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Draft UN resolution threatens sanctions against Iran
Poor nations must chalk out own
reform path: United Nations
Pakistan may field candidate for top UN post |
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US Congress slams administration on F16s for Pakistan
India rules the roost at Toronto film fest
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Draft UN resolution threatens sanctions against Iran
United Nations, July 21 But Iran has once again said that it would not reply until August 22 to an offer of commercial and technological incentives if it curbs its nuclear ambitions, which the United States and its allies believe are a cover for bomb making. Tehran threatened to “reconsider its nuclear policies” presumably a withdrawal from the nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT), if ''the path of confrontation is chosen,” according to a statement by Ali Larijani, secretary of the Iranian Supreme National Security Council. The draft resolution, distributed to the 15 UN Security Council members by France, Britain and Germany, has not yet been approved by Russia and China, who earlier submitted amendments that would weaken some of the provisions. No vote has been set and the US Ambassador, John Bolton, said junior diplomats from Germany and the permanent five council members with veto power - the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China - would negotiate further. Bolton, who did not give his view on the draft, said perhaps the United States could serve “as a bridge” between the Europeans and Russia and China. The European draft “decides” that Iran “shall suspend all enrichment-related and reprocessing activities, including research and development and suspend the construction of a reactor moderated by heavy water.” The suspension is to be verified by the UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency, the document states. It “expresses its intention” if Iran does not comply with the resolution to adopt measures under Article 41 of the Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, which relates to economic and diplomatic sanctions. But it excludes any military force. At a July 12 meeting in Paris, all six countries agreed that Iran had given no indication it would engage seriously on the incentive package offered by major powers in early June and referred the issue back to the Security Council. Iran is building a heavy-water nuclear reactor at Arak, (190 km) southwest of Tehran. Western nations are concerned the plant's plutonium by-product could be used to produce nuclear warheads. Spent fuel can be processed to extract weapons-grade plutonium. The plutonium can also be mixed with enriched uranium to produce fuel for a special type of nuclear reactor. Russia’s UN Ambassador, Valery Churkin, suggested August 31 as the date for Iran to comply with the resolution and indicated Moscow was not in a hurry to adopt the document. “We are not in a rush at all,” Churkin said on Wednesday. “We do not want to ambush Iran in any way. We do not want to dictate things to Iran.” But he made clear the six could not wait forever for Tehran's response. In his statement in New York on Thursday, Larijani said the nuclear program was restricted to electricity production as permitted under the NPT treaty and supported by most developing nations in the world. “If the path of confrontation is chosen instead of the path of negotiations and if any measure is taken to limit the inalienable rights of the Iranian nations, then there will remain no option for the Islamic Republic of Iran but to reconsider its nuclear policies,” Larijani wrote.
— Reuters
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Poor nations must chalk out own
reform
United Nations, July 21 The World Economic and Social Survey (2006) recommends improving the trade environment - not just through freer market access and reduction of rich country farm subsidies, but also by giving developing nations better opportunities to take part in the world service markets, including those that entail mobility of low-skilled labour. "While trade liberalisation has been the main policy trend in recent decades, in most parts of the world this has led to an expansion of export volumes, but not necessarily to higher economic growth," the survey said. "Countries able to diversify and change the structure of production to encompass activities of higher productivity have seen more visible growth gains." According to the report, lagging infrastructure development accounts for as much as one third of the income gap between East Asia and Latin America. In response, it recommends investments in infrastructure, with public funds if private sources fall short. Contrary to some prescriptions, the UN says, immediate institutions of large-scale governance reform is not a necessary condition for growth, or even sometimes beneficial in the short run. The experience of China and Vietnam indicates that incremental reforms, if credible and perceived as steps along the way to further change, can be highly effective in shepherding strong and sustained growth. The UN study was discussed on Thursday by ECOSOC, currently in session in Geneva, as delegates considered follow-up to the 2002 Monterrey Consensus, which set up an agreement on basic principles of development. It established responsibilities for the developed world, especially in maintaining an international environment conducive to development, but assigned primary responsibility to the developing countries themselves in selected strategies to raise standards of living and enhance national capacities. A gist of the Geneva deliberations was made available at UN headquarters in New York. Also at UN's New York headquarters, a new report was released on Thurday on Least Developed Countries (LDCs). It said that though the economies of the world's 50 LDCs grew in 2004 at an rate of 5.9 percent due to high demand for natural resources and a growth in aid, but it has not translated into an increase of employment for reducing poverty. "What we see is a problem of productive labour absorption," Charles Gore, author of the LDC Report (2006), told reporters during the of the report. "The labour force is growing very rapidly in the LDCs, but it is very difficult for them to generate the productive jobs and livelihoods to employ people productively and remuneratively." In the past, Gore explained, excess labour was absorbed by opening up more and more land for agriculture, but there is no longer room for such expansion. As a result, more people were seeking work outside agriculture, leading to increasing urbanization.
— UNI
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US Congress slams administration on F16s for Pakistan
THE US lawmakers on Thursday criticised the Bush administration for rushing the sale of F-16s to Pakistan and accused it of compromising congressional oversight on arms sales and putting national security at risk.
