MOSCOW, RUSSIA
{02-07-2012}

Tens of thousands rally against Putin's rule
LYNN BERRY  // Associated Press

∆ - Iran's threats to Israel
∆ - 200 killed in Syrian government bloody crackdown
∆ - Secretary Panetta concerned about Israel
∆ - Iran's atomic bomb
∆ - Brazilian President visits Cuba
∆ - Chavez's Cancer
∆ - Communist Party
∆ - Asamblea PC-EN
∆ - Hugo Chavez ignored drug warnings about defense
      chief
∆ - Is oil drilling in Cuban waters safe?
 

    Their frozen breath rising in the brutally frigid air, tens of thousands of protesters marched through downtown Moscow on Saturday to keep up the pressure on Prime Minister Vladimir Putin one month before a presidential election that could extend his rule for six more years. The protesters have few illusions that they can drive Putin from power now, but for the first time in years Russians are challenging his control and demanding that their voices be heard.

    Wrapped in furs or dressed for the ski slope, as many as 120,000 people turned out for the third and perhaps largest mass demonstration since Putin's party won a parliamentary election Dec. 4 with the help of what appeared to be widespread fraud.  The election, following Putin's presumptuous decision in September to reclaim the presidency, was the last straw for Russians increasingly unhappy with the creeping authoritarianism during his 12-year rule. Two protest rallies in December, which also drew tens of thousands, were the biggest in Russia since the demonstrations 20 years ago that led to the collapse of the Soviet Union.

    The deep freeze that has settled over the Russian capital threatened to keep many away on Saturday, when temperatures dropping to minus 4 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 20 degrees Celsius). Instead, they tied on the white ribbons that have become the symbol of the protest movement and chanting "Russia Without Putin" marched about a mile (about 1 1/2 kilometers) to a square across the river from the Kremlin. Thousands of police monitored the two-hour peaceful protest without intervening.

    An anti-Putin protest also took place in St. Petersburg on Saturday, drawing 5,000 people, and smaller rallies were held in several dozen other cities across Russia.

    A separate rally in Moscow in support of Putin drew no more than 20,000 people. Most of them were teachers, municipal workers, employees of state-owned companies or trade union activists, who had come with co-workers on buses provided by their employers. Many clearly had been drinking. "I can see how Russia started to change when Putin became president," said Alexander Igolkin, a 51-year-old social worker. "I would already build a monument to him."

    The anti-Putin protests have been driven by members of the educated and urban middle class, many of whom are connected through social networking sites. Putin has ignored many of their demands, including for a repeat parliamentary election, but he has sought to assuage their anger by making vague promises to introduce liberal reforms and to guarantee a fair presidential vote on March 4.

    The presidential race pits Putin against three leaders of parliamentary parties who have run against him in the past, and one fresh face: the billionaire owner of the New Jersey Nets basketball team, Mikhail Prokhorov. Prokhorov joined Saturday's protest, but did not speak from the stage.

    None of the contenders is expected to pose a serious challenge to Putin, whose ratings are now hovering just below the 50 percent needed for a first-round victory. If Putin fails to win an outright victory, he would face a runoff three weeks later, most likely against Communist Party chief Gennady Zyuganov, a rival he could easily defeat.

    During the demonstration, activists from several organizations were encouraging protesters to sign up as election observers to guard against vote rigging on March 4.

    As the afternoon sun started to fade, the rally ended with the call of "Not a Single Vote for Putin" and demands for legal reforms that would open the way for fair political competition and for new parliamentary and presidential elections.

    The protesters also demanded the release of political prisoners and punishment for those involved in the vote-rigging. Before heading home, the protesters released white balloons. Some balloons had lettering saying "For Fair Elections" or "If You Inflate (the vote) Once Again, I'll Burst."

PRESIDENT OBAMA: ISRAEL HAS NOT MADE DECISION ON IRAN ATTACK

      WASHINGTON, D.C.--President Barack Obama said on Sunday that Israel has not yet decided how to respond to concerns about Iran's nuclear program and said there was no evidence that Iran has the "intentions or capabilities" to wage attacks on U.S. soil.  Asked in an NBC interview whether Israel was set to attack Iran, Obama said: "I don't think that Israel has made a decision on what they need to do. I think they, like us, believe that Iran has to stand down on its nuclear weapons program," adding Israel and the United States would work "in lockstep" on Iran.

    Obama, who is up for re-election in November, has ended the U.S. war in Iraq and is seeking to wind down combat in Afghanistan amid growing public discontent about American war spending at a time when the economy remains weak. The Democrat made clear on Sunday that he would not like to see more fighting in the oil-producing Persian Gulf region. "Any kind of additional military activity inside the Gulf is disruptive and has a big effect on us. It could have a big effect on oil prices, we've still got troops in Afghanistan, which borders Iran, and so our preferred solution here is diplomatic," he said.

    Republican Mitt Romney, the top contender to oppose Obama in the November 6 presidential election, said he would start his presidency by imposing "far tougher" sanctions on Iran and back up American diplomacy with "a very credible military option." Tehran says its nuclear program is meant to produce energy, not weapons, but has not responded to the latest Western overtures for talks and has threatened to retaliate against U.S. and European sanctions affecting its finances and oil sales. In the NBC interview, Obama stressed he was not taking any options off the table to stop Iran from becoming a nuclear power. "We're going to do everything we can to prevent Iran from getting a nuclear weapon and creating an arms race - a nuclear arms race - in a volatile region," he said.

