National Security | News-Opinion
TOP NEWS: Nat’l Security / Foreign Affairs: October 8th, 2012
Top Five News and Analysis Links (Excerpts Below)
- Chávez Wins New Term, Holding Off Surge
- Europe Still at Odds Over Workings of Bailout Fund
- OECD Points to Further Global Slowdown
- Panetta: Turkey-Syria Clashes Potential to Spread
- Israel and Hamas in Missile Battle
Excerpts and more top news and analysis
VENEZUELA ELECTIONS: Chávez Wins New Term, Holding Off Surge - NYT
President Hugo Chávez won re-election on Sunday, facing down the strongest electoral challenge of his nearly 14 years in office and gaining a new mandate to deepen his socialist revolution.
VENEZUELA ELECTIONS: Chávez Wins Vote by Wide Margin – WSJ
Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez soared to a bigger-than-expected victory over his challenger, Henrique Capriles, handing him another six-year mandate to rule the oil-rich nation.
VENEZUELA ELECTIONS: Chavez, Survivor - NY MAGAZINE
Jon Lee Anderson: Venezuela’s election could not sweep the former paratrooper from power…
VENEZUELA ELECTIONS: Cuba’s Stake in the Chávez Presidency - WSJ
Deepening privation is making Cubans restless. Oil from Venezuela is essential to the regime’s hold on power.
EUROZONE: Europe Still at Odds Over the Workings of Its Bailout Fund – NYT
As with many of the other improvised solutions to the euro zone’s problems, the $650 billion European Stability Mechanism’s reality is less elegant than the theory behind it.
EUROZONE/SPAIN: Depositors Turn Up Heat on Spanish Banks - WSJ
More than 700,000 Spanish depositors poured money into preferred shares and subordinated bonds issued by their banks. Many now say they were swindled.
EUROZONE/FRANCE: Budget-Pact Vote to Test Hollande
Socialist President François Hollande faces a test of his authority when France’s National Assembly on Tuesday votes on a European Union treaty aimed at tightening budget discipline across the euro zone.
EUROZONE: Sweden Fin. Minister Softens Tone on Bank Union – WSJ
Sweden is striking a more supportive tone on a new European Union banking union, but the country’s finance minister said it is one of a handful of nations that see significant hurdles and question marks standing in the way of a deal.
*MORE EUROZONE NEWS & ANALYSIS BELOW
GLOBAL ECONOMY: OECD Points to Further Slowdown - WSJ
Most major economies are to slow further, with only Brazil and the U.K. to see a moderate pickup, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s leading indicators.
GLOBAL ECONOMY/IMF: IMF 2012 Meeting: In Uncharted Waters – BROOKINGS
Against the backdrop of growing uncertainties about the global economy, leaders will converge on Tokyo for the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank.
GLOBAL ECONOMY: Economic recovery ‘on the ropes’ – FT
Index shows threat of global recession with only the US bucking the trend
GLOBAL ECONOMY: World Bank Lowers Asian Growth Forecast - NYT
Its report says East Asian economies will be slower than expected this year, but acceleration will take hold next year.
GLOBAL ECONOMY: Asian Issues to Feature at IMF Meeting - WSJ
Regional issues, including recently intensified territorial disputes, are likely to be main topics in meetings on the sidelines of the IMF meeting in Tokyo.
*MORE GLOBAL ECONOMY NEWS & ANALYSIS BELOW
TURKEY-SYRIA: Panetta: Turkey-Syria Clashes Potential to Spread – WSJ
The continued exchange of artillery fire between Syria and Turkey raises additional concerns that the conflict may escalate and spread to neighboring countries, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said.
TURKEY-SYRIA: Turkey, Syria Continue to Trade Fire – WSJ
Syria and Turkey exchanged artillery fire for a fifth straight day on Sunday, while insurgents struck police headquarters in Damascus, in the third high-profile attack in the Syrian capital in recent weeks.
TURKEY-SYRIA: Syrian shelling leaves Erdogan with dilemma – FT
Needs to balance deterrence with escalation
ISRAEL/HAMAS: Israel and Hamas in Missile Battle - WSJ
Israel and Hamas militants have exchanged fire in the most serious flare-up in months on the Jewish state’s border with the Gaza Strip, officials said.
ISRAEL/HAMAS: Israel Launches Airstrikes After Attacks From Gaza - NYT
Israeli warplanes responded to rocket fire from Gaza on Monday by launching airstrikes, in a flare-up that began Sunday when Israel fired missiles against two suspected members of jihadist groups.
ISRAEL-LEBANON: Lebanon: Israeli Planes Circled Its Airspace for Hour - NYT
The morning after the Israeli Air Force shot down an unidentified drone, the Lebanese government said that four Israeli warplanes spent an hour illegally circling in its airspace.
IRAN: Accusations, protests prompt worries Iran may curb IAEA access – WP
Iran ratchets up pressure on U.N. agency that oversees its nuclear program with strident criticisms.
IRAN: Iran Lawmakers Press Ahmadinejad on Economy – WSJ
Iranian lawmakers on Sunday attacked President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad over the decline of the country’s currency, as the crisis threatens to morph into a broader political showdown.
IRAN: Sanctions to Turn Iran’s Currency Crisis Into Revolution - BLOOMBERG, EDITORIAL
Amid the usual hyperbolic conspiracy theories, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said something incisive in a televised address last week: that the West is waging economic “war” against Iran.
