Geopolitical chaos procreating a chaotic leaderless world is sucking the literal life out of human hope. The tentacles of austerity measures and quantitative easing are the primary catalyst of all the madness. One way or another every government financier around the world is determined to cultivate the appearance that the good times are still rolling. The only problem is that the natural rate of failure refuses to participate in the economic facade. Fiat currencies’ purchasing power dwindles, the pounding drum beat of war beckons, and an open ended hegemonic polarity struggle for commodities ensues.

While serving as a member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System in 2002, current U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke gave the world a glimpse into the past, present, and future all at once. In his speech, entitled “Deflation: Making Sure ‘It’ Doesn’t Happen Here,” Ben Bernanke stated:

“Although a policy of intervening to affect the exchange value of the dollar is nowhere on the horizon today, it’s worth noting that there have been times when exchange rate policy has been an effective weapon against deflation. A striking example from U.S. history is Franklin Roosevelt’s 40 percent devaluation of the dollar against gold in 1933-34, enforced by a program of gold purchases and domestic money creation.”

Today the infamous 40 percent strikes again, as Cyprus agreed to the terms of a European Union bailout in which banks will seize 40 percent of uninsured bank depositors’ wealth.

Moody’s Investors Service was quoted in Bloomberg as saying, “The seizure of larger deposits may spark tensions with Russia, the source of an estimated $31 billion in holdings in Cypriot banks.”

Proxy wars have gone beyond the spectrum of arming rogue militants and allied nations in dispersed pockets of the globe, graduating to the realm of state sponsored economic terrorism. As “Gerald Celente” consistently and aptly states, “Currency wars + Trade Wars = Real Wars.”

All of the economic wheeling and dealing continues on as the “Arab Spring” explodes into a caballing year round inferno engulfing the entire Middle East. Daily at the United Nations, permanent Security Council members China, Russia, France, United Kingdom, and the United States spar over regional influence with each passing veto and resolution.

This is most apparent in Syria where Russia opposes any intervention as it struggles to prop up the government of its last remaining ally in the Mediterranean region. Russian naval forces stationed at Tartus, Syria may be the last line of repellent preventing NATO intervention.

The lines of frienemy engagement get blurrier with every passing engagement.

Simultaneously as the United States prepares to implement its own austerity measure policy that has carefully been repackaged and marketed to the public under the label sequestration, it is arming rebels in Syria. All claims of being in financial dire straits gets immediately lost within the noise of controlling key choke points around the globe.

One cannot forget less than two years after watching the Al Qaeda flag being proudly raised in the Libyan city of Benghazi, that America’s new found ally the Free Syrian Army are the protégés of Al Qaeda.

The life cycle of keyboards do not possess the durability to correctly and fully analyze threats posed by the uncontrollable Kim Jong Un ruled North Korea. The isolated peninsula nation even managed to startle its longtime ally China into voting in favor of U.N. Security Council resolution 2094. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang was quoted as saying;

“China supports the UN Security Council’s necessary and moderate response to the nuclear test of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).”

Barely beyond two weeks later newly appointed Chinese President Xi Jinping, warned the West not to meddle in Syria’s civil war while on his first visit to Russia.

Not even the mythical country of Chimerica can rescue the too big to fail world from the natural rate of failure. Governments around the world are taking sides now under the cloak of every global economic and geopolitical conflict, because nations know that a hegemonic storm is coming with no evacuation routes or shelter in sight. Once more, honesty of time is proving that which cannot last forever won’t.

Image courtesy: European Parliament

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North Korea, amid global warnings and hard-hitting criticism, launched a rocket from the western coast, showing its might and following what it had pronounced a few days earlier.

As reported earlier, North Korea was preparing to launch a missile, and recently Pyongyang turned that declaration into reality by launching a missile into orbit. This rattling-down action was exercised when North Korea launched a rocket named “Unha” from Sohae launch pad located in the North West of Pyongyang.

According to the BBC, “The launch of the second version of our Kwangmyongsong-3 (Unha-3) satellite from the Sohae Space Centre … on December 12 was successful” the state news agency KCNA said. “The Satellite has entered the orbit as planned.”

North Korean state media termed the launch as a “ground-breaking” mission that met the “last instructions” of Pyongyang’s late leader.

According to the Guardian, North American Aerospace Defence Command (NORAD), said “ the three-stage Unha rocket had taken its expected southerly course, with its first stage falling into the Yellow Sea west of South Korea and the second landing in the sea east of the Philippines.”

