Turkey - Economic Meltdown ?: Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan blames lira crash on Donald Trump 'plot - by Chris Baynes

Turkey’s president has blamed the crash of the lira on the United States, claiming a “political, underhand plot” had sent the value of his country’s currency tumbling to record lows.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Donald Trump of waging “economic war against the entire world”, after the American leader escalated a diplomatic feud by doubling tariffs on steel and aluminium.

“The aim of the operation is to make Turkey surrender in all areas, from finance to politics,” the Turkish president told supporters in the Black Sea city of Trabzon.

The lira has lost more than 40 per cent of its value against dollar this year, amid worsening ties between Turkey and the US and concerns over Mr Erdogan’s influence over the economy.

The fall turned to meltdown on Friday, when the lira dropped 14 per cent, rattling global markets.

Speaking in Trabzon, Mr Erdogan dismissed suggestions that Turkey was facing a financial crisis like those seen in Asia two decades ago.

"What is the reason for all this storm in a tea cup? There is no economic reason,” he said. ”This is called carrying out an operation against Turkey.”

“We will give our answer, by shifting to new markets, new partnerships and new alliances, to the one who waged an economic war against the entire world and also included our country.

“Some close the doors and some others open new ones.”

Mr Trump announced additional sanctions on Turkish metals last week as relations between the two nations continued to sour over Ankara's detention of a US pastor.

"Our relations with Turkey are not good at this time," tweeted the US president, two days after talks between American and Turkish officials about pastor Andrew Brunson, 50, ended without any obvious progress.

Note EU-Digest: this whole confrontation between the US and Turkey has mainly to do with the mid-term US election and boosting the Evangelical support for the Republicans. Specially if Trump is able to bring Pastor Andrew Brunson back to the US, from Turkey, where he is under house arrest for supposedly collaborating with what the Erdogan government called "terrorists".

Read more: Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan blames lira crash on Donald Trump 'plot' | The Independent

Middle East - Iran: US demands Britain back Trump with Iran sanctions

Ambassador Woody Johnson has challenged the UK to abandon its European neighbours who back the 2015 international deal to constrain Iran's development of nuclear capabilities in return for  trade with Iran. Johnson said on Sunday that Britain should join forces with America to enforce the US president's hard-hitting sanctions. He also delivered an explicit ultimatum to British companies, telling then to stop doing business with Iran or face "serious consequences" for their trade with the US.

The comments are a direct challenge to Prime Minister Theresa May's minority Conservative government, days after a minister point-blank refused to go along with Trump's sanctions on Tehran and keep the nuclear agreement alive.

They also come six days after Jeremy Hunt, the Foreign Secretary, signed a joint statement with the EU which promised to push ahead with blocking the impact of the sanctions on European businesses. Johnson's comments escalate the tensions over what is the first test of the so-called special relationship between the US and UK since Trump's visit to the UK last month.

Britain negotiated the original Iran deal in 2015 with France, Germany, China, Russia and the US in a process coordinated by the European Union. The Tehran regime agreed to curb its nuclear program in return for the lifting of sanctions.

But Trump pulled out of the deal, which was struck by his predecessor Barack Obama, three months ago because Trump believes it is not stopping Iran from meddling the Middle East. Hard-hitting economic sanctions were reimposed last week with more to come in November.

Note EU-Digest: Hopefully Britain will not cave in to the bullying tactics of Trump, instead reurn to the welcoming arms of the EU in a new Brexit referendum.Like was said before, getting out of the EU for any member will mean losing your EU "security blanket" in standing up against the "big powers".

Read more: US demands Britain back Trump with Iran sanctions

Middle East: Global powers condemn US sanctions against Iran and encourage businesses to ignore the Trump administration

Several global powers have decried President Donald Trump's administration for reinstating tough economic sanctions against Iran, while actively calling on businesses to ignore the White House over the coming months.

Despite pleas from key members of the international community, the U.S. re-imposed sanctions targeting the Iranian government's purchase of U.S. dollars on Tuesday. The measures also impact Tehran's trade in gold and other precious metals, as well as its automotive industry.

In a tweet posted earlier this week, Trump said: "These are the most biting sanctions ever imposed, and in November they ratchet up to yet another level. Anyone doing business with Iran will NOT be doing business with the United States. I am asking for WORLD PEACE, nothing less!"

Read more: Global powers condemn US sanctions against Iran and encourage businesses to ignore the Trump administration

The Netherlands - Islam: Dutch Children from Turkish descent Forced to Submit to Islam

Parents in the Netherlands can't stop their children from being indoctrinated with Islam against their wishes.

A new report from Cultuur onder Vuur (Culture Under Fire) documents evidence from hundreds of cases where children in Dutch schools are instructed by an imam on how to pray and how schools are taking measures to hide these trips from parents.

Church Militant spoke with Hugo Bos, the campaign leader for Culture Under Fire, who said they started investigating Islamic indoctrination in Dutch schools after they found one video of a school trip to a mosque.

