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Obama to avoid corridor discussions
Photo: AP
Ahmadinejad. Unwanted
Photo: AP

Obama preparing for diplomatic dance at UN

US president to take part in many events this week apart from three-way summit with Israeli, Palestinian leaders. On the agenda: Nuclear programs, epidemics, military entanglements, and a stubborn attempt to avoid Iranian, Libyan leaders

WASHINGTON – US President Barack Obama is in for a long week at the United Nations General Assembly. When the discussions open Tuesday, the American president will be forced to do a lot of footwork and avoid eye contact, handshakes and hugs with unwanted leaders.

 

At this stage, it appears the president's associates will invest a lot of efforts in being non-united with many of the nations' leaders, at the United Nations building.

 

Obama will arrive in New York on Monday evening for a series of meetings at the margins of the assembly, one of the most important ones being his three-way summit with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

 

On Wednesday, the US president will host a festive reception. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and infamous Zimbabwean leader Robert Mugabe have not been invited.

 

US Ambassador to the UN Susan Rice has already clarified that Obama has no plans for small talk with the Iranian president in the corridors, and that he would leave the auditorium immediately after delivering his speech so as not to be in the same room with Ahmadinejad, despite his remarks during the election campaign that America "has to talk to its enemies."

 

These days, as the West is vigorously preparing for its multilateral talks with Iran, it's clear to Obama that he must prepare for meetings with enemies, rather than provide them with propaganda.

 

Crowded discussions – and roads

A variety of issues are on Obama's agenda during the General Assembly discussions: The Iranian and North Korean nuclear programs, the war on al-Qaeda, the problems in Pakistan and the war in Afghanistan, global warming, genocide and mass torture, an attack on computerization systems, and epidemics.

 

All these issues will be put aside for a few moments, as the president meets with Netanyahu and Obama and poses to the camera with them in order to demonstrate his commitment to the peace process.

 

So Obama is preparing for the diplomatic dance, but those who will have to work as well are the New York Police Department, the FBI, and the Secret Service, who are securing the roads near the UN building on the west, and patrolling the river on the east.

 

Another famous building which has been fortified is the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, which will serve as the American delegation's headquarters. New York's residents are also in for a lot of footwork, in light of the heavy traffic jams expected.

 


פרסום ראשון: 09.21.09, 18:28
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