A Mediterranean-style diet packed with fish, chicken and olive oil and low on fatty dairy products and meat may lower the risk of memory problems later in life, a large US study said on Monday. But the beneficial effects of eating a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids do not extend to people with…
Cyprus and the emerging Mediterranean gas wars
For more than a century a major background factor in numerous wars across the globe has been the control of oil. Now, with governments across Europe trying to lower their “carbon footprints,” gas and wars over control of gas are emerging.The bizarre conflict over Cyprus and Greece, as well as Syria, have more than a little to do with the new gas wars geopolitics.In December 2011, Texas’ Noble Energy, found a field offshore Cyprus estimated to hold at least 7 tcf of natural gas. Noble Energy found huge gas reserves offshore Israel in 2010, giving Israel for the first time the prospect of becoming a major gas player too. Now the plot thickens.Qatar, a major backer of the toppling of the Assad regime in Syria has a vested interest there related to gas. Qatar has bid to become the world’s premier LNG gas exporter. Its North Field is contiguous to Iran’s South Pars gas field in the middle of the Persian Gulf. Qatar at the moment is backed by Turkey against Assad’s Syrian regime.Now, a major motivation to both want Assad off the map, and chaos in Syria might just be that in July 2011, Syria, Iran and Iraq signed a $10 billion agreement for a gas pipeline from Iran’s Port Assalouyeh near South Pars to Damascus, Syria via Iraq. Iran plans to extend the pipeline from Damascus to Lebanon’s Mediterranean port where it would be delivered to EU markets. Adding to Qatar’s determination to destroy the Syria-Iran-Iraq gas cooperation is the discovery in August 2011 by Syrian exploration companies of a huge new gas field near the border with Lebanon and at Tarsus on the Syrian Mediterranean. Any export of Syrian or Iranian gas to the EU would go through the Russian-tied port of Tarsus.According to informed Algerian sources, the new Syrian gas discoveries, are believed to equal or exceed those of Qatar. The Iran-Iraq-Syria gas pipeline to the EU would be a de facto Shi’ite pipeline from Shi’ite Iran via Shi’ite-majority Iraq onto Shi’ite-friendly Alawite Al-Assad’s Syria. No surprise that Qatar backs an anti-Shi’ite Muslim Brotherhood solution for Syria Qatar-friendly. Sunni Salafist Qatar hosts the Brotherhood presently, as well as the US military and the British. Interesting combination.Now, enter Israel as a new major gas player. Russia, the steadfast backer of Assad in Syria and defender of Russian naval rights at Syria’s Tarsus port, has weighed in on the side of…Israel. Nothing personal, just business, geopolitical energy business. Tamar natural gas field off the coast of Israel is expected to begin yielding gas for Israel’s use in 2013. And Noble in late 2010 found an enormous natural gas field, Leviathan, offshore of Israel in the Levantine Basin. On February 26, Russia’s Gazprom signed a 20-year deal with Levant LNG Marketing Corp. to exclusively buy liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Israel’s offshore Tamar field also in the Mediterranean off the coast of Haifa. Gazprom has reportedly during the crisis also offered Cyprus to develop its gas reserves. Cyprus, reeling from the results of the bank crisis, badly needs a strong partner to develop its new-found gas wealth. That can’t happen unless they have a strong partner to face up to Turkey who claims rights over Turkish Cyprus waters. Gazprom has huge leverage over Turkey as supplier of 40% of Turkish gas for her industry. Moscow and Gazprom may yet emerge the net gainer from these hidden Mediterranean gas wars. … Read More
Israel begins pumping natural gas
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Egyptian navy catches divers cutting Internet cable
CAIRO, Egypt — Egypt’s naval forces caught three scuba divers officials say were trying to cut an undersea internet cable in the Mediterranean on Wednesday.In a statement on his official Facebook page, Col. Ahmed Mohammed Ali said divers were arrested while “cutting the undersea cable” of Egypt’s main communications company, Telecom Egypt.”The armed forces foiled an attempt and arrested three divers while they were cutting a submarine cable,” Ali wrote.The statement, accompanied by a photo of three young men who were apparently Egyptian, said they were captured while on a speeding fishing boat just off the coast of Alexandria. It did not say who they were or why they would want to cut the cable.Continue Reading… … Read More
