Barack Obama will Wednesday propose major cuts in US and Russian nuclear stocks, making a pitch for his own place in history in an evocative open-air speech during his first visit as president to Berlin.
Almost 50 years to the day since John Kennedy declared "Ich bin ein Berliner" and 26 years since Ronald Reagan exhorted "Tear down this wall!" Obama will unveil plans for a one third reduction in Cold War nuclear arsenals.
He will also hold talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, with whom he usually has respectful relations, but who is pointedly demanding details on the exact extent of US spy agency surveillance programs.
Obama will use the speech at the Brandenburg Gate to propose cutting US and Russian strategic nuclear warheads to around 1,000 each, and also seek cuts in tactical nuclear arms stocks in Europe.
Though he remains popular in Germany, Obama will struggle to meet the expectations he spun for himself as a presidential candidate, in a speech to 200,000 Berliners in 2008 that made him a political star in Europe.
Since that call for a joint US-European bid to "remake the world" by battling terrorism, global warming, Middle East violence and poverty, Obama has learned the power of the status quo at home and abroad to thwart change.
But frustration will not temper his rhetoric, according to US deputy national security advisor Ben Rhodes.
In his meeting with Merkel, Obama is under intense pressure to explain the reach and scope of US National Security Agency spying programmes which hoover up data from phone records and the Internet in the United States and abroad.
The programs, which have special resonance in a nation where snooping operations by the communist Stasi secret police are a painful memory, have triggered alarm across the political spectrum in Berlin.
Read more: Obama to make landmark speech at Brandenburg Gate - GERMANY - FRANCE 24
6/19/13
Turkey Freedom of expression squelched as Erdogan Government working on draft to restrict social media in Turkey
The Turkish government launched yesterday a study to restrict social media, an attempt that has been inspired by the Gezi protests that have spread across the country.
The Justice Ministry has started working on a draft on crimes over the Internet, ministry sources told the Hürriyet Daily News yesterday. “International implementations regarding the issue are being inspected,” the source said.
Yesterday’s remarks by Interior Minister Muammer Güler also confirmed that social media websites are on the government’s radar, as the protesters who have been shaking the country for nearly 20 days have widely used social media as a tool to organize demonstrations. The police are making efforts on this issue, Güler told a group of journalists in Ankara, noting that some people had been detained in İzmir because of their allegedly provocative tweets during the protests.
Read more: POLITICS - Government working on draft to restrict social media in Turkey
The Justice Ministry has started working on a draft on crimes over the Internet, ministry sources told the Hürriyet Daily News yesterday. “International implementations regarding the issue are being inspected,” the source said.
Yesterday’s remarks by Interior Minister Muammer Güler also confirmed that social media websites are on the government’s radar, as the protesters who have been shaking the country for nearly 20 days have widely used social media as a tool to organize demonstrations. The police are making efforts on this issue, Güler told a group of journalists in Ankara, noting that some people had been detained in İzmir because of their allegedly provocative tweets during the protests.
Read more: POLITICS - Government working on draft to restrict social media in Turkey
6/18/13
Politicians out of touch with reality - social unrest spreads around the world - by RM
From Brazil to Turkey, Bulgaria to Egypt, Spain to India, Greece to Mexico,and so on, people are protesting against their governments. This comes as a result of many factors, accumulated anger, poverty, deprivation, disparity, exclusion and marginalization. The people in power are accused of arrogance, misrule, corruption, nepotism, and unwillingness to compromise.
People interviewed watching the G8 leaders cosying up to to each other in Northern Ireland, surrounded by great luxury, attending "bla-bla" meetings and social events, said they felt absolutely no affinity with this "comedy". The general observation was that the G8 leaders were acting like prima-donas instead of elected officials, and did not tackle real pressing issues.
It is becoming more and more clear that the incapacity of traditional political representatives to deal with the new demands of a changing world has resulted in a disconnect between them and the public at large. This is a most alarming development. Looking back at history one can say safely that this is what usually causes public disturbances which eventually lead to revolutions and the established order.