US CLOSES EMBASSY IN SYRIA

     WASHINGTON, D.C.--The Obama administration has closed the U.S. Embassy in Damascus and pulled all American diplomats out of Syria. Officials say Ambassador Robert Ford and other diplomats left Syria on Monday. It's the most dramatic U.S. move so far after 11 months of a violent crackdown on dissent by President Bashar Assad's regime. The State Department warned last month it would close the embassy unless Assad's government stepped up its protection. It cited concerns about the safety of personnel and recent car bombs.  The U.N. says Assad's crackdown has killed more than 5,400 people since March. The revolt began with mostly peaceful protests, but armed rebels are now increasingly fighting the regime. The Obama administration has long demanded that Assad step down. Officials insist his regime's demise is inevitable.

    The UK also announced on Monday it would recall its ambassador to Syria for what it called consultations. Activists and witnesses said the Syrian army had stepped up its attacks on opposition fighters in Homs after a UN Security Council resolution, aimed at ending the bloodshed in the country, was blocked by Russia and China on Saturday. Robert Ford, the US ambassador, and 17 other US officials left Syria and were expected to travel back to the US. Ford informed Syrian authorities of the decision to leave earlier on Monday, state department officials said. Two diplomats left by air and the others went overland to Jordan. The state department said two weeks ago that it would close the embassy unless Assad's government better protected the mission, citing safety concerns about embassy personnel and a recent series of car bombs. "We have been relentless in sending a message that it is time for Assad to go," President Barack Obama said during an interview with NBC. "This is not going to be a matter of if, it's going to be a matter of when.''

    Meanwhile, in London, William Hague, the UK foreign secretary, told parliament: "I have today recalled to London our ambassador in Damascus for consultations." He said Britain and other nations would consider a resolution at the UN General Assembly, in the absence of a Security Council resolution on Syria. Britain would increase pressure on Syria through the European Union, he said. "We have already agreed 11 rounds of EU snactions and will hope to agree further measures by the [EU] Foreign Affairs Council on February 27," Hague said. "This is a doomed regime as well as a murdering regime," he said. "There is no way it can recover its credibility internationally." For their part, Angela Merkel, the German chancellor, and Nicolas Sarkozy, the French president, spoke with one voice on Syria after holding talks in Paris on Monday. "Germany and France will not let the Syrian people down on the Syrian issue," Sarkozy said, announcing plans for a Libya-style international contact group on Syria.

CUBA DENIES EXIT PERMIT TO YOANI SANCHEZ INVITED BY BRAZIL

     HAVANA, CUBA--Cuba’s best-known pro-democracy blogger said she was denied permission to leave her country after Brazil granted her a visa ahead of President Dilma Rousseff’s state visit to the communist island last week.  “There’s no surprise,” Yoani Sanchez said in a posting on her Twitter account today. “They again deny me permission to leave. It’s the 19th time they violate my right to enter and leave my country.”

    Sanchez, a critic of Raul Castro’s government on her Generation Y blog, requested permission to travel to Brazil next month so she could attend the screening of a documentary in which she appears. While she’s been barred from leaving Cuba for the past four years, expectations she might be allowed to exit this time increased after Brazil granted her a visa on the eve of Rousseff’s visit this week.  After Rousseff failed to meet with Sanchez and other activists during the three-day trade mission to Havana, the blogger complained on Twitter that the Brazilian president came to Cuba “with her wallet open and her eyes shut.”

    Rousseff, who was inspired by Cuba’s revolution to take up arms against Brazil’s military dictatorship in the 1960s, said she would not get involved in what is an internal Cuban matter. “Brazil gave the visa to the blogger,” she told reporters in Havana. “The rest is not a matter for the Brazilian government.”  Brazil’s Foreign Ministry declined to comment on Cuba’s decision when contacted by Bloomberg News. While blocked from traveling abroad, Sanchez openly criticizes Castro’s government online, and has emerged as a leader among a group of young dissidents who describe the daily travails life in Cuba through difficult-to-access social media. She was invited to Spain after winning the Ortega y Gasset journalism prize in 2008. Many of her chronicles are published by newspapers throughout Latin America.

SECRETARY HILLARY CLINTON CALLS FOR FRIENDS OF SYRIA TO UNITE

      SOFIA, BULGARIA--U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton called Sunday for "friends of democratic Syria" to unite and rally against President Bashar Assad's regime, previewing the possible formation of a formal group of likeminded nations to coordinate assistance to the Syrian opposition. Speaking in the Bulgarian capital of Sofia a day after Russia and China blocked U.N. Security Council action on Syria, Clinton said the international community had a duty to halt ongoing bloodshed and promote a political transition that would see Assad step down. She said the "friends of Syria" should work together to promote those ends.

    Clinton was bluntly critical of Saturday's veto by Russia and China at the United Nations blocking action against the continuing violence in Syria.  "What happened yesterday at the United Nations was a travesty," she said. "Faced with a neutered Security Council, we have to redouble our efforts outside of the United Nations with those allies and partners who support the Syrian people's right to have a better future," Clinton told reporters after meeting top Bulgarian officials. Such a group could be similar, but not identical, to the Contact Group on Libya, which oversaw international help for opponents of the late deposed Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. However, in the case of Libya, the group also coordinated NATO military operations to protect Libyan civilians, something that is not envisioned in Syria.

     Clinton warned that a failure to act would increase the chances for "a brutal civil war" as many Syrians under attack from their government moved to defend themselves. U.S. officials said a friends group would work to further squeeze the Assad regime by enhancing sanctions against it, bringing disparate Syrian opposition groups inside and outside the country together, providing humanitarian relief for embattled Syrian communities and working to prevent an escalation of violence by monitoring arms sales. "We will work to expose those who are still funding the regime and sending it weapons to be used against defenseless Syrians, including women and children," Clinton said. "We will work with the friends of a democratic Syria around the world to support the opposition's peaceful political plans for change." Clinton's comments came as Syria's opposition appealed for international backing along the lines she suggested following the double-veto at the U.N. Security Council that outraged the U.S., its European allies and Arab leaders and intensified fears that Assad would unleash even greater violence to crush protesters.

