IRAN NUCLEAR WITHIN WEEKS

1-WORLD QUAKES LAST 2 DAYS. 2-Six dead in Malaysian floods, 80,000 evacuated. 3-Louisiana rain threatens to flood rivers. 4-More storminess for the East and Northwest. 5-Space shuttle Discovery lands in Florida. 6-Secret Talks Between Israel and Saudi Arabia. 7-A Perfidious Ruling of Israel ’s Supreme Court. 8-In Praise of Christian Zionists. 9-Restricted pro-EU constitution meeting under fire. 10-Iran defies United Nations with pledge of going nuclear within weeks.

EARTHQUAKES

MATTHEW 24:7-8
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.

MARK 13:8
8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:(ETHNIC GROUP AGAINST ETHNIC GROUP) and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.

LUKE 21:11
11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.

WORLD QUAKES LAST 2 DAYS (USGS)

Update time = Sat Dec 23 12:15 AM EDT

DEC 23,06
MAP 2.5 SOUTHERN ALASKA
MAP 3.5 SOUTH OF ALASKA
MAP 2.7 FOX ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA
MAP 2.7 CENTRAL CALIFORNIA

DEC 22,06
MAP 3.6 FOX ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA
MAP 6.1 ANDAMAN ISLANDS, INDIA REGION
MAP 2.8 ALASKA PENINSULA
MAP 5.2 FIJI REGION
MAP 3.3 ANDREANOF ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN IS., ALASKA
MAP 5.1 KEPULAUAN SANGIHE, INDONESIA
MAP 4.8 NEAR THE EAST COAST OF KAMCHATKA, RUSSIA
MAP 3.9 FOX ISLANDS, ALEUTIAN ISLANDS, ALASKA
MAP 2.6 CHANNEL ISLANDS REGION, CALIFORNIA
MAP 4.5 EAST OF THE KURIL ISLANDS

STORMS HURRICANES-TORNADOES

LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.

Six dead in Malaysian floods, 80,000 evacuated Fri Dec 22, 5:25 AM ET

KUALA LUMPUR (AFP) - The death toll from floods in Malaysia rose to six, as torrential rains in six states forced nearly 80,000 people to flee their homes and experts warned the capital was now under threat. The latest victim was a woman aged in her 60s who was found dead in her home in the worst hit state of southern Johor.Other casualties were washed away in their cars and in rivers.The number of evacuees in Johor has increased to 63,699, the Civil Defense Department's chief of disaster management, Che Moin Umar, told AFP on Thursday.Another 11,195 people had been evacuated from the western tourist state of Malacca, 2,504 from central Pahang state, 314 from western Negeri Sembilan, and a total of 604 from Kelantan and Terengganu, he said.The rains,which started Sunday in Johor, Pahang, Malacca and Negeri Sembilan, have now spread to northeastern Kelantan and Terengganu states, flooding low-lying areas and inundating villages.

The meteorological department warned the Klang Valley which Kuala Lumpur sits in would be affected if heavy rains persist. It issued its most severe red stage heavy rain warning for the area, advising residents to be prepared.The heavy rainfalls and wind condition that are currently affecting states in the east coast and Johor are expected to bring heavy downpour to the Klang Valley and its surrounding areas, it said, according to the state Bernama news agency.

Che Moin said relief operations were largely smooth but that because of the scale of the disaster there were some delays in meeting requests for assistance.There were reports of looting in Johor's worst-hit town of Segamat, as well as stores emptying as residents stocked up.The meteorology department also issued strong wind warnings of up to 70 kilometres an hour and rough seas with swells of up to 5.5 metres (18 feet) off Malaysia's east coast, and Sabah and Sarawak on Borneo island, until Sunday.Several villages on Terengganu's coast late Wednesday were lashed by strong winds and tides, forcing hundreds to flee as waves washed over their homes, reports said.

Louisiana rain threatens to flood rivers Fri Dec 22, 10:45 AM ET

NEW ORLEANS - Rain-swollen rivers threatened to flood some southeastern Louisiana homes Friday, a day after the storm swamped streets in New Orleans and neighboring Jefferson Parish, snarling traffic and closing schools.

