Council on Foreign Relations

Thurday's papers continue to mull over the fall-out from Pakistan's elections on Monday. Dawn in Karachi says in an editorial that the winds of change are refreshing, and that they have signalled a greater degree of freedom for women in politics. The News in Pakistan is concerned about the future relationship of the leaders of the main political parties and President Musharraf, pondering the dangers of a potentially mutually destructive confrontation in the future. In the Australian, foreign editor Greg Sheridan writes that the election may well prove a turning point in Pakistani history and is of immense importance globally. In the Washington Post, columnist Robert D. Novak asks why the Bush administration continues to support Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf. No Pakistani expects help from Musharraf, he writes. Only the United States still takes him seriously. The Independent in London writes in an editorial that military rule provides only an illusion of stability, and says it is in all our interests that it does not return to Pakistan. Amir Taheri, in a column in the Wall Street Journal, says that while Pakistan's election has been portrayed by the Western media as a defeat for President Pervez Musharraf, the real losers were the Islamist parties. In the Times of India, security analyst K Subrahmanyam strikes a note of caution. He warns that it might be too early to celebrate. The exit of Musharraf, which seems to be inevitable, does not necessarily mean that Pakistan will be launching on a new democratic path.

Also in today's papers:

Christian Science Monitor

• Jason Stearns, an independent analyst, and Colin Thomas-Jensen of the ENOUGH project, highlight an opportunity to help end the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, as President Bush wraps up what they call his choreographed trip to Africa.
• Reza Aslan, a Middle East analyst, and Kenneth Ballen of the Center for Public Opinion comment on a new survey which suggests a plummeting of support for al-Qaeda and other radical groups in Pakistan.

Financial Times

• In an editorial the FT praises President Bush for what it calls an extraordinary effort in the international fight against HIV/AIDS.
• In a further editorial, on the retirement of Fidel Castro, the paper calls on the United States to abandon its four-decade-old economic embargo against Cuba.
• Victor Mallet, in an op-ed, identifies what he believes is a problem lying at the heart of Chinese foreign policy: the absence of vigorous public debate inside China on the important international issues of the day.

Guardian

• In an editorial, the Guardian criticises the suppression of the word "Israel" in the publication of an early draft of what it calls the "dodgy dossier" - a report on Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction used by the British government to support the case to invade Iraq.

Haaretz (Israel)

• In a commentary, Israel Harel observes that Kosovo's declaration of independence has sparked concern in certain circles in Israel, and says the day may not be far off when the Arabs of Galilee start clamoring for political independence, too.

Jordan Times

• In an editorial, the paper asks if Palestinians should declare independence à la Kosovo, and says the idea is not a bad one.

Middle East Times

• In an editorial, the Middle East Times says that if President Bush had mistaken the Middle East for Africa we might all be a lot happier and secure. The United States has been seen as a reassuring force for stability in Africa.

New York Times

• In an editorial the paper comments on free speech on the Internet and criticises the disabling of a web site last week by a federal judge, saying it stifles important speech and violates the First Amendment.
• Columnist Nicholas D. Kristof, in a commentary on Kenya's continued instability, says many Kenyans see the United States as part of the problem, for its inadvertently signaling that President Kibaki could get away with stealing re-election.

Times of London

• In an editorial the Times calls on the Republican White House hopeful Mike Huckabee to stay in the race, this being vital to keep interest alive. The price of Republican "unity" at this early stage would be to render the party almost invisible from now to August, as all American eyes glued to the Democrats' race between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, says the Times.

Wall Street Journal

• B.R. Myers of Dongseo University, in a response to Lorin Maazel of the New York Philharmonic, (see Wednesday's Daily Opinion Roundup), writes that it is time America realized that Kim Jong Il of North Korea derives his regime's legitimacy not from communism, but from crude, race-based nationalism.
• In a commentary on China's credit boom, Victor C. Shih of Northwestern University says the Chinese government needs to continue monetary tightening by raising interest rates and the bank's reserve requirements.
• Eduardo Nolla of the Universidad San Pablo-CEU, in a commentary on the record of the Spanish prime minister Jose Zapatero, says a glance at Spain four years after his unexpected and dramatic election in March 2004 seems to prove the old saying that the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

Washington Times

• In an editorial, the paper says the recent violence and chaos on the border separating Gaza from Egypt should serve as a wake-up call about the jihadi threat emanating from the Sinai Peninsula, which it says has become a recruiting ground for al-Qaeda.