Tonight Friday Sep. 30th will be the last daily broadcast of "Gimme Shelter Radio". After tonight Gimme Shelter Radio will be heard once a week every Wednesday night at 11pm EST.
All of the shows will be live and will also be recorded for "on demand" listening.
In the event of a special breaking news day event Gimme Shelter Radio will host a special broadcast to address the situation or event as needed.
By subcribing as a listener to Gimme Shelter Radio (free of charge) you will be sent an e-mail by Blog Talk Radio in the event of any emergency broadcast of "Gimme Shelter Radio"...
“Our orientation now is towards developing the economy and investment and to rapidly grow in different domains,” Maliki went on saying.
29/09/2011
Maliki: American forces’ presence ends by end of this year
Baghdad, Prime Minister, Nouri Al Maliki, said “presence of the US forces is decided; it will end by end of this year, all according to what has been agreed upon.”
Maliki stressed during an interview with a satellite channel, which will be aired later, “there will not be any presence of any foreign soldier, the presence of experts and trainers and purchasing weapons is normal thing and is followed all over the world.”
He continued “today, everyone is working on solving problems, and resorting to constitution to do so. The most important thing is that everyone discovered that everyone should live and run the state.”
“Our orientation now is towards developing the economy and investment and to rapidly grow in different domains,” Maliki went on saying.
He pointed out that “Iraq managed to become a democratic state that enjoys free politics and media; it is witnessing today movement in political, economic, and social domains after the stability that took place in security.”
Iraq officially ends the opening of the market requirements of Arbil Stock Exchange
Announced the head of the Iraq Stock Exchange on Friday, for the end of the formal requisites of the opening market of Arbil Stock Exchange.
Abd al-Razzaq al-Saadi told the Kurdish news agency (Rn) that "the Securities Commission ended Legal requirements and technical to start a market Arbil Stock Exchange specifications international.
He pointed out that the "market Arbil Trading Financial will begin the actual work after the completion of the Kurdistan Regional Government the electronic link with the Baghdad Stock Exchange Central, which will actually few days." and gave the Securities Commission of Iraq March / March, two licenses for the opening of the financial market in Erbil and Basra.
He said Saadi, "Iraq does not need to open more markets, electronic finance, because there is a tendency in the world to reduce market and integrate them." began to Iraq Stock Exchange activity in 2004, and shifted from manual trading to the use of screens handle electronic in 2009 and opened for trading two hours a day five days a week.
The banking sector is the largest in the exchange, which also includes the shares of industrial companies, insurance companies, hotels and agricultural companies. The total value of shares listed on the Stock Exchange about three billion dollars.
Japan's Mizuho Corporate Bank on Friday said it would buy a 15 percent stake in Vietnam's largest bank by market capitalisation to take advantage of economic growth in the Southeast Asian nation.
Mizuho Corporate (MHCB) signed the deal, worth about $567 million, with the Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (Vietcombank) in Hanoi.
"As a result, MHCB will be Vietcombank's largest private shareholder and only next to the government of Vietnam," the Japanese institution said in a statement, adding that Vietcombank had total assets of more than $16 billion as of June 30.
The Japanese bank said Vietnam and its neighbours had high growth potential, giving "expectation of widening business opportunities for Japanese corporations going forward in Vietnam, as large-scale infrastructure projects progress and markets expand".
Several other overseas financial institutions hold strategic stakes in Vietnamese banks.
"We think Vietnamese banks require more capital than would be the case for those in most other Asian countries due to a more volatile and challenging operating environment, high loan growth and under-provisioning," Moody's Investors Service said in a report this month.
Analysts have expressed concern that the amount of bad loans held by Vietnamese banks is higher than officially reported, and that the country's struggling smaller financial institutions should be consolidated.
September 30, 2011 Iraq: the law was passed across the national oil company until the ratification of the oil and gas law
Baghdad, A member of the parliamentary oil and energy, said Friday that his committee decided to postpone the adoption of a law the national oil company until the passage of a law of oil and gas.
Said Furat al-Shara told the Kurdish news agency (Rn) that "the Commission on oil and energy parliamentary law firm decided to withdraw the national oil until the oil law and the gas form of political support the country's oil."
He added that the "law of the national company will be talking about as the Oil Ministry, which is still object to some of the paragraphs which it believed it did confuse Taakedtha on the last three licensing rounds."
He explained that "the oil and gas committee has asked the Presidency of the parliament not to include the law of the national oil company on its agenda to read it a second reading during the month of October as planned."
And ended with the oil and energy parliamentary study of the development of an integrated national oil company
And given to the parliamentary energy commission, the national oil company has oversight over oil resources and oil projects Altfeselh follow-up after the oil ministry in accordance with law regulating its work
The oil ministry has declared the month of September / September last year that crude oil inventories in the country was 505 billion barrels of discovered fields that $ 66 oil fields, with total recoverable reserves of 143 billion barrels of oil.
Plans to increase Iraq's oil exports during the next six years to 12 million barrels per day after obtaining the approval of the international oil (OPEC)
Bayati meet political official at the U.S. Embassy
His MP Abbas al-Bayati, a member of the National Alliance on Wednesday 28/9/2011 brief summary of Mr. and Mrs. Joshua Harris Samreen Mirza of the Political Department at the U.S. Embassy. Bayati said in this meeting the importance of aircraft deal F-16 and they need a strategy and defense is necessary and urgent to Iraq under the construction of its air force, defense, and praised the role of the U.S. Administration to assist in the completion of this transaction, it will enhance the military capability of Iraq to ensure the effective protection of our air, and that aircraft with high specifications and sophisticated.