"We found it very shocking," he said. "We found proof of 19 cases where children took part in Islamic rites."

Robert Spencer, director of Jihad Watch, told Bos that when children pray at these mosque excursions, it is "exercise in Islamic dawah" — a form of proselytism. From the Muslim perspective, these children are "purposefully prepared for converting to Islam."

One of the cases from 2014 involves elementary school children who were taken to a mosque in Zwolle. That mosque hosted the hate-preaching Pakistani imam, Mohammed Anas Noorani Siddiqui. Siddiqui reportedly said, "Non-Muslim Dutch people live like dogs and b*****s."

They found other mosques children had visited had allegations of extremism and anti-Semitism and ties to the Turkish nationalist movement and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's AK Party.

Last year, Erdogan called on Muslim Turks to have five children and "educate your children at better schools."

Bos noted a survey found three-quarters of Catholic and Protestant schools visited a non-Christian place of worship. In 41 percent of those cases, it was a mosque.

Additionally, parents are often not informed of the field trips and schools take steps to hide the information from the public. Oftentimes, Bos found that the school would take down the information from their website after parents complained or they were contacted by him.

"The government has made goals for education that include respect for other religions," Bos said. The curriculum includes spiritual direction, yoga, meditation and visiting a church. In practice, Bos found little to no efforts being made to take Muslim students to non-Islamic places of worship.

Read more: Dutch Children Forced to Submit to Islam

EU's Migrant Dilemma: Spain takes more African migrants despite signs of tension - by Barry Hatton and Valerio Nicolosi

A rescue boat carrying 87 African migrants who were saved in the Mediterranean Sea docked Thursday at the southern Spanish port of Algeciras, but without the welcome offered to previous groups as the political mood in Spain began showing signs of tension about a spike in migrant arrivals.

The boat operated by Spanish aid group Proactiva Open Arms brought what it said were mostly Sudanese war refugees, including 12 minors, picked up off the Libyan coast on Aug. 2.

Spain allowed the boat to come after other, geographically closer, European Union countries refused to let it dock amid continuing tension among EU governments about how best to respond to the wave of migrants crossing from Africa.

Spain's new center-left Socialist government made fair treatment for migrants one of its headline policies after coming to power two months ago.

In June, it announced measures to "put people's rights first" in the country's migration policies. Among other things, it took the first steps toward extending public health care to foreigners without residence permits.

That same month, it accepted the Aquarius rescue ship with 630 migrants on board after Malta and Italy turned it away.

Authorities gave those migrants who arrived in Valencia a special entry permit into Spain of 45 days for humanitarian reasons. A further 60 who arrived on a rescue ship in Barcelona last month were given a 30-day permit while they decided what to do. Their paperwork was also fast-tracked.

But those who arrived in Algeciras on Thursday will get no such special treatment.

They will be processed, the government said, like any other migrants rescued at sea: held by police for 72 hours at a migrant camp, given a medical check-up, identified and detained while they await asylum or are given an expulsion order.

Note EU-Digest: The European Migrant crises is another top priority the EU Commission must tackle. In this particular case, as in most others, this above mentioned group of young African men, came to Europe basically for no other reason but economics. The EU must either return them from where they came, or better still, increase development aid to the nations they came from, under very strict rules, to avoid development money going into the pockets of corrupt politicians in these countries. Right now the EU Migrant policy is totally dysfunctional, and causing  major tensions within the EU. 

Read more: Spain takes more African migrants despite signs of tension - ABC News

Middle East: Iran - US Relations: Donald Trump bullies rest of world they must choose between trade with US or Iran - by Bethan McKernan

European companies should still be able to trade with Iran despite new US sanctions, according to minister of state for the Middle East, Alaistair Burt.

Donald Trump tweeted “anyone doing business with Iran will NOT be doing business with the United States”.

The EU has launched a “blocking statute”, designed to allow companies within the bloc to sue the Trump administration, if they are adversely affected by US sanctions, and has encouraged member states to continue trading with Tehran.

This EU legislation should protect businesses in member states who do not wish to break off economic ties with Tehran despite the reinstatement of US sanctions which came into effect on Tuesday, Mr Burt told the BBC.

“If a company fears legal action taken against it and enforcement action taken against it by an entity in response to American sanctions then that company can be protected as far as EU legislation is concerned,” added Mr Burt.

Read more: Donald Trump says rest of world must choose between trade with US or Iran | The Independent

EU Citizens under threat from populist right-wing local and foreign politicians who are endangering the EU's unity and economic stability - by RM

Right-wing populist politicians destabilizing the EU

Democratic and Cultural Fortress Europe is under attack, by devious right-wing populist politicians and their followers

These include, but not limited to, (see picture insert) from top left to right: Donald Trump (USA), Steve Bannon (USA), Marine Le Pen (France), Nigel Farage (Britain), Benjamin Netanyahu (Israel), Geert Wilders (the Netherlands), Dr.Jörg Meuthen (Germany), Jarosław Aleksander Kaczyński (Poland), Viktor Mihály Orbán (Hungary),Thierry Henri Philippe Baudet (the Netherlands) Luigi Di Maio (Italy), and Sebastian Kurz (Austria)

It is not a question anymore of how to come to terms with this threat, but how this threat can be eliminated effectively.  Tthe majority of Europesn citizens certainly do not want Europe to fall apart into a feuding group of nations, and easy prey for China, Russia and the US.

