All to play for at Old Trafford

MADRID (Reuters) - Cristiano Ronaldo showed he was equal to the biggest of occasions with a superb header for Real Madrid against former club Manchester United as their Champions League last-16 first-leg showdown ended 1-1 on Wednesday.

Watched by millions around the world, the hotly-anticipated clash at the Bernabeu was Portuguese Ronaldo's first game against the club where he made his name before joining Real for a world-record fee in 2009.

It also renewed the rivalry between Real coach Jose Mourinho and his United counterpart Alex Ferguson as the La Liga champions seek the 10th European title that has eluded them since 2002 and the Premier League leaders chase a fourth triumph in Europe's elite club competition.

United withstood an early Real onslaught and drew first blood against the run of play in the 20th minute when Danny Welbeck nodded past Diego Lopez from a Wayne Rooney corner.

Ronaldo levelled 10 minutes later when he towered above Patrice Evra to send an Angel Di Maria centre arrowing into the corner.
The result gave United a slight advantage for the return leg in Manchester on March 5, although both sides will regret squandering chances in the second half that could have eased their passage to the last eight.
Mourinho said he was confident his side could score more than one goal at Old Trafford next month.
"It's true they had two big chances in the second half but it was out of context because we were chasing the game and they were defending and waiting," the former Chelsea and Inter Milan manager told a news conference.
"Basically, what I thought, everything's open, very open for the second leg. I think this will go to the last minute."
FRAGILE TEENAGER
Ronaldo, top scorer in this season's Champions League with seven goals in seven appearances, barely celebrated his goal and spoke of the debt he owes United, where he was transformed from an inexperienced and fragile teenager into one of the world's most formidable forwards.
"It's a place where I played for six years and I have a lot of affection for the club as everyone knows," Ronaldo told Spanish television broadcaster Canal Plus.
"United are very strong in defence and they created some problems for us. But with the chances we had, we could have scored more goals," the 28-year-old added.
"Everything's open for the game at Old Trafford and I think we have the ability to score goals there and get through."
The two clubs were paired in Europe for the first time in almost a decade and as well as 2008 world player of the year Ronaldo the match showcased some of the game's top performers like United forwards Robin van Persie and Wayne Rooney and Real playmaker Mesut Ozil.
Real attacked the visitors' goal from the start, United goalkeeper David De Gea tipping a Fabio Coentrao effort on to a post in the sixth minute as a ragged United struggled to retain possession.
They had yet to have an attempt on goal when Welbeck spun away from Sergio Ramos and nodded inside the post for only his second goal in 28 matches.
Ronaldo, given a rousing ovation from both sets of fans before kickoff, went close following up on his own free kick before his equaliser sent the home fans into raptures.
The Real faithful are hungry for Champions League success as the team's bid for a second straight La Liga title has floundered and they are stuck down in third 16 points behind leaders and arch-rivals Barcelona.
Real were far more threatening going forward but nearly conceded a second in the 34th minute when Welbeck came close to poking a Van Persie centre past Diego Lopez.
BACK FOOT
United started the second half brightly but were soon on the back foot again as Real surged forward in search of a second.
De Gea, who joined United from Real's city rivals Atletico Madrid, again denied Coentrao on the hour when he flung himself to hook the fullback's goal-bound shot away with his right boot.
Although they were seeing little of the ball, United managed to create a number of dangerous openings.
Lopez tipped a searing Van Persie drive on to the bar in the 72nd minute moments before the Netherlands striker squandered a golden chance for United's second.
He controlled the ball in the area but miscued his volley and Xabi Alonso raced back to clear with Lopez stranded.
In the frenetic dying minutes, the United defence scrambled the ball away from Ronaldo close to goal and Lopez palmed a Van Persie drive around the post.
"The disappointing thing for me was in the first half we sat back off them and they had a lot of play around the edge of our box and that's unlike us," Ferguson told Sky Sports.
"We changed it in the second half and put Danny Welbeck on top of Xabi Alonso and it made a big difference in terms of the ebb of the game and made us better in the second half," he added.
"We didn't have the possession we would have liked but I've got to be pleased. The players have dug in and we go back to Old Trafford with a great chance."

SEBI orders freezing of two Sahara firms' assets

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REUTERS - The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) ordered a freeze on the assets and bank accounts of two Sahara Group companies, saying they failed to heed a Supreme Court order to repay billions of dollars collected from investors in outlawed bonds.