According to Zee News “The United Nations Security Council on Wednesday condemned North Korea for launching a long-range rocket in defiance of UN resolutions.”

North Korea is currently banned from ballistic missile testing as per the UN resolution that was passed in the year 2009 following a second nuclear test. Criticism started flowing in from all corners of the globe over North Korean action that strongly ignored UN Resolutions. Furthermore, it can be said it’s an act that gathered huge condemnation and attention since almost all neighboring countries were displeased with it.

U.S Ambassador to the U.N. Susan Rice said “No matter how the North Koreans choose to describe the launch it violates two council resolutions and shows that country is determined to pursue its ballistic missile program without regard for its international obligations.”

Britain’s foreign secretary William Hague said “I strongly condemn the satellite launch today. The UK government would summon the North Korean ambassador in London,” he added, “This provocative act will increase tension in the region. I deplore the fact that (North Korea) has chosen to prioritize this launch over improving the livelihoods of its people.”

There has been a war of accusations and defiance between North Korea and the world at large over the country’s ambitions of nuclear programs and ballistic missile technology over many years.

Following the launch, a statement was issued by UN Secretary-General that reads “The Secretary General has been urging the leadership in Pyongyang not to carry out such a launch and instead to build confidence with its neighbours while taking steps to improve the lives of its people.” It further said “the Secretary-General is concerned about the negative consequences that this provocative act may have on peace and stability in the region.”

The North Korean official KCNA news agency said that Foreign ministry spokesman expressed views like this: “No matter what others say, we will continue to launch satellites and thus actively contribute to the economic construction and improvement of people’s living standard.”

On the contrary there has been a growing reluctance by North Korea over the international community. Its objections finally surfaced with the launch of the rocket.

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North Korea recently announced its intention to launch a long range missile in December. This follows a failed attempt in April 2102. The North Korea State news agency revealed the country’s plans to send another satellite in orbit which might take place between December 10 and December 22, between 11:00 am to 5:00 pm EST.

According to the BBC‘s Lucy Williams in Seoul, “North Korea’s state media have described the rocket launch as being for peaceful purposes, with the aim of putting a polar-orbiting earth observation satellite into space.”

According to the New Scientist in April, North Korea’s endeavor to cast-off a rocket “failed just within a minute after a 30 metre-long Unha-3 booster blasted off from the sohae satellite launching station at 7:39 am local time on 13 April,” said the official Korean Central News Agency.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command in Colorado said that “the craft didn’t get anywhere near the orbit.”

After almost seven months of research and analysis over the real cause of April failure, North Korean scientists seem to have identified their mistakes and now they are again ready to launch a rocket into space. North Korea has named the missile Kwangmyongsong-3.

North Korea cautioned the UN shipping agency and international Maritime Organisation about its intentions to launch a rocket into orbit, and released a trajectory of its missile. The first stage of the rocket is expected to dash-off in a western part of the Korean Peninsula and the second stage might drop-off close to the Philippine coast.

China seems to be concerned with the launch and said that all sides should restrain themselves from acts of aggravating tensions in the region.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang said in a brief statement, “We hope all relevant parties will do that which benefits peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula, hope all sides will respond calmly and avoid exacerbating the situation.”

Russia, on the other hand, raised vocals of disappointment over North Korea’s decision to move forward with the missile launch. The Russian Foreign Ministry said “We urgently appeal to the government (of North Korea) to reconsider the decision to launch a rocket.”

Russia, at the time of the April launch, with a downcast voice had said “North Korea had been warned not to ignore a UN Security Council resolution which ‘unambiguously prohibits from launching rockets using ballistic technology.’”

United States also joined the  league criticizing North Korean missile launch plans and said that the act would be “highly provocative” and would threaten peace and stability in the region.

The sensitivity of the decision to launch the missile by North Korea can be sensed by the fact that Japan has started deploying a surface-to-air missile system in its southern island.

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The conflict in Syria rages on as the Battle of Aleppo enters its third week on August 2. Since March of 2011, when the first anti-government protests began in Syria, around 200,000 have been made refugees and around 20,000 people have been killed.

Aleppo, a commercial hub in Syria and the city with the largest population, is one of the most active combat locations in Syria. It is a key location since the winning of Aleppo for the rebels could mean the end of the Assad regime. BBC’s Jim Muir wrote, “The longer the situation remains unresolved, the stronger the rebels’ grip may become, as they pursue their goal of establishing a ‘liberated area’ in Aleppo and neighboring Idlib province to use as a springboard against the regime’s last stronghold, Damascus.”

