Recently in International Politics Category

"To most independent observers it seems plain that Israel's cruel, aggressive and expansionist policies have resulted in a steady deterioration in its strategic environment."

by Patrick Seale, Al-Hayat

What would it take to persuade Israel to rethink its attitude towards its Arab neighbours - and primarily towards the Palestinians? The Hamas victory in Gaza is surely a clear signal that an Israeli change of direction is urgently needed.

All Israel`s efforts to break the democratically-elected Hamas government have failed. Its policies of boycott, siege and starvation, of bombing and shelling, of extra-judicial murder, of withholding tax revenues, of the systematic destruction of Palestinian institutions have served only to create a time-bomb of hunger, despair and defiance on Israel's flank.

Yet Israel appears to have learned nothing. Instead of seeking peace with the Arabs - instead of seizing their outstretched hand - it persists in rejecting all peace overtures, preferring to rely on force and still more force, and on its ability to manipulate its American ally. ... Full story

"We believe the economy should be based on human beings," and that capital, investment, the profit motive and the workings of the state should be subordinate to human beings."

By Kintto Lucas

QUITO (IPS) - The landslide victory for Ecuador's governing Movimiento Alianza País in the election for a constituent assembly to rewrite the Ecuadorean constitution has cleared the way for the foundations to be laid for a "solidarity economy."

Alberto Acosta, a 58-year-old economist with strong ties to the country's environmental and indigenous movements, was the candidate who garnered the greatest number of votes on Sunday [Sept. 30], which means he is likely to preside over the constituent assembly when it begins its work in November.

In an interview with IPS, he stressed the need for the new constitution to establish the framework of an economy based on solidarity, and argued that the "neoliberal" free-market model followed by previous governments must be dismantled. ... Full story

By Tom Segev

Mischa Shauli sat at the National Archives in Washington, D.C., completely beside himself. It had been years since the first time he heard about the existence of a document said to prove that Stalin, not Hitler, bore the main responsibility for World War II, and for years he had searched for it with all his skills as a professional detective. Shauli's last position was as Commander Shauli, Representative of the Israel Police in Russia. Previous to that he had been head of the police fraud investigation unit for the Southern District.

A few years ago Shauli read "Icebreaker: Who Started the Second World War," by Bogdan Rozen. Rozen, who now lives in England, wrote it under the pseudonym of Viktor Suvorov. Shauli, impressed by the book, translated it into Hebrew and saw to its publication here.

From out of the sea of details, a coherent thesis emerges: Stalin dragged Hitler into war to force Europe into chaos and facilitate a communist revolution on the continent. According to Shauli, there is evidence to back up this theory, including a speech by Stalin himself as well as a report obtained by the U.S. Consulate in Prague. The report has been mentioned here and there over the years, but it has never been published, because no one knows where it is today. ... Full story

Editor's note: African poverty is deep and persistent. One thing that is urgently needed to escape this, as the article below suggests, is the export of finished products, not raw materials, a policy advocated by Proutist Universal. Government officials in Uganda would do well to fund projects that aim at establishing this kind of value-added industry. Otherwise, wealthy nations will continue to grow wealthier at African expense.

By Alexis Okeowo

KAMPALA (IPS) - Coffee producers in Uganda suffer from an unfair trade relationship with Europe, even though their beans produce some of the best quality coffee in the world, says the Ugandan coffee industry's governing body.

''The biggest loser is the person directly involved in coffee bean production," says Henry Ngabirano, director of the Uganda Coffee Development Authority. Moreover, Ugandan producers get an "unequal share of the revenue generated by coffee beans".

Combined, Ugandan growers and exporters receive 6 percent of the finished product's price, according to the Uganda Coffee Development Authority. "This shows what level of exploitation there is," Ngabirano says. ... Full story

Demands for a tariff begin in the U.S. By Patrick J. Buchanan

"After 34 years with LTV Steel, I was forced to retire because of a disability. Two years later, LTV filed bankruptcy. I lost a third of my pension, and my family lost their health care. Every day of my life, I sit at the kitchen table across from the woman who devoted 36 years of her life to my family, and I can't afford to pay for her health care. What's wrong with America, and what will you do to change it?"

It was the most compelling moment of the Democratic [Party] debate.... The speaker was retired steelworker Steve Skvara. He stood on crutches, voice breaking, as he spoke.

There are millions of Steve Skvaras out there, and what they do not know, in their anger and frustration, is that their government did this to them. They are the victims of an ideology that gripped both parties and is destroying the middle-class country they grew up in.

Before World War II, the United State sheltered, nurtured and aided U.S. industry-until, by 1928, we produced 40 percent of the world's manufactures. The companies we created, U.S. Steel and Jones and Laughlin, GM, Chrysler and Ford, Boeing, McDonnell and Lockheed, IBM and GE, were marvels of the modern age.