The al-Bayati, there is no disagreement between the political blocs on the need for trainers as well as there is considerable disagreement about the number, but the node in the issue of immunity, and wished to reach the political leadership which will meet soon in the Office of the President on his return from New York to a common understanding and vision of a unified national in question trainers and their protection is far from the political blackmail and the use of This paper pressure by the parties against the other.
The al-Bayati, the keenness of the National Alliance on dialogue with the Kurds and Iraqi forces to reach a consensus within the framework of the constitution and a committee was formed for that purpose to meet with our brothers the Kurds and the openness to the other blocks, and that political differences are not for everyone but is in damage to everyone and shake their image before the people and undermine their credibility ..
Bayati concluded that there are outside parties want to destabilize the security and political stability in the country and Nukhayb terrorist incident and the recent bombings in Karbala came under the direction and plan. Office of the Attorney Abbas al-Bayati, 29/9/2011
The Iraqi ambassador to Algeria, Uday Khair Allah, told reporters Wednesday that the Algerian government has decided to forgive all Iraq’s debt to this country and invited all Arab and world countries to follow Algeria’s footsteps.
Iraq’s debt to Algeria was estimated at $400 million. The amount included $167 million in unpaid interests and over $91 million in payment delay fines.
The ambassador said that many Arab nations are reluctant to forgive Iraq’s debts to and asked them to follow the Algerian example. He emphasized that Iraq should contact all countries it owes money to and request a write-off.
Iraq’s total government debt in 2010 was estimated at $92.3 billion according to Iraq’s Central Bank as it is announced on its website which includes 4.6.6 billion domestic debt. The CBI says that in 2003 after the fall of the previous regime in that country, the debt level was at $130 to $140 billion.
The bank says reducing the debt has been a priority for the government and debt relief negotiations have led to the cancelation of a significant amount of Iraq’s external debt.
Iraq’s Central Bank categorizes this country’s debt as that of Paris Club bilateral debt ($42.5 billion), Non-Paris Club bilateral debt ($67.4 billion), Commercial debt ($20 billion), Multilateral debt ($0.5 billion).
Bank say’s Iraq expects to receive no more than 80 percent cancelation from its creditors. Iraq continues to negotiations with mainly Gulf countries for more cancelation of Iraq’s debt, says the bank on its website.
Biden vowed to ensure the security of Kuwait after the withdrawal from Iraq
Neighbourhood: - praised the Kuwaiti ambassador to Washington Sheikh Salem Al-Sabah, the results of the talks held by Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Al-Mohammad last night with Vice President Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton, Secretary of State and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, U.S. Army Michael Mullen.
The new U.S. Vice President U.S. commitment to the security of the Gulf and America's partners in the region.
A press release said the White House that U.S. Vice-President and Prime Minister of Kuwait in search of a range of regional issues, political and security, including the changes that take place in the region, due to the spring of the Arab, and the importance of resolving outstanding issues between Kuwait and Iraq.
They also stressed - in the light of the twentieth anniversary of the liberation of Kuwait this year - the fixed long-term relations between their countries, and expressed pride in the strength of their bilateral relations.
He said the Kuwaiti Ambassador to the Prime Minister discussed a number of topics of common interest with Biden, especially bilateral relations, as said Biden, the U.S. commitment to the security of Kuwait in particular, and the security of the Gulf region in general, something that was appreciated and commended by the Prime Minister.
And Sheikh Salem Al-Sabah said that HH the Prime Minister raised with Biden's file Kuwaiti detainees in Guantanamo, Fawzi al-Odah and Faiz al-Kandari, explaining to him the great importance of this issue for the Kuwait government and people, and asked him to make every effort to release, indicating that the Vice President promised to His Highness the Prime Minister to give serious consideration to this file.
Sheikh Salem said that there is correspondence in full conformity to the overall issues that were discussed, noting that the two sides discussed the issue of the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.
He stressed that the Prime Minister was keen to raise this issue with Biden, being the first official in the administration for the Iraq dossier.
He said the Kuwaiti ambassador said that Biden's commitment to the security of the United States of Kuwait, and the security of the region in the wake of that withdrawal.
He noted that the two sides discussed a number of regional issues of common interest, confirming the presence of mismatch in views between the two parties fully.
To meet Hillary - Ambassador Sheikh Salem after meeting his with Clinton that «the dialogue between the two sides revolved around a number of bilateral issues and regional and international issues of common interest», adding that the Prime Minister discussed with U.S. Secretary of State issue of the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq, and developments in the Arab world The so-called Arab spring.
Sheikh Salem said that the Prime Minister discussed with Clinton one of our detainees at Guantanamo «and told her it was a popular cause major priority of the political leadership in Kuwait».
He added that the Kuwaiti ambassador Kuwaiti detainees in Guantanamo, Fawzi al-Odah and Faiz al-Kandari two of the people of Kuwait», pointing out that His Highness the Prime Minister asked that Clinton is doing its best to release them.
He stressed that «His Highness the Prime Minister expressed to Secretary of State of Kuwait is ready to provide all the guarantees required by the U.S. side, to reassure them that these detainees did not pose a future threat to the United States, which is a key concern to the United States».
Head of government: the U.S. troop presence in Iraq is settled
Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki that Iraq was able to be a democratic state, which enjoys freedom of politics and media, which is undergoing a movement in the political, economic and social stability after what happened on the security side.
