Bharat Rakshak

abhischekcc wrote: gendarme.

JEDDAH (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia has discovered its first hieroglyphic inscriptions mentioning an Egyptian pharaoh dating back more than 3,000 years on a rock near the northern city of Tabuk, state media reported.
The inscriptions, which bore the name of Pharoah Ramses III, dated back to the 12th century BC and amounted to the first hieroglyphic discovery in the desert kingdom.Ramses III ruled ancient Egypt from 1192 BC to 1160 BC, state news agency SPA said late Sunday.The discovery was made in July at the Tayma oasis, which archaeologists now say was an important land route between the western coast of Arabia and Egypt's Nile Valley.Over the past few years Saudi Arabia has been increasing efforts to promote cultural and archeological finds. Earlier this year the government showcased some of its discoveries at the Louvre museum in Paris.

Sanku wrote:

abhischekcc wrote: gendarme.

Abcc, a clarification are you saying that being a gendarme is enough? Note the very connotation is that we are some on else's functionary.

Not much different from Philip's constable. Isnt this exactly what we were troubled with in general? Instead to be a power and influence in our own right and have the rest of the world defer to us in our sphere of influence.

You may wish to relook at the choice of word perhaps (in case of confusion caused by choice of words)

Spending five years in a Saudi Arabian jail while facing death by beheading would be traumatic for anyone, let alone for a 17-year-old thousands of miles away from home.
But that's exactly what Rizana Fathima Nafeek, who moved to Riyadh from Sri Lanka to work as a maid, has endured since 2005. Nafeek, now 22, has spent the past half-decade in a Riyadh prison facing a death sentence in a country where she does not speak the language and where she does not have any relatives. Her job, obtained through a Sri Lankan recruitment agency, was supposed to be the ticket out of abysmal poverty for her family, says her mother, Razeena Nafeek. The family of six found it hard to get by on the income that Mohammed Nafeek, her father, earned as a woodcutter in the remote village of Muttur, east of Colombo. "We pinned all our hopes on the job," she adds.
(See pictures of women in Saudi Arabia.)
But that opportunity turned into a nightmare just one month after Nafeek — who, at 17, carried forged documents that said she was above the legal working age of 18 — began her job in the Saudi household. Her employers accused her of murdering their 4-month-old infant. Nafeek later told her mother that the child accidentally choked while being bottle-fed by her. She had no prior experience taking care of a young child, her mother said.
Nafeek was found guilty of the charge and sentenced to death — a conviction that rights groups say was based on a confession made under duress and the forged passport that changed her status to that of an adult. But last month, the sentence was upheld by Saudi Arabia's highest court, prompting a fresh wave of calls from Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa and international rights groups, including Amnesty International and the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), for Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz al-Saud to pardon Nafeek. The European Union and the U.N. Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights have indicated that they, too, will be making similar appeals. If the King ratifies the sentence, then execution by beheading would be imminent.
(See pictures of the women ridding Sri Lanka of mines.)
Nafeek's may be the most high-profile case facing a Sri Lankan domestic worker in the Middle East, but it is not the first and will not be the last. In 2009, over 77,000 Sri Lankan women went to the Middle East as domestic workers, and some 42,000 went to Saudi Arabia, according to that government's statistics. Sri Lankan women working abroad play a vital role in the Sri Lankan economy; of the nation's over 1 million overseas workers, women's paychecks accounted for more than half of the $3.4 billion sent back to Sri Lanka in foreign remittances last year.
Like Nafeek, most of these women come from the nation's poorest families and hardly have any prior work experience. The unskilled nature of their work and expectations of their employers can make for a volatile work environment, often complicated further by the lack of a common language. "Sri Lankan migrant workers face a multitude of obstacles at all stages of the migration process: predeparture, in service, and upon return and reintegration," says Pramodini Weerasekera, a program officer with the International Labor Organization, which is advising the Sri Lankan government on enhancing training networks and sending more skilled workers abroad. "Many of these issues stem from the skill-level profile of Sri Lanka's migrant workforce where the majority of workers fall within the low-skilled and housemaid categories."
In 2009, there were 4,500 complaints lodged by maids working in Saudi Arabia to Colombo's Foreign Employment Bureau. Most complaints were about a lack of communication, sexual harassment or no payment of wages, but some were much worse. Last week, a domestic worker who returned to central Sri Lanka from Jordan reported being forced to swallow at least six nails. Over the weekend, another woman who returned from Kuwait had 14 nails removed from her body at a hospital in the central Sri Lankan town of Kurunegala. These cases follow close on the heels of yet another gruesome story: in August, 50-year-old Lahanda Purage Ariyawathie, a grandmother of two, returned to Sri Lanka from Saudi Arabia five months after accepting a job as a maid. Her body was dotted with small, oozing wounds. Doctors later removed over 20 nails and needles that had been embedded in her body. Ariyawathie said that hot nails were embedded in her body by her Saudi employers who were dissatisfied with her work. Saudi authorities have rejected the claim.


