Michael's Morning 7 - 07 May

I. Ex-Kosovo leader leaves Colombia after expulsion

Former Kosovo Prime Minister Agim Ceku said on Thursday he had left Colombia following an expulsion order from the local security agency as he is wanted in Serbia on war crimes charges. Serbia indicted Ceku, a former top commander of Kosovo Albanian guerrillas during the 1998-1999 war, for war crimes against Serbs and other non-Albanians.

II. Report: Turkey To Break With NATO On Iran

A report issued by the Washington Institute says Turkey has moved steadily away from its NATO allies and toward Iran, Russia and Syria. The report, titled “The AKP’s Foreign Policy: The Misnomer of Neo-Ottomanism” and authored by senior researcher Soner Cagaptay, says Turkey’s new foreign policy — led by the ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP according to its Turkish initials — has come at the expense of Ankara’s relations with Israel, the European Union and the United States. “Ankara will likely opt out of a NATO consensus on Iran, clash with the United States on how to handle Hamas and Hezbollah, and disagree with the EU and the U.S. on Russia,” the report said.

III. Hawaii Lawmakers Pass Bill to Create 'Islam Day'

Hawaii's state Senate overwhelmingly approved a bill Wednesday to celebrate "Islam Day" -- over the objections of a few lawmakers who said they didn't want to honor a religion connected to Sept. 11, 2001. "I don't think there's any country in the history of the world that has been more tolerant than the United States of America, and because of that tolerance, we've looked the other way a lot of times, and many thousands of our citizens have been killed by terrorists."

IV. Anti-government clash in Georgia

Anti-government protesters and police have clashed in the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, amid rising national tensions. They come a day after the authorities said they had thwarted an army mutiny at a base outside the capital. Later in the evening, opposition leaders and supporters gathered outside parliament for a rally, as they have daily since 9 April. The protesters are calling for the resignation of President Mikhail Saakashvili over his leadership record and his handling of Georgia's war with Russia last summer.

V. EU Offers Russia's Neighbors Perks for Energy

The European Union will offer better trade ties and easier visa rules to six of Russia's neighbors on Thursday as it seeks their support for oil and gas pipelines bypassing Russia. The EU's most senior representatives at the talks will include Barroso, Merkel and Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek, whose country is holding the rotating EU presidency. Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia will be represented by their presidents, while Ukraine is sending both the president and prime minister. Belarus will have a lower-level delegation headed by a deputy prime minister, and Moldova, which accused EU member Romania of instigating recent post-election riots, named its foreign minister as delegation chief.

VI. EU seeks to enroll Caucasus neighbors, Egypt and Iraq into energy deal bypassing Russia

The European Union will press eight southern neighbors on Friday to join a long-term partnership that would give them a sustained income from their natural gas in the years ahead and provide Western Europe with stable gas deliveries that bypass Russia. At a meeting in Prague with leaders of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Egypt and Iraq, the EU will push for a broad commitment on the expansion of a web of half a dozen east-west gas pipelines spanning thousands of miles (kilometers).

VII. U.S. Commission Places Turkey on "Watch List" for Religious Freedom

The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom placed Turkey on its "Watch List" as one of the most serious offenders of religious freedom abuse toward non-Muslim communities. It was the Commission's most extensive report on religious freedom in its ten-year history. Congress created the Commission in 1998 through the International Religious Freedom Act. It serves to monitor the status of freedom of thought, conscience, and religion or belief abroad, as defined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and related international instruments. It provides independent policy recommendations to the President, Secretary of State, and Congress.