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IDOMENI, Greece : “We will all die here. We are not leaving.” Abdul points to the lifeless body of a fellow Moroccan who electrocuted himself to death on Thursday by grabbing high-voltage train cables on the Greek border with FYROM.

Police believe he did it intentionally, growing increasingly desperate after days trapped on the border. Holding the man’s body, a group of Moroccan men moved towards the border crossing with cries of “Allahu akbar” (“God is greatest”). Greek police fired tear gas to push them back.

Another Moroccan had been badly burned in a similar incident on Saturday. “We have been here for five days,” says Mohammed, also Moroccan. “We have no food and we are cold. Why won’t they let us through? Aren’t we human? We are not terrorists,” he told AFP. With FYROM authorities only letting through refugees from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, migrants from other countries have been blocked on the border with Greece for days or even weeks.

Their anger boiled over early Thursday. Groups of migrants seized communal tents operated by humanitarian agencies and destroyed some prefab houses set up by the UN refugee agency.

Meanwhile, nearly 2,000 migrants have been rescued off the Libyan coast in 11 separate operations, the Italian navy said Thursday, after a break in bad weather sparked fresh attempts at the perilous Mediterranean crossing.

The migrants were plucked from eight dinghies and three boats by the Italian coastguard, the navy, a Doctors Without Borders (MSF) boat and two vessels taking part in the EU’s Operation Sophia, which patrols the sea for people smugglers.

The rescue followed a lull in arrivals caused by bad weather, during which only around 400 migrants were picked up in over 10 days – a startlingly low number compared to the summer months, when an average of 760 people a day were rescued.

The Italian coastguard said the rescues took place after the command centre in Rome received calls for help by satellite phone from the migrant vessels.
Four dinghies with a total of 458 migrants on board were intercepted by the coast guard, while another 300 migrants were picked up from three other dinghies by the Italian navy.

Spanish frigate Canarias and Britain’s Enterprise, both deployed in the Sophia operation, picked up 286 and 416 migrants respectively from two boats, while MSF’s Bourbon Argos saved 428 migrants from a boat and 96 from a dinghy.
MSF also said Thursday they had launched a joint operation with environmental group Greenpeace to rescue people risking their lives on the crossing between Turkey and Greece.

The operation will use three boats based on Greece’s Lesbos island, in cooperation with the Greek coastguard.

According to the United Nations, the number of migrants crossing the Mediterranean to Europe fell by more than a third last month, due to bad weather and a Turkish crackdown on traffickers in the Aegean on the route into Greece.

The International Organization for Migration estimated in late November that nearly 860,000 migrants had landed in Europe so far this year, with more than 3,500 dying while crossing the Mediterranean in search of safety.

On Tuesday, the UN’s children’s agency warned that women and children make up an increasing proportion of the migrants and refugees on the move, and currently account for more than half, up from just 27 percent a few months ago.

source:nation.com.pk

CLAIMS have emerged a Gundagai highway patrol officer issued speeding tickets to fictitious foreign drivers so that he could reach an informal quota set by his bosses.

The 39-year-old officer was charged last week on 16 counts of modifying restricted data held on a police computer.

He claimed he had caught 16 drivers from different countries speeding in and around Wagga
The false tickets were allegedly issued to international drivers that didn’t actually exist.

The officer allegedly believed he would escape detection if the tickets were made out to foreigners because the State Debt Recovery Office would not pursue them once they’d returned overseas.
The officer is believed to be a senior constable attached to the highway patrol command. He will face court on January 6.

source:theherald.com.au

THE Department of Defence has told a Senate inquiry that it is “too early” to talk about compensation for people affected by the Williamtown RAAF Base contamination scandal.

Appearing at the inquiry’s first hearing in Canberra on Thursday, Defence deputy secretary Steve Grzeskowiak said consideration of compensation was “complex” and “needs to be taken as the full impact [of the contamination] emerges over time”.

Pressed by Greens Senator Lee Rhiannon on whether compensation was being discussed internally, Defence special counsel Michael Lysewycz said his office was “having discussions”, but said it was “too early” to talk about the issue in detail.

