Photo: Ako Rasheed/Reuters

Security forces have raided the farm of prominent Sunni tribal leader Sheikh Ali Hatem al-Suleiman, seeking to arrest him.

Al-Suleiman, emir of the Dulaim tribes, has been instrumental in setting up the "Army of Pride and Dignity", a tribal force in Ramadi and elsewhere in Anbar Province, west of Baghdad.

The emir said that dozens of Army of Pride and Dignity members later tracked down the Iraqi army convoy that conducted the raid and clashed with it, freeing three farmers who had been seized.

"This is it; enough is enough. We will attack every Iraqi army checkpoint in Anbar if they don't withdraw from Anbar province immediately," Al-Suleiman said. "We will not accept any talks or negotiations with the government anymore."

Yemen: Expulsion of Yemeni Workers from Saudi Arabia

Al Jazeera English posts an overview of the impending expulsion of Yemeni labourers from Saudi Arabia, announced in April and coming into effect from 3 July.

Saudi Arabia has also resumed the construction of a 1800-kilometre (1125-mile) border fence flanking Yemen.

Tunisia: Salafists Persist With Meeting Despite Ban

The Salafist movement Ansar al-Sharia has vowed to go ahead with its annual congress at the weekend in defiance of a Government ban.

"We are not asking permission from the government to preach the word of God and we warn against any police intervention to prevent the congress from taking place," the Ansar al-Sharia spokesman Seifeddine Rais told a news conference in Tunis. "The government will be responsible for any drop of blood spilt."

Rais said that more than 40,000 people were expected at the planned meeting on Sunday in the historic central city of Kairouan.

Rached Ghannouchi, the leader of the ruling Islamist party Ennahda, said Wednesday that the gathering was banned because organisers did not get permission from the authorities as required by law.

Minister of Interior Lotfi Ben Jeddou said last week that he would bring to justice "anyone inciting to murder or hatred.. or who pitches tents for preaching in."

Bahrain: 6 Twitter Users Given Prison Sentences

Six Twitter users have been sentenced to one year in prison each for "misusing the right of free expression", allegedly insulting King Hamad. The six Twitter users were accused of writing remarks "undermining the values and traditions of Bahrain's society towards the king on Twitter".

Egypt: 7 Security Officers Abducted in Sinai

Three policemen and four army officers travelling from Arish to Rafah in the northern Sinai Peninsula have been kidnapped.

The identity of the captors is unclear.

The Government has been trying re-establish authority in the area after the 2011 Revolution.

Egypt: Resignation of Senior Advisor in Key Loan Talks

A senior advisor in the Ministry of Finance involved in talks on a vital $4.8 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund has resigned, suggesting that bureaucrats supporting the Muslim Brotherhood had meddled in his work.

Khallaf was head of the ministry's public debt unit.

"They try to disrupt my work and interfere in it as well as marginalize me....There is no link between my ideas and theirs," Khallaf said of new appointees, saying they had a "political nature".

Egypt: Judiciary Talks with President Suspended

The Supreme Judicial Council has suspended talks with President Mohammed Morsi over a controversial bill that would remove thousands of senior judges.

Critics say the bill would pave the way for Islamist judges to take over the judiciary and solidify Morsi's power, while backers say it seeks to remove remnants of the ousted Mubarak regime.

The Council's six judges met Morsi last month, and the two sides agreed to form a committee of legal experts that would draft legislation to reform the judiciary.

Iraq: Bombs Kill 35+ on Wednesday

Attacks in mainly-Shia areas of Baghdad and in northern Iraq killed more than 35 people on Wednesday, following weeks of violence by Sunni Islamist insurgents determined to unleash sectarian confrontation.

A string of car bombings across the capital on Wednesday evening, including one outside a cafe and another at a market, killed at least 22 people and wounded dozens more.

Earlier, 10 people were killed when two car bombs exploded near government buildings in Kirkuk in northern Iraq.

A suicide bomber on a motorcycle blew himself up near a police patrol in northern Baghdad, killing at least two officers, while a roadside bomb killed a policeman in a town near Mosul, 390 kilometres (240 miles) to the north..

Hardly a day goes by without an "expert" declaration about the global spectre of Al Qa'eda.

