The Star Online: World Updates
The Star Online: World Updates |
- Mario Monti named to head new Italy government
- Israel says Iran closer to atom bomb than thought
- NEWSMAKER - Showman Berlusconi makes ignominious exit
| Mario Monti named to head new Italy government Posted: ROME (Reuters) - Italy's president appointed former European Commissioner Mario Monti on Sunday to head a new government charged with implementing urgent reforms to end a crisis that has endangered the whole euro zone.
After a frenetic weekend during which parliament passed the reforms and Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi stepped down to the jeers of hostile crowds, President Giorgio Napolitano asked Monti to form a government, expected to be composed largely of technocrats. The respected economist, made a life Senator last week, said he would work urgently to form a government and is likely to name around 12 ministers within days. "I intend to fulfil this task with a great sense of responsibility in the service of our country. In a moment of particular difficulty for Italy, in a turbulent situation for Europe and the world, the country needs to meet the challenge," Monti said after his nomination. "We owe it to our children to offer them a future with dignity and hope," he added. A process that normally takes several days or weeks was completed over the weekend as Napolitano raced to restore market confidence, which collapsed disastrously last week. After nominating Monti, the president said that Italy must make an extraordinary effort to overcome the crisis and to restore the trust of investors and European institutions. Italy's borrowing costs soared to unmanageable levels last week, threatening a Europe-wide financial meltdown. Markets calmed down at the end of the week once it became clear that Berlusconi would go and Monti would take his place. Rome will watch on Monday to see if the formal nomination will continue the positive effect on markets. If Monti manages to secure enough backing in parliament, he will implement reforms agreed by Berlusconi with euro zone leaders to cut Italy's massive debt and revive a chronically stagnant economy. There are clear signs that he will face problems, with Angelino Alfano, secretary of Berlusconi's PDL party, saying there was "huge opposition" in its ranks to a Monti government. Alfano said after meeting Napolitano on Sunday afternoon, however, that the party -- which has been badly split by the crisis -- would support Monti. UPHILL BATTLE Outgoing Interior Minister Roberto Maroni, a senior figure in the devolutionist Northern League, confirmed that the party opposed the expected technocrat government and said Monti would face an uphill battle. "The decisions which Monti will take must pass in parliament and I think that with such a heterogeneous majority he will have many problems. I believe this solution will lead to many problems," Maroni said in a television interview. The League, allied with the PDL in the outgoing government, adamantly opposes pension reform that would hit older voters who are among its key supporters. Italy's political turmoil was very much centred on the flamboyant, scandal-plagued figure of Berlusconi and thousands of demonstrators partied in the streets of Rome on Saturday night after he resigned. The normally ebullient media magnate cut a forlorn figure as he stared from his car, looking pale and drawn, when he left Napolitano's palace to shouts of "clown, clown". He said in a televised message on Sunday that he was saddened by the demonstrations but had resigned from a sense of responsibility to end speculative attacks on Italy. "It was ... sad to see that a responsible and if you will permit me to say, generous act, like resigning was greeted with whistles and insults," the 75-year-old media magnate said. Some protesters threw coins at Berlusconi's car in a gesture reminiscent of the departure into exile in 1993 of disgraced Socialist Prime Minister Bettino Craxi, often seen as Berlusconi's political mentor. German Chancellor Angela Merkel welcomed signs of an end to the weeks of uncertainty, saying the approval of a reform package in parliament on Saturday was "heartening". "I hope that confidence in Italy is restored, which is crucial for a return to calm throughout the euro zone," she said before a party conference in Leipzig. Sunday newspapers said Berlusconi's departure marked the end of an era and spoke of the irony of a media magnate famed for his skill at communicating with the public being seen off by jeering crowds. Monti has received the backing of the main opposition groups and the PDL and should have strong support in parliament, at least at first. But he could face strong opposition from both left and right to some of the tough austerity measures he must implement to satisfy markets and euro zone leaders. The next elections are not due until 2013 but there are widespread predictions Monti will leave before then, making way for polls once he has passed the reforms promised to Europe. Italy came close to a full-scale financial emergency last week after yields on 10-year bonds soared over 7.6 percent, levels which forced Ireland, Portugal and Greece to seek an international bailout. (Additional reporting by Roberto Landucci, Massimiliano Di Giorgio and Paolo Biondi in Rome, Alexandra Hudson in Berlin; writing by Barry Moody; editing by Tim Pearce) Copyright © 2011 Reuters Full content generated by Get Full RSS. | ||
| Israel says Iran closer to atom bomb than thought Posted: JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday the full extent of Iran's nuclear programme was not reflected in a recent U.N. report, which said that Tehran appeared to have worked on designing an atomic bomb. "Iran is closer to getting an (atomic) bomb than is thought," Netanyahu said in remarks to cabinet ministers, quoted by an official from his office.
