Free Republic

Laura Rozen’s account of the behind-the-scenes action during the Iranian nuclear talks in Istanbul undermines the notion that President Obama is in control of the P5+1 diplomatic process that he fiercely defended during the weekend. As Rozen’s reporting makes clear, it is the European Union’s Catherine Ashton who was clearly in charge of the affair, and as long as that fierce critic of Israel is calling the shots, it’s unlikely the Iranians will surrender their nuclear ambitions. Indeed, by championing Iran’s right to nuclear development, which could be ultimately used for military purposes, Ashton may be steering the negotiations toward...

Question: What enabled the slaughter of Jewish children and soldiers in the French city of Toulouse by a Muslim steeped in radical, victim-centric, warped Islamist ideology? Answer: People like EU Foreign Policy Chief Catherine Ashton, an apologist for terrorist hate. She is the epitome of amoral, cowardly, politically correct, morally relativistic trash allowed by decadent, fearful Westerners to run amok at the top of their societies. This combination of a disconnected public and crazy political elite creates an atmosphere where lying bullies -- Islamo-fascist-leftists -- trample Western values, commit horrendous acts of ultra-violence, and shut down free speech. Meanwhile, people...

- FrontPage Magazine - http://frontpagemag.com - Obama, Iran and the 1939 SyndromePosted By P. David Hornik On March 7, 2012 @ 12:55 am In Daily Mailer,FrontPage | 1 Comment On Tuesday EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton announced that the group of six global powers—permanent UN Security Council members the U.S., Britain, France, China, and Russia plus Germany—were resuming nuclear talks with Iran at an unspecified time and place.She announced it just as Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu was in Washington trying to convince the U.S. leadership that neither diplomacy nor sanctions were coming anywhere near stopping Iran’s push to...

Juppe: It's our responsibility to bring to Israel's attention the unforeseeable consequences it [strike] would have. PARIS - French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said on Wednesday that it was important to ensure that Israel is fully aware of the potential consequences of a military strike on Iran. "There is still a debate in Israel (about a military strike) and it's our responsibility to bring to Israel's attention the unforeseeable consequences it would have," he said, signaling that France was wary of resorting to a military strike. Related: •'Israel must be ready to strike Iran if talks fail'•PM: Israel has acted...

Catherine Ashton Wikimedia CommonEuropean Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton raced to assure Palestinian Authority officials they were still on the EU dole. “Ashton informed Abbas that the EU projects to the PA and the Palestinians which are carried out in the Palestinian Territories, won’t be frozen due to the PA Leader move at the UN,” the Arabic-language Al-Quds newspaper reported, citing sources close to PA chairman Mahmoud Abbas. Ashton's assurances come on the heels of reports the United States Congress was blocking the transfer of $200 million to cash-strapped officials in Ramallah due to Abbas' statehood gambit at the...

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton on Tuesday (17 May) said the bloc's response to events unfolding in the southern neighbourhood is not at all "a marginal activity", citing evacuations from Libya, the opening of an office in Benghazi and humanitarian aid. Speaking alongside US secretary of state Hillary Clinton, Ashton stressed the need to keep "remembering what the European Union is and what it is not, and it's bringing together the 27 member states to support action and activities in a recognition of the principles that we hold dear." "It doesn't mean that on every...

The Arab League on Saturday announced it would host next week a conference on war-wracked Libya, which will be attended by UN chief Ban Ki-moon and the European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton. The April 14 gathering will focus on political solutions to the crisis and "reinforce coordination between the Arab League, UN, African Union and Organisation of the Islamic Conference (OIC)," league number two Ahmed Ben Helli said. Amr Mussa, who heads the 22-member pan-Arab body based in the Egyptian capital, OIC chief Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu and Jean Ping, head of the African Union Commission, will also attend the...

"Air Force strikes in Gaza" SNIPPET: "IDF retaliates for deadly Qassam attack: Air Force hits several Gaza targets, including metal foundry, smuggling tunnel; Vice PM Shalom says Israel to offer strong response to rocket attack that killed Thai worker Thursday" SNIPPET: "IDF aircraft struck at least four targets in the Gaza Strip on Friday, a day after a rocket fired from the Palestinian enclave killed a Thai worker in Israel, Hamas security officials and witnesses said." SNIPPET: "Israel also sent a letter of complaint to United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who is due to visit Israel at the weekend,...

The European Union's Lisbon Treaty has come into force with the aim of streamlining EU decision-making. The first EU president also took office along with the bloc's new foreign policy chief. The European Union welcomed the Lisbon Treaty with a ceremony in Lisbon, Portugal where the text was first signed. Getting all 27 EU states to ratify it however, was a long and arduous process that was only completed last month. The new treaty lays out a series of fundamental changes within the European Union, including creating the bloc's first permanent president. That job has gone to former Belgian prime...

Just a short update on an important story this week. I will be talking about it on Jimmy DeYoung's Prophecy Today on the radio tomorrow. As I have mentioned before, the EU's new foreign policy chief officially began took her position on December 1. I noted that I thought this diplomatic corps aspect of the EU would move quickly and take the helm of foreign policy for the EU. The policy chief, Catherine Ashton, speaking at the EU Parliament, came out strongly against the state of Israel. She called East Jerusalem "occupied territory." She demanded the immediate lifting of the...