The orders posted late on Wednesday by the SEBI escalated a battle between the regulator and unlisted Sahara, one of India's biggest business groups and a household name in the country through its sponsorship of the national cricket team.
SEBI also ordered a freeze on all bank accounts and properties in the name of the Sahara Group founder, Subrata Roy, and three other directors of the two firms, according to two separate orders posted on the regulator's website.
Sahara said in a statement that its total liability was unlikely to exceed the 51.2 billion rupees it had deposited with the regulator.
It also said it had appealed the Supreme Court's December order to deposit additional money with the regulator and that a hearing is likely next week.
Sahara owns the Grosvenor House hotel in London, and last year struck a deal to buy the Plaza Hotel in New York.
The group was ordered in August to repay sums raised by what the court called "dubious" means from nearly 30 million small investors, with 15 percent interest a year.
The two Sahara firms raised a total of 257.8 billion rupees in the outlawed bonds as of April 2011, according to Sahara court affidavits cited by SEBI.
In December the court ordered Sahara to pay an initial deposit of 51.2 billion rupees with SEBI, pay another 100 billion rupees in the first week of January and the remainder in the first week of February.
The companies have said that only 26.2 billion rupees remains to be refunded as they have repaid the remainder, SEBI said, an assertion the regulator disputes.
Sahara said in its statement that the SEBI order did not take into account redemptions it has made since January 2012.
Sahara India Real Estate order: http://link.reuters.com/sex85t
Sahara Housing order: http://link.reuters.com/rex85t
The SEBI statement said its order would be implemented with immediate effect and that India's central bank and the finance ministry's Enforcement Directorate would be informed about the development.
The two Sahara group companies were asked to give details of any investment other than those mentioned in the order within 21 days, according to the order on the regulator's website.

The great Indian helicopter scam

The Indian defence ministry ordered a CBI probe into the $748 million deal for 12 VVIP AugustaWestland helicopters following arrest of its Italian manufacturer Finmeccanica's chief on graft charges in the contract.

 

Italian police arrested the head of defence group Finmeccanica SpA on 12 February 2013 on a warrant alleging that he paid bribes to win an Indian contract, adding to a wave of corporate scandals shaking Italy before a general election.

Prosecutors accused Chief Executive and Chairman Giuseppe Orsi in the arrest warrant of paying bribes to intermediaries to secure the sale of 12 helicopters in a 560 million euro deal when he was head of the group's AgustaWestland unit.

What is the $750 million VVIP chopper deal scam all about?
The Indian defence ministry ordered a CBI probe into the $748 million (Rs 4,040 crore by today’s exchange rate) deal for 12 VVIP AugustaWestland helicopters following arrest of its Italian manufacturer Finmeccanica's chief on graft charges in the contract.

This is not the first time that the allegations have surfaced and ironically enough, three of the helicopters have already been delivered to the Indian Air Force, the first of them in December 2010.

Some 30 per cent of the contracted amount has already been paid and the remaining would have to paid as and when the remaining nine machines are delivered, as of now, no wrongdoing has been proved.

In fact, a scale model of the helicopter had formed part of the IAF tableaux during this year's Republic Day parade.

What are the moneys invovled?
The VVIP chopper deal was for $748 million (Rs 4,040 crore) and Italian prosecutors say that the company – Anglo-Italian firm AugustaWestland – paid kickbacks to the tune of Euro 51 million (Rs 370 crore).

What is the scam all about?
Finmeccanica Chief Executive and Chairman Giuseppe Orsi was arrested over bribes allegedly paid to secure the sale of 12 helicopters to India, when he was head of the group's AgustaWestland unit, a judicial source with direct knowledge of the situation told Reuters.

Police were searching Orsi's home and the offices of AgustaWestland close to Milan, a source close to Orsi's lawyer said. The Milan offices of state-owned Finmeccanica, Italy's second-biggest corporate employer after Fiat Spa, were also searched, the judicial source said.

An Indian defence ministry source said kickbacks worth Rs 40 million allegedly paid to Indian officials to grease contracts for Finmeccanica were being probed and that Delhi was considering the deferral of the Finmeccanica helicopter deal, worth 560 million euros.

Highlighting the political sensitivity of the Finmeccanica case ahead of national elections on February 24 and 25, Prime Minister Mario Monti said the Italian government would deal with management issues at the company.

"There is a problem with the governance of Finmeccanica at the moment and we will face up to it," Monti told RAI state television.

Orsi, a long-serving defence industry executive, has always denied any wrongdoing with regard to the corruption probe, which has been going on for a year.

In a brief statement, Finmeccanica expressed its support for Orsi and said it hoped his legal position could be clarified as soon as possible. Its business was operating as normal in the meantime, the company added.

Concern has been growing that the corruption probes could tarnish Finmeccanica's reputation and distract management while the company is carrying out a tough restructuring.

