Global News Journal
Beyond the World news headlines
Gaddafi and Lukashenko – coming in from the cold?
Posted by Andrei Makhovsky and Salah Sarrar
Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko and Libyan leader
Muammar Gaddafi found they had plenty in common when they met in
Minsk this week.
Both their countries have started to come in from the cold after years of
international isolation and sanctions that were imposed on their
countries because of their policies.
They also share a vision of a multi-polar world to
counterbalance U.S. influence.
But despite their efforts to improve ties with the West,
they could not avoid a dig at Washington.
“We both see as a key issue that the world must be
multi-polar. We already know what a unipolar world leads to,” Lukashenko said.
Long list of enemies in Syria blast
One of the problems with countries like Syria – secretive and authoritarian – is that whenever a bomb goes off or someone is assassinated, the list of possible suspects is extensive.
One can draw up a long list of enemies who could have plotted and carried out Saturday’s rare car bomb attack on a major road near a Syrian state security complex and an intersection leading to a famous Shi’ite Muslim shrine. The blast, which killed 17 people including a brigadier general and his son, poses another test to Syria’s reputation for keeping a tight grip on dissent and maintaining stability in a troubled area.
Gaddafi – No longer “Mad Dog” of Middle East
Once called the “mad dog of the Middle East” by President Ronald Reagan, Libya’s leader Muammar Gaddafi will meet U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice this week.
Senior State Department official David Welch told reporters he had met Gaddafi — “a person of personality and experience” — several times.
