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Disunited Arab Emirates no more big assets for Israel, the United States

Disunited Arab Emirates no more big assets for Israel, the United States

The countries of the Middle East, like the United Arab Emirates are grappling with a slowdown of economy thanks to the low oil prices and impact of pandemic, resulting in a significantly big number of expats losing their jobs that may potentially change the demography of the region. (Image Courtesy: Middle East Eye)

The countries of the Middle East, like the United Arab Emirates are grappling with a slowdown of economy thanks to the low oil prices and impact of pandemic, resulting in a significantly big number of expats losing their jobs that may potentially change the demography of the region. (Image Courtesy: Middle East Eye)

By Soroor Ahmed | Patna

As per the definition of State given in Political Science textbooks for high school it should be sovereign, have a government, territory or land and population. By that criterion several of the countries are inherently weak States as they are too small in size or too sparsely populated. Yet they are counted as independent countries and are the honourable members of the United Nations.

But in the post-Corona world a new type of development has taken place. There is a fear that many tiny countries may in the near future actually lose the status of the State and may end up being called just outposts. A handful of such States are situated in the Middle East. This is simply because of massive process of de-population they are undergoing. As these tiny States–just a dot on the map of the world–have witnessed a huge cut in jobs and return of expatriates–thanks to crash in oil price and slump in its demand–they have lost almost all the attraction of being called a State.

As in the name of the government they always used to have a titular head and their sovereignty would always be in doubt. Thus they had been inherently weak since their establishment.

The United Arab Emirates is one of them. Following its decision to establish diplomatic ties with Israel, the US President Donald Trump, after a series of foreign policy disasters, proclaimed from the house-top that he had brokered a deal between Israel and UAE and tried to project it as if it was a great achievement.

He perhaps failed to appreciate the fact that brokering a deal between such a failed State and Israel is–in this era of rapid Chinese expansion and rising influence of Turkey and Iran–would lead to nowhere.

But this gentleman at least has nothing to boast about on the foreign policy front. One day he would abuse North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un and call for the destruction of that country, but on the other day he meets the same person in such a way as if he had found a long lost brother. Then a day later he would forget if any country with such a name ever exists.

With election around the corner he had at least something to brandish. The Israeli government thinks that with UAE becoming a friend the Jewish state would get a base in the Gulf to checkmate Iran. But this effort has been going on since 1979 Iranian Revolution, especially after First Gulf War in 1991 which paved the way for the virtual control of Kuwait by the US-led NATO forces.

After all the forward headquarters of the US Central Command is situated in Qatar. Israel had developed a very good relationship with another Shia-dominated, but anti-Iran neighbouring country, Azerbaijan. An air base was developed here so that Israelis could attack Iran, particularly its nuclear facilities. Did all these steps really succeed in containing Iran?

In contrast Iran has in recent years managed to come out of isolation and even President Obama had to sign a deal with it. It is other thing that President Trump cancelled it, and re-imposed sanctions. But he failed to get the support of European Union. Only on August 20 the United Kingdom, France and Germany said that they would oppose the US motion at the United Nations to re-impose sanctions on Iran.

Iran, and for that matter Turkey, might be suffering economic losses because of the US actions, but there is no denying the fact that the influence of these two Muslim countries have increased in the region. This is so in spite of the fact that many people in the Muslim world have strong reservations with some of their policies and stands.

In contrast the stature of Israel has largely been neutralised and the Gulf countries have lost whatever clout they used to enjoy in the past. The huge fall in the oil price has deprived them of whatever attraction they used to have.

The truth is that barring Saudi Arabia, Yemen, and Oman, the other tiny Sheikhdoms were carved out and declared independent by the colonial masters with a purpose. The plan was to use them as military bases, a task which they have been performing. Establishing diplomatic ties with Israel is immaterial.

However, the diminishing status of these so-called States has made policy-makers in Washington sit up and ponder. Even the much bigger, but once again thinly populated, Saudi Arabia, especially under Mohammad bin Salman has isolated itself from the Muslim world.  Its crime in Yemen, and the role in the two Gulf Wars have not been forgotten.

The truth is that ever since the Arab revolt against the Ottoman Turks and their embrace of the British and French armies at the high time of World War-I, the  role of the leaders of peninsular Arabs have never been appreciated in the Muslim world.

Notwithstanding the fact that Makkah and Madinah being situated in Hejaz there is a general feeling that the third holiest shrine of Islam Al-Aqsa today is in the hands of Israel largely because of the great betrayal of Arabs against fellow Muslim, that is Ottoman Turks.

Israel is the creation of the same colonial powers which hewed out so many small states in the region and installed monarchs of their choice on them.

So except during the 1973 Arab-Israel War and immediately after, Saudi Arabia never enjoyed the role of leadership of the Muslim world.

