JAPAN

JAPAN
Asahi Shimbun, Tokyo, March 24: Peace has even less of a chance in the Middle East after Israeli missiles on Monday killed Sheik Ahmed Yassin, founder of the militant group Hamas, in the Gaza Strip, the Palestinian self-autonomous region.
Why did Israel kill him now? Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has given up hope of a negotiated peace with the Palestinians and suggested a unilateral dismantling of Jewish settlements in Gaza. It appears that he planned to crush the Hamas movement before Israel pulls out of the settlements and thus eliminate the threat of terror.
Opposite effect
But exactly the opposite is likely to result from this killing. All Yassin's death will do is add fuel to the fire.
The Sharon government characterizes the attack on Palestinians as part of the fight against terror, which it presses ahead together with the United States. On the other hand, it also says it aims at coexistence with a Palestinian state. But will responding to terror with terror lead to reconciliation?
The situation is grave. This endless cycle of violent retaliation must be shut down. Concrete action should be taken promptly for effective intervention through the United Nations Security Council.
ARGENTINA
Clarin, Buenos Aires, March 24: First and foremost, the Spanish elections were an exemplary civic retort to the terrorist threat. Spaniards turned out massively at the polls and, in so doing, showed not only that they are willing to demonstrate in the streets in repudiation of terrorism -- but to use the instruments of democracy to make their will manifest ... the voters decided to hand victory to the Socialist party candidate, Jose Luis Zapatero. The outcome underlied voter intent to punish the official Popular Party candidate for presumed government manipulation of information about the origins of the attack ahead of the elections ... and the outcome of the Spanish election is sure to have repercussions on other political stages .... Zapatero has already promised a frontal assault on terrorism but also said he will withdraw Spanish troops from Iraq.
Clarin, Buenos Aires, Argentina March 24: Environmental degradation is one of the consequences of a lack of planned economic development. Emissions of greenhouse gases, coupled with deforestation, have triggered a growing global warming trend. ... yet most industrialized nations still show no signs of seriously limiting their gas emissions despite the emergence of growing environmental concerns.
The main air purifier for earth's atmosphere is the Amazon, but this lung is now severely threatened. Scientists estimate that the Amazon will lose 15 percent of its territory by 2020, owing to logging and increased agriculture ... Rational methods of exploiting these natural resources must be put in place, along with international accords to safeguard the environment. Until then, these trends will continue unchecked, imperiling many life forms until human beings are increasingly affected.
SINGAPORE
Straits Times, Singapore, March 24: The failure to find WMD (in Iraq) has severely harmed U.S. credibility. Washington's unwillingness to admit it was wrong has worsened matters. The Western alliance, badly divided in the run-up to the war, has since drifted further apart. One of America's strongest allies, Poland's President Aleksander Kwasniewski said last week that he had been "misled" about Iraq's WMD, and that Polish troops might be withdrawn from the country next year.
Threat from Spain
The new Spanish leader has threatened to do the same, unless the United Nations is given a significant role in Iraq by June 30, when an interim Iraqi government is due to be installed. The U.S. is still supported by many countries -- including Singapore, Japan and South Korea from Asia -- but public opinion in most countries has turned against America and its occupation of Iraq seems to have become a new recruiting tool for Islamic terrorist groups.
The top priority now is to deny these groups a beachhead in Iraq. Whatever the merits or demerits of war a year ago, the U.S. cannot withdraw until Iraq is stabilized. Indeed, the force strength it has in the country now -- 130,000 troops, soon to be reduced to 110,000 -- is woefully inadequate.