The heat wave singed the third phase of the Lok Sabha polls, with only half the 14.40 crore voters turning up to vote for 107 seats on Thursday.
Crucial phase for BJP The round was crucial for the BJP which was defending 43 seats as compared to the Congress’s 25. Polling is now over in the BJP strongholds of Gujarat, MP and Karnataka.
With temperatures ranging from 40 to 46 degree Celsius in nine states and two Union Territories, Deputy Election Commissioner R. Balakrishan said the “hot summer” had affected the turnout.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi and BJP prime minister candidate Lal Krishna Advani were among the 1,567 candidates in the fray in the third round.
Even as the poll panel described the polling as peaceful, two polling officials and their driver were killed in West Bengal’s Paschim Midnapore district when a landmine blew up their vehicle on Thursday evening.
In Purulia, two Border Security Force men were injured in an explosion in a primary school.
With Thursday’s poll, voting for two-thirds of the 543 Lok Sabha seats is now over.
The round was crucial for the BJP which was defending 43 seats as compared to the Congress’s 25. Polling is now over in the BJP strongholds of Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka.
The average turnout for Phase III was lower compared to 2004, except in Gujarat and Anantnag, the only seat to go the polls in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday.
Despite the boycott call given by the separatists, the voting percentage was 10 per cent higher at 25 per cent in Anantnag than the last time.
Gujarat saw a five per cent higher voting this time. It was 45 per cent in 2004 polls. BJP’s prime ministerial candidate L.K. Advani is a candidate from Gandhinagar. After casting his vote, Advani called for a fixed tenure for Lok Sabha and compulsory voting to counter low turnout.
Polls were boycotted in 150 polling booths in West Bengal and Bihar. In West Bengal’s sensitive Lalgarh area, very low turnout was reported.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Terrorist attacks double in Pakistan, drop overall
Terrorist attacks in Pakistan more than doubled last year despite a general decline in such violence and its casualties worldwide, according to U.S. government figures released on Thursday.
The death toll from worldwide terrorism fell to 15,765 from 22,508 in 2007, while the number of attacks dropped to 11,770 from 14,506, according to data compiled by the U.S. intelligence community and released in a U.S. State Department report.
The general decline reflected diminished violence in Iraq following U.S. President George W. Bush's 2007 decision to send additional troops to the country, which U.S.-led forces invaded in 2003 to topple former dictator Saddam Hussein.
However, the report said that attacks in Pakistan more than doubled in 2008.
U.S. officials have grown increasingly worried about the stability of nuclear-armed Pakistan, a U.S. ally seen as vital to stabilizing Afghanistan, as the Taliban have advanced from their Swat Valley stronghold to other parts of the country.
The death toll from worldwide terrorism fell to 15,765 from 22,508 in 2007, while the number of attacks dropped to 11,770 from 14,506, according to data compiled by the U.S. intelligence community and released in a U.S. State Department report.
The general decline reflected diminished violence in Iraq following U.S. President George W. Bush's 2007 decision to send additional troops to the country, which U.S.-led forces invaded in 2003 to topple former dictator Saddam Hussein.
However, the report said that attacks in Pakistan more than doubled in 2008.
U.S. officials have grown increasingly worried about the stability of nuclear-armed Pakistan, a U.S. ally seen as vital to stabilizing Afghanistan, as the Taliban have advanced from their Swat Valley stronghold to other parts of the country.
Swine flu: first case of UK human transmission suspected
Health officials fear they have discovered the first case of someone catching swine flu within the UK, it emerged last night, as the number of confirmed cases in this country reached eight.
The "probable" case of domestic transmission involves a man who was in close contact with Iain and Dawn Askham, the Scottish couple who became the first confirmed British cases after returning from their honeymoon in Cancún, Mexico, with the virus.
Tests on the man found low levels of influenza A virus, and the samples were flown to the Health Protection Agency's main laboratories at Colindale, in north London, for further testing to establish whether he has swine flu.
The case emerged as three more people were diagnosed as infected with swine flu in Britain yesterday, bringing the total number of cases to eight. The HPA's laboratories are investigating a further 230 possible cases.
The Askhams said last night that they believed they had caught the virus on the flight back to Britain. The couple, who left hospital yesterday six days after being admitted, told the Daily Record that five men sitting near them on the Cancún to Birmingham flight had been coughing and sneezing throughout the journey. Mr Askham, 27, an IT worker, said he told his wife: "I think we're going to be getting off this plane with the plague."
Last night it emerged that a US security aide who helped arrange Barack Obama's trip to Mexico was suffering from flu-like symptoms, while Canada recorded its first case of person-to-person transmission of the virus, in Nova Scotia.
