Politics

The Afghan government and the Taliban have reportedly begun secret, high-level talks over ending the Afghan war. According to the Washington Post, Taliban representatives have recently met with officials from the government of Afghan President Hamid Karzai. At least one session was reportedly held in Dubai, even if there are differing versions of it.

Antiwar activists targeted in last month’s FBI raids in Minneapolis and Chicago have announced they won’t testify before a grand jury. On Tuesday, demonstrators gathered outside a federal building in Chicago where the grand jury is convening. Stephanie Weiner, whose home was targeted in the raid, said the activists would defy their subpoenas to appear.

The Obama administration has reportedly finalized a $60 billion deal to sell advanced military aircraft to Saudi Arabia. It would be the largest-ever single arms deal in US history. State Department spokesperson P.J. Crowley declined to confirm the plans until the White House submits the deal for congressional approval.

The US Agency for International Development will give US$50 million this year to finance Venezuelan opposition groups, according to US government documents released in Caracas. In an interview with Radio Nacional de Venezuela, analyst Eva Golinger said the documents prove that USAID plans to fund even political parties, to campaign for the September 28 congressional elections

Whilst tens of millions struggle to survive the flood devastation, 30% of Pakistan’s budget revenue will be sent abroad to foreign creditors for massive loans made to dictators years ago. Rescue efforts for tens of millions of people whose lives have been devastated could be crippled. Avaaz campaign is trying to persuaded creditor governments to drop debt.

President Barack Obama is preparing to officially declare the end of US combat operations in Iraq seven-and-a-half years after the US invasion. Barack Obama will make the announcement in a nationally televised speech tonight from the Oval Office. He gave a preview of his speech in his weekly radio address over the weekend.

Kevin Rudd came in like a lion and went out without a bleat, but many Australians felt cheated. After all he was elected by the entire nation so what was the Labor Party thinking about when they chucked him out? Whatever those thoughts were, the result was a hung parliament and an electoral hangover with the populace seeing reality as a green tinted spectacle.

The presidential candidate of the Workers Party, Dilma Rousseff, today expanded to 17.9 percentage points her lead in the preference of Brazilian voters for the general elections in October. According to the results of the survey by Sensus Company, commissioned by the National Confederation of Transport, Dilma has the support of 46 percent of intending voters.

From the 17th to the 20th of August the XVI São Paulo Forum Meeting, created in 1990 took place in the City of Buenos Aires. Political parties, organizations and representatives from 18 countries in the region participated in the event. Overthrown Honduran President, Manuel Zelaya was present. The Humanist Party from Argentina participated in all workshops.

After a week of negotiations, the main conclusions of the World Peoples Conference on Climate Change and the Right of Mother Earth (Cochabamba, April 2010) have been incorporated in the document of United Nations on Climate Change, that now have been recognized as a negotiation text for the 192 countries which has been congregated in Bonn, during the first week august of 2010.