Many rebels have taken hold of several districts within the city of Aleppo and Assad has sent tanks, helicopter gunships, and war planes to attack it.

On August 2 the rebel Tawheed Brigade left Tal Rifaat to give aid to the rebels in Aleppo. Also early in the morning of August 2 the rebels attacked Menagh army base with a stolen tank. Menagh is from where Assad has been launching several of his artillery and air strike attacks on Aleppo. The rebels pulled out after a short time with one rebel fighter claiming, “We hit the airport using a tank that we captured from the Assad army. We attacked the airport a few times but we have decided to retreat at this time.” However, several reports claim that the retreat may have been due to the war planes that attacked the rebels.

In Aleppo, rebels put a video online that showed them executing several prisoners; the act is being called a war crime by several organizations. The rebels also claim to have taken three police stations within the city in the last week. Also last month, Assad’s forces managed to drive most of the rebels out of Damascus and began to push an offensive on Aleppo.

Tensions between the two sides have also risen from the government activity in Damascus and the rebel activity in Aleppo. Assad, who has been in power since the death of his father in 2001, launched two attacks in Damascus on Thursday in which soldiers went door to door asking people to show their papers. The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) claimed “the bodies of 43 people were recovered. Some of them had been summarily executed.”

In the last month Assad’s top four advisers, including his own brother-in-law, were killed in a bombing. Since then, Assad has been in hiding and has only issued pre-recorded statements.

On Wednesday, August 1 the mobile phone connections were cut for the city of Aleppo leading many to believe that the government would launch an attack. In fact, on Thursday the government forces attacked the Salaheddine district in Aleppo, although most were repelled by the rebels.

The problems worsen even further for the citizens of Aleppo since the city is beginning to run out of food. The World Food Program issued a statement claiming, “The humanitarian situation is deteriorating in Aleppo and food needs are growing rapidly.”

The world’s response

Many believe that outside governments should be helping the rebels although since Russia and China are in favor of keeping Assad in power, there has been little consensus. The Security Council has created three separate resolutions that have been vetoed by Russia and China as too extreme because it would cause a regime change led by an outside power, violating sovereignty.

The UN General Assembly will be voting on a resolution written by Saudi Arabia shortly that would support the Syrian rebels.

President Obama called Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Monday, July 30 to “coordinate efforts to accelerate a political transition in Syria.” Although Obama will not send direct military assistance, he does seem to want to support the rebels. The Treasury Department has recently decided that it will give a license to the Syrian Support Group that will aid the rebels financially.

Jordan, a bordering country to Syria, has been helping Syrian refugees enter their country. However, in recent days Syrian soldiers shot at Jordanian troops that were helping the refugees to cross the border.

On August 2, the UN-Arab League joint special peace envoy to Syria, Kofi Annan, has announced that he will not renew his contract when it ends in August, effectively quitting his job. He claims that the Syrian people “desperately need action” but he believes that the UN Security Council is “finger pointing and name calling.”

Annan is the author of the six point peace plan that was introduced a few months ago. It called for an end to all military conflict, peaceful political negotiations, and more freedom of expression for the Syrian people. Unfortunately, neither the rebels nor the Syrian government upheld all sides of the plan and the situation quickly deteriorated.

Annan has blamed both sides in the Syrian conflict for the lack of peace but has also said that the problems were “compounded by the disunity of the international community.” He went on to state, “Syria can still be saved from the worst calamity – if the international community can show the courage and leadership necessary to compromise on their partial interests for the sake of the Syrian people – for the men, women, and children who have already suffered far too much.”

Currently it is unknown who will fill Annan’s position at the end of August, but most assuredly few are willing to take it.

Image Courtesy of   homeros / Shutterstock.com

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Two wars are being waged in Syria. There is the physical fighting going on between the rebels and government troops but there is also a media war going on in which the results of the physical battles are being hidden or changed to misrepresent facts. One young activist, Yahya Abdulrahman, a physics student at Aleppo University claimed, “The regime is fighting the people in two ways. One is with the army. The other is with the media. There are parts of the Free Syrian Army that are fighting the regime. But there are other parts fighting the regime’s hackers.””

