The Morning Brief - Lignet
Egypt: Rammed-Through Constitution Could Lead to Bloodshed
The political crisis in Egypt took a new turn, more dangerous turn today
when an Islamist-dominated constitution-writing assembly began voting on
a new constitution to relieve political pressure on President Mohammed
Morsi and to outmaneuver the Egyptian High Court. Although the Islamists
are likely to be successful in ramming through a new constitution, the
high-handed way they went about this is likely to exacerbate political
tensions in the country and could lead to violence.
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Why Americans are Less at Risk of Phone Hacking
Results of the official investigation of the News of the World phone
hacking scandal in the UK are due to be released today, and will surely
provoke inquiries from American privacy advocates as to whether U.S.
citizens are as vulnerable to the depredations of unethical private
investigators as the British have been. Fortunately for U.S. citizens,
material differences in the American legal environment mitigate against
private investigators being involved in such skullduggery in the United
States.
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Collapse of EU Budget Talks a Useful Failure
The breakdown of the European Union’s budget talks came as expected last
week, highlighting the growing divide between member states from the
pro-austerity north and those from its debt ridden south. British Prime
Minister David Cameron capitalized on the schism and walked away from
Brussels a winner, bolstering his political strength at home, as LIGNET
explains.
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Israel: Racing to Improve Missile Shield Against Iran
Israel is aiming to build on the recent success of its Iron Dome
counter-rocket system to take out larger missiles that outclass Iron
Dome interceptors, including some that could be fired from Iran. These
new missile defense systems are extremely sophisticated and some must
have a 100 percent kill-rate because they need to be capable of
intercepting future Iranian missiles that could carry nuclear warheads.
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Hondurans Face Violent Election Year as Zelaya Returns
Honduran voters in 2013 will be asked to reverse a 2009 coup d’état that
removed leftist former President Manuel Zelaya. He is running next year
as a congressional candidate while his wife, Xiomara Castro, is the
uncontested presidential candidate of the leftist Liberty and
Refoundation (LIBRE) party. A victory for Zelaya or his wife could have
devastating consequences for the violence-wracked Central American
country.
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South American Trading Bloc Turns Left
Mercosur, the largest trading bloc in South America, is taking advantage
of its suspension of Paraguay to invite to invite several countries
supportive of its leftist agenda to become full members, including
Venezuela, Bolivia and Ecuador. By welcoming these countries, which were
previously opposed by Paraguay, Mercosur has taken a sharp turn to the
left and is likely to become increasingly anti-American as it grows in
strength.
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Greece: Uncertainty Surrounds New Bailout Agreement
The latest EU meeting on the Greek debt crisis produced a more generous
bailout plan with new provisions for debt reduction, aiming to cut down
government debt to 124 percent of GDP by 2020. While this plan averts a
Greek default and euro exit for now, it is not a long-term solution and
more significant steps will need to be taken in the near future –
possibly including writing off some Greek debt.
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Chang: Economic-Military Showdown Looming in China
Gordon G. Chang, author of the book The Coming Collapse of China,
recently told LIGNET of his concerns that China's growing assertiveness
from the South China Sea to Japanese territorial waters could spark a
regional military conflict. He believes China may become even more
aggressive in the near and medium terms as its economy slows and it
realizes that a window of opportunity for territorial gains is quickly
closing.
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Spain: Election Yields Mixed Results for Catalonia Secession
Efforts
Major gains by separatist parties in Spain's Catalonia province in
elections over the weekend have added fire to a growing movement for
independence from Spain. While Catalonia leaving Spain would be an
enormous blow to the country, the elections were not a complete win for
the secessionists and highlighted dissention in their ranks, making the
status quo likely to continue.
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Congo: Rebel Advance May Lead to Coup
The success of a separatist rebel group last week in capturing the city
of Goma, a major commercial hub in the eastern Democratic Republic of
Congo, will have dire consequences for the stability of the country. If
the rebels continue their advance, major corporations will be forced to
halt plans to expand mining operations in one of the most mineral-rich
countries in the world.
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