The Evil Alliance: ISIS reconciles with al-Qaida group as Syria air strikes continue - by Martin Chulov

The Evil Alliance: ISIS and al-Qaida

Air strikes continued to target Islamic State (Isis) positions near the Kurdish town of Kobani and hubs across north-east Syria on Sunday, as the terror group moved towards a new alliance with Syria’s largest al-Qaida group that could help offset the threat from the air.

Jabhat al-Nusra, which has been at odds with Isis for much of the past year, vowed retaliation for the US-led strikes, the first wave of which a week ago killed scores of its members. Many al-Nusra units in northern Syria appeared to have reconciled with the group, with which it had fought bitterly early this year.

A senior source confirmed that al-Nusra and Isis leaders were now holding war planning meetings. While no deal has yet been formalized, the addition of at least some al-Nusra numbers to Isis would strengthen the group’s ranks and extend its reach at a time when air strikes are crippling its funding sources and slowing its advances in both Syria and Iraq.

Al-Nusra, which has direct ties to al-Qaida’s leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, called the attacks a “war on Islam” in an audio statement posted over the weekend. A senior al-Nusra figure told the Guardian that 73 members had defected to Isis last Friday alone and that scores more were planning to do so in coming days.

“We are in a long war,” al-Nusra’s spokesman, Abu Firas al-Suri, said on social media platforms. “This war will not end in months nor years, this war could last for decades.”

Read more: Isis reconciles with al-Qaida group as Syria air strikes continue | World news | The Guardian

The Canada-EU trade deal: Signed, not sealed

In October last year, Stephen Harper, Canada’s prime minister, flew to Brussels to sign a trade-and-investment deal in principle between Canada and the EU. On September 26th, the two sides announced the close of negotiations. But despite the back-slapping there may still be work to be done. Sigmar Gabriel, Germany’s economy minister, objected strenuously this week to a clause in the deal that would allow companies to sue governments if they felt their rights had been infringed.

The clause is common in bilateral investment deals and initially attracted little attention in the Canada-EU negotiations. But it has become a flashpoint in another set of trade negotiations, between the EU and the United States. The European Parliament, a range of environmental and civil-society groups, and certain German politicians oppose it because they feel it gives multinational firms too much power in their dealings with government.

During a debate in Germany’s Bundestag about the two sets of EU talks, Mr Gabriel said “it’s completely clear we reject these investment-protection agreements” and that the debate was not over yet. In Ottawa, Jose Manuel Barroso, president of the European Commission, questioned whether Mr Gabriel was speaking for the German government, saying that all official communications he had received from Germany were “absolutely in favor of this agreement”.

The text of the trade deal must go through a legal review and translation before being presented to the Canadian and European parliaments for ratification. Reopening it now would kill the agreement, according to Karel De Gucht, the European trade commissioner.

It would also be a blow to Mr Harper. The deal goes well beyond the traditional fare of lower tariffs and higher farm quotas. It also makes it easier for companies in both areas to compete for large government contracts, closes gaps in intellectual-property rules, and allows for mutual recognition of some professional certifications.

Note EU-Digest:  any clause in the deal that would allow companies to sue governments if they felt their rights had been infringed must not be accepted by the EU parliament in any way, shape or form.

Read more: The Canada-EU trade deal: Signed, not sealed | The Economist

Britain dodging EU laws and UK taxpayers now face huge bill from EU jobless - by Alison Little

European Union rules require a member state where a foreign worker has paid National Insurance Contributions (NICs) to reimburse the person’s home country for certain benefits, mostly Jobseeker’s Allowance, paid when they return.

Britain insists it will hand over the cash only where the person has paid NICs here for long enough to qualify for the benefits had they stayed in the UK and been unemployed.

But a group of Eastern European countries has signalled they will work together to step up pressure on the UK to bow to a non-legally binding recommendation from an EU committee that states should reimburse each other regardless of their own rules.

The Czech Republic said it was working with Hungary, Slovakia and Poland who all claim Britain owes them millions.

Czech Minister of Labour and Social Affairs Michaela Marksova yesterday  said her country had received just £800,000 from Britain in payments for unemployed returning Czechs when it was owed an estimated £3 million.

In a radio interview she accused UK authorities of dragging their heels and dodging their EU responsibilities.