We were the most self-sufficient nation in history, and American industrial workers the best-paid on earth. The companies they worked for had begun to guarantee lifetime job security, generous pensions for retirees and health insurance for all workers.

Came then the free-trade fanatics with their Faustian bargain. ... Full story

Editor's note: Though Taiwan has struggled to maintain its independence from mainland China, support for its recognition as a sovereign nation is limited. The reunion of Taiwan and China should not occur, however, until communism on the mainland has been eliminated. "Reunification yes, communism no" would be an appropriate slogan.

By Raul Gutierrez

SAN SALVADOR (IPS) - The president of Taiwan, Chen Shui-bian, is visiting Central America, fearful of losing more allies in the region, as occurred with Costa Rica which broke off diplomatic relations with Taiwan in order to reestablish them with China.

Chen's visit, which brought him to El Salvador this Friday, reflects Taiwan's interest in reinforcing the ties it has had for decades with this region, which are now beginning to fray as trade with China increases, analysts say.

"Their diplomatic moves show the anxiety (of the Taiwanese) after Costa Rica's volte-face" on Jun. 6, political scientist and expert on international politics Napoleón Campos told IPS.

Central American and many Caribbean countries are, in fact, almost the last international backers that Taiwan, regarded by China as a renegade province, has had over the past two decades, he said. ... Full story

"Other reforms would create new types of property to be managed by cooperatives, give neighborhood-based "communal councils" administrative responsibilities usually reserved for elected officials and create "a popular militia" that would form part of the military. The workday would also be reduced to six hours."

By CHRISTOPHER TOOTHAKER, Associated Press Writer CARACAS, Venezuela - Venezuela's National Assembly, dominated by allies of President Hugo Chavez, gave unanimous initial approval Tuesday to constitutional reforms that would allow him to run for re-election and possibly govern for decades to come.

Assembly President Cilia Flores said Chavez's proposed changes to the constitution, including the lifting of presidential term limits, were approved by all 167 lawmakers after about six hours of debate.

Final approval is expected within two or three months, and voters will then decide whether to approve the changes in a referendum.....Full story

By Marwaan Macan-Markar

BANGKOK (IPS) - As they makes half-hearted attempts to restore democracy in Thailand, the country's elites that profited most from last September's coup are in two minds about the role of elections and public participation in the future.

Thai democracy can do without either goes the thinking among a section of the country's political leadership, sections of academia and even the judiciary -- members of which were hand-picked by the junta that staged the country's 18th coup with plans to redraw its political map.

This oligarchy is leaving no room for doubt as to who it has in mind in attempting to erect this wall of exclusion -- the rural poor. Anti-poor and anti-election rhetoric is visible in the newly released draft of the country's 18th constitution and the arguments that support it. ... Full story

By Joyce Mulama

NAIROBI (IPS) - Members of the media in Kenya took to the streets Wednesday in a silent protest against a law that would compromise press freedom by forcing them to divulge sources. Passed by parliament earlier this month, the Media Council of Kenya Bill is now awaiting presidential assent.

A clause in the new legislation states that "When a story includes unnamed parties who are not disclosed and the same become the subject of a legal tussle as to who is meant, then the editor shall be obligated to disclose the identity of the party or parties referred to."

Their mouths gagged with tape and cloth to symbolise the ultimate effects of the law, journalists in their hundreds marched to the office of Attorney General Amos Wako and to parliament in the capital, Nairobi, to present a petition urging head of state Mwai Kibaki not to sign the bill into law. ... Full story

"Russia will be inhabited by only 40 million people in the next 40 years, down from the current 143 million, if it does not adopt a policy to preserve natives in their regions.'

By Ali Nassor Special to The St. Petersburg Times

Demographers have provided dire statistics depicting a sharp decline in Russia's population in the next few decades - and said that St. Petersburg, which loses an average of 70 people every day and has the lowest birth rate in the nation, could be hit hardest.

According to the St. Petersburg Civil Registry Committee, an average of 130 children are born in the city every day but the daily mortality rate is just over 200.

However, the International Institute for Strategic Studies maintains that St. Petersburg's leading position in Russia's population decline has been exaggerated, reporting worse figures in the neighboring regions of Lenoblast, Novgorod and Pskov with annual demographic decline there ranging between 1.21 percent and 1.5 percent, while St. Petersburg is experiencing a less than 1 percent annual slump.

Dmitry Dubrovsky, head of modern ethnology and inter-ethnic relations at St. Petersburg's Russian Museum of Ethnography, said the forecast demographic catastrophe has nothing to do with Moscow and St. Petersburg, "because these cities as a rule are attractive spots for both internal and foreign migrants, ready to cover any demographic gap."

But "the real concern in Russia's official circles is about an extinction of Russians as a race, rather than population decline in its traditional sense," says Dubrovsky, adding that it was one of the factors that prompted President Vladimir Putin last year to adopt a special policy aimed at "calling ethnic Russians abroad back home, but restricting migration for other nationalities." ... Full story