www.newsday.com By DAVID McHUGH Associated Press Writer January 26, 2003, 5:04 PM EST

DAVOS, Switzerland -- Millions of people in the Middle East believe the United States is indifferent to the region's fate, Jordan's King Abdullah said Sunday, urging Washington to commit itself anew to resolving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Addressing the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Abdullah said there was little chance of avoiding war in Iraq. "We're a bit too little too late," he said. "Today I think the mechanisms are in place ... It would take a miracle to find dialogue and a peaceful solution."

He said peace must give the Palestinians a state big enough for a functioning economy, and guaranteed securities for both populations.

"With clear, committed leadership from Washington, the vast majority of Palestinians and Israelis will choose coexistence and peace," Abdullah said.

The king's remarks drew extended applause from business and political leaders, many of whom are skeptical about the U.S. push to force Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein to disarm.

"Millions have been left to believe that the powerful West is indifferent or worse," Abdullah said. "Despair, hatred and division have helped extremists recruit for global campaigns of terror."

Secretary of State Colin Powell also called for a viable Palestinian state in his speech at the forum, though his larger focus was laying out reasons for U.S. concern over Iraq's failure to cooperate with United Nations weapons inspectors.

Powell urged Israel to stop constructing settlements in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, from which the Palestinian state will be formed.

"A Palestinian state, when it's created, must be a real state, not a phony state that's diced into a thousand different pieces," he said. Amir Moussa, secretary general of the Arab League, praised the reference to a "real" Palestine.

"This is a very, very positive statement about the nature of the Palestinian state and a serious message to Israel," he said.

Asked whether Powell's speech had changed his opinion on Iraq, Moussa replied, "No, but I enjoyed his speech."

Powell "did very well at relating to the mood in Davos, talked a lot about trust, talked a lot about all the positive and constructive things the United States does," said Ellen Laipson, former vice chairman of the U.S. government's National Intelligence Council and now head of the Henry L. Stimson Center think tank.

He received two standing ovations, but Laipson said she thought it was more because of the audience's respect for Powell as a person rather than for U.S. policy.

The Palestinian issue broke into a panel discussion that was supposed to be about the development of democracy in Arab countries. Prince Turki al-Faisal, former Saudi intelligence chief and newly named ambassador to Britain, warned Sen. Joseph Biden, D-Del., that America's perceived failure to push its ally Israel for a solution undermined Washington's standing among Arab countries.

Biden responded by saying that both sides shared blame, and challenged the audience of several hundred, some of them Arabs, to raise their hands if they thought Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat would sign a peace deal. Only a few did.

"Three of you -- OK, I won that poll," said Biden, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He also urged new efforts toward peace, saying, "We had better get about it."

Police said Sunday that three police officers were injured and 30 people were arrested when "militant activists" rampaged overnight in the Swiss capital of Bern, smashing windows and two parked cars.

Police used water cannons, tear gas and fired rubber pellets against the protesters, who were blocked from reaching the forum on Saturday. Officials said there was about $74,000 in damage.

About 1,000 anti-capitalist demonstrators marched peacefully through Davos on Saturday, but thousands more never reached the mountain resort after militants blocked the rail and road to protest security checks.

www.nzherald.co.nz 27.01.2003 8.45 am

DAVOS, Switzerland - Boogeying poolside was out, bashing America was in at this year's Davos business summit as angst over war and recession drove out the traditional strut and swagger of the global elite.

The World Economic Forum's six-day annual meeting returned to the chic Swiss ski resort after decamping to New York last year for the first time in three decades to embrace a city still reeling from the September 11 suicide plane attacks.

But this year it was hard to hear a kind word about a United States now viewed with distrust and scepticism, especially over the superpower's threats of war against Iraq if it fails to come clean over any weapons of mass destruction.

"It's very worrying that the Americans could be prepared to act unilaterally. They are playing a very risky game," Simon Maxwell, head of Britain's Overseas Development Institute think tank, said, echoing a common theme in Davos.

US Secretary of State Colin Powell faced pointed questions from the audience yesterday after a keynote address telling sceptical Europeans the United States was willing to attack Iraq alone if others shrank from disarming President Saddam Hussein.

