HUMAN RIGHTS | WAR CRIMES | GENOCIDE
August 25, 2008
Genocide|Katyn. The Russian Academy of Qualification Improvement and Professional Retraining of Education Employees approved a history guidelines for public schools, which will inform Russian students, since now on, that the Katyn genocide of 1940 when the Soviet NKVD exterminated 22,000 Polish citizens, was politically and historically justified, and was a response to the 1920 Soviet-Polish war. Link
August 22, 2008
Freedom of Speech. Reporters Without Borders gave a negative evaluation of respect for freedom of speech during the Beijing Olympic games. While most foreign reporters were able to cover the sports events without a problem, police and their civilian auxiliaries repeatedly prevented journalists from covering demonstrations or investigating subjects which the government regards as sensitive. Link
August 7, 2008
Zimbabwe|Food crisis. The Red Cross issued an emergency appeal to donors for $26,6-million for food aid to Zimbabwe, saying millions in the politically and economically unstable country faced hunger. The number of people in need could rise to up to 5,1-million, almost half the population, by the end of 2008. Link
August 5, 2008
Rwanda|Genocide. The 500 pages long report by Rwanda’s “Mucyo Commission” provides evidence that France was aware of and participated in preparations for the genocide, and even participated in crimes during the Rwandan genocide in 1994. At a news conference last week, President Kagame said he has evidence of French complicity. Link
August 4, 2008
ICC|Genocide. The African Union said that a move by the International Criminal Court (ICC) to indict Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir for genocide and war crimes in Darfur was pouring "oil on the fire". The AU urged the U.N. Security Council to suspend the ICC investigation into the president while peace efforts continue. Link
July 30, 2008
US|Genocide. The U.S. House of Representatives adopted a resolution commemorating Mrs. Irena Sendler, who repeatedly risked her own life to rescue over 2,500 Jewish children in Poland's Warsaw ghetto from Nazi extermination during the Holocaust. Similar resolution is being sponsored in the Senate by Sen. Barack Obama. Link
July 29, 2008
Darfur|Genocide. According to the newest report prepared by more than 50 NGOs focused on the Darfur crisis, the UN-African mission faces critical shortages in troops, personnel, equipment and logistics, therefore cannot fully implement its mandate. Link
July 26, 2008
Restitution of Property. In a response to the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Foreign Affairs resolution calling upon Poland to 'immediately enact' legislation on the restitution of property confiscated by the Germans during the war and by the communists afterwards, some of the parties in the Polish Parliament intend to submit a resolution calling upon the United States to reimburse Poland for trading it to the communist Soviet Union at the Yalta Conference in 1945. Link
July 22, 2008
UN|Genocide. U.N. Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, who earlier this month neglected to issue even a short statement commemorating the victims of the Bosnian genocide on its 13th anniversary, although his spokesperson said they were contemplating such a step, this time promptly issued a statement saying that he feels heartened by the news of Radovan Karadzic’s arrest. Link
July 4, 2008
Food crisis. Biofuels have forced global food prices up by 75% - far more than previously estimated - according to a confidential World Bank report obtained by the Guardian. The damning unpublished assessment is based on the most detailed analysis of the crisis so far, carried out by an internationally-respected economist at global financial body. Link
June 23, 2008
Bosnia|Displaced people. Too many citizens of Bosnia and Herzegovina remain displaced from their homes 13 years after the country’s war ended, and many of those that have gone back to their villages live in unfinished buildings and lack basic economic opportunities, a United Nations human rights expert said today. Link
May 29, 2008
Food crisis. In the next 10 years food prices will remain well above the levels of the last decade, according to a report issued today by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organizations (FAO) and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development. Link
May 18, 2008
China|North Korea. Impoverished North Korea has offered $100,000 to China to help with disaster relief in the wake of Monday's devastating earthquake. The declaration came a day after the United States said it would provide 500,000 tonnes of food aid to North Korea despite their standoff over Pyongyang's nuclear program. Link
May 16, 2008
Cluster bombs ban. The United Nations sees renewed momentum for a global ban on cluster bombs as more than 100 nations - but not the world's top users and stockpilers - gather in Dublin to finalize an anti-cluster munitions treaty. Link
