Indian summer of uncertainty






Time to retake the Latin exam







Building the foundations

Domestic success for the BRICS countries backs up their global posturing






A fortress made of BRICS







A modern Moscow mule

A Russian proposal to try to create artificial life receives Hollywood backing

The actor Steven Seagal once said “I have made a lot of mistakes. But I’ve worked hard. I have no fear of death. More important, I don’t fear life.” Lately he has become an enthusiastic supporter of a futuristic aim to secure exceptional advancements in human immortality. If it succeeds, he may not even have to face death, let alone fear it. Seagal is so taken with the plans that he recently wrote an open letter to Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

‘Russia 2045’ is a movement established by a combination of fantasists and scientists with huge ambitions. They want to address what they see as an inexorable degradation of the concept of human life that we have at the moment. Amongst their proposals is the challenge of creating a ‘hologram body’.

Many scriptwriters and novelists have hypothesised over the possible ingredients of the ‘elixir of life’ and the notion of ‘living forever’ has simply been a romantic but unattainable projection of human achivement. Until now. Those believers gathering in Moscow are determined to produce an ‘immortal brain’, arguing that it is a natural course of research for progressive scientists of this day and age. They have set a deadline by which to create the make-up that a regular passer-by would need in order never to die. Some eager fans of the project are even predicting a competition similar to the ‘Space Race’ – but this time with Russia the undisputed champion.

Of course, the mission has its detractors and the scheme has come under fire from many in the Church. Alexey Osipov, a professor at the Moscow Spritual Schools announced that “[the human being is] a unity of body and soul, and separating one from the other is unthinkable from the point of view of Christianity and is vicious.” In response, the founder of the Russia 2045 movement, Dmitry Itskov, said that the ‘cyborg’ idea “[is not] running against anyone’s religious ideals or values.”

In his 2002 film, Half Past Dead, Seagal plays an undercover cop who gets shot and is declared ‘medically deceased’. If this scheme turns out to be a success, the idea that a person could ever have truly died might eventually become the stuff of legend.

An island life for me

Tempers have flared up again between Russia and Japan over the disputed Kuril Islands. Islands remain at the centre of many international territorial conflicts.

On Thursday 10 February Japan’s foreign minister, Seiji Maehara, restated his country’s commitment to the belief that the four southernmost islands of the Kuril group remain under Japanese jurisdiction. His call comes after Russian President Dmitry Medvedev visited the contested archipelago in November last year. During his trip Medvedev promised greater development and outlined an increase in military presence on the islands, clearly not a move that has been welcomed in Tokyo. Remarkably, the fractious nature of the two countries’ relationship over the Kurils means that they still have not got round to signing a joint peace agreement to end World War Two hostilities between them.

Islands are at the centre of an ongoing dispute between Nicaragua and Colombia. The San Andres and Providencia group in the Caribbean has been part of Colombia since the 1920s but Nicaragua took the issue to the International Court of Justice in 2001, which ruled in favour of Bogota. Managua’s main argument is over location, and the islands are much closer to Nicaragua, but it would not be surprising if the tourist factor also plays a part in their disquiet: the islands are beautiful Caribbean hotposts, an English creole is widely spoken and visitor numbers are growing.

Hugo Chavez, President of Venezuela. Source: marcellogentile1, YouTube, 11/02/11

At the other end of the Americas, there are The Falklands, or Las Malvinas, as they are known in Buenos Aires. A well-known island disupte which provoked a war between the two claimants in 1982. The UK posititon is clear: the islands were, are, and will remain British, for as long as the Falklanders themselves wish to remain under British jurisdiction (which at the moment they do). The Argentine outlook takes a similar line: the islands were, are, and ought to be part of Argentina. One only needs to look at an Argentine national map to understand the geographical stubbornness. But there has been a change of dynamic since 1982. Back then, Chile and the US both openly backed the UK, and Spain supported Argentina. But now many of Latin America’s leaders have openly urged the devolution of the islands back to Argentina, and idea rejected by London. Hugo Chavez famously railed against what he views as another example of ‘Western imperialism’.

The Kurils are next to Japan and form part of a territorial island link chain that goes north to Kamchatka. The Falklands are nearly 8,000 miles away from the UK. But the issue of island disputes is extremely old, complicated and is prevalent across the world (the examples above are just three of the more prominent disputes). It is not an argument that can be simply resolved by stating history, distance from home country or ‘proper ownership’.

Rumblings of Delhi belly

Thousands marching in cities across the country. Politicians vilified. Demands for change. While the media spotlight has been on Egypt, the public have also been on the move in India.

The clamour has been over the increasing corruption that the nation fears is infecting their politicians and business leaders. Nepotism, embezzlement and abuse of powers are all charges that have been levelled at the political class. Manmohan Singh, the prime minister, has stood firm and said he will not ‘spare’ anyone found guilty of corruption.

In December, the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party-led coalition headed a huge anti-sleaze demonstration in the capital. However the latest protests were not party-specific and it seems that the public is tired of all political corruption.

India is at an interesting global intersection at the moment and must aim publicly to clean up politics to ensure the continued smooth running of the fast-developing country. In December it signed an historic arms trade deal with Russia, deepening the ties between the two BRIC countries. It is undergoing a census of its 1.2 billion citizens. Kashmir remains a sticking-point in the region but it can provide India with a platform for reformist and more open dialogue in the future, even though it will never accept secessionist plans.

The sub-continent is in a time of trial. Pakistan, despite the exciting news for adrenaline-loving snow enthusiasts that a ski resort has opened in the Swat Valley, is nearing boiling point. The war in Afghanistan is going on inside its borders, sectarian violence is increasing and as the pressure increasing on politicians, the risks become ever more deadly.

But the Indian government ought not to discard talks with Pakistan simply because of the violence and the historic entrenchment over the area. India can continue to grow politically and this would help it grow into its shoes as the second-biggest country in the world, a role it might be able to play in the years to come on all levels – not just in terms of population.

Reporting the dead: Part Two


  • 2006 – 2010 – Death toll: 529

a) The five most deadly countries

1. Iraq 127


2. The Philippines 59


3. Mexico 47


4. Pakistan 38


5. Somalia 23


b) The rest of the world



Europe (26): Russia 21, Georgia 5


Reporting the dead: Part One




  • 2010 – Death toll: 105

a) The five most deadly countries in the last year

1 = Mexico and Pakistan 14 dead in both



3. Honduras 9


4. Iraq 8


5. The Philippines 6


b) The deadliest nations in the rest of the world



