South Korea to decide on building jet fighters

Seoul (UPI)
Jul 10, 2013

The South Korean government is reportedly speeding up efforts to indigenously develop and produce a new fighter aircraft.

The Korea Times, citing government sources, said a notice requesting bids for its KFX project could be published as soon as next month.

"Seoul's efforts to accelerate the development of the new fighter underscores growing concern over the potential air security vacuum," the newspaper reported. "The Air Force is expected to face a shortage of around 100 fighters in 2019 when almost all of the F-4s and F-5s will be decommissioned."

Required operational capabilities for the project are expected to be confirmed later this month at a meeting of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Council.

The KFX program, under which the country will acquire 120 fighters, is expected to cost almost $19.7 billion.

The fighters are expected to be deployed after 2023.

"Since February, a Defense Ministry task force consisting of officials from the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Defense Program Acquisition Administration and Air Force has been conducting research for the development project," according to the report.

"The task force has had heated discussions particularly on whether to opt for a single or double-engine platform. Sources said that the task force had chosen a double-engine platform."

Source: Space Mart.
Link: http://www.spacemart.com/reports/Report_South_Korea_to_decide_on_building_jet_fighters_999.html.

Paris bans pro-Palestinian protest amid tensions

July 16, 2014

PARIS (AP) — French authorities are forbidding pro-Palestinian protests in some cities after violence marred a recent march against the violence in Gaza, as Jewish-Muslim tensions in France have reached their highest level in years.

Moderates on both sides called Wednesday for calm, and for a halt to fighting in the Mideast. France has Western Europe's largest Muslim and Jewish populations, and Israeli-Palestinian unrest often translates into anger between the communities.

After several thousand pro-Palestinian demonstrators marched peacefully Sunday through Paris, clashes broke out among small groups, including some who attacked synagogues, Jewish stores and neighborhoods.

Militants from the Jewish Defense League were also involved in violence against pro-Palestinian demonstrators, according to Roger Cukierman, head of France's leading Jewish organization, CRIF. Speaking Wednesday to the Associated Press, he denounced the league's violent methods and lamented that its actions Sunday — including provoking pro-Palestinian protesters — could further inflame anger.

Several demonstrations have been held in recent days calling for an end to Israeli airstrikes on Gaza. A march was planned for Paris on Saturday. A police official said Wednesday said it would be banned because of "the serious risk of disruption of public order that such a protest could engender, in a context of heightened tension." The official, who wasn't authorized to be publicly named, spoke on condition of anonymity.

Authorities have also banned protests in Nice and Lille. The French government is pushing for a cease-fire in Gaza and to calm tensions at home. French authorities are struggling to stem the flow of young Muslim radicals, facing dim job prospects and discrimination in France, from heading to Syria to fight with extremists. Meanwhile French Jews are emigrating in record numbers for Israel.

"The Jewish population is worried because they are finding themselves cornered on the one hand by the right, the extreme right, which is gaining electoral support, and is still anti-Semitic in its ideology and in its ranks, and on the other hand, by pro-Palestinian forces, by the extreme left, by disaffected youth from suburban housing projects, and by the Muslim population in general," renowned Nazi hunter Serge Klarsfeld said Wednesday at a memorial service in remembrance of Jews deported during World War II.

"History tells us that when there is an anti-Jewish movement we cannot control, the best thing to do is to move to another country," he said. Cukierman described the current tensions as the worst in decades.

During other intifadas in recent years, when anger mounted in France, he said, "We heard death to Israelis. Now we hear death to Jews." He said anti-Arab discrimination in France feeds the anger. He called for calm, and acknowledged that forbidding protests can be "delicate, because there is freedom of expression."

Sofiane Benzaroual, a 22-year-old student protesting Wednesday in Paris against Israeli attacks in Gaza, said the violence against synagogues Sunday "tarnished the Palestinian flag, because the majority of Palestinians want peace, they don't want violence."

At the same protest stood Serge Grossvak, a member of the Parisian Jewish community. He carried a poster reading: "I am Jewish and I am here with my friends for peace."

Louise Dewast and Milos Krivokapic in Paris contributed to this report.

France to redeploy its troops in Africa

July 17, 2014

PARIS (AP) — French troops are still in Mali a year and a half after they were sent there for a targeted operation against extremists. And instead of leaving, they're about to expand their mission to fighting terrorism from the Atlantic coast to the Mediterranean.

That's because the region's terrorist problem hasn't gone away: French troops merely dispersed Mali's al-Qaida-linked militants, and their potential ties with Nigerian militant group Boko Haram are of increasing concern to the French government.

The redeployment of 3,000 French troops in five of its former colonies across northwest Africa is expected to become official in the coming days. Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian arrived Wednesday in Mali, and President Francois Hollande is starting a three-day visit to Ivory Coast, Niger and Chad on Thursday.

Africans have mixed feelings about French soldiers setting up camp long-term. Some in Mali see it as a neo-colonial power grab, while others feel that the French are only extending the mission because they failed to finish the job they started in January 2013.

"A sovereign country should not accept the presence of foreign troops to assure its security. France took advantage of the weakness of our defense system to set itself up again in our country, after it was chased out in 1960 by the Malian people," said Bassirou Guindo, a Bamako vendor.

The new operation — codenamed "Barkhane" after a crescent-shaped dune in Sahara desert — will involve Mali, Mauritania, Burkina Faso, Niger and Chad. While Hollande said this week that the original Mali operation, called Serval, "has been perfectly accomplished," sporadic violence continues. A French soldier was killed Monday by a suicide attack while taking part in a reconnaissance mission in northern Mali. And deadly violence has rocked the north in recent months as Tuareg separatists push back against central authority.

"There are still major risks that jihadists will develop in the zone," Le Drian said Sunday on Europe 1 radio. The shifting strategy is aimed at preventing the "highway" across the region now used for drug and weapons trafficking "from becoming a place of permanent passage, where jihadist groups between Libya and the Atlantic Ocean can rebuild themselves. It's our security which is at stake," he said. French authorities say al-Qaida's North Africa branch, with fighters scattered around the region, is the main threat to French targets at home and around the world.

