0 12,500 police at Olympics as UK learns from mutiny

British police will deploy around 12,500 officers to protect the Olympic Games after facing strong criticism for their lack of manpower and slow response to last year's U.K. riots.

The Olympic operation, drawing officers from 52 forces across Britain, will bolster the 10,500 army personnel already tasked with securing the July 27-Aug. 12 Games.

Planning was reviewed after Britain was stunned by violence last August that left five people dead and a trail of looted stores, torched cars and burned-out buildings in London and a few other cities.

Metropolitan Police assistant commissioner Chris Allison, who is coordinating Olympic policing, insisted Monday that lessons had been learned from the unexpected rioting.

"We are in a different place to where I think we were last summer, a number of sentences have been given by the courts which I think will act as a clear deterrent to people, communities themselves have come out and said, `This is not acceptable,'" Allison told The Associated Press inside Scotland Yard police headquarters in London.

He also noted that now "we have command team in place, we have up to 9,500 officers on duty (in London) on peak days, unlike last summer when we didn't."

This time the streets of the capital will be flooded with officers in a pre-emptive move to dissuade anyone from causing mayhem as the Olympics return to London after 64 years.

"My hope is if anything were to happen ... we have the resources we can quickly assign to try to deal with it and nip it in the bud," Allison said. (Google)

While insisting that officers on patrol won't be "oppressive," Allison said there will be a robust response from the outset -- unlike during the riots -- with annual leave for officers heavily restricted and non-essential training postponed.

"We will follow the approach of intervening when we have the officers," Allison said. "Our challenge last summer is we didn't have those officers."

Last month, the public was given a glimpse of what could be in store when police snipers and heavily armed officers intervened to stop an armed siege in London's shopping district. No one was hurt.

The army operation will be using surface-to-air missiles systems, typhoon fighter jets, helicopters, two warships and bomb disposal experts.

Inside the venues, which can only be entered through airport-style security, Allison assured the public that there will be no risks to their safety.

"They are probably some of the securest places anywhere in the country ... and these are people who just want to watch sport, so there are no crime challenges in there," Allison said. "The vast majority of police officers will be out in the public space, in the public transport infrastructure, in the crowded spaces."

Police will be deployed heavily in the capital's tourist hotspots -- including Covent Garden and Leicester Square -- as well as at sites across London showing the Olympic action on big outdoor screens.

Allison hopes people will embrace the games rather than using them as a platform for anarchy.

"I am sure when the games come everyone will be bitten by the Olympic bug," he said.

News From : businessweek.com/ap/2012-05

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0 Iran wishes to demolish Israel - Netanyahu

Iran is seeking atomic weapons to destroy Israel and world powers should not make any concessions over its nuclear program, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says.

Netanyahu made the remarks as the head of the UN nuclear watchdog was in Teheran on a key mission that could lead to the resumption of probes on whether Iran has secretly worked on a nuclear weapon.

Much of the West believe Iran is seeking to develop nuclear weapons, a charge Iran denies. Israel views a nuclear Iran as an existential threat due to frequent calls by Teheran for its destruction along with its support of violent anti-Israel groups and its long-range missile program.(Google)

'Iran wants to destroy Israel and it is developing nuclear weapons to fulfill that goal,' Netanyahu said at a conference for public servants on Monday.

'Against this malicious intention, leading world powers need to display determination and not weakness. They should not make any concessions to Iran,' he said.

Yukiya Amano, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, made a one-day visit to Teheran on Monday focused on getting Iran to agree to terms that will allow IAEA inspections of suspect Iranian sites, including the Parchin military complex where the agency had reported suspicious activities in the past.

His visit comes ahead of talks on Wednesday in Baghdad between Iran and the United States, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany.

Teheran's uranium enrichment activities at its plant at Fordo, near the holy city of Qom, are of particular concern for Israel because it is dug into a mountain and possibly resistant to attack.