Dr Harry Burns, Scotland's chief medical officer, said the new British patient was "probably more likely than less likely" to have swine flu because of his contact with the couple and the fact that influenza A viruses are rare at this time of year. He is being treated at home with the antiviral drug Tamiflu.
Nicola Sturgeon, the Scottish health secretary, said: "The circumstances around this person give us cause for concern. And that's why he's being treated as probable. That would be the first case of onward transmission from one of the original Mexico cases."
The latest confirmed cases involve a woman in Newcastle upon Tyne and two people in London. All eight confirmed cases contracted the flu in Mexico and have shown relatively mild symptoms after treatment with antiviral drugs.
The sharp rise in suspected cases over the previous 24 hours - from 78 to 230 - may indicate the heightened state of public awareness and alarm, as much as a sign of the disease's rapid spread.
EU governments failed last night to agree on pooling medical resources to combat the flu, and rejected French calls for a blanket ban on air travel to Mexico. The emergency meeting in Luxembourg of health ministers from the 27 countries in the EU agreed to coordinate policies and efforts, but indicated this amounted merely to sharing information on monitoring the speed of the virus's spread.
The newly confirmed case in Newcastle is a woman, recently returned from Mexico, who shared a flat with two local students.
Newcastle University said it would not close its facilities as a precaution. "This [patient] is not a student or a member of staff," the university said in a circulated email. "Neither of the students [who share the flat] has so far displayed any flu-like symptoms.
"Both students have received the antiviral Tamiflu. They and the university have been advised by the HPA that there is no need for the students to isolate themselves from the community unless they show symptoms."
Health officials in Paignton, where a 12-year-old girl was confirmed as having swine flu, said yesterday that dozens of other people in the area had complained of symptoms.
The girl, who is said to be "improving" is a pupil at Paignton Community and Sports College in Devon. Yesterday the school was shut and 340 pupils and staff issued with Tamiflu.
Dr Sarah Harrison, public health consultant for Torbay Care Trust, said: "We are aware of people who have flu-like symptoms. A number of people in this area are being tested. The numbers are more like dozens than hundreds."
After releasing the latest tally, the HPA said: "At this stage close contacts who should be offered antivirals as a precaution are individuals who have been exposed to a probable or confirmed case within the previous seven days, for longer than one hour, and within a distance of one metre. All cases up to now have been associated with travel to Mexico."
Earlier in the day the government's chief medical officer, Professor Sir Liam Donaldson, said he believed the UK would see "many more cases" of swine flu as the virus spreads, but that most people would make a good recovery. He described himself as "concerned, but not alarmed" by the decision by the World Health Organisation to raise the global alert level to phase five.
The "probable" case of domestic transmission involves a man who was in close contact with Iain and Dawn Askham, the Scottish couple who became the first confirmed British cases after returning from their honeymoon in Cancún, Mexico, with the virus.
Tests on the man found low levels of influenza A virus, and the samples were flown to the Health Protection Agency's main laboratories at Colindale, in north London, for further testing to establish whether he has swine flu.
The case emerged as three more people were diagnosed as infected with swine flu in Britain yesterday, bringing the total number of cases to eight. The HPA's laboratories are investigating a further 230 possible cases.
The Askhams said last night that they believed they had caught the virus on the flight back to Britain. The couple, who left hospital yesterday six days after being admitted, told the Daily Record that five men sitting near them on the Cancún to Birmingham flight had been coughing and sneezing throughout the journey. Mr Askham, 27, an IT worker, said he told his wife: "I think we're going to be getting off this plane with the plague."
Last night it emerged that a US security aide who helped arrange Barack Obama's trip to Mexico was suffering from flu-like symptoms, while Canada recorded its first case of person-to-person transmission of the virus, in Nova Scotia.
Dr Harry Burns, Scotland's chief medical officer, said the new British patient was "probably more likely than less likely" to have swine flu because of his contact with the couple and the fact that influenza A viruses are rare at this time of year. He is being treated at home with the antiviral drug Tamiflu.
Nicola Sturgeon, the Scottish health secretary, said: "The circumstances around this person give us cause for concern. And that's why he's being treated as probable. That would be the first case of onward transmission from one of the original Mexico cases."
The latest confirmed cases involve a woman in Newcastle upon Tyne and two people in London. All eight confirmed cases contracted the flu in Mexico and have shown relatively mild symptoms after treatment with antiviral drugs.
The sharp rise in suspected cases over the previous 24 hours - from 78 to 230 - may indicate the heightened state of public awareness and alarm, as much as a sign of the disease's rapid spread.
