Stop the presses: there has been an important development in the ongoing negotiations between six world powers (the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia, China, France, Germany) and Iran over the latter’s uranium-enrichment program. The “six” have offered to help Iran purchase medical isotopes on the international market. Let’s take a look at the lead-up to this breathtaking development. Oct 1, 2009: Iran accepts in principle a proposal by the “six” (hereafter, “the US”, as Washington is the prime mover) to send 75% of its low-enriched uranium (LEU) to Russia and France to be enriched to 20% for use in … Continue reading Nuclear jawboning for knuckleheads

By Syed Fazl-e-Haider KARACHI – Government efforts to curb black-market currency dealing in the US dollar may be backfiring. The difference between the unofficial and official exchange rates is widening on strengthening dollar demand after the Pakistan central bank recently made it mandatory for everyone to show their personal identification card for greenback deals. The exchange rate for the rupee crossed the 87 mark against the US dollar in the open market this week, while being traded at 85 in the inter-bank market. “For the first time in the past one-and-a-half years, the difference in the exchange rate of the … Continue reading Islamabad slips on dollar crackdown

By Stephen Wong SHANGHAI – The Hollywood blockbuster Avatar is popular across the world, with US$2.21 billion in worldwide ticket sales. In China it has been a smash hit despite its 2-D version being pulled from some cinemas as it was drawing audiences away from the officially approved film Confucius. Some Western media reports have claimed that the 2-D version was banned by the authorities as they saw parallels between the movie’s depiction of the Na’vi people being forcibly relocated on their planet, Pandora, and government land-grabs in China. One blogger said the science-fiction epic was an allegory for “nail houses” – … Continue reading Avatar hits home in China

By Pepe Escobar Like an ever-profitable horror B-movie franchise, the al-Qaeda myth simply refuses to die. United States intelligence has now focused its lasers on the alleged 300 al-Qaeda jihadis concealed in Yemen’s craggy, rural Maarib province – as much as the Pentagon has deployed infinite might to find those maximum 100 prowling the Hindu Kush in Afghanistan. But wait. Didn’t top US intelligence officials recently swear on their government paychecks that it’s all but “certain” that this sinister, multifaceted hydra with sleeper cells all over the planet – “al-Qaeda” – will attack inside the US within the next six … Continue reading Yemen, the new Waziristan

By Nick Turse In the 19th century, it was a fort used by British forces. In the 20th century, Soviet troops moved into the crumbling facilities. In December 2009, at this site in the Shinwar district of Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province, United States troops joined members of the Afghan National Army (ANA) in preparing the way for the next round of foreign occupation. On its grounds, a new military base is expected to rise, one of hundreds of camps and outposts scattered across the country. Nearly a decade after the George W Bush administration launched its invasion of Afghanistan, TomDispatch offers … Continue reading Black sites in the empire of bases

By Larry Jagan BANGKOK – As Myanmar prepares for its first elections in 20 years, uncertainty surrounding the promised democratic transition has crippled the workings of government and raised tensions inside the armed forces. While many analysts view the highly anticipated polls as mainly a one-horse race, there is also a growing sense that the elections may not go exactly as dictator Senior General Than Shwe plans. Even though an official polling date has not been announced, election fever has gripped the country, one of Asia’s poorest and most politically repressed. The state-controlled media are now full of reports, footage … Continue reading Myanmar takes a democratic step

By Ranjit Devraj NEW DELHI – After India’s Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh announced on Tuesday a six-month ban on the cultivation of Bt Brinjal, the country’s first genetically modified (GM) food crop, food security experts and activists said this major farming country has been saved from a biodiversity disaster. “This is an historic decision. The minister deserves to be congratulated, given that he was under enormous pressure to give approval for Bt Brinjal, especially after the country’s Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) cleared it,” leading food security specialist Devinder Sharma told Inter Press Service (IPS). Had the genetically modified version … Continue reading People’s victory in India’s brinjal wars

Declared or otherwise, there are nine ongoing operations by the security forces to crush the militants in the NWFP and tribal areas, with at least one in the offing in North Waziristan. However, while the strikes themselves have weakened the enemy and caused it to retreat to the surrounding hills, subsequent security arrangements have done little to lay the foundation for a durable peace. The militants have not yet called it a day and continue their hit-and-run war. The writ of the state has not yet been established beyond cantonments and garrisoned offices. Currently, off-and-on explosions, targeted killings and kidnappings … Continue reading Civilians: first line of defence

THE recent conference in London to chart the future course for Afghanistan produced a small victory for Pakistan. Islamabad had insisted for many years that a long-term, stable solution to the 30-year-old Afghan problem could only be found if some of those identifying themselves with the Taliban movement were accommodated within the governing structure. This position was first advanced by Gen Pervez Musharraf and followed by the present government. The Americans, however, would not have anything to do with anybody who went under the banner of the Taliban movement. But then an interesting thing happened. The Taliban emerged as different … Continue reading A small victory

ISLAMABAD: The top brass of Pakistan Army is all set to undergo a reshaping process with the retirement of at least 12 three-star generals, including four corps commanders, during the ongoing calendar year, warranting promotion of major generals and the necessary reshuffle. Three of the lieutenant generals, including incumbent Director-General of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Lt-Gen Ahmad Shuja Pasha, are scheduled to retire next month. However, according to informed sources, Lt-Gen Pasha in all probability will get an extension ‘in the interest of continuity’. A senior security official told Dawn that the army chief did not need to send a … Continue reading ISI chief, four commanders retiring this year