PROTESTERS STORM 6 OF SYRIA'S EMBASSIES

     LONDON, ENGLAND--Demonstrators have stormed SIX Syrian embassies in Europe and the Middle East after Syrian forces reportedly killed more than 200 people in the city of Homs. British police used batons to beat back protesters attempting to storm the Syrian Embassy in London for a second time after successfully breaking in early Saturday. The crowd broke several of the embassy's windows during the melee. Police said six people were arrested in the initial assault on the building, while another six were arrested hours later when demonstrators chanting "We want to close the embassy" kicked down barriers and rushed the building.

     A similar scene played out in Athens before dawn, where police said 13 people - 12 Syrians and one Iraqi national - were detained after forcing their way into the Syrian Embassy before dawn. In Germany, 20 people forced their way into Syria's Embassy in Berlin on Friday and damaged offices there, police said. Syrian protesters in Cairo set part of the embassy on fire Friday night, while protesters in Kuwait broke windows at the embassy and hoisted the opposition flag. The Kuwait news agency said a number of security personnel were hurt in scuffles. Syria's government has denied the assault on Homs, calling news reports about it part of a "hysterical campaign" of incitement by armed groups against Syria, meant to be exploited at the U.N. Security Council as it prepares to vote on a draft resolution backing an Arab call for President Bashar Assad to give up power.

     The Syrian National Council, Syria's main opposition group, urged Russia to stop its "shameful intransigence" at the U.N. and for the world to help stem the bloodshed. It also called for Syrians to protest outside their embassies. After protesters gathered force Saturday afternoon in London, police brought in sandbags and riot gear to regain control of the surging crowd at the embassy. Britain's Foreign Office condemned the initial break-in, which police said began at 0100 GMT Saturday (8 p.m. EST Friday) and drew around 150 protesters. Britain's Foreign Office said it takes seriously its obligations to protect foreign embassies and their employees, and that police are reviewing security arrangements at the Syrian Embassy in light of Saturday's events.

CLAIMS OF VENEZUELA'S SUPPORT TO IRAN FOR ATTACKS ON THE US

     WASHINGTON, D.C.--Iran is likely to use Latin America, where with the Venezuelan support it has set up a relevant economic and diplomatic network, as a launch pad for an attack on the United States, experts and Republican Representatives warned during a hearing at the Western Hemisphere Subcommittee of the Foreign Affairs Committee, US House of Representatives.

      "Iran has the desire to attack, it is expanding its capacity to threaten the United States," cautioned Norman A. Bailey, Cuba and Venezuela mission manager for the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, Efe quoted.  His testimony was given in a hearing entitled: "Ahmadinejad's Tour of Tyrants and Iran's Agenda in the Western Hemisphere."  For Bailey, the dangerous part is Iran's partnership, primarily with Venezuela, to spread over Latin America the view that "the United States is the real threat."

     Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made a tour in January of Venezuela, Nicaragua, Ecuador and Cuba. On Tuesday, January 31, US Intelligence Chief James Clapper testified in a hearing at the US Senate that some Iranian leaders are nowadays "willing" to launch an attack on the United States.  He pointed out that Iran, with the help of the government presided over by Hugo Chávez, has set up an economic and diplomatic network which, among others, makes it easier for Iranian officials "to move at leisure" around the Western Hemisphere bearing Venezuelan identity documents.

PRESIDENT OBAMA CALLS ON UNITED NATIONS TO BACK SYRIA RESOLUTION

      WASHINGTON, D.C.--Amid fresh violence in Syria, President Barack Obama called on the U.N. Security Council on Saturday to stand up against Bashar Assad's "relentless brutality" and act as a credible advocate for human rights. In a blistering statement, Obama said Assad had displayed "disdain for human life and dignity" following weekend attacks in the city of Homs that left more than 200 people dead.

     "The Syrian regime's policy of maintaining power by terrorizing its people only indicates its inherent weakness and inevitable collapse," Obama said. "Assad has no right to lead Syria, and has lost all legitimacy with his people and the international community." To the Syrian people, Obama pledged U.S. support and vowed to work with them to build a better future in their country. The president's statement came as the Security Council was meeting in New York for an unusual weekend session to consider a draft resolution backing an Arab League call for the Syrian leader to step down. The U.S. and other western nations strongly support that resolution, but it faces the prospect of a Russian veto.

    Obama urged the Security Council to take a stand against Assad's regime and back the resolution. "The international community must work to protect the Syrian people from this abhorrent brutality," he said. The Obama administration has long called for Assad to leave power during the 11-month crackdown on the uprising against his regime. But the U.S. has ruled out military action to oust Assad. The U.N. said in December that that more than 5,400 people have been killed since March, but it has been unable to update its count for weeks due to the chaos. Hundreds more have been killed since that tally was announced.

RUSSIA AND CHINA VETO UN RESOLUTION CONDEMNING SYRIA GOVERNMENT'S DEADLY CRACKDOWN

     UNITED NATIONS, NEW YORK--Second double veto of Syria resolution draws condemnation from rights groups and US envoy who calls it "unforgivable". The vote came a day after activists reported the deaths of more than 200 people in an army assault on Homs. Russia and China have vetoed a UN Security Council resolution on protests for the second time. Thirteen countries on Saturday voted for the resolution proposed by European and Arab nations to give strong backing to the Arab League's plan to end the violence in Syria that has claimed thousands of lives across the country since March 2011. But Russia and China made a repeat of their rare double veto that blocked an earlier draft resolution on October 5. Vitaly Churkin, the Russian ambassador to the UN, said the veto of the new resolution was necessary because it "sent an unbalanced signal to the Syrian parties".