The number of soldiers in the region will remain roughly the same, with some 1,000 of them staying in northern Mali. The operation will have its headquarters in the Chadian capital of N'Djamena. A senior French presidential aide said the shift "will allow us to have more flexibility so that we can take into account the situation in each country and deploy reinforcements where it is necessary." The aide spoke on condition of anonymity because the operation is not officially launched yet.

The force will count 20 helicopters, 200 armored vehicles, 10 transport planes, 6 fighter jets and 3 drones, according to the defense ministry. Hollande's visit to Niger and Chad will focus on terrorism issues while his stop in Ivory Coast will be dedicated to economy. The French president will visit the French air base of Niger's capital Niamey, where unmanned aircraft are based, including two U.S.-made Reaper surveillance drones. He will also visit the French military base of Kossei in Chad.

The French government deflects accusations of neo-colonialism by insisting on the involvement of African countries in their own security, through participation in U.N. or international peacekeeping missions in Mali and Central African Republic.

Malian Defense Ministry adviser Lt. Col. Diarran Kone said a defense treaty being signed during Le Drian's visit is aimed in part at putting a legal structure around the French presence. But he acknowledges frustration and misunderstanding among the Malian population about the French role.

Ordinary people are blunt about their views. "The presence of the French troops is not a good thing," said Fanta Kamate, a 21-year-old student in Bamako. "They come to Mali only for their own interests."

Ahmed contributed from Bamako, Mali.

Ukraine orphans become pawns in civil conflict

July 15, 2014

DONETSK, Ukraine (AP) — Tamara Popova and her fellow orphans are adamant: They don't want to go to Russia. The separatist gunmen running this eastern Ukrainian city aren't asking. They're giving orders.

As fighting between insurgent and government troops closes in on the city, the 130 or so children living at Donetsk Orphanage No. 1 find themselves in the middle of a tug of war. The insurgents say the children will be safer in Russia. Ukraine wants to move them to facilities in government-held territory, at least until the fighting dies own. It says taking them outside the country would be tantamount to a kidnapping.

"Normal people would ask our opinion," the 16-year-old Popova said, as other orphans nodded in agreement. "We told them that this was against the law, that we have brothers and sisters here. But then they started to swear."

The orphanage has children from age 7 into their late teens. It's clean and well-ordered. Pictures of stars from the local Shaktyar Donetsk soccer team hang in one room. Another is decorated with a fairytale tableau. Girls' bedrooms are decked in pink wallpaper and hung with floral pattern curtains.

It's an image of peace undermined by the menace of violence. Men bearing automatic rifles arrived one recent day to lay down the law about moving to Russia, terrifying everybody. Yelena Im, 16, scoffed at insurgent claims they have the orphans' best interests at heart.

"If they act like that when they want to take us - everybody was crying - then I don't know how they will treat us there," Im said. "They took away our passports. We told them to give us back our documents, that we need them. What right do they have to take them?

"But they don't answer. They just turn around and start screaming again." Both sides appear to be using the orphans for propaganda. "Under Ukrainian law, the actions of these scoundrels should be qualified as a criminal offense," Ukraine's foreign ministry said in a statement.

"They are children of the Donetsk Republic," said Roman Lyagin, the social affairs minister of the separatist government. "We deem Ukraine an enemy. We are not Ukraine, so we evacuate children to secure places. In this case, we believe this to be the Russian Federation."

Russia, meanwhile, touts the large numbers of child refugees heading toward Russia as proof that Ukraine can't take care of them. Pavel Astakhov, Russia's children's rights ombudsman, said Sunday there were 22,000 Ukrainian child refugees in Russia. He urged Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to "defend the most defenseless, the orphans of Ukraine.

"Allow them to leave for Russia!" The orphans themselves remain caught in the middle. Orphanage director Olga Volkova said the insurgents made clear they must do as they are told. "We were told that if we don't comply, then this will be considered sabotage, because during wartime we must comply with orders," she said. "And if we don't, then we will be talked to in a different way."

Associated Press reporters Laura Mills in Moscow and Peter Leonard in Kiev, Ukraine, contributed to this report.

Eastern Ukrainians flee as army suffers losses

July 11, 2014

DONETSK, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine's president vowed vengeance in blood after 19 troops were killed in an insurgent rocket attack Friday, and residents of the rebel-held city of Donetsk began fleeing in large numbers for fear of a government siege.

The barrage of rocket fire just before sunrise at a base near the Russian border was a devastating setback for government forces, who had seemingly gained the upper hand last weekend when they pushed the pro-Russian fighters out of their stronghold city of Slovyansk. In addition to those killed, 93 soldiers were wounded, the Defense Ministry said.

"For every life of our soldiers, the militants will pay with tens and hundreds of their own," Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko warned. "Not one terrorist will evade responsibility. Everybody will get what is coming to them."

Ukrainian government troops have been fighting for more than three months against separatists in eastern Ukraine, and in the last two weeks, they have cut the territory held by the rebels in half. Driven from Slovyansk, the rebels have regrouped in Donetsk, an industrial city of 1 million, and Ukraine has said it will cordon off the area.

In anticipation of a siege, leaders of the self-styled Donetsk People's Republic announced they will evacuate entire neighborhoods. Many residents have rushed to pack up and leave for fear of getting caught in the cross-fire, given the insurgents' strategy of using residential areas for cover.

"The militia has begun blowing up roads, so I want to get out while there is still time. I don't want to turn into a living shield for the militants," said 56-year old businessman Andrei Koziyatko. High-end shops are boarded up, and many other businesses, including insurance companies, real estate offices, beauty salons and notaries, have closed their doors. "For sale" and "For rent" signs abound where there were none a few weeks earlier. Property values have collapsed, with one-bedroom apartments in the city center now selling for $15,000, or one-third of what they cost before.