News From: skynews.com.au/world/

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0 Leader Putin and The Middle East – psychoanalysis

On 7 May this year, Vladimir Putin returned to the Kremlin with a grandiose ceremony and he is now closely preparing the first foreign policy measures in his third term as president of Russia. Such measure is the appointment of Dmitry Medvedev to participate at the 38th G8 summit in Camp Davis, on 18-19 May. Also, Russia will host the G8 summit in 2014. Furthermore, everyone knows Putin decided not to participate in the NATO summit in Chicago: he expressed that choice even before winning the elections and his decision is causing a great deal of speculations. However, it appears one of his first foreign meetings as a president is going to be with his American homologue, even if Obama’s term is close to the end or maybe precisely because of that.

The international media is currently considering the possibility of Putin visiting Israel one more time (he did that first in 2005), shortly after his meeting with Barak Obama. The ties between Russia and Israel have become stronger during the last two decades also because over one million Jews emigrated from the former USSR to Israel, and the members of the Russian- speaking Jewish community have occupied influential positions in the Israeli politics as well as in the economic, scientific and cultural life, thus contributing to the development of the relations be- tween the two countries.

There is also another relevant aspect: the Middle East has regained its status of competition arena between Russia and the Western countries, especially the USA. During the Cold War, Russia lost its influence in Egypt, as well as the Egyptian and Libyan military navy bases. After 1990, Russia lost yet another important Arab country where they had had a strong influence – Iraq. Therefore, in order to maintain an important area of influence in the Middle East, Russia granted constant support to the current Syrian regime and kept its only military navy base in the Mediterranean in Tartus. Considering the new developments within the Arab Awakening, Russia is now using all opportunities to promote its interests in the area and to recuperate the lost positions and image (many times Russia is seen as a supporter of the oppressive regimes); to this end, Israel can play an important role. Of course, it does not mean Russia will neglect its relations with another power pole in the area, Saudi Arabia (president Putin was the first Russian head of state to pay an official visit in Saudi Arabia in 2007, and then he went on to Qatar and Jordan). Also, Russia will maintain good cooperation relations with the Gulf Cooperation Council countries in the fields of technology and the military. Actually, we believe Russia will maintain its positions regarding several important regional issues such as the conflict with Iran and the peace process between Israel and Palestine by adopting a foreign policy of keeping in contact with all parts, without neglecting to support its allies and at the same time negotiating with their opponents.

Furthermore, Russia appears to be interested in getting involved in the new relations now developing between Israel, Greece and Cyprus. This can facilitate a strengthened position for the Russians in east Mediterranean region, including the promoting of Russian economic interests, considering the newly discovered natural gas resources; also, it can be a valid counterbalance to the Turkish influence in the area. At the same time, Israel will try to use the Russian intentions to its advantage, in order to fight back some anti-Israeli positions and promote its own interests in the region. However, Israel will surely remain the main partner to the US strategy in the Middle East and will not develop relations with Russia to the detriment of this partnership; in its turn, Rus- sia is aware of this arrangement.

Russia’s main concern on our continent is to keep Europe divided as well as to develop a new strategy considering the current European situation. In the meantime, Russia pays special attention to the Middle East in order to promote and defend the Russian national interests. In this respect, a potential partnership with Israel can be beneficial to both parts, and not just for the Mid- dle East but for other areas as well, such as the Caucasus. Most likely, Russia will succeed in maintaining a relevant presence in the Middle East; however, the Russian position is never going to return to what it used to be in the beginning of the Cold War.

News From:eurasiareview.com

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0 President Obama trips Joplin one year after Tornado, speaks at High School Inauguration

President Obama took a break from the world stage and the campaign trail late Monday to heap praise on this southwestern Missouri city a year after a giant tornado cut a deadly path through the area, claiming 161 lives.

Obama told graduating seniors of Joplin High School that their story of loss and resilience is an American story — of community, kindness and generosity in which people’s best instincts triumph over greed.(Google)

“As you take on the roles of colleague and neighbor and citizen, you will encounter all kinds of divisions between groups — divisions of race and religion and ideology,” the president said. “But you are from Joplin. So you will know that it’s always possible for a community to come together when it matters most.”

It was graduation night on May 22, 2011, too, when Joplin High School and more than 7,500 other buildings were destroyed by one of the deadliest and costliest tornadoes in U.S. history. The storm was a mile wide and packed winds of more than 200 mph. In Joplin and nearby Duquesne, the storm reduced schools, businesses and homes to giant swaths of lumber and rubble.

