Russia’s Doping Scandal

The WADA report into corruption and doping in Russian athletics has accused the Russia’s athletics federation (ARAF) and the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (RUSADA) of being non-compliant with Wada’s doping code. Several elite Russian athletes were named in the report, with some facing lifetime bans from all sport and have effectively gotten away with illegal performances at the London Olympics. The report makes reference of state-run doping programme organised by the Kremlin with the involvement of security officials and head coaches. The governing body is now considering whether to ban Russia from participating from the next Olympics due to be hosted in Rio in 2016.

Cameron’s Four Point Plan

David Cameron is due to publish a list of objectives which he aims to achieve when holding the re-negotiation of the UK’s membership of the European Union. The letter to the president of the European Council will pave the way for detailed talks among EU leaders. In a speech ahead of the letter’s publication, Mr Cameron will say four objectives lie at the heart of the UK’s renegotiations:

• Protection of the single market for Britain and other non-euro countries
• Boosting competitiveness
• Exempting Britain from “ever-closer union” and bolstering national parliaments
• Restricting EU migrants’ access to in-work benefits such as tax credits

The issue of restricting benefits is considered as the most contentious point as some EU states feel that could discriminate against their citizens yet it is an area that Cameron is committed to pursuing because it is the one that might address immigration. Mr Cameron has said he wants the UK to stay in a reformed EU, but he has not ruled out leaving if he cannot secure the change he wants with the leaders of the 27 EU countries.

Terror attack likely cause of Metrojet Crash

Investigators looking at what caused a Russian airliner to crash in Egypt believe a bomb was put in the hold prior to take-off. The UK Intelligence teams along with their US counterparts claimed to have intercepted communications between militants in the Sinai Peninsula who alleged to have organised the attack. Following this recent revelation, a number of countries, including the UK, Russia and Netherlands, have suspended all flights to and from Egypt until the investigation into the cause of the crash is complete. Vladimir Putin, Russia’s President, has expressed grave concern over the levels of security at the Sharm el-Sheikh airport with reports stating that the security measures were lax and not properly adhered to – a similar concern was expressed by Phillip Hammond, UK’s Foreign Secretary. The Metrojet Airbus A321 was flying from Sharm el-Sheikh to St Petersburg when it came down in Sinai on Saturday, killing all 224 people on board. Most of the victims were Russian.

A mysterious bright light in the sky

The light was spotted travelling quickly over Orange County and neighbouring areas late on Saturday, leading to fevered speculation online over its origin. The Orange County sheriff said the light was from the naval test fire made off the California coastline. Videos posted online show a bright flare rising high, before a wide, bright blue flash emerges in a cone shape. Many videos continue to track the light for several minutes. Media in California confirmed that the light came from an unarmed Trident missile fired from the USS Kentucky navy submarine. However, many residents were quick to assume that this was a UFO with a possibility of it being an extratorrential form.

Myanmar’s Elections:  Aung San Suu Kyi believes her party has won a parliamentary majority

Early results shows that the National League for Democracy secured a sweeping victory but final official results will not be known for days. The election was seen as the most democratic in Myanmar for 25 years. A quarter of Myanmar’s 664 parliamentary seats are set aside for the army, and for the NLD to have the winning majority it will need at least two-thirds of the contested seats. But Ms Suu Kyi believes that her party has surpassed that, and has won around 75%. The military-backed Union Solidarity Development Party (USDP) has been in power in Myanmar since 2011 when the country began its transition from decades of military rule to a civilian government.

Oil: Oversupply will remain

The oil market will remain oversupplied until the end of the decade as an unstoppable push for cleaner fuels and greater efficiency offsets the effect of lower prices. The International Energy Agency said oil demand would rise by less than 1 per cent a year between now and 2020, a slower pace than necessary to quickly mop up an oil glut that has driven prices to multiyear lows. The slowdown in oil demand growth follows a near 15-year surge in consumption, driven by the rapid industrialisation of China and other emerging market economies. But Beijing is now moving away from dirtier fuels and to less energy-intensive growth as it moves towards a more consumer-led economy. The IEA does not expect crude oil to reach $80 a barrel until 2020as excess supplies are slowly soaked up. After 2020, oil demand growth is expected to grind almost to a halt, increasing just 5 per cent over the next 20 years.