Obama's Attempt at Foreign Policy Intervention
Update: Odinga has changed his mind and now agreed to meet with President Kibaki. It may be that Barack Obama's telephone call was successful.
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The U.S. today urged Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga to engage in bi-lateral talks to resolve Kenya's political crisis.
Barack Obama called the opposition leader to urge him to agree to the talks.
Barack Obama, whose late father was Kenyan, spoke with the opposition leader Raila Odinga for about five minutes from New Hampshire, asking the opposition leader to meet directly with President Mwai Kibaki, said the Democratic presidential candidate's spokesman.
"He urged an end to violence and that Mr. Odinga sit down, without preconditions, with President Kibaki to resolve this issue peacefully," said the spokesman, Bill Burton.
The outcome (from first linked article): [More...]
But Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga on Tuesday rejected a government offer of bilateral talks to end a crisis that has killed at least 500 people and displaced some 255,000, saying that without international mediation such a meeting would be a sideshow.
More here.
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