Turkey's Erdogan presses Assad's envoy over unrest (Reuters)

ANKARA (Reuters) – Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan held crisis talks with an envoy of Syria's president on Wednesday as Ankara pressed its once well-regarded neighbor to end a crackdown on protesters that it has called "savagery."

Relations between Turkey and Syria have been strained as some 8,500 Syrian refugees have poured across the border into Turkey seeking sanctuary in makeshift camps of tents from an onslaught by President Bashar al-Assad's security forces.

Assad envoy Hassan Turkmani met for almost three hours with Erdogan, who has expressed impatience over Assad's repressive tactics and slowness to reform, as well as anger over a burgeoning humanitarian crisis.

No statements came out of the meeting. But Erdogan, who had a close rapport with Assad, had said before his re-election on Sunday that once the vote was over he would be talking to Assad in a "very different manner."

Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, the architect of Ankara's policy of cultivating closer ties with Middle East countries including Syria and Iran, went to the border and talked to refugees, including wounded men lying on beds in camp hospitals.

Seeing Davutoglu approach, the Syrians -- men, women and children -- gathered together chanting "Freedom" and "Erdogan."

"I'll talk to Turkmani and will share with him with all frankness what I saw. We are seeing a humanitarian situation here and developments are concerning," Davutoglu told reporters after visiting a camp in Yayladagi, across from the restive Syrian town of Jisr al-Shughour, 20 km (13 miles) away.

He said he would meet with Turkmani in Ankara on Thursday.

Turkmani told journalists before meeting Erdogan the refugees would stay in Turkey for a "short period of time."

"Soon they will be returning. We have prepared everything for them, they have started returning," he said.

Assad asked to send an emissary when he called Erdogan on Tuesday to congratulate him on winning a third term in office.

On Wednesday, a group of refugees in Yayladagi got their message out, chanting "People want freedom!" and "Erdogan help us!," while journalists watched on the other side of the gate.

The crowd was made up of veiled women and young men, some with children on their shoulders. Police did not interfere.

"THEY TREAT US LIKE INFIDELS"

With Assad facing mounting international condemnation, Erdogan has become regarded as a saviour by Syrian refugees.

A 36-year-old Syrian man in a street in the Turkish border village of Guvecci, who gave his name as Ahmed and refused to be filmed, gave a taste of what Davutoglu was likely to hear.

"We decided to flee to Turkey after learning troops arrived in Jisr al-Shughour: I, my wife and six kids. We heard they were burning down the city, including the mosques," he said.

"We came here to protect our family, we're not against them, but they fight us like we were infidels.

"I don't plan to go back until the situation improves there. Some of my relatives were wounded during protests in Jisr al Shughour, one of them was shot in the foot, two were killed, one was shot in the head and is in intensive care now."

Preparations are being made for another influx of refugees far to the east along the 800 km border.

A Turkish Red Crescent official, who requested anonymity, said more tent camps, able to shelter 10,000 people, were being set up near the Turkish city of Mardin and the town of Nusaybin.

Erdogan has called Assad several times since public unrest first broke out in Syria three months ago, each time urging reforms and an end to the bloodshed.

In a telephone call on Tuesday, Erdogan told Assad to avoid using violence against his people and advised him that reforms should be undertaken as soon as possible. Erdogan also raised concern over protests outside Turkey's embassy in Damascus.

The Turkish English-language newspaper Today's Zaman reported that some 2,000 demonstrators marched to the Turkish embassy in Damascus on Sunday and tried to hoist a Syrian flag.

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Gates presses US allies to do more against Libya (AP)

By ROBERT BURNS and BRADLEY KLAPPER, Associated Press Robert Burns And Bradley Klapper, Associated Press – 1 hr 8 mins ago

BRUSSELS – The Obama administration challenged five key military allies Wednesday to take on a greater share of the NATO-led air campaign against Moammar Gadhafi's forces, illustrating the strains of a three-month intervention in Libya that has no time frame for an exit.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates delivered the pointed message in a goodbye to his counterparts from NATO ahead of his retirement next month, senior American and British officials said. But none of the nations that were challenged pledged to do more.

The pressure on Germany, Poland, Spain, Turkey and Netherlands comes as the alliance continues with intensified airstrikes on Libya's capital and only a day after President Barack Obama played down any suggestions of a rift with German Chancellor Angela Merkel over her nation's lack of contribution to the war effort.

"Secretary Gates was very blunt," said Liam Fox, the defense secretary of Britain, which along with France has led the mission to protect Libyan civilians from Gadhafi's troops.

Gates said Spain, Turkey and the Netherlands should enhance their limited participation in noncombat operations by joining in strike missions against ground targets, U.S. officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss internal NATO deliberations. They said Gates pressed Germany and Poland, the two countries not participating at all militarily, to help in some form.

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton likely will restate Gates' argument Thursday when NATO nations and Arab governments participating in the air campaign meet in the United Arab Emirates.

"At each meeting, the international pressure is growing and momentum is building for change in Libya," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said.

Nuland and other officials accompanying Clinton to Abu Dhabi said the time had come to look at the next phase of the Libya situation — what replaces the despotic Gadhafi regime.

That means the U.S. and its partners will start looking at what fate — exile, prosecution or some third option — should befall the leader and his family. They also must consider the parameters for a future cease-fire between rebels and remaining Gadhafi loyalists, and then how to ensure a viable democratic process, according to U.S. officials who said these issues would be the focus of discussions in Abu Dhabi.

Gates, according to officials, said the additional military support wasn't needed to continue air operations for another 90 days, which has been welcomed by all 28 NATO countries. But he said it was a necessary element of fairness in an alliance built on the principle of shared burdens.

