minister insists britain wanted diplomatic solution on iraq
london jan afp
the first former cabinet minister to give evidence to the iraq war inquiry
insisted on tuesday that britain had always wanted diplomatic solution to the
crisis before the invasion
former defence secretary geoff hoon kicked off testimony from series of
cabinet ministers ahead of the eagerly awaited appearance of former prime
minister tony blair before the panel on january
hoon said britain had always hoped diplomatic efforts to disarm iraq through the
united nations would bear fruit and he doubted that blair had ever given the
united states unconditional support for military action
blair influential spokesman at the time of the war alastair campbell told
the inquiry last week that blair had sent secret notes to then us president
george bush in the months preceding the march invasion
campbell said that while blair was pressing bush to seek diplomatic solution
he indicated in his notes he would support military action if the un route
failed
hoon was asked whether he as defence minister would not have expected to have
been consulted if blair was writing notes committing britain to military action
would have been and that is why do not believe he was ever unconditionally
committing us to anything hoon said think that right up until the vote in
the house of commons our attitude towards the use of force was always
conditional
hoon was referring to the march vote in which british lawmakers backed the
use of military force against saddam husssein regime
turning to blair talks with bush at the president ranch in crawford texas
in april hoon said british military chiefs were anxious afterwards to
understand us military thinking on iraq
he said however that blair had not briefed him directly on what was said at the
meeting
don think he told me anything directly saw the record of the meeting
hoon said
declassified letters released by the inquiry show that peter goldsmith then
attorney general the government top legal advisor warned hoon in april
there were considerable difficulties in justifying military action
but hoon said that by march shortly before the us led invasion
goldsmith was advising the government that an invasion would not be illegal
was clear that his conclusion was that there was legal justification for
military action hoon told the inquiry he says so categorically goldsmith
is due to give evidence on january two days before blair
hoon identified mid as the period when it become clear that washington
meant business over iraq because the country was so deeply traumatised over
the september attacks and it perceived saddam as another threat
he told the inquiry it was getting pretty real by then think there was
real sense of the americans thinking through in very practical way the
consequences of the axis of evil speech by bush and focusing on iraq
so we had no doubt at that stage in the summer that they meant business
hoon defence minister from to said that as early as october he
told blair that decision on military action was necessary because he felt it
was essential that the armed forces be given time to prepare
hoon admitted he had feared the british armed forces would struggle to meet the
demands of full scale military invasion of iraq because they were already
deeply committed in afghanistan following the invasion
rugbyu best and horan back in ireland squad
dublin jan afp
ireland coach declan kidney recalled front row forwards rory best and marcus
horan when he named man squad for the defence of the champions six nations
title on tuesday
ulster hooker best has not played this season having undergone surgery on neck
injury in the pre season but has recently returned to contact training
munster prop horan returns having missed out on the november internationals
after undergoing routine medical procedure for minor heart ailment
the loosehead has not played for his province since the european cup win over
treviso in october but played minutes for shannon in their all ireland league
clash with dolphin on saturday
there are nine uncapped players in the squad with ulster forwards dan tuohy and
declan fitzpatrick among the new faces
ireland took the title last season with their first grand slam in years and
went through unbeaten rounding off last year with home win over world
champions south africa
they begin their six nations campaign against italy in dublin on february
urgent moscow to send envoy to kiev after freeze in ties medvedev
moscow jan afp
russian president dmitry medvedev said tuesday he would send an ambassador to
kiev after five month freeze news agencies reported following the election
defeat of ukraine pro western president
iran welcomes west new realism on nuclear drive
tehran jan afp
iran on tuesday welcomed what it called the west newfound realism on
tehran controversial nuclear programme after world powers failed to decide on
new sanctions
china meanwhile urged flexibility on the standoff over iran nuclear drive
and return to negotiations
however defence minister ahmad vahidi renewed warning that iran forces
could hit western warships in the gulf if it comes under attack over the nuclear
standoff
on the diplomatic front foreign ministry spokesman ramin mehmanparast told
reporters speaking of sanctions is repetitive and it is not constructive
some western countries should correct their approach and be realistic about
our nuclear rights and we feel there are traces of realism to be seen he
added
world powers made up of the five permanent members of the un security council
plus germany met in new york on saturday but failed to reach an agreement about
new sanctions
the six are concerned about tehran rejection of un brokered deal under which
most of iran low enriched uranium leu stockpile would be shipped abroad to
be further enriched into reactor fuel
iran has come up with its own counter proposal of staged and simultaneous swap
of leu with nuclear reactor fuel this has been largely rejected by world
