North Korean leader Kim Jong-il attended a concert yesterday celebrating the 57th anniversary of the Korean War as the two main adversaries from that conflict conducted war drills off his country’s eastern coast.

The State Merited Chorus performed numbers such as “Our General is the Best” and “My Song in the Trench,” state-run Korean Central News Agency reported today. The audience gave “enthusiastic cheers” to Kim, the Supreme Commander of the Korean People’s Army, who “heartily congratulated them on the victory” in the Fatherland Liberation War.

As Kim took part in celebrations to mark the cease-fire that ended open hostility on the Korean peninsula, U.S. and South Korean forces were putting on a display of military might that included anti-submarine maneuvers intended as a deterrent to the North.

The four-day drills, which end today, are being held after a South Korean-led investigation team in May blamed North Korea for torpedoing the South’s warship Cheonan, killing 46 sailors.

The three-year Korean War ended in a cease-fire after China’s entry pushed back the U.S. and United Nations forces. South Korea remains technically at war with the North, with the two sides separated by one of the world’s most-fortified borders.

This is the third try to pass the law on Casino through Ikh Khural. Two other drafts were rejected by the previous Parliament.

“Neighboring regions of neighboring countries don’t have any casinos or gambling centers, which allows such businesses to flourish in Mongolia,” deputies said to Business Mongolia. Law initiators believe that it will contribute to the Mongolian economy and revenue.

According to the draft document, one percent of casino income will be collected into the “Good Will” Foundation, a social welfare fund. The casino is going to be open only for foreigners and the government of Mongolia will own certain part of its asset.

The government of the country had signed a contract four years ago that will put a U.S. real-estate company, Winwheel Bullion, in charge of building a casino complex with hotels, shopping malls, banks and a modern airport to bring visitors across the vast distances needed to reach it. Neither the company nor the Mongolian side have provided any information about financial arrangements for the zone.

The government first awarded a contract to develop Zamyn Uud to a British Virgin Islands-registered company called Western Paradise, promising tax breaks and other incentives, but that deal fell through.

Zamyn-Uud FTZ is 900 hectares in size and located three kilometers east of the main town and three kilometers north of Erenhot city (usually shortened into Eriyen, Ereen or Erlian), Inner Mongolia, China.

A tiny town and railway depot, Zamyn Uud is about 350 miles northwest of Beijing, has a population of 10.000 inhabitants and is very much dependent upon the commercial activity generated by the neighboring Chinese city Erenhot.

The major employer in Zamyn-Uud is the Government of Mongolia, which employs approximately 700 people to manage and operate the Mongolian Railway. In this location, the railway is very important as it handles goods and products being transported from Russia to China (around 10 million tons per year), facilitates direct cross-border trade with China, and has a container loading and unloading facility (twenty wagons a day) to overcome the difference in rail gauge of the Mongolian and Chinese railway systems. Handling capacity of the transshipment facility is 60-80 wagons a day.

The city of Erenhot is experiencing fast economic growth. Its current population is estimated at almost two -hundred thousand residents while the per capita GDP of the city was at 14,000 Yuan in 2009.

Between Mongolia and China there presently is only one international port of entry operating on a permanent basis and nine bilateral ports of entry operating on a seasonal basis. Most prominent among these is the “Zamiin-Uud – Erenhot,” international port.Nine others, including “Bulgan” port in the province of Khobdo, “Gashuunsukhait” port in the province of South Gobi, and “Shiveekhuren,” also in South Gobi, are very crowded during the short season in which they operate.

According to the state’s statistic data 508.821 of Mongolian citizens traveled through the various ports of entry to Russia and China in 2000, but the majority – 266.221 passing through Zamyn Uud –Erenhot.

Answering journalists’ questions about the situation in Kyrgyzstan, a spokesman of the Belarusian Foreign Ministry underlined: “We’re faced with a serious international problem. Our President, Alexander Lukashenko is working on directions for a resolution. There is no doubt that this problem can be solved only within the framework of international law.”

Ensuring the Belarusian Embassy’s safety in the Kyrgyz Republic is under control, Andrei Savinykh said at a press briefing in Minsk. According to the spokesman, the Belarusian Foreign Ministry is working with local authorities in Bishkek, and “they are providing us all possible assistance.”

“The main problem, as you know, is uncontrolled destructive elements involved in riots and looting. It is important to note that this is a systemic threat is not only for us but for the Kyrgyz society in general. In this regard, we also implement a range of measures aimed to ensure security of the embassy staff and their families,” said Andrei Savinykh.

Earlier this week Kyrgyz bloggers launched a flash mob called “Let’s bombard the Belarusian president web-site with messages,” which was supported by many Internet users who expressed outrage towards Kurmanbek Bakiyev’s refusal to recognize his resignation from office saying that the interim had not kept their side of the promise to protect his family from harassment.