EU governments failed last night to agree on pooling medical resources to combat the flu, and rejected French calls for a blanket ban on air travel to Mexico. The emergency meeting in Luxembourg of health ministers from the 27 countries in the EU agreed to coordinate policies and efforts, but indicated this amounted merely to sharing information on monitoring the speed of the virus's spread.
The newly confirmed case in Newcastle is a woman, recently returned from Mexico, who shared a flat with two local students.
Newcastle University said it would not close its facilities as a precaution. "This [patient] is not a student or a member of staff," the university said in a circulated email. "Neither of the students [who share the flat] has so far displayed any flu-like symptoms.
"Both students have received the antiviral Tamiflu. They and the university have been advised by the HPA that there is no need for the students to isolate themselves from the community unless they show symptoms."
Health officials in Paignton, where a 12-year-old girl was confirmed as having swine flu, said yesterday that dozens of other people in the area had complained of symptoms.
The girl, who is said to be "improving" is a pupil at Paignton Community and Sports College in Devon. Yesterday the school was shut and 340 pupils and staff issued with Tamiflu.
Dr Sarah Harrison, public health consultant for Torbay Care Trust, said: "We are aware of people who have flu-like symptoms. A number of people in this area are being tested. The numbers are more like dozens than hundreds."
After releasing the latest tally, the HPA said: "At this stage close contacts who should be offered antivirals as a precaution are individuals who have been exposed to a probable or confirmed case within the previous seven days, for longer than one hour, and within a distance of one metre. All cases up to now have been associated with travel to Mexico."
Earlier in the day the government's chief medical officer, Professor Sir Liam Donaldson, said he believed the UK would see "many more cases" of swine flu as the virus spreads, but that most people would make a good recovery. He described himself as "concerned, but not alarmed" by the decision by the World Health Organisation to raise the global alert level to phase five.
Fraud Charge in N.Y. Pension Case
An inquiry into corruption at the New York State pension fund continued to broaden nationwide on Thursday when a top consultant to pension funds around the country was charged with a fraud-related felony by the office of Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo.
The consultant, Saul Meyer of Aldus Equity, a Dallas-based firm, was also charged with violations of securities laws by the Securities and Exchange Commission as part of what the agency called “a multimillion-dollar kickback scheme involving New York’s largest pension fund.” The commission also charged Aldus Equity with multiple securities violations.
Mr. Meyer, 38, is a co-founder of Aldus, which has advised several of the nation’s largest pension funds, including those overseen by New York State. Aldus is also among more than a dozen private equity consultants approved by the board of Calpers, the giant California pension fund, though its staff has not used Aldus’s services.
Mr. Meyer surrendered to the authorities in New York and pleaded not guilty to the fraud-related felony, a violation of the Martin Act, a sweeping state securities statute, on Thursday in Manhattan Criminal Court. A judge ordered him released on $200,000 bail.
In a teleconference on Thursday, Mr. Cuomo said his investigation, which is continuing, had uncovered what amounts to a conspiracy involving politicians, professional investors and consultants to defraud public pension funds in New York and other states by paying millions of dollars in kickbacks in exchange for access to the funds. Investment firms reap lucrative fees by managing portions of the funds.
“I believe we are disclosing a national network of actors who often acted in concert and did this all across the country,” Mr. Cuomo said.
James Clarkson, director of the S.E.C.’s New York regional office, said: “Aldus was chosen by the pension plan because of Aldus’s willingness to illegally line the pockets of others.”
In the wake of the charges, many Aldus clients were scrambling to sever their ties with the firm. Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico, caught up in a public investment scandal in his state, ordered the New Mexico State Investment Council, which manages the state’s trusts, to fire Aldus on Wednesday; the comptrollers of New York State and New York City took similar actions on Thursday.
“I learned years ago that it’s far easier for a prosecutor to file a complaint than to prevail at a trial,” said Paul L. Shechtman, Mr. Meyer’s lawyer. “Time and the evidence will show that Saul Meyer did nothing wrong.”
In a statement, a lawyer for Aldus, Matthew D. Orwig, accused the S.E.C. of conducting a “trial by news release” and called its action “appalling and careless.”
Mr. Cuomo’s office and the commission have been investigating Alan G. Hevesi, the former New York State comptroller, since 2007, and the S.E.C. recently began scrutinizing pension transactions in California. Federal investigators have also been looking into public investment funds in New Mexico. The tentacles of the various investigations appear to lead back to one another.
Aldus is accused of helping Daniel Hevesi, Mr. Hevesi’s son, profit from a deal in New Mexico at the same time that the New York comptroller’s office, then run by his father, agreed to increase by $200 million the amount of pension money overseen by Aldus.