Read more: http://www.time.com/time/world/article/ ... z15SPuqJU6

shyamd wrote:The GCC and Iran

The Iranians are not F'ing around. The GCC experience with Iranian intel goes back to the post shah days.
The GCC fears Iran, and don't want to wake up with dark skies and bomb sirens, black smoke in the air. So the GCC is actually scared of what the US and Israel and Iran are going to do.
An iranian commander recently told Al Jazeera, that they are aware that certain countries in the region which have US bases fear reprisals, Iran would target the US bases in the region but not the nations themselves unless they are involved.

...
Until recently, France was reportedly resisting demands by the UAE to take back about 60 Mirage 2000-9s in exchange for a Rafale sale. But now French newspaper La Tribune has reported the UAE has insisted on a second condition.

In return for buying the Rafale, France must give the UAE's two airlines -- Abu Dhabi's Etihad and Dubai's Emirates -- more landing slots at major French airports, especially Charles de Gaulle near Paris. According to La Tribune, this forces the French government to choose between "two of its industrial jewels": Rafale manufacturer Dassault and Air France.
...

2010-11-08 19:20:00
Call India With O2

New Delhi, Nov 8 (IANS) Omani ambassador to India Humaid Ali Al-Maani Monday said India and Oman share a 'very special' bond and their relationship will be 'enhanced' further.

'India is a very special partner for Oman and we are working to enhance this relationship further, not only in our cultural cooperation but in trade and political matters as well,' Al-Maani told IANS, after inaugurating a two-day seminar on literature and cultural heritage of India and Oman at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) here.

The university also hosted two scholars from the country, on the eve of its 40th National Day, who stressed on the similarities between the languages of India and Oman.

'Urdu has many Arabic words and Arabic too has many Indian words in it. So does our cultures, clothing etc. We have also also shared great trade relations,'said Dr. Said Sulaiman Al Isaie, one of the visiting scholars.

Another scholar, Dr. Ahmed Abdur-Rahman Salim Bil Khair, presented a paper titled 'Role of Kerala in Arabic language in India'.

'This is my paper because Kerala was the place Arab traders first travelled to and it has influenced the culture and language a lot,' he said.

) Vice President Hamid Ansari Saturday called for the adoption of a new Look-West policy aimed at the Gulf and West Asia that can secure the country's economic, strategic and cultural interests in the region, which has a huge non-immigrant population of over six million Indian workers.

'For us in India, a 'Look West' policy towards this part of West Asia would be as relevant for safeguarding and promoting India's interests as its Look-East policy aimed at East Asia that has been in place for some years,' Ansari told a conference.

'The strategic relevance of the sub-region to India has to be located in geographic and economic terms,' Ansari said in his inaugural address at the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA) conference on India and GCC Countries, Iran and Iraq: Emerging security perspectives.

Nearly 100 delegates from India and the region are participating in the two-day conference.

The GCC countries include Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Ansari said: 'The focus of Indian interest in the region would remain on the desirability of having friendly governments, regional peace and stability, access to oil and gas resources, freedom of navigation in the Persian Gulf through the Straights of Hormuz, continued market access for Indian trade, technology, investments, security and welfare of the Indian workforce, particularly in times of the distress emenating from disturbed local or regional conditions.'

The vice president also pointed out that the region is within the security parameters of India and the operational radius of the Indian Navy.

'The latter's participation in the anti-piracy operations in the Arabian Sea is a case in point. If needed, it can escort shipping and interdict forces hostile to it,' he said.

Ansari said it is 'evident' that given the geo-political imperatives of the eight littoral states of the Persian Gulf, security perspectives and threat perceptions do not converge.

'The concerned states want to prosper and avail of the benefits of development. The Gulf lands are essential for the world's economic health since they are a principal source of hydrocarbon energy as well as a major market for industrial goods, technology and services. Therefore the peace of these waters must be maintained,' he added.

