Friday, July 20, 2012
World Bank chief warns on eurozone crisis impact
Delivering his first public speech since taking on his new role at the start of the month, Jim Yong Kim said even if Europe's sovereign debt problems are contained, they could still cut growth in most of the world's regions by as much as 1.5pc. However, if the crisis spins out of control, developing nations see their GDP fall 4pc or more, enough to trigger a deep global recession, he said.
"Such events threaten many of the recent achievements in the fight against poverty," Mr Kim said, noting that over the last decade nearly 30 developing countries' economies have grown by 6pc or more annually.
Outlining the challenges ahead for the World Bank, which is tasked with eradicating poverty through investment, Mr Kim said his priority was to protect development gains from economic risks, such as the eurozone crisis, which has begun to weigh on growth in large emerging economies such as China.
For now, the world's poorest nations appear to be somewhat insulated from the effects of Europe's crisis because they have limited exposure to global financial markets.
But Kim said not everyone would be spared and he urged European policymakers to take necessary steps to restore stability.
The Telegraph
N.Korean Army Chief 'Refused to Go Quietly
A gunbattle broke out when the North Korean regime removed army chief Ri Yong-ho from office, leaving 20 to 30 soldiers dead, according to unconfirmed intelligence reports. Some intelligence analysts believe Ri, who has not been seen since his abrupt sacking earlier this week, was injured or killed in the confrontation.
According to government officials here, the gunbattle erupted when Vice Marshal Choe Ryong-hae, the director of the People's Army General Political Bureau, tried to detain Ri in the process of carrying out leader Kim Jong-un's order to sack him. Guards protecting Ri, who is a vice marshal, apparently opened fire. "We cannot rule out the possibility that Ri was injured or even killed in the firefight," said one source.
Choe is believed to be the right-hand man of Jang Song-taek, the uncle and patron of the young North Korean leader. He made his career in the Workers Party rather than the army. After being appointed director of the bureau, Choe repeatedly clashed with Ri, who came up as a field commander, prompting Choe to keep Ri under close watch and apparently triggering an internal probe targeting the army chief.
The military had grown tremendously in power under former North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's "songun" or military-first doctrine, and military heavyweights like Ri who grew in stature during this period were considered threats to the young North Korean leader.
"The firefight has still not been 100 percent confirmed," said a government official here. "It may take some time for us to gain a clearer picture of what happened."
The Chosun
1,200 more troops put on standby for Games
The move towards a second emergency deployment followed the disclosure that Theresa May, the Home Secretary, was warned about problems at G4S, the Games security contractor, several weeks before she had previously admitted.
Failures by G4S have forced the Government to deploy an extra 3,500 military personnel to the Games, as well as hundreds of police officers. A total of 17,000 are involved.
The firm has still not been able to tell organisers how many security guards it will provide, forcing ministers to consider a second deployment. Senior ministers yesterday concluded there was no immediate need for the move, but accepted that more troops could be required. As a result, 1,200 personnel have been put on 48 hours’ “notice to move”.
Jeremy Hunt, the Culture Secretary, said G4S’s performance was improving, but accepted that the extra soldiers, sailors and airmen could yet be necessary. “They will remain in their current locations but can be called on if we need them during the coming weeks,” Mr Hunt said. “This is a sensible precaution.”
Mrs May last week told MPs that ministers had only become aware of problems at G4S the previous day, but in a letter to the home affairs committee yesterday she said G4S had told an Olympics Security Board meeting of “scheduling problems” on June 27. The Home Office said Mrs May gave accurate answers.
The Telegraph
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