It’s a step back from September 30, when the commander of the Williamtown RAAF Base, Air Commodore Steve Roberton, told a public meting in Tomago that “Defence polluted here, Defence pays”.
“There’s a lot of good intent at the moment but actually to trigger compensation especially for those who really need it, we need to get the federal and the state level connected,” he said at the time.

“It’s actually getting the mechanism for the money to get it into the right groups.”

But at the hearing on Thursday, Mr Grzeskowiak backed away from those comments, saying he was not aware of them, and that it would “not be Defence’s position”.

The hearing went for just under three hours, and also covered the issue of when Defence knew about the contamination, and its response to the scandal so far.

Mr Grzeskowiak acknowledged “the legacy environmental contamination issue” at Williamtown and said Defence was “committed to undertaking ecological and human health risk assessments to understand current exposure scenarios and associated risks”.

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As well as Defence officials, the inquiry heard testimony from NSW Chief Scientist Mary O’Kane, and Peter Shannon and Rory Ross, two solicitors from law firm Shine Lawyers.

Shine represents a group of residents from Oakey in Queensland, a town close to an army aviation base that has also seen PFOS and PFOA contamination spread beyond the base into private water bores.

Mr Shannon said Defence would need to be “pushed” by the parliament to provide serious financial compensation.

“Defence is charged with protecting the public purse strings so it is not going to voluntarily cough up compensation, it has to be pushed,” he said.

“The only entity with the power to do that is Parliament.”

Greens Senator Lee Rhiannon asked whether the Commonwealth had already admitted liability for the contamination by paying financial compensation to businesses like fishing trawlers, but Mr Shannon said that was “not necessarily” the case.

“That can be done, and usually is, without an admission of liability,” he said.

Following the hearing, Newcastle MP Sharon Claydon said she “welcomed Defence’s commitment to resolving this complex issue”, but called on the government to “clarify” the compensation situation.

“What compensation is going to be provided to residents and local businesses who have suffered losses?” she said.

“Because they still haven’t committed to that.”

The hearing went for just under three hours, and covered the issue of when Defence knew about the contamination, the prospect of compensation, and Defence’s response so far.

The Newcastle Herald reported in September that Defence first knew about possible environmental impacts from firefighting foam containing PFOS in 2003, and Mr Grzeskowiak said Defence had tried to limit the release of the foam into the environment from then.

Despite that, the foam wasn’t phased out at the base until 2012, and is still used in trace amounts when fighting fires in “critical incidents”.

Mr Grzeskowiak did not respond directly to questions from the inquiry chair Alex Gallacher about what Defence did to stop PFOS leaking into groundwater and onto neighbouring land once it was aware the contaminant was on the base in December 2011.

source:theherald.com.au

Οι Αρχές της Αυστραλίας περιόρισαν το πεδίο έρευνας για τη χαμένη πτήση ΜΗ370 σε μία ζώνη δεκάδων τετραγωνικών χιλιομέτρων στον νότιο Ινδικό Ωκεανό και δηλώνουν πεπεισμένοι ότι το Boeing 777 της Malaysia Airlines, που παραμένει άφαντο από τις 8 Μαρτίου του 2014, έχει καταπέσει στο σημείο αυτό.

Η έρευνα για την πτήση ΜΗ370 εκτείνεται σε μία περιοχή 120.000 τετραγωνικών χιλιομέτρων και μέχρι τώρα δεν έχει αποδώσει κανένα αποτέλεσμα.

Το μόνο εύρημα από τη συντριβή του αεροσκάφους ήταν ένα κομμάτι από πηδάλιο της πτέρυγας (flaperon) που βρέθηκε στο νησί Ρεϊνιόν, στο δυτικό Ινδικό Ωκεανό, πολλές χιλιάδες χιλιόμετρα από το σημείο των ερευνών.