Laura A. Brevetti, a lawyer for Daniel Hevesi, said on Thursday that her client did not have “any knowledge of a so-called quid pro quo arrangement for his benefit.” Bradley D. Simon, a lawyer for Alan Hevesi, said his client did not engage “in a quid pro quo to benefit his son.”
Hank Morris, a former political consultant to Alan Hevesi, also received money as part of deals in New Mexico and California. Mr. Morris was accused last month in an indictment of demanding millions of dollars from investment firms in exchange for access to the New York State pension fund.
He has pleaded not guilty.
“We are purposefully and aggressively looking to cooperate with other enforcement agencies across the country,” Mr. Cuomo said. “This is sort of like when you pull a thread on the sweater and that one thread starts to unravel the entire fabric.”
“We’re pulling threads and it turns out the other end of the thread is in New Mexico or Connecticut or Illinois or in California,” he said.
In court filings, the S.E.C. has described a range of improper transactions undertaken in connection with an investment pool run by Aldus for the New York State pension fund. Among other things, Aldus agreed to split fees with Mr. Morris as part of its advisory deal with the pension fund, the filings said.
Deutsche Bank, which had owned a significant minority interest in Aldus, said on Thursday that it had exercised an option to terminate its stake.
According to the complaint from Mr. Cuomo’s office, Mr. Meyer sought to sever his deal with Mr. Morris in 2006 when Deutsche Bank was considering buying a stake in Aldus. He asked a hedge fund manager to intercede on his behalf.
The complaint said that Mr. Morris told the hedge fund manager: “Tell that little peanut of a man that I can take the business away as easily as I provided it.”
Mr. Hevesi, who resigned as comptroller in late 2006 after pleading guilty to an unrelated felony, has not been charged in the case.
Mr. Cuomo said on Thursday there was more to come. “It’s an ongoing investigation,” he said, “and I would say, ‘Stay tuned.’ ”
The consultant, Saul Meyer of Aldus Equity, a Dallas-based firm, was also charged with violations of securities laws by the Securities and Exchange Commission as part of what the agency called “a multimillion-dollar kickback scheme involving New York’s largest pension fund.” The commission also charged Aldus Equity with multiple securities violations.
Mr. Meyer, 38, is a co-founder of Aldus, which has advised several of the nation’s largest pension funds, including those overseen by New York State. Aldus is also among more than a dozen private equity consultants approved by the board of Calpers, the giant California pension fund, though its staff has not used Aldus’s services.
Mr. Meyer surrendered to the authorities in New York and pleaded not guilty to the fraud-related felony, a violation of the Martin Act, a sweeping state securities statute, on Thursday in Manhattan Criminal Court. A judge ordered him released on $200,000 bail.
In a teleconference on Thursday, Mr. Cuomo said his investigation, which is continuing, had uncovered what amounts to a conspiracy involving politicians, professional investors and consultants to defraud public pension funds in New York and other states by paying millions of dollars in kickbacks in exchange for access to the funds. Investment firms reap lucrative fees by managing portions of the funds.
“I believe we are disclosing a national network of actors who often acted in concert and did this all across the country,” Mr. Cuomo said.
James Clarkson, director of the S.E.C.’s New York regional office, said: “Aldus was chosen by the pension plan because of Aldus’s willingness to illegally line the pockets of others.”
In the wake of the charges, many Aldus clients were scrambling to sever their ties with the firm. Gov. Bill Richardson of New Mexico, caught up in a public investment scandal in his state, ordered the New Mexico State Investment Council, which manages the state’s trusts, to fire Aldus on Wednesday; the comptrollers of New York State and New York City took similar actions on Thursday.
“I learned years ago that it’s far easier for a prosecutor to file a complaint than to prevail at a trial,” said Paul L. Shechtman, Mr. Meyer’s lawyer. “Time and the evidence will show that Saul Meyer did nothing wrong.”
In a statement, a lawyer for Aldus, Matthew D. Orwig, accused the S.E.C. of conducting a “trial by news release” and called its action “appalling and careless.”
Mr. Cuomo’s office and the commission have been investigating Alan G. Hevesi, the former New York State comptroller, since 2007, and the S.E.C. recently began scrutinizing pension transactions in California. Federal investigators have also been looking into public investment funds in New Mexico. The tentacles of the various investigations appear to lead back to one another.
Aldus is accused of helping Daniel Hevesi, Mr. Hevesi’s son, profit from a deal in New Mexico at the same time that the New York comptroller’s office, then run by his father, agreed to increase by $200 million the amount of pension money overseen by Aldus.
Laura A. Brevetti, a lawyer for Daniel Hevesi, said on Thursday that her client did not have “any knowledge of a so-called quid pro quo arrangement for his benefit.” Bradley D. Simon, a lawyer for Alan Hevesi, said his client did not engage “in a quid pro quo to benefit his son.”