After his arrival in Belarus, the president of Kyrgyzstan declared his non-resignation as the head of state. In turn, Alexander Lukashenko noted that Kurmanbek Bakiyev can be dismissed from his post only be holding election in the Kyrgyzstan and the leader of the country should participate in it.

According to the opposition politician, there should be a “fair trial” in Kyrgyzstan against Kurmanbek Bakiyev. “If he’s a criminal, then we have no right to conceal such people in our country, it blows upon its prestige,” said activist leader “For Freedom” (Za Svabodu) movement, Alexander Milinkevich. “Firstly, I think that there should be an investigation on the case of the dead and injured during the Kyrgyz events. If Bakiyev is proved by trial, he should be in Kyrgyzstan, not hiding in Belarus,” he said.

Interior Minister Moldomusa Kongantiyev and First Deputy Prime Minister Akylbek Zhaparov were severely beaten by protesters in the town of Talas, where the unrest began on Tuesday, the Ferghana.ru news service reported. The Kyrgyz Interior Ministry denied reports that Kongantiyev had died of his injuries.

The protesters set fire to the prosecutor’s office and looted state television headquarters. Kyrgyz state television and state-controlled Channel Five have suspended broadcasting, reports Interfax.

The local White House has been taken over by opposition forces and Roza Otunbaeva has taken charge of the interim government. She informed journalists that Prime-Minister Daniyar Usenov “signed the resignation statement and personally submitted it to me. The opposition forces took over the power”, as quoted by RIAN. The resignation of  the Prime-Minister automatically means the resignation of the Cabinet Council.

The imprisoned opposition leaders Ismail Isakov, Erkin Bulekbaev, Saparbek Argynov and Uran Ryskulov were released although there were no legal sanctions or amnesty granted. The opposition leaders and various marginal men (who also refer to themselves as opposition members) gave live interviews on state television channel.

Meanwhile unknown people devastated the Kyrgyz national arts museum, named after Gapar Aitiev. The collection included precious paintings of Russian and Soviet artists like Vrubel, Levitan, Falk and other famous impressionists.

Their has been no word from Kyrgyz President Kurmanbek Bakiev till now. He has not addressed the nation since the events started and there are only unconfirmed rumours that he might be in the south gathering support there. Interfax informed that on the night of April 7 Bakiev’s house was looted and burned with people grabbing personal belongings, bed-clothes, dishes, rugs and whatever they could lay their hands on. Not a single fire-engine arrived at the scene. The location of the president’s teammates and relatives has not been yet reported. According to unofficial sources, the President’s son Maxim Bakiev was on his way to the United States to attend  investment forum on April 8 in Washington DC. The event was pre-planned and turned out to be perfect timing for him.

The Russian Federation had hinted that it no longer supported the Bakiev regime. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin called the unrest “a purely internal matter” and accused Kyrgyzstan’s president of “stepping on the same rake” as his predecessor, Askar Akayev. Both Bakiyev and Akayev incited public anger over alleged widespread corruption and nepotism in their administrations.

Askar Akayev, who now lives in Moscow, urged Bakiyev to step down. “The best outcome for the people of Kyrgyzstan would be the resignation of Bakiyev,” Akayev said on Ekho Moskvy radio.

“The single reason for these protests is Bakiyev and his politics”, said former independent RF Duma Deputy Vladimir Ryzhkov to Moscow Times. He said the Kyrgyz government was a classic dictatorship — “oppressive, corrupt and clannish — there are very good grounds to overthrow it. Russia has a huge influence over economically weak Kyrgyzstan. If it sends a mission with an energetic leader, it can act as a peacemaker,”. By not responding, Moscow risks losing the support of the Kyrgyz, “a people who are traditionally very friendly toward us,” he said.

The U.S. State Department is clueless as to how to manage the situation and said on Wednesday that the United States believes the Kyrgyz government is still in power despite claims that opposition had seized control. “We continue to think the government remains in power,” said State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley, while adding – “We have no indication that the government has ceased to function …the situation is difficult, but not to the extent that there are claims that the government has fallen, we don’t have that information”.

Kyrgyzstan achieved independence with the collapse of Soviet Union in 1991. Though still an impoverished Central Asian nation, it’s seen as a strategic asset in both Moscow and Washington. Immediately after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, U.S. set up a military base in Kyrgyzstan to support the war in Afghanistan. But in February 2009, at the same press conference that announced the gift of $2.1 billion in Russian aid to the Kyrgyz, President Bakiyev also announced the closure of the U.S. air base. He later backtracked, offering United States continued use of the base, but at three times the original rent.

Last month alone, more than 50,000 U.S. and coalition troops passed through Manas en route to Afghanistan according to U.S. military officials. The U.S. agreement allowing American use of the base in Kyrgyzstan, a mountainous is set to expire soon.

