November 14, 2003

=November 14, 2003=

*2003 California recall: California Secretary of State Kevin Shelley officially certifies the recall election and he declares Arnold Schwarzenegger the Governor-Elect. The swearing-in is set to take at 11:00am PST on Monday November 17 on the steps of the State Capitol in Sacramento, California.
* Four former heads of Israel's internal security criticise the policies of the right wing Likud-led government of Ariel Sharon towards Palestinians and say the policies if not changed would see Israel "headed for (an) abyss". The four headed the security services for two decades between 1980 and 2000. [http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/front/2003/1115/index.html]
* In Paris over 40,000 people participate in the European Social Forum.
* Attempting to calm fears that the recent takeover of oil giant YUKOS will mean a return to the era of a state-managed economy, Russian president Vladimir Putin tells Russian businessmen that the government is not planning to take control of the economy. [http://www.latimes.com/business/investing/la-fg-putin15nov15,1,824675.story?coll=la-headlines-business-invest]
* Politics of Canada: Paul Martin is elected leader of the Liberal Party. He becomes Prime Minister-designate and will assume office upon Jean Chrétien's retirement by the end of February 2004. [http://globeandmail.ca/servlet/story/RTGAM.20031114.wspee14/BNStory/Front/]
* The US trade deficit with the People's Republic of China hit a record USD $12.7 billion in September, with imports from mainland China also a record at $14.8 billion. For the first nine months of this year, the total trade deficit was $89.7 billion. At this pace, it will surpass the record of $103 billion set in 2002. [http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,102973,00.html]
* Occupation of Iraq:
** During his visit to London, President Bush plans to meet the families of UK troops killed in Iraq. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3271003.stm]
** Two US troops are killed near Samarra when their vehicle is blown up. [http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=GTTD51RIN4Z1SCRBAE0CFFA?type=topNews&storyID=3824518] US forces kill seven Iraqis thought to have been preparing a rocket attack. [http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=540&e=1&u=/ap/20031114/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq]
** Pentagon bans cameras at funerals in Arlington National Cemetery. Coverage of bodies arriving at Dover Air Force Base is already banned. [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A38338-2003Nov13.html]
* Economy of Japan: Japan's economy grows 0.6% in Q3 to give the 7th quarter of growth after a long recession. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3269673.stm]
* War on Terrorism: A leaked UN report claims that attempts to cut off the flow of funds to al-Qaeda are being undermined by lack of will. [http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/StoryFT/FullStory&c=StoryFT&cid=1066565876294&p=1012571727085]
* Politics of Germany: German opposition party CDU votes to expel Member of Parliament Martin Hohmann after he made a speech that was widely criticised for being anti-Semitic. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3269597.stm]
* India and the People's Republic of China hold joint naval exercises near Shanghai. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3267731.stm]