Síntesis informativa - 31 de octubre de 2018
THE NEW YORK TIMES
Bomb Explodes at Russian Security Agency, Wounding 3 Workers
MOSCOW — An explosive device detonated inside an office of Russia’s main security agency on Wednesday, wounding three workers and killing the person who carried it, the Russian authorities said.
The explosion at the local headquarters of the Federal Security Service in the northern city of Arkhangelsk was labeled a terrorist act by the Russian Investigative Committee, which is responsible for high-profile crimes and is investigating. It said in a statement that the attacker was a 17-year-old local resident, but did not offer any other information.
“According to preliminary information, the person entered the building, took an unknown item out of a bag, which exploded shortly after in his hands,” the Russian Antiterrorism Committee said in a statement.
“He suffered injuries that killed him,” it said. “Three employees of the Federal Security Service were injured.”
As Merkel Eyes Exit, Nervous E.U. Wonders Who’ll Take the Stage
BRUSSELS — The European stage Angela Merkel commanded for so long and so effectively may be cracking, if not collapsing. She has been the poster woman for Europe’s democratic center, but the center is imploding. She and Germany have been a symbol of stability, but now even Germany is seen as politically unstable.
But the prospect of her departure — she announced this week that she will not run for another term as the German chancellor — has nonetheless created a degree of panic at the core of the European Union.
Ms. Merkel may be becoming more unpopular at home, and her influence over others may be waning. But to those who believed — and worked for — the dream of an ever-closer union, Ms. Merkel was considered fundamentally reliable, decent and committed to Europe and its values. She stood as a bulwark against the strutting populists who now run countries as varied as Italy, Hungary and Poland.
How the Far Right Is Shaking Germany’s Political Order
Every Friday in Chemnitz, Germany, a crowd of far-right activists gather to denounce immigrants.
“What do we with foreigners?” a man calls into a megaphone.
“Out out out!” the protesters reply.
We went to Chemnitz to witness the weekly demonstrations, which began last August when two refugees from Syria and Iraq allegedly stabbed a German man to death. The crime became a rallying cry for the far right and others who oppose migrants. And it has resulted in real violence, including numerous attacks on immigrant businesses.
Migrants have been a political flashpoint for Germany since 2015. That’s when Chancellor Angela Merkel welcomed nearly a million asylum seekers from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan. The decision infuriated many Germans. And it divided a country that, after reckoning with its Nazi past, had long seemed immune to the rise of populist movements.
Once at Guantánamo, 5 Senior Taliban Members Now Join Political Office in Qatar
KABUL, Afghanistan — Five senior Taliban members who spent years in the American prison camp at Guantánamo Bay have joined the insurgency’s political office in Qatar at a time when that delegation has been at the center of American efforts to start a peace process, Taliban officials said Wednesday.
The five high-ranking members of the original Taliban movement — including the chief of the Taliban government’s army, a minister, a deputy intelligence chief, and two governors — were released in 2014 in exchangefor an American soldier held by the insurgency, Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl. The five were shifted to Qatar, where officials say about three dozen Taliban leaders live with their families, and remained under watch of that country’s government.
Their joining of the Taliban’s political commission, which will bring them more freedom of movement, comes days after the insurgency’s longtime deputy, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, was also released back to the Taliban ranks. Mullah Baradar was arrested in a joint Pakistani-American raid in 2010 and had remained in Pakistani detention.
The recent developments follow two rounds of meetings between the Taliban and top American diplomats, after the Trump administration ordered direct contacts to try to jump-start an Afghan peace process.
‘Cold War’ Takes New Meaning for U.S. Marines at a NATO Exercise
ABOARD THE U.S.S. IWO JIMA, on the Norwegian Sea — Among hundreds of Marines boarding amphibious assault vehicles this week to get from the frigid sea to the frigid beach, Lance Cpl. Jacob Boutte was armed with a secret weapon: black Merino woolen long johns.
They were not part of the Marine Corps’s standard kit during 17 years of deployments to the warmer climes of Iraq, Syria, Djibouti and southern Afghanistan. So as he prepared to embark this week on one of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s largest exercises since the end of the Cold War, Corporal Boutte turned to allies for help.
“I talked to the Norwegians about what they use,” he said.
