Chief Coordinator and Official Spokesman of Hizb ut-Tahrir in Bangladesh Mohiuddin Ahmed in a press release issued today said that like the previous years, the current government has declared a budget amid much fanfare. The Finance Minister yesterday declared a big budget of BDT 113,819 crores with big deficit (BDT 34,358 crores).
Hizb ut-Tahrir condemns, in the strongest words, the brutal and cowardly assassination of Dr. Sarfaraz Naeemi. Dr. Sarfaraz Naeemi was bitterly against the American interference in this region and a few days ago in an interview to a private TV channel he severely condemned the government's surrender to American dictates.
Anti-Islamic parties do well in European elections
The Dutch politician Geert Wilders' Freedom Party won 17 percent of the vote European Union parliamentary elections in the Netherlands. Wilders, who has compared the Koran to Mein Kampf, campaigned on an anti-EU and anti-immigrant platform. The Freedom Party finished second to the governing Christian Democratic Alliance, which garnered 19.9% of the vote. Naftaniel, a Dutch Jew whose organization monitors anti-Semitism and racism, said "Wilders is bringing to attention things that are important for Dutch society," citing the "the situation of extreme Islam." In Britain, The British National Party won its first seats in the European Parliament, in a major breakthrough for a party reviled by mainstream politicians for its anti-immigration stance. Party chairman Nick Griffin was elected an MEP in the northwest of England region with eight percent of the vote, hours after Andrew Brons won the BNP's first ever European seat in the nearby Yorkshire and the Humber region. Griffin told Sky News television: "This is a Christian country and Islam is not welcome, because Islam and Christianity, Islam and democracy, Islam and women's rights do not mix." The election result means that Muslims in Europe will find it difficult to practice their faith. It also diminishes Turkey's chances of joining the EU.
Oil reaches a new high of $71
The price of oil burst through the $71 a barrel mark and some predict that the price could eventually hit $250. The latest high - from lows of $30 only four months ago - came on the New York Mercantile Exchange, where the cost of July deliveries rose by $1.35 to $71.36. This comes on top of a $2 rise the day before as investors rushed into the market on the back of lower stockpile figures, higher demand estimates and speculation against further falls in the dollar. "I wouldn't be surprised if we're testing $80 in a week or two," said one analyst, while BP's chief executive, Tony Hayward, questioned whether $90 could be the "right" value. Alexei Miller, chairman of the Russian energy group Gazprom, raised the stakes further when he reiterated last year's estimates of $250 a barrel. But there is no apparent demand for oil in the world right now. Global oil consumption fell 0.6% to 81.8m barrels a day in 2008, the first decline since 1993 and the largest drop for 27 years. The rise in the price oil is once again being manipulated by American speculators to prevent further erosion in the value of the dollar.
Deluded Mubarak praises Obama's pledge not to fight Islam
In an interview broadcasted on Wednesday in Cairo President Hosni Mubarak said that Barack Obama has presented a fresh understanding of Islam not shown by predecessors. Obama called for a "new beginning" in ties between the United States and Muslims, many of whom felt targeted by the "war against terror" launched by former President George W. Bush after the September 11, 2001 attacks, and his wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. "Under the past administration, there was a feeling that the Islamic world was a group of terrorists, Islam was hated and Muslims should be watched, and that the previous administration was scared of any Muslim. But Obama came and said we will not fight Muslims and Islam. He is a sympathetic man, and says the United States will not fight Islam because Islam is a heavenly religion," he said.
Malaysian government to launch Islamic TV channel in line with eastern culture
The Islamic television channel is in the final stage of preparation and will be launched soon, said a Minister in the Prime Minister's Department. He was confident that the TV channel would provide a new dimension in educating the public on bringing up the family based on Islamic teachings and in line with eastern culture and etiquette."The Islamic TV channel will give the people an alternative. I had discussed the matter with Information, Communication and Culture Minister Datuk Seri Dr Rais Yatim. "Local TV stations do carry Islamic programmes but they only made up 10-18 percent of the overall content. The Islamic TV channel will appeal to Muslims and also non-Muslims," he said. The Islamic TV channel is fully owned by the government. Clearly the launch of a state funded Islamic TV channel is intended to counter the growing Islamic revival in Malaysia, especially the move towards political Islam.