Read more: UK taxpayers face huge bill from EU jobless who go home | UK | News | Daily Express

China - EU: Chinese FM, EU foreign policy chief meet on closer strategic partnership - by Ren Zhongxi

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met here Friday with EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton on the sidelines of the annual high-level debate of the UN General Assembly.

During their talks, Wang said that the China-EU comprehensive strategic partnership, which has laid a solid foundation and opened a bright prospect for the development of bilateral ties, ushers in a second decade this year.

During a trip to Europe in March this year, Chinese President Xi Jinping and European leaders decided to deepen their partnership for peace, growth, reform and civilization, which has charted the course for the future development of China-EU ties, said Wang.

China and the EU need to accumulate mutual trust and strengthen cooperation on the basis of mutual respect so as to further advance their comprehensive strategic partnership, said the Chinese foreign minister.

For her part, Ashton said that the EU-China relationship, which has made rapid progress over the past 10 years, enjoys great potential for further development.

Read more: Chinese FM, EU foreign policy chief meet on closer strategic partnership - CCTV News - CCTV.com English

EU: Poll shows 70% polled want citizenship of European ISIS sympathizers revoked

In a recent EU-Digest Poll 70 % of those polled want citizenship of European ISIS sympathizers revoked, while 20% want it revoked following legal extradition procedure, while 10% wanted to do nothing.

In our new poll the following question is asked : "Which country in your opinion is presently the principal conduit for ISIS supplies and finances recognizing that ISIS is a direct result of earlier Western efforts to bring down the Assad Regime in Syria, whereby not only exiled opposition but also Jihadist and splinter terrorist organizations were provided with weapons and financing ? "

1) Iran
2) Saudi Arabia
3) Turkey
4) Qatar

EU-Digest

ISIS: Britain, Belgium and Netherlands to debate in Parliament joining airstrikes on Iraq

The British, Dutch and Belgian parliaments are to consider proposals to join the US-led coalition’s airstrikes on Iraq, according to reports.

Sources in the British prime minister’s office said the UK’s parliament would be recalled from its summer recess on Friday in order to vote on the issue, the BBC reported.

Iraqi Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi is expected to issue a formal request for British assistance while at the UN on Wednesday.

In an interview with the American NBC News earlier this week, UK Prime Minister David Cameron said the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) was one “you cannot opt out of.”

“It has oil, it has money, it has territory, it has weapons and there’s no doubt in my mind it has already undertaken and is planning further plots in Europe and elsewhere,” he added.

Although Cameron has previously hinted that he does not consider the Syrian government “legitimate,” the BBC also reported that any parliamentary vote would be authorizing military action in Iraq but not Syria, because of fears about the legality of such a move and opposition from the Labour Party.

A parliamentary motion to approve military action against the Syrian government failed last year amid opposition from Labour—the official opposition—and from within Cameron’s own Conservative Party.

A US-led coalition encompassing Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain and Jordan carried out airstrikes against ISIS targets on Tuesday and Wednesday.

In Iraq, American jets have been bombing ISIS targets since August, and were recently joined by French warplanes.

In addition to France, the Australian government recently announced it was sending warplanes to the UAE in preparation for joining the US in strikes against ISIS in Iraq.

Also on Wednesday, the Dutch and Belgian governments said they would consider sending air force jets to assist in the US strikes in Iraq.

The Dutch news agency ANP announced on Wednesday that the government of the Netherlands is to consider sending a small number of combat jets to the region to join in the campaign against ISIS.

The same day, the Belgian Ministry of Defense confirmed it had received a request for assistance from the US, and would prepare a plan to send six F-16 fighters to join US efforts. The move would need approval from the Belgian parliament and is expected to be granted later this week.

Read more: Britain, Belgium and Netherlands to debate joining airstrikes on Iraq « ASHARQ AL-AWSAT

Germany: Opening Weekend of Oktoberfest 2014 - by Alan Taylor

Oktoberfest 2014

One million steins of beer were consumed over the weekend, organizers say, as tourists and locals kicked off the 181st Oktoberfest.

The Bavarian beer festival, held on Munich's Theresienwiese, lasts 16 days and will welcome more than six million visitors from around the world.