May 12, 2008
Genocide history. At the age of 98 dies human rights hero, Irena Sendler, one of the first persons honored by Israel’s Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial as a Righteous Among Nations for saving some 2,500 Jewish children from Warsaw Ghetto during the World War II. In recent years a number of prominent politicians promoted a campaign to nominate her to the Nobel Peace Prize. Link
May 6, 2008
Food crisis. According to U.N. experts the lack of investment in agriculture over a long period of time, as well as the use of precious natural resources for biofuel production, are the main contributing factors to the current global food crisis. Link
May 4, 2008
Somalia|Human rights. According to the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement the situation in Somalia is growing steadily worse, with increasing violence having caused a mass exodus from Mogadishu. Humanitarian crisis is being exacerbated by prolonged drought, which lasts for the third consecutive year. Link
May 1, 2008
USA|Birma. U.S. President George W Bush announced fresh sanctions against the military regime in Burma. He said he had ordered the US Treasury to freeze the assets of state-owned firms in Burma "that are major sources of funds that prop up the junta". Link
April 30, 2008
Colombia|Human Rights. A group of independent United Nations experts have called for urgent measures to protect those defending human rights in Colombia, following a recent surge in violence that includes killings, harassment and intimidation of civil society activists, trade union leaders and lawyers representing victims. Link
April 22, 2008
Darfur|Genocide. John Holmes, the UN’s Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, reported to the Security Council that as many as 300,000 people are now estimated to have died in Darfur since early 2003, when rebels began fighting Government forces and allied militiamen. This figure includes deaths from disease, malnutrition and reduced life expectancy, as well as from direct combat. Link
April 20, 2008
Food shortage. UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon, said the world was “living through one of the most extraordinary economic transformations in history,” with the global economy growing in size from $23 trillion in 1990 to $53 trillion in 2007 and trade increasing by 133 per cent over the same period. He warned, however, that for the past three years, the world has consumed more food than it produces and that the situation is unsustainable. Link
April 19, 2008
Tibet|Human rights. Chinese people took to the streets in several cities to denounce calls for Tibetan independence and demand a French goods boycott following anti-China protests on the Paris leg of the Olympic torch relay. Link
April 1, 2008
Human Rights|Beijing Olympics. President Bush has been urged by the Speaker of the House of Representatives to boycott the opening ceremony of the Beijing Olympic Games because of the way that China has handled the political unrest in Tibet. Link
|
EUROPE | USA | CHINA | RUSSIA
August 16, 2008
U.S.|Demographics. According to the Census Bureau, minorities, now roughly one-third of the U.S. population, are expected to become the majority in 2042. By 2023, minorities will comprise more than half of all children. By 2050, the population of the U.S. should reach 439 million. Link
August 6, 2008
Polls|Elections. According to the newest poll by the Pew Research Center, 48% Americans are tired hearing of Barack Obama and they think he is overexposed in the media, while only 26% think the same about John McCain. Link
July 22, 2008
Venezuela|Russia. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez declared after meeting with its Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev, that Russia would be welcome to deploy a military base in his country, if it asked for such. "We are already big and good friends," he added. Link
July 17, 2008
Georgia|Russia. Russia sets a precondition of signing of a non-use of force treaty before other aspects of a German-proposed Abkhaz peace plan, including IDP return, could be considered, says Sergey Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister. Link
July 17, 2008
Germany|Algeria. Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel visited and held talks with Algeria’s President Abdelaziz Bouteflika to persuade Algeria to boost energy supplies to Germany - an attempt aiming at securing diversification of gas supplies to her country and decrease Germany’s energy dependence on Russia. Link
July 17, 2008
China|Economy. China's economy slowed down for a fourth straight quarter as inflation eased in June. The Gross Domestic Product grew 10.1 percent in the second quarter after rising 10.6 percent in the first three months. China's economic growth has been on a steady decline since peaking in the second quarter of 2007. Link
July 8, 2008
