· Humanitarian crisis could deepen, report warns
· Quartet seeks to bypass Hamas in providing funds

The EU is preparing to go it alone and channel emergency funds to the Palestinians if talks with the US, Russia and United Nations on setting up an international mechanism for easing their financial plight fail this week, senior officials indicated at the weekend.

Pressure for a swift agreement on supplying food and other aid directly to Palestinians as well as money to pay the salaries of health workers and teachers intensified when President Mahmoud Abbas and Ismail Haniyeh, prime minister of the Hamas-led government, failed to resolve the crisis over the weekend.

The US and EU suspended direct funding to the Hamas government early last month, leaving 165,000 public employees of the Palestinian Authority (PA) unpaid so far this month. According to a Brussels document, the crisis in Gaza and the West Bank could deepen in the next few months, leading to "greatly increased unemployment and poverty levels, and possibly the breakdown of law and order".

The "quartet" of peace mediators - the EU, US, Russia and UN - will discuss in New York tomorrow plans put forward by Britain and France for the "international mechanism" to bypass both Hamas and President Abbas and provide funds and aid through bodies such as the World Bank, IMF or the UN itself.

But Washington has resisted the idea of paying overdue salaries to workers in essential services such as health and education. Its tougher stance, with Israel's backing, is seen by some Palestinians as not so much an effort to change Hamas policies as to change the regime.

Benita Ferrero-Waldner, EU external affairs commissioner, who was in Egypt at the weekend, said: "We do hope there's a chance for a common agreement on this issue." She refused to set a deadline but admitted that the humanitarian crisis among Palestinians was worsening.

Europe's heads of government will be asked next month to weaken their hold over cross-border police and judicial co-operation in a move that could herald a new era of European integration.

The plan, to be debated at a summit in June, is designed to show the EU can shake off the political paralysis caused by the French and Dutch rejections of the European constitution.

The Commission president, Jose Manuel Barroso, said he would use the summit to call for countries to pool more powers in a "large number" of areas of police and judicial co-operation.

Bulgaria's prime minister yesterday appealed to the European Union not to "humiliate" his country, as EU leaders prepared to make Sofia sweat over whether it could join next year.

José Manuel Barroso, European Commission president, has decided to delay by up to five months a decision on whether Bulgaria and Romania should join the EU in 2007, to assess whether they are serious about tackling corruption and organised crime. His biggest concerns are over Bulgaria, where police and judicial reforms have so far failed to yield high-level prosecutions of criminal bosses or crooked politicians.

Olli Rehn, EU enlargement commissioner, has praised Romania's progress but has called on Sofia to be "much more vigorous" on crime.

Mr Rehn had hoped to be in a position to recommend an entry date for both countries in a report to EU leaders on May 16, but senior Commission officials told the FT the final decision would be delayed until the autumn, possibly until October.

The Commission wants to apply maximum pressure on EU applicants to meet high standards before they join, partly to assuage doubts in western Europe over the speed of enlargement.

Tony Blair has conceded he will not serve a "full term" before standing down but rejected pressure from Labour MPs for him to announce his departure date.

The Prime Minister told the Parliamentary Labour Party last night that he would give "ample time" to his successor to take over before the next general election. He denied he would damage Labour's prospects by hanging on too long, saying: "My legacy is a fourth term for Labour."

Although two MPs, Andrew Smith and Geraldine Smith, urged Mr Blair to announce his departure timetable, most of those present appeared to welcome his assurances. There was growing speculation that he would quit in May next year after completing 10 years in Downing Street.

After a packed, one-hour meeting, critics welcomed Mr Blair's shift away from his previous formula that he would serve a full term. "We have been eyeball-to-eyeball and the Prime Minister just blinked," one said.

Earlier, Mr Blair had a meeting with Gordon Brown at Downing Street at which they held "talks about talks" on how to handle the succession and end the damaging infighting that has erupted since Labour lost more than 300 seats at Thursday's local elections.