The theme of this year's meeting was "Building Trust", and surveys of WEF members bore out a lack of confidence worldwide in US leadership. One panel discussion was entitled "US omnipotence: What lies ahead?".

Gone are the days when American businessmen and policymakers showed up at Davos to teach European and Japanese laggards lessons about corporate and economic policy management.

"The feeling of confrontation against the US was very strong, absolutely too strong for my taste," said Peter Brabeck, chief executive of Nestle SA, the world's biggest food company and a veteran of Davos meetings.

"The anti-Americanism is profound," agreed former US State Department official Stuart Eizenstat.

"There used to be disputes between Europe and the US about trade, about bananas, but now we're being accused of trampling on the institutions that we've created."

No Calypso band jammed on a floating stage in the Davos conference centre's pool this year because organisers axed the customary Saturday night black tie and evening gown soiree.

"A big party is not appropriate at this monent. It doesn't fit the mood," WEF founder and guiding light Klaus Schwab said.

There were plenty of long faces among the 1,000 corporate chieftains and two dozen heads of state or government on hand for the 33rd annual WEF gathering that runs until Tuesday.

The mood was definitely downbeat ahead of a looming war in Iraq and with the world stuck in a stubborn economic slump.

"This is just about the hardest year to forecast and it's difficult to be anything but gloomy," sighed British American Tobacco Plc Chairman Martin Broughton.

WEF Managing Director Jose Maria Figueres said the subdued tone was "as it should be. That is the global mood. Davos in that respect is a reflection of what our members and different stakeholders are feeling. I think it's a very healthy change."

Missing are many of the lavish corporate flings that once filled posh Davos hotels every night. Flaunting wealth and power -- once a hallmark of Davos -- made way for a more introspective mood.

A youth orchestra played for delegates on Saturday night -- a slot normally reserved for a raucous do that went on until dawn.

"Before a potential war and addressing pretty serious issues, it's time to focus and not to dance," WEF spokesman Michel Ogrizek said.

The WEF reduced the sprawling attendance list by about 30 per cent to 2000 to make things more intimate. Several of the European ministers who had been due to attend, notably from France, Germany and Spain, dropped out at the last minute.

After the dotcom crash of 2001 and the corporate malfeasance scandals of 2002, many of the past capitalist gurus of Davos were missing.

But Brazil's new leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva added a dash of colour, joking that he could head home physically intact despite venturing into a capitalist hotbed.

www.s-t.com

The movie "Gangs of New York" shows just how fearful the natives get when new groups arrive from foreign shores. In this case, it's the newly arrived Irish who are feared by the English and Dutch, and fear turns into slaughter.

White against white. English Protestant against Irish Catholic. It seems almost simple when you consider the complexity of America today. The new immigrants are of many colors and languages, arriving from exotic lands like Somalia, Guyana and the Sudan.

In Massachusetts, 40 percent of the foreign-born population arrived in the last decade. Last November's vote favoring English immersion over bilingual education is undoubtedly a response to the sudden arrival of so many newcomers.

If the natives are overwhelmed by the changes, this does not mean they are racist. Many cities and towns don't have the means or ways of understanding how to manage this great demographic change, according to Miren Uriarte of UMassBoston. The word racist cuts off the conversation and people's fears go underground, when we need to talk openly and freely.

Two of the most fascinating immigrant stories are taking place in Schenectady, N.Y., with the Guyanese, and in Lewiston, Maine, with the Somalians. While I was in Schenectady last month (my home town), I followed the story of the Guyanese in the local newspaper, where the worries of both sides were thoroughly aired. Schenectady was once known as "the city that lights and hauls the world," but the lights went out when General Electric downsized. The loss of work and young people has been catastrophic for the area. Recently the city began aggressively recruiting new businesses, a winning strategy that called for a new workforce.

The mayor went down to Queens, N.Y., and recruited young Guyanese workers who are black and English-speaking (originally from Guyana, bordering on Venezuela). They came, they saw, they stayed. Today they are buying and fixing up long-neglected properties. With a strong work ethic and strong families, they are bringing the city back to life.

Are there problems? Absolutely. Does everybody like the idea of 2,000 Guyanese suddenly moving in? Of course not. Many natives are fearful of being displaced and resent the Guyanese for getting breaks they feel they didn't get. But there are continuing discussions about the concerns of both groups, and this is healthy.