On Sunday Peter Bergen and CNN gave a shout-out to the "Al Qa'eda brand" --- you know, a terrorist version of McDonald's ("I'm Bombin' It") or Nike ("Just Jihad It"). "Analysts" and media maintained the reduction of the Syrian conflict as one in which "self-professed Al Qa'eda affiliates" were taking over and threatening Western interests --- offering little of substance in their portrayal of the situation on the ground and the factions in the Syrian insurgency.

But how can you become one of these "experts", out-Bergening the Bergens to get your own segment on CNN? Here's our handy 4-step guide:

1. Find a Really Catchy Title
2. Create a Catchy Brand
3. Tie It to the Notion of the "Enemy"
4. Apply It to Any Situation in the World

Armed groups surrounding two ministries in Tripoli have formed an alliance with a list of six demands including the resignation of Prime Minister Ali Zeidan.

The groups initially demanded that Parliament pass the "political isolation law" banning from public service any senior official who held a position under the ousted Qaddafi regime.

They presented the expanded list of demands to Reuters late Wednesday. The conditions include the freezing of a recently-released state budget and the right to form a committee to take charge of the Foreign Ministry.

Meanwhile, a rival coalition that said it supported the Government warned gunmen at the ministries it was prepared to use force to dislodge them.

"If you do not respond to our demands, we will form a common national force from all the cities of Libya to handle this situation," the coalition, including federalists in eastern Cyrenaica and leaders of former insurgent groups, said.

Prime Minister Zeidan promised the Government would pursue the plans to bar anyone who held a senior position under Qaddafi and said some ministers would have to be replaced under legislation passed on Sunday.

Zeidan also defended the armed groups, saying they had a right to express their views as they saw fit: "We don't have militias in Libya, we have revolutionaries."

The Prime Minister also denied that Parliament had bowed to the pressure of gunmen, insisting the new law was necessary to protect the ideals of the revolution.

The Government's Joint Security Force claimed it cleared irregular brigades from 56 buildings across Tripoli, including militia from the capital, Kikla, Zintan, and Ghariyan.

The force, a joint initiative of Ministries of Interior and Defence, was formed six weeks ago. It says it is still waiting for authorisation from the Attorney General to clear a further 15 buildings in the capital’s Garghour district but that the authorities have so far declined, citing sensitivities because of the brigades --- all from Misurata --- involved.

Troops Protecting Government Building in Tripoli

Libya: Clashes Over "Exclusion" Legislation

Hundreds of demonstrators have protested against armed groups demanding the exclusion of officials from the regime of Muammar Qaddafi, who was overthrown in October 2011.

Several hundred people gathered in Tripoli's Algeria Square on Friday to protest against the gunmen, who have surrounded the Ministries of Justice and Foreign Affairs. They waved placards such as "The era of the militias is over", "Attacks on the ministries are attacks on the Libyan people", and "No to weapons, yes to dialogue."

When the crowd marched to Martyrs' Square, they were challenged by supporters of the law to exclude the Qaddafi-era officials from top government posts.

The crowd then left the square for the prime minister's office to "express Tripolitans' solidarity with the Government and the legitimate authorities in the country," an organiser said.

Under increasing pressure over the measure, the General National Council said on Monday that it was suspending plenary sessions until Sunday.

It said the delay was needed to give political blocs in the GNC time to examine the bill to reach a compromise on the law.

GNC Vice President Salah al-Makhzoum said a compromise had been reached among the political blocs by adding "exceptions" in the bill in order to retain key individuals in the administration.

He said the bill is expected to be voted on next week.

Libya's army had taken up positions earlier on Friday at strategic sites around the capital, and soldiers in pickup trucks mounted with machine guns were also deployed on Martyrs' Square ahead of the protests.

Egypt: Mubarak Appeal for Release Rejected

The Criminal court has rejected former President Hosni Mubarak's second appeal for his release from prison, during the investigation of charges of illicit gain from his position.

The court ordered Mubarak to remain in detention for 15 days while the charges are investigated.

Libya: Gunmen Surround Foreign Ministry

A military official says about 200 armed men are surounding the Foreign Ministry building in Tripoli, demanding the ministry reform and hire former fighters who helped overthrow the Qaddafi regime.

Esam al-Naas said 38 trucks, some mounted with machineguns, were around the Ministry. The protesters allege that many supporters of the Qaddafi regime are still occupying senior positions in the ministry and its missions abroad.