Being excluded from the growing Indian market could be a major headache for the group, which faces defence budget cuts in its main Italian, British and U.S. markets.

Under Indian defence procurement rules, companies found to have been involved in corruption can be punished with blacklisting and fines, an Indian defence ministry source said.

Explaining the rationale for the CBI probe, a defence ministry statement said: "Press reports have appeared from time to time on the subject of Italian prosecutors having initiated a probe into the alleged unethical dealings of M/s. Finmeccanica, Italy. The probe had been widened to include the Indian contract signed with M/s. Augusta Westland."

"In view of the media reports" the defence ministry, through the external affairs ministry, "had sought information from the governments of Italy and UK. No specific inputs were, however, received substantiating the allegations".

CBI to probe AugustaWestland VVIP chopper deal
Explaining the rationale for the CBI probe, an Indian defence ministry statement said: "Press reports have appeared from time to time on the subject of Italian prosecutors having initiated a probe into the alleged unethical dealings of M/s. Finmeccanica, Italy. The probe had been widened to include the Indian contract signed with M/s. Augusta Westland."

"In view of the media reports" the defence ministry, through the external affairs ministry, "had sought information from the governments of Italy and UK. No specific inputs were, however, received substantiating the allegations".

Since no specific input has been received so far from the two governments, MoD (ministry of defence) has decided to refer the case to CBI for inquiry," the statement added.

Tender twisted to favour AgustaWestland
Three brothers with family ties to a former head of the Indian air force helped to twist rules in a helicopter tender won by Italy's AgustaWestland, prosecutors alleged in an arrest warrant for a top Italian businessman.

Italian prosecutors said that two managers at AgustaWestland, a unit of defence group Finmeccanica, paid go-betweens to help it win the 2010 contract to supply 12 helicopters to India.

Part of these payments ended up with the three Indian brothers, Juli, Docsa and Sandeep Tyagi, whose cousin Sashi Tyagi was former Indian air force chief. None of the Tyagis has been accused of wrongdoing by officials in India.

Prosecutors in the northern Italian town of Busto Arsizio, near AgustaWestland's headquarters, said former chief executive Giuseppe Orsi hired U.S.-born Guido Ralph Haschke, who was then a consultant for the Finmeccanica group, to lead dealings in India to secure the contract.

Haschke and his partner Carlo Gerosa, prosecutors said, had close ties with the Tyagi brothers.


Action only after CBI probe: Antony
India will blacklist Finmeccanica SpA and cancel a deal to buy 12 helicopters from the Italian defence group if allegations of bribery are proven against the company, Defence Ministry A.K. Antony said on 13 February 2013.

Antony said the CBI had been ordered to investigate the purchase of the luxury choppers -- destined for use by India's political leadership. He said that if the allegations were proved true, those involved would be punished.

Antony said that so far internal enquiries by the defence ministry have found no evidence against Finmeccanica in the $754 million helicopter deal. He refused to answer specific questions about the Italian allegations and said the CBI investigation would find the truth.


Former IAF chief denies bribery allegations
SP Tyagi, who is facing charges of corruption over the 556-million-euro Chopper deal, has categorically denied any involvement in influencing the VVIP helicopters deal in favour of Italy's AgustaWestland.

Tyagi, the former Indian Air Force chief, who finds himself in the midst of the storm, added that the deal materialised three years after he retired. Tyagi, explained that the changes in specifications, as alleged by the prosecutors, to influence the deal were not made during his tenure.

Favouring a CBI probe, he said: "There should be an inquiry, only then can the facts be established."

s a Suicide Ever Someone Else's Fault? Difficult Questions in the Wake of a Tragedy

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FacebookAshley Anne Riggitano, a pretty 22-year-old fashion intern jumped to her death from the George Washington bridge into the Hudson River on Wednesday afternoon, her 22nd birthday, after participating in a rage-fueled online blowout between five of her friends, one of whom dared her to overdose on her medication, writing on Facebook, "Go try to kill yourself on Xanax again, you untable [sic] loser. Go f*** yourself and never speak to me again."

On the bridge, Riggitano had left her Louis Vuitton bag containing medication such as Adderall and Klonopin with handwritten notes pointing toward the five people who had allegedly tormented her and whom she didn't want at her funeral.