Ansari, who was ambassador to Iran and Saudi Arabia, cited several of India's trade ties with the Persian Gulf region.

India imports over 63 per cent of its crude oil from these regions. These countries account for 22 per cent of India's total trade. The UAE is one of the top trading partners of India with a total trade of $ 43.5 billion, ahead of China and the US. Saudi Arabia is India's fourth largest trade partner and Iran stands ninth. Indian non-immigrant workforce of nearly six million work in these countries.

'A Gulf regionalism that is outward looking, flexible and dynamic, consistent with regional diversity would contribute to regional and global welfare, peace and security.

'This would also enable these nations to take advantage of the opportunities emerging from enhanced economic integration, as also to face the common threats of terrorism, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, securing energy exports, security of sea lanes, tackling pandemics, natural disasters and others,' Ansari said.

Issac John (KT Exclusive
)

21 November 2010
It doesn’t matter how seasoned you are as a media person there is always something mildly intimidating about being received by a VVIP for an interview. It is not just the aura of power that surrounds the celebrity or simply that ambience of being a photograph come alive.

Meeting the Indian President Pratibha Devisingh Patil on the day before her departure was an honour as also a great opportunity to bring up issues of a bilateral nature.

Rashtrapati Bhavan, the residence of the President is perhaps the most dramatic testimony to imperial architecture. Designed by Sir Edward Lutyens, it is spread over an area of about 330 acres featuring 340 rooms and wide expanses of billiard table lawns.

Two officials from the Ministry of External Affairs accompany me to the sprawling historical monument built in 1928. We undergo five layers of security checks as we enter the magnificent premises of the former Viceroy Palace.

Before meeting the President, I am taken to three reception areas. After clearing the first point, I am ushered into a room where tea and snacks are being served. The décor is museum-like and large portraits on the walls frown down on me as heavy as the history which they reflect. After a wait of 30 minutes, I am invited to a bigger, well-appointed room with chandeliers the size of a truck outside the main reception area where the President receives guests. There too I had to undergo another phase of screening and identity checks before finally entering the sitting room.

A few moments later the President enters and smiles warmly, putting me at ease. I present her a memento from the Khaleej Times which she graciously accepts and forwards her thanks to the paper’s management and staff.

Then she settles down and is open for questions. The interview on the eve of her state visit to the UAE is an in-depth one and Pratibha Devisingh Patil answers each one at length.

Khaleej Times: What are the priorities on your state visit to the UAE and Syria? What is the content of the agenda that lies before India and the UAE, given the stronger foundation of cooperation the two countries have been building in the wake of the two visits to New Delhi by the UAE Vice-President and Prime Minister His Highness Shaikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum?

Pratibha Devisingh Patil: We have historical and civilisational links with the UAE and the Arab world. This is my first official visit to the Gulf region and the UAE is the first country that I am visiting in this region. The UAE is part of our extended neighbourhood and we share historic partnership. In the contemporary times, we have sustained and nurtured these links with exchange of high level visits at political level. We fondly recall the visit of His Highness Shaikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, father of UAE, to India in 1975 and 1992. Prime Minister Indira Gandhi visited the UAE in 1981. My predecessor Dr Abdul Kalam also paid a successful visit to the UAE in 2003. India is committed to pursue a common strategic vision for promoting regional peace and security and for the enhancement of our relations in the political, economic, security and cultural fields. My visit is meant to renew our dialogue with the leadership of the UAE and to interact with the business and the Indian communities to provide momentum to our relations.

Q: There is a perception that energy and oil will figure prominently in your discussions, especially the need for upgrading India’s security concerns with regard to energy sources. In fact the media has called it the “energy security” trip. Would you like to elaborate upon it?

A: The UAE is one of India’s major suppliers of crude oil. It will continue to be important for India’s energy security. However, our relations with the UAE has broader strategic dimension in political, trade, economic and cultural fields. We have mature and multi-dimensional relations. The presence of a large Indian community has further cemented our fraternal relationship dating back to many millennia. My discussions with His Highness the President of the UAE and other leaders will be focused on how to take this unique partnership forward in a fast-changing world and to exchange views on major regional and global issues where we share common perceptions.

Q: Is there any move from the Indian side to promote and create awareness about the nation’s rich cultural heritage in the Gulf region with which your country enjoys several centuries of deep-rooted ties?