This year, the average price of a mug of beer at any of the tents this year comes to €10.67 ($13.70 U.S.). Gathered here are some of the scenes from the opening weekend of Oktoberfest 2014.

Read more: Opening Weekend of Oktoberfest 2014 - In Focus - The Atlantic

Syria: The 7 Countries America Has Bombed Since 9/11 - by Adam Pasick

The U.S. began airstrikes in Syria on Monday, fulfilling President Barack Obama’s vow to “degrade and destroy” the extremist group that calls itself the Islamic State. The Pentagon said it deployed bombers, fighters, and cruise missiles against ISIS forces within Syria, and a U.S. defense official told ABC News that “several Arab nations” are also involved in the operation.

The military operations within Syria bring the total number of countries targeted by U.S. airstrikes since September 11, 2001—either by conventional planes and missiles, or by armed drones—to seven.

In addition to Syria they include: the long-running U.S. military campaigns in Iraq (which has now been bombed by four consecutive U.S. presidential administrations, dating back to 1991) and Afghanistan; drone attacks on Islamist militant groups in Somalia, Yemen, and Pakistan; and NATO-led operations against ousted Libyan dictator Muammar al-Qaddafi.

Read more: The 7 Countries America Has Bombed Since 9/11 - The Atlantic

The Netherlands: Google Goes Dutch With $770M Data Centre

has announced plans to build a new data centre in Europe, this time in Eemshaven, a seaport in the Netherlands.

The internet giant says it has put aside €600 million ($772 million) to build the new data centre, and will be its fourth location in Europe after Finland, Belgium and Ireland. Google currently has more than 10 data centres across the Americas, Europe and Asia. Indeed, its first two Asian data centres opened just last year, in Taiwan and Singapore.

Google says the new facility will create more than 1,000 jobs, with a view towards starting “initial opertions” in the first half of 2016 before becoming fully operational by the latter part of 2017.

Google actually already uses a rented data centre in Eemshaven, which it says will continue to operate after the launch of its new incarnation.

Read more: Google Goes Dutch With $770M Data Centre

EU Economy: Visco Says ECB May Not Need to Add Stimulus Amid Euro - by Jana Randow Decline

The European Central Bank may not need to add stimulus measures after steps in the past three months pushed down the euro, said Governing Council member Ignazio Visco.

“Inflation expectations have to be back where they were,” Visco said Sept. 20 in an interview in Cairns, Australia, where he attended a meeting of Group of 20 finance chiefs. “This doesn’t mean that there will be a next step. We have been bold enough to reduce interest rates to a level that was unexpected to the market.”

The single currency has dropped about 6 percent since early June, when the ECB introduced a negative interest rate on excess reserves and presented a four-year lending program to fuel credit. Policy makers reduced borrowing costs further earlier this month and committed to buying asset-backed securities and covered bonds to boost the ECB’s balance sheet by as much as 1 trillion euros ($1.3 trillion).

Read more: Visco Says ECB May Not Need to Add Stimulus Amid Euro Decline - Bloomberg

NEWS REPORTS IN ENGLISH: Tired of listening and watching sensational, bias and overrated News TV Channels?

Check out Aljazeera, BBC, Euronews, France24 for objective news reporting - watch or listen to them on your tv, computer or download their Apps for your smartphone.

EU-Digest

European Economy: Why Europe is terrified of deflation - by Paul Ames

From Putin’s hordes massing over the eastern borders of Ukraine to the army of home-grown Islamic State fanatics threatening a murderous return from the Middle East, Europe has a lot be frightened of right now.

Yet there’s another nightmare haunting Europe’s economic policy makers: a monster called deflation that’s already clawing at the continent’s financial fundaments.

“We are meeting here at the time when Europe is facing a great threat,” Polish Finance Minister Mateusz Szczurek warned in a recent speech. “We are on the verge of deflation,” he told a Sept. 4 conference in Brussels. “As Europeans we should never forget that it was depression and deflation … that brought to power the totalitarian regime that devastated our continent through the world war and unspeakable atrocities 75 years ago.”

At first glance deflation doesn’t sound so bad.

“Anybody who doubts how bad it could get should look back to the last time the US caught a serious dose of deflation. They called that the Great Depression.”

Prices go down, what’s not to like?