On-the-scene videos that surfaced in the days after the Joplin tornado tell the tale of the storm’s power. One compilation of security-camera footage from inside Joplin High School shows a darkened and empty complex suddenly jarred to life by roaring winds and falling debris. Music stands are tossed across a band room, and lunch tables careen across the cafeteria before the building’s ceiling caves in.

There were also heartbreaking stories of loss, among them the fate of Will Norton, sucked out of his father’s car on the way home from his high school graduation. A week later he was found dead. In all, seven Joplin students were among those killed.

A year later, the recovery still has a long way to go in this city of 50,000. Hundreds remain in temporary housing. Gnarled and half-bare trees stand alone where they once shaded houses. Concrete pads lie where churches stood, and vinyl banners flap in the wind, directing worshipers to temporary quarters. Joplin High School is a giant pile of debris, the building finally demolished this year to make way for its replacement.

But the school is a symbol of the accomplishments, too. Although the building was lost, officials were able to open a makeshift replacement in time for the 2011-12 school year to keep the students from scattering to surrounding schools. Along the construction fence that encloses the school property, dozens of painted wooden butterflies and stars bear messages such as “Faith,” “Hope” and “U.S.A.”

“Teachers worked extra hours, and coaches improvised,” Obama told a crowd of about 4,600 packed into the gymnasium of Missouri Southern State University. “The mall was turned into classrooms, and the food court became a cafeteria — which sounds like a bit of an improvement. Sure, the arrangements might have been a little noisy and a little improvised, but you hunkered down and you made it work. Together.”

Said Joplin Schools Superintendent C.J. Huff, “This class, quite simply, has been amazing.”

Obama also celebrated the generosity of others, including the 50,000 who came from across the country to help Joplin rebuild.

Obama was joined at the graduation by Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon (D). The president left politics and policy behind at his previous stop, Chicago, where earlier Monday he wrapped up a NATO summit focused on the drawdown in Afghanistan — and where, during a news conference, he defended his reelection campaign’s attacks on Republican Mitt Romney’s years as a private equity manager at Bain Capital.

In Joplin, meanwhile, Obama spoke of harnessing the same spirit that possessed this city over the past year to “help rebuild America.”

“You are from Joplin,” he said. “You are from America. And no matter how tough times get, you will be tougher. No matter what life throws at you, you will be ready. You will not be defined by the difficulties you face but how you respond — with strength, and grace, and a commitment to others.”

News From: washingtonpost.com/politics/

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0 Barack Obama rejects to meet Asif Ali Zardari at NATO summit

US President Barack Obama is at loggerheads with his Pakistani corresponding person Asif Ali Zardari, refusing to meet him it appears that over blockage of NATO supply lines into Afghanistan, an issue which continues to strain ties between two nations, American media reports said on Monday.

'The New York Times' said a deal to resurrect the supply lines fell apart as Obama began talks on ending the NATO alliance's contest role in Afghanistan in 2013.

Zardari, who flew to Chicago with hopes of thrilling his physique with a meeting with Obama, was preparing to leave empty-handed as the 2 countries continued to feel the repercussions of a fatal American air strike last November, for which the US President has offered condolences but no apology, the paper said.
But White House second-in-command National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes said that President Obama could not meet Zardari as he had a "full slate of summit meetings to attend".
"But we don't expect any other bilateral meetings so we didn't draw that linkage. We're going to continue to work through the issue with the Pakistanis," he said.
Zardari did, however, meet with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to discuss the provide routes.
A State Department official later said that Clinton and Zardari talk about the significance of reopening NATO supply lines and of taking joint action against the fear groups, in Af-Pak region including al-Qaeda and Haqqani.

"This whole breakdown in the relationship between the US and Pakistan has come down to a addiction of this apology issue," Vali Nasr, a former State Department adviser on Pakistan, was quoted as saying by the daily.
The grouping of no apology and no meeting, Nasr said, "will send a powerfully embarrassing message back to Pakistan." According to the daily, the failure to strike a deal on the supply routes ahead of the summit injects new tension into the relationship.

"When NATO extended the request, we thought it would move the Pakistanis off the dime," a senior American official was quoted as saying.

