Karzai's first post-victory speech; Taliban claim responsibility for disrupting election; North Korea bomb pressure mounts; Australia's economy recovers; Czech ruling on Lisbon Treaty; and more
Top of the Agenda: Afghan Corruption
Afghan President Hamid Karzai did not indicate a plan to fight corruption Tuesday in his first speech since he was declared winner of the country's disputed presidential election. Though Karzai said he wanted to tackle corruption, he did not commit to specifics (NYT) on reorganizing his administration.
Asked whether he would change key ministers and officials, he said, "These problems cannot be solved by changing high-ranking officials. We'll review the laws and see what problems are in the law and we will draft some new laws."
His speech followed comments by U.S. President Barack Obama that urged the Afghan government to tackle the rampant corruption and drug trade that have contributed to the Taliban's resurgence.
Meanwhile, the Taliban claimed success (Reuters) in disrupting the electoral process with their attacks, including an assault on a UN guesthouse last week that killed five UN staff members
Analysis
The Guardian reports that the deals Karzai struck with "unsavory powerbrokers" during his election campaign may compromise his anti-corruption campaign, since the new government will likely be obligated to reward the dealmakers.
CFR's Max Boot says in Commentary Magazine that U.S. General Stanley McChrystal must continue the counterinsurgency campaign or risk "devastating and unnecessary defeat."
Background:
CFR's Stephen Biddle testifies before the U.S. House Committee on Armed Services on U.S. options in Afghanistan.
PACIFIC RIM: North Korea Nuclear Development
North Korea put more pressure (NYT) on the United States by declaring it has completed reprocessing of bomb-grade plutonium. In September, the country told the UN Security Council it was in its "final phase" of reprocessing 8,000 fuel rods unloaded from its nuclear reactor in Yongbyon to "weaponize" plutonium in the rods.
Australia: Australia's central bank raised interest rates (FT) by a quarter of a percentage point to 3.5 percent for the second time in just over a month, a sign that its economic recovery is accelerating. It is the only central bank in the developed world to have increased rates twice since the financial crisis. Norway and Israel have raised rates once.
Elsewhere:
-Secretary Clinton's comments on Israeli settlements anger Arab states
-Czech constitutional court rules on Lisbon Treaty.
This is an excerpt of the CFR.org Daily News Brief. The full version is available on CFR.org