National Security | News-Opinion

TOP NEWS: Nat’l Security / Foreign Affairs: September 6th, 2012

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Excerpts and more top stories

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EUROZONE: Global Stocks Rise Ahead of ECB Meeting - AP, VIA CFR
Global stock markets jumped today ahead of a crucial European Central Bank meeting, at which President Mario Draghi is expected to announce a new bond buying program (AP) in order to alleviate the ongoing eurozone sovereign debt crisis.

EUROZONE: Can Mario Draghi reshape Europe?  - WP
A pending European Central Bank decision could push Europe toward a closer economic union or leave the euro zone still floundering for a solution to its crisis.

EUROZONE: IRELAND: IMF Approves Loan Tranche for Ireland - WSJ
The IMF approved a ?920 million loan tranche for Ireland, lauding the country’s ability to meet bailout program targets despite a slowdown.

EUROZONE: ITALY: Recession could force Italy to seek EU aid - FT
Country may be forced to apply for an EU bond-buying programme in exchange for implementing further tough economic reforms, officials have warned

EUROZONE: Moves vary on EU’s fiscal compact - FT
Policy makers hope to advance European unity through national laws or constitutional amendments that will embed states in framework of integration

CHINA: Clinton struggles to soothe Beijing fears – FT
The US secretary of state is greeted in Beijing by another salvo of Chinese state media criticism of her policies in the region.

CHINA: A Touchy Relationship – NYT
After Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton’s trip failed to get deals on two big items, Beijing and Washington have a long way to go to translate soothing rhetoric into action.

CHINA/JAPAN: Japan Agrees to Buy Islands at Center of Dispute With China  - NYT
Japan has struck a tentative deal to buy three islands in the East China Sea that are at the center of a heated territorial dispute with China, a source close to the talks said Thursday.

CHINA/N. KOREA: China Firm Squabbles With North Korea -FT
An unusually public spat between the North Korean government and a Chinese company is providing a rare note of visible tension between Pyongyang and its closest ally and benefactor.

CHINA: The Dollar is Still King – FT, OPINION
The renminbi won’t replace the dollar any time soon.

IRAN: U.S. Presses Iraq on Iranian Planes Carrying Arms to Syria – NYT
The United States said Wednesday that Iraq had an obligation to stop and inspect Iranian planes flying through its airspace that are suspected of carrying arms to Syria.

FOREIGN POLICY/OBAMA: Renewing America’s Fighting Faith – FP, OP-ED
WILL MARSHALL: Barack Obama’s correction to the excesses of the George W. Bush years was necessary. But cold-blooded realism is not enough to safeguard America’s interests and promote its values.

FOREIGN POLICY/ELECTIONS 2012: A look ahead at the debate on defense policies  - WP
Mitt Romney and President Obama previewed last week some of what might occur Oct. 22 when they debate defense policies at Lynn University in Boca Raton, Fla.

FOREIGN POLICY/DNC:  Obama intervened on God, Jerusalem platform language - POLITICO
After two failed voice votes, the Democratic Party’s platform language was changed Wednesday night to include God and refer to Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. President Obama is said to have ordered the change.

SYRIA: Syria rebels prepare to unite - FT
Rebel leaders say that an understanding has been reached to form the Syrian National Army, under the leadership of a Jordan-based general

SYRIA/EGYPT: Egyptian President Warns Assad That ‘Your Time Won’t Be Long’ - NYT
A statement by President Mohamed Morsi of Egypt directed at Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad, added to regional acrimony as Syrian forces shelled the battleground city of Aleppo.

SYRIA: Syria’s spooky parallel  - WP, OP-ED
U.S. caution echoes 1980s Afghanistan.

SYRIA: Only bombing Assad’s forces will stop the slaughter now – INDEPENDENT, OPINION
It need not become ‘another Iraq’ and the Syrian military challenge can be met

SYRIA: In Syria, Allies Stage a Rerun – RCP
The U.S. and its allies are moving in Syria toward a program of covert support for the rebels that, for better or worse, looks very much like what America and its friends did in Afghanistan in the 1980s.

AFGHANISTAN: U.S. to Retain Role as a Jailer in Afghanistan - NYT
The United States military will continue indefinitely to operate a section of the Parwan complex holding foreign combatants, even as the two countries mark a transfer of authority.

