What they're saying…

Excerpts from editorials from newspapers throughout the world, on current events, from the Associated Press

London Times, on Russian influence in Uzbekistan:

Russia is behaving as if nothing outrageous has happened in Uzbekistan, and as if the progress of the past 15 years had not happened. Moscow's response to the killing of at least 169 and possibly as many as 745 people in the Ferghana Valley in the past week, mostly unarmed civilians, has been worthy of Molotov himself. The violence was provoked by foreign extremists, the Russian Foreign Minister has said, parroting President Karimov of Uzbekistan. These extremists are terrorists: hunting them down is thus a counter-terrorism operation, and the responsibility of "any self-respecting state" defending its national security.

All of which is unsurprising but deeply troubling. Translated from diplomatic code, it amounts to a stern warning that whatever may have transpired in Ukraine, Kyrgyzstan or Georgia, the Kremlin does not now intend to let Uzbekistan slip from its "sphere of influence." Such thinking reflects Moscow's dangerously outdated view of foreign policy as a zero-sum game. It should not pass unchallenged. ...

The scale of the recent atrocities is becoming clearer. If Russia is allowed to condone them, autocrats in neighbouring Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan will be encouraged to resort to similar tactics. If the U.S. is perceived to have failed to condemn such deeds forcefully, it risks losing the moral authority that it has won in the region since Sept. 11, 2001, and damaging its strategy to promote freedom.

Bahrain Tribune, Manama, on the fallout from Newsweek's article about Koran desecration:

Newsweek's retraction of its story that U.S. investigators found evidence interrogators at Guantanamo Bay desecrated the Holy Koran has put a big question mark on the credibility (if any) of media giants. Responsibility, honesty and fairplay are necessary pillars for sensible journalism. If any of these elements is missing in the profession, the results may be disastrous -- for the public and the country. ...

Although it would be premature to conclude that Newsweek has lost all its dependability, it would not be unwise to demand that the publication do more to repair damage caused by the article. ...

Condoleezza Rice said "it has also done a lot of harm to America's efforts" to demonstrate tolerance and breed goodwill in the Muslim world.

Need one remind her of the torture skills some Bay soldiers brazenly demonstrated in the past? The world would never have known, if the media had not exposed the systematic torture and humiliation faced by Bay detainees. ...

With these horror stories still fresh in mind, one looks at the Newsweek episode with suspicion. Was the whole story a drama pre-planned as part of an attempt to improve U.S. image in the Muslim world? Was it stage-managed to make it look like real?

Kathimerini, Athens, Greece, on the financial success of the 2004 Olympics:

The Athens 2004 Organizing Committee should be distinguished as a model to be imitated by state-run but also private enterprises for its absolute success in organizing last year's Olympics.

The Games were staged without any hiccups despite the extremely demanding nature of the project -- especially for a country of Greece's size -- and the committee still succeeded in making a 7-million-euro overall profit. ...

Certain commentators have pointed out that the profit announced by ATHOC is "provocatively" insignificant when compared to the total cost of organizing the Games -- just under 9 billion euros, nearly double the original budget.

But such a comparison is prejudiced and completely unfair. The committee undertook the organization of the Games on the basis of a specific budget -- which it not only balanced but also made a profit upon -- and had no involvement whatsoever in the construction of costly sports venues and other infrastructure works, which were the sole responsibility of the state.

And whether the government wants to accept it officially or not, this successful "experiment" should be used as a guide for future activities in the public.