So if Riyadh follows UAE in establishing diplomatic ties with Israel it would not be a big surprise, or a huge achievement.

(Soroor Ahmed is a senior journalist based in Patna. The views are personal.)

Ahmad Zaidi: A Brilliant Indian-American Success Story

Ahmad Zaidi: A Brilliant Indian-American Success Story

Ahmad ZaidiKaleem Kawaja 

AHMAD ZAIDI, who is originally from Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, and is a 1985 Electrical Engineering graduate from the Thapar Institute of Technology, Karnal, Haryana, epitomizes a brilliant success story in United States.

Zaidi is currently a vice-President at the world-renowned hi-tech giant, the Intel Corporation in the Silicon Valley in California, US.  He is among the very select band of bright young minds who migrated to US from India looking to contribute to the development of high technology and to making America great and India proud.

Zaidi holds nine patents in the field of microprocessor design and architecture. In US he earned a master’s degree in electrical engineering from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia, in 1987.

In 2009, Zaidi was presented an award by the Malaysian minister for setting up the Embedded Silicon Design Center in Penang, Malaysia. In addition, he and his teams have been honored with multiple technical awards, including an Intel Software Quality Award in 2011 and an Intel Achievement Award in 2012.

Ahmad Zaidi is vice president of the Platform Engineering Group and general manager of the Embedded Subsystems and Intellectual Property (IP) Blocks Group at Intel Corporation. He is also responsible for Security Silicon Engineering and manages Security CPU and IP engineering for the Intel Security Group. He leads an organisation that spans sites in the United States, Malaysia, Israel, Poland and India, and is responsible for delivering hardware, software, firmware IP subsystems and soft IP blocks for Intel products across all product segments. His group is chartered with delivering IP in areas such as audio, voice, speech, sensors, security, Input/Output (I/O) technologies and software related to storage, communications and manageability.

Since joining Intel in 1987 as an engineer in the microprocessor unit at Cupertino, CA, Zaidi has progressed rapidly and has held a number of senior technical and management positions in microprocessor design, embedded systems and communications. Before assuming his current position, he was the general manager of the Chipset and System-on-Chip (SoC) IP Group where he was responsible for delivering chipset hardware, firmware and software for Intel’s client platforms in addition to leading the development of reusable IP blocks for Intel products across all segments.

Prior to that, Zaidi was the general manager at Intel Corporation of the Embedded and Communications Silicon Engineering Group, where he led a cross-geography team responsible for delivering SoC and chipset products for the embedded and communications market segment. Earlier in his Intel career, Zaidi served as director of the Silicon Engineering, Infrastructure and Network Processor divisions and as engineering manager on the first Intel® Itanium® processor.

Ahmad Zaidi lives in Cupertino, CA with his wife and two children.  His father was an engineering manager at the Fertilizer Corporation in Paniput, Haryana. As a young man, Zaidi grew up in Paniput.

Why India should close a trade deal with the US

Why India should close a trade deal with the US

As the economy slows, a pact will send the right message to investors, and change the narrative about India

Frank F. Islam

Frank F. Islam

During Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the United States (US) in September, in which President Donald Trump made a cameo appearance at the “Howdy Modi” event in Houston, the two leaders were expected to announce a trade deal. But, the two sides could not agree on the contours of such a deal before that landmark trip ended.

Media accounts suggested that, over subsequent weeks, New Delhi and Washington appeared to be near a trade deal several times. Nonetheless, as 2019 draws to a close, India and the US are still without a deal.

Two recent bilateral visits give hope, however, that the two countries might reach an agreement soon. In mid-November, India’s commerce and industries minister Piyush Goyal visited Washington to hold discussions with the US Trade Representative (USTR), Robert Lighthizer. And, subsequently, a USTR delegation was in India to continue the talks. Reports say that the two sides are nearing a breakthrough. At a time of general economic slowdown, a trade deal with the US in the waning days of the year would end the economic news for India on a high note.

It is worth noting that since India opened up its economy, the US-India bilateral trade has grown at a spectacular rate. The trade in goods increased from $5 billion in 1991 to nearly $88 billion last year. In 2018, India was America’s ninth largest goods export market. When trade in services is also included to the mix, the volume of bilateral trade last year was $142 billion.

This huge increase in the trade volume does not mean that the two countries were or are on the same page on every trade issue. The US continues to voice its long-standing concerns in primarily two areas: Lack of adequate market access and protection of US intellectual property rights in India. Over the years, India has listened to these concerns and has made concessions. The result is there for all to see: Last year, American companies exported goods exports worth $33.5 billion and services to the tune $25.2 billion to India.

The concerns about market access and intellectual property rights have never become wedge issues in the US, except during presidential election cycles. For example, President George W Bush imposed tariffs on Indian steel to woo voters in the critical battleground state of Ohio, ahead of his 2004 campaign. Not to be outdone, his challenger Senator John F Kerry vigorously went after the Indian outsourcing industry.