Italy's feuding politicians failed to elect a head of state yesterday as tensions rose between Romano Prodi's incoming centre-left government and the outgoing centre-right coalition of Silvio Berlusconi.

Mr Prodi's coalition supports Giorgio Napolitano, 80, a former communist. Mr Berlusconi's coalition nominated Gianni Letta, 71, a former Berlusconi personal assistant

The vexed question of what to do about the European constitution returns to the agenda this week.

It's nearly a year since Dutch and French voters said No to the draft constitution, throwing the process into turmoil.

Afterwards, the EU declared a "period of reflection". For the constitution's supporters, it was a time to examine the options: for its opponents, a time to put the constitution on ice.

But now the period of reflection is drawing to a close, although there will be no formal decisions on a way forward until the first half of next year, when Germany takes over the rotating presidency of the EU.

Commission proposal

On Monday, a two-day forum on the future of Europe opened at the European Parliament in Brussels. It is addressing topics such as globalisation, justice and security, and Europe's place in the world. But its underlying theme is the constitution.

On Tuesday, Estonia is expected to become the thirteenth of the 25 EU states to ratify. Finland is likely to follow suit, probably in the second half of the year, during its term in the EU presidency.

Later in the week, the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, is expected to outline her policy on the EU and Germany's role within it, especially with regards to further enlargement.

PRETORIA (IRNA) -- South African Deputy Foreign Minister Aziz Pahad said that International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is the only specialized body eligible to ensure that Iranian nuclear program is for civilian purpose.

"At the board of governors we consistently argued that we have not exhausted the IAEA processes. Indeed, they sent the issue to the Security Council before even Mr. ElBaradei presented his report. We were arguing that this is an unnecessary haste.

"Our argument was that we should give more time for the Iranians to comply with the remaining issues, since they had complied already. We cannot say that the remaining two issues cannot be resolved. We think that they can be resolved," he told IRNA.

"Of course, we defend the right of all the signatories to NPT to have the right to use nuclear power for peacefully means. We ourselves are working on that program, but, at the same time we understand that a climate of mistrust has been created and so we should now try to see what we can do within the rights of Iran's sovereignty and its right to have civilian nuclear technology to build confidence and I believe this is a big challenge for Iran to build that confidence, so that we don't allow the Security Council process to escalate.

"We have to wait and see if the Russians and the Chinese are going to allow the Security Council to pass the latest resolution on that issue."

FORT TARIK, Iraq -- They look more like motels in rural America than forts in a war zone, but a string of low concrete structures are the U.S.-led coalition's first line of defense against foreign fighters trying to sneak into Iraq from Iran and Syria.

The United States has built or renovated nearly 260 forts along Iraq's borders, and installations like Fort Tarik south of the Iranian city of Mehran have taken on new importance because of the showdown with Tehran over its disputed nuclear program.

The small fort sits within sight of two Iranian border outposts, and a tour of Tarik on Sunday showed just how tough it can be for coalition forces to adequately patrol a remote desert landscape without a nearby town or village.

Border patrols based at Fort Tarik recently captured several suspected Iranian intelligence agents who had crossed into Iraq, a U.S. official said.

bold mine

US President George W. Bush isn't known for his willingness for giving interviews, but he recently sat down with German TV presenter Sabine Christiansen for 30 minutes. He answered her questions readily -- but also showed that he's become little more than a spectator of his own political decline.

A man and a woman sit in front of an unlit fireplace in the White House. The woman is Germany's most well known TV presenter. The man is the most powerful man in the world -- or at least that's how he's introduced before the interview begins. And yet what we're shown on German ARD public television Sunday night is really a trans-Atlantic misunderstanding. Sabine Christiansen, who asks George W. Bush about one pressing global issue after another -- and who is relatively insistent when it comes to human rights issues -- isn't really talking to the most powerful man in the world at all. In the spring of 2006, one-and-a-half years after Bush's triumphant re-election, she may in fact be speaking to the most powerless US president of all time.