A: For many centuries, our people have crisscrossed the Arabian Sea from times immemorial, establishing, in the process, enduring bonds at people-to-people level. We have enriched each other’s cultural heritage. Islam came to India as early as 8th Century A.D. through Arab traders. Arabic books were translated into Indian languages. Similarly, many Sanskrit works were translated into Arabic language during the Abbasid caliphate. The Sufi tradition came to India from this part of the world. There has been fusion of ideas in architecture, paintings, literature, music, language, medicine and many other fields. Even in the contemporary times, we are continuing our efforts to celebrate the cultural dimension in our relationship. The Indian Council for Cultural Relations along with Indo-Arab Cultural Centres is working closely with Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage and other institutions in the UAE. Recently, many Indian classical and modern literature have been translated into Arabic language. There is plan to translate Arabic works into Indian languages. The large Indian community in the UAE has been a major factor in showcasing India’s diverse culture in the Gulf region. The cultural interaction between India and the Arab world has been going on for centuries and will continue for many more.

Q: As the President of the country with largest expatriate community in the Gulf, have you any plans to discuss prisoner swaps, share thoughts on Indian expatriate labour and how to end the recruitment scams and the rackets in human trafficking? One area that has not yet been adequately addressed is an effective mechanism to look after the interests of the Indian population and ensure their welfare, particularly with regard to the large labour force working in the UAE. What are the new initiatives your government has in mind in this regard?

A: I am proud of the fact that the Indian community has made valuable contribution to the socio-economic development of the UAE. There are over 5.5 million Indian workers in the Gulf, of which about 1.75 million live and work in the UAE alone. We are very grateful for the UAE Government for the warm welcome they have received in the country. The welfare of the overseas Indian community is a high priority for our government. The Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs has been working for the welfare of the Indian community in cooperation with the host governments. I am happy to say that the UAE Ministry of Labour has initiated many measures to improve the working conditions of overseas workers. It is working closely with our officials to set up redressal mechanisms. Government of India is in the process of setting up an online attestation procedure for recruitment of Indian workers in collaboration with the UAE Ministry of Labour. The India-UAE Memorandum of Understanding on Labour is also being updated. I am also pleased to launch the Indian Workers Resources Centre in the UAE during my visit. It is an important initiative that will provide 24-hour helpline and counselling services to distressed workers. The Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs is currently involved in many initiatives including new legislation on the Indian Emigration Act to protect interests of the emigrating workers.

Q: Will India’s home ministry and other law enforcement agencies be working with their UAE counterparts on issues of mutual security and safety and upping the level of sharing data specifically where organised terrorism is concerned?

A: The relevant security agencies of the UAE and India are cooperating with each other on terrorism and other security issues. Terrorism is a common challenge that many countries in the region are confronted with. Terrorism does not respect borders and this menace has to be tackled through cooperation at international level. We have already signed agreements in the field of Mutual Assistance on Criminal matters and on Extradition Treaty. We have also reached agreement on security cooperation. This Security Cooperation Agreement is due to be signed during the proposed visit of the UAE Minister for Interior to India in the coming months.

Q: What is the value of India’s total global exports and imports in the first half of fiscal 2010-11? What was the growth last year and what is the outlook for India’s foreign trade this year?

A: During April-September 2010, India’s total exports and imports amounted to around $103 billion and $166 respectively. These figures represent a growth rate of about 30 per cent over the figures for the corresponding period during 2008-2009. Given this growing trend, there is reason to be optimistic that our overall trade for the current fiscal year would witness a healthy growth rate.

Q: How do you rank GCC among India’s global trade partners in terms of value? Is there any estimate on the current level of the two-way investments between India and the UAE as well as with the GCC? Is there any new initiative under your government’s consideration to tap the Gulf investments in Indian infrastructure development?

A: Our total trade with the GCC countries amounted to $91 billion and $83 billion in 2008-2009 and 2009-2010 respectively. Among all regions, GCC is our largest trading partner followed by European Union. As regards investments by the GCC countries, the UAE is, by far the largest investor in India with an FDI of $1.77 billion which makes it the tenth largest investor in India globally. In relative terms the investments from the GCC countries in India is small. This is surprising because this region boasts of some of the largest sovereign funds in the world. Indian economy is currently growing at a rate of 9 per cent. It is the second fastest growing economy in the world. A major share of the growth is accounted for by the services sector. A majority of our population is young and hence the growth in demand will be sustained in the long term. Our infrastructure needs colossal investments because the gap between demand and supply is wide in power, communications, transport, ports and other sectors. I am aware that more needs to be done to attract investments from the Gulf. Some major initiatives have already been taken. The creation of the Joint India-Oman Investment Fund is one such measure. We need to examine whether similar arrangements can be worked out for other GCC countries. We are also interested in investments from the sovereign funds in our disinvestment programme for the public sector undertakings.