Yet the cold economic reality means that when prices fall people stop spending, hoping things will get even cheaper. In response, businesses cut production and lay off workers. That means even less demand, and prices drop further.

By then, your economy’s in a vicious downward spiral.

Making things worse, those falling prices bring declining wages and worsening debt burdens.

Anybody who doubts how bad it could get should look back to the last time the United States caught a serious dose of deflation, from 1929-33. They called that the Great Depression.

Why Europe is terrified of deflation - Salon.com

Netherlands: Dutch ambassador to the US talks trade in visit to Portland, Maine - by Seth Koenig

More aggressive promotion of Maine tourism and lobster on an international scale can open the doors to more diverse economic activity, a top European diplomat suggested Tuesday.

Rudolph Simon Bekink, ambassador to the U.S. for the Kingdom of the Netherlands, told an audience at the Portland office of the law firm Preti Flaherty on Tuesday afternoon that Maine can still do more to capitalize on its trademark seafood and vacation offerings on the international market.

And doing so can introduce influential people to all that Maine has to offer, he suggested. After all, that’s what brought him here. Bekink began vacationing in Maine in the 1980s, and now has a second home in Scarborough, where he plans to retire next year.“It’s so beautiful here,” he said. 

“The Dutch are probably the logistics kings of the world in terms of the import and export business,” said Janine Cary, director of the Maine International Trade Center. “Even if it starts on the tourism side or the logistics side, it can expand out into more economic activity.”

Cary said the Westbrook-based IDEXX Laboratories, one of Maine’s largest employers, is one example of that. Founder David Shaw loved Maine and wanted to live here when he established his business, she said.

While Maine seeks to attract business leaders with its natural beauty, Bekink said federal, state and city officials should build up the infrastructure necessary to support their companies should those people begin thinking of relocating here permanently.

Much progress is being made through the return of container shipping out of Portland’s International Marine Terminal, where the Icelandic firm Eimskip has been operating for more than a year now.

But Cary, whose organization partnered with Preti Flaherty to hold the after-lunch talk, said more infrastructure changes must be

Read more: Dutch ambassador to the US talks trade in visit to Portland — Portland — Bangor Daily News — BDN Maine

The Netherlands: Refreshingly Different Dutch Vocalist JO SARAH Launches "Citizens of the world"

Soulful world music sung and played by a vocalist who has traveled and lived in many countries around the world.

JO SARAH is more than a vocalist; she’s a songwriter and a percussionist too. She writes songs inspired by her roots, soul, jazz and world music (Brazilian, African and Middle Eastern).

JO SARAH

JO SARAH, a vocalist that takes you on a magical journey of ethnical sounds in the world. With her philosophical lyrics, interesting choice of harmonies and uplifting danceable rhythms, JO SARAH intrigues with her authenticity. From intimate Surinamese ballads to groovy African/Brazilian rhythms, JO SARAH will whisk you away!

Passionate and driven, she tells her story about what she’s seen and experienced in the many different cultures. With her sounds she paints a sounds cape that shows you where her roots lie; India, Ghana, Surinam and the Indian tribes of the Amazon.

After studying two years of Law JO SARAH decided to quit and fully focus on her music. She auditioned at the ArtEZ Conservatory of Zwolle and she got accepted right away.

Here she took singing lessons from Ronald Douglas, Adrienne West, Zosja El Rhazi and Izaline Calister. She partook in many master classes from artists like Gino Vanelli, Nancy Morano, Lilian Vieira, Josee Koning, David Linx, Kurt Elling and many more. During her study in Zwolle JO SARAH trained her songwriting-, piano- and percussion skills.

At the beginning of her last year at the conservatory JO SARAH decided to study at the Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus, Denmark. Here she got many master classes from musicians all over the world (Cuba, Brasil, Papua New Guinea, Gambia, Mali, Iceland etc.)

During this time JO SARAH had a lot of time and space to think about who she is as a singer, artist and as a person. In this time of self-reflection JO SARAH wrote songs that were dear to her and close to her heart. She realized that singing her own songs makes her the happiest, especially when it’s influenced by world music, soul & jazz.

Coming back from Denmark, she quit all her bands and started her new journey.

