Around The World [10.29.14]

US - Russia relations

• Russia is prepared to ferry US supplies to the International Space Station (ISS) on its Progress spacecraft to compensate for the loss of the Antares rocket (RT)

“So far NASA has not asked us, but we have a gentleman’s agreement to help each other should a need arise such as after the loss of a supply ship or another emergency,” Aleksey Krasnov, the head of Roscosmos’ manned spaceflight department, told Ria Novosti.

“In such cases we always put our partners on a priority list and they do the same thing for us. If a request comes for an emergency delivery of any cargo to the ISS with our cargo ship, we will do it,” he assured."

South Asia & South East Asia

Control of

• Illegal Drugs
• Illegal Arms in the hands of Citizens and terrorists
• Gold Smuggling
• Human (especially women and children) Trafficking

(Cross border issues)


Today In News 

• Human Traffickers in Bay of Bengal Cast Sights on Bangladesh : Police, Rights Groups Report Upsurge in Bangladeshi Victims Exploited by Criminal Gangs (Wall Street Journal)

"Bangladeshi police say that since the end of September, they have freed about 100 people a week.

More than 130 people - nearly all of them Bangladeshi - were freed last month from a camp in Thailand"

Euro Zone

• The euro zone : The world’s biggest economic problem. Deflation in the euro zone is all too close and extremely dangerous (Economist)

"Something radical is needed."

Oil

• Cheaper oil : Many winners, a few bad losers (Economist)

"THE collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 had many causes. None was as basic as the fall in the price of oil, its main export, by two-thirds in real terms between 1980 and 1986. 

Now the oil price is falling again. Since June, it has dropped from about $115 for a barrel of Brent crude to $85 or so—a reduction of roughly a quarter. If prices settle at today’s level, the bill for oil consumers will be about $1 trillion a year lower.

Who would have guessed that chaotic, war-torn Libya would somehow be pumping 40% more oil at the end of September than it had just a month earlier? Saudi Arabia’s decision to boost output to protect its market share and see off new developments in the Arctic was also a surprise.

The average new car consumes 25% less petrol per mile than ten years ago."

Ebola Crisis

• Ebola and big data : Call for help. Mobile-phone records are an invaluable tool to combat Ebola. They should be made available to researchers (Economist) 

Middle East & North Africa

• The relative success of Tunisia : A light unto the Arab nations Tunisia works, but it is fragile. The rest of the world should give it a hand (Economist)
• Islamic State 'frees 25 schoolchildren' says rights group (BBC)