Από την παραπάνω έκταση, υψηλή προτεραιότητα δίνεται πλέον σε μία περιοχή 98.000 τετραγωνικών χιλιομέτρων, από την οποία έχουν ήδη ερευνηθεί τα 54.000 τετραγωνικά χιλιόμετρα. Το 7% της έκτασης αυτής πρέπει να ψαχτεί εκ νέου, λόγω ατελειών στην ηχοβολιστική έρευνα.

Κατά τους χειμερινούς μήνες στις έρευνες συμμετείχαν δύο πλοία εξοπλισμένα με σόναρ. Σε αυτά θα προστεθεί ένα τρίτο πλοίο, το οποίο έχει τη δυνατότητα να αναπτύξει ένα μη επανδρωμένο βαθυσκάφος με κάμερα.

Τα παραπάνω σκάφη θα συνδράμει από τον Ιανουάριο ένα κινεζικό πλοίο, το οποίο διαθέτει σόναρ τελευταίας τεχνολογίας και μέγιστης δυνατής ακρίβειας (Synthetic Aperture Sonar). Το πλοίο αυτό θα αναλάβει τον επανέλεγχο μία δύσκολης περιοχής, στην τάφρο που διαπερνά τη ζώνη των ερευνών.

Για τον περιορισμό της έκτασης στην τρέχουσα περιοχή υψηλής προτεραιότητας, χρησιμοποιήθηκε ένα νέο μαθηματικό μοντέλο, καθώς και δεδομένα από χιλιάδες πτήσεις. Το τελικό αποτέλεσμα δοκιμάστηκε σε πραγματικές πτήσεις και προέβλεψε με ακρίβεια το ίχνος τους.

«Διατηρούμε την ελπίδα μας, για την ακρίβεια είμαστε αισόδοξοι, ότι θα εντοπίσουμε το αεροσκάφος» δήλωσε ο αναπληρωτής πρωθυπουργός της Αυστραλίας, Ουόρεν Τρους. Όπως πρόσθεσε, η νέα ανάλυση είναι «πραγματικά ενθαρρυντική» για το ότι βρίσκονται στο σωστό δρόμο.

Πηγή:in.gr

Moscow announced a halt to talks on a major gas pipeline with NATO member Ankara as Putin fired another salvo in their war of words, while Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan shot back by claiming he had “proof” Russia was involved in illegal oil trading with the Islamic State group.

BELGRADE: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday (Dec 3) vowed that the Turkish leadership would be made to regret the downing of one of Moscow’s warplanes, as Ankara presented its condolences for the death of a Russian pilot in the incident.

Moscow announced a halt to talks on a major gas pipeline with NATO member Ankara as Putin fired another salvo in their war of words and Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan shot back by claiming he had “proof” Russia was involved in illegal oil trading with the Islamic State group.

Following talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Belgrade in the highest bilateral level contact since the crisis began, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu presented his condolences for the death of a Russian pilot in the incident.

But he stopped short of issuing the apology that Moscow has demanded and admitted that there had been no breakthrough in the 40-minute talks on the sidelines of a security conference.

Russia and Turkey have been plunged into their worst crisis since the Cold War over Turkey’s downing of a Russian jet on its border with Syria on Nov 24 – sparking fury and economic sanctions from the Kremlin.

Russia has accused Erdogan and his family of personally profiting from the oil trade with IS, which controls a large chunk of Syrian territory including many oil fields.

“We will not forget this complicity with terrorists. We always considered and will always consider treachery to be the ultimate and lowest act,” Putin told lawmakers in his annual state of the nation speech.

“We know for example who in Turkey fills their pockets and allows terrorists to make money from the stolen oil in Syria.”

‘REGRET THEIR ACTIONS’
Erdogan has furiously denied the accusations against him and his family and said Turkey had proof that Russia was, in fact, involved in trading oil with IS.

“We have the proof in our hands. We will reveal it to the world,” the Turkish leader said in a televised speech in Ankara.

Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu accused Moscow of running a “Soviet propaganda machine” along the lines of the Communist Party mouthpiece daily Pravda.

Putin, whose administration has already announced sanctions against Ankara including a ban on the import of some Turkish foods, and reintroduced visas for Turkish visitors, insisted Turkey would be made to regret its actions.

