Ukraine, Crimea, Syria, Israel, Iran, Turkey, Putin, China, and World War III [Archive] - Page 5

Callista

18th January 2016, 04:18

Yesterday I saw this vid:

Sir Julian Rose: ALERT! The situation in Poland is critical

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nz9Nu8YJ7l8

and today this article appeared in Veterans Today:

POLAND WILL BEGIN DIVIDING UKRAINE (http://www.veteranstoday.com/2016/01/17/poland-will-begin-dividing-ukraine/http://www.veteranstoday.com/2016/01/17/poland-will-begin-dividing-ukraine/

Originally appeared at Rusplt, translated by Comrade Korolyov exclusively for SouthFront

Ambitions and old scores of Russia’s historical opponents will help to find a solution to the Ukrainian question

Polands threatens to become the EU’s main problem in 2016, according to Austrian Der Standard publishment. The winning party “Right and Justice” (translated from Russian translation of the original Polish name), that won the majority of votes in the Seim, is nowadays conducting a coup d’état, establishing control over all governmental institutions, including the Constitutional Court.

The right-winged conservative orientation of Warsaw makes it remember old Polish-Ukrainian arguments and scores, and claim its rights on the historically Polish lands of Western Ukraine. Russia can “heat” the situation according to her own interests. Dividing Ukraine can help Novorossiya to separate, leaving only a dozen central regions under Kiev’s control.

The “Right and Justice” party under Yaroslav Kachinsky came to power last autumn and completely legally – as a result of democratic elections. After it received the majority of seats in the parliament, it, for the first time in the modern Polish history, formed a single-party government. And this time there was not a single Communist, Socialist or other left-wing party in the Seim.

Polish President Andjey Duda – is also from Right and Justice. The total control received by the conservatives of the jurisdictional and executive powers allowed them to develop their success. According to the Seim-approved law, the quorum of the Constitutional Court has been increased from 9 to 13 judges, and the decisions will be made not by majority, but by two-thirds of the votes. This way, the work of this highest law institution is de-facto paralyzed.

Right and Justice are “eurosceptics”. Their ideal – is a strong Poland with little influence from the EU, or, if possible with no influence at all. Factually, this is a Polish analogue to the French “National Front”. Also, what makes the Polish conservatives stand out is their honest-to-god Russophobian attitude.

In the setting of absolutely unlimited power, the right-winged conservative ideology will undoubtedly become the main Party Line of Polish foreign policy, and this means, old historical scores will be attempted to be settled, interests and claims of this formerly powerful European country will be revived, as it happened in history before. The neighbours of this new “Grand Duchy of Poland” should brace themselves.

Geopolitics is back on the menu

Polish ambitions were always grandiose. The four divisions this country lived through are living proof of this: only the aggressive defeated suffer such a fate. Nowadays, when the foreign policy is turning out rather nicely for the Polish, it seems, we are to expect some sort of a revanchist movement within Polish governmental circles. Poland is being backed by the “British world” with the U.S. in it’s lead, whose loyal European puppets are Warsaw and London (as yet another eurosceptic and EU’s critic). No longer wishing to serve Germany’s interests, the leader of new non-military eurointegration, Poland dreams of simultaneously play the role of one of the leading European states. This is where Right and Justice triumph’s roots are set.

This was already understood in the EU. Luxemburg’s Foreign Affairs Ministry’s head Jean Asselbourne called what is happening in Poland now “strange and scary”: in his opinion, the attacks on independence of courts, mass media and methods, which are used to do this, are a spit in the face of European principles. “The European Union must explained to the Polish government, without any delay, that you cannot do this”, – says Asselbourne. However, to do this to a legally elected government is unclear. The expulsion of Poland from the EU is not outlined in any of the allied agreements, is what Der Standard reminds us, meaning any threats are useless.

We must note, that Warsaw’s strife to play an increasing role in the international affairs was predicted in Stratfor’s analysis. In 2009 they were claiming that before 2020 Germany, Turkey, Japan and Poland will activate, all of these throughout history marked themselves with the thirst of expansion, but as the result ended up a subject or a satellite of a victorious nation. Demonstration of Merkel’s ambitions, political insanity of Erdogan, new Japanese militarism (that recently permitted the use of Japanese Self-Defense force to operate out of the country), and, last, but not least, ultraright conservative Poland – this is all a sign that the forecast was correct. Geopolitics is back on the menu.

Division of Ukraine

Poland will of course be an antirussian and proamerican country. And this is why she probably won’t be too hostile to the antirussian Kievan regime. “Washington’s forepost” is a “forepost” for both countries. For now, this is so, however the nationalist regimes act out of their own logic. USA’s wishes will only be considered up to a point, and only until Polish interests are considered too. And a fundamental interest of all nationalists is a conquest of all historical “living space”. In the Polish case, this is Western Ukraine. Just a few years ago most analytics couldn’t even guess that something like this could become a reality. Maidan and its consequences weren’t foreseen either.

More to that, the map of a possible Ukrainian divide the Polish media demonstrated over a year ago. This is, of course, not the Sovinformburo (Soviet Informational Buerau, Soviet Union’s mass media organisation), we cannot take everything the Polish media says as an outright truth, but still, it is the sign of true intentions of the Polish government and Polish peoples’ attitudes. According to Polish nationalists, Poland must consume Lviv, Volyn, Ivano-Frankovsk, Ternopol, Rovnensk cities and their districts (oblasts). This isn’t surprising, consingering that Lviv is really a Polish city ethnically, that was given to the USSR in 1939 as per Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. And although the Polish community has thinned out over the decades, the historical memory, especially of Polish-Ukrainian War of 1918-1919, has not dissapeared. This is why Poland was lobbying the creation of a monument to commemorate that war in Lviv “Lviv’s little eagles”. We can say the same about Volyn with it’s famous massacre.

This is also confirmed by the fact that “a Polishman’s card” is being widely spread in those regions. And it was being done for a while now – this law was passed eight years ago. It eases the access through the Polish border and is easily exchanged for a residence permit, overall it Polifies its owner. It really is a Polish passport in its own sense. Because it is unable to give out EU member’s passport just to anyone, Warsaw acts in steps. Already 140 000 Ukrainians own this card. If their interests will suddenly be under threat, Poland wil have a moral right to intervene.

Dreaming about the conquest of those lands, the Polish also thought about other lands and their historical ownership. Chernovitskaya oblast can be given to Romania. Zakarpatskaya – to Hungary. Russia will take back all of Novorossiya (that is all of Kharkhovskaya, Dnepropetrovskaya, Donetskaya, Luganskaya, Zaporozhskaya, Khersonskaya, Nikolaevskaya and Odesskaya oblasts, literalliy half of Ukraine) where the population is vastly ethnically Russian and Russian-speaking, and the economy is traditionally very dependent on Russian clientelle. And Ukraine itself will be left with nine central regions with Kiev as the capital: Zhitomirskaya, Khmelnitskaya, Vinnitskaya, Kievskaya, Chernigovskaya, Cherkasskaya, Kirovogradskaya, Sumskaya and Poltavskaya oblasts. These are historical lands of Kievan Rus. This way, Ukraine will keep all its territories, except those that were gifted to Ukraine the so-much hated in Ukrainian nationalist circles Russian Czars and Soviet leaders.

Such turn of events would be favourable for Russia not only because of Novorossian salvation, but also because of localisation of the insane Ukrainian nationalism in set boundaries. Even the rather ruthless Soviet government that was standing for internationalism in it’s good form couldn’t eradicate it, now, after twenty five years of “independence”, it, while fully stripped of statehood, is still dangerous as ever. If a small Ukrainian country will be created, in it’s natural borders, the lovers of Mova and Vyshivanka will be able to practice their fetishes without any harm to their neighbours, rightfully proud to belong to a Ukrainian nation, and, if they will pull it off, Europe.

The conditions to realise such a scenario or just about right. Nationalist turn in Poland is key. Through making a deal with Warsaw (or may be bypassing it, and talking as equals with the U.S. straight away, to save time), exciting Romanian and Hungarian (and may be even Slovakian and Belorussian) appetites, Russia could solve the Ukrainian crysis for good and for safety of all, including the Ukrainians themselves. But first and foremost for the good and safety of the Russian population of Novorossiya.

Sophocles

23rd January 2016, 12:49

More on Victoria Nuland`s "Rudolph Hess moment":

Nuland meets Surkov to warn about imminent NATO attack by Scott (http://thesaker.is/nuland-meets-surkov-to-warn-about-imminent-nato-attack-by-scott/)

The Saker January 20, 2016

Since Maidan in Kiev two years ago, American life has become a reality show from the Discovery channel. Every day Americans are discovering something new. For example, this January they discovered that the US stock market is full of hot air, and that the world has turned nervous and angry. Also they have discovered that they have bolshoy (big) problem getting around the Persian Gulf. Which has been, if you think like a true American, their backyard. You see, if you think like an American, the entire world is your backyard and your outhouse.

Remember how in spring 2014, the NATO-backed junta started hunting the Russians in Ukraine, and how people were found hanged on the trees because they were Russian? Remember, how the junta’s tanks moved against civilians in Donbass and people were trying to stop tanks with their bare hands? Russians had called for Europe to stop the spread of fascism in Ukraine. European politicians and its media furiously denied the allegations, and to prove the absence of fascism in Ukraine, massacred hundreds of the Russians in Odessa and Mariupol. It was highly publicized as the heroic fight against “Russian aggression.” Remember?

Among the people who were burned in the Labor Union building in a beautiful port of Odessa were a local poet, a pregnant woman, several children and a teen student of Odessa University, whose mother, a professor of the same university was trying, to no avail, to save him in the midst of murderous crowd bused from Kiev and the Western parts of Ukraine.

Back then Russia promised to take revenge and to turn the life of the masters of our universe, yankees*, into a living hell.
*[According to the Urban Dictionary, “yanky”: American wind sack, worst type of Human on the planet, lives with head inserted completely up his own rectum, there all very stupid…]

We are not psychotic murderers like you, Russia said to the West. We won’t kill your women and children. We will just put the end to your life on this planet as you know it. After we are done, no one, including your Founding Fathers, will be able to recognize you. The West ignored this promise, because the West never listens to what Russians have to say.

On Friday January 15th, 2016 less than 24 hours after the meeting between Sergey Lavrov and John Kerry in Zurich on January 20, 2016 was announced, and just a day before the sanctions on Iran were scheduled to be lifted, a plane carrying Victoria Nuland (http://tass.ru/en/politics/850056), an Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs, took a sudden turn on its way from Vilnius to Berlin and landed on a Russian airbase near Kaliningrad. Earlier Nuland out of blue called Kremlin and urgently demanded that president Putin meet with her personally. Putin refused to see her, but sent his “influential” assistant Surkov (http://rusvesna.su/recent_opinions/1453122098) to see what she wanted.

Surkov had arrived at Kaliningrad on Thursday January 14th. Nuland’s plane landed on the military base near Kaliningrad on Friday January 15th. Surkov and Nuland had a four hour talk behind closed doors. No one knows what exactly they talked about. The officially released version (http://www.veteranstoday.com/2016/01/17/the-surkov-nuland-meeting-and-the-end-of-the-junta/) states that they talked about the implementation of the Minsk II agreement, the changes in Ukraine’s constitution, and the upcoming elections in Donetsk and Lugansk People’s republics.

Unofficial versions vary.

It’s being reported by some experts from the French AgoraVox who sincerely think that Nuland came to “prevent an inevitable NATO strike on Russia,” and that she came in attempt to “prevent world war.”

According to the witnesses of Nuland’s arrival, she was in and “extremely agitated” state of mind. She was repeating over and over: “War is coming! War is at our gates!” She was also heard saying that Russia “has not fulfilled its promises,” and now “everybody is going to pay for this.”
Also being reported that she has been very agitated recently because Barack Obama is “cleaning” the White House and that she herself might be on a chopping block.

The same day, Friday January 15th at 16:20PM Putin held an emergency briefing session (http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/51173) with permanent members of the Security Council in his Novo-Ogaryovo residence.

Taking part in the meeting were Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, Speaker of the Federation Council Valentina Matviyenko, Speaker of the State Duma Sergei Naryshkin, Secretary of the Security Council Nikolai Patrushev, Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu, Director of the Federal Security Service Alexander Bortnikov, Director of the Foreign Intelligence Service Mikhail Fradkov, Deputy Secretary of the Security Council Rashid Nurgaliyev, and permanent member of the Security Council Boris Gryzlov.

The agenda covered unspecified current domestic and international matters.

And what? And nothing…

What had propelled Vikki Nuland, a Washington unelected apparatchik, whose life long efforts are universally understood as being directed towards the destruction of Russia, what propelled her to rush to warn Russia about the alleged imminent NATO strike? Shouldn’t she keep her mouth shut until the happy day of the NATO nukes taking a flight into the country that Nuland hates with so much vigor?

To find an answer to this question we have to go way way back.

On Tuesday January 12th, 2016 CNN first reported Jane Psaki’s announcement about “Iran holding 10 US sailors.” (http://edition.cnn.com/2016/01/12/politics/10-u-s-sailors-in-iranian-custody/)

The reasons for the US marines to enter tightly guarded waters around Iran’s military base on the Farsi Island were confusingly reported as follows: (http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2016/01/18/us-navy-boats-veered-into-iranian-waters-before-mechanical-breakdown/78958820/) ” they drifted into Iranian waters, they had veered off course before one of the boats experienced a mechanical breakdown, the Navy lost communication with the boats.”

Two boats with marines were released back into the wild after approximately 15 hours. It said (http://www.timesunion.com/news/politics/article/US-military-releases-1st-account-of-sailors-Iran-6766512.php) “a post-recovery inventory of the boats found that all weapons, ammunition and communications gear was accounted for, minus two SIM cards apparently removed from two hand-held satellite phones.”

Some people now say that the boats were on a suicide mission, willingly or unwillingly. There are credible reports of an Israeli submarine positioned nearby that was allegedly ready to sink the vessels while in Iranian waters, as a prerequisite for a political fury of sanctions and armed whatnots against Iran over an “attack on the US vessels.”

Had the marines understood what their fate might be we don’t know. However, the Iranians say that the US marines cried (http://rusvesna.su/news/1453044380) while being detained, that’s how scared they were, until they were told that they won’t be killed, tortured, or imprisoned, as they knew the US would have done to Iranians if the situation was somehow reversed.

Somebody must had warned Iranians about this false flag attack. Could it be someone from the US Navy? From NATO? Just like the American diplomat working in Moscow warned about the plot to kill the President of Russia in March 2015. According to the plan Putin was supposed to be killed on a helicopter. Remember, The Economist magazine’s “mysterious” cover for 2015? Putin in black and white and, wearing sunglasses and an orange helicopter in front of him? Orange as in “orange revolution.” Because, as we all know, they are all geniuses over there, and we are just country pumpkins. That was it. Fifth columnists, NGO grant eaters, and other liberal rats were running around the Kremlin with cameras because they were told to watch service helicopters with a promise that something big was about to happen.

PgB_kAVDwhM

An American diplomat reported this plan to the Russia’s authorities and the plan was foiled. Rumor has it, the guy moved to Crimea and got baptized in the Russian Orthodox Church. It’s a beautiful ceremony, I must admit, and to experience it is worth saving the life of a president.

It looks like people everywhere are very alert to the possibility of the psychotic 1% starting a mass slaughter across the globe, and try to fight these plans with everything they’ve got; career, freedom and life notwithstanding.

Upon learning of a plan to use two swift boats as a bait, and to turn the Persian Gulf into a “pearl harbor,” the Russia’s Air Forces, who just happened to be in the neighborhood apparently used their mysterious capacity to turn off the US swift boats’ systems, and allegedly, the Israeli submarine’ systems, also. Boats became deaf, blind and motionless. Exactly like in November 2014in the Black Sea, the Russian Sukhoi Su -24 with the newest jamming complex paralyzed the most modern American combat management system “Aegis” installed on the destroyer “USS Donald Cook.”

CNN showed this humiliation ( Persian Gulf, not the Black sea one)

D1S0HOsB7f8

As someone rightfully noted, “You haven’t lived until you’re a 22 year old ensign a few months out of NROTC, leading 7 sailors who are all under 21 and 2 chiefs who are about 30 years old. Your small boat breaks in the middle of the Persian Gulf and you can’t see the ship and the radio is broken. And not only that, half the political establishment of your country is hoping to Christ you become a martyr.”

Now, can we understand why the US marines were crying?

And most importantly, we might know what exactly Surkov told to Nuland when she blackmailed him by an “imminent NATO strike.” Known for being as politically correct, subtle and calculating as a guided missile, Surkov could, for all we know, even have used the CNN footage to illustrate his points.

Well, from the Black Sea to island Farci, the US marines have been crying more and more since 2014 when the USS Cook was blinded, deafened and disabled by Russia’s SU. Will Washington ever see their tears and bring them home? Meanwhile, the US military gradually learn that urinating on dead Muslims is not nearly as exhilarating as getting down on your knees in front of alive ones.

Source (http://thesaker.is/nuland-meets-surkov-to-warn-about-imminent-nato-attack-by-scott/)

Hervé

25th January 2016, 15:49

20 Dead, 200 Hospitalized After Reports US Lab "Leaks" Deadly Virus In Ukraine (http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-01-25/20-dead-200-hospitalized-after-reports-us-lab-leaks-deadly-virus-ukraine)

http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/pictures/picture-5.jpg (http://www.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden) Submitted by Tyler Durden (http://www.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden) on 01/25/2016 09:51 -0500

Amid the so-called "ceasefire" in Ukraine, yet ongoing shelling in many regions (https://dninews.com/article/dpr-defense-ministry-situation-report-22012016), the Donbass news agency reports (https://dninews.com/article/deadly-virus-leaked-us-laboratory-donbass-dpr-army-and-intelligence)that more than 20 Ukrainian solders have died and over 200 soldiers are hospitalized after an apparent leak of a deadly virus called "California Flu" from a US lab near the city of Kharkov.

As Donbass News International reports (https://dninews.com/article/deadly-virus-leaked-us-laboratory-donbass-dpr-army-and-intelligence),
More than 20 Ukrainian soldiers have died and over 200 soldiers are hospitalized in a short period of time because of new and deadly virus, which is immune to all medicines. Donetsk People's Republic intelligence has reported that Californian Flu is leaked from the same place where research of this virus has been carried out.

The laboratory is located near the city of Kharkov and its base for US military experts.

Information from threatening epidemic is announced by Vice-Commander of Donetsk Army, Eduard Basurin.

uhW0aBu-l4I

Leak of deadly virus in Ukrainian side was published first time on 12.1.2016 (https://dninews.com/article/dpr-defense-ministry-situation-report-12012016):

"According to the medical personnel of the AFU units (Ukrainian troops) there were recorded mass diseases among the Ukrainian military personnel in the field. Physicians recorded the unknown virus as a result of which the infected get the high fever which cannot be subdues by any medicines, and in two days there comes the fatal outcome. Thus far from the virus there have died more than twenty servicemen, what is carefully shielded by the commandment of the AFU from the publicity", said Basurin in daily MoD situation report. Outbreak of deadly virus continues and Friday 22.1.2016 Vice-Commander told new information from epidemic (https://dninews.com/article/dpr-defense-ministry-situation-report-22012016):

"We keep registering new facts of growing the epidemics of acute respiratory infections among the Ukrainian military.

Just since the beginning of this week more than 200 Ukrainian military have been taken to civil and military hospitals of Kharkov and Dnepropetrovsk. It is important to repeat that the DPR intelligence previously reported the research being carried out in a private laboratory in the locality Shelkostantsiya, 30 km away from the city of Kharkov, and involving US military experts. According to our information, it is there where the deadly Californian flu strain leaked from," Basurin said. It appears it is not just military that is affected, as Radio Free Europe reports (http://www.rferl.org/media/video/ukraine-flu/27503591.html) a flu epidemic is sweeping through the eastern Ukrainian city of Kramatorsk -- and the conflict smoldering nearby is making the situation even worse. Doctors are unable to identify the exact strain of the virus, because the laboratory they need is across the front lines in separatist-controlled Donetsk

http://flashvideo.rferl.org/Videoroot/Pangeavideo/2016/01/d/d4/d42f43ba-b012-4f81-bf8d-219224c8fdff.mp4

Redstar Kachina

25th January 2016, 15:59

..........

Hervé

3rd February 2016, 20:37

I am now inclined to believe that all the media demonization of Putin and Russia was exactly for that purpose:

Not About Security: Pentagon Spending in Europe Lines Washington's Pockets (http://sputniknews.com/us/20160203/1034179719/pentagon-spending-europe.html)

http://cdn4.img.sputniknews.com/images/101502/00/1015020025.jpg
© Sputnik/ David B. Gleason

The Obama administration's plan to quadruple US military spending in Europe "has nothing to do with defending or protecting the United States," a defense policy expert told Radio Sputnik’s Brian Becker.

The Pentagon this week announced that it plans to spend $3.4 billion (http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160202/1034111544/us-europe-military-build-up.html) in Europe next year, up from $789 million in the current budget. While several countries in the region expressed support, some firmly oppose the increased US military presence.

Daniel McAdams, of the Ron Paul Institute for Peace and Security, told Radio Sputnik's "Loud & Clear" that the Obama administration is using a "non-existent" threat from Russia as a pretext to increase defense spending.

"The US has been hyping up this new threat from Russia ever since it fomented the coup in Ukraine. I mean, you couldn't ask for a better excuse for the US to amp up its military spending," he said.

McAdams called Europe a "relatively wealthy continent" that can "certainly rely on itself for its defense needs."

"If you look at the US, where you have people without health care, you have Obamacare costs rising, you have crumbling infrastructure – yet Americans now are being forced to pay to take care of relatively wealthy Europeans from a non-existent Russian threat."

McAdams labeled US military spending as "welfare for the rich," saying it "has nothing to do defending or protecting the United States."

"It's all about keeping the think tanks, the defense contractors, and everyone around the beltway extremely wealthy and powerful, and popping a flag in the hand of the rest of the country and telling them the lie that all this money that's being stolen from them is to keep them safe." he said.

"Well they're not any safer; they're far less safe."

Hervé

4th February 2016, 02:52

Euromaidan unmasked: Europe shocked by the bitter truth on Ukraine (http://orientalreview.org/2016/02/03/euromaidan-unmasked-europe-shocked-by-the-bitter-truth-on-ukraine/)

Wed, Feb 3, 2016
Anti-Human Rights (http://orientalreview.org/category/issues/anti-human-rughts/), Phenomenon of Terrorism (http://orientalreview.org/category/issues/phenomenon-of-terrorism/), Ukraine (http://orientalreview.org/category/regions/eurasian-union/ukraine/)

By ORIENTAL REVIEW

The hard-hitting documentary by Paul Moreira “Ukraine, les masques de la révolution” [Ukraine: Masks of the Revolution], released (http://www.canalplus.fr/c-infos-documentaires/pid3357-c-special-investigation.html)on Monday night by Canal+, created a turmoil both in Ukraine and France well before the premiere. On Sunday the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry reported in Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/UkraineMFA/posts/948369965216924)that their Ambassador in France had sent an outraged letter to Canal+ where he condemned the documentary as a “a pamphlet at the height of the worst disinformation traditions” “using primitive methods of journalistic manipulation, including the handling of comments of respondents, distorted in translation and facts and purely fabricated images“. The same day Le Monde doubled the pressure on Canal+ (http://www.lemonde.fr/televisions-radio/article/2016/01/31/les-lunettes-deformantes-de-moreira_4856732_1655027.html). Paul Moreira has calmly and respectfully responded to his critics by a detailed post translated into English here (https://newcoldwar.org/french-filmmaker-paul-moreira-responds-to-critics-of-his-documentary-film-on-the-odessa-massacre-of-may-2-2014/). To the credit of Canal Plus’ management, the documentary was screened in time:

(the English subtitles are available)

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Please watch it attentively. And let’s try to understand why it has infuriated so much the official Kiev.

To be fair, the masterpiece did not reveal anything new. So far there were a lot of separate investigations by international organizations, NGOs, concerned individuals etc on different aspects of the “Revolution of Dignity“: who actually killed the “heavenly hundred“ (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tXYY23A_ZI), what happened in Odessa in May 2014 (http://reports.swedhr.org/the-odessa-massacre-of-2-may-2014/), what is going on in the zone of “anti-terrorist operation” (http://www.osce.org/ukraine-smm/156571) in the South-East of Ukraine, where are the “Russian troops (http://www.globalresearch.ca/ukrainian-government-no-russian-troops-are-fighting-against-us-sanctions-against-russia-based-on-falshoods/5428523)” and where are the Western mercenaries there (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wi87U9tgNXE)… But most of them were successfully ignored by the mainstream Western media, stick to their comfortable myths about Euromaidan.

The principal danger of Paul Moreira heartbreaking 50-minutes long documentary is that it exposed all critically important lies and silenced facts about “Revolution of Dignity” and its agents in a concentrated form at the established French TV channel.

Paul Moreira did not do anything but showed a simple and honest truth – there was no dignity in that “revolution”. There is no “free civilizational choice” and “independent and legitimate authorities” in today’s Ukraine. There are gangsters licensed to kill and rob, psychopaths and criminals in the “democratic parliament”, parallel Nazi-inspired army, foreign officials who manipulate the political process in a sovereign country, media under total nationalist control etc. His argumentation and picture are so evident, eloquent and bright that there is no reasonable way to refute them. Here is the cause of hysteria and calls to ban (which paradoxically has triggered unprecedented public attention to the movie far beyond France) – they understand that an open and fair discussion would lead further undesirable revelations against the interim rulers in Kiev.

One more pleasant outcome of this story is that the rumors about clinical death of the independent journalism in the West are apparently somewhat exaggerated…

Hervé

5th February 2016, 02:37

Yemeni tribes call for mobilization against Saudi Arabia (http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/02/05/448750/Yemen-Saudi-Arabia-Hamdan-Aden)

Fri Feb 5, 2016 12:54AM

(see video here: http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/02/05/448750/Yemen-Saudi-Arabia-Hamdan-Aden)

This screen grab shows Yemeni men of the Hamdan tribe rallying in favor of resistance against the Saudi war on the country in the north of the capital, Sana’a, on February 4, 2016.

Yemeni tribes from across the country have called for mobilization against Saudi Arabia’s deadly war on the Arab world’s poorest nation, Press TV reports.

Men of Hamdan, one of Yemen’s most powerful tribes, rallied to the north of the capital, Sana’a, vowing to provide support in the form of potential mobilization for the country’s fighters resisting the Saudi aggression.

“Tribesmen of Hamdan have marched in support of the popular resistance against the Saudi invasion and occupation of our country. Anyone who dares to invade our territories should know that Yemen has been and will always be the graveyard of invaders. As we trust Allah, we do not fear their internationally-banned weapons as victory is on our side,” said one demonstrator. Hundreds of tribesmen from the southern parts of the country held a gathering in the capital. The participants pledged union against what they described as a US-Israeli initiative targeting the country, which was being implemented by Saudi Arabia.

http://217.218.67.233//photo/20160205/74e51a56-ca71-4eff-b8f1-4b1f3cc84c0e.jpg
This grab photo shows Yemeni tribesmen during an event in the capital, Sana’a, on February 4, 2016 to denounce the Saudi aggression against the country.“Yemenis from the north and the south are united against such US-Saudi project,” said a keynote speaker at the event.

Yemen has been under military attacks by Saudi Arabia since late March last year in a bid to bring the country’s fugitive former president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, a Riyadh ally, back to power.

Over 8,270 people, among them 2,236 children, have been killed and 16,015 others injured since the onset of the aggression. The strikes have also taken a heavy toll on the impoverished country’s facilities and infrastructure, destroying many hospitals, schools, and factories.

A recent damning UN report verified that the aggressors have targeted civilians in Yemen, documenting 119 sorties that violated international humanitarian law.

“We know that the United Arab Emirates also has an interest in keeping our port of Aden under its domination. They want terrorist organizations such as al-Qaeda and Daesh to gain power in Aden,” the speaker added.

The Yemen-based al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) has exploited the volatile conditions and the breakdown of security in Yemen since the beginning of the Saudi war to tighten its grip on parts of southeastern Yemen.

The Daesh Takfiri terrorist group has also gained ground in and around Aden.

Ansarullah fighters, along with allied army units, are fighting the Takfiri militants and countering the Saudi aggression against the war-torn country.

Redstar Kachina

5th February 2016, 15:42

..........

Cidersomerset

5th February 2016, 15:55

I have not been posting on this thread much as there is to much info at the
moment , but the psyop against Russia is well and truly on as the BBC aired an
odd programme 11.30 pm last night on BBC 2. It was basically similar to
the they put up a year or so before the 7/7 bombings.

The ' Elites' have to tell us what they are planning before hand and hide it in plain
sight. I have been seeing this for years and researchers have been pointing this out
for decades. It has been ramping up more since Russia occupied Ukraine and
intervened in Syria.

=========================================

This World

World War Three: Inside the War Room

A committee of senior former British military and
diplomatic figures comes together to war-game a
hypothetical 'hot war' in eastern Europe.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b06zw32h/this-world-world-war-three-inside-the-war-room

==============================================
==============================================

What if Putin invaded Latvia & nuked UK? New BBC show fantasies will tell

P8X00VpsoOc

Published on 3 Feb 2016

Russia invading Latvia - and then launching a nuclear strike on the British military.
That's the fictitious vision of the future, in a new show from the BBC.