CIA Chief stresses that bin Laden is in Pakistan
CIA Director Leon Panetta said on Thursday the U.S. intelligence agency believes al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden is hiding in Pakistan and hopes joint operations with Pakistani forces will find him. Asked whether he was sure that bin Laden was in Pakistan, Panetta told reporters: "The last information we had, that's still the case." Finding bin Laden is "one of our major priorities," Panetta said. "One of our hopes is that the Pakistanis move in militarily, combined with our operations, we may be able to have a better chance" to find the al Qaeda leader, he said. Panetta said al Qaeda "remains the most serious security threat" to the United States and its leaders, particularly in Pakistan, continue to plot against America. There are "a number of people" on the ground in Pakistan providing intelligence on al Qaeda targets to the United States, he said.
Question
Lately, the western media has speculated that the worst of the financial crisis is over and that the economies of some western countries are showing signs of economic recovery-the first green shoots, so to speak of. The media reports are often supported by economic experts and politicians who point to the buoyant stock markets, bank profits and the rise in the price of oil as evidence that the world economy has finally reached the bottom and is on the path of recovery. Hence the question arises is the western world really witnessing an economic revival or is it all media hype designed to instil confidence in the global financial system and prolong the crisis? And if this is the case, then why it is noticed such rise in the oil price, bank profits and buoyant stock markets?
Answer
It is wrong to exclusively look at the financial indicators such as the rise in the value of the stock markets or the rise in the value of commodities to determine the health of the economy. If one looked carefully at the level of corporate production, GDP, unemployment numbers, retail sales, corporate and consumer spending, number of foreclosures and bankruptcies including famous companies like General Motors...,and other economic indicators then there is not a single economy in the world that is showing a positive trend-when these indicators are considered as a whole.
Here is some indications showing this fact:
1-America
Take the US economy for example where the chorus about green shoots in the economy rings the loudest. US jobless rate up to 8.9% the highest in 26 Years. US GDP shrank by 6.1 per cent in the first quarter of this year. To cope with falling sales, businesses reduced their inventories the most since Second World War by $103.7 billion in the first quarter of 2009 compared with $25.8 billion in the fourth quarter of 2008.Business investment declined by 38 % at an annual rate. Exports of goods and services decreased 30 per cent in the first quarter of 2009, compared with a decrease of 23.6 % in the fourth quarter of 2008. Foreclosure filings rose in March 2009 to 341,180. This figure is up by 17% from February 2009 and 46% from March, 2008. Yet this despite the fact that US government has spent billions to shore up ailing banks and improve credit flows within the economy. The same can be said for other western economies.
2-Germany
In Germany the unemployment rate is at 8.2% the worst since the Second World War. However, if it was not for the upcoming federal election and the change in the way the government reported the unemployment figures the jobless rate would be much higher. The Federal Labour Office said on 28/5/2009 that the seventh straight jobless rise was restrained by statistical changes and widespread use of shorter working hours. UniCredit economist Andreas Rees noted that the statistical changes to the jobs data were being phased in gradually so that June unemployment would also prove surprisingly positive. "There cannot be any doubt that further job cuts are in the pipeline," said Rees. "The labour market remains the Achilles heel of the German economy on its road to recovery." Furthermore, new data from the VDMA plant and equipment makers' association offered a stark reminder that German industry is still heavily exposed to weak global demand. German engineering orders fell in April by 58 % in real terms from the previous year, the biggest decline since records for the sector began, the VDMA said. Foreign orders dropped 60 %, with the domestic intake down 52 %. The government expects Europe's largest economy to contract by a record 6 % this year, and some observers are even more pessimistic.
3-Europe
European retail sales declined at a faster pace in May 2009 as rising unemployment prompted consumers to hold back spending, the Bloomberg purchasing managers index showed. "Consumers still face a lot of bad news from the labour market as unemployment will continue to rise," said Nick Kounis, chief European economist at Fortis Bank Nederland in Amsterdam. "Europe's unemployment rate rose to 8.9 % in March, the highest in more than three years. The rate will increase to 9.9 % next year and 11.5 % in 2010, the EU commission forecasts. The euro area economy may shrink 4 % this year, according to the European Commission, as exports decline and companies cut output and jobs.