powers insisting tehran accept the international atomic energy agency offer
the new york meeting brought together senior officials from britain france
germany russia and the united states but china signaling its reluctance to
back tougher sanctions pushed by the west sent lower level diplomat
in beijing mehmanparast opposite number ma zhaoxu also at press
conference on tuesday said china has all along proposed the proper settlement
of the iran nuclear issue through dialogue and consultation
we hope relevant parties can enhance consultations show flexibility and
promote the early peaceful solution of the relevant issue in proper manner
ma said his country was aware of the proliferation concerns of the western
nations but insisted the islamic republic had the right to the peaceful use of
nuclear energy
iran defence minister reiterated that his country was not cowed by the threat
of military action
why are there so many warships there the westerners know that these warships
are the best target for operation by iran if they do anything against us
vahidi said
iranian officials have repeatedly threatened to deliver crushing response
and hit us targets including its bases in the gulf and neighbouring iraq and
afghanistan if iran nuclear sites are attacked
the united states and its regional ally israel which accuse iran of seeking
atomic weapons under the guise of civilian nuclear programme have never ruled
out military option to thwart tehran nuclear drive
iran denies the charges
bank sector thrives as lebanon awaits reforms bank governor
beirut jan afp
lebanon bank deposits have risen percent and foreign currency reserves have
reached record levels thanks to growing confidence linked to the relative
political stability of the last two years central bank governor riad salameh
told afp in an interview
in bank deposits increased percent to billion dollars or
billion euros bank profits for their part increased between nine and
percent and credit percent salameh said
while other countries have been shaken by the global recession confidence in
lebanon really grew last year he said with the economy posting seven percent
growth just one percentage point down from
lebanon solid banking sector managed to largely buck the global economic trend
partly because of its conservative policies and its assets estimated at some
billion dollars billion euros which currently outweigh lebanon
billion dollar gross domestic product gdp
twice voted the world best central bank governor by financial magazine
euromoney salameh says he expects even better results this year seeing as the
political and security risks in the country have faded
between and series of political assassinations as well as
devastating war between hezbollah and israel and government stalemate shook
the tiny mediterranean country home to around four million people
but the political situation has dramatically improved since the formation of
new unity government in may along with the economic prospects
was good year and the balance of payments recorded historic surplus
of billion dollars thanks to transfers which rose percent from and
accounted for seven billion dollars he added
foreign currency reserves of the central bank also reached record billion
dollars in without counting the gold reserves estimated at more than
billion dollars according to salameh
but despite his optimism the governor who is praised for his prudent policies
said serious reform was needed to reduce the budget deficit which was estimated
at billion dollars at the end of november equivalent to more than
percent of the country gdp
the imf has recommended that lebanon take steps to reduce its debt to gdp ratio
raise revenues by reviewing current electricity tariffs and redirect
expenditures
international donors conference in paris raised billion dollars to
help rebuild the country after the israel hezbollah war
under the so called paris iii agreement the country should implement series
of reforms including privatisation of the costly electricity sector and the
telecom sector
in december france announced one year extension on million euro
million dollar loan to lebanon agreed under paris iii pending economic
reforms
the first step in reducing the state annual budget deficit is to reform the
electricity sector which drains percent of our gdp salameh said
lebanon national debt topped billion dollars in equivalent to
percent of the country gdp
but the governor said he was unperturbed by the staggering debt percent of
which is in foreign currency
the debt to gdp ratio dropped from percent two years ago to percent
today and that is mainly result of growth in and salameh said
the only way we can solve the debt problem is if we manage to maintain growth
rate that exceeds the debt rate
buildings burn in fresh religious clashes in nigeria
kano nigeria jan afp
pall of smoke rose over the nigerian city of jos on tuesday as fresh
christian muslim clashes erupted after weekend violence that killed at least
people officials and residents said
state authorities placed the city under hour curfew as residents said they
heard gunshots and had seen smoke billowing from parts of the city the capital
of plateau state in central nigeria
an employee at jos central mosque where he said bodies were being taken told
afp people were killed in the overnight fighting and wounded but the
number could not be independently confirmed
the mosque is full with the injured and the dead this morning we received
bodies with about injured mohammed shittu at the jos central mosque told
afp
authorities said curfew put in place at the weekend had been extended
the government has placed hour curfew on jos and bukuru small town on
the fringes of jos following the resumption of violence in parts of the city
the state information commissioner gregory yenlong told afp
all residents are hereby directed to stay indoors as security agents work
towards restoring peace said yenlong
all flights to the city were suspended tuesday airport and airline sources
said
david maiyaki christian resident of dutse uku area of jos where the latest