Q: What is India’s big picture as a fast growing global economic powerhouse? How will you like to envision India’s standing on the global economic arena 10 years from now? Do you believe that India needs to have a bigger role in international finance institutions like the World Bank and the IMF?

A: India has been recognised as a major player in the international level in political, economic, climate change, trade and other major global issues. We are part of the G-20. G-20 meeting has taken action to shifts quota in the IMF in favour of India. I am confident that the strong fundamentals of the Indian economy will enable us to achieve our objective of double digit growth in the coming years. It should be noted that India, at an average growth of a minimum of 7.5 per cent in GDP per year will achieve a ten-fold increase in per capita income in the next 30 years and join the ranks of the developed countries. India has been at the forefront of reforms of the UN, seeking an enhanced global role as a permanent member of the reformed Security Council, commensurate with its size, capabilities, contribution to the UN peacekeeping operations and impeccable track record in upholding the UN system. On global economic issues, India has worked with our international partners to address the complex challenges to revive the global economy. India is playing a major role in the context of the ongoing Doha Round of multilateral trade negotiations being conducted in the WTO. All these achievements have been made while safeguarding our democratic and secular fabric. All these reflect India’s growing profile that is vital in global affairs.

n a news conference shown on state TV, Health Minister Abdullah al-Rabeeah said the king suffered a slipped disc. He said a blood clot was pressing on nerves in his back, causing him pain and so he was heading abroad for treatment.

"But I assure everyone that the king is in stable condition and enjoys good health and God willing will return in good health to lead this great nation," al-Rabeeah said.

The bigger question is what happens when the generation of Abdul-Aziz's sons runs out. The youngest of the seven or eight sons often cited as having the stature and experience to rule are in their mid-60s — suggesting the generation still has some time left in power.

But sooner or later, the throne will have to move on to the next generation, raising the potentially deeply divisive question of which Abdul-Aziz son will pass power to his own son. Abdullah's creation of the council aimed in part to provide a system for that transfer.

Each brother has sought to set up his sons in positions of power, in part to guarantee their line's position. Nayef's son Mohammed, for example, is chief of the powerful counterterrorism forces that took the lead in the fight against al-Qaida the past decade — making Mohammed the target of a suicide bomber who nearly killed him last year.

Earlier this month, Abdullah stepped down as head of the country's 260,000-strong elite National Guard and gave the post to his own son, Prince Mitab. On Monday before traveling, the king swore his son into his post, surrounded by seven of his others sons, who include a provincial governor and a royal adviser.

16:20 IST
Shri Salman Khurshid, Minister for Minority Affairs and Corporate Affairs, paid a maiden visit to Oman on 21st November, 2010, as a special envoy of the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh to convey greetings on the 40th anniversary Renaissance of the Sultanate of Oman. His visit coincided with the 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Oman. During his audience with Sulatan Qaboos bin Said Al Said, Shri Kurshid conveyed warm greetings and felicitations on behalf of the Prime Minister and the people of India.

During this visit, Shri Khurshid also called on Oman’s Minister of Commerce and Industry, Maqbool bin Ali bin Sultan, with whom he discussed strengthening of collaboration in food, education and IT sectors. Space, renewable energy and nuclear energy cooperation also came in for discussion. He also called on Omer bin Abdul Munim Al Zawawi, Special Advisor to the Sultan for External Liaison Affairs. Further, Shri Salman Khurshid also called on Shaikh Abdullah bin Mohammed al Salmi, Minister of Awqaf and Religious Affairs, who conveyed that permission for building of a temple and a gurudwara would be given shortly. He also interacted with a cross section of Indian expatriates living in Oman.

Shri Khurshid also called on Yousuf bin Alawi bin Abdullah, Minister Responsible for Foreign Affairs and Ahmed bin Abdulnabi Macki, Minister of National Economy & Deputy Chairman of Financial Affairs And Energy Resources Council on 23rd November, 2010. Entire gamut of bilateral relations between India and Oman were reviewed.

Oman has assured India that it will soon allow a temple and a gurdwara to be built in the country, home to some 500,000 expatriate Indians, it was announced Wednesday.