The immigrant story in Lewiston, Maine, is more difficult. At the invitation of the mayor, a few African Muslim families from Somalia settled in all-white Lewiston. The number eventually grew to 1,100. As weary refugees from a fierce civil war, they must now learn a new language and acquire new work skills. Recently, a white supremacy group from outside the area (true racists) came to Lewiston to urge people to drive the Somalians out. Thankfully, the protest turned against the hate mongers.

These immigrant stories will play themselves out in time, just as those in "The Gangs of New York" did. Meanwhile, the world's refugees are increasing. We must take in our fair share of political refugees as should other well-off nations. But legitimate questions must be asked as well: What are the limits to open space, clean water and other natural resources in the United States? How can we help other countries end these brutal civil wars and improve their own standard of living?

These subjects are all part of the conversation we need to cultivate, not squelch.

Marsha McCabe is a columnist for The Sunday Standard-Times.

www.iol.co.za January 26 2003 at 10:56AM

Paris - Ask French entrepreneur Tawfik Mathlouthi why his Mecca-Cola has become such a phenomenal success, and he is likely to say it's all about politics.

"Not only Arabs and Muslims are buying it, but also non-Muslims who are sick and tired of the crimes committed by America," he said.

If Mecca-Cola is indeed a measure of the level of discontent with Washington's foreign policies, then President George W Bush should probably pay some attention to its bottom line.

In the ten weeks since he brought his new soft drink on the market, Mathlouthi has received orders for 16 million 1,5-litre bottles.

'Every order I get from the US gives me great pleasure'"We originally planned for 160 000 bottles," he said. "They were gone in three days."

The soft drink is now being distributed in 23 countries, nine in Europe, with England providing the most lucrative market by taking 1,8 million bottles a month.

However, the 46-year-old father of four is most proud of the 80 000 bottles he has so far sold to the United States, the drink's political target and home of its mega-rival, Coca-Cola.

"Every order I get from the US gives me great pleasure," he said with a smile you could sense over the phone.

Mathlouthi said another 30 countries - including Indonesia, Pakistan, Venezuela, Cuba and South Africa - were waiting for him.

"They don't want to close the deal with anyone," he said. "They want to talk to the man whose idea it was, me. And I can't be in 20 places at once. It's just a question of time. In June, we will be distributed on five continents."

Not bad for a business that was begun with a shoestring budget of €22 000 (R207 240) and, as he put it, "a little creativity". - Sapa-DPA

www.taipeitimes.com BLOOMBERG Sunday, Jan 26, 2003,Page 10

Crude oil rose for the first time in three days after White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said it was "unacceptable" for Iraq to bar scientists from talking with UN weapons inspectors.

Concern that the US will soon invade Iraq comes as a strike in Venezuela has caused that nation's exports to plummet. Iraq and Venezuela in November pumped about 7 percent of the world's oil.

Crude oil for March delivery rose US$1.03, or 3.2 percent, to US$33.28 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was the biggest one-day gain since Jan. 9. Prices were up 1 percent this week and 69 percent from a year ago.

In London, the March Brent crude-oil futures contract rose US$0.77, or 2.6 percent, to US$30.49 a barrel on the International Petroleum Exchange.

Hussein may try to blow up Iraq's 1,500 oil wells if the US and its allies invade, a senior defense official said at the Pentagon on condition of anonymity.

"There are a variety of intelligence sources that leave us with the impression or belief that the regime has the capability and intent to cause destruction to the oil fields," the official said.

During the 1991 Gulf War, Hussein ordered the destruction of more than 700 of 1,000 oil wells in Kuwait as his army retreated. It took 18 months and about US$20 billion to repair the damage.

The strike in Venezuela, which began on Dec. 2, is giving union officials, business leaders and former oil executives the chance to pressure President Hugo Chavez to step down or hold elections. Chavez has refused both alternatives.

As of Wednesday, Venezuela's production was about 714,000 barrels a day, striking oil workers said. The government says production is above 1 million barrels a day. Output has plunged from about 3 million barrels before the strike.

Venezuela, Saudi Arabia, Canada and Mexico normally vie to be the largest supplier to the US In October the four supplied 65 percent of US oil imports, according to the Energy Department.

Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, pumps about 10 percent of global supply.