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Iran, U.S. hold nuclear talks in Munich

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kerry-zarif

by Press TV

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and US Secretary of State John Kerry have held fresh talks in the German city of Munich as a March deadline for a nuclear deal between Tehran and the P5+1 group approaches.

The two foreign ministers started their talks on Friday on the sidelines of Munich Security Conference.

Back in January, Zarif and Kerry held intense negotiations in the Swiss city of Geneva to help speed up the ongoing negotiations between Iran and the P5+1 group – the US, France, Britain, China, Russia and Germany – over Tehran’s peaceful nuclear work.

The Iranian minister is scheduled to attend a meeting attended by Kerry as well as his French and German counterparts, Laurent Fabius and Frank-Walter Steinmeier, on Sunday to discuss Iran’s nuclear program. European Union foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, is likely to participate in the meeting.

The Iranian minister is also to hold a one-on-one meeting with his German counterpart.

Since an interim deal was agreed in Geneva in November 2013, the negotiating sides have missed two self-imposed deadlines to ink a final agreement.

Iran and the P5+1 countries now seek to reach a high-level political agreement by March 1 and to confirm the full technical details of the accord by July 1.

The scale of Iran’s uranium enrichment and the timetable for the lifting of anti-Iran sanctions are seen as major sticking points in the talks.

The New York Times slams Modi’s dangerous silence on communal attacks in India

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Modi-protest-us

New York: After U.S. President Barack Obama raised the issue of religious intolerance in India, The New York Times (NYT) published a very strong editorial criticizing Prime Minister Narendra Modi for what it calls his “dangerous silence” on a series of communal events in the country.

The editorial, by the NYT editorial board, lists recent attacks on churches and reports of Ghar Vapsi or conversion and marks out the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) for its proposed conversions programme in Ayodhya in March this year, saying the group “was playing with fire.” “Mr. Modi’s continued silence before such troubling intolerance increasingly gives the impression that he either cannot or does not wish to control the fringe elements of the Hindu nationalist right,” the NYT editorial surmised.

New York Times editorial: ‘Modi’s Dangerous Silence’

Full text of the Editorial published in the New York Times on February 6, 2015:

What will it take for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to speak out about the mounting violence against India’s religious minorities? Attacks at Christian places of worship have prompted no response from the man elected to represent and to protect all of India’s citizens. Nor has he addressed the mass conversion to Hinduism of Christians and Muslims who have been coerced or promised money. Mr. Modi’s continued silence before such troubling intolerance increasingly gives the impression that he either cannot or does not wish to control the fringe elements of the Hindu nationalist right.

Recently, a number of Christian churches in India have been burned and ransacked. Last December, St. Sebastian’s Church in East Delhi was engulfed in fire. Its pastor reported a strong smell of kerosene after the blaze was put out. On Monday, St. Alphonsa’s Church in New Delhi was vandalised. Ceremonial vessels were taken, yet collection boxes full of cash were untouched. Alarmed by the attacks, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India has urged the government to uphold the secular nature of India and to assure its Christians they are “protected and secure” in their own country.

There is also concern about the mass conversions. Last December, about 200 Muslims were converted to Hinduism in Agra. In January, up to 100 Christians in West Bengal “reconverted” to Hinduism. Hard-line Hindu nationalist groups, like the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), make no secret of their support for a “homecoming” campaign designed to “return” non-Hindus to the fold. More than 80 per cent of Indians are Hindu, but Pravin Togadia of the VHP says his organisation’s goal is a country that is 100 per cent Hindu. The only way to achieve that is to deny religious minorities their faith.

The VHP is reportedly planning a mass conversion of 3,000 Muslims in Ayodhya this month. The destruction of the Babri Mosque there in 1992 by Hindu militants touched off riots between Hindus and Muslims across India that left more than 2,000 people dead. The VHP knows it is playing with fire.

Mr. Modi has promised an ambitious agenda for India’s development. But, as President Obama observed in a speech in New Delhi last month: “India will succeed so long as it is not splintered along the lines of religious faith.” Mr. Modi needs to break his deafening silence on religious intolerance.

Religious intolerance in India would have shocked Gandhi: Obama

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Photo: PTI

Photo: PTI

Washington: US President Barack Obama on Thursday said the “acts of intolerance” experienced by religious faiths of all types in India in the past few years would have shocked Mahatma Gandhi.

The comments by Obama came a day after the White House refuted suggestions that the US President’s public speech in New Delhi in which he touched upon religious tolerance was a “parting shot” aimed at the ruling BJP.