“We will not rattle our sabres. But if someone thinks that after committing heinous war crimes, the murder of our people, it will end with (an embargo on) tomatoes and limitations in construction and other fields then they are deeply mistaken,” Putin said.

“We will not stop reminding them of what they did and they will not stop regretting their actions.”

Both Russian pilots ejected from the Su-24 plane after being shot down by two Turkish F-16s.

One was killed while parachuting to the ground – in circumstances yet to be fully explained – while a second was rescued by Russian and Syrian forces from the Syrian side of the border. Another Russian serviceman was killed in the rescue operation.

“We expressed our sadness and expressed our condolences for the Russian pilot who lost his life,” Cavusoglu said after meeting Lavrov in the Serbian capital. But he added: “It would not be realistic to say that the problems have been overcome in a first meeting.”

The meeting was the first such high-level encounter since the shooting down, after Putin on Monday snubbed Erdogan at the UN climate summit in Paris.

In comments broadcast on Russian television, Lavrov also confirmed that there had been no breakthrough. “We did not hear anything new. The Turkish minister confirmed the positions which they have already voiced,” he said.

‘ALLAH PUNISHED THE ELITE’

Immediately after Putin’s speech Russia’s energy minister Alexander Novak announced the suspension of talks between Ankara and Moscow over the major TurkStream pipeline project.

Negotiations over the project to pipe Russian gas to Turkey under the Black Sea have been floundering since Moscow launched air strikes in Syria in late September in support of the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, which Ankara fiercely opposes.

But the official announcement of the break-off in the talks dealt another blow to Russian-Turkish ties, as Putin lamented the damage to a relationship that he has spent years nurturing.

“Only Allah, most likely, knows why they did this. And evidently Allah decided to punish the ruling clique in Turkey by depriving them of their intelligence and reason,” he said.

source:channelnewsasia.com

ERIC Holland was just killing time in his shed when he came across a mature lace monitor in his backyard earlier this week.

“I was just doing a repair job in my shed when I opened the door and I saw this huge thing run across the ground and out of sight,” Mr Holland said.

“I went inside after I saw it in the backyard and heard a banging noise coming from the side of the house.

“When I went outside I saw him on the side of the house with his tail hitting the drain pipe,” Mr Holland said.

Mr Holland was quick enough to snap a photo of the estimated five foot goanna scaled on the side of his Thurgoona home.

Mr Holland has lived in the area for 18 years said he has never seen anything quite like it in his backyard.

“It was a big surprise really. I something get blue tongues and lizards in the backyard but never anything quite like this.”

The goanna quickly shuffled off Mr Holland’s property. Mr Holland has not sighted the reptile since.

The NSW Office of Environment and Heritage said it would not be unusual for a lace monitor to be found in the area around Albury.

Lace Monitors can grow to around two metres in length and weight up to 20 kilograms.

source:theherald.com.au

Sydney (AFP) — Australia on Thursday said fresh analysis of data on missing jet MH370 confirmed authorities are searching in the right place, with hopes remaining that it will one day be found.

Australia has been leading the difficult search in the remote southern Indian Ocean for the Malaysia Airlines plane since it mysteriously disappeared on March 8 last year en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people on board.

Based on satellite analysis of the jet’s likely trajectory after it diverted from its flight path, ships have been scouring the seabed off Australia’s west coast, so far covering 75,000 square kilometres (29,000 square miles) of a 120,000 square kilometre target zone without result.

Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss said the Australian Defence Science and Technology Group had been tasked with crunching all available data once again to make sure nothing had been missed.

The conclusions, using models of Inmarsat satellite communications data, aircraft dynamics and meteorological data to determine likely flight paths, were released in a new report — “MH370 – Definition of Underwater Search Areas.”

“The key outcomes of this additional work validate what has happened so far. It affirms that the aircraft is likely located somewhere in the 120,000 square kilometre area along the seventh arc,” Truss said, referring to the area where authorities believe the plane went down.

“The new research further emphasises that we are searching in the right direction, it uses different methodology and has come to the same conclusions.