The storm system dumped more than 6 inches of rain on New Orleans. Galliano, about 60 miles south of the city, got more than a foot of rain, National Weather Service meteorologist Robert Ricks said.Friday morning, the weather service issued flood warnings for the Tchefuncte River and the Bogue Falaya River near Folsom and Covington — about 30 miles north of New Orleans — and recommended evacuating some houses near Folsom.The Tchefuncte is likely to flood low-lying houses when it crests near Folsom early Friday night and near Covington on Saturday morning, forecasters said.

More storminess for the East and Northwest M. Ressler, Meteorologist, The Weather Channel Fri Dec 22, 3:03 PM ET

South

PUBLICIDAD

The exiting eastern storm will give much of the Southeast a brief chance to dry out Saturday and much of Christmas Eve as any remaining showers are confined to the Florida Peninsula. Quickly though, an upper-level disturbance will zip from the Desert Southwest to Texas Saturday with a few strong thunderstorms roaming through the Rio Grande valley. By Sunday, low pressure will be taking shape over the northwest Gulf along the tail end of the front. Heavy rain will explode over eastern Texas, Arkansas and Louisiana with possible late-day severe thunderstorms from Baton Rouge to Biloxi. Sunday night and Monday, the low pressure area will intensify and rain will surge northward dousing the region east of the Mississippi. A few severe thunderstorms could develop over Florida, south Georgia and the coastal Southeast. Colder air will begin to feed in behind the storm as it heads for the Ohio Valley and Mid-Atlantic later Monday. Rain could change to snow in parts of Arkansas. Monday night and Tuesday morning with some moisture remaining, snow showers could sweep eastward with the colder air across the Tennessee Valley and into the Smokey Mountains and north Georgia. Later Tuesday and Wednesday the South will be quiet. Thursday and Friday, the early week scenario could be repeated with another rain event expanding from the lower Mississippi Valley across the Southeast.

Northeast

The once Denver storm and cold front are on the move. The heavy rain will end in the Mid-Atlantic by Saturday morning and from south to north during the remainder of the day across New England. Only northernmost New England could see sleet and freezing rain. By Sunday, the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic will be quiet except for snow showers over northern New York and northern New England. Then an intensifying storm will approach from the south Christmas Day with low pressure heading northward both east and west of the Appalachians. Locally heavy rain will steadily overspread the region from south to north reaching southern New York and southern New England by nightfall. Some sleet and freezing rain could occur in the mountains across northern Pennsylvania and points northward. The windy storm will roar through the region Monday night and Tuesday. The rain will end east of the mountains Tuesday, but a significant snow could coast the mountains from northwest Pennsylvania to Maine.

Midwest

Once the snow wraps up across the northern Great Lakes Saturday, the Plains and Midwest will enjoy a quiet lead up to Christmas. Christmas, though won't be so quiet. A storm heading north from the northwest Gulf Coast Christmas Day will be energized by a potent upper-level disturbance racing into the Mississippi Valley. This meeting will generate an increasingly windy Ohio Valley storm with plenty of rain and possibly a fringe of snow from southeast Missouri and Illinois to Lower Michigan. Monday night and early Tuesday as the storm heads for the Northeast, colder air will sweep eastward changing the rain to snow showers right into the
Appalachians. Snow showers and gusty northwest winds will linger over Lower Michigan, Ohio and eastern Kentucky right into Tuesday evening. Wednesday should be quiet almost region-wide.

West

The Pacific parade of storms will move ashore early Saturday, Monday, Wednesday and Thursday. With snow levels ranging from 1500 feet in the northern Cascades to 5000 feet or so over northern California, each storm will coat the mountains with at least another 6 to 12 inches of snow. Strong gusty winds will hit coastal areas with each storm, especially the Oregon coast. The heaviest rains will focus over southwest Oregon and northwest California where each storm could dump several inches over the coastal range. Inland, each storm will bring more snow to the Great Basin and Rockies.

LUKE 21:11,25
11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places, and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.
25 And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION)

MATTHEW 21:29
29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:

Space shuttle Discovery lands in Florida Fri Dec 22, 5:56 PM ET

CAPE CANAVERAL, United States (AFP) - Space shuttle Discovery and its seven-member crew landed safely at the Kennedy Space Center here after worries about weather had scotched an earlier landing time.

