Kerry landed in Israel,
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U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry landed late Wednesday evening in Israel, a spokesperson for the U.S. embassy in Israel told Xinhua.
Kerry visits the region in an attempt to push forward negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians, which appear to be stuck, mainly due to Israel’s ongoing construction in the West Bank and east Jerusalem settlements.
Israeli officials, on their part, said the Palestinians are ” looking for reasons” to avoid the talks and drag their feet throughout the nine months allocated for the talks and Netanyahu demands that the Palestinian president acknowledge Israel as a Jewish state and work to end the incitement against Israel.
Netanyahu and Kerry will meet on Thursday morning and give some statements afterward. Kerry will also meet with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah later in the day and perhaps again with Netanyahu on Thursday evening.
Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat told Palestinian Radio Wednesday afternoon that the Mideast talks are faltering.
“Kerry must work to save the talks, to stop the deterioration of the talks caused by Israel’s continuing settlement activity,” he said.
Other than the peace process, Kerry will also discuss the Iranian nuclear program and interim agreement signed between the P5+1 countries and Iran in Geneva, which Netanyahu called a ” historic mistake.”
The U.S. strong bond with Israel was strained recently over the countries’ disagreement on how to approach the diplomatic discourse with Iran, with officials of both nations exchanging attacks on the issue.
The United States pushed to reach for an interim agreement and give diplomacy a chance, while Netanyahu and his government campaigned worldwide to keep sanctions in tact and get more guarantees from Iran that it would not push for nuclear weapons.
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Edward Snowden: NSA gathers 5 bln records of cellphone location data a day
5122013
U.S. National Security Agency is gathering nearly 5 billion records a day on cellphone location data around the world, the Washington Post reported on Wednesday citing the latest leak by former defense Edward Snowden.
The Washington Post’s latest report on the agency’s intelligence surveillance programs cited top-secret documents provided by Snowden and interviews with U.S. intelligence officials.
The NSA’s gathering of the whereabouts of cellphones worldwide has enabled the agency to track the movements of individuals and map their relationships “in ways that would have been previously unimaginable,” the newspaper reported.
The NSA uses a powerful analytic tool, known collectively as CO- TRAVELER, to analyze and look for unknown associates of known intelligence targets by tracking people whose movements intersect.
“The NSA cannot know in advance which tiny fraction of 1 percent of the records it may need, so it collects and keeps as many as it can — 27 terabytes, by one account, or more than double the text content of the Library of Congress’s print collection,” the newspaper reported.
One senior collection manager, speaking on condition of anonymity but with permission from the agency, told the newspaper that they are getting “vast volumes’ of location data from around the world by tapping into the cables that connect mobile networks globally and that serve U.S. cellphones as well as foreign ones.
In addition, data is often collected from tens of millions of Americans who travel abroad with their cellphones every year, the newspaper reported.
The NSA does not target Americans’ location data by design, but the agency acquires a substantial amount of information on the whereabouts of domestic cellphones “incidentally”, the newspaper reported.
NSA Director Keith Alexander admitted at a Senate hearing earlier this year that the agency collected some Americans’ cellphone location data in bulk as a part of a secret pilot program in 2010 and 2011.
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Food security non-negotiable: Sharma to WTO members
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In a development that has increased the risk of collapse of Bali talks, India on Wednesday in a strongly-worded message to the WTO members said the food security issue is “non-negotiable” for New Delhi.
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Addressing the plenary session of the 9th Ministerial Conference of the WTO, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said the Bali package must be substantive, and historical imbalances in trade rules must be corrected to ensure a rule-based, fair and equitable order.
“Agriculture sustains millions of subsistence farmers. Their interests must be secured. Food security is essential for over four billion people of the world. For India, food security is non-negotiable. Need of public stock-holding of foodgrains to ensure food security must be respected. Dated WTO rules need to be corrected,” he said.
The G-33, grouping of 46-member developing nations including India, China and Indonesia, has proposed to amend the WTO Agreement on Agriculture in order to procure foodgrains from poor farmers at minimum support price and sell to poor people at cheap rates through public distribution system.
India’s Food Security Act entitles 82 crore people to 5 kg of foodgrains per person a month at Rs 1-3 per kg.
The country needs 62 million tonnes foodgrains a year to implement the law.