“Michelle and I returned from India – an incredible, beautiful country, full of magnificent diversity – but a place where, in past years, religious faiths of all types have, on occasion, been targeted by other peoples of faith, simply due to their heritage and their beliefs – acts of intolerance that would have shocked Gandhiji, the person who helped to liberate that nation,” Obama said in his remarks at the high-profile National Prayer Breakfast.

The US President, who has just returned from India, was referring to violence against followers of various religions in India in the past few years. He, however, did not name any particular religion and said the violence is not unique to one group or one religion.

“Humanity has been grappling with these questions throughout human history. And lest we get on our high horse and think this is unique to some other place, remember that during the Crusades and the Inquisition, people committed terrible deeds in the name of Christ.

“In our home country, slavery and Jim Crow (racial segregation state and local laws) all too often was justified in the name of Christ,” he said, addressing the gathering of over 3,000 US and international leaders.

“There is a tendency in us, a sinful tendency that can pervert and distort our faith. In today’s world, when hate groups have their own Twitter accounts and bigotry can fester in hidden places in cyberspace, it can be even harder to counteract such intolerance.”But God compels us to try. “And in this mission, I believe there are a few principles that can guide us, particularly those of us who profess to believe,” he said.

In a US-style Town Hall address in New Delhi on January 27, the last day of his India trip, Obama had made a strong pitch for religious tolerance, cautioning that India will succeed so long as it was not “splintered along the lines of religious faith”.

The White House yesterday strongly refuted allegations that Obama’s remarks on religious tolerance was aimed at the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), saying the speech in its entirety was about the “core democratic values and principles” of both the US and India.

(PTI)

Iran says missile program is “not negotiable”

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iran

Iranian officials denied any negotiation is taking place with P5+1 group over its missile plan and stressed that the program is “not negotiable.”

On Wednesday, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Brigadier General Massoud Jazzayeri said that the country “will never” accept to negotiate over its missile program and “defensive capabilities” with any world power, Fars news agency reported.

A day earlier, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister and senior nuclear negotiator Abbas Araghchi stressed that “Iran’s missile program has totally defensive nature and is not negotiable,” the Tehran Timesreported.

Iranian officials’ comments came after US Department of State spokesperson Jen Psaki said on Monday that Iran’s missile program was part of the P5+1 group — United States, France, Britain, Germany, Russia and China — nuclear talks with Iran.

Meanwhile, Iran’s President Hassan Rouhani berated the world’s nuclear powers on Wednesday, saying atomic weapons had not kept them safe and reiterating that his country was not seeking the bomb.

Rouhani avoided explicit mention of ongoing nuclear talks between the West and Iran but accused atomic-armed states of hypocrisy.

“They tell us ‘we don’t want Iran to make atomic bombs,’ you who have made atomic bombs,” Rouhani said in Isfahan, 400 kilometers south of the capital Tehran.

He then took aim at Israel, thought to be the only nuclear power in the region although it has never publicly acknowledged it, dubbing the Zionist state a “criminal.”

“Have you managed to bring about security for yourselves with atomic bombs? Have you managed to create security for the usurper Israel?” Rouhani said.

“We don’t need an atomic bomb. We have a great, self-sacrificing and unified nation,” he stressed, referring to Monday’s launch of an observation satellite into space by Iran.

“Despite pressures and sanctions, this nation sent a new satellite into space,” Rouhani added.

Iran is in negotiations with the P5+1 powers aimed at a deal to resolve a long-running dispute over its nuclear program.

Iran denies ever seeking atomic weapons but western powers are unconvinced Tehran’s activities have been solely aimed at peaceful energy production.

Under an interim deal, Iran’s stock of fissile material has been diluted from 20 percent enriched uranium to five percent in exchange for limited sanctions relief.

(AFP, Al-Akhbar)

Delhi Uber rape victim files lawsuit in U.S court

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uber-cab

Washington: A Delhi woman allegedly raped by an Uber driver last December has filed a lawsuit in a US court accusing the web-based US taxi firm of focusing on profits over the safety of its passengers.

In a 36-page complaint filed in the US District Court for the Northern District of California Thursday, the woman seeks to “slam the brakes on Uber’s reckless worldwide expansion at the unfortunate expense of basic customer safety.”

The lawsuit which identifies the victim only as Jane Doe, also seeks compensation “for the horrific and brutal rape that she suffered due to Uber’s inadequate and disingenuous ‘commitment to safety’.”