RT LIVE http://rt.com/on-air

====================================================

Deja Vu .... Or more sinister.

BBC Panorama_ London Under Attack (the show that predicted 7/7 bombings in London

AIYu6QN5MH4

Cidersomerset

5th February 2016, 16:17

This could also be a potential flash point for NATO intervention ? ......

Turkey might be gearing up for invasion of Syria – Russian Defense Ministry

Mvwk67LTcjY

Published on 4 Feb 2016

Developments on the Turkish-Syrian border give serious grounds to suspect that
Ankara is planning a military invasion in Syria, the Russian Defense Ministry said.

================================================
================================================

Syrian talks paused ‘in part’ because of Russia, US State Dept claims

ZdIRQgD5WDk

Published on 4 Feb 2016

Washington has accused Russia of being “in part” a reason for the temporary halting
of the Syrian peace talks, muddling the official UN statement in order to back their
claim, and failing to identify other reasons which contributed to the suspension.

READ MORE: http://on.rt.com/73kp

=================================================
=================================================

Saudi Arabia Declares Its Ground Forces Ready to Invade Syria

By David on 5th February 2016 War and Terror

http://www.davidicke.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Untitled-4-3.jpg

A Saudi military spokesman has confirmed that Riyadh is prepared to join any US-led ground
operations to fight Daesh, also known as IS/Islamic State, in Syria, if such operations are
approved by the coalition.

“The kingdom is ready to participate in any ground operations that the coalition (against
Islamic State) may agree to carry out in Syria,” Brigadier General Ahmed Asseri told
al-Arabiya TV. Asseri is also the spokesman for the Saudi-led Arab coalition in Yemen.

“If there was a consensus from the leadership of the coalition, the kingdom is willing to
participate in these efforts because we believe that aerial operations are not the ideal
solution and there must be a twin mix of aerial and ground operations,” Asseri added.’

Read more: Saudi Arabia Declares Its Ground Forces Ready to Invade Syria

http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160204/1034244705/saudi-ground-troops-syria.html

Cidersomerset

5th February 2016, 16:26

Related imo.....

‘Assange’s only crime is telling world how it is secretly run’ – John Pilger

RqzZDJrUit0

Published on 5 Feb 2016

RT LIVE http://rt.com/on-air

http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?88680-Julian-Assange-is-being-arbitrarily-held-UN-panel-to-say-UK-unlikely-to-abide-by-decision...

====================================================
====================================================

" THE USUAL SUSPECTS " .....

N. Korea, not Russia: Sanders argues with Clinton over global threat source

i5Xvd7OvrhU

Published on 5 Feb 2016

Between Iran, North Korea, and Russia, Hillary Clinton and Senator Bernie Sanders
disagreed about which was the “greatest threat” to America in the final Democratic
debate before the New Hampshire primary.

===================================================
===================================================

Pentagon lists Russia as top global threat, seeks fourfold boost in defense budget

ZGOT8A_gjB4

Published on 2 Feb 2016

The Pentagon chief Ashton Carter has announced a four-fold increase in the US's
defence budget for Europe - citing Russian aggression as the main reason.
Washington plans to spend a whopping 3.4-billion dollars countering it.

RT LIVE http://rt.com/on-air

Hervé

5th February 2016, 16:43

Saudi military intervention in Syria amounts to war: Russian deputy (http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/02/05/448832/Syria-Russia-Saudi-Arabia)

Fri Feb 5, 2016 3:51PM

http://217.218.67.233/photo/20160205/d4ed3ead-5472-48a9-a1fd-79686eed0867.jpg
Syrian government forces walk in the village of Tal Jabin, north of the embattled city of Aleppo on February 3, 2016. (AFP photo)

A Russian deputy has warned Saudi Arabia that any military ground operation in Syria without the Damascus government's consent amounts to a declaration of war.

"Syria has to give official consent, to invite, otherwise it will be a war. The same applies to international law," Pavel Krasheninnikov, the head of the State Duma committee, told Interfax on Friday.

Krasheninnikov said that by promising a ground operation in Syria Riyadh now "intends to send troops to the territory of a sovereign state essentially without declaring a war."

Saudi Arabia on Thursday voiced readiness to participate in any ground operations in Syria if the US-led coalition allegedly targeting terrorists decides to start such operations.

US State Department spokesman John Kirby also welcomed the Saudi decision.

Saudi Arabia is a member of the so-called US-led coalition that has been conducting air raids against what are claimed to be the Daesh terrorists inside Syria without any authorization from the Syrian government or a UN mandate since September 2014.

The US-led strikes have on many occasions targeted infrastructures and left many civilians dead.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said during an interview in March 2015 that the US-led military campaign does not aim to “do away” with the terror group.

Washington and its regional allies, including Turkey and Saudi Arabia, have been backing militants fighting against the Syrian government and people. Since the Syria conflict started in 2011, they have been providing military and financial aid to the militants who are accused of widespread war crimes and crimes against civilians.

Hervé

5th February 2016, 21:43

'US seeks broader war in Syria, encourages Saudi intervention' (http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/02/05/448841/US-broader-war-Syria)

Press TV, Fri Feb 5, 2016 4:42PM

(see video here: http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/02/05/448841/US-broader-war-Syria)

The US has since 2011 wanted to deploy ground troops to Syria to secure its position there and vanquish the sovereign Assad government, says Dennis Etler.

Since 2011 the United States has wanted to deploy ground troops to Syria to secure its position there and vanquish the sovereign government of President Bashar al-Assad. Now it is encouraging Saudi Arabia to deploy ground troops to Syria to accomplish its mission, an American political analyst says.

Dennis Etler, a professor of Anthropology at Cabrillo College in Aptos, California, made the remarks in an interview with Press TV on Friday, after US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter welcomed Saudi Arabia’s offer of troop deployment to Syria.

On Thursday, Carter welcomed the Saudi offer to participate in any ground operations in Syria, launched by a US-led coalition claiming to be fighting against Daesh terrorists in the Middle East.

US seeks to replace Assad with a puppet
“It is becoming clearer by the day that the superpower contention in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is becoming more and more acute. Since the emergence of ISIL a couple of years ago, armed, trained and funded by the US through its proxies, including Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Israel, the US has banked on Takfiri terrorists to serve as stormtroopers in its campaign to oust Syrian President Bashir al-Assad and replace him with a compliant US puppet,” Professor Etler said.

“The so far successful military intervention by Russia, at the request of the Syrian government, into the ongoing civil war, has however turned the tide of battle in favor of the Syrian Arab Army and thrown a wild-card into the conflict that the US never anticipated,” he added.

ISIL militants on the ropes in Syria
Professor Etler said that with ISIL and other armed militants “on the ropes and Syrian forces advancing on rebel held positions in Aleppo, the US and its allies are desperate to salvage their position.”

“As a result the US dropped certain conditions that had stymied the initiation of peace talks between the Syrian government and supposed unarmed opposition forces, in the hope that the US could achieve at the negotiation table what could not be achieved on the battlefield,” he stated.

“The Syrian armed forces with Russian air support will however not surrender the initiative and allow the insurgents to reestablish their positions. The negotiation ploy thus seems to be a non-starter, at least from the US perspective,” he noted.

What complicated US ‘mission’ in Syria
Professor Etler said “the US has from the start of the conflict in Syria wanted to introduce ground forces to secure its position and vanquish the independent and sovereign Syrian government. This has been complicated by a number of factors. The most important has been war weariness on the part of the US people which resulted in promises of US military withdrawal from both Afghanistan and Iraq.”

“The second factor has been the successful negotiations on lifting economic sanctions imposed on the Islamic Republic of Iran. Iran's willingness to compromise and reach an agreement on its nuclear program forced the US to concede defeat and end its economic isolation of the Islamic Republic. Subsequent Russian and Chinese economic and political support for Iran has threatened to further isolate the US and its allies in the region,” he added.

“Faced with the dilemma of seeing its influence in Middle East and North Africa begin to wane the US is resorting to its tried and true method of asserting control over a region that has begun to waiver, war. In order to do so however the US has to find a new rationale to intervene that will appease its critics at home and abroad. This is where US support for ISIL and other terrorist groups comes into play,” the analyst noted.

Why US wants ground forces
“By unleashing ISIL in Syria and Iraq, and facilitating its spread into Libya and elsewhere, the US established an excuse to re-engage in ground combat operations and enlist its allies in the fight as well. The hope is that the introduction of ground forces in both Syria and Libya will allow the US and its proxies to reassert their power and influence in order to consolidate their geo-political control of the region,” Professor Etler said.

“Both Syria and Libya were off limits to direct US control, until they were destabilized and turned into failed states by US initiated and supported attempts at regime change, led in large measure by terrorist groups surreptitiously supported by Saudi Arabia, the Persian Gulf States, Turkey and Israel,” he stated.

“The US strategy of supporting terrorist networks in MENA now seems to be paying dividends. It has allowed US Defense Secretary Ash Carter to welcome a Saudi offer to participate in ground operations in Syria by a US-led coalition, and Carter's openness to the introduction of US ground forces in Libya. Both developments are in keeping with the US strategy of promoting terrorism and endless war in the Middle East and North Africa to keep its adversaries at bay and maintain its hegemony over the region,” the academic concluded.

Hervé

5th February 2016, 22:03

Accordingly, Syria's ally is not wasting time to render those feet on the ground unnecessary:

No More Games in Syria: Russian Airstrikes Pulverize 'Moderate' Rebels for 36 Straight Hours (http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/no-more-games-syria-russia-pulverizes-moderate-rebels-36-straight-hours/ri12658)

Russia conducts largest aerial campaign since the start of its participation in the Syrian conflict

By Rudy Panko (http://russia-insider.com/en/rudy-panko) 6 hours ago

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/s400/public/EyZJ2G7.jpg?itok=_nqg4h3R (http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/EyZJ2G7.jpg)
The Su-34 in Latakia

It's a bad time to be a "moderate" in Syria: Even the Washington Post is now reporting that Al-Nusra and other freedom-loving moderate groups are losing the war (https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/syrian-rebels-are-losing-aleppo-and-perhaps-also-the-war/2016/02/04/94e10012-cb51-11e5-b9ab-26591104bb19_story.html).

As the SAA closes in on Aleppo, Russia is paving the way for a new offensive in northern Homs. And by "paving the way", we really mean "36 hours of continuous airstrikes" (http://www.almasdarnews.com/article/no-sleep-tonight-for-rebels-as-russian-airstrikes-pound-northern-homs/):
For 36 straight hours, the Russian Air Force has pulverized the Islamist rebel defenses in northern Homs, as the Syrian Arab Army’s 47th Brigade of the 11th Tank Division and the National Defense Forces (NDF) prepare to strike the imperative villages of Harbinifseh and Kisseen that are located along the Orontes River.

According to a senior officer from the Syrian Arab Army, the Russian Air Force’s powerful airstrikes over northern Homs are part of the largest aerial campaign launched by the Russian Federation since the advent of their participation in the Syrian Conflict.

Trusted western media outlets are already crying foul, accusing Russia and Assad of derailing peace talks.

The reality is that the west and its Arab client states wanted terrorist groups to have a seat at the negotiating table, which was (rightfully) unacceptable to Moscow.

It looks like Russia has found a more effective way of negotiating with Al-Nusra and Ahrar Al-Sham: Surrender or be turned to dust.

Morbid

5th February 2016, 23:27

Hervé

6th February 2016, 01:07

Peace Talks “Paused” After Putin’s Triumph in Aleppo (http://www.counterpunch.org/2016/02/05/peace-talks-paused-after-putins-triumph-in-aleppo/)

by Mike Whitney (http://www.counterpunch.org/author/mike-whitney/) February 5, 2016

http://uziiw38pmyg1ai60732c4011.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/dropzone/2016/01/putinshades-510x287-1-510x287.jpg

“This is the beginning of the end of jihadi presence in Aleppo. After 4 years of war and terror, people can finally see the end in sight.”
— Edward Dark, Twitter, Moon of Alabama

A last ditch effort to stop a Russian-led military offensive in northern Syria ended in failure on Wednesday when the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) backed by the National Defense Forces (NDF) and heavy Russian air cover broke a 40-month siege on the villages of Nubl and al-Zahra in northwestern Aleppo province. The Obama administration had hoped that it could forestall the onslaught by cobbling together an eleventh-hour ceasefire agreement at the Geneva peace talks. But when the news that Syrian armored units had crashed through al Nusra’s defenses and forced the jihadists to retreat, UN envoy Staffan de Mistura suspended the negotiations tacitly acknowledging that the mission had failed.

“I have indicated from the first day that I won’t talk for the sake of talking,” the envoy told reporters, saying he needed immediate help from international backers led by the United States and Russia, which are supporting opposite sides of a war that has also drawn in regional powers.” (Reuters) De Mistura then announced a “temporary pause” in the stillborn negotiations which had only formally begun just hours earlier. Developments on the battlefield had convinced the Italian-Swedish diplomat that it was pointless to continue while government forces were effecting a solution through military means.

After months of grinding away at enemy positions across the country, the Russian strategy has begun to bear fruit. Loyalist ground forces have made great strides on the battlefield rolling back the war-weary insurgents on virtually all fronts. A broad swathe of the Turkish border is now under SAA control while the ubiquitous Russian bombers continue to inflict heavy losses on demoralized anti-regime militants. Wednesday’s lightening attack on the strategic towns of Nubl and Zahraa was just the icing on the cake. The bold maneuver severed critical supply-lines to Turkey while tightening the military noose around the country’s largest city leaving hundreds of terrorists stranded in a battered cauldron with no way out.

For the last two weeks, the Obama team has been following developments on the ground with growing concern. This is why Secretary of State John Kerry hurriedly assembled a diplomatic mission to convene emergency peace talks in Geneva despite the fact that the various participants had not even agreed to attend. A sense of urgency bordering on panic was palpable from the onset. The goal was never to achieve a negotiated settlement or an honorable peace, but (as Foreign Policy magazine noted) to implement “a broad ‘freeze’ over the whole province of Aleppo, which would then be replicated in other regions later.” This was the real objective, to stop the bleeding any way possible and prevent the inevitable encirclement of Aleppo.

The recapturing of Nubl and Zahraa leaves the jihadists with just one route for transporting weapons, food and fuel to their urban stronghold. When loyalist forces break the blockade at Bab al Hawa to the northeast, the loop will be closed, the perimeter will tighten, the cauldron will be split into smaller enclaves within the city, and the terrorists will either surrender or face certain annihilation. Wednesday’s triumph by the Russian-led coalition is a sign that that day may be approaching sooner than anyone had anticipated.

It’s worth noting, that a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, Michael O’Hanlon– whose plan to “deconstruct Syria” by using “moderate elements” to “produce autonomous zones”–advised Obama and Kerry “not to pursue the failed logic of the current Syria peace talks but to explore a confederal model and seek buy-in from as many key players and allies as possible.” In other words, the main architect of the US plan to break up Syria into smaller areas, (controlled by local militias, warlords and jihadists) thought the peace talks were “doomed” from the very beginning.

According to O’Hanlon the US needs to commit “20,000 combat troops” with “the right political model for maintaining occupation”. The Brookings analyst says that “Any ceasefire that Kerry could negotiate…would be built on a foundation of sand” for the mere fact that the “moderate” forces it would support would be much weaker than either the SAA or ISIS. That means there would be no way to enforce the final settlement and no army strong enough to establish the authority of the new “unity” government.

O’Hanlon’s comments suggest western elites are deeply divided over Syria. The hawks are still pushing for more intervention, greater US, EU, and NATO involvement, and American and allied “boots on the ground” to occupy the country for an undetermined amount of time. In contrast, the Obama administration wants to minimize its commitment while trying desperately to placate its critics.

That means Syria’s troubles could resurface again in the future when Obama steps down and a new president pursues a more muscular strategy. A number of powerful people in the ruling establishment are as determined-as-ever to partition Syria and install a US puppet in Damascus. That’s not going to change. The Russian-led coalition has a small window for concluding its operations, eliminating the terrorists, and reestablishing security across the country. Ending the war as soon as possible, while creating a safe environment for Syrian refugees to return home, is the best way to reduce the threat of escalation and discourage future US adventurism. But Putin will have to move fast for the plan to work.

Excerpts from: “Deconstructing Syria: A new strategy for America’s most hopeless war (http://www.brookings.edu/blogs/order-from-chaos/posts/2015/06/30-deconstructing-syria-ohanlon)“, Michael O’ Hanlon, Brookings Institute.

Redstar Kachina

6th February 2016, 01:52

..........

Morbid

6th February 2016, 10:43

-HbjizKEqG4

this reminds me of illuminaty project 'global goals'. obviously this claim to have 0 nuclear weapons is strong, but can be politically directed at certain countries. its obvious where this is coming out of. do you recon they would disarm themselves? highly doubt american controllers would start first - they can claim whatever they want.. but lost all trust and credibility.

Cidersomerset

6th February 2016, 12:08

End of ISIS? Russian Jets Hit 900 Targets in Last Three Days and Jihadists are Fleeing

By David on 6th February 2016 War and Terror

http://www.davidicke.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Untitled-20.jpg

IuzUAi8EPbc

‘Russia’s intervention in Syria has produced many astounding results since it began late
last year, and they seem to be continuing into the new year too.

Major General Igor Konashenkov is reporting that the Russian airstrikes have hit almost
900 targets from 1-4 February in Aleppo, Latakia, Homs, Hama and Deir ez-Zor, which
have caused the terrorists to sustain heavy losses:

“In order to retain at least some semblance of a fighting capacity, the militants’ forces in the
Syria’s northern regions continue abandoning their positions and falling back to the Turkish border.”’

Read more: End of ISIS? Russian Jets Hit 900 Targets in Last Three Days and Jihadists are Fleeing

http://21stcenturywire.com/2016/02/04/end-of-isis-russian-jets-hit-900-targets-in-last-three-days-jihadists-fleeing/

Cidersomerset

6th February 2016, 12:26

this reminds me of illuminaty project 'global goals'. obviously this claim to have 0 nuclear weapons is strong, but can be politically directed at certain countries. its obvious where this is coming out of. do you recon they would disarm themselves? highly doubt american controllers would start first - they can claim whatever they want.. but lost all trust and credibility.

Just a thought the nuclear threat has kept the status quo with the major countries
in check since the end of WW11 and the atomic bombs dropped on Japan . There
has still been many wars and conflicts since then to keep the Banksters , mil ind
complex's around the world in profit . keeping the elites in power with the ever
looming threat of mutual destruction which keeps our possible ' overlords' well
supplied with fresh human 'essence/souls' to feed on , then you go off into the
realms of mainstream ridicule and what we speculate in the alternate community.

Jordan Maxwell: "The Elites Use War To Make Blood Sacrifice To Extra Terrestrial Gods!"

http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?88695-Jordan-Maxwell-The-Elites-Use-War-To-Make-Blood-Sacrifice-To-Extra-Terrestrial-Gods-&p=1044185#post1044185

There were several reports of ET's switching off nuclear missiles and other possible
demonstrations that they could interfere if necessary. Going on from there if the
secret space feet does exist and they have exotic weaponry , possibly
demonstrated on 9/11 ? Nuclear weapons , like oil and other corporate control
memes may be obsolete and if we get to the stage of nuclear war , which may just
be a control meme , they may have the means to destroy or disrupt them aka
the 'Star Wars ' programme was postulated to do , and may of just been cover for
the real space fleet who have developed ET tech or their own. Speculation I know
but based on the various threads we speculate about.

The other option is , well ' sad ' its all down to humanity......

Cidersomerset

7th February 2016, 12:46

Back to the good old days of the Cold war mark 2
just as those dam Russky's have scuppered ISIS
in Syria we will target them again and keep our
corporate masters happy....
--------------------------------------------------------------

US Now Overtly at War Against Russia

By David on 7th February 2016 War and Terror

http://www.davidicke.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Untitled-60.jpg

‘NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced on February 2nd that he approves of U.S. ‘Defense’
Secretary Ash Carter’s proposal to quadruple U.S. armaments and troops in Europe, against ‘Russian aggression.’

Secretary Carter said earlier that same day, in his announcement of America’s arming for war against Russia:

We are reinforcing our posture in Europe to support our NATO allies in the face of Russia’s aggression. In
Pentagon parlance, this is called the European Reassurance Initiative and after requesting about $800 million
for last year, this year we’re more than quadrupling it for a total of $3.4 billion in 2017.’

Read more: US Now Overtly at War Against Russia

http://rinf.com/alt-news/breaking-news/u-s-now-overtly-at-war-against-russia/

Hervé

7th February 2016, 13:46

In the beginning... there was a False Flag...

The ICTY Tribunal in Hague: The grenades at Sarajevo Markale market (1994.) were shelled by Muslim Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina , by order of Alija Izetbegovic (https://theremustbejustice.wordpress.com/2014/02/17/hague-tribunal-the-grenade-at-the-sarajevo-markale-market-in-1994-was-shelled-by-the-army-of-bosnia-and-herzegovina-by-order-of-alija-izetbegovic/)

by Grey Carter (https://theremustbejustice.wordpress.com/author/kishad/) Posted on February 17, 2014

HAGUE – During his testimony in defense of Radovan Karadzic, former Bosnian Muslim policeman stated before the Hague Tribunal that the grenade that murdered 66 and left 140 persons injured at Markale market in Sarajevo, was actually fired by (Muslim) Army of Bosnia and Herzegovina , by order of then – leader Alija Izetbegovic.

https://theremustbejustice.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/albright-clinton-izet.jpeg?w=594 (https://theremustbejustice.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/albright-clinton-izet.jpeg)
Albright-Clinton-Izetbegovic

Under the coded pseudonym KW -586 , the witness, hidden behind the adjusted voice , stated that he was member of the Bosnian Muslim special unit “Pearls “, (1992-1994) , when he was in charge of securing the Presidency in period when the Body held sessions at the National Bank building in Sarajevo.

The Witness KW -586 claimed that due to his duty he have had the opportunity to hear what the then – Bosnian Muslim President Alija Izetbegovic, together with his son Bakir and the head of the Islamic Community of Bosnia and Herzegovina Reis- ul- ulema Mustafa Ceric and other officials spoke at meetings . The witness accused Izetbegovic for planning terrorist attacks on Bosnian Muslim, in order to cause civilian casualties in Sarajevo, Markale as well as in Srebrenica in order to accuse Serbs and extort NATO intervention in favor of the Muslims.

” Izetbegovic was under extremely strong influence of local Muslim cleric with strong Turkish ties, Reis- ul- Ulema Ceric . Izetbegovic’s main goal was to gain the Western intervention in behalf of the Muslims by causing “mass suffering in Sarajevo and Srebrenica, provoking the Serbs to fire back and shell civilian targets , including hospitals:”

KW -586 testified that he heard Izetbegovic and religious leader Ceric to consider ” what would happen if a shell would hit the Markale market” .
“Only few days later , on February 5. 1994 , it really happened “, said the witness , arguing that the ABiH (Muslim army) fired a grenade at Markale from area of the village Mrkovići;

“It was done by orders of General ABiH (Bosnian Muslim army, NATO protege) Sefer Halilovic, and the Unit who accomplished the task was under the command of General Mustafa Hajrulahović called the Italian.”

According to the indictment against Karadzic , the first explosion of a mortar shell at Markale took place on 5 February 1994 , when 66 people were killed and more than 140 injured.

[...]

Full article: https://theremustbejustice.wordpress.com/2014/02/17/hague-tribunal-the-grenade-at-the-sarajevo-markale-market-in-1994-was-shelled-by-the-army-of-bosnia-and-herzegovina-by-order-of-alija-izetbegovic/

Also here, at The Saker: Bosnian-Muslim witness confirms that the Markale Massacre was a false flag (http://thesaker.is/bosnian-muslim-witness-confirms-that-the-markale-massacre-was-a-false-flag/)

Hervé

7th February 2016, 16:34

Hervé

8th February 2016, 14:22

"Masks of the Revolution" to Be Shown a Third Time (http://www.fort-russ.com/2016/02/masks-of-revolution-to-be-shown-third.html)

Translated by Ollie Richardson for Fort Russ, 8th February, 2016

https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mdKS-BPIuyg/Vrh-VMkdP6I/AAAAAAAAHMY/5FikSdgMY-w/s640/1454916911_chtoby-malo-ne-747-4471698.jpg (https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-mdKS-BPIuyg/Vrh-VMkdP6I/AAAAAAAAHMY/5FikSdgMY-w/s1600/1454916911_chtoby-malo-ne-747-4471698.jpg)

The film "Masks of the revolution" will be shown on French Canal+ for a third time, according to "Rossiyskaya Gazeta", citing the production company Premieres Lignes. This step will be chosen by the direction of TV channel because of the unprecedented stir caused by the film within audience.

Because Canal+ is a paid service available only to subscribers, many French people were recording the film on DVDs and other media to give it to friends and acquaintances afterwards, the newspaper writes.

The second screening of the film by Paul Moreira took place yesterday, February 7th, the third is scheduled for 14th of the current month. The management of Canal+ did not hesitate in the face of a stream of destructive criticism that was aimed at the Director.

"The fact that Paul Moreira was the target of an aggressive and politically correct audience because of his effective documentary, is no surprise. Those who have the courage to express a point of view about Russia or the conflict in Ukraine, other than what is generally accepted, are systematically defamed. Moreira said that, for example, it has long been known that the difference is that his movie dared to appear on an important national TV channel. And this is a good news", - commented the French political scientist Philip Migo.

As a reminder, earlier, human rights activists from the Moscow Bureau on human rights decided to give the authors of the film "Masks of the revolution" a prize "For courage and professionalism", but the Ukrainian authorities intend to sue Canal+ due to the failure of TV to remove the film from the air.

==========================================

Moreira's earlier rebuttal (http://www.sott.net/article/311524-Kiev-livid-as-documentary-revealing-ugly-truth-about-Maidan-revolution-aired-on-French-TV-EN-subs-VIDEO) to French MSM newspaper Le Monde
Translated by NewColdWar.org (https://newcoldwar.org/french-filmmaker-paul-moreira-responds-to-critics-of-his-documentary-film-on-the-odessa-massacre-of-may-2-2014/)

When I started this investigation on Ukraine, I was astonished to discover the degree to which the massacre in Odessa [May 2, 2014] had faded from memory. Forty five people were killed in a huge fire in the heart of a major European city in the middle of the 21st century. Everything was filmed by dozens of cameras and cell phones. Yet around me, no one remembered.

Forty five Ukrainians of Russian origin died in a fire inside a building [the Trades Union House in the city center of Odessa] caused by the Molotov cocktails of Ukrainian nationalist militias. After a quick investigation, I discovered that the event had not been censored. It had been addressed, discussed, but never investigated. As though too embarrassing to discuss.

Why no investigation? Probably because the victims were of Russian origin. These victims were reported as "persons" but without knowing who they were, who killed them and why they were dead. "Persons" who were nobodies.

In speaking of these deaths, our democracies should have expressed some sympathy, officially, solemnly. There should have been strong reactions by chancelleries. Press releases by ministries of foreign affairs. [However], following the Russian invasion of Crimea, Russian-speaking populations in the conflict were assigned the roles of villains.

What happened on that May 2, 2014, in Odessa? I discovered the answer after viewing hours of video shootings, interviewing dozens of witnesses, finding victims and aggressors and comparing the stories until I pieced together facts that make sense of this fury. Important fact: I interviewed and have broadcast only direct witnesses of events - the people I saw on videos - in order to filter to some extent the exaggerations and lies that arise in such a circumstance, on the side of the attackers as well as victims. The result of this painstaking work is at the heart of the film to be broadcast Monday evening [February 1] by Canal Plus [Canal +].

During my investigation into this massacre of little exposure, I saw the importance of Ukrainian nationalist militias. They were at the forefront of street fighting on Maidan Square (January-February 2014], and later formed battalions to fight Russian troops in the east of the country. But these battalions were merged into the army. They did not exercise the same discipline. They were able to serve as auxiliaries to the government; or become a parallel police. And, yes, in their ranks, the signs of neo-Nazi ideology were obvious.

My investigation went against the commonly accepted narrative. I knew I was going to meet strong opposition, that we would be accused of playing into the hands of Putin, to voice elements of Russian propaganda. I did not expect to meet with such huge denial, bordering on hysteria at times. On a Ukrainian website, I am called a "terrorist" in the pay of the Russian secret service. The site calls for a ban on the film. Even the Ukrainian ambassador to France pressured Canal Plus [not to screen the film]. That is what surprises me the most. For it seems to me that Ukraine must ask itself about these paramilitary groups. They are, as stated in the film, the greatest threat to Ukrainian democracy. To renounce saying what one knows to be the truth because "it plays into Russian propaganda" is to become a propagandist oneself. One omits, not because we are liars but because we are full of good intentions. But never forget that from such omissions, the worst conspiracy theories are born.

In France, the accusations against the film have come mainly from two militant blogs and an unusually violent writing by the reporter in charge of Ukraine in Le Monde, Benoit Vitkine. In all three publications, the arguments are similar. It is said I did not nuance enough my perception of the extreme right, which ranges from dark brown neo-Nazism to light-beige nationalism. I exaggerated the importance of the paramilitary groups, armed with Kalashnikovs and sometimes with tanks. I have not stressed enough their heroic role in their fight against the Russians. I exaggerated the influence of Americans in the regime change [of February 2014].

