US Punishes Firms for Iran Sales

US — The US has imposed sanctions on nine foreign companies, six of them Chinese, for allegedly selling missile goods and chemical arms material to Iran. A US State Department spokesman said the measures were based on ‘credible evidence’ but gave no details.  

The US will not provide export licences to the firms involved, two of them Indian and one Austrian, and has banned the US government trading with them. China has in the past denied selling weapons-related material to Iran.  

The US and EU suspect Iran of pursuing nuclear weapons and are considering whether to refer it to the UN Security Council. Tehran says its nuclear programme is for civilian energy use.  

Washington said it had taken action against the companies concerned under the Iran Non-proliferation Act, passed by the US Congress in 2000. The legislation aims to prevent international support for Iran’s nuclear, chemical and missile-based weapons programmes.  

US State Department spokesman Adam Ereli said: ‘It’s an important and effective tool in constraining Iran’s efforts to develop missile and weapons of mass destruction capabilities.’  

The penalties against the firms will remain in place until December 2007. (Source: www.bbc.co.uk)

Life Term for China Land Minister

China — A former Chinese government minister has been jailed for life for taking half a million dollars in bribes. A Beijing court convicted Tian Fengshan of accepting bribes over eight years while a minister and regional official. China is trying to crack down on corruption, amid fears it could undermine Communist Party rule.  

Tian is one of the most prominent to be accused of graft since a senior lawmaker was executed in 2000. Tian is said to have escaped the death penalty as he confessed and repented. But the verdict will doubtless be used as a warning to others, observers say. Nearly 50,000 Chinese officials have been punished for corruption over the past two years. The government has also launched a series of campaigns to crack down on 
corrupt officials.  

The Communist Party says the number of corruption cases has fallen but there are more high-profile cases involving the embezzlement of larger amounts of money. A recent investigation by the National Audit Office found that $36 billion of public funds had been misused in the first 11 months of the year alone. (Source: www.bbc.co.uk)
 

Swiss to Extradite Adamov to Russia, Not US

Switzerland — Switzerland will extradite Russia’s former Nuclear Energy Minister Yevgeny Adamov to his homeland, a Swiss court said in a ruling that irked the US, which wants him to face fraud charges.  The decision by the Lausanne-based Federal Court upholds an appeal by Adamov against an earlier ruling by the Swiss Justice Department to extradite him to the US.  

‘He will now be extradited to Russia,’ a spokesman for the court said, confirming that the panel of federal judges had overturned the Justice Department’s decision.   

Berne will now decide when to extradite Adamov. A Justice Department spokesman declined to give a timeframe for Adamov’s return to Moscow, citing security reasons. Adamov was arrested while visiting Switzerland in May 2005 on the basis of a US extradition request to face charges of embezzling $9 million Washington sent to Moscow to help fund nuclear safety projects. Adamov, who served under former President Boris Yeltsin, insisted he be sent back to Russia where he is accused of fraud while in office.   

‘We’re disappointed by the decision by the Swiss Supreme Court to extradite Mr Adamov,’ State Department deputy spokesman Adam Ereli told reporters.   

‘We respect the Swiss justice system, but we would have greatly preferred that he be extradited here,’ Ereli said. (Source: www.thestar.com.my)

Safe Deposit Law Aims to Protect Inheritors

Hong Kong — Valuables placed in jointly rented safe deposit boxes can be frozen for up to a year if one of the people renting the box dies, according to a new law that comes into effect in February.  

Elaborating on Hong Kong’s new scheme abolishing estate duties, Deputy Secretary for Home Affairs Stephen Fisher announced that the law will protect potential inheritors by giving the spouse or immediate family members the right to take possession of items in a shared safe deposit box for 12 months or until the will is resolved.  

Under the current law, as long as the estate duty is paid, the safe deposit box can be opened by any surviving owner. The new law, which comes into effect on February 11, will change ‘the traditional Chinese habit of sharing safe deposit boxes,’ Fisher said.  

According to the new law, anyone jointly renting a safe deposit box with a person who dies, and who removes items without the consent of the spouse or immediate family, commits an offence under the Revenue (Abolition of Estate Duty) Ordinance, and is liable to a maximum penalty of HK$10,000. (Source: www.thestandard.com.hk)