United for Peace of Pierce County, WA - We nonviolently oppose the reliance on unilateral military actions rather than cooperative diplomacy.

Israel kept up its anti-Iran propaganda campaign on Monday as Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni lectured in China, claiming that "Behind almost every conflict that we have in the Middle East, one can see the long arms and shadow of Iran."[1] -- "Meanwhile," Amos Harel wrote, "Minister for Strategic Affairs Avigdor Lieberman has set up 12 working groups in cooperation with the defense establishment to deal with different aspects of the crisis over Iran's nuclear program." -- Lieberman is working to create a climate of "escalating crisis" and is tasking groups "focusing on monitoring the technological progress Iran is making toward developing nuclear weapons; the type of public relations activities Israel is undertaking on the issue; and the efforts being made to explain the situation to the public in Israel," YNet reported.[2] -- BACKGROUND: Lieberman, it will be recalled, is the racist leader of Yisrael Beitenu ('Israel [Is] Our Home'), whose main constituency is Israel's Russian immigrant community, and which in the past has proposed the transfer of Israel's minority Arab population. -- In October 2006 he was elevated to the position of deputy prime minister charged with overseeing "strategic threats to the country, specifically that posed by Iran." -- Lieberman's party finished fourth in the March 2006 general elections in Israel, and holds 11 seats in Israel's 120-member Knesset. -- Lieberman is politically ambitious and is widely believed to be positioning himself to bid for the post of prime minister. -- The New York Times classifies Avigdor Lieberman as "nationalist," "rightist," or "right-wing," but never acknowledges his racism, though this is clearly on display in documents like the one he presented Saturday night to Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert in anticipation of the U.S.-sponsored Mideast peace conference scheduled to take place in Annapolis by the end of the year.[2] -- In it, Lieberman identifies a "holy basin" that must remain under full Israeli sovereignty, lays down the non-negotiable principle that that "the State of Israel will not allow the right of return, not on the level of principles and not in humanitarian cases," demands that "the State of Israel's permanent borders will guarantee the continuation of the Jewish majority," and calls for an "exchange [of] territories and populations," which amounts to a plan for population transfer — essentially, a sanitized version of negotiated ethnic cleansing....

FM: WORLD MUST HALT IRAN NUKES REGARDLESS OF ECONOMIC INTEREST
By Amos Harel

[PHOTO CAPTION: Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni addressing university students in Beijing on Monday.]

Countries must unite in preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons technology, even if that clashes with their own narrow economic interests, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said Monday.

"Behind almost every conflict that we have in the Middle East, one can see the long arms and shadow of Iran," Livni said in a speech to university students in Beijing, where she is seeking Chinese support for new United Nation sanctions.

"If this dangerous regime . . . masters the technology of developing nuclear weapons, then the stability that we are trying to build in the Middle East will vanish," Livni said, citing Iran's support for militant anti-Israeli groups such as Hezbollah and Hamas.

China could play a crucial role in defusing the Iranian nuclear dispute by supporting tougher sanctions, she said, adding that pressure needed to be intensified before Iran mastered the means to produce nuclear weapons.

"China on this has a crucial role as a member of the Security Council of the United Nations," she said, adding that past efforts to impose sanctions had been diluted by compromise.

China, the four other permanent United Nations Security Council members -- the United States, Russia, France, and Britain -- and Germany are preparing to discuss a possible new resolution that Western powers want to authorize intensified sanctions against Tehran.

China agreed to two earlier rounds of Security Council sanctions against Tehran but, like Russia, has said it fears additional sanctions demanded by Washington and other Western powers will exacerbate tensions.

Iran has shrugged off earlier sanctions, insisting its nuclear program is peaceful.

"The nature of sanctions can only work if it is, and if they are, concrete, important to the other side and being taken by the international community in consensus," Livni told the audience of students and academics.

Livni also said China could play a positive role in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process by encouraging other Middle Eastern states to the table and encouraging what she called "moderates" in the process.

Livni's visit comes in a week highlighting China's growing but still cautious role in the volatile Middle East. Jordan's King Abdullah arrives in Beijing on Monday for a visit that will also address Middle Eastern conflicts.

While keeping solid ties with Israel, Beijing has sought to maintain strong ties with other Middle Eastern states that are traditional partners or supply much of its imported oil. Iran is China's third biggest supplier of imported crude oil, behind Angola and Saudi Arabia.

Livni's visit to China comes on the heels of a trip to Europe last week by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to discuss Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts with French and British leaders and push for new U.N. sanctions against Iran.

The intensive diplomacy is part of an effort to force Iran to abandon its nuclear program that Washington says is an attempt to acquire an atomic bomb.

While both the French and British leaders came out strongly in favor of new Iran sanctions, China has joined fellow permanent U.N. Security Council member Russia in opposing such measures.

Beijing generally shies away from signing on to measures that it considers undue interference in another country's internal affairs. China's need for export markets and energy resources has also prompted it to draw close to Iran and mute Western attempts to force the regime to change its policies.

