2010-11-11 CNN
Thank you to Mr. Koczot's class for that exemplary introduction! My name is Carl Azuz, and today's top stories are right now!
An interesting headline came out of President Obama's third day in India: He was giving a speech to India's parliament, its government, and the U.S. president officially endorsed India getting a permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council. Okay, so what? Well, since 1945, the U.N. Security Council has had five permanent members. They include the U.S., the United Kingdom, France, China, and Russia. These five countries have had the ultimate power to veto any major move that the U.N. wants to make, so a permanent seat there is very powerful. CNN's Ali Velshi explains why President Obama wants India, to have one:
Why did President Obama bring it up? Well, the U.S. sees a huge potential upside to a powerful India in terms of democracy. President Obama sees India's system as a model for developing countries.
And then there's the economy. We've discussed this. India is booming, creating more and richer consumers every year. And, finally, there's the issue of security. India is involved in Afghanistan, is joining the cause for nuclear nonproliferation. As for Pakistan, America's ties with that country do complicate its ties with India because those two are arch rivals. But that, too, was part of the president's address.
Besides Pakistan, though, China also sees India as a rival and doesn't want India permanently on the Security Council. And Japan has been trying to get a permanent U.N. seat since the early 1990s. So while the president's statement was welcomed in India, action isn't expected anytime soon -- if ever.
No air cargo from Yemen will be allowed into the United States anytime soon. The Department of Homeland Security is also saying "no" to any air cargo from the African country of Somalia. And no airline passengers can travel with large printer cartridges. These new rules are in effect immediately, and here is the reason: An apparent terrorist plot involving two package bombs. They were discovered in late October on air cargo shipments from Yemen to the U.S.