By Qaribur Rahman Saeed The upcoming London Conference on Afghanistan must seize the opportunity to bring warring sides together instead of escalating the presence of international troops. Negotiating channels are open and could produce a lasting peace for the beleaguered nation. Representatives of the 43 nations in the International Security Assistance Force of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Afghanistan meet on January 28 against the backdrop of 2009 being the deadliest year for civilians and military personnel since international forces ousted the Taliban from power in 2001. The 2,412 civilian deaths recorded last year were 14% higher than in … Continue reading Afghanistan’s talking cure

By Christopher Johnson TOKYO – Japanese officials watching the demise this week of Japan’s flagship carrier, JAL, are looking to turn the hard lessons learned from the airline’s collapse into a new tourist boom for the country, backed by arrivals from old enemies, Russia and China. JAL, brought down by poor scheduling, a shortage of overseas passengers and mountains of debt, this week entered bankruptcy after years of surviving on government loans. The new government, led since last August by the Democratic Party of Japan after the long-dominant Liberal Democratic Party lost a general election, now aims to open up … Continue reading JAL dies, tourism drive stirs to life

By Abubakar Siddique Kabul has cautiously returned to its everyday hustle and bustle, a day after a Taliban attack that rocked the city center and brought the harsh realities of war perilously close to the presidential palace and key ministry buildings. But the brazen attack on January 18, in which just seven Taliban militants managed to detonate suicide bombs that destroyed a shopping center and wage a lengthy gun battle with Afghan forces, has raised serious questions about the state of security even in areas thought to be relatively secure. Jamal Nasir described the concerns of his fellow Kabul residents … Continue reading McChrystal’s plan takes a Taliban hit

By Beaumont Smith VIENTIANE – It is easy to be seduced by the peaceful rural scenes, punctuated by rice fields, vegetable patches and reed-filled wetlands. But behind the natural tapestry, tension and anger are brimming over in the local communities near the Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge outside of the Lao capital. The communal complaint: their long self-sustaining community will on government orders soon be converted into an 18-hole golf course, luxury hotel and top-end residential developments, and the compensation on offer to relocate is well below going market land prices. The Vietnam-owned Long Thanh Golf Trading and Investment Joint Stock Company, … Continue reading Golf and the great Lao land grab

By Neeta Lal NEW DELHI – India’s environment minister, having faced accusations of practicing “voodoo science”, has been vindicated with the Nobel Prize-winning United Nations climate body’s prediction that the Himalayan glaciers would disappear by 2035 being exposed as inaccurate speculation. After suffering blows from the “Climategate” scandal and the tumultuous and essentially failed Copenhagen climate conference last year, the credibility of the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is now being further questioned over revelations concerning a 2007 report in which it said the total area of the Himalayan glaciers would shrink from the present 500,000 to 100,000 square … Continue reading India turns up heat over ‘Glaciergate’

By Ira Chernus Every year, apologists for Israel’s occupation of Palestine eagerly await Martin Luther King Day. Then they trot out these words, spoken by Dr King shortly before his death in 1968: “When people criticize Zionists they mean Jews; you are talking anti-Semitism.” King, who repeated the themes that really mattered to him – justice, freedom, human dignity, non-violence – over and over again, mentioned anti-Semitism only once, in an informal question-and-answer session. Nobody asked him what he meant, and he never explained. (A lengthy letter of “his” expounding on the theme has been proven a hoax.) Yet, year … Continue reading King’s legacy and Israel’s future

By an IPS correspondent KOLKATA – On Sunday, when this eastern India metropolis of moderate winter experienced one of the chilliest days of the season, the weather was no deterrent for the tens of thousands who lined the streets to catch a glimpse of a 95-year-old communist leader’s body soon after a teary-eyed comrade announced his death. The red flags fluttered and chants of red salutes filled the air as a sea of communist foot soldiers joined the common people who thronged the streets, many breaking down in tears, as they paid their last respects to Jyoti Basu, the communist … Continue reading Patriarch’s death a blow to communism

By Jean MacKenzie KABUL – Monday’s Taliban attack in the Afghan capital, Kabul, comes as President Hamid Karzai is trying to win over the international community to the idea of reconciliation with the Taliban. He has called repeatedly for peace overtures to the insurgents, and has even broached the subject of removing Taliban leaders from the United Nations’ “black list” which restricts extremists’ movements and freezes their assets. Dramatically signaling their willingness to continue the conflict, peace talks may now be off the table for some time to come. Kabul was quiet but uneasy late on Monday following a series … Continue reading Kabul strike hits peace plan hard

By Kaveh L Afrasiabi NEW YORK – A much-anticipated meeting of the “Iran Six” nations at the weekend to discuss the next steps for sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program ended without any progress. The New York meeting’s failure to reach a decision has been blamed on China, which sent a low-level representative in an open gesture to oppose new sanctions on Iran. It bursts the bubble of unity among the five permanent members of the UN Security Council – the United States, France, Britain, China and Russia – who, along with Germany, constitute the “Iran Six”. The stage … Continue reading Bubble bursts on Iran nuclear options