Tomorrow's Online Headlines 12-23-2013 | Sci

Khodorkovsky told reporters in Berlin that "the struggle for power is not for me", but made clear he would put pressure on Putin and urged world leaders to do the same, saying his release should not be seen as a sign Russian repression is at an end.

"We need to work further so that there would be no more political prisoners left in Russia and other countries," he told a news conference at a museum commemorating the Berlin Wall from the Cold War era. "I am going to do my utmost in this regard."

Putin unexpectedly announced on Thursday that he would pardon Khodorkovsky, who had been in jail on fraud and tax evasion charges since he was arrested in 2003, during Putin's first term, and was seen by many as a political prisoner.

He was released from a prison camp near the Arctic Circle on Friday and flew to Berlin, where he was reunited with relatives.

He said he would not advise leaders on how to deal with Russia's "complex" president but added: "I just hope politicians from Western countries will keep in mind that I'm not the last political prisoner in Russia when they talk to Putin."

Emotional at times but looking healthy and composed in a dark suit and blue necktie, Khodorkovsky, said that there were no conditions attached to his release and that he had made no admission of guilt in asking Putin for a pardon.

But he said that despite the Kremlin's public assurances that he was free to return to Russia, he could not do so now because there was no guarantee he would be able to leave again if necessary.

NO CHOICE ON LEAVING RUSSIA

He said the decision to leave Russia immediately after his release had not been his.

"I had no choice. I was woken at 2 a.m. by the head of prison camp and he told me I was going home," he said. "During the trip I learned that the trip ended in Berlin. I saw on the door of the airplane that it was a German airplane."

The former Yukos oil company chief said his financial position was good and he had no plans to go back into business, but made clear he had not made big decisions about his future, saying repeatedly he had only been free for 36 hours.

Low-cost operator Iliad this month added 4G service to its Free Mobile offers without raising the price, putting pressure on leading telecoms companies Orange, Vivendi's SFR and Bouygues Telecom to follow suit with competitive offers.

The contest has led executives to trade barbs in the media, with Orange CEO Stephane Richard accusing Iliad of compromising quality on its 4G service. Iliad is still building its mobile network and had 700 mobile antennas capable of handling 4G speeds as of December 1.

The minister, Fleur Pelleting, said the government would act to ensure that the telecom regulator Arches regained the power to enforce quality standards, after a Constitutional Court ruling that prevented it from imposing penalties.

"We are going to correct this situation in early 2014," she told Le Parisian daily. "We are going to give the telecoms policeman his stick back."

The Iliad offer has led to a price war as well as a war of words among the telecom operators. Orange said some of its customers would get 4G wireless at no additional charge, shortly after smaller rival Bouygues extended the same offer to its low-cost subscription plan.

Asked about the accusations flying among telecoms bosses, Pelleting said: "Their invective is worthy of the schoolyard, and I am not their mistress."

Oulu, with a population of about a quarter million, was once a key Nokia R&D site, before the mobile maker was left for dead in the global smartphone race by Apple's iPhone and handsets running Google's Android software.

Nokia and its networks venture at one point employed about 5,000 people in Oulu, more than three times the next biggest private sector employer, but now it has work for less than half that.

The city's unemployment rate topped 16 percent in the summer, a level not seen since the Finnish financial crisis of the early 1990s.

But despite the gloom, and an average annual temperature of 2 degrees Celsius (36F), the buds of a recovery are visible in Finland's biggest northern city, 600 kilometers from Helsinki.

It is becoming a model for the rest of the country as it fights to fill the gap left by Nokia's tumbling sales and the tens of thousands of job cuts that preceded the former world beater's September decision to give up the mobile business and sell to Microsoft.

Oulu is now a leading candidate to host a new data center for Microsoft, which wants to invest $250 million on such facilities in Finland after it takes over the Nokia business next year.

Former "Nokians" are starting to land on their feet, too.

Pasi Leipala, a former senior manager at Nokia, is now chief executive at Haltian, which designs electronics and software products and is one of the city's most successful start-ups.

Last year you could count its employees on the fingers of one hand. Now it has a staff of 70.

"The best thing about Oulu is that there are so many skilled people; it's easy to hire some of the best talents," said Leipala.

U.S. wireless chipmaker Broadcom is expected to save hundreds of jobs by buying the Finnish wireless modem division of Japan's Renesas Electronics, which previously planned to dismiss all employees in Oulu, most of whom had transferred from Nokia back in 2010.

Telecom equipment maker Nokia Solutions and Networks, which will account for 90 percent of group turnover after the sale of the handset division, also plans to keep its 2,300 workers in Oulu, and there is talk of hiring more.

