americans.

U.S. General Stanley McChrystal, commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, could ask for more troops when he issues a report next week. "The situation is serious and we need to turn the momentum of the enemy, but we can do that," he told the BBC.

A new poll in the Washington Post found 51 percent of Americans believe the war is not worth fighting, and only a quarter favor sending more troops.

The Afghan government has requested international and domestic media not report violence on polling day, a ban that the United Nations says it has asked authorities to lift.

Karzai calls on Afghans to defy Taliban and vote

KABUL - President Hamid Karzai called on Afghans to defy Taliban threats and vote, hours before polls opened in an election on Thursday that could prove the toughest test yet of his own mandate and his nation’s fragile democracy.
Nearly as much as it is a test for Karzai, the election is also a high political hurdle for U.S. President Barack Obama, who has ordered a massive troop build-up this year as part of a strategy to reverse Taliban gains.

Streets in the Afghan capital were tense, police were out on round-the-clock shifts, and Karzai insisted the Taliban, stronger than at any time since they were toppled in 2001, would fail in their pledge to disrupt the country’s second-ever presidential vote.

“Enemies will do their best, but it won’t help,” he told reporters late on Wednesday.

“I hope that tomorrow our countrymen, millions of them, will come and vote for the country’s stability, for the country’s peace, for the country’s progress.”

Karzai himself faces an unexpectedly strong challenge from his former foreign minister, Abdullah Abdullah.

Polls, the most recent conducted more than a month ago, show Karzai winning by a wide margin, but not by enough to secure victory in a single round.

Should he fail to win more than 50 percent, Karzai would most likely face Abdullah in a run-off in October.

Perhaps greater than the threat at the ballot box is the threat on the battlefield from Taliban insurgents, who have vowed to disrupt the voting and ordered Afghans to stay home.

In a series of statements on Wednesday the Taliban said they had infiltrated 20 suicide bombers into Kabul and would close all the country’s roads, taking no responsibility for the deaths of anyone who defied them to go to the polls.

U.S. officials say there may be some violence, but they do not think it will reach the scale needed to wreck the vote.

Increased attacks

The extent of any violence is nearly impossible to predict. The tempo of attacks has clearly increased in the weeks leading to the poll, with fighters mounting two big suicide car-bomb strikes and a building siege inside the normally secure capital.

Security in most of the country is still far better than it was in Iraq when several successful elections were held there. But the Taliban may be able to fatally damage the vote even without big attacks, if their threats keep people from voting.

More than 30,000 U.S. troops have arrived in Afghanistan this year, raising the size of the international force there above 100,000 for the first time, including 63,000 Americans.

The new troops have made bold advances into previously Taliban-held areas, but have also taken by far the worst casualties of the war. More Western troops have died in Afghanistan since March than in the entire period from 2001-04.

The Afghan government issued a “request” two days before the election that international and Afghan media refrain from publishing any information about violence in the country between 6:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. (0130-1530 GMT) on polling day.

The United Nations says it has asked the authorities to reconsider the measure. Afghan journalists said the ban, if enforced, could make the situation worse by depriving Afghans of credible information about the scope of any violence, opening the country up to the spread of unchecked rumours.

Richard Holbrooke, Obama’s envoy to Afghanistan and neighbouring Pakistan, said on a visit to the region expectations for the poll’s outcome needed to be realistic.

“The election is difficult to hold in a war-time country. And we’re not sure how many polling stations will be closed because of security. Taliban has said they’re going to close them all. But I don’t know how many they will succeed in closing,” he said.

“No election is perfect. Don’t expect a perfect election.”

