UN inspectors investigating the use of chemical weapons in Syria are not expected to complete their work for another two to three weeks, increasing the likelihood that any US-led attack may take place before they have delivered their report.
The UN team left Syria with biological and other samples last Saturday and has been asked by the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, to speed up its work. But according to an unnamed western diplomat quoted by the Associated Press in New York on Wednesday, the accelerated timetable will only shave about a week off the original processing time.
John Kerry, the US secretary of state, has already said the UN report will not reveal anything not already known to Washington. Britain's position is similar. The US, France and Britain have all produced declassified intelligence assessments blaming the al-Ghouta attacks on 21 August on the Syrian government and arguing that the rebels were not capable of carrying them out.
Syria's president, Bashar al-Assad, and Russia have blamed the opposition but have produced no evidence in support of their claim.
On Wednesday Russia's foreign ministry issued a report claiming to show that a chemical substance used in fighting at Khan al-Assal near Aleppo in March was not fired by standard Syrian army ammunition. The shell was similar to those made by a rebel group, the ministry said.
Khan al-Assal, where 26 people were killed, was one of the incidents the UN team was supposed to be investigating before the al-Ghouta attacks. The Russian report thus establishes a link between rebel forces and chemical weapons.
Russia had previously described the use of "cottage industry" quality sarin nerve gas delivered by a crudely made rebel missile. Western officials have characterised Moscow's submissions on chemical weapons as shoddy and incomplete.
3 comments:
Germany's agressive and reckless expansion of wind and solar power has come with a hefty price tag for consumers, and the costs often fall disproportionately on the poor. Government advisors are calling for a completely new start.
If you want to do something big, you have to start small. That's something German Environment Minister Peter Altmaier knows all too well. The politician, a member of the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU), has put together a manual of practical tips on how everyone can make small, everyday contributions to the shift away from nuclear power and toward green energy. The so-called Energiewende -- literally "energy turnaround" -- is Chancellor Angela Merkel's project of the century.
Altmaier and others are on a mission to help people save money on their electricity bills, because they're about to receive some bad news. The government predicts that the renewable energy surcharge added to every consumer's electricity bill will increase from 5.3 cents today to between 6.2 and 6.5 cents per kilowatt hour -- a 20-percent price hike.
German consumers already pay the highest electricity prices in Europe. But because the government is failing to get the costs of its new energy policy under control, rising prices are already on the horizon. Electricity is becoming a luxury good in Germany, and one of the country's most important future-oriented projects is acutely at risk.
After the Fukushima nuclear accident in Japan two and a half years ago, Merkel quickly decided to begin phasing out nuclear power and lead the country into the age of wind and solar. But now many Germans are realizing the coalition government of Merkel's CDU and the pro-business Free Democrats (FDP) is unable to cope with this shift. Of course, this doesn't mean that the public has any more confidence in a potential alliance of the center-left Social Democrats (SPD) and the Greens. The political world is wedged between the green-energy lobby, masquerading as saviors of the world, and the established electric utilities, with their dire warnings of chaotic supply problems and job losses.
Even well-informed citizens can no longer keep track of all the additional costs being imposed on them. According to government sources, the surcharge to finance the power grids will increase by 0.2 to 0.4 cents per kilowatt hour next year. On top of that, consumers pay a host of taxes, surcharges and fees that would make any consumer's head spin.
WASHINGTON -- Sen. John McCain says he doesn't support the latest Senate resolution to authorize military force against Syria.
McCain is an outspoken advocate of intervention against Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime and wants more than cruise missile strikes and other limited action.
The Arizona Republican threatened earlier this week to vote against a White House draft resolution unless President Barack Obama promised greater support to Syria's rebels. McCain then expressed support after meeting Obama at the White House.
He now opposes a resolution crafted by Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez of New Jersey and Republican Sen. Bob Corker of Tennessee. It puts a 90-day limit on action and says no American troops can be sent into Syria.
Asked if he supported it, McCain said, "In its current form, I do not."
Post a Comment