- Washington's hawks have sent a public manifesto to President
George Bush demanding regime change in Syria and Iran and a Cuba-style
military blockade of North Korea backed by planning for a pre-emptive strike
on its nuclear sites.
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- The manifesto, which was sent on Tuesday, is presented
as a "manual for victory" in the war on terrorism. It also calls
for Saudi Arabia and France to be treated not as allies but as rivals and
possibly enemies.
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- The manifesto is contained in a new book by Richard Perle
(pictured), a Pentagon adviser and "intellectual guru" of the
hardline neo-conservative movement, and David Frum, a former Bush speechwriter.
They warn of a faltering of the "will to win" in Washington.
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- In the battle for the President's ear, the manifesto
represents an attempt by hawks to break out of the post-Iraq doldrums and
strike back at what they see as a campaign of hostile leaking by their
foes in such centres of caution as the State Department or in the military
top brass.
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- Their publication, An End to Evil: How to Win the War
on Terror, coincided with the latest broadside from the hawks' main enemy,
the Secretary of State, Colin Powell.
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- Though recovering from prostate cancer, Mr Powell summoned
reporters to his bedside to hail "encouraging" signs of a "new
attitude" in Iran and call for the US to keep open the prospect of
dialogue with Tehran.
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- Such talk is anathema to hawks like Mr Perle and Mr Frum,
who urge Washington to shun the mullahs and work for their overthrow in
concert with Iranian dissidents.
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- The book demands that any talks with North Korea require
the complete and immediate abandonment of its nuclear program.
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- As North Korea will probably refuse such terms, the book
urges a Cuba-style military blockade and overt preparations for war, including
the rapid withdrawal of US forces from the South Korean border so that
they move out of range of North Korean artillery.
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- Such steps, with luck, will prompt China to oust its
nominal ally, Kim Jong-il, and install a saner regime in North Korea, the
authors write.
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- The authoritarian rule of Syria's leader, Bashar Assad,
should also be ended, encouraged by shutting oil supplies from Iraq, seizing
arms he buys from Iran, and raids into Syria to hunt terrorists.
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- The book calls for tough action against France and its
dreams of offsetting US power. "We should force European governments
to choose between Paris and Washington," it says.
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- The Telegraph, London
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- http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/12/31/1072546588325.html
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