CHICAGO // The US president-elect Barack Obama will unveil his national security team today with former rival Hillary Clinton picked as secretary of state and Robert Gates staying on as defence secretary.
The pair, who have been at odds with Mr Obama in the past over foreign policy and defence issues, will have the task of implementing Mr Obama's vision for "renewing" America's leadership in world affairs, rebuilding its image abroad, and overseeing two wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Today's announcement has been given added emphasis by last week's rampage in India's financial capital of Mumbai by gunmen who killed nearly 200 people, including at least five US citizens, ratcheting up tensions with nuclear-armed rival Pakistan, which New Delhi said was linked to the attacks.
With polls showing most Americans more concerned about the dire state of the economy than national security, Mr Obama spent much of last week naming leading members of his economic team and presenting himself as a strong chief executive officer.
But the Mumbai attacks were a timely reminder that Mr Obama will not have the luxury of focusing only on fixing the economy as he succeeds the outgoing president George W Bush. His vice president-elect, Joe Biden, warned during the presidential campaign that Mr Obama could be tested by a national security crisis within six months of taking office on Jan 20.
US authorities warned last week of a possible al Qa'eda threat to transit systems in and around New York City, although they added there was no specific information to confirm the plot had developed "beyond aspirational planning".
A Democratic official confirmed Mr Obama had chosen Mr Gates and Ms Clinton, as well as retired Marine Gen James Jones as national security adviser. They will be named at a Chicago news conference at 10.40am local time.
Other positions were likely to be announced, possibly including the Arizona Gov Janet Napolitano as head of homeland security, the former Justice Department official Eric Holder as lawyer general and Susan Rice, an Obama foreign policy adviser, as UN ambassador.
US media say the defence secretary, Mr Gates, who had previously said he wanted to leave at the end of the Bush administration, has agreed to stay on, although it is not clear for how long.
While Mr Gates avoided direct criticism of Mr Obama during the election campaign, he has advocated policies that have been at odds with Mr Obama on issues such as the Iraq war.
Mr Obama wants to withdraw US troops from Iraq within 16 months of taking office, but Mr Gates has argued against setting timetables and a quick pullout, saying it could jeopardise the security gains that have been made over the past year.
However, Mr Gates, praised by Democrats and Republicans since taking over the Pentagon from Donald Rumsfeld in 2006, would provide continuity at the Pentagon while the United States fights two wars, in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Mr Obama clashed with Ms Clinton during a bitter campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination. Ms Clinton famously ran an advertisement depicting a 3am crisis call at the White House to argue that Mr Obama, a first-term Illinois senator, was not ready to be commander-in-chief.
Ms Clinton has also tended to talk tougher, once saying she would "obliterate" Iran if it attacked Israel. She criticised as "naive" Mr Obama's call for direct presidential-level engagement with foes like Iran and North Korea.
But Ms Clinton broadly sides with Mr Obama in supporting a greater emphasis on engagement in US foreign policy.
The New York Times reported on Saturday that Ms Clinton's husband, former President Bill Clinton, had agreed to make public the names of more than 200,000 donors to his foundation as part of a deal with Mr Obama to clear the way for his wife to become secretary of state.
The newspaper said Mr Clinton had decided to publish his contributor lists to avoid any appearance of conflict of interest with his wife's duties as secretary of state.
A member of Mr Obama's transition team confirmed to Reuters the conditions of the agreement as reported by the Times.
* Reuters
Specs
Engine: Electric motor generating 54.2kWh (Cooper SE and Aceman SE), 64.6kW (Countryman All4 SE)
Power: 218hp (Cooper and Aceman), 313hp (Countryman)
Torque: 330Nm (Cooper and Aceman), 494Nm (Countryman)
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh158,000 (Cooper), Dh168,000 (Aceman), Dh190,000 (Countryman)
Game Changer
Director: Shankar
Stars: Ram Charan, Kiara Advani, Anjali, S J Suryah, Jayaram
Rating: 2/5
The Facility’s Versatility
Between the start of the 2020 IPL on September 20, and the end of the Pakistan Super League this coming Thursday, the Zayed Cricket Stadium has had an unprecedented amount of traffic.
Never before has a ground in this country – or perhaps anywhere in the world – had such a volume of major-match cricket.
