apsules for Tuesday's matches at the World Cup (FIFA rankings in parentheses): Mexico (17) vs. Uruguay (16), 10 a.m. Group A. Rustenberg. Two of the many Latin American teams that have prospered in the tournament, a victory for either wins the group. Mexico: El Tri has done well with an aggressive setup featuring three attackers. Javier Hernandez has added spice to the offense. Uruguay: Diego Forlan, who scored both goals in leading Atletico Madrid to the Europa League title, had a pair against South Africa last week. Notable Fact: Mexico will be without striker Carlos Vela, who has a right leg injury. Replacement Pablo Barrera impressed against France. France (9) vs. South Africa (83), 10 a.m. Group A. Bloemfontein. Even if one of these nations wins, it is not certain to advance because a draw between Mexico and Uruguay will eliminate both the French and the hosts. France: The disarray in the French camp reached absurd proportions when the players boycotted a practice session Sunday after striker Nicolas Anelka was kicked off the squad. South Africa: Coach Carlos Alberto Parreira plans five lineup changes, with two players — goalkeeper Itumeleng Khune and midfielder Kagisho Dikgacoi — suspended. Notable Fact: No host has failed to advance from the opening round of a World Cup. Bafana Bafana are in serious danger of becoming the first. Nigeria (21) vs. South Korea (47), 2:30 p.m. Group B. Durban. Nigeria must win big over South Korea and have Greece lose to Argentina by a wide margin to get into the second round. A victory for South Korea won't guarantee advancement if Greece also wins. Nigeria: The Nigerians have a reputation for offense, but they haven't threatened much throughout this tournament. South Korea: The Koreans are in their seventh consecutive World Cup but only advanced when they co-hosted the tournament in 2002 and reached the semifinals. Notable Fact: Nigeria midfielder Sani Kaita received a red card for a sideline foul when he kicked out at a Greek opponent. He received death threats after the incident. Greece (13) vs. Argentina (7), 2:30 p.m. Group B. Polokwane. Argentina has won both matches and a tie moves it into the second round. Greece could win and still not advance. Greece: The Greeks come off their first World Cup victory, in which they scored their first Cup goals, beating Nigeria 2-1. Argentina: Gonzalo Higuain scored three times against South Korea, the only hat trick thus far in the first round. Notable Fact: Argentina coach Diego Maradona says Brazil is still the favorite to win the World Cup despite "not playing well" at the tournament so far.
Russia is “Cyprus’ most reliable supporter” in resolving the Cyprus problem, Cypriot Foreign Minister Markos Kyprianou said before his departure to Moscow, where he would hold talks with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on Monday. “I would like to highlight that Russia has been and remains a reliable advocate of the principal position of the Republic of Cyprus and resolutions of the UN Security Council related to the Cyprus settlement,” he said. “Russia has never changed its position and it is our most reliable supporter in the UN Security Council,” Kyprianou said noting that this fact was proved last week during discussions of the UN SC resolution extending mandate of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus for six months.
III. RIANOVOSTI - Russia informs EU of gas dispute with Belarus
Russia has informed the European Union about its gas dispute with Belarus, a European Commission spokeswoman said on Monday. Marlene Holzner said Energy Commissioner Gunther Oettinger received a notification letter from Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko. Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller said earlier on Monday that Gazprom had started cutting gas supplies to Belarus over the debt. The restriction will gradually rise from 15 to 85 percent of daily supply. Belarus has refused to pay higher prices this year, which increased to $169 per 1,000 cubic meters for the first quarter and $185 for the second quarter, and has continued to pay last year's rate of $150 instead. Belarusian First Deputy Energy Minister Eduard Tovpinets on Friday evening announced that Gazprom owed some $200 million to Belarus for gas transit fees to Europe, a charge Gazprom rejects. Belarus has now admitted its debt but negotiations are underway concerning their repayment.
IV. B92 - PACE session to have Kosovo debate
The summer session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) begins in Strasbourg on Monday, and will include a debate on Kosovo. The session, which will be closed on June 25, will also be attended by the permanent delegation of the Serbian parliament, headed by Dragoljub Mićunović. Rapporteur of the PACE Political Affairs Committee and former Swedish defense minister Bjorn von Sydow will submit his report on Kosovo on Tuesday, June 22, and the resolution based on his report is expected to be adopted at the session. Sydow stressed the neutrality of the Council of Europe regarding the situation in Kosovo, adding that he primarily insists on Kosovo standards, rather than status. In his report, he underscored a bad situation in the province concerning the rule of law, adding that “there are problems of minority communities and corruption, including in institutions”. During the summer session, PACE will also discuss the tension in the Middle East, the report on the swine flu pandemic, Islam, Islamism and Islamophobia in Europe, as well as the legal regulations for the prevention of human rights violations in northern Caucasus.
