US doesn’t support NGOs that oppose nuclear-power projects

Washington, March 2: The US has said it’s strongly supportive of India’s investment in civil nuclear power and it’s support to NGOs is for development and for democracy programmes and not for opposing projects like Kudankulam.

Asked to comment on a reported remark of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that three US NGOs were funding a movement in Tamil Nadu State to oppose setting up of a nuclear power plant there, State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland said, “I’m not aware of that.”

“As you know, we are strongly supportive of India’s investment in civil nuclear power,” she said. “The NGOs that we fund in India are involved in the same kind of democratization projects.”

“We are supportive, as a government, of India’s investment in civil nuclear power,” she repeated in response to another question. “That’s not what we support NGOs to do in India. Our NGO support goes for development and it goes for democracy programmes.”

Asked if the US was surprised at the Indian Prime Minister’s statement and if Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was aware of this, Nuland said: “I can’t speak to that one way or the other.”

Referring to several steps taken by India and Pakistan recently to improve bilateral trade and business relationships, she said, “We think this is great news and will further the warming of relations between India and Pakistan on trade, economy and investment.”

Describing it as ‘a testament to the hard work both governments have been putting into’, Nuland said that it was very much part and parcel of the Silk Road vision that they have, that trade and investment can help all people in the region become more prosperous.

Asked if the US was playing any role in this, she said, “Beyond encouraging both governments to keep it up, no. They are doing this on their own.” (IANS)

Israel to test next-generation missile defense system

Tel Aviv, March 2: Israel is ready to conduct the first test of the Arrow 3 missile defence system, a State-owned defence contractor announced.

“The initial trial of the advanced Arrow 3 will be performed in the near future to confirm the interceptor’s effectiveness,” Itzhak Kaya, head of the Arrow Missile Program at Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), said in a military and aviation exhibition on Thursday near Tel Aviv.

“A series of different tests will be run to establish the system’s high level of reliability within a short time,” a statement quoted him as saying.

Kaya said that Arrow 3, which utilizes a radar system named Green Pine, is more capable than ever to deal with future threats. In limited tests conducted a few weeks ago, he said, the system demonstrated improved identification and tracking of incoming missiles with high levels of certainty.

Asked whether planned cuts to Israel’s defence budget would delay completion of the system’s development and its acquisition by the Israeli military, Kaya said that the programme was on track, meeting expectations as a high priority defence system.As far as I know, there is no threat to the program’s future”.

The Israel Air Force currently deploys two Arrow 2 batteries, with a third on the way.          Arrow 3, which is slated to comprise the upper tier of Israel’s missile defences, is scheduled to enter service in 2015.

A top Israeli missile defence expert recently echoed Kaya’s assurance regarding Arrow 3, saying that the system is capable of protecting Israeli territory from an Iranian long-range missile barrage.

“There is no such thing as 100 percent defence, but the Arrow is capable of providing adequate defence against Iran’s Shahab and Sajil ballistic missiles,” Arieh Herzog, who recently stepped down as director of the Defence Ministry’s Homa Missile Defence Agency (HMDA) said.

“The Iranians have the ability to launch barrages and that is an important part of their capabilities, but we are prepared and have the ability to intercept those barrages,” Herzog said. Other former and current defence officials have also voiced confidence in the Arrow system. “It was developed to deal with missiles fired from distances of more than 1,000 km,” Uzi Rubin, the Arrow’s Chief developer and head of the HMDA between 1991 and 1999, told Xinhua on Thursday. He noted, however, that rockets from Syria posed a more imminent threat than those from Iran due to the former’s proximity to Israel’s northern border.

IAI’s announcement and the officials’ remarks came amid a media buzz in recent months that Israel is planning to launch a pre-emptive strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities. (IANS)

US and India working together to contain LeT

Washington, March 2:  Renewing focus on Pakistani terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), a top US military commander has described it as a ‘dangerous’ outfit with ‘a lot of international design.’

Claiming that the group boasts of good operational security, Admiral Robert Willard, the PACOM Commander, told the US Congress that America and India were working together to contain LeT.

Willard said Pakistan-based LeT is a very dangerous organisation. It not only has very good operational security, but also a lot of international design in terms of their aspirations.

“So it is a very important threat, and we’re working very closely with the nations in the region to help contain it,” he said.

