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Amid Soaring Tensions, Leaders Prepare for Key Global Security Summit

Henry Ridgwell

   MUNICH, GERMANY - U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Pentagon
   chief Mark Esper will join hundreds of global leaders in Germany Friday
   for the three-day Munich Security Conference.

   Numerous security flashpoints around the world, from Syria, Yemen and
   Iran to Hong Kong, Ukraine and Libya, add to the growing tension and
   unease ahead of the summit, which takes place against the backdrop of
   the coronavirus outbreak and a global climate emergency.

   The United States' large delegation is a sign that the Washington wants
   to counter accusations that it is disengaging, says analyst Elisabeth
   Braw of Britain's Royal United Services Institute, who is attending the
   annual Munich conference.

   "As we speak actually the U.S. is beginning its largest military
   exercise in Europe in a quarter of a century," noted Braw in an
   interview with VOA. "And that's worth remembering when we talk about
   the U.S. disconnecting or disengaging from Europe."

   US-Iran tensions

   Washington's biggest showdown in Munich is likely to be with Iran,
   which is sending Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif to the summit.
   He and several other world leaders and government ministers will be
   given around 15 minutes to address the conference, before question and
   answer sessions. Several bilateral meetings usually take place on the
   sidelines of the conference, which is seen as a key annual event to
   sustain dialogue between global strategic rivals.

   The U.S. killed top Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in a drone strike
   earlier this year. Retaliatory air strikes by Iran on U.S. bases
   culminated in the accidental shooting down of a Ukrainian Airlines
   passenger jet, killing all 176 people on board.

   Conference host, former German Ambassador Wolfgang Ischinger, hopes the
   conference will offer a lifeline for the Iran nuclear deal that the
   U.S. withdrew from, with Europe at the forefront of negotiations.

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