“We haven’t fought in the cold in a long time,” echoed Sgt. Juan Carlos Banda, a platoon leader with the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, which is based at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.
Hovering over the Trident Juncture exercise in Norway and among the roughly 15,000 American troops — most of them Marines — who are participating, is a consuming narrative about the alliance’s next possible war.
Chinese Intelligence Officers Accused of Stealing Aerospace Secrets
WASHINGTON — Intelligence officers in a small office in China’s vast intelligence-gathering network for years stole secrets from aerospace companies in the United States and abroad, Justice Department officials said on Tuesday in unsealing the third indictment in recent weeks that detailed China’s elaborate efforts to steal corporate secrets through espionage and hacking.
Two Chinese intelligence officers and five hackers repeatedly broke into corporate computer systems to steal intellectual property and other information about the aerospace industry, according to the indictment, which had been under seal since June.
From January 2010 to May 2015, they stole turbofan engine plans and other confidential business information from 13 companies, according to court documents. They included Capstone Turbine, a gas turbine manufacturer based in Los Angeles, and other unnamed companies in Los Angeles and San Diego as well as Massachusetts, Arizona, Oregon and Wisconsin and overseas in Britain, France and Australia.
At the time, a Chinese government-owned aerospace company was developing a comparable commercial aircraft engine, the government said.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/30/us/politics/justice-department-china-espionage.html
They’re Trained for War. Now American Troops Are Headed to the U.S. Border.
WASHINGTON — Already, President Trump has sent 1,000 military forces to the southwest border in a decision he said will protect Americans from a caravan of migrants coming from Central America. He has pledged to deploy at least 4,000 more troops by week’s end, as part of a last-ditch effort to galvanize the Republican base before the midterm elections on Tuesday.
The troops, the president said, will be “waiting” for the caravan of unarmed men, women and children fleeing violence in Central America. Mr. Trump has also said the caravan may include Islamic terrorists, though he has shown no evidence to back up the claim.
“This is an invasion of our Country and our Military is waiting for you!” Mr. Trump tweeted Monday. But using the world’s most powerful military to stop some 3,000 unarmed migrants who may or may not make it to the United States border might not be the best use of taxpayer dollars at the Defense Department. Here’s why.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/10/30/us/politics/american-troops-border-migrants.html
THE GUARDIAN
China reveals trade war strain as yuan slides and manufacturing stalls
The Chinese economy has revealed fresh signs of the pressure of a trade war with the US and a wider slowdown at home as manufacturing activity fell and the yuan was fixed at a new 10-year low to the dollar.
Chinese spies charged in US with trying to steal jet engine secrets
The indictments unsealed in Los Angeles on Tuesday named two officers working for the Nanjing-based foreign intelligence arm of China’s ministry of state security and six other defendants who allegedly conspired from 2010 to 2015 to steal sensitive turbofan engine technology used in commercial aviation.
Prosecutors said the hackers had tried to infiltrate 13 companies, including two aerospace based in the United Kingdom. Only one company, Los Angeles-based Capstone Turbine, was named.
Jair Bolsonaro denies he is a fascist and paints himself as a Brazilian Churchill
Bolsonaro told TV Band, one of Brazil’s major channels, it was his leftwing detractors who were fascists, not him.
“They always accuse others of being what they are themselves,” he said. “It’s these leftwing people, who always put themselves above the rest, who are fascists.”
In his first televised address after Sunday’s victory, Bolsonaro held up a Portuguese translation of Churchill’s Memoirs of the Second World War and said his government would be inspired by “great world leaders”.
DEUTSCHE WELLE
Austria anuncia que se retirará del Pacto Mundial para la Migración
El ultranacionalista vicecanciller de Austria, Heinz-Christian Strache, comentó que “la inmigración no es ni puede ser un derecho humano” y que “no puede haber derecho a migrar debido al clima o a la pobreza”.
Austria, país que preside la UE este semestre, se retirará del Pacto Mundial para la Migración por considerar que puede sentar la base para que sea considerada como un derecho humano, anunció este miércoles (31.10.2018) el canciller federal de la república alpina, Sebastian Kurz.
Brand new German tanks, helicopters need improvement before deployment
The bulk of the tanks, fighter jets and helicopters delivered to the Bundeswehr were not ready for deployment, the Defense Ministry has said. Manufacturers delivered 97 large items but only 38 were fully operational.
the Bundeswehr strove to have 70 percent of its weapons systems ready for operations at any time. In 2017, only 39 percent of new deliveries were ready for deployment.