"Only things that could be proven were written (in the U.N. report), but in reality there are many other things that we see," Netanyahu said, according to the official. The Israeli leader did not specify what additional information he had about Iran's nuclear programme during his cabinet's discussion on the report by the U.N.'s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) released last week. At the start of meeting, Netanyahu made a broadcast repeating his call for the world "to stop Iran's race to arm itself with a nuclear weapon before it is too late". Iran has dismissed accusations that it is developing nuclear weapons and says it needs atomic technology for electricity and other peaceful projects. it called the IAEA report "unbalanced" and "politically motivated". The IAEA paper has intensified media speculation that the United States or Israel might take military action against Iran to destroy its nuclear programme. The U.N. nuclear watchdog said it had "credible" information that Iran had built a large explosives vessel to conduct hydrodynamic experiments, which are "strong indicators of possible weapon development". Both Washington and Israel have said they are keeping all options on the table to stop Tehran developing a nuclear bomb. Israel, a close strategic ally of Western powers, is widely believed to have the Middle East region's only nuclear arsenal, dating back decades. It has never confirmed or denied this, under a policy of ambiguity designed to deter attacks. (Reporting by Ari Rabinovitch; Editing by Andrew Heavens) Copyright © 2011 Reuters Full content generated by Get Full RSS. | ||
| NEWSMAKER - Showman Berlusconi makes ignominious exit Posted: ROME (Reuters) - Silvio Berlusconi dominated Italy for 17 years with a unique mix of political talent and brazen behaviour but in the end the born showman was humiliatingly jeered from office, brought down by pressure from abroad.
A man who had rejoiced in his ability to talk directly to ordinary Italians looked pale and isolated as he was forced to resign on Saturday after his broken promises and crumbling power brought Italy to the brink of financial disaster. In scenes reminiscent of the departure of his mentor, Socialist Prime Minister Bettino Craxi in 1993, the 75-year-old media magnate was harried by angry crowds hurling insults and coins at his limousine as handed his resignation to President Giorgio Napolitano. Berlusconi slipped out of the Quirinale presidential palace by a side entrance as thousands of demonstrators chanted "Clown! Clown!" and spontaneous street parties erupted. The scandal-plagued premier, one of Italy's richest men, was forced out by weeks of turmoil on financial markets that pushed Italy's borrowing costs to levels that obliged Ireland, Portugal and Greece to seek bailouts of a kind which the euro zone could not afford for its third largest economy. A remarkable week, that started with Berlusconi adamantly refusing to resign, ended a remarkable political career that began when he burst on to the scene in 1994 promising a fresh new approach after a corruption scandal that swept away Italy's postwar political order. His demise was a far cry from 2008 when a landslide victory gave the media tycoon his third and strongest electoral mandate. He had been prime minister for longer than any postwar leader, painting himself as the only choice for the dominant conservative voting bloc and a bastion against communism. Bolstered by unrivalled communication skills and a dominance of Italian media, Berlusconi had for years seemed immune to a series of controversies that would have destroyed a politician in most other parts of the world. They included the lurid "Rubygate" scandal in which he was charged with having sex with an under-age prostitute, and a wave of salacious revelations from police wiretaps about alleged orgies at his luxurious Milan villa. He also faces two ongoing fraud court cases, the latest in more than 30 prosecutions by magistrates he accuses of being communists bent on perverting democracy. The perma-tanned media tycoon, once a cruise ship crooner, was always unrepentant about a notoriously off-colour sense of humour and a series of diplomatic gaffes which led many foreign leaders to try to avoid being photographed near him. DECLINE Berlusconi had been in political decline for most of this year, his former mastery undermined