Hank Morris, a former political consultant to Alan Hevesi, also received money as part of deals in New Mexico and California. Mr. Morris was accused last month in an indictment of demanding millions of dollars from investment firms in exchange for access to the New York State pension fund.
He has pleaded not guilty.
“We are purposefully and aggressively looking to cooperate with other enforcement agencies across the country,” Mr. Cuomo said. “This is sort of like when you pull a thread on the sweater and that one thread starts to unravel the entire fabric.”
“We’re pulling threads and it turns out the other end of the thread is in New Mexico or Connecticut or Illinois or in California,” he said.
In court filings, the S.E.C. has described a range of improper transactions undertaken in connection with an investment pool run by Aldus for the New York State pension fund. Among other things, Aldus agreed to split fees with Mr. Morris as part of its advisory deal with the pension fund, the filings said.
Deutsche Bank, which had owned a significant minority interest in Aldus, said on Thursday that it had exercised an option to terminate its stake.
According to the complaint from Mr. Cuomo’s office, Mr. Meyer sought to sever his deal with Mr. Morris in 2006 when Deutsche Bank was considering buying a stake in Aldus. He asked a hedge fund manager to intercede on his behalf.
The complaint said that Mr. Morris told the hedge fund manager: “Tell that little peanut of a man that I can take the business away as easily as I provided it.”
Mr. Hevesi, who resigned as comptroller in late 2006 after pleading guilty to an unrelated felony, has not been charged in the case.
Mr. Cuomo said on Thursday there was more to come. “It’s an ongoing investigation,” he said, “and I would say, ‘Stay tuned.’ ”
North Korea issues threat, demands apology from U.N.
North Korea warned Wednesday that it will fire an intercontinental ballistic missile -- or even carry out another nuclear test -- unless the U.N. apologizes for condemning the regime's April 5 rocket launch.
By flaunting its rogue nuclear and missile programs, Pyongyang raised the stakes in the escalating diplomatic tit for tat with the outside world. North Korea also said it would start generating nuclear fuel, an indication that the regime will begin enriching uranium, a preliminary step to making an atomic bomb.
North Korea is known for its use of brinkmanship and harsh rhetoric to force the West to react, but the threat of a nuclear test is significant.
Pyongyang conducted its first atomic test in 2006 and is thought to have enough plutonium, another material for atomic weaponry, to make at least half a dozen nuclear bombs.
There are no indications, however, that scientists in North Korea have mastered the technology needed to make a nuclear warhead small enough to fit onto a missile.
Still, North Korea's rocket launch early this month drew widespread international concern.
Pyongyang says the liftoff was a nonmilitary effort to send a communications satellite into space, but the U.S., Japan and others saw it as a disguised test of a delivery system capable of sending a long-range missile within striking range of Alaska.
The United Nations Security Council denounced the launch as a violation of 2006 resolutions barring Pyongyang from missile-related activity, and imposed new sanctions.
By flaunting its rogue nuclear and missile programs, Pyongyang raised the stakes in the escalating diplomatic tit for tat with the outside world. North Korea also said it would start generating nuclear fuel, an indication that the regime will begin enriching uranium, a preliminary step to making an atomic bomb.
North Korea is known for its use of brinkmanship and harsh rhetoric to force the West to react, but the threat of a nuclear test is significant.
Pyongyang conducted its first atomic test in 2006 and is thought to have enough plutonium, another material for atomic weaponry, to make at least half a dozen nuclear bombs.
There are no indications, however, that scientists in North Korea have mastered the technology needed to make a nuclear warhead small enough to fit onto a missile.
Still, North Korea's rocket launch early this month drew widespread international concern.
Pyongyang says the liftoff was a nonmilitary effort to send a communications satellite into space, but the U.S., Japan and others saw it as a disguised test of a delivery system capable of sending a long-range missile within striking range of Alaska.
The United Nations Security Council denounced the launch as a violation of 2006 resolutions barring Pyongyang from missile-related activity, and imposed new sanctions.
Russia blasts NATO over two issues
Officials in Moscow lashed out bitterly at the West today, excoriating NATO for expelling two Russians suspected of spying and for pushing ahead with planned military exercises in Georgia.
In sharp contrast to the Obama administration's call for a "reset" of U.S.-Russian relations and the recent thaw in Russian-NATO ties, it was a day of acrimony and veiled threats as Russian officials resorted to some of their toughest talk in weeks.
Two high-ranking members of Russia's permanent mission to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization were stripped of their credentials and expelled from Belgium on accusations of espionage, the alliance's leadership announced today. The two were identified as political desk chief Viktor Kochukov and mission attache and executive secretary Vasily Chizhov.