Al-Naas said negotiations with the protesters are underway and that no one has entered the ministry building.

Iraq: Authorities Suspend Al Jazeera

The Communications and Media Commission has suspended the licences of 10 satellite television channels, including Al Jazeera, beyond they "adopted language encouraging violence and sectarianism".

Sharqiya, a leading channel in Iraq, is among the outlets barred from covering events or moving personnel around the country.

The ban comes amid escalating, mainly-Sunni protests against the Government and five days of clashes between security forces and demonstrators in northern Iraq that have killed at least 215 people.

Egypt: Mubarak Appeal Behind Closed Doors

A judge has barred the media from today's appeal by former President Hosni Mubarak against detention while charges of making illicit gains using his position are being pursued.

Even if he wins the appeal, the 84-year-old Mubarak will not be released, as he still faces detention in two other corruption cases.

Mubarak was sentenced to life in prison in June 2012 of charges of complicity in the killing of protesters during the January-February 2011 uprising that toppled him. The conviction was overturned on appeal, however, and Mubarak faces a retrial this spring.

Israel: Debate on Extending Detention of "Security Suspects"

A committee of the Knesset will debate tomorrow over extension of an emergency law that allows security suspects to be detained for longer periods that prescribed by law, before they are brought before a judge or given access to a lawyer.

Egypt: President Meets Judiciary

President Morsi has invited all heads of judicial bodies to meet with him on Sunday to discuss a resolution for ongoing disputes over the future of the country's judiciary.

The Muslim Brotherhood, of which Morsi is a member, and other Islamist groups have been calling on the Shura Council to pass a law reducing judges' retirement age from 70 to 60.

In the latest clash, the National Conscience Front, largely consisting of Islamist figures, lambasted veteran judge Ahmed El-Zend, a fierce opponent of Morsi, for "demanding foreign interference".

Israel: Officials --- No Charges Against Israeli Soldiers Under Agreement with Turkey

Israeli officials have said that a deal between Israel and Turkey, over the May 2010 incident in which Israel's commandoes killed nine Turkish civilians on a Gaza-bound flotilla, will prevent Turkish citizens from filing criminal charges against Israel Defense Forces soldiers and officers.

Last month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu finally apologised to Ankara over the incident, and talks have followed on reparations to families of the victims. Another round of discussions is scheduled this week.

Israel: Air Force Hits Gaza Targets

Israeli aircraft struck three claimed sites of the Islamic Jihad group in Gaza early this morning.

The Israel Defense Forces said it was responding to rocket fire: "The IDF will not tolerate any attempt to harm Israeli civilians, and will not allow for a return to the reality before Pillar of Defense [the eight-day war in Gaza in November] where Israeli civilians are threatened."

Egypt: The Shutdown of the Egypt Independent News Site

On Thursday, the leading English-language news site Egypt Independent shut down after four years in operation.

Staff said the management of the Al-Masry Media Corporation abruptly closed the site, ordering a last-minute stoppage of publication on Wednesday "after scrutinizing the issue’s content". The journalists subsequently put out a final issue on the Web.

In a final article, editor Lina Attalah set out the mission of the Independent and the challenges it faced:

How can we navigate through the rigidity of the journalistic form? How can we narrate a story through our multilayered subjectivities? How do we emancipate ourselves from predetermined notions of representation?

How do we create affect? How do we engage? How do we afflict? How do we comfort? How do we become active mediators as opposed to silent vehicles of information?

We didn’t develop full answers, but kept asking and investing in a practice that constantly activated these questions.

At moments we did well. At others we failed. But we knew we wanted to continue, despite repeated threats of closure.

Attalah then described how threat became reality, through a note left with the office receptionist:

Abdel Moneim Saeed, the new chairperson of the Al-Masry Media Corporation board, said closing Egypt Independent, which he argued had only constituted a financial burden on the institution, was a measure of his capacity as “a surgeon who has to conduct the fine operation of letting go of the child in order for the mother to survive.”

