WRAP Clinton says Mideast status quo unsustainable
(5 Feb 2011) SHOTLIST POOL 1. United States Secretary of State, Hillary Rodham Clinton walks to podium 2. SOUNDBITE (English) Hillary Rodham Clinton, US Secretary of State: ++SOUNDBITE BEGINS ON CUTAWAY OF AUDIENCE++ "Leaders in the region may be able to hold back the tide for a little while but not for long. That has been the story of the last weeks, it is what has driven demonstrators into the streets of Tunis, Cairo and cities throughout the area. The status-quo is simply not sustainable. So for all our friends, for all the friends in the region, including governments and people, our challenge is to help our partners take systematic steps to usher in a better future, where peoples' voices are heard, their rights respected and their aspirations met." 3. Mid of audience listening 4. Wide of audience US POOL - NO ACCESS NORTH AMERICA/INTERNET 5. SOUNDBITE (English) Hillary Rodham Clinton, US Secretary of State: "I think that this is such a difficult set of decisions for any government to carry out and do so in a way that results in the outcome we are all seeking but it will become immeasurably harder if there is not restraint, by government and security forces and we thankfully saw that yesterday with the very large but peaceful demonstration, and if there is not a rejection of violence by other forces in the country. There's a great economic pressure building up inside Egypt in addition to the news Wolfgang (Sch�uble - German Federal Minister of Finance) shared, there's also reports of one of the major pipelines being sabotaged. There is a lot of, there are a lot of actions that are out of anyone's control in any position of responsibility of leadership inside Egypt or outside Egypt." 6. Close of Clinton listening 7. SOUNDBITE (English) Hillary Rodham Clinton, US Secretary of State: "Part of what we have to do is to send a consistent message supporting the orderly transition that has begun, urging that it be not only transparent and sincere but also very concrete so that the Egyptian people and those of us on the outside can measure the progress that is being made but ultimately as Herman (Van Rompuy - European Council President) said, as all of us have been saying, this is going to be up to the Egyptian people themselves." 8. Pull out of stage STORYLINE United States Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton warned on Saturday of economic woes, repression and popular discontent across the Middle East and urged international support for reforms pledged by Egypt's embattled leaders so that extremists do not hijack the country's political transition. Clinton said that backing for democratic reforms around the region was critical, despite risks of short-term instability, illustrated by reports of an alleged attack on an oil pipeline. An Egyptian gas company official said the explosion and fire were caused by a gas leak, while a regional official said earlier that sabotage was suspected. Clinton's comments appeared to reflect a subtle shift in Washington's position toward Egypt, which had been peppered with demands for political transition to begin immediately. On Saturday, Clinton noted that the transition would "take some time" to do right, although she made clear that taking steps to ensure a peaceful and transparent change should be expeditious. "Part of what we have to do is to send a consistent message supporting the orderly transition that has begun, urging that it be not only transparent and sincere but also very concrete," she told the international security conference in Munich. That unhappiness expands exponentially with new communications technologies, she noted. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: / ap_archive Facebook: / aparchives Instagram: / apnews You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...