Demanding a trial by jury, the lawsuit seeks a “a permanent injunction directing that Uber take all affirmative steps necessary to remedy the effects of the unlawful conduct” alleged in the complaint, “and to prevent repeated occurrences in the future.”

It also seeks an award of unspecified amount of punitive damages to be determined at trial, plus prejudgment interest, to compensate the victim “for all physical, monetary and/or economic harm.”

Her New York based Douglas H. Wigdor, in a statement said: “Uber’s focus on its bottom line over the safety of its passengers has resulted in what can only be described as modern day electronic hitchhiking.”

“We intend to hold Uber responsible for the significant physical and emotional harm it has caused to our client, while simultaneously seeking a court order mandating that Uber initiate certain safety precautions that they appear unwilling to do voluntarily,” he said.

“We hope that this lawsuit will bring about positive change that will ultimately protect people worldwide who are unaware of the serious risks of entering into an Uber car,” Wigdor added.

Jeanne M. Christensen, another Wigdor LLP lawyer said: “San Francisco Uber executives’ decisions to cut costs at the expense of customer safety forced our client to pay the ultimate cost in New Delhi.”

“Her brutal rape by an Uber driver who was a known repeat sexual predator was a result of a global Uber policy that has far-reaching consequences,” she said.

“We intend to hold Uber accountable for violence that could easily have been avoided had even a minimal background check been conducted.”

An Uber spokesperson said: “Our deepest sympathies remain with the victim of this horrific crime. We are cooperating fully with the authorities to ensure the perpetrator is brought to justice.”
The accused driver Shiv Kumar Yadav is currently on trial on rape and kidnapping charges in Delhi.

Delhi banned Uber and several other web-based taxi firms for failing to carry out adequate driver checks in early December.

But last week Uber announced resumption of its services in Delhi sayinmg it had applied for a radio taxi license and would improve safety by introducing features such as an “in-app emergency button”.

(IANS)

Cuba demands Guantanamo Bay in return for US ties

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Cuban President Raul Castro issues broad list of demands, saying that without them normal relations are unreachable.

Castro's call for an end to the US embargo drew support at the summit from several Latin American presidents [Reuters]

Castro’s call for an end to the US embargo drew support at the summit from several Latin American presidents [Reuters]

by Associated Press

Cuban President Raul Castro demanded that the United States return the US naval base at Guantanamo Bay before the two nations re-establish normal relations.

Castro also said the US should lift the half-century trade embargo on Cuba and compensate his country for damages in exchange for reconcilliation.

Castro told a summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States on Wednesday that Cuba and the US are working toward full diplomatic relations but “if these problems aren’t resolved, this diplomatic rapprochement wouldn’t make any sense”.

Castro and US President Barack Obama announced on December 17 that they would move toward renewing full diplomatic relations by reopening embassies in each other’s countries.

The two governments held negotiations in Havana last week to discuss both the reopening of embassies and the broader agenda of re-establishing normal relations.

Obama has loosened the trade embargo with a range of measures designed to increase economic ties with Cuba and increase the number of Cubans who don’t depend on the communist state for their livelihoods.

The Obama administration says removing barriers to US travel, remittances and exports to Cuba is a tactical change that supports the United States’ unaltered goal of reforming Cuba’s single-party political system and centrally planned economy.

Cuba has said it welcomes the measures but has no intention of changing its system.

List of Cuban demands

Castro emphasised an even broader list of Cuban demands, saying that while diplomatic ties may be re-established, normal relations with the US depend on a series of concessions that appear highly unlikely in the near future.

He demanded that the US end the transmission of anti-Castro radio and television broadcasts and deliver “just compensation to our people for the human and economic damage that they’re suffered.”

Demands also include an end to US support for Cuban dissidents and Cuba’s removal from the US list of state sponsors of terrorism.

Castro also wants the US to pay hundreds of millions of dollars in damages for losses caused by the embargo.

“The re-establishment of diplomatic relations is the start of a process of normalizing bilateral relations, but this will not be possible while the blockade still exists, while they don’t give back the territory illegally occupied by the Guantanamo naval base,” Castro said.

Castro’s call for an end to the US embargo drew support at the summit from the presidents of Brazil, Ecuador, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Venezuela.

Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff also praised the effort by the leaders of Cuba and the US to improve relations.

“The two heads of state deserve our recognition for the decision they made – beneficial for Cubans and Americans, but, most of all, for the entire continent,” she said.