Afghans go to polls under threat of Taliban violence

KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) -- Under the menacing threat of violence from the Taliban, Afghans headed to the polls on Thursday in the war-ravaged nation's second-ever national election.In parts of the capital Kabul, where recent calm was shattered by a series of bloody attacks leading up to election day, the streets were eerily empty early in the day, save extra security checkpoints. At midday, NATO's International Security Assistance Force reported "Kabul is calm."The Taliban has vowed to disrupt the voting, and the risk may have been too high for some Afghans to venture out to vote.The government ordered a ban on media coverage of incidents of violence in an effort to "ensure the wide participation of the Afghan people."
Thousands of NATO and Afghan soldiers provided security at the polls and more than 30 observer groups -- domestic and international -- were on hand to monitor the voting.
But in other parts of Afghanistan that have been largely spared the daily drumbeat of car bombs, assassinations and whizzing rockets, voters lined up to cast their ballots.Pajhwok, an independent Afghan news agency, reported brisk turnout in western Herat province, which borders Iran.
In central Bamiyan province, where predominantly ethnic Hazaras suffered under Taliban rule, thousands of voters cast their ballots behind cardboard screens inside dust-caked tents. Police struggled to hold back and search the crowd and at one point, people pushed through, breaking off one of the gates to the polling center.
Organizers from Afghanistan's Independent Election Commission said all 412 polling stations across Bamiyan will be open, whereas in neighboring Daikundi province to the south, 11 polling centers were closed because of security concerns. The southern provinces form the heartland of Taliban territory.A few other polling stations in eastern Kunar and Nuristan provinces that did not open and others, including 100 in Ghor that opened without a security presence, Pajhwok reported.The Taliban ruled Afghanistan from 1996 until the 2001 U.S.-led invasion and in recent months has staged an increasingly bloody insurgency. Afghanistan observers and experts said a high turnout would help marginalize the radical Islamist group."We're at a moment of truth," said Mark Schneider, senior vice president of the International Crisis Group, an independent advisory and analysis organization.Incumbent President Hamid Karzai, dressed in his traditional purple and green striped robe, cast his vote shortly after the polls opened Thursday and had his finger stamped with indelible ink, a measure to thwart fraud."It's the second presidential and parliamentary elections in Afghanistan and I'm sure this will be for peace, for progress and for the well-being of the Afghan people," he said afterward. "And I request the Afghan people to come out and vote so that through their vote, Afghanistan can be a more secure, more peaceful and a better country."Karzai's name appears on the ballot with 40 other candidates for president. His top rival is his former finance minister Abdullah Abdullah, who once served as a confidante of Ahmed Shah Massoud, the charismatic leader of the anti-Taliban Northern Alliance killed by al Qaeda. The other candidate who gathered steam in the campaign is former Finance Minister Ashraf Ghani, a Western-educated man who served as a World Bank analyst. Who are the candidates? How does the voting work? Read here »Karzai was named interim leader after the fall of the Taliban regime and won the 2004 election by a significant margin. His popularity, however, has waned in recent months as Afghanistan has been crippled by corruption and increasing bloodshed.Both Abdullah and Ghani hailed anti-corruption measures and government transparency as centerpieces of their campaign platforms.More than 3,000 candidates also are on the ballot vying for 420 provincial seats.Women's votes were seen as crucial. Under Taliban rule, women were denied equal rights and hurtled backward in time. In some areas, however, women voters were greatly outnumbered by men.Habiba Surobi, the female governor of Bamiyan, said one problem is that women who live in remote areas are still not aware of their rights."This is something to be concerned about," she said, adding that it was the responsibility of Afghanistan's women leaders to ensure better awareness and education.International donors are helping pay for Afghanistan's $223 million electoral undertaking. Richard Holbrooke, the top U.S. envoy in the region, acknowledged earlier this week that staging an election in the midst of war was tough, but expressed optimism that Thursday's vote would showcase Afghanistan's fledgling democracy.About 15 million Afghans are registered to vote. Earlier, officials had estimated that number as 17 million.