“That gives us real encouragement that every effort is being made to ensure the search is well focused and well targeted and hopefully will therefore achieve someday a satisfactory result.”

Three ships continue to scour the area, in between returning to port to resupply — a four-day voyage in each direction through often harsh conditions.

“Weather continues to impact on search operations but the onset of summer is expected to bring more favourable conditions over the coming months,” the Joint Agency Coordination Centre said in a separate update Thursday.

Speculation on the cause of the plane’s disappearance has focused primarily on a possible mechanical or structural failure, a hijacking or terror plot, or rogue pilot action.

Investigators believe the aircraft ran out of fuel and crashed somewhere in the southern Indian Ocean, sparking one of the biggest mysteries in aviation history.

Despite the satellite evidence pointing to the plane going down, many Chinese relatives of those on board remain sceptical, and are convinced their loved ones are alive, perhaps being held at an unknown location.

In July, a two-metre-long (almost seven-foot) flaperon wing part washed up on a beach on the Indian Ocean island of Reunion which was confirmed to be from the ill-fated flight, marking the first concrete evidence that MH370 met a tragic end.

But analysts have said that only by locating the crash site and recovering the black box will authorities be able to solve the mystery of why the plane went down.

source:mysinchew.com

In happier times: Then Opposition Leader Tony Abbott meets the Queen in 2011. Photo: Getty Images

Tony Abbott, Australia’s most famous monarchist, asked to see the Queen, but she declined.

After losing the prime ministership, Tony Abbott sought an audience with the Queen during his trip to London last month, but the request was declined.

Mr Abbott, Australia’s most famous monarchist and a former executive director of Australians for Constitutional Monarchy, was told that the Queen’s schedule would not permit a meeting although she was in London at the time.

Mr Abbott’s unsuccessful bid is revealed in part 5 of Fairfax Media’s Shirtfronted series on the life of the Abbott government.

It also reveals that, on his last day in power, three of Mr Abbott’s cabinet ministers discussed going to see him together to tell him his time was up.

In the morning of the day of the coup, Christopher Pyne and George Brandis, both Turnbull supporters by this point, separately phoned Julie Bishop about going together to see the leader.

She rejected the idea. Ms Bishop decided it had reached the critical point. It would be humiliating for a delegation to call on Mr Abbott.

She decided to go alone. She arranged to meet him the minute he returned from a trip to Adelaide, shortly before noon, and told him he’d lost the support of the party.

Ms Bishop still intended to vote for him until he later offered her job as deputy to another minister, Scott Morrison. At that, she considered herself no longer bound to vote for the leader

A few hours after Ms Bishop’s call, Mr Turnbull went to see Mr Abbott to declare his challenge.

Mr Abbott was startled, despite feverish media reporting and warnings from colleagues.

He and his then chief of staff, Peta Credlin, had sometimes described Mr Turnbull in private as “another Peter Costello”, all pose and no punch. They seemed to be convinced that he would never challenge.

The first leadership spill against Mr Abbott was precipitated when he announced that he had knighted the Queen’s husband, Prince Philip.
The first leadership spill against Mr Abbott was precipitated when he announced that he had knighted the Queen’s husband, Prince Philip. Photo: Getty Images

Mr Abbott, invited to give the Margaret Thatcher oration, was in London from October 26 to 28.

The Queen’s daily schedule, which is published by the Palace, shows that she had only two appointments on the 26th and was apparently free in the evening.

On the 27th she hosted a morning reception and had an evening meeting with Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron but nothing in between.

And on the third and final day of Mr Abbott’s trip she had no appointments all day but gave a reception in the evening, according to her published diary.

Mr Abbott once quoted Pascal in explaining widespread public support for the monarchy: “The heart has reasons that reason cannot know.”

The former prime minister was careful to consult the Governor-General, Sir Peter Cosgrove, before approaching the Palace to make sure he was not breaching etiquette. He was encouraged to go ahead. Other former prime ministers have been granted audiences.