Without the deal, "it's going to be really uncomfortable" for Zardari at the summit, which runs through Monday, the official told 'The New York Times'. (Google)

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0 Israel's army chief heads to China ahead of Iran talks

Israel’s military chief Lieutenant General Benny Gantz left for China on Sunday morning, just days ahead of a critical meeting between world powers and Iran over Tehran’s nuclear programme.

According to the Israeli military, Gantz’s visit comes at the invitation of China’s Chief-of-Staff General Chen Bindnge, who visited Israel last August.

Gantz will meet Chinese security and military officials to “discuss current security and strategic challenges, the regional security status in the Middle East and military cooperation,” the military said in a statement.
He will also tour the Jewish museum in Shanghai.

China is one of the five permanent UN Security Council members which along with Germany comprise the so-called P5+1 group, which will be meeting with Iranian officials in the Iraqi capital on May 23.
The Baghdad meeting marks the second round of talks between Iran and world powers over Tehran’s disputed nuclear programme, which were revived in April in Istanbul after a 15-month impasse.
China is one of the biggest customers for Iran’s oil, and has publicly resisted joining the Western sanctions imposed on Tehran.
Top Israeli officials have repeatedly expressed scepticism that the talks would succeed in convincing Iran to abandon its nuclear programme, which Israel and much of the West believes is a bid to develop atomic weapons — a charge denied by Tehran.

Security ties between Israel and China became strained after Washington pressured the Jewish state to cancel a deal in 2005 to upgrade Harpy Killer drones it had sold to Beijing amid concerns that advanced US defence technology contained in Israeli equipment could be used against Taiwan.

The Harpy debacle saw China demanding millions in compensation from Israel in what was second such claim in five years.

Israel had previously paid Beijing $350 million after breaking an agreement in 2000 to supply Falcon airplanes with an AWACS radar system.

A number of senior Israeli officials have visited China since then, most recently Defence Minister Ehud Barak in June 2011.(Google)

Speaking on condition of anonymity, an Israeli defence official told AFP that Washington was informed in advance of Gantz’s visit.

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0 NATO shifts to help an elusive Afghanistan peace

President Barack Obama and NATO allies declared Sunday that the end of the long and unpopular Afghanistan war is in sight even as they struggled to hold their fighting force together in the face of dwindling patience and shaky unity.

From his hometown and the city where his re-election operation hums, Obama spoke of a post-2014 world when "the Afghan war as we understand it is over." Until then, though, remaining U.S. and allied troops face the continued likelihood of fierce combat.

Gen. John Allen, the top commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, offered a stern warning Sunday that the plan to give Afghan forces the lead in fighting next summer won't take coalition troops out of harm's way. "It doesn't mean that we won't be fighting," Allen said. "It doesn't mean that there won't be combat."

The fate of the war is both the center of this summit and a topic no one is celebrating as a mission accomplished. The alliance already has one foot out the Afghanistan door, Obama has his ear attuned to the politics of an economy-driven presidential election year and other allies are pinching pennies in a European debt crisis.

As NATO powers and other nations contributing to the war effort gathered, the alliance's top officer, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, asserted that "there will be no rush for the exits" in Afghanistan. "Our goal, our strategy, our timetable remain unchanged," he said.

In fact, the strategy has shifted many times over the course of more than 10 years of war, and the goal narrowed to objectives focused on the long-term security of the mostly Western nations fighting there. The timetable has also moved, despite the overall commitment to keep foreign forces in Afghanistan into 2014.

Tension over newly elected French President Francois Hollande's pledge to end his country's combat mission two years early infused the meeting. German Chancellor Angela Merkel pointedly cited the credo of the allies in the Afghanistan war, "in together, out together," and her foreign minister cautioned against a "withdrawal competition" by coalition countries.

Hollande said he was merely being pragmatic in keeping a campaign pledge to pull combat troops this year but this still would "let the alliance continue to work."

While France's new posture obviously rattled the leaders, Allen betrayed no concern about the coalition's common purpose coming unglued. "The mantra of this particular mission has been in together, out together," he told reporters. "And I'm not seeing, frankly, many voices being raised that would oppose that."

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