Stakes high as Afghans go to vote

BBC.COM
Millions of Afghans are set to vote in the country's second presidential election since the fall of the Taliban.Militants have threatened to disrupt the polls, in which President Hamid Karzai is running for a second term.Violence has escalated in recent days and at least five election workers were killed on Wednesday. There are fears some Afghans will be afraid to vote.But a government order for a media black-out on poll-day attacks so as not to dissuade voters has been criticised.Some 300,000 Afghan troops and members of the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) are being deployed to protect the 17 million registered voters.Polling stations open at 0700 (0230 GMT) and close at 1600. However, it remains unclear how many of the 6,969 polling sites will operate because of the security threat.“ I'm requesting all our people wherever they are... to come out and vote in millions ”
The interior ministry says about a third of the country is at high risk of attack and that no polling stations will be open in eight districts under Taliban control.
There are also concerns about corruption, with reports of voting cards being openly sold and of candidates offering large bribes.
Opinion polls suggest support for Hamid Karzai, who is running against 41 candidates, is at around 45%, with his former foreign minister, Abdullah Abdullah, in second place with 25%.On Wednesday Mr Karzai urged all registered voters to cast their ballot in defiance of the insurgents.
Ian Pannell, BBC News, Kabul Despite a lively campaign the enthusiasm and joy that surrounded the last election has largely disappeared.
Corruption, fraud, apathy and the threat of attacks from the Taliban are expected to keep many people away from the polls.But millions of pounds have been invested and hundreds of lives have been lost in order to allow this election to happen.Not surprising then that western officials insist that any vote, however flawed, is still better than none at all."I'm requesting all our people, wherever they are - in villages, in homes, in remote areas, in valleys - to come out and vote in millions to make this country a greater, better success," he said. "It's good for all of us."
"Enemies will do their best, but it won't help," he added.
Militants have made repeated threats against the polls and more than 25 people have been killed in bombings and attacks in the last two days.
In a statement, the Taliban said 20 suicide bombers had made their way to the capital, Kabul, where they were preparing attacks.
In Helmand province, insurgents warned that anyone with indelible ink on their finger, used to identify people who have voted, would have it cut off.
The BBC's Caroline Wyatt, in the Helmand city of Lashkar Gah, says there is a quiet sense of menace in the province as people weigh up whether to risk going to the polling station.
Reporters harassed
The US has expressed concern about the apparent attempts by militants to intimidate voters.
But State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said there was a "very strong will of the majority of people in Afghanistan to be responsible for their own destiny".

Mr Kelly also criticised Afghan attempts to ban media coverage of violence during the polls, saying unfettered media reporting was "a fundament of a free society".
Some journalists have reported being harassed and beaten by security forces. The United Nations has asked for the ban to be lifted, saying the Afghan constitution guarantees a free press.
Thursday's vote will be Afghanistan's second presidential election since the US-led invasion in 2001 toppled the Taliban regime.
Preliminary official results should be announced sometime on Saturday evening. If the winning candidate fails to gain more than 50% of the vote on Thursday, there will be a second-round run-off in October.

Kick out Karzai. We deserve a second chance

www.timesonline.co.uk
My country is on the brink of chaos, and without peace, honesty and justice in Afghanistan the whole world is in danger
Ashraf Ghani
The success of the Nato-led intervention in Afghanistan hangs in the balance in the elections that begin today. Without a new government committed to restoring the State’s sovereignty and working with the international community to stabilise the country, the insurgency will spiral further out of control. Afghanistan needs a new leader who has a clear strategy to achieve our mutual goal of sending foreign troops home.

In the past three years the insurgency has grown in strength and number. The Taleban have reversed their losses in southern and eastern strongholds and gained ground in once stable parts of the North and West. Al-Qaeda still remains active on our border. The number of troops on the ground has increased, and yet this past July was the deadliest month for foreign forces since the conflict began eight years ago.

In the run-up to today’s election the insurgents once again stepped up their attacks. Deadly suicide bombs outside Nato headquarters and around Kabul this week have underlined their determination. They are targeting candidates and voters alike, intent on killing soldiers, police and innocent civilians. Fear has gripped the country as Afghans anxiously anticipate a violent post-election outcome.

The corruption of the Karzai regime has enabled this deterioration of security by tolerating lawlessness, cutting deals with warlords and turning a blind eye to the drug trafficking that is funding attacks and perpetuating injustice. Mr Karzai’s recent pardon of five drug dealers and a known rapist are just the latest in a series of unconscionable acts he has committed as president. This week he even welcomed General Abdul Rashid Dostum, a known killer, back to Afghanistan to endorse his re-election bid. Not only does Mr Karzai lack a coherent strategy to stabilise the state, but also he lacks the will and legitimacy among the people to do so.

