QUOTE OF THE DAY
“At a time when it is talking to the major powers, Iran smiles and says all sorts of nice things, the same Iran is sending deadly weapons to terrorist organizations.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, after officials said Israeli naval commandos prevented an attempt to smuggle an Iranian shipment of advanced rockets destined for the Gaza Strip Article, this page
Iran boasts of multiple-warhead missiles
TEHRAN, Iran - Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guard said Wednesday that it had acquired missiles with multiple warheads, the latest armaments advance to be claimed by the Islamic Republic.
At a ceremony Wednesday, Defense Minister Hossein Dehghan presented a delivery of four types of ballistic missiles - named Qiam, Qadr H1, Fateh-110 and Persian Gulf. The Qadr H1 and Qiam, he said, are equipped with multiple warheads, greatly boosting their destructive power.
Iran regularly announces breakthroughs in military technology that are impossible to independently verify.
But the Pentagon released a rare public report in 2012 noting significant advances in Iranian missile technology, acknowledging that Tehran has improved missile accuracy and firing capabilities.
China’s military budget expands 12.2%
BEIJING - China announced Wednesday that it was increasing its military budget for 2014 to almost $132 billion, a 12.2 percent rise over last year. The rapid growth in spending is another sign of the country’s goal of becoming a dominant military presence in the Pacific, with a navy able to project power across the region.
The rate of growth in spending is greater than that of recent years. In 2013, China’s defense budget increased by 10.7 percent over the previous year. The country’s military spending is the second-largest in the world, behind that of the United States.
The buildup of the People’s Liberation Army, which also includes navy and air force branches, is considered by many analysts to be consistent with the size of China’s economy - the second-largest in the world - and its global political influence. Nevertheless, the military expansion is being closely watched by other nations in the region and by the United States, the supreme military power in the Pacific.
Foreign military analysts say China’s actual annual military spending is higher than the official figure. IHS Jane’s, a defense-industry consulting and analysis company, estimated that China would spend $148 billion this year. The unofficial estimate is still much less than the military budget of the United States, which is officially $526.8 billion for the 2014 fiscal year.
Legislature axed, vote called in Quebec
MONTREAL - Quebec’s premier dissolved the legislature Wednesday and called an election in a bid to gain a majority of seats for her pro-independence party.
Parti Quebecois Premier Pauline Marois said she needs a majority to revive Quebec’s economy and protect the province’s distinct identity.
“I’m asking you to give us the means to act,” Marois said.
“We have a plan and the team to make our plan succeed.”
The Parti Quebecois’s ultimate goal is to separate from Canada, but there’s no guarantee the party will hold a referendum if it gets a majority.
Opinion polls indicate the idea lacks popular support, and Marois made no mention of sovereignty or another referendum Wednesday. She has so far only promised to hold public hearings.
Voters in the French-speaking province of 8.1 million will head to the polls April 7.
India elections start in April, end in May
NEW DELHI - India’s national elections will begin April 7 and continue on nine separate dates until May 12 with results expected to be announced May 16, according to the Election Commission of India.
The vote is the world’s largest, with 814 million voters eligible to choose 543 members of the lower house of parliament. This election is widely considered to be India’s most consequential since 1977.
No party is expected to win an outright majority in parliament, although the right-of-center Bharatiya Janata Party and its leader, Narendra Modi, enjoy a substantial lead in opinion polls. In total, 272 seats are needed to elect a prime minister, and a potpourri of regional parties will probably be needed to get a majority.
Early polls suggest that the Gandhi family, which has dominated Indian politics for most of the country’s 67-year history, could suffer its worst defeat, with some surveys predicting a rout for the family’s Indian National Congress party. A slowing economy and repeated corruption scandals have tarnished the family’s image.
Front Section, Pages 6 on 03/06/2014