Fidel Castro expresses cautious support of Cuba-U.S talks

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Fidel Castro has welcomed talks with Washington, but warned, “I don’t trust the policy of the United States.”

Fidel-Castro

by teleSUR

Former Cuban President Fidel Castro publicly gave his blessing to the historic negotiations between Cuba and the United States Monday, but warned Washington isn’t to be trusted.

“We will always defend cooperation and friendship with all the peoples of the world, among them our political adversaries,” said Fidel Castro in a statement published by Cuban newspaper Granma. “Any peaceful or negotiated solution to the problems between the United States and the peoples or any people of Latin America that doesn’t imply force or the use of force should be treated in accordance with international norms and principles.”

However, Fidel Castro conceded, “I don’t trust the policy of the United States nor have I had an exchange with them.”

“But, this does not mean … a rejection of a peaceful solution to conflicts or the dangers of war,” he explained.

The first round of negotiations between Havana and Washington wrapped up last week. The talks are aimed at reviving bilateral ties after decades of U.S. attempts to overthrow the government in Havana.

Along with the U.S. blockade and the controversial listing of Cuba as a state sponsor of terrorism, other issues discussed in the meeting included immigration reform and plans to open embassies.

U.S. President Barack Obama has already announced plans to loosen trade and investment restrictions, along with easing a long-standing travel ban.

Both sides reported some progress in last week’s talks, but said there is still more work to be done.

A Cuban official that spoke ahead of the negotiations explained the first round of talks wouldn’t “normalize” bilateral relations.

“Cuba is re-establishing diplomatic relations with the U.S. The process of normalization is much longer and deeper,” the official stated.

The U.S. blockade of Cuba must be totally dismantled before relations can be completely normalized, the official said.

Barack Obama wraps up three-day India visit, departs for Saudi Arabia

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US President Barack Obama (L) and First Lady Michelle Obama gesture as they board Air Force One prior to departing from Air Force Station Palam in New Delhi on January 27, 2015. President Barack Obama said the United States could be India's "best partner" January 27 as he wrapped up a three-day visit to New Delhi by highlighting the shared values of the world's biggest democracies. AFP PHOTO / PRAKASH SINGH

US President Barack Obama (L) and First Lady Michelle Obama gesture as they board Air Force One prior to departing from Air Force Station Palam in New Delhi on January 27, 2015. AFP PHOTO / PRAKASH SINGH

New Delhi: US President Barack Obama today left for Saudi Arabia, wrapping up his three-day visit here during which both the countries broke a seven-year logjam to operationalise a landmark civil nuclear deal, besides enhancing defence and trade ties.

Obama, accompanied by his wife Michelle, folded his hands in a traditional “namaste” and waved before boarding Air Force One at the Palam airport where Union Minister Piyush Goyal and, Foreign Secretary Sujatha Singh, were among those present.

Obama and the US First Lady had planned a visit to the Taj Mahal but cancelled their trip to the world heritage site and instead decided to visit Saudi Arabia to pay condolences to the Royal family following death of King Abdullah.

In his talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday, both the leaders managed to remove the hurdles to operationalise the civil nuclear deal besides deciding to jointly produce military hardware and stepping up economic engagement.

In what Obama called a “breakthrough”, the two sides resolved key hurdles pertaining to the liability of suppliers of nuclear reactors in the event of an accident and the tracking of fuel supplied by the US.

Obama yesterday became the first US President to grace the Republic Day celebrations. He is also the first American President to visit India twice.

The American President today addressed a Town hall event at Siri Fort Auditorium here during which he spoke on a range of issues and made a strong pitch for religious tolerance.

(PTI)

Iran vows retaliatory response to fresh sanctions by U.S

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Ali Larijani

Tehran: Iran’s Majlis (parliament) has devised retaliatory plans in case that the United States imposes fresh sanctions on the country over its nuclear program, the Majlis Speaker Ali Larijani said here on Saturday.

The lawmakers have “seriously considered scenarios” to make the United States regretful if the U.S. Congress decides to slap new sanctions on Iran, Larijani was quoted as saying by Tasnim news agency.

“A jump in (expanding) Iran’s nuclear technology” will occur in case of fresh sanctions, he said, adding that Tehran is absolutely capable of doing that.

Iran has already shown necessary flexibility in the course of nuclear talks with six world powers, and the U.S. President Barack Obama’s struggle with the Congress is his own problem and Iran does not have to pay the price for the political infighting in the western state, the Iranian speaker said.