This came during an interview with al-Maliki Al-Manar TV, and the full interview will be broadcast at a later time determined by the channel.
The Prime Minister emphasized that the presence of U.S. troops is settled, will end at the end of this year, according to what has been agreed upon, there will be no presence of any foreign troops, and the question of the existence of experts and trainers with the purchase of weapons, it is normal and is applied universally.
Maliki said: Today, all working to solve problems, and refer the matter to the Constitution, it is important that everyone discovered that he can not live and the state administration but by all parties.
The Prime Minister added: We went towards the development of the economy has become the best investment of wealth and its fair distribution, and promotion and development rapidly in various fields.
Snip ~ Influenced by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, the Iraq government is phasing in an increased capitalization requirement for all banks.
9/26/2011
Iraq's private banks setting growth records, attracting foreign investors A resurgent oil economy, projected GDP growth at more than 12 per cent and a record level of foreign investment point to signs that the private banking industry in Iraq is looking at substantial growth, a new report on Iraqi banking says.
The analysis, conducted by Ahmad Saleh, senior research analyst at IraqiXchange, also indicates that for the first time in the modern era, bank deposits in Iraq accounted for more than half of the money supply.
"Iraq's economy is growing out of its wartime difficulties quickly and transitioning from a centralized economy to one that is market-based," says Saleh, an Iraq native and veteran North American banking analyst.
"With credit accounting for more than one-third of bank revenue and deposits at record levels, our analysis identifies attractive and specific investment opportunities in the Iraqi banking sector," Saleh says.
HSBC of London, Qatar National Bank and National Bank of Kuwait are among those with stakes in Iraqi banks, and more financial institutions are following.
The Middle East and Africa banking sector is second only to Asia's in growth potential, according to the 2011 Barclays Corporate Global Banking Survey of 200 top banking and insurance services executives.
Influenced by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, the Iraq government is phasing in an increased capitalization requirement for all banks.
"The hope," Emirates Bank investment strategist Irfan Chaudhry tells IraqXchange, "is that new capital requirements will bring consolidation, increased investment and more interest from foreign banks."
At least 18 people were killed when a large car bomb exploded among mourners crowding into a Shi'ite funeral in Iraq's Hilla city on Friday, local authorities and witnesses said.
The blast left burned bodies and damaged vehicles near a Shi'ite mosque where relatives had gathered in a tent for the funeral of a local sheikh, witnesses said. Ambulances ferried three or four people at a time from the scene.
"I was standing on the other side of the funeral tent, and suddenly the place turned into hell, all my relatives were cut down and their bodies were burned," said Haider Qahtan, 37, whose hand was injured in the blast.
At least 18 people were killed and 48 more wounded, a police official at the scene said.
Hilla, 100 km south of Baghdad, is a mainly Shi'ite city on a route used by pilgrims visiting Shi'ite holy sites in the south of the country.
Violence in Iraq has eased since the sectarian strife took the country to the brink of civil war a few years after the U.S. invasion. But Sunni Islamists tied to al Qaeda and Shi'ite militias still carry out daily attacks.
Sunni insurgents often target Shi'ite pilgrims with car bombs and suicide attacks in an attempt to rekindle sectarian tensions and test Iraq's government as the last U.S. troops prepare to withdraw by the end of the year.
Recent attacks and incidents in the Sunni heartland of Anbar in western Iraq and in the Shi'ite holy city of Kerbala have fueled worries of resurgent sectarian violence.
Israeli air force hits Gaza following rocket launch
• Night-time raid was made on Hamas military base • Israeli officials confirmed missile strike • Strike was in response to rocket fire from strip
The Israeli air force carried out a night-time raid on a Hamas military installation Thursday following rocket fire from the Gaza Strip.
Two rockets were fired into Israel on Thursday, Palestinian Authority and Hamas officials confirmed, while a statement from the Israeli Defence Forces claimed that one such rocket had struck an abandoned building.
The statement added that Israeli jets were scrambled in response and a “direct hit was confirmed” on a “terror activity site” in the central Gaza Strip.
The alleged Hamas military base was located east of the al-Maghazi refugee camp, although medical personnel in the area have confirmed there were no related civilian injuries or deaths.
The rocket attack and retaliatory missile strike comes at an extremely sensitive time in the history of Israeli-Palestinian relations as the occupied territory seeks full UN membership and recognition of statehood.
The effort, which has been bogged down by bureaucracy in the United Nations, has enflamed passions and tension between Palestinians and Israeli settlers and led to clashes and several deaths on both sides.
The situation was compounded when Israel announced the expansion of a settler development in East Jerusalem, a move which was criticised by major allies, including the US, UK and European Union.
Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territories are illegal under international law, but Israel refutes the ruling.
Hamas, the group which controls the blockaded Gaza Strip, has criticised the Palestinian Authority's move at the UN, saying that neither negotiations nor UN resolutions can give the Palestinians what they want.
It is unclear whether the latest rocket launch into Israel was an attempt to derail the Palestinian Authority's efforts.
Oil output remains around 2.7m b/d and should rise by over 15% in 2011 overall. And with oil prices surging by almost 40% this year, oil revenues are booming, in turn driving heavy state spending. GDP growth is still seen accelerating sharply to about 10% this year from just 1% in 2010.