Flight Engineers Rick Mastracchio and Mike Hopkins worked to remove the pump module, which had problems December 11 when an internal valve stuck in an incorrect position, NASA said on its website.

They plan to go outside again Monday to replace the pump and might have to return Christmas Day to wrap up the job.

The pump circulates ammonia through loops outside the station to keep equipment cool. The space station's life support system is up and running, but ISS operations were cut back as a result of the failure, NASA said.

CNN's John Zarrella reported that NASA had concerns about the excursion because water built up in a European astronaut's helmet in July, causing that spacewalk to be cut short.

NASA installed new safeguards, including snorkels inside the space suits that would allow astronauts to take breaths if water formed and they had to return to the space station, Zarrella said. Mastracchio and Hopkins reported no problems Saturday.

The others on the space station include Russian cosmonauts Mikhail Tyurin, Sergey Ryazanskiy and Oleg Kotov and Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata.

The Roman Curia, which includes Vatican staff, priests and cardinals, gathered in the ornate Clementine Hall. The pope praised those who have worked in the Vatican for "many years with immense dedication, hidden from the eyes of the world." The church needs "people who work with competence, precision and self sacrifice in the fulfillment of their daily duties," he said.

Without professionalism, Francis warned, "there is a slow drift downwards towards mediocrity" and "dossiers become full of trite and lifeless information" that fail to inspire.

Without an attitude of service to bishops and churches worldwide, he said, "the structure of the Curia turns into a ponderous, bureaucratic customs house, constantly inspecting and questioning, hindering the working of the Holy Spirit and the growth of God's people."

Holiness encompasses an openness to God, prayer, deep humility and fraternal charity in relationships with fellow workers, Francis said.

"It also means apostleship, discreet and faithful pastoral service, zealously carried out in direct contact with God's people. For priests, this is indispensable," he said. He also urged the Curia to avoid indulging in gossip, saying: "Gossip is harmful to people, our work and our surroundings."

Francis has already taken a number of steps to try to reform the Vatican's administration in the nine months since he was elected to the papacy. CNN's Vatican reporter John Allen, also a senior correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter, said Saturday's speech was brief but set out some core principles.

"He said very clearly he wants a Vatican that is focused on service, rather than power," Allen said. In July, the pope set up an expert committee to recommend reforms to the economic and administrative structures of the Holy See. He has also ordered more scrutiny of the Vatican bank, which has been plagued by financial scandals for years.

Earlier this month, he announced the creation of a commission to prevent the abuse of minors and to support victims of abuse. The Catholic Church has faced calls for reform in the wake of scandals involving the sexual abuse of children by priests and allegations of corruption.

Since taking charge, Francis has also shifted the tone of the church toward a focus on service, compassion and helping the poor and addressed controversial issues such as homosexuality and the role of women in the church.

IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde also praised the U.S. Federal Reserve's communication of its decision last week to start scaling back its massive monetary stimulus.

"Growth is picking up," Lagarde said on NBC's "Meet the Press." "And unemployment is going down. So all of that gives us a much stronger outlook for 2014, which brings us to raising our forecast."

The IMF forecast in October that the U.S. economy would expand 2.6 percent in 2014 after growing 1.6 percent this year. At the time, Lagarde warned that Congressional failure to raise the U.S. debt ceiling could damage not only the United States, but the rest of the global economy.

A U.S. Congress, deeply divided along party lines, did manage to pass a limited, two-year budget deal last week to trim some planned spending cuts and reduce the risk of a government shutdown.

Yet the legislation does nothing to avoid a possible U.S. debt default that could occur if Congress does not raise a cap on U.S. borrowing.

President Barack Obama's administration has warned that the government could run out of borrowing authority needed to pay its bills as soon as February if lawmakers do not swiftly raise the debt ceiling.

"The budget deal that was cut at year-end is a very good sign of ... responsibility, accountability and realism," Lagarde said on Sunday.

Netanyahu was stung by an interim agreement last month for Tehran to curb its nuclear program in return for a limited easing of sanctions, calling it a historic mistake.

His reaction has been to call for the dismantling of Iran's nuclear projects, as opposed to their containment, and a halt to its development of ballistic missiles, an issue not addressed in the interim accord signed in Geneva on November 24.

Taking even wider aim, Netanyahu said negotiators should demand a change to Iran's "genocidal policy" toward Israel, manifested through its supply of thousands of missiles to Palestinian and Lebanese militants, and its calls for the Jewish state's destruction.