Estimates of how many people have left vary. The mayor's office said 30,000. Donetsk People's Republic prime minister Alexander Boroday put the number at 70,000 and rising. At the Donetsk train station, people waited in long lines at the ticket office. Four trains a day go to the capital, Kiev, and three others travel in the opposite direction, to the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don.

"People are trying to go in any which direction. But all the tickets for the coming week are sold out," station director Irina Nikolaicheva said. Irina Khodyko, a 38-year old accountant, said she was leaving for Kiev with her 10-year old son and 12-year old daughter. Their apartment is by the once-gleaming international airport — now a bombed-out ruin in a district rendered inaccessible by the daily clashes.

"Life has become impossible. Every day they shoot. All the windows in our apartment are shot out. The children have stopped sleeping," Khodyko said. She said insurgent forces tried to press-gang her husband into fighting, but he fled.

"The Ukrainian army is in no rush to liberate us. They have just abandoned us, and we are forced to get ourselves out of this mess," she said. Koziyatko, the businessman, has been forced to close his lumber and building equipment supply business, which employed 17 people, after more than half his workers left Donetsk.

"The smartest, best-educated and most talented people are fleeing. And who is going to stay?" he asked.

A look at who's running in Slovenia vote

July 11, 2014

LJUBLJANA, Slovenia (AP) — Slovenia is holding an early parliamentary election on Sunday to choose its third government in three years. The EU-member country was forced into a vote after the outgoing prime minister, Alenka Bratusek, lost a power struggle within her party and resigned.

A new party is leading in opinion polls but appears far from majority support, and another coalition government is the likely outcome. Once the most prosperous of the eastern European states, the eurozone nation plunged into financial turmoil during the EU debt crisis. It has managed to stabilize Slovenia's banks without resorting to an international bailout.

WHO'S RUNNING The front-runner is the party of Miro Cerar, a politically inexperienced law expert and parliamentary consultant, better known as the son of Olympic gymnastics medalist Miroslav Cerar. The Miro Ciro Party was formed in June, and Cerar swiftly gained popularity as a new, untainted political figure. Just behind is the conservative Slovene Democratic Party of former Prime Minister Janez Jansa, who was jailed last month for corruption. Several smaller parties are also running.

WHAT THE POLLS SAY Recent surveys show Cerar's party with about 30 percent support, ahead of Jansa's Democrats on 25 percent. The Pensioner's Party is next at around 10 percent, while other smaller parties — including Bratusek's — trailed.

WHAT LIES AHEAD The new government must handle sensitive proposals to privatize Slovenia's main airport, Telekom Slovenia and other state assets. Cerar has spoken against selling state property. BY THE NUMBERS

Fifteen parties are competing for 90 seats. There are 1.7 million voters, but analysts predict a low turnout because voting comes at the height of summer holiday season. Polls open at 0500 GMT Sunday and close at 1700 GMT. Exit polls are expected soon after.

Jovana Gec contributed from Belgrade, Serbia.

Italy to accelerate Turkey's EU membership

13 July 2014

Italy will throw the full weight of the EU presidency behind Turkey's accession bid as it takes over the office, Italian under-secretary for Europe Sandro Gozi has told the Anadolu Agency.

Gozi said Turkey's accession to the EU would contribute to the 28-member bloc economically, socially and culturally.

He said: "We have always welcomed and supported Turkey's EU membership. We always want Turkey to be included in the EU more and this will be among Italy's priorities."

Stating that Turkey should make good use of Italy's presidency period, Gozi said: "Italy is determined to accelerate Turkey's EU membership process, hence we will do our best to support Turkey's EU bid."

Italy took the EU’s rotating six-month term-presidency in June from Greece – the 12th time it has held the office since it founded the European Economic Community with five other nations in 1957.

Turkey and the EU opened accession talks on Chapter 22, which covers regional policy, after France lifted its block on the chapter in November 2013.

Beginning accession talks on 35 negotiation chapters in 2005, Turkey has seen very little progress amid opposition to Turkish membership in some EU countries, including France, and the unresolved Cyprus dispute.

Gozi, emphasizing that Turkey would play a key role in the EU in terms of the regional security, said: "There are also common economic interests between Turkey and the EU which is one of the main reasons for Italy's support for Turkey's membership.

“The latest developments on the Kurdish issue are also impressive but we still have things to do together. The negotiation process will have positive effect, both on Turkey and Turkish citizens."

Turkey has been working to implement the reforms needed for it to comply with the 35 negotiation areas that will secure accession. So far, only 14 ‘chapters’ have been opened while 17 still remain blocked, due in part to the dispute over Cyprus.

New migration policies are among Italy's top priorities as it receives a large number of migrants from Libya, Syria and Iraq, many drowning during the perilous sea crossing to southern Italy.

"We are not in the middle of the economic chaos as a couple of years ago. As Italy, we think that EU should care for the human rights protection not only in countries' EU negotiations but also in Europe," Gozi said.

Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi had said the EU cannot turn a blind eye to migrant deaths and called for the EU to do more to help Italy's humanitarian program.

Source: World Bulletin.
Link: http://www.worldbulletin.net/todays-news/140611/italy-to-accelerate-turkeys-eu-membership.

Wildfire threatens town near Athens

July 12, 2014

ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Authorities say a raging wildfire southeast of Greece's capital has burned down at least one house and threatened several others.

The fire broke out early Saturday afternoon in a forested area in the hills west of Keratea, 40 kilometers (25 miles) southeast of Athens, and has spread quickly, despite the efforts of more than 150 firefighters. Four planes and three helicopters also assisted before nightfall.

Local mayor Costas Levantis told TV channel Star that one house has burned down. Greece's hot, dry summers and prevailing high winds make wildfires frequent. The government has warned that firefighting resources are stretched dangerously thin.

Thousands protest Gaza strikes in London, Paris

July 11, 2014

LONDON (AP) — Thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators turned out on the streets of London and Paris on Friday to call for an end to Israeli military strikes on Gaza.

Several thousand people crowded the streets outside the Israeli Embassy in west London, waving placards that read "Gaza: End the Siege" and "Freedom for Palestine." The crowds blocked an entire road, and several protesters managed to climb on top of a double-decker bus stuck in traffic, but police said the protest was largely peaceful.

