One Week Later....

Pope: amicable tone

In  Pope: amicable tone, we said that Pope Benedict XVI would face institutional, social, and political challenges on his trip to the United States.

• Benedict visited the White House on Wednesday, his 81st birthday, and praised the United States as a nation where strong religious belief can coexist with secular society.

Boomerang Berlusconi

In  Boomerang Berlusconi, we wrote Silvio Berlusconi would almost certainly win a third term in parliamentary elections

• Berlusconi's conservative coalition achieved solid and workable majorities in both houses of parliament in the general election of April 13-14.
• However, the centre-right coalition will face internal tensions over regional and economic policy, and Berlusconi himself will remain a highly controversial figure, given the fundamental conflict of between his business interests and his political role.
  

Putin tightens grip

In  Premier Putin, we wrote that outgoing Russia President Vladimir Putin was expected to join the ruling United Russia party at its congress and immediately become party boss, a step towards parliament approving him as prime minister on May 8.

• In a move that will strengthen his long-term hold over Russia, possibly at the expense of his handpicked successor Dmitry Medvedev, Putin accepted an offer to become Chairman of the pro-Kremlin party at a congress in Moscow. (The Telegraph)

Political Masterstroke

The World Next Week Political Masterstroke award goes to Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe who called UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown "a little tiny dot on this world". The UK prime minister, whose approval ratings back home have dropped to the lowest in history, began a formal visit to the United States on Wednesday, and even there he was eclipsed by Pope Benedict XVI's simultaneous visit. (NYT)

Analytica™

Worthy of note, or news to us.

Torch progress

The Olympic torch relay completes the latest leg of its world tour in Delhi, as 15,000 police secure the city centre.

Samsung head snared

Prosecutors in South Korea indict Samsung chairman Lee Kun-hee for tax evasion and breach of trust.

And finally…

Edward Lorenz, a meteorologist who became the father of the modern field of chaos theory, died Wednesday of cancer in Massachusetts aged 90, MIT announced Thursday. (AFP)