fighting erupted overnight said the curfew did not yet seem to have taken
effect
we woke up to new fighting this morning as am talking to you we are indoors
but there is burning and gunshots all around us david maiyaki told afp by
phone
government has placed hour curfew but it does not seem to have any effect
fighting is continuing unabated he said
ibrahim mudi resident of sabon fegi suburb in the central part of the city
said from here can hear gunshots and see burning buildings from
neighbourhood in the northern part of the city
it seems that jos north is completely on fire added mudi who spoke by phone
from his veranda
mohammed ahmad from the unguwarrogo area said the city is enveloped in smoke
and gunshots have filled the air
it quite terrifying we are indoors but we don feel safe it like any
moment something is going to happen to us said ahmad
sunday fighting had been confined to nassarawa gwon predominantly christian
part of the city but it has since spread to other areas military spokesman
said
yes there is renewed violence but the extent of the violence cannot tell
it is not concentrated it is not limited to one area it is scattered army
spokesman colonel galadima shekari told afp
fighting first erupted on sunday when christian youths protested the building of
mosque in christian majority area of nigeria th largest city houses and
vehicles were set ablaze in part of the city which has population of
sunday clashes also injured hundreds and displaced around people the
red cross in the city said
hundreds of troops and police were deployed and the authorities said monday that
calm had returned to the city after hour dusk to dawn curfew was imposed
the curfew was extended following the latest clashes
yenlong vowed the state government will do all it takes to ensure the return of
normalcy to the city
jos situated between the muslim dominated north and the christian south has in
recent years been hotbed of religious violence in nigeria whose million
people are divided almost equally between followers of the two faiths
in november hundreds of people were killed in two days of fighting in the
city triggered by rumour that the mainly muslim all nigerian peoples party had
lost local election to the christian dominated people democratic party
state officials put the death toll in that violence at about but other
sources gave toll twice that figure
other parts of nigeria north and central regions have lately been plagued by
religious violence
last month at least people were killed in clashes between security forces
and members of radical islamist sect in the northern bauchi state
another sect boko haram which means western education is sin staged an
insurrection in july in nearby borno state when at least people were killed
as security forces crushed the unrest
greek cypriots hail landmark ruling on property dispute
nicosia jan afp
president demetris christofias the greek cypriot leader welcomed london
court ruling on tuesday that british couple must demolish holiday home
they built in the island turkish held north
this judgment essentially validates the decision of our court and is of legal
significance and politically important christofias told reporters
legally the english court behaved on the basis of eu law human rights
conventions of the council of europe and judgments of the european court of
human rights
politically it an answer to the turkish side which wants to reject the
right of ownership or the use of one property
the landmark decision by the court of appeal in london revolves around court
case in nicosia dating from
in its ruling the court ordered david and linda orams to hand the land back to
meletios apostolides the original owner of the property in lapithos and pay
him damages
apostolides family fled to southern cyprus when turkey occupied the north in
and he launched court action in cyprus which was followed by string of
subsequent legal hearings amid disagreements over the case
the ruling is likely to strengthen any legal claims greek cypriots might want to
assert over their former properties in the north
after the turkish military occupation of the north about greek cypriots
fled south abandoning their properties
many of the abandoned properties were distributed among turkish cypriots who had
left behind assets in the south and many of whom subsequently sold them on to
foreigners mainly britons
the decision backs the cypriot court and the european court of justice and could
set precedent for thousands of other people who have built holiday homes in
northern cyprus
property is one of the most complex and divisive issues of the cyprus problem
the greek cypriot side is expected to use the ruling to support its stance and
proposals in ongoing un backed talks aimed at the mediterranean island
reunification this year
christofias indicated he would adopt such an approach saying the greek cypriot
government would now take closer look at the ruling and its implications
from political point of view we have this decision and will use it
accordingly the cypriot president said
german solar industry faces subsidy cut minister
berlin jan afp
germany the world biggest market for solar cells is poised to slash its
subsidies for solar power by as much as percent economy minister rainer
bruederle said on tuesday
envisage an order of magnitude of to percent bruederle said at an
energy conference in berlin
electricity produced by solar power in germany is sold at minimum price
guaranteed by the government to help producers compete with firms using fossil
fuels and nuclear power that can produce power much more cheaply
this guaranteed price has already been reduced gradually the subsidy was
already cut by percent from january this year but pressure has grown on
the government to accelerate the process
experts say the subsidy fails to spur competition in the industry which
represents less than one percent of the total electricity production in germany
europe top economy
