Australian company Mantra Resources has to pay tax bill, for Tanzania uranium mine to go ahead
Tanzania: Uranium Project Licence Shelved Till Tax Bill Paid, Beyond Nuclear 12 Aug 12, Dodoma – A SPECIAL mining licence to allow Russian firm, Uranium One start mining at Mkuju River in the Selous Game Reserve buffer zone, will not be issued until Australian Mantra Resources pay over 180 million US dollars (approx. 292.12bn/-) in taxes, the Parliament was told.
Australia willing to sell uranium to repressive, undemocratic Emirates regime
Think again on uranium sale to illiberal UAE Crikey, by Dr Rodger Shanahan, 8 Aug 12 “……our recent announcement of a $200 million deal to sell uranium to the UAE, and the UAE’s announcement at the same time that it would support Australia’s bid for a seat at the UN Security Council
What you won’t hear from the government or Foreign Affairs Minister Bob Carr is any mention of the Emiratis recent intolerance for anything that approaches free speech. This strikes one as, well, hypocritical, considering this government has espoused the need for autocratic rulers to listen to the voice of the people and in some cases to step aside when they don’t adopt this approach.
On the surface, the UAE is a socially liberal Arab state with which we and many other Western countries have close relations. But below the surface, the UAE is demonstrating that it is just as politically illiberal as other Arab regimes.
How else to explain the forced closure of democracy promotion NGOs earlier this year such as the US-funded National Democratic Institute and the German-funded Konrad Adenauer Foundation? Concerns about what has been happening in the UAE are neatly summarised in an article on open democracy.
Of more concern than the action against foreign NGOs, however, has been the detention without charge of over 50 political and human rights activists accused of a rather Orwellian-sounding plot against state security and the rather more standard claim that they had unspecified ties “to foreign parties”. It appears that no political activists in the Arab world, be it in Syria, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the UAE or Egypt, ever has a legitimate domestic political complaint: all political opposition is always carried out at the behest of foreign powers.
And what is Australia’s view on the crackdown on political activists and the closure of democracy-promoting institutes in the UAE? You guessed it: nothing.
Carr’s statements have spoken of our close trading relationship but you won’t find a single word of criticism levelled against the Emiratis for their unwillingness to countenance free speech. I am an advocate of close relations with the UAE because I believe it serves both our national interests. But a relationship in which we have to remain silent about repression of individual freedoms in order to maintain business interests is one in which we reveal ourselves to be less an activist middle power than a subservient mineral exporter….. http://www.crikey.com.au/2012/08/08/australia-uses-china-policy-on-the-emiratis/
Credibility gulf in Australia’s deal to sell uranium to United Arab Emirates (UAE)
The federal government’s decision to sell uranium to the United Arab Emirates lacks credibility and has the potential to undermine efforts towards nuclear non-proliferation in the Middle East, the Australian Conservation Foundation said today. “In the shadow of Fukushima – an ongoing crisis directly fuelled by Australian uranium – nuclear power is under a cloud as an energy source.
“Japan closed all its nuclear plants for safety testing, Germany has committed to get out of nuclear power within a decade and nations such as Switzerland, Belgium and Italy are moving away from nuclear power. “Plans for new nuclear power reactors in the UK and USA face increased community resistance and scrutiny and increased regulatory compliance costs.
“But despite repeated domestic and international calls, including from the UN Secretary General, the federal government has done nothing to review or enhance nuclear security regimes, bi-lateral safeguards or chain-of-custody arrangements.
“The United Arab Emirates, an alliance of seven monarchies in which each monarch retains absolute power, sits in the middle of an unstable region. “The Arab Spring has not fully sprung in the UAE. “To state that Australian uranium will not be misused because it is in the UAE’s interest not to misuse is naïve and lacks credibility.
“This move by the federal government has the potential to undermine efforts to advance nuclear non-proliferation in the Middle East. “Australia’s uranium export policy continues to be driven by commercial interests, not the national interest. “The Australian Conservation Foundation has serious concerns about the adequacy and capacity of the international nuclear safeguards regime.”
Australian govt rejects USA naval nuclear base, (FOR THE MOMENT ANYWAY)
Smith rejects proposal for US carrier base ABC Radio AM By Naomi Woodley August 02, 2012 Defence Minister Stephen Smith has flatly rejected a proposal to expand a naval base in Perth to accommodate US nuclear-powered aircraft carrier groups.