Smart phones have been key in the Syrian uprising – just like in the Arab Spring revolutions – because, according to the Christian Science Monitor, it is a way for the people to undermine the state media (which is controlled by Assad) and get supporters within Syria and in the rest of the world. So far the Syrian government has banned access to YouTube and Facebook, but several of the youth have found ways around these government firewalls.

Having smart phones and access to computers and internet allow the rebels to communicate with friends and family as well as talk to soldiers who want to defect to the rebel army.

Many Syrian rebels have risked their lives while fighting the media war. According to the Guardian hundreds of video activists have joined the revolution through videography; most are male, young, and technologically capable individuals. Abdulrahman, one of these activists, admits that filming is just as dangerous as fighting with a gun: “If the army sees anyone with a camera they try and kill him first.”

However, the video aspect of the revolution is just as important as the actual physical fighting. Assad controls Syria’s television stations which claim that the Free Syrian Army (the rebels) is a group of “terrorists” and “al-Qaida” while also broadcasting pro-regime propaganda. Abu Mhio, a rebel media activist claims, “When we will be free, [Syrian TV] will be dead.”

If Assad controls all of the media in the country he can prevent the successes of the rebels from being reported which lowers their support and prevents more people from getting involved. In order to ensure that the world and the Syrian people actually know what is going on in Syria they must record it for themselves, even if it is emotionally tolling and life-threatening.

Abdulrahman was arrested once for video-recording a protest on his campus. After being beaten and made to sign a piece of paper claiming he was an informant, he was released and continued filming for the rebels. He has also filmed the dead in the streets to show the toll of the fighting. “I filmed one of the children killed last week. We hadn’t eaten all day because of Ramadan. But afterwards I couldn’t touch any food.”

In previous years rebels have not had such technological access to aid them in their cause. Hafez al-Assad, the current ruler’s father, ruled Syria from 1970 and was responsible for destroying the Muslim Brotherhood uprising in the city of Hama in 1982, killing at least 10,000 people. One rebel fighter explained to the Christian Science Monitor, “His father destroyed Hama in a few days, but there was no TV there and no internet to show the world. But today we have the internet, we photograph and film and have Al Jazeera, so people know. They can see what is happening.”

Few journalists have been allowed within Syria in the recent months of fighting, but those that have, have received threats. One Guardian journalist received a death threat via a tweet from a member of the regime stating, “I pray every night that you die.”

Those journalists that are allowed in the country are also not provided a lot of access. Another journalist, Alex Thomson, tweeted “Syrian government is losing the PR war” when they refused to let him interview or record the Syrian military.

Ultimately, winning the media war will be just as important as winning the physical war for both sides. The rebels have succeeded in many ways but they must take Aleppo in order to really start making changes. According to Burhan Ghalioun, a member of the Syrian National Council currently in Paris, if the rebels take Aleppo “there will be nothing more that will stand in the way of the Free Syrain Army. Hama, Homs, to the outskirts of Damascus have in large part been liberated.”

Image Courtesy of  Omar Chatriwala

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Rome, Italy - “It is cause for great satisfaction that the date for the election of the National Assembly of the new Libya has been set for 7 July,” said Minister Giulio Terzi, according to whom “despite the many difficulties that any transition carries with it, by holding free elections, Libya is about to take a fundamental step toward building a democratic State fully integrated into the International community.

Recalling the “primary importance in this phase of the role of the United Nations Support Mission”, Terzi underscored that “the new government named by the Assembly will have the task of relaying the foundations of a Libyan State apparatus, based first and foremost on respect for human rights and, at the same time, of offering new opportunities for economic and social advancement to all the components of the Libyan society.”

“Italy is watching with confidence,” Terzi concluded, “as Libya follows the path to adopting a new constitution and will continue to steadfastly support the construction of a new, prosperous, free and democratic Libya, in the conviction that that nation’s progress and the gradual reduction of distance from the European Union are elements essential to regional stability.”

Minister Terzi is the Foreign Minister of Italy and has been working closely with many leaders of the Arab nation, including those in Libya. He received the diplomats from Syria and members of the Arab League in May to discuss the revolutions of Arab Spring and the future of the Arab world.

Giulio Terzi di Sant’Agata has been Italy’s Foreign Minister since November of 2011. Prior to his position as the Minister of Foreign Affairs he was the Permanent Representative of Italy at the United Nations in New York and was also the head of the Italy delegation in the Security Council of the United Nations.

