Tag Archives: syria
Obama gears up for all-out push on Syria
Obama gears up for all-out push on Syria (AFP) / 9 September 2013 Washington deepened its diplomatic offensive at home and abroad on Sunday as President Barack Obama braced for a key week in his push to persuade skeptical Americans to back strikes against the Syrian regime. Lawmakers returning on Monday from their summer break are set to begin debate on whether to approve limited US military action in Syria, with a Senate vote possibly coming as early as Wednesday. Obama will blitz US networks on Monday evening before addressing the American people from the Oval Office on Tuesday aiming to lay out the case to deepen US involvement in a two-year-old war that has claimed more than 100,000 lives. President Bashar Al Assad was also to take to the US airwaves to deny he ordered a suspected chemical attack on his people last month, which has shocked the world and galvanised the Obama administration into preparing for its first military foray into the brutal conflict. In a rare interview with a US network, Assad insisted he was not behind the August 21 gas attack on a Damascus suburb, and issued a veiled warning to the American people not to become militarily involved in the rebellion against him that erupted in March 2011. The long-time Syrian leader warned that as his country prepares “as best we can” for US military action, there could be a bitter consequences. “There’s no evidence that I used chemical weapons against my own people,” he reportedly told CBS television, in the interview to be aired on Monday. Assad said he “had a message to the American people that it had not been a good experience for them to get involved in the Middle East in wars and conflicts.” He “suggested that there would be, among people that are aligned with him, some kind of retaliation if a strike was made,” veteran CBS correspondent Charlie Rose told CBS. After talks with Arab League leaders in Paris, US Secretary of State John Kerry said: “All of us agree, not one dissenter, that Assad’s deplorable use of chemical weapons… crosses an international global red line.” Kerry, who was dispatched by Obama to shore up support abroad, said a number of Arab countries, were willing to sign a statement agreed by 12 of the G20 countries last week calling for a “strong” reaction to the alleged attack. Asked about Assad’s denial, Kerry told journalists traveling with him on his next stop in London that “the evidence speaks for itself.” “Today we discussed the possible and necessary measures that can be taken,” he said earlier, adding Saudi Arabia was among those who had signed on. While a resolution for a military strike is likely to pass the Senate controlled by Obama’s Democrats, according to a Washington Post survey some 224 of the current 433 members of the Republican dominated House were either “no” or “leaning no” on military action as of Friday. A large number, 184, were undecided, with just 25 backing a strike. A top White House official said on Sunday the Obama administration is planning “for every contingency” in case of any fallout from US military strikes. “We have to obviously be very careful and very targeted and very limited in our engagement so we do not get dragged into the middle of this. And then there’s obviously risk of reaction and retaliation against our friends,” White House Chief of Staff Denis McDonough said on CNN. He urged hesitant lawmakers to watch graphic videos released over the weekend, said to be of the August attack, showing corpses as well as dying people, including children, writhing in pain and apparently foaming at the mouth and vomiting. The Los Angeles Times reported meanwhile that the Pentagon was preparing for three days of attacks on Syria, longer than originally planned. War planners now aim to unleash a heavy barrage of missile strikes to be followed swiftly by additional attacks on targets that may have been missed or remain standing after the initial launch, the newspaper cited officials as saying. A US defense official said the scale and purpose of the operation against Syria has not changed in recent weeks, although US forces would adjust as needed. “We will continue to review our targeting and targeting options as the Syrian government adapts over time,” said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. On the ground, Syrian rebels, including the Al-Nusra Front, were said to have taken control of the historic Christian town of Maalula, north of Damascus. And an Italian journalist and a Belgian national who had both been kidnapped in early April were released and on a plane flying to Italy, the Italian government said. Continue reading
G20 fails to heal rift on Syria at Russia talks
G20 fails to heal rift on Syria at Russia talks (AFP) / 6 September 2013 World leaders at the G20 summit on Friday failed to bridge their bitter divisions over US plans for military action against the Syrian regime, as Washington slammed Moscow for holding the UN Security Council ‘hostage’ over the crisis. Despite not being on the original agenda of the summit hosted by Russian President Vladimir Putin outside Saint Petersburg, the leaders discussed the Syria crisis into the early hours of the morning over dinner amid the splendour of a former imperial palace. US President Barack Obama (L) meets with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (R) at the G20 Summit in St. Petersburg on September 5, 2013.- Reuters Putin has emerged as one of the most implacable critics of military intervention against the regime of Syrian President Bashar Al Assad over an alleged chemical weapons attack on August 21, saying any such move without UN blessing would be an aggression. There was no breakthrough at the dinner as leaders, including US President Barack Obama , presented their positions on the Syria crisis which only confirmed the extent of global divisions on the issue, participants said. “The differences of opinions of the leaders were confirmed during the dinner,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted as saying by Russian news agencies. British Prime Minister David Cameron (C) chairs a meeting on the humanitarian situation in Syria at the G20 summit in St Petersburg on September 6, 2013. – Reuters “Some states were defending the view that rushed measures should be taken, overlooking legitimate international institutions. Other states appealed not to devalue international law and not to forget that only the UN Security Council has the right to decide on using force,” he added. A high-ranking source close to the talks said there was a disappointing lack of ambition at the dinner on the Syria issue, noting that Putin as host was keen not to aggravate tensions further. But a French diplomatic source said the objective of the dinner “was an exchange between the top world leaders and not to come to an agreement”. The dinner went on into the small hours of the