Θετικό μήνυμα Σόιμπλε προς Ελλάδα...[ 3654 ]

DW: Θετικό μήνυμα Σόιμπλε προς Ελλάδα και χωρίς την έγκριση της Μέρκελ

«Το έκανε, άλλωστε και πριν από τις γερμανικές εκλογές του περασμένου Σεπτεμβρίου, όταν παραδέχθηκε ότι θα απαιτηθεί ενδεχομένως και τρίτο πακέτο στήριξης της Ελλάδας».

Πηγή: Deutsche Welle

Δημοσίευση: 18/02/2014 - 15:42 Τελευταία ενημέρωση: 18/02/2014 - 15:42

«Εάν επιβεβαιωθεί το πρωτογενές πλεόνασμα της Ελλάδας και μάλιστα εάν είναι μεγαλύτερο του αναμενόμενου, ο Βόλφγκανγκ Σόιμπλε δεν θα διστάσει να εκπέμψει στην Αθήνα ένα θετικό μήνυμα, ακόμη και χωρίς το "πράσινο φως" της καγκελαρίου», 

επισημαίνει την Τρίτη η ελληνική υπηρεσία της Deutsche Welle, σε ανάλυσή της για τις πρόσφατες εξελίξεις σχετικά με τη στάση του Βερολίνου έναντι της Αθήνας.

«Το έκανε, άλλωστε και πριν από τις γερμανικές εκλογές του περασμένου Σεπτεμβρίου, όταν παραδέχθηκε ότι θα απαιτηθεί ενδεχομένως και τρίτο πακέτο στήριξης της Ελλάδας», επισημαίνεται στο άρθρο, και τονίζεται ότι «ένα υψηλό πλεόνασμα θα δικαιώσει την πολιτική Σόιμπλε και κατά συνέπεια τη διαχείριση της κρίσης από το Βερολίνο».

Ο αρθρογράφος υποστηρίζει, πάντως, ότι «αναμφίβολα η πολιτική ελίτ της Γερμανίας ανησυχεί για το ενδεχόμενο ενίσχυσης στις ευρωεκλογές της "Εναλλακτικής για τη Γερμανία"» και αναφέρει ότι το ελληνικό πρόβλημα δίνει «αέρα στα πανιά» των ευρωσκεπτικιστών, καθώς «παρά τον πακτωλό των δανείων που της έχουν χορηγηθεί, η Ελλάδα δεν βρίσκεται ακόμη εκτός κινδύνου».

'Potentially hazardous' Asteroid...[ 3653 ]

Asteroid 2000 EM26: 'potentially hazardous' space rock to fly close to Earth

Space rock to pass by Earth 2.1m miles away, but astronomers say 270-metre object poses significant danger in case of impact

• Press Association
• theguardian.com, Tuesday 18 February 2014 08.34 GMT

Asteroid 2000 EM26 is due to fly past Earth at 2am UK time roughly 2.1m miles away, but its large size means it is classified as potentially hazardous. Photograph: Paul Fleet/Alamy

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A "potentially hazardous" asteroid the size of three football fields will come uncomfortably close to Earth early on Tuesday.
The space rock, known as 2000 EM26, poses no threat and will pass the Earth at just under nine times the distance to the moon.
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But it is defined as a potentially hazardous near-Earth object (NEO) large enough to cause significant damage in the event of an impact. Scientists estimate the asteroid, travelling at 27,000mph, is 270 metres (885ft) wide.
At its closest approach at 2am UK time, the rock will be 2.1m miles from Earth, or 8.8 lunar distances.
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Images of the asteroid making its flyby will be captured by the Slooh robotic telescope service, which provides internet access to automated observatories.
2000 EM26 makes its appearance almost exactly a year after two major NEO events on 15 February 2013.
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As scientists tracked a 30-metre wide asteroid that brushed by the Earth at a distance of 17,200 miles, another space rock unexpectedly exploded above Chelyabinsk, Russia.
The meteor, thought to measure 20 metres wide, released the energy of 20 atomic bombs 18 miles above the ground.
Thousands of buildings were damaged and many people injured by flying glass and debris, but no one was killed.
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Slooh astronomer Dr Bob Berman said: "On a practical level, a previously unknown, undiscovered asteroid seems to hit our planet and cause damage or injury once a century or so, as we witnessed on 20 June 1908 and 15 February 2013.
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"Every few centuries, an even more massive asteroid strikes us – fortunately usually impacting in an ocean or wasteland such an Antarctica. But the ongoing threat, and the fact that biosphere-altering events remain a real if small annual possibility, suggests that discovering and tracking all NEOs, as well as setting up contingency plans for deflecting them on short notice should the need arise, would be a wise use of resources."