This morning's car bomb outside the French Embassy in Tripoli (Sabri Elmhedwi/EPA)

1936 GMT: Iraq.

At least 36 people have been killed and more than 70 have been injured in clashes in Iraq. Sunni protesters clashed with police this morning in Hawijah this morning, sparking the violence. That, in turn, has sparked protests across the country. The Independent reports:

As news of the clashes spread through Sunni Iraq, street protests erupted in solidarity with Hawijah, a Sunni bastion 30 miles west of Kirkuk. Some 1,000 people took to the streets in Fallujah, west of Baghdad, after calls for protests broadcast from the minarets of mosques. “War! War!” was the chant of some. In Ramadi, capital of Sunni Anbar province, crowds threw stones at a military convoy, overturning and setting fire to a Humvee.

The violence in Hawijah started at 5am when security forces, backed by helicopters, entered the protesters encampment. The Defence Ministry claims the demonstration had been infiltrated by militants, of whom it says 20 were killed along with an army officer and two soldiers. The army reported finding weapons including 34 Kalashnikovs and four PKM machine guns, and made 75 arrests. In response to the raid there were attacks on two army checkpoints near Hawijah in which 13 people died.

Protesters say security forces provoked the violence. “They invaded our sit-in, burned the tents and opened fire indiscriminately and killed and wounded dozens,” Abdulmalik al-Juburi, a leader of the Hawijah sit-in told AFP. “This pushed Arab tribesmen to go to the streets and attack several checkpoints to avenge protesters. We only have four rifles to protect the sit-in, and there are no wanted people among us.”

Video showing Sunnis attacking Iraqi army vehicles in Anbar youtube.com/watch?v=UoN3ug… #iraq

— Wladimir(@vvanwilgenburg) April 23, 2013

The situation has rarely been so complicated in Iraq. The police say that they were targeting the insurgent group Naqsh-bandiya Army. Now, there is concern that this group will respond. Furthermore, there is concern that the group's response may be popular among Sunnis when it does respond.

0830 GMT: Iraq

At least 26 people have been killed in clashes between security forces and Sunni Muslim demonstratorrs in the north in Hawija, near Kirkuk.

Violence erupted when security forces raided an anti-government protest camp.

The Ministry of Defence said in a statement that troops responded after being attacked by gunmen in the camp. Protesters said they were unarmed when the army opened fire.

0640 GMT: Libya

A car bomb has exploded at the French embassy in Tripoi, injuring two guards.

"There was an attack on the embassy. We think it was a booby trapped car," a French official said. "There was a lot of damage and there are two guards wounded."

Diplomatic missions have been targeted elsewhere in Libya, as in September's attack on the US mission in Benghazi that killed the US ambassador and three other Americans, but this is the first attack on a diplomatic post in the capital.

IMF's Lagarde & Egypt's President Morsi

On Friday, throngs of protesters called for the "purging of the judiciary," as most judges were appointed by the Mubarak regime, and recent decisions have acquitted top-ranked members of the Mubarak regime of any wrongdoing.

Today, Ahram Online reports that current Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi has met with the Prosecutor-General Talaat Abdullah and the Supreme Judicial Council today, a day after the Justice Minister resigned.

1335 GMT: Egypt

A Cairo criminal court has accepted the prosecution's appeal against a release order for former President Hosni Mubarak in his trial on graft charges.

Mubarak, who was in court for the hearing, will remain detained for at least a 15-day period pending further investigation into the case.

The judge ruled against the release because the order was issued by the misdemeanor court, which has no jurisdiction over the matter.

Release orders are under the jurisdiction of the criminal court, the ruling added.

Mubarak's lawyer Farid El-Dib told the media he would file a new appeal for the release of his client with the criminal court.

The editor of the newspaper Ummah, Amara Hassan Al-Khatabi, has been released on bail as he faces charges of defaming and insulting the judiciary.

A new hearing had been set for 23 June. Al-Khatabi faces a maximum of 15 years in prison.

The editor was arrested almost four months ago after he published a list of 87 judges whom he declared were corrupt.

There had been a number of protests at his imprisonment awaiting trial, including appeals for his release from Minister of Justice Salah Marghani and Minister Culture Habib Mohammed Al-Amin.

0850 GMT: Libya

Egyptian prosecutor Hamdi Mansour has ordered that Ahmed Qaddaf Al-Dam, first cousin and former aide of former Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi, be tried for attempted murder, resisting arrest, and possession of unlicensed firearms.

The charges stem from a skirmish with police during Qaddaf Al-Dam's arrest last month in Cairo.