President Donald Trump has stated that he believes trade wars are good for the US economy. While trade disputes with Canada, Mexico and China have attracted most of the headlines, Trump has opened new battlefronts with a number of countries, including India.

In May, his administration escalated the disputes with India, when it ended Indian participation in the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), which had allowed India to export a number of goods to the US at low tariffs for decades. In retaliation, India increased tariffs on 28 US goods.

In the latest rounds of talks, the two countries have reportedly agreed on tariff concessions on dozens of fruits and nuts products, and are close to a deal on medical devices. The major remaining challenge seems to be finding common ground on agricultural products.

This is because Trump is very sensitive about the loss suffered by famers in the US midwest, after China imposed huge tariffs on American agribusiness products as a retaliatory measure. With the midwest farmers critical to Trump’s re-election prospects, the White House has spent tens of billions of dollars in subsidy to those farmers to offset their losses. Getting concessions on agricultural products in a deal with India would resonate with this targeted constituency.

From the Indian side of the ledger, it is likely a good idea for India to yield an inch, a foot , and possibly even a yard , in the ongoing trade talks. New Delhi has more to gain than to lose .

First, it will help change the narrative about the economy. Most rating agencies have downgraded their growth projections for India for next year. A trade deal would reassure US and other foreign investors about India’s future economic prospects.

Second, the US-China trade war has forced many American companies to explore alternative options for manufacturing. For India to take advantage of this vacuum, it has to establish a more predictable trade environment.

Finally, a trade deal has become even more important after India’s decision to stay out of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). The size of the economies of RCEP partners, in the aggregate, rivals the combined economies of the US and Europe.

It is in India’s interest to conclude the ongoing trade talks with the US productively. That does not mean giving away the store, but it does mean being flexible and keeping the larger economic story in mind.

As the axiom goes — and contrary to what the US President believes or says — there are no winners in a trade war. Similarly, a sound trade agreement has no losers.

 

Frank F Islam is an entrepreneur, civic leader, and thought leader based in Washington, DC. The views are expressed here are personal

Courtesy: This article first appeared in the Hindustan Times  

US community colleges add Apple’s ‘App Development with Swift’ curriculum

US community colleges add Apple’s ‘App Development with Swift’ curriculum

US community colleges add Apple's 'App Development with Swift' curriculumSan Francisco : Tech giant Apple on Saturday announced that its “App Development with Swift” curriculum will be offered in over 30 community colleges across the United States in 2017-2018 school year.

The course will enable the students with no programming experience to build their own fully-functional apps.

“We believe passionately that the opportunity should be extended to everyone and community colleges have a powerful reach into communities where education becomes the great equaliser,” said Apple CEO Tim Cook in a statement.

The company is aiming to prepare the students to build careers in software development and Information Technology.

Several community colleges like Austin Community College District, Northeast Mississippi Community College, Northwest Kansas Technical College and campuses in the Alabama Community College System have added the curriculum for the session.

“Apple is going to be a force multiplier in the community’s ongoing efforts to lift 10,000 people out of poverty and into good jobs over the next five years,” said Austin Mayor Steve Adler.

Apple’s app economy supports 1.5 million jobs in the US. In 2016, software developers in the US earned $5 billion through the App Store, a 40 per cent increase over 2015.

—IANS

U S To Host 7th Annual Global Entrepreneurship Summit

U S To Host 7th Annual Global Entrepreneurship Summit

gesGlobal Entrepreneurship Summit 2016

When we connect global entrepreneurs with the access and exchange needed to create and innovate, we unleash their power to change the world.

A clear example of this is found in Silicon Valley where thousands of firms have achieved success. With that in mind, what better place to gather entrepreneurs at all stages of business development for the 2016 Global Entrepreneurship Summit (GES). This Summit will be the 7th installment in a series previously hosted by the United States and the governments of Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Malaysia, Morocco, and Kenya. In bringing the Summit back to the United States, President Obama highlights his commitment to building bridges that help us tackle global challenges together.

GES 2016 aims to showcase inspiring entrepreneurs and investors from around the world creating new opportunities for investment, partnership, and collaboration; connect American entrepreneurs and investors with international counterparts to form lasting relationships; and highlight entrepreneurship as means to address some of the most intractable global challenges. Hosting GES in Silicon Valley will highlight America’s entrepreneurial spirit and allow American investors and entrepreneurs to see the talent, solutions, and opportunities that exist globally.

The summit will include a wide range of workshops, panels, ignite talks, pitch competitions, mentoring, and networking sessions aimed to give participants tailored opportunities to gain skill and relationships that will help their ventures grow. Within the Summit there will also be demonstration areas, experiential learning exhibitions, and opportunities to connect with industry experts.

(Reference:http://www.ges2016.org/)