31 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Source: Kyodo News

TOKYO, Aug. 31 — House of Representatives Speaker Yohei Kono on Sunday urged his Russian counterpart Boris Gryzlov to ‘’peacefully settle'’ the dispute between Russia and Georgia over the breakaway Georgian province of South Ossetia, Japanese officials said.

During a meeting with Kono in a Tokyo hotel, Gryzlov, who is visiting Japan to attend a conference of Group of Eight lower house speakers to be held in Hiroshima on Tuesday, said Western media reports on the issue are wrong, according to the officials. (more…)

Filed by Amadeus Domaradzki under East-West Relations and Russia

31 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Source: ITAR-TASS World Service

TOKYO, August 31 (Itar-Tass) — Speaker of the Russian State Duma Boris Gryzlov expressed readiness to describe the situation in South Ossetia to his G-8 colleagues at the summit of the heads of parliament lower houses of the leading industrialised nations, which will open on September 1.

He voiced this idea on Sunday at a meeting with his Japanese counterpart Yohei Kono, chairing the forum. (more…)

Filed by Amadeus Domaradzki under East-West Relations and Russia

31 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Author: Joshua Kurlantzick
• Source: The Boston Globe

JUST THREE YEARS ago, at the G-8 summit of industrialized nations, it looked like the world of foreign aid was about to change. As the 2005 conference ended, British Prime Minister Tony Blair ascended the steps of a resort in the quaint Scottish village of Gleneagles and announced that rich nations would double their aid to Africa by 2010, giving some $50 billion annually. “It is progress — real and achievable progress,” he concluded. (more…)

Filed by Amadeus Domaradzki under Development, Health and Infectious Disease

30 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Source: ITAR-TASS World Service

MOSCOW, August 30 (Itar-Tass) —— The G8 parliament summit will discuss the situation in South Ossetia and Abkhazia, State Duma Speaker Boris Gryzlov told reporters on Saturday. He will leave on Monday for Japan to participate in the seventh G8 head of parliament meeting. (more…)

Filed by Amadeus Domaradzki under East-West Relations and Russia

30 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Author: James Blitz
• Source: Financial Times

Strong words from the G7 do not signal a return to club’s old format, say James Blitz and Daniel Dombey

Russia has this week been the subject of relentless criticism from western governments over its actions in Georgia.

However, nothing conveyed the impression of the Kremlin’s international isolation more than the decision by the Group of Seven leading industrial nations to co-ordinate their attack on Moscow. (more…)

Filed by Amadeus Domaradzki under East-West Relations and Russia

29 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Author: Michael Mainville
• Source: Agence France Presse

Georgia on Friday broke diplomatic relations with Russia, heightening hostilities between the neighbours as Moscow also hit back at Western criticism.

Georgia announced the split three days after Russia formally recognised the Georgian breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent states.
(more…)

Filed by Anita Li under East-West Relations and Russia, Regional Security

28 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Source: Trend News Agency (Azerbaijan)

The world’s leading industrial nations on Wednesday condemned Russia’s actions in Georgia, underlining the country’s growing estrangement from the West.
(more…)

Filed by Anita Li under East-West Relations and Russia, Regional Security

28 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Source: Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) News

Four protesters sentenced over riots at the G20 summit in Melbourne in November 2006, have had their sentences reduced on appeal.
(more…)

Filed by Anita Li under Other

28 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Author: Toni Vorobyova
• Source: Reuters News

MOSCOW, Aug 28 (Reuters) - Russia wants to renegotiate a few current trade agreements, and is only ready to lower tariffs and liberalise trade after joining the World Trade Organisation, its top negotiator was quoted as saying on Thursday.
(more…)

Filed by Anita Li under Multilateral Trade, East-West Relations and Russia, Regional Security

28 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Author: Alexander Osipovich
• Source: Agence France Presse

Russia won support Thursday from China and Central Asian states in its standoff with the West over the Georgia conflict as the European Union said it was weighing sanctions against Moscow.
(more…)

Filed by Anita Li under East-West Relations and Russia, Regional Security

28 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Author: Seyfolreza Shahabi
• Source: BBC Monitoring Middle East

There is a proverb in Farsi saying that: “The rude thief will blame the host for the theft.” Israeli’ protest at Turkey on the visit by Iranian president to that Muslim country is the real example of the above-mentioned proverb. Tel Aviv and her western supporters believe Israel is informed about the diplomatic game at international as well as regional level and obliges herself to observe the recognized diplomatic principles. They accuse other independent countries of impoliteness in diplomatic relations while, contrary to the diplomatic norms, Tel Aviv permits herself to interfere in the domestic affairs of a big Muslim country in the Middle East and protest at the visit to Turkey by the president of a Muslim country. Tel Aviv has even taken a step further, and the ambassador of Tel Aviv in Ankara has submitted a letter from Israeli Foreign Ministry to the Turkish authorities. This is while two Muslim and neighbouring countries of Iran and Turkey have been on good terms and relations with each other from old times when Israel had not been yet conceived as the result of political intimacy of America and Britain.
(more…)

Filed by Anita Li under Regional Security, Conflict Prevention and Human Security

28 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Author: Alexander Osipovich, Alexander Osipovich

Russia on Thursday tested an inter-continental missile, heightening tensions with the West as France said the European Union could impose sanctions on Moscow over the Georgia conflict.
(more…)

Filed by Anita Li under Energy and Nuclear Safety, East-West Relations and Russia, Arms Control, Proliferation and WMD, Regional Security, Conflict Prevention and Human Security

28 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Author: PAUL AMES
• Source: Associated Press Newswires

BRUSSELS, Belgium (AP) - When it comes to action over Georgia, Russia has the European Union over a barrel. In fact, 1.2 million barrels.