A smaller protest took place in Paris Friday, where about 100 people demonstrated near the French Foreign Ministry. Demonstrators waved Palestinian flags. One woman shouted "Palestine will survive" had the flag painted on her cheeks.

Stephane Frappreau, who identified himself as Jewish, said the demonstrations were about "defending humanity and about stopping the massacre." "I think that people tend to forget that Palestinians are people who are suffering, kids and women, who are dying every day," Frappreau said. "And I think that people shouldn't confuse things or come to quick conclusions, because being against Israel as we are today is not about being anti-Semitic."

France has both Western Europe's largest Jewish community and its largest Muslim population, and the French government has been walking a careful line on the Gaza developments. President Francois Hollande issued a statement earlier this week in support of Israel that prompted criticism because it failed to mention Palestinian victims. He later spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyau and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, then issued new statements expressing support for each and concern for all victims. He condemned violence and urged a return to peace talks.

More demonstrations were planned for the weekend. In London, a spokeswoman for Prime Minister David Cameron said earlier he supported Israel in the face of attacks by Hamas against Israeli civilians.

Mozambique Air Force jets get new lease on life

Bacau, Romania (UPI)
Jul 9, 2014

Eight MiG-21 fighters of the Mozambique Air Force have been overhauled and upgraded in Romania.

Aerostar S.A, the leading Romanian aerospace company, said its overhaul and upgrade work took 120 days for each aircraft.

Upgrades included installation of a GPS system and a modern digital flight data recorder.

"The program commenced over a year ago and has involved six single-seat and two double-seat trainer variants," Aerostar said. "Each overhaul took up to 120 days to accomplish and in effect the aircraft have been re-lifed and rehabilitated.

"In many instances the aircraft involved had not flown operationally for some 20 years."

Work on the aircraft was performed under a package deal that included the overhaul of an L-39 jet trainer and training of Mozambican ground crew and pilots.

Aerostar is a major supplier to the Romanian Ministry of National Defense but has begun to branch out into the manufacture of commercial aircraft aerostructures and maintenance, repair and overhaul services.

"The Mozambique program, which is coming to its conclusion, is proof of our capabilities in this direction," said Grigore Filip, president and general director of Aerostar. "We will feel that our mission has been completely successful when we find out that the Mozambique personnel are operating and carrying out flight training by themselves.

"Furthermore, we believe that this type of upgrade/overhaul/training solution brings advantages to countries with precarious resources and we shall increase our efforts to interest them in our capabilities."

Source: Space Mart.
Link: http://www.spacemart.com/reports/Mozambique_Air_Force_jets_get_new_lease_on_life_999.html.

One down, one to go: Rio Olympics next for Brazil

July 15, 2014

RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) — Brazil just pulled off the World Cup. Next up is Rio de Janeiro's 2016 Olympics, which poses an even bigger challenge.

Cement trucks are busy, creating billowing dust clouds, and girders are rising along Avenida Embaixador Abelardo Bueno, the road running in front of the main Olympic Park in the suburb of Barra da Tijuca.

"It's going, it's going," said a worker at the construction site, wearing an orange helmet, blue overalls and introducing himself as Mauricio Lima. Rust-orange beams sprouted behind him as he talked, a superstructure that in two years will become the Olympic media and broadcast centers.

"There is a lot to do, but things are moving," he added. The World Cup overcame fears about protests, half-finished stadiums and chaotic transport to deliver an exciting tournament that culminated with Germany's 1-0 victory over Argentina in extra time in the final.

Brazil's humiliating 7-1 loss against Germany in the semifinals was a blow to the home country, and the collapse a week ago of an overpass — part of a World Cup project in the southeast city of Belo Horizonte — killed two people. Eight workers died in World Cup stadium construction accidents.

Rio's Olympics have had their own problems. A few months ago, International Olympic Committee Vice President John Coates called the city's preparations the "worst" in memory. Other IOC members openly lambasted Rio. In response, the IOC sent in executive director Gilbert Felli to work as a troubleshooter.

His presence has helped, and Felli expects most projects back on schedule by September. "I'd like to be clear," Felli said in an interview with The Associated Press. "Until the games are delivered I'm always concerned. But it's not the case to say we're not going to make it. It's not possible that we won't make it."

Felli believes the World Cup gave the Olympics a boost. "The perception of the Brazilians is much more positive," Felli said. "It's good for the games. They have better trust in themselves to deliver the games. My view is to say ... the Brazilians will deliver excellent games. But we have to work every day for it. Nothing is a done deal."

Deadlines are still tight, and Felli described some as "tense, very tense." The problem areas include: —a shortage of hotel rooms —severe water pollution at the sailing venue in Guanabara Bay —a late start at the second large cluster of venues called Deodoro in northern Rio

—completion of a subway line extension from central Rio to Barra da Tijuca, site of the Olympic Park —construction of a public golf course several kilometers (miles) from the Olympic Park. The Rio Games, with events scattered around four venue clusters, could present transportation nightmares in a city cut up by mountains, tunnels and poor roads. About 60 percent of the events will be at Olympic Park, about 25 kilometers (15 miles) west of central Rio.

The Olympic Park and nearby golf course are being built in a wetlands/swamp area. Small alligators have been spotted wandering around the golf course, and visitors constantly complain about swarming mosquitoes in the Olympic Park area and the neighboring athletes village.

Other events will be staged at three other clusters: Deodoro; the famous Maracana Stadium area in central Rio; the Copacabana Beach and Guanabara Bay areas. Track and field will be run at the Joao Havelange Olympic Stadium, which was built in 2007 for the Pan American Games. The stadium, located in the Maracana cluster area, has been closed for a year for renovation and is to open next year.

In the wake of the World Cup, former IOC marketing director Michael Payne warned against complacency. "The danger would be anybody having a false sense of security," Payne said. "The Olympics are a far more complicated undertaking to deliver than the World Cup."