the solar sector itself has said it is prepared to accept cut in the subsidy
but that anything above percent would be intolerable
after years of dazzling results germany solar industry has succumbed to the
gloom enveloping the broader economy with competition from asia also taking the
shine off the sector
the world top solar cell maker cells saw its turnover plunge by over
percent in the first nine months of
alert
russia to send ambassador to ukraine after five month freeze reports
slump in german investor survey points to sluggish recovery
frankfurt jan afp
german investor sentiment fell for the fourth month running in january as
europe biggest economy braced for burdensome and long recovery the zew
research institute said tuesday
foreign exchange traders sold the euro on the news and the single currency fell
to dollars in afternoon london trading from late on monday
zew indicator of german economic sentiment lost more ground than expected to
an indexed points the lowest level since july
the assessment of the financial market experts suggests that we will see an
economic recovery in at best but not clear economic upswing
statement quoted zew president wolfgang franz as saying
the way out of the recession is burdensome and long he added
analysts polled by dow jones newswires had expected the german financial sector
barometer to just edge lower to points
the index remained well above its historical average of points but
according to the experts the automobile and consumption sector is likely to
develop downwards in the next half year the zew statement said
consumption was already weak during the crucial christmas shopping period in
december and auto sales were boosted by state car scrapping premium last year
but are now expected to slow sharply
the path is still rocky everything is still volatile economy minister
rainer bruederle commented on the sidelines of an energy conference in berlin
although the zew survey is itself volatile and analysts said poll by the ifo
economic institute this week would give better idea of where things stand the
results were another sign the german recovery was slowing down
growth figures released last week showed that the economy contracted by
percent in its worst performance since the great depression and that the
recovery might have come almost to halt in the fourth quarter
while the large majority of analysts still expect an improvement in the
economic situation doubts are beginning to grow commerzbank economist ralph
solveen said
germany is expected to post modest growth in though finance ministry
spokesman said monday that economic activity could expand by percent this
year up from the previous percent forecast
despite the export led recovery however pre crisis output volumes won be
regained any time soon in many sectors said alexander koch at the italian bank
unicredit
the turnaround in the zew growth expectations strengthens the view that the
most dynamic part of the economic recovery now lies behind us he added
but ing senior economist carsten brzeski said the latest reading showed only
that experts had clearer idea of the challenges facing germany
the initial enthusiasm after the end of the recession last year has made way
for more realism brzeski said before concluding that the german economy is
now entering calmer waters
greenpeace blasts putin for letting lake baikal plant reopen
moscow jan afp
decree by russian prime minister vladimir putin allowing controversial paper
plant near siberia pristine lake baikal to reopen is crime environmental
group greenpeace said tuesday
putin decree which was made public on monday reverses an earlier ban on the
production of cellulose paper and storage of waste around lake baikal the
world deepest freshwater lake
it is expected to allow operations to restart at the baikal paper plant owned
by russian billionaire oleg deripaska which has been closed since october
this decree is crime because to protect the interests of one particular
oligarch putin is casting aside russia entire net of ecological laws roman
vazhenkov head of greenpeace lake baikal campaign told afp
to allow chemical wastes to be dumped there what else can you call it but
crime he added
lake baikal which is on unesco world heritage list contains percent of
the world fresh water supply and has been hailed as the galapagos of russia
for its unique flora and fauna
generations of environmental activists have fought for the closure of the
soviet era paper mill founded in which they say endangers baikal
fragile ecosystem by spewing waste into the lake
but the plant is also an economic boon to the region and employees were
cut loose when it was forced to shut in october driven bankrupt by the
global economic crisis
environmentalists had worried the aged plant could be reopened in august when
putin in surprise stunt plumbed the lake depths aboard mini submarine
and declared it ecologically clean
the russian government has taken numerous measures to shore up the struggling
soviet era industry and halt mass job losses amid fears that social unrest
could spread in economically hard hit regions
metals tycoon deripaska had been russia richest man before the financial
crisis but saw his fortune decimated by the slowdown
haiti looters threaten new strife
port au prince jan afp
security forces struggled tuesday to control looters in haiti capital but
week after the earthquake that devastated the country rescuers still pulled
miracle survivors from the rubble and said more could be found
with the stench of urine and decomposing bodies still hanging over port au
prince the us military presence grew and un chief ban ki moon asked for
extra international troops and police to help protect relief supplies
thousands of homeless haitians were prey to bands of looters swarming through
the ruins with the police and international peacekeepers tasked with protecting
the homeless were nowhere to be found
haitian police in combat gear fired off rounds and hauled some people to the
ground to try to stop the worst of the pillaging