The landing concluded a nearly 13-day successful mission that advanced construction of the International Space Station (ISS) in four space walks, including one added at the last moment to fix a stuck solar panel array.The 2232 GMT landing came at the end of a 66-minute descent during which the shuttle plunged at more than 26,500 kilometers (16,500 miles) an hour as it descended through the Earth's atmosphere.The shuttle gave off a double sonic boom as it descended through the early evening skies to the runway on Florida's Atlantic coast.Discovery carried seven astronauts, six from the United States and one from the European Space Agency, Christer Fuglesang, Sweden's first astronaut.Officials of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration had hoped weather conditions would improve enough in Florida to avoid having to land the space shuttle at Edwards Air Force Base in California or the White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico.A landing at either location in the western United States would have meant NASA would have to fly the shuttle to Florida, in the southeast, on the back of a modified Boeing 747 plane, which would cost some 1.7 million dollars.

There was also a worry about time running out in the mission, now in its 13th day. A landing by Saturday at the latest would be required because of dwindling electrical supplies on the shuttle.The Discovery team spent eight days at the station, rewiring it and attaching a two-ton truss to its girder-like structure.The crew also added a day and the extra space walk Monday to shake loose a solar panel array that had gotten stuck as it was being folded.Earlier Friday NASA officials awakened Discovery's crew to the song Home for the Holidays, to begin preparations for the return to Earth.Good morning, Discovery, the Mission Control Center in Houston, Texas, said to the seven crew members after their musical wake-up call.We hope you agree with us that There's no place like home for the holidays, because we hope to see you back here on Earth later this afternoon.

We can't agree more, replied Commander Mark Polansky.

After this mission, NASA plans 13 more shuttle flights -- including five in 2007 -- to complete construction of the International Space Station by 2010, when the three-aircraft shuttle fleet is due to be retired.ISS construction fell years behind schedule after the 2003 Columbia tragedy when the spacecraft disintegrated minutes ahead of landing, killing all seven astronauts aboard.NASA suspended the shuttle program to deal with safety problems. The space shuttle Atlantis mission in September marked the resumption of ISS construction.

Secret Talks Between Israel and Saudi Arabia
By Hana Levi Julian (INN)

Israel and Saudi Arabia, which have no official diplomatic relations, have been holding high-level secret talks on the issue of terrorism in the region. A senior U.S. official quoted by the Reuters news agency said on Wednesday the two nations have been holding high-level secret talks despite the oil kingdom’s refusal to recognize the Jewish State.

Despite denials by both countries, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Richard Jones said he felt it was important to publicize the contacts. I don’t have any particular details on it, but the very fact that … first of all they would be able to communicate and that they would be willing to communicate with one another I think shows a very serious approach, he said.Jones commented that such contacts would be a logical response to the chaos that is engulfing the region. He said cautiously that perhaps Israel is taking a second look at a long-rejected Saudi peace plan proposed in 2002.

I think they (the Israelis) recognize that Saudi Arabia’s policies have evolved in recent years and that Saudi Arabia is now more interested, and more on the side of peace, he said. The Israelis are warming to that.Defense Minister Amir Peretz said Sunday that the plan, which calls from Israel to surrender all of the land restored in the 1967 Six-Day War, could be the basis for an agreement with the Palestinian Authority (PA). Prime Minister Ehud Olmert made a similar statement last month. In return, the Saudi plan offers recognition of the State of Israel by Arab countries.

Kadima Cabinet Minister Meir Sheetrit said in October that he too is in favor of holding discussions on the plan.Olmert, Peretz and Sheetrit were all clear that Israel will not surrender heavily populated areas, such as the Jerusalem suburbs of Neve Ya’akov and Ma’aleh Adumim.

The U.S. Ambassador was not specific about the content of the meeting held in September between the two leaders. There is definitely something going on there, he said, but beyond the one contact that was in the press I am not privy to [it].

According to various media reports, the contacts between the two Middle Eastern nations began soon after Israel’s second Lebanon War this summer.The Prime Minister praised Saudi initiatives focused on a regional peace plan and Iran’s nuclear development program, saying he admired King Abdullah wisdom and sense of responsibility. He added praise for Saudi efforts in the region, both those made publicly and others as well, in a September interview with the daily Yediot Aharonot.When questioned more specifically on whether Olmert had met with senior Saudi officials, however, he answered cryptically, I don’t have to answer every question.The Saudis immediately denied meeting with Israeli officials. The state-owned Saudi Press Agency (SPA) quoted a Foreign Ministry statement which said, The news story circulated by Israeli and Qatari media recently over contacts between Saudi and Israeli officials is utterly false.