Image Courtsey of the  Italian Embassy

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On the anniversary of the April 8, massacre of the residents of Camp Ashraf, International Solidarity for a Democratic Change in Iran (ISDCI) calls on UN, US and EU to take necessary steps to guarantee safety and basic human rights of the residents.

ISDCI also calls on US Secretary Clinton to, firstly, uphold her last year’s December 25 commitment for a “robust Monitoring” by the U.S. at Camp Liberty and secondly remove the terror tag on the Iran’s most important opposition movement, the MEK, which is an absolute necessity to facilitate resettlement to third countries.

The UN Security Council is expected to discuss Iraq, including the situation of Ashraf residents, next week. The Secretary General Special Representative for Iraq, Ambassador Martin Kobler is also expected to report to the Security Council.

ISDCI also calls on the United Nation Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to ensure that the conditions at Camp Liberty meet minimum humanitarian standards which it currently lacks.

ISDCI further expresses its dismay that after one year past the April 8 Massacre, the perpetrators of this heinous crime against humanity are yet to be brought to justice.

ISDCI participated in an international conference in Paris on March 24, 2012 as a display of solidarity for the call to protect residents of Camps Ashraf and Liberty in Iraq as the international consensus have called for it for the past year.

On the one-year anniversary of April 8 massacre of unarmed residents of Camp Ashraf at the hands of the Iraqi Army, and by the orders of the Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and the Iranian regime, ISDCI along with the families of the residents of Ashraf and supporters of the Iranian resistance remember the day of loss of their loved ones on April 8 of last year, knowing there is still much left to be accomplished as lives of the residents who still live in Ashraf or Liberty are in danger.

The Attack of April 8, 2011 on the unarmed residents of Camp Ashraf, who were declared “Protected Persons” under the “Fourth Geneva Conventions” by the American forces following the invasion of Iraq, left 36 residents dead, including 8 women, one as young as 19 years old.

The Attack was the second of its kind. The first attack, leaving 11 unarmed residents dead, took place in July 2009 shortly after the handover of the protection of the camp to Iraqis, despite persisting opposition on the part of residents, realizing the close ties between the governments of Iraq and Nouri al-Maliki and the theocratic regime ruling in Iran, foreseeing a human catastrophe.

Last February the residents accepted an international call supported by the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to move to Camp Liberty located in Baghdad under the condition that their safety and security as well as humanitarian and human rights standards would be guaranteed and honored in the new Camp.

About 1200 residents have moved to Liberty up until now despite the new camp’s lack of adequate and basic accommodation particularly for so many people. The inadequacies include drinking water, electricity, and proper sewage system, not mentioning the 24 hour presence of police guards armed with heavy machineguns.

At the March 24 Conference in Paris, speakers from the United States and Europe stressed on the need for protecting the rights of Ashraf and Liberty residents. Speakers included Maryam Rajavi, the President-elect of the Iranian resistance, Rudy Giuliani, former mayor of New York and US Presidential Candidate (2008), Michael Mukasey, US Attorney General (2007-2009), Secretary Tom Ridge, the first US Homeland Security Secretary (2003-2005) and former Governor of Pennsylvania;

John Bolton, former US Ambassador to the United Nations, Patrick Kennedy, member of the US Congress (1991-2011); Glenn Carle, former Deputy National Intelligence for Transnational Threats; Col. Wesley Martin, former Commander of the MNF-I anti-terrorism unit and commander of Forward Operation Base in Ashraf; Lt. Col Leo McCloskey, Commander of Forward Operation Base in Ashraf until 2008. Additionally, a number of European personalities also made remarks during the conference.

Speaking in front of a crowd of about one thousand cheering supporters, the speakers stressed on the necessity for the U.S. Government to remove the unjust terror tag on the Iranian resistance, as the Europeans and the British have done, paving the way for a smooth transit by the residents to other countries.

Image Courtesy of   http://www.flickr.com/photos/perspective/

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In meeting with members of the UN Security Council, Haiti’s Minister of the Interior, Thierry Mayard-Paul, reiterated the top concerns of his office which are focused on implementing President Martelly’s vision for decentralization as a key to job creation throughout Haiti.

Outlining the steps the Martelly administration is taking to build a strong platform for constitutional rights and democratic governance in Haiti, the Minister stressed that his highest priority is to ensure the safe and stable climate required for foreign investments that will drive job creation.  “In order to carry out the vision of the President to create jobs through sustainable economic development and to empower local communities throughout Haiti via decentralization, we must consolidate democratic governance,” he said.