After a few try outs JO SARAH was happy with her fresh new band: Jesse Buitenhuis(guitar), Roel van den Nieuwenhoff(keys), Jeroen van der Ley(bass), Roman Sielert(percussion) and Tuur Moens(drums).

JO SARAH is paving her way with her amazing band.

She just graduated honor fully with a 9 at the ArtEZ Conservatory in Zwolle. Currently she has plans to release her Debut EP “Citizen of the World” in November 2014.

Read more about: JO SARAH

US blows off Netherlands in ISIS fight - by Maxime Zech

The United State has deemed The Netherlands unfit to address the threat of the Islamic State (IS) in a powerful enough manner. Because of the country’s hesitation to contribute heavy weaponry, The Netherlands
will not be part of the so-called coalition of the willing, in which  nine allies are joining forces in the fight against IS, the Dutch daily Volkskrant reports. 

At the NATO summit in Wales last week, American Foreign Affairs Minister John Kerry called on nine allies to join the coalition of the willing and contribute to the armed struggle. 

According to a source, The Netherlands was very surprised not to be on the list. The coalition is now made up out of The United States, Great Britain, France, Germany,  Italy, Denmark, Turkey, Poland, Canada and Australia.

Note Almere Digest: The list who is in or out among the nations participating in the fight against ISIS keeps changing daily. Recently Turkey stated they would not participate with troops.  

Read more: US blows off Netherlands in ISIS fight - NL Times

Muslims on the move against ISIS: German Muslims invite all faiths to day of prayer against ISIS - by Bethan John

More than 2,000 German mosques have invited Germans of all religions to join their Friday prayers to present a united front against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) to try to dissuade young Muslims from travelling to fight with radical Islamists in Syria and Iraq.

Germany’s four main Muslim groups announced their plan on Tuesday in response to concerns that German Muslims are joining ISIS and returning home with radical ideas and combat experience, posing a domestic security threat.

“We want to make clear terrorists and criminals do not speak in the name of Islam, they have trampled on the commandments of our religion, and that murderers and criminals have no place in our ranks, in our religion,” the head of the Central Council of Muslims, Aiman Mazyek, told a news conference in Berlin.

The groups are also organising peace rallies across Germany on the same day which senior officials, including Interior Minister de Maiziere and Berlin Mayor Klaus Wowereit, are expected to attend.

Authorities estimate 400 Germans have joined IS in Iraq and Syria. De Maiziere, announcing a ban on the group last week, urged the country’s 4 million Muslims to be vigilant about IS recruitment, especially on the Internet.

A 20-year-old man charged with joining IS in Syria went on trial in Frankfurt on Monday, the first such case in Germany.

Ali Kizilkaya, a spokesman for the umbrella group behind Friday’s initiative, said the Muslim community needed the support of the rest of German society to stop the radicalisation of young Muslims.

Note EU-Digest: excellent  initiative by German Muslim organizations  Should be copied by Muslim organizations around the world . Also more in-depth investigations should be conducted as to the actual provenience of so-called "radical Muslim" organizations. This could possibly lead to some surprising results?

Read more: German Muslims invite all faiths to day of prayer against ISIS - Al Arabiya News

Scottish referendum on a knife edge: Two polls put No at 52% - with undicided at 14%

Scotland is heading for a cliffhanger result in Thursday's independence referendum, two eve-of-vote surveys are indicating.

Both opinion polls put the No campaign on 52 per cent, with support for Yes on 48 per cent, setting the scene for a highly-charged final 24 hours of campaigning.

The final result could lie in the hands of voters who are yet to make up their minds.

An ICM poll for the Scotsman put the undecided vote at 14 per cent, but suggested the Yes campaign was gaining ground.
 
Read more: Scottish referendum on a knife edge: Two polls put No at 52% - Scottish independence - UK - The Independent

EU-US Trade Negotiations: Unions oppose US trade deal with EU - by John Moylan

Plans for a major EU-US trade deal have been denounced by trade unions on the last day of their annual conference.

Delegates unanimously backed a motion opposing the Transatlantic Trade and Investment partnership (TTIP) and calling for negotiations to be halted.

Some trade unions and NGOs say that the agreement will threaten the future of the NHS and other public services.