For example: —The World Cup involved 736 athletes; the Olympics 10,500. —The World Cup is one championship; the Olympics are dozens. —The World Cup drags on for a month; the Olympics are densely packed into just over two weeks.

—Host-generated broadcasting for the World Cup amounted to a few hundred hours; the Rio Olympics will generate about 5,000 hours. Payne suggested Rio's Olympic preparations might have "bottomed out" a few months ago, which means the only way is up.

"No disrespect to FIFA and the complexity and what they've done," Payne said. "But the sheer number of events becomes intimidating in the Olympics. It's a danger if Brazilians think it's just a bit more complex."

Brazil is estimated to have spent $11 billion to 14 billion on the World Cup, mostly public money. About $4 billion went to building or refurbishing 12 stadiums. Olympic spending is about $17 billion — a mix of public and private money. Rio Mayor Eduardo Paes said he expects overall spending to increase by as much as 20 percent. That would put spending at over $20 billion.

In their winning bid in 2009, Rio officials pitched that the Olympics would be a catalyst for building infrastructure in Rio, a city neglected for 50 years. But as costs have risen, and in an election year for President Dilma Rousseff, national, state and local officials have flip-flopped. Now they say infrastructure spending should be viewed separately from direct Olympic spending.

They argue that a subway extension, high-speed bus lanes and a rejuvenated port would have been built anyway and are not Olympic-related expenses. However, Paes has acknowledged the projects lingered for years and would not have happened without the Olympics.

Dennis Coates, a sports economist at the University of Maryland-Baltimore County, warns against countries bidding for mega events like the Olympics or World Cup on the premise they will drive economic growth or spur building of roads and bridges.

"If you need highways and airports, you should be able to build them without throwing a big, expensive party for the rest of the world," he said. "All that does is add to the cost. But if that's the only way to convince the public that this is a good idea, than I guess that's what you do. It's sad but true."

AP Sports Writer Stephen Wilson contributed to this report.

Germany basks in 4th World Cup after 24-year wait

July 14, 2014

BERLIN (AP) — It's been a long wait, and now Germany is basking in its fourth World Cup title.

The Die Welt newspaper celebrated Monday with a three-word headline in the national colors of black, red and gold that read simply: "It is true," while Der Spiegel magazine's website listed Germany's titles: "1954. 1974. 1990. 2014!"

Midfielder Mario Goetze, who wasn't born when Germany won its last World Cup, sealed the title with his extra-time goal. "THANK GOETZ! World champions!" screamed the mass-circulation daily Bild. "Super Mario gets the fourth star!" read the headline in Berlin tabloid Berliner Kurier.

German astronaut Alexander Gerst congratulated the team from the International Space Station on its "top performance." He tweeted a picture of himself in a Germany jersey with an extra fourth star — "as experts on stars, we already got one."

Germany goalkeeper Manuel Neuer said after the match: "All of Germany is the world champion." The theme was picked up by a top official in Chancellor Angela Merkel's party, Peter Tauber, who tweeted, "Good morning, you world champions out there!"

Merkel and President Joachim Gauck, who traveled together to the final in Rio de Janeiro, posed for pictures with the team and the trophy. And there was another selfie with a beaming chancellor for forward Lukas Podolski, weeks after Merkel dropped into the dressing room during a visit to Germany's opening match.

It's Germany's first World Cup title as a reunited nation, though that fact drew barely any attention in German media. West Germany's 1990 win came with the country just three months away from reunification; united Germany won the 1996 European Championship.

About a quarter of a million fans celebrated into the night at the packed "fan mile" in front of Berlin's Brandenburg Gate, while car drivers blasted their horns into the early hours of the morning. The party resumes on Tuesday morning, when coach Joachim Loew's team is due to land at Berlin's Tegel airport and then celebrate its triumph at the Brandenburg Gate.

The Finance Ministry said it will issue a special "Germany World Cup champion" postage stamp. But don't expect Germany to declare a national holiday in celebration. "There is no serious discussion of this," government spokeswoman Christiane Wirtz said.

Germany World Cup heroes return to huge fan party

July 15, 2014

BERLIN (AP) — Germany's World Cup-winning team returned home Tuesday to celebrate the country's fourth title with huge crowds of fans.

The team's plane touched down at Berlin's Tegel Airport midmorning after circling the "fan mile" in front of the landmark Brandenburg Gate. Captain Philipp Lahm carried the trophy off the aircraft to cheers and a chorus of "Football's Coming Home" from fans gathered on the airport's viewing terrace.

He was followed by midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger, draped in a German flag and sporting a bandage under his right eye, the result of a cut in the 1-0 win over Argentina in the final on Sunday. From the airport, the team set off for downtown Berlin in a bus painted with the years of Germany's World Cup victories: The previous occasions were in 1954, 1974 and 1990.

They were to make the last part of the trip to the Brandenburg Gate on an open truck. The "fan mile" started filling up hours before the arrival, with some waiting overnight to get a place at the front.

"We're all excited to see what it will be like," Schweinsteiger told ARD television. "This time, thank God, we have the cup with us." "It will only sink in for us in the next few days." The team's plane was about an hour behind schedule, its departure from Rio de Janeiro delayed after a luggage truck hit the aircraft and damage to the paintwork had to be inspected.

Germany's World Cup party gets underway at home

July 14, 2014

BERLIN (AP) — A quarter of a million German football fans reacted with unbridled joy, mixed with shock, on Sunday when Mario Goetze struck late in extra-time for Germany to win the World Cup with a 1-0 victory over Argentina.

The supporters, packed into the "fan mile" in front of the German capital's famous Brandenburg Gate, screamed as one when Goetze took the ball on his chest and let fly inside the far post from a narrow angle.

Fans cheered, clapped and shouted, with groups of fans hugging and jumping into the air together, making so much noise the commentary on the large screens could no longer be heard. Flares illuminated the stage and sent plumes of smoke into the sky.

"We're going to be world champions! We're going to be world champions!" yelled the compere of the public viewing event, even before the second period of extra-time was over in Brazil. The party was already underway in Berlin, though there were a couple of nervous moments before the revelers could really let themselves go.