And then certain factual errors are pinpointed. I'll try to answer them here.

To question the rigor of my documentary, Benoit Vitkine cites one, sole example. He accuses me of having created out of my imagination the manufacture of a new generation of tanks by the nationalist battalion Azov (for which he seems to feel a fond indulgence). But it's the truth. Andriy Biletsky, the head of the battalion, sang to me its praises [manufactured tank] with much pride. 1.2 meters of armored shield in the front and steering video cameras used to steer it. The technical details of this new beast of war can be found here.

Benoit Vitkine is well aware that Andriy Biletsky comes from the most radical extreme right. His electoral standing is low (although he is a Rada deputy), but his standing in steel and in battle-hardened men is strong.

Then Benoit Vitkine insinuates, without citing anything in support, that my purpose is to highlight "the installation of a new fascism in Ukraine". Vitkine must be very angry to write such things. I never said that fascism had settled in Ukraine. The key phrase of my documentary is: "The Ukrainian revolution has created a monster that will soon turn against its creator." And then I tell how far-right groups attacked the parliament and killed three policemen in August 2015. I have never suggested that the attackers were in power. Even if those who are in power were able to use them.

The only "good point" which Benoit Vitkine wants to award me is that I worked on the massacre of Odessa, a "frequently overlooked episode". You said it yourself, dear colleague...

Anna Colin Lebedev writes a blog on Mediapart.fr. She, on the other hand, reproaches me precisely for my treatment of the "drama" of Odessa. She is careful to never write the word "massacre" or "butchery", to never precisely name the savagery of the murders. Anna Colin Lebedev affirms that this "drama" is not at all ignored. The only proof she offers are papers published ... a year after the fact. Those of Le Monde (Benoit Vitkine) and The Economist. A blogger, Olivier Berruyer, conducted an analysis of article headings in the days immediately following the massacre. This analysis is available on his website. It is most eloquent.

Anna Colin Lebedev accuses me of creating a story "centered on the tears of victims". That's true, I gave voice to a mother who lost her 17 year old son, Vadim Papura. She spoke reluctantly, she was certain that I would not use her statements, that the West does not care about their fate. I also give voice to Ukrainian nationalists, some of whom even voice remorse. I interviewed eyewitnesses from all sides. According to Anna, everything is the fault of the police, who were not sufficiently effective [in stopping the violence that day]. This is what the film should have focused on, she says. Not on militiamen who threw Molotov cocktails on the trade union building or who finished off the wounded lying on the ground [after jumping from windows to escape the burning building]. Not on the fact that none of the killers has been imprisoned and that the Ukrainian government has sabotaged any judicial inquiry, as recalled in the article in The Economist [May 8, 2014] which she kindly quotes as reference but which she probably has not taken the time to read.

That's it for the specific criticisms. From there, we descend into tiny details.

Thus, Anna Colin Lebedev tells me that I mention the presence of the symbol of Azov on Maidan while the battalion had yet to be created. It will be formed three months later. Sure, but for me, it was just a name change: the symbol was everywhere on Maidan, it is the same symbol as the group 'Patriots of Ukraine', who have the same leader, Biletsky, the same men and who will go on to form a military battalion to fight in Mariupol [Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine].

So for clarity, I made the editorial decision not to go into such levels of detail. The fact that this famous [Azov] symbol is borrowed from an SS division, Das Reich, does not seem to move my critics.

Igor Moysichuk, according to Anna Colin-Lebedev, was not the spokesman for Pravy Sektor [Right Sector] however he was introduced as such in this televised debate. Igor Moysichuk is a member of nationalist splinter groups that sailed between Azov and Pravy Sektor but he was mostly a crook playing for his personal account. He joined the Radical party of Oleg Lyashko and he was arrested, in front of our camera, after extorting 100,000 Hryvnia from some guy from his party.

In the blog Comité Ukraine [Ukraine Committee] by Renaud Rebardy, I am accused of not reporting that the Azov battalion had integrated into the regular army. Renaud Rebardy will have misheard and, especially, misunderstood the nature of relations between the Ukrainian government and Azov. Here is a verbatim commentary from the film when I talk to Azov: "Officially, this brigade obeys the Ukrainian national army. And yet, many of them remain masked."

And this is what their leader Andriy Biletsky told me about their financial means: "Well, if we talk about finances, for acquiring armaments, it is provided by the state, as is part of our equipment. The rest comes from the work of activists among whom there are small and medium businessmen. They invest money and make all of this possible. "

During the interview and in comments that I finally edited out, Biletsky utters a veiled threat against the government he deems too corrupt. The subtlety of Azov is that they are officially in the army but they retain a wide margin of autonomy.

Then Renaud Rebardy says that there have "never been talks" to remove Russian as an official language in 13 Ukrainian regions. The facts: the Ukrainian parliament proposed to do so on February 23, 2014, and the day after, the war started. Russian-speaking populations were worried about their future and Putin took advantage of that to launch military manoeuvres. On February 28, the [interim] Ukrainian president repealed the measure. But it was too late, the devil had escaped from the box.

The same Renaud Rebardy chides me for reporting that the new Ukrainian Minister of Finance is a former U.S. diplomat. Natalie Jaresko became a naturalized Ukrainian in December 2014 in order to join the government. Before that, she worked first as a diplomat at the State Department, specializing in Eastern European countries, from 1989 to 1995, and then she maintained a strong relationship with the U.S. government after taking over the presidency of the Western NIS Enterprise Fund (WNISEF), an investment fund that invests money from a U.S. state agency (USAID) in the Ukrainian economy. She remained there (in addition to her position at the private investment fund she ran, Horizon Capital) until she took a job in the Ukrainian government [as finance minister]. These are not trivial matters, correct?

Benoit Vitkine accuses me of reporting that the new ministers of the economy are "pro-business". Yet this is the politics from which they declare themselves "aggressively pro-business," I have it in my video recordings. This explains, for example, the fourfold increase in natural gas prices. Among other things.

Rebardy also accuses me of being too harsh with Oleh Tyahnybok, the leader of the Svoboda Party. I describe him: "Historically, he belongs to the neo-Nazi movement." This man has many times said that he wants to rid the country of the "Muscovite-Jewish mafia"; he often uses the term "Yid". He was also the founder of the Social National Party (does that name remind you of something?).

Another criticism came from the militant Euromaidan blog: I gave voice to Alexis Albu, a communist activist of Odessa whom they accuse of being homophobic and red-brown.

Why did I interview Albu? Not because of his opinions but because I discovered on amateur video his presence in the building of Odessa on the famous May 2, 2014. And let me remind you, my goal was to find people who are seen in videos and then gather their comments on what they saw. I try to establish the facts. What interested me in Albu is that we see him walking out of the union building intact and shortly thereafter, he is laying on the ground, gravely wounded in the head. What happened in between?

Finally Anna Colin Lebedev noted a sentence written in the presentation of the website of Premières Lignes announcing my documentary: "No one has really asked who they (the Ukrainian nationalist paramilitaries) were." This sentence is obviously factually false. But if she saw the movie and, most of all, listened to it, she knows that this sentence is not in there. It was written to "sell" the film on the website of the production house and can therefore be attributed to clumsy marketing.

All this said, if one sits at the level global public perception, it is clear that the general public knows nothing about the importance of Ukrainian neo-Nazi groups, nor the existence of the massacre of Odessa of May 2, 2014. That's because this issue has been underreported (which is not to say not reported at all). We know from the Russian side, it is said that far-right nationalists went to fight in the Donbass. But we know less on the other side.

To conclude, I invite everyone to watch the film on Monday night on Canal Plus and make your own judgment. Because the people who insult me and threaten me on social networks are precisely those who have not seen the documentary. They imagined it. Faith is a powerful drug.

Hervé

10th February 2016, 20:41

US Can't Afford to Let Kiev Fulfill Minsk Peace Deal - French Politician (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160210/1034541768/ukraine-peace-sanctions-policy.html)

Sputnik
Politics (http://sputniknews.com/politics/) 20:36 10.02.2016
(updated 23:12 10.02.2016)

http://cdn2.img.sputniknews.com/images/103225/77/1032257708.jpg
© AFP 2016/ Sergei Supinsky

On Wednesday, Sergei Lavrov blasted Kiev for skirting its responsibility to fulfill the Minsk agreements, aimed at ending Ukraine's civil war; France and Germany, the foreign minister added, fully understand that Kiev is 'playing the fool'. Speaking to Sputnik, French MEP Philippe de Villiers warned that Moscow should look for Washington's trace.

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© Sputnik/ Grigoriy Sisoev Kiev Can't Keep 'Playing the Fool' in Skirting Minsk Obligations - Lavrov (http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160210/1034496361/ukraine-eu-crisis-lavrov.html)

Interviewed by Russian daily newspaper Moskovsky Komsomolets on Wednesday, Lavrov said (http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160210/1034496361/ukraine-eu-crisis-lavrov.html) that Kiev is deliberately dragging its feet on fulfilling the Minsk Agreements, signed in February 2015 by Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany and aimed at bringing peace to eastern Ukraine. "Ukraine is currently in a political and economic situation of complete disorder. But from the point of view of the Minsk agreements, the less [Kiev's leadership] tries to fulfill them, the longer sanctions will remain against Russia, and they say this freely," Lavrov said.

"Everyone understands that this is abnormal, especially the Germans and the French, who are in direct contact with the participants of the negotiations of the so-called Normandy format, where details are scrupulously reviewed [regarding] who needs to be doing what, and what has and hasn't been done in the execution of the points written in the Minsk agreements. There's already an understanding that 'playing the fool' cannot last for long," the foreign minister added.

Asked to comment on Lavrov's remarks, Philippe de Villiers, MEP, former presidential candidate and leader of the conservative eurosceptic Movement for France party told Sputnik that unfortunately, Kiev's decisions are not made independently of their political benefactors in Washington.

"It's clear that Russia is trying to fulfill the Minsk agreements, and that the Ukrainian side is trying to evade their responsibility. Why? Because if the Minsk agreements were fulfilled, the US would no longer be able to oppose Europe lifting its sanctions against Russia," the politician noted.

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© REUTERS/ Alkis Konstantinidis 'Sinking' Minsk Agreements May Ruin France’s Reputation (http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160209/1034452902/france-ukraine-minsk-agreements.html)

"After all, Kiev today is being managed by the Americans, who promise them membership in the EU and especially in NATO. Such a thing is unacceptable to Russia, to the Europeans, and for Frenchmen such as myself," Villiers emphasized. Categorically opposed (http://sputniknews.com/analysis/20150224/1018697542.html) to Europe's sanctions against Russia, the politician reiterated that in the present situation, "at a time when we in the West need Russia, sanctions are madness – they are a disgrace."

"France's authorities were mistaken when they thought that sanctions would not affect France's economy. In everyone's interests, and in particular for the sake of our farmers, it's time to put an end to these endless sanctions."

Asked whether, in time, Paris and Berlin will be able to put more pressure on Kiev to fulfill its obligations, Villiers suggested that "unfortunately, the answer to that question cannot be found in Paris or Berlin, but in Washington. The Ukrainian question is an American issue. As for myself, I would like to see Paris and Berlin stop being Washington's puppets."

At the same time, the politician emphasized that on the societal level, "more and more French people are beginning to believe that our friendship with Russia is infinitely more valuable to the future of the European continent than our relationship with America, which pushes us into unfortunate diplomatic adventurism, in Syria, for example, where we find ourselves on the wrong side. There, we should fight on the side of Assad, like the Russians. But as things are, we are on the side of Qatar and Saudi Arabia, together with Al-Qaeda; it is truly immoral."

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© AP Photo/ Vadim Ghirda Kiev May Resort to Military Provocations to Evade Minsk Deal (http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160208/1034388724/minsk-deal-ukraine-donbass.html)

Concluding with a dose of optimism, Villiers suggested that today, "finally, common sense seems to be returning. It took two years for this to happen. I called Francois Hollande and told him the following: 'Mr. President, come to your senses; remove the sanctions. France must demand from Germany and the US, which are driving this game, to restore friendly relations with Russia. Europe's future is created not in the United States, but on the European continent."

Redstar Kachina

10th February 2016, 23:37

..........

Calz

11th February 2016, 08:18

Hard to imagine Joseph Farrell's Febr 4th "news from the nefarium" not being posted on this thread but if it has I missed it going back passed Febr 4th.

Farrell's assessment of some of what has already been posted the last couple pages.

*Very* interesting vid which makes some powerful points and has me rethinking my opinion(s) of the overall global situation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ex9kEezGpfk#t=1905

Streamed live on Feb 4, 2016

Henry Kissinger was in Russia visiting President Putin, a week after a very interesting press conference from Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov:
http://tass.ru/en/politics/854286

http://russia-insider.com/en/politics...

Hervé

12th February 2016, 17:27

Russia’s Kurdish Gambit: US Ally in Syria Takes Moscow’s Side (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160210/1034493298/russia-syrian-kurds-alliance.html)

Middle East (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/) 09:59 10.02.2016
(updated 10:53 10.02.2016)

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© AFP 2016/ DELIL SOULEIMAN

The announcement of the leadership of the Syrian Kurds that they would open their first foreign office in Moscow is telling: their choice of Russia over Washington or Western Europe signals that Russia is allying with the Kurds in the Middle East, which will certainly undermine US and Turkish policy in the region, according to the Israeli media.

Wednesday is set to see an inauguration ceremony of the first European office of the Syrian Kurds, which will be located in Moscow. The ceremony is to be attended by Russian foreign ministry officials as well as representatives from several other countries, according to Abdulsalam Ali, the Syrian Kurdish envoy in Moscow. “The choice of Moscow and not Washington or Western Europe is telling,” says The Jerusalem Post.

“Putin appears to be making another shrewd play for power in the Middle East by allying with the Kurds, in a step that undermines United States and Turkish policy in the region,” states the Israeli newspaper. The US has established its cooperation with Syrian Kurdish fighters against Daesh (ISIL/ISIS). It has developed working relations with the Syrian Kurdish YPG (People's Protection Units) – the military wing of the Syrian Democratic Unity Party (PYD) – the most dominant force among the Syrian Kurds and an affiliate organization of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a Kurdish group located in Turkey which remains listed as a terrorist organization by the US, Turkey, and the EU.

Meanwhile, Turkey has denounced the move. (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160209/1034462526/syrian-kurds-us-turkey.html) Recep Tayyip Erdogan issued what can be considered as an ultimatum to the US (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160207/1034375512/erdogan-us-turkey-kurds.html) this week, saying that its, that it’s “either us or the PYD” (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160209/1034478496/loud-clear-erdogans-ultimatum.html), Gallia Lindenstrauss, a Turkey expert and research fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies at Tel Aviv University told the newspaper.

“Russia’s Kurd gambit”, the outlet says, takes advantage of US hesitancy in fully supporting the Kurds because of worries about angering Turkey. This “makes Ankara’s life much more difficult as it continues fighting a Kurdish insurgency at home.”

“It is highly likely that Russia will take advantage of the trend and support the Kurds, (http://sputniknews.com/world/20160204/1034192071/russia-kurds-center-against-terrorism.html) effectively turning an American ally into a Russian one,” the newspaper quotes Shmuel Bar, a senior research fellow at the Samuel Neaman Institute for National Policy Studies at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology in Haifa, as saying.

This opinion is also echoed by The Guardian, which says that the possible alliance between Russia and the Syrian Kurds “puts Erdogan in a corner”. (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160201/1034047604/turkey-russia-kurds-syria.html)

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/301654/large/a_kurds.jpg (http://www.sott.net/image/s15/301654/full/a_kurds.jpg)
© www.jpost.com (http://www.jpost.com) Kurd fighters on the march, part of the Syrian game change.

“A big, new military operation against Kurdish strongholds, in defiance of both Russia and the US, would be a sign of Erdogan’s desperation, marking a potentially catastrophic spreading of the Syrian conflict,” the outlet states.

Related:
Why so Much Hate? Closer Look at Erdogan’s ‘Kurdophobia’ (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160209/1034477022/turkey-erdogan-kurdophobia-crackdown-kurds.html)
Is the Honeymoon Officially Over? Turkey Summons US Ambassador Over Washington’s Stance on Kurds (http://sputniknews.com/us/20160209/1034480243/turkey-summons-us-ambassador.html)
Blackmail Continues: Turkish FM Says US Must Choose Between Turkey, Syrian Kurds (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160209/1034476081/turkey-us-syrian-kurds.html)

Hervé

13th February 2016, 01:07

Russia Has Destroyed the CIA's Arms Smuggling Operation in Syria (http://russia-insider.com/en/russia-has-destroyed-cias-weapons-smuggling-operation-syria/ri12821)

Rudy Panko (http://russia-insider.com/en/rudy-panko) 11 minutes ago

No wonder Washington is suing for peace

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/s400/public/report-the-cia-has-been-secretly-training-syrian-rebels-for-months.jpg?itok=TtqUyDpg (http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/report-the-cia-has-been-secretly-training-syrian-rebels-for-months.jpg)
No more CIA-supplied guns for 'moderate' rebels

Let's cut to the chase: The closing of the Azaz corridor, a major supply artery for the "moderate rebels" in Syria, should be viewed as a crippling military defeat for the United States.

As analysts have pointed out, US Secretary of State John Kerry repeatedly implored (http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/syrian-breakthrough/ri12804) Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov to keep the Azaz corridor open.

The New York Times now explains why Kerry was so anxious (http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/11/world/middleeast/russian-intervention-in-syrian-war-has-sharply-reduced-us-options.html?_r=1):

Mr. Kerry enters the negotiations with very little leverage: The Russians have cut off many of the pathways the C.I.A. has been using for a not-very-secret effort to arm rebel groups, according to several current and former officials. Mr. Kerry’s supporters inside the administration say he has been increasingly frustrated by the low level of American military activity, which he views as essential to bolstering his negotiation effort. For at least the last three years (https://www.rt.com/news/cia-arms-smuggling-syria-796/), the CIA has been smuggling arms into Syria via Turkey and Jordan. Not anymore. The rebels are increasingly cut off from their arms suppliers -- and the US is now begging for peace.

This conflict is far from over, and despite reports of a tentative peace agreement, escalation still remains a very grim possibility.

But the US has been outplayed in Syria. Period. The CIA will have to go crawling back to Langley with its tail between its legs -- until it finds a new country to destabilize. Maybe Turkey?

Hervé

13th February 2016, 15:04

Aleppo Before and After: Syrians Sick of War, Tired of 'Marauding' Rebels (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160213/1034699397/aleppo-before-after-on-the-ground.html)

Middle East (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/) 13:39 13.02.2016
(updated 13:47 13.02.2016)

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© REUTERS/ Abdelrahmin Ismail

The Syrian Army offensive to liberate the city of Aleppo and its surrounding province continues; RT Syria correspondent Murad Gazdiev returned home to share his impressions about the situation on the ground there, the city's history before the war, and its fate since the ill-fated Arab Spring uprisings of 2011.

"Before the civil war began," Gazdiev recalled (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgxXLqQlTzE), "Aleppo was Syria's largest city [population 2.3 million]. It is really something of a mixing pot; you had all sorts living together there – Assyrians, Kurds, Arabs, Armenians, Turks, all living together peacefully."

Before the war, the city's ancient splendor and cultural diversity made it a source "of hundreds of thousands of tourists; there was also business, industry, finance, jobs – it was a bustling metropolis. And then of course, the civil war began…"

https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/695805171167703040/jQ487hBu_bigger.jpg raya ‏@xrayaax (https://twitter.com/xrayaax)

Before and after pictures of Aleppo, Syria.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CaWKLBmVIAE7gSV.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CaWKLBpUsAU3bGX.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CaWKLBqUYAABQYj.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CaWKLBuVIAALDeX.jpg

Unfortunately, the correspondent noted, "there's not a street left unmarked by fighting in Aleppo." None of the factions which emerged during the course of the so-called Arab Spring could stay out of the conflict, even though many tried.

"As for the belligerents – given how much of a mixing pot the city was, you had all flavors of rebels in Aleppo at one point or another, from the 'moderate' FSA [Free Syrian Army], the Nusra Front [Al-Qaeda's Syrian franchise], to even ISIS [Daesh] in the city at one point."

Recalling that the city was also once a prosperous industrial hub, Gazdiev pointed to a video by the Eretz Zen Syria news channel showing "rebels moving heavy machinery across the Turkish border, apparently selling it, [saying] they 'liberated' this machinery – you know, stole it."

uOSUh87WA20

"Apparently, according to the Syrian government, one year into the 'revolution', a thousand factories just in and around Aleppo were robbed –pilfered, stripped of all valuables, and all the stuff sold across the border in Turkey."

"And this is not even going into the roving bands of bandits or 'rebels' – whatever they were at that point, walking around the city when they first went into it, robbing whoever they didn't like. And if they didn't like you enough, it didn't just stop with robbery or mugging –it could be fatal," the journalist said.

"Mass executions in Aleppo were not a rarity, – they weren't a unique thing They happened often," Gazdiev added, pointing to a gruesome (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LdxLpci2XG4) video from 2012 showing rebels "throwing postal workers off of a roof because they worked for the government."

"At one point, rebels actually turned off electricity and water supplies to the entire city, because they couldn't just [turn off] just the government-controlled areas – so they disconnected everything, even areas that they controlled. So it is at all surprising that so many people fled Aleppo?"

Commenting on the one-sidedness of Western media coverage of the situation in Aleppo, Gazdiev complained that they have devoted "nowhere near as much" coverage to the rebels' misdeeds, described above, as they have for example to government forces' alleged barrel bombing.

Ultimately, the journalist noted, "Syrians themselves have grown tired of the war; all they really want is just an end to it all – just an end to the fighting."

Redstar Kachina

13th February 2016, 15:39

..........

Calz

13th February 2016, 23:02

US can't win in Syria so they've resorted to drowning the world in propaganda instead

Sputnik
Sat, 13 Feb 2016 22:22 UTC

The success of the ongoing Russian airborne campaign in Syria has prompted Washington to launch an information war against Moscow.

While Moscow proposed that all warring sides in Syria declare a ceasefire starting on March 1, the US continues to insist on an immediate cessation of hostilities, claiming that Moscow is stalling in order to allow the Syrian army to complete its ongoing offensive.

Also, on February 10 US warplanes carried out an airstrike against the Syrian city of Aleppo, with Washington immediately blaming Russia for the deed.

According to Araik Stepanyan, executive secretary of the Presidium of the Academy of Geopolitical Problems, faced with the success of the Russian airborne campaign in Syria the US resorted to information warfare.

"We need to understand that an information war was declared against Russia, so such statements shouldn't come as a surprise," Stepanyan told Radio Sputnik. "The fact that these statements are easy to refute matters little for the US leadership because its goal is to create an information phantom for the electorate. They're well versed in the art of fooling the masses; the creed of their propaganda is 'the more terrifying the lie is, the more people believe in it'."

Stepanyan added that the US had to resort to this strategy because its own campaign in Syria has so far failed to produce any meaningful results. He also mentioned the recent incident when TV Channel France 2 showed footage of Russian airstrikes in Syria as the work of the US-led international coalition, remarking that apparently the US can now claim credit for Russia's successes.

"These are all elements of hybrid warfare, its integral component — psychological warfare," he concluded.

Meanwhile, US President Barack Obama sought to increase the budget of the Broadcasting Board of Governors, the US federal agency responsible for the Voice of America and Radio Liberty/Radio Free Europe, among others, requested a substantial budget increase. If the newly proposed budget for fiscal year 2017 is approved, the agency will receive nearly $778 million - a vast sum, especially compared to Russia's foreign media budget.

For example, MIA Rossiya Segodnya, the parent company of Sputnik News, operates on a budget of $75 million, including both domestic and foreign media — 10 times less than the BBG. Comment: The more blatant the lies become the more the US has to spend in order to get anyone to actually believe any of them.

Further reading: 'We need more lies!' - Obama's new budget calls for massive increase in propaganda spending

http://www.sott.net/article/312180-US-cant-win-in-Syria-so-they-ve-resorted-to-drowning-the-world-in-propaganda-instead

Hervé

14th February 2016, 15:27

Road To World War III: Turkey Shells Syria For Second Day As Saudi Warplanes Arrive (http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-02-14/road-world-war-iii-turkey-shells-syria-second-day-saudi-warplanes-arrive)

http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/pictures/picture-5.jpg (http://www.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden) Submitted by Tyler Durden (http://www.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden) on 02/14/2016 09:43 -0500

On Saturday, the geopolitical world was shocked when Turkey began shelling Aleppo, where the Syrian opposition has its back against the wall in the face of an aggressive advance by Hezbollah and the IRGC supported, of course, by Russian airstrikes.

To be sure, everyone knew Ankara and Riyadh would have to do something quick if they wanted to preserve the rebellion. Their proxies are being rolled up rapidly by Hassan Nasrallah’s army and Vladimir Putin’s air force juggernaut. But few expected the escalation would come so quickly.

But Recep Tayyip Erdogan is unpredictable (just ask the lone surviving pilot of the Su-24 Turkey shot down in November) and this weekend, he decided that there’s no time like the present when it comes to starting World War III.

Officially, Turkey says it’s shelling Kurdish positions in Syria in self defense. It’s all about securing the border against hostiles, Ankara says. Of course the idea that the YPG are set to invade Turkey is laughable. The Syrian Kurds have secured enough space in their own country to declare an autonomous proto-state, and they needn’t aspire to capturing Turkish territory.

But for Erdogan, that’s precisely the problem. Ankara fears the YPG’s gains will embolden the PKK militarily and the HDP politically and last June’s elections clearly suggest that an emboldened Kurdish minority has the power to shake up the political scene.

And so, Turkey is set to take the fight to Syria in the name of fighting “terrorists”, which for Erdogan, means eradicating the Kurds. As we noted on Saturday, the challenge for Ankara and Riyadh is this: somehow, Turkey and Saudi Arabia need to figure out how to spin an attack on the YPG and an effort to rescue the opposition at Aleppo as an anti-ISIS operation even though ISIS doesn’t have a large presence in the area.

Incredibly, Turkey seems less concerned about the optics than we thought. In short, Erdogan looks as though he’s prepared to simply enter the war on the pretext that Turkey needs to roll back the YPG which, you’re reminded is explicitly backed by the US.

In a way that makes sense. You can’t very well shell Aleppo and use ISIS as an excuse. The group’s presence isn’t large enough in the area. But what you can do is say “the PKK are terrorists, they’re allied with the YPG who are in Aleppo, and therefore, we need to shell Aleppo.” Put in the simplest possible terms, what Erdogan is really doing is trying to reopen supply lines closed by Russia and Iran by wiping out Kurdish forces who dominate the northern border with Turkey.

The shelling continued on Sunday. "The Turkish army shelled positions held by Kurdish-backed militia in northern Syria for a second day on Sunday, killing two fighters," Reuters reports (http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-shelling-idUSKCN0VN09S), citing the admittedly dubious Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. The YPG controls nearly all of Syria's northern frontier with Turkey, and has been a close ally of the United States in the campaign against Islamic State in Syria, but Ankara views the group as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has waged a three-decade-old insurgency for autonomy in southeast Turkey."

Jaysh al-Thuwwar, an allied group warned Turkey against further attacks, saying if the country "has goals in our dear nation, we will defend our land and our people, and view it as a hostile party". Again, this comes from the very same groups the US is overtly supporting with arms and air power. So not the CIA-sponsored opposition. Turkey is shelling fighters who literally have the clearance to call in US airstrikes from warplanes that, in an irony of ironies, are flying from Incirlik, the Turkish air base.

And speaking of Incirlik, the Saudis are moving into position.

They're also conducting "exercises" dubbed "North Thunder" or, "Road North." Here's SPA (translated (http://www.spa.gov.sa/viewstory.php?lang=ar&newsid=1466877)):

Witnessing the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia during the next few hours the arrival of troops participating in the military exercise largest and most important in the history of the region, "Raad north," In the King Khalid Military City Hafr al-Batin in the northern kingdom will be implemented exercise which is the largest military maneuver in terms of the number of countries, with the participation of 20 Arab, Islamic and friendly country, in addition to the Peninsula shield forces, and these countries are: Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Bahrain, Senegal, Sudan, Kuwait, Maldives, Morocco , Pakistan, Chad, Tunisia, the moon, Djibouti, Oman, Qatar, Malaysia, Egypt, Mauritania, Mauritius, in addition to the Peninsula shield forces. Islands constitute Raad north, the largest military exercise of its kind in terms of the number of participating countries, and military equipment quality of weapons and military equipment diverse and sophisticated, including fighter jets from different models reflect the large quantitative and qualitative spectrum, which show him those forces, as well as the participation of a wide range of artillery and tanks, infantry and air defense systems, naval forces, in a simulation of the highest level of high alert for the armies of the countries 20 participation.

Exercise Raad North represents a clear message to the Saudi brothers and brothers and friends of the participating countries stand united to face all challenges and to maintain peace and stability in the region, in addition to the emphasis on many of the goals, all in full readiness circle and maintain the peace and security of the region and the world .

Analysts say that the exercise Raad North confirms that the leaders of the participating countries, are fully in line with the vision of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the need to protect the peace and stability in the region. A lot of words to say this: "We're flexing our muscles on the way to invading Syria."