This issue certainly must, if it is not so already, become the number one objective on the agenda of the EU Commission, the EU Parliament and each individual EU Nation state.

Maybe, in this context it might help to refresh our memory as to the importance of the EU among the world of nations, with some historic background on the EU, and the benefits its citizens enjoy.

The European Union was set up with the aim of ending the frequent and bloody wars between neighbours in Europe, which culminated in the past, and more recently in the First and Second World Wars.

Europeans were determined to prevent such killing and destruction from ever happening again.

After the Second world war, Europe was split into East and West,  resulting in a 40-year-long Cold War.

To counter this political problem, West European nations created the Council of Europe in 1949.

It was a first step towards cooperation between them, but six countries even wanted to go further.

As of 1950, the European Coal and Steel Community begins to unite European countries economically and politically in order to secure lasting peace.

The six founding countries were Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands.

The 1950s were dominated by a cold war between east and west. Protests in Hungary against the Communist regime are put down by Soviet tanks in 1956. ’

On the 8 of May 1950 French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman presents a plan for deeper cooperation. This historic event is celebrated every 9th of May as ' Europe Day'

On 18 April 1951 based on the Schuman plan, six countries signed a treaty to run their heavy industries – coal and steel – under a common management. In this way, none can on its own make the weapons of war to turn against the other, as in the past.

In 1957, the Treaty of Rome created the European Economic Community (EEC), or ‘Common Market

One thing led to another, making the EU what it is today, operating as a single market with 28 member countries, one of the major global trading powers.

EU economic policy seeks to sustain growth by investing in transport, energy and research – while minimising the impact of further economic development on the environment.

In terms of the total value of all goods and services produced (GDP), it is bigger than the US economy. EU GDP in 2017 was €15.3 trillion

Over 64 % of EU countries’ total trade is done with other countries in the EU bloc.

On January 1, 2017, the population of the European Union (EU) was estimated at 511.8 million, compared with 510.3 million on 1 January 2016. During the year 2016, as many births as deaths were recorded in the EU (5.1 million), meaning that the natural change of the EU population was neutral.

With just 6.9 % of the world’s total population, EU trade with the rest of the world accounts for some 15.6 % of global imports and exports.

Consequently, together with the United States and China, the EU is one of the 3 largest global players in international trade.

The 28 EU countries had the second largest share of global imports and exports of goods in 2016.

For individual EU citizen some of the benefits include:

    1) Eligibility to live and work everywhere within the EU without further permission.

    2) Eligibility to take part in local elections of the community where you are a resident. So if you       are a Frenchman living in Munich you can vote for in the election of the Munich
city council, which chooses the mayor. You can even run for a seat in that local municipality.
   
   3) Eligibility to vote in the EU parliamentary elections, and you can even run for a seat.
   
    4) Coming from another EU member country one may not be discriminated against, in relation to local citizen in your place of residence. That means: If local residents are allowed to send their children to public school for free, you are also allowed. If they receive social security payments, you may also receive them.
   
    5) Say you want to run a workshop in Germany, you may even have benefits over and above those of local German citizens. If you are a German running a car repair workshop, you either need a master certificate as a trained car mechanic, or you have to employ somebody who has such a certificate. If, however, you are coming in from another EU country, you only have to show proof that you are a car mechanic with a work experience.
   
    6) As an EU citizen you also have diplomatic protection. If you are in a country where your home country does not have its own embassy, every EU embassy of a member state is obliged to help you if you need help.
   
    7) EU citizens also have the right to communicate with every administrative office within the EU in your own language - and you have the right to receive an answer in your own language.

Bottom line - don't let these right-wing Populists mislead you with vague and confusing arguments, Ask for specifics, like how they would set up things differently, and what the benefits would be for you as a citizen.

And if this results in more garbled rhetoric, like we so often hear from those populist politicians,  make sure you tell them they are not convincing you.

There is no way EU citizens would benefit from going back to their own currency, border controls, banking regulations, and nationally protected local trade.

Probably the most remarkable success for the EU has been that, apart from its economic prominence, following the ‘Schuman Declaration’, on 9 May 1950, there have been 68 years of peace across the continent, following this declaration.

The European project, known as the EU is the best thing that ever happened for peace, economic stability and prosperity on  the European continent. Another positive is that since it is still a project under development, it can only get better.

We must therefore use all means at our disposal to protect and safeguard it from the destabilizing forces which are presently attacking its existence.

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