Ambitious official projections for oil output are being revised lower, with government now talking of 8m b/d by 2017 rather than 12m b/d. But further rises in output, to about 2.9m b/d in 2012 and 3.1m b/d in 2013, will underpin solid growth in the next few years, albeit slowing from this year's pace. State spending on construction and infrastructure will remain high, but security concerns, persistent electricity shortages, banking sector weaknesses, legal uncertainties and a lack of foreign investor confidence will continue to hamper the revival of private sector activity.
Core inflation has risen this year, to 7.6% in August from 3.3% at end 2010, but this largely reflects higher energy and food costs. We expect the rate to ease back in the coming months and to average around 6% both this year and in 2012. A small current account surplus is expected this year as exports rise by over 45%, driven by higher oil output and the forecast 39% rise in the average world oil price. But lower oil prices and higher imports may bring a return to deficit in 2012. Strong revenues could also yield a small budget surplus this year, as spending falls behind schedule.
In the following video interview, former UNAMI chief Ad Melkert (2009-2011) recounts how the United Nations supported dialogue over boundary issues and assisted Iraqi politicians to find a compromise on the electoral law that laid the ground for peaceful elections in 2009
Tehran, Iraqi Parliament Speaker Osama Nujaifi is expected to visit Tehran on Friday at the head of a high-ranking delegation to meet with Iranian officials and discuss different aspects of bilateral relations.
"Today (Friday) Iraqi Parliament Speaker Osama Nujaifi will arrive in Tehran at the head of a high-ranking delegation," Head of the Iraqi parliament's Information Office Mohammad Abubakr told FNA.
Abubakr reiterated that the Iraqi speaker is due to meet with his Iranian counterpart Ali Larijani and other Iranian officials during his three-day stay in the country to confer on the further expansion of relations between the two neighbors and the recent incidents at the two countries' common borders.
Iran and Iraq's shared borderline has recently been the scene of conflicts between the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) and the Iraq-based PJAK terrorist group.
A senior commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps said yesterday that the IRGC's successful military operation against the PJAK has forced the terrorist group to accept Iran's terms and withdraw from the Iranian soil.
"Last week, the grouplet helplessly held up its hands and surrendered and withdrew from the Jasosan heights, a place that they called their pride and honor," Lieutenant of the IRGC Ground Force General Abdollah Araqi said on Thursday.
He added that the group accepted to retreat to areas one kilometer behind Iran's borderline with Iraq and avoid conducting military activities on Iranian soil and recruiting Iranian nationals.
Araqi announced that the Iranian forces had killed 180 militias and wounded 300 others during the recent operations, and said Iranian forces are now stationed in the heights and are building bunkers.
PJAK, a militant Kurdish nationalist group with bases in the mountainous regions of Northern Iraq, has been carrying out numerous attacks in Western Iran, Southern Turkey and the Northeastern parts of Syria where Kurdish populations live.
The separatist group has been fighting to establish an autonomous state, or possibly a new world country, in the area after separating Kurdish regions from Iran, Iraq, Turkey and Syria.
Iranian intelligence and security officials have repeatedly complained that Washington provides military support and logistical aids for such anti-Iran terrorist groups.
(articles coming out today seem to be putting the pressure on Iraq to get "something" done ... what that "something" is, remains to be seen .. imo, it would be the U.S. Troops and the Status of Forces Agreement .. U.S. wants to stay in Iraq .. possibly under the title of a "Training of Forces Agreement", maybe when this agreement is signed, they will have completed all chapter 7 sanction mandates and they can move on) jmo ... September 30, 2011
Failing Oversight: Iraq’s Unchecked Government
Spreading corruption threatens to undermine the significant progress Iraq has made toward reducing violence and strengthening state institutions.
Failing Oversight: Iraq’s Unchecked Government , the latest report from the International Crisis Group, examines the steady erosion of the credibility of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s government resulting from the failure to safeguard institutions against corruption and abuse. This, along with the related problems of service delivery, constitutes a serious threat to the legitimacy of state institutions and is giving strong ammunition to Maliki’s critics.
“The revolutions that have spread throughout the Middle East and North Africa since December have given new impetus and a sense of urgency to the call for better governance in Iraq”, warns Joost Hiltermann, Crisis Group’s Middle East and North Africa Deputy Program Director. “To bolster its faltering legitimacy, Maliki’s government will have to launch a vigorous anti-corruption campaign, improve service delivery and create checks and balances in the state system”.
As violence spread following the 2003 U.S. invasion, and in an environment of escalating kidnappings, explosions and assassinations, public services were thoroughly devastated, and Iraq witnessed an explosive and alarming rise in corruption.
Longstanding projects were abandoned overnight, and judges and parliamentarians were targeted. Oversight agencies, which should have been less exposed to risk because of their lack of direct contact with the general population, were forced to roll back their operations, leaving state institutions without effective safeguards against corruption or abuse.
As a result, state output declined dramatically for a number of years, even as the annual budget steadily increased due to elevated oil prices. The state’s paralysis contributed to the proliferation of graft, nepotism and other criminal activity throughout the bureaucracy.
In order to strengthen its credibility, the government and the Council of Representatives should develop an anti-corruption framework that will allow for greater and more effective cooperation and coordination between the various state institutions.
Likewise, reforms of the Council of Representatives, the most important body in the new oversight framework, have to facilitate the formulation of legislative bills and accelerate the lawmaking process.
In addition, political parties’ independence should be reinforced by introducing binding financial transparency legislation.
The U.S. and other members of the international community should encourage these changes and offer immediate and direct support, while publicly expressing disapproval of the government’s resistance to long-overdue legislation designed to repair the damage caused to state institutions since 2003.
