DTN News - CANADA May 21 2012: Happy Victoria Day

DTN News - CANADA May 21 2012: Happy Victoria Day
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - May 21, 2012: Victoria Day is a public holiday observed across Canada on the Monday before May 25th.

Victoria Day celebrates Queen Victoria's birthday (May 24th). Canada is still a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, of which the Queen is head. 

Victoria Day is always on a Monday, and thus the holiday is part of a long weekend, which is commonly referred to as the Victoria Day Weekend, the May Long Weekend, the May Long, or the May Two-Four (a case of beer there is called a "two-four" and many of these are consumed over the holiday). The weekend is also called the May 24th weekend, although it does not necessarily fall on May 24th.

The Victoria Day Weekend always falls on the weekend before Memorial Day in the U.S.
The Victoria Day Weekend is the first popular weekend for spring / summer travel. Lots of people open up their cottages, plant gardens, or just get away. Expect crowds at resorts and hotels and busy highways. Fireworks displays are common, especially on Monday night.


*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith - DTN News
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*This article is being posted from Toronto, Canada By DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News Contact:dtnnews@ymail.com 
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DTN News - TECHNOLOGY NEWS ~ FACEBOOK: Mark Zuckerberg’s And Priscilla Chan Tied The Knot

DTN News - TECHNOLOGY NEWS ~ FACEBOOK: Mark Zuckerberg’s And Priscilla Chan Tied The Knot
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith 
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - May 21, 2012: Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg has updated his status to "married."

While all the media talk was about Facebook’s initial public offering, Mark Zuckerberg and his nine-year-old girlfriend Priscilla Chan secretly tied the knot on Saturday. According to Us Weekly, the couple spent the past five months preparing for the wedding, but they preferred not to mention anything because they wanted an intimate ceremony. 

Zuckerberg and 27-year-old Priscilla Chan tied the knot at a small ceremony at his Palo Alto, Calif., home Saturday, capping a busy week for the couple.

This photo provided by Facebook shows Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan at their wedding ceremony in Palo Alto, Calif., Saturday, May 19, 2012. Zuckerberg updated his status to "married" on Saturday. The ceremony took place in Zuckerberg's backyard before fewer than 100 guests, who all thought they were there to celebrate Chan's graduation. (AP)

Facebook co-founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan are seen in this screengrab of a wedding photo posted on Zuckerberg's Facebook page May 19, 2012. Zuckerberg wed longtime girlfriend Chan on Saturday, announcing the nuptials through a status update on the social networking site. (REUTERS)

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his girlfriend Priscilla Chan walk near Fuxing Road in Shanghai in this March 27, 2012, file photo. Zuckerberg wed longtime girlfriend Chan announcing the nuptials through a status update on the social networking site May 19, 2012. (REUTERS)

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and his girlfriend Priscilla Chan walk near Fuxing Road in Shanghai in this March 27, 2012, file photo. Zuckerberg wed longtime girlfriend Chan announcing the nuptials through a status update on the social networking site May 19, 2012. (REUTERS)

Facebook Founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, shown in this image from Reuters video, celebrates after ringing the NASDAQ Stock Market Opening Bell remotely from "Facebook" headquarters in Menlo Park, California, May18, 2012. Investors are bracing for Facebook's Wall Street debut on Friday after the pioneering online social network raised about $16 billion in one of the biggest initial public offerings in U.S. history. To rapturous applause from employees, Facebook Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg rang the bell to kick off trading on the Nasdaq market at the company's Silicon Valley headquarters at 6:30 a.m. Pacific time. (REUTERS)

FILE- In this July 9, 2011, file photo, Mark Zuckerberg, president and CEO of Facebook, walks to morning sessions with his girlfriend Priscilla Chan during the 2011 Allen and Co. Sun Valley Conference, in Sun Valley, Idaho. On Saturday, May, 19, 2012, Zuckerberg and Chan tied the knot at a small ceremony at his Palo Alto, Calif., home, capping a busy week for the couple. (AP)

Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg loves wearing a hoodie just about everywhere, including on a December trip to China with girlfriend Priscilla Chan (second from right). (GETTY)

Facebook’s founder Mark Zuckerberg (2nd L) and his girlfriend Priscilla Chan (3rd R) holding flowers offered to them by local tourist officials during their private trip to Ha Long Bay in northeastern province of Quuang Ninh. They are on December 26, 2011 visiting the northern mountainous tourist site of Sapa, according to local media saying the couple received a two-week long Vietnamese tourist visa. (AFP)

*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith ~ DTN News
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*This article is being posted from Toronto, Canada By DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News Contact:dtnnews@ymail.com 
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DTN News - NATO SUMMIT IN CHICAGO: ISAF Nations To Decide On Next Transition Milestone

DTN News - NATO SUMMIT IN CHICAGO: ISAF Nations To Decide On Next Transition Milestone
Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources By Cheryl Pellerin - American Forces Press Service & 'Pak Wants US To Apologise For Salala' - The News
(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - May 21, 2012: Representatives from 50 nations that contribute to the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan will decide today on the next milestone for the transition in Afghanistan, President Barack Obama said here today.

