DTN News - G8 SUMMIT NEWS: At Summit, G8 Powers Urge Yemen Leader To Go

DTN News - G8 SUMMIT NEWS: At Summit, G8 Powers Urge Yemen Leader To Go

Source: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Reuters

(NSI News Source Info) DEAUVILLE, France - May 26, 2011: Leaders of the Group of Eight called on Yemen's president to quit on Thursday, hoping to avert civil war flaring up in one part of the Arab world as they prepared to help new democracies flourish in another.

Starting a summit in the French seaside resort of Deauville, the G8 -- seven Western powers plus Russia -- were expected to endorse aid programs for Tunisia and Egypt, the vanguards of the Arab Spring, which has seen autocratic rulers overthrown.

But the bloodshed and fighting in the Yemeni capital Sanaa darkened any sense of congratulation and offered a stark reminder of the violence that has engulfed other states in North Africa and the Middle East, notably also Libya and Syria.

Summit host France said Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh must end his 33-year rule: "We deplore the fighting that occurred overnight which was a direct result of the current political impasse, for which President Saleh has direct responsibility due to his refusal to sign the GCC transition agreement," a foreign ministry spokesman said, referring to the Gulf Cooperation Council.

For the United States, to whom Saleh was long an ally in its conflict with al Qaeda, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in Paris: "We continue to support the departure of President Saleh who has consistently agreed that he would be stepping down from power and then consistently reneged on those agreements."

In Deauville, Japanese foreign ministry spokesman Satoru Satoh also urged Saleh to sign a power transition deal he had negotiated with his opponents after mediation by Gulf states.

David Cameron, the British prime minister, said the summit would show Arabs on the street that the world stood behind them:

"I want a very simple and clear message to come out of this summit, and that is that the most powerful nations on earth have come together and are saying to those in the Middle East and North Africa who want greater democracy, greater freedom, greater civil rights, 'We are on your side'."

"We will help you build your democracy, we will help your economies ... we will help you in all the ways we can, because the alternative to a successful democracy is more of the poisonous extremism that has done so much damage in our world."

IMF LEADERSHIP

A host of other issues crowded in on a formal agenda whose slimness reflects the diminished role of the G8 in a world in which the developing economies, such as India and China, have taken a bigger part, though wider bodies like the Group of 20.

European members of the G8 -- France, Germany, Britain and Italy -- were expected to try to rally support from the United States, Russia, Canada and Japan for the EU candidate to run the International Monetary Fund in the face of discontent among the emerging economies, who want a bigger say at the IMF.

China raised the prospect of further wrangling over the choice of French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde to replace Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who quit when charged with attempted rape. Beijing urged "democratic consultation" on the IMF post, casting doubt on Paris's claim that Lagarde had China's backing.

Clinton also said the United States had no official position on Lagarde, though U.S. officials have indicated Washington would back her. And Clinton hinted that the U.S. government did welcome highly qualified women candidates.

After a morning of scattered bilateral talks, French President Nicolas Sarkozy hosted a lunch to open the 24-hour summit. Deauville was largely sealed off from the outside world by heavy security, leaving a few hundred left-wing protesters to demonstrate in the port of Le Havre, 40 km (25 miles) away.

ARAB SPRING

Russia, a post-Cold War addition to the G8 which often takes a contrary view to the seven Western powers, is opposed to the NATO bombing effort to oust Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.

There was no immediate sign, however, of significant new moves by Moscow to try to mediate between the warring parties.

The group will condemn Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's crackdown on protesters, officials said.

Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan will brief the G8 on Tokyo's response to the nuclear crisis at Fukushima after the tsunami in March, part of a process of discussions aimed at improving the safety of nuclear power plants.

On the global economy, the future leadership of the IMF and efforts in the European Union to deal with sovereign debts that have pushed several states which use the euro currency into crisis, are likely to be discussed in tandem.

The Europeans, apparently with tacit support from the United States, have insisted on maintaining a convention that the IMF managing director should be chosen from Europe. The role of the global lender, notably under Frenchman Strauss-Kahn, in helping bail out Greece and other indebted EU states has been cited by European leaders as a factor in keeping the post for themselves.

However, the rising BRICS economies -- which includes Russia alongside China, India, Brazil and South Africa -- have decried the process of choosing a successor and want more of a say.

The effect of Greece's difficulties on the euro and hence on world currency markets is also a matter of concern for the non-European powers in Deauville, though European Council President Herman Van Rompuy told reporters as the summit began that the leaders were not negotiating any package for Athens.

Among a range of matters discussed among the leaders before lunch, U.S. President Barack Obama told Russian President Dmitry Medvedev that he wanted a rapid entry for Moscow into the World Trade Organization. And Medvedev confirmed post-Soviet Russia's first big purchase of foreign arms -- ordering four amphibious assault ships from a French-led consortium.