With safety and national security a top concern, the Minister pointed out that over the course of the last year, Haiti has meticulously studied the issue of the prolonged stay of MINUSTAH in the country.  Viewing the subject within the context of safety, election results, and other factors, he said the 2011 elections provided an exceedingly large mandate for the Martelly administration for the next five years, a reference to Martelly’s commanding 2 to 1 victory over his opponent.

“As a result, we are convinced that Haiti must assume the tasks of public safety and national security.  This is a long-term task that in our view begins and ends with civilian control over any security force to ensure ongoing disaster preparedness and to heighten the effectiveness of disaster mitigation efforts.”

To that end, President Martelly has established a Commission to study, in detail, the rehabilitation of Haiti’s armed forces in detail.  This Commission will provide recommendations once it has compiled its findings.

Mayard-Paul stated that the members of the Commission are not only conducting their own assessment regarding reinstatement of the armed forces, but are also consulting recognized international experts.  “We have also been speaking with heads of state and other elected officials and policy makers about this issue,” he said.

To that end, the Minister of the Interior has been visiting other Latin American and Caribbean countries to review Best Practices for Public and National Safety that have worked in the region.  “When the Commission presents its final report, we believe we will have a long-term roadmap that will enable us to achieve democratic sovereignty,” he remarked.

Other topics discussed with the visiting UN team included resolving border issues and accelerating the process of reconstruction.  The Minister expressed his appreciation for the UN peacekeeping force saying, “I’d like to thank the MINUSTAH, on behalf of the Haitian people and our government in particular, for their many years of collaboration with Haiti.”

Image Courtesy of  arindambanerjee / Shutterstock.com

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AJC expressed grave concern about India’s relations with Iran. In a letter to the Indian ambassador to the United States, AJC stressed that any effort by India to intensify its commercial activity with Iran could undermine the U.S. and EU sanctions that aim to stop Iran’s nuclear-weapons program.

“We are alarmed and dismayed by this apparent move to elevate commercial interests over vital security concerns,” wrote AJC President Robert Elman and Executive Director David Harris in a letter to Ambassador Nirupama Rao.

The full text of the letter to Ambassador Rao follows:

Her Excellency Nirupama Rao
Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary
Embassy of India
2107 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20008

Dear Ambassador Rao:

As you are aware, AJC has been a long-time friend of India and an advocate of increasingly close cooperation between Washington and New Delhi.

In that spirit, we were deeply troubled by recent news reports of Indian efforts to intensify trade relations with Iran at the very moment that Washington and fellow democracies are applying new economic pressures in the banking and energy sectors to persuade Tehran to halt its pursuit of nuclear-weapons capability.

We were particularly struck by the announcement this week, by Commerce Secretary Rahul Khullar, that “a huge delegation” of Indian business representatives would soon travel to Iran to capitalize on opportunities created by European withdrawal from the Iranian market.

This suggests that New Delhi is attempting to take advantage of sanctions adopted by like-minded nations for the explicit purpose of preventing nuclear proliferation by a dangerously aggressive regime — and which could, in turn, trigger an escalating arms race — in a highly volatile region.

In light of India’s history of support for International Atomic Energy Agency resolutions on Iranian transgressions, and repeated expressions of Indian Government concern about Iran’s nuclear ambitions, we are alarmed and dismayed by this apparent move to elevate commercial interests over vital security concerns.

India has asserted that it will only abide by UN Security Council restrictions on trade with Iran, but not go beyond. Yet, as in the recent case of Syria, further measures are today impossible because of a threatened veto by one or two permanent members. We fear that India risks not only the erosion of the latest steps laudably adopted in Washington, Brussels and elsewhere, but also its standing as an admired partner in safeguarding regional and global security.

We thank you for conveying AJC’s concerns on this urgent matter to your Government, and look forward to the prospect of discussing it with you at your earliest convenience.

With the assurance of our profound esteem and best wishes, we remain,

Respectfully,
Robert Elman, President
David Harris, Executive Director

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David Cameron recently visited Saudi Arabia for the first time as Prime Minister to strengthen the UK-Saudi partnership. Saudi Arabia is UK’s largest Middle Eastern partner with an annual trade value of £15 per year according to BBC News. Mr. Cameron met King Abdullah and Crown Prince Nayef after arriving in Riyadh last week. Downing Street reported:

Building a strong relationship with Saudi Arabia is vital to advancing the United Kingdom’s priorities in the region: increasing exports and investment; boosting energy security and creating jobs; co-operating on security, counter-proliferation and counter-terrorism; and promoting stability through political reform and human rights.