On the second day of the NATO summit in Chicago, the president and NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen made statements before the closed meeting.

Obama spoke from his place at the circle of tables formed around the blue NATO logo. About 250 heads of state and other officials were in attendance.

At today’s summit meeting, the president said, attendees “will set a goal for Afghan forces to take the lead for combat operations across the country in 2013, next year, so that ISAF can move to a supporting role.”

This will be another step toward the goal of having Afghans take the full lead for their security by the end of 2014, when the ISAF combat mission will end, Obama added.

NATO and its partners aim to preserve the coalition’s hard-won progress in Afghanistan, he said.

“The strategic partnership agreement that President [Hamid] Karzai and I signed in Kabul ensures that as Afghans stand up, they will not stand alone,” the president said. “Today we can agree on NATO's long-term relationship with Afghanistan beyond 2014, including our support of Afghan security forces.”

Two years ago at NATO’s summit in Lisbon, Portugal, Obama said, coalition nations agreed on a framework for transition in Afghanistan that would allow a responsible drawdown of the war by the end of 2014, and afterward allow for a long-term partnership with Afghanistan and the Afghan people.

Important progress has been made during the past two years, the president added.

“Our forces broke the Taliban's momentum, more Afghans are reclaiming their communities, Afghan security forces have grown stronger, and the transition that we agreed to in Lisbon is well under way,” he said.

Last week saw more progress, Obama said.

“We very much welcome President Karzai's announcement of the third group of areas to begin transition,” he said. “This means that 75 percent of the Afghan people live in areas where Afghan forces will be moving into the lead.” This phase will see 122 more districts across the nation transition to Afghan control, Karzai said May 17.

In his remarks before the morning session, the secretary general said that as Afghan forces step up, coalition forces will step back into a supporting role, focusing on training, advising and assisting Afghan partners.

“By the end of 2014, Afghan forces [will] have assumed full security responsibility throughout Afghanistan. By end of 2014, the ISAF operation will terminate and the NATO-led combat mission will end,” Rasmussen said.

But the commitment of NATO and the international community in Afghanistan is for the long term, said he added.

“From 2015, we expect to maintain a NATO-led presence to train, advise and assist the Afghan security forces,” Rasmussen said. “And NATO and ISAF nations will also pay their share to help sustain the army and police Afghanistan needs for the coming years. We all remain committed to our goal: a secure and democratic Afghanistan in a stable region.”

Obama said the region and the world have a profound interest in an Afghanistan that is stable, secure and not a source of attacks on other nations.

“And today, as always,” the president said, “our thoughts are with our brave forces who are serving in this vital mission.”

'Pak Wants US To Apologise For Salala' - The News

Hours before the start of Nato summit in Chicago on Sunday, Pakistan Ambassador in the US, Sherry Rehman called for the US administration to execute Pakistan's five demands to salvage the relationship between the two countries.

In her write-up published today in foreign media, Sherry Rehman topped the five-point demand list with the tendering of apology by the US for Salala attacks that killed 24 Pakistan soldiers.

She said significant progress could be made towards resetting the bilateral relationship if the US tenders apology for Salala attacks, reimburses CSF, enhances sharing of intelligence, ceases the drone attacks and shifts to policy of trade not aid.

"The US and Pakistan have had a rocky year. The unilateral raid on Abbottabad, the Raymond Davis CIA provocation, the U.S.-led NATO air assault in Salalah that tragically killed 24 Pakistani soldiers and the continuing unauthorized drone attacks on Pakistani soil have frayed our 60-year special relationship," Sherry Rehman said.

If the war against extremism is to succeed, the war of words between democratic allies must end, she asserted.

The ambassador said Pakistan has taken the first step to restoring normalcy to Pak-US relations by working to reopen the NATO supply routes that were closed after the Salalah tragedy.

Additional NATO News;

ISAF Nations to Decide on Next Transition Milestone       CHICAGO - Representatives from 50 nations that contribute to the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan will decide at the NATO summit on the next milestone for the transition in Afghanistan, President Barack Obama said.

05/21/2012 Allen Explains Priorities in Afghanistan       WASHINGTON - Coalition forces will fulfill their missions in Afghanistan, Marine Corps Gen. John R. Allen, commander of the International Security Assistance Force, told reporters at the beginning of the NATO summit.

05/21/2012 Face of Defense: Marine Serves Second Afghan Tour       KHAN NESHIN DISTRICT, Afghanistan - Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Brandon M. Barton is on his second tour of duty in Afghanistan, yet earlier in his life he’d never thought he would find himself wearing a Marine Corps uniform.