"What is present now is aircraft that are part of the Saudi forces," Brigadier General Ahmed al-Asiri told Al Arabiya News Channel (http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2016/02/14/Saudi-Arabia-confirms-sending-jets-to-Turkey-.html) on Sunday, referencing the Saudi presence at Incirlik. "The kingdom is ready to participate in any ground operations that the coalition (against ISIS) may agree to carry out in Syria," he added.

https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/698817899570556928/pIcm-_Tq_bigger.png درع الوطن Verified account ‏@diraalwatan (https://twitter.com/diraalwatan)

#North_Thunder (https://twitter.com/hashtag/North_Thunder?src=hash), the biggest military exercise in the region led by #Saudi (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Saudi?src=hash)

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CbLKcP2UkAEGDMc.jpg
Remember, Turkey also shelled the Syrian army on Saturday.

“Turkish artillery shelled Syrian territory, targeting Syrian Kurdish positions and the positions of the Syrian Arab Army,” SANA news agency reported, citing a letter from Damascus to the UN. Expect those attacks to continue in the name of "self defense."

Meanwhile, the Russians aren't letting up. Aleppo will be recaptured and that, as they say, is that. "Russia is determined to create facts on the ground, and when they have accomplished this, then they will invite the West to fight a common enemy, this is ISIS," Norbert Roettgen, head of the foreign affairs committee in the German parliament says, underscoring our contention that Russia is determined to negotiate from a position of absolute strength. "Let's be clear about what this agreement does. It allows Russia's assault on Aleppo to continue for another week," John McCain exclaimed. "Mr Putin is not interested in being our partner. He wants to shore up the Assad regime, he wants to establish Russia as a major power in the Middle East, he wants to use Syria as a live fire exercise for Russia’s modernizing military."

Right. And America is seemingly powerless to stop him.

In the short term, the only question now is this: how long will it be before Turkey or Saudi Arabia kills a Hezbollah fighter or an IRGC general?

Or worse: what happens when a Russian ends up dead at the hands of the region's Sunni powers?

Hervé

14th February 2016, 17:59

Meanwhile... business as usual...

Dozens of guns, 20,000+ ammo seized from 2 Britons in Greece near Turkey border (https://www.rt.com/news/332404-greece-turkey-arms-smuggling/)

Published time: 14 Feb, 2016 07:28
Edited time: 14 Feb, 2016 07:37

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/302036/large/56c02a34c46188c1348b45f0.jpg
© Jaime Saldarriaga / Reuters

Greece’s coast guard has reportedly arrested two “heavily armed” British men carrying more than a dozen guns and thousands of rounds of ammunition from Turkey, a top security official said.

A high-ranking security official told AP that the suspects were both Iraqi-born British subjects in their 20s. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to comment on the ongoing investigation.

The two were arrested Saturday night by coast guard officers near the port of the Greek city of Alexandroupolis, off the Turkish border.

The two suspects were driving a trailer loaded with more than a dozen guns of an unspecified type and well over 20,000 rounds of ammunition, the security official said. According to preliminary reports (http://www.alexpoli.gr/nea-ypothesi-tzichantiston-stin-alexandroupoli/), the load included “3,357 handguns.” The number has not yet been confirmed by any other sources or official statements.

The two suspects are reportedly not on any terrorist or criminal database.

Police counterterrorist elements and National Intelligence Agency officers were scrambled to head for Alexandroupolis, AP reported.

Some previous reports say Greece’s territory was previously utilized for smuggling arms and ammunition. In May 2015, border guards in northeast Greece arrested a 28-year-old man from Syria at the Kipoi border crossing, said to be carrying a fake British driver’s license.

He was traveling to Turkey in a car with Austrian license plates. During a search, officers found more than 95,000 rounds of ammunition hidden in special compartments inside the vehicle.

Calz

14th February 2016, 20:15

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TxJahviIaFc

Published on Feb 13, 2016

World-renowned libertarian Lew Rockwell, the co-founder of the Mises Institute and Ron Paul's former congressional chief of staff, joins the show today to discuss the the plan to start world war 3 by the elite.

https://www.lewrockwell.com/

(commercial starts around 8 minute mark if you wish to skip)

Hervé

15th February 2016, 16:00

Turkey continues shelling Kurdish regions in Syria: Group
(http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/02/15/450451/Syria-Russia-Turkey-Davutoglu-Kurdish-Azaz-Tal-Rifaat)
PressTV Mon Feb 15, 2016 1:20PM

http://217.218.67.233/photo/20160215/1a55cffe-324c-4631-be12-91e8888514f1.jpg
Turkish forces' armored vehicles patrol at the southeastern town of Nusaybin, Turkey, near the border with Syria on February 14, 2016. (AP photo)

Despite international outcries, Turkey has shelled Kurdish regions in northern Syria for the third day, saying it will not allow Kurds to take control of the Syrian border town of A’zaz.

The so-called Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said on Monday that Turkish forces shelled a road to the Tal Rif'at town as well as a region near A’zaz. Turkey had targeted the same areas over the weekend.

"We will not let A’zaz fall," said Turkish Prime Minister Ahmed Davutoglu, adding, "The YPG (the Kurdish People's Protection Units) will not be able to cross to the west of the Euphrates (River) and east of Afrin."

Ankara regards the YPG and its affiliate the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) as an ally of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which has been fighting for an autonomous Kurdish region inside Turkey since the 1980s.

The YPG, which controls nearly Syria’s entire northern border with Turkey, has been fighting against the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group.

http://217.218.67.233//photo/20160215/0c4ca48d-e0b1-4606-9172-f0251e7ebd8a.jpg
Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu (AFP photo)

Syria on Sunday condemned the Turkish attacks, and took the case to the UN Security Council. Turkey claims that Syrian Kurdish forces were advancing under the support of the Russian air force.

The Russian Foreign Ministry has also condemned Turkish attacks as “provocative.”

"Starting from February 13, Turkish artillery concentrated in border areas is carrying out massive strikes on Syrian towns recently freed from terrorists," the ministry said in a statement.

The statement said many civilians were killed and wounded in the Turkish attacks while infrastructure and a number of residential houses were destroyed.

The Russian ministry also expressed Moscow’s “serious concern” about what it calls Ankara’s aggressive actions against Syria and described it as “overt support of international terrorism."

Turkey is said to be among the main supporters of the militant groups operating in Syria, with reports saying that Ankara actively trains and arms the Takfiri terrorists there and facilitates their safe passage into the conflict-ridden Arab country.

Earlier, France and the US called on Turkey to halt its artillery bombardment of the Kurdish areas in Syria.

==========================================

The crux of the matter: the "corridor" Turkey needs to keep open to feed its mercenaries (hatched area):

http://www.unzcloud.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/SakerSyria.jpg

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/301958/full/Screen_Shot_2016_02_13_at_5_27.jpg

Near Azaz the U.S. ally Turkey is currently shelling (http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/Default.aspx?pageID=238&nID=95143&NewsCatID=352) (video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5foWo1suiEQ)) the U.S. ally YPG which is fighting the CIA-supported FSA.

Hervé

15th February 2016, 16:58

State of current affairs in and around Syria:

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/302188/full/2300syria_ISIS_7_27_15.jpg

Hervé

15th February 2016, 17:47

'Thank you Russia!' - Residents of Liberated Syrian Towns (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160215/1034759184/residents-of-liberated-syrian-towns-thank-russia.html)

Middle East (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/) 03:46 15.02.2016
(updated 11:05 15.02.2016)

http://cdn1.img.sputniknews.com/images/103219/21/1032192187.jpg
© AFP 2016/ ANWAR AMRO

Syrian towns Nubl and al-Zahra in Northern Aleppo province had been occupied by the Free Syrian Army since July, 2012. After their liberation on the February 3rd and following improvement of their living conditions, residents are expressing their gratitude to Russia, Iran and Hezbollah.

Only about two weeks ago, the two strategically important towns were under the control of various rebel factions, including the al-Nusra Front. According to reports from locals, for more than three years they had to conquer fear and learn how to survive without enough aid, but with constant shelling in the background. The Syrian Army, backed by pro-Iranian militias and Russia, which has been conducting air strikes targeting Daesh positions in the country, was welcomed with open arms by the residents that support the Syrian government and Bashar Assad. Streets are now decorated with posters of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei along with photographs of the Syrian President beaming down from the front of the town hall in Nubl and hanging outside its main mosque.

"Thank you Russia! Thank you Hezbollah! Thank you Iran!" a resident shouted on the street, as reported by CNN.

According to the Syrian Red Crescent, it delivered humanitarian relief to Nubl and Al Zahra earlier this week. Reportedly, the living conditions have significantly improved there in just two weeks, with stores and markets becoming better stocked.

This is a victory of great importance for the Syrian Army, as al-Zahra and Nubl are located between the Turkish border and parts of Aleppo that are controlled by insurgents. This leaves the terrorists in Northern Aleppo with no supply routes. The towns will become the main centers for military operations by government forces in the north of Syria. What's just as important is that the lifting of the sieges bolstered morale among pro-government forces, which now believe there are capable of winning back any territory, occupied by opposition. Russia continues carrying air strikes against terrorist targets across Syria, including those in Aleppo province.

Related:
Turkish Army Shelling Kurdish Barracks in Northern Syria - Source (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160214/1034755741/turkey-shells-kurdish-syria-barracks.html)
Time for Washington to Admit 'Russia Is Right on Syria' (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160215/1034756552/washington-should-admit-russia-is-right-on-syria.html)

Hervé

15th February 2016, 18:38

Erdogan uses ISIS to suppress Kurds, West stays silent – Turkish MP (https://www.rt.com/news/332529-erdogan-uses-isis-kurds/)
(https://www.rt.com/news/332529-erdogan-uses-isis-kurds/)
RT
Published time: 15 Feb, 2016 17:24

https://cdn.rt.com/files/2016.02/original/56c2060ec36188472a8b458b.jpg
Buildings which were damaged during the security operations and clashes between Turkish security forces and Kurdish militants, are pictured in Sur district of Diyarbakir, Turkey February 11, 2016 © Sertac Kayar / Reuters

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been using ISIS to advance his Middle East policy and suppress the Kurds, and Ankara’s elite maintains vibrant economic ties with the terror group and harbors its militants, a Turkish MP has told Russian media.

“Erdogan uses ISIS [Islamic State/IS, also known as ISIS/ISIL] against the Kurds. He can’t send the Turkish Army directly to Syrian Kurdistan, but he can use ISIS as an instrument against the Kurds. He has a greater Ottoman Empire in his mind, that’s his dream, while ISIS is one of the instruments [to achieve it],” Selma Irmak, a Turkish MP from the Peace and Democracy Party told RIA Novosti on Monday.

There are many signs that the Turkish leadership is aiding Islamic State and benefiting from it, Irmak argued.

“Wounded militants are given medical treatment in Turkey. For ISIS, Turkey is a very important supply channel. They are allowed to pass through the Turkish border, being given IDs [and other documents],” she added.

“ISIS has training camps in Turkey,” Irmak stressed, citing other examples of Turkey providing IS with certain capabilities, including the fact that all militants go back and forth into Syria through Turkish territory.

Both the Turkish elite and the terrorist group enjoy economic ties as well, Irmak argued.

“ISIS’ oil is sold via Turkey. All of ISIS’ external [trade] operations are being carried out via Turkey and involve not only oil.” Part of the terrorist group’s criminal business trafficking hostages as well as female slaves of Yazidi and Assyrian minorities, while “the government is, of course, well aware of it,” she added.

More proof could be the absence of any violence between the Turkish military and Islamic State militants.

“ISIS never attacked Turkish positions and claimed no responsibility for terror attacks in Turkey’s cities. There were three large terror attacks [in 2015] in Diyarbakir, Suruc and Ankara. Each attack caused harm to the Kurds and opposition activists supporting them,” the MP noted.

Turkey only intervened when the Kurds retook territory from the IS-held Kurdish city of Tell Abyad in northern Syria.

“Turkish warplanes formally bombarded the ISIS-held territory and conducted two airstrikes to show it fights the Islamic State. And in the meantime, Turkey made 65 airstrikes on Qandil [the PKK stronghold in mountainous northern Iraq].”

According to Irmak, Ankara feels free to take on the Kurds because the West is unwilling to harm its interests in the region and beyond.

“Unfortunately, the international community is indifferent towards these events. Turkey has taken Europe prisoner by using Middle Eastern refugees as an instrument of blackmail. The US keeps silent too, having common interests with Turkey. For instance, the US wants to keep using the Incirlik airbase […] and the Turkish Army is emboldened by such impunity.”

Related:Turkey ‘won’t let’ Azaz, Syria, fall to Kurdish militia, shells YPG targets for 3rd day (https://www.rt.com/news/332471-turkey-syria-azaz-kurds/)

Hervé

15th February 2016, 19:59

The "Race To Raqqa" - A Syrian Campaign Plan (http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/02/the-race-to-raqqa-a-syrian-campaign-plan.html)

Moon of Alabama (http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/02/the-race-to-raqqa-a-syrian-campaign-plan.html) Posted by b on February 15, 2016 at 01:56 PM | Permalink (http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/02/the-race-to-raqqa-a-syrian-campaign-plan.html)

http://www.moonofalabama.org/images4/raqqarace.jpg
map via (https://twitter.com/Souria4Syrians/status/699282748834447360) The 'Nimr' Tiger (https://twitter.com/Souria4Syrians) - bigger (http://www.moonofalabama.org/images4/raqqarace.jpg)

There is today a lot of indignation in "western" media over the Russian air campaign in Syria. One, two, three, ... hospitals were bombed!. And schools! An the rebels lost more villages! Barrel bombs! Cluster bombs! One must ask how many of these "hospitals" were really hospitals and not just quarters for Jihadi "rebels". From the videos that were published I could identify only one destroyed building that might have been a real hospital. But ever there no medical equipment was visible in the debris. Could this probably arranged media assault be the preparation for some new false flag stunt or some other planned escalation?

Hardly any mentions was made today about continued Turkish shelling of Kurdish towns in Syria. As soon as the Syrian artillery will be near the border, in a week or so, such shelling will be answered and the situation will then escalate very fast.

The Russian promised that the The “Gates of hell” will be open in the coming months in Syria (https://elijahjm.wordpress.com/2016/02/14/the-gates-of-hell-will-be-open-in-the-coming-months-in-syria/). The current massive Russian bombing is the beginning of that campaign. "Rebels" running away from a town due to bombing are not able to kill the Syrian soldiers that then enter that town. Houses and infrastructure can be rebuild but dead soldiers can not be resurrected. That is the simple rule that now guides the Syrian government campaigns. There are no hints yet of how exactly the liberation of Aleppo province, rebel held parts of Aleppo city and in Idleb will proceed. There is a bigger campaign plan behind it but it is not yet visible.

Visible though is the Syrian plan of the Race to Raqqa (http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/02/the-race-to-raqqa-is-intensifying.html) against the Islamic State.

From the south west a brigade sized force of the Syrian army (red), soon to be reinforced by volunteer units, is pushing north-east towards Tabqa airbase which lies south of Route 4 and the city of Al Tawra. Both are held by the Islamic State (grey). The troops are now some 15 kilometers away from the base. Should the Syrian army take the base it would achieve firecontrol over Route 4 from Turkey via Al Bab to Raqqa and could stop most Islamic State traffic on that road. Should the army take Al Taqra city it could also capture the Taqwa dam of the Assad barrier lake. Then all Islamic State forces west of the Euphrates would be completely cut of from Raqqa and Iraq. They could be further split up by Syrian army forces coming from Aleppo going east and in the north by Kurdish forces (yellow) going west . The Islamic State would lose a lot of terrain in that move and, much more important, its sole open access route to Turkey. The difficult attack on Raqqa city itself, some 15 kilometers further east, would only come after the Tabqa base and Al Tawra are taken.

But few military plans survive the contact with the enemy and there are other forces that would like to get their hands on Raqqa before the Syrian army reaches it
Last week the Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim visited the Turkish President Erdogan in Istanbul. Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar have declared that they would join the announced Saudi ground campaign against the Islamic State should the U.S. take the command and lead. Saudi fighter jets have landed in Incirlik airbase. A Kuwaiti air transport plane landed in Hatay today, allegedly filled with weapons. The Turkish Prime Minister Davutoglu is visiting Ukraine with a large delegation. Is there some coordination ongoing? A diversion in Ukraine to keep the Russians busy in Ukraine while an Turkish/Gulf Arab attack is launched on Syria? Or vice versa?

While the situation for the Syrian government and its allies looks much better now than six month ago, the war on Syria is far from over. It may well expand and escalate further before an end is in sight.

Hervé

16th February 2016, 16:52

Russian Diplomat Drops a Bombshell: US Expected ISIS to Seize Damascus by October (http://thesaker.is/russian-diplomat-drops-a-bombshell-us-expected-isis-to-seize-damascus-by-october/)

The Saker, February 16, 2016
In an article in a British newspaper Russia’s ambassador to the UK reveals the Russians were told by the Western powers that after the US proclaimed a no-fly zone, ISIS would capture Damascus
by Alexander Mercouris for Russia Insider: http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/russias-ambassador-uk-drops-bombshell-us-expected-isis-seize-damascus-october/ri12860

Alexander Yakovenko, Russia’s ambassador to Britain, dropped something of a bombshell on Monday, though one that has gone completely unnoticed.

In a piece in the print edition of the London Evening Standard defending Russian policy in Syria he made the following extraordinary disclosure:

“Last summer we were told by our Western partners that in October Damascus would fall to IS (ie. the Islamic State – AM).

What they were planning to do next we don’t know. Probably, they would have ended up painting the extremists white and accepting them as a Sunni state straddling Iraq and Syria”. The summer – when these conversations between the Western powers and the Russians allegedly took place – was the time when the US was in discussions with Turkey and Jordan about setting up a no-fly zone and safe havens in Syria.

I discussed in this article how “no-fly zone” is today simply a euphemism for a US bombing campaign (http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/how-russia-pursues-its-objectives-syria/ri11013).

What Yakovenko is therefore in effect saying is that the US was planning in the summer to start a bombing campaign to overthrow the government of Syria in the knowledge that this would result by October in the victory of the Islamic State and its capture of Damascus.

Russia Insider has previously explained that it was to stop the US proclaiming a no-fly zone (http://russia-insider.com/en/military/how-russia-checked-us-plan-no-fly-zone-syria/ri10248) – i.e. commencing a bombing campaign aimed at overthrowing the Syrian government – that Russia intervened in Syria.

The fact Yakovenko says the US told the Russians this would result in the Islamic State capturing Damascus by October explains why the Russians felt they had to act as they did.

Is Yakovenko however telling the truth?

The first thing to say is that the British and US governments have not denied what he is saying.

That however is not conclusive. It is not difficult to see why the British and US governments might think that in light of the incendiary nature of what Yakovenko is saying denying it would simply give his comments more publicity if they denied them and that the better approach is silence.

If so, then the fact Yakovenko’s comments have been almost entirely ignored shows this approach has worked.

Is Yakovenko however senior enough to know the details of the discussions that took place in the summer between the Russians and the Western powers as he says?
The answer to that question is almost certainly yes.

Though London is no longer the most important diplomatic posting for a Russian ambassador in Western Europe, it remains an important posting, and any official appointed to be Russia’s ambassador to Britain is by definition a senior official whom Moscow will ensure is kept well-informed.

If there were discussions of the sort Yakovenko says, he would almost certainly have been fully briefed about them.

What Yakovenko says is also consistent with things we know.

In the summer – having just captured Palmyra – the Islamic State was on a roll, making it not implausible that it might reach Damascus by the autumn.

The Syrian army in the meantime had suffered a succession of heavy defeats, and had been forced to withdraw from Idlib province.

In light of all this, in the context of a US bombing campaign, it is not implausible the US was telling the Russians in the summer that the Islamic State would seize Damascus by October.

As for the US’s discussions about setting up a no-fly zone and safe havens, there was nothing secret about those, and they were openly acknowledged.

Why however would the US tell the Russians that they expected the Islamic State to seize Damascus by October?

That is not a difficult question to answer.

No-one in the early summer thought there was any likelihood the Russians would intervene militarily in Syria. The US probably thought it was not risking anything by telling Moscow its military plans and what their likely consequences would be.

Probably what the US expected was that the threat of a bombing campaign leading to the seizure of Damascus by the Islamic State would terrify Moscow and persuade the Russians to force Assad to stand down, which has been the US objective all along.

In that case the US seriously underestimated the Russians’ resolve and their willingness to act to prevent what the US was threatening from coming to pass.

Overall Yakovenko’s disclosure makes sense, and is therefore probably true.

What it shows is how reckless the US’s Syrian policy had become.

At the very time the US was pretending to fight the Islamic State it was in fact preparing steps that it knew would facilitate its victory.

Even if this was intended as a diplomatic play it was an extraordinary thing to do.

The families of US victims of jihadi terror would surely feel betrayed if they were ever find out about it, whilst it is not difficult to imagine the consternation and recriminations in Washington when the Russians unexpectedly pre-empted the US strategy by intervening in the way they did.

As for the people of Damascus – spared not just US bombing but rule by the Islamic State – and the people of Europe – who would have faced a far bigger refugee flood if what Washington was telling the Russians had come to pass – they both have reason to be grateful to the Russians for making sure that things turned out otherwise.

animovado

16th February 2016, 21:41

The link to the above mentioned article in the EveningStandard by Alexander Yakovenko:

http://www.standard.co.uk/comment/alexander-yakovenko-russia-and-the-us-are-partners-in-trying-to-end-the-war-in-syria-a3180571.html

Hervé

16th February 2016, 22:02

Turkey Admits to Aiding Al Qaeda and ISIS (http://russia-insider.com/en/turkey-admits-aiding-al-qaeda-and-isis/ri12880)

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/40x40/public/userphoto/575076_172788779517745_599048449_n.jpg?itok=acthf5dzMaram Susli (http://russia-insider.com/user/13721) 26 minutes ago

Turkish support for Al Qaeda and ISIS in Syria has always been an open secret. Now it's an accepted fact
http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/s400/public/testtubedailyshow-0087-why-is-t-large.thumb_.jpg?itok=waHG2KYQ
Turkey shows its true colors -- again

Yesterday, Turkish Prime Minister Davutoglu told Reuters (http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-turkey-davutoglu-idUSKCN0VO0ZZ) that YPG fighters would have seized Azaz and Tal Rifaat if it had not been for Turkish artillery shelling. He failed to mention that these towns would have been liberated from Al Qaeda. Al Qaeda’s Syrian branch, Jabhat Al Nusra, shares control (http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-turkey-davutoglu-idUSKCN0VO0ZZ) of Azaz with "moderate" FSA brigades. Davutoglu has effectively admitted that Turkey is protecting Al Qaeda.

This would not be the first time Turkey has had a direct hand in helping Al Qaeda take a Syrian town. In March 2014 (http://landdestroyer.blogspot.com.au/2014/03/urgent-natos-turkey-providing-air.html), Turkish president Erdogan provided direct air support to Jabhat Al Nusra as it took over the town of Kessab. In a blatant act of support for Al Qaeda, Erdogan brazenly shot down a Syrian Jet which was attempting to fire on Jabhat Al Nusra terrorists crossing in from the Turkish border. Kessab was a Syrian town inhabited by mostly Armenian diaspora, who had a century ago escaped genocide at the hands of Turkey.

In recent years, Turkey’s aid of Al Qaeda and ISIS in Syria has developed from an open secret to an accepted fact. In November, footage (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/video/news/video-1131232/Alleged-ISIS-fighters-casually-chat-Turkish-border-guard.html)emerged of Turkish border guards leisurely conversing with ISIS militants in Kassab.

There is a deluge of evidence (http://www.meforum.org/5317/turkey-isis) that Turkey is supplying ISIS with weapons via trucks driving through the border. US Vice President Joe Biden admitted (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w04YE5zRmc8) that his Turkish ally was responsible for allowing ISIS into Syria. The statements were an attempt to deflect blame for ISIS away from the US and solely onto its allies. Russian president Putin (http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/24/vladimir-putin-turkey-isis-terrorists-warplane-analysis)also openly called out Erdogan as an ‘accomplice of terrorism’. Russia has previously revealed reconnaissance (http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/russia-accuses-turkey-of-shooting-down-jet-to-defend-isis-oil-supplies-a6755176.html)footage showing ISIS oil trucks smuggling Syrian oil into Turkey.

Davutoglu’s brazen statements further highlight the Turkish government's lack of respect for sovereignty and international law. Stating that Turkey will not allow Azaz to fall to Syrian Kurds, seemingly forgetting that Azaz is a Syrian town,exposes Turkey's true motives.

Syria’s Foreign Ministry sent (http://www.plenglish.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4608011&Itemid=1)several letters to the UN Secretary General and the Security Council complaining about the artillery shelling from Turkey. Violating the sovereignty of a UN member state is a breach of international law. However, the UN has ignored every violation of Syrian sovereignty to date, solidifying its impotence as a so-called organisation for world peace and diplomacy.

Hervé

17th February 2016, 13:29

"GIF over North Aleppo (1/02/16-15/02/16)" by Dr--Death in syriancivilwar

Uploaded 2 days ago

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/302626/full/Screen_Shot_2016_02_16_at_10_2.jpg
© @miladvisor

(visit: http://imgur.com/cxyM0aF for animated .gif)
(http://imgur.com/cxyM0aF)

Calz

18th February 2016, 03:00

When looked at from a nationalist viewpoint this article is brilliant (posting only a snippet).

I posit that taking into account the "next level up of the globalists" shows this is the "hidden hand" guiding the world to the various endgame scenarios.

(I won't even hazard to speculate about the "next level up of the multidimensionals").

___________________________

Has Washington hatched a new Machiavellian plan for Syria and Iraq?

F. William Engdahl
New Eastern Outlook
Wed, 17 Feb 2016 00:00 UTC

One of my often-cited sayings is around 2,500 years old. It's from the respected Chinese philosopher Sun Tzu in his small masterpiece, The Art of War. For centuries it's been one of the most influential strategy writings not only in Asia, but also the Western world. It goes as follows:

"If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle."

― Sun Tzu, The Art of War

In geopolitical analysis, when I examine a major political or economic development, it's very important that I first look into myself, to feel if I'm blurring my analysis because of deep-felt personal wishes for a peaceful, more harmonious world, blurring the reality of a given nation or groups of nations. Similarly, if I take those malevolent patriarchs who dominate American and NATO policies today, I must be certain I know, not merely the surface of what an American President or Secretary of State might say on a given day. It can be a lie, a slick maneuver or it can be even honest. The work of any serious analyst is to sort out which it is, to go deeper, to "mine" the lode in order to see the real strategic implications.

Such is the case with finding out what is the real Washington policy—the economic and foreign policy today. For example, what is the real meaning and purpose behind the journey of the 92-year-old Henry Kissinger to Moscow to meet Vladimir Putin and others recently? What's the real purpose of John Kerry when he appears to follow a policy more friendly towards Russia than, say, his Assistant Secretary Victoria Nuland or Secretary of Defense Ash Carter? Is it the voice of a significant faction within the foreign policy establishment that genuinely seeks a shift in Washington policy with Moscow from confrontation and war towards detente, diplomacy and a policy of peace and economic cooperation? What's the real intent of the Roman Pope in wanting to come together with the Orthodox Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, the first such meeting between those two churches - east and west - since the Great Schism of 1054? Is that a positive step towards world peace or is it something ominous?

Washington: confusion or deception?

It's a widespread notion, fostered by US and European mainstream and other media, even by media in Russia and China that Washington is in confused disarray, a Superpower or hegemon which has lost its bearings. Media analysts write of a policy clash or internal factional battle that renders any US action in destroying DAESH or ISIS in Syria and Iraq a ludicrous, bumbling joke.

much more:

http://www.sott.net/article/312470-Has-Washington-hatched-a-new-Machiavellian-plan-for-Syria-and-Iraq

Baby Steps

18th February 2016, 13:56

An opinion piece

I am someone who looks at the USA and the west with a similar level of suspicion as I do Russia. I also probably view rt more than most and recognise its quality as well as its bias. Watching rt is dangerous however, because it demonstrates the many missing facts that do not appear in the controlled western media. These may be slanted but they are also facts. There has been little success by those attempting to fact check rt and uncover falsehoods. So am I a Russophile? perhaps more than most. we must guard against thinking we are in a similar situation to previously when dealing with Russia. the international situation is dramatically different to what it was in the cold war.

The Russians are justifiably fearful at the moment. It appears that people like Condoleeza Rice, supposedly a Russia specialist, who presumably are well aware of Russian paranoia deriving from the actions of Napoleon and Hitler yet seem oblivious to the current tide of events which would make anybody fearful.

Russia has witnessed the 911 debacle and rt is the only large agency I know to have officially stated that it was some kind of inside job. That truth is scary, but more so is the incredible stupidity and suggestibility of the us public who still trust the government conspiracy theory albeit by only a small majority. I know, incredible isn’t it? Scarier still is how this event triggered a sequence of insane illegal acts of aggression that, apart from resulting in millions of deaths, have destabilised the situation in the Middle east, Russia’s back yard. Scarier still is that the illegal destruction of Iraq appears to have been motivated by resource greed. If I were Russian I would be keenly aware of the undue influence that the corporate world exert on western governments, and I would fear the possibility of the corporate world attempting to get their mits on Russia’s resources. The Iraq debacle demonstrates that the public in the west will tolerate such atrocity and not punish the criminals. scary indeed.