The idea for a $7 billion US carrier base on Australia’s Indian Ocean seaboard is one of many canvassed in a report commissioned by the US Defence Department from the Centre for Strategic and International Studies think tank.
Mr Smith says while increased US access to the HMAS Stirling base is on the cards in the long term, American aircraft carriers will not be based in Australia. “The report is an independent report to the United States government. It’s not a United States government document,” he said.
“We don’t have United States military bases in Australia and we are not proposing to. What we have talked about in terms of either increased aerial access or naval access is precisely that – greater access to our facilities.” The West Australian Premier and Opposition Leader have also ruled out the aircraft carrier base idea………….
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-08-02/smith-rejects-us-base-proposal/4171086
Australia’s uranium to Arab world- (take back radioactive wastes later?)
Such a stable part of the world – the Middle East ? Australia to take back the radioactive wastes – LATER? – C.M
When Abu Dhabi outlined its plans to build the Arab world’s first nuclear power plant in 2008, it had hoped that some supplier nations would be willing to take back the waste.
Australia to supply UAE nuclear fuel but won’t take radioactive waste, The National April Yee Aug 1, 2012 ABU DHABI // Australia has opened the door to supplying the UAE with nuclear fuel but has ruled out taking back the radioactive waste it generates.
“The UAE meets all the tests, and the tests are rigorous and extensive and we’re happy to make a big commitment to providing them with energy security,” the Australian foreign minister Bob Carr said yesterday.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sheikh Abdullah, signed a nuclear cooperation agreement with Mr Carr last night allowing for such nuclear trade as Abu Dhabi prepares to award a major contract for 15 years’ worth of uranium. But fuel leasing, in which the supplier takes back the spent fuel, is off the cards for now in Australia, which also bans nuclear plants at home. Continue reading
Danger for Australia, linked in with USA’s aggressive attitudes to China
Washington’s global ambitions exceed its power – and that spells trouble for Australia. WA Today, Hugh White, 24 July “….the problems facing America abroad are so intractable, and the measures needed to deal with them are so difficult, that neither side wants to talk about them. In this case we are seeing not consensus, but paralysis. Unfortunately, this second explanation is the right one.
That’s a big worry for Australia as well as for America, because our political leaders also share a deep consensus on foreign policy. Both Gillard and Abbott identify so closely with US positions that America’s foreign policy paralysis becomes ours too……..
The most important change in US foreign policy since 2008 has been the sudden recognition that China’s rise is for real, and that its challenge to US primacy in Asia must be taken seriously. Obama’s response has been to try to face down China by building a new strategic coalition – including Australia – to contain Beijing’s ambitions. He has resisted any idea of constructive accommodation with America’s largest trading partner. This seems a sure road to disaster…..
Obama has failed just as Bush did, and for the same reason. Even more than under Bush, America’s international reach under Obama exceeds its grasp. And now he has added a huge new goal of his own – to push back against China as its economy grows to overtake America’s……
Both Obama and Romney proclaim the same bold agenda for American leadership in the new century, and both assure the voters that this is possible because the US remains as powerful as ever, still able to mould the world to promote American interests and values……
Neither will acknowledge the limits within which a realistic and successful US foreign policy must work. So both prefer to say nothing. That holds the seeds of deep trouble for America, and for Australia.
http://www.watoday.com.au/opinion/society-and-culture/americas-foreign-fantasy-20120723-22kh9.html#ixzz21ZCQS2pt
China’s anxiety about Abbott’s pro USA attitudes?
What, for example, should the Chinese make of a throwaway line in his 2009 conservative manifesto Battlelines, that, ”Although China is likely to become even stronger in the years ahead, this may not mean much change for Australia’s international relationships or foreign policy priorities.” This is the same rising China whose insatiable demand for resources has kept Australia afloat and is on track to become the world’s largest economy. The shift of power to Asia, centred on China, has prompted the Americans to deploy 60 per cent of its navy to the region – hardly something to be dismissed as not ”much change”…..
The view of Abbott the neo-con confronting ideological enemies won’t be helped by his choice of venue for a speech in Washington in the days before he goes to Beijing: the conservative think tank, the Heritage Foundation.
Does Abbott have a plan for managing China in a changing world? Illawarra Mercusry, Daniel Flitton, 24 July 12, PAUL Keating went to Beijing a few months ago, only to find himself at the receiving end of a lecture that is becoming all too familiar for Australian visitors to the Asian superpower.
