Unfortunately that headline is only for this day. Yes April First the day for April first jokes and scams. Sorry to get your hopes up but it is 01 April 2009.
In reality Mrs Clinton, Obamas Secretary of State hopes to hand out the Olive branch to so called moderate taliban insurgents.At the meeting in The Hague Tuesday she said, Quote: We must ... support efforts by the government of Afghanistan to separate the extremists of al Qaeda and the Taliban from those who have joined their ranks not out of conviction, but out of desperation, .
Nearly eight years after the U.S.-led invasion to topple the Taliban rulers of Afghanistan, more than 70,000 U.S. and NATO troops are still there battling a growing insurgency, which is also spreading its influence in Pakistan.
The Pakistani Taliban said on Tuesday they had carried out an attack which killed eight cadets in a police academy in the Pakistani city, Lahore They should be offered an honorable form of reconciliation and reintegration into a peaceful society, if they are willing to abandon violence, break with al Qaeda, and support the constitution, Clinton said.
This is all well and good, but the question still persists what of the Canadian troops who have held far more than other NATO countries to the principles of security and reconstruction. Even the Russians gave their input at Tuesdays meeting.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also signaled a greater readiness by Moscow to help reconstruct Afghanistan.
We need to combine the antiterrorist measures with the socio-economic measures to rebuild Afghanistan and in future Russia is quite ready to participate in that effort, he said. Then the Iranians gave their two cents worth.
Akhoundzadeh reaffirmed Iran's long-standing opposition to the presence of foreign troops in Afghanistan, which has left it facing an American military presence both there and in neighboring Iraq.
The presence of foreign forces has not improved things in the country and it seems that an increase in the number of foreign forces will prove ineffective too, Akhoundzadeh said.
But he added: Iran is fully prepared to participate in the projects aimed at combating drug trafficking and the plans in line with developing and reconstructing Afghanistan.
So what will next April Fools day bring? Hopefully a far truer headline and success for NATO Allies in their longest running mission to date.
Please show your support,Islanders at the Red Rally in the DVA building Atrium in downtown Charlottetown.Noon hour Friday the 3rd April.Perhaps even an MLA or two may show up to show their support for our troops serving away.Also don't forget the Red Rally Run on Saturday the 4th.
Nil Sine Labore
Robby