4-Japan
Japan's jobless rate hit the highest in five years at 5 % in April. In the reported month, 3.46 million people were without jobs, up 25.8 % from April last year, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said in a preliminary report. There were only 46 jobs available for every 100 jobseekers, making the ratio the worst since June 1999. The government also released the nation's core consumer price index (CPI) Friday, which showed a 0.1 % fall in April, compared to a year before. The core nationwide CPI, which excludes fresh food prices, fell in March for the first time in a year and a half, and remained in deflationary territory in April, reflecting falling petrol prices and weakening demand amid the global economic slump. Also households spent less in April, down by 1.3 % to 306,340 yen ($3,175) from the same month a year before. Household spending figures are a key indicator of private consumption, which accounts for more than half of Japanese gross domestic product (GDP). Japan's GDP is shrinking at an annual rate of almost 10 per cent .The latest figures, for the period from January to March, showed the worst decline in Japan's economy since 1947. Glenn Maguire, Société Générale's chief Asia economist, said: "Generally, a 10 per cent contraction in growth is considered a depression. Japan has come terribly close to this, with the economy contracting by 9.7 per cent over the year. This point serves to highlight that Japan is the developed economy on which the financial crisis has had the most pernicious impact."
5- World economy
Perhaps the best indicator of the economic revival is the health of the world economy. According to The New York Times the economies of the developed world have had their worst quarterly showing in decades, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said on 25/5/2009, even as more signs emerged that the pace of the decline was easing. The combined gross domestic products of the 30 countries in the organization fell 2.1 % in the first quarter when compared with the previous quarter. If that preliminary estimate holds, it would be the largest drop since 1960, when the organization began collecting such data. The G.D.P. of member countries fell 2 % in the final quarter of 2008. The O.E.C.D. economies accounted for 71 % of world G.D.P. in 2007, according to the World Bank. Those economies shrank 4.2 % in the first quarter from a year earlier. The United States contributed 0.9 %age point of that decline, while Japan contributed 1 %age point, the 13 largest euro-zone countries 1.3 points, and the remaining member countries 1 point. China, which is not a member of the organization, is one of the few countries where the economy has continued to grow in the first quarter.
The increase noticed in the value of the stock markets, and some goods and services , can be attributed to three factors:
First, the US government bailed out AIG by giving it $173 billion. AIG used more than $90 billion of tax payers' money to pay money it owed (due to Credit Default Swap Contracts) to US and European banks. On March 15 2009, AIG revealed that through three separate types of transactions, Goldman received an aggregate $12.9 billion, Merrill Lynch $6.8 billion, Bank of America $5.2 billion, Citigroup $2.3 billion and Wachovia $1.5 billion. Among European banks, SocGen was the biggest recipient at $11.9 billion, Deutsche got $11.8 billion, Barclays was paid $8.5 billion and UBS of Switzerland got $5 billion. Describing the importance of AIG payouts the Federal Reserve Chairman, Ben S. Bernanke said: "Here was a company [AIG] that made all kinds of unconscionable bets. Then, when those bets went wrong, they had a - we had a situation where the failure of that company would have brought down the financial system." Unable to give money directly to the banks for a fear of public backlash the Fed routed the money through AIG which eventually reached the banks. Subsequently, many of these banks posted profits (Bank of America (BAC) made $4.2 billion, Citigroup $1.6 billion, Goldman Sachs $1.8bn and in Europe, Barclays Bank unveiled record full-year profits of £5.28 billion the 1st quarter of 2009) and the stock markets increased in value.
So this increase is not because of profit due to economic activities, but because of that money support which will not stay for long time.
