Mubarak’s Son Proposes Nuclear Program( Egypt)

[RedEarth]

CAIRO, Sept. 19 — Gamal Mubarak, the son of Egypt’s president, proposed Tuesday that his country pursue nuclear energy, drawing strong applause from the nation’s political elite, while raising expectations that Mr. Mubarak is being positioned to replace his father as president.

The carefully crafted political speech raised the prospect of two potentially embarrassing developments for the White House at a time when the region is awash in crisis: a nuclear program in Egypt, recipient of about $2 billion a year in military and development aid from the United States, and Mr. Mubarak succeeding his father, Hosni Mubarak, as president without substantial political challenge.

..........

He also said in a clear reference to the White House: “We do not accept visions from abroad that try to dissolve the Arab identity and the joint Arab efforts within the framework of the so-called Greater Middle East Initiative.”

When President Bush called for promoting democracy in the Middle East, he looked to Egypt as a leader in that effort. But with all the chaos in the region, and with the United States in need of strong allies, the administration has backed off on pressing for democracy here.

Instead, it has witnessed the country reversing earlier gains, arresting political opposition figures, beating street demonstrators, locking up bloggers, blocking creation of new political parties and postponing local elections by two years.


http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/20/world/africa/20egypt.html?hp&ex=1158811200&en=37b5ee3587b9617f&ei=5094&partner=homepage

[pinerow]

1. And the race is on...

nt

[bemildred]

2. Another US satrapy considering disobedience. nt

[Tempest]

3. First Saudi Arabia and now Egypt

A WH press reporter needs to ask Bush how his Mid East inititative is coming.

[pinerow]

4. Wow..."satrapy"...Shows my age...I haven't seen that term

in use since I last read Kipling...lol...

[bemildred]

5. "Despot" is from the Byzantines, IIRC.

But the modern connotations of that are not what I meant, "despot" tends to get conflated with "tyrant" and "dictator" and the like; where what I meant is more in the line of "stooge ruler", which "satrap" seems to fit better.

[MisterP]

8. Bush: "satrap? Iranian aggression!!! *faints*"

[NOLADEM]

6. Why, do they have something we want?

[Tellurian]

7. Bush I started this deal. Providing nuclear enrichment programs to Iraq...

Now, they all want them and if our sales team of Bush&Cheney LTD.
refuse to provide them they'll go to the Super Wallmart across the street.

They opened Pandora's Box when they started providing the ME with nukes.