The government insists it could boost the economy and open up the US market to British firms.
In recent months, unions have stepped up their opposition to the plan.

Many have focused on the potential impact on the NHS, where private firms are able to provide services.

They claim that TTIP would allow those firms to sue the government if it chose to return those services to public ownership.

Speaking at the conference, Gail Cartmail, assistant general secretary of the Unite union, called for the NHS to be protected from TTIP.

Read morfe: BBC News - Unions oppose US trade deal with EU

Europe -New EU Commissioners Ready To Roll As France and Britain Secure Top EU Economy Posts

French Socialist Former finance minister Pierre Moscovici takes the key portfolio of economic policy, though he will be supervised by former Finnish prime minister Jyrki Katainen and former Latvian prime minister Valdis Dombrovskis.

British Conservative Jonathan Hill takes a revamped portfolio entitled Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union - something the London government, outside the euro zone, had been pitching hard for. He will be in charge of relations with, among others, the European Banking Authority.

Danish liberal Margrethe Vestager will be in charge of the powerful competition portfolio that gives the EU a big say in the expansion or merger plans of the world’s biggest companies, while former Slovenian prime minister Alenka Bratusek will oversee the EU’s plan to create an energy union.

Sweden’s Cecilia Malmstrom will have the task of negotiating the world’s biggest trade agreement between the United States and Europe. Miguel Arias Caneta of Spain will be energy and climate change commissioner, though former Slovenian former premier Alenka Bratusek will have the more senior post of vice-president overseeing the development of an energy union.

Germany’s Guenther Oettinger will have responsibility for the digital economy, a portfolio including the overhaul of the EU telecoms market. Elzbieta Bienkowska of Poland takes the role of commissioner for the internal market, industry, entrepreneurship and small business.

The new Commission is due to take office on November 1, subject to its confirmation by the European Parliament.

Read more: ReEurope - France and Britain secure top EU economy posts - France 24

Soccer: Key Battles That Will Shape Netherlands' Clash with Czech Republic

Kicking off their Euro 2016 qualification campaign, the Netherlands will face the Czech Republic in Prague on Tuesday.

It won't be the first time the two countries face off: The Netherlands and the Czech Republic have played against each other a total of nine times.

Three games were won by the Dutch, three by the Czechs. The remaining three matches ended in a draw. In other words: From both perspectives, the two nations seem like worthy opponents.

Read more: Key Battles That Will Shape Netherlands' Clash with Czech Republic | Bleacher Report

Italy: Outlook Italian insurance market improves

Fitch Ratings has revised Italy's Outlook to Stable from Negative. At the same time the agency has affirmed Italy's Long-term foreign and local currency Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) at 'BBB+'. The issue ratings on Italy's senior unsecured foreign and local currency bonds were also affirmed at 'BBB+'. 

The Country Ceiling has been affirmed at 'AA+' and the Short-term foreign currency IDR at 'F2'.

Fitch has also  revised its outlook on the Italian insurance market from negative to stable following stronger-than-expected first-half results from Italian insurers.

The change also reflects Fitch's expectation that Italian insurers' profit and capital adequacy will be resilient despite the country dipping back into recession.

GGGD will peak at 135% of GDP in 2014, marginally higher than Fitch's previous forecast (133% of GDP), due to weaker nominal GDP growth. Fitch expects GGGD to decline slowly and remain above 130% of GDP until 2017, compared with the 'BBB' median of 40%. The high debt leaves very limited fiscal space to respond to any adverse shock.

The new government of Matteo Renzi announced a structural reform agenda with an ambitious timetable and confirmed in the 2014 Stability Programme the previous governments' commitment to the eurozone fiscal framework, in particular, keeping deficit below 3% of GDP in 2014 and maintaining the medium-term fiscal consolidation path.

Almere-Digest

Insurance Industry: SURE Autumn editiom highlights Insurance developments around the world

A new edition of Koster verzekeringen b.v. international internet publication SURE, with highlights from and around the global insurance world, is available on-line.    

 KOSTER verzekeringen b.v. is an independent Dutch insurance company in Alphen aan den Rijn, established in 1985 and presently employing some 40 highly specialized employees

What makes KOSTER Verzekeringen b.v. particularly interesting is their corporate philosophy. Chairman of the Board Wim Koster says about this philosophy: "we don't just sell insurance policies but instead we helps our customers during the buying process".