The Qatari-based region-wide Al-Jazeera television news network also reported that Israel and Saudi officials had met.Saudi Arabia and U.S. defense officials met recently for the most comprehensive talks in years.

The discussion centered on the growing threat from Iran's rapidly developing offensive power, according to the Mideast Newsline. The strategists concluded that the U.S. will maintain a long-term presence in the Gulf and will cooperate with the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council.Concerns about the increasing threat from the international al-Qaeda terrorist organization, which has renewed its threats to strike the U.S. were also discussed during a visit in November by a senior Saudi official with Vice President Richard Cheney.This week Saudi officials launched a campaign geared to teach children the dangers of terrorism. The education department in the country's Makkah region is trying to combat the culture of terrorism that tries to engage young children in terrorist activities. Officials said the program is part of the country's overall campaign to keep out terrorism. We are in a terrible need for such a campaign to safeguard our children from following the road of fanatics, said an official from King Abdul Aziz University.

A Perfidious Ruling of Israel ’s Supreme Court
Prof . Paul Eidelberg DEC 21,06

On December 12, 2006, Israel ’s High Court of Justice ruled that Palestinian residents of the West Bank and Gaza could file lawsuits against Israel for damages incurred in IDF operations, provided that the operations in question did not take place as part of a clearly defined war . The court ignored or trivialized the fact that the elected leaders of these Palestinians, consistent with their PLO Constitution, are explicitly waging a relentless war against Israel . For further evidence, recall the January 2006 election, when a large majority of the Palestinians voted for Hamas, whose Covenant vows genocidal war against Israel . Today, Hamas is a proxy of Iran whose commitment to Israel ’s annihilation is broadcast daily by Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, cheered by the Palestinians who cheered Saddam Hussein and danced on their rooftops as Scud missiles fell on Tel Aviv . Nevertheless, the court, headed by retired Supreme Court president Aharon Barak, nullified an amendment to the Civil Wrongs (Liability of the State) Law that was passed by the Knesset on July 27, 2005, granting the State broad immunity from lawsuits filed by Palestinian civilians for damages resulting from IDF actions against Palestinian terrorists .

The court’s ruling was vintage Barak—another manifestation of his artificial and pernicious application of international law to the embattled Jewish State of Israel . Barak’s secular, left-wing agenda continues to dominate and emasculate this country . The ultimate goal of that agenda is to erase Israel as Jewish state by transforming it into a conventional state of its citizens . In response to the court’s ruling, a friend of mine, a legal consultant in numerous international lawsuits, informed me of some shocking implications of that ruling .

This prompted me to convey not only his warnings (with permission), but also to further demonstrate the Supreme Court’s subversive tendency . In lifting the immunity of the State from civil lawsuits filed by Palestinians claiming damages resulting from IDF actions, the court automatically lifted the immunity of soldiers and officers (as well as public officials) involved in such actions . Israeli soldiers can the more readily be sued for damages in countries whose courts, bolstered by the ruling of Israel’s own Supreme Court, decide to apply international law against these Israelis—something a U . S . federal court refrained from doing by dismissing attempts to sue former Israeli chief of general staff Moshe Ya'alon for alleged war crimes . Otherwise, the costs and harassment involved in such lawsuits—a bonanza for the legal profession—can financially destroy a soldier and his family, on the one hand, and provide aid and comfort to Israel ’s enemies, on the other .

Although the court’s ruling also makes Israeli soldiers and officers (and public officials) individually liable for damages incurred during the expulsion of Jews from Gush Katif and other Jewish communities, the court would probably dismiss such suits on the ground that Israel’s government has already provided for the compensation of these Jews .In any event, since Israeli servicemen are now liable for damages resulting from their carrying out the orders of the government, thoughtful soldiers may think twice about obeying such orders rather than face costly lawsuits both at home and abroad .On the other hand, since such lawsuits and their costs would obviously be reported by the media, this will surely discourage many Israelis from enlisting in the IDF . What is more, many Israelis will be prompted to leave the country, disgusted with a government that abandons them to the wiles of their enemies even in the courts of Israel . The Supreme Court’s ruling in this matter is perfidious .