Cars drivers blasted their horns, whooped and yelled, before captain Philipp Lahm had even lifted the trophy at Rio de Janeiro's Maracana Stadium. Once he did, a massive fireworks display took place around the Brandenburg Gate, where fans had begun gathering six hours before kick-off.

Not even the rain or ominous thunder rumbling overhead could put them off. Police closed a number of entrances to the fan mile at least four hours before kickoff due to the sheer volume of fans attending. With three hours to go, police said it was full.

Other public viewing venues also filled up, despite forecasts of heavy rain across the country. Showers and summer storms were due to move in from the southwest. Some 50,000 fans attended the Fan-Arena at St. Pauli's stadium in Hamburg, while supporters brought their sofas to watch the World Cup games at Union Berlin's Alte Foersterei stadium.

News agency dpa reported that a man was stabbed and later died from his injuries at a public viewing event in a cinema in the northern city of Bremen. Standing amid thousands of discarded plastic beer cups, the fans at the Brandenburg Gate cheered loudly before kickoff came when the clouds gave way and the sun briefly broke through.

The long wait took its toll on some overindulgent supporters, however, keeping the Red Cross busy throughout the match. There was a solitary scream, followed by stunned silence, when Gonzalo Higuain thought he'd scored for Argentina in the first half, only for wild cheering to erupt when the effort was disallowed for offside.

The fans applauded record World Cup goalscorer Miroslav Klose when he went off after possibly his last game for Germany, but otherwise there were few opportunities for fans to let loose until Goetze finally broke the deadlock.

"They made it exciting," Leon Tober of Fuerstenwalde, east of Berlin, told The Associated Press. "It was a long wait, especially after twice coming third (in previous World Cups). It's great for the young generation. They're a super troupe of players. They can go on now and win even more."

It was Germany's fourth World Cup, but its first as a unified country. West Germany's triumph in 1990 came several months after the fall of the Berlin Wall, which passed in front of the Brandenburg Gate where more celebrations will be held Tuesday when coach Joachim Loew's team is scheduled to display the World Cup trophy to fans.

Not everyone had been supporting Germany. A Berlin taxi-driver with an Argentina flag flying from his window riled fans on Kastanienallee Street in Prenzlauer Berg by beeping at them as he passed. "I've been cursed at and spat upon," said Cihan Goz, laughing as he relayed the story. He said he was a fan of Maradona, revered among Argentines as the world's best ever player. Coz was still picking up passengers despite the flag.

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who watched the game in Berlin with Argentina's ambassador in Germany, said: "We dreamed of becoming world champions and that dream came true."

U.S. cargo ship blasts off with supplies for space station

13 July 2014 Sunday

An unmanned Orbital Sciences Corp Antares rocket blasted off from a seaside launch pad in Virginia on Sunday, sending a Cygnus cargo ship on its way to the International Space Station, a NASA Television broadcast showed.

The 133-foot-tall (41-meter-tall) rocket lifted off at 12:52 p.m. EDT/1652 GMT from a commercially operated launch pad at NASA's Wallops Island Flight Facility on the Virginia coast.

Perched on top of the rocket was a Cygnus spacecraft, built by Orbital Sciences in partnership with Italy's Thales Alenia Space, a joint venture of Thales SA and Finmeccanica SpA.

The freighter was loaded with more than 3,660 pounds (1,660 kg) of food, science equipment and supplies for the space station, a $100 billion research laboratory that flies about 264 miles (425 km) above Earth. The capsule was slated to reach the orbital outpost on Wednesday.

The mission is the second of eight station cargo runs by Orbital Sciences under a $1.9 billion contract with NASA.

Orbital Sciences made its first cargo run to the station in January. It has not yet announced other customers for its medium-lift Antares rocket, a two-stage booster that relies on Russian-built AJ-26 engines to power its first stage.

Orbital Sciences named the Cygnus ship launched on Sunday the SS Janice Voss, a tribute to Voss, a five-time shuttle astronaut and former Orbital Sciences engineer who died of breast cancer in 2012.

The capsule is expected to remain berthed at the space station for about a month. Once unloaded, it will be filled with garbage and items no longer needed by the station crew and redirected into the atmosphere for incineration.

Source: World Bulletin.
Link: http://www.worldbulletin.net/todays-news/140622/us-cargo-ship-blasts-off-with-supplies-for-space-station.

Russia test launches first new space rocket since Soviet era

09 July 2014 Wednesday

Russia launched its first new design of space rocket since the Soviet era from the northern military space port of Plesetsk on Wednesday, aiming to break its reliance on foreign suppliers as well as the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

The Angara rocket's quiet debut was in marked contrast to the live broadcast of an embarrassing aborted first launch attempt, watched by President Vladimir Putin via video link from the Kremlin.

"The first test launch of the light-class Angara-1.2PP space rocket was conducted by the Air and Space Defence Forces," Russia's Defense Ministry said in a statement, cited by Russian news agencies.

The rocket blasted off at 1600 Moscow time (1200 GMT), it said, on a planned roughly 20 minute suborbital short flight across Russia's Arctic coast line.

More than two decades in the works, the new generation Angara rockets are a key to President Vladimir Putin's effort to reform a once-pioneering space industry hobbled after years of budget cuts and a brain drain in the 1990s.

The designer of the first stage RD-191 engine, Energomash, blamed the failure on its first trial launch on a drop in the pressure of the liquid oxygen tank.

The rocket is the first entirely designed and built within post-Soviet Russia's borders - ordered by then President Boris Yeltsin in the 1990s to break dependence on other ex-Soviet republics and a launch pad Russia leases from Kazakhstan.

A potential commercial rival to Arianespace of France and Californian-based SpaceX, a heavier version of the modular launcher is designed to replace Russia's workhorse Proton rocket which has suffered an embarrassing litany of failures.

But industry experts estimate its development has cost billions of dollars and the Angara rockets will only become commercially viable in another decade if launched from a new cosmodrome Russia is building in the far east.

