Asia/Pacific

The Burmese opposition leader is on a two-week visit to the U.S.; she'll also meet with lawmakers on Capitol Hill

Sens. McCain, Graham and Lieberman warn conditions are "worrisome enough" to justify maintaining 68,000-strong force.

Burmese opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi kicked off her first official visit to the United States on Tuesday by reassuring China that her country's tightening ties with the United States doesn't signal a rupture with its giant neighbor.

China was the Burmese military regime's closest ally for several decades, and is worried that Burma's rapid democratization and improving ties with the U.S. and other western powers could undermine its influence as the Obama administration proceeds with its strategy of “rebalancing” toward Asia. Suu Kyi is visiting several U.S states over the next two weeks, starting with a busy schedule in the nation's capital, where she will receive the congressional Gold Medal on Wednesday.

“We can use our new situation to strengthen relations with all three countries,” Suu Kyi said in remarks at the U.S. Institute of Peace. 

The U.S. Embassy in the Caucasus nation of Azerbaijan on Monday issued an “emergency message” to Americans in the area warning them to be “alert and aware” as violent anti-American protests spread beyond the Middle East.

A protest, sparked by the American-made anti-Muslim video that has fueled riots in two dozen countries, is expected in front of the U.S. Embassy in Baku on Monday afternoon, the embassy warned. 

“The demonstration is assumed to be connected to other anti-American demonstrations ongoing worldwide,” the embassy warned. “Even demonstrations that are meant to be peaceful can become violent and unpredictable. You should avoid them if at all possible. Be alert and aware of your surroundings at all times.”

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The United States officially transferred its military prison at Bagram to control of Afghanistan's government on Monday. [The Washington Post]

The vice president of Iraq has been sentenced to death in absentia on terrorism charges. [The New York Times]

A bipartisan group of U.S. senators wrote to Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari on Friday blasting the country's blasphemy law following the arrest of a young Christian with an intellectual disability for allegedly burning pages of the Koran.

The senators write that the law's application to religious minorities violates their rights and called on Zardari's government to ensure their safety. The letter also asks for the girl, Rimsha Masih, to be released from jail; she could face life in prison or even the death penalty under Pakistani law.

“While we do not condone the destruction of any religious document or artifact or the defamation of any religion,” the letter states, “the application of Pakistan's blasphemy law undermines the State's obligation to protect the rights of all religious groups in Pakistan and in fact has repeatedly been used to harass and intimidate members of minority religious groups.” Read more...

Australia on Friday vowed to see its mission in Afghanistan through to its conclusion at the end of next year despite suffering its worst military losses since the Vietnam war, Agence France-Presse is reporting.

Three Australian troops were shot by an Afghan colleague in so-called “green-on-blue” violence and two others died in a helicopter crash within 24 hours this week. Defense Minister Stephen Smith, however, said the country would continue with its mission to progressively transfer power to Afghan forces in Uruzgan province, saying an immediate withdrawal would “increase the risk” of a Taliban resurgence.

“It doesn’t do anything to my resolve to stay the course,” Smith reportedly told reporters in Australia, “because staying the course is absolutely the right thing to do.”

Read more...

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Secretary of State Hillary Clinton holds talks in the Cook Islands today as the most senior U.S. official ever to attend the Pacific Island Forum, as the United States re-engages with long-ignored countries as part of its “pivot to Asia.” [AFP]

Election Day: Voters in Angola are expected to allow president Jose Eduardo dos Santos to extend his 32-year rule when they go to the polls today.[BloombergBusinessweek]

Three Australian soldiers were killed by a man in an Afghan army uniform in southern Afghanistan on Thursday, bringing the number of NATO soldiers killed in “green-on-blue” attacks to 45 this year.

Another two Australian troops were killed in a separate incident when their helicopter crashed Thursday.

“In a war of so many losses, this is our single worst day in Afghanistan,” Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard said, according to The Associated Press. “Indeed, I believe this is the most losses in combat since the days of the Vietnam War and the Battle of Long Tan. This is news so truly shocking that it’s going to feel for many Australians like a physical blow.”

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Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's visit to the Cook Islands on Friday underscores the strategic importance of even the farthest-flung archipelagos as the United States ramps up competition with China in the Pacific, writes The Los Angeles Times.

Iran's top nuclear scientist is back at work after being sidelined for several years, The Wall Street Journal reports.