Now on to Europe. Consider that the USA military budget is approximately half of the planets arms spending. Consider that NATO has reneged on every pledge not to encroach towards Russia’s borders. Consider that the USA has unilaterally withdrawn from anti ballistic missile treaties and is installing abm facilities near Russia. Consider that currently troops and equipment are pouring from America and others towards Russia’s borders. Consider that Europe’s and America’s gdp combined is substantially more than ten times the size of Russia’s. you can see, if you view the situation from an un-blinkered and well informed perspective it is obvious that western actions since the end of the cold war will inevitably stoke up the old Russian paranoia, and with some justification.

Considering Russia’s western borders it is simply common sense that the powers that be ought to understand Russia’s desire for buffer states between itself and NATO. These states should not align with NATO, but can maintain their own defences. Sweden is such a state. Ukraine is such a state.

One fact glaringly missing from western coverage of the Ukraine situation is that an illegal coup took place against a legal democratic government. a coup that was sponsored, bank rolled and brokered by the USA. Research this, and research the activities, views and associates of Victoria Nuland. research the fact , confirmed from numerous sources, that the Maidan protesters were paid $500 per week, in order to encourage them to stay there and not go back to work. Research the film footage of truck loads of cash arriving in USA diplomatic planes.

Now if there is a global policemen , the USA, which desires global peace and prosperity, they would be very sensitive to a wobbly regime on a fearful Russia’s border. I would expect diplomatic efforts to ensure the re-establishment of a democratic government with a clear mandate asap, so that this entity could guage accurately the majority public view on the idea of aligning economically towards Europe. if it emerged that this is what the public wished, which was never established but may be the case, I as the global police man diplomat would attempt to reassure the paranoid bear by encouraging NATO to set up treaties guaranteeing no offer of NATO membership nor any military involvement within Ukraine.

This of course has not happened, instead we see NATO doing all they can to antagonise Russia on its own border. I made the parrallel to you of a USA hostile coup being provoked in, say Mexico by Russia. How would the USA react? Don’t forget such a thing did happen, in Cuba, and Kennedy took the world to the brink of destruction to prevent missiles being based there. Please may I know why the idea of parallels between these situations is ridiculous.

Does all this excuse Russian behaviour in Ukraine? No, but it explains it, and I would suggest that any semi educated intelligence analyst would have been able to predict what happened, and warn against the west manipulating Ukraine. I get exasperated when people accuse Russia of illegal invasions and aggression. Have such people forgotten illegal USA aggression in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya and Syria? Does that not count is some way? This is Orwellian double think. I am not capable of the intellectual and moral double standards required to accept one countries illegality and in the same breath condemn another’s. nor are the Russian public, although so many in the west are capable of such self delusion.

Scarier yet , we now have the augmentation of anti-Russian feeling in Ukraine. although I understand these feelings and I know a bit about how many Ukranians viewed Hitler as a liberator, and were prepared to fight under him, and I appreciate that Stalin’s tyranny accounts for this, uncorking this latent historical hatred does not serve the cause of peace. Of course Russia shares the blame for this un corking. Please note that the people who are violating the Minsk agreement are the Kiev government.

A de-escalation strategy is not hard to imagine. Ceasefire, withdrawal of USA and other mercenaries & military advisors. Pledge to keep NATO out of Ukraine. Ukraine wide elections. Accept the loss of Crimea. Lift sanctions. Resume the healthy and hopeful economic integration of Russia into Europe’s sphere. Pull back all the NATO aggression. Do everything to re-assure the Russians of our peaceful intentions. Russia is a great and powerful nation that is currently suffering due to the oil price. It is clear beyond dispute (unless one is nuts) that the Europeans have a vested interest in peace and stability in Russia. If one accepts that obvious truth, then why are we doing everything possible to destabilise them? We of course do not wish to see state collapse, Fascism, or warlordism to emerge in Nuclear Armed Russia. We need to recognise that Russia is desperate to prevent war and instability in Ukraine, it is clearly not in their interests. It is in the interests of corporate forces who wish to exploit the Land, markets and fracking opportunities in both Ukraine and Russia. Whether these corporate interests should be accommodated at all is a matter for the Ukranian & Russian people!

Hervé

18th February 2016, 16:08

'One Must Be Blind Not to Realize That Russia is Defending Europe in Syria' (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160218/1034972985/russia-syria-france-national-interests.html)

Politics (http://sputniknews.com/politics/)16:57 18.02.2016
(updated 18:06 18.02.2016)

http://cdn4.img.sputniknews.com/images/102943/20/1029432075.jpg
© AFP 2016/ RAMI AL-SAYED

The threat to European interests in the Middle East comes not from Russia, but from Turkey and Saudi Arabia, says French Middle East expert Roland Lombardi. Ankara in particular has a great deal to lose, and in its desperation might try to pull NATO into a reckless military campaign against Russia, the analyst warns.

Interviewed by France's Atlantico (http://www.atlantico.fr/decryptage/tsar-contre-sultan-choc-russie-turquie-en-syrie-est-en-train-faire-plonger-vers-3eme-guerre-mondiale-cyrille-bret-roland-2589418.html) news website, Lombardi, an independent consultant and analyst specializing in the Middle East, suggested that the goals Moscow is pursuing in Syria do not pose a threat to the West, but on the contrary, are protecting European interests. The Russian air operation in Syria, in the analyst's view, has three objectives: a) to see Russia become a regional or even global power through a successful demonstration of its ability to resolve conflicts in the Middle East; b) to support the Syrian government "so that it will eventually become de facto the single bulwark against Al-Qaeda and Daesh (ISIL)," and c) to fight against radical Islamism, which poses a threat not only to the region, but to Russia and its 20 million-strong Muslim community as well.

"Which of these objectives are a threat to the West?" Lombardi bluntly asked. "One must be either blind or a complete idiot not to notice that, when Russia defends its interests in the Middle East, it is simultaneously defending the interests of Europe, and particularly those of France," the analyst bitingly added.

"Is it necessary to recall that the terrorists who struck France in 2015 were not obeying orders from Moscow? Or that it was not Russia that funded or supported some Salafist imams from the Muslim Brotherhood to preach violence and hatred in our nation in some French mosques?" France's diplomats, Lombardi notes, "quickly forget that the Russians were the first to support our intervention in Mali in 2013! More recently, who was it that offered their support when we sent our fleet and aircraft to the eastern Mediterranean in retaliation for the November bombings? Again, it was the Russians!"

"Let's not deceive ourselves," the analyst says. "Today, the only threats to the world order are our 'allies' – the Turks and the Saudis; the same people whose double game with some terrorist and jihadist groups has appeared out in the open; the same people who still want to install the Salafists or the Muslim Brotherhood in Damascus and in all the Arab capitals affected by the Arab Spring."

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's dream of becoming the neo-sultan of a neo-Ottoman empire has been fading before his eyes, Lombardi warns. Facing growing international isolation, Ankara is supported in its Syria policy only by Saudi Arabia. And here, more and more frustrated, the world is in danger of a Turkey attempting to involve NATO in a war against Russia.

"Tensions between Turkey and Russia have reached unprecedented levels over Syria…Ankara and Riyadh are increasingly isolated on this issue (even Qatar has left the game). They are the big losers – Turkey especially. This is why in a reckless, headlong rush bordering on panic, the Turks, supported by the Saudis, have threatened to intervene in Syria – less to tackle Daesh than to 'save' their protégés and to hit the Kurds (who are our brave and valuable allies against Daesh)." "In blocking the current negotiations," Lombardi notes, Turkey is "paradoxically allowing the Russians to gain time to shell all of Bashar Assad's opponents, without distinction. Thus, frustrated, angry and feeling abandoned by the Americans, Ankara might act unpredictably. The danger is that Erdogan might decide to [openly] cross the Syrian border with his army."

"Such a move would never receive a mandate from the UN Security Council (where Russia and China have the right of veto). He [Erdogan] expects an escalation, and an error on Russia's part, in order to evoke Article 5 of the NATO charter, which would force the alliance to help him, and which, incidentally, would be catastrophic. Serious provocations, along the lines of the downed Russian jet last year, must be expected. Hopefully, the Russians will not fall into a trap, and keep their cool. And we must hope, above all, that the Americans, one way or another, succeed in returning their turbulent 'ally' to reason."

Ultimately, Lombardi concludes, "in Syria, whether we like it or not, the solution proposed by Russia is the most serious, the most reasonable, and corresponding to common interests."

Related:
Infighting? NATO Members Ask Turkey to Stop Shelling Kurds in Syria (http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160216/1034848805/nato-kurds-shelling.html)
With Russia's Help Syrian Army Will Soon Restore Sovereignty of the State (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160206/1034340831/russian-syrian-army-will-soon-restore-sovereignty-throughout-syria.html)
Why Putin’s Strategy in Syria Wins Over and Over Again (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160215/1034782688/russian-strategy-syria.html)

Hervé

18th February 2016, 18:49

Right Sector: "Take the Machine Guns, Assault Rifles, RPGs and Drive Poroshenko Out!" (http://www.fort-russ.com/2016/02/right-sector-take-machine-guns-assault.html)

Translated by Ollie Richardson for Fort Russ, 18th February, 2016

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/303003/large/Right_Sector_gunmen_take_boy_h.jpg

The Right Sector and UPA announced a march to Kiev after February 20th. This was stated in a joint press conference by one of the members with the callsign 'Sensey'.

According to him, on the 20th of February they will begin the mobilization of nationalists, which will give time for the President to voluntarily resign, otherwise he will be threatened with punishment.

"The time will come when we put the weapons into our hands, and we will come and say: "Poroshenko is a traitor, get out of here. You have three days". And then we'll take the assault rifles, submachine guns, RPGs and drive him out of there...

On the 20th February, each of us will leave home and begin to mobilize people. I don't know which way – we are not oligarchs, and have no money. I can say that I am doing this to attract businessmen who are not engaged with this government.

We're going slowly to 10, 20, 30 people to the extent possible, we'll leave here, and claim the position of the impeachment of the President, definitely, the recognition of the ATO in the war, the release of all political prisoners and other issues...

We'll give them three days to leave peacefully without weapons... or one day, and then we will take up arms, which we received in the East, because of them. They have taught us to fight and to kill, and we're going to kill them if they did not understand what is going on," said Sensey.

Morbid

19th February 2016, 08:08

Hervé

19th February 2016, 17:37

MSF admits withholding Syria hospital coordinates from Damascus & Moscow (https://www.rt.com/news/332950-msf-hospitals-coordinates-syria/)

Published time: 19 Feb, 2016 05:10

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/303247/large/56c68c9cc36188da3e8b45cc.jpg
© doctorswithoutborders / Instagram

Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) does not provide GPS coordinates of health facilities it supports in Syria to either Damascus or Moscow over fears of “deliberate” attacks, the medical charity said, blaming a recent strike on “probably” Syrian or Russian forces.

“We gave to the Russian ambassadors in Paris [and] in Geneva coordinates for three hospitals located in very intense conflict zones, but not for all of them, and it was a decision taken together with the medical staff of the health facilities that we support,” said MSF operations director Isabelle Defourny.

At least 25 people were killed, including nine medical personnel and 16 patients, when airstrikes destroyed a hospital supported by MSF. Ten others were wounded when four missiles reportedly struck the hospital initially at around 9:00am local time Monday, according to accounts provided by medical staff on site. Forty minutes later, after rescuers arrived, the hospital was allegedly bombed again.

According to MSF, the coordinates had not been shared with the authorities or relevant Russian representatives because of safety concerns that were voiced by doctors operating in Syria.

“The staff of the hospital [and] the director of the hospital didn't know if they would be better protected if they give the GPS or not,” Defourny said.

The operations director also noted, citing a deadly US airstrike in October on an MSF hospital in Kunduz, Afghanistan, that even offering GPS location would not serve as a safety guarantee. But now, after the latest strikes, the charity seeks to remedy the situation and expects its affiliated medical staffers to share their coordinates with the Syrian government officials.

The NGO seeks an independent investigation into the strikes, but has already accused the Russian air force and the Syrian Army of “probably” hitting the Maaret al-Numan hospital, yet at the same time acknowledging that it has no evidence into their assertion.

“We say a probability because we don’t have more facts than the accounts from our staff,” said Dr. Joanne Liu, MSF’s international president.

The Pentagon has also failed to provide any additional intelligence to back the claims of Russia and Damascus involvement in the deadly attack, with Operation Inherent Resolve spokesperson Colonel Steven Warren admitting it was all “unclear.”

"Unclear to us whether it was the Russian aircraft, Syrian aircraft or a Russian missile or a Syrian missile, that part at this point is a little bit unclear to us,” Warren said on Wednesday.

“It is important to note that there were no coalition strikes in that area and in fact there have been no coalition strikes in Aleppo this year,” he added, contradicting the information shared by the Russian defense ministry last week.

https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/675283352862089216/GE1X4ASz_normal.png RT ✔ @RT_com (https://twitter.com/RT_com)
MORE US planes entered Syrian airspace from Turkey, flew to Aleppo & bombed targets there http://on.rt.com/7499 (https://t.co/18kg7qXu6E)
9:09 AM - 11 Feb 2016 (https://twitter.com/RT_com/status/697693978418933760)
View image on Twitter (http://twitter.com/RT_com/status/697693978418933760/photo/1) https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Ca60-HQW8AA0WFC.jpg (http://twitter.com/RT_com/status/697693978418933760/photo/1)
While the Syrian ambassador said Damascus has “intelligence information” that showed US warplanes had struck the hospital, the Russian presidential spokesman met allegations that the Russian Air Force delivered the strike with a flat denial, urging detractors to provide proof of the “empty” and “unfounded” accusations.
“We vehemently reject such allegations, particularly because those making those statements have always proven to be unable to deliver any proof of their unfounded accusations,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

MSF says that attacks against civilian infrastructure and hospitals became “routine”, saying that 101 shelling attacks have hit some 70 MSF-supported facilities over the last 13 months in Syria. At the same time, the MSF noted that it never received official permission from Damascus to carry out work in Syria and operates mainly in areas held by anti-government forces.

The NGO president also noted the dire situation on the Turkish border, where Ankara continues its cross-border shelling of the Syrian Kurds gaining more ground.

“100,000 people are caught in northern Syria, near Azaz. They’re trying to escape the escalating air strikes and ground combat,” Liu said. “They are trapped between the Turkish border and a frontline.”

Related:OP-EDGE: Syrian blame game: Russia demonized as terrorists get free pass (https://www.rt.com/op-edge/332751-msf-russia-media-isis/)

Hervé

19th February 2016, 19:57

"Are Green Berets Leading The YPG In North-West Syria?" - "Wrong Question ..." (http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/02/green-berets-ypg.html)

Posted by b on February 19, 2016 at 02:19 AM | Permalink (http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/02/green-berets-ypg.html)

A few days ago we asked the speculative question: Are Green Berets Leading The YPG In Taking The Azaz Pocket? (http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/02/are-green-berets-leading-the-ypg-in-taking-the-azaz-pocket.html) That question was, as we will see, wrong. It is not the YPG that is the relevant part here but some other groups fighting next to it. We wrote:

The Kurds in the Azaz pocket have also some support from a professional military. Their moves are very purposeful and controlled. They are clearly coordinated with the Syrian army. The coordination with the Russian airforce works well and there is ground fire coordination with the SAA.
...
Who are the professionals that are helping the YPG to take the Azaz pocket? My first thought was of course Russian Spetsnaz. But I asked around and none of my usual sources would confirm this. The sources acknowledged that the YPG in west Syria has special force support but there was some quite unexpected silence over who these forces were. It is clear to me that these are not Syrian special forces. The YPG does not want to be seen as an adjunct to the Syrian government. No one would confirm to me that these are Russian forces even as that would be of no great surprise to anyone. This leads me to speculate that some U.S. special forces are directing the YPG in the Azaz pocket. This in coordination with the Syrian army and the Russians. The idea presumed a split between the CIA, which arms the jihadis with TOWs and other toys, and the U.S. military, which helps the Kurds against the Islamic State jihadis in north-east Syria.

http://www.moonofalabama.org/images4/azazpocket-s.jpg
big (hi-rez) (http://www.moonofalabama.org/images4/azazpocket.jpg)
(compare to post # 1050 (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?69621-Ukraine-Crimea-Syria-Israel-Iran-Putin-and-World-War-III&p=1047096&viewfull=1#post1047096))

At Sic Semper Tyrannis (http://turcopolier.typepad.com/sic_semper_tyrannis/) Pat Lang and The Twisted Genius, both experienced and higher level former spec ops, found (http://turcopolier.typepad.com/sic_semper_tyrannis/2016/02/my-will-be-done.html#comment-6a00d8341c72e153ef01bb08bba920970d) that (http://turcopolier.typepad.com/sic_semper_tyrannis/2016/02/isis-continues-massive-retreat-as-syrian-forces-advance-towards-tabaqa-ttg.html#comment-6a00d8341c72e153ef01bb08bb2386970d) unlikely (http://turcopolier.typepad.com/sic_semper_tyrannis/2016/02/isis-continues-massive-retreat-as-syrian-forces-advance-towards-tabaqa-ttg.html#comment-6a00d8341c72e153ef01b7c8164f4a970b).

But there are now additional data points which support my crazy idea. The "Kurds" besieging the Azaz pocket from the west and the south are not all Kurds. They have local allies with whom they are organized under the label Syrian Democratic Forces. Indeed, according to this report (http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/originals/2016/02/turkey-syria-hopeless-azaz-battle.html#), the Kurds have pulled back from the southern Azaz line and leave it to an allied group. Some of the pro-Syrian troops now there are intimate friends of the U.S. military:

On Feb. 10, the YPG and Jaish al-Thuwar (Army of Revolutionaries), two allied SDF units, seized the Menagh air base south of Azaz and then the nearby villages of Maranaz, Malikiye, Der Jammal and Tell Acar.
...
The Syrian rebel group Jaish al-Uswar entered Tell Rifaat on Feb. 15. The next day, Ahmed al-Omar, the group's spokesman, said it had cleared Tell Rifat after four days of battles. Tell Rifaat was a key point for logistics operations between Aleppo and Turkey. After Tell Rifaat, SDF units captured the villages of Ain Dejne, Kfar Naya and toward Azaz and then entered Marea. My question was wrong. It was about Green Berets accompanying the YPG. But I should have asked about Green Berets accompanying whoever was moving there, the YPG and/or other groups, and fighting on the pro-Syrian side.

Who makes up Jaish al-Thuwar? Established in May 2015, some of its fighters were in the US-supported, but then disbanded, Hazm Movement and the Syrian Revolutionaries Front. Cephed al-Akrad (the Kurdish Front) — made up of Kurds who had not joined the YPG — is another unit of Jaish al-Thuwar. The Seljuks Brigade and Sultan Selim Brigade of Turkmens, which operate separately from the Turkish-supported Turkmen forces, are also part of Jaish al-Thuwar. An alliance of Arabs, Turkmens and Kurds, Jaish al-Thuwar joined the YPG-led Syrian Democratic Forces in October 2015. Most of the fighters hail from settlements on the Azaz-Marea line and areas of Menbic, al-Bab and Jarablus currently controlled by IS. It isn't accurate to call Jaish al-Thuwar fighters outsiders. After capturing areas near Azaz, the YPG left them to the control of Jaish al-Thuwar and withdrew to Afrin. Some observers in the Turkish government circles interpreted the move as the YPG using Jaish al-Thuwar as a cover. This may be a bit of an overstatement, as the Americans function as a coordinator between these two SDF units. There is an amalgamation of various small groups, some trained by the U.S. military, which is holding the southern border of the Azaz pocket including the Menagh air base and Tell Rifaat. This group coordinates with the YPG Kurds through U.S. intermediaries.

Who then are these intermediaries and who is really leading or "advising" the quite diverse Jaish al-Thuwar?

Adding another data point that supports my hunch the Pentagon yesterday admitted that the special forces it put down in Syria to coordinate the Kurds fighting the Islamic State are in contact (http://www.france24.com/en/20160218-pentagon-asked-russia-avoid-syrian-areas-with-us-commandos) with the Russian forces in Syria:

The Pentagon has asked Russia to stay away from parts of northern Syria where US special operations troops are training local fighters to combat the Islamic State group, military officials said Thursday. The acknowledgement is significant because the Pentagon has repeatedly stressed it is not cooperating with Moscow as the two powers lead separate air campaigns in war-ravaged Syria.

Lieutenant General Charles Brown, who commands the US air forces in the Middle East, said US officials had asked Moscow to avoid "broad areas" in northern Syria "to maintain a level of safety for our forces that are on the ground."
...
Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook said Russia had honored the request, and stressed the Pentagon only provided broad geographic descriptions of where the US troops are, not their precise location.
There was "one instance in which we have asked, for the safety of our special operators, (the Russians) to not engage in that particular geographical area," Cook said. "We think it's a reasonable request."

The Pentagon last year said it was sending about 50 special operations forces to work with anti-IS fighters in Syria, though officials have said next to nothing about their whereabouts and progress since. Notice that the AFP report above emphasizes "northern Syria". Not "north-east Syria" or "east-Syria" where the YPG, with acknowledged U.S. air and special force support, is successfully cleaning the Hasakah (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Hasakah) governate of Islamic State trash. The AP report (http://news.yahoo.com/us-asked-russia-not-bomb-near-us-commandos-173608693.html) does likewise.

The insertion of 50 U.S. special operation forces into Syria was announced (http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/30/syria-us-deployment-troops-obama-special-operations) at the end of October 2015, around the same time the Jaish al-Thuwar joined the YPG to form the SDF named alliance. Jaish al-Thuwar includes people who have been through the Pentagon's training program.

After the Syrian army closed the Azaz pocket the YPG and its allies made fast, elegant and well coordinated moves to take the southern line of the Azaz pocket and to push north from it. A rag-tag force of amateurs would not have been able to operate like that. It is the way that this happened that led me to believe that there were some extraordinary well trained folks involved in it. These folks were coordinating the SDF force itself as well as with the Russians and the Syrian army.

So let me rephrase my earlier question about the Green Berets leading the "YPG":
Are Green Berets leading the SDF and more so Jaish al-Thuwar in taking the Azaz pocket?If the answer is "Yes" additional questions follow from the above one:

Does this demonstrate a split between CIA and the Pentagon with each supporting opposing sides?

Is this the real reason for Erdogan's rage (http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/erdogan-calls-on-us-to-choose-between-turkey-or-syrian-kurds/ar-BBpcS87) over the U.S. affair with the "YPG"?

Was this coordinated between Secretary of State Kerry and Foreign Minister Lavrov?

What does this mean for the future of Syria?

Hervé

19th February 2016, 20:29

...

None dare call it a MESS (https://www.rt.com/news/332998-syrian-war-simple-chart/)!

This is not the first attempt to dumb down the complexities of geopolitics in the Middle East via a handy graphic.
Karl Sharro, Middle East commentator and satirist, created a parody diagram of the region last year, which many took at face value.

https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/633610348113719296/-aejbAQb_bigger.jpg Karl Sharro ‏@KarlreMarks (https://twitter.com/KarlreMarks)

Following recent event, updated diagram of geopolitical relationships in the Middle East

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CBBdj4zWgAAlouq.jpg

5:16 AM - 26 Mar 2015

=====================================

... as a comment to this sort of things:

View image on Twitter (http://twitter.com/Charles_Lister/status/698609742155919364/photo/1)
https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CbH1xEAWcAIGgGU.png (http://twitter.com/Charles_Lister/status/698609742155919364/photo/1)

https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/647709659114131456/5uIO_Zx1_normal.jpg Charles Lister ‎@Charles_Lister (https://twitter.com/Charles_Lister)

This *simple* chart shows all states of hostility currently being played out on #Syria (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Syria?src=hash)’s territory#IntractableWar (https://twitter.com/hashtag/IntractableWar?src=hash)
9:48 PM - 13 Feb 2016 (https://twitter.com/Charles_Lister/status/698609742155919364)

ThePythonicCow

19th February 2016, 23:11

http://www.moonofalabama.org/images4/azazpocket-s.jpg
big (hi-rez) (http://www.moonofalabama.org/images4/azazpocket.jpg)

Since I did not know offhand what the various colors stood for on this map ... which country/force was which color ... I did some looking around, and found a map with the parties labeled, and using the image that I found here (https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CbUsfrCW4AAjWWf.jpg), I labeled the map that Hervé posted with the names of the country/force holding each area.

http://thepythoniccow.us/syria_azazpocket_labeled_small.jpg
big (hi-rez) (http://thepythoniccow.us/syria_azazpocket_labeled_large.jpg)

The large dark brown region marked "Daesh" extends perhaps 80 miles to the right (east) of what shows on this map, along the Turkish border, before turning into more Kurdish controlled territory.

Now that the forces of Assad's Syrian Regime have connected up with Kurdish forces just north of Aleppo and regained control of that major northern city of Aleppo, the Syrian Rebel forces in the green area at the lower left (southwest) of this map, in what's called the Idlib province, are disconnected from Turkey, Daesh, or the remnant of the Syrian Rebel forces further north, along the Turkish border, and those Rebel's in the Idlib province can no longer be easily supplied by their allies.

Hervé

19th February 2016, 23:53

[...]
Since I did not know offhand what the various colors stood for on this map ... which country/force was which color ...
[...]

Yeah... those are at the top of the page (post # 1042 (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?69621-Ukraine-Crimea-Syria-Israel-Iran-Putin-and-World-War-III&p=1046568&viewfull=1#post1046568) and # 1043 (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?69621-Ukraine-Crimea-Syria-Israel-Iran-Putin-and-World-War-III&p=1046586&viewfull=1#post1046586)) for those who happen to follow the thread :P

ThePythonicCow

20th February 2016, 00:01

Yeah... those are at the top of the page (post # 1042 (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?69621-Ukraine-Crimea-Syria-Israel-Iran-Putin-and-World-War-III&p=1046568&viewfull=1#post1046568) and # 1043 (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?69621-Ukraine-Crimea-Syria-Israel-Iran-Putin-and-World-War-III&p=1046586&viewfull=1#post1046586)) for those who happen to follow the thread :P
Aha - caught me out :P

Hervé

20th February 2016, 14:23

Putin Foresaw US Drive for World Domination in 2007 Speech (http://sputniknews.com/analysis/20160217/1034878507/putin-us-domination.html)

Sputnik Opinion (http://sputniknews.com/analysis/) 07:56 17.02.2016

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/303337/large/Msc_2007_Saturday_09_00_11_00_.jpg

Russian President Vladimir Putin predicted the US ambitions to rule the world, experts said.

WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — Russian President Vladimir Putin clearly identified a documented US drive to dominate the world in his 2007 Munich speech, but nations around the world continue to resist it, American and European scholars told Sputnik.

"President Putin is obviously aware of the fundamental tenets of neo-conservative US foreign policy since 2001," California State University Emeritus Professor of Political Science Beau Grosscup, an author and terrorism analyst, told Sputnik.

That plan was spelled out clearly in the 1992 Pentagon Defense Planning Guidance (DPG) authored by Paul Wolfowitz and future Vice President Dick Cheney to maintain the United States as the sole architect of the post-Cold War landscape, Grosscup noted.

"[The plan] includes by-passing existing international institutions, the United Nations in particular, for unilateral reliance on military power, backed by ad hoc alliances," Grosscup pointed out.

The plan also included a Full Spectrum Doctrine that said the United States should be able to fight and win numerous wars, including nuclear ones, for regime change purposes in rogue nations, and that it should prevent the rise of competing powers such as Russia, China and Europe, Grosscup added.

"Most notable is the right wing Neo-Nazi-inspired Ukrainian regime-change coup backed by the United States. Along with the Georgia political crisis in 2008, [they] are the final building blocks to move NATO to Russia's immediate borders," Grosscup claimed.

The purpose of these moves was to prevent Russia rise as a competing power and to control Central Asian oil and gas reserves, he observed.

"President Putin's concerns expressed at Munich are understandable. Putin points out correctly that the United States and its ad hoc coalition allies have used non-UN sanctioned unilateral military force in the Middle East to de-stabilize Iraq, Lebanon, Afghanistan, Libya, Palestinian Occupied Areas and Syria," Grosscup observed.

On the nuclear front, the United States continues its effort to "out-invent" its strategic weapons rivals with a technological breakthrough that would allow it to win a strategic nuclear war with Russia," he stated.

Also, "Current US President Barack Obama had given battlefield commanders the authority to breach the conventional-nuclear threshold on their own, Grosscup warned.

However, recent Russian policies in the Middle East and Eastern Europe had blunted the drive to expand US influence, University of Louvain Professor and author of "Humanitarian Imperialism" Jean Bricmont told Sputnik.

"The resistance of Russia in Syria and Ukraine has strengthened the hand of the anti-interventionists in the US," he stated.

The current US presidential election campaign had already demonstrated that the American public did not share their rulers’ appetite for endless interventions and wars around the world, Bricmont emphasized.

"The tide is changing, slowly but surely. The American public does not go along any more with the neo-cons-liberal interventionists," he maintained.

The pattern of voting in the early US primary and caucuses indicated that the US public had no enthusiasm for new wars, Bricmont concluded.

