HYPERLINKS MAY REQUIRE AN EMAIL:
USA
The U.S.-Saudi Arms Deal and Riyadh's Military Challenge STRATFOR
EUROPE
Strikes to Protest Pension Reform Sap France's Energy STRATFOR
Germany's Short-term Economic Success and Long-term Roadblocks STRATFOR
ASIA
China Security Memo: Oct. 21, 2010 STRATFOR
Dispatch: The Importance of Turkmenistan STRATFOR
RUSSIA
Russia: NATO Guarantees On BMD Sought October 22, 2010
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov met with his German and Polish counterparts, Werner Hoyer and Jacek Najder, respectively, in Brussels on Oct. 22, DPA reported. Russia will only cooperate with NATO’s plan to build a ballistic missile defense (BMD) shield in Europe if it receives guarantees that the BMD system cannot be used against Russia’s nuclear arsenal, Ryabkov said. Ryabkov said it is “extremely important” to be aware of any threats the BMD system would pose to Russian national security interests. Hoyer called on NATO to take Russia’s concerns into account, but Najder said NATO’s decision on BMD would be made separately from a decision to invite Russian participation. All three officials called the meeting a “positive experience” and expressed a willingness to meet again.
IRAN
Iran: Banks Set Up In Muslim Countries October 21, 2010
Iran is using dummy names and opaque ownership structures to secretly set up banks in Iraq, Malaysia and other Muslim countries to skirt sanctions, U.S. officials stated, The Washington Post reported Oct. 21. Sanctions curtailed Iran’s global banking activities, a U.S. source said, adding Iran wants to buy and set up banks where they believe they will be able to carry out business without U.S. impediments. A spokesman for the Iranian mission to the United Nations could not comment until he spoke with Tehran officials.
Iran, Malaysia: Gachsaran Refinery Deal Inked October 21, 2010
Iran and Malaysia signed an agreement to construct the 3 billion euro Gachsaran refinery to produce 12,000 barrels of gasoline and diesel oil per day, IRNA reported Oct. 21.
IRAQ
NOTHING SIGNIFICANT TO REPORT
ISRAEL
NOTHING SIGNIFICANT TO REPORT
AFGHANISTAN
Afghanistan: Taliban Still Operational In Kandahar City - Spokesman October 22, 2010
The Taliban claimed responsibility for a number of attacks in Kandahar City the night of Oct. 21, The Voice of Jihad reported Oct. 22, citing a Taliban spokesman. The operations were successful and the group did not suffer any casualties, the spokesman said, adding the attacks prove Ahmad Wali Karzai’s efforts to rid the city of the Taliban have been unsuccessful. The group remains capable of carrying out attacks anywhere in the area, the spokesman said.
Afghanistan: Bomb Blast Kills District Governor October 22, 2010
An insurgent attack with an improvised explosive device killed the governor of Dur Baba in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar province as he drove to work, according to a police spokesman, AFP reported Oct. 22. The governor’s driver and two guards were injured, the source stated
Afghanistan: Iran Providing Cash To Karzai Aide
October 24, 2010
Iran has been providing Afghan President Hamid Karzai’s chief of staff, Umar Daudzai, with a steady supply of cash payments for the Afghan president to use to pay Afghan lawmakers, tribal elders and Taliban commanders, The New York Times reported Oct. 24, citing unnamed Afghan and Western officials. The officials said Iran is providing the cash to Daudzai and Karzai to promote Tehran’s interests within the Afghan president’s administration. A spokesman for Iranian Ambassador to Afghanistan Feda Hussein Maliki, who officials said had provided the cash payments to Daudzai, denied the allegations, calling them lies by the West and foreign media organizations.
Pakistan: U.S. Seeks Boost Of CIA Presence
October 23, 2010
U.S. President Barack Obama asked Pakistan to allow additional Central Intelligence Agency officers and special operations military trainers to enter the country to increase pressure on militants near the Afghan border, according to The Wall Street Journal, AFP reported. The requests were rebuffed by Islamabad, which remains reluctant to allow a larger U.S. ground presence in Pakistan, The Wall Street Journal reported.
MIDDLE EAST
UAE: Naval Base Opened To Bypass Hormuz October 21, 2010
The United Arab Emirates opened a naval base in its east coast emirate of Fujairah, giving it direct access to the Arabian Sea and allowing it to bypass the Strait of Hormuz if Iran were to close it, Middle East Online reported Oct. 21, citing local media. State-run WAM news agency said the base will allow for a quick response to “natural and man-made disasters” at sea and ensure safe passage for oil exports.
SOUTH OF THE BORDER
Mexico: Gulf Cartel Denies Responsibility For Attacks October 22, 2010
Suspected members of Mexico’s Gulf Cartel posted four banners on separate pedestrian bridges in Matamoros, Tamaulipas state, denying responsibility for attacks in recent weeks against soldiers and federal police, El Universal reported Oct. 22. In its messages, the cartel said its enemy was rival cartel Los Zetas rather than the Mexican government.
Mexico: FBI Investigating Death In Ciudad Juarez October 21, 2010
The FBI is investigating the death of a 21-year-old man in Mexico who according to his father was a member of the U.S. National Guard, an FBI spokesman said Oct. 21, CNN reported. Jose Gil Hernandez Ramirez was killed in an Oct. 20 drive-by shooting in Ciudad Juarez, according to the Chihuahua state attorney general’s office. The FBI is working alongside the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command
Colombia, Ecuador: Ministers To Discuss 'Sensitive Issues' October 21, 2010
Colombian Defense Minister Rodrigo Rivera will meet with Ecuadorian Security Minister Miguel Carvajal in Quito on Oct. 28 to discuss “sensitive issues” that led to the two nations breaking off political relations in 2008, El Espectador reported Oct. 21. Rivera and Carvajal will discuss the exchange of information for joint operations and analyze material found on computers belonging to Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia leader Raul Reyes
Colombia: FARC Planned Attacks On Public Figures October 21, 2010
The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) planned to attack high-ranking government and military figures in Bogota, including Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and former President Alvaro Uribe, according to Colombian Defense Minister Rodrigo Rivera, Caracol Radio reported Oct. 21. FARC reportedly sent members to carry out surveillance in Bogota prior to the planned attacks and authorities have seized a list of possible targets as well as four explosive devices, El Tiempo and El Espectador reported.
Mexico: Juarez Bombing Suspects Arrested October 21, 2010
Mexican Federal Police arrested 14 bombing suspects and took them to the Federal Police headquarters in Iztapalapa colony of Mexico City, El Universal reported Oct. 21. In the case, an improvised explosive device (IED) was placed in a vehicle in Juarez on July 15. Federal Police have accused Fernando “El Dorado” Contreras Meraz of being the leader of the group and the person who dialed the cell phone to detonate the IED.
MISC
NOTHING SIGNIFICANT TO REPORT
Except where noted courtesy www.stratfor.com
No comments:
Post a Comment