XINHUA
Irán niega vender crudo a través de Rusia en medio de presión por sanciones de EEUU
TEHERAN, 31 oct (Xinhua) -- El ministro de Petróleo iraní, Bijan Namdar Zanganeh, negó el miércoles que Rusia venda petróleo bruto iraní en el mercado internacional ante las sanciones de EEUU sobre las exportaciones energéticas de Irán.
El Departamento de Estado de EEUU ha fijado el 4 de noviembre como una fecha tope para que aquellos que compran petróleo de Irán dejen de hacerlo. Quienes no lo hagan enfrentarán sanciones de parte de Estados Unidos.
http://spanish.xinhuanet.com/2018-10/31/c_137572383.htm
OTAN descarta modificar ejercicio masivo por pruebas de misiles rusos
TRONDHEIM, 30 oct (Xinhua) -- La Organización del Tratado del Atlántico Norte (OTAN) indicó hoy que la alianza no modificará sus planes para realizar el mayor ejercicio militar desde el fin de la Guerra Fría en Noruega luego de que Rusia anunció que probará esta semana misiles en aguas internacionales cercanas.
De acuerdo con medios noruegos, autoridades de aviación rusas avisaron al operador de aeropuertos civiles del país Avinor que las pruebas con misiles se realizarán del 1 al 3 de noviembre.
El jefe de la OTAN señaló que Rusia tiene importantes fuerzas navales en esta área y que ejercita con regularidad sus capacidades marítimas cerca de la costa noruega.
http://spanish.xinhuanet.com/2018-10/31/c_137570095.htm
China y Papúa Nueva Guinea se comprometen a fortalecer relaciones y cooperación bajo iniciativa de la Franja y la Ruta
ORT MORESBY, 31 oct (Xinhua) -- China y Papúa Nueva Guinea (PNG) se comprometieron este miércoles a desarrollar aún más las relaciones entre los dos países y a mejorar la cooperación bajo la iniciativa de la Franja y la Ruta.
Al reunirse con el consejero de Estado y ministro de Asuntos Exteriores chino, Wang Yi, que se encuentra de visita en el país insular, el primer ministro de PNG, Peter O'Neill, aseguró que su país es un amigo importante e íntimo de China entre los países insulares del Pacífico.
http://spanish.xinhuanet.com/2018-10/31/c_137572379.htm
China pide medidas para reducir tensiones en Ucrania
NACIONES UNIDAS, 30 oct (Xinhua) -- Un enviado chino llamó este martes a las partes involucradas en el conflicto de Ucrania a disminuir la tensión y resolver los problemas de forma pacífica.
Wu Haitao, representante permanente adjunto de China ante las Naciones Unidas, expresó su oposición a la injerencia en los asuntos internos de Ucrania, y pidió la aplicación integral de la Resolución 2202 (2015) y del acuerdo de Minsk II sobre la resolución de conflictos en el país europeo.
http://spanish.xinhuanet.com/2018-10/31/c_137571916.htm
Francia contempla todas las sanciones si Arabia Saudí resulta culpable de asesinato de Kahshoggi
PARIS, 31 oct (Xinhua) -- El ministro de Asuntos Exteriores de Francia, Jean Yves Le Drian, dijo hoy que su país no descartará ninguna sanción contra Arabia Saudí si la investigación sobre el asesinato del periodista Jamal Khshoggi evidencia que el reino estuvo involucrado en el asesinato.
Al preguntarle si París respaldaría el llamado de Berlín de que se suspendan las ventas de armas hasta que se establezca la verdad sobre el asesinato del periodista, el ministro francés dijo que Alemania había tomado la iniciativa demasiado pronto.
http://spanish.xinhuanet.com/2018-10/31/c_137572440.htm
Consejero de Estado chino rechaza falsa acusación sobre ayuda exterior china
PORT MORESBY, 31 oct (Xinhua) -- La ayuda exterior de China es llevada a cabo sobre la base de la igualdad, el mutuo beneficio, la apertura y la sustentabilidad, afirmó el miércoles el consejero de Estado y ministro de Relaciones Exteriores chino, Wang Yi, de visita en Papúa Nueva Guinea.