That’s how much Russian crude is pumped westward every day down the Druzhba pipeline to fuel Europe’s economies.

This hard economic reality explains why Monday’s emergency EU summit will struggle to produce much more than a slap on the wrist for Russia, despite Europe’s exasperation over Moscow’s invasion of Georgia and backing for its two separatist regions to break away.
(more…)

Filed by Anita Li under Energy and Nuclear Safety, East-West Relations and Russia, Regional Security

28 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Source: Guardian Unlimited

The Russian prime minister, Vladimir Putin, claimed today the Caucasus crisis was started by the Americans as an election campaign ploy.
(more…)

Filed by Anita Li under East-West Relations and Russia, Regional Security

28 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Source: Nikkei Report

TOKYO (Nikkei)–With the dollar plunging and the global financial markets teetering on the brink of crisis in March, authorities in the U.S., Europe and Japan had crafted a contingency plan to jointly shore up the greenback, The Nikkei learned Wednesday.
(more…)

Filed by Anita Li under Global Financial Crises, Exchange Rate Management and Monetary Policy

28 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Source: Nikkei Report

TOKYO (Nikkei)–The tensions between Western countries and Russia over Moscow’s actions in Georgia will test Japan’s diplomatic finesse when it hosts a meeting of Group of Eight nations’ foreign ministers next month.
(more…)

Filed by Anita Li under Energy and Nuclear Safety, East-West Relations and Russia, Regional Security

28 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Source: Voice of America Press Releases and Documents

Russian President Dmitri Medvedev is asking his Asian allies Thursday for their support of Russia’s role in the Georgia crisis.
(more…)

Filed by Anita Li under East-West Relations and Russia, Regional Security

28 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Source: States News Service

The following information was released by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees:

UN refugee agency chief António Guterres today completed a three-day visit to Pakistan during which the government agreed to revise its Afghan repatriation strategy beyond 2009. Both parties also reached a strong consensus on projects to develop refugee-hosting areas in Pakistan.
(more…)

Filed by Anita Li under Development, Conflict Prevention and Human Security

27 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Author: RAPHAEL G. SATTER
• Source: Associated Press Newswires

The Group of Seven industrialized democracies condemned Russia on Wednesday for its actions in Georgia, underlining the country’s growing estrangement from the West. (more…)

Filed by Sarah Cale under East-West Relations and Russia, Conflict Prevention and Human Security

27 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Source: Korea Times

The Horn of Africa, the region that encompasses Ethiopia, Somalia, Djibouti and Eritrea, has in recent times hit the international news for all the wrong reasons. (more…)

Filed by Sarah Cale under Development

27 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Author: Ben Padley and Gavin Cordon
• Source: Press Association National Newswire

Britain tonight condemned Russia’s “excessive use of military force” in Georgia as Foreign Secretary David Miliband warned Russian president Dmitry Medvedev he had “big responsibility” not to provoke a new Cold War. (more…)

Filed by Sarah Cale under East-West Relations and Russia, Conflict Prevention and Human Security

26 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Source: The Statesman

Japan has been increasingly becoming a part of the toothless non-nuclear proliferation regime. Ever since the signing of the US-India nuclear deal on 18 May 2005 and resultant developments, Japan has been fast losing its grip over its cardinal principles of anti-nuclearisation adopted after the devastation of its cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by the nuclear bombs dropped by the US on 6 and 9 August 1945.

Notwithstanding the fact that nuclear bombs could destroy all of humanity and living entities, Japan has decided not to oppose the US-India nuclear deal at a meeting of the 45-member Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) to be held at the end of August. (more…)

Filed by Ozlem Yucel under Energy and Nuclear Safety

26 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Source: Jiji Press English News Service

Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry will request 23.8 billion yen in budget outlays for fiscal 2009 to revive subsidies to promote the use of solar power systems at private homes, officials said Tuesday.

Japan provided subsidies to households adopting solar power systems between 1994 and fiscal 2005, when the subsidy system was scrapped for financial reasons. (more…)

Filed by Ozlem Yucel under The Environment, Climate Change

26 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Source: Agence Europe

More than 1,500 delegates from 180 countries are meeting in Accra, Ghana, from 21 to 27 August) in the latest phase of UN climate change negotiations which aim to bring, in December 2009, an international agreement on a worldwide post-2012 regime for tackling global warming. (more…)

Filed by Ozlem Yucel under The Environment, Climate Change

26 August 2008
For Personal Use Only

• Source: Agence France Presse

The International Monetary Fund has cut its world growth forecasts for this year and next in light of the global slowdown, an official said on Tuesday.

For 2008, the IMF now expects world growth of 3.9 percent, down from the 4.1 percent previous estimate, said the official, close to one of the delegations attending a meeting of G20 developed and developing countries at the weekend. (more…)

Filed by Ozlem Yucel under Global Financial Crises