The wish list has received a cool reception in Washington, will be given short shrift by Iran and was described as "crazy" by a senior Western diplomat. But experts believe the Israeli leader wants to put pressure on President Barack Obama and prevent U.S.-Iranian ties from thawing too far, too fast.

One way to do that would be to send a message to Israel's supporters on Capitol Hill. The Senate has already sparred with Obama over whether new sanctions against Iran should be prepared.

A former Netanyahu adviser, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said U.S. legislators were Netanyahu's target audience.

"It's one thing for Congress to hold off on imposing sanctions, quite another for it to cancel sanctions under a final deal with Iran. Netanyahu wants to help set the tone in Congress and he doesn't mind if Obama notices."

There is a growing sense in Washington that Netanyahu has accepted it is unlikely he can derail the negotiations, so he may have reverted to spoiling tactics, however unpopular they may be in Obama's administration.

"I can't believe the Americans are happy about (Netanyahu) sounding off the way he is at this critical point in time," said one Israeli official, who has direct knowledge of recent White House consultations between U.S. and Israeli experts on Iran.

The United States views engagement with the new, relatively moderate government in Iran as a chance to defuse more than three decades of tensions.

Asked about Netanyahu's push to broaden Geneva negotiations, White House National Security Council spokeswoman Bernadette Meehan said talks were focused exclusively on the nuclear issue.

About 100,000 people gathered at Kiev's Independence Square to demonstrate for the fifth weekend in a row against President Viktor Yanukovich's decision to shelve a trade deal the European Union and pursue closer ties with Russia.

Although it was a relatively strong showing - enough to fill the square and adjacent streets - the number was the lowest this month, and around half the previous weekend's turnout which was estimated at up to 200,000 people.

"We will not leave," Vitaly Klitschko, a heavyweight boxing champion who leads the liberal UDAR (Punch) party, told the rally. "We will celebrate the New Year here and we will celebrate Christmas here."

In the Ukrainian Orthodox Church's calendar, Christmas falls on January 7.

Seeking to consolidate the protest movement, he and leaders of other major opposition parties said they were establishing a nationwide political movement called Maidan, a reference to the Ukrainian name of the protest site, Maidan Nezalezhnosti.

"We will make life hell for this government," said far-right nationalist leader Oleh Tyahnybok.

Street protests erupted after Yanukovich's decision on November 21 to walk away from an agreement on free trade and political association with the EU, after years of careful preparation, and turn to Ukraine's former Soviet overlord Russia.

The U-turn, while backed by many in Russian-speaking eastern Ukraine which is Yanukovich's power base, angered others in western and central areas, where people see the country's future in Europe.

EUPHORIA WEARING THIN

The rallies grew larger after police violently dispersed the initial protests. Demonstrators have since erected barricades around the downtown area, including the city government building which they have occupied.

However, despite securing support from Western powers and many of Kiev's inhabitants - who are donating money, food and other supplies - the protests have failed to deter Yanukovich.

Last week, he secured a $15 billion bailout from Russia along with a hefty price cut for natural gas, which Ukraine imports from its neighbor to heat homes and fuel industry.

The initial euphoria - prompted by huge rallies and protesters' ability to repel riot police - is wearing thin, and keeping people on the streets will become harder, especially with holidays approaching and the weather likely to get colder.

"We will continue to strike, also next year," Verdi representative Joerg Lauenroth-Mago said. "But I won't say when and where exactly that will happen."

Hundreds of workers in Amazon's logistic centers in Bad Hersfeld and Leipzig have been on strike since Monday, in actions due to end on Saturday, December 21, threatening to disrupt shipments in the Christmas shopping season. Some staff at the company's Graben site have also stopped work.

Amazon said earlier this week 1,115 staff had joined the strikes at the three sites, but said there had been no delays to deliveries. The company employs a total of 9,000 warehouse staff in Germany plus 14,000 seasonal workers at nine distribution centers.

The German union has organized short strikes this year to try to force Amazon to accept collective bargaining agreements in use elsewhere in the mail order and retail industry, as benchmarks for pay at Amazon's German distribution centers.

However, Amazon has maintained that it regards staff at its centers in the cities of Bad Hersfeld and Leipzig as logistics workers and that they receive above-average pay by the standards of that industry.

EU antitrust chief Joaquin Almunia rejected the internet search giant's latest concessions on Friday and warned that it has only a short time left to make a satisfactory offer.

Google has been investigated by the European Commission antitrust regulator for three years over complaints that it blocked competitors in search results.

The company's original proposal in April to resolve the matter was rejected by its competitors, including Microsoft and British price-comparison website Foundem, who said that the changes would only reinforce its dominance.