For a free subscription to SURE  - contact info@koster.nl

Almere-Digest

EU-US Trade Negotiations: Germany to take control of EU/US trade deal, leak suggests- by Geoffrey Smith

U.S. tech companies hoping for unfettered access to the E.U.’s market under a major new trade deal got the bureaucratic equivalent of the ice bucket challenge Thursday.

A draft document obtained by the website Euractiv sketching out how the top jobs in the new European Commission will be handed out suggested that Germany’s Guenter Oettinger will take responsibility for the E.U. side of the negotiations for the next five years.

Oettinger is a long-time political ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel, and analysts say his appointment would ensure Europe will take a tough line on the new ‘Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership’.

TTIP, hailed by its advocates as a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity” to break down remaining trade barriers between the U.S. and E.U., has run into a storm of protest in Germany–traditionally one of the biggest advocates of free trade–over concerns that it will allow big companies too many rights to sue governments.

In addition, the ongoing tensions over U.S. spying on its biggest European ally has made German public opinion wary of giving free rein to the–mostly U.S.-based–companies that dominate the internet and the world of big data.

“Merkel is concerned that the political environment around TTIP has become completely toxic,” says Pavel Swidlicki, an analyst with the think-tank Open Europe in London. “This is a smart move.”

Note EU-Digest: the EU interests are in good hands with Mrs Merkel and Germany.

Read more: Germany to take control of EU/US trade deal, leak suggests

The Netherlands: Banking Industry - ING Bank reported a sharp rise in second-quarter net profit

NG NV reported a sharp rise in second-quarter net profit, boosted by one-time gains and lower provisions for bad loans, as the Dutch bank edges closer to fully rid itself from Dutch government support.

The Netherlands' largest bank by assets on March 3 said net profit for the quarter came in at €1.07 billion ($1.43 billion), compared with €895 million in the same period last year as profit at its insurance business more than quadrupled to €245 million despite lower operational results. 
 
The insurance business benefited from revaluations on a private equity portfolio and a €79 million gain on a closed book of Japanese variable annuities.

Net profit at its banking business dropped by 1.6% to €806 million, despite a 34% drop in loan loss provisions to €405 million, which was offset by higher taxes, a payment for its contribution to the nationalization of Dutch peer SNS Reaal in 2013 and restructuring costs at its Dutch Retail bank.

EU-Digest

Europe's job market has strengths the US doesn't - by Paul Wiseman and Christopher S. Rugaber

Compare unemployment rates, and America's job market looks much stronger than Europe's. The U.S. rate for August, being released Friday, is expected to be a near-normal 6.1 percent. In the 18 countries that use the euro currency, by contrast, it's a collective 11.5 percent.

Yet by some measures, Europe is doing better. It's been more successful in keeping people working, letting the disabled stay on the job and boosting the proportion of women in the workforce.

And Europeans in their prime working years — ages 25 to 54 — are more likely to be employed than Americans are.

Fewer than 77 percent of prime-age Americans have jobs, compared with 80 percent in Belgium, 81 percent in France and 82 percent in the Netherlands, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

If Americans 25 to 54 were as likely to be working as Germans the same age, 8.3 million more Americans would have jobs.

''Where we used to talk about the U.S. having a high-powered labor market in the late 1990s, Germany has that now,'' says Jacob Kirkegaard, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics.

It's true, of course, that the unemployed have a much harder time finding a job in, say, Spain or Greece than the United States. Spain's unemployment rate is nearly 25 percent. For people under 25, the rate tops 50 percent.

Though the eurozone's overall unemployment rate is 11.5 percent, individual countries include low-rate nations like Germany and Austria (4.9 percent) as well as some with much higher unemployment than the United States: Portugal (14 percent), Italy (12.6 percent), France (10.3 percent), Belgium (8.5 percent).

Yet Josh Bivens, research director at the liberal Economic Policy Institute, says America's relatively low ''headline unemployment rate is painting too rosy a picture of how the U.S. labor market is doing.''

The fall in the U.S. unemployment rate has been exaggerated by rising numbers of adults neither working nor looking for work. The government counts people as unemployed only if they're looking for a job. When many stop looking, the unemployment rate can fall even if few people are hired.