“A trade agreement must be in harmony with our shared commitments of eliminating hunger and ensuring the right to food. These are an integral part of the Millennium Development Goals,” he added.
He said the due restraint provision in its current form cannot be accepted and it must remain in force till “we reach a negotiated permanent solution”.
The G-33 proposal on food security aimed at addressing the problems faced by developing countries due to outdated WTO rules which base agriculture subsidy calculation on external reference prices of 1986-88, even as global food prices have increased manifold during this period.
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Ford India sales up 19%
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Ford India has reported 19 percent growth in total sales at 12,050 units in November this year as compared to the same month last year.
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The company had sold 10,155 units in November 2012, Ford India said in a statement.
Domestic sales grew by 33 percent to 7,909 units in November this year as against 5,944 units in the same month last year, it added.
However, exports of the company remained steady in November at 4,141 units.
Ford India Executive Director (Marketing, Sales and Service) Vinay Piparsania said, “We are happy that we continue to register steady sales growth despite persistent market challenges as Indian consumers respond enthusiastically to our smart, fuel-efficient and dependable vehicles.
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Banks collect over $25 bn from special dollar swap window: RBI
5122013
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The Reserve Bank on Monday said about USD 25 billion has been received from special concessional swap windows for deposits by non-resident Indians and overseas foreign currency borrowings by banks.
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It would have crossed USD 25 billion as on date, RBI Deputy Governor H R Khan said on the sidelines of an event organised by the National Housing Bank. The Reserve Bank announced the swap windows for foreign currency non-resident (bank) deposits and overseas borrowings by banks on September 4, after the rupee declined about 30 per cent against the dollar between April and August.
The facility is open till November 30. The special window allows banks to swap fresh FCNR (B) dollar funds, mobilised for a minimum tenor of three years, at a fixed rate of 3.5 per cent per annum.
The RBI also allowed banks to borrow up to 100 per cent of their tier-I capital from overseas, which can be swapped with the central bank at a concessional rate of 100 basis points below the rate prevailing in the market.
Khan said the RBI had recently clarified that banks can get disbursement from multilateral agencies till December 31. “There are some multilateral institutions who have taken some time to sanction the loans and release it. What we have said is that there is a commitment that they will be releasing so we have given time up to December 31 for the banks to take loans under tier-I from international financial institutions, multilateral financial institutions,” he said.
“The transaction has to be booked before November 30. Forward to forward can be done up to December 31. This is limited only to banks who are on the process of negotiations with international financial institutions. We have issued a circular on this,” he said.
Asked if the RBI is considering an extension of the dollar-swap facility for oil marketing companies, Khan said, “In a calibrated manner, it is happening. And quite a big chunk is already there in the market…We don’t foresee any problem.”
The swap windows have helped the rupee to gain almost 11 per cent since they were announced. Economic Affairs Secretary Arvind Mayaram said last week, “Till November 30, the FCNR-B window is open. We might even touch USD 25 billion.”
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FM warns tax defaulters of stringent action
5122013
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Stringent action would be taken against service tax defaulters if they did not declare under the voluntary compliance encouragement scheme (VCES), Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram said in Bangalore on Wednesday.
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“As only less than half (seven-lakh) of the total 17 lakh registered pay service tax regularly and sincerely, strict action will be taken against the defaulters,” Chidambaram said at a day-long interactive session with traders and business chambers.
Asserting that the scheme was a fair offer, the finance minister said the objective was to encourage disclosure of tax dues and compliance of service tax laws by those who have not paid service tax October-December 2012.
“All the tax payers should make a declaration under VCES by December 2013. A committee will be formed to examine the rejected declarations,” he said.
Noting that the scheme had elicited an encouraging response in the city, as evident from 432 declarations with Rs.156 crore outstanding, Chidambaram said the zonal tax office ranked third in the all-India list of compliance.
Minister of State for Finance (Revenue) J.D. Saleem, Revenue Secretary Sumit Bose, Central Board of Excise and Customs Chairman Praveen Mahajan and CBEC Member (Service Tax) Majumdar Roy Chaudary were present on the occasion to clarify doubts and explain the provisions of the scheme.
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Updated on : 04-12-2013 04:49 PMEdit : Edit
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Obama offers up to USD 5 billion to tackle AIDS
5122013
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US President Barack Obama has pledged up to USD 5 billion to fight HIV/AIDS as long as the rest of the world collectively offers double that amount.