Islam|UK. Britain's most senior judge, Lord Phillips, said he was willing to see sharia law operate in the country, so long as it did not conflict with the laws of England and Wales, or lead to the imposition of severe physical punishments. Link
July 1, 2008
Lisbon Treaty. Polish President Lech Kaczynski announced in an interview published Tuesday that he will not sign the EU's Lisbon Treaty, saying it was pointless after Irish voters rejected it in a referendum last month. Link
June 23, 2008
EU|Iran. European Union states agreed to impose new sanctions against Iran, including an asset freeze on its biggest bank, over its refusal to meet demands to curb its nuclear program. Link
June 14, 2008
China|Japan. Japan told China it remained concerned about its ballooning defense expenditure, as the two countries sought to build military and other ties following a historic visit to Japan by Chinese President Hu Jintao last month. Link
June 10, 2008
EU|US. The annual EU-US Summit begins in Slovenia, which presently holds EU rotating Presidency. The transatlantic relations will be discussed by President George W. Bush and the highest representatives from the EU. Link
June 5, 2008
Reform Treaty. The Lisbon Treaty is heading towards a shock defeat in a referendum in Ireland with the “No” side now in the lead, according to the findings of the latest Irish Times/TNS mrbi poll. Link
June 3, 2008
NATO|Russia. NATO Secretary General called a deployment of Russian troops into Abkhazia illegal and in clear contravention of Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. He called for withdrawal of Russian troops and urged Russia and Georgia to quickly begin talks to de-escalate the crisis. Link
May 21, 2008
Cyprus|Peace initiative. The Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders are going to meet at the official residence of the United Nations Envoy to Cyprus this Friday for the second round of talks aimed at reuniting the two communities on the Mediterranean island. Link
May 13, 2008
EU|US. The European Commission accused the U.S. of using national security issues as a pretext for protecting companies and markets from EU competition in it’s annual report on US trade barriers. Link
May 12, 2008
EU|Georgia. Five EU foreign ministers of Slovenia, Sweden, Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia, who met in Tbilisi, Georgia, expressed their concerns about the recent tensions with Russia over the Abkhazia region and confirmed their support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Georgia. Link
May 11, 2008
Venezuela|Germany. Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez almost told German Chancellor Angela Merkel to go to hell, but stopped short of insulting the woman leader on Mother's Day. Instead he called her a political descendant of Adolf Hitler and German fascism. Link
May 10, 2008
China|Security. China is undertaking a dramatic overhaul of its nuclear weapons in an effort to modernize and expand its arsenal. According to the experts, Chinese military had realized that its nuclear weaponry had fallen behind those of other major powers and might not survive a “first strike” by potential adversaries. Link
May 8, 2008
U.S.|Nuclear preparedness. According to a report of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of the House of Representatives, the U.S. hospitals lack capabilities to handle a large influx of victims following a major nuclear, chemical or biological terrorist attack. Link
May 6, 2008
USA|Russia|Georgia. The Bush administration sharply criticized Russia for what it called a series of "provocative actions" in recent weeks in the dispute between the former Soviet republic of Georgia and its breakaway region of Abkhazia. Link
April 30, 2008
Russia|Georgia|NATO. NATO reaffirmed its strong support to Georgian sovereignty and territorial integrity, and its view that the Russian Federation should reverse the recent steps which undermine that sovereignty. NATO described recent statements by Russian officials and political figures considering a possible use of force by Russia in Georgian territory as unhelpful. Link
April 29, 2008
Russia|Georgia. In a response to Russia’s deployment of extra peacekeeping troops to Georgia's breakaway Abkhazia region, Georgian government blocked Russia’s accession talks to the World Trade Organization. Link
April 28, 2008
Russia|Demographics. According to Karl Kulessa, U.N. Population Fund (UNFPA) chief in Moscow, Russia's population could fall from 142 million today to as low as 100 million in 40-50 years. The decline in the population is being driven by increasing alcohol abuse, poor diet and social changes. In UNFPA’s opinion Russia is doing little to reverse these critical changes. Link
April 27, 2008
EU|Reform Treaty. Support for the Reform Treaty in Ireland, the only EU member state to hold a referendum ratifying the treaty, dropped from 43 per cent in February to 35 per cent today among those entitled to vote in the referendum. Those opposed to the treaty have increased from 24 per cent to 31 per cent. The number of undecided voters remains almost unchanged, at 34 per cent. Link