The assurance was given by Omani Minister of Awqaf and Religious Affairs Shaikh Abdullah bin Mohammed al Salmi to India's Minister for Minority and Corporate Affairs Salman Khurshid.

Khurshid was in Muscat to represent India as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's special envoy on the 40th anniversary of the renaissance of Oman celebrated Sunday.

The Omani minister told Khurshid "that permission for building of a temple and a gurdwara would be given shortly", an official statement said.

Khurshid also interacted with a section of Indian expatriates. Of the over 4.8 million expatriate Indians in the Gulf, 500,000 are in Oman, according to official estimates.

The Indian minister held talks with Omani leadership to expand India-Oman ties.

"During his meeting with King Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said, Kurshid conveyed warm greetings and felicitations on behalf of the prime minister and the people of India," the statement said.

The minister's visit coincided with the 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

Khurshid also called on Oman's Minister of Commerce and Industry Maqbool bin Ali bin Sultan and discussed strengthening of collaboration in food, education and IT sectors.

"Space, renewable energy and nuclear energy cooperation also came in for discussion," according to the statement.

Sanjay Verma, India's consul-general to Dubai said that Pratibha Patil will chat with Indian workers who have participated in the construction of the Burj Khalifa.

shyamd wrote:Indian strategists have decided to place their long term sourcing of natural gas from Oman. But Omani reserves are still years away from development. I think IPI is out and Oman to India is back in. But we are still years away. This was in an energy intelligence article yesterday.

New Delhi, Nov 25 (PTI) Describing Saudi Indian partnership as "strategic" and "solid", Commerce and Industry Minister of Saudi Arabia Abdullah A Z Alireza today sought India''s collaboration for building a knowledge-based economy in his country.As the oil-rich country moves away from "being a gas station of the world" towards a "sophisticated laboratory of excellence, innovation and knowledge", Saudi Arabia is looking for enhanced partnership with India, he said at a Ficci function here.Referring to the "landmark" visit of King Abdullah to India in 2006 and a return visit of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to Saudi Arabia recently, Alireza said that the Saudi- India strategic partnership "will overcome any challenge".Between 2000 and 2008, Saudi exports to India increased seven-fold, while imports from India increased six fold, he said.During 2009-10, the bilateral trade between the two countries stood at about USD 21 billion.He said, Saudi Arabia''s focus would be a knowledge-based economy with education being its core. "At this junction, a great opportunity exists to further institutionalise our collaborative effort so that both countries continue to mutually benefit". He said the collaborative efforts need to be institutionalised.

shyamd wrote:


Also interestin to note: Both the UAE and Syria support the Indian position on Kashmir issue and back New Delhi's quest for a permanent seat in UN Security Council.

brihaspati wrote:http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/us-emba ... nts/247936

Tuesday, 09 February 2010, 11:35
6. (C) Pakistan: the UAE has taken a leading role in the Friends of Pakistan initiative and has provided about $800 M in assistance in recent years. The Al Nahyan family had a long-standing relationship with former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, and this has transitioned to support for her husband, Asif Ali Zardari, but the UAE stays in touch with all elements on the Pakistani scene, including Musharraf. MbZ will be very interested in your dialogue with General Kayani.

I came to the latest uproarious US diplomatic history with the deepest cynicism. And yesterday, in the dust of post-election Cairo – the Egyptian parliamentary poll was as usual a mixture of farce and fraud, which is at least better than shock and awe – I ploughed through so many thousands of American diplomatic reports with something approaching utter hopelessness. After all, they do quote President Hosni Mubarak as saying that "you can forget about democracy," don't they?

It's not that US diplomats don't understand the Middle East; it's just that they've lost all sight of injustice. Vast amounts of diplomatic literature prove that the mainstay of Washington's Middle East policy is alignment with Israel, that its principal aim is to encourage the Arabs to join the American-Israeli alliance against Iran, that the compass point of US policy over years and years is the need to tame/bully/crush/oppress/ ultimately destroy the power of Iran.

There is virtually no talk (so far, at least) of illegal Jewish colonial settlements on the West Bank, of Israeli "outposts", of extremist Israeli "settlers" whose homes now smallpox the occupied Palestinian West Bank – of the vast illegal system of land theft which lies at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian war. And incredibly, all kinds of worthy US diplomats grovel and kneel before Israel's demands – many of them apparently fervent supporters of Israel – as Mossad bosses and Israel military intelligence agents read their wish-list to their benefactors.