Initially, the Afghan population welcomed the Nato forces, but the Bush doctrine of counterterrorism resulted in arbitrary arrests, detentions and accidental civilian deaths that turned the people against the troops. The efforts of the international community have been undermined by incompetent Afghan leadership. The prime example is the National Police, which after $10 billion in international assistance remains unprepared and rife with corruption. The Obama Administration is ready to change this doctrine but it needs a capable and reliable partner.

I have a strategy for restoring sovereignty that can bring peace to Afghanistan in the next three to seven years. Only one fifth of my plan involves a military effort, the rest consists of government reform and economic growth. For this to happen it will be essential for the Afghan Government and the international community to agree to a process with clear benchmarks that measures meaningful process toward withdrawal, such as a mutual commitment to shut foreign detention centres such as Bagram within three years.

Once the joint commitment is established then a coherent peace- building process can begin. The first priority will be to negotiate an initial ceasefire. Only then can a process of reconciliation with the Taleban begin. We need to talk with the Taleban and understand why they joined the insurgency to help to address the root causes. In my experience, injustice and bad governance have been the primary drivers.

The next step will be to reorganise Afghan security forces. As commander-in-chief, the president must lead the security effort — something that Mr Karzai has failed to do. Operations should be restructured around three key priorities: securing cities, highways and large projects. In their endeavours, the security forces need to take a neighbourhood-level approach, reaching out to local elites to ensure cooperation. Rooting out corruption will be critical to this. I want to create a network of 20,000 citizen monitors who will report on the abuse of power by local officials and police. These monitors should be connected in a telephone chain that leads them directly to the president’s office from local, district and provincial levels. Such a “neighbourhood watch” scheme would restore trust in the armed forces.

The final step to achieving security will be to create jobs. Afghanistan suffers from almost 53 per cent unemployment, and 71 per cent of our population is under the age of 30. I have laid out a detailed plan to create one million new jobs in construction, mining and agriculture. These jobs will help to give Afghans a stake in society — so that they won’t want to attack it. My economic agenda includes privatisation, foreign investment and the opening of international markets to Afghan goods. Whether it is a rural women’s co-operative exporting dried fruit, the beef sold by a nomadic herdsman or even our deep deposits of copper or gems, Afghanistan is rich in exportable resources. Ultimately it will be impossible to achieve stability until people see improvements in their daily lives. Jobs and growth are the way to make that happen.

Military gains will never be enough. Nowhere is this better illustrated than Helmand. Despite repeated Nato victories, it is still not safe. Strong civic institutions, such as courts, local councils and an uncorrupt police force are needed to enforce a just and lawful order.

After almost eight years of Hamid Karzai, violence, drug trafficking and rampant corruption are continuing to erode our national sovereignty. The elections offer both Afghanistan and the international community a rare second chance to get it right: to root out the insurgency, pursue reconciliation and enforce the good governance that is needed to secure the peace and make it last. The future stability of our nation, our region and the world depend on the outcome.

Ashraf Ghani is a former Finance Minister, and a presidential candidate in Afghanistan

Voter turnout could deal blow to Taliban

(CNN) -- A high voter turnout in Thursday's presidential elections in Afghanistan could help marginalize the Taliban, experts said Wednesday.

The militant Islamist group, which ruled Afghanistan from 1996 until the 2001 U.S.-led invasion, has threatened to violently derail the war-torn nation's second-ever presidential election. Fifteen million voters, almost half the nation, are registered.

In the last week, two suicide car bombers killed 15 people in Kabul, a rocket landed on the presidential palace compound, wounding a staffer, and Afghan security forces killed three gunmen after storming a bank. The Taliban said the gunmen were potential suicide bombers and that there were 17 more in the capital.