One can only hope that the politicians presently at the helm of their governments around the world witnessing the people they are supposed to represent openly revolt against them, will take this as a serious warning to take corrective action before its too late.
EU-Digest
People interviewed watching the G8 leaders cosying up to to each other in Northern Ireland, surrounded by great luxury, attending "bla-bla" meetings and social events, said they felt absolutely no affinity with this "comedy". The general observation was that the G8 leaders were acting like prima-donas instead of elected officials, and did not tackle real pressing issues.
It is becoming more and more clear that the incapacity of traditional political representatives to deal with the new demands of a changing world has resulted in a disconnect between them and the public at large. This is a most alarming development. Looking back at history one can say safely that this is what usually causes public disturbances which eventually lead to revolutions and the established order.
One can only hope that the politicians presently at the helm of their governments around the world witnessing the people they are supposed to represent openly revolt against them, will take this as a serious warning to take corrective action before its too late.
EU-Digest
US-EU: Special Interests and Governments Will Screw Up EU-US Trade Deal - by Matthew Feeney
The talks almost didn’t happen thanks to the French, who threatened to veto if the French film and TV industry wasn’t excluded from the negotiations.
As the talks develop we should expect to see more of these sort of exemptions as well as special deals with other industries. It shouldn’t be surprising when European farmers, American manufacturers, and others complain about the potential deal.
Any trade agreement between the U.S. and the European Union will require ratification from the E.U. member states and the U.S. Congress. Just how beneficial a trade deal that has been ratified by over two dozen governments and includes considerations for specials interests will be to Europeans and Americans remains to be seen. I can’t say I’m optimistic.
Read more: Special Interests and Governments Will Screw Up EU-US Trade Deal - Hit and Run; Run : Reason.com
As the talks develop we should expect to see more of these sort of exemptions as well as special deals with other industries. It shouldn’t be surprising when European farmers, American manufacturers, and others complain about the potential deal.
Any trade agreement between the U.S. and the European Union will require ratification from the E.U. member states and the U.S. Congress. Just how beneficial a trade deal that has been ratified by over two dozen governments and includes considerations for specials interests will be to Europeans and Americans remains to be seen. I can’t say I’m optimistic.
Read more: Special Interests and Governments Will Screw Up EU-US Trade Deal - Hit and Run; Run : Reason.com
Bulgaria: Concerns over Security Agency Choice Show Need for Bulgaria Reforms
The public protests that followed Bulgarian Prime Minister Plamen Oresharski's selection of a media mogul as the country's top security chief highlight the need for further reforms in Bulgaria to "give confidence to the Bulgarian people," a European Union spokesman said Monday.
The prime minister, who has only been in office for a month, faced calls to resign from thousands of protesters over the weekend despite reversing last week's decision to pick 32-year-old Delyan Peevski as head of the national security agency DANS, AFP reported.
Asked about the situation, Olivier Bailly, a spokesman at the European Commission said the protests showed "the depths of concerns in Bulgarian society about the rule of law."
He said the controversy shows "the need for reform" in Bulgaria to create "procedures which can give confidence to the Bulgarian people."
Read more: Concerns over Security Agency Choice Show Need for Bulgaria Reforms - Novinite.com - Sofia News Agency
The prime minister, who has only been in office for a month, faced calls to resign from thousands of protesters over the weekend despite reversing last week's decision to pick 32-year-old Delyan Peevski as head of the national security agency DANS, AFP reported.
Asked about the situation, Olivier Bailly, a spokesman at the European Commission said the protests showed "the depths of concerns in Bulgarian society about the rule of law."
He said the controversy shows "the need for reform" in Bulgaria to create "procedures which can give confidence to the Bulgarian people."
Read more: Concerns over Security Agency Choice Show Need for Bulgaria Reforms - Novinite.com - Sofia News Agency
USA: Chinese dissident claims Chinese conquest of U.S. academia
Blind Chinese dissident Chen Guangcheng has now released a statement concerning his allegations that New York University is severing relations with him to curry favor with China’s oppressive Communist government and assure completion of a gleaming portal campus in Shanghai.