Hervé

20th February 2016, 16:21

Following along that hypothesis:

"Are Green Berets Leading The YPG In North-West Syria?" - "Wrong Question ..." (http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/02/green-berets-ypg.html)

Posted by b on February 19, 2016 at 02:19 AM | Permalink (http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/02/green-berets-ypg.html)

A few days ago we asked the speculative question: Are Green Berets Leading The YPG In Taking The Azaz Pocket? (http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/02/are-green-berets-leading-the-ypg-in-taking-the-azaz-pocket.html) That question was, as we will see, wrong. It is not the YPG that is the relevant part here but some other groups fighting next to it....

[...]

The insertion of 50 U.S. special operation forces into Syria was announced (http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/oct/30/syria-us-deployment-troops-obama-special-operations) at the end of October 2015, around the same time the Jaish al-Thuwar joined the YPG to form the SDF named alliance. Jaish al-Thuwar includes people who have been through the Pentagon's training program.

[...]

As a matter of fact:

Miss Me (by) Much: Pentagon Informs Russia About US Troops in Syria (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160220/1035100049/us-russia-disclosure-cooperation.html)

Middle East (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/) 18:05 20.02.2016
(http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/)(updated 18:33 20.02.2016)

http://cdn3.img.sputniknews.com/images/103509/91/1035099169.jpg

Seeking to avoid potential escalation, the US revealed the locations of its special ops personnel in Syria to Moscow.

The disclosure (http://www.militarytimes.com/story/military/2016/02/18/us-quietly-tells-russia-where-us-special-forces-located-syria/80561370/) was made beyond the scope of the existing memorandum of understanding (MOU) which was signed between the US and Russia in October 2015 in order to regulate safety protocols for their respective warplanes in the region.

"We provided a geographical area that we asked them to stay out of it because of the risk to US forces," Pentagon spokesman Peter Cook told journalists, according to Military Times.

"This was a step we took to try to maintain their safety in a dangerous situation and this was a request that we made to the Russians outside the scope of the memorandum of understanding… Up to this point, [the Russians] have honored this request," he added.

The MOU was signed between Moscow and Washington in October following the beginning of the Russian air campaign in Syria. However, the document remains fairly limited in scope due to disagreements between the two powers, as the US continues to accuse Russia of bombing 'moderate' rebel forces fighting the Syrian government instead of Daesh forces – allegations that Moscow has continuously refuted.

However, despite being at odds regarding certain aspects of the Syrian conflict, the US and Russia did cooperate on several issues, most notably the elimination of Syrian chemical weapons and the approval of the Geneva peace talks (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160220/1035093906/syria-talks-resumption-montreux.html).

Syria has been mired in civil war since 2011, with the country’s government fighting multiple opposition factions and extremist groups, including Daesh (also known as ISIL or the Islamic State).

The Syrian Army's anti-terror effort is backed by Russia's ongoing air campaign in Syria which was launched on September 30, when more than fifty Russian warplanes, including Su-24M, Su-25 and Su-34 jets, commenced precision airstrikes on Daesh and Jabhat an-Nusra targets in Syria at the behest of Syrian President Bashar Assad.

==========================

I also guess they want to avoid something like this to happen:

MSF admits withholding Syria hospital coordinates from Damascus & Moscow (https://www.rt.com/news/332950-msf-hospitals-coordinates-syria/)

Published time: 19 Feb, 2016 05:10

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/303247/large/56c68c9cc36188da3e8b45cc.jpg

Hervé

20th February 2016, 16:35

OMG! Some people are still sane!

NATO Warns Turkey It Won’t Support Ankara in Conflict With Russia (http://sputniknews.com/world/20160220/1035066264/NATO-turkey-russia-syria.html)

World (http://sputniknews.com/world/) 00:04 20.02.2016
(updated 02:45 20.02.2016)

http://cdn5.img.sputniknews.com/images/103237/74/1032377406.jpg

As tensions escalate between Turkey and Russia, NATO has warned Ankara that it will not take part in a war provoked by the Turkish government.

Last November, Turkey shot down a Russian jet flying through Syrian airspace. While many feared that the incident would plunge both countries into war, conflict was avoided, though relations between Moscow and Ankara have remained chilly.

As Turkey pushes to deploy ground forces across its border to remove the legitimate government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, the Turkish government is, again, threatening the world with war.

"The armed forces of the two states are both active in fierce fighting on the Turkish-Syrian border, in some cases just a few kilometers from each other," one NATO official told Der Spiegel.

Ankara’s aggression seems partially based on the assumption that, should conflict erupt, Turkey will be supported by its NATO allies. According to Article 5 of the NATO treaty, the collective defense clause would be invoked if any member state is attacked.

But European leaders have made it abundantly clear that they have no interest in participating in a war of Turkey’s making.

"NATO cannot allow itself to be pulled into a military escalation with Russia as a result of the recent tensions between Russia and Turkey," Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn told Der Spiegel.

Of Article 5, Asselborn stressed that "the guarantee is only valid when a member state is clearly attacked."

Germany appears to agree.

"We are not going to pay the price for a war started by the Turks," said a German diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity.

NATO leadership made similar warnings soon after Turkey’s downing of the Russian bomber last year.

"We have to avoid that situations, incidents, accidents spiral out of control," NATO General Secretary Jens Stoltenberg said at the time. "I think I’ve expressed very clearly that we are calling for calm and de-escalation. This is a serious situation."

On Friday, French President Francois Hollande stressed the need to prevent conflict between Moscow and Ankara.

"There is a risk of war between Turkey and Russia," he said in an interview with France Inter radio.

As Turkey calls to escalate the violence in Syria, Russia has called for a meeting of the United Nations Security Council to address its concerns over the rising tensions.

"The situation is becoming more tense due to increased tensions on the Syrian-Turkish border and Turkey’s stated plans to send troops to northern Syria," reads a statement from the Russian Foreign Ministry.

Related:
Turkey Blames Kurds for Ankara Attack to Justify Sending Troops to Syria - Turkish Lawmaker (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160218/1034998685/turkish-troops-syria-turkey.html)

Morbid

21st February 2016, 11:21

so where the talking heads on tv are at bashing on about turkish aggression? double standards at its best..

Hervé

21st February 2016, 16:32

Aleppo Operation 'Reminiscent of the Liberation of Stalingrad' (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160221/1035130163/aleppo-liberation-stalingrad.html)

Middle East (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/) 15:48 21.02.2016
(updated 16:34 21.02.2016)

http://cdn2.img.sputniknews.com/images/103482/46/1034824638.jpg

In a recent firsthand report based on his travels to Syria's Aleppo, The Spectator associate editor Peter Oborne wrote that the Syrian Army's victories in encircling the militant-controlled portions of the city are, in some ways, reminiscent of the liberation of the city of Stalingrad during the Second World War.

Oborne's piece (http://www.spectator.co.uk/2016/02/aleppo-notebook-the-citys-terrorist-besiegers-will-now-be-besieged/), published by the conservative British news magazine last week and entitled "Aleppo Notebook: the city's terrorist besiegers will now be besieged," was based on the journalist's recent travels to the city, and his interactions with ordinary Syrians. The article, together with Oborne's report (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3436456/Inside-city-damned-human-tide-flees-Aleppo-Europe-PETER-OBORNE-sends-devastating-dispatch-war-torn-Syrian-city.html) for The Daily Mail and a televised interview (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UNza0Hmo11k) he had with RT upon his return, triggered a vigorous debate in Britain, the United States and in Europe for its blunt critique of Western governments' position on Syria.

Against a tidal wave of commentary in the Western media about 'the Assad regime' and its battle against 'moderate rebels', Oborne shocked readers by openly reporting that during his travels, "again and again I was asked: why is Britain supporting the terrorists?"

Vanessa Beeley: Last week Peter Oborne became the first Western journalist to enter Aleppo following its relief… https://t.co/D5v1pHW9wK

"When I returned to London," the journalist wrote, "I read in the newspapers that this turn of events [in Aleppo] was regarded as a calamity. Of course, it does depend on your point of view. Government-held Aleppo was under siege from jihadi forces until last year. That was never reported. Now the areas of Aleppo held by the rebels are coming under siege. That is reported in the western press as a catastrophe, and has brought a concerned response from the British Foreign Secretary."

A week later, the journalist's 'Aleppo Notebook' continues to generate shockwaves, this time in Russia and the former Soviet Union, with social media users picking up on the journalist's comment that the situation in the jihadist-controlled portions of the city is now reminiscent of the situation in Stalingrad on the eve of its liberation. "My time in Aleppo coincided with the turning point in the Syrian civil war. Assad's forces, with the help of Russian air power, cut off the line of supply from the Turkish border to the jihadist forces encircling the government-held areas of the city. Deprived of fresh fighters, guns and ammunition from their Turkish sponsors, Al Nusra and other groups encircling the city are, over the long term, doomed. Islamic State, which sells its oil through Turkey, will start to run short of money. Think of Stalingrad in 1942: the besiegers are now the besieged," Oborne wrote.

Russian-speaking social media users picked up on the story on Twitter, Facebook, and Russian social media platform VKontakte, with the print media soon to follow; Russian news agency RIA Novosti's story (http://ria.ru/syria_chronicle/20160220/1377841264.html) on the comparison received nearly 75,000 views in less than 24 hours. And, while some users commented that the scale of the two battles is not comparable, or that the circumstances or details of the two battles were different, others insisted that the comparison, in its spirit, was not only appropriate, but an important way of trying to get across to ordinary Britons who is who in the conflict.

"The comparison with Stalingrad is inappropriate, I agree, but this is a signal through which the journalist is trying to reach British public opinion. Maybe it will help them to understand who is who in this war," a user named Ivan said, commenting on the RIA Novosti story.

Hopefully, Mr. Oborne's revelations about Allepoans' support for the government, about the composition of the jihadist forces occupying part of the city, and about much of the Western media's shameful support for the militants really will help not just Britons, but people all across Europe and North America understand 'who is who' in the war in Syria.

http://www.veteranstoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/lido_962.jpg

http://www.veteranstoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/lido_961-1.jpg

Earlier positions (Lake shores for reference):

http://www.moonofalabama.org/images4/raqqarace.jpg
map via (https://twitter.com/Souria4Syrians/status/699282748834447360) The 'Nimr' Tiger (https://twitter.com/Souria4Syrians) - bigger (http://www.moonofalabama.org/images4/raqqarace.jpg)

Related:
Surviving a Siege: Walk Through Partly-Encircled Aleppo Citadel (PHOTOS) (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160216/1034842286/syria-war-aleppo-citadel.html)

Morbid

21st February 2016, 17:36

JJn0kBnoVns

TeXaR

21st February 2016, 18:04

-

"Waging war on Syria is prelude to targeting Iran. The road to Tehran runs through Damascus."

A clarifying interview with Stephen Lendman.

What We Are Witnessing Now Is The Calm Before The Storm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJELBF9nWKI

Stephen Lendman: Turkey seeks to annex northern Syria

Press TV has interviewed Stephen Lendman, an author and radio host in Chicago, to discuss the remarks made by the Russian foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, censuring Turkey’s plan to establish a buffer zone in Syria, saying such a proposal contradicts the international law and will heighten tensions in the region.

The following is a rough transcription of the interview.

Press TV: You have seen on the one hand Turkey saying that they have to create this free zone and on the other hand you have seen what Russia is saying about their intentions.
What do you think is going on here? Why does Turkey want to do this now?

Lendman: I think it is important to realize first of all that Turkey will do nothing without US permission and ... complicity.
Turkey all along throughout the Syrian war has wanted to cut off a piece of northern Syria and annex it.
Well Russia’s intervention absolutely destroyed those plans. There is no chance of Turkey establishing a piece of Syria, annexing it into part of Turkey’s territory.

At the same time Turkey continues to saber-rattle, it threatens to send troops across border into Syria.
I think what it might do at most is to make a brief incursion over a limited area, if it intends to do that in fact. I am not sure what it intends to do. I think Russia will respond according to exactly what Syria does and I think what Russia will mainly do is use international law as its main weapon.
Russia does not want a greater military confrontation than already. It wants to use the power of the law and its righteousness using the law to intervene against any extra belligerence that Turkey or anybody else might have in mind including Saudi Arabia.

Press TV: Let’s talk about that then, you talked about the power of the law and its righteousness. Which law? Whose law? Who is enforcing it?
We look at the situation especially we have seen in Syria and how basically I would say the law has been used against the government in Damascus. How likely is the possibility that the law could actually be used in a way that would be against still the Syrian government?

Lendman: I think that is a very key point and I have said it so many times in my writing. There is no question, the Syrian war is not a civil war, the Syrian war is Obama’s war and it is naked aggression using Daesh and other terrorist groups as US imperial foot soldiers so you talk about international law right down the drain from the start and Turkey of course is a valued US ally and NATO member supported by America and the other NATO forces, other NATO states.

So at the same time I think Turkey is very concerned about how far it will go.
I think America will not let Turkey go more than a certain amount, more than a certain degree in advancing more belligerence than already because the situation is already explosive, the possibility of having direct confrontation with Russia, while it is acting as a supreme peacemaker [that] may be too much for Washington.
We will have to wait and see what happens and it is a very inflammatory situation right now and literally anything possibly could happen here.
I am hoping that maybe the worst that I fear won’t happen but who knows.

http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/02/10/449593/Turkey-Russia-Syria-USObama-NATO-Daesh

Hervé

22nd February 2016, 13:43

ISIS and US-Backed 'Moderate' Rebels Join Forces, Attack Syrian Army in Southeastern Aleppo (http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/isis-and-us-backed-moderate-rebels-join-forces-attack-syrian-army-aleppo/ri12990)

It's time to bury the 'moderate' rebel myth

By Rudy Panko (http://russia-insider.com/en/rudy-panko) 14 seconds ago

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/s400/public/assad-syria-isis-obama_0.jpg?itok=Lo9ncVno (http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/assad-syria-isis-obama_0.jpg)
Do the "moderates" also drive brand new Toyotas?

Leith Fadel, editor-in-chief of Al Masdar News, is reporting that "moderate" rebels (funded and armed by the United States and its Arab client states) are now fighting alongside ISIS in an attempt to push the Syrian army out of Southeastern Aleppo.

Your tax dollars hard at work (https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/isis-rebels-attack-the-syrian-army-together-in-southeast-aleppo/):

[T]he Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham (ISIS) is attacking the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) in southeastern Aleppo; however, they are not alone, thanks in large part to the joint effort from the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and Jund Al-Aqsa (Syrian Al-Qaeda group).
ISIS and the Islamist rebels share control over the small village of Rasm Al-Nafal, along with 2 other points on the Khanasser-Aleppo Road that they captured in a simultaneous assault on the National Defense Forces (NDF) last night.
Both the Islamist rebels and ISIS announced that they control Rasm Al-Nafal and they have yet to attack one another; instead, they are assaulting the Syrian Armed Forces, who just sent fresh reinforcements to this front in order to recapture the points they lost along this road. And just to remind our readers, the Free Syrian Army is openly supported by the United States (http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2015/12/15/Free-Syrian-Army-rebels-deny-Russian-support.html):

Some of the most powerful FSA groups have received military support from the United States. These groups have been regularly targeted in the Russian aerial campaign that got underway in support of Assad on Sept. 30, and have reiterated denials of receiving any help from Moscow. Are we going to continue to pretend that NATO isn't funding terrorism in Syria?

Calz

22nd February 2016, 15:22

Report: Putin Threatens Turkey With Tactical Nukes

Moscow warns Ankara that it will fiercely resist an invasion of Syria

Paul Joseph Watson - February 22, 2016

Award-winning Iran-Contra journalist Robert Parry has been told by a source close to Vladimir Putin that Russia has threatened Turkey with the use of tactical nuclear weapons if it launches a joint invasion of Syria with Saudi Arabia.

Writing for Consortium News, Parry warns that the risk of the United States and its allies escalating the conflict in Syria to rescue rebels who are now on the verge of defeat could spark “World War III”.


“If Turkey (with hundreds of thousands of troops massed near the Syrian border) and Saudi Arabia (with its sophisticated air force) follow through on threats and intervene militarily to save their rebel clients, who include Al Qaeda’s Nusra Front, from a powerful Russian-backed Syrian government offensive, then Russia will have to decide what to do to protect its 20,000 or so military personnel inside Syria,” writes Parry.

“A source close to Russian President Vladimir Putin told me that the Russians have warned Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that Moscow is prepared to use tactical nuclear weapons if necessary to save their troops in the face of a Turkish-Saudi onslaught. Since Turkey is a member of NATO, any such conflict could quickly escalate into a full-scale nuclear confrontation.”

Parry’s background suggests the information should be treated seriously. He covered the Iran-Contra scandal for the Associated Press and Newsweek and was later given a George Polk award for his work on intelligence matters.

According to Parry, although President Obama has “sought to calm Erdogan down and made clear that the U.S. military would not join the invasion,” he has been “unwilling to flatly prohibit such an intervention”.

Moscow’s alleged threat to repel a Turkish invasion of Syria with nuclear weapons follows comments by Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev in which he warned of a new world war if the United States and its allies send ground troops into Syria.

Turkey and Saudi Arabia have both signaled they are considering a ground invasion of Syria in order to aid refugees and so-called “moderate rebels” fighting against the Assad regime.

Last week, Turkish officials called for a “safe zone” to be established within Syria to allow refugees to flee Russia’s advance, although the United States argued that such a corridor could not be set up without a no fly zone.

Saudi Arabia is currently conducting the biggest wargames the region has seen for a quarter of a century. Northern Thunder involves 150,000 troops from 20 countries and is viewed by some as a precursor to a possible invasion of Syria.

Earlier this month, Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir told CNN that President Bashar al-Assad will have to be removed “by force” if the political process fails.

Despite official denials that the kingdom possesses nuclear weapons, Saudi political analyst told RT’s Arabic network last week that the Saudis have indeed obtained the bomb and that tests will be conducted soon.

http://www.infowars.com/report-putin-threatens-turkey-with-tactical-nukes/

Morbid

22nd February 2016, 19:45

kA6uSZ2QQ5E

Hervé

23rd February 2016, 02:47

Turkey is scr*wed. And it’s all US' fault (corrected text) (http://thesaker.is/turkey-is-screwed-and-its-all-us-fault/)

By Arras (for The Saker) February 22, 2016

Amid rising tensions between Turkey and Russia over the situation in Syria, one important fact got lost. It’s not Russia that caused the current Turkish problems. It was the USA.

The most fundamental problem modern Turkey is facing is the Kurdish question. It’s a chronic problem, which threatens the integrity of Turkey and the Turkish elite perceives it as the largest security treat the country is facing. Turkish policies in Syria are determined by the Kurdish issue more than anything else. The change from the so called policy of zero problems with neighbors, which Erdogan and his government used to promote, came as a surprise to many and is directly related to the Kurdish issue and the events in Iraq after the disastrous US invasion.

http://thesaker.is/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/screved.jpg (http://thesaker.is/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/screved.jpg)

Here, a little historical excursion is needed. When the modern Turkish state was created on the ashes of the Ottoman empire following defeat in WWI, it was seeking a new identity on which it could successfully establish itself. The new young Turkish elite chose the model of nationalism, at that time a progressive concept so popular in contemporary Europe.

Turkey, just like some of its European counterparts, was however faced with the imperial heritage of diverse ethnic groups living on its newly established territory. There were large and ancient communities of Greeks, Armenians, Kurds and many other people living in Anatolia and the European part of Turkey. Ethnic Turks themselves were relative newcomers to these parts of the world, having arrived only in the 11th century. Greeks and other ethnic groups, on the other hand, can trace their presence in what is now Turkey well into the Bronze Age and beyond (3300-1200 BC).

The Turks managed to solve the Greek question after the Graeco-Turkish war of 1919-1922 and the large exchange of population which followed it. Most Greeks left Turkey and Turkey received an influx of ethnic Turks from Greece in return. The Armenian question got solved already during WWI in what many call the Armenian genocide. Term which Turkey fiercely opposes. It was a forceful deportation of Armenians into the Syrian desert. It is estimated that about 1.5 million of them died. Turkey acknowledges the fact of the deportation, but claims that loss of life was an unintended consequence rather than a deliberate act.

One ethnic question which Turkey however did not manage to solve is the Kurdish question. The Kurds are an ancient community of Iranian people who accepted Islam. They were skilled soldiers and played an important role in Islamic armies, including the Seljuk and the Ottoman. Indeed, the most famous historical Kurdish figure is Saladin (name under which he is known in the West), a Muslim general who reconquered Jerusalem during the Crusades and a sultan of Egypt and Syria.

The Turks tried to solve the Kurdish issue by straightforward assimilation. They announced that from now on, Kurds are simply „Eastern Turks“ and banned the Kurdish language. The Kurds resisted and the Turks answered with repression, forced relocation, discrimination and heavy handed military crackdown. Kurds in Turkey are since then in de facto constant rebellion and a, sometimes less sometimes more intense, war with the Turkish government, which claimed thousands of lives on both sides.

Despite having an advantage in numbers and equipment, Turkey seems to be slowly losing this war. It is estimated that Kurds make up to about 20% of the Turkish population and Kurdish families have about double the birthrate of Turkish ones. In a few decades, this will eventually lead to a situation when there will be more Kurdish than Turkish men of military age in Turkey.

To make matters worse for Turkey, Kurds do not live only in Turkey. Thanks to the post colonial legacy and arbitrariness of borders, which France and Britain drew in the sands, plains and hills of the Middle East, similarly sized Kurdish communities live in the neighboring countries of Syria, Iraq and Iran. Together they inhabit one large, almost continuous area called Kurdistan. Fortunately for the Turks, the Kurds in these countries until recently faced similar persecution as in Turkey. All these countries perceive their Kurds as a threat to their territorial integrity. The most well know episode of this repression came when Saddam Hussein used poison gas on Kurds in Northern Iraq. That was by no means an exclusive example, but one which at the time suited Western interests in the Middle East and thus received widespread publicity in Western media. After decades of silent complicity. Which brings us back to the cause of the recent change in Turkish policies and the rising tension on Turkish-Syrian border.

When the USA decided to invade Iraq in 2003, Turkey correctly concluded that the operation is pure hazard with an unpredictable outcome. In a hope of minimizing the negative impact on Turkey itself, they decided to keep strict neutrality and to not intervene, and went so far as to refuse to allow their US and British NATO allies to use Turkish territory and bases for an attack.

The US attack on Iraq and the occupation led to an all out civil war inside the country and eventually broke Iraq into de facto Shia, Sunni and Kurdish parts. All of a sudden Turkey was faced not just with Kurdish insurgency inside Turkey, but, for the first time. also with (de facto) an independent Kurdish state right on its borders which could provide a safe haven (regroup and supply) area for Kurds from inside Turkey. That was a disaster. The Turks tried to deal with the situation with limited military incursions into Iraqi Kurdistan, attempts to buy Kurdish leaders and reliance on the ability of their US partners to keep the Kurds in check and prevent damage. Something the Americans turned out not to be very capable at. Perhaps even not willing.

The lesson Erdogan and the Turkish leadership sees to have learned from the events in Iraq was likely that abstaining from conflicts in the region will not shield Turkey from negative consequences and, if Turkey can not prevent these conflicts, it’s better that Turkey participates in them and thus is at last able to protect its interests by influencing the outcome.

When the USA and their NATO allies decided to change regimes in Northern Africa and engaged in yet another imperial adventure in Libya, following initial reluctance, Turkey agreed to join. And when the USA then decided to start a war in Syria, Turkey jumped on the wagon, probably on the promise of a quick victory and the instalment of a new government of the Muslim Brotherhood, friendly to Turkey and its ruling party. Ankara might have even expected such a government to be a Turkish client. That certainly was the expectation of Riyadh, another unfortunate victim of US Middle Eastern policies.

As is the rule with similar US foreign policies, they seldom work as advertised. When Assad proved to be resilient, Ankara and Riyadh were expecting Washington to do what it did in Libya and intervene under the pretext of a no fly zone and an alleged protection of civilians, a pretext well tested already in Yugoslavia. No man however steps into the same river twice, wisdom already ancient Greeks understood. After the disaster in Libya, opposition to intervention, led prominently by Russia and China, proved to be stronger, and support inside the USA and their British and French allies weaker than might have been anticipated. A no fly zone did not materialize. Of note is, that Turks and Saudis were its most outspoken proponents and they insist on establishing a no fly zone in Syria (euphemism for a US led intervention) till today. Meanwhile, Obama’s administration walked away, quietly thankful to the Russians for the face saving pretext in form of the chemical weapons deal.

Regime change in Syria thus had to be accomplished solely through proxies in the form of a colorful collection of various more or less disgusting Sunny Islamic groups, both local and foreign. Turkey and Saudi Arabia engaged in an enthusiastic support of these groups; openly supporting those under the moderate name, and less openly others, while publicly pretending to fight them as radicals and terrorists. In reality. the only group Turkey ever really fought in Syria were Kurds. Which is ironically probably the only significant opposition group in Syria which really deserves name moderate. Despite the catastrophic heterogeneity of these opposition groups, which are willing to fight each other as much as they are willing to fight Syrian government, it seemed that the government will be eventually worn down in a war of attrition.

But then came the unexpected Russian intervention and, against all assurances from Washington about the Russians having another Afghanistan, it managed to turn the tables and forced the rebels to what is increasingly looking like an all-out retreat. This is a disaster of epic proportions for Turkey. Instead of a friendly regime of the Muslim Brotherhood type in Damascus, which Ankara would be able to control, they are faced with the creation of a second Kurdish independent state on their borders. That’s what has sent the Turkish leadership into panic mode and that’s why the Turks are seemingly irrationally rising tensions on the border with Syria. In my opinion, the downing of the Russian plane, the shelling of Kurds and the concentration of military forces on the border, accompanied with aggressive rhetoric, are not so much meant to threaten Russia or Assad, they are first of all desperate attempts to force Washington to lead an invasion in Syria at last. Which is probably something Washington itself made Ankara and Riyadh expect in the first place. Now Washington is being seen dragging their feet and backing out. Neither Turkey, nor Saudi Arabia are likely to invade alone.

To conclude, the US policies of destabilizing countries and whole regions to suit their geopolitical and economic interests in the last decade or two proved to be often as damaging to US allies as they are to US opponents. If not more. Another case in point of course is the European migration crisis. What effect is that going to have on relations between the USA and their allies on one side, and US opponents on the other, remains to be seen. But it is reasonable to expect that dissatisfaction with US leadership will be on the rise.

Calz

23rd February 2016, 10:51

Here is another good helping of food for thought from Joseph Farrell ... this in response to the article I already posted in this thread:

http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?69621-Ukraine-Crimea-Syria-Israel-Iran-Putin-and-World-War-III&p=1047269&viewfull=1#post1047269

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6-b8giY0nk

Streamed live on Feb 18, 2016

F William Engdahl has a fascinating new analysis out about the geopolitics of the Middle East; listen, and add in some usual high octane speculation...

Hervé

23rd February 2016, 14:48

Who would have guessed...

Ukraine-Turkey military cooperation (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190396.html)

Voltaire Network | 23 February 2016 http://www.voltairenet.org/squelettes/elements/images/ligne-rouge.giffrançais (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190371.html)Español (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190388.html)Português (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190398.html)Türkçe (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190410.html)

http://www.voltairenet.org/local/cache-vignettes/L400xH250/arton190396-6e1da.jpg

The Ukrainian and Turkish First ministers, Arseniy Yatsenyuk and Ahmet Davutoğlu, signed a military cooperation agreement February 15, 2016 in Kiev.

The two states will cooperate in the field of aircraft engines, radar, communication technology and navigation systems.

Ukraine has an arms industry dating from the Soviet era.

Translation: Roger Lagassé (http://www.voltairenet.org/auteur125483.html?lang=en)

Hervé

23rd February 2016, 15:10

European Political Influence Operations Are «Made in USA» (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190319.html)

By Wayne Madsen
Voltaire Network | Washington D. C. (États-Unis) | 18 February 2016
Deutsch (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190320.html) norsk (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190365.html)

Western Europeans are persuaded to live in democracy. However, since the end of World War II, no people could freely choose to approach the Soviet Union or Russia. Whenever either gave it a try, terrorist campaigns, political assassinations and even a coup prevented it. In fact, the West European democracy does not apply to international issues. In this area, only the will of the United States account.

http://www.voltairenet.org/local/cache-vignettes/L400xH300/1_-_1_1_-165-83f47.jpg
James Clapper

In yet another case of pure American hypocrisy on a grand scale, the US Congress has ordered James Clapper, the director of National Intelligence, to investigate alleged Russian financing of European political parties over the past decade.

It is clear that the latest move by the American neoconservatives is not only to target Russia but also European political parties that have backed Russia’s defensive policies in Ukraine and castigated German Chancellor Angela Merkel for opening Europe’s borders to hordes of Islamist terrorists from Syria, Iraq, North Africa, and Afghanistan masquerading as refugees.

Parties said to be probed by American intelligence agencies and financial control authorities on behalf of their neoconservative masters, including Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs Victoria Nuland, her husband Robert Kagan, and grandmaster George Soros, include Jobbik in Hungary, Golden Dawn in Greece, the National Front of France, and the Northern League of Italy. These parties have rejected the «Eurocratic» control of Europe exercised from Brussels. They have also rejected American dominance of European foreign policy on issues ranging from Ukraine and Syria to free trade agreements and a borderless Europe for non-European economic and political migrants.

The move against the populist political parties of Europe represents a new phase of America’s neo-imperialistic foreign policy: the targeting of political parties within NATO countries that have achieved success through the democratic electoral process.

