DUBLIN — Before his recent resignation, outgoing Irish Prime Minister Bertie Ahern prefaced the annual St. Patrick”s Day pilgrimage to the White House by predicting “a hard year” ahead for the Irish economy. The banking crisis and credit crunch in the United States, as well as the falling dollar, worry Irish policy-makers. Ireland has 25 percent of its trade in dollars and has bet much of its recent economic boom on a 12 percent corporate tax rate — an enormous incentive for U.S. multinationals such as Intel and Microsoft to run pan-European operations out of Ireland. Google has the headquarters of its European and Middle East operations in Dublin. “The company is very pleased with how the Dublin operation continues to develop,” a Google spokesman said.
Category: USA
Rioters torch U.S. embassy in Belgrade – The Washington Times
PRISTINA, Kosovo — A torched embassy building in Belgrade was the latest target of Serbian anger yesterday, as the United States faced growing consequences of its support for Kosovo’s independence. Despite billions of dollars spent on security upgrades in the decade since al Qaeda bombed two embassies in Africa — including $1 billion budgeted for 2008 — rioters managed to break into an outer embassy building in Belgrade and set it ablaze, to cheers from rioting mobs outside. Embassies have been either rebuilt or reinforced with multiple security barriers whenever possible.
Pakistan to get over US$5bn in quake aid – ISN
http://www.isn.ethz.ch/news/sw/details.cfm?ID=13572 Governments and international organizations have pledged to give over US$5 billion in aid to earthquake-stricken Pakistan. At a...
Unhappy Prospects for Afghan Security – OCGG
http://www.oxfordgovernance.org/fileadmin/Publications/SB004.pdf ‘The security situation in Afghanistan is volatile, having seriously deteriorated in certain parts of the country. Attacks on...