The statement, obtained Sunday night by The Daily Caller, is a humdinger. In addition to squarely accusing NYU of caving to Chinese pressure, the self-taught lawyer and famed human rights activist charges that a large number of American academics and academic institutions have become wrapped in the tentacles of China’s communist government.
“The work of the Chinese Communists within academic circles in the United States is far greater than what people imagine, and some scholars have no option but to hold themselves back,” Chen said. “Academic independence and academic freedom in the United States are being greatly threatened by a totalitarian regime.”
According to Chen, “as early as last August and September, the Chinese Communists had already begun to apply great, unrelenting pressure on New York University, so much so that after we had been in the United States just three to four months, NYU was already starting to discuss our departure with us.”
Chen, his wife and two children have been living in a housing complex for students and faculty at NYU since May 2012 when the U.S. State Department (under Hillary Clinton) negotiated their highly-publicized escape.
When he lived in China, Chen fought authorities on human rights issues, particularly in rural areas. He was an advocate for property rights, women’s rights and the plight of the poor. He also exposed an array of odious family-planning abuses related to China’s one-child policy.
Since arriving stateside, Chen, 41, has been primarily learning English, meetings with American professors and penning a memoir. At the end of June, though, he and his family will have to find a new place to crash. The most likely destination appears to be Fordham University School of Law.
Read more: Chinese dissident claims Chinese conquest of U.S. academia | The Daily Caller
The statement, obtained Sunday night by The Daily Caller, is a humdinger. In addition to squarely accusing NYU of caving to Chinese pressure, the self-taught lawyer and famed human rights activist charges that a large number of American academics and academic institutions have become wrapped in the tentacles of China’s communist government.
“The work of the Chinese Communists within academic circles in the United States is far greater than what people imagine, and some scholars have no option but to hold themselves back,” Chen said. “Academic independence and academic freedom in the United States are being greatly threatened by a totalitarian regime.”
According to Chen, “as early as last August and September, the Chinese Communists had already begun to apply great, unrelenting pressure on New York University, so much so that after we had been in the United States just three to four months, NYU was already starting to discuss our departure with us.”
Chen, his wife and two children have been living in a housing complex for students and faculty at NYU since May 2012 when the U.S. State Department (under Hillary Clinton) negotiated their highly-publicized escape.
When he lived in China, Chen fought authorities on human rights issues, particularly in rural areas. He was an advocate for property rights, women’s rights and the plight of the poor. He also exposed an array of odious family-planning abuses related to China’s one-child policy.
Since arriving stateside, Chen, 41, has been primarily learning English, meetings with American professors and penning a memoir. At the end of June, though, he and his family will have to find a new place to crash. The most likely destination appears to be Fordham University School of Law.
Read more: Chinese dissident claims Chinese conquest of U.S. academia | The Daily Caller
Canada - EU: Harper Ends EU Trip Unable to Win Trade Deal Amid U.S. Talks - Andrew Mayeda and Theophilos Argitis
Prime Minister Stephen Harper concludes his eight-day European trip unable to complete a trade agreement with the European Union, just as the opening of EU-U.S. talks raises the risk that Canada will be left out.
Harper, who met German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta on the sidelines of the Group of Eight leaders’ summit in Northern Ireland, couldn’t persuade his European peers to drop their remaining objections in the talks. One of the biggest sticking points for Canada is access for the country’s beef and pork producers, a concession that faces resistance from France and Ireland, two of Europe’s biggest meat suppliers.
Failure to ultimately reach an accord would undermine Harper’s efforts to diversify Canada’s trade away from the U.S., its largest trading partner. While Harper has made free trade a key plank of his economic agenda, completing six accords since 2006, none have been with major economies.
“The longer the matter is not brought to a conclusion, the more likely it becomes that the European Union will turn its attention to the U.S.,” said Lawrence Herman, a lawyer at Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP in Toronto who specializes in trade issues, by telephone June 7. If a pact isn’t reached in the next few weeks, it would represent “a rather serious setback for Canadian trade policy, given all the efforts of the Harper administration,” he said.