morning and even after a late-night opera show, Putin and British Prime Minister David Cameron had a meeting to discuss the Syria situation, the Kremlin said. UN chief Ban Ki-moon on Friday also warned that military strikes could spark further sectarian violence in the country which he said is suffering from a humanitarian crisis “unprecedented” in recent history. “I must warn that ill-considered military action could cause serious and tragic consequences, and with an increased threat of further sectarian violence,” Ban said. The Syria crisis and prospect of military intervention has overshadowed the official agenda of the summit of leaders of the world’s top economies and emerging markets to stimulate growth and battle tax avoidance. It was not immediately clear if the leaders would have another chance to discuss Syria on the summit’s second day or if the main session would focus on purely economic issues. Several Western states share Putin’s opposition to military action and after the British parliament voted against strikes, France is the only power to have vowed it will join American intervention. Obama is seeking backing from Congress for military action, putting back the timetable for strikes which had been anticipated even before the two day-summit got underway on Thursday. The US president held a bilateral meeting on Friday morning with President Xi Jinping of China, who like Russia vehemently opposes military action against Syria. Even as the leaders were setting out their arguments at the dinner, the US ambassador to the United Nations in New York launched a lacerating attack on Russia for holding the Security Council “hostage” over its backing of Assad. “Even in the wake of the flagrant shattering of the international norm against chemical weapons use, Russia continues to hold the council hostage and shirk its international responsibilities,” Samantha Power told reporters. Amid a new low in US-Russia tensions, no bilateral meeting as been scheduled between Putin and Obama although officials have left the door open for some informal contact. According to US intelligence, more than 1,400 people living in rebel-held suburbs of Damascus were killed in the August 21 chemical weapons attack, which involved the use of sarin nerve gas. The US says the Assad regime was responsible, a claim not accepted by Russia. Cameron told BBC TV from the G20 summit that Britain had further evidence of the use of chemical weapons in the attack in samples its experts had tested. With the clock ticking down to strikes, Russia said Syria’s Foreign Minister Walid Muallem would travel to Moscow for talks on Monday. The two-and-a-half year conflict between Assad and rebels, which began as a popular uprising, has left more than 100,000 people dead. About a third of Syria’s pre-war 20.8 million population has fled abroad or have been forced from their homes, according to the UN refugee agency. Continue reading
Upbeat economic data lifts world shares
Upbeat economic data lifts world shares (Reuters) / 5 September 2013 European government bond yields were at near 1-1/2 year highs on Thursday and the dollar clung close to six week peaks on a combination of a better global economic outlook, nervousness about Syria and pending central bank meetings. Russia and China, meanwhile, both warned the US ahead of the G23 meeting in St Petersburg that the end of the Federal Reserve’s bond-buying programme could have a profound impact on the global economy. The European Central Bank and Bank of England were both expected to leave interest rates unchanged, but investors were looking for statements reiterating pledges to keep rates low given recent stronger economic data. ECB President Mario Draghi “is going to want talk down the prospects of recovery a little bit and get people’s feet on the ground” said Will Hobbs, head of equities strategy at Barclays Wealth. European money market rates have been moving higher recently in response to stronger economic data and on expectations the Federal Reserve is set to begin unwinding its stimulus, possibly as soon as later this month. Analysts see little options for the bank other than just maintaining a soft tone in communication, sending German 10-year bond yields have raised to 1-1/2 year highs of 1.981 percent. Earlier the Bank of Japan voted unanimously to maintain its monetary stimulus, while declaring the world’s third-largest economy was on a recovery path, sending the yen briefly above 100 to the dollar, a six week low. In the emerging markets India’s new RBI began his tenure in spectacular fashion by unveiling measures to support the currency and the banking sector that sent the Nifty up 3.3 percent and boosting the rupee. The rupee rose to as high as 65.53 per US dollar, pulling well away from a record low around 68.85 set last week. The gain in Indian stocks and a slight rise in Tokyo’s shares after the BOJ decision helped lifted Asia equity prices by 0.6 percent, to near a three week high. European share markets were up 0.5 percent in early trade, gaining ground for the second day in a row and hitting its highest level since August 27. “People are waiting for cues from the central banks, and there is just no real trend on the market at the moment,” said Guillaume Dumans, co-head of research firm 2Bremans. The euro last traded at $1.3185, down slightly against the stronger dollar and not far from a six-week low of $1.3138. MSCI world equity index was up 0.1 percent following a second day of gains on Wall Street spurred by another set of upbeat USdata, which included the strongest monthly rise in car sales during August since October 2007. “Strong car sales in the US again lifted market confidence in the economy, and lifted expectations that the US Federal Reserve will start cutting back its stimulus this month,” said Isao Kubo, an equity strategist at Nissay Asset Management. Syria Action Markets remained cautious about Syria as a possible US military strike moved one step closer after a Senate committee voted in favour of action, clearing the way for a vote in the full Senate, likely next week. The possible military strike against Syria in reaction to its alleged use of chemical weapons and the Fed’s decision to reduce its stimulus were expected to dominate discussions at a meeting of leaders from the Group of 20 developed and developing economies in St Petersburg. In a note prepared for the meeting the IMF warned that emerging countries were particularly vulnerable to a tightening of US monetary policy. It urged strengthened global action to revitalise growth and better manage risks, adding some downside risks have become more prominent. US President Barack Obama meanwhile was expected to use the meeting to win international backing for a military strike against Syria and this was keeping a floor under oil markets Brent crude rose 56 cents to $115.47, while US oil was up 64 cents to $107.97. Continue reading