"To any funeral, these people should not be allowed based upon words and actions," Riggitano had written.
In the days leading up to her suicide, Riggitano reportedly engaged with one woman over Facebook, accusing her of bullying. But according to the woman, Riggitano was the instigator.
Are these five women to blame for Riggitano's suicide? Can anyone ever be responsible for someone else taking their own life? The New York Post reported that Riggitano may have had a history of problems and tried to commit suicide at least once before so it's possible that she was depressed and prone to such extreme measures; any incident could have been the impetus. On the other hand, there have been plenty of cases where people have been held responsible for another's person's suicide. In 2010, Rutgers University freshman Tyler Clementi jumped to his death from George Washington Bridge after a roommate recorded an intimate act between Clementi and another man.

It's also unclear whether Riggitano was the aggressor or the victim, nor do we know whether the exchanges constituted as bullying according to state laws. It goes without saying that cyber bullying is rampant on social media. Without seeing other people's facial cues and body language, it's easier to lash out without inhibition because there are no immediate consequences. And research has proven that people are more likely to turn against others when there is physical distance between them.
However this unfolded, one thing is clear: This case is incredibly sad. No one wants to feel responsible for such a tragedy, regardless of who is to blame. Our hearts go out to the Riggitano family.

Is Rasool the answer to India’s spin woes?

Kashmir-born Parveez Rasool made Australia dance to his off-spin with a seven-wicket haul for Board President's XI

Rasool being felicitated in Kashmir.


Chennai: October 17, 2009 is a day Parveez Rasool will never forget. Arriving in Bangalore for the under-22 CK Nayudu tournament with his Jammu and Kashmir teammates, Rassol got the shock of his life when Karnataka's anti-terrorism squad arrested him for alleged traces of explosives in his kit bag.
It was a false alarm, but Rasool spent 10 hours in police custody, facing intense interrogation. Such incidents can leave one mentally scarred, but Rasool emerged unscathed.

Like that dreadful day, February 12, 2013 is also a day Rasool would like to remember, albeit for happier reasons. In one of the biggest stages of his blossoming career, the 23-year-old off-spinner had a dream run, scalping seven wickets for the Board President's XI to leave the Australians in a spin on Tuesday.

The bowling all-rounder, as he likes to call himself, was not deterred by the big stage he found himself in at the Guru Nanak College ground. He troubled the Aussies with the bounce and natural loop he got from his high-arm action, and reaped the rewards.

This was his second international experience after he was selected to play for India 'A' against England last month and he enjoyed it.

Rasool is humble, as one would expect of someone who hails from Brijbehara, a small town in Anantnag district. "It's a great achievement to do well against a team like Australia. By God's grace if I get more chances, I'll look to do my best," he said.

South Korea unveils missile it says can hit North‘s leaders

South Korea unveiled a cruise missile on Thursday that it said can hit the office of North Korea’s leaders, trying to address concerns that it is technologically behind its unpredictable rival which this week conducted its third nuclear test. South Korean officials declined to say the exact range of the missile but said it could hit targets anywhere in North Korea.

The Defense Ministry released video footage of the missiles being launched from destroyers and submarines striking mock targets. The weapon was previewed in April last year and officials said deployment was now complete. “The cruise missile being unveiled today is a precision-guided weapon that can identify and strike the window of the office of North Korea‘s leadership,” ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok said told reporters.

North Korea has forged ahead with long-range missile development, successfully launching a rocket in December that put a satellite into orbit. The North’s ultimate aim, Washington believes, is to design an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead that could hit the United States.

North Korea, which accuses the United States and its “puppet”, South Korea, of war mongering on an almost daily basis, is likely to respond angrily to South Korea flexing its muscles.

North Korea, technically still at war with the South after their 1950-53 conflict ended in a truce, not a peace treaty, carried out its third nuclear test on Tuesday, drawing condemnation from around the world including its only major ally China. The test and the threat of more unspecified actions from Pyongyang have raised tensions on the Korean peninsula as the South prepares to inaugurate a new president on February 25.

“The situation prevailing on the Korean peninsula at present is so serious that even a slight accidental case may lead to an all-out war which can disturb the whole region,” North Korea‘s official KCNA news agency said.

Italian firm chief held for India graft

BUSTO ARSIZIO, Italy (Reuters) - Italian police arrested the head of defence group Finmeccanica SpA on Tuesday on a warrant alleging that he paid bribes to win an Indian contract, adding to a wave of corporate scandals shaking Italy before a general election.

Prosecutors accused Chief Executive and Chairman Giuseppe Orsi in the arrest warrant of paying bribes to intermediaries to secure the sale of 12 helicopters in a 560 million euro deal when he was head of the group's AgustaWestland unit.