05/21/2012 Combined Afghan, Coalition Force Detains Taliban Facilitator       WASHINGTON - A combined Afghan and coalition security force detained a Taliban facilitator in the Zharay district of Kandahar province.

05/21/2012 Rotational Deployments to Boost U.S. Asia-Pacific Presence       WASHINGTON - Welcoming new Marine rotational deployments in Australia and Navy rotations planned for Singapore, the top U.S. Pacific Command officer said he’ll seek similar arrangements, possibly to include the Army, that expand U.S. presence in the region without the need for more permanently based forces.

05/20/2012 NATO Declares Missile Defense System Operational       CHICAGO - During its first session at the 25th NATO Summit, the alliance’s senior governing body declared operational the missile defense system it endorsed at its November 2010 summit in Lisbon, Portugal, NATO’s secretary general said.

05/20/2012 Panetta Meets With United Kingdom Counterpart       CHICAGO - U.S. Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta met in Chicago with his counterpart from the United Kingdom, Secretary of State of Defense Philip Hammond.

05/20/2012 Summit Reaffirms Commitment to Collective Security, Obama Says       CHICAGO - A year and a half after the NATO members at their summit in Lisbon, Portugal, pledged bold action to revitalize the future alliance, heads of state and government are reaffirming commitment to their collective defense and security, President Barack Obama said.

05/20/2012 Obama: Summit Will Reflect Consensus on Afghanistan       CHICAGO - The NATO summit largely will be devoted to ratifying and reflecting broad consensus on long-term support for Afghanistan, President Barack Obama said after a meeting in Chicago with Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

05/20/2012 Secretary General Kicks Off NATO Summit in Chicago       CHICAGO - NATO’s largest-ever summit opened in Chicago to focus on keeping Afghanistan secure, ensuring NATO’s capability in the 21st century, and enhancing the alliance’s global network of partners, Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said.

05/19/2012 Panetta Discusses Cooperation With French Defense Minister       WASHINGTON - Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta met with newly appointed French Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian to discuss Afghan transition prior to the upcoming NATO Summit, a senior Pentagon spokesman said.

05/19/2012 Panetta Praises Troops on Armed Forces Day       WASHINGTON - Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta today thanked troops and their families for their service in an Armed Forces Day message, in which he also noted the importance of the upcoming NATO Summit in Chicago.

05/18/2012 President Issues Armed Forces Day Proclamation       WASHINGTON - In a proclamation declaring May 19 Armed Forces Day, President Barack Obama urged all Americans to recognize and honor U.S. military members for their “unparalleled service” in defense of the nation.

05/18/2012 Summit to Highlight NATO’s Evolving Capabilities       WASHINGTON - There are three big agenda items and one strategic priority that will occupy center stage at NATO’s May 20-21 summit in Chicago, James J. Townsend Jr., deputy assistant secretary of defense for European and NATO policy, told Pentagon Channel and American Forces Press Service reporters.

05/18/2012 Report Depicts China’s Military Progress, Strategic Thinking       WASHINGTON - The Defense Department’s 2012 Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China report details China’s growing military capabilities, and points to areas of cooperation between the United States and China, a senior DOD official told Pentagon reporters.

05/18/2012 NATO General Outlines Summit Topics, Alliance Changes       WASHINGTON - NATO’s plan for military operations in Afghanistan up to and beyond 2014 will be the top agenda item at the organization’s May 20-21 summit in Chicago, Danish Army Gen. Knud Bartels, chairman of the NATO Military Committee, told American Forces Press Service.

05/18/2012 Face of Defense: Quick-thinking Airman Prevents Tragedy       SOUTHWEST ASIA - When Air Force Senior Airman Lanea Trevino noticed abandoned shower supplies in the wash stall next to hers, she set out in search of the items’ rightful owner and ended up saving another airman’s life.

05/18/2012 Locklear: Pacom’s Priorities Reflect New Strategic Guidance       WASHINGTON - With clear direction from President Barack Obama and Defense Secretary Leon E. Panetta, the new U.S. Pacific Command chief said he’s using the new strategic guidance as a roadmap as he sets priorities and engages with the region.

05/18/2012 Combined Force Seizes Opium Cache       KABUL, Afghanistan - An Afghan and coalition security force discovered a drug cache of opium during a patrol in the Nahr-e Saraj district of Helmand province.

05/18/2012 U.S. European Command, NATO Boost Cyber Defenses       WASHINGTON - Navy Adm. James G. Stavridis, the commander of U.S. European Command, says preparing a good defense to deter cyber attacks ranks among his top concerns.

*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources By Cheryl Pellerin - American Forces Press Service & 'Pak Wants US To Apologise For Salala' - The News
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*This article is being posted from Toronto, Canada By DTN News ~ Defense-Technology News Contact:dtnnews@ymail.com 
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