The net result of America’s barrage against the so-called European «Right» may result in an expansion of asset freezes and visa bans already extended by Washington to officials of the governments of Russia, the Russian autonomous republic of Crimea, and the eastern Ukrainian republics of Donetsk and Lugansk. Potential targets of such sanctions could include French National Front leader and presidential candidate Marine Le Pen, British Labor Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, Scottish National Party foreign affairs spokesman and member of Parliament Alex Salmond, and Austrian Freedom Party leader Heinz-Christian Strache.

Washington’s ominous moves towards European democracy in targeting parties of both the right and left hearken back to the old Cold War days when the CIA and the Federal Bureau of Investigation were fond of compiling lists of «dangerous subversives» abroad who would be routinely denied visas to enter the United States because they were suspected «Communists» or «Reds».

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Ironically, it is the CIA that has a rich history of financing political parties abroad, particularly in Europe, to carry out its agenda. A 2003 report by the Council of Europe, titled «Financing political parties and election campaigns – guidelines,» states, «Not only foreign governments... but also foreign intelligences agencies have engaged in covert funding activities. During the Cold War, for example, the CIA was actively involved in funding anti-communist political organizations.»

The US National Endowment for Democracy (NED) consists of two arms of the major American political parties, the International Republican Institute (IRI) and National Democratic Institute (NDI) that funnel US intelligence money to pro-American political parties. These are not the only QUANGOs (quasi-autonomous non-governmental organizations) with ties to the CIA that have funneled money to European political parties. Others include the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE), the Free Trade Union Institute (FTUI), the European Partnership for Democracy (EPD), the Westminster Foundation for Democracy of Britain, the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy, the Arab Democracy Foundation, and the United Nations Democracy Fund [1 (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190319.html#nb1)].

The right-wing American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), which is funded by major US corporations, including Koch Industries, to influence laws at the American state and federal government levels, was discovered to maintain links to the UK Conservative Party to defeat anti-tobacco and environmental legislation in Britain. The IRI, NDI, and ALEC, with the blessing of the CIA and the Obama administration, also worked to defeat the Scottish referendum on independence in 2014.

The CIA’s history is replete with examples of US covert funding of European political parties. In the 1960s, the CIA provided money to the Italian Christian Democratic Party to ensure that the Italian Communist Party did not achieve political success at the national level. American «leftists» like Irving Kristol, Hannah Arendt, Isaiah Berlin, and others were funded by the CIA to influence the political direction of their friends in the European «democratic left», mainly social democratic parties, to dissuade them from forming coalitions with Communist parties. Many of the present-day right-wing neoconservatives were spawned from these sell-outs of the left, including Kristol’s son, the arch-neoconservative pundit William Kristol.

Through the US National Student Association, the CIA routinely sponsored American students to attend Soviet-sponsored youth festivals in Europe in order to recruit members of European leftist parties to become CIA assets.

GGHXjO8wHsA

Although today the United States has Europe’s right-wing nationalist parties in its gunsights, during the Cold War, the CIA relied on the forerunners of these rightist parties to carry out false flag terrorist operations that were blamed on leftist groups. These operations, generically known as «Operation Gladio», were used by the CIA as psychological weapons against Europe’s socialist leftist and communist parties [2 (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190319.html#nb2)]. Now, the CIA and other US intelligence agencies are targeting parties across the political spectrum – rightist nationalists, leftist anti-globalists and anti-militarists, and secessionists. They are American targets merely because they are opposed to American neo-imperialism and globalized dominance by international bankers and investment houses.

In order to counter neutralist tendencies within the UK Labor Party, the CIA financed an influence operation via the Congress of Cultural Freedom to provide the political leverage for such Labor Party leaders as Hugh Gaitskell, Anthony Crosland, and Denis Healey to move the Labor Party into a more pro-NATO position [3 (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190319.html#nb3)]. Conversely, when Labor Prime Minister Harold Wilson and Labor Party leader Michael Foot took the party down a leftward path, the CIA arranged for the two leaders to be ousted by CIA implants within the party. For Wilson, the traitor du jour for the CIA was James Callaghan, a right-winger, and for Foot, it was Neil Kinnock, a committed globalist and European federalist, who played the role of Brutus. When Wilson was forced from power as prime minister in 1976, the CIA went on «red alert» to prevent longtime Labor leftist leader Tony Benn from succeeding him. The CIA’s efforts paid off when their man Callaghan took over from Wilson.

It was the same story in France, where the CIA actually worked with the 1968 «Paris Spring» leftist leaders, including Daniel Cohn-Bendit, to ensure that the demonstrations against the French government forced President Charles De Gaulle from power. De Gaulle was eventually replaced by a series of French presidents more to Washington’s liking: Georges Pompidou, Valery Giscard d’Estaing, Francois Mitterand, Jacques Chirac, and the most pro-American of them all, Nicolas Sarkozy. France, which under De Gaulle, withdrew from the NATO military command, eventually was slowly absorbed back into the alliance by successive pro-American French presidents. The fear of the CIA is that Le Pen’s presidency in France may copy De Gaulle and leave the NATO military structure. That is why Washington is doing everything possible to demonize the National Front as agents of Russia.

Similar horror stories of the CIA’s actions against political parties from Portugal and Greece to Denmark and Belgium can be found in the historical record. If any country is in need of a full examination of its covert political and influence operations in Europe, it is the United States, not Russia.

Wayne Madsen (http://www.voltairenet.org/auteur124955.html?lang=en)

Source: Strategic Culture Foundation (Russia) (http://www.voltairenet.org/auteur125099.html?lang=en)

[1 (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190319.html#nh1)] “The networks of "democratic" interference (http://www.voltairenet.org/article30022.html)”, by Thierry Meyssan, Voltaire Network, 22 January 2004; « La NED, vitrine légale de la CIA (http://www.voltairenet.org/article166549.html) », par Thierry Meyssan, Оdnako (Russie) , Réseau Voltaire, 6 octobre 2010.

[2 (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190319.html#nh2)] NATO’s Secret Armies: Operation Gladio and Terrorism in Western Europe, Daniele Ganser, Cass (London 2004).

[3 (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190319.html#nh3)] Who Paid the Piper?: CIA and the Cultural Cold War, Frances Stonor Saunders (Granta, 1999). “When the CIA financed European Intellectuals (http://www.voltairenet.org/article136478.html)”, by Denis Boneau, Voltaire Network, 27 November 2003.

Hervé

23rd February 2016, 15:56

Seventy years of harassing political establishment and people of Europe (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190171.html)

By Andrey Fomin, Voltaire Network | Moscow (Russia) | 5 February 2016http://www.voltairenet.org/squelettes/elements/images/ligne-rouge.gif

Português (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190180.html) فارسى (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190185.html) Español (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190214.html) Nederlands (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190232.html) Deutsch (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190225.html) čeština (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190241.html) italiano (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190240.html) français (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190306.html)

Contrary to appearances, the decision of the United States to investigate a possible Russian aid to anti-European parties is not intended to protect Europeans from foreign interference. This is quite the opposite. For 70 years, Washington controls the West European politics prohibiting all forms of genuine democracy

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According to a “sensational” article by The Telegraph, the US director of National Intelligence was recently instructed by Congress to “conduct a major review into Russian clandestine funding of European parties over the last decade.” [1 (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190171.html#nb1)] This disclosure —a classic “controlled leak”— is intended to warn disobedient yet popular political entities across Europe to scale back their ambitions to rebalance the roles and weight of their nation states within the European Union. Hungary’s Jobbik, Greece’s Golden Dawn, Italy’s Lega Nord, and France’s Front National are explicitly included in the US “warning list,” while other unnamed “parties” in Austria, the Czech Republic, and the Netherlands are being advised that they are “under a US security probe.” Even the new British Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, is suspected of flirting with the Russians. So, according to the sponsor of The Telegraph’s story, any European politician who dares to question NATO’s eastward expansion, the policy of anti-Russian sanctions, or the current European stance on the Ukrainian conflict is essentially a witting or unwitting tool of “Russia’s hybrid warfare.”

Well, that would be funny if it weren’t so dangerous. In fact, any impartial observer would pose some simple questions: Why the hell do US intelligence agencies care about challenges to Europe’s internal security? Aren’t they the same agents who finance, recruit, and control countless political organizations, individuals, and media outlets on the European continent? Why are they so brazenly revealing their dominion over Europe?

A politically correct challenger would argue that the United States saved Europe from the “Communist threat” after the end of WWII, facilitated its speedy economic recovery, and is still safeguarding the continent under its nuclear umbrella. Perhaps. But a review of the historical background should not begin with the Marshall Plan. First of all, that was launched in April 1948. Since the Nazis capitulated in May 1945, a misinformed reader might deduce that the United States had been drafting a massive investment program for Europe for as long as three years, and … he would be wrong. At the Second “Octagon” Quebec Conference in September 1944, President Roosevelt and US Treasury Secretary Henry Morgenthau Jr. submitted to the British PM Winston Churchill their Post-Surrender Program for Germany [2 (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190171.html#nb2)]. That strictly confidential document envisaged the partition and complete deindustrialization of the German state. According to the plan, Germany was to be divided into two independent states. Its epicenters of mining and industry, including the Saar Protectorate, the Ruhr Valley, and Upper Silesia were to be internationalized or annexed by France and Poland. Following are a few excerpts:
• The [US] military forces upon entry into [German] industrial areas shall destroy all plants and equipment which cannot be removed immediately.

• No longer than 6 months after the cessation of hostilities, all industrial plants and equipment not destroyed by military action shall either be completely dismantled and removed from the area or completely destroyed.

• All people within the area should be made to understand that this area will not again be allowed to become an industrial area. Accordingly, all people and their families within the area having special skills or technical training should be encouraged to migrate permanently from the area and should be as widely dispersed as possible.

• All German radio stations and newspapers, magazines, weeklies, etc. shall be discontinued until adequate controls are established and an appropriate program formulated.
That was the original postwar recovery program for Germany, known as the Morgenthau Plan. The notorious Joint Chiefs of Staff Directive 1067 (JCS 1067) addressed to the Commander-in-Chief of U.S. Occupation Forces in Germany, which was officially issued in April 1945, was fully in line with that document [3 (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190171.html#nb3)].

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Partition of Germany according to Morgenthau Plan, 1944

The Morgenthau Plan very quickly proved to be a strategic mistake. The United States underestimated the ideological and cultural impact the Soviets would have on European societies. Left to their own judgment, American strategists failed to understand the attraction that a socialist system held for the majority of the population of the liberated nations. A vast spectrum of pro-socialist and pro-communist politicians began winning democratic elections and gaining political influence not only in Eastern Europe, but also in Greece, Italy, France, and other European states (Palmiro Togliatti and Maurice Thorez are just a few who could be named here). Thus Washington came to understand that its forced de-industrialization of Europe could result in Soviet-style reindustrialization and eventual Russian dominance of the continent… Therefore the US had to promptly replace the Morgenthau Plan with one named after Secretary of State George Marshall… Over the course of four years it provided Europe with $12 billion USD in credits, donations, leases, etc., for the purpose of buying … American machinery and other goods. Although the plan undoubtedly revived the economies of Europe, its biggest positive effect was on … the US economy itself! Simultaneously a wave of political repression was launched throughout Europe, most notably in Germany.

The media has largely forgotten about a Soviet initiative, proposed in 1950, to withdraw from the GDR and to reunify a neutral, non-aligned, demilitarized Germany within one year of the conclusion of a peace treaty. As a matter of fact, the resolution adopted at the Prague meeting of the foreign ministers of the Soviet Bloc on Oct. 21, 1950 proposed the establishment of an all-German Constituent Council, with equal representation from East and West Germany to prepare for the formation of an “all-German, sovereign, democratic, and peace-loving provisional government.” Needless to say, the US government and West German administration in Bonn strongly opposed the initiative [4 (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190171.html#nb4)]. While a plebiscite on the issue “Are you against the remilitarization of Germany and in favor of the conclusion of a Peace Treaty in 1951?” was announced in both halves of the divided state, that referendum was held and officially acknowledged only in East Germany (with 96% voting “yes”).vtek The authorities in US-controlled West Germany failed to respond in a truly democratic manner. They refused to recognize the preliminary results of the referendum that had been held since February 1951 (of the 6.2 million federal citizens who had taken part by June 1951, 94.4% also voted “yes”) [5 (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190171.html#nb5)] and introduced the draconian cautious Criminal Law Amendment Act (the 1951 Blitzgesetz) on July 11. According to that legislation, anyone guilty of importing prohibited literature, criticizing the government, or having unreported contacts with representatives of the GDR, etc. was to be prosecuted for “state treason,” which was punishable by 5 to 15 years in prison. Consequently, between 1951 and 1968, 200,000 charges were brought against 500,000 members of the Communist Party and other left-wing groups in Germany under this law. Ten thousand people were sent to prison, and most of those who were “cleared” of charges never resumed their political activities. Additional legal amendments in 1953 actually abolished the right to freely hold gatherings and demonstrations, and in 1956 the Communist Party of Germany was banned.

REVX_EPe_xEMore details can be found in Daniel Burkholz’s 2012 documentary “Verboten – Verfolgt – Vergessen (http://www.roadside-dokumentarfilm.de/index.php?article_id=51&clang=2)” (Forbidden-Followed-Forgotten. Half a Million Public Enemies), which is surprisingly unavailable on YouTube.

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The political repression that occurred in Germany from the 1950s to the 1980s, compared to similar events in other European countries during the same period, is a very taboo topic. Operation Gladio in Italy, the crimes of the regime of the Black Colonels in Greece, and the controversial assassinations of realistic European politicians who openly advocated for historical compromise with the Soviet bloc – such as Italian PM Aldo Moro (1978) and Swedish PM Olof Palme (1986) – all received far more media attention. The revelations made by a former correspondent for the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Udo Ulfkotte, in his book Gekaufte Journalisten (http://www.kopp-verlag.de/Gekaufte-Journalisten.htm?websale8=kopp-verlag&pi=939100) (“Purchased Journalists”) about the mechanism of media control in Germany (remember the Morgenthau Plan?) represent only the tip of the iceberg.

http://www.voltairenet.org/local/cache-vignettes/L220xH331/1_-_1_3_-68-fad6a.jpg

The almost complete lack of reaction seen in Berlin after Edward Snowden’s disclosure of the blanket electronic espionage routinely conducted against German leaders by the NSA means that in reality, Germany has acknowledged its loss of sovereignty over its own country and thus has nothing to lose.

So, after taking all these facts into account and rereading the article in The Telegraph, are you still so sure that the United States is truly the guardian of Europe’s sovereignty? Is it not more likely that by using the alleged “Russian threat” to control and harass the political establishment and civil society in Europe, Washington is making headway toward a simple and primitive goal – that of merely keeping its sheep within the fold?

Andrey Fomin (http://www.voltairenet.org/auteur125938.html?lang=en)

Source Oriental Review (Russia) (http://www.voltairenet.org/auteur125416.html?lang=en)

[1 (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190171.html#nh1)] «Russia accused of clandestine funding of European parties as US conducts major review of Vladimir Putin’s strategy. Exclusive: UK warns of "new Cold War" as Kremlin seeks to divide and rule in Europe (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/12103602/America-to-investigate-Russian-meddling-in-EU.html)», Peter Foster & Matthew Holehouse, The Telegraph, January 16, 2016.

[2 (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190171.html#nh2)] “Suggested Post-Surrender Program for Germany (http://docs.fdrlibrary.marist.edu/psf/box31/t297a01.html)”, F. D. Roosevelt, September 1944.

[3 (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190171.html#nh3)] “Directive to the Commander in Chief of the U.S. Occupation Forces (JCS 1067) (http://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org/sub_document.cfm?document_id=2297)” (April 1945)

[4 (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190171.html#nh4)] “Notes for Eastern Element’s Briefing of General Mathewson (https://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1951v03p2/d341)”, February 15, 1951. Published in Foreign Relations of the United States 1951, Volume III, Part 2, European Security and the German Question (Document 341).

[5 (http://www.voltairenet.org/article190171.html#nh5)] “Flusslandschaft 1951. Frieden (http://protest-muenchen.sub-bavaria.de/artikel/90)”, Protest in München.

Hervé

23rd February 2016, 16:21

Week Nineteen of the Russian Intervention in Syria: would Russia use nukes to defend Khmeimim? (http://thesaker.is/week-nineteen-of-the-russian-intervention-in-syria-would-russia-use-nukes-to-defend-khmeimim/)

The Saker, February 20, 2016

This column was written for the Unz Review: http://www.unz.com/tsaker/week-nineteen-of-the-russian-intervention-in-syria-would-russia-use-nukes-to-defend-khmeimim/

The past week saw no decrease in the tense confrontation between Turkey and Russia over Syria. While Russia’s position is simple – ‘we are ready to fight’ – the Turkish position is much more ambiguous: Turkish politicians are saying one thing, then the opposite and then something else again. At times they make it sound like an invasion is imminent (http://russia-insider.com/en/turkey-confirms-military-strikes-against-assad-russia-looks-seal-syrian-turkish-border-force/ri12830), and at times they say that “Turkey plans no unilateral (http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-turkey-idUSKCN0VE100)invasion (http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-turkey-idUSKCN0VE100)”. Since a UN authorized invasion of Syria will never happen, this means some kind of “coalition of the willing”, possibly NATO. The problem here is that the Europeans have no desire to end up in a war against Russia (http://sputniknews.com/world/20160220/1035066264/NATO-turkey-russia-syria.html). At the same time, the US and France refuse to allow a UN Resolution which would reaffirm the sovereignty of Syria (https://www.rt.com/news/333042-syria-sovereignty-un-resolution/). Yup, that’s right. The US and France apparently think that the UN Charter (which affirms the sovereignty of all countries) does not apply to Syria. Go figure…

There are persistent rumors that top Turkish military commanders, categorically oppose any attack on Syria and that they want no part in a war with Russia. I don’t blame them one bit as they understand perfectly well two simple things: first, Turkey does not need a war, only Erdogan does; second, when Turkey is defeated, Erdogan will blame the military. There are also signs of disagreements inside the USA over the prospects of such a war, with the Neocons backing Erdogan and pushing him towards war just as they had done with Saakashvili while the White House and Foggy Bottom are telling Erdogan to “cool it”. As for the Turks themselves, they have shelled Kurdish and Syrian positions across the border and, on at least two occasions, a small military force has been seen crossing the border.

From a purely military point of view, it makes absolutely no sense for the Turks to mass at the border, declare that they are about to invade, then stop, do some shelling and then only send a few little units across the border. What the Turks should have done was to covertly begin to increase the level of readiness of their forces then and then attacked as soon as Russians detected their preparations even if that meant that they would have to initiate combat operations before being fully mobilized and ready. The advantages of a surprise attack are so big that almost every other consideration has to be put aside in order to achieve it. The Turks did the exact opposite: they advertised their intentions to invade and once their forces were ready, they simply stopped at the border and began issuing completely contradictory declarations. This makes absolutely no sense at all.

What complicates this already chaotic situation is that Erdogan is clearly a lunatic and that there appears to the at least the possibility of some serious infighting between the Turkish political leaders and the military.

Furthermore, there appears to be some very bad blood between the USA and the Erdogan regime. Things got so bad that Erdogan’s chief adviser, Seref Malkoc, said that Turkey might deny the US the use of the Incirlik Air Base for strikes against ISIL if the US does not name the YPG as a terrorist group (http://www.todayszaman.com/diplomacy_turkey-us-dispute-over-syrian-kurdish-pyd-widens_412796.html). Erdogan later repudiated this statement (http://vz.ru/news/2016/2/19/795405.html), but the fact remains that the Turks are now directly blackmailing the USA. If Erdogan and his advisors seriously believe that they can publicly blackmail a superpower like the USA then their days are numbered. At the very least, this kind of irresponsible outbursts shows that the Turks are really crumbling under the pressure they themselves have created.

Still, the fact that Turkey has not invaded yet is a tiny minute sign that maybe, just maybe, the Turks will give up on this crazy notion or that they will limit themselves to a ‘mini-invasion’ just a few miles across the border. The military would probably prefer such a minimal face saving option, but what about Erdogan and the crazies around him?

Maybe the Turkish military ought to realize that the country is ruled by the madman and do something about it?

Still, the Russians are taking no chances and they have put all their forces into high alert. They have very publicly dispatched a Tu-214r (http://theaviationist.com/2016/02/15/tu214r-deployed-to-syria/) – her most advanced ISR (Intelligence Surveillance Reconnaissance) aircraft. You can think of the Tu-214R as an “AWACS for the ground” (http://rbth.com/defence/2016/02/19/russias-state-of-the-art-tu-214r-spy-plane-arrives-in-syria_569263), the kind of aircraft you use to monitor a major ground battle (the regular Russian A-50Ms are already monitoring the Syrian airspace). In southern Russia, the Aerospace forces have organized large-scale exercises involving a large number of aircraft which would be used in a war against Turkey: SU-34s. The Airborne Forces are ready. The naval task forces off the Syrian coast is being augmented. The delivery of weapons has accelerated. The bottom line is simple and obvious: the Russians are not making any threats – they are preparing for war. In fact, by now they are ready.

This leaves an important question to be asked: what would the Russians do if their still relatively small force in Syria is attacked and over-run by the Turks? Would the Russian use nuclear weapons?

At least one reporter, Robert Parry, as written the following (https://consortiumnews.com/2016/02/18/risking-nuclear-war-for-al-qaeda/):

“A source close to Russian President Vladimir Putin told me that the Russians have warned Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan that Moscow is prepared to use tactical nuclear weapons if necessary to save their troops in the face of a Turkish-Saudi onslaught”. Is that really possible? Would the Russians really use nuclear weapons of things get ugly in Syria?

The Russian Military Doctrine (http://www.rg.ru/2014/12/30/doktrina-dok.html) is very clear on the use of nuclear weapons by Russia. This is the relevant paragraph:
27. The Russian Federation reserves the right to use nuclear weapons in response to the use against her and (or) her allies of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction, as well as in the case of aggression against the Russian Federation with the use of conventional weapons in a way which would threaten her very existence as a state. The decision to use nuclear weapons is taken by the President of the Russian Federation.
There is no ambiguity here.
Unless Russia is threatened as a state she will not use nuclear weapons.

Some will, no doubt, say that the official military doctrine is one thing, but the reality in Syria is another one and if the Turks overrun Khmeimim Russia will have no other option than to use nukes. There is a precedent for that kind of logic: when the US deployed the 82nd Airborne in Saudi Arabia as part of Desert Shield the Pentagon fully understood that if the much larger Iraqi army invaded Saudi Arabia the 82nd would be destroyed. It was hoped that the USAF and USN could provide enough air sorties to stop the Iraqi advance, but if not it was understood that tactical nuclear weapons would be used. The situation in Syria is different.

For one thing, the Russian task force in Syria is not an infantry tripwire force like the 82nd in Iraq. The terrain and the opposing forces are also very different. Second, the Russian contingent in Syria can count on the firepower and support of the Russian Navy in the Caspian and Mediterranean and the Russian Aerospace Forces from Russia proper. Last but not least, the Russians can count in the support of the Syrian military, Iranian forces, Hezbollah and, probably, the Syrian Kurds (http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-02-18/kurds-warn-turkey-of-big-war-with-russia-if-troops-enter-syria)who are now openly (http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-02-18/kurds-warn-turkey-of-big-war-with-russia-if-troops-enter-syria)joining the 4+1 alliance (http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-02-18/kurds-warn-turkey-of-big-war-with-russia-if-troops-enter-syria) (Russia, Iran, Iraq, Syria and Hezbollah) turning it into a 4+2 alliance I suppose.

There is one important feature of this 4+2 alliance which ought to really give the Turks a strong incentive to be very careful before taking any action: every member of this 4+2 alliance has an extensive military experience, a much better one than the Turkish military. The modern Turkish military is much more similar to the Israeli military in 2006 – it has a great deal of experience terrorizing civilians and it is not a force trained to fight “real” wars. There is a very real risk for the Turks that if they really invade Syria they might end up facing the same nightmare as the Israelis did when they invaded Lebanon in 2006.

In the meantime, the Russian backed Syrian forces are still advancing. Since the beginning of their counter-offensive the Syrians have succeeded in recapturing all of the strategic locations in western Syria in slow and incremental steps and they are now threatening Raqqa. See for yourself:

The bottom line is this: the size and capabilities of the Russian task force in Syria has been expanding and the level of collaborations between the elements of the 4+2 alliance has been increasing. Add to this the capability to deploy a regimental-size (and fully mechanized) Airborne force in Latakia if needed, and you will begin to see that the Turks would be taking a major risk if they attacked Russian forces even if Russia does not threaten the use of tactical nukes. In fact, I don’t see any scenario short of a massive US/NATO attack under which Russia would use her tactical nuclear weapons.

Frankly, this situation is far from resolved. It is no coincidence that just when a ceasefire was supposed to come into effect two terrorist attacks in Turkey are oh-so-conveniently blamed on the Kurds. It sure looks like somebody is trying hard to set Turkey on a collision course with Russia, doesn’t it?

Making predictions about what the Turks and their Saudi friends will do makes no sense. We are clearly dealing with two regimes which are gradually “losing it”: they are lashing out at everybody (including their US patrons), they are terrified of their own minorities (Kurds and Shia) and their propensity for violence and terror is only matched by their inability in conventional warfare. Does that remind you of somebody else?

Of course! The Ukronazis fit this picture perfectly. Well, guess what, they are dreaming of forming an anti-Russian alliance with the Turks now (http://www.dailysabah.com/diplomacy/2016/02/01/ukraine-open-to-military-cooperation-with-turkey-in-black-sea-ukrainian-fm-says). Amazing no? Just imagine what a Ukrainian-Turkish-Saudi alliance would look like: a real life “Islamo-Fascist” gang of thugs combining hateful fanaticism, corruption, violence, strident nationalism and military incompetence. A toxic combination for sure, but not a viable one.

The Saker

Calz

23rd February 2016, 16:22

Either the whole world has gone completely mad or else this is all going exactly as scripted ...

__________________

Saudis Call for Arming Syrian Jihadists with Anti-aircraft Missiles to Shoot Down Russian Planes

Saudis and US desperate to rollback Syrian gains

Kurt Nimmo | Infowars.com - February 23, 2016

In addition to threatening to invade Syria and oust Bashar al-Assad Saudi Arabia says it wants to arm jihadists in the country with anti-aircraft missiles to take out Russian jets.

“We believe that introducing surface-to-air missiles in Syria is going to change the balance of power on the ground,” Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said during an interview with Der Spiegel.

“It will allow the moderate opposition to be able to neutralize the helicopters and aircraft that are dropping chemicals and have been carpet-bombing them, just like surface-to-air missiles in Afghanistan were able to change the balance of power there. This has to be studied very carefully, however, because you don’t want such weapons to fall into the wrong hands,” al-Jubeir said.

Even The New York Times admits there are few if any moderates fighting in Syria and the Gulf Emirate, Turkish and CIA organized, trained and armed fighters are virtually all Sunni Salafists and jihadists. “Nowhere in rebel-controlled Syria is there a secular fighting force to speak of,” Ben Hubbard wrote for the newspaper on April 27, 2013.

http://www.infowars.com/saudis-call-for-arming-syrian-jihadists-with-anti-aircraft-missiles-to-shoot-down-russian-planes/

Hervé

24th February 2016, 13:38

Week twenty of the Russian military intervention in Syria: a ceasefire and yet another huge victory for Russia
(http://thesaker.is/week-twenty-of-the-russian-military-intervention-in-syria-a-ceasefire-and-yet-another-huge-victory-for-russia/)

The Saker, February 24, 2016

This article was written for the Unz Review: http://www.unz.com/tsaker/russian-american-agreement-on-syria/

http://thesaker.is/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Russian_Air_Force_Sukhoi_Su-34-300x200.jpg (http://thesaker.is/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Russian_Air_Force_Sukhoi_Su-34.jpg)

The recent agreement between the USA and Russia really solves nothing, it does not even end the war, and both sides are expressing a great deal of caution about its future implementation. And yet, this is a huge victory for Russia. While it is too early to say that “the Russian won in Syria”, I think that it is now fair to say that the Russian position on Syria has won. Here is why:

First: nobody is suggesting anymore that Assad will be ousted or Damascus taken. That, in turn, means that everybody has now recognized that Syrian Arab Republic, backed by Russia, has successfully repelled the aggression of the huge coalition the AngloZionists built to overthrow Assad.

Second: Russia has forced the UNSC and the USA to admit that the vast majority of those who fight Assad today are terrorist. Of course, this is not how this was declared, but if you look at the organizations which the UNSC has already declared as ‘terrorists’ then you already have an absolute majority of the anti-Assad forces. This means that the moral and legal legitimacy of the anti-Assad forces is lies in tatters.

Third: regardless of what Erdogan does actually try to do next, there are now clear signs that neither NATO, nor the EU nor even the Turkish high military command want a war with Russia. And that means that Erdogan’s gamble has not paid off and that his entire Syria policy is now comprehensively dead. Keep in mind that following the treacherous attack on the Russian Su-24 the Kremlin made it a policy goal to “Saakashvilize” Erdogan. This goal is now almost reached and Erdogan’s future looks very, very bleak: everybody ( except maybe the Saudis) is sick and tired of this maniac. The best thing which could happen to Turkey now would for the military to get rid of Erdogan and to replace him with somebody willing to repair all the damage he did.