El alto funcionario realizó estas declaraciones durante una conferencia de prensa conjunta con el ministro de Relaciones Exteriores de Papúa Nueva Guinea, Rimbink Pato, al preguntársele sobre las afirmaciones de países y medios occidentales de que la ayuda que China brinda a los países insulares del Pacífico les causa una carga de deuda.
Wang aclaró que la ayuda china a los países insulares del Pacífico es realmente el apoyo y asistencia mutuas entre los países en desarrollo, y es una parte importante de la cooperación Sur-Sur.
http://spanish.xinhuanet.com/2018-10/31/c_137572439.htm
AL JAZEERA
Secret no more: Israel's outreach to Gulf Arab states
Prime Minister Netanyahu has for years boasted about ties with key Arab states, but those ties were rarely visible.
That changed on Friday when Netanyahu made an unannounced visit to Oman, where he met longtime ruler Sultan Qaboos bin Said.
It marked the first visit by an Israeli leader in more than 20 years to the tiny Gulf state, a US ally that has in the past facilitated negotiations between the United States and Iran.
The Palestinians fear that Trump is trying to rally support from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states in order to pressure the Palestinians into accepting a peace plan that falls far short of their demands.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/10/secret-israel-outreach-gulf-arab-states-181031084807219.html
One dead in blast at security service building in north Russia
Three others were injured when an explosive device went off inside the FSB building in Arkhangelsk city.
Russia's National Anti-Terrorist Committee confirmed the blast, but did not immediately provide details.
US reassures Taiwan on security as China increases threats
In response, China warns Taipei against 'colluding with foreign forces' to disrupt stability in the Taiwan Strait.
The US is Taiwan's main arms supplier and strongest international backer.
The Chinese military stepped up encirclement drills around Taiwan, which the island has denounced as intimidation, and three former allies - El Salvador, Burkina Faso and the Dominican Republic - switched ties to Beijing this year.
Pacific Rim trade pact dumped by Trump nears take-off
Deal reduces tariffs in economies that together amount to more than 13 percent of global GDP - a total of $10 trillion.
A landmark 11-country deal that will slash tariffs across much of the Asia-Pacific will come into force at the end of December, New Zealand said on Wednesday, a rare bright spot for global commerce as the US-China trade war intensifies.
The deal moved forward after Australia became the sixth nation to formally ratify it, alongside Canada, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand and Singapore.
RT
Over 120 civilians killed by US-led coalition airstrikes in Syria in 1 month – Russian military
Scores of civilians have been killed in the past month as a result of indiscriminate US-led coalition strikes in eastern Syria, according to the Russian Defense Ministry.
Civilian casualties aside, Washington’s “poor” strategy – as well as that of its allies - only let Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) reclaim some of the territories lost earlier, the Russian military noted. This includes Hajin, As-Susah, As Safana and Al Marashda. Meanwhile, the terrorists are still being supplied with modern weapons, the MoD said, without pinning blame directly on the US-led coalition. The routes for such supplies are being tracked down and investigated.
https://www.rt.com/news/442730-120-civilians-killed-us-strikes/
Saudis, UAE pressured UN for favorable media coverage in exchange for Yemen aid – report
Saudi Arabia and the UAE demanded favorable PR from UN aid agencies at an unprecedented level, including articles written in major Western newspapers, in return for a $930 million aid package for Yemen, leaked documents reveal.
The Gulf kingdoms said future humanitarian donations to the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) would be reflected by the amount of positive humanitarian coverage both countries received for their efforts in Yemen, now in its fourth year of civil war, according to the internal UN files seen by Guardian.
In addition to demanding that receiving agencies document Saudi and UAE-supported activities in Yemen with photographic and video material, Riyadh also asked that OCHA seek favorable publicity, “highlighting our contribution” in Yemen, in major foreign newspapers such as The Guardian and New York Times.
The revelations about Saudi and Emirati aid-for-publicity demands come as the coalition’s military actions against civilian targets comes under increased international scrutiny. The document also sets out 48 specific steps that the UN, along with agencies such as OCHA, the WHO, UNICEF, and UN Development Programme, agreed to carry out to publicize Saudi humanitarianism.
https://www.rt.com/news/442738-aid-strings-attached-saudi-uae/
Dollars declined: India to pay for Russian air defense system in rubles
The contract between Moscow and New Delhi on supplies of Russian S-400 air defense systems will be settled in rubles, according to Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov.
