 | Peres picks Netanyahu to form Israel government
Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel's right-wing Likud Party says he wants to form a broad-based government of national unity. Netanyahu used a live broadcast from a meeting at the president's office to call on the centrist Kadima Party leader Tzipi Livni, and Ehud Barak of the left wing Labour Party to join his administration. He was speaking just minutes after President Shimon Peres invited him to form a government. Netanyahu also said that Iran remained Israel's biggest challenge. Livni, whose party won one more seat in the Knesset than Netanyahu's, had previously rejected the idea of joining a unity government. She said she preferred to go into the opposition rather than be part of a coalition led by someone else. Netanyahu now has six weeks to put together a government. |  | | German upper house approves stimulus package
The upper chamber of the German parliament, the Bundesrat, has voted to approve a 50-billion-euro economic stimulus package. The biggest rescue plan in German history is to be implemented over the next two years in an effort to tackle the country's worst recession since World War II. Chancellor Angela Merkel's grand coalition needed the support of some opposition party members to get the measure through the Bundesrat, which represents Germany's 16 states. The bill, which still has to be signed into law by President Horst Köhler, includes investment in infrastructure, modest tax cuts, increases in family benefits and business incentives. This follows an initial stimulus package of around 30 billion euros that was passed last year, but later deemed not to be sufficient. | | | Saab restructures in a move to avoid bankruptcy.
Swedish car maker Saab has filed for bankruptcy protection after US parent company General Motors announced plans to shed the brand as part of its restructuring efforts. An application by Saab to reorganise the company has since been approved by a district court. The move, which is intended to protect the company from creditors, comes after the Swedish government refused to inject money into the carmaker. Saab employs more than 4,000 people in Sweden. Including suppliers and sub-contractors, some 25,000 jobs are at risk. | | | Opel needs more financial assistance from state
German car maker Opel needs more public help in the form of loan guarantees than expected. The newsmagzine Der Spiegel reported that the General Motors subsidiary was now seeking more than three billion euros. Until now, the auto manufacturer was thought to need less than two billion in loan guarantees. Opel has refused to confirm the report. A spokesman for the finance ministry in the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia said any decision on granting aid would not be made until early April. Opel is planning to present a new business plan meant to demonstrate the company's long-term viability within the next two weeks. | | | Latvia's prime minister resigns
Latvia's Prime Minister Ivars Godmanis has resigned after weeks of political instability resulting from Riga's handling of the economic crisis. The country's President Valdis Zatlers said he had accepted Godmanis' resignation in a move which will see the collapse of Latvia's centre-right coalition. Public anger at wage cuts and a perceived lack of accountability from politicians led to riots and street blockades in the Latvian capital in January. The International Monetary Fund and other international organisations had pledged 7.5 billion euros in financial assistance if the Latvian government could meet certain conditions, which included finding a political consensus. The latest crisis coincincides with an IMF visit to the country.
| | | Clinton arrives in China
US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has arrived in Beijing for talks with Chinese leaders that are expected to focus on bilateral ties as well as international issues such as North Korea's nuclear programme. While still in Seoul, Clinton told reporters that Washington's relations with Pyongyang would not improve as long as Pyongyang refuses dialogue with South Korea. Speaking following talks with her South Korean counterpart Yu Myung-Hwan, Clinton said Pyongyang must follow through on its commitment to wind down its nuclear programme. China is the last stop on Clinton's first foreign trip since being named secretary of state last month. | | | Pentagon chief asks allies for bigger Afghanistan commitment
US Defense Secretary Robert Gates has asked NATO allies to send more soldiers and civilian staff to Afghanistan. Gates was speaking at an informal meeting of defence ministers in the Polish city of Krakow to discuss strategies on Afghanistan. Earlier, NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said the military alliance could “not afford to fail”. He added that not enough progress had been made in fighting the Taliban insurgency. Germany confirmed that it would send 600 extra troops to the country to boost security ahead of general elections, to be held in August, while Italy has suggested it could provide 500 more personnel. Washington announced it would send an additional 17,000 troops to Afghanistan.
| | | Kyrgyz president signs off on US base closure
Kyrgyzstan's president has signed a law to close a key US air base used as a staging post for military operations in Afghanistan. President Kurmanbek Bakiyev's approval of the law is the last step before Kyrgyz authorities issue an eviction notice, which will give the United States 180 days to vacate the base. President Barack Obama's calls for an increased military focus on Afghanistan could be hampered by the closure of the Manas air base. On Thursday Kyrgyz lawmakers voted overwhelmingly for the government-backed bill to cancel the lease agreement on the Manas air base, a staging post for 15,000 troops and 500 tons of cargo each month to and from Afghanistan. The US Defense Department has said it would try to negotiate to keep the base. | | | Buenas Aires gives holocaust denier 10 days to leave the country.
Argentina has ordered a Roman Catholic bishop who denies the extent of the Holocaust to leave the country within 10 days or face expulsion. The Argentine Interior Ministry said Bishop Richard Williamson had violated provisions of his residence permit. The British-born Williamson recently denied the existence of the gas chambers during an interview with Swedish television in the German city of Regensburg. German authorities have also launched an investigation. Williamson, who recently had an excommunication lifted by the Pope, has refused an order by the Vatican to retract his comments saying he wants more time to review the evidence. | | | | |
German Parliament Approves 50-Billion-Euro Stimulus Plan
