CYPRUS - The leaders of Cyprus are meeting in Geneva for UN-led talks, with optimism that they can reach a settlement to end decades of division. The UN envoy in Geneva said Greek Cypriot leader Nicos Anastasiades and his Turkish Cypriot counterpart Mustafa Akinci "really want to make this work". Previous attempts at reunifying the island have failed. The aim is to create some kind of united but federal Cyprus where power is shared between the two communities. Cyprus has been split since Turkish troops invaded in 1974, following an Athens-inspired coup by Greek Cypriots seeking union with Greece. The northern third of the island is inhabited by Turkish Cypriots and the southern two-thirds by Greek Cypriots. Talks have already been going on for some 19 months and significant stumbling blocks remain.

USA - US President-elect Donald Trump has hit back at Meryl Streep's criticism of him as she received a lifetime achievement award at the Golden Globes. He tweeted: "Meryl Streep, one of the most overrated actresses in Hollywood, doesn't know me but attacked last night at the Golden Globes. She is a Hillary flunky who lost big," Mr Trump added of the three-time Oscar-winning actress. She said: "When the powerful use their position to bully others we all lose."

USA - In the last few weeks, we have heard so much news about alleged Russian hacks of DNC and Podesta emails that it isn’t even news any more. The only reason it appears to be news is that it continues to have front-page position in the orthodox media even though the basic story is old and unchanged.

USA - After Hillary Clinton was defeated in the US presidential election the relevant powers launched a campaign to delegitimize the President-elect Donald Trump. The ultimate aim of the cabal is to kick him out of office and have a reliable replacement, like the Vice-President elect Pence, take over. Should that not be possible it is hoped that the delegitimization will make it impossible for Trump to change major policy trajectories especially in foreign policy.

USA - Director of National Intelligence James Clapper admitted to the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday that the Russians did not alter vote counts in the US Election. "They did not change any vote tallies or anything of that sort," Clapper said under questioning from Chairman John McCain (Republican for Arizona) Clapper further implicitly conceded that whatever the Russians might have done in making Democratic National Committee emails available to the public, the outcome of the US presidential election nonetheless reflected "the choices" of American voters.

USA - “The bottom line is that anyone can be ISIS. We therefore need an approach to securing civilized societies that doesn't allow individuals to hide behind the cloak of Western passports… The time has come for a "global passport," a parallel digital certification of a person's identity, background, criminal record, travel history, and other details.

GERMANY - A charter reiterating strict German migration limits and calling for new Turkey-like refugee agreements with third countries is reportedly being drafted by the leader of Germany’s Christian Social Union (CSU). A program dubbed ‘Germany must remain Germany’ has been reportedly prepared by the Bavarian Prime Minister and the leader of CSU Horst Seehofer. The document is expected to be published on Tuesday, according to a report of Munich's local newspaper the Münchner Merkur. The charter outlines the CSU’s position on Germany’s and the EU’s migration challenges. The document has been authored mainly by Seehofer, but also contains a number of proposals from Bavarian ministers, as well as input from other federal and state government officials, according to the Münchner Merkur.

USA - CNBC report asks ‘Who Do You Believe America? Wikileaks or US Intelligence Officials?’ In the end an astounding 83%, 69,815 out of the 84,115 total votes that were cast, stated they believed Wikileaks. Of course there is a well substantiated fear of those same US intelligence agencies which undoubtedly prevented tens of thousands from casting their votes in favor of Wikileaks. But at the end of the day when you ask someone if they trust Wikileaks with a perfect 10 year track record of never once putting out a lie over US intelligence agencies which have been caught in lie after lie over the last decade, from Iraq WMDs to recent lies about Russia for hacking the US elections which those same intelligence agencies have been caught doing, who would any reasonable person believe?

USA - The world as we know it could end in just ten years as political turmoil reaches its peak, a scientist has warned. Professor Peter Turchin says social unrest and political upset could result in the collapse of the world as we know it, based on his latest research. 

GERMANY - Germany's insistence on austerity in the euro zone has left Europe more divided than ever and a break-up of the European Union is no longer inconceivable, German Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel told Der Spiegel magazine.

UK - The question is whether what follows will be an unravelling of the post-second world war era into deglobalisation and conflict, as happened in the first half of the 20th century, or a new period in which non-western powers, especially China and India, play a bigger role in sustaining a co-operative global order.

GERMANY - In a week that revealed a jump in inflation in Europe’s largest economy, commentators are lining up to urge the European Central Bank president to end his ultra-loose monetary policy. From the allegation that savers face devastation to Bild newspaper’s call to “Raise rates now!” Draghi is once again facing the wrath of Germans fretting that the guardian of price stability will let them down.  “The debate is going to get louder, particularly in Germany where people are bred to fear inflation,” said Stefan Kipar, an economist at BayernLB. “But one mustn’t forget that the ECB is setting monetary policy not only for Germany, but for the whole euro area, and that even in Germany the underlying price-pressure remains moderate and inflation should stay below 2 percent in the upcoming year.”

USA - Donald Trump's team is ordering politically appointed ambassadors to leave their overseas posts by Inauguration Day, The New York Times reports. The mandate could leave the US without Senate-confirmed representatives for months in countries like Germany and Britain, the Times notes. The order breaks with precedent. In the past, administrations have granted extensions on a case-by-case basis. The State Department reportedly informed all politically appointed ambassadors that they were to submit letters of resignation effective January 20 the day after the election, and instructed those seeking extensions to submit formal requests.

USA - Three US senators introduced a bill calling for US embassy to be relocated to Jerusalem and recognizing city as Israeli capital. As it convened for the first Tuesday of the New Year, the new US Congress made one of its primary orders of business the introduction of a bill to move the country’s embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, calling on Washington to recognize Jerusalem as "the undivided capital of the State of Israel." The "Jerusalem Embassy and Recognition Act," submitted Tuesday by former Republican presidential candidates and senators Ted Cruz of Texas and Marco Rubio of Florida as well as Nevada Senator Dean Heller, would withhold funds from the US State Department until the embassy is moved.

JORDAN - Jordan's government spokesman warned on Thursday of "catastrophic" repercussions if President-elect Donald Trump makes good on a campaign promise to move the US Embassy in Israel to contested Jerusalem. Such a move could affect relations between the US and regional allies, including Jordan, Information Minister Mohammed Momani told The Associated Press, addressing the issue publicly for the first time.  An embassy move would be a "red line" for Jordan, would "inflame the Islamic and Arab streets" and serve as a "gift to extremists," he said, adding that Jordan would use all possible political and diplomatic means to try and prevent such a decision.