It’s not clear whether Mr Abbott had any particular purpose in his request, but he said in September that part of the Queen’s appeal was as a symbolism of continuity: “The Crown is a fixed and stable point in a shifting and changing world.”

source:smh.com.au

Ο Γιώργος Πάρθημος, διευθύνων σύμβουλος της Connexion Media, χτίζει «γέφυρες» τεχνολογίας με τα μεγαθήρια στο χώρο κατασκευής αυτοκινήτων στο Detroit.

Ο Γιώργος Πάρθημος, ο ομογενής γενικός διευθυντής της Connexion Media, που μία φορά και έναν καιρό -πριν από περίπου 10 χρόνια- δημιούργησε την πλατφόρμα διαδικτυακού ραδιοφώνου για αυτοκίνητα miRoamer- εισάγει στην Αυστραλία μία καινοτόμα ιδέα. Όπως ανέφερε στο «Νέο Κόσμο», η προσπάθεια αυτή, η οποία έχει την στήριξη της πολιτειακής κυβέρνησης της Βικτώριας, στοχεύει στο να βοηθήσει πολλές νέες εταιρίες παραγωγής τεχνολογίας για αυτοκίνητα στην Αυστραλία να κερδίσουν συμβόλαια με τα μεγαθήρια της παγκόσμιας αυτοκινητοβιομηχανίας αλλά και, γενικότερα, την έλευση μίας νέας εποχής στον τομέα της αυτοκινητοβιομηχανίας της Αυστραλίας.

«Συναντήθηκα με την υπουργό Βιομηχανίας της Βικτώριας, κ. Lily D’ Ambrosio, προκειμένου να τής εκθέσω το σκεπτικό της ίδρυσης αυτού του Κέντρου Καινοτομίας, αλλά και το γεγονός ότι οι ομόλογοί της στο Detroit είναι έτοιμοι να συνεργαστούν με την Αυστραλία. Η υπουργός ενδιαφέρθηκε άμεσα και έχουμε ήδη ξεκινήσει τη διαδικασία σχεδιασμού αυτού του Κέντρου, για τη δημιουργία του οποίου η κυβέρνηση θα βοηθήσει. Στόχος του θα είναι η εμπορευματοποίηση προϊόντων τεχνολογίας νέων εταιριών ή ατόμων που αυτή τη στιγμή δεν έχουν πρόσβαση στην αγορά λόγω των γνωστών περιορισμών.

Η Αυστραλία διαθέτει πολλά ταλέντα, αλλά οι νέες ιδέες (start ups) σταματούν στα σύνορά της ή σε κάποια εργαστήρια, γιατί, όπως γνωρίζετε, είναι πολύ δύσκολο, λόγω του ανταγωνισμού που υπάρχει και των κεφαλαίων που χρειάζονται για την έξοδό τους στην παγκόσμια αγορά, να φτάσουν αυτά τα προϊόντα στα αυτιά και τα μάτια των μεγάλων εταιριών. Κάποιος πρέπει να τους τα δείξει, να τους τα προτείνει, να τους τα προωθήσει. Νομίζω ότι είμαι σε θέση να το κάνω αυτό με δεδομένη την σχέση που έχω αποκτήσει με τις μεγάλες αυτοκινητοβιομηχανίες. Και αυτός θα είναι ο στόχος του νέου αυτού Κέντρου Καινοτομίας» μας λέει ο κ. Πάρθημος.

Το συνολικό κόστος του Κέντρου, όπως ο ίδιος υπολογίζει, θα φτάσει τα $5 εκατ. Πέρα από την κυβερνητική οικονομική στήριξη, ο ίδιος έχει ήδη έρθει σε επαφή με επενδυτές και εταιρίες διαχείρισης επενδυτικών κεφαλαίων, αναζητώντας επιπρόσθετα κεφάλαια για τη δημιουργία του. «Υπάρχει ενδιαφέρον ακόμα και από την ομοσπονδιακή κυβέρνηση της Αυστραλίας. Είμαστε στην φάση της διερεύνησης, αλλά πιστεύω, ότι αν η όλη προσπάθεια προχωρήσει με τους ρυθμούς που προχωρά αυτή τη στιγμή το Κέντρο -που θα έχει δύο έδρες, μία στη Μελβούρνη και μία στο Detroit-, θα ξεκινήσει να παράγει ουσιαστικό έργο στα μέσα της επόμενης χρονιάς.