The PACOM Commander was responding to a question from Congressman Joe Wilson as to what effort was being made to counteract threat from LeT.(PTI)

China blames Dalai Lama for self-immolation

Beijing, March 2: A Chinese official on Friday held the Dalai Lama responsible for a string of self-immolation by Tibetan monks, saying the Tibetan spiritual leader applauded them.

Zhao Qizheng, spokesman for the annual session of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), said this here.

Zhao alleged that in some cases, there were people who forecast the time and places where self-immolation would take place. “Some people brought video cameras to film the incidents, and some even tried to prevent the rescue efforts,” Zhao told reporters.

“According to what I have heard, he (Dalai Lama) publicly applauded the courage of these people who set fire to themselves.”

A string of self-immolation broke out in Tibetan areas in Sichuan and Qinghai provinces bordering Tibet in recent months. And at least two mob attacks on police offices were reported in Sichuan’s volatile Tibetan areas in January, leaving at least two people dead.

Zhao said that committing suicide, which is a disrespect for life, was not a wise thing to do. He asked people not to take extreme actions to express their attitudes.

“It is important to avoid being misled,” Zhao said. “If you lose your life because of extreme actions, it will be too late to regret it.”

Xinhua said the Tibetan region had taken steps to improve the living conditions and environment for local monks to practice Buddhism. Efforts have also been made to provide roads, water, electricity and cultural services for them, it said.

The Dalai Lama, who China dubs ‘splittist’, has lived in India since fleeing his homeland following a failed uprising in 1959. His government-in-exile, based in Dharamsala, is not recognised by any country. (IANS)

80,000 people flee Mali as clashes continue

Geneva, March 2 : Some 80,000 people have fled the western African nation of Mali to neighbouring countries due to intense fighting between government troops and rebels, the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said on Friday.

Countries such as Mauritania, Burkina Faso and Niger continue to receive large number of refugees, as fighting between Malian Army and rebel Tuaregs, which started in mid-January, saw no sign of easing so far, Xinhua reported.

  The Mauritanian government estimated that there have been now over 31,000 Malian refugees on its territory, and that the number is growing by 1,500 each day. In Burkina Faso, where authorities have already registered 18,326 Malian refugees, an average of 500 Malians are crossing the border daily.

Meanwhile, an additional 81,000 Malians are reportedly being internally displaced.The UN High Commission for Refugees is working with humanitarian partners and governments concerned to bring aid to the region. (IANS)

India’s youth, like world over, are seeking change: US professor

Washington, March 2: Citing the example of India, a noted US professor has outlined how, frustrated and angry, the world’s young people are demanding change, from Europe and Japan to the swarming streets of Cairo.

“Whether it’s the Occupy Wall Street movement in the United States or the mass rallies of the Arab world, young people have been jolted into action and are leading the response to diminished opportunities and unfulfilled aspirations,” David E. Bloom, wrote.

“India is an example of a country focused on and struggling to realize the benefits of its large and still-growing youthful population,” wrote Bloom, Professor of Economics and Demography at the Harvard School of Public Health, in the March issue of Finance & Development, an International Monetary Fund publication.

“It is the second most populous country in the world, and its 15 to 24 year-old population is the largest and growing,” he said noting “India’s 238 million 15 to 24 year-olds equals the total population of the world’s fourth most populous country, Indonesia.”

Bloom recalled the Indian National Knowledge Commission, headed by Sam Pitroda, had concluded, “Our youth can be an asset only if we invest in their capabilities. A knowledge-driven generation will be an asset. Denied this investment, it will become a social and economic liability.”

“India’s young people have shown strong support for social activist Anna Hazare and his anticorruption campaign-a testament to their acute awareness of the debilitating effects of corruption,” Bloom said.

“Neighbouring Pakistan sits on a similar precipice, albeit a bit closer to the edge. With 38 million adolescents and young adults, Pakistan has the world’s fifth largest 15- to 24-year-old population,” he said.

“But fragile governance structures, a poor record of development progress, regular episodes of extreme social conflict, and a shaky macroeconomic situation all contribute to young people’s lack of confidence in Pakistan’s future,” he said. (IANS)

Five places where life may exist in solar system

Washington, March 2:  Life on Earth occupies some bizarre places from deep-sea hydrothermal vents to frigid and lightless lakes. While scientists hunt for hospitable planets circling other stars, the solar system has a few candidates.

According to the Christian Science Monitor, the following are the five places where life may exist, Mars: Early in its history, the red planet had abundant surface water. Could microbes lurk underground?