The Russian Foreign Ministry called the expulsions "provocative," and issued a statement warning NATO to "think about the consequences of what happened. We will certainly make our own conclusions from this provocation."
Dmitry Rogozin, Russia's permanent envoy to NATO, said the charges of espionage were false, calling them "unprecedented crude steps aimed to unbalance Russia" and derail newly resumed talks between Russia and the alliance. The expulsions came just as the NATO-Russia Council met for the first time since Moscow's war last summer with Georgia.
"I want to say that, in line with established diplomatic practice, this act will not remain unanswered," Rogozin told the Interfax news agency.
NATO suspended political contact after Russian troops crossed into Georgia last summer -- provoked, Moscow said, by a Georgian assault on the breakaway republic of South Ossetia. Wednesday marked the first day of renewed political discussion between the Atlantic alliance and Moscow. But the talks came amid increased tension over NATO plans to hold military exercises in Georgia beginning next week.
The exercises were scheduled long before last year's war, but officials in Moscow argue that they constitute a potentially destabilizing threat and should be abandoned.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev todaycalled the exercises "an open provocation," and warned the West that it would be responsible for any ensuing troubles.
"It is common knowledge that no exercises shall be held where there was war recently," Medvedev said. "All responsibility for possible negative consequences will lie with the people undertaking the relevant steps."
Against the background of rippling tensions, Russia signed a treaty accepting responsibility for military control of the so-called "borders" dividing Georgia's rebel republics from the rest of the small Caucasian nation.
Last summer's war revolved around the fate of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, another republic that has broken with Georgia. Moscow has since recognized the two areas as newly formed, independent countries. Only Nicaragua and the Islamic militant faction Hamas joined Russia in recognizing the rebel territories, but an undeterred Moscow continues to treat the two republics as independent, albeit client, states.
The presidents of the two republics were in Moscow todayto sign the agreement with Medvedev. The treaty gives Russia responsibility for guarding the cease-fire line until the two rebel territories create their own border guard.
The three leaders also signed cooperation agreements linking the security services of the breakaway republics with the Russian FSB, the powerful intelligence service that is the modern-day successor to the KGB.
The deals could further destabilize the already fragile cease-fire in the Caucasus, some Russian analysts warned. Skirmishes have already broken out between Georgian and rebel forces.
"Now if there are any incidents on the cease-fire lines, it will be a direct confrontation between Russia and Georgia," Russian military analyst Pavel Felgengauer said. "Which, of course, would be a good pretext for resuming the war."
In sharp contrast to the Obama administration's call for a "reset" of U.S.-Russian relations and the recent thaw in Russian-NATO ties, it was a day of acrimony and veiled threats as Russian officials resorted to some of their toughest talk in weeks.
Two high-ranking members of Russia's permanent mission to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization were stripped of their credentials and expelled from Belgium on accusations of espionage, the alliance's leadership announced today. The two were identified as political desk chief Viktor Kochukov and mission attache and executive secretary Vasily Chizhov.
The Russian Foreign Ministry called the expulsions "provocative," and issued a statement warning NATO to "think about the consequences of what happened. We will certainly make our own conclusions from this provocation."
Dmitry Rogozin, Russia's permanent envoy to NATO, said the charges of espionage were false, calling them "unprecedented crude steps aimed to unbalance Russia" and derail newly resumed talks between Russia and the alliance. The expulsions came just as the NATO-Russia Council met for the first time since Moscow's war last summer with Georgia.
"I want to say that, in line with established diplomatic practice, this act will not remain unanswered," Rogozin told the Interfax news agency.
NATO suspended political contact after Russian troops crossed into Georgia last summer -- provoked, Moscow said, by a Georgian assault on the breakaway republic of South Ossetia. Wednesday marked the first day of renewed political discussion between the Atlantic alliance and Moscow. But the talks came amid increased tension over NATO plans to hold military exercises in Georgia beginning next week.
The exercises were scheduled long before last year's war, but officials in Moscow argue that they constitute a potentially destabilizing threat and should be abandoned.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev todaycalled the exercises "an open provocation," and warned the West that it would be responsible for any ensuing troubles.
"It is common knowledge that no exercises shall be held where there was war recently," Medvedev said. "All responsibility for possible negative consequences will lie with the people undertaking the relevant steps."
Against the background of rippling tensions, Russia signed a treaty accepting responsibility for military control of the so-called "borders" dividing Georgia's rebel republics from the rest of the small Caucasian nation.
