Briefing Skipper
In which we scour the transcript of the State Department’s daily presser so you don’t have to. Here are the highlights of Friday’s briefing by Department Spokesman Ian Kelly: Kelly wouldn’t say which American officials met with North Korean nuclear negotiator Ri Gun, but a State Department officials tells The Cable Ambassador Sung Kim met ...
In which we scour the transcript of the State Department’s daily presser so you don’t have to. Here are the highlights of Friday’s briefing by Department Spokesman Ian Kelly:
- Kelly wouldn’t say which American officials met with North Korean nuclear negotiator Ri Gun, but a State Department officials tells The Cable Ambassador Sung Kim met with Ri Saturday in NYC "to convey the U.S. position on denuclearization and the Six Party Talks and discuss the possibility of further talks." Kim went to San Diego Sunday for the Northeast Asian Cooperative Dialogue with principal deputy assistant secretary of defense Derek Mitchell. No decision yet on who will attend Friday’s session in NYC.
- The State Department is now looking toward the middle of this week for a decision from Iran on exactly how and how much they might let their low enriched uranium be transferred to a third country for processing. Meanwhile, inspectors have begun checking out the Qom plant. The hopes of another meeting between Iran and the P5+1 countries by the end of the month are narrowing.
- Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell will go to Burma, as early as next week, to meet with the junta there. "We’ve begun the dialogue, which is positive, but we are still working out exactly where we’ll go from here," said Kelly, "Nothing is confirmed at this point."
- The U.S.-Japan relationship is not in crisis, but there are some areas where disagreements could surface, Kelly acknowledged, while not responding to statements by Japanese Foreign minister Katsuya Okada, who said there was some flexibility on how to deal with the Futenma air base in Okinawa.
- Indian Prime Minister Monmohan Singh will come to Washington next month.
- State wants talks in Honduras between ousted leader Manuel Zelaya and de facto leader Roberto Micheletti to resume. "There’s a sense of urgency is because the clock is ticking," Kelly said, stressing the need to prepare for November elections.
Josh Rogin covers national security and foreign policy and writes the daily Web column The Cable. His column appears bi-weekly in the print edition of The Washington Post. He can be reached for comments or tips at josh.rogin@foreignpolicy.com.
Previously, Josh covered defense and foreign policy as a staff writer for Congressional Quarterly, writing extensively on Iraq, Afghanistan, Guantánamo Bay, U.S.-Asia relations, defense budgeting and appropriations, and the defense lobbying and contracting industries. Prior to that, he covered military modernization, cyber warfare, space, and missile defense for Federal Computer Week Magazine. He has also served as Pentagon Staff Reporter for the Asahi Shimbun, Japan's leading daily newspaper, in its Washington, D.C., bureau, where he reported on U.S.-Japan relations, Chinese military modernization, the North Korean nuclear crisis, and more.
A graduate of George Washington University's Elliott School of International Affairs, Josh lived in Yokohama, Japan, and studied at Tokyo's Sophia University. He speaks conversational Japanese and has reported from the region. He has also worked at the House International Relations Committee, the Embassy of Japan, and the Brookings Institution.
Josh's reporting has been featured on CNN, MSNBC, C-Span, CBS, ABC, NPR, WTOP, and several other outlets. He was a 2008-2009 National Press Foundation's Paul Miller Washington Reporting Fellow, 2009 military reporting fellow with the Knight Center for Specialized Journalism and the 2011 recipient of the InterAction Award for Excellence in International Reporting. He hails from Philadelphia and lives in Washington, D.C. Twitter: @joshrogin
More from Foreign Policy
Can Russia Get Used to Being China’s Little Brother?
The power dynamic between Beijing and Moscow has switched dramatically.
Xi and Putin Have the Most Consequential Undeclared Alliance in the World
It’s become more important than Washington’s official alliances today.
It’s a New Great Game. Again.
Across Central Asia, Russia’s brand is tainted by Ukraine, China’s got challenges, and Washington senses another opening.
Iraqi Kurdistan’s House of Cards Is Collapsing
The region once seemed a bright spot in the disorder unleashed by U.S. regime change. Today, things look bleak.
Sign up for World Brief
FP’s flagship evening newsletter guiding you through the most important world stories of the day. Delivered weekdays.
By submitting your email, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use and to receive email correspondence from us. You may opt out at any time.
