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US, Saudis progressing on religious freedom
| A reminder there's stuff going on behind the scenes that we don't see. Not that I expect much to come out of it, but he's giving it the try: he's offering the Soddies the chance to back off gracefully from their plans for world domination, pretend it never happened so we can all be friends. Eventually they may actually take that generous offer, but it'll only be after they've been backed into a diplomatic and — more important and more difficult — economic corner. He'd better get started on the economic war soon, since I have to fill my tank tomorrow. |
The United States has made important progress with Saudi Arabia during consultations on ways to enhance religious freedom in the kingdom, the State Department said Tuesday. The consultations began after the administration listed Saudi Arabia as a "country of particular concern" in a report last September that covered the state of religious freedom in more than 190 countries. Countries so designated can be subject to sanctions. Tuesday was the deadline for reporting to Congress on followup action but State Department spokesman Adam Ereli said more time was needed to evaluate the situation. Also designated for the first time as countries of particular concern last September were Vietnam and Eritrea.
Of the three, Saudi Arabia generated the most interest because the kingdom is a close US friend and had escaped US censure for religious intolerance previously. The report last September accused Saudi Arabia of "particularly severe violations" of religious freedom. Over the past six months, Ereli said the United States has been working for greater religious tolerance in all three countries. "We've made some important progress," Ereli said. "I think we're close to arrangements that respond to issues raised in the report." Perhaps with an eye on Tuesday's deadline, the Saudi government said last week in a statement that it has been carrying out a national public awareness campaign to educate Saudi citizens about the "true values of the Islamic faith and the importance of tolerance and moderation."
Posted by: Fred 2005-03-18 |
