ISDEI Instituto de Seguridad, Defensa y Estudios Internacionales

The Earth has been getting warmer -- but how much of that heat is due to greenhouse gas emissions and how much is due to natural causes? A leaked report by a United Nations’ group dedicated to climate studies says that heat from the sun may play a larger role than previously thought. “[Results] do suggest the possibility of a much larger impact of solar variations on the stratosphere than previously thought, and some studies have suggested that this may lead to significant regional impacts on climate,” reads a draft copy of a major, upcoming report from the U.N.’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The man who leaked the report, StopGreenSuicide blogger Alec Rawls, told FoxNews.com that the U.N.’s statements on solar activity were his main motivation for leaking the document. 'The main premises and conclusions of the IPCC story line have been undercut by the IPCC itself.' - StopGreenSuicide blogger Alec Rawls “The public needs to know now how the main premises a

The Pentagon and the White House focus on the core Defense budget, but that’s not the half of it By David Cay Johnston February 02, 2013 " Information Clearing House " - Soon, we will get the president’s proposed fiscal 2014 spending plan. Much attention will focus on Social Security and Medicare, which have been flashpoints lately. Meanwhile, if coverage in years past is any guide, we can expect stories from many news outlets that will significantly understate a third huge slice of spending—the real costs of military and other national defense spending. Chuck Hagel, on the griddle now as President Obama’s nominee for Secretary of Defense, famously called the Defense Department “bloated,” in a 2011 interview with Financial Times. But budget stories then and now tend to report on the base budget from the Department of Defense, leaving readers with the impression that that is the full cost of fulfilling the Constitutional mandate to “provide for the common defence.” It isn’t.

By Pepe Escobar February 02, 2013 " Information Clearing House " - To quote the immortal line in Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon, as filmed by John Huston, "Let's talk about the black bird" - let's talk about a mysterious bird made out of gold. Oh yes, because this is a film noir worthy of Dashiell Hammett - involving the Pentagon, Beijing, shadow wars, pivoting and a lot of gold. Let's start with Beijing's official position; "We don't have enough gold". That leads to China's current, frenetic buying spree - which particularly in Hong Kong anyone can follow live, in real time. China is already the top gold producing and the top gold importing nation in the world. Gold accounts for roughly 70% of reserves held by the US and Germany - and more or less the same for France and Italy. Russia - also on a buying spree - is slightly over 10%. But China's percentage of gold among its whopping US$3.2 trillion reserves is only 2

By Ben Schreiner Harnessing Asia's growth and dynamism is central to American economic and strategic interests. - Hillary Clinton February 02, 2013 " Information Clearing House " - France’s military intervention into Mali may at first glance appear to have little to do with the U.S. “pivot” to Asia. But as a French mission supposedly meant to bolster a U.N. sanctioned and African-led intervention has gone from “a question of weeks” to “the total re-conquest of Mali,” what may have begun as a French affair has now become a Western intervention. And this in turn has drawn wider strategic interests into the conflict. Strategic interests, it is becoming clearer, shaped by the imperatives of the U.S. Asia pivot. Widening Intervention The geopolitical posturing over the crisis in Mali, coming as France's intervention fans out across the region , is no more evident than in the public statements coming from both London and Washington. As British Prime Minister David C

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran's Envoy to Oman Ali Akbar Sibouyeh and Omani Minister of Information Abdul Munim bin Mansour al-Hasani explored avenues for the further expansion of the relations between Tehran and Muscat. During the meeting, Sibouyeh said that the two countries enjoy excellent ties due to the determination of the two sides' leaders for the expansion of ties. He described the close ties between Iran and Oman as a role model for the other countries, and called for stronger cooperation in exchanging information. The Omani minister, for his part, pointed to two countries' age-old relations and cultural commonalities, and said, "The two countries' ties have been a role model in political aspects and it is necessary to promote ties in such other areas as culture and information as such a move can underlie the further development of political and economic ties." Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in a meeting with Omani Foreign Minister Yusuf bin Alawi on W

TEHRAN (FNA)- Japanese Ambassador to Tehran Koji Haneda underlined Iran's important role in maintaining peace and stability in the region, and announced Tokyo's enthusiasm for the further expansion of bilateral ties with Tehran. "The Islamic Republic of Iran plays an influential role in securing peace and stability in the region and Japan is interested in the further development and expansion of the relations between the two countries more than ever," Haneda said in a meeting with member of the Iranian parliament's Training and Research Commission Gholam Ali Haddad Adel on Saturday. He also stressed the importance of the expansion of the relations between the two countries' parliaments. During the meeting, Haddad Adel pointed to the good and friendly relations between Tehran and Tokyo, and said, "The two Iranian and Japanese nations' rich civilizations and their approach to the strengthening of tranquility and stability in the Asian continent is a

Scientists have cracked the secret of spider silk's strength and what makes the fibre at least five times as tough as piano wire, weight for weight. Arizona State University researchers are studying the silk's molecular structure in a bid to produce materials ranging from bullet-proof vests to artificial tendons, using a sophisticated but non-invasive laser light scattering technique. "Spider silk has a unique combination of mechanical strength and elasticity that make it one of the toughest materials we know," said Jeffery Yarger, professor of chemistry and biochemistry at Arizona, who led the research, the journal Nature Materials reported. "This work represents the most complete understanding we have of the underlying mechanical properties of spider silk," said Yarger, according to an Arizona statement. Spider silk is an exceptional biological polymer, related to collagen (the material found in skin and bones) but much more complex in its structure. The e

Iran's crude oil exports in December leapt to their highest level since European Union sanctions took effect last July, analysts and shipping sources said, as strong Chinese demand and tanker fleet expansion helped the OPEC member dodge sanctions. Exports rose to around 1.4 million barrels per day (bpd) in December, according to two industry sources and shipping and customs data compiled by Reuters on a country-by-country basis and corroborated by other sources and consultants. The sources said they expected exports to dip in January from the December peak ahead of new U.S. sanctions. Western sanctions aimed at curbing Iran's disputed nuclear programme halved Iran's oil exports in 2012 from 2.2 million bpd in late 2011, leading to billions of dollars in lost revenue and a plunge in the Iranian currency. But continuous robust demand from top buyer China and others such as India and Japan, as well as the purchase of new tankers, allowed the Islamic Republic to unexpectedly bo