In the past 60 years, only one American president had worse poll ratings 18 months after his election: Richard Nixon at the end of his stint in office. Bush could safely ignore those polls if everything else were okay -- but at the moment nothing is. For some time now, the president has become an observer of his own political decline. But the world of television often has little to do with reality and Bush's plunge was hardly an issue in the interview.

Iraq is a long way from developing into the model democracy that Bush wanted to create by toppling Saddam Hussein. Iran is pressing ahead with its nuclear program, unimpressed by Washington's threats. Compared to Iranian President Mahmoud Ahamdinejad and his fantasies about the annihilation of Israel, Saddam Hussein was a tinhorn despot.

From hawk to dove?

Bush's answer to the question of how he will respond to the threats from Tehran is a far cry from the hawkish rhetoric we've grown used to. Diplomacy, diplomacy, diplomacy -- that's what he's betting on, at least for now. The hawks in Washington are burned out; they have no answers to what's happening in Iran. Oh wait, there's also Latin America, where they're electing one leftist government after another. What would once have given rise to crisis meetings and secret military plans doesn't even seem to be worth a question anymore.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, sent a letter yesterday to George Bush - the first such communication for 27 years - offering an analysis of global issues and "new ways of getting out of the current delicate situation in the world".

The US last night rejected the letter as having no relevance. A US state department spokesman said: "Nothing in the letter addresses the issues on the table between Iran and the world, whether on the nuclear issue, terrorism or human rights."

He added: "Instead, it is a broad historical, philosophical exposition."
The 18-page letter, which did not directly mention the nuclear dispute but ranges over issues such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, came as the foreign ministers of the US, Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China met in New York to discuss tabling a United Nations security council resolution against Iran.

The meeting marked the international debut of Margaret Beckett, the new foreign secretary. She met Condoleezza Rice, the US secretary of state, for a one-on-one at the Waldorf hotel before sitting down to dinner with representatives from France, Germany, Russia and China.

Caracas: Venezuela is seeking to raise income tax on Orinoco Belt heavy crude upgrading projects to 50 per cent from 34 per cent, President Hugo Chavez said on Sunday.

"Income tax on oil operations is 50 per cent, and they are still paying less than 50 per cent," said Chavez during his weekly Sunday broadcast. "They are at ... 34 [per cent]. We're going to take that to 50 per cent."

Four joint ventures with state oil giant PDVSA currently process some 600,000 barrels per day of heavy crude. Partner companies include Chevron, ExxonMobil, Norway's Statoil and France's Total.

Venezuela's Seniat tax authority earlier this year proposed a reform of the nation's income tax law to raise taxation on all upstream oil production to 50 per cent.

Energy Minister Rafael Ramirez, who is also president of PDVSA, told reporters in March he agreed with the proposed increase for Orinoco projects.

Venezuela's Congress will have to approve a reform of the income tax law

According to this op-ed article from Mexico's La Jornada, since the 1840s, Washington has tried and failed to hinder Mexicans and Latin Americans from entering what was once Mexican territory. Today Hispanics are regaining control - through the ballot box.

Mexico was not very populated when it gained its independence in 1821. Only 6 million inhabitants resided within its territory of over 4 million square kilometers [1,544,408.63 square miles]. Mexico's northern neighbor, [the U.S.] then of a similar size, had a population twice that of Mexico. Thanks to the reports provided to President Thomas Jefferson by Baron Alexander Von Humboldt during his stay in Washington, the Americans were well informed of the situation in the northern regions of New Spain. Despite their great natural resources, these immense territories, encompassing Texas, New Mexico and California, and lands as far north as the 42nd parallel, were nearly unpopulated. Only indigenous groups and close to 40,000 mestizos and descendants of the Spaniards lived there.

[Editor's Notes: Mestizos are people of mixed European and indigenous - Indian - ancestry. Baron Alexander Von Humboldt  was a German scientist who was stranded in Mexico when his ship ran aground].