CHINA/TRADE: U.S. Panel Says Chinese Technology Giants Pose Security Threat – NYT
American companies should avoid business with China’s two leading technology companies, the House Intelligence Committee warns in a report to be issued Monday.
CHINA/TRADE:Report Undermines Huawei’s Plans – WSJ
A damning U.S. Congressional report represents one of the biggest threats to plans by China’s Huawei and ZTE to expand into developed markets.
CHINA: China’s state-owned enterprises: The state advances – ECONOMIST
The state’s grip on the economy has been tightening. Could foreign pressure persuade the new leadership to reverse course?
SYRIA: Whose revolution? – WP, David Ignatius
Extremists’ power is growing in Syria.
SYRIA: Rebels Clash With Syrian Security Forces Near Lebanon - NYT
Fighting was reported at the Lebanon border and in Aleppo on Sunday as Turkish forces fired back into Syria for the fifth consecutive day in retaliation for cross-border shelling.
LIBYA: Discord Skewed Benghazi Response – WSJ
New details are emerging of discord among U.S. agencies that has complicated the response to last month’s consulate attack in Libya.
LIBYA: Libyan PM forced to stand down - FT
Mustafa Abushagur ousted by National Congress vote
DRONES/PAKISTAN: In Pakistan, Drone Protest Takes Detour for Safety - NYT
SALMAN MASOOD: A demonstration against American drone strikes inside Pakistan’s tribal belt was abandoned after the military warned of “imminent danger,” but thousands rallied at a safer location.
DRONE KILLINGS: Obama’s Drone Dilemma – SLATE, Eric Posner
The killings probably aren’t legal—not that they’ll stop.
U.S. MILITARY: As Military Suicides Rise, Focus Is on Private Weapons – NYT
The Pentagon and Congress are working on policies to separate at-risk service members from personal weapons, but gun-rights advocates and many veterans are opposed.
U.S. TERROR SUSPECT: Terror Suspects Appear in U.S. Courts - WSJ
The radical imam Abu Hamza and four other terrorism suspects appeared in federal courts Saturday, hours after losing a long fight to avoid being extradited from the U.K.
JAPAN-CHINA: Japan to Step Up PR in Isle Spat - WSJ
Japan has decided to change tack in promoting its claim to disputed islands in the East China Sea amid an escalation of tensions with China over the territorial dispute.
S.KOREA: Seoul to Extend Missile Range - WSJ
South Korea said it would extend the range of its ballistic-missile systems to cover all of North Korea.
MIDDLE EAST: Missing in action - WP, EDITORIAL
The U.S. can’t ignore the Middle East’s struggles.
U.S. FOREIGN POLICY: The Myth That Screwed Up 50 Years of U.S. Foreign Policy – FP
It’s time to set the record straight about John F. Kennedy’s handling of the Cuban missile crisis.
EUROPE/NUCLEAR POWER: Did EU Nuclear Checks Reassure? – WSJ
Why some governments suspect a hidden agenda behind a report on the safety of Europe’s nuclear power stations.
EUROPEAN FASCISM: Populism takes an ominous turn - NEWSWEEK, Op-Ed
Niall Ferguson: When a party called “Golden Dawn”—which has something that looks a lot like a swastika as its logo— starts denying aspects of the Holocaust and heaping opprobrium on immigrants, it’s best to keep a straight face. But if elections were held tomorrow, these guys could become the third-largest party in the Greek Parliament.
FRANCE/TERROR LAW: Paris to Boost Antiterror Laws - WSJ
The French government aims to strengthen antiterrorism laws and boost security at places of worship, French President François Hollande said, after authorities mounted a series of raids against an alleged Islamic terror network suspected of targeting France’s Jewish community.
U.K. ART VANDALISM: Vandal Defaces Rothko Artwork - WSJ
British authorities are searching for a man who defaced a valuable Mark Rothko canvas with black paint at the Tate Modern museum.
KUWAIT: In Bid to End Crisis, Kuwait’s Parliament Is Dissolved - AP via NYT
Kuwait’s ruler dissolved Parliament on Sunday, a step toward ending political gridlock and calling the second elections this year that could again swing in favor of Islamist-led opposition groups.
INDIAN ECONOMY: India Aims to Rein In Spending – WSJ
Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram said India will make a major push to rein in government spending, partly by switching to a system where it delivers subsidies by direct cash transfers, as it aims for a 5.3% fiscal deficit.
MORE EUROZONE NEWS & ANALYSIS
DEBT/HUMAN RIGHTS: Debt crisis hitting human rights, EU told - FT
Austerity linked to erosion of criminal justice rights.
IMF/SPAIN: Less cash, more impact - ECONOMIST
The IMF needs to change tack if Spain asks for a bail-out.
MORE GLOBAL ECONOMY NEWS & ANALYSIS
GLOBAL ECONOMIC HOPE: Shift in Growth Engines Signals Gain After Pain - BLOOMBERG
A revolution in the world economy targeted at revving up new growth engines ultimately will produce gain after pain.
GLOBAL INVESTMENT: Investors, beware - ECONOMIST
As long as politicians in the world’s big three economies continue to dither, another global recession is possible.
ARGENTINA FISCAL CLIFF: Parallels between apartheid, Argentina - FT, Op-Ed
Tony Leon: Argentina is heading, and not for the first time, towards an economic cliff.
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