Source: World Bulletin.
Link: http://www.worldbulletin.net/haber/140357/russia-test-launches-first-new-space-rocket-since-soviet-era.

Putin signs nuclear energy deal with Argentina

July 12, 2014

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin signed agreements on nuclear energy generation with Argentina on Saturday as part of a Latin American tour aimed at building Russia's influence in the region.

Argentina has been building nuclear-powered electricity plants to revive its nuclear program and reduce its dependence on fossil fuels amid an energy crunch. Putin and President Cristina Fernandez said the Russian atomic energy corporation, Rosatom, would be involved with the construction of units in Argentina's Atucha III nuclear power plant.

"These are very important agreements," said Fernandez, who had been out of the public eye for a week due to a throat infection. "Argentina is a leader in Latin America in terms of nuclear energy generation," Fernandez said at a joint news conference at the presidential palace. "They reaffirm our bonds of friendship and strategic links."

Argentina has one of the world's largest deposits of shale oil and gas, but only a few companies have made commitments to develop the fields as many fear the government's interventionist energy policies.

Although a deal on the shale deposits was not announced Saturday, Fernandez said members of the Russian delegation traveling with Putin will visit Argentina's Vaca Muerta (Dead Cow) deposit in Neuquen province.

"We're talking about Russia — one of the world's top producers of gas and oil in the world. But we Argentines also have our own and it seems like others have noticed," Fernandez said. After a dinner, the Russian leader was heading to Brazil for a summit of leaders from the BRICS nations: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

"Argentina is one of Russia's top strategic partners in Latin America. We cooperate in vast sectors and I'm in constant contact with the president," Putin said. "We also have similar positions in the international arena."

About 150 members of the local Ukrainian community waved flags and held large banners outside the Pink House presidential palace to protest Russia's annexation of Crimea and alleged support for separatists elsewhere in Ukraine.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande urged Russia this week to use its influence on rebels in eastern Ukraine so a meeting on a possible cease-fire can take place as soon as possible.

Merkel is due to watch her country's team play Argentina in the World Cup final in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday. Putin, whose country is hosting the 2018 tournament, also is attending the game, and Brazil's Foreign Ministry announced Saturday that Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko also would be there.

So far, the countries on Putin's itinerary have been sympathetic or uncritical of Russia's position on the conflict. Fernandez has accused the United States and Britain of a double standard for criticizing a pro-Russian secession vote held in Crimea while backing a status referendum in the Falkland Islands claimed by Argentina.

A few dozen activists also turned out to protest anti-gay laws and prejudice in Russia, which does not recognize gay marriages or civil unions. Putin approved a law last year banning what it calls gay "propaganda" from reaching minors.

"It's not only the government's problem but the Russian society, which discriminates against us. I have friends who have committed suicide because of this," said Marina Mironova, a teacher who said she lost her job in Russia because of her sexual orientation and who is now seeking asylum in Argentina with her partner.

"We want to stay here and marry legally. There's freedom, nice people and the president is tolerant." Argentina is the first country in Latin America to legalize gay marriage. Two Russian homosexuals married in Argentina earlier this year and are also seeking asylum.

Putin in Argentina, building Russian ties

July 12, 2014

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin met Argentina's president on Saturday as part of a Latin American tour aimed at building Russia's influence and investments in the region.

Putin and President Cristina Fernandez, who has been out of the public eye for a week due to an acute throat infection, were expected to sign a series of agreements, including cooperation on nuclear energy generation.

The Russian leader then was heading to Brazil for a summit of leaders from the so-called BRICS nations: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. About 150 members of the local Ukrainian community waved flags and held large banners outside the Pink House presidential palace to protest Russia's annexation of Crimea and alleged support for separatists elsewhere in the country.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande urged Russia this week to use its influence on rebels in eastern Ukraine so that a meeting on a possible cease-fire can take place as soon as possible.

Merkel is due to watch her country's team play in the World Cup final in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday, the same day Putin is expected to be in the city. So far, the countries on Putin's itinerary have been sympathetic or uncritical of Russia's position on the conflict. Fernandez has accused the United States and Britain a double standard for criticizing a pro-Russian secession vote held in Crimea while backing a status referendum in the Falkland Islands claimed by Argentina.

A few dozen activists also turned out to protest anti-gay laws and prejudice in Russia, which does not recognize gay marriages or civil unions. Putin approved a law last year banning what it calls gay "propaganda" from reaching minors.

"It's not only the government's problem but the Russian society, which discriminates against us. I have friends who have committed suicide because of this," said Marina Mironova, 38, a teacher who said she lost her job in Russia because of her sexual orientation and who is now seeking asylum in Argentina with her partner.

"We want to stay here and marry legally. There's freedom, nice people and the president is tolerant." Argentina is the first country in Latin America to legalize gay marriage. Two Russian homosexuals married in Argentina earlier this year and are also seeking asylum.

Putin kicks off Latin America tour with Cuba stop

July 12, 2014

HAVANA (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin began a six-day Latin American tour aimed at boosting trade and ties in the region with a stop Friday in Cuba, a key Soviet ally during the Cold War that has backed Moscow in its dispute with the West over Ukraine.

The two countries signed about a dozen accords in areas such as energy, industry, health and disaster prevention. Russian companies will participate in petroleum projects around Boca de Jaruco on the island's north coast, and that cooperation will extend to offshore oil deposits, Cuban government website Cubadebate said.

Another agreement covered infrastructure at a big new port project that Cuba hopes will become a regional shipping center and attract much-needed foreign investment. "We are talking about the possibility of creating in Cuba a grand transportation hub with a possible modernization of the maritime port of Mariel and the construction of a modern airport with its respective cargo terminal," Putin said, according to an official Spanish translation of his remarks in Russian.

Moscow is also forgiving 90 percent of Cuba's Soviet-era debt, which totals more than $35 billion. The remainder will be invested in education on the island, Putin added. The debt agreement is "another great, tangible generosity of the Russian people toward Cuba," President Raul Castro said.