Why indeed should any thinking Israeli want to serve in an army or air force ordered to attack Arab terrorists who may be concealed or sheltered by Arab civilians, when such military service may pauperize him, thanks to Israel’s Supreme Court? Bad enough, nay, outrageous, that the government releases thousands of terrorists whose capture required Israeli soldiers to risk and often lose their lives . But for the High Court of Justice to hand down a ruling which can only aid and comfort the enemy—Palestinians who overwhelmingly and demonstrably identify with Ahmadinejad’s goal to wipe Israel off the map—this is more than outrageous . It is perilously close to treason as defined in Article III, Section 3, of the American Constitution . Of course, we are in Israel , where treason, as defined by Section 99 of the Penal Code, has become respectable, and where judges do not have to fear impeachment .

The Jerusalem Post, December 22, 2006
In Praise of Christian Zionists,By Michael Freund

They number in the millions and wield increasing power and influence across the United States . From year to year their voice grows stronger and more resolute, as their role in shaping policy, and the future of American society continues to expand. Guided by faith, they love Israel passionately and pray for her well-being, rejoicing in her successes and grieving over her setbacks.

They are America 's Bible-believing Christians, and it is time for Israel to reach out to them in a far more sophisticated and comprehensive manner. A great deal has already been written about the close ties that have developed between the two, as Israeli officials have at last begun to appreciate the depth and feeling of American evangelical support for the Jewish state. Indeed, what was once unthinkable has now become routine, as leading Christian pastors and Israeli government representatives regularly confer with one another, exchanging ideas and views on the principal issues of the day.

But in far too many instances, Israel 's attitude toward evangelicals has been short-sighted and ill-advised, with the relationship often focused on soliciting dollars rather than devotion. And that has got to change, because far greater things are at stake here than just boosting revenues from tourism. For as strong and robust as the American Jewish community might be, it cannot and will not last forever, as recent demographic trends make clear. That leaves evangelical Christians as the best hope for ensuring that bedrock US support for Israel remains firm and unwavering in the decades to come. In other words, thank God for Christian Zionists. Like it or not, the future of the relationship between Israel and the US might very well hinge far less on America's Jews than on its Christians.

By all accounts, evangelical Christians are a force to be reckoned with. As the Independent put it the other day ( London , December 19): To say the United States is a religious country is an understatement. According to polls, an estimated 47 per cent of American adults claim to be 'born-again' or evangelical. Even if the figure is an overstatement, it still means there are tens of millions of Americans who identify themselves as evangelical. And this translates into an enormous wellspring of support for Israel , as an August 2006 study by the Pew Research Center revealed. According to the report's findings, Seven-in-ten white evangelicals (69%) believe God gave Israel to the Jewish people and a solid majority (59%) believes that Israel is the fulfillment of biblical prophecy.

Not surprisingly, the study found that those who believe that God gave Israel to the Jews and that the State of Israel fulfills biblical prophecy are much more likely than others to sympathize with Israel in its dispute with the Palestinians. No wonder so many evangelicals have taken to calling themselves Christian Zionists. Their sympathy and concern for Israel is readily apparent. I see it in the e-mails I receive regularly from evangelical Christians in the US in response to my columns in The Jerusalem Post. They are sincere and caring, and full of love and concern for Israel and its plight.Sure, there are some who would like to convert Jews, and they make little or no attempt to hide their agenda. But the vast majority simply wish to bless Israel because that is what they truly believe God wants them to do. AND IT IS this genuine and heartfelt affection that contains within it the potential to forge a historic alliance, one that could help heal some of the painful wounds of the past even as it paves the way for a close and meaningful partnership in the future. By adopting a few simple but significant steps, Israel can lay the groundwork for ensuring that the bond with US Christians continues to deepen.

First, Israel should appoint a roving ambassador tasked with responsibility for maintaining relations with Christians in America . This should not be just an honorary title, nor should it go to one of the usual organizational fund-raisers or foreign service hacks. Instead, the government should appoint a person of faith, one who can communicate with evangelicals in terms they both understand and appreciate.

Second, Israel should reach out to Christian leaders and their communities, and initiate the establishment of prayer battalions in churches across the United States . Like rapid-deployment forces used by the military, these battalions could be mobilized at a moment's notice to pray for specific issues, such as the return of Israel's missing soldiers or the threat posed by Iran's nuclear ambitions. Such an undertaking would have nothing to do with asking for funds, but everything to do with tapping into the vast reservoirs of faith and belief that underscore Christian backing for the Jewish state. And you can be sure that if a person is moved to pray for Israel , chances are that his sense of affinity will only continue to grow. Other steps that Israel could take to reinforce US Christian support might include organizing an annual conference for religious and lay leaders in Jerusalem , as well as helping them to develop the equivalent of a birthright-Israel program for young churchgoers which would serve to reinforce their connection with the land of the Bible.

