Head Of U.S. State Department's Energy Office To Step Down
The head of the State Department's office in charge of energy diplomacy will step down in August after playing a key role in getting countries such as China, India and Japan to cooperate with Western sanctions on Iran, officials said on Friday. Carlos Pascual became an important player in Washington's effort to place tough new sanctions on Iran over its disputed nuclear program soon after the bureau of energy resources was launched in 2011. The State Department said Pascual had decided to return to private life. He traveled to countries in Asia, Europe and the Middle East with officials from the Departments of Treasury and Commerce to ease the way for sanctions that slashed oil production from one of OPEC's top crude producers.
Global Pirate Attacks Increase
The AP reported that pirate attacks rose worldwide in the first quarter of the year, with overtaking as the country worst plagued by sea bandits, a global maritime watchdog said. Seafarers suffered 49 attacks between January and March around the world, up 20 percent from the 41 recorded in the same period last year, the International Maritime Bureau said in a report by its piracy reporting center in . ranked as the No. 1 hotspot amid a lack of effective law enforcement, with its 10 reported attacks. Myriad armed groups roam the Niger Delta, where violence has slashed oil production and helped propel oil prices to new highs. produces about 2.1 million barrels of oil a day, the largest output in .
