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| Friday, February
23, 2001, Chandigarh, India   
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Sanctions to further erode after attack:
Iraq Pak to equip subs
with N-missiles LTTE to extend
ceasefire Release revenue
to PLO: USA |
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Clinton’s denial of
deal
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Sanctions to further erode after attack:
Iraq Baghdad, February 22 Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tareq Aziz said world condemnation of the attack, especially by big powers Russia, China and France, showed the “US policy on Iraq is isolated and unreasonable”. “Only Canada and Israel have supported this aggression... This is an important development,” Aziz told reporters after meeting visiting Russian ultra-nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky. “This policy will not weaken Iraq,” Aziz said, referring to what he described as a turning point in Iraq’s trade and political links with the outside world following four days of extensive US and British air bombings in late 1998. “In 1999 and 2000, openness on Iraq has increased and its political, economic and trade relations have improved with many countries,” he added. Aziz said he was not surprised by the latest bombings of air defence installations near Baghdad. He reaffirmed Iraq’s position that it would only accept a return of UN inspectors if the Security Council acted to eliminate Israel’s weapons of mass destruction. The 1998 bombings followed the inspectors’ pullout after Baghdad refused to cooperate with them, insisting on a timetable to lift the sanctions put in place since Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait in 1990. “There is nothing new, except that there is a deliberate escalation by the new American administration and Britain...to destroy Iraq,” he said. “Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction have been destroyed... Their mission in Iraq has been completed,” Aziz said. “But the Security Council is not doing the same in Israel because America and Britain are preventing that.” Aziz made no comment on “smart sanctions” being mulled by Washington and London to overcome the shortcomings of the UN embargo. But government newspapers dismissed the new approach as a stupid and doomed ploy to keep the stranglehold on Iraq by the USA and Britain, the only members of the Gulf War alliance still
militarily engaged against Baghdad. “The smart sanctions focus primarily on controlling Iraq’s financial resources and restricting Iraq’s diplomacy under the pretext of preventing it from arming itself,” al-Thawra newspaper, organ of the ruling Ba’ath Party, said in an editorial. “In other words, it aims at putting Iraq’s economic, political and military potentials in the hands of the American and British enemies — a complete colonialist hegemony. “These smart sanctions are nothing but a desperate and stupid attempt to exit the dead-end road reached by the American-British policies against Iraq.” US. State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said yesterday that US and British officials met in Washington as part of consultations to bring “more definition” to the ideas on the sanctions. They are trying to find an approach which stops Iraq from developing weapons of mass destruction while allaying concerns that Iraqis are short of food and medicine.
Reuters |
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Pak to equip subs with N-missiles Islamabad, February 22 Speaking to reporters at the end of the Pakistan Navy’s annual Arabian Sea exercises at the Naval Headquarters at Karachi yesterday, Rear Admiral Tahir said Pakistan’s submarine arm had been considerably strengthened with the induction of indigenously built Agosta 90-B submarines which were designed to provide a definite edge over the Indian Navy. He said the induction of nuclear weapons had fundamentally changed the dynamics of military equations in the region. A potential conflict is more likely to be short and intense due to fear of reaching nuclear thresholds on both sides. The visualised conflict scenarios are likely to be crises-oriented, localised military actions and prolonged forward deployment of forces, he said. He said when it came to achieving nuclear balance, Pakistan was relatively placed at a distinct disadvantage. The “aggressive” draft of the Indian nuclear doctrine, which assure no first use while keeping the option of a pre-emptive strike open was quite ambiguous and worrisome for Pakistan, he said.