Read more: Harper Ends EU Trip Unable to Win Trade Deal Amid U.S. Talks (2) - Businessweek
PRISM: Why privacy is the price of digital-age communication - by Omar El Akkad
Since the revelations of widespread intelligence-agency eavesdropping on the digital communications of millions of people in the United States and around the world, governments and technology companies have been under immense pressure to explain exactly how pervasive the monitoring has become. Users of e-mail and social networks provided by the likes of Google Inc., Apple Inc. and Microsoft Corp. have found themselves asking whether there are any means of keeping their data totally secure.
The short answer, it seems, is that there isn’t. And new revelations suggest that even the BlackBerry, touted by Research In Motion Ltd. as the most secure form of wireless communication in the market, could not clock the prying eyes of government.
The Guardian newspaper reported that the Government Communications Headquarters, Britain’s intelligence agency, spied on the e-mail and phone communications of visiting foreign dignitaries during meetings in London in 2009. The paper reported that, among other things, the GCHQ had manged to “penetrate” the security of the visiting officials’ BlackBerrys.
Read more: Why privacy is the price of digital-age communication - The Globe and Mail
The short answer, it seems, is that there isn’t. And new revelations suggest that even the BlackBerry, touted by Research In Motion Ltd. as the most secure form of wireless communication in the market, could not clock the prying eyes of government.
The Guardian newspaper reported that the Government Communications Headquarters, Britain’s intelligence agency, spied on the e-mail and phone communications of visiting foreign dignitaries during meetings in London in 2009. The paper reported that, among other things, the GCHQ had manged to “penetrate” the security of the visiting officials’ BlackBerrys.
Read more: Why privacy is the price of digital-age communication - The Globe and Mail
Listing of free wi-fi Airports around the world
BEWARE of wi-fi networks called "Free Public Wi-Fi" in airports. You'll get online but most likely they are fake unsecure networks hoping to steal info.
If you want to Add or Remove a Free Wi-Fi location please fill out the Form
Read more at: free wi-fi Airports
6/17/13
PRISM: US data scandal reveals European vulnerability - by Jean Pierre Stroobants and Frederic Lemaitre
On June 10, the European Commission voiced its “concern” about the consequences of Prism, the US surveillance program that allows the National Security Agency (NSA) to access the data of non-US citizens, including EU citizens.
Viviane Reding, the Europe’s justice commissioner, was notably quiet and avoided an open clash with the US, apparently more focused on denouncing EU member states that had blocked her personal data protection plan in Luxemburg on June 6.
Still, in talks with American authorities, the commissioner did “systematically” raise the issue of the rights of EU citizens, her spokeswoman said.
Indeed, the revelations from ex-CIA analyst Edward Snowden came in the middle of delicate - and lengthy - negotiations in Europe about how to protect citizens’ privacy in the era of massive data collection.
Discussions on the DPR (Data Protection Regulation) have been ongoing for 18 months and 25 meetings; 3,000 amendments to the regulation have been proposed, a sign of how divided the EU is on the issue.
A few hours before the story was published in the Guardian newspaper, ministers of justice from the 27 member countries were holding a meeting on the subject; had they known about his revelations, they might have come to an agreement.
Britain and the Netherlands believe the Reding project would be too punitive for companies, France is asking for more controls on social networks, while Germany says the text is too vague. But now that the revelations on Prism have come to light, the European capitals can at least agree on one thing: they are all feeling “concerned”.
Read more: US data scandal reveals European vulnerability
Russia: Vladimir Putin’s rich lifestyle: 4 yachts, 58 aircraft, 20 homes and a $75,000 toilet - by Andrea Divirgilio
On one side, there’s the world’s richest man and the first from a developing country with net worth of $69 billion, Carlos Slim Helu who doesn’t believe in conspicuous consumption and lives in modest home with no interest in flashy super yachts, cars, jets or palatial house across the globe. On the other hand, here’s the Russian President Vladimir V. Putin who is rumored to be among the world’s wealthiest men, with a fortune worth tens of billions, which he of-course denies. Born in a middle class Soviet family,
Putin who also once compared ruling Russia to being a ‘galley slave’ reportedly lives a ‘king-size’ lifestyle with access to Presidential perks including four grand yachts, 20 homes with opulent fittings, 58 aircrafts with one Russian-made Ilyushin Presidential jet with a $75,000 toilet, not to forget Putin’s ultra-expensive watch collection worth $700,000.