    Churkin said Western nations behind the resolution were "calling for regime change, pushing the opposition towards power". Li Baodong, the Chinese representative to the UN, said further consultation was needed before the council denounced the Syrian government. "To push through a vote when parties are still seriously divided over the issue will not help maintain the unity and authority of the Security Council, or help resolve the issue," Li said. The veto was immediately condemned by New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) as "diplomatic cover" for the Syrian government. In a statement, the rights group said: "Vetoes by Russia and China are not only a slap in the face of the Arab League, they are also a betrayal of the Syrian people." The HRW statement continued: "The death toll had more than doubled in the last four months, and the risk is high that the Assad regime will see this double veto as a green light for even more violence."

     Susan Rice, the US envoy to the UN, called the double veto "unforgivable". "Since these two members last vetoed the resolution, an estimated 3,000 Syrians have been killed, with nearly 250 killed just yesterday. Many thousands more have been held and tortured," Rice said, adding; "Once again, the courageous people of Syria can see which members of the council support their fight and which do not." The UN has reported that more than 5,400 people have been killed since anti-Assad protests erupted in March 2011. Rice concluded with a direct warning to Moscow and Beijing that "any further bloodshed will be on their hands". Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, said the double veto "is a great disappointment to the people of Syria and the Middle East and to all supporters of democracy and human rights". "It undermines the role of the United Nations and the international community in this period when the Syrian authorities must hear a unified voice calling for an immediate end to its violence against the Syrian people," he said in a statement.

ISRAEL SAYS IRANIAN MISSILES AIMED AT THE UNITED STATES

     JERUSALEM, ISRAEL--Iranian missiles “aimed at America,” said Israeli Deputy PM Moshe Yaalon, Thursday, February 2, 2012. In Israel, Deputy Prime Minister Moshe Yaalon said that Iran is “getting ready to produce a missile with a range of 10,000 kilometers... That's the Great Satan. It was aimed at America, not at us." And, the Israeli IDF Intelligence Chief Aviv Kochavi said Iran already has enough uranium to build 4 nuclear bombs and could build one within a year. Just yesterday, a "bipartisan" task force of conservative Democrats and neo-conservatives who served in the Bush administration urged President Obama to prepare for an "effective surgical strike against Iran's nuclear program."

    Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey told Israeli leaders Jan. 20 that the United States would not participate in a war against Iran begun by Israel without prior agreement from Washington, according to accounts from well-placed senior military officers. Dempsey's warning, conveyed to both Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak, represents the strongest move yet by President Barack Obama to deter an Israeli attack and ensure that the United States is not caught up in a regional conflagration with Iran. But the Israeli government remains defiant about maintaining its freedom of action to make war on Iran, and it is counting on the influence of right-wing extremist views in U.S. politics to bring pressure to bear on Obama to fall into line with a possible Israeli attack during the election campaign this fall.

     President Obama still appears reluctant to break publicly and explicitly with Israel over its threat of military aggression against Iran, even in the absence of evidence Iran has decided to build a nuclear weapon. Dempsey's trip was highly unusual, in that there was neither a press conference by the chairman nor any public statement by either side about the substance of his meetings with Israeli leaders. Even more remarkable, no leak about what he said to the Israelis has appeared in either U.S. or Israeli news media, indicating that both sides have regarded what Dempsey said as extremely sensitive. A senior Israeli official said on Thursday that the missile testing site near Tehran that was destroyed in a huge explosion three months ago was developing missiles with a range of some 6,000 miles aimed at the United States. The official, Moshe Yaalon, a deputy prime minister and minister for strategic affairs, said the explosion, at a Revolutionary Guard missile base, hit a system “getting ready to produce a missile with a range of 10,000 kilometers.”  “That’s the Great Satan,” he said, invoking the term Iran often uses to refer to the United States. “It was aimed at America, not at us.

AYATOLLAH ALI KHAMENEI WARNS US, ISRAEL AGAINST STRIKE

      TEHRAN, IRAN--Iran's supreme leader pledged Friday to aid any nation or group that challenges Israel and said any military strikes over the Islamic Republic's nuclear program would damage U.S. interests in the Middle East "10 times over." The nationally broadcast comments by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei staked out a hard line in apparent replies to suggestions that military strikes are an increasing possibility if sanctions fail to rein in the Islamic Republic's nuclear program. It also may signal that Tehran's proxy forces - led by Lebanon's Islamic militant group Hezbollah - could be given the green light to revive attacks on Israel as the showdown between the archfoes intensifies.  The West and its allies fear Iran could use its uranium enrichment labs - which make nuclear fuel - to eventually produce weapons-grade material. Iran insists it only seeks reactors for energy and medical research.

    On Thursday, Israel's defense minister, Ehud Barak, suggested the world is increasingly ready to consider a military strike if sanctions fail. The head of the country's strategic affairs ministry, Vice Premier Moshe Yaalon, also suggested Iran's main military installations are still vulnerable to airstrikes - even as Iran starts up a new uranium enrichment facility deep in a mountainside bunker south of Tehran. Yaalon's comments appear to reinforce earlier suggestions by other Israel officials that the window for a possible attack is closing and Israel would need to strike by summer to inflict significant setbacks on Iran's nuclear facilities. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity under standing guidelines. Khamenei answered by repeating Iran's declarations that it will never roll back its nuclear program, which he had earlier said was now part of the country's "identity" and a cornerstone of its technological endeavors.

     On Friday, Iran said it successfully sent a small satellite into orbit in the third such launch in recent years, state media reported. "From now on, in any place, if any nation or any group confronts the Zionist regime, we will endorse and we will help. We have no fear expressing this," said Khamenei, using the phrase widely used by Iran's leader to describe Israel.  Khamenei affirmed that Iran had assisted groups such as Hezbollah and the Palestinian Hamas - a well-known policy rarely stated explicitly by Iranian leaders. "We have intervened in anti-Israel matters, and it brought victory," he said, citing the 2006 war between Hezbollah and Israel and nearly three weeks of conflict in the Gaza Strip that began with an incursion by Israel in December 2008. In Jerusalem, an Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman said he wasn't surprised by Khamenei's remarks. "It's the same kind of hate speech that we've been seeing from Iran for many years now," Yigal Palmor said.