Last summer's war revolved around the fate of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, another republic that has broken with Georgia. Moscow has since recognized the two areas as newly formed, independent countries. Only Nicaragua and the Islamic militant faction Hamas joined Russia in recognizing the rebel territories, but an undeterred Moscow continues to treat the two republics as independent, albeit client, states.
The presidents of the two republics were in Moscow todayto sign the agreement with Medvedev. The treaty gives Russia responsibility for guarding the cease-fire line until the two rebel territories create their own border guard.
The three leaders also signed cooperation agreements linking the security services of the breakaway republics with the Russian FSB, the powerful intelligence service that is the modern-day successor to the KGB.
The deals could further destabilize the already fragile cease-fire in the Caucasus, some Russian analysts warned. Skirmishes have already broken out between Georgian and rebel forces.
"Now if there are any incidents on the cease-fire lines, it will be a direct confrontation between Russia and Georgia," Russian military analyst Pavel Felgengauer said. "Which, of course, would be a good pretext for resuming the war."
Chrysler bankruptcy deal revealed
US carmaker Chrysler will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection immediately and has formed an alliance with Fiat, President Obama has said.
Chapter 11 protects firms from their creditors, allowing them to rearrange their finances while still trading.
The move came after talks had broken down with Chrysler's lenders late on Wednesday, the White House said.
Chrysler chief executive Robert Nardelli said he will step down after the company emerges from bankruptcy.
Mr Nardelli has been in charge at Chrysler since 2007 but said he felt it would be an appropriate time to leave after bankruptcy.
New Chrysler
The filing for bankruptcy protection will lead to the forming of a new corporate entity.
Details of the new Chrysler include:
Fiat's technology will enable Chrysler to build fuel efficient cars
• Fiat will take a 20% stake, with the possibility of it rising to 35% if performance targets are met. It could reach 51% by 2016 if Chrysler's government loans are fully repaid
• The Treasury will have an 8% stake, a union-run trust fund VEBA will take a 55% stake, and the governments of Canada and Ontario will gain a combined 2% stake
• Current owner Cerberus will forfeit its 80.1% stake
• Daimler will give up its remaining 19.9% stake in Chrysler
• Chrysler bondholders will receive $2bn (£1.35bn) in cash in exchange for forgiving their $6.9bn debt
• The new company will be run by a nine-person board, with six picked by the government and three by Fiat. The board will pick a new chief executive.
'Surgical bankruptcy'
Some Chrysler dealerships will close over time but no jobs will be lost in the short term, President Obama said.
BANKRUPTCY PROTECTION
US bankruptcy protection is called Chapter 11
It gives US businesses time to rearrange their finances while continuing to trade, protected from their creditors
History of Chrysler
Can Fiat save Chrysler?
Q&A: What next for Chrysler?
Chrysler will receive a further $8bn in government aid, up from the $6bn the Treasury had promised it if it had successfully restructured the business by midnight.
The White House described the move as a "surgical short bankruptcy" which should last between 30 and 60 days.
President Obama said the "necessary steps" had been taken to give Chrysler "a new lease of life".
He added that he had "every hope" that Chrysler will become "stronger and more competitive" now that it had Fiat on board.
"It's a partnership that will give Chrysler a chance not only to survive, but to thrive in a global auto industry," he said.
'Hedge fund block'
The deal will need to be ratified by the bankruptcy court.
While Chrysler's main banks, holding 70% of the debt, accepted this proposal, it was rejected by hedge funds that hold a sizeable proportion of its remaining debt. Hedge funds are private investment funds that typically attract rich private investors.
Their stance in the negotiations was criticised by President Obama.
"A group of investment firms and hedge funds decided to hold out for the prospect of an unjustified taxpayer-funded bailout," he said.
"They were hoping that everybody else would make sacrifices and they would have to make none. Some demanded twice the return that other lenders were getting. I don't stand with them."
Chrysler is owned by private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management, which bought an 80.1% stake from Germany's Daimler for 7.4bn euros ($9.9bn; £6.6bn) in 2007.
Cerberus will forfeit its stake as part of the deal.
Italian partner
The partnership with Fiat will create the world's sixth largest carmaker.
Italy's Fiat will not have to pay anything for its share, which will give it access to the North American marketplace. It will also have the right to appoint three company directors.
In return, Chrysler will be able to take advantage of Fiat's expertise in making smaller, more fuel-efficient cars in its existing US factories.
No Chrysler plants in the US will close.
Fiat chief executive Sergio Marchionne said he would spend time meeting Chrysler employees and touring its facilities over the next few weeks.
"While our agreement must necessarily go through the US legal system for a few weeks, we will be preparing ourselves to re-emerge quickly as a reliable and competitive automaker," he said.
The Treasury will provide Chrysler with $3.3bn in working capital to support it through the Chapter 11 process.
