Briefing Skipper: Clinton-Okada, Gaza, P5+1, Abu Dahbi
In which we scour the transcript of the State Department’s daily presser so you don’t have to. Here are the highlights of Tuesday’s briefing by acting deputy spokesman Gordon Duguid: Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada won’t just focus on the Futenma basing issue, said Duguid. "They find that ...
In which we scour the transcript of the State Department’s daily presser so you don’t have to. Here are the highlights of Tuesday’s briefing by acting deputy spokesman Gordon Duguid:
- Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada won’t just focus on the Futenma basing issue, said Duguid. "They find that this will be a good time to talk about wider issues, such as North Korea, Iran and Burma, as well as engagement with China."
- Special Envoy George Mitchell was in Brussels and met with the EU Political and Security Committee known as the Paris Group and then also had bilateral meetings with EU Foreign Affairs Chief Baroness Ashton, Tony Blair and with Spanish Foreign Minister Miguel Moratinos.
- Special Envoy Richard Holbrooke was in Abu Dahbi but has now moved on to Pakistan. Assistant Secretary for Western Hemisphere Arturo Valenzuela is in Chile where he met with President Michelle Bachelet, Minister of Foreign Affairs Mariano Fernandez, Minister of Finance Andre Velasco, as well as presidential candidates Eduardo Frei and Sebastian Pinera.
- Duguid rejected the accusation by Iran that America was somehow involved in the bombing death of nuclear scientist Masoud Ali Mohammadi. "The idea, the discussion, the charge that the United States had anything to do with a murder in Tehran today is absurd," he said.
- Cautious support for the Egyptian move to build a wall to stop tunnels from Gaza. "I think I’ve given you our position that we need to stop weapon smuggling into Gaza, and this wall is being built in that effort," Duguid said.
- No confirmation that the next P5+1 meeting on Iran will be Saturday (toward the end of this week, Duguid said) and as for the substance, "We will be looking at specific measures, of course." Clinton said the sanctions should target the elite, but that’s not what the congressional bills say.
- No comment on the reports that Egyptian police were beating American women on the streets of Tahrir Square.
- The State Department would welcome, but is not explicitly calling for a review of the acquittal of Sheikh Issa bin Zayed Nahyan, the member of Abu Dahbi’s royal family who was let go despite being caught on video torturing an Afgani man.
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
Saudi-Iranian Détente Is a Wake-Up Call for America
The peace plan is a big deal—and it’s no accident that China brokered it.
The U.S.-Israel Relationship No Longer Makes Sense
If Israel and its supporters want the country to continue receiving U.S. largesse, they will need to come up with a new narrative.
Putin Is Trapped in the Sunk-Cost Fallacy of War
Moscow is grasping for meaning in a meaningless invasion.
How China’s Saudi-Iran Deal Can Serve U.S. Interests
And why there’s less to Beijing’s diplomatic breakthrough than meets the eye.
Sign up for Morning Brief
Foreign Policy’s flagship daily newsletter with what’s coming up around the world today. 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.