PTI |
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LTTE to extend ceasefire Colombo, February 22 The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), battling for a separate state for minority Tamils in the country’s north and east, also appealed for more international pressure on the government to enter talks. “We have decided to extend the truce for another month as a gesture of goodwill and to provide further space and time to help to promote the peace effort undertaken by the Norwegian government,” an LTTE statement said. The extension comes after Norwegian envoy Erik Solheim held talks in London earlier this month with a Tamil rebel negotiator soon after a visit to the war-torn island aimed at finding ways to end an 18-year conflict that has killed an estimated 64,000. The government, which has said it wants the talks but will not lay down its arms first, pushed ahead with military offensives in the country’s north during the first unilateral ceasefire which started on Christmas Eve. Meanwhile, Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga, in a bid to reduce government spending amid a worsening economic crisis, has ordered her 44-member Cabinet to drastically slash the number of cars and telephones used by them and downsize their offices. Ms Kumaratunga also put an end to the unlimited fuel that ministers were entitled to and ordered that each minister would get only 1,000 litres of petrol or 373 litres of diesel for a maximum of eight cars for a Cabinet minister and five cars for a junior minister. Ministers were also asked to reduce the number of telephones they are currently using by 15 to 20. The number of ministry staff is also to be reduced from 34 to 20. The belt-tightening was ordered because of last month’s decision to depreciate the rupee. The government also raised Customs duties by 40 per cent from yesterday in a bid to discourage imports as the country’s trade deficit showed signs of widening to unprecedented levels. Reuters, UNI |
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Release revenue
to PLO: USA Washington, February 22 “We do believe the economic pressure on Palestinians needs to be relieved, and that tax payments in particular need to be made because the Palestinian authority needs the money to support its operations,” the State Department spokesman, Mr Richard Boucher said. He said the Secretary of State, Mr Colin Powell, would also raise the issue during his trip to West Asia beginning February 23. The senior Palestinian negotiator, Mr Nabil Shaath, had raised the issue yesterday during a meeting at the State Department with Mr Powell and Mr Edward Walker, the Assistant Secretary of State for the Near East. During his trip to the Middle East, Mr Powell will discuss the need for Israelis and Palestinians to stop violence, re-establish trust and look for a path to pursue peace. He will meet Russian Foreign Minister, Mr Igor Ivanov, in Cairo to talk about Iraq and the Middle East, among other things, Mr Boucher said. Earlier Mr Shaath said he had Mr Powell to do what he could to make sure at least that the Palestinians get the collected taxes, the duties that had been withheld.
IANS |
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Clinton’s denial of deal Washington, February 22 One of the two felons, Glen Braswell, was among the 140 persons whom Mr Clinton pardoned on his last day in the White House, while the other, Carlos Vignali, was among 36 persons who had their sentences shortened by the former President. The disclosure is a new twist to the so-called Clinton pardon controversy, now the object of a federal probe and two congressional investigations. Mr Clinton, in a statement issued by his transition office in Washington yesterday, said, “Yesterday I became aware of press inquiries that Hugh Rodham (Hillary Clinton’s brother) received a contingency fee in connection with a pardon application by Glenn Braswell and a fee for work on Carlos Vignali’s commutation application.” “Neither Hillary nor I had any knowledge of such payments,” Mr Clinton said. “We are deeply disturbed by these reports and insist that Hugh return any monies involved.” he added.
Reuters |
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Major upsets at
Grammy Awards
A darkly violent album, “Marshall Mathers” sparked controversy because of songs that appeared to glorify wife- killing, violence against gay people, incest, forced sodomy and random murder. Outside the Staples Centre, where the awards ceremony was being held, about 200 representatives from women’s, gay and religious groups protested against Eminem’s inclusion in the ceremony, holding a “rally against hate” to draw attention to Eminem lyrics which they said promoted domestic violence. Irish rock band U2 also added three Grammy Awards to their collections, while country singer Shelby Lynne won the best new Artist Award. U2 won the closely watched Record and Song of the year Grammys, as well as the prize for rock performance by a duo or group, all for “Beautiful Day,” bringing their Grammy tally to 10. But the Eminem controversy seemed to have overshadowed the Grammys this year as the show’s host Jon Stewart joked that he ran into Eminem backstage and “he’s the gayest guy you’d ever meet.”
ANI  |
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Borneo clashes
toll 75 Jakarta, February 22 |
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Pak may evict one lakh refugees Islamabad, February 22 |
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Estrada’s wife withdrew $ 2m? Manila, February 22 |
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