AFGHANISTAN: Afghan Military Cracks Down on Insider Killings - WSJ
The Afghan military has dismissed or detained hundreds of soldiers (WSJ) for alleged ties to insurgents in an effort to limit “green on blue” killings of coalition troops, defense ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Zahir Azimi announced yesterday.

LIBYA: Libyan Alleges Waterboarding by C.I.A., Report Says – NYT
A new report by Human Rights Watch, based on interviews with 14 Libyans, documents accounts of detention in Afghanistan and, in one case, of waterboarding by the C.I.A.

LIBYA: Spy Chief for Qaddafi Is Extradited to Libya - NYT
The former intelligence chief, Abdullah al-Senussi, was extradited to Libya by Mauritania on Wednesday, handing a victory to the new Tripoli government.

ISRAEL: Leak Prompts Netanyahu to Cancel Security Cabinet Meeting on Iran Issue - NYT
Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, angrily cut short a key gathering of top security officials, accusing an unnamed participant of leaking details of the sensitive meeting to the media.

ISRAEL/IRAN: Israeli Spymasters Offer No Slam-Dunk on Iran - BLOOMBERG
There is considerable interest at the moment in the goings-on within the co-called Security Cabinet of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Netanyahu took the unusual step of breaking off a meeting of the group today.

EGYPT: After Egypt’s revolution, families continue search for missing activists  - WP
Relatives have combed morgues, hospital logs and prisons in a desperate quest for clues.

N. KOREA: North Korea May Take Action to Jolt Economy, Analysts Say - NYT
South Korean analysts said a meeting of North Korea’s Parliament later this month may officially introduce Kim Jong-un’s program to revitalize his country’s moribund economy.

TURKEY: 25 Killed in Turkey Ammunition Depot Blast - NYT
An explosion and blaze triggered by an accidentally dropped hand grenade has killed 25 soldiers during a stock check at a Turkish ammunition depot, the government said Thursday.

PAKISTAN: HRW asks Parkistan to protect Shiite Muslims - AFP, VIA CFR
Human Rights Watch today called on the Pakistani government to “urgently act” to protect minority Shiite Muslims (AFP) from increasing sectarian attacks that have left hundreds dead this year.

COLOMBIA: Colombia cautious over latest peace talks - FT
Juan Manuel Santos notes that simply agreeing an agenda, which Bogotá and the Farc have done, can be the hardest part in any negotiation

SOMALIA: Al-Shabaab surrenders in Afmadow - DAILY NATION, VIA CFR
More than two hundred militant al-Shabaab fighters surrendered in Afmadow town yesterday after four days of attacks by African Union forces on Shabaab bases near Kismayo.

PERU: Comrade Williams, leftist militant, killed - BBC
Security forces killed a top leftist militant with the Shining Path rebel movement, known as Comrade Williams, President Ollanta Humala said yesterday.

S. AFRICA: South African Union Rebuffs Mine Deal – REUTERS
South Africa’s Association of Mineworkers and Construction Union refused to sign a deal with platinum company Lonmin to end a four-week strike at the Marikana mine (Reuters) northwest of Johannesburg that resulted in the police shooting dead thirty-four striking miners last month.

QUEBEC: Quebec Attack May Have Been Assassination Attempt, Police Say. –  NYT
The return to power of the separatist Parti Québécois continued to be overshadowed on Wednesday by a shooting at a victory party in Montreal that killed one man and critically injured another.

INDIA: India to Extend Price Controls on Drugs – WSJ
India plans to widen the scope of price controls on pharmaceuticals, creating another potential hurdle for multinational drug companies doing business in the country.

INDIA: India Moves to Center Stage in Grain Trade - WSJ
Despite widespread rural poverty and undernourishment, India is emerging as a food powerhouse, exporting millions of tons of wheat, corn and rice, providing a much-welcome foreign currency boost to national coffers.

INDIA: India at Crossroads on Path to Superpower – DE SPIEGEL, VIA RCW
Poverty is still rampant in India and chaos remains a defining characteristic. But the country is also a global leader in high tech, has become the world’s leading weapons importer and is planning a mission to Mars. On the way to superpower status, India must first overcome deep-seated corruption and internal division.

 

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