Secondly: the US government early this year announced its stress test program for US banks designed to instil confidence in investors that the US banks were healthy and not too deeply leveraged. The stress tests were specifically crafted by US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geitner to give the impression that most of the troubled assets of banks can be erased from the balance sheet. On May 6 2009 the US government announced that some US banks such as JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs did not require government funds, whilst other banks such as Bank of America and Morgan and Stanley required some funds. In total, ten of America's top banks required just under $75bn, which could be easily covered by the TARP fund which still has $75 billion remaining-thereby reducing the need for the US government to ask congress for more funds. Subsequently, stock markets posted hefty gains and shares in US banks rose in value. Wells Fargo was up 8.5%, Morgan Stanley was up 0.9, Bank of America up 4% and Citigroup 7% respectively. However, despite the upbeat mood amongst investors, many experts have stated that the tests were fatally flawed. "The stress tests are, at best, a waste of time," said Mike Holland. "At worst, they're misleading and testing the wrong things. The idea of using some level of unemployment to say whether Citigroup is not as strong as JP Morgan to me is laughable. And therefore I will be glad when this process is over." "I would argue - as others have - that a lot of (banks') models have been badly flawed in the last few years anyway, which is why they're in the mess they're in," said Yra Harris, a currency trader with Praxis Trading. On May 4 2009 the International Monetary Fund estimated that U.S. financial institutions could suffer $2.7 trillion in losses from the global credit crisis, nearly double its projection six months ago.
Thirdly: early this year both the US Federal Reserve and the Bank of England announced plans that they would embark upon on ‘quantitative easing' or the creation of money to buy bad assets of banks, corporate bonds and other troubled financial assets. The increase in the money supply will inevitably lead to inflation and increase the price of goods of services. Already the Bank of England is concerned about the high inflation in an economy that is suffering its worst economic downturn since the 1930s, In its statement the Bank of England (BoE) said there are 'promising signs' that the pace of Britain's downturn is slowing. But the BoE also said it has been taken aback by the stubbornly high level of inflation, which at 2.9 per cent is ' significantly' higher than its 2 per cent target. This explains why the prices of certain commodities (the price of oil has increased to more than $58 a barrel from a low of $36) have risen and how it is being misinterpreted as a sign of economic recovery. Furthermore, it should be noted that oil prices usually increase when the value of the dollar is very low. The increase is not due to an increase in demand for oil rather it is because the US actively manipulates the price of oil to prevent further erosion of the value to the value of the dollar.
Also when we know that according to The Impact of the Financial and Economic Crisis on Global Energy Investment prepared by the IEA in May 2009, the world electricity consumption dropped in 2009 for the first time since World War II- a clear signal that the world economy is very far from an economic revival.
For the aforementioned reasons the economic recovery in the West is premature. At best, western governments by pursuing a policy of low interest rates and quantitative easing are delaying an inevitable economic collapse. In fact it can be argued that by flooding barren economies with money manure, western governments are most likely to re-inflate collapsed commodity and currency bubbles, which will produce greater calamity then what the world is witnessing today.
The Egyptian regime prepared an elaborate convoy for President Obama who was flanked on all sides by the elite cavalry guard and accompanying luxury limousines complete with music bands.
Jim Rogers: Dollar headed for a major crisis
A currency crisis is imminent, so investors should avoid shorting the market, said Jim Rogers, veteran investor and chairman of Rogers Holdings. "I'm afraid they're printing so much money that stocks could go to 20,000 or 30,000," Rogers said. "Of course it would be in worthless money, but it could happen and you could lose a lot of money being short."Rogers called the US dollar a "terribly flawed currency," adding that it could be the starting point for the next currency crisis. "I would suspect that somewhere along the line...someone's going to say, 'I'm going to start selling mine before everybody else does,'" Rogers said. "That's when you have a currency crisis."
Israel determined to scupper Obama's overtures of peace to Iran
For the first time since 1980, the US has authorised its embassies around the world to invite Iranian diplomats to Independence Day receptions. The move is part of a new policy of engagement with Iran under President Barack Obama's administration. However, Israel is determined to put a stop to Obama's peace overtures. Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said in Washington on Wednesday that Israel will keep all options against Iran's any potential threats or attacks. Speaking to reporters after talks with U.S. officials, Barak said: "I repeat what I have always said, we are not taking any options off the table."
Egypt welcomes Obama by closing Sultan Masjid for prayer
Al Arabiyya reported that Muslims could no longer pray at Sultan Hassan masjid after security forces cordoned off the masjid in preparation for U.S. President Barack Obama's trip to Cairo Thursday sparked outrage from the opposition Muslim Brotherhood even as the masjid denied them. The masjid, a historical masjids that dates back to 1348 A.D., is reportedly on Obama's itinerary for his Cairo trip, which will commence in the early afternoon this coming Thursday, following the president's speech at Cairo University and his visit to the American embassy. "This (restricting faithful from praying at masjid) is impermissible in Shariah," brotherhood member, Muhsen Radi, told Al Arabiya. "Egypt's security service has cordoned the whole area around the masjid and has told businesses nearby to close on Wednesday and Thursday."