Qaddaf Al-Dam was the long-time Libyan liasion with Cairo during the Qaddafi era. He recently challenged a Libyan request for his extradition.

An Egyptian court recently ruled in Qaddaf Al-Dam's favour on grounds that he might not be guaranteed his full legal rights in post-revolution Libya. Qaddaf Al-Dam's lawyers say their client bears Egyptian nationality, so cannot be extradited.

Libya has asked Egypt to hand over about 100 former Qaddafi regime officials.

0830 GMT: Egypt

The International Monetary Fund and Cairo continue to speak of agreement on a $4.8 billion IMF loan "in the coming weeks", following this weekend's talks between IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde and an Egyptian delegation in Washington.

A joint statement said of the Egyptian officials, including Central Bank Governor Hisham Ramez and Minister of Finance Al-Mursi Hegazy:

[They] are firmly committed to addressing Egypt's economic and financial challenges with the objective of restoring sustained and socially-balanced growth, and they are already taking encouraging actions in this direction.

Work will continue with the objective of reaching agreement on an IMF Stand-By Arrangement to support the authorities' national economic program in the coming weeks.

The IMF and Egypt have been unable to reach agreement in months of talks. Last November, Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi briefly introduced a wide set of tax rises, a condition for the loan, but he almost immediately withdrew them.

On Saturday Lagarde said the IMF would remain engaged in loan negotiations with Egypt but also wanted the international community to provide financing, saying the IMF "cannot be the only one" to help prop up Egypt's economy.

"It's a task and we will not give up, we will not leave the table," she declared at a news conference.

]]>http://www.enduringamerica.com/home/rss-comments-entry-33419752.xmlChina and East AsiaDavid AlbrightEA GlobalEA IranEA LiveEA Middle East and TurkeyIranIraqMiddle East and IranNorth KoreaSyriaScott LucasSat, 20 Apr 2013 06:28:19 +0000http://www.enduringamerica.com/home/2013/4/20/ea-video-analysis-introducing-the-love-triangle-of-profilera.html497390:5781342:33414698

Ten years ago, it was the Axis of Evil --- Iraq, Iran, and North Korea.

Today, it is the "Nexus of Proliferation", with Iran and North Korea still featured and Syria replacing the fallen Saddam Hussein.

This 8-minute analysis explains how members of Congress and an "expert" --- step up, Dr David Albright of the Institute for Science and International Security, the man who has declared dangers of the Iranian nuclear programme such as "Magnets of Doom" and "Pink Tarpaulins" --- has given us this new label for the Threat to America.

Protesters in Kuwait on Wednesday night (Photo: AFP)

1445 GMT: Bahrain. As journalists convene to cover the Formula 1 race, the Bahraini police have detained a team of foreign journalists as well as a Bahraini reporter.

Just after 2:30 pm local time, an ITN news team, along with Bahraini journalist Naziha Saeed and their driver, were stopped at a checkpoint and taken to Budaiya police station.

This is hardly the first time foreign journalists have been detained inside Bahrain. It's unknown whether or not the journalists will be released soon.

1010 GMT: Libya

A Libyan passenger plane with about 150 passengers on board was hit as it prepared to land at Tripoli airport on Wednesday evening but sustained no major damage.

The Buraq Air Boeing 737 was a few miles (kms) from the capital's airport when the incident occurred.

It was not immediately clear whether the episode was accidental fire or an attack.

"As the plane prepared to land at Tripoli airport, it was hit on the bottom, in the lavatory at the front of the plane," a Buraq Air source said. "The plane landed safely afterwards."

A second airline source added: "We do not know exactly what happened but we believe this was accidental fire. Security at the airport has been stepped up and so far nothing suspicious has been found."

0620 GMT: Kuwait

Riot police fired tear gas and stun grenades on Wednesday night at an estimated 10,000 demonstrators,  protesting against authorities for raiding the house of a key opposition leader.

Several protesters were wounded in the clashes.

The police acted after Special Forces with assault rifles searched the home of former MP Mussallam al-Barrak, seeking to arrest him to serve a five-year prison term for insulting the Emir.

The crowd marched on a police station southwest of Kuwait City. Police pushed them back with tear gas and stun grenades, and protesters responded with fireworks and stones.