It will also extend a $4.7bn loan to the new company, once it has emerged from bankruptcy, repayable over the next eight years.
Chrysler's financial arm - that makes loans to buyers and to dealers - will be merged into GMAC Financial Services. GMAC is the finance arm of General Motors (GM) but was bailed out by the government in December. The new GMAC will get government support.
Chrysler, the smallest of the US "Big Three" carmakers after GM and Ford, secured a $4bn loan from the US government at the start of the year, and has since gained $500m mor
Chapter 11 protects firms from their creditors, allowing them to rearrange their finances while still trading.
The move came after talks had broken down with Chrysler's lenders late on Wednesday, the White House said.
Chrysler chief executive Robert Nardelli said he will step down after the company emerges from bankruptcy.
Mr Nardelli has been in charge at Chrysler since 2007 but said he felt it would be an appropriate time to leave after bankruptcy.
New Chrysler
The filing for bankruptcy protection will lead to the forming of a new corporate entity.
Details of the new Chrysler include:
Fiat's technology will enable Chrysler to build fuel efficient cars
• Fiat will take a 20% stake, with the possibility of it rising to 35% if performance targets are met. It could reach 51% by 2016 if Chrysler's government loans are fully repaid
• The Treasury will have an 8% stake, a union-run trust fund VEBA will take a 55% stake, and the governments of Canada and Ontario will gain a combined 2% stake
• Current owner Cerberus will forfeit its 80.1% stake
• Daimler will give up its remaining 19.9% stake in Chrysler
• Chrysler bondholders will receive $2bn (£1.35bn) in cash in exchange for forgiving their $6.9bn debt
• The new company will be run by a nine-person board, with six picked by the government and three by Fiat. The board will pick a new chief executive.
'Surgical bankruptcy'
Some Chrysler dealerships will close over time but no jobs will be lost in the short term, President Obama said.
BANKRUPTCY PROTECTION
US bankruptcy protection is called Chapter 11
It gives US businesses time to rearrange their finances while continuing to trade, protected from their creditors
History of Chrysler
Can Fiat save Chrysler?
Q&A: What next for Chrysler?
Chrysler will receive a further $8bn in government aid, up from the $6bn the Treasury had promised it if it had successfully restructured the business by midnight.
The White House described the move as a "surgical short bankruptcy" which should last between 30 and 60 days.
President Obama said the "necessary steps" had been taken to give Chrysler "a new lease of life".
He added that he had "every hope" that Chrysler will become "stronger and more competitive" now that it had Fiat on board.
"It's a partnership that will give Chrysler a chance not only to survive, but to thrive in a global auto industry," he said.
'Hedge fund block'
The deal will need to be ratified by the bankruptcy court.
While Chrysler's main banks, holding 70% of the debt, accepted this proposal, it was rejected by hedge funds that hold a sizeable proportion of its remaining debt. Hedge funds are private investment funds that typically attract rich private investors.
Their stance in the negotiations was criticised by President Obama.
"A group of investment firms and hedge funds decided to hold out for the prospect of an unjustified taxpayer-funded bailout," he said.
"They were hoping that everybody else would make sacrifices and they would have to make none. Some demanded twice the return that other lenders were getting. I don't stand with them."
Chrysler is owned by private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management, which bought an 80.1% stake from Germany's Daimler for 7.4bn euros ($9.9bn; £6.6bn) in 2007.
Cerberus will forfeit its stake as part of the deal.
Italian partner
The partnership with Fiat will create the world's sixth largest carmaker.
Italy's Fiat will not have to pay anything for its share, which will give it access to the North American marketplace. It will also have the right to appoint three company directors.
In return, Chrysler will be able to take advantage of Fiat's expertise in making smaller, more fuel-efficient cars in its existing US factories.
No Chrysler plants in the US will close.
Fiat chief executive Sergio Marchionne said he would spend time meeting Chrysler employees and touring its facilities over the next few weeks.
"While our agreement must necessarily go through the US legal system for a few weeks, we will be preparing ourselves to re-emerge quickly as a reliable and competitive automaker," he said.
The Treasury will provide Chrysler with $3.3bn in working capital to support it through the Chapter 11 process.
It will also extend a $4.7bn loan to the new company, once it has emerged from bankruptcy, repayable over the next eight years.
Chrysler's financial arm - that makes loans to buyers and to dealers - will be merged into GMAC Financial Services. GMAC is the finance arm of General Motors (GM) but was bailed out by the government in December. The new GMAC will get government support.
Chrysler, the smallest of the US "Big Three" carmakers after GM and Ford, secured a $4bn loan from the US government at the start of the year, and has since gained $500m mor
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