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/ 18 February 2005
Peter Mandelson, the European Union trade commissioner, this week launched a fresh onslaught on protectionist forces in Europe and the rest of the world and demanded the dismantling of virtually all barriers to trade in goods and services.
Mandelson argued in Stockholm that opening up European and global markets as a whole is the key to promoting growth and jobs at home — and fighting poverty in the Third World.
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/ 18 February 2005
Stunned astronomers on Friday described the greatest cosmic explosion monitored to date — a star burst from the other side of the galaxy that was briefly brighter than the full moon and swamped satellites and telescopes. The high-radiation flash caused no harm to Earth but would have literally fried the planet had it occurred within a few light years of home.
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/ 18 February 2005
The presidents of Colombia and Venezuela met in Caracas this week to patch up frazzled relations after the worst diplomatic row between the South American neighbours for decades. Colombia’s President Alvaro Uribe was greeted with a 21-gun salute on his arrival in Caracas to meet Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez, who barely a month ago had threatened to break off commercial and diplomatic relations.
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/ 18 February 2005
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa) has expressed ”serious interest” in building two large-dish antennas in South Africa as part of its deep space array network, Deputy Science and Technology Minister Derek Hanekom announced on Friday.
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/ 18 February 2005
The South African Reserve Bank’s decision not to cut the repo rate last Thursday baffles, surprises and disappoints in equal measure. It now seems like a trick of the mind that Governor Tito Mboweni is the same man who, last August, ”surprised” the markets with a 0,5% cut. Now that gesture seems like nothing more than his personal celebration of the new term on which he was embarking.
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/ 18 February 2005
A battle is under way for the future of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (Nepad), as African Union (AU) chairperson Alpha Konaré seeks to bring the continent’s flagship programme in governance reform and economic development under full AU control, while the Nepad secretariat, under Wiseman Nkuhlu, wants more limited integration.
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/ 18 February 2005
Iraq has gained a relatively stable foundation for drawing up a new Constitution after this week’s election results. The figures show that no group will be able to railroad its proposals through the drafting process. The watchwords will have to be dialogue and compromise. A balance of parties means the new Constitution will be a product of compromise.
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/ 17 February 2005
Your chewing gum has just lost its flavour, but there is no garbage can in sight. What do you do? According to Jewish law, get ready to swallow it. A prominent Israeli rabbi has ruled that spitting gum on a sidewalk or hiding it under a desk is a violation of Halacha or Jewish law.
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/ 17 February 2005
A meeting on Thursday between Togo’s new military-installed leader, Faure Gnassingbe, with his fiercest critic of his accession to power, the chairperson of the African Union, Nigeria’s President Olusegun Obasanjo, has ended, officials said. The Economic Community of West African States has threatened Togo with sanctions.