If the Afghan people rise above the threats and attacks and turn out en masse to vote, the Taliban's ability to exact fear on the population will be diminished. In essence, a large voter turnout will be a vote of confidence in the democratic process, experts said.

But, warned J. Alexander Thier of the U.S. Institute of Peace, a nonpartisan, congressionally funded think tank, it's a two-way street.

"[Voters are] not going to be able to stand up to the Taliban and Taliban intimidation if they don't believe in the alternative," said Thier, who directs the institute's "Future of Afghanistan" project.

It's imperative the election is deemed legitimate, he said, because if the Afghan people think the election was rigged or predetermined, they will lose faith in an already weak and corrupt government.

"As we increase our military resources there, it will look like the U.S. is pouring in to prop up a leader not supported by his own people," Thier said.

A bogus election - whether real or perceived -- could exacerbate an already fragile political situation, another expert said.

"There's a concern that if they don't handle this election properly, there will be more violence because people are not trusting the legitimacy of the election," said Patricia DeGennaro, who has served as a consultant on policy development in President Hamid Karzai's office.

Daniel Markey, a senior fellow with the Council on Foreign Relations and former State Department staffer, said nothing would better suit the Taliban, which is trying to dissuade citizens from voting in an effort to discredit the entire process.

The group, which has resurged in recent years, also is attempting to show the international community that the war in Afghanistan is not winnable, Markey said.

"The entire project in Afghanistan - the reason we have tens of thousands of troops there - is based on the idea that eventually we'll get a stable and effective government," he said. "If it's thoroughly discredited by the Taliban, if it leads to more instability, then the political side of the equation won't come together and the military side won't be enough to hold Afghanistan together."

The Taliban shouldn't be the sole scapegoat for Afghanistan's woes. In addition to U.S. and international mishandling of the situation in Afghanistan, the government of Karzai, who is running for re-election, is seen as corrupt and ineffective, Markey said.

Another problem is the people of Afghanistan, said Frank Anderson, president of the Middle East Policy Council and former chief of the CIA's Near East and South Asia division.

There are plenty of people in Afghanistan who want to see democracy and civil society prevail, but there are more people - largely in the rural areas - who have little faith in government, he said.

They want better lives but have far more confidence in family and tribal leaders, outside of whom, they believe, "there is no permanent friendship and no permanent enmity," Anderson said.

"There is a population that lacks the education and opportunities to even conceive what benefit they could get from a modern nation-state," said Anderson, who headed the CIA's Afghan task force in the late 1980s. "They've always been able to prevent a modernizing state force from extending its writ into the countryside."

Perhaps demonstrating the point is that polls indicate votes are going to fall largely along ethnic lines.

Karzai is a Pashtun, Afghanistan's largest ethnic group, while his top opponent, Abdullah Abdullah, is half Pashtun and half Tajik, the second-largest ethnic group.

Experts differ on whether the election will be a landslide or photo finish, but most agree Karzai has the advantage over Abdullah, a 48-year-old doctor who served as Karzai's foreign minister until 2006.

Another front-runner, Ashraf Ghani, has not been polling well. DeGennaro said it's because he refuses to bargain with powerful warlords and elders, a common Afghan means of garnering popular support.

While Karzai's and Abdullah's campaign headquarters have been bustling with people trying to form alliances with the next potential chief executive, Ghani has embraced a more grassroots approach.

"His compound is quite quiet. ... That's why he's not doing well," said DeGennaro, an adjunct associate professor at New York University who has taught classes on international intervention in Afghanistan.

Ghani is the best prospect for change, the professor said. He works with women and intellectuals, embraces Western-style governments and keeps human rights and social issues like literacy atop his agenda, she said.

Karzai, DeGennaro said, is more prone to bombastic promises. Afghans are increasingly weary of the war and violence in their country and Karzai has promised to boot U.S. troops out of major cities and curtail the deadly U.S. airstrikes in Afghanistan.

"It's definitely what Afghans want to hear, but he's never going to implement [his promises]," DeGennaro said.

