Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri said on Thursday the country would soon define its offshore boundaries with Cyprus and Syria and would move ahead with licensing exploration for oil and gas. Lebanon has said it hopes to launch a licensing round for offshore gas exploration at the beginning of 2012. "We are finalising the economic zones with Syria, and hopefully soon we will be sending to parliament the whole area for ratification," Hariri told reporters in Cyprus. "At some point we had some differences on the agreement with Cyprus; we had some differences with Syria. Now we have a much better relationship with Syria, and we are negotiating the economic zone," Hariri said. Cyprus has a conclusive agreement with Egypt defining its sea boundaries, has signed an agreement pending ratification with Lebanon and is holding talks with Israel. Cyprus, which lies to Lebanon's west, carried out one licensing round for deepwater exploration in the eastern Mediterranean in 2007, despite objections from Turkey, its northern neighbour with which it has no diplomatic ties. Turkey earlier on Thursday said it planned to begin work on oil exploration around Cyprus but did not specify where. The southern rim of the island, controlled by Cyprus's internationally recognised government, has already divided up 13 sea plots, which it is offering for exploration. An U.S.-based energy company has exploration rights to one of Cyprus's plots, while the island plans a second licensing round soon. Energy officials say they want to conclude talks with neighbouring countries before proceeding with another round.
II. PNN - Data From Confiscated Laptop Suggests Turkish Involvement in Planning of Gaza Aid Flotilla
Documents taken from the laptops of passengers aboard the Gaza-bound aid flotilla that was attacked by Israeli forces suggest support from higher-ups in the Turkish government. Turkey has denied claims that they gave any assistance to the flotilla's organizers. The extracted documents display the detailed planning and preparation for the aid mission last May. Included are multiple response scenarios to different possible situations, including several regarding Israeli aggression, and dealing with possible imprisonment. There is also a full record of meetings between the heads of the six groups involved. This vital document was found in the laptop of Polish journalist Ewa Jasiwicz, a member of the Free Gaza Movement. The organizers claimed that they recieved from Turkey "direct support from PM and other ministers. During [face to face] discussions, [they] openly said that if we have any difficulties, gov[ernment] will extend what support they can”. The Turkish Embassy has denied giving any direct support, making it very clear that "the flotilla was a civilian initiative. If it was a government initiative we would have handled it, and this was not the case." The Israeli Defense Forces confiscated all documents found on the ships right after their attack and promptly sent them for intelligence analysis. Most of the important documents were analyzed by the Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center, which released a report on their findings in early October.
III. WASHINGTONPOST - Turkey hesitates on NATO missile defense
Turkey finds itself once again in an awkward position between fellow NATO members and Iran as it considers a proposal to place a key component of a U.S. missile defense system on its soil. Depending on how it is resolved, the issue could heighten or quell concerns in Washington that Turkey is drifting away from the West. The U.S. would like Turkey to host a radar installation for its European missile shield and to back a proposal to make missile defense a core mission for NATO. After initial enthusiasm about the radar, Turkey has hesitated. Its main concern is that it does not want the missile defense system to explicitly target Iran. Turkey also doesn't want NATO to go on record at its summit in Lisbon, Portugal, Nov. 19-21, identifying Iran as a ballistic missile threat. But U.S. and NATO officials have clearly identified Iran as the most immediate threat, even pegging the timing of building a missile defense to projected advances in Iran's missile capabilities. The disagreement has bolstered doubt about Turkey's commitment to Western institutions at a time when its bid for membership in the European Union has stalled. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said this week at a conference on U.S.-Turkish relations that the United States is not pressuring Turkey on the missile defense issues. Still, a Turkish refusal of the radar or problems negotiating the NATO statement could cause tensions to spike. Both sides say they are looking for a solution. A solution could involve playing down any mention of Iran as the motivation for building a missile defense system. With anger at Iran running high in the United States, however, the Obama administration may find that an uncomfortable compromise.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev on Wednesday said his country's ties with NATO have to overcome years of historic distrust, as he prepares to attend the Western alliance's summit. "Relations between Russia and NATO have always been difficult, maybe it's a legacy plus emotions, feelings, people's perceptions," he told foreign policy experts and dignitaries at his Gorky residence just outside Moscow. "We all have some historical background... Undoubtedly, this weighs down our relations including with NATO. In Russia, there is a feeling that NATO is a kind of aggressive factor in relation to Russia. Perhaps it is misguided thinking in many ways." On Tuesday, Medvedev said he would attend next month's NATO summit in Lisbon as he seeks to promote what he thinks should be a common European security strategy uniting the continent once split between the West and the Soviet bloc under a joint strategic vision. Medvedev first proposed his common European security plan in 2008 but that idea had earlier received lukewarm support in the West.