Obama and Sarkozy led tributes to the Serbian government for its arrest of Bosnian Serb war crimes suspect Ratko Mladic. The French president called it "courageous" said it would bring former pariah Belgrade a step closer to integration with the EU.

(Reporting in Deauville by Alexei Anishchuk, David Ljunggren, Emmanuel Jarry, Francesca Piscioneri, Geert de Clercq, Gernot Heller, Brian Love, Jeff Mason, Nick Vinocur, John Irish, Keith Weir, Luke Baker, Marie Maitre, Steve Holland, Yann Le Guernigou, Yoko Kubota, Jon Boyle, Alastair Macdonald and Catherine Bremer; editing by Jon Boyle)

*Link for This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources Reuters

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DTN News: Canada To Use Its G8 Presidency To Press For Iran Sanctions: PM

DTN News: Canada To Use Its G8 Presidency To Press For Iran Sanctions: PM *Source: DTN News / AFP (NSI News Source Info) OTTAWA, Canada - February 11, 2010: Canada will use its G8 presidency to press the club of world's richest nations for more sanctions against Iran to try to curb its nuclear ambitions, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said Wednesday. "Canada will use its G8 presidency to continue to focus international attention and action on the Iranian regime" and "work with its allies to find strong and viable solutions, including sanctions, to hold Iran to account," Harper said in a statement. "It is time for Iran to end its defiance of the international community, suspend its enrichment activity and take immediate steps toward transparency and compliance by halting the construction of new enrichment sites, and fully cooperating with the International Atomic Energy Agency," he said. Harper's announcement came as the US Treasury Department ordered a freeze on assets of an individual and four companies linked to Iran's Revolutionary Guard. US President Barack Obama on Tuesday called for a "significant regime of sanctions" against Iran for seeking to further enrich nuclear materials in defiance of UN Security Council resolutions actions. In Moscow, the powerful head of Russia's national security council, Nikolai Patrushev, said Tehran's announcement that it had started work to produce 20 percent enriched uranium cast doubt on its claims not to be pursuing weapons. Patrushev indicated the Kremlin's patience in trying to seek dialogue with Tehran was wearing thin. Harper said his government is "deeply disturbed" by Iran's decision. "Iran's past history of deliberately concealing aspects of its nuclear program makes this latest move even more worrying," he added. Leaders of the Group of Seven industrialized nations, plus Russia, are to meet next in Toronto in June. Related Articles Why Iran unrest is not revolution re-run CNN - 1 day ago China urges agreement on Iran nuclear fuel proposal Washington Post - 1 day ago Confidential IAEA document suggest Iran-s higher enrichment operation modest ... Gaea Times (blog) - 2 hours ago

DTN News: China Shows Military Might In Early July, During Ethnic Violence In Xinjiang Autonomous Region

DTN News: China Shows Military Might In Early July, During Ethnic Violence In Xinjiang Autonomous Region *Source: DTN News / Int'l Media (NSI News Source Info) TAIPEI, Taiwan - July 28, 2009: Chinese soldiers in riot gear stand and sit at the main city square in the centre of Urumqi in China's Xinjiang Autonomous Region July 9, 2009. Chinese President Hu Jintao, forced to abandon a G8 summit in Italy by ethnic violence in restive Xinjiang, said that maintaining social stability in the energy-rich region was the "most urgent task", state television reported on Thursday July 9. Armed Chinese paramilitary police in riot gear march along the main near Dong Kuruk Bridge mosque in the city of Urumqi in China's Xinjiang Autonomous Region July 15, 2009. Security remains heavy in ethnic Uighur neighbourhoods of Xinjiang regional capital Urumqi after riots between the Muslim Uighur minority and majority Han Chinese wounded more than 1,600. About 1,000 people have been detained. The official Xinhua news agency said on Wednesday 192 people were killed in the riots in Urumqui. The earlier figure was 184. Hu described Sunday's riots in the regional capital Urumqi, where 156 people were killed and 1,080 wounded when minority Muslim Uighurs attacked majority Han Chinese, as a "serious violent crime elaborately planned and organised by 'three forces' at home and abroad", an apparent reference to religious extremists, separatists and terrorists.