Google proposed new concessions in an attempt to avert a possible fine of up to $5 billion, and the Commission asked 125 of Google's rivals and third parties to provide feedback on these in October.

Almunia said the revised proposals did not go far enough.

"The latest proposals are not acceptable in the sense that they are not proposals that can eliminate our concerns regarding competition," Almunia said in a radio interview with Spain's RNE.

Almunia said that, in particular, Google's latest offer did not remove concerns about the treatment of Google's rivals in so-called vertical searches, which are specialized searches for a particular product or a restaurant.

Asked if there would be sanctions against Google, Almunia said: "No, no, no ... At this moment, there is little time left, but the ball is still in Google's court. But within a short time frame the ball will then be here (with the European Commission) and then it will be the moment to take decisions."

The European Commission hopes to close the case next spring.

RIVALS' CONCERNS

Google's spokesman in Brussels, Al Verney, defended the company's revised offer, saying: "We've made significant changes to address the European Commission's concerns, greatly increasing the visibility of rival services and addressing other specific issues."

ICOMP, a lobby group that counts Microsoft and four other complainants among its members, accused Google of being unwilling to change its "harmful practices".

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said that this group of people - estimated by the administration to be fewer than 500,000 in number - will be allowed to claim a "hardship exemption" from the requirement in the 2010 Affordable Care Act to buy insurance.

Armed with the exemption, they then have the option to buy "catastrophic" insurance plans - cheaper insurance with a minimal coverage level that, under the law, is normally available only to people under the age of 30.

"This is a common-sense clarification of the law," said Joanne Peters, a spokeswoman for Sebelius. "For the limited number of consumers whose plans have been canceled and are seeking coverage, this is one more option."

In the law, there are 14 categories of "hardships" that can be used to get an exemption from the mandate to buy insurance, such as a recent eviction or bankruptcy.

But this is the first exemption prompted by the administration's botched rollout of the law, and comes after months of insistence that there would be no delays in implementing the individual mandate.

The rocky rollout of President Barack Obama's signature policy achievement has been embarrassing and politically damaging, helping push Obama's approval ratings to the lowest point of his presidency.

Part of the backlash came when millions of people received policy cancellation notices, forcing Obama to apologize for a promise he made that people who liked their insurance policies could keep them under the Affordable Care Act reforms.

The latest twist comes just days before a December 23 deadline for arranging insurance coverage to begin on January 1. In effect, it will provide the administration and Democrats in Congress some political cover, because people won't be able to claim they don't have insurance purely because their policy was canceled and alternatives are too expensive.

The change was suggested by a group of Democratic senators, some of whom face difficult reelection campaigns in 2014.

But the exemption comes after a series of other delays in enforcing or implementing various parts of Obamacare, and instantly sparked more political criticism that the government is unevenly and unfairly applying the law.

Russia's federal prison service said Khodorkovsky was heading for Germany following his release and that his mother, Marina, was undergoing medical treatment there. A German police official said he was en route to Berlin and was expected to land on Friday afternoon.

Khodorkovsky was freed a day after Putin unexpectedly announced he would release one of his most powerful critics. A government source said the move could deflect criticism over Putin's human rights record as Russia prepares to host the Winter Olympics in February.

"He has left the camp. That's all I can say," Khodorkovsky's lawyer Vadim Klyuvgant told Reuters by telephone.

Putin surprised Russians and cheered the business community by announcing he would free the 50-year-old businessman because his mother was ill. Investors said it could ease entrepreneurs' fears of the Kremlin exploiting the courts for political ends.

In a presidential decree signed on Friday, Putin said he was "guided by the principles of humanity".

Putin had said after a four-hour, end-of-year news conference on Thursday that Khodorkovsky asked for clemency. This took his lawyers by surprise and they said they were checking with their client.

"PUTIN'S PRISONER"

He was scheduled for release next August but supporters had feared the sentence might be extended, as it was once before.

Reporters waiting outside Penal Colony No. 7 at Segezha, near the Finnish border, 300 km (200 miles) south of the Arctic Circle, did not see Khodorkovsky leave. He has spent the past few years working in the camp, in an area that was once a notorious part of Stalin's Gulag system of labor camps.

In the eyes of critics at home and abroad, his jailing was a significant stain on the record of Putin, 60, who was first elected president in 2000 and has not ruled out seeking another six-year term in 2018.

Khodorkovsky came to represent what critics say is the Kremlin's misuse of the judicial system, curbing the rule of law, and of its refusal to permit dissent.

The authorities deny this, saying judges are independent and that Putin has not cracked down on opponents. The president has, however, singled Khodorkovsky out for bitter personal attacks in the past and ignored many calls for his release.