Christian support for Israel is broad, profound and deep. If cultivated properly, it can blossom into a lasting friendship of historical, political and diplomatic significance. And with American Jewry steadily shrinking in size, nothing could be more pressing or more vital.The writer served as Deputy Director of Communications in the Prime Minister's Office under former premier Binyamin Netanyahu.

Restricted pro-EU constitution meeting under fire
22.12.2006 - 09:23 CET | By Mark Beunderman

EUOBSERVER / BRUSSELS - The Liberals in the European Parliament have strongly rejected a plan by Spain and Luxembourg to hold a restricted friends of the EU constitution meeting, saying the move carries the serious risk of dividing the union. The criticism comes after last week's invitation by Spain and Luxembourg to the Europe ministers of only those 18 EU countries which have ratified the constitution to a private meeting in Madrid on 26 January. Spain and Luxembourg deliberately excluded France and the Netherlands, which rejected the charter in popular referendums in 2005, as well as seven other states which subsequently
suspended ratification, from the Madrid meeting - and invited them only for a second gathering open for all EU states in Luxembourg in late February.

The initiative of Spain and Luxembourg carries the serious risk of dividing the union. To hold a conference only for those who have ratified the constitution threatens to gang up on the refuseniks, said Liberal constitutional spokesman and UK MEP Andrew Duff. Calling for the meetings to be cancelled, he went on to say that they are hugely undermining the efforts of the German presidency, whose duty it is to come up with proposals to renegotiate the 2004 constitutional treaty.Germany, which will chair the EU for six months from 1 January, has been tasked to design a road map at the end of its presidency to find a way out of the constitutional limbo created by the French and Dutch no votes. German foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier on Tuesday (19 December) gave a cautiously positive reaction to the Spanish-Luxembourg move by saying he understood the wish of the pro-constitution states to meet separately. Meanwhile, Spanish and Luxembourgish diplomats defended their initiative, with one Spanish contact saying that it is designed precisely to help the German presidency to collect the positions, to help to find a way out.

It is difficult to think that this will divide the union, he added.But divisions over the restricted invitation already emerged when it was circulated at an EU leaders' summit last week, with Dutch prime minister Jan Peter Balkenende warning the institutional debate in the EU should remain controllable. French president Jacques Chirac meanwhile played down the importance of the Spanish-Luxembourg plan, saying the constitution is a matter for the German presidency. Spain and Luxembourg are the only two countries which ratified the EU constitution by referendum, with 77 percent of Spaniards and 56 percent of Luxembourgers voting yes to the document.

Iran defies United Nations with pledge of going nuclear within weeks
By Alex Spillius,Last Updated: 2:38am GMT 22/12/2006

Iran defied imminent United Nations sanctions over its nuclear programme yesterday and pledged that it would become a member of the nuclear club within weeks.After weeks of haggling between major world powers, a resolution is expected to be approved by the UN Security Council before Christmas.The nature of this resolution is not capable of pressuring Iran, and Iran will give an appropriate response to it, said Ali Larijani, the secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, and main negotiator on atomic issues.

This behaviour will just create more problems.Following Iran's failure to halt sensitive nuclear fuel work, the resolution is expected to ban imports and exports of materials and technology relating to uranium enrichment, reprocessing and heavy-water reactors, as well as ballistic missile delivery systems.

Iran's president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, yesterday reiterated a prediction that Iran will announce going nuclear in February during celebrations of the 1979 Islamic revolution against the Shah.Addressing a rally in west Iran, he said his country's nuclear plans would inspire other nations.

He revelled in mocking President George W Bush and the West.Some so-called superpowers... think that they can control the whole world, he said. I'm telling them: Open your eyes, today, the world no longer thinks your decisions have any value.His typically outspoken remarks came after the American president said his Iranian counterpart was out of step with the rest of the world. On a tour of the Middle East this week Tony Blair called on moderate Muslim states to line up against Iran, which he accused of supporting extremist elements in southern Iraq and Lebanon.Since his surprising election victory last year, Mr Ahmadinejad has accelerated Iran's nuclear programme, which western powers suspect is aimed at producing nuclear weapons in five to 10 years.Mr Ahmadinejad has said Israel should be wiped off the map.