Eight NATO members are participating in air strikes in Libya: the U.S., Britain, France, Belgium, Canada, Norway, Denmark and Italy. Denmark and Norway in particular are contributing disproportionately, given the size of their militaries, U.S. officials said, and both are feeling the stress on their aircraft and crews as well as a financial strain.

These stresses, combined with the refusal of some alliance members to participate at all in offensive operations, are one reason U.S. officials believe NATO is excessively dependent on the United States for its advanced military power.

Britain echoed the U.S. concerns.

"There are other countries that have assets which we could be using, not necessarily ground attack, but in support and reconnaissance, in air-to-air refueling and so on," Fox said. "Too many are doing too little."

The U.S. and its allies say the upturn in NATO airstrikes is increasingly pinning Gadhafi into a corner, even as troops loyal to the erratic leader of 42 years lashed back with renewed shelling of the western city of Misrata on Wednesday, killing 10 rebel fighters. Yet NATO's strikes on Wednesday — at least four strikes during the day after five before dawn — reinforced the limits to its intervention.

Despite overwhelming aerial power, it has been difficult for the international coalition to end the threat from Gadhafi without overstepping its mission. NATO says it is scrupulously following the U.N. resolution calling for the protection of civilians, and not for the ouster of Gadhafi, who is vowing to fight to the death.

By singling out countries, Gates put longstanding allies on the spot at a time when NATO leaders are emphasizing their solidarity in the Libya mission. NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen told reporters Wednesday the alliance is well on its way to fulfilling the mission and paving the way for a post-Gadhafi period.

But nearly three months after operations started, no one can convincingly say how fast the intervention will be able to end. The opposition holds maybe a third of the inhabitable area of the country, but has struggled to make advances. And as long as Gadhafi's forces remain close to inhabitable areas, the threat to civilians persists.

The U.S. military moved to a secondary role after the initial period of air and naval bombardment that established a no-fly zone over the North African country and opened the door to the NATO-led air campaign.

Obama has declined to put U.S. warplanes back into an offensive role — aside from a relatively small number of planes targeting Libya's air defenses. But a few weeks ago the U.S. provided nine more aerial refueling planes to enable NATO to accelerate its bombing, the U.S. officials said.

Further U.S. escalation would face sharp scrutiny at home. On Wednesday, Democratic Sen. Jim Webb of Virginia and Republican Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee unveiled a resolution calling on Obama to seek congressional consent for military involvement in Libya and prohibiting American ground forces in Libya.

The measures builds on a resolution passed by the House last week rebuking Obama for failing to get authorization from Congress before ordering air strikes in March.

___

Klapper reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Mike Corder in Brussels and Matthew Lee in Abu Dhabi contributed to this report.

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U.S. presses China over human rights

China following U.S. debt crisisvar cnnWindowParams = window.location.toString().toQueryParams();if(typeof cnnWindowParams.video != "undefined") {if(cnnWindowParams.video) {cnnLoadStoryPlayer('business/2011/05/09/qmb.china.us.talks.cnn', 'cnnCVP1', '640x384_start_art', playerOverRide, T1);}} else {$('cnnCVP2').onclick = function() {if ($$('.box-opened').length) {$$('.box-opened').each(function(val){Element.fireEvent(val, 'click');});}cnnLoadStoryPlayer('business/2011/05/09/qmb.china.us.talks.cnn', 'cnnCVP1', '640x384_start_art', playerOverRide, T1);};$('cnnCVP2').onmouseover = function() {$('cnnCVP2').className = 'cnn_mtt1plybttn cnn_mtt1plybttnon';};$('cnnCVP2').onmouseout = function() {$('cnnCVP2').className = 'cnn_mtt1plybttn';};}Remarks by Clinton, Biden reflect tougher administration line on human rightsHowever, both urge more cooperation with ChinaChinese counselor says China has made "enormous progress" including "on human rights"Remarks came at the opening of the third U.S./China Strategic and Economic Dialogue

Washington (CNN) -- While urging more cooperation with China, senior U.S. officials Monday repeatedly stressed differences over human rights, reflecting a harder line from the Obama administration on a major disagreement between the two economic powers.

In opening remarks at the third U.S./China Strategic and Economic Dialogue in Washington, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said, "We worry about the impact on our domestic politics and on the politics and stability in China and the region. We see reports of people, including public interest lawyers, writers, artists and others who are detained or disappeared."

Vice President Joe Biden also addressed the opening, noting that "We have vigorous disagreements over human rights," adding, "I recognize that some in China see our advocacy in human rights as an intrusion and, Lord only knows, what else. But President Obama and I believe strongly, as does the secretary, that protecting fundamental rights and freedom such as those enshrined in China's international commitments as well as in China's own constitution is the best way to promote long-term stability and prosperity."

Chinese State Counselor Dai Bingguo, however, countered, noting the "enormous progress" China has made, "including on human rights."

Clinton called for continued economic cooperation with China, saying "fears and misperceptions linger on both sides of the Pacific."

"I will be very open about that," Clinton said. "Some in our country see China's progress as a threat to the United States; some in China worry that America seeks to constrain China's growth. We reject both of those views. We both have much more to gain from cooperation than from conflict. The fact is that a thriving United States is good for China and a thriving China is good for America."

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On military issues, Clinton said that to work together both countries must be able to "understand each other's intentions and interests," adding "we must demystify long-term plans and aspirations." For the first time, Clinton said, senior military officials from both sides are participating in the Dialogue to discuss how to reduce what Clinton called the "dangerous risks of misunderstanding and miscalculations."

Clinton also praised U.S.-China cooperation on sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program and on North Korea.

"We continue to urge North Korea to take concrete actions to improve relations with South Korea and to refrain from further provocations... And we want to see North Korea take irreversible steps to fulfill its international obligations towards denuclearization."

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