 Europa/Ganymede:With rocky cores heated by tugs from Jupiter, these moons are thought to have potentially life-supporting seas beneath their icy crusts.

Enceladus: This icy moon of Saturn also has sub-surface deposits of liquid water or slush, a rocky core, and Saturn’s gravity for heat. Active ice volcanoes could be circulating nutrients that life forms could use.

Titan: Saturn’s largest moon has lots of hydro-carbons as raw material for biologically important molecules. It’s extremely cold. Could life exist underground?

Venus: It’s a long shot, with its crushing atmosphere and surface temperatures that would melt lead. But 30 miles up, conditions might be more favourable. Bacteria on Earth endure much worse. (IANS)

Skyscrapers, termites threaten Buddhist temple in China

Shanghai, March 2: A 130-year-old Buddhist temple here is facing an alarming situation due to termites, ageing structures and nearby high-rise buildings.

  The Jade Buddha Temple in Putuo district was founded in 1882 during the Qing Dynasty (1640-1911) with two jade Buddha statues imported to Shanghai from Myanmar by sea.It not only attracts Chinese visitors but is also internationally famous, the Shanghai Daily reported.

  A report by the local Architecture Quality Exam Station showed the buildings inside the temple are troubled by termite damage as well as cracks and tilting structures.Reconstruction efforts are under way, aiming to fix the safety risks and consolidate the temple structures.But the temple, with narrowly-spaced buildings, is facing risks of fire and other accidents, said temple abbot Jue Xing.

All the temple buildings are made of wood and brick, making them vulnerable to fire.Burning joss sticks and lighting candles are major ways to pray among people inside Buddhist temples, which only increases the fire risk, he said.

 “On New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day, big crowds came in to pray and wish for good luck, traffic hit about 100,000 people,” he said. Such huge crowds have always forced police to send 70 to 80 officers just to keep order. (IANS)

Ban skinny models from catwalk

London, March 2: Skinny models should be banned from the catwalk, say experts. Academics at the London School of Economics said restricting the use of photographs of underweight models in magazines would help ease the pressure on women to be very thin.A study of 3,000 women in Britain and Europe found young women, who account for 90 percent of anorexia cases, were influenced by the size and weight of their peer group. Experts said the eating disorder was a disease that was linked to social and cultural influences, The Telegraph reported Friday.Women in Austria were the thinnest with a body mass index (BMI) of 23.67 compared to a European average of 25.The lowest BMI among young women was in Italy at 21.40. The two countries also had the highest rates of anorexia, along with Ireland. In Britain, average BMI was the highest of the 17 countries in the study at 25.98. Britain had the 12th highest anorexia rate. (IANS)

Has Spears settled harassment lawsuit?

Los Angeles, March 2: Pop star Britney Spears has reportedly settled a sexual harassment lawsuit filed by her ex-bodyguard Fernando Flores. According to tmz.com, Flores previously claimed at the Los Angeles County Superior Court that the singer sexually harassed him and abused her own children. The case is now officially closed. Britney is believed to have gone before a private mediator to end the lawsuit, but no details of the settlement have been disclosed as the terms are confidential.(IANS)

Jennifer Aniston fell in love with goat

London, March 2: Actress Jennifer Aniston says she fell in love with a goat during the shooting of her new movie Wanderlust. The 43-year-old bonded with the animal when shooting Wanderlust and she particularly enjoyed milking the beast. “When we were doing our screen test, I met that goat because I had never milked a goat in my life, isn’t that weird? I’ve never milked a goat, I grew up in New York City, but I fell in love with our goat,” contactmusic.com quoted Aniston as saying. (IANS)

LiLo takes life lessons from ‘bad experiences’

Los Angeles, March 2: Actress Lindsay Lohan admits that she has learned from her bad decisions. The 25-year-old feels that she doesn’t need any more ‘negative stuff’ in her life and wants to put her bad times behind her. “I regret the choices that I’ve made, but I’m grateful for where I am today because of them. I don’t need to see any more negative stuff, I don’t need to put myself in those places anymore,” showbizspy.com quoted Lohan as saying. “It’s been a learning experience and I’m glad that I experienced it. I’m grateful that I’ve learned from it. It’s helped me, it’s humbling,” she added. (IANS)

Mischa to launch retro clothing range

London, March 2:  Actress Mischa Barton is launching a retro-inspired clothing and accessories range.The 26-year-old, who already has her own collection of handbags, has teamed up with her mother Nuala to launch the new line this year, reported contactmusic.com. (IANS)