There's a wonderful moment in the cables when the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, explains to a US congressional delegation on 28 April last year that "a Palestinian state must be demilitarised, without control of its airspace and electro-magnetic field [sic], and without the power to enter into treaties or control its border". Well goodbye, then, to the "viable" (ergo Lord Blair of Isfahan) Palestinian state we all supposedly want. And the US Congress lads and ladies appear to have said nothing.

Instead, in The New York Times, we read through the Wikileaks files for the best quote. Here is Saudi King Abdullah, via his ambassador in Washington (a dab hand with the press), sayingthat Abdullah believes America must "cut of the head of this snake" – the snake being Iran or Ahmadinejad or Iranian nuclear facilities, or whatever.

But the Saudis are always threatening to cut off the head of their latest snakes. In 1982, Yasser Arafat said he would cut off Israel's left arm after its invasion of Lebanon, and then the Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin said he would cut off Arafat's right arm. And I suppose that when it is revealed to us – as, alas, it is in these Wikileaks papers – that unsuitable applicants for US visas are called by American diplomats "visa vipers", we can only conclude that snakes are much in demand.

The problem is that for decades, Middle East potentates have been threatening to chop off the heads of snakes, serpents, rats and Iranian insects – the latter a favourite of Saddam Hussein who used US-supplied "insecticide" to destroy them, as we all know – while Israeli leaders have called Palestinians "cockroaches" (Rafael Eitan), "crocodiles" (Ehud Barak) and "three-legged beasts" (Begin).

Tears of laughter, I have to admit, began to run down my face when I read the po-faced US diplomatic report from Bahrain that King Hamad – or "His Supreme Highness King Hamad" as he insists on being called, in his Sunni dictatorship with a Shia majority and a kingdom slightly larger than the Isle of Wight – had announced that the danger of letting the Iranian nuclear programme go on was "greater than the danger of stopping it".

That wonderful Palestinian journalist Marwan Bishara was right when he said at the weekend that these US diplomatic papers were of more interest to anthropologists than political scientists; for they are a record of a deviant way of thinking about the Middle East. If King Abdullah (the crumbling Saudi version, as opposed to the Plucky Little Jordanian King version) really called Ahmadinejad Hitler and Sarkozy's adviser called Iran "a fascist state", it shows only that the US State Department is still obsessed with the Second World War.

I loved the stunning report of a visitor to the US embassy in Ankara who told diplomats that Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was dying of leukemia. Not because the poor old boy is a cancer victim – he is not – but because this is the same old nonsense we've been peddled about the Middle East's recalcitrant leaders for so many years. I remember the days when American or British "diplomatic sources" insisted that Gaddafi was dying of cancer, that Khomeini was dying of cancer (long before he died), that Khomeini was already dead of cancer – again, long before he died – that the Palestinian contract killer Abu Nidal was dying of cancer, 20 years before he was murdered by Saddam. Even in Northern Ireland, Britain's half-baked spooks told us that the Protestant Vanguard leader William Craig was dying of cancer. And of course, he lived on, like the awful Gaddafi, whose Ukrainian nurse is described by the Americans as "voluptuous". Of course she is. Aren't all blonde dames "voluptuous" in such descriptions?

One of the most interesting reflections – dutifully ignored by most of the pro-Wikileaks papers yesterday – came in a cable on a meeting between a US Senate delegation and President Bashar Assad of Syria earlier this year. America, Assad told his guests, possessed "a huge information apparatus" but lacked the ability to analyse this information successfully. "While we lack your intelligence abilities," he says in rather sinister fashion, "we succeed in fighting extremists because we have better analysts ... in the US you like to shoot [terrorists]. Suffocating their networks is far more effective." Iran, he concluded, was the most important country in the region, followed by Turkey and – number three – Syria itself. Poor old Israel didn't get a look in.

Of course President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan is "driven by paranoia" – so is everyone in that land, including most of Nato and especially theUnited States – and naturally the President of Yemen pretends to his own people that he is killing al-Qa'ida representatives when we all know it's General David Petraeus's warriors who are the culprits. Muslim leaders have constantly been claiming American military prowess against other Muslims as their own work.

Of course, we must not be too cynical. I loved the American diplomatic report (from Cairo, of course, not from Tel Aviv) which said that Netanyahu was "elegant and charming ... but never keeps his promises". But doesn't that apply to half the Arab leaders as well?