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Obama urged other countries to replenish the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria as part of a White House event marking World AIDS Day which fell on Sunday.
Obama also announced a new plan to seek a cure for HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, which will see USD 100 million go towards the development of therapies at the National Institutes of Health.
“Don’t leave our money on the table,” Obama said, calling for a new global effort to spur funding for AIDS research. “It’s been inspiring to see the countries most affected by this disease vastly increase their own contributions to this fight — in some cases, providing more than donor countries do.
“That ought to inspire all of us to give more, to do more, so we can save more lives.” The initiative will see Washington donate one dollar for every two dollars collectively offered by other nations up to a US total of USD 5 billion over the next three years.
Obama also announced that the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS relief (PEPFAR), a program started by his predecessor George W. Bush, had smashed through a target of treating six million people.
“I’m proud to announce that we’ve not only reached our goal, we’ve exceeded our treatment target. We’ve helped 6.7 million people receive lifesaving treatment,” Obama said. Obama also said that the United States planned next year to convene a conference with its global partners to set common goals for battling the disease.
The Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR) welcomed Obama’s announcements, including the $100 million for the search for an HIV cure.
“We cannot achieve the President’s goal of an AIDS-free generation without continued investment in the research necessary to ultimately help us find a cure for this disease,” said Rowena Johnston, amfAR’s vice president and director of research.
The Obama administration says it has improved and expanded on PEPFAR — which the president described as a “phenomenal” achievement of his predecessor George W. Bush.
The program has now reached 1.5 million pregnant women with HIV with antiretroviral drugs to prevent HIV transmission to their children. It also marked a milestone in June with the birth of the one millionth infant born HIV-free because of PEPFAR’s support.
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Updated on : 03-12-2013 06:30 AMEdit : Edit
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Biden meets Xi,
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Biden meets Xi, seeks to scale down tensions over air zone
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US Vice President Joe Biden on Wednesday met Chinese President Xi Jinping and sought to scale down regional tensions caused by Beijing’s unilateral declaration of an air defence zone over islands disputed with Japan in the East China Sea.
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Biden, who had spent considerable time last year building up rapport and friendship with Xi before the Chinese leader took over the Presidency, said he believed Xi was a candid and constructive person.
“In developing new relationship between China and US, both qualities are solely needed,” Biden told Xi during their meeting at the Great Hall of the People here after his arrival from Japan on Wednesday.
“Candour generates trust. Trust is the basis on which real change, constructive change, is made,” he said, while trying to prevail over the Chinese leadership to have a rethink on their decision to set up an Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ) over the disputed islands in the East China Sea.
The US, Japan and South Korea have already rejected the Chinese ADIZ and flew their defence planes violating the Chinese stipulation that all flights passing through the zone have to file their flight plans with China.
“This (US-China) is a hugely consequential bilateral relationship that is going to play a significant part in affecting the course of the 21st century,” Biden told Xi.
“This new model of major-country cooperation ultimately has to be based on trust, and a positive notion about the motive of one another,” he said.
Biden’s trip, which began in Japan and ends in South Korea, comes amid a furore over Beijing’s declaration of ADIZ.
China’s assertiveness demonstrate the challenges US faces specially to its policy of “pivot” towards Asia and its security alliance with Beijing’s great rival Japan.
Xi called Biden an “old friend” and told him, “You have long been committed to the growth of China-US relations and I commend you for the large amount of work you have taken.”
Relations had generally maintained “positive development”, he said, noting that the region and globe were undergoing “complex changes” and “regional hot spot issues keep cropping up”.
Speaking highly of the sound momentum of ties, Xi said China and US as two major economies and permanent members of the UN Security Council, share important obligations to maintain world peace and stability and promote development.
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Updated on : 05-12-2013 09:07 AMEdit : Edit
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Tejpal insists it was a ‘consensual act’
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Tarun Tejpal, accused of sexual assaulting a woman journalist, is sticking to his version that whatever happened between the two was a “consensual act”, a police officer said on Thursday.
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“The investigation is heading in the right direction and we are interrogating Tejpal in detail…He is cooperating,” a senior official, who is part of the Crime Branch team investigating the case, said.