Not much will change in Afghanistan if Karzai or Abdullah win, experts predict. In regard to human rights, the rampant opium trade and the U.S. military presence - a few of the top issues dogging Afghanistan - "there is no significant policy daylight between them on the key issues," Anderson said.

There is also little difference in the level of support that either man would receive from Washington, he said, adding, "Irrespective of who wins, the enemy isn't going to stop."

Though Americans are largely buffered from the violence and political turmoil that unfolds daily in Afghanistan, the Council on Foreign Relations' Markey said U.S. citizens should keep an eye on the nation.

"We should care about those troops, but we should also care about stability in Afghanistan so we don't see a return to something that looks like pre-9/11 Afghanistan," he said.

US energy experts due today: Holbrooke

KARACHI: President Barack Obama’s envoy for Pakistan and Afghanistan Richard Holbrooke announced on Wednesday that a team of US experts would arrive in Pakistan on Thursday to help address its energy crisis.

He told a news conference before flying to Afghanistan at the conclusion of his visit to Pakistan that the US would begin issuing 100 business visas every week in Karachi from next month and restore consular services next year through its consulate general.

Mr Holbrooke said the steps were being taken to strengthen bilateral ties and facilitate Pakistan’s access to international markets, especially the US.

He said the measure would be a major step in strengthening relations between the city of Karachi, the business community and the people of Pakistan and the US.

On his first visit to Pakistan’s economic hub, Mr Holbrooke underscored the ‘deep ties’ that bound the two countries and US support for the business community.

The US diplomat also focused on the energy crisis and the situation in Afghanistan.

He said the US had great confidence in Pakistani people and its resilient economy, which promised opportunities for the future. The US was working with the private sector to support policies envisaging innovation, employment opportunities and growth, Mr Holbrooke added.

Focused on the ‘plague of blackouts,’ he said energy shortfall presented a clear crisis for Pakistan.

He said the needs of Pakistani people must be addressed and assured that the US was prepared to help.

‘We also seek to engage the energy crisis of Pakistan which is a complex problem and cannot be solved through quick-fix measures. It needs a mix of resources and plans on appropriate use of fuel and generation capacity.’

As a first step, the US government is organising a Pakistan emergency energy task force to explore all possible means of engagements. In the short term, the US will hold a meeting with Pakistani officials in October in Islamabad.

A team of energy experts will arrive on Thursday to evaluate the situation and seek technical details, the US envoy said, adding that Washington was engaging many international financial institutions, including Exim Bank and the US Trade and Development Agency, the IMF, the ADB and the World Bank. The private sector would be critical in all the efforts, he said.

‘We have made a major turn in our relationship with Pakistan under President Obama by focussing on the needs of Pakistani people,’ he said.

AFGHANISTAN

In reply to a question about Afghan elections, Mr Holbrooke said: ‘There are 17 million people registered as voters in Afghanistan — five million more than the previous election. I can’t say how many polling stations will be closed tomorrow during elections. It is very difficult in Afghanistan to see perfect elections.’

On the possibility of negotiation with Taliban, the US envoy said: ‘This is not like World War II. This is a different war in which there is an equal threat to Afghanistan, Pakistan and the United States. We are fighting against a common enemy.’

Mr Holbrooke was pleased with the success of Pakistan Army in Swat and other parts of the northwest.
He acknowledged that a purely military solution was neither likely nor desirable.

He said the Taliban were fighting for many reasons -- some for guns, some for money and some for revenge.

Mr Holbrooke vowed to ‘continue to make efforts to succeed in Afghanistan’ and claimed to have made a lot of progress lately both in Afghanistan and Pakistan. He said there was room for anyone supporting Taliban to reintegrate into Afghan life after leaving Al Qaeda, laying down arms and starting life in accordance with the country’s constitution.

In reply to a question, he said: ‘Balochistan is a concern for all of us as tension seems to be rising, adversely affecting Pakistan and Afghanistan.’ But he declined to go further, saying it was for the government of Pakistan to deal with the issue.

He said the US had no presence in Balochistan nor were its troops present in Pakistan.

US negotiations with Russia for an alternative route for Nato supplies to Afghanistan would not affect the importance of Karachi.

