News from US and Europe

Russian military chief warns of nuclear war risks

Yahoo,

17 November, 2011

MOSCOW (AP) 
Russia is facing a heightened risk of being drawn into conflicts at its borders that have the potential of turning nuclear, the nation's top military officer said Thursday.

Gen. Nikolai Makarov, chief of the General Staff of the Russian armed forces, cautioned over NATO's expansion eastward and warned that the risks of Russia being pulled into local conflicts have "risen sharply."

Makarov added, according to Russian news agencies, that "under certain conditions local and regional conflicts may develop into a full-scale war involving nuclear weapons."

A steady decline in Russia's conventional forces has prompted the Kremlin to rely increasingly on its nuclear deterrent.

The nation's military doctrine says it may use nuclear weapons to counter a nuclear attack on Russia or an ally, or a large-scale conventional attack that threatens Russia's existence.

Russia sees NATO's expansion to include former Soviet republics and ex-members of the Soviet bloc in eastern and central Europe as a key threat to Russia's security.

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Spanish election: convincing victory for People's party

Conservative opposition leader Mariano Rajoy beats Socialists' José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero

the Guardian, 

20 November, 2011

The conservative opposition People's party (PP) of Mariano Rajoy have won a clear majority in Spain's general election.

With over 90% of the votes from the election counted, the centre-right PP won 186 seats compared to 154 in the last legislature, while the Socialists plummeted from 169 to 110, their worst performance ever.

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Cyber-attack claims at US water facility

FBI and Homeland Security to investigate shutdown of a water pump suspected to be work of foreign hackers

the Guardian, 

20 November, 2011

US homeland security and FBI officials are investigating an apparent cyber-attack on a water utility near Springfield, Illinois.

The attack may have been the cause of a water pump shutdown, and could be the first case of foreign hackers successfully targeting a US industrial facility.

The shutdown did not result in any supply issues, but the incident triggered a high-level investigation.


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Brussels hopes eurozone's new governments will soothe debt fears

All eyes on Spain and Italy's austerity measures but EU wants to increase its power over national budgets

the Guardian, 

20 November, 2011

EU leaders were last night pinning their hopes on further political consolidation and high approval ratings for new governments in Spain and Italy to calm debt markets, despite concerns that the eurozone's banks remain vulnerable to a sovereign default.

Mario Monti, the new head of Italy's government of technocrats, will meet his cabinet today and present proposals to Brussels on how he intends to implement austerity measures as Italy battles to regain the respect of private investors battered by weeks of bad news from Rome. Mariano Rajoy, who last night swept to power in Spain, will also lay out plans to implement spending cuts to remain within limits set by Brussels.

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Millions of people risk death due to increasing heat wave frequency: IPCC report

Newstrackindia

United Nations, Nov 19(ANI):  Millions of people face a risk of death due to heatwaves caused by man- made climate change, a UN report has warned.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report found that that it is "virtually certain" that the hotwaves' frequency would increase by a factor of 10 if the world continues to emit carbon dioxide and other gases at the current rate.

The report is the United Nation's first review of the impact and solution to global warming.

The report, however, admitted that it is difficult to gauge the climate change impact.

For instance, according to report, it is likely that rainfall will increase in many areas by 2100, particularly in the tropics.

However, the report admitted that flooding or drought situation is not solely caused by man made climate change but also other factors like land use change play a significant role.

For article GO HERE