Barrak, who says he is prepared to go to prison at any time, had refused to turn himself in three times in the past two days because MInistry of Interior  officials failed to produce an original arrest warrant.

The former lawmaker described the raid on his house as a "cowardly action by the government" and said some of his relatives were beaten up and badly treated.

Kuwaiti courts have already sentenced at least 10 former opposition MPs and tweeters for insulting the Emir. The orders come amid moths of protests, challienging the Emir's amendment of electoral laws and calling for politial reforms.

See also Syria Live: "We Are Stronger Than Those Who Would Divide Us"
Friday's Israel (and Beyond) Live: A Quiet "Freeze" on Settlement Expansion?

1925 GMT: Palestine. West Bank Prime Minister Salam Fayyad has submitted his resignation to President Mahmud Abba, despite US efforts for him to stay on.

"Fayyad met Abbas for half an hour in the president's headquarters in Ramallah in the West Bank and officially handed him his written resignation," a Palestinian official said.

Abbas tasked Fayyad with the role of caretaker for the current government until a new Prime Minister is appointed, another official said.

Late Friday, US Secretary of State John Kerry telephoned Abbas to press him to find common ground with his prime minister over economic policies, Palestinian officials said.

A senior Palestinian official said Fayyad had had his letter of resignation prepared since 23 March but put off submitting it because of a visit to Israel and Palestine by US President Barack Obama and Abbas's overseas trips.

1715 GMT: Libya. Seventeen armed supporters of former leader Muammar Gaddafi were captured after an attack on a police post in the southern town of Sebha on Friday, a local security official said.

Ahmed al-Atteibi, head of the town's military council, said a police guard and two comrades were killed in the attack, during which the assailants seized vehicles and weaponry.

Armed forces spokesman Colonel Ali Shikhi said the group were transferred to prisons in Tripoli.

1625 GMT: Mali. Medicins Sans Frontieres have released a report on the Malians displaced by months of conflict --- 270,000 inside the country and 170,000 refugees:

The refugees rely completely on outside assistance and humanitarian aid for their survival, including such basic needs as food, water, shelter, and medical care.

So far the humanitarian response has been far from adequate. Aid agencies including UNHCR and the World Food Program (WFP) have been slow to respond to the continued influx of new refugees, resulting in high levels of malnutrition amongst children who have been in the camps for several weeks. In temperatures of 50 degrees, refugees receive only 11 liters of water a day, and shelter and sanitation have been vastly inadequate for their needs. Recently, the provision of food, water, and sanitation has improved, but the situation is still extremely precarious and aid organizations need to maintain their humanitarian response for as long as necessary.

1015 GMT: Egypt. Ousted Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak was taken back to Cairo's Maadi military hospital after the judge presiding over his retrial announced he was stepping down.

The judge, Mustafa Hassan Abdullah, apologised for his decision and said he was referring the case to the Cairo appeals court, according to Egyptian daily al-Masry al-Youm. The BBC reported "chaotic scenes" and shouting in the courtroom as Abdullah made his announcement.

0715 GMT: Egypt. Rami Almeghari reports on the construction of paved roads and building of housing units in Gaza, courtesy of Qatar’s $400 million pledge to upgrade infrastructure.

0545 GMT: Egypt. Former President Hosni Mubarak goes on trial again today, accused of complicity in the murder of protesters during the uprising that toppled him in February 2011.

Mubarak was sentenced to life in prison last June, but Egypt's highest appeals court ordered a retrial in January.

Mubarak, former Minister of Interior Habib El Adly, and four top aides face the charges of involvement in the killing of more than 800 demonstrators in the 18-day uprising. Mubarak's two sons, Gamal and Alaa, face retrial on charges of financial corruption.

The former president could have been given the death penalty last spring but will not face that prospect today --- under Egyptian law, he cannot receive a harsher sentence than he did during his original trial.

Mubarak was sent to Tora Prison after being convicted last year and was then moved to a military hospital.  While his sons were cleared of the charges in the trial, they remain in prison pending other corruption investigations.

Listen to discussion from 37:04 mark

The take-away on the surface is that a lot of the relationship was symbolic, with Thatcher's exploitation of it --- given her challenge to notions of "society" in Britain --- even greater than Reagan's effect in the US.

The shrewd listener, however, will be able to detect further thoughts behind carefully-chosen words.