More Foreign-Policy Crises Loom for U.S.
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Reported by Sandra I. Erwin
If the U.S. government needs a truly compelling reason to aggressively
tackle the AIDS crisis in Africa, now it has one: Al Qaeda leaders
are considering recruiting suicide bombers among the terminally
ill, who would have nothing to lose, said Rear Adm. Chris Parry,
director of joint doctrine and concepts at the U.K. Ministry of
Defense. “They have AIDS and they are going to die anyway,”
he said. “It’s a huge problem.” An AIDS crisis
also is brewing in Russia. A combination of AIDS, terrorism and
economic doldrums has turned that country into a hopeless “basket
case,” Parry said.
The United States, meanwhile, should work on developing a “grown-up”
relationship with Iran, Parry said. “I think that once you
stop being paranoid, Iran is a place where you’ll be taking
holidays in 20 years.” If America plays Iran right, he added,
“You’ll have a good relationship, even if, at the end
of the day, you can’t stop them from getting nuclear weapons.”