A People’s Revolt in Cyprus: Richard Wolff on Protests Against EU Plan To Seize Bank Savings
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‘Cyprus to lose 40 per cent of GDP by accepting bailout terms’- economist
Cypriot president, Nicos Anastasiades, is holding talks with thetroika (EU, ECB, IMF) in the last attempt to secure €10 billion,which will save the debt-hit Mediterranean island frombankruptcy. Under the latest plan, a one-time levy of 20 per cent would beplaced on uninsured deposits of more than €100,000 at the Bank ofCyprus, with a separate tax of 4 per cent assessed on uninsureddeposits of more than €100,000 at all other banks in thecountry.A professor of Political Economy at the University of Nicosia andthe president of the Cyprus Center for European and InternationalAffairs, Andreas Theophanous, believes that the shock therapyimplemented by the EU in Cyprus is the wrong solution as it’ll onlyworsen the economic situation in the country. RT: A crucial meeting is underway in Brussels as thepresident of Cyprus is discussing the crisis with the key figureswho hold the country’s fate in their hands. What’s your prognosisof its outcome?AT: It’s very difficult to make a forecast. There is apolitical willingness by the government [of Cyprus] to reach anagreement for the bailout with the Troika, but it seems that theyare making it more and more difficult with new and new demands. Thefear that exists is that in case that all demands of the troika areaccepted, it’ll be very difficult for this agreement to be viablein the sense that it’ll throw the country into a huge fiscal cliff,huge recession and a vicious circle. And it’ll be extremelydifficult if not impossible to get out of it. RT: Cyprus is desperately trying to prevent business fromfleeing the country, even the Archbishop of Cyprus is reportedlyplanning to hold talks with foreign investors. How destructive doyou predict the outflow of capital could be if the measures areimplemented?AT: You see, what has happened lately was unprecedented.When they announced the measures last week it led to a big panic. Ithink the economic problems of Cyprus could be addressed with agradualist approach. These shock therapies create more problemsthan they resolve. We think in Cyprus that there’s a hugesolidarity deficit in the European Union and in the Troika, whichis much higher than any fiscal deficit or public debt of anycountry in the European south. RT: Many people now face losing up to a fifth of theirlife savings. How are banks planning to restore their customers’trust after something so many view as outright robbery?AT: This is unprecedented. Cyprus lost 25 per cent of itsGDP almost two years ago when it was the haircut of the Greek debt.And there has been no compensation for that. If these ideas thatare being discussed are implemented – there would be anotherhaircut of Cyprus’ GDP, which will be around 40 per cent. It’ll beimpossible, I think, to get out of such a mess. I find it verydifficult for this to be viable. Even if there’s agreement, even ifit goes through the parliament, I find it extremely difficult forthis to be viable in the next few months to come. … Read More
Snow go zone: Clean-up crews mobilized as massive March snowfall masks Moscow (PHOTOS)
The depth of snow cover in the Russian capital had reached 59cm(23 inches) by Sunday morning, with the synoptic forecast expecting15cm (6 inches) in the next 24 hours.But the extremely powerful Mediterranean cyclone causing the badweather wasn’t such a huge surprise for the Moscow authorities asin Kiev.Moscow’s Housing and Public Utilities Department informedRIA-Novosti that around 15,500 units of specialized vehicles arecurrently involved in fighting the aftermath of the snowfall, witharound 12,600 yard-keepers cleaning the roofs of the buildings and36,000 more working in the streets.Over 200,000 cubic meters of snow have already been removed tothe special landfill and mobile snow melting facilities outside thecity.The snow hasn’t hampered the operation of the city’s airports asthere were no significant delays to the flights departing fromSheremetyevo, Domodedovo or Vnukovo Airports.The heavy snowfall, which is absolutely abnormal for March, isexpected to last in the Russian capital until Monday evening,adding around 25-28cm (10-11 inches) to Moscow’s snow cover.The meteorological service says that this March may become thecoldest in Moscow in the last 33 years, forecasting temperatures ofaround minus 9 or 10 degrees Celsius, which is around nine degreesbelow average. … Read More