“Until these and other actions are taken, the government will continue to operate virtually unchecked, bringing with it the type of chronic abuse, rampant corruption and growing authoritarianism that is the inevitable result of failing oversight”, says Robert Malley, Crisis Group’s Middle East and North Africa Program Director. “The types of reform Iraqis are demanding are achievable, but they require unity of vision and good faith – qualities desperately lacking today”.
Gimme Shelter Radio is the nightly live radio program of the private "Gimme Shelter" forum hosted by Phoenix. Show topics cover the global current events impacting us all. The live show airs nightly at 11pm EST. All past shows are on-demand.
Snip ~ She added that the new tax tariff will be compatible with economic policy and objectives, and must be approved by the World Trade Organization, because Iraq is close to joining the organization ...
September 29, 2011
Iraq studying tax reform and the allocation of corporate
Baghdad - Naseer Goldfinch - Dar Al-Hayat,
The Economic Commission decided to entrust the Iraqi High Economic Advisers to the Prime Minister to prepare a paper tax reform in the country, the adoption of the systems in place in developed countries, in addition to starting a project to allocate state-owned companies , central reservations close to the government for fear of turning the ownership of these companies to be in force.
The Commission on Economic Affairs in a meeting chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Rosnora Shaways and the membership of the ministers of planning, trade and industry and minerals, agriculture, and the President of the National Investment Commission, mandated the advisers in the Office of the Prime Minister delivered a paper tax reform «a way as to simplify procedures and avoid the red tape, in coordination with the ministries of trade and money.
And confirmed the economic adviser of the Council of Minister Salam Sumaisem told «life», that the paper the new tax reform will focus on the preparation of instructions for the tax systems on the basis of a modern and in the form reflects the view of the state, its economic and social.
She added that the new tax tariff will be compatible with economic policy and objectives, and must be approved by the World Trade Organization, because Iraq is close to joining the organization. She added that the Iraqi Planning Ministry asserts that the rate of per capita income in Iraqs 500 thousand Iraqi dinars (410 dollars)», pointing out that 40 percent of the income of the Iraqi family is allocated to secure the energy sources of fuel, electricity and other.
The decision of the Finance Committee parliamentary deputy Ahmad electrodes for the «life», that the Iraqi tax system is backward and traditional, adding that «this system is supported for decades. In regard to the powers of government in the preparation of tax system and work on it, said electrodes that the adoption of the new tax system needs to legislate a new law eliminates the previous laws, and this is the responsibility of the Finance Committee in Parliament, which will raise their paper tax reform through the Higher Economic Committee, for consideration and then presented for approval into law a new Parliament.
He stressed that the plan will examine the impact of the proposed tax on the citzen, and positive and negative impacts in the economy of the country as a whole, and will reject the Parliament any new legislation detrimental to the interests of the citizen, who still needs more support.
In the framework of meetings of the Economic Commission Higher chaired the technical agent of the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs Hassan Rashid Dara Iraqi Special Meeting of the road map for restructuring public companies owned by the ministries, to discuss the form the comprehensive survey to employees of companies.
Smeisim explained: We fear the allocation of companies to transfer ownership to the influential people, and that means the destruction of the productive sector of the country. Increased: We hope the application of advanced experiences of countries such as France, by offering the shares of each company to the employees of the company's first, and then in the market for securities Iraq.
For Immediate Release September 29, 2011 Readout of Vice President Biden's Meeting with Prime Minister Al-Sabah of Kuwait
Vice President Biden met today with Prime Minister Nasir Al-Muhammad Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah of Kuwait at the White House. They discussed a range of regional, political and security matters, including the changes underway in the region as a result of the Arab Spring, and the importance of resolving outstanding issues between Kuwait and Iraq. Noting that this year marks the 20th anniversary of the liberation of Kuwait, the Prime Minister and Vice President stressed the enduring ties between our two countries, and expressed their appreciation for the strength of the bilateral relationship. The Vice President also reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to the security of the region and of our partners. link
UNITED NATIONS - The UN Security Council on Wednesday pushed back a decision on the Palestinian bid to join the United Nations in a move that will give more time to international efforts to revive direct talks.
But UN envoys for the two foes wrangled over who is to blame for the latest year-old negotiations deadlock, with diplomats warning both sides are hardening their positions.
The 15-member Security Council sent the bid made by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas last Friday to a special membership committee to give its verdict.
A full session of the council met for barely two minutes in the first public discussion of the bid that the US has vowed to veto when it comes to a vote.
“Unless I hear a proposal to the contrary I shall send the application of Palestine to the committee on new members,” said Lebanon’s UN ambassador Nawaf Salam, president of the council for September.
No comments were made and Salam hurriedly brought the gavel down to get the meeting over.
The membership committee, made up of all 15 council nations, will hold its first meeting on Friday.
US Vice President Joe Biden met at the White House with Kuwaiti Prime Minister Sheikh Nasser Mohammad al-Ahmad Al-Sabah for talks on the Arab Spring and the emirate's thorny ties with Iraq.
The pair discussed a range of issues, "including the changes underway in the region as a result of the Arab Spring, and the importance of resolving outstanding issues between Kuwait and Iraq," the White House said on Thursday.
They "stressed the enduring ties" between the two countries, 20 years after US troops helped to liberate Kuwait following the 1990 invasion by the regime of former Iraqi strongman Saddam Hussein, which sparked the Gulf War.