Washington will be held accountable for possible failure of nuclear talks, Larijani made the remarks following the recent push by some U.S. hardline lawmakers to pass new sanctions against Iran.

Meanwhile, the senior Iranian lawmaker, Hossein Naghavi-Hosseini, said Saturday that any new sanctions against Iran will seriously hurt the ongoing nuclear talks between Iran and the world powers, and the U.S. will be responsible for the probable failure.

Any new sanctions on Iran is against the Geneva accord, and “if this happens it will definitely put an end to the talks,” Naghavi-Hosseini, the spokesman for the Majlis (parliament) National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, was quoted as saying by semi-official ISNA news agency.

The six countries — Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States — and Iran clinched an interim agreement in Geneva in November 2013, whereby Iran agreed to cap its nuclear program in exchange for limited sanction relief.

However, the deadline for following negotiations was extended twice last year, yet with no major breakthroughs.

If the ongoing nuclear negotiations fail, “the United States will be responsible for the failure of the talks,” Naghavi-Hosseini said also referring to the recent moves by some U.S. Congressmen to impose fresh sanctions against the Islamic republic.

A new draft is being prepared by the Majlis which means “to oblige the government to resume nuclear enrichment using new generation of centrifuges,” he said.

“Majlis’ nuclear committee is working on the technical aspects of the draft in detail,” he was quoted as saying.

If the western countries hinder the progress of the talks, the Iranian government will have to upgrade uranium enrichment to 60 percent purity, Naghavi-Hosseini added.

Iran has been a target of UN sanctions due to its alleged attempts to build nuclear weapons. The West accuses Iran of developing nuclear weapons under the cover of civilian nuclear programs, which Iran has denied, insisting that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes only.

The sides agreed in November 2014 to extend the deadline for another seven months aimed to reach a political agreement within the next five months.

How much nuclear capability Iran can keep, and the steps to lift West-imposed sanctions against Tehran are the main sticking points for the ongoing negotiations.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammed-Javad Zarif and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry held talks about Tehran’s nuclear program on Friday on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in the Swiss city of Davos.

Deputy foreign ministers from Iran are going to sit down with diplomats from the UK, France and Germany in the Turkish city of Istanbul later this month to further discuss Iran’s nuclear issue, according to Press TV report on Saturday.

(Xinhua)

U.S a dangerous ally: former Australia PM

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Malcolm Fraser, former primer minister of Australia.

Malcolm Fraser, former primer minister of Australia.

by China Times

In his new book titled “Dangerous Allies,” Malcolm Fraser, the former prime minister of Australia worries that the Canberra’s dependence on the United States will eventually bring the nation into a direct conflict with China. His words echo those of Georgetown University professor Amitai Etzioni in and article he wrote for the Diplomat on Jan. 20.

Australia has always been strategically dependent on other great powers since gaining independence in 1901. It relied on the United Kingdom until World War II and then transfered that dependence to the United States afterwards. The relationship grew stronger with the signing of the Australia, New Zealand, United States Security Treaty in 1951. Fraser said that the treaty does not require the US to defend Australia, only nneding to “consult” it in case of an attack.

In Fraser’s book, he describes how Australia’s blind faith in the UK before World War II left the country unprepared for war. He then goes on to say that currently many feel more vulnerable because of the country’s dependence on the United States. What Fraser and many Australian leaders fears most is that the United States will get Australia involved in a coflict not of its own making. “Australia effectively ceded to America the ability to decide when Australia goes to war,” said Fraser.

Fraser labelled the United States a “dangerous ally” as Australia has become progressively more enmeshed in American strategic and military affairs since the end of Cold War.

Just as with the armed conflicts in the Middle East, Fraser said that the conflict in Ukraine took place partially due to Washington’s attempt to include Ukraine in NATO. He went on to blame the United States lack of historical understanding towards Russia on the matter.

Washington’s policy to “contain” China can eventually lead to trouble for Australia. Believing that the United States will eventually use Australia as a base to attack China, Fraser suggested the removal of all American military facilities from Darwin in the north and Pine Gap in the center of the country as soon as possible. The former Australian leader added that the country should be more independent of the United States in both defense and foreign affairs. While recommending that Australia shore up its diplomatic activities throughout Asia and at the UN, he also suggested an increase in defense spending to 3% of the country’s GDP.

Jared McKinney, an American defense expert said that Fraser’s book is often redundant and sometimes appears simplistic and one-sided in its historical interpretations. Still, he praised Fraser’s great service to Australia and it said would be a shame if his arguments were unable to incite the sort of grand strategy debate.

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