"AgustaWestland and its management seem to be used to paying bribes and we have reason to believe that such a corporate philosophy could be repeated in the future if not stopped through an arrest," Judge Luca Labianca wrote in the warrant, reviewed by Reuters.
Orsi's lawyer said his client denied distributing any money or pocketing a single euro.
Highlighting the political sensitivity of the case before the parliamentary elections on February 24 and 25, Prime Minister Mario Monti said the government would deal with management issues at Finmeccanica. The state is the largest individual shareholder in the company with more than 30 percent.
"There is a problem with the governance of Finmeccanica at the moment and we will face up to it," Monti told RAI state television.
In a statement, Italy's economy ministry said it was working to provide management continuity, the protection of shareholders' interests and transparency in decision-making at the group.
Finmeccanica convened a meeting of its board for Wednesday at 1700 GMT to consider the next steps. In a statement, it said activities would continue as usual "in order to limit the impact from today's judicial activities on, amongst other things, the disposals process under way."
The heavily indebted group is seeking to sell its AnsaldoEnergia power engineering business to focus on its core aerospace and defence activities and avoid a costly credit rating downgrade.
India, currently the world's largest weapons importer, has a history of corruption in defence deals dating back to the 1980s.

Indian Defence Minister A.K. Antony has ordered an inquiry into the deal to be conducted by the Central Bureau of Investigation, the country's federal police force. In a statement the ministry said Italy had not provided details of its own investigation.

An Indian defence ministry source said allegations that kickbacks worth 40 million rupees had been paid to Indian officials to grease contracts for Finmeccanica were being investigated and that Delhi was considering the deferral of the Finmeccanica helicopter deal.

Police searched Orsi's home and the offices of AgustaWestland, close to Milan. The Milan offices of Finmeccanica, Italy's second-biggest corporate employer after Fiat Spa , were also searched.
POLITICAL SHADOWS
A series of scandals has shaken Italian business in recent weeks, notably over derivatives losses at lender Banca Monte dei Paschi and an inquiry into allegations that oil services group Saipem SpA , which is 43 percent owned by oil major Eni SpA , paid bribes to win contracts in Algeria.
Orsi, a long-serving defence industry executive, has always denied any wrongdoing with regard to a corruption inquiry into AgustaWestland which first came to light in February 2011.
His lawyer Ennio Amodio told reporters on Tuesday that Orsi was stunned by the arrest. "He cannot figure out what he can be accused of. He did not pocket a single euro and did not distribute any money," Amodio said.
The corporate scandals have become an issue in Italy's parliamentary election campaign. Orsi's appointment to lead the heavily indebted defence group in May 2011 was backed by the Northern League party, an ally of then Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.
Lawyer Amodio said the warrant made no mention of any alleged payments to the Northern League.
Centre-left politicians had called for Orsi to step down when he was first targeted in the corruption investigation.
"Some of the parties clearly have an interest in playing the justice card for political capital in view of the vote," said Stefano Zamagni, professor of economics at Bologna University.
Besides Orsi, three other people have been placed under house arrest, including AgustaWestland chief Bruno Spagnolini.
In the arrest warrant, prosecutors allege that Orsi and others paid money through intermediaries, including Indian nationals and U.S.-born Guido Ralph Haschke, who also has Italian nationality.
They alleged that those middlemen paid a former Indian Air Force chief to change the terms of the tender to allow AgustaWestland to win the contract. The warrant does not make clear how much money was supposedly paid.
RESTRUCTURING PLAN
Finmeccanica shares were down 7 percent on Tuesday, while its rail technology unit Ansaldo STS was down 3 percent.
Concern has been growing that the corruption investigations could tarnish Finmeccanica's reputation and distract management while the company is carrying out a tough restructuring.
Being excluded from the growing Indian market could be a major problem for the group, which faces defence budget cuts in its main Italian, British and U.S. markets.

Under Indian defence procurement rules, companies found to have been involved in corruption can be punished with blacklisting and fines, an Indian defence ministry source said.

Orsi's arrest also risks derailing Finmeccanica's plans to sell its non-core energy and transportation assets, something the company wants to do to avoid further downgrades of its credit ratings.

Obama urges Congress to make government work for 'the many'

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama challenged a divided Congress to back his plans to create middle-class jobs on Tuesday in a State of the Union speech that put a renewed focus on the U.S. economy and sought support for overhauling gun and immigration laws.

Looking to use momentum from his re-election victory last November, Obama vowed to turn much of his attention toward reducing the country's 7.9 percent unemployment rate.

"It is our unfinished task to make sure that this government works on behalf of the many, and not just the few," he said.

Obama spoke from the well of the House of Representatives for his address to a joint session of Congress in the midst of yet another bitter battle with Republicans over taxes and spending, and this tussle cast a heavy shadow over his appearance.