The feelings of the Chinese people, he was told by a senior official, had been greatly hurt by the recent deployment
of 200 American marines to a base near Darwin…….
what sort of a perspective will Abbott bring to Australia’s international affairs? Continue reading
Australia’s pro nuclear Foreign Minister hastening sales of uranium to India
Australia working to ensure uranium supply to India: Bob Carr to SM Krishna The Economic Times, 11 JUL, 2012, Australia today said it was in the process of working out internal arrangements to ensure supply of the yellowcake to New Delhi.
Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr conveyed this to External Affairs Minister S M Krishna during their talks here in the Cambodian capital on the sidelines of the ASEAN Ministerial meeting.
“As you are aware, Labor party had earlier decided to reverse its policy and supply uranium to India. Mr Carr informed the External Affairs Minister that they are in the process of working out internal arrangements which will enable them to give effect to this policy of the Labor Party and as a government they will finalise this (arrangement) and come to India shortly with the draft,” MEA Spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said…… Continue reading
USA out to get Julian Assange, and Australian govt not helping him,
Foreign Minister Bob Carr… claimed last week that there was “not the remotest 
evidence” of any US government desire to prosecute the WikiLeaks founder.
Fresh call on Assange ‘espionage’ SMH Philip Dorling July 2, 2012 THE head of the United States Senate’s powerful intelligence oversight committee has renewed calls for Julian Assange to be prosecuted for espionage. The US Justice Department has also confirmed WikiLeaks remains the target of a criminal investigation, calling into question Australian government claims the US has no interest in extraditing Mr Assange. Continue reading
Lynas Corporation will have to agree to returning its radioactive wastes to Australia, unless it finds a permanent solution
The Temporary Operating License will only be issued after Lynas fulfils two new conditions imposed
AELB: Lynas committed to returning radioactive waste to Australia The Malaysian Insider By
Lisa J. Ariffin June 28, DENGKIL, June 28 — Lynas is committed to return all potentially harmful waste from its rare earths plant here to Australia despite its government’s firm refusal to take it in, Malaysia’s radiation regulator said today.
The Atomic Energy Licensing Board (AELB) told reporters today the Australian miner would have to send home all residue that could not be turned into commercial products or if a location for a permanent disposal facility (PDF) here could not be determined or approved.
“Lynas will have 10 months to come up with a permanent disposal facility plan for its radioactive residue upon receiving its temporary operating license (TOL),” said Dr Noor Hasnah Mohamed Khairullah who is special adviser to the AELB director-general.
“If they fail to find a location for the PDF, or if the plan is not approved, then Lynas has to return the residues back to Australia. Continue reading
Ever subservient to USA, Australia’s Foreign Minister ducks and weaves, pretending to support Julian Assange
Diplomatic cables released under freedom of information legislation show that in December 2010 the Australian embassy in Washington reported to Canberra that WikiLeaks was the target of an ”unprecedented” US criminal investigation focussed on possible espionage charges
Mr Assange observed that it was “fascinating to note that the government is at odds with popular opinion; it’s not acting in its electoral interests – which makes one wonder what interests it’s really serving.”
Assange seeking US legal guarantee, The Age, Philip Dorling June 25, 20 JULIAN Assange hopes his bid for political asylum at the Ecuadorian embassy in London will elicit diplomatic guarantees that he will not be prosecuted by the United States on espionage and conspiracy charges.
However, Foreign Minister Bob Carr yesterday renewed the Australian government’s strong criticism of WikiLeaks and indicated support for Mr Assange will remain limited to routine consular assistance Continue reading
Lynas rare earths plant in Malaysia to go ahead without plan for long term disposal of radioactive wastes?
why are we talking about a storage facility in Malaysia when it was made clear that one of the prerequisite to the Temporary Operating License or TOL is that the waste be shipped back to Western Australia?
The Australian government reiterated that it will not accept responsibility for any waste material produced by Lynas, although one of the five conditions attached to the recent approval of its temporary operating license is that it must take full responsibility for waste management from its plant including returning the waste to the source, if necessary.
But in a media briefing, AELB director-general, Raja Abdul Aziz Raja Adnan, gave his assurance that the board would insist on a letter of undertaking from Lynas Australia that it would adhere to this condition.