April 25, 2008
EU|Death penalty. The European Union officially called upon Kentucky’s Governor to commute death penalty sentence in the case of Mr. Ralph Baze. The EU expressed its disappointment with United States Supreme Court which on April 16 issued a ruling allowing continued use of lethal injections in the State of Kentucky. Link
April 24, 2008
Elections|Iraq war. Hillary Clinton’s chief foreign policy adviser, Richard Holbrooke, invokes the Dayton Peace Accords, which ended war in Bosnia-Herzegovina, as a role model for achieving peace and stabilization in Iraq. Link
April 23, 2008
EU|China|Africa. European Parliament adopted a resolution heavily criticizing China's energy investments in Sudan and Angola. China was also condemned for shipping weapons to Sudan, Liberia and the Democratic Republic of Congo in defiance of United Nations embargoes. Link
March 21, 2008
Russia. Russian Parliament unanimously adopted a resolution on Georgia's Abkhazia and South Ossetia regions urging Kremlin to utilize Kosovo’s precedent and consider recognition of independence of those two separatist states. Link
March 7, 2008
U.S.|Elections. Clinton campaign successfully demanded resignation of Samantha Power, one of Obama’s key foreign policy advisers, after she called Clinton “a monster”, while speaking off-the-records during an interview with “Scotsman” magazine. Link
|
SECURITY | ENVIRONMENT | OTHER
August 26, 2008
Israel|Iran. The chances that Israel will strike Iran after the U.S. presidential election are quite high, said John Bolton, a prominent U.S. security expert. I think that if it does happen, it will not be before November, but before the U.S. president's inauguration, he said in an interview with Interfax. Link
August 17, 2008
Nuclear war. Robert Gates, U.S. Secretary of Defense, dismissed Russia’s threats that it will launch a nuclear strike on Poland for its support of Georgia and for signing a missile defense deal with the United States. Gates called those statements as Russia’s empty rhetoric. Link
August 14, 2008
Missile defense. Polish and US negotiators have signed a preliminary agreement on placing an anti-missile shield in northern Poland, after nearly two years of negotiations. The announcement on Thursday evening involves the condition demanded by Warsaw that an additional arsenal of Patriot missiles be stationed in Poland without time limits. American troops will jointly run the anti-missile base and there will be a US garrison in Poland by 2012. Link
August 1, 2008
Statistics. In the month of July, the EuropeanCourier.org reached the readership of 10,110 individual users (a 26% increase as compered to the last high in April) with 27,410 pageviews (a 22% increase). As much as 67.79% of the readers came to the website directly without any referral. The most frequently referring website was Google.com, which directed 2.20% of the total traffic. The most frequenty read articles in July were: an interview with Florence Hartmann (6.65% of the total readership) and an article about the Dayton Peace Accords (6.49% of the total readership).
July 14, 2008
Colombia|FARC. The Daily News publishes an op-ed calling for a tougher policy toward Hugo Chavez. “The Colombian intelligence agencies should publish the thousands of unreleased files from Reyes' laptop, which are widely believed to contain further detail on Chavez's dealings with the FARC and other terror groups” - writes the newspaper. Link
July 9, 2008
Ukraine. One of our contributors, Dr. Kerry Longhurst, publishes an interesting monograph on the European Neighborhood Policy and its consequences for Ukraine’s EU prospects, which is available online for the readers. Link
July 8, 2008
Global economy crisis. According to the Asia Times, the global economy problems are attributed to two main factors: the first one is “the crisis of speculation, characterized by a chronic bubble economy” and the second one is “the crisis of global agriculture, which has been in many ways a planned and calculated crisis.” Link
July 4, 2008
US|Iran. According to The Australian there is somewhere between a 30 and 40 per cent chance that the Bush administration will bomb Iran's nuclear facilities before the end of the year. The U.S. administration describes a nuclear-armed Iran as "a very immediate existential threat to Israel, because of the short distances involved and Israel's inability to withstand even one nuclear strike". Link
June 26, 2008
EU|CIA. A new publication by the Council of Europe, ”The CIA above the laws? Secret detentions and illegal transfers of detainees in Europe” details the investigation of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) based on two reports by Dick Marty, a Swiss member of PACE, and also the legal opinion of the European Commission for Democracy through Law (better known as the Venice Commission). Link
June 18, 2008
