I’m sorry that (for my part at least) posting has been sparse lately; I took a much-needed vacation and have been buried in work since I got back.
Here are Stewart Patrick and Kaysie Brown arguing that it is in the Obama administration’s interest to take concrete action against al-Bashir. Money quote:
First, he should openly dismiss any possibility of Security Council deferment and insist that any country that is able to do so should remand Bashir to the court. This includes U.S. ally Qatar, host of the 2009 Arab League summit, which Bashir plans to attend. Second, Obama should engage Beijing on tighter UN sanctions for Bashir’s criminal regime, which by its actions is now endangering long-term Chinese interests in Sudan. Third, he should welcome the African Union’s creation of a new Darfur panel under former South African President Thabo Mbeki, who has promised that “war crimes, crimes against humanity, and other abuses will be punished resolutely.” Fourth, he should commit U.S. logistical support for the UN peacekeeping mission and jointly with Europeans, declare a no-fly zone in Darfur enforced by Western warplanes. Finally, he should shore up the ICC’s global standing, by signaling willingness to consider eventual U.S. membership, pending a bipartisan review of its performance and adequate safeguards.
It’s not clear whether all of those are practicable (joining the ICC, for instance, might be politically difficult), but they represent useful starting points for thinking about how to leverage the arrest warrant against al-Bashir to get, at the least, serious concessions out of Khartoum.