Iraq is still paying war reparations to oil-rich Kuwait.
Snip ~ A delegation of Kurdish politicians is expected to visit Baghdad next week for further negotiations, according to the London-based Arabic Sharq al-Awast newspaper. The visit had been delayed when the tensions escalated two weeks ago ...
September 28, 2011
Parliamentary Oil Commission close to agreement over new oil law
Baghdad - The parliamentary oil commission is currently studying three drafts for a new oil law, after a previous version was turned down by the Kurdistan Region's parliament
According to committee members, the committee agreed to 90% of the drafts, except to those articles that deals with the distribution of the oil wealth. The federal government in Baghdad wants to control the distribution, whereas the Kurdistan Region Government (KRG) in Erbil wants to manage its oil wealth independently.
"The federal government refers to the constitution and believes it may manage the oil wealth. The provinces refer to the Erbil Agreement and believe a joint agreement has to be made," said Committee Member Bahaa Hadi, member of the State of Law Coalition (SLC) of Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki.
The Erbil agreement, by which the political leaders agreed to form a national-partnership government, brought to an end the 9-month political impasse over the country's three key executive seats of power. It also stated that an agreement should be reached over a new oil law.
Najafi looking with Biden's withdrawal of U.S. troops from the country
Iraqi Council of Representatives announced Thursday, the search boss Osama Najafi withdrawal of U.S. forces end this year with U.S. Vice President Joe Biden. According to a statement issued by the Council of Representatives received a "Twilight News" a copy of that "House Speaker Osama Abdul Aziz Najafi discussed with Vice President Joe Biden, several important issues were the most prominent of the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq and the issue of training Iraqi forces," came during the receipt of a Nujaifi a phone call from Mr. Biden on Wednesday.
The statement added that the two parties in search of "the expected effects on the political and security situation of Iraq by the uprisings and popular revolts in the region."
Iraq is likely to buy more F-16s after the first 18
Baghdad, Iraq's decision to purchase 18 F-16 fighter jets will provide a "very robust capability" where now there is none and will allow the country to protect its airspace, the chief U.S. military spokesman in Iraq said Thursday.
But an Iraqi parliamentarian who sits on the defense oversight committee said the size of the order was so small as to be "ridiculous." Aides to Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki said a follow-up order for more of the planes, which Lockheed Martin makes at Fort Worth, Texas, is nearly certain.
The deal, worth $3 billion, was announced this week after Iraq, its treasury flush because of high oil prices, made a $1.4 billion down payment.
Ali Musawi, a spokesman for Maliki, said the 18 planes are "a first installment, and hopefully there will be another 18 to make a total of 36."
While the fighters will "enhance" Iraq's abilities to protect its airspace, land and waters, "they will not, by themselves, be enough, because our neighboring countries have a large number of fighter planes," Musawi said, referring to Turkey, Iran, Saudi Arabia and Syria. "So looking to Iraq's position in the region, having those planes is not much, but it is a beginning."
Iraq calls on the Government to declare its position on U.S. troops
Radio Sawa called the existing Iraqi government to declare its position on the issue of explicit U.S. troops stay after 2011 and not leave it stuck between the politicians and senior government leaders.
The adviser said the Iraqi Hani Ashour in a press release today that the leaks information about the existence of secret negotiations to extend the stay of U.S. forces under any title or refused to do so made the Iraqis in a quandary on the issue is linked to the fate of their country's future and sovereignty, he said.
Maliki confirms that Iraq today is a democratic country where the exercise of freedoms and move and see a development in all fields
An interview of the Prime Minister stresses that Iraq today is a democratic country where the exercise of freedoms and witness a movement and development in all areas, said Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki that Iraq was able to be a democratic state, which has a free policy and the media, which is undergoing a movement in the political, economic, social, after settling, which happened in the security aspect.
This came during an interview with the sovereignty of Al-Manar TV, and broadcast the interview in full later determined by the channel. And Mr. Prime Minister that the presence of U.S. troops is undecided , will end at the end of this year, according to what has been agreed upon, there will be no presence of any foreign troops, and the question of the existence of experts and trainers with the purchase of weapons, it is normal and is applied universally.
The sovereignty: today, all working to solve problems, and refer to the the matter to the Constitution, it is important that everyone discovered that he can not live and the state administration but by all parties. Mr Prime Minister: we went was to develop the economy and the best investment of wealth and its fair distribution, and promotion and development rapidly in various fields.
A majority of German lawmakers voted to approve an EU plan (DeutscheWelle) to increase the lending capacity of the eurozone's temporary bailout mechanism, the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), while expanding its powers to buy up government bonds on the secondary market. It was a political coup for German Chancellor Angela Merkel, who has faced significant dissent within her center-right coalition government over whether to provide a new bailout to indebted Greece.
The Finnish parliament (Guardian)a hotbed of euro skepticism--also approved the measure. Austria's parliament agreed to support EFSF expansion and is expected to ratify the agreement (WSJ) tomorrow. Six other European countries must still approve the measure before it can take effect. Slovakia, which will vote on the plan in mid- to late October, is considered the biggest obstacle (Bloomberg) to its enactment, though lawmakers indicated a compromise may be in sight.
Eurozone leaders hope that ratification of the expanded rescue mechanism will pave the way for a second Greek bailout that was agreed upon by EU leaders in July.
Even as the Greek government lobbies eurozone leaders for a second bailout, the Greek sovereign debt crisis has become unsustainable and a default is all but inevitable. Most economists think the question now is how to make the process orderly.
