Briefing Skipper: Haiti, Iran, Syria, Omar al-Bashir

Posted By Josh Rogin Thursday, February 4, 2010 - 10:50 AM Share

In which we scour the transcript of the State Department's daily presser so you don't have to. Here are the highlights of Wednesday's briefing by spokesman P.J. Crowley:

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton met Wednesday with Bahraini Foreign Minister Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmed Al Khalifa.
Two Uighur Guantanamo Bay prisoners are headed to Switzerland, prompting quick protests from the Chinese Communist Party government. Latvia is also taking a Guantanamo prisoner, but since he's not a Uighur, the Chinese seem OK with that one.
Assistant Secretary Kurt Campbell is in Asia and met Wednesday with South Korean Deputy Foreign Minister Lee Yong-joon.
Crowley said he was not aware of any consular contacts between the U.S. and Haitian governments related to the 10 America missionaries arrested there for child trafficking. "First and foremost, is a judgment for the Haitian judge and whether he refers this case for further investigation. This is right now a matter in the Haitian judicial system," Crowley said, "As far as we know right now, we're satisfied with what's happening."
The State Department is still waiting for Iran to formally communicate to the IAEA their willingness to sign on to a nuclear fuel transfer agreement, as President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad recently announced. "We will look for actions as opposed to just words," said Crowley, "We're just seeking clarification through the IAEA as to whether Tehran has changed its current position."
"There are no negotiations taking place between the United States and Iran regarding a prisoner swap," Crowley added, "I think we're not interested in a swap, per se." There will be some kind of P5+1 consultation in the next few days.
Crowley said the White House has passed on a name to the Syrian government for the next U.S. Ambassador to Damascus and is waiting for a response, but he wouldn't not confirm that name was Baghdad DCM Robert Ford.
On the news that the ICC could charge Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir with genocide related to Darfur, Crowley said, "The United States strongly supports international efforts to bring those responsible for genocide and war crimes in Darfur to justice and believes firmly that there cannot be a lasting peace in Darfur without accountability and justice." Not sure if that jives with Scott Gration's suggestion of cookies and gold stars for Khartoum, "But in the absence of significant action by Sudan itself to investigate and prosecute those responsible for genocide in Darfur, this is an acceptable and - under the ICC, this is the kind - just the kind of case and circumstance that it was formed for," Crowley said, "At some point, Bashir has to get a good lawyer."