Η Connexion, η εταιρία της οποίας ο ίδιος ηγείται, έχει ήδη μπει στην επόμενη φάση του τομέα παραγωγής εξαρτημάτων και τεχνολογίας για την παγκόσμια αγορά. Αυτή τη στιγμή, η αυστραλιανή εταιρία έχει καταφέρει κάτι που πολλές άλλες μικρές επιχειρήσεις της Αυστραλίας ή ταλαντούχοι κατασκευαστές δεν τολμούν ούτε καν να ονειρευτούν υπό την παρούσα κατάσταση.

Ήδη η General Motors, η Ford και άλλες 10 μεγάλες αυτοκινητοβιομηχανίες χρησιμοποιούν τα δύο βασικά προϊόντα της Connexion, την πλατφόρμα miRoamer και την εφαρμογή Flex, η οποία ελέγχει τη μηχανική απόδοση των οχημάτων που έχουν επανδρωθεί μ’ αυτή στην παραγωγή των «έξυπνων» αυτοκινήτων τους.

«Χρειάστηκε πολύ σκληρή δουλειά για να φτάσει η Connexion εδώ που είναι σήμερα. Εκείνο, όμως, που αποκομίσαμε είναι γνωριμίες σε υψηλά πόστα. Κάθε φορά που θα εμφανιστώ στη General Motors, τη Volkswagen, τη Peugeot ή στα γραφεία κάποιας άλλης μεγάλης αυτοκινητοβιομηχανίας, μετά την οποιαδήποτε παρουσίαση ή κουβέντα μας, ακούω την ίδια ερώτηση «Γιώργο έχεις να μας δείξεις κάτι άλλο, καινούριο;». Αναφέρονται στο συγκεκριμένο τομέα, αυτόν του «έξυπνου» αυτοκινήτου (connected car). Εγώ δεν τα ξέρω όλα, ξέρω όμως ότι υπάρχουν πολλά προϊόντα στην Αυστραλία, πολλά start ups και χρειαζόμαστε ένα Κέντρο το οποίο θα μπορεί να κατευθύνει τους κατασκευαστές στη σωστή οδό, να αποτελέσει καταλύτη, αλλά και αρωγό στο να προωθήσουμε αυτά τα προϊόντα. Πρέπει να συνεργαστούμε, αν θέλουμε να περάσουμε στην «έξυπνη» εποχή στον χώρο της αυτοκινητοβιομηχανίας» λέει.

Ενδεικτικά να αναφέρουμε ότι, σύμφωνα με έρευνα της Gartner, έως το 2020 o αριθμός των «έξυπνων» αυτοκινήτων που θα κυκλοφορούν στους δρόμους θα ξεπεράσει τα 250 εκατ.

Στην προσπάθεια δημιουργίας του Κέντρου, ο Γιώργος Πάρθημος δεν κρύβει και το εμπορικό ενδιαφέρον της Connexion Media, στην οποία -να σημειώσουμε- έχουν επενδύσει και πολλοί ομογενείς.

«Στην Connexion έχουμε αποκτήσει το know how και τις γνωριμίες και αυτό θα μοιραστούμε με το νέο Κέντρο. Δεν αποκλείω, όμως, κάποια στιγμή να ενδιαφερθεί η Connexion να επενδύσει σε κάποιες άλλες αυστραλιανές εταιρίες και τα προϊόντα τους».

Πηγή:Νέος Κόσμος

Οι δύο χώρες συμφώνησαν σε πιο «στενή» στρατιωτική συνεργασία, σύμφωνα με αποκλειστικό δημοσίευμα της «The Australian»

Οι αρχηγοί των Ενόπλων Δυνάμεων της Αυστραλίας και της Κίνας, συμφώνησαν -σε συνάντησή τους- να συνεργαστούν πιο στενά σε αμυντικό επίπεδο, με απώτερο στόχο την καταπολέμηση της τρομοκρατίας.