“What we can say for the public record is that a sequence of actions and inactions by the State Department recently resulted in a host of serious national security and compliance issues,” Republican Congressman Henry Hyde said at a hearing on the proposed sale of F-16s and weapons systems to Pakistan. The chairman of the House International Relations Committee, Mr. Hyde said the State Department “cannot persuasively justify its position even now.” “The notification was made precipitously and without explanation,” he said. On June 28, the Bush administration formally notified Congress of plans to sell Pakistan up to 36 F-16C/D Block 50/52 Falcon fighters built by Lockheed Martin Corp. Congressman Tom Lantos, the Democrat co-chairman of the committee, accused mid-level State Department bureaucrats of convincing their bosses “to ignore 30 years of precedent and cut this committee, and this Congress, out of consideration of U.S. arms sales.” “This insolence flies in the face both of custom and the intent of the Constitution,” Mr. Lantos said. Critics of the $5 billion weapons deal for Pakistan concede they will not be able to stop it from going through. Lawmakers criticised the State Department for giving them only 30 days to consider the deal. That deadline expires next week. John Hillen, assistant secretary of state for political-military affairs, defended the Bush administration's consultation with Congress on the sale as "unprecedented." “Never before have such extensive arms sales consultations taken place,” he said. The “consultation” State Department refers to is more accurately described as a few highly-rehearsed briefings by State during a two-week period in June, Mr. Hyde said. Richard Boucher, assistant secretary of state for South and Central Asian affairs, describing Pakistan as a strategic partner of the U.S., said, “We are asking Pakistan to do difficult things to protect Americans, and we must show concern in return for Pakistan’s security.” “The F-16 sale provides a clear and concrete signal to all Pakistanis that Pakistan’s security is important to the United States,” Mr. Boucher said. “A confident Pakistan that feels secure is more likely to pursue peace and cooperation with its neighbors. Conversely, a Pakistan that feels vulnerable is more likely to rely on nuclear weapons and non-conventional tactics to ensure its security.” Mr. Hillen described the sale as a “presidential priority.” “This sale would also demonstrate that we are serious about a strategic relationship based equally on concern for Pakistan’s national interests and security needs,” Mr. Hillen said. Congressman Gary Ackerman, a Democrat and co-chairman of the India Caucus in the House, contended Pakistan did not need F-16s to assist the U.S. in the war on terror. “I do not believe that these planes will help us or Pakistan in the war against Al-Qaida along the Pakistan/Afghan border,” he said. Mr Ackerman expressed concern that like the transfer of nuclear technology by Pakistani scientist Abdul Qadeer Khan's network, sensitive U.S. military technology could “wind up in the hands of thirdparties — nations or terrorists.” Mr Hillen dismissed concerns that China will benefit from this sale. “In fact, the best thing that could happen for the Chinese military is for a sale like this not to go through because then it is they who will have access to influence the Pakistan military as opposed to the United States,” he said.
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Pakistan may field candidate for top UN post
Islamabad, July 21 Islamabad would field its candidate only if Mr Tharoor remains in the race, reported The Nation daily, which had earlier speculated that Pakistan planned to field its journalist-turned diplomat Maleeha Lodhi against Mr Tharoor. The paper said Pakistan was expecting Mr Tharoor to withdraw but would wait till a final list of contestants emerges. Islamabad may field its candidate in September if Mr Tharoor reaches the final stage of the selection process, it said. Under the UN Security Council procedure, a candidate can be introduced anytime before it makes the final selection. The report said Pakistan did not regard Mr Tharoor as a serious contender as it believed that India had fielded him “half heartedly”. Pakistan has been backing Thai Deputy Premier Surakirat Sathirathai for the post and has assigned former Foreign Secretary Riaz Khokhar the task to campaign for him.
— PTI
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India rules the roost at Toronto film fest
Toronto, July 21 Johar's much-awaited multi-starrer will be screened in the “Gala Presentation” section of the festival — a slot usually reserved for high-profile blockbusters or premieres. KANK, a love story set in New York, features the father-son combo of Amitabh and Abhishek Bachchan along with Shah Rukh Khan, Rani Mukerji and Preity Zinta. Four other Indian films will also premiere during the September 7-16 festival, the 31st edition of the annual extravaganza. “India is a nation of different cultures and languages, which makes its cinema diverse, dynamic and exciting. Films in Hindi, Marathi, Telegu and Manipuri will be here ... These four films demonstrate the impressive range of Indian cinema and we at the festival are thrilled to be part of its future,”Festival Co-Director Noah Cowan said in a statement here. The John Abraham-starrer “Kabul Express,”directed by Kabir Khan and filmed on location in war-torn post-9/11 Afghanistan, will be premiered in the “Special Presentation” category of the festival. ‘Filmmakers Chitra Palekar and Rajnesh Domalpalli will be showcasing their directorial debuts here in the festival’s “Discovery”section. Palekar's Marathi film 'Maati Maay' starring Nandita Das and Atul Kulkarni, is based on Maheshweta Devi's story 'Daayen'. The film tells the story of a woman branded a witch and condemned to the fringes of society.
— PTI
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Amitabh Bachchan meets senior members of UK
Government.
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