Even as Obama spoke, House Speaker John Boehner, the top Republican in Congress, accused him of offering "little more than the same stimulus policies that have failed to fix our economy and put Americans back to work."

Boehner's comments came in a statement that was issued while Obama was still delivering his address and the speaker was sitting behind him, at times scowling. "The president had an opportunity to offer a solution tonight and he let it slip by," Boehner said in his statement.
Obama reserved his toughest words to urge a resolution to a festering budget battle that will result in automatic deep spending cuts at the end of the month unless a deal can be reached.
Americans, he said, do not expect government to solve every problem, "but they do expect us to put the nation's interests before party. They do expect us to forge reasonable compromises where we can."
Many of his proposals may face a difficult path getting through Congress. He proposed raising the U.S. minimum wage for workers from $7.25 to $9 an hour. Republicans typically oppose increases in the minimum wage out of worry it will prompt businesses to fire workers.
He backed a $50 billion program to fund infrastructure rebuilding projects like fixing aging bridges, but many Republicans are adamantly against such stimulative government spending after Obama's first-term $787 billion stimulus did not lead to a dramatic reversal in the unemployment rate.
"Our economy is adding jobs, but too many people still can't find full-time employment," he said. "Corporate profits have rocketed to all-time highs, but for more than a decade, wages and incomes have barely budged."
Obama said that to offset the cuts he would like to raise $800 billion in revenue by eliminating tax loopholes enjoyed mostly by the wealthiest Americans.
It is a proposal Boehner backed before he reluctantly agreed instead to higher income tax rates on the richest to avert a fiscal crisis at the end of 2012. Republicans are in no mood for more tax increases and want spending cuts instead.
"The American people have worked too hard, for too long, rebuilding from one crisis to see their elected officials cause another," Obama said.
GUN REGULATIONS
Obama urged Congress to approve his proposals for tighter gun regulations, requiring background checks for all gun purchasers, and banning assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition clips.
In the House chamber for the speech, seated with Obama's wife, Michelle, were the parents of a Chicago teenager, Hadiya Pendleton, who was shot to death a week after participating in the president's second-term inaugural activities.
"Hadiya's parents ... are in this chamber tonight, along with more than two dozen Americans whose lives have been torn apart by gun violence. They deserve a vote," Obama said.
Obama urged lawmakers to approve over the next few months an overhaul of immigration laws to permit a pathway to citizenship for some 11 million illegal immigrants. Republicans who saw Hispanics overwhelmingly vote for Obama over Republican challenger Mitt Romney last November, are more open to new immigration rules but want stronger border security first.
The clock is now ticking on Obama. He has about a year to get his legislative priorities enacted before Americans shift attention to the 2014 congressional elections.
In a nod to Republican worries over what they see as out-of-control government spending on entitlement programs for the elderly and poor, Obama said he would back efforts to reduce healthcare spending by the same amount over a decade as proposed by a bipartisan commission whose recommendations he had rejected.
He vowed to take action to confront climate change through presidential executive orders unless Congress enacts legislation.
While heavily focused on domestic policies, Obama's speech had some crucial foreign policy elements.
He outlined steps to unwind U.S. involvement in the unpopular 11-year-old Afghanistan war and plans to announce that 34,000 of the 66,000 U.S. troops still there will return by early 2014.
He did not give details of what sort of residual American presence might remain in Afghanistan after 2014, when the U.S. withdrawal is supposed to be complete.
Obama's speech came a day after North Korea conducted its third underground test of a nuclear device in response to what it called U.S. hostility.
"Provocations of the sort we saw last night will only isolate them further, as we stand by our allies, strengthen our own missile defense and lead the world in taking firm action in response to these threats," he said.
Obama said the United States would enter into negotiations with the European Union aimed at reaching a transatlantic free trade agreement.

Why is China angry with North Korea?

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea conducted its third nuclear test on Tuesday in defiance of U.N. resolutions, drawing condemnation from around the world, including from its only major ally, China, which summoned the North Korean ambassador to protest.

Pyongyang said the test was an act of self-defence against "U.S. hostility" and threatened stronger steps if necessary.

The test puts pressure on U.S. President Barack Obama on the day of his State of the Union speech and also puts China in a tight spot, since it comes in defiance of Beijing's admonishments to North Korea to avoid escalating tensions.