And then we come to the dank and frightening reporting of a meeting between Andrew Shapiro, "Assistant Secretary of State for the US Political-Military Bureau", meeting with Israel's spooks almost exactly a year ago. Israel was unable to protect its Cessna Caravan and Raven unmanned pilotless drones over southern Lebanon, admits Mossad. (Hezbollah will be obliged for this nugget.) An Israeli "J5" Colonel Shimon Arad waffles on upon the dangers of "Hezbollahstan" and Hamastan" and the "internal political deadlock" in Lebanon – there wasn't then, but there is now – and about Lebanon as a "volatile military arena" and the country's "susceptibility to outside influences, including Syria, Iran and Saudi Arabia".

And, of course – though Colonel Arad doesn't mention this – American influence and Israeli influence and French influence and British influence and Turkish influence. Shapiro "cited the need to provide an alternative to Hezbollah" – the Costa Rican police force, perhaps? – and suggested that the Lebanese army would come to the defence of Hezbollah (unlikely, in the circumstances).

There's a priceless denial of the UN Goldstone report on the Gaza atrocities of 2008-09 by reserve Major General Amos Gilad, who says that the document's criticisms of Israel are "baseless" because the Israeli military made 300,000 phone calls to houses in Gaza ahead of strikes ... to prevent civilian casualties". Poor old Shapiro seems to have reacted in silence. That would be a phone call to a fifth of the entire Palestinian population of Gaza, kids, babies and all. And even then they killed 1,300 Palestinians, most of them civilians. Of course the Palestinian Authority of the bland Mahmoud Abbas didn't want to take over this killing field after the Israelis had won – another offer made by Israel with US knowledge – because Israel didn't win. It didn't even find its missing soldier in the tunnels of Gaza.

There's a symbolic moment when Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed al-Nahyan of Abu Dhabi – not to be compared to the "distant and uncharismatic personage" of his brother Khalifa – worries about Iran in front of the US ambassador Richard Olsen who then suggests that he has "a strategic view of the region that is curiously close to the Israeli one". But of course he does. Line them up. They will pray in their golden mosques, these kings and emirs and generals, buying more and more American weapons to protect themselves from the "Hitler" of Tehran – better, I suppose, than the 2003 Hitler of the Tigris or the 1956 Mussolini of the Nile – and entreat God that they will be saved by the might of America and Israel. I can't wait for the next episode in this fantasy.

NEWS | Wednesday, December 1, 2010 |

'US has deployed 200 nukes in Europe'December 01, 2010 10:39:42 PM

PTI | London

The US has deployed nearly 200 tactical nuclear weapons across Europe, particularly in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany and Turkey, leaked cables from whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks have revealed.

While the international community has long suspected that the US has warheads remaining in Europe, the locations of the bombs have never been revealed -- until now.

A cable, sent from Berlin, details discussions last year in which US Assistant Secretary of State Philip Gordon talks to Germany's foreign policy adviser Christoph Heusgen about weapons in the four countries.

"Heusgen said that from his perspective, it made no sense to unilaterally withdraw 'the 20' tactical nuclear weapons still in Germany while Russia maintains 'thousands' of them," the 'Daily Express' quoted the cable as saying.

The cable adds that former British Premier Gordon Brown noted it was important to think through all "potential consequences" of withdrawing the weapons from Germany -- "for example, a withdrawal of nuclear weapons from Germany and perhaps from Belgium and the Netherlands could make it very difficult politically for Turkey to maintain its stockpile..."

Another leaked cable details a January 2009 meeting between the US and Dutch embassy officials and Prince Turki Al-Kabeer, an official in Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs, during which Iran's nuclear programme was discussed.

The missive says: "Prince Turki warned that if Iran tried to produce nuclear weapons other countries in the Gulf would be compelled to do the same or to permit the stationing of nuclear weapons as a deterrent."

shyamd wrote:
RamaY: the cables are showing worry about TSP nuke activity. Doubt they r nude. Although I do recall Arun_S guru suggesting that kayani hid a few and US was scared it could get smuggled through.

Mahendra wrote:Something infinitely silly would be to take comments on YouTube seriously

That apart taking pot shots at N3 in his absence isn't a very honourable thing in my humble opinion

ramana wrote:
KS garu long ago in the mid 1980s said that NATO allies were crypto-nuke powes as they all had US nukes on their territory except the launch authority was with US forces. Read the Gordon Brown notation that "Turkey to maintain its stockpile"!
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