Read more: Vladimir Putin’s filthy rich lifestyle: 4 yachts, 58 aircraft, 20 homes and a $75,000 toilet | Bornrich
Putin who also once compared ruling Russia to being a ‘galley slave’ reportedly lives a ‘king-size’ lifestyle with access to Presidential perks including four grand yachts, 20 homes with opulent fittings, 58 aircrafts with one Russian-made Ilyushin Presidential jet with a $75,000 toilet, not to forget Putin’s ultra-expensive watch collection worth $700,000.
Read more: Vladimir Putin’s filthy rich lifestyle: 4 yachts, 58 aircraft, 20 homes and a $75,000 toilet | Bornrich
Alfa Group Sets Up Unit to Invest $20Bln in Oil, Gas
Mikhail Fridman's Alfa Group, flush with money after earning billions on the sale of TNK-BP, has set up a London-based oil and gas investment vehicle that could invest about $20 billion over a three to five year period, a representative of the subsidiary told The Moscow Times.
The unit, called L1 Energy, plans to invest $10 billion of its own funds, and another $10 billion might be borrowed or provided by other investors, she said.
L1 Energy has a mandate to identify, execute and manage long-term significant investments in exploration and production, oilfield services, infrastructure and other energy projects, Alfa said in a statement.
German Khan, one of Alfa's three co-owners, who returned to the group earlier this month after 10 years as the executive director of TNK-BP, will be chief executive of the company. L1 Energy will boast a big name advisory board that includes former BP chief executive Lord John Browne.
The fund will be part of a new international corporate investment vehicle, LetterOne Group, which will also include the group's telecommunications assets.
Read moreAlfa Group Sets Up Unit to Invest $20Bln in Oil, Gas | Business | The Moscow Times
The unit, called L1 Energy, plans to invest $10 billion of its own funds, and another $10 billion might be borrowed or provided by other investors, she said.
L1 Energy has a mandate to identify, execute and manage long-term significant investments in exploration and production, oilfield services, infrastructure and other energy projects, Alfa said in a statement.
German Khan, one of Alfa's three co-owners, who returned to the group earlier this month after 10 years as the executive director of TNK-BP, will be chief executive of the company. L1 Energy will boast a big name advisory board that includes former BP chief executive Lord John Browne.
The fund will be part of a new international corporate investment vehicle, LetterOne Group, which will also include the group's telecommunications assets.
Read moreAlfa Group Sets Up Unit to Invest $20Bln in Oil, Gas | Business | The Moscow Times
G8 meeting: After Harper's comments, Putin cast as pariah at G8 summit - Steve Rennie
If this G8 meeting is any indication, the next gathering of world leaders in Russia is shaping up to be a strained affair.
A chasm has emerged between Russian President Vladimir Putin and the rest of the Group of Eight leaders over the deepening crisis in Syria.
That division was laid bare on Sunday night when Prime Minister Stephen Harper called Putin, who hosts the G20 summit in St. Petersburg in September, the outlier of the G8.
Read more: After Harper's comments, Putin cast as pariah at G8 summit | CTV News
A chasm has emerged between Russian President Vladimir Putin and the rest of the Group of Eight leaders over the deepening crisis in Syria.
That division was laid bare on Sunday night when Prime Minister Stephen Harper called Putin, who hosts the G20 summit in St. Petersburg in September, the outlier of the G8.
Read more: After Harper's comments, Putin cast as pariah at G8 summit | CTV News
Turkey could deploy army to quell protests
Turkey's deputy prime minister said on Monday the armed forces could be called up if needed to help quell popular protests that have swept Turkish cities in the last two weeks, the first time the possibility of a military role has been raised.
Bulent Arinc made the remarks in Ankara, where 1,000 striking trade union workers faced off briefly against police backed by several water cannon, before police retreated and the crowd left.