And yet scoring has remained high, and Abu Dhabi has seen some classic encounters in every format of the game.
October 18, IPL, Kolkata Knight Riders tied with Sunrisers Hyderabad
The two playoff-chasing sides put on 163 apiece, before Kolkata went on to win the Super Over
January 8, ODI, UAE beat Ireland by six wickets
A century by CP Rizwan underpinned one of UAE’s greatest ever wins, as they chased 270 to win with an over to spare
February 6, T10, Northern Warriors beat Delhi Bulls by eight wickets
The final of the T10 was chiefly memorable for a ferocious over of fast bowling from Fidel Edwards to Nicholas Pooran
March 14, Test, Afghanistan beat Zimbabwe by six wickets
Eleven wickets for Rashid Khan, 1,305 runs scored in five days, and a last session finish
June 17, PSL, Islamabad United beat Peshawar Zalmi by 15 runs
Usman Khawaja scored a hundred as Islamabad posted the highest score ever by a Pakistan team in T20 cricket
McIlroy's struggles in 2016/17
European Tour: 6 events, 16 rounds, 5 cuts, 0 wins, 3 top-10s, 4 top-25s, 72,5567 points, ranked 16th
PGA Tour: 8 events, 26 rounds, 6 cuts, 0 wins, 4 top-10s, 5 top-25s, 526 points, ranked 71st
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Key findings
- Over a period of seven years, a team of scientists analysed dietary data from 50,000 North American adults.
- Eating one or two meals a day was associated with a relative decrease in BMI, compared with three meals. Snacks count as a meal. Likewise, participants who ate more than three meals a day experienced an increase in BMI: the more meals a day, the greater the increase.
- People who ate breakfast experienced a relative decrease in their BMI compared with “breakfast-skippers”.
- Those who turned the eating day on its head to make breakfast the biggest meal of the day, did even better.
- But scrapping dinner altogether gave the best results. The study found that the BMI of subjects who had a long overnight fast (of 18 hours or more) decreased when compared even with those who had a medium overnight fast, of between 12 and 17 hours.
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Results
2pm: Serve U – Maiden (TB) Dh60,000 (Dirt) 1,400m; Winner: Violent Justice, Pat Dobbs (jockey), Doug Watson (trainer)
2.30pm: Al Shafar Investment – Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,400m; Winner: Desert Wisdom, Bernardo Pinheiro, Ahmed Al Shemaili
3pm: Commercial Bank of Dubai – Handicap (TB) Dh68,000 (D) 1,200m; Winner: Fawaareq, Sam Hitchcott, Doug Watson
3.30pm: Shadwell – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh100,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Down On Da Bayou, Xavier Ziani, Salem bin Ghadayer
4pm: Dubai Real Estate Centre – Maiden (TB) Dh60,000 (D) 1,600m; Winner: Rakeez, Patrick Cosgrave, Bhupat Seemar
4.30pm: Al Redha Insurance Brokers – Handicap (TB) Dh78,000 (D) 1,800m; Winner: Capla Crusader, Bernardo Pinheiro, Rashed Bouresly
HAJJAN
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Everton%20Fixtures
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Look%20Both%20Ways
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More coverage from the Future Forum
Fixtures (all in UAE time)
Friday
Everton v Burnley 11pm
Saturday
Bournemouth v Tottenham Hotspur 3.30pm
West Ham United v Southampton 6pm
Wolves v Fulham 6pm
Cardiff City v Crystal Palace 8.30pm
Newcastle United v Liverpool 10.45pm
Sunday
Chelsea v Watford 5pm
Huddersfield v Manchester United 5pm
Arsenal v Brighton 7.30pm
Monday
Manchester City v Leicester City 11pm
Company%20Profile
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The%20specs
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Ain Issa camp:
- Established in 2016
- Houses 13,309 people, 2,092 families, 62 per cent children
- Of the adult population, 49 per cent men, 51 per cent women (not including foreigners annexe)
- Most from Deir Ezzor and Raqqa
- 950 foreigners linked to ISIS and their families
- NGO Blumont runs camp management for the UN
- One of the nine official (UN recognised) camps in the region
Awar Qalb
Director: Jamal Salem
Starring: Abdulla Zaid, Joma Ali, Neven Madi and Khadija Sleiman
Two stars
