Today in Washington (June 16, 2009)
- Viddler
Today in Washington (June 16, 2009)
Obama says “deeply troubled” by Iran poll violence - Obama says “deeply troubled” by Iran poll violence US President Barack Obama said yesterday that he was “deeply troubled” by the recent violence in Iran, but made it clear that Washington wanted to avoid becoming a “handy political football” in the election dispute. Obama said: “It is up to Iranians to make decisions about who Iran’s leaders will be. We respect Iranian sovereignty and want to avoid the United States being the issue inside of Iran, which sometimes the United States can be a handy political football – or discussions with the United States.” But, in spite of the “deep differences that exist between the United States and Iran on a range of core issues,” Washington would continue to pursue some “tough, hard-headed diplomacy” with Tehran to prevent a nuclear armed Iran and ensure that that country was not “exporting terrorist activity.” U.S. urges Iran to consider allegations of voting irregularities US State Department spokesperson, Ian Kelly, said yesterday that Washington “has doubts” about the results from Friday’s presidential election in Iran. Asked about European calls for an investigation into voting irregularities, Kelly said: “Iran needs to take seriously these allegations and needs to examine these accusations very thoroughly.” Kelly added that the U.S. had “deep concerns” about the violent protests throughout Iran in response to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s disputed landslide victory. He said: “We see a real desire of the Iranian people to express themselves, to be involved in the political process. And that right needs to be respected.” Iran not doing enough to combat human trafficking, says US The United States said today that Iran was not making efforts to combat human trafficking there, which it described as “extensive”. The State Department said in its 2009 “Trafficking in Persons Report”: “The government By WashingtonTV Tags : footage , iran , news , tv , video , washington , washingtontv
Viddler | June 17, 2009