Nuclear terrorism. Rolf Mowatt-Larssen, the head of U.S. Energy Department’s intelligence unit, called for urgent action to be taken to scoop up any nuclear material outside state control before the terrorists do. Mowatt-Larssen said that in the long term, international law enforcement measures must be strengthened to make the cost of nuclear trafficking prohibitively expensive. Link
June 11, 2008
U.S.|Elections. According to Politico.com, the two prettiest Hollywood blonde actresses, Scarlett Johansson and Jessica Alba, strongly support Democratic presidential candidate Barrack Obama in his bid for the White House. Link
June 4, 2008
U.N Assembly. A former Nicaraguan leftist foreign minister, Miguel D'Escoto Brockmann, who has been a sharp critic of U.S. governments was elected as the next president of the U.N. General Assembly. Link
June 1, 2008
Islam|Terrorism. For the first time ever, Islamic seminary Darul-Uloom Deoband in India issued a fatwa against terrorism, stating that Islam had come to wipe out all kinds of terrorism and to spread the message of global peace. Link
May 24, 2008
Bosnia|Al-Qaeda. Jewish Daily Forward published an article by one of our contributors, Amb. Muhamed Sacirbey, responding to Washington Post’s allegations that Osama Bin Laden might have been planning 9/11 terrorist attacks from Bosnia instead of Afghanistan, should the NATO forces did not intervene in the Balkans in 1995. Link
May 24, 2008
U.S.|Elections. Hillary Clinton indirectly suggested that the reason she still remains in the race despite long odds is the possibility of Obama’s assassination; as an example she pointed out to the murder of Robert Kennedy in June of 1968 during his presidential campaign. Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton responded that “Sen. Clinton's statement [...] was unfortunate and has no place in this campaign." Link
May 7, 2008
U.S.|Elections. A prominent group of U.S. evangelical leaders called for a pull back from party politics so that the followers would not become exploited for partisan gains. The movement has been crucial element behind U.S. President George W. Bush’s re-election victory in 2004. Link
May 5, 2008
Security|Elections. Suggestions by U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton that the United States should offer a nuclear security umbrella to Middle Eastern Arab nations have drawn mixed reviews among security analysts. Link
May 4, 2008
Serbia|EU. The final week of campaigning began for Serbia's most crucial election in the post-Slobodan Milosevic era, with every sign that divisions over the country's future course are deepening. Link
May 3, 2008
Defense|Missile shield. The Senate Armed Services Committee approved President George W. Bush's request for U.S. missile-defense installations in the Czech Republic and Poland. The panel unanimously agreed to "fully authorize" both a proposed interceptor site in Poland and a tracking radar in the Czech Republic as part of a $542.5 billion fiscal 2009 defense spending bill. Link
May 3, 2008
Statistics. The European Courier reaches in April, 2008, the readership of 8,020 individual users with 22,287 pageviews.
May 1, 2008
Terrorism|WMD. “Guerrilla” terrorists, particularly al-Qaeda, continue to seek weapons of mass destruction for a major attack, according to a U.S. State Department review. The finding came in an annual department report on terrorism that also featured North Korea as one of five state sponsors of terrorism. Link
April 26, 2008
Security|Zimbabwe. British Prime Minister Gordon Brown called for a United Nations mission to Zimbabwe to inspect human rights abuses. Britain is seeking an arms embargo on President Robert Mugabe’s ruling party ZANU-PF and intends to step up diplomatic efforts ahead of UN Security Council meeting on the former British colony. Link
April 17, 2008
Climate change. The European Commission urged U.S. President George W. Bush to be more ambitious in tackling climate change while welcoming his acceptance that the United States would need to curb greenhouse gas emissions. Link
April 13, 2008
Venezuela|Terrorism. According to Spiegel International, emails and other files found on a FARC laptop in the jungles of Ecuador show that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez may have close relations with the terror group. Link
April 9, 2008
EU|Terrorism. According to a report released by Europol, Europe saw in 2007 four failed and attempted Islamist terrorist attacks. The UK experienced two failed terrorist attacks, while Denmark and Germany both reported one attempted attack each. Link
March 19, 2008
UN|Terrorism. Envoys from Cuba and Iran sharply criticized the United States on Wednesday at a U.N. Security Council debate on counter-terrorism, accusing it of supporting "terrorists" bent on attacking their countries. Link
March 2, 2008
Iran|Nuclear Weapons. According to the newest report released by Committee on Foreign Affairs of British House of Commons, Iran will establish a “breakout” nuclear weapons capability no sooner than by 2015. Link
|