Meanwhile, Minister for Strategic Affairs Avigdor Lieberman has set up 12 working groups in cooperation with the defense establishment to deal with different aspects of the crisis over Iran's nuclear program.

The conclusions and recommendations of the working group are expected to be included in a document Lieberman will present to the cabinet later this year.

In recent months, with the agreement of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Lieberman has intensified his involvement on the Iranian issue and has been holding regular meetings with relevant officials in the defense establishment.

This activity has resulted in a certain degree of dissatisfaction in Defense Ministry circles.

The meetings with Lieberman include representatives of the foreign and defense ministries, the Atomic Energy Committee, the Israel Defense Forces (with particular focus on Military Intelligence), and the Mossad intelligence agency.

The different working groups will be tasked to present the cabinet with an up-to-date picture of Iran's efforts to independently develop nuclear weapons and the various implications of the escalating crisis for Israel.

Some of the groups are focusing on monitoring the technological progress Iran is making toward developing nuclear weapons; the type of public relations activities Israel is undertaking on the issue; and the efforts being made to explain the situation to the public in Israel.

To date the cabinet has not often discussed the Iranian nuclear program, and Olmert has been holding periodic talks on the matter to monitor developments.

Notwithstanding the successful diplomatic foray of Olmert to Europe last week, during which both France and Britain expressed their complete support, intelligence assessments in Israel remain unchanged in their pessimism on the efficacy of economic sanctions, in their current form, to block Iran's efforts.

** In official document presented to Prime Minister Olmert, minister for strategic affairs draws red lines ahead of US-sponsored Mideast peace conference; says 'holy basin' in Jerusalem must remain in Israel's hands **

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Strategic Affairs Avigdor Lieberman drew his red lines on Saturday night in an official document presented to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert ahead of the U.S.-sponsored Mideast peace conference scheduled to take place in Annapolis by the end of the year.

Lieberman demanded that the permanent agreement with the Palestinians include an exchange of populations and territories, in a way which will guarantee the Jews a majority of 80% in the State of Israel.

He also demanded that the Palestinians halt all terrorist activities and deal with their economic problems before the permanent agreement is discussed.

The document released by Lieberman's office included the following objectives for the diplomatic negotiations with the Palestinians on the permanent agreements:

1. Israel's permanent borders will be based on historic, security-related, demographic, and geographic parameters.

2. Any future diplomatic agreement must guarantee the State of Israel's Jewish, Zionist and democratic nature.

3. Any future diplomatic agreement will include recognition of the permanent borders by the international community, the neighboring countries, and the Palestinians.

4. Any future diplomatic agreement will include a clause guaranteeing the end of the conflict, meaning no mutual demands in the future.

Lieberman demanded that Olmert determine Jerusalem's borders in a way that will leave the "holy basin" under full Israeli sovereignty, while implementing the religious ritual arrangements.

The borders of the "holy basin," according to Lieberman: From the east: The Mount of Olives and Mount Scopus; from the north: Sheikh Jarrah; from the south: Silwan and Mount Zion. The territory and population exchange principle will also apply to the refugee camps and villages near Jerusalem.

"The State of Israel will not allow a passage between Gaza and Judea and Samaria through its sovereign territory. This situation is similar to the reality which existed before June 4, 1967, as well as the reality before the establishment of the State of Israel."

Addressing the refugee issue, the Yisrael Beiteinu chairman ruled that "the State of Israel will not allow the right of return, not on the level of principles and not in humanitarian cases. This issue is definite and will not be negotiated."

Lieberman also outlined the principles guiding his party: "Entering negotiations on the permanent agreement requires first and foremost obtaining security for the State of Israel and a significant improvement in the Palestinians' economic situation.

"Any attempt to force a diplomatic arrangement before a substantial drop in terrorist activities, particularly the Qassam fire, and in a reality in which there is an unemployment rate of more than 80% on the Palestinian side – is destined to fail.

"A salutation [sic] to the conflict must be based on an agreement to exchange territories and populations, and the creation of a reality of two homogenous nation-states, so as not to create a situation in which the Palestinians have a state and a half and the Jews have half a state.

"This principle is crucial, particularly in light of the vision presented by the Israeli Arab Higher Monitoring Committee. We must not accept a reality in which a Palestinian state will be established without one Jew, while the State of Israel turns into a bi-national state with more than 20% minorities."

The minister also ruled that "the State of Israel's permanent borders will guarantee the continuation of the Jewish majority and the democratic regime, and will provide security for all its citizens.

"The permanent agreement which will be signed between the parties will constitute a joint and international agreement and will replace Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338. The international community is committed to be a side in the agreement, while providing guarantees and being actively involved in security-related, diplomatic and economic issues."

Lieberman also demanded that NATO forces be stationed in the territories should the Palestinians fail to create an effective security system to halt terrorist activities. He added that the United States and the European Union must invest directly in the Palestinian economy in order to guarantee an appropriate standard of living and workplaces for the Palestinians.

In his document, Lieberman ruled that the conflict was not territorial, but rather national-religious, and compared the situation to that in Kosovo, the Balkan peninsula, and northern Ireland.