Joel R. Poinsett, the first American ambassador to newly independent Mexico, made an offer to purchase these northern regions. The response of the Minister of Foreign Relations, Lucas Alaman, was that Mexico was not for sale. Alaman also succeeded in getting the United States to ratify the Treaty of Limits that Mexico had signed with Spain in 1819. This was achieved in 1833. However, this didn't end the ambition of the Americans. Anglo-Saxon colonists, many of whom had settled in Texas, sought to separate themselves from Mexico until they achieved their real goal: the annexation [of this territory] to the United States in 1845.

Two years later, this country began a war of conquest against Mexico. A new Treaty of Limits followed that war. Mexico lost half of its territory, one of the largest takeovers in world history.

[Editor's Note: The most important consequence of the Mexican-American War (1846-1848) was the resulting "sale" of the Mexican territories of California and New Mexico to the U.S. and recognition of the annexation of Republic of Texas. ].

Certainly it is true that Mexico had not been able to populate this enormous territory. But history often surprises us. What didn't happen then, in fact, happened much later. Just as in other countries, Mexico experienced a baby boom after the 1940's. Before that, the United States, thanks to the immigration of millions of Europeans and, on a smaller scale, Asians, had managed to populate its enormous territory. Soon, thousands of Mexicans were also attracted, hoping to take a stab at the American Dream. As time went on, this attraction grew to an extent that could no longer be contained.

Vice Premier Shimon Peres said Monday that "the president of Iran should remember that Iran can also be wiped off the map."

"Teheran is making a mockery of the international community's efforts to solve the crisis surrounding Iran's nuclear program," Peres told Reuters, adding that "Iran presents a danger to the entire world, not just to us."

ATHENS -- A Greek fisherman has netted the remains of a bronze horseman and an amphora, treasures from ancient Greece preserved for two millenia in the Aegean Sea, officials said yesterday.

The haul, which the man discovered in his nets off the island of Kalymnos last Tuesday, was delivered to police who then handed it over to archeology service officials, the culture ministry said in a statement.

Greece, as part of a program to recuperate and preserve ancient artifacts, offers treasure finders a reward worth 10 percent of the object's value to return it to state authorities.

NEW YORK - Daily circulation fell 2.5 percent at U.S. newspapers in the six-month period ending in March, according to data released Monday, reflecting the industry's ongoing struggle to retain paying customers amid competition from the Internet and other media outlets.

The Newspaper Association of America, analyzing data from the Audit Bureau of Circulations, also reported that Sunday circulation fell 3.1 percent at the 610 newspapers reporting those figures. The 2.5 percent decline in average paid weekday circulation was based on data from 770 newspapers reporting to the Audit Bureau.

The overall decline in both weekday and Sunday circulation were approximately the same as those given in the previous six-month reporting cycle for the period ending last September.

Newspaper circulation has been in general decline for years as many people, particularly young adults, turn to other media outlets including cable TV and the Internet for news and information. Also, tougher rules on telemarketing have forced newspapers to find other ways to attract new readers.

Despite the decline in paid copies, newspapers are seeing a greater number of visitors to their Web sites. The NAA also reported Monday that newspaper-run sites had an overall 8 percent increase in viewers in the first quarter.

AccountingWEB.com - Apr-19-2006 - Is there any more 'American' story than the immigrant who earns success through hard work, determination and sheer grit?

This story is ingrained in the American psyche, but recent research is exploding the myths of the land of opportunity. Perhaps the United States was never a classless society, but it is certainly more rigid today than ever. These days, if you're born into a poor family, you're likely to die poor. If you're born into riches, you'll stay rich. If your parents are middle-class, the chances of ending up on a higher rung of the economic ladder are far smaller than you might think.

According to research cited in a new paper written by Alan Berube, a Brookings Institution scholar and metropolitan policy expert, the U.S. is becoming increasingly less socially mobile. Across the 1990s, about 40 percent of U.S. families ended the decade in the same income bracket in which they began, versus 36-37 percent in the 1970s and 1980s. More than half the families at the bottom were still there after 10 years.