The U.N. Security Council held an emergency meeting at which its members, including China, "strongly condemned" the test and vowed to start work on appropriate measures in response, the president of the council said.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, the third of his line to rule the country, has presided over two long-range rocket launches and a nuclear test during his first year in power, pursuing policies that have propelled his impoverished and malnourished country closer to becoming a nuclear weapons power.
North Korea said the test had "greater explosive force" than those it conducted in 2006 and 2009. Its KCNA news agency said it had used a "miniaturised" and lighter nuclear device, indicating it had again used plutonium, which is suitable for use as a missile warhead.
China, which has shown signs of increasing exasperation with the recent bellicose tone of its reclusive neighbour, summoned the North Korean ambassador in Beijing and protested sternly, the Foreign Ministry said.
Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said China was "strongly dissatisfied and resolutely opposed" to the test and urged North Korea to "stop any rhetoric or acts that could worsen situations and return to the right course of dialogue and consultation as soon as possible".
Analysts said the test was a major embarrassment to China, which is a permanent member of the Security Council and North Korea's sole major economic and diplomatic ally.
Obama called the test a "highly provocative act" that hurt regional stability.

"The danger posed by North Korea's threatening activities warrants further swift and credible action by the international community. The United States will also continue to take steps necessary to defend ourselves and our allies," Obama said.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice said Washington and its allies intended to "augment the sanctions regime" already in place due to Pyongyang's previous atomic tests. North Korea is already one of the most heavily sanctioned states in the world and has few external economic links that can be targeted.
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said the test was a "grave threat" that could not be tolerated.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov urged North Korea to abandon its nuclear arms programme and return to talks. NATO condemned the test as an "irresponsible act."

South Korea, still technically at war with North Korea after a 1950-53 civil war ended in a mere truce, also denounced the test. Obama spoke to South Korean President Lee Myung-bak on Tuesday and told him the United States "remains steadfast in its defence commitments" to Korea, the White House said.

MAXIMUM RESTRAINT
North Korea's Foreign Ministry said the test was "only the first response we took with maximum restraint".
"If the United States continues to come out with hostility and complicates the situation, we will be forced to take stronger, second and third responses in consecutive steps," it said in a statement carried by the official KCNA news agency.
North Korea often threatens the United States and its "puppet", South Korea, with destruction in colourful terms.
North Korea told the U.N. disarmament forum in Geneva that it would never bow to resolutions on its nuclear programme and that prospects were "gloomy" for the denuclearisation of the divided Korean peninsula because of a "hostile" U.S. policy.
Suzanne DiMaggio, an analyst at the Asia Society in New York, said North Korea had embarrassed China with the test. "China's inability to dissuade North Korea from carrying through with this third nuclear test reveals Beijing's limited influence over Pyongyang's actions in unusually stark terms," she said.
Mark Fitzpatrick of the International Institute for Strategic Studies think tank, said: "The test is hugely insulting to China, which now can be expected to follow through with threats to impose sanctions."
The magnitude of the explosion was roughly twice that of the 2009 test, according to the Vienna-based Comprehensive Nuclear-Test Ban Treaty Organization. The U.S. Geological Survey said that a seismic event measuring 5.1 magnitude had occurred.
U.S. intelligence agencies were analysing the event and found that North Korea probably conducted an underground nuclear explosion with a yield of "approximately several kilotons", the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said.
Nuclear experts have described Pyongyang's previous two tests as puny by international standards. The yield of the 2006 test has been estimated at less than 1 kiloton (1,000 tons of TNT equivalent) and the second at some 2-7 kilotons, compared with 20 kilotons for a Nagasaki-type bomb.
North Korea trumpeted the announcement on its state television channel to patriotic music against a backdrop of its national flag.
"It was confirmed that the nuclear test that was carried out at a high level in a safe and perfect manner using a miniaturised and lighter nuclear device with greater explosive force than previously did not pose any negative impact on the surrounding ecological environment," KCNA said.
North Korea linked the test to its technical prowess in launching a long-range rocket in December, a move that triggered the U.N. sanctions, backed by China, that Pyongyang said prompted it to take Tuesday's action.
The North's ultimate aim, Washington believes, is to design an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead that could hit the United States. North Korea says the programme is aimed at putting satellites in space.
Despite its three nuclear tests and long-range rocket tests, North Korea is not believed to be close to manufacturing a nuclear missile capable of hitting the United States.
It used plutonium in previous nuclear tests and before Tuesday there had been speculation that it would use highly enriched uranium so as to conserve its plutonium stocks, as testing eats into its limited supply of materials to construct a nuclear bomb.
"VICIOUS CYCLE"
When Kim Jong-un, who is 30, took power after his father's death in December 2011, there were hopes that he would bring reforms and end Kim Jong-il's "military first" policies.

Instead, North Korea, whose economy is smaller than it was 20 years ago and where a third of children are believed to be malnourished, appears to be trapped in a cycle of sanctions followed by further provocations.