Cuban state media carried photos in the evening of Putin's meeting with retired leader Fidel Castro. Putin and Raul Castro also participated in a ceremony at Havana's Memorial to the Soviet Internationalist Soldier.

Amid the crisis in Ukraine, the countries on Putin's itinerary have shown themselves to be sympathetic to Russia's position on the conflict, or at least not overtly critical. Cuban official newspapers tend to characterize it as a struggle against right-wing extremism threatening ethnic Russians in Ukraine. Earlier this year, Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez criticized U.S. and European Union sanctions imposed on Russian individuals and pro-Russian Ukrainians.

"In the international arena, we agree with the current policy of strength and political intelligence that the Soviet Union — I mean Russia — is carrying out," Castro said. Putin made a stop in Nicaragua on Friday night for a one-hour meeting with President Daniel Ortega. He then flew on to Argentina, whose president, Cristina Fernandez, accused the United States and Britain in March of having a double standard for criticizing a pro-Russian secession vote held in Crimea while backing a status referendum in the disputed Falkland Islands.

After that, he goes to Brazil, which was among several nations opposing Russia's possible exclusion from an upcoming G20 summit in Australia due to the crisis. "We are grateful to South Americans for the support of our international initiatives, including outer space demilitarization, strengthening international information security and combating the glorification of Nazism," Putin said in an interview with Prensa Latina before the trip.

On Friday he reiterated Russia's opposition to the 52-year-old U.S. embargo against Cuba, which aims to isolate the communist-run nation economically and financially. Havana and Moscow have a shared history dating to the Cold War, when they were united by ideology and opposition to U.S. influence. They drifted apart in the 1990s, however, as the collapse of the Soviet Union ended billions of dollars in trade and subsidies for Cuba.

In December 2000, shortly after his first election, Putin visited the island and pledged to reinvigorate relations. Russia said in February that it was looking to expand its worldwide military presence, including asking permission for its navy ships to use ports in Cuba and elsewhere in Latin America. A Russian intelligence-gathering vessel has docked in Havana on multiple occasions in recent months.

Putin plans to attend a presidential summit of the BRICS group of nations in Fortaleza, Brazil, in the coming days. He is to be in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday for the World Cup final and ceremonial handover of host duties for soccer's marquee tournament, which next takes place in Russia in 2018.

Iran calls for end to Israeli strikes, defends Hamas

12 July 2014 Saturday

Iran has called for an “immediate end” to Israeli military strikes on Gaza.

In a television interview to be broadcast on Sunday, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said “the United States and the rest of the members of the [UN] Security Council have a moral and legal responsibility to put an end to this.”

Asked to condemn Hamas rocket attacks on Israel, Zarif told the NBC program Meet the Press: “We do not condemn people who are defending themselves."

He added: “We believe that Israel aims to make Palestinians suffer from hunger by the initiatives endangering civilians in [the] Gaza Strip, restricting civilians’ access to food and medicine."

Meanwhile, Amnesty International has called on the UN to investigate the actions of both sides.

“More than 100 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip, more than 600 people have been wounded, many of them seriously,” Amnesty said in a statement. “In Israel, at least 20 people have been wounded by rocket attacks and property damaged since Israel launched Operation Protective Edge in the early morning of 8 July.”

The campaign group called for an arms embargo on Israel, Hamas and Palestinian armed groups.

Israel’s military operation is the third in Gaza within six years.

Source: World Bulletin.
Link: http://www.worldbulletin.net/haber/140559/iran-calls-for-end-to-israeli-strikes-defends-hamas.

India increases defense spending, invites foreign investment

New Delhi (AFP)
July 10, 2014

India announced Thursday it would lift the cap on foreign direct investment in the defense sector to 49 percent and announced a 12-percent rise in military spending as part of efforts to modernize its armed forces.

In his first budget, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley raised defense spending for the current financial year to 2.29 trillion rupees ($38.3 billion), up from 2.03 trillion rupees budgeted in the 2013-2014 year.

Jaitley, who is also defense minister, said he planned to open up the military industry to foreign investment, lifting the limit from 26 percent to 49 percent, with Indian companies retaining management and overall control.

"There can be no compromise with the defense of our country," Jaitley told parliament.

"Modernization of the armed forces is critical to enable them to play their role effectively in the defense of India's strategic interests."

- Investor skepticism? -

Thursday's budget also included 10 billion rupees ($167 million) for railway lines in border areas that is expected to be targeted at areas neighboring rivals Pakistan and China.

India has eyed Chinese investment in railways near its border anxiously, with Beijing ploughing billions of dollars into infrastructure in Tibet.

India is one of the world's biggest arms importers, traditionally relying on Russia and in more recent years the United States for equipment and technology due to weaknesses with its own industry.

But slow procurement over decades and the collapse of a string of defense deals during the previous center-left Congress party government's rule has left the military short of key equipment.

Jaitley said last month he aimed to speed up buying in the interests of "national security", while experts expect a more muscular foreign policy under the new administration.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a hardline nationalist, won landslide elections in May, pledging to reform and revive the economy which has slumped to a decade-low level.

India's military has grown increasingly frustrated at the state of its equipment as it looks to defend itself against an increasingly assertive China and from Pakistan.

Defense analyst Rahul Bedi said the new cap would fail to lure foreign companies because it was less than 50 percent and they feared losing rights to their sensitive technology.

"It doesn't matter if it's 26 percent or 49, it's not 51 percent which puts them in control, so foreign investors are going to look at this with skepticism," Bedi from IHS Jane's Defense Weekly told AFP.

India hiked its military spending by a huge 34 percent in 2009-2010 over the previous year after the 2008 attacks in Mumbai by Pakistan-based gunmen killed 166 people and revealed gaping holes in the country's security setup.

India overtook China to become the world's biggest importer of arms in 2010, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, which monitors the global arms trade.

The US has displaced Russia as India's biggest arms supplier, importing $1.9 billion of military kit from the US in 2013, according to research from IHS Jane's.

Source: Space War.
Link: http://www.spacewar.com/reports/India_increases_defence_spending_invites_foreign_investment_999.html.