Several serious examinations of class mobility-or more accurately the lack thereof-are drawing attention to the barriers that hinder movement from one social class to the next. As the divide between the haves and have-nots grows, the more difficult it is to climb from one rung to the next, Berube wrote.

He pointed out that in 2004 and 2005, The New York Times, the Wall Street Journal and the Los Angeles Times, have all written series of articles on the subject of whether and how Americans are moving up the ladder. And in the United Kingdom, the issue has taken central stage in the public debate, Berube said in "Overcoming Barriers to Mobility: The Role of Place in the United States and UK."

They dress up in pink catsuits, have names like "Spider Mum" and feel a social obligation to plunder the most expensive restaurants and gourmet delicatessens in town as part of a campaign to help the poor.

Last week the well-heeled citizens of Hamburg's Altona district got a taste of their antics when 30 of them marched into the city's luxury "Fresh Paradise Goedeken" supermarket and walked out five minutes later with €15,000 (£10,000) worth of stolen goods.

The gang's booty included magnums of Champagne at €99 a bottle, filets of Japanese Kobe beef at €108 a kilogram, legs of venison, a salmon and several boxes of Valrhona chocolate.

Before leaving, gang members thrust a bouquet of flowers into the hands of a shop assistant. Attached was a handwritten note which proclaimed: "Survival in the city of millionaires would be impossible without us!" It was signed by "Spider Mum", "Santa Guevara" and "Multiflex".

Another note later released by the gang insisted that the haul had been distributed to Hamburg's needy, to the "social workers, cleaning ladies and minimum-wage earners". It added: "The places of wealth in this town are as numerous as the opportunities to take it."

ONE of America's most famous fraudsters arrived in London yesterday to warn Britain about identity theft.
Frank Abagnale, 58, whose life story inspired the Leonardo DiCaprio film Catch Me If You Can, is to advise banks, utility companies and large retailers on how to combat fraud.

His advice to the Government is that identity cards will provide new and greater opportunities for identity theft. And he has told the public: never trust e-mail, buy a "criss-cross" shredder and employ a security company to monitor your bank account 24 hours a day.

Mr Abagnale's CV includes a five-year spell in which he cashed $2.5 million (£1.3 million) from bad cheques, successfully assumed eight identities and passed himself off as a paediatrician, a lawyer and a pilot for Pan Am.

When he was finally arrested in 1969, Mr Abagnale was wanted by authorities in 26 countries and, after serving sentences in France and Sweden, was returned to the US and jailed for 12 years.

In 1974 he was released on the condition that he worked for the FBI. He has since worked for the US Government for 30 years and built a business advising American banks and companies on fraud prevention. He told The Times yesterday that identity theft, which began in America, was rapidly taking hold in Britain.

LONDON, May 8 -- Liberian girls as young as 8 are being sexually exploited by United Nations peacekeepers, aid workers and teachers in return for food, small favors and even rides in trucks, according to a new report from Save the Children U.K.

The report said the problem was widespread throughout Liberia, a small country struggling to get back on its feet after a long and bloody civil war.

Save the Children based its findings on interviews with more than 300 people in camps for displaced people and in neighborhoods whose residents have returned after being driven away by war. They said men in positions of authority -- aid workers and soldiers, government employees and officials in the camps -- were abusing girls.

"All of the respondents clearly stated that the scale of the problem affected over half of the girls in their locations," the report said. "The girls reportedly ranged in age from 8 to 18 years, with girls of 12 years and upward described as being regularly involved in 'selling sex,' commonly referred to as 'man business.' "

In a statement from Liberia, the United Nations said that eight cases of sexual abuse and exploitation involving its workers had been reported since the beginning of the year and that one staff member had been suspended, Reuters reported.

However, all policy activities I've heard of are in direct counter to the idea of a recognition of this reality. And until policy changes, then all statements to the contrary are froth and nonsense.

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