With the Nov. 2 midterm elections less than two weeks away, political analysts are focusing on races that will help determine whether Republicans oust Democrats from control of the U.S. House and Senate and how the two parties fare in gubernatorial races. Bloomberg Businessweek takes a look in its Oct. 25 issue at eight key contests, from coast to coast, that illustrate some of the issues, trends and voter dynamics at work in the 2010 campaign. These factors include turnout concerns facing Democrats, public opposition to the Troubled Asset Relief Program and the health-care overhaul, and the role of spending by pro-Republican outside groups. Indiana: Early Clue - When Democrat Baron Hill won his U.S. House race in 2006, he retook the Indiana seat from the Republican who had bounced him from office two years earlier. Hill’s return signaled a national wave that put his party in control of Congress. This year, Republicans hope to once again defeat Hill in this competitive district in the state’s southeast corner. With polls closing at 6 p.m. Eastern, the outcome may provide an early glimpse of what’s in store nationwide. Virginia: Turnout Crucial - Buoyed by college students and blacks energized by Barack Obama’s presidential bid, Democrat Tom Perriello two years ago won a U.S. House seat in Virginia by 727 votes -- in percentage terms, the nation’s closest congressional contest. This year, his race against Republican Robert Hurt, a state senator, tests whether Democrats can survive without Obama on the ticket and with their records including such unpopular votes as the health- care overhaul passed in March. In the largely rural district that includes the University of Virginia, about 20 percent of 2008’s voters were African American, and the college yielded 4,000 new Democratic backers. Many of those have graduated, while newcomer students don’t seem as motivated. West Virginia: Senate Control - Democrat Joe Manchin is the popular West Virginia governor vying for the Senate seat opened up by Robert Byrd’s death in June. An Oct. 12 survey by Public Policy Polling, though, shows 47 percent of voters would prefer Manchin, who won re-election with 70 percent of the vote in 2008, remain as governor. He’s also battling Obama’s unpopularity in the state; the lost it in 2008 by 13 percentage points. The upshot may be a crucial Republican win that helps the party gain the 10 seats it needs for Senate control. Republican businessman John Raese has turned the contest into a toss-up by urging West Virginians to do their part to put a check on Obama. Ohio: Obama Visits - Obama was back in Columbus, Ohio, on Oct. 17 for a get-out- the-vote rally on the Ohio State University campus. It was his 11th trip to the state since taking office -- and his fourth to Columbus. One of his aims is to aid U.S. Representative Mary Jo Kilroy, a freshman Democrat battling for another term. Obama himself, though, has plenty to gain from reminding Ohio voters why they backed him in 2008. He won Kilroy’s district by 9 percentage points, while she eked out a 2,311-vote win. Polls show Kilroy trailing this year after supporting Obama’s health-care bill, the economic stimulus package, and new rules for the nation’s financial markets. Texas: TARP Vote - There’s no shortage of Democratic candidates under fire for having cast unpopular votes in the last two years. One of those is Texas Democrat Chet Edwards, a 10-term House incumbent who has hung onto his heavily Republican district, wedged between Dallas and Austin, in part by rejecting some of his party’s biggest priorities. This term, he opposed Obama’s health-care overhaul. He gave Republican challenger Bill Flores an opening with votes for TARP and the stimulus plan, which the lawmaker concedes might finally do him in. “It may cost me an election,” Edwards told the Dallas Morning News. “But it was the right thing to do.” Analysts give Flores the edge. Colorado: Outside Spending - Colorado may be Republican Karl Rove’s next proving ground. Independent groups, two of which the one-time political strategist for former President George W. Bush helped start, are pouring money into the state. Between Sept. 1 and Oct. 17, outside groups reported spending $13.6 million in Colorado, more than in any other state, with $8.5 million helping Republican candidates. “You can’t have your television on for 10 or 15 minutes without seeing at least two or three ads saying that someone shouldn’t have been born,” said Kenneth BNevada: Tea Party Test - Even Las Vegas oddsmakers would be hard-pressed to pick