This morning's key headlines from
GenerationalDynamics.com:
- U.S. Navy warships head for eastern Mediterranean
- Israel reaches a crossroads in the Gaza conflict
- Turkey's Erdogan lashes out at U.N. and Israel after being one-upped by Egypt's Morsi
- Britain, with growing anti-European mood, may leave the EU
- Eurogroup finance ministers to meet on Tuesday about Greece
U.S. Navy warships head for eastern Mediterranean
Three U.S. Navy amphibious warships are going to the eastern
Mediterranean to stand by in case they are needed to help evacuate
Americans from Israel. The possibility of an evacuation is considered
remote as a contingency. The estimated 2,500 Marines on board will
now have their homecoming to America delayed for several days.
CNN
Israel reaches a crossroads in the Gaza conflict
On the sixth day of Israel's military operation in Gaza, its air force
struck over 80 targets in Gaza, while Hamas and Islamic Jihad fired
130 rockets into Israel, many of which were intercepted by the Iron
Dome missile defense system. At this writing on Monday evening,
Israel's cabinet is meeting to discuss what to do next. The major
choices are:
- Accept a proposed truce offered by Egyptian negotiators in
Cairo. This seems to be unlikely at this stage, as it's unlikely that
it would last more than a day.
- Begin a ground invasion of Gaza. This would be a major
commitment, resulting in numerous deaths and condemnation from many
parts of the world.
- Kick the can down the road by continuing the current military
operation.
In many ways, this is a no-win situation for Israel. Jerusalem Post and Washington Post
Turkey's Erdogan lashes out at U.N. and Israel after being one-upped by Egypt's Morsi
Although Egypt's president Mohamed Morsi and Turkey's prime minister
Recep Tayyip Erdogan are supposed to be jointly working as negotiators
to get a truce in the Israel/Gaza conflict, the United Nations has put
Erdogan in a secondary role to Morsi. One of the reasons is that
Morsi is taking a more statesmanlike approach to the negotiations, and
is talking to both Hamas and Israel, while Erdogan has refused to talk
to Israel since the latter refused to apologize for the deaths of nine
Turkish citizens in the May 31, 2010, confrontation between Israel's
armed forces and the Gaza "Freedom Flotilla." Erdogan's unwillingness
to even talk to Israel has made him a poor choice for negotiator. So
Erdogan lashed out at the United Nations on Monday, saying that he
doesn't trust the organization because it lacks a Muslim voice. He
also lashed out at Israel, saying that it was a "terrorist state." He
said that the West ignore the "sufferings of Muslims in Palestine,
Syria and Myanmar because of lack of oil." Hurriyet (Ankara) and Bloomberg
Britain, with growing anti-European mood, may leave the EU
The recent bitter negotiations between Britain and negotiators in
Brussels is causing increased "Eurosceptism" in Britain. Prime
minister David Cameron is threatening to veto spending increases in
the EU budget, and there is increased talk, in both Britain and
Brussels, of Britain leaving the European Union. However, a British
business confederation is warning that leaving the EU would be bad for
Britain:
"It is like many relationships: can't live with you,
can't live without you. Whatever the popular appeal may be of
withdrawal, businessmen and politicians must keep the bridge to
Europe firmly in place."
Reuters
Eurogroup finance ministers to meet on Tuesday about Greece
A meeting on Tuesday of the Eurogroup of eurozone finance ministers to
discuss approving the next bailout payment to Greece is expected to
generate more heat than light. A sharp disagreement between Eurogroup
president Jean-Claude Jüncker and International Monetary Fund (IMF)
chief Christine Lagarde broke out into the public last week, and it's
far from resolved. Jüncker would like to find a way to give Greece
additional bailout money and to postpone some of Greece's austerity
commitments, while Lagarde is insisting the previous agreements be
honored. Dow Jones
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