In Istanbul, the cradle of protests that have presented Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan with the greatest public challenge to his 10-year leadership, several hundred union members also marched in sympathy with anti-government demonstrations.
Read more: Turkey could deploy army to quell protests | Reuters
Bulent Arinc made the remarks in Ankara, where 1,000 striking trade union workers faced off briefly against police backed by several water cannon, before police retreated and the crowd left.
In Istanbul, the cradle of protests that have presented Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan with the greatest public challenge to his 10-year leadership, several hundred union members also marched in sympathy with anti-government demonstrations.
Read more: Turkey could deploy army to quell protests | Reuters
France hits back at 'reactionary' claims
"Some say they belong to the left, but in fact they are culturally extremely reactionary," Jose Manuel Barroso, the president of the European Commission said in an interview with the International Herald Tribune published on Monday.
That prompted Jean-Christophe Cambedelis, a national secretary of France's ruling party, to describe his remarks as "intolerable", saying he should "retract his comments or quit". A Commission spokesman said "there is no basic disagreement between the Commission and the French government on this question."
He also denied that Mr Barroso's criticism targeted France's Socialist government. Mr Barroso's unusually outspoken words followed a marathon round of difficult European Union talks on Friday after France held up agreement between the bloc's 27 trade ministers on the exact terms of the Commission's mandate to negotiate a EU-US trade deal.
After 13 hours, a compromise was finally reached agreeing to the French demand but which also stated that the Commission could come back on the question if necessary.
Note EU-Digest: maybe the trade deal negotiations between the EU and the US should be put on hold until their is more clarity as to the damage done to European Citizens Privacy Rights as a result of the PRISM issue .
Read more: France hits back at 'reactionary' claims - Telegraph
That prompted Jean-Christophe Cambedelis, a national secretary of France's ruling party, to describe his remarks as "intolerable", saying he should "retract his comments or quit". A Commission spokesman said "there is no basic disagreement between the Commission and the French government on this question."
He also denied that Mr Barroso's criticism targeted France's Socialist government. Mr Barroso's unusually outspoken words followed a marathon round of difficult European Union talks on Friday after France held up agreement between the bloc's 27 trade ministers on the exact terms of the Commission's mandate to negotiate a EU-US trade deal.
After 13 hours, a compromise was finally reached agreeing to the French demand but which also stated that the Commission could come back on the question if necessary.
Note EU-Digest: maybe the trade deal negotiations between the EU and the US should be put on hold until their is more clarity as to the damage done to European Citizens Privacy Rights as a result of the PRISM issue .
Read more: France hits back at 'reactionary' claims - Telegraph
Tax Havens: "The Netherlands is not a tax haven", says minister - but reports contradict his statement
 |
| The Netherlands - major tax haven |
But reports contradict his statement.
.
A report for Holland Financial Centre by economic institute SEO said that €278bn flow through shell companies based in the Netherlands every year.
This stems from the tax break on participations, relatively low tax on interest and royalties and the wide tax treaty network with other countries, the SEO report says
The SEO report states the Netherlands has some 12,000 multinational holding companies, of which 75% are based at trust offices. These holding companies generate between 8,800 and 13,000 jobs – or around only one job per company.
Another report on Tuesday said the Netherlands’ extensive tax treaty network with other countries leads to huge revenue losses in developing countries.
Research by multinational research institute Somo shows ‘28 countries together lose €771m on dividend and interest tax income alone every year,’ because of Dutch tax treaties.
But the total amount will be far higher because the calculations do not include tax avoidance through profit shifting with the use of royalties and capital gains
‘This report shows Dutch tax treaties have a seriously negative impact on poor countries’ revenue and that there is no evidence these tax losses are compensated by an increase in investment as a result of having tax deals,’ said Somo researcher Katrin McGauran.
In particular, Eastern European countries such as Serbia, Ukraine and Croatia have very disadvantageous treaty provisions, the report states.
In late 2012, Mongolia cancelled its tax agreements with the Netherlands and other countries because of the loss of revenue.
Read more: DutchNews.nl - The Netherlands is not a tax haven, says minister
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