Currently, the kingdom is the second largest purchaser of UK arms. It has been rumored that the UK is planning on going forward with an order of 72 Eurofighter Typhoon and 48 Eurofighter jets. However, until now, nothing is confirmed. Even though the UK sees Saudi Arabia as a major sale market of military equipment, the British Prime Minister did not visit the Saudi King just to discuss business, it has been reported that one of the main goals of his visit was to establish a personal relationship with the King.

According to CNN News, the two leaders are most likely to discuss security, world economy, and Middle Eastern issues, such as the current protests occurring in the region. Moreover, Mr. Cameron also met with the Saudi Foreign Minister, Prince Saud Al Faisal and talked about this year’s UN General Assembly; both leaders agreed to strengthen the co-operation between their countries.

BBC News reported that, in an interview with the Al Arabiya news, the Prime Minister said:

The UK is prepared to table a new resolution at the UN Security Council over the appalling bloodshed carried out by the Syrian regime. The whole Arab League has to come together; others need to listen to that and act on that at the UN. Britain stands ready to do that.

Mehdi Hasan, the senior politics editor at the New Statesman magazine, believes that Britain has no “moral authority” to advocate democracy to Syria and Iran, he told RT News, “It’s a bit rich for the British prime minister to stand in Saudi Arabia and condemn the dictator in Syria without looking around him – all the dictators were surrounding him in Riyadh.”

The UK and Saudi Arabia have always been close allies, with more than 150 business joint ventures between the two countries. Currently, around 30,000 Britons live and work in the kingdom.

Image Courtesy of  http://www.flickr.com/photos/nickatkins/ 

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Meanwhile the world’s attention is captured by the events of the Northern part of Africa in the last weeks in Ivory Coast there is a real humanitarian emergency. Since the elections of November 2010 the country is torn by the political instability and the conflicts among the “two presidents” supporters.

Thousands of refugees and hundreds of dead have been estimated in the last months by the humanitarian organizations which are working in the country to help the population and try to keep the peace and avoid another civil war.

The UNHCR has reported that the situation is getting worse every day and that the clashes and the violence are increasing dangerously.

The presidential election in November showed the loss of the president Laurent Gbagbo, in favor of his rival Alassane Ouattara. The results have been contested by Gbagbo who refused to hand power to Ouattara, declaring the elections’ results were not valid. The victory of Ouattara has been internationally recognized by most countries and the United Nations, which see him as the Ivory Coast’s president in office.

This event has led to a situation of strong tension and to the rise of violent clashes among the population. In this civil war climate the population is fleeing the country for taking refuge in the nearest countries, especially in Liberia, where already 20.000 people are escaped there.

According to Save the Children the half of the refugees are children. Numerous are the non-governmental organizations (NGO) that report a difficult situation which is getting constantly worse in these weeks. The fear of a new civil war – after that of 2004- is strong.

The president Alassane Ouattara declared: “my country is on the brink of genocide”. It seems that peaceful demonstrations of the president’s supporters in the Abobo neighbourhood, a suburb of the city of Abidjan, were put down with bloodshed by the forces loyal to Gbagbo. The protesters have been attacked with tank fire and at least seven women were killed and 110 people wounded.

UN refugee agency spokesman Jacques Franquin said: “The situation is deteriorating rapidly. Certain areas of Abidjan are truly in a situation of war with the population fleeing. The situation is making it impossible to reach people who are in need of urgent humanitarian assistance.”

“Today I will reiterate it to the genocide in the making. They are killing people along ethnic lines. They are killing foreign nationals from foreign countries, from neighbouring countries. They are killing people who are opposed to Mr Gbagbo. That’s not acceptable. “These were the words of Yousoufou Bamba, Ivory Coast’s ambassador to the UN and Ouattara loyalist, who is calling for more international intervention and for the arrival of more peacekeepers in the country.

The UN Security Council is concerned about the situation and particularly about the attacks on the civilians. It has been estimated by the United Unions that at least 365 people have been killed since December, and about 200,000 people have been displaced by the bloodshed.

The world can’t stay in total indifference; this situation has to be faced up as soon as possible. Africa is still fighting to achieve a civil condition of life and the basic human rights but the West of the world too often forgets it.

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