The euro is proving it can transform economies in a way that corresponds to shared European values, writes former European Commissioner Mario Monti in the Financial Times.
With fewer conservative renegades than feared, Merkel can breathe a sigh of relief. But with more difficult decisions approaching, the respite may not last, says Der Spiegel.
A workable deal to salvage the euro was precluded by disparate electorates being promised contradictory things, says the Guardian.
1. It would be a strategy designed to ease the burden of ALL debts — by simultaneously devaluing ALL currencies … and re-inflating ALL asset prices. The G-20may propose devaluing all currencies, including the U.S. dollar and the euro.
2. To end the Great Depression in 1933 Franklin Roosevelt devalued the dollar via Executive Order #6102, confiscating gold and raising its price 69.3%, effectively kick starting asset reflation.
3. They cease all gold sales and instead, raise the current official central bank price of gold from its booked value of $42.22 an ounce — to a price that monetizes a large enough portion of the world’s outstanding debts.
That way, just like in 1933, the debts become a fraction of re-inflated asset prices (led higher by the gold price). And this time, instead of staying with the dollar as a reserve currency, the G-20 issues three new monetary units of exchange, each with equal reserve status.
The three currencies will essentially be a new dollar, new euro, and a new pan-Asian currency. (The Chinese yuan may survive as a fourth currency, but it will be linked to a basket of the three new currencies.)
A. A new fixed-rate currency regime. Immediately upon upping the price of gold and introducing the new currencies, a new fixed exchange rate system would be re-introduced. The floating exchange rate system would be tossed into the dust bin along with the old currencies. This would kill any speculation about further devaluations in the currency markets, and drastically reduce market volatility.
B. To sell the program to savers and protect them from the currency devaluation, compensatory measures would be enacted. For instance, a one-time windfall tax-free deposit could be issued by governments directly to citizens’ accounts, or, to employer-sponsored pensions, to IRAs, or Social Security accounts.Income taxes may subsequently be raised to pay for the give-away, or a nominal global type of sales tax could be enacted to help pay for the new system and the compensatory measures.
C. Additional programs would be designed to protect lenders and creditors. Lenders stand a much higher chance of getting paid off under the new monetary system — but with a currency whose purchasing power would now be a fraction of what it was when the loans were originated.
The Big Question: What gold price would be legislated to reflate the U.S. and global economy?
I can’t tell you what gold price the G-20 would ultimately agree to. But here’s what they will be looking at …
To monetize 100% of the outstanding public and private sector debt in the U.S., the official government price of gold would have to be raised to about $53,000 per ounce.
To monetize 50%, the price of gold would have to be raised to around $26,500 an ounce.
To monetize 20% would require a gold price a hair over $10,600 an ounce.
To monetize just 10%, gold would have to be priced just over $5,300 an ounce.
Those figures are just based on the U.S. debt structure and do not factor in global debts gone bad. But since the U.S. is the world’s largest debtor and the epicenter of the crisis, the G-20 will likely base their final decision mostly on the U.S. debt structure. Read full article G20's Secret debt Solution @ link
____
2010-03-13
Germany considers Central Bank gold reserves for EMF BERLIN, Germany is considering the possibility of euro zone countries using their central banks' gold reserves to back a European Monetary Fund, German magazine Focus reported on Saturday.
The German Finance Ministry declined to comment on the report by Focus, which did not specify its sources.
"A proposal from the finance ministry suggests pooling the gold reserves of the former central banks of euro zone countries in a stabilisation fund," Focus wrote. According to Focus, Greece still has around 112 tonnes of gold, while the German Bundesbank has 3,407 tonnes with a market value of around 90 billion euros. German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble on Friday repeated his call for a fund which could, as a last resort, offer help to euro zone states facing bankruptcy. Greece is battling a debt crisis and EU policymakers have been debating ways of providing support for it and other troubled euro zone members. link
Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke on Wednesday signaled he is prepared to take more unconventional policy steps if the weak U.S. economy worsens too much.
Mr. Bernanke stressed that he is watching price trends very closely. "If inflation itself falls too low or inflation expectations fall too low, that would be something we'd have to respond to because we don't want deflation," Mr. Bernanke said in a question-and-answer session after a speech in Cleveland.
He didn't say he sees deflation -- or a debilitating decline in prices -- as a risk right now. Prices have actually been rising above the 2.0% comfort zone in recent months. Mr. Bernanke said inflation expectations currently indicate that price increases will average around 2% over the coming years, which is where the central bank wants to see them.
Highlighting his concern over the economy's weakness, however, Mr. Bernanke said the high unemployment rate was "a national crisis" that required attention from the White House and Congress.
"We've had close to 10% unemployment now for a number of years, and of the people who are unemployed, about 45% have been unemployed for six months or more. This is unheard of," Mr. Bernanke said.
He has shown a strong determination to do what is needed to fix a persistently weak economy. But while efforts taken to fight the financial crisis of 2008 were praised by most, the most recent steps to buy bonds to spur growth have drawn criticism from several quarters. Senior Republicans worry that future inflation is the real problem and that the central bank is only making it worse with its unorthodox moves.
He took more unconventional steps at its latest policy meeting last week. The central bank said Sept. 21 that it will sell $400 billion of its U.S. Treasury securities maturing in the next three years and replace them with longer-term bonds maturing in six to 30 years. The program is meant to drive down long-term interest rates to make borrowing cheaper. They also plan to halt the shrinkage of mortgage securities from its portfolio, a move directed at helping the housing sector.
