Admiral Mullen visits Gulf, to urge restraint Posted 2011/02/20 at 11:17 am EST
WASHINGTON, Feb. 20, 2011 (Reuters) The top U.S. military officer arrived in the turbulent Gulf region on Sunday for a week-long visit to underscore U.S. strategic ties with allies challenged by protest movements sweeping the Arab world. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen attends a meeting with Japan's Defence Minister Toshimi Kitazawa at the latter's office in Tokyo December 9, 2010. REUTERS/Yuriko Nakao Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar, United Arab Emirates and Kuwait. He will also stop in Djibouti, where demonstrators inspired by revolts that toppled leaders in Egypt and Tunisia have clashed with riot police. "Though this trip was planned well before the recent unrest in the region, the chairman will be interested to gain the perspectives of leaders here about these protest movements," said spokesman Capt. John Kirby. Mullen, he added, will also "make clear his desire to see that peaceful protest be allowed to continue without threats or violence from any quarter and that restraint is shown by all sides in these disputes." No further details on the trip were provided. Mullen's itinerary did not include Bahrain, a cornerstone of U.S. military power in the Gulf and the site of deadly clashes between anti-government protesters and security forces last week. The United States regards Bahrain, home to the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet, as a bulwark against Shi'ite power Iran across the Gulf. (Reporting by Phil Stewart; editing by Todd Eastham) ------------------------------------ Post message: [email protected] Subscribe : [email protected] Unsubscribe : [email protected] List owner : [email protected] Homepage : http://proletar.8m.com/Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/proletar/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: [email protected] [email protected] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [email protected] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