TOL sell-out by PSC: The final smirk from Lynas Malaysia Chronicle, by Charles Santiago, 19 June 12, We welcome the report of the Parliamentary Select Committee which has produced its recommendations, including the upgrading of the standards used by the AELB. But while we appreciate the effort, this is clearly a document which has only looked at ways to keep the Lynas Advance Material Plant (LAMP) in operation.
The key area – returning the radioactive waste to Western Australia – has not been looked at although it was one of the earliest pre-conditions to the government granting Lynas a Temporary Operating License.
Violating pre-requisite to the Temporary Operating License (TOL) Over a ten-year period of the plant’s operation, the total volume of wastes will amount to 2,766,600 cubic metro. Over a 20-year period, as Lynas continues to enjoy its tax break, the waste would presumably have doubled. And it is highly inconceivable that there will be enough soil and technology available to “dilute” the wastes and remove its radiation level to natural ground level radiation.
This is especially crucial as Lynas plans to store the wastes onside in the Residue Storage Facility (RSF). Continue reading
Malaysia’s Atomic Energy Licensing Board (AELB) set radiation standards to exempt Lynas to reuse wastes
the Atomic Energy Licensing Board (AELB) has arbitrarily set its own safety standards for radiation exposure, which is not in accordance with international standards. The AELB standards would be used to exempt and clear Lynas’ radioactive wastes for reuse and recycle. The exposure to radioactive waste was one of the causes that led to high levels of lead poisoning and other severe health complications of the people in Bukit Merah.
TOL sell-out by PSC: The final smirk from Lynas , Malaysia Chronicle, by Charles Santiago, 19 June 2012 “…….Health over investment? The PSC has outlined a guideline to look into health measures for the people, wording it to say that this was undertaken to arrest the fears of the public. Severe birth defects, eight leukemia cases over five years in a community of 11,000, tears and anguish of the poor people from a largely shoe-making community – these are not news headlines. Neither is it the plot of a movie.
These are the consequences of carelessly allowing the Asian Rare Earth factory to be built in Bukit Merah, Perak in 1982. When Mitsubishi Chemical started operating its rare earth factory, the villagers complained of choking sensation, pungent smell, coughs and colds.
The community also saw a sharp rise in the cases of infant deaths, congenital disease, leukemia and lead poisoning. Thirty years later, it has not wiped out the memories and heartache of the villagers who lost their children and loved ones. Only the government is feigning ignorance. Continue reading
China uneasy about USA’s increasing militarism in Australia
Home-brewed cold war bad for business, WA Today, Patrick Porter,June 18, 2012 PICK a godfather. That was the barbed warning of a former senior officer of China’s People’s Liberation Army to Australia. Choose between China (its greatest trading partner) and the US (its greatest ally and security guarantor).
In a recent visit to Beijing, Australia’s defence minister was quizzed by Chinese generals why our country is hosting 2500 marines in rotations through the Northern Territory and strengthening its defence ties with Washington.
They know about Australia’s blueprint for a future war alongside the US against China in the secret chapter of the
2009 Defence white paper, even if it was merely a contingency plan. The hostility of Chinese officials underscores Australia’s strategic dilemma: how to cope within an escalating rivalry between Beijing and Washington, and the threat that our trading interests and military-security interests could come into conflict.
http://www.watoday.com.au/opinion/politics/homebrewed-cold-war-bad-for-business-20120617-20hzt.html#ixzz1yB4na2No
Australian rare earths company Lynas backing out of its processing project in Africa
Lynas Likely To Give Up Rare Earths Project in Africa International Business Times, By Esther Tanquintic-Misa | June 14, 2012 With its highly-controversial Malaysian rare earths processing plant an already ample source of headache, Lynas Corp. has been reported to be likely backing out from another rare earths project, this time in Africa.
Citing unidentified industry sources, The West Australian reported that Lynas Corp. is thinking of shunning the Kangankunde rare earths project in Malawi after a Malawi High Court questioned the authenticity of the Australian miner’s ownership over the project…..
With the recent development, the Australian rare earths miner deemed it might be better to give up the African project altogether, than suffer again the same fate as with its highly controversial rare earths processing plant in Malaysia, The West Australian reported…. Lynas Corp. “is reassessing the project’s risks in the context of Malawi’s present governance and institutional frameworks,” sources told The West Australian. … http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/351984/20120614/lynas-corp-rare-earths-malawi-africa-malaysia.htm
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