Wikileaks: Washington is hit hard by Wikileaks

Washington is at the centre of a diplomatic crisis after the release of thousands of secret messages on the whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks.

Advance notice of the cache of 250,000 so called cables were made available to a handful of newspapers.

Some of them include candid views of foreign leaders and blunt assessments of nuclear and terrorist threats.

Among the revelations are the opinions of Middle East leaders to Iran as well as reports that Israel is continually urging Washington to be strong against the country and its nuclear programme.

Other messages apparently disclosed that the US was happy to spy on the activities of the UN.

Having been told of the imminent leaks Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has been urgently contacting foreign officials over the past few days to warn them of the disclosures.

Although some of the information can be considered harmless, security analysts agree the release of the documents is embarrassing to say the least especially the thoughts and criticisms levelled by US diplomats at its allies.

Environment: Low expectation as UN climate talks convene

A new round of UN climate talks gets underway today in Cancun in Mexico.

Switching on a wind turbine to power the UN conference’s hotel, Mexican President Felipe Calderon said discussions between some 200 nations would focus on preparations for a hotter world.

But, the fanfare in the beach resort is well below that of last year’s Copenhagen summit in Denmark. That aimed to agree a new climate deal but was widely criticised as a failure because of its non-binding nature.

Despite the generally low expectations, green activists are calling for real action.

Greenpeace Climate Coordinator Joao Talocci said:

‘‘Greenpeace is here in Chichen Itza, Mexico to remind delegates meeting for the UN climate talks of a crucial lesson: even the most advanced civilisations collapse. If we do nothing, climate change could have devastating consequences for humanity.’‘

Protecting the planet’s rain forests is also expected to dominate the agenda.

The EU is also pushing for emerging economies to set firmer targets on cutting their greenhouse gas emissions in an effort to achieve something concrete and avoid more hot air.

Elections 1: Haiti's elections hit by fraud allegations 

There have been scenes of chaos and confusion in Haiti after several presidential candidates called for Sunday’s vote to be cancelled.

Twelve of the 18 people contesting the ravaged nation’s top job have alleged widespread fraud.

They include the prominent front runner, Mirlande Manigat.

The former first lady and her 11 colleagues have accused outgoing President Rene Preval’s unity coalition of trying to steal the elections.

Voters at one polling station trashed the centre, shouting “thief thief”. Violence spilled over into the street.

The criticism of the election is a blow to the credibility of the UN-supported poll. The international community was hoping they could produce a stable, legitimate government after Haiti was devastated by January’s earthquake and continues to struggle with a cholera epidemic.

Elections 2: Egypt's opposition cries "foul" in parliamentary vote

Polling stations in Egypt’s first round of parliamentary elections have closed amid charges of fraud and intimidation.

Opposition parties including the banned Muslim Brotherhood, whose candidates have stood as independents have complained of vote rigging in favour of President Hosni Mubarak’s ruling party.

Muhamad Al-Beltaji of the Muslim Brotherhood said:

“People have been prevented from voting, our representatives have been stopped from entering the polling stations….the security forces have orchestrated the electoral process from beginning to end.”

The accusations have been denied by Egypt’s Interior Ministry and sporadic violence had been down played. Official results are due out on Tuesday.

Electoral Commission spokesman, Sameh al-Kashef was clear the poll had been fair: “The Commission so far has not received any claims of serious irregularities from candidates or voters in the electoral process.” he said.

Estimates for the election turnout are not expected to differ from previous polls which analysts say are regularly accompanied by public distrust in most of the political parties.

Our Cairo correspondent Mohamed Elhamy said, “ the first round of Egypt’s legislative elections have been overshadowed by the accusations.The ruling National Democratic Party is expected to win a landslide while many Muslim Brotherhood candidates will lose their seats.”

From: Euronews