In an apparent criticism of lawmakers in the U.S. and other developed countries, Mr. Bernanke said the nation has something to learn from the economic success story of China and other emerging-market countries.
Disciplined fiscal policies, the benefits of open trade and the need to encourage private capital formation were among the reasons the chief listed to explain the high growth rates experienced by China, India and other countries. Technological advances and education are also key factors that helped these countries perform better than the U.S. over the past decade.
"Advanced economies like the United States would do well to relearn some of the lessons from the experiences of the emerging-market economies," Mr. Bernanke said in a speech, part of the Cleveland Clinic's "Ideas for Tomorrow" series.
When talking about China, Mr. Bernanke is usually critical. He has repeatedly blasted the country for relying too much on exports for economic growth. He has warned that by keeping the value of its currency artificially low, the Asian country runs the risk of overheating its economy. This time, he shifted his focus.
While repeating his warning to China not to rely too much on trade for growth, Mr. Bernanke spent more time in his largely academic speech looking at the reasons behind the success story of China and other emerging countries.
Washington, Four Republican senators traveled to Libya on Thursday to meet with the nation's new rulers, the highest-profile American delegation to visit the country since the ouster of longtime leader Moammar Gadhafi.
The four lawmakers — John McCain of Arizona, Mark Kirk of Illinois, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Marco Rubio of Florida — planned to meet with members of the National Transitional Council, which is now governing Libya after the rebels forced Gadhafi from power. Gadhafi's whereabouts remain unknown, but the new leaders suspect he is hiding in the southern desert of the North African nation.
The senators, whose brief visit was largely shrouded in secrecy, also planned to tour Martyrs' Square and hold a news conference with reporters. They traveled from Malta, where they met with Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi on Wednesday.
After months of fighting, anti-Gadhafi forces seized control of Tripoli and much the country late last month. Battles still continue in three areas — Gadhafi's hometown of Sirte, Bani Walid and the southern city of Sabha.
The leaders of Britain, France and Turkey have visited Libya, and U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Jeffrey Feltman has traveled to Benghazi. But the congressional group was the most significant American presence as Libya begins a new chapter.
McCain, the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee, and panel member Graham had pressed President Barack Obama for U.S. military intervention in Libya, weeks before the U.N. Security Council voted in March to authorize military action to protect civilians and impose a no-fly zone. McCain had invoked the humanitarian disasters in Rwanda and Bosnia in the 1990s.
When other lawmakers criticized Obama for acting with limited congressional consultation, McCain, the 2008 Republican presidential nominee, defended the president.
In April, McCain traveled to Benghazi, where he called the rebels "patriots" and "heroes."
Rubio is a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Kirk serves on the Senate Appropriations subcommittee on foreign operations.
Snip ~ In a further development, IMF and European Central Bank officials will return to Greece today to assess whether the stricken country has done enough to rein in profligate spending - and thus deserves a further dose of a bail-out.
September 29, 2011 EU set to go ahead with £50bn Robin Hood tax
EUROPE will press ahead with plans to introduce a £50 billion "Robin Hood tax" on the continent's banks in the face of opposition from UK Chancellor George Osborne, as fresh uncertainty over the eurozone's debt rescue plan spooked markets once again.
Istanbul: Iraq, which loses $5 million a day by burning off associated gas, should speed up improvements so that it’s no longer one of the world’s biggest gas-flaring polluters, a World Bank official said.
Flaring of associated gas in Iraq has risen to 10 billion cubic metres a year from 3 billion in 1994 as the country increased oil production, putting it in fourth place behind Russia, Nigeria and Iran, according to Fabrice Mosneron Dupin, adviser at the Sustainable Energy, Oil, Gas and Mining Division of the World Bank-led Global Gas Flaring Reduction initiative.
“In the last two, three years it has increased by about 1 billion cubic meters per year, every year,” Dupin said on Tuesday in Istanbul, where he was attending Iraq 2011: Future Energy, a conference organised by The Energy Exchange.
The country will be able to alleviate the problem through a gas-capture agreement it’s due to sign with Royal Dutch Shell, he said. Captured associated gas can feed power stations in Iraq, where widespread shortages and rationing are hobbling the economy and reconstruction efforts.
Bank of America Deathwatch: $50 Billion Securities Fraud Suit Over Merrill Acquisition
If mortgage litigation and losses on second mortgages aren’t enough to put Bank of America in a terminally impaired state, the $50 billion private lawsuit filed earlier today represents another major blow.
In short form: when Bank of American bought Merrill, the suit claims failed to disclose $15.31 billion loss around the time of the acquisition. It further alleges that this loss was deliberately hidden to assure the deal would be approved by shareholders. The suit charges that senior executives, including the former CFO, Joseph Price, didn’t tell the general counsel, Timothy J. Mayopoulos, about the full extent of the losses. Mayopoulos had been told the losses were roughly $5 billion. He had initially wanted them to be presented, but later decided against it (one has to assume due to pressure from CEO Ken Lewis and others) because it was within the range of recent Merrill quarterly losses. He was told two days before the shareholder vote the losses would be $7 billion, but that was still in a range that investors would arguably expect. They were actually $11 billion the day of the vote. Four days later, at a board meeting, Mayopoulos found out about the larger loss figures and tried to meet with Price. Mayopoulos was fired the next day.
Tonight Friday Sep. 30th will be the last daily broadcast of "Gimme Shelter Radio". 