approximately us troops were on the ground overseeing the aid effort and
trying to provide security
more than marines arrived on the uss bataan boosting overall us troop
numbers to either in haiti or offshore us commanders have promised more
than personnel would be in the disaster zone in coming weeks
the un security council was expected to approve on tuesday ban request for
more troops and police for the battered un mission in haiti
the un peacekeeping mission had its headquarters destroyed in the magnitude
earthquake that hit january and is now feared to have killed up to
people
while the scope of the disaster is still not clear extraordinary stories of
children and adults surviving several days under collapsed buildings keep
emerging
an month old child was found alive six days after the quake and rescuers are
clinging to hopes that more can be found
the child now at port au prince general hospital was covered with dust but
otherwise appeared healthy no one knew her name and rescuers believe her family
died when their home collapsed
medics at an israeli field hospital outside the capital also treated jean louis
brahms an eight month old boy trapped for five days under his family house
the baby father and older brother escaped in time with just minor injuries
but jean louis remained trapped until neighbour heard him crying and contacted
un peacekeepers
figures provided by the united nations indicated that about of the more than
people hauled out in the past week had been found on sunday or monday
hope persists there is still hope said elisabeth byrs spokeswoman of the un
office for the coordination of humanitarian affairs ocha
the problem is dehydration but for the moment there is still chance she
added
relief efforts are now focusing on the estimated quarter of million injured
and million homeless many of them orphans who lost their parents in the
disaster
officials have expressed fears the final death toll may top and
government minister said sunday that bodies had already been buried
the us military started airdrops of food and water to survivors on monday the
us defense department said
us air force plane dropped some meals and liters of water
to site just outside port au prince the pentagon said in statement
the us military had been reluctant to make aid airdrops out of concern of
starting troubles on the ground but said the airdrop was made to controlled
drop zone where no people on the ground were endangered
us president barack obama proposed joint us brazilian canadian leadership for
relief efforts as the scale of the disaster overwhelmed the international
humanitarian operation
obama suggested to brazilian president luiz inacio lula da silva that the three
countries should lead and coordinate efforts by the international community of
haiti donors and other parties brazilian government official said
eu nations promised more than million dollars in aid and reconstruction
funds but dominican president leonel fernandez estimated billion dollars
over five years would be needed to help haiti recover
the disaster has started to cause diplomatic fallout around the world
china angrily denied accusations that its rescue team there was only searching
for missing chinese nationals
concerning the comments that chinese rescuers only rescue chinese these
comments are false and are made out of ulterior motives foreign ministry
spokesman ma zhaoxu told reporters
france was forced on the defensive after development minister alain joyandet
called on the united nations to clarify the us role in haiti and said the
priority should be helping haiti not occupying haiti
german finance minister tells eu partners to tighten belts
berlin jan afp
german finance minister wolfgang schaeuble vowed tuesday to repair the country
tattered public finances and to press eurozone partners like greece to do the
same
the recommendations of the european commission to cut our deficit and to stick
to the eu growth and stability pact are helpful schaeuble told parliament
during debate on germany stretched budget
and as result we will commit to making sure that all the others in europe
accept and put into practice these recommendations this will pose indescribably
difficult challenges for some member states but there is no responsible
alternative he said
it is in our own basic interest that the euro stability and its credibility
on financial markets is maintained in the coming years
he said that germany had special responsibility to ensure the stability and
credibility of europe single currency because of it being the biggest economy
in the nation eurozone
state spending to battle historic recession will push germany deficit close
to percent this year more than double the percent limit set out in the
european union growth and stability pact schaeuble said
we are going to once again respect the limit of percent schaueble vowed
adding that the deficit must be reduced in stages starting in
greece has come under intense eu and financial market pressure to deal with
massive deficit of almost percent of output and huge debt that threaten the
credibility of regulations that underpin europe single currency
german finance minister tells eu partners to tighten belts
berlin jan afp
german finance minister wolfgang schaeuble vowed tuesday to repair the country
tattered public finances and to press eurozone partners like greece to do the
same
the recommendations of the european commission to cut our deficit and to stick
to the eu growth and stability pact are helpful schaeuble told parliament
during debate on germany stretched budget
and as result we will commit to making sure that all the others in europe
accept and put into practice these recommendations this will pose indescribably
difficult challenges for some member states but there is no responsible
alternative he said
it is in our own basic interest that the euro stability and its credibility
on financial markets is maintained in the coming years
he said that germany had special responsibility to ensure the stability and