DEFENSE SECRETARY PANETTA: PRESSURE MUST BE KEPT ON IRAN

     RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, GERMANY--U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said Friday the key to stopping Iran from getting a nuclear bomb is keeping global support for tough economic sanctions. Speaking to US airmen in Germany, Panetta reiterated that if Iran does not change course, the US is "prepared to respond if we have to." Panetta was responding to an airman who asked at what point the United States would get involved in Israel's potential conflict with Iran. Panetta sidestepped that aspect of the Iran issue and focused on international efforts to persuade Iran to not build the bomb.  He reiterated that all U.S. options are on the table, implying the possibility of using military force.

    "My view is that right now the most important thing is to keep the international community unified," Panetta said, "so we're keeping that pressure on to convince Iran that they shouldn't develop a nuclear weapon, that they should join the international family of nations" and abide by international norms. "If they don't, we have all options on the table and would be prepared to respond if we have to," he said. U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta won't dispute a report that he believes Israel may attack Iran this spring in an attempt to set back the Islamic republic's nuclear program. On Thursday, Panetta was asked by reporters to comment on a Washington Post opinion column by David Ignatius that said the secretary believes there is a "strong likelihood" that Israel will attack Iran in April, May or June. Ignatius did not say who told him this.

    Asked whether he disputes the report, Panetta said, "No, I'm just not commenting." He added, "What I think and what I view, I consider that to be an area that belongs to me and nobody else." Panetta noted that Israel has stated publicly that it is considering military action against Iran. He said the U.S. has "indicated our concerns." Panetta was at Ramstein Air Base Friday to visit troops after attending NATO meetings in Brussels. Later Friday, he was heading to Munich to attend an international security conference Saturday where Iran was certain to be among the topics discussed.

IRAN REPORTS LAUNCH OF SATELLITE INTO ORBIT

     TEHRAN, IRAN--Iran successfully launched a new small satellite into orbit early Friday, state media reported, the latest in the country's ambitious space program that has raised concerns because if its possible military applications. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called in to the launch site, saying he was "hopeful this act will send a signal of more friendship among all human beings," the state IRNA news agency reported.  IRNA said the home-made satellite, Navid, or Gospel, was designed to collect data on weather conditions and monitor for natural disasters. It said the satellite weighs about 110 pounds and would orbit the earth at an altitude of up to 234 miles, circling the planet 15 times a day. It's of a type known as miniaturized or microsatellites, which are cheaper to produce and allow for less costly launch vehicles. Navid, produced at an Iranian engineering university, is the third small satellite that Iran launched over the past years and is expected to remain in orbit for about two months.

    The two earlier satellites -- Omid, launched in 2009, and Rasad, sent into orbit in June 2011 -- lasted three weeks and 82 days, respectively. IRNA said Navid has advanced control technology, a higher resolution camera and photocells to generate power. The satellite was sent into orbit by a missile launch-vehicle dubbed Safir, or Ambassador in Farsi, which IRNA described as having 20 percent more launch power, compared to earlier versions of satellite carrier missiles. An Iranian website, Irannuc.ir, claimed Safir was a ballistic missile that can be converted into an intercontinental missile. State TV showed footage of the launch, with a rocket sent off and turning into a light point in the darkness of the skies.   Iran's decade-old space program has raised alarms in the West, because the same technology that allows missiles to launch satellites can be used to fire warheads. Israel, the U.S. and others charge that Iran is trying to develop nuclear weapons, a charge Tehran denies, insisting its nuclear enrichment program is geared only for peaceful purposes, such as energy production.

    Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi and the country's minister of science and technology, Kamran Daneshjoo, were present at the launch, IRNA said. There was no independent confirmation or details about where the launch took place. Iran has made a series of claims in recent years about advances in its space program, which have not been verified by others. In 2010, Tehran announced it had successfully launched a rocket carrying a mouse, turtle and worms into space. The authorities are intent on showcasing the nation's technological successes as signs Iran can advance despite the West's sanctions over its controversial nuclear program. Iran is also pressing ahead with its military missile program, frequently testing missiles capable of reaching Israel, U.S. bases in the Gulf and parts of southeast Europe.

US inteLligence chief: psuv will have a hard time replacing hugo chavez

      washington, d.c.--US Director of National Intelligence James Clapper said in a written testimony to the Senate Intelligence Committee that Venezuelan President (dictator) Hugo Chavez "announced that he is cancer-free, but there are still doubts about his health."

     According to the intelligence chief, "there is no other leader (in Venezuela) who can match his (Chávez's) charisma, force of personality, or ability to manipulate politics and policy should he be unable to run again," Efe reported.  "His failure to groom others to lead his United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) means that any successor would lack his stature," he added.

    Clapper also said that as a result of Venezuelan presidential election in 2012, the political environment will become "highly competitive and polarized." "Once the election campaign begins in February 2012, the electorate will be seeking solutions for the country's 25 percent inflation, widespread food and energy shortages, and soaring crime and homicide rates," the text reads.  The abovementioned document is a testimony that Clapper sent to the Senate Intelligence Committee to assess external threats to the United States.

venezuela balks at british warship deployment over falkland

     CARACAS, VENEZUELA--The Venezuelan Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned, through a statement, the provocative and intimidating actions by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland against Argentina, as regards the Falkland Islands (Malvinas Islands).

     "The decision to deploy a warship to the Falkland Islands, along with the aggressive statements by British Prime Minister David Cameron and Foreign Minister William Hague against the Argentine government and people shows an unacceptable attitude of the British government which is repudiated by Latin American and Caribbean countries," read a statement released by Venezuela's Foreign Ministry.