The share of Americans 16 to 64 either working or seeking work has fallen to 72.7 percent from 75.3 percent at the end of 2007, when the Great Recession began. In the 28 countries in the European Union, the figure has risen to 72.3 percent from 70.5 percent in late 2007. The United States and Europe calculate their employment rates in broadly similar ways.

No single reason explains why prime-age employment and workforce participation trends are weaker in the United States.

Read more: Europe's job market has strengths the US doesn't - Worcester Telegram & Gazette - telegram.com

ISIS "Terrorists and killers will be followed to the gates of hell and punished"

President Obama made his strongest statements yet against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) on Wednesday, promising that the U.S. will “degrade and destroy” the extremist group after they beheaded a second American journalist.
 
“Our objective is clear and that is to degrade and destroy ISIL so it’s no longer a threat—not just to Iraq but also to the region and to the United States,” Obama said, referring to ISIS by their alternate name.

On Tuesday, ISIS released a video of the beheading of Steven Sotloff, 31, a freelance journalist who worked for Time and Foreign Policy and was seized in Syria last August. His killer appears to be the same masked jihadist who killed James Foley exactly two weeks prior. The video’s authenticity was confirmed by President Obama and American officials early Wednesday.

Note EU-Digest: ISIS better remember what happened to Bin Laden..They will be followed to the gates of hell and will be brought to Justice !

Read more:President Obama: We will ‘degrade and destroy’ ISIS | MSNBC

EU-US Trade Negotiations: Bring on the defeat of the EU-US free trade deal - by Nick Dearden

In spite of previous suggestions to the contrary, the proposed EU-US free trade deal will, after all, include the NHS, trade minister Lord Livingston admitted on Monday.

The deal, known as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership or TTIP, is a priority of David Cameron’s government – a “once in a generation” opportunity. But officials have been taken aback by the extent of public hostility.

At the heart of this opposition is the fear that the TTIP will give big business vast new powers over public services like the NHS, and undermine rights at work, environmental protection and food safety standards. According to a poll commissioned by Unite, 68% of people in marginal constituencies oppose the inclusion of the NHS as part of the deal. Even among Tory voters, just 23% supported its inclusion.

After weeks of the government telling the public that “the NHS won’t be affected”, Lord Livingston has admitted that Cameron won’t exclude the NHS, because the TTIP is too good an opportunity to sell our “world class health services” to the US market.

This also means US health corporations would gain new “rights” to sell their health services here. And should they be impaired from doing so by, let’s imagine, a future government abolishing the Health and Social Care Act, those corporations will have the right to sue the British government through a parallel legal structure created by the TTIP. They won’t even have to go through our domestic court system.

Read more: Bring on the defeat of the EU-US free trade deal | Nick Dearden | Comment is free | theguardian.com

Sea Food: 91 percent of US seafood comes from abroad.

Set against the backdrop of the larger American food system, the seafood deficit, is, well, fishy. Many of the US most important landfoods are trending in the opposite direction. Corn, anybody? Plenty of it — surpluses of it, in fact. Beef? Enough domestic production to supply every American with around eighty pounds a year — five times the national per capita rate of seafood consumption.

Meanwhile, the paucity of domestic fish and shellfish in our markets and in our diets continues even as foreign seafood floods in at a tremendous rate. In the last half century American seafood imports have increased by a staggering 1,476 percent.

It gets fishier still. While 91 percent of the seafood Americans eat is foreign, a third of the seafood Americans catch gets sold to foreigners. By and large the fish and shellfish we are sending abroad are wild while the seafood we are importing is very often farmed. Two hundred million pounds of wild Alaska salmon, a half billion pounds of pollock, cod, and other fish-and-chips-type species, a half billion pounds of squid, scallops, lobsters, and other shellfish is, every year, being sent abroad, more and more often to Asia; untold tons of omega-3-rich seafood are leaving our shores to help other countries lower their rates of heart disease, raise their cognitive abilities, and lengthen their life expectancy.

American consumers suffer from a deficit of American fi sh, but someone out there somewhere is eating our lunch.

How did we land ourselves in such a confoundingly American catch?

Read more: American catch: The fight for our local seafood | GreenBiz.com