Worldwatch, May 12, 2015
Transcript:
British referendum on EU
British Prime Minister David Cameron may hold a referendum on European Union membership earlier than the end of 2017. According his spokesman speaking on Tuesday, the referendum will take place as soon as a deal is reached with the EU that satisfies Conservative demands for major changes in Britain’s relationship with the bloc.
The comments coincide with a meeting of EU finance ministers in Brussels.
Speaking to journalists on arrival at the meeting, British finance minister George Osborne insisted that his recently re-elected Conservative government would try to reform the European Union ahead of a planned referendum on British membership of the bloc. ((Soundbite: “I’m here with a very clear mandate to improve Britain’s relationship with the rest of the EU and to reform the EU so that it creates jobs and increases living standards for all its citizens. I don’t think anyone is now in any doubt, we will hold that referendum on British membership of the European Union, having conducted these negotiations.”)) A referendum on Britain’s membership of the EU by the end of 2017 was a key plank of the Conservatives’ winning manifesto in the British general election last week.
Magnitude 7.1 quake strikes in Nepal: USGS
A 7.1 magnitude earthquake struck Nepal near the base camp for Mount Everest early this morning. The current death toll stands at 37, but it is likely to rise. Tremors from the quake radiated across parts of Asia. In neighboring India, at least 16 people were confirmed dead after rooftops or walls collapsed onto them. Chinese media also reported one death in Tibet. The quake comes just 17 days after a 7.8 magnitude earthquake killed more than eight thousand and injured over seventeen thousand in Nepal. This second earthquake was shallow, occurring at a depth of 10 kilometres and sent people fleeing from buildings in the capital Kathmandu.
Kerry meets with Putin in Sochi
United States Secretary of State John Kerry met with President Vladmir Putin of Russia today in Sochi. The meeting marks the first time a high-ranking American official has visited Russia since the start of the Ukraine crisis in late 2013. Mr. Kerry described the talks as being “frank”, adding that it is “important to keep lines of communication between the U.S. and Russia open” to address global issues. The meeting with President Putin followed four hour-long talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in the Black Sea resort town. Relations between Moscow and the West have been badly damaged over disagreements surrounding Russia’s behavior in Ukraine, Syria and Iran.
First Russia-China naval war games in Mediterranean
Russia and China’s first-ever joint naval war games began in the Mediterranean Sea on Monday. The drills will include live-fire exercises and take place over ten days. The Mediterranean is over four and a half thousand miles away from the Chinese coast making it, practically speaking, an unusual venue for the exercises. Taking place in the backyard of Western Europe, it is a provocative move that reveals a powerful new alliance between Russia and China. The war games come after Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Moscow for Victory Day celebrations. The alliance marks a shift away from the West after the United States and European Union placed sanctions on Russia over the Ukraine crisis.
Saudi airstrikes continue in lead up to ceasefire
Warplanes from the Saudi-led coalition continued their airstrikes targeting the positions of Yemen’s Shiite rebels on Tuesday, hours before a cease-fire is set to begin. According to security officials, the airstrikes targeted weapons depots and other military facilities north and south of the capital city Sanaa. The strikes stopped shortly before the arrival in Sanaa of the newly appointed United Nations envoy to Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed of Mauritania. The envoy is to oversee the humanitarian ceasefire, which will go into effect at 11pm local time and is due to last five days.
Study finds fewer Christians, more unaffiliated in U.S.
The United States is becoming less Christian with fewer claiming allegiance to any faith, according to a Pew Research Study published today. The study, titled ‘America’s Changing Religious Landscape,’ found that 70.6 percent of the population claim to be Christian, down from 78.4 percent in 2007. The trend is particularly marked among younger Americans, but it is also seen across many segments of American society.