Την περασμένη Δευτέρα, ο αρχηγός των Ενόπλων Δυνάμεων της Αυστραλίας, Mark Binskin, υποδέχθηκε στην Καμπέρα τον αρχηγό των Ενόπλων Δυνάμεων της Κίνας, Fang Fenghui. Οι δύο άνδρες επισκέφθηκαν το Αρχηγείο Κοινών Επιχειρήσεων των αυστραλιανών Ενόπλων Δυνάμεων στις παρυφές της περιοχής Bungendore, ενώ στη συνέχεια ο στρατηγός Fang επιθεώρησε το άγημα των Αυστραλιανών Δυνάμεων στην έδρα του Γενικού Επιτελείου στο Russel Hill της Καμπέρας. Στον χώρο όπου έγινε η επιθεώρηση βρίσκονταν Κινέζοι δημοσιογράφοι, αλλά όχι εκπρόσωποι των ΜΜΕ της Αυστραλίας.

Η συγκεκριμένη συμφωνία, δεν έχει επιβεβαιωθεί ακόμα από την αυστραλιανή κυβέρνηση, αλλά σύμφωνα με δημοσίευμα της εφημερίδας «The Australian», η οποία επικαλείται σχετικό έγγραφο που εξέδωσαν οι κινεζικές Αρχές και έχει στην κατοχή της, αναφέρει ότι η συνεργασία αναβαθμίστηκε σε ανώτερο επίπεδο και οι σχέσεις των ενόπλων δυνάμεων βρίσκονται σε ιστορικά στενό επίπεδο. Μάλιστα, στο έγγραφο ανακοινωθέν γίνεται λόγος για νέες κοινές στρατιωτικές ασκήσεις.

Όπως αναφέρει το σχετικό δημοσίευμα, το οποίο επικαλείται κυβερνητικές πηγές, έχει ήδη προγραμματιστεί και επίσκεψη της υπουργού Άμυνας, Marise Payne, στην Κίνα την επόμενη χρονιά με απώτερο στόχο την προώθηση των αμυντικών σχέσεων μεταξύ των δύο χωρών.

Η νέα προσπάθεια στρατιωτικής συνεργασίας μεταξύ των δυο χωρών έρχεται στον απόηχο της όξυνσης των σχέσεων της Κίνας με τις γείτονες χώρες της, στην περιοχή της Ανατολικής και Νότιας Σινικής Θάλασσας.

Κατά την προ μηνών διένεξη του Πεκίνου με τις γειτονικές χώρες, όπως οι Φιλιππίνες και το Βιετνάμ, που διεκδικούσαν την επίμαχη περιοχή και τον υποθαλάσσιο πλούτο της, η Ουάσιγκτον στο πλευρό της οποίας τάχθηκε και η Καμπέρα, διαμήνυσε ότι το Διεθνές Δίκαιο δεν επιτρέπει την «κατασκευή» κυριαρχικών δικαιωμάτων μέσω της τεχνητής επέκτασης νησιών. Η Κίνα έχει αφιερώσει τεράστια μέσα για την τεχνητή επέκταση των νησίδων Σπράτλι (Νάσα στα κινέζικα) που έχει θέσει υπό τον έλεγχό της στα διαφιλονικούμενα νερά της περιοχής τα οποία πρεσβεύει ότι ανήκουν στα χωρικά της ύδατα.

Ένα άλλο στοιχείο που συνθέτει τον καμβά πάνω στον οποίο επετεύχθη η παρούσα συμφωνία μεταξύ Αυστραλίας-Κίνας, είναι και η πρόσφατη συμφωνία της κυβέρνησης της Βόρειας Περιοχής να υπενοικιάσει για 99 χρόνια το λιμάνι του Darwin σε κινεζική εταιρία, γεγονός που έχει δυσαρεστήσει τις ΗΠΑ.

Πηγή:Νέος Κόσμος