According to statistics, Kyrgyzstan’s population is now 5.4 million. The country’s gross domestic product in 2008 was $4 billion while main exports are cotton, tobacco, gold, mercury, uranium and natural gas.

The private television station Imedi showed the report at 8 p.m. Saturday evening, complete with voiceover commentary on ‘live’ video showing Russian tanks and fighter jets operating inside the country.

Georgians rushed to gas stations and ATMs, and the country’s wireless network crashed under the weight of fearful calls.

The news program preceded the clip with a clear warning which labeled the program as fictitious, but many missed it and took it for the real thing.

In all, the panic was said to have lasted less than three hours.

After a lengthy, interesting, and highly competitive presidential election in Ukraine, Viktor Yanukovich was finally sworn into office in the country’s capital of Kiev yesterday.

During the presidential runoff over the last few months, the defining contrast between Yanukovich and his chief opponent, Yulia Tymoshenko, seemed to be the former’s pro-Russian affinity versus the latter’s pro-European inclinations.

In his inaugural speech, however, President Yanukovich said that it was important for his country to build relations with Russia, the European Union, and the United States.

“Being a bridge between East and West, an integral part of Europe and the former Soviet Union at the same time, Ukraine will choose a foreign policy that will allow our country to get the most out of the development of equal and mutually beneficial relations with Russia, the European Union, the United States, and other countries that influence development in the world,” he said.

In addition to dealing with finicky relationship between its neighbors on either side, Yanukovich will also have his hands full repairing the debt-ridden and unreliable Ukrainian economy, fighting rampant corruption and poverty, as well as stabilizing a shaky political system that hasn’t been able to achieve much in recent years due to fighting within the Orange Revolution parties.

Check out this CNN interview with Mr. Yanukovich.

Tamayo was in the midst of a 36-year sentence for crimes including “disrespect, public disorder, and resistance,” according to the independent Cuban Human Rights Commission, and launched the hunger strike in protest to poor prison conditions.

Mr. Tamayo’s death came while Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was visiting Cuba to inaugurate an US$800 million investment.

While standing alongside Mr. Lula da Silva, Cuban President Raul Castro was asked about the death of Orlando Tamayo by Brazilian reporters.

“We regret it very much. That’s the result of relations with the United States,” President Castro said, referring to Havana’s belief that Cuban dissidents are U.S. agents working to destabilize the communist government.

“We didn’t murder anyone here, no one was tortured. That happens at the Guantanamo base, not in our territory,” Castro said.

According to the Associated Press, Orlando Tamayo is the first Cuban activist to die on an anti-government hunger strike in nearly 40 years.

What Dalai Lama has said and done in the past decades have fully shown that he is not a pure religious figure, but a political figure in exile who’s long engaged in activities to split China and undermine ethnic unity in China under the cover of religion. While claiming that his visits to foreign countries are aimed at spreading religious teachings, he has never stopped defaming the Chinese Government, selling “Tibet independence” proposals and undermining relations between China and other countries. This is well reflected in his remarks during his current visit, including those he made on CNN’s Larry King Live.

In addition, the talks between Dalai’s private representatives and the Chinese Government at the end of January have demonstrated once again that the Dalai group is still clinging to their separatist propositions, including the so-called “greater Tibet region” and “meaningful autonomy”, whose ultimate goal is to separate a quarter of Chinese territory from China. This is something that no sovereign country can allow to occur.

As Dalai Lama claimed on Larry King Live, he regards a foreign country other than China or its Tibetan Autonomous Region as his “home”, and Tibet is “not much concern” to him. Such a political figure is in no way qualified to represent the Tibetan people as self-claimed by him.

Tibet has never been a country in history, but an inalienable part of China from ancient times. Dalai Lama’s repeated calling Tibet a “country” explains nothing but his true mind of splitting Tibet from China. We urge the U.S. side earnestly abide by the U.S. Government’s committment of recognizing Tibet as part of China and not supporting “Tibet independence”, take measures to undo the damages caused by Dalai’s visit, stop providing convenience or platform for Dalai and pro-Tibet independence forces, take concret actions to maintain the healthy and stable development of China-U.S. relations. We sincerely hope American people see through Dalai’s true nature as a separatist and his ulterior motive of sabotaging China-U.S. relations, understand and support China’s just positions on Tibet-related issues.

KIEV, Feb 22 (Reuters) – Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko on Monday renewed her attacks on President-elect Viktor Yanukovich, whom she accuses of winning election through fraud, and rejected any post-election deal with him.

In a televised statement she accused her rival of already beginning to sell off Ukraine’s gas pipeline network — a sensitive issue since it touches on relations with Russia — and predicted he would not stay in power for long.