Asked why the US could not create conditions for 2.5 million Afghan refugees to return home, he promised that it would be Washington’s priority after the Afghan elections.

He also talked about plans to set up economic opportunity zones along the Afghan border.

To a question about his reported remarks regarding President Asif Ali Zardari completing his term, Mr Holbrooke said the US wanted democratically elected representatives to complete their term.

‘We support the democratically elected government of Pakistan.’

Earlier, the US envoy met Sindh Governor Ishratul Ibad Khan and an MQM delegation and discussed development works.

A delegation of the PPP, led by Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah, also met him at the Governor’s House.

Mr Holbrooke termed development works carried out in Karachi unbelievable. Talking to journalists after visiting a city government school near the City Railway Station, he said measures taken by District Nazim Syed Mustafa Kamal had surprised him.

North Korean diplomats to meet US Governor Bill Richardson

Times Online
In a further sign of a possible thaw in relations between Pyongyang and Washington, two North Korean diplomats are to meet Bill Richardson, the Governor of New Mexico, today.

The meeting is being held at the request of Kim Myong-Gil, a minister at the North Korean mission at the United Nations, and will take place "for most of the day" in Santa Fe, a spokeswoman for Mr Richardson said.

She said that the diplomats had expressed interest in clean energy solutions being developed in New Mexico and stressed that Mr Richardson was not representing the administration of President Barack Obama.

But the meeting will inevitably be seen as a sign that Pyong Yang may be willing to be more conciliatory in its relations with the US and South Korea.

It comes just two weeks after former President Bill Clinton met North Korean leader Kim Jong Il in his successful mission to free two US journalists and after further conciliatory signs to South Korea.

Kim Jong Il sent a message of condolence to the family of Kim Dae Jung, the former President of South Korea, amid media reports from the South that a delegation from Pyong Yang would attend his funeral. Earlier this week the North also announced that it would restart several tourism ventures with South Korea.

The meeting comes as the first details emerge of Mr Clinton's visit to Pyong Yang this month, where he met a surprisingly fit-looking Mr Kim. According to the New York Times the men enjoyed "chit chat" during a long dinner together, with an "unexpectedly spry" Mr Kim suggesting that the two men stay up afterwards.

According to the New York Times, Mr Clinton's meeting with the Dear Leader was also at Pyong Yang's behest.

Officials in Washington told the newspaper that Mr Clinton had not asked to see Mr Kim, asking only for a meeting with "appropriate officials".

But his meeting has given the first substantive insight into Mr Kim's health and that of his rule.

After suffering a stroke last year, Mr Kim has looked increasingly frail in official photographs, leading to suggestions that he was about to stand down in favour of one of his sons. However officials accompanying Mr Clinton said that they were surprised at his apparent fitness and at the presence of two long-standing aides who were thought to have been pushed aside.

The men's conversation, however, did nothing to change the US perception of North Korea's nuclear ambitions, the newspaper said.

Mr Richardson, a veteran diplomat who served as US ambassador to the United Nations under Mr Clinton, has had a long relationship with the North.

He twice visited the country in the 1990s to secure the release of US citizens held prisoner there and has also met with diplomats from the North Korean UN mission twice before, in 2004 and 2006

In 1996, he negotiated the release of US citizen Evan Hunziker, an eccentric missionary who had been detained for three months on suspicion of spying after swimming the Yalu river.

Two years earlier, he helped free a US military helicopter pilot, Bobby Hall, who was shot down after straying into North Korean airspace.

Any warming in relations could be set back as South Korea prepares to launch its first rocket, just four months after Pyong Yang's own missile launch, which was punished with UN sanctions

The North has warned that it would "closely watch" the international response to South Korea's launch, scheduled for today.

South Korean officials have said that their rocket launch, carrying an observation satellite, is peaceful, and they hope that it will boost the country's aim to become a regional space power.

Yeom Ki-su, a Science Ministry official, said that the two-stage rocket, called KSLV-I, will carry a domestically built satellite aimed at observing the atmosphere and ocean.