Colombia elected Juan Manuel Santos, the scion of one of the country's most powerful families, to succeed outgoing President Alvaro Uribe, who is stepping down after a successful eight-year rule marked by his iron-fisted military offensive against cocaine-financed Marxist insurgents. Santos scored a landslide win Sunday over Antanas Mockus, a former mayor of Bogota. As Uribe's chosen heir, Santos staked his campaign on continuing the tough-security policies that have made Colombia a safer country in recent years.On Sunday, many Colombians decided to stay home and watch the World Cup soccer matches instead of going to vote. With a commanding 25-point lead after the first vote, Colombians seemed confident that Santos's victory was sealed. Turnout was much lower than in the first-round vote, officials said. Santos based his campaign on continuing Uribe's successful security and economic policies. Santos, educated at Harvard and the London School of Economics, served as Uribe's defense minister. Under his watch, security forces decimated the leadership of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, a drug-financed guerrilla group labeled as a terrorist organization by the European Union and the U.S. The victories by the U.S.-backed military cut the FARC's combat force in half, to around 8,000 fighters, but they have retained the ability to strike. The government reported that three policemen and seven soldiers were killed in attacks by the FARC on Sunday. Santos has pledged to finish off the FARC and is asking for more military aid from the U.S. to get the job done. The U.S. has provided $7 billion in military aid in the last 10 years, but the U.S. Congress plans to cut transfers by 3% for this year and 9% for 2011 from what was initially budgeted. Colombia is expected to receive $670 million in military aid this year, the lowest figure in eight years. With Santos in the presidency, Washington is guaranteed an ally in a region dominated by populist, anti-U.S. leaders. As defense minister, he boosted military cooperation with the U.S. He oversaw an agreement giving U.S. troops access to seven Colombian military bases, a deal which has enraged socialist Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez.
Turkish forces pushed into northern Iraq yesterday, killing four people, including a 15-year-old girl as they attacked the hideouts of Kurdish rebels who killed 12 soldiers in the deadliest spell of violence in two years. The ground incursion into Iraq came after Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan pledged to fight the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) "to the end." PKK spokesman Ahmed Denis responded with a threat to attack cities across Turkey if the army did not halt its policy of confrontation. Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, a Kurd, criticized the "unilateral" Turkish action and called on the Erdogan government to return to peaceful efforts to woo Turkey's large Kurdish minority away from violence. Turkish fire killed a 15-year-old girl and wounded her mother and 2-year-old brother in Khwakurq village, said Sidikan district commissioner Ahmed Qader. As Turkish forces advanced into Iraqi territory during the night, they killed three other people, a security official said, without specifying whether the dead were civilians or PKK fighters.
VII. RUTLANDHERALD - Vermont Legislature chides Turkey
The Vermont Legislature is asking the government of Turkey to end religious discrimination against the Orthodox Christian Church, Sen. Richard Sears said Thursday. “The General Assembly strongly urges the Republic of Turkey to recognize the right to religious freedom for all its residents and to end all discriminatory policies directed against the Ecumenical Patriarchate of the Orthodox Church,” the resolution read. The secretary of state has been directed to send a copy of the resolution to Turkey’s embassy in Washington, D.C. “I know some people will criticize and say, ‘What has Vermont got to do with this issue?’ but I think we were founded on the principles of religious freedom and I think it’s important for us to uphold them as much as we can throughout the world,” Sears said. According to Sears, Vermont is now one of more than half the states in America to have passed a resolution urging Turkey to reconsider its position on the Orthodox Christian Church, especially as it looks for membership in the European Union. Turkey’s population is almost entirely Muslim but it is also home to the spiritual leader of 300 million Orthodox Christians, “His All Holiness, Bartholomew, archbishop of Constantinople, New Rome, Ecumenical Patriarch,” according to the “Sixty Minutes” report. The Vermont Senate Joint Resolution said that the government of Turkey had “repeatedly and illegally adopted repressive discriminatory policies” against the church, whose members include the Greek Orthodox Church, such as laws that forbid the church from owning property, requirements that the church’s leaders be Turkish citizens and the closure of a theological school.