by glaring misjudgments in local elections and three referendums, as well as the loss of a key alliance. Often derided abroad for his facelifts, hair transplants, make-up and gaffes, Berlusconi until recently commanded a large following particularly among middle-class women, pensioners and the self-employed, striking a chord with his warnings about the dangers of left-wing extremists. But with lurid details from assorted sex and corruption scandals filling newspapers for months and bitter government infighting poisoning the atmosphere around him, Berlusconi's touch finally deserted him. He had seemed to have a good chance of hanging on for scheduled elections in 2013, until markets panicked by the Greek crisis turned on Italy, focusing on the inability of Berlusconi's squabbling government to pass meaningful reforms. Up to the last, Berlusconi appeared to underestimate the gravity of the crisis, declaring this month that "restaurants are full, you have trouble booking seats on planes" as the economic pain mounted for millions of ordinary Italians. As markets focused on Italy's huge public debt and stagnant economy, Italy's government bonds came under huge pressure and the European Central Bank had to move in August to buy bonds on the market to stop the crisis spreading. In return it demanded tough economic reforms, effectively dictating government policy and destroying Berlusconi's boasts that he had shielded Italy from the euro zone crisis. With his coalition crumbling around him and borrowing costs soaring out of control, Berlusconi finally agreed to resign after losing a crucial vote in parliament. But in a sign of how much the collapse of market confidence was focused on him individually, bond yields soared even higher the day after the announcement because of market uncertainty about whether he would really go. Napolitano had to publicly assure markets the flamboyant billionaire would step down and accelerated the political transition by asking former European Commissioner Mario Monti on Sunday to form a new government. SCEPTICISM Berlusconi's personal decline began in 2009 when his estranged wife Veronica accused him of consorting with under-age women, finally sowing doubts in the minds of voters who had hitherto been charmed by his image as a self-made macho Latin male. In addition, Berlusconi has persistently shown himself to be better at promises than action, failing to implement pledges in 2008 to use his business acumen to liberalise a notoriously inflexible and protected economy. As owner of Italy's main private television channels and top-flight soccer team AC Milan after making a fortune in a Milan construction boom, he typified an Italian dream, with millions won over by his rags-to-riches story and optimism. Berlusconi created his own party almost overnight in 1994 to fill the void on the right caused by the destruction of the long-dominant Christian Democrats by a corruption scandal. His media empire Mediaset has a near-duopoly in television with state-run RAI over which, as premier, he had ultimate control. This gave him a much-criticised stranglehold on Italian media while he was accused of lowering cultural values with variety shows dominated by scantily clad starlets. Critics also say he used his political and media power to fend off many prosecutions. His fall from power could unleash a new wave of cases by magistrates. In the last year the Catholic Church has distanced itself from him, following reports of starlets and prostitutes dancing half-naked in return for cash and gifts. He boasted in one phone call of having sex with eight women in one night. Berlusconi has always maintained the dinners he hosted were jovial affairs that involved little more than food, jokes and song. His only concession has been to say he is "no saint" and loves beautiful women. He is given little chance of returning to high political office but analysts say he could continue to exert influence both through his media empire and the rump of the PDL party that he founded -- unless it implodes under the pressure of the political crisis as some expect. Whatever happens, one of the most scandalous eras, in a country famed for scandal, appears to be over. (Additional reporting by James Mackenzie and Deepa Babington) Copyright © 2011 Reuters Full content generated by Get Full RSS. |
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