Baghdad: US embassy promotes homosexuality
Last month The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad held its first ever gay part. The invitation described the event as "the first-ever U.S. Embassy Gay Pride Theme Party". The event was organized and sponsored by a group of employees. Given the lack of places to meet in Baghdad, the embassy allows groups to use its social facilities for events on a first-come, first-served basis." The invitation said, "Prizes will be awarded for two contests: Best Dressed Gay Icon and Best Lip Synch Performance."
After having brutality terrorised the Muslims of Iraq through mass killings, rape and torture, the US is now rewarding the country with the promotion of homosexuality. America is determined to strip the Muslims of Iraq of their Islamic identity and replace it with its decrepit values.
Obama's speech- Another endorsement of America's war against Islam
By his own admission, Obama said,"No single speech can eradicate years of mistrust." And by Obama's own actions his policy towards the Muslim world is no different than the course charted by his predecessor-President Bush. Obama has not lifted a single finger to protect the rights of the Palestinians from the aggressions of the Zionists. Obama continues to wage war in Iraq and Afghanistan. More recently he has expanded America's war into Pakistan and is looking to invade Somalia and Sudan. His support of tyrants like Mubarak and King Abdullah belittles the very values he espouses for the Muslim world. Despite all of this, he still has the audacity to think that by speaking about his dubious Muslim past he can win over the hearts and minds of millions of Muslims world-wide. Obama represents nothing more than the arrogance of receding super power that is desperately trying to placate the Muslim world in order to ensure that its precious material interests are not undermined.
Pakistan is the most dangerous country in the world
Speaking on ABC radio PM programme, Lieutenant Colonel Kilcullen, a former theorist of asymmetrical warfare in the Australian Army and a senior advisor US General Petraeus , said that while the international focus has shifted from Iraq to Afghanistan, Pakistan is central to security concerns within in the region. "I think it's not an exaggeration to say that Pakistan is the most dangerous country in the world today," he said. "In certainly in terms of counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency problems, it is the problem that most worries me and I think that should most worry Western policy makers. Pakistan is a very developed country, there's a Pakistani Diaspora across most other countries in Europe and North and South America and it has more than 100 nuclear weapons," he said."The government is progressively losing control of its own population and territory. And you've got Al Qaeda sitting right in the middle of the country so it's a very, very significant problem." The counter-insurgency expert says the problems in Pakistan are compounded by a lack of direct access and diverging priorities within the Pakistani security agencies. "We don't have a lot of ability to influence the situation in Pakistan and frankly there are elements in the Pakistani military and intelligence services who are on the other side," he said. "I think that the ISI [Inter-Services Intelligence] has a history of using militant extremist organisations as an unconventional counterweight to Indian regional influence and most members of the Pakistani national security establishment tend to regard the real threat to Pakistan as India, not extremist militancy."
Question:
On 19/5/2009 speaking on state television Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapaksa declared victory against the Tamil Tigers. He said, "Our motherland has been completely liberated from separatist terrorism." The state television also broadcasted images of the Tamil Tiger leader's body after it was recovered from the battlefield. "A few hours ago, the body of terrorist leader (Velupillai) Prabhakaran, who ruined this country, was found on the battleground," army Chief Gen. Sarath Fonseka told state television. In his victory speech the President Rajapaksa was anxious to strike a reconciliatory tone with Tamil people. He said,"Our intention was to save the Tamil people from the cruel grip of the (rebels). We all must now live as equals in this free country."
What is the reality of the conflict in Sri Lanka? Is it a local or regional conflict or an international conflict? In who's favour was the result of this conflict? Is it possible to say that the conflict in the island has come to an end or not?
Answer:
To answer these questions we shall say:
1- The Sri Lankan conflict has often been portrayed as a protracted conflict between the Sri Lankan government and the militant movements of Sri Lankan's Tamil population. However, in reality the conflict is a classic Anglo-American struggle to control the strategic waterways of Sri Lanka and has been fought with the aid of regional proxy powers such as India and Pakistan.