The move comes as Moscow intensified recent efforts to make de-dollarization of the Russian economy one of the main pillars of its policy. The Kremlin is looking for an alternative to the US dollar in mutual settlements with international partners. The key point of the plan is to make it more profitable for Russian exporters and importers to use rubles instead of dollars.
The Indian government has been increasing military cooperation with Russia. In early October, Russia and India agreed on supplies of Russia's S-400 missile systems worth $5.4 billion. The deal was clinched during Putin's two-day visit to New Delhi. The country is also reportedly planning to buy Russian T-14 Armata tanks and guided-missile frigates, and could potentially develop submarines and next-generation fighter jets in cooperation with Russia.
https://www.rt.com/business/442716-india-s-400-ruble-settlement/
Cuban crisis 2.0? Moscow eyes military bases in Cuba after US INF pullout
Moscow’s response to Trump’s plans to quit the INF treaty could be to reinstall military bases in Cuba, the State Duma defense committee head said. He also predicted “a new Cuban crisis” if the US and Russia fail to come to terms.
The US is planning to walk away from the crucial Cold War-era Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty, and Russia’s response may well be in the spirit of those times – namely, reactivating military facilities in Cuba. That is according to Vladimir Shamanov, the head of the State Duma defense committee and a former Airborne Troops commander.
This issue may be raised when Cuba’s new president, Miguel Diaz-Canel, visits Russia in early November. Diaz-Canel, a fresh face of Cuba’s Communist Party, is wary of foreign military presence, but “politics is living matter,” Shamanov said.
https://www.rt.com/news/442726-russia-cuba-bases-inf/
Putin launches giant gem mine in Russia’s Far North (VIDEO)
A new diamond deposit has opened in Russia's northeastern region of Yakutia. The project is run by Alrosa, the world's largest diamond mining company.
“Russia is a country of enormous natural wealth, and diamonds of Yakutia are another national treasure of which we are proud. The launch of the new field is another step towards improving the quality of life of the population in the Far North and strengthening Russia's leadership in the global diamond market,” said Russian President Vladimir Putin, who launched the project on Wednesday.
The Verkhne-Munskoye diamond field is the largest investment project for Alrosa. The company will invest 60 billion rubles (shy of $1 billion at the current exchange rate) by 2042. The field will produce about 1.8 million carats of diamonds a year, and its reserves are enough to continue mining operations for more than 20 years (till 2042).
https://www.rt.com/business/442724-putin-launches-giant-gem-deposit/
AL MAYADEEN
OLP se retira del Acuerdo de Oslo y suspende coordinación de seguridad con el régimen israelí
30 de octubre. Debido a que el liderazgo de extrema derecha de Israel ha insistido durante mucho tiempo en que los palestinos nunca tendrán un estado independiente, autoridades de la OLP argumentaron que la cooperación de seguridad solo estaba abaratando la ocupación israelí permanente y brindándole una cobertura legal para tomar medidas que violan el derecho internacional en los territorios palestinos ocupados.
La medida de la OLP es también la respuesta a los intentos de la administración Trump de imponer a los palestinos el “acuerdo del siglo”, que contiene cláusulas inaceptables para el pueblo palestino y que violan gravemente sus derechos nacionales y el derecho internacional.
Siria denuncia prácticas anexionistas del régimen israelí en el Golán ocupado
30 de octubre. El comunicado reiteró que el Golán sirio ocupado es una parte integrante de su territorio y trabajará por devolverlo a la madre patria tarde o temprano por todos los medios posibles. También confirmó su apoyo a su población en su resistencia a la ocupación israelí y esas elecciones ilegales y reiteró su rechazo a la anexión del Golán sirio a Israel.
Turquía se niega a compartir pruebas recopiladas sobre complicidad saudita en el asesinato de Khashoggi
30 de octubre. Arabia Saudita admitió que se hizo un plan premeditado para matar a Khashoggi, pero dice que fue creado por un grupo de operadores deshonestos sin el conocimiento del príncipe heredero de la Arabia Saudita, Mohammed bin Salman.