    The Venezuelan Government urges the Government of the United Kingdom to set aside "the aggressiveness and arrogance, which are a consequence of its shaky colonial past and to fulfill the terms contained in repeated statements of the United Nations General Assembly, which oblige it to negotiate a peaceful and final solution to the dispute over the Malvinas Islands."

IRAN SAYS OIL PRICE COULD REACH $120 TO $150 PER BARREL

     TEHRAN, IRAN--The head of Iran's state oil company said Sunday that the price of crude will reach $120 to $150 per barrel, as officials in Tehran prepare to discuss a ban on crude sales to European Union countries in retaliation for an EU embargo. Head of the National Iranian Oil Company Ahmad Qalehbani also said that Tehran would expand its capacity to refine crude domestically, instead of selling it on international markets. The EU announced an embargo on Iranian oil last week to pressure Tehran on its controversial nuclear program.  The embargo is set to go into effect in the summer, but Iran says that it may cut the flow of crude to Europe early.

    Iran says the EU accounts for only 18 percent of its output and that it can find new customers. It says the embargo will hurt the West more than Iran, in part by causing a spike in prices. "It seems we will witness prices from $120 to $150 in the future," Qalehbani was quoted as saying by IRNA. He did not give a time frame for the prediction, nor any other details. The price of benchmark U.S. crude on Friday was around $99.56 per barrel. Qalehbani also said that Iran could find other customers for its crude in the short term, while in the longer term expanding its refining capacity to turn the crude into other petroleum products. "The sale of some 18 percent of Iranian oil, to a market other than the EU, is quite possible. But our long term idea is to increase refining capacities to produce valuable products," he said.

     Qalehbani's statement came as Iranian oil officials prepare to debate a ban on crude sales to European Union countries. Many Iranian lawmakers and officials have called for an immediate ban on oil exports to the European bloc before the EU's ban fully goes into effect in July. They say this will hurt Europe before it can find alternative suppliers. It also coincided with a visit by a U.N. nuclear team expected to focus on Iran's alleged attempt to develop nuclear weapons. The United States and its allies argue that Iran is trying to develop nuclear weapons technology, while Tehran says the program is for purely peaceful purposes. With some 3.5 million barrels of crude production, Iran is the second largest OPEC producer. Some 80 percent of the country's foreign revenue comes from exporting around 2.2 million barrels of oil per day.

US, ALLIES URGE UN ACTION TO END VIOLENCE IN SYRIA

      UNITED NATIONS, NEW YORK--Vowing to avoid "another Libya," the U.S. and its allies challenged Russia on Tuesday to overcome its opposition to a U.N. draft resolution demanding that Syrian President Bashar Assad yield power and end the violence that has killed thousands. "It is time for the international community to put aside our own differences and send a clear message of support to the people of Syria," Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton told the U.N. Security Council in backing an Arab League plan for the country. Russia, one of Assad's strongest allies, has signaled it would veto any U.N. action against Damascus, fearing it could open the door to eventual international military involvement, the way an Arab-backed U.N. resolution led to NATO airstrikes in Libya.  But Clinton said U.N. action in Syria would not involve military intervention, unlike the NATO-led efforts that resulted in the ouster of Moammar Gadhafi. "I know that some members here may be concerned that the Security Council is headed toward another Libya," Clinton said. "That is a false analogy."

    The top diplomats from Britain, France and Arab League pressed the same point: The objective of the draft resolution was not military involvement and a continued delay would come at the cost of the lives of innocent civilians. "We all have a choice: Stand with the people of Syria and the region or become complicit in the continuing violence there," Clinton told council members. "Despite its ruthless tactics, the Assad regime's reign of terror will end and the people of Syria will have the chance to chart their own destiny," she said. "The question for us is: How many more innocent civilians will die before this country is able to move forward toward the kind of future it deserves?" The diplomatic showdown came as Syrian government forces took back control of the eastern suburbs of the capital, Damascus, after rebel soldiers briefly captured the area in a startling advance last week. The two-day offensive left more than 100 people dead, making it among the bloodiest days since the uprising began in March, according to the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights and the Local Coordination Committees, an opposition group.

     The U.N. estimated several weeks ago that more than 5,400 people have been killed in the Syrian government crackdown, but has not been able to update the figure. Russia has stood by Assad as he tries to crush the uprising. In October, Moscow vetoed the first Security Council attempt to condemn Syria's crackdown and has shown little sign of budging in its opposition. Moscow's stance is motivated in part by its strategic and defense ties, including weapons sales, with Syria. Russia also rejects what it sees as a world order dominated by the U.S. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. that Moscow "would never allow the Security Council to authorize anything similar to what happened in Libya." Saying the U.N. should not choose sides, Lavrov told the ABC that all parties should cease violence and engage in dialogue. Russia "would not support anything that would be imposed on Syria," he said. Clinton suggested that more negotiation on the text was necessary before a vote later in the week. "We will have a concerted effort over the next days to reach agreement in the Security Council to put forth a resolution that sends a message to President Assad and his regime," she told reporters.

RUSSIA CLASHES WITH EUROPEAN, ARABS OVER SYRIA UN RESOLUTION

     UNITED NATIONS, NEW YORK--European and Arab nations are calling on the U.N. Security Council to back a resolution supporting the Arab League’s plan to end the 10-month-old political crisis in Syria. But, Russia has expressed concerns about the new text. Following a lengthy closed-door discussion Friday afternoon on a draft resolution proposed by council members Morocco, Britain and France, Russia’s Ambassador Vitaly Churkin told reporters that the new text ignores what he called Moscow’s “red lines” where they could not go. “The red lines included any indications of sanctions, the red lines included any sort of imposition of arms embargo - because we know how in real life arms embargo means you supply arms to illegal groups but you cannot supply weapons to the government - we cannot accept that," he said.