DTN News: U.S. President Barack Obama Arrived In Italy For G8 Summit

DTN News: U.S. President Barack Obama Arrived In Italy For G8 Summit *Source: DTN News (NSI News Source Info) ROME, Italy - July 8, 2009: U.S. President Barack Obama left Moscow on Wednesday aboard Air Force One after two days of talks with Russian leaders. Obama flies to Italy for a meeting with leaders of the Group of Eight nations in the Italian city of L'Aquila. U.S. President Barack Obama and his first lady Michelle Obama arrive in Pratica di Mare military airport on the outskirts of Rome, Wednesday, July 8, 2009. Obama is in Italy to attend the G8 (Group of Eight) summit in L'Aquila from July 8 to July 10. U.S. President Barack Obama is flanked by Italian Gen. Rolando Mosca Moschini (Military and Defence Presidential Advisor), as they review the honor guard prior to his meeting with Italian President Giorgio Napolitano at the Quirinale Presidential Palace, in Rome, Wednesday, July 8, 2009. Obama is in Italy to attend the G8 (Group of Eight) Summit in L'Aquila from July 8 to July 10. U.S. President Barack Obama arrived in Italy on Wednesday to attend the G8 summit. Obama, who arrived from Moscow at an air base south of Rome, was due to meet with President Giorgio Napolitano before heading to the central city of L'Aquila for the summit

DTN News: Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi In Sober Mood For White House Meeting With President Barack Obama

DTN News: Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi In Sober Mood For White House Meeting With President Barack Obama

*Sources: Int'l Media / The Times

(NSI News Source Info) WASHINGTON - June 16, 2009: A defiant Silvio Berlusconi held White House talks with President Obama yesterday, seeking to restore some of his international lustre as scandals and talk of a coup to overthrow him continued to swirl at home. US President Barack Obama listens to Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi during a meeting in the Oval office at the White House in Washington, DC, on June 15, 2009. President Barack Obama said Monday Italy had agreed to accept three specific detainees from the Guantanamo Bay "war on terror" camp, after talks with Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. With world media attention riveted by lurid details of his private life, the Italian Prime Minister did his best to present himself in sober and statesmanlike pose at the meeting with Mr Obama. They discussed the crisis in Iran, the Middle East peace process, troop commitments in Afghanistan and next month’s G8 summit, which Italy will host in the earthquake-ravaged town of L’Aquila. Mr Berlusconi said that Italy would take three detainees from Guantánamo Bay, which the US wants to close by January next year. It was all a long way from the furore over allegations about Mr Berlusconi’s relationship with Noemi Letizia — an 18-year-old aspiring model — and photographs of scantily clad individuals at his villa in Sardinia. The mystery of the relationship between Silvio Berlusconi and an 18-year-old aspiring model deepened yesterday when photographs were published showing them attending a Christmas party given by AC Milan, the football club that he owns. La Repubblica, the newspaper, published photographs and a video clip on its website showing Noemi Letizia seated at a table with Fedele Confalonieri, the head of Mr Berlusconi's holding company Fininvest. One of his longest-serving friends and business partners, Carlo Ancelotti, the AC Milan manager, can be seen standing behind them. Letizia, who is at the centre of Mr Berlusconi’s divorce row, attended the party with her mother, Anna Palumbo. Veronica Lario, the second wife of Mr Berlusconi, 72, requested a divorce after he attended the 18th birthday party of Ms Letizia last month and gave her a €6,000 (£5,200) diamond pendant. Mr Berlusconi was quoted in Italy by La Repubblica yesterday as vowing to step down and call an early election if his opponents continued with an alleged plot to bring him down. “My Government will go ahead calmly, but if it does not then we shall have to return to the polls,” he was reported to have said. However, the Prime Minister’s spokesman dismissed the remark last night as fantasy. Rumours of a conspiracy against Mr Berlusconi were first raised in a speech he made at the weekend. He did not specify who might be behind it but several names were mentioned by allies and political commentators speculating that he would be replaced by either a caretaker government headed by a non-partisan figure or a cross-party government of national unity. The meeting with Mr Obama yesterday represented an important opportunity for him to restore his international reputation alongside one of the world’s most popular leaders. Il Giornale, Mr Berlusconi’s newspaper, said that he had cancelled a dinner at the Italian Embassy in Washington, as well as visits to the National Gallery and Arlington National Cemetery, to concentrate on his meeting with the US President. Mr Berlusconi promised that he would arrive in Washington “handsome and suntanned” — a reference to his controversial description of Mr Obama soon after the US elections, when he described America’s first black president as “handsome, young and suntanned”. The Prime Minister’s aides denied reports that relations with the new Administration were cool. “If that were the case it would not explain why Berlusconi is the second European leader after Gordon Brown to be received at the White House,” one said. They also denied that there was American “irritation” over Mr Berlusconi’s close relations with Vladimir Putin, the Russian Prime Minister, and Colonel Muammar Gaddafi of Libya, who, on a visit to Rome last week, made a comparison between America and al-Qaeda.