World of opinion
On Libya:
If the latest reports of the Libyan rebels’ breakthrough at the strategically important city of Zawiyah are to be believed, the six-month conflict could soon be entering its endgame. The capture of Zawiyah would put rebel forces just 30 miles from the capital Tripoli, the stronghold of Moammar Gadhafi. While pro-Gadhafi forces are still putting up stiff resistance in the city, the fact that Libyan government forces have fired their first Scud missile at rebel positions suggests the regime is becoming increasingly desperate.
While the surprise resurgence in the rebels’ fortunes is most welcome, NATO and its allies still face a formidable challenge in persuading Gadhafi to relinquish power without indulging in further bloodshed. Gadhafi’s forces have an estimated 200 Scud missiles, as well as limited stockpiles of chemical weapons, and there is always the risk that the dictator will take measures of last resort in his determination to cling to power. Gadhafi’s disinclination to stand down, moreover, will have been strengthened by the International Criminal Court’s warrant for his arrest on war crimes charges, a move that had the enthusiastic backing of William Hague, the Foreign Secretary. But what incentive is there for the Libyan leader to leave office when all that awaits him is a prison cell in the Hague?
Gadhafi will also draw encouragement from the disarray that has befallen the rebel leadership following the murder of their military commander, General Abdel Fattah Younes, by Islamist militants. … The conflict might be nearing its end, but the final outcome remains far from certain.
The Telegraph, London
On Turkey:
In the normal course of events, the visit to Jeddah [in Saudi Arabia] of Turkish President Abdullah Gul recently and his talks with Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah would raise little attention. Relations between the two countries are excellent and have been for a long time. There is no reason whatsoever to imagine that they will do anything other than continue to grow.
But these are not normal times in the Middle East. No state, apart from the Kingdom and most other GCC countries, have been untouched by the Arab Spring. To that small list Turkey must be added because, although a European state, it is by reason of history, culture and location firmly part of the Middle East. Regrettably, ever since the Ataturk revolution, Turkey has stood facing uniquely westward, its back turned on the Middle East. For the past 60 years, moreover, its eyes have been fixed resolutely on a future in Europe and, since 1963, specifically a future in what is now the European Union.
That West-only focus began to dissolve with the election nine years ago of the first AKP government led by President Abdullah Gul then as prime minister and, since 2003, under the premiership of Recep Tayyib Erdogan, the party’s founder. It is not that the AKP has dropped Europe from its sights; far from it. It is that it has widened Turkey’s political vision to reflect its geographical position, its history and culture and its strategic interests. …
It is Turkey that is now the other main driving force for peace and stability in Middle East, alongside Saudi Arabia. …
Arab News, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
On Somalia famine relief:
Reports that thousands of sacks of stolen corn and grain are available on the black market in Somalia adds yet another layer of complexity to the challenge of delivering food aid to the starving.
The U.N. World Food Program, which is investigating allegations of theft in Mogadishu, has acknowledged that humanitarian supply lines remain vulnerable to looting in the war-ravaged country, and that there is no easy way to resolve this.
Somalia has no aid delivery infrastructure. The Islamist al-Shabab militia controls the south, the famine’s epicenter, but has banned western aid groups and continues to deny there even is a famine.
These difficulties, however, should not dissuade international donors from opening their wallets to help victims of the worst famine in a generation. Somalia’s children and families who are slowly starving to death should not be abandoned. Food aid cannot be suspended because some is being diverted. Instead, aid groups should focus on identifying those responsible, and taking action against them. …
The country’s long-standing humanitarian crisis means some theft of food aid is simply unavoidable. Private militias, many linked to the government, compete to guard or steal food aid. Yet there is an understandable reluctance for U.N. peacekeeping troops to get into the business of protecting food aid, following the disastrous experience in Somalia in 1993, when the downing of two U.S. Black Hawk helicopters led to the collapse of the U.S. mission.
Western governments and individuals must instead rally to help the UN meet its urgent appeal for $2.4-billion in aid, support humanitarian groups to deliver food to secure parts of Somalia, and develop innovative initiatives that circumvent issues of safety …
The Globe and Mail, Toronto
On a new nuclear watchdog:
The new nuclear safety agency being set up by the government to regulate nuclear power plants is to be classified as an extra-ministerial bureau of the Environment Ministry.
Some members of the government had proposed putting the watchdog body under the jurisdiction of the Cabinet Office.
In the end, the Environment Ministry was chosen, mainly for two reasons. For one, nuclear regulation has much in common with environmental regulation. And the procedures for creating a new agency are simpler for the Environment Ministry than for the Cabinet Office, where responsibility tends to be dispersed because of the wide range of functions the office performs.
The decision to make the Environment Ministry primarily responsible for regulating the nuclear power industry is significant.
It spells an end to the long-standing national policy of promoting nuclear power generation. …
Since the central government reorganization in 2001, the bodies that replaced them have played the leading role in regulating the nuclear power industry. …
This resulted in what is known as the nuclear power village, a close-knit community of bureaucrats, scientists and businesspeople with vested interests in promoting nuclear power. The upshot of all this was inadequate safety measures. …
The question is whether the new watchdog will have the will and the power to resist pressure from politicians and other government organizations and fulfill its role as the guardian of nuclear safety if an emergency flares. …
A sweeping review of nuclear safety standards and regulations is also imperative. To establish a new nuclear regulatory regime expediently, the government needs to address a mountain of issues without delay. A steady hand is important for the challenge.
The Asahi Shimbun, Tokyo