      "Unfortunately, the draft we saw today did not only ignore our red lines but also added some new elements which we find unacceptable as a matter of principle.” The Russian envoy said the Arab League plan, which includes the transfer of power from President Bashar al-Assad to a deputy in preparation for multi-party elections, imposes a certain outcome of political dialogue before that dialogue even starts. “We need to concentrate on establishing political dialogue," he said. "The Arab League may have its ideas about where that political dialogue should go, they are free to express those ideas, but certainly the Security Council cannot be a tool to impose specific solutions on countries, including in this particular situation, Syria.” He said Moscow does not see the new draft text as one on which they could agree, but said they would be willing to engage in negotiations.  British Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant rejected his colleague's objections, saying the proposed text does not include an arms embargo or sanctions, nor does it call for regime change. He noted that it also includes some language from an earlier Russian proposed draft resolution on the subject.

     Essentially, Lyall Grant said, the new resolution simply supports the Arab League’s efforts to end the crisis. “Frankly, the time has come where we should be supporting the Arab League’s efforts," he said. "They took a very strong, binding decision on the Arab League members at the weekend. They have come with a credible plan that involves dialogue, a political transition, and we believe that we should support it.” Lyall Grant said negotiations on the text would begin Monday and he hoped to have a vote on the measure next week, possibly as early as Wednesday.  On Tuesday afternoon the Arab League Secretary-General Nabil ElAraby and the Prime Minister of Qatar will brief the 15-member Security Council on the League’s month-long monitoring mission in Syria, which was plagued by difficulties. Syria has rejected the Arab League’s plan of January 22nd, but has said the League’s observer mission may remain in the country for another month.

UK ISLAMISTS ADMIT LONDON STOCK EXCHANGE BOMB PLOT 

     LONDON, ENGLAND--Four radical Islamists admitted in court Wednesday plotting to bomb the London Stock Exchange as part of a campaign of al Qaeda-inspired attacks across the British capital in the run-up to Christmas 2010. Police foiled the plot at an early stage before firm dates were agreed or explosive devices assembled. The plan was to cause "terror, economic harm and disruption" rather than injury, prosecutor Andrew Edis told London's Woolwich Crown Court. However, "their chosen method meant there was a risk people would be maimed or killed," he said. The four, with five other men, admitted a range of terrorism offences after changing their pleas shortly before their trial had been due to begin, the Press Association reported.

     The defendants, all British nationals with Bangladeshi or Pakistani backgrounds, had been inspired by al Qaeda and the late radical Muslim cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, Edis said. Al-Awlaki, a U.S. citizen linked to al Qaeda's Yemeni branch, was killed last year in a CIA drone strike. Undercover officers had followed two of the conspirators in November 2010 as they made observations of London landmarks including the Big Ben clocktower, parliament, Westminster Abbey and the London Eye ferris wheel. The two men, Mohammed Chowdhury, 21, and Shah Rahman, 28, both from east London, admitted preparing for acts of terrorism by planning to plant an improvised bomb in the toilets of the London Stock Exchange.

     Brothers Gurukanth Desai, 30, and Abdul Miah, 25, both from Cardiff in Wales also pleaded guilty to the same charge. Some of the defendants had also discussed leaving home-made bombs in the toilets of pubs in Stoke, in the English midlands. The judge told Chowdhury he could expect to receive 18-1/2 years and Rahman 17 years, although the actual time spent in jail would be shorter, around six years, taking account of time already served and parole. The five other men, one from Cardiff and four from Stoke, admitted lesser terrorism offences including attending operational meetings and fundraising. All will be sentenced next week.

SEVEN KIDNAPPED DIPLOMATS IN ONE YEAR IN VENEZUELA

      CARACAS, VENEZUELA--An armed group of five subjects approached Mexican Ambassador to Venezuela Carlos Pujalte Piñeiro and his wife, Paloma Ojeda, and forced them to get in a car at 1:30 a.m. on Sunday morning. According to police sources, they intercepted the 58-year-old diplomat and his wife in leaving a private party at Caracas Country Club. It was learned that the couple was freed after paying a dear sum of US dollars, on Monday, at 4:45 a.m. According to a bulletin from the press office of Libertador Municipality Police, its police agents drove the couple to the Mexican Embassy in Caracas. Some minutes later, their car was found in Chapellín, a low-income barrio located in eastern Caracas.

    At 7:25 a.m., officers of the Scientific, Criminal and Forensic Investigation Agency (Cicpc) took the vehicle to their police station in western Caracas. The city collapsed; all vehicles on the freeways of Caracas-La Guaira, Petare-Guarenas, Valle-Coche and Regional del Centro would be inspected.  Experts complained about poor coordination among State security agencies, because the diplomats had been released at 4:30 a.m. On Monday, at 2:00 p.m., Gabriela Olivo de Alba, the Mexican Cultural Attaché, read over a communiqué on the event, at the entrance of the Mexican Embassy. "The Secretariat of Foreign Affairs (SFA) reports that the Ambassador of Mexico to the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Carlos Pujalte Piñeiro and his wife, were kidnapped on yesterday (Sunday) night, in the city of Caracas.

     Fortunately, today in the early morning, they were released and are in good health. The Foreign Office is pleased with it. In dealing with this delicate situation, the timely advice of the Secretariat of Public Security was particularly important. Likewise, the SFA appreciates the endeavors of Venezuelan authorities to help find and release Ambassador Pujalte and his wife, and informs that it has requested the Government of Venezuela to carry out a thorough investigation in order to clarify these facts; at the same time, it is willing to cooperate with this task." The Mexican ambassador is the seventh foreign officer who has been held hostage in less than one-year term.