2- Sri Lanka's importance lies in its location. It is situated about 19 miles off the southern coast of India thus overlooking one of the most important sea routes between West Asia and South East Asia. It is separated from the Indian subcontinent at its narrowest point by 22 miles of sea called Palk Strait. America has for sometime desired to control the Palk Straits and to make it part of Pentagon's military foot print. This will spur America to dominate the Indian Ocean and cut off vital oil supplies from the Middle East and Africa to China, as well as to thwart China's naval expansion westward. Immediately, after September 11 2001 attacks, the then US defence secretary Rumsfeld embarked on initiatives to bolster further the ties between Sri Lanka and the US. The control of Palk Straits would also hurt India's sea supply route to its eastern states and may necessitate traversing around Sri Lanka to reach these states thereby increasing the journey time and making it a very expensive alternative route. A reduction of influence of the Palk Straits would also hurt India's ambitions to become a regional naval power and limit its naval expansion plans eastwards. It is for these very reasons that China established military ties with the Sri Lankan government and supplied it with military equipment. It is also important to note that a decline in Indian influence over the Palk Straits would also affect British interests in the region. For hundreds of years Britain has sought to dominate the Indian Ocean to keep open sea routes located in the region to supply goods to far Eastern markets. American hegemony over the Indian Ocean and the Palk straits would hurt both Britain and Europe. Hence the control of Sri Lanka is of immense importance to the US and will enable it to curb the threat of China and limit British and European influence in South East Asia and the Far East.
3- The roots of the conflict lie in the disenfranchised Tamil population that was brought over by the British from India's Tamil Nadu region to work on the coffee and tea plantations thereby transforming the island into a major tea producer. However, the majority Buddhist Sinhalese community disliked Britain's preferential treatment of the mainly-Hindu Tamils. The independence of Sri Lanka in 1948 only accentuated the bitterness between the two communities, as successive Sinhalese governments stalled on promises to grant the Tamils who resided in the North of the country greater political rights. Disappointed by these turn of events, Tamils lost faith in their political leaders as well as the Sri Lankan political process that blocked every attempt to accommodate them. During this period a number of militant groups sprung up. The most prominent of them was The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam commonly known as the LTTE or the Tamil Tigers, which was formed in 1976 and headed by its founder, Velupillai Prabhakaran. Its aim was to create an independent Tamil state named Tamil Eelam in the north and the east of the island. It was only in the 1980s that the LTTE grew in popularity, especially after the failed attempt in 1983 of Tamil legislators to push through reforms for their people. However, the LTTE quickly became infiltrated by British, Indian and US agents- leading to infighting and confrontation with other militant groups. In the 1980s Britain pushed India to support both LTTE and the Sri Lankan government in response to the growing American influence in Sri Lanka. Eventually, India under the pretext of preventing Tamils in India joining the Tamils in Northern Sri Lanka to create a separate homeland directly intervened in the conflict, especially when the Indian Congress ruling party realised that the Sri Lankan army was close to wiping out the LTTE. The intervention of India was continued in the form of a political face of it, and in the form of help to the Tigers from behind a curtain, On July 29, 1987, Indian involvement led to a peace accord signed between Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi Sri Lankan President Jayewardene. Under this accord, the Sri Lankan Government made a number of concessions to Tamil demands, including devolution of power to the provinces and the establishment of an Indian Peace Keeping Force in return for stopping support to Tamil insurgents.
4- Indian occupation of parts of Sri Lanka backfired and led to a humiliating withdrawal of Indian troops. America exploited the negative sentiments against India to cement its relations with the LTTE as well as the Sri Lankan government. But America gave preference to the latter. Thereafter, America's relations with the Sri Lankan government grew stronger and reached a new level of cooperation in the days after the attacks of September 11 2001. America now gave Sri Lankan government the green light to pursue the fight against LTTE as part of the global war on terrorism. In return America sought to establish strong military and economic ties with Sri Lanka. In June 2002, Washington held discussions Colombo on a far-reaching Access and Cross Servicing Agreement (ACSA) that would enable US warships and aircraft to use facilities in Sri Lanka. In July 2002, President Bush met with then-Sri Lankan Prime Minister Wickremesinghe at the White House and pledged U.S. support for peace and economic development in Sri Lanka. The United States and Sri Lanka signed a new Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) in 2002.An immediate casualty of this newfound relationship was Britain which found itself increasingly isolated for two primary reasons. First, the congress party in India had been replaced by the pro-American BJP, which was reluctant to adopt an aggressive policy towards Colombo. Second the Sri Lankan government was now under the influence of America. Thus Britain resorted to supporting the LTTE until its demise this year.