'Catch me if you can' ...[ 3652 ]

San Antonio police: 'Catch me if you can' motorcyclist is caught

By Catherine E. Shoichet and Suzanne Presto, CNN

February 18, 2014 -- Updated 1325 GMT (2125 HKT)

Reckless biker posts video taunt

(CNN) -- Police say the motorcyclist raced through traffic at reckless speeds in San Antonio, Texas, then posted a video to Facebook last week titled "Catch Me If You Can."

It turns out, they could.

VIDEO

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Investigators searching for a stolen motorcycle found the man they suspect of being the reckless rider -- Alberto Rodriguez, 27 -- when he ran out the back door of the house, San Antonio Police Sgt. Javier Salazar said Monday.

"It was a coincidence," he said.

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Detectives also found the stolen motorcycle, police said in a statement posted on the department's Facebook page.

"Rodriguez faces his currently outstanding felony warrants, a misdemeanor assault warrant, (and) possibly charges in connection with the stolen motorcycle," police said.

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The video was posted to the police Facebook page under Rodriguez's name, CNN affiliate KSAT reported. It shows a motorcyclist dangerously cutting through rush hour traffic in San Antonio at speeds of more than 100 mph, according to authorities.

His helmet camera recorded every hair-raising moment as he squeezed between cars and trucks.

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Last week, authorities announced that they believed Rodriguez was the motorcyclist.

"Really all it would have taken was a split second for him to impact the lives of several people, possibly killing someone just by his very actions," Salazar told CNN affiliate KSAT last week.

It was not immediately clear whether Rodriguez has retained legal representation.

Canadian wanted in YouTube 186-mph motorcycle ride surrenders

CNN's Faith Karimi contributed to this report.

Unrest at Australian asylum center ...[ 3651 ]

1 dead, dozens hurt after unrest at Australian center for asylum seekers

By Jethro Mullen and Mitra Mobasherat, CNN

February 18, 2014 -- Updated 0548 GMT (1348 HKT)

One person was killed and dozens injured after unrest broke out overnight at an Australian detention center for asylum seekers on a remote island in Papua New Guinea.

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(CNN) -- One person was killed and dozens injured after unrest broke out overnight at an Australian detention center for asylum seekers on a remote island in Papua New Guinea, authorities said Tuesday.
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Detainees breached fences surrounding the facility on Manus Island, which lies several hundred kilometers northeast of mainland Papua New Guinea, the Australian government said.

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"This was a very dangerous situation where people decided to protest in a very violent way and to take themselves outside the center and place themselves at great risk," said Australian Immigration Minister Scott Morrison.

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Click HERE and read more

Uzbekistan the president’s daughter,...[ 3650 ]

Associates of Uzbekistan's First Daughter Facing Prosecution

Gulnara Karimova

© RIA Novosti. Valery Levitin

 18/02/2014 // 10:15

MOSCOW, February 18 (RIA Novosti) – Prosecutors in Uzbekistan are probing several close associates of the president’s daughter, a once-powerful businesswoman and diplomat, on suspicion of involvement in financial crimes, as an apparent struggle for power continues to unfold in the Central Asian nation.
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The General Prosecutor’s office said in a statement posted online Monday that Rustam Madumarov, Gayanye Avakyan and Yekaterina Klyuyeva are suspected of large-scale tax evasion and concealing foreign currency.
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The move against figures known to be in Gulnara Karimova’s inner circle marks another escalation in a months-long crackdown that has resulted in the closure of several media outlets and charities belonging to the daughter of the Central Asian nation’s leader.
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Karimova, 41, who has gained most attention internationally for her fruitless attempts to launch a career as a pop singer and fashion designer, was formerly Uzbekistan’s envoy to the United Nations and had in some circles been seen as a possible successor to her 75-year-old father, Islam Karimov.
Islam Karimov has for more than two decades ruled with an iron fist in Uzbekistan, a mainly Muslim nation of almost 30 million people on Afghanistan’s northern border.
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Little is known, however, about the exact current balance of power between the president, the security services and the various clans believed to be vying for influence. Karimov's refusal to admit any political competition or hint at a possible succession strategy, as well as recurring rumors of his ill health, have ingnited much speculation about prospects for the economically troubled and strategically located nation.
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Karimova’s stature has been on the wane since last year, when numerous businesses reportedly owned or indirectly controlled by her were subjected to raids by law enforcement authorities.
The growing pressure has prompted claims from Karimova that elements in the former Soviet nation’s powerful security services are attempting to seize power.
Karimova wrote on her Twitter account in November that Madumarov, who regional media has identified as her common-law husband, had been arrested, but did not detail any charges against him.
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Karimova has also been linked to corruption investigations in Western Europe.
Investigators in Sweden in 2012 began pursuing claims that Finnish-Swedish telecommunications giant TeliaSonera had made unauthorized payments of hundreds of millions of dollars to a Gibraltar-based offshore company controlled by Avakyan to secure its place in Uzbekistan’s mobile telecommunications industry.
Another group of individuals linked to Karimova has been targeted in money-laundering investigations in Switzerland.
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