ROYAL NAVY TO SEND HMS DAUNTLESS TO FALKLAND ISLANDS

     LONDON, ENGLAND--Dauntless will set sail for the Falkland Islands in the coming weeks armed with a battery of missiles that could "take out all of South America's fighter aircraft let alone Argentina's," according to one Navy source.  The Type 45 destroyer is the most advanced anti-aircraft and anti-ballistic ship in the world equipped with 48 Sea Viper missiles and the Sampson radar, which is more advanced than Heathrow air traffic control.

     The ship is in a league of its own in air defence able to track dozens of multiple targets. "It can shoot down Argentine fighters as soon as they take off from they bases," said another Navy source. "This will give Buenos Aires serious pause for thought."  The deployment, expected in late March, comes as Argentina has stepped up its sabre rattling over possession of the islands with a ban on all Falkland registered ships in South American ports.  Sending the £1 billion Dauntless on her first mission to the area will reinforce Britain’s position although it will cause difficulties for the Foreign Office which is trying to downplay the rhetoric.

     Admiral Lord West, the former First Sea Lord and Falklands veteran, said the Type 45 has an “amazing anti-air warfare capability.”  He also sent a warning to the Buenos Aires government. “Should there be any foolish nonsense from Argentina, Dauntless can sit just off the airfield and take down any aircraft coming in. It’s a game-changing capability.”  A Navy Spokesman said: “The Royal Navy has had a continuous presence in the South Atlantic for many years. The deployment of HMS Dauntless to the South Atlantic has been long planned, is entirely routine and replaces another ship on patrol."  Dauntless will replace the ageing Type 23 frigate Montrose.  Earlier this month the Navy sent Daring, the first Type 45, to the Arabian Gulf as tensions with Iran increase.

US INTELLIGENCE CHIEF: IRANIAN ATTACK ON AMERICA AND ALLIES INCREASINGLY LIKELY

     WASHINGTON, D.C.--The head of US intelligence has warned that there is an increasing likelihood that Iran could carry out attacks in America or against US and allied targets around the world. The warning from the director of national intelligence, James Clapper, reflects rapidly rising tensions over Iran's nuclear programme after the US and EU announced embargoes on the Iranian oil trade in the past few weeks, Israel leaked details of its preparation for a possible conflict and both the west and Iran boosted their military readiness in the Gulf. The US plans to send a third aircraft carrier to the region in March, while Iran's military has threatened to block the entrance to the Gulf in the strait of Hormuz and is planning to hold naval exercises there in the next few weeks involving a host of new weapons.

    Presenting his annual "worldwide threat assessment" to Congress, Clapper said an alleged plot to blow up the Saudi ambassador in Washington last year, which the US blamed on the Iran's Revolutionary Guard, "shows that some Iranian officials – probably including the supreme leader Ali Khamenei – have changed their calculus and are now more willing to conduct an attack in the United States in response to real or perceived US actions that threaten the regime." Clapper added: "Iran's willingness to sponsor future attacks in the US or against our interests abroad probably will be shaped by Tehran's evaluation of the costs it bears for the plot against the ambassador as well as Iranian leaders' perceptions of US threats against the regime." Western officials say that in the past year there has been a notable increase in activity around the world by suspected members of Iran's Quds force, the external operations arm of its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which they say could reflect positioning of units capable of carrying out reprisal attacks against western and Israeli targets if Iran was itself attacked.

    "There have been a lot of reports recently of IRGC activity abroad," one western official said. "There is a great deal of worry about the IRGC carrying out covert and deniable actions. But they may be overestimating how much they can hide their role. The US and others are very concerned about this. "In this situation, there is a risk of miscalculation," the official added, "or of rogue elements operating independently." US officials say that the alleged Washington bomb plot showed a new recklessness by an increasingly embattled Iranian regime. An Iranian-American was charged last October with planning to blow up the Saudi ambassador to the US while he ate at his favourite Washington restaurant, potentially killing many Americans at the same time. The US has claimed authorization for the attack came from the highest levels of the regime, but Clapper's remarks marked the first time Washington has openly blamed the supreme leader.

January 15,  2009   (Messages that the Cuban people should always remember)

PRESIDENT BUSH SENDS LAST "MESSAGE OF HOPE" TO THE CUBAN PEOPLE

        WASHINGTON, D.C..-- Outgoing US President George W. Bush sent a "MESSAGE OF HOPE" Tuesday to the Cuban people, particularly jailed members of the anti-communist opposition who have been "silenced by tyranny and oppression." "This message of hope is directed especially to those who have made pleas for freedom only to be silenced by tyranny and oppression," Bush said in a statement which described Cuba as "one of the cruelest dictatorships this hemisphere has witnessed."

      Bush, who hands the presidency to his successor Barack Obama on January 20, said his administration had continually challenged Havana to bring political and economic changes and improve human rights on the impoverished island. His administration, he said, "has made it clear that the United States stands prepared to respond to any request for assistance from a Cuba that transitions to democracy.



     The Castro regime's response to our offers has been continued repression of the Cuban people." January 1 marked the 50th anniversary of the Cuban revolution that saw its leader Fidel Castro head up a communist dictatorship vehemently opposed by the United States, just 90 miles (145 kilometers) to the north.




     "The world has witnessed other instances of dictatorship but has ultimately seen those regimes fall and formerly enslaved countries embrace their birthright of freedom. One day, the people of Cuba will enjoy this same blessing," Bush said. In what was likely his final statement on Cuba before leaving office, Bush also said he has been personally touched by the plight of Cubans on the impoverished island over his eight years in Washington. "Throughout my presidency, the plight of Cuba has been close to my heart. My sincere wish has been for the proud people of Cuba to take their rightful place in the community of democratic, freedom-loving nations." 

CAMCO'S WEEKLY NOTE