"The more North Korea shoots missiles, launches satellites or conducts nuclear tests, the more the U.N. Security Council will impose new and more severe sanctions," said Shen Dingli, a professor at Shanghai's Fudan University. "It is an endless, vicious cycle."
Options for the international community appear to be in short supply. Diplomats at the United Nations said negotiations on new sanctions could take weeks since China is likely to resist tough new measures for fear they could lead to further retaliation by the North Korean leadership.
Beijing has also been concerned that tougher sanctions could further weaken North Korea's economy and prompt a flood of refugees into China.
Tuesday's action appeared to have been timed for the run-up to February 16 anniversary celebrations of Kim Jong-il's birthday, as well as to achieve maximum international attention.

Significantly, the test comes at a time of political transition in China, Japan and South Korea, and as Obama begins his second term. The U.S. president will likely have to tweak his State of the Union address due to be given on Tuesday.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is bedding down a new government and South Korea's new president, Park Geun-hye, is preparing to take office on February 25.
China too is in the midst of a once-in-a-decade leadership transition to Xi Jinping, who takes office in March. Both Abe and Xi are staunch nationalists.
The longer-term game plan from Pyongyang may be to restart international talks aimed at winning food and financial aid. China urged it to return to the stalled "six-party" talks on its nuclear programme, hosted by China and including the two Koreas, the United States, Japan and Russia.
Its puny economy and small diplomatic reach mean that North Korea struggles to win attention on the global stage - other than through nuclear tests and attacks on South Korea, the last of which was made in 2010.
"Now the next step for North Korea will be to offer talks... - any form to start up discussion again to bring things to their advantage," predicted Jeung Young-tae, senior research fellow at the Korea Institute for National Unification in Seoul. (Additional reporting by Jack Kim, Christine Kim and Jumin Park in SEOUL; Linda Sieg in TOKYO; Louis Charbonneau and Michelle Nichols at the UNITED NATIONS; Fredrik Dahl in VIENNA; Michael Martina and Chen Aizhu in BEIJING; Mette Fraende in COPENHAGEN; Adrian Croft, Charlie Dunmore and Justyna Pawlak in BRUSSELS; Paul Eckert, Roberta Rampton, Tabassum Zakaria and Jeff Mason in WASHINGTON; Editing by Nick Macfie, Claudia Parsons and David Brunnstrom)

How Volkswagen plans to drive up profits

 

Ulrich Hackenberg isn't yet a household name but if Volkswagen's $70 billion bet on his big idea pays off, he may join the likes of Henry Ford, Alfred Sloan and Taiichi Ohno in the canon of auto industry pioneers.Since the heyday of Henry Ford and his Model T, the world's automakers have considered the "global car" to be their Holy Grail - the same basic design that can be built, in subtle variations, and sold in different markets.
Take that fundamental concept, stretch it across many different vehicle types, sizes and brands, then build them by the millions, and you begin to sense the enormity of Volkswagen's rapidly evolving "mega-platform" strategy and its potential impact on competitors around the globe.

Former Miss Russia jailed in US, faces deportation

Image courtesy: New York Post

New York:  Miss Russia 1998 and former Miss Universe semifinalist Anna Malova, charged in the US with forging drug prescriptions, will spend Christmas holidays in jail, the New York Post reported.

Zardari to be released from hospital tomorrow

Islamabad:  A statement from Pakistan's president says he will be discharged from hospital in Dubai on Thursday, and that all tests carried out on him returned results "within normal range."

The statement on Wednesday said that Asif Ali Zardari was to "rest at home", once he has left the hospital.

China's human rights record getting worse: US ambassador

Beijing:  China's deteriorating human rights record is a growing concern for the United States, even as overall ties between the countries become more entwined, US Ambassador Gary Locke said on Wednesday.

New giant plane to launch people, cargo into orbit

Seattle:  Microsoft Corp. co-founder Paul Allen and aerospace pioneer Burt Rutan are building the world's biggest plane to help launch cargo and astronauts into space, in the latest of several ventures fuelled by technology tycoons clamouring to write America's next chapter in spaceflight.

Islamists poised to consolidate in Egyptian polls

Cairo:  Islamists are poised to further consolidate their overwhelming lead in the second phase of Egyptian parliamentary polls, as millions headed to polling booths on Wednesday to decide the future of nine governorates, in the first landmark elections since the ouster of Hosni Mubarak.

Time names 'The Protester' as 'Person of Year'

New York:  Time magazine named the collective "protester" around the world as its person of the year Wednesday, citing the change brought by street demonstrations from Arab countries to New York.