Obama and Sarkozy Rendezvous in Paris

Get out of Iraq, stop the drone attacks, and get a state for Palestine

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama’s Nobel Prize was more of a nudge toward peace than a recognition of his accomplishments in pursuit of it. Juan Cole of Salon offers some ways Obama could live up to the award:

• Get out of Iraq on time. We’ve done what we can, and the sides there are more likely to compromise without us.
• Don’t bomb Iran. It would make them rush to build a nuclear weapon at all costs; our only option would be full-scale war.

Briefed military last night, will reveal number and other details tomorrow

(NEWSER) - After weeks of deliberation, President Obama has settled on a new strategy for the war in Afghanistan and ordered the military to carry it out. The exact size of the troop escalation has not been announced, but sources put the number in the neighborhood of 30,000 more troops. The president started informing military leaders last night and will explain his plan in detail in a national speech tomorrow from the US Military Academy at West Point. More»

(NEWSER) - Yesterday's surprise announcement at the G20 summit of the existence of a hidden Iranian nuclear enrichment facility wasn't the way President Obama planned to handle the information, Politico reports. His hand was forced by a reporter who learned of a letter in which Iran notified the UN's nuclear watchdog agency in Vienna of the previously undisclosed site under construction since 2005 in a mountain near Qom. More»

The president may face tough questions on N. Korea, Iran, and climate change

(NEWSER) - President Obama will get a respite from America’s rancorous political scene when he appears at the United Nations next week, but he may find international squabbles just as heated, Economist writes. An enthusiastic multilateralist, Obama is loved by leaders around the world. But topics like North Korea, Iran, and climate change could blow a little chill into their international love-fest. More»

(AP) - Barack Obama and his French counterpart, Nicolas Sarkozy, stood together today on thwarting Iran's nuclear ambitions and furthering a Mideast peace that provides for separate Israeli and Palestinian states. "We want peace. We want dialogue. We want to help them develop. But we do not want military nuclear weapons to spread," said Sarkozy of Iran, adding that he worries about "insane statements" from Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. More»