The sharp attack by the fiery 49-year-old premier, who on Saturday dropped her legal challenge to Yanukovich’s election, significantly raised political tensions before his inauguration on Thursday.

“Yanukovich, who came to power by lies, is not our president and he will not last long,” she told a televised broadcast. “I want to say that I would not, under any circumstances, create a coalition together with Yanukovich,” she declared.

Yanukovich, a 59-year-old ex-mechanic who is backed by wealthy industrialists in eastern Ukraine, beat Tymoshenko by a narrow margin of 3.5 percentage points in the Feb. 7 runoff.

She says she was robbed of victory by electoral fraud, but at the weekend she withdrew an attempt to get a high court to give the go-ahead for another vote. She said she could not trust it to fairly consider the evidence.

Yanukovich is set to be sworn in to office on Feb. 25 and now has to steel himself to working with Tymoshenko — albeit for only a short period — until he can force her out by forging a new coalition in parliament.

Delays in ending Ukraine’s long political turmoil and bringing a measure of stability to the power structure will only continue to deter much-needed investment for the struggling economy.

The ex-Soviet state of 46 million has been kept afloat by an International Monetary Fund bail-out programme of $16.4 billion, but this has been suspended because of paralysis in decision-making and breached promises.

The IMF has said it will resume the programme once stability has returned to government.

The Yanukovich camp is pressing ahead with trying to strike a deal for a new coalition among the opportunistic deputies in parliament which can involve long and tricky horse-trading.

If he fails to do this, he may be forced to call an early parliamentary election with unpredictable consequences.

Until then, he is doomed to share the higher echelons of power with a prime minister who does not regard him as legitimately elected.

FUTURE IN OPPOSITION?

Yanukovich is expected to tilt Ukraine back towards the old imperial master, Russia, after five years of estrangement under pro-Western President Viktor Yushchenko. His first foreign visit after inauguration is expected to be to Moscow in early March.

One specific charge Tymoshenko levelled against him was that he had begun “selling off Ukrainian national interests in all directions”, including the privatisation of the gas network system.

Yanukovich has proposed creation of a consortium including Russia to run the country’s gas pipelines.

On Monday, she broached for the first time a possible future in opposition if Yanukovich managed to outflank her in parliament and form a new coalition bringing in defectors from among her erstwhile allies.

“If the patriotic forces, the democratic political parties in parliament sell out politically, then I will go into opposition to bring closer the time when our state returns to a civilised way of development,” she said.

Earlier on Monday, her camp said it wanted a quick parliamentary vote which she hopes will back her government before Yanukovich has time to muster support to bring it down.

The Regions Party faction of Yanukovich said on Friday it planned a vote of no-confidence in the government in early March after his inauguration. But Tymoshenko’s bloc said it had collected enough signatures to force the vote this week before his swearing-in.

Tymoshenko’s BYuT bloc appears to feel that the Yanukovich camp, which is busy preparing for the inauguration, will not have time to muster the necessary 226 votes for it to succeed this week.

The Associated Press
Friday, February 19, 2010; 6:46 AM

ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan — Turkmenistan is set to allow the creation of a second political party this year, breaking up the one-party system that has been in place since the Central Asian nation gained independence, state media reported Friday.

The only political force registered in the ex-Soviet nation is the pro-government Democratic Party of Turkmenistan, which is closely modeled on the Communist Party.

“If anyone wishes to propose creating a new political party, we can register one this year, as stipulated by the Constitution,” President Gurbanguli Berdymukhamedov said at a government meeting Thursday. The constitution that was adopted in 1992 allows for the formation of political parties.

It was not immediately clear to what extent the new party could diverge from the Democratic Party of Turkmenistan. It’s a common practice in former Soviet Central Asia to create nominal opposition parties loyal to the government.

Most active government opponents have fled the energy-rich Central Asian nation, where dissent is not tolerated.

Berdymukhamedov came to power in December 2006 after the death of Saparmurat Niyazov, who kept Turkmenistan largely isolated in two decades of authoritarian rule and an all-encompassing personality cult.

Berdymukhamedov has made vague commitments to implement democratic reforms, kindling hopes the Central Asian country would introduce greater freedoms.

But critics say Berdymukhamedov has failed to live up to his pledges.

In the 2008 parliamentary elections, almost all elected deputies were from the Democratic Party of Turkmenistan. A small number of independent candidates drawn from state-approved civic groups were also allowed to run. Everybody competed on a platform of support for Berdymukhamedov.

Under reforms enacted earlier in 2008, the number of seats in Parliament was more than doubled to 125, and the chamber’s powers were nominally boosted.

Another seminal development was the abolition of the rubber-stamp People’s Council – a 2,507-member assembly of presidential appointees, town elders and others that was formerly Turkmenistan’s highest legislative body.