this one. Polls show the contest in Nevada between Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and Sharron Angle, a Tea Party-backed Republican, is one of the nation’s closest. It may well be the most important, too. The race has become a proxy for whether Tea Party insurgents who overcame opposition from many elected Republicans to win primaries can go on to triumph in general elections. And in the case of Angle, she is trying to defeat one of the leaders of the party in power. Obama has rallied around Reid, with the president set to make his third appearance in the state tomorrow. Reid needs all the help he can get -- Angle raised more than $14 million in the year’s third quarter to his $2.8 million. Much of the spending has gone toward attack ads. Oregon: Governor’s Race - The anti-politician mood evident in much of the U.S. is bolstering the prospects of Republican Chris Dudley in Oregon’s gubernatorial race, as the political newcomer seeks to break the state’s streak of six straight Democratic chief executives. If Dudley prevails, he would be part of a net gain in Republican governors that some analysts say could go as high as eight and may include replacing Democratic administrations in such major states as Ohio, Pennsylvania and Michigan. That would put the party in enviable shape as states prepare to redraw their political boundaries in the wake of the 2010 Census.
VI. POLITICSDAILY - Why NPR Was Wrong to Fire Juan Williams
NPR had the right to fire Juan Williams over his comments on "The O'Reilly Factor," but they shouldn't have done it. Williams, of course, made the tactical mistake of admitting that -- right or wrong -- he sometimes has fears about Muslims on airplanes. As Williams said to O'Reilly: I think, look, political correctness can lead to some kind of paralysis where you don't address reality. I mean, look, Bill, I'm not a bigot. You know the kind of books I've written about the civil rights movement in this country. But when I get on the plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they are identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried. I get nervous. In 2009, Attorney General Eric Holder said that when it comes to race, the America is "essentially a nation of cowards." He was right. Whether it's discussing race or religion, it seems being a coward is the safest and most prudent decision one can make. Clearly, having an honest discussion is fraught with danger. Williams, after all, was fired by NPR for admitting to an emotion that, let's be frank, many Americans share. Why does this matter? Williams put it well: "political correctness can lead to some kind of paralysis where you don't address reality." Simply put, as long as people are afraid of being real, we are unlikely to solve our problems. But even if one were to concede that Williams attitude and comments were inappropriate, is firing him the right response? As others have suggested, NPR should have instead invited him on one of its programs to debate and discuss his fears. Something positive might have come from that, but just as Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar chose to storm of the set of "The View" during a recent appearance by O'Reilly, the politically correct guide to debate often involves cutting off discussion, not encouraging more of it. It's also important to note that Williams' comments are being selectively edited. Watching the full clip in context demonstrates that his remarks were much more nuanced than they might first appear. Watch the full clip. In fact, Williams actually spent much of his time advocating for tolerance.
VII. IOCC - U.S. OCA Hierarch Visits IOCC Office In Georgia
During a visit to Georgia, His Grace, Bishop Michael of New York and New Jersey of the Orthodox Church in America (OCA) gave his blessing to the IOCC staff and was briefed on current humanitarian initiatives in the country. Bishop Michael was in Georgia at the invitation of the Georgian Orthodox Church for the occasion of the celebration of the 1000th Anniversary of the restoration of the Patriarchal Cathedral of the Life-Giving Tree in Mtskheta, Georgia. During the visit to the IOCC office, Bishop Michael noted that IOCC is "one of the biggest achievements of the Orthodox churches in America which is widely recognized and respected." Accompanying him on the visit was Archpriest Alexander Tandilashvili, a cleric of the Georgian Orthodox Church who serves in the OCA's Diocese of New York and New Jersey, and Father Giorgi Mamaladze from the Diocese of Batumi-Lazeti (West Georgia).