5- However, it was not until the election of President Mahinda Rajapaksa's in November 2005 that America finally got a Sri Lankan government in place that wholeheartedly supported the destruction of LTTE. In fact Rajapaksa's was elected based on his promise to defeat the LTTE. Rajapaksa formed pacts with the hardline Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna party and extremist Buddhist monks. America openly welcomed his re-election."We remain committed to maintaining the historically close ties between our two countries," a press release from the US Department of State in Washington DC said. Adam Ereli, deputy spokesman for the US Department of State said: "The United States looks forward to working with President Rajapaksa as he confronts many significant and immediate challenges. " America through Rajapaksa and his brother who is Chief of army staff embarked on a campaign to uproot LTTE. Sensing the change in Colombo Britain, India and Europe did their utmost to prevent Rajapaksa's government to wipe out the LTTE.
6- America provided Rajapaksa's military with vital equipment by instructing Pakistan to help Sri Lanka. In March 2006, Sri Lankan authorities had sought Multi-Barrel Rocket Launcher System (MBRLS) and other advanced weapons from Pakistan when Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa visited Pakistan. In May 2008 that Sri Lankan Army Chief Lt-Gen Fonseka came to Pakistan and finalised a deal as per which Pakistan sold 22 Al-Khalid tanks to Sri Lanka in a deal worth over US$100 million. General Fonseka also gave a shopping list of weaponry worth about US$65 million to the Pakistani military authorities. On Jan 19, 2009, in a meeting between Pakistani Defence Secretary Lt-Gen (retd) Syed Athar Ali and his visiting Sri Lankan counterpart Gotabhaya Rajapakse in Rawalpindi, the two countries had agreed to enhance cooperation in military training, exercises and intelligence sharing regarding terrorism.
7- As the Sri Lankan army made vital battle field gains against the LTTE, Britain her proxy India and Europe sought reconciliation between Rajapaksa's government and the LTTE. Their aim was to protect LTTE from being destroyed. America would occasionally join Britain and Europe in encouraging Rajapaksa to support a ceasefire and engage in peace talks-but this was only lip service. Hence a familiar pattern emerged-Britain and India would voice concern for Tamil civilians caught up in the conflict and advocate reconciliation. In response Rajapaksa's would reject such overtures. In fact in the latter days of the conflict Britain, Europe and India repeatedly called for a ceasefire and encouraged worldwide demonstrations by mobilising the Tamil diaspora to protest against Rajapaksa government's killing of civilians. The Sri Lankan government ignored such please and through US assistance via Pakistan managed to crush the LTTE-a militant organization that controlled vast swath of land in the north, ran its own police force, boasted of its own navy and air force.
The defeat of the LTTE means that British and Indian influence in the North of the country has been marginalized and now gives America the opportunity to consolidate her stranglehold over Sri Lanka and establish a permanent military presence in the country. It also allows America to control the Palk Straits and wield her naval power in the Indian Ocean to counter the Chinese threat. Furthermore, America can use Sri Lanka to pressurise India -given that the congress party has returned to power for another 5 years-to follow its policies for the region. However, a lot depends on Rajapaksa's ability to repair relations with the Tamils and accommodate their political concerns. America has already voiced support for such an endeavour and has earmarked vital aid via the IMF to Rajapaksa's government to accomplish such a task. A stable Sri Lanka is vital for American interests, and given the history of the region, Britain and her surrogate India will be looking to re-establish themselves in Sri Lanka. The Anglo-American struggle may have subsided for now, but it is certainly not over.
As summer temperatures soar, hundreds of thousands of Muslims, who fled from the war in Swat are facing immense suffering, deprived of even the most basic of needs, such as electricity, drinking water and clothing. Whilst on the other hand the rulers of Pakistan, sitting in air conditioned rooms and corridors of power, are toasting to the success