The detailed statements of Tejpal are being recorded by a team led by Investigating Officer (IO) Sunita Sawant under the supervision of Deputy Superintendent of Police Sammy Tavares. “…Tejpal has been maintaining that the act was consensual though he has not denied having indulged in the act,” the officer said on the condition of anonymity.
He has corroborated what the young girl has stated in her complaint, except that the act was “forced upon the girl,” and has so far stuck to his version that the act was consensual, the official said.
Tejpal, who has been in police custody since Saturday night, has been spending much of his time going around pathological labs at Goa Medical College and OPD of the Institute of Psychiatry and Human Behaviour (IPHB).
Tejpal will undergo third round of medical tests on Thursday. “We hardly get time to interrogate him. The Goa Medical College has now called (him) for the third round of medical examination,” an official said, adding that GMC has been conducting all the tests which are mandatory as per the procedure.
Tejpal spent the entire day at GMC on December 2, followed by Wednesday. The interrogation of the accused began on Sunday at the Crime Branch.
Meanwhile, a senior officer said the accused has confessed to writing an email to the woman journalist and also to the then Managing Editor of Tehelka, Shoma Chowdhury.
The investigators said they will seek extension of Tejpal’s police custody when his six-day remand ends on Friday.
“The summons have been issued to Shoma and three witnesses. We have to question Tejpal based on the statement by them before the magistrate. We will ask for extension of his police custody,” a senior official said.
Tejpal has been accused of sexually assaulting the woman journalist in an elevator at a starred hotel here during the ThinkFest event held earlier last month. The girl has said that she was sexually assaulted twice by Tejpal.
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Updated on : 05-12-2013 11:56 AMEdit : Edit
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Boletín de Noticias de Nueva Tribuna
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New Integrated Terminal Building Inaugurated At Goa Airport
5122013| Providing Quality Aviation Infrastructure High On Priority: MOCA |
| A New Integrated Terminal Building has been inaugurated by the Minister of Civil Aviation, Shri Ajit Singh today at Goa Airport. Dedicating the new facility to the people of the state, the Minister said, “providing quality aviation infrastructure commensurate with the expected passenger traffic growth is high on priority of my ministry.” Expansion and upgradation of airport at such a tourist and industry destination as Goa assumed significant importance, he added.
The New Terminal Building at Goa is an integrated terminal building capable of handling both domestic and international operations. The terminal building is equipped with the state-of-the-art facilities like passenger boarding bridges, CUTE enabled check-in counters, inline compatible baggage handling system, software based building management system, elevators and escalators. The terminal building can handle 2750 peak hour passengers at a time. The terminal building has been built at a cost of Rs. 345 crore.
Speaking on the occasion, the Minister of Civil Aviation highlighted the contribution of Goa in overall economic growth of the country. He said “Goa Airport with 1,000 plus annual international charter flights accounts for almost 90% of India’s international charter tourist flights. In the year 2012-13, Goa Airport handled 1,208 charter flights, an increase of 45% over the year 2011-12”. He acknowledged the role of Goa Government and Indian Navy for paving way for the development of the new integrated terminal building at Goa Airport.
Shri Ajit Singh underlined that the civil aviation has become a focal point of the development as it is a key infrastructure that connects people, shrinks distances and facilitates the growth of business and seamless flow of investment, leading to multiplier effect across the economy. Expressing the hope that India’s domestic air travel market will become the second highest growing market in the world in near future, he said “the domestic passenger movement in the next ten years shall exceed 336 million passengers per annum and international passenger traffic shall cross 84 million mark from the current level of 117 million domestic and 43 million international passengers in 2012-13.”
Expressing his happiness over the inauguration of the New Integrated Terminal Building, Shri. K. C. Venugopal, Minister of State for Civil Aviation, said that the Ministry has been giving priority to enhance airport infrastructure in India, modernisation of existing airport infrastructure in metro and non-metro cities and construction of green field airports to bridge the gap between available airport capacity and projected demand.
Governor of Goa, Shri Bharat Vir Wanchoo, Chief Minister, Shri Manohar Parrikar, Minister of State for Civil Aviation, Shri K.C. Venugopal, former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, Shri Digvijay Singh and other dignitaries were present on the occasion. Shri. K.N. Shrivastva, Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation delivered the welcome address.
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