Fourth: all the threats to impose a no-fly zone or to occupy Syria have now been invalidated by an agreement which basically declares that anybody not respecting the cease-fire is a legitimate target for engagement and destruction.

Fifth: the USA had to accept the humiliation of having to agree to all of the Russian terms for the current ceasefire. Yes, of course, the USA can, and probably will, try renege on part, or all, of this agreement, but the precedent has been set and it will be very hard, if not impossible, for the USA to openly return to the pre-2016 policies.

Sixth: does anybody still remember the rhetoric of Hillary Clinton about Syria and Russia? Her position was crystal clear: Assad must go and those who support him “punished”. Even after the Russian military offensive began, the US refused to tell the Russians where the “good terrorists” were and where the “bad terrorists” were. No exchange of information with Russians was acceptable. Now the Americans had to agree to work with the Russians on a map of Syria designating where the participants of the ceasefire and were those who were not included in the ceasefire were deployed. In other words, the US will now have to share with Russia all the info it previously refused to share and work with the Russians on a daily basis.

Seventh: Russia has basically co-opted the so-called “Free Syrian Army”. How? By basically forcing every single faction in Syria to chose between one of two possible statuses: being a ‘terrorist’ (and a fair target for destruction) or being a participant in a political process entirely designed by Russia. The Russians are now even opening a “Truce Center” at the Khmeimin airbase (https://www.rt.com/news/333381-syria-reconciliation-russia-hotline/) near Latakia which will now “render assistance” to all the parties to the ceasefire.

http://thesaker.is/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Russian_Air_Force_Sukhoi_Su-34-300x200.jpg (http://thesaker.is/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Russian_Air_Force_Sukhoi_Su-34.jpg)
The new face of Russian diplomacy :-)

This, for the time being, mainly a diplomatic victory, of course, but a Russian diplomatic victory made possible by a Russian military victory. A tiny Russian military contingent has basically completely neutralized the plans of an entire worldwide Empire. That, in itself, is an amazing achievement.

The other big winner here are, in my opinion, the Kurds who, according to British officials (http://www.rbc.ru/politics/23/02/2016/56cc4b5f9a7947b06c6fff7b), appear to be coordinating their military operations with the Syrian army and the Russian Aerospace Forces and who now might well even achieve their dreams of joining the Iraqi and Syria regions of Kurdistan. Which is just about the worst nightmare for the Turks come true, hence the still remaining risk of a Turkish military operation ostensibly to create a ‘buffer zone’ but really to save face. That kind of intervention will remain a possibility for as long as the Turks can continue to hope to commit aggression against their neighbors under the protection of NATO and the USA. And that ain’t gonna change anytime in the future.

And then there are the Saudis. They are very, very angry. They are angry to the point of making not so subtle threats about using nuclear weapons to deal with their adversaries. See for yourself:

yXuJkVPRjNI
Actually, since Pakistan got The Bomb, I would not dismiss any Saudi claims of having a number of nuclear devices. But what does that really mean?

Absolutely nothing.

It is quite possible that the Saudis have the know how for a nuclear device. And it is quite possible that they even got their hands on enough nuclear materials for a few bombs. They might even have succeeded in purchasing a few nuclear devices from the Pakistanis or Israelis. But even if that is true, the reality is that the Saudis don’t even have the military capability to deal with the poorest Arab country on the planet (Yemen) and that they most definitely don’t have the military capability to engage their nuclear devices in a way which would allow them to achieve any kind of military advantage. After all, what are we talking about here? Using nuclear weapons against the Syrian military? Against Iran? Against Russia? This is absolutely ridiculous. The reality is that whatever nuclear capabilities the Saudis might or might not have, the fact that they would make nuclear threats is just a sign of weakness and fear, not a sign of strength. This is why nobody is impressed by these statement, least of all the intended targets of such threats.

While it is quite true that the latest agreement between the USA and Russia does not mark the end of the war in Syria, it is a turning point, a kind of a Minsk-2 Agreement which nobody really wants to comply with, but which seals the defeat of the AngloZionist plans in Syria as much as Minsk-2 meant the defeat of the Ukronazi dream.

Time is now on the Russian/Syrian side. With each passing day the Russian task force in Syria will become more powerful, as will the Syrian Armed Forces. That, by itself, will not be enough to defeat Daesh, and we can expect a stiff resistance from the Takfiri crazies, but the writing is on the wall for all to see: the more the Russians and the Americans become directly and jointly involved, the less Turkey and Saudi Arabia will be able to determine the outcome of the war. In other words, while this is far from being the end of Daesh, it is the beginning of the end for Daesh in Syria.

Yet again the nay-sayers and Putin-haters have been proven wrong. To be honest, so have I: I would never have guessed that the Russians could have achieved so much with so little and yet they did pull off this extremely dangerous gamble and they won. Only an extremely skillful combination of military, economic, diplomatic and political means could have yielded such a remarkable result but Putin, apparently, found this perfect mix. The path ahead remains extremely dangerous, for sure, but the outcome of the 20 week long Russian military intervention in Syria is nothing short of remarkable.

The Saker

Hervé

24th February 2016, 16:07

Finally: someone's seeing the gas-lighting...

Kennedy: Daesh is a By-Product of Washington's Drive for Qatari Gas (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160224/1035279588/us-syria-conflict-daesh.html)

Politics (http://sputniknews.com/politics/) 18:14 24.02.2016
(updated 18:15 24.02.2016)

http://cdn1.img.sputniknews.com/images/103243/37/1032433772.jpg
© AFP 2016/ HO / ALBARAKA NEWS

Washington military planners decided to remove Bashar al-Assad from power using seasoned jihadist fighters because the Syrian president refused to back the Qatari project to build a gas pipeline through Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria and Turkey, radio host, attorney and nephew of US President John Fitzgerald Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. asserted.

The $10 billion pipeline project first surfaced in 2000. Nine years later Bashar al-Assad announced that he would not support the initiative that would have granted Qatar direct access to European energy markets via terminals in Turkey.

Soon after that "the CIA began funding opposition groups in Syria," Kennedy wrote (http://www.politico.eu/article/why-the-arabs-dont-want-us-in-syria-mideast-conflict-oil-intervention/) for Politico. The CIA went ahead with this plan months before the Arab Spring uprising in Syria took place, which clearly indicates that the Syrian conflict is in fact a violent foreign-sponsored insurgency aimed at bringing a pipeline project to life, not a civil war for greater rights or representation.

Moreover, "US intelligence planners knew from the outset that their pipeline proxies were radical jihadists who would probably carve themselves a brand new Islamic caliphate from the Sunni regions of Syria and Iraq," Kennedy observed.

http://cdn1.img.sputniknews.com/images/102772/16/1027721662.jpg
© AP Photo/FILE - In this photo taken Monday, June 23, 2014, fighters from the Islamic State group parade in a commandeered Iraqi security forces armored vehicle down a main road at the northern city of Mosul, Iraq

This is what happened when Daesh (http://sputniknews.com/tags/organization_Daesh/) fighters launched a blitz offensive on the second largest Iraqi city of Mosul from their Syrian stronghold of Raqqa (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160213/1034706612/race-raqqa-why-washington-wants-to-capture-the-city.html) in June 2014. They later declared an Islamic caliphate on the territories under Daesh control, shocking the world with their brutality, financial resources and military capabilities.

"Not coincidentally, the regions of Syria occupied by the Islamic State exactly encompass the proposed route of the Qatari pipeline," the expert added.

If completed, the project would have had major geopolitical implications. Ankara would have profited from "rich transit fees." The project would have also given "the Sunni kingdoms of the Persian Gulf decisive domination of world natural gas markets and strengthen Qatar, America's closest ally in the Arab world," the expert noted. In addition, the pipeline would have also strengthened Saudi Arabia by giving the oil kingdom additional leverage against Iran, whom Riyadh sees as its archenemy.

===============================

Yep... the battle for "energy" (see post # 871 (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?69621-Ukraine-Crimea-Syria-Israel-Iran-Putin-and-World-War-III&p=1023578&viewfull=1#post1023578) and # 878 (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?69621-Ukraine-Crimea-Syria-Israel-Iran-Putin-and-World-War-III&p=1024075&viewfull=1#post1024075)):

http://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Screen-Shot-2015-11-26-at-18.46.04-1024x926.png (http://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Screen-Shot-2015-11-26-at-18.46.04.png)

http://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/south-stream-map-en-1024x502.jpg (http://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/south-stream-map-en.jpg)
South Stream Pipeline Route Options, source TASS

http://www.sott.net/image/s10/218114/full/gazprom_3.jpg

http://www.sott.net/image/s14/284243/full/gas_line_qatar.jpg

Ewan

26th February 2016, 11:59

Robert Fisk, one of the better journalists, writing for The Independent, meets up with the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and the statment "England is helping ISIS" survives the editorial process.

Iranian-revolutionary-guards-battling-outside-aleppo (http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/syria-civil-war-on-the-front-line-with-the-iranian-revolutionary-guards-battling-outside-aleppo-a6891891.html) - The Independent

Baby Steps

26th February 2016, 12:48

ISIS-FINANCIAL UPDATE (TO THE SHAREHOLDERS PRESUMABLY!)

the below appeared in the business press in London-it almost reads like an executive report to the owners by the Directors.

Excellent article however as usual in the West it manages to present an account of reality that ignores the facts that Assad remains popular, and that popularity stretches beyond his own Alawite Minority. In fact, if he was achieving 70-80% approval that means that a large number of the Majority Sunnis were supportive of Assad's attempt at Secular Baathism.

It cannot be mentioned in the press here that the cease fire has only been a direct result of the Russian action. Touch wood, Putin has played a blinder! We are hearing rumblings about dumping Turkey out of Nato, Erdogan's leash has been tugged, so hopefully he will pull back. The Saudis have been threatened with tactical Nukes, and Putin can legally use these on the Saudi's on Syrian territory if they invade.I hope that holds them back.

The Saudis are demanding three divisions of Sunni Pakistani troops.

Thanks Putin for the success so far! However this is in no way the end of ISIS. People have had a taste of living in a Sunni 'state' that is a clear enemy of corrupt Arab governments, Secular Russia and Western Dajjals. They will remember that initially when it was well funded, it did establish a working state. The genie has been released. If eastern Syria remains a pile of rubble & desert populated by starving people, the ISIS genie with thrive on, if only in the hearts of some people.

So reconstruction, aid and a revitalised secular state in Syria are VITAL to minimise the genie's on-going influence.

Islamic State earnings call: Why the terrorist group's 2014 financial boom is a distant memory – but the 2015 decline won't be fatal

In these pages 12 months ago, as companies revealed their year-end financial results and governments made their annual promises of greater things to come, I reflected on the financial reporting of a new arrival – an entity that had, during 2014, emerged from the financial shadows, and was heralded as being “…as sophisticated and well-funded as any group that we have seen”. But in my view, the terrorist group’s finances faced a difficult year ahead.
In January 2015, Isis updated analysts on its financial position, reporting an expected surplus of $250m after expenditure of $2bn, including countless spending commitments such as monthly wages for the poor and disabled, orphans, widows and families of individuals killed in airstrikes. Unsurprisingly, the surplus was to be invested in its war effort. Twelve months later it seems only right to assess its financial pledges and seek to determine whether the robust cashflow and fortress balance sheet the group claimed in early 2015 remains today, and whether its rhetoric of welfare for all has become a reality.
In recent weeks, analysts of Isis have started to notice tell-tale signs of financial stress as 2015’s claims of robust earnings and strong solvency have come under considerable strain. In contrast to 2014, 2015 was a very different financial year for Isis. Time and the pressure brought to bear by coalition airstrikes are undoubtedly having a noticeable and measurable effect on the group’s funding. First, a failure to expand its territory means that the exceptional items Isis recorded in 2014, as it captured bank vaults, oil storage facilities and grain silos, have not been repeated. Second, its earnings run-rate has declined sharply as airstrikes have destroyed the key funding source of oil, related products (estimated by the US Treasury to have been worth up to $500m per annum) and the distribution infrastructure of tankers that helped the group to monetise this resource.
Third, since August 2015, the Iraq state has stopped paying an estimated $170m per month to state employees still working in Isis-controlled territory, salary that was taxed at up to 50 per cent by the group. And further, existing financial resources have reportedly been incinerated in recent airstrikes as cash storage facilities have been hit. In sum, Isis faces a material restriction on cashflow as the excess it reported in early 2015 has surely turned negative.
Like any business or state facing a fall in earnings, Isis is taking steps to rationalise its operations, cut costs, and boost income from its remaining sources. Gone are the freely offered welfare commitments made in the halcyon days at the dawn of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi’s caliphate to the people in the territory it controls and those it seeks to attract. Further commitments, such as those made in the group’s Dabiq magazine, to provide healthcare, food and commodities in the markets have been conspicuous by their absence for months. For those living under Isis control, access to food and supplies for cooking and heating have long been expensive at best and non-existent at worst. Gone too are the generous benefits offered to fighters and their families. Salaries have purportedly been slashed by 50 per cent in Isis’s main city of Raqqa and even incidentals such as free energy drinks and snacks have also been axed. For a proto-state that spends up to two thirds of its budget on maintaining its military capability, such financial hardship is potentially catastrophic.
And in perhaps the most telling sign that financial hardship is taking its toll, the Gold Dinar, the currency of the caliphate, hailed in 2015 as a means of breaking free from enslavement to the US dollar, has failed to materialise. Worse still, the “fraudulent US dollar note” that the Gold Dinar was billed to replace has become the preferred tax-raising currency for Isis when collecting payments for the limited utilities it supplies.
So will 2015’s financial decline be fatal for Isis? The simple answer is no. The complexities of the conflict across Syria and Iraq mean that, for as long as the current chaos continues and the international community remains divided in its approach to confronting the various factions fighting in this five-year long war, the group will thrive in some form: a diminished version of its current incarnation, or a restructured and refocused group turning to criminality and tapping new sources of funding such as the regional or global drugs trade harnessed so effectively by Hezbollah.
The financial boom of 2014 is a distant memory for Isis. What surplus it had has surely been spent as the international community has undermined its earnings power through the removal of territory and the destruction of its lucrative oil assets and infrastructure.
2016 is set to see further financial decay. But while this may inhibit the group’s activity across Syria and Iraq, operations in “new markets” such as Libya, Egypt, and Western Europe seem likely to ensure the group’s survival for some time yet.

by Tom Keatinge - 25 February 2016 4:32am
Tom Keatinge is director of the Centre for Financial Crime & Security Studies at the Royal United Services Institute, and a former investment banker at JP Morgan.

http://www.cityam.com/235336/islamic-state-earnings-call-why-the-terrorist-groups-2014-financial-boom-is-a-distant-memory-but-the-2015-decline-wont-be-fatal

Calz

26th February 2016, 14:31

100 rebel groups???

No wonder this is such a nightmare ...

_______________

Solid progress: Nearly 100 rebel groups sign up to Syrian ceasefire deal

Sputnik
Fri, 26 Feb 2016 13:57 UTC

The Syrian opposition High Negotiations Committee (HNC) said on Friday that nearly 100 rebel groups have agreed to the recently negotiated Russian-US ceasefire in the Arab republic.

As co-chairs of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG), Moscow and Washington announced a plan for a ceasefire between the Syrian government and rebel forces starting this Saturday.

The ceasefire does not apply to Daesh jihadist group or other designated terrorist organizations, including al-Nusra Front.

http://www.sott.net/article/313109-Solid-progress-Nearly-100-rebel-groups-sign-up-to-Syrian-ceasefire-deal

Hervé

26th February 2016, 14:46

Minsk Violations - Mercenaries Discovered - Ukrainian Indiscipline (http://russia-insider.com/en/donetsk-blog-feb-25-new-localities-seized-mercenaries-recognised-marauding/ri13059)

Irina Burya (http://russia-insider.com/user/13780) 07 seconds ago

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/s400/public/-3.jpg?itok=4V9RrF6m (http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/-3.jpg)

This is a new, and, we hope, not long-lived feature on Russia Insider. Ukraine’s civil war is still very much ongoing. Both sides are exchanging fire. Civilians and soldiers continue to die on both sides.

DONi was recently founded by a Finnish journalist and Russian businessman whom we know, and we have every reason to believe that their reporting can be relied on as truthful. More information about the agency follows below this report.

Due to its slow, simmering nature, events in Novorossiya rarely make headlines, so people forget there is a real war going on.

Donetsk, Thursday, Feb 25, 16.30 pm. Exclusive to Russia Insider

(Attn readers: this is frequent feature - if you would like to have clarification of facts mentioned here, additional information, more explanation of why certain events are happening, please ask us in the comments section, or email the author at: i.burya@dninews.com This will help us provide you with information you want to have.)

Over the past two days the intensity of shelling has decreased. The 207 incidents of shelling reported by the DPR Defense Ministry are a less terrifying experience than the roughly 800 incidents of shelling before. Nevertheless they still threaten the lives of civilians and cause a considerable damage to their homes. According to the Ministry, the latest shelling resulted in two civilians being wounded in a suburb of Donetsk and a 10-year-old boy suffering shell-shock in Gorlovka, a city to the north of the capital of the DPR.

The heavy shelling forced the DPR Ministry of Transport to suspend repair works on the segment of the railway that had been damaged by a Ukrainian sabotage group several days ago. This part of the railway is the main line for transporting coal mined in the DPR, in particular to Ukraine. Due to the explosion, coal supplies to Ukraine were stopped. However, Kiev seems more interested in destruction of the DPR infrastructure than in the unencumbered functioning of Ukrainian industry.

The threat posed to civilian life and property forces the DPR Army to return fire. Over the past two days the Ukrainian military authorities have reported receiving 102 incidents of shelling on their positions by the DPR Armed Forces, indicating that both sides are not observing the ceasefire.

(Credibility - DONi closely follows the reports of the governments of the DPR and their Ukrainian counterparts and secures independent confirmation when possible. In our experience, the DPR’s claims are correct approximately 95% of the time, whereas official Ukrainian reports are almost never correct, and for all appearances, deliberately so.)

Under intensive artillery cover, Kiev continues to seize localities within the buffer zone delineated by the Minsk negotiations. Two days ago, during the heaviest shelling, Ukrainian social networks exploded with posts celebrating the taking by Ukrainian forces of one such locality near Donetsk, even though such creeping advances represent open violations of the Minsk Agreement.

Today the press service of the Ukrainian military headquarters has confirmed this fact, adding that another small town in the south of Donbass is also under Ukrainian control. Besides this, the OSCE mission reported the presence of six Ukrainian infantry fighting vehicles in yet another locality within the grey zone that is supposed to be totally demilitarized.

The OSCE international observers also informed that they had not been allowed to inspect a checkpoint of the Ukrainian forces in the Lugansk region. It is possible that Kiev in such a way tries to prevent detection of foreign mercenaries quartered in these areas. DPR intelligence has repeatedly reported from their sources on the ground of the observation of English-, Polish- and Arabian-speaking soldiers near the front line.

Several days ago the LPR Defense Ministry also reported of the existence of a group of 30 soldiers, apparently belonging to a US private military company, located in an elite cottage settlement in the north of the Lugansk region. The settlement is heavily guarded by Ukrainian soldiers: its perimeter is patrolled and the entrances have checkpoints. According to local residents, the unit provides protection to the OSCE representatives as well as trains the Ukrainian military.

Kiev previously always insisted that foreign mercenaries were merely being used as instructors for Ukrainian forces. However, two days ago it was officially announced that US snipers are to take part in the hostilities in Donbass on the Ukrainian side. At a press conference of the Georgian National Legion, which became a part of the nationalist battalion Kievan Rus, one of these snipers was introduced as already a member, with ten more to follow.

The Ukrainian authorities need mercenaries because their own army is collapsing. DPR intelligence has repeatedly reported of extremely low morale in the regular-army units, demonstrated by their constant drinking, marauding, and fighting of each other. Two days ago in the south of Donbass there was a fire at a local market that partially destroyed the main source of provision for the locals. According to Ukrainian media a probable cause of fire was violation of fire safety rules in using electrical appliances. The town residents, however, informed that the market had been set alight by Ukrainian soldiers after they plundered it while searching mostly for alcohol.

Aside from increasing the numbers of mercenaries on the front line, Kiev also reportedly continues to amass weapons and equipment there. According to DPR intelligence, over the past two days alone, one 220mm “Uragan” MLRS, eleven 152mm and 120mm motorised artillery systems, 38 tanks, 11 infantry fighting vehicles, four mortars and one 85mm anti-tank cannon D-44 has arrived on the front line. (See pictures below for weapons mentioned).

In addition, OSCE observers have noted in their latest report the presence of previously undocumented military equipment. It would seem that in terms of weapons and military equipment, Kiev is guided more by its plans to escalate the conflict than by the Minsk Agreement to resolve it.

---------------------

The Donetsk International News Agency is a private, non-profit information agency located in the center of the city of Donetsk. It is headed by Finnish journalist, Janus Putkonen and has 10 full time journalists on staff. Approximately half of them are natives of Western European countries. Its website is: www.dninews.com (http://www.dninews.com)

Hervé

26th February 2016, 15:10

Putin Hopes US Understands Terrorists Not Protected by Syrian Ceasefire (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160226/1035389582/putin-terrorism-fight-syria.html)

Politics (http://sputniknews.com/politics/)14:29 26.02.2016(updated 14:55 26.02.2016) Get short URL

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/304752/large/1034041936.jpg
© Sputnik/ Alexei Druzhinin

Vladimir Putin hopes his American partners understand that the fight against terrorism in Syria should continue even after the ceasefire goes into effect.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Russia hopes the United States understands that the fight against Daesh as well as against other terrorist groups in Syria must continue even after the cessation of hostilities agreement goes into effect (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160226/1035379818/russia-anti-terror-campaign-syria.html), Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday.

“However, I would like to emphasize once again that the groups of Daesh, al-Nusra Front, and other terrorist organizations recognized as such by the UN Security Council are not included [in the agreement]. The decisive fight against them will obviously continue. I would like to express my hope that no one has forgotten that besides IS there are still other terrorist organizations, as I have said already, that have been acknowledged as such by the UN Security Council,” Putin said during a meeting with the members of the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB).

Earlier this week, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov told RIA Novosti that Russia and the United States were in talks over the preparation of the draft UN Security Council resolution. The draft will reportedly be put up for a vote on Friday. On Monday, the United States and Russia (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160224/1035253055/russia-us-cessation-hostilities.html), the co-chairs of the International Syria Support Group (ISSG), announced a plan for a cessation of hostilities between the warring parties in Syria to go into effect on Saturday, February 27. The agreement has been approved by the other 17 members of the ISSG.

Syria has been in a state of civil war since 2011, with the army loyal to President Bashar Assad fighting several opposition factions and militant organizations, including Daesh terrorist group, which is banned in a number of countries, including Russia and the United States.

Related:
Out to Win: Why Syria Ceasefire Deal is a Huge Victory for Russia (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160225/1035354086/syria-ceasefire-russia-victory.html)

Calz

26th February 2016, 15:53

Anyone else see a problem here???

http://www.pic4ever.com/images/121.gif

________________

Kerry: 30,000 US Troops Needed for “Safe Zone” in Syria

Safe zone would risk confrontation with Russia

Kurt Nimmo | Infowars.com - February 25, 2016

Secretary of State John Kerry took his “Plan B” to the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations on Wednesday. He said a proposed “safe zone” in Syria would require between 15,000 and 30,000 US troops.

“Our Pentagon estimates that to have a true safe zone in the north of the country you may have upwards of fifteen to thirty thousand troops. Now are we ready to authorize that? Are we ready to put them on the ground?” Kerry said.

The Obama administration previously discounted the idea of establishing a safe zone. On July 23 retired U.S. general John Allen said an “air exclusion zone” inside Syria was not “part of the conversation” with Turkey during negotiations allowing US planes to use the Incirlik Air Base in Turkey to conduct airstrikes in Syria and Iraq.

http://www.infowars.com/kerry-30000-us-troops-needed-for-safe-zone-in-syria/

Hervé

26th February 2016, 17:00

What that "Safe Zone" is intended to be used for:

Terrorists Receive New Arms Cargos from Turkey (http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13941205000571)

Wed Feb 24, 2016 2:46

http://media.farsnews.com/media/Uploaded/Files/Images/1394/11/24/13941124000451_PhotoI.jpg

TEHRAN (FNA)- The terrorists stationed in the Northern outskirts of Lattakia city have been equipped with new cargoes of weapons reportedly coming from Turkey.

The new batch of arms includes BM-21 122-mm Grad multiple rocket launchers, sources said on Wednesday.

Lattakia is a province bordering Turkey. The Syrian army and popular forces have recently pushed the militant groups back from more territories in the Northern part of Lattakia province and took back several villages and heights.

Earlier this week, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said that more than 80 nations, particularly Turkey and Saudi Arabia, have provided financial, logistical and material assistance to terrorist groups, who are fighting in Syria.

The Syrian leader described foreign sponsorship as "active" and "unlimited." Some of those countries support radicals "directly with money, with logistical support, with armaments, with recruitments," he noted in an interview with Spain's El Pais newspaper.

Others help "them politically, in different international forums", he added.

Assad accused Saudi Arabia of being the key financial backer of the militants, who are trying to overthrow him. He also urged the international community to prevent "other countries, specially Turkey, from sending more recruits, more terrorists, more armaments, or any kind of logistical support" to terrorists, if it wants to see an efficient ceasefire in Syria.

Hervé

26th February 2016, 18:02

Iraqi Commanders: Volunteer Forces to Continue Mosul Battle Despite US Pressures (http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13941205001355)

Wed Feb 24, 2016 6:40

http://media.farsnews.com/media/Uploaded/Files/Images/1394/04/13/13940413000765_PhotoI.jpg

TEHRAN (FNA)- The Iraqi volunteer forces (Hashd al-Shaabi) commanders reiterated that they are determined to continue their tough battle against the ISIL in a bid to take full control of the city of Mosul in Northern Iraq, and said that they will pay no heed to the US pressures aimed at preventing them from doing so.

"We are committed to the Iraqi government's decision that the Iraqi volunteer forces should play an active role in the battles against the Takfiri terrorists in Mosul," Spokesman of Iraq's Ansarullah al-Nujaba Movement Hashem al-Moussavi told FNA on Wednesday.

He reiterated that the volunteer forces are waiting for the Iraqi government's decision before moving towards Mosul.

"The US and the regional spy agencies are seeking to trouble the Iraqi volunteer forces' partnership in the war against the ISIL in Mosul, but to no avail," al-Moussavi added.

In a relevant development on February 16, A senior Iraqi volunteer forces commander underlined that his forces are determined to continue their war against the ISIL in the city of Fallujah.

"The US and some pro-US Iraqi politicians intend to exert pressure on the Iraqi government to prevent the volunteer forces from entering the Fallujah city, but the volunteer forces will not bow to such pressures," Hassan al-Sari told FNA.

He underlined that some Iraqi political figures are dissuading the volunteer forces at the order of the US.

"The Iraqi volunteer forces will never given in to the demands of a few individuals who are not well-wishers of Iraq and are linked to the ISIL," the Iraqi commander added.

In early February, Iraqi security sources disclosed that Washington is exerting pressure on the Baghdad government to end volunteer forces partnership in war against ISIL and dissolve the militia army that has the lion share in the war on terrorism in the country.

"The US government has conveyed the message to the Iraqi government through its diplomats that there is no need to Hashd al-Shaabi forces and their role should come to an end," a senior Iraqi source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told FNA. "Battlefield and security intel indicate that the Iraqi government is also stepping in this path," the source added.

Meantime, the Iraqi volunteer forces have reacted to the leaked intel by warning against any regional and international attempts to put an end to their life and operation.

In relevant remarks in early November, al-Sari underlined that the US is doing its best to weaken his country's popular forces to block their further advances in key provinces.

"The US is exerting a lot of pressure to weaken the Iraqi volunteer forces and prevent them from advancing towards Salahuddin and Anbar provinces," al-Sari told FNA.

He said that the Americans are trying hard to prevent the Iraqi volunteer forces from entering and capturing the city of Fallujah that is under the control of the ISIL now.

Al-Sari, however, reiterated that the Iraqi volunteer forces have maintained their readiness and will continue the fight against the ISIL until achieving all their goals.

In late November, Iraqi volunteer forces discovered and seized US-made military hardware and ammunition in captured terrorists' positions.

The Iraqi forces discovered US-made military hardware and ammunition, including missiles, in terrorists' command center in Salahuddin province, informed sources said.

The ISIL Takfiri terrorists currently control shrinking swathes of Syria and Iraq. They have threatened all communities, including Shiites, Sunnis, Kurds, Christians, Ezadi Kurds and others, as they continue their atrocities in Iraq.

Senior Iraqi officials have blamed Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and some Persian Gulf Arab states for the growing terrorism in their country.

Rocky_Shorz

26th February 2016, 19:13

Saudi and UAE military aircraft have arrived at the Incirlik airbase in southern Turkey. Turkish authorities announced Thursday that Saudi warplanes set to be used in the fight against ISIS would shortly arrive in the country.

The planes are to be stationed at the Incirlik base, which is already hosting US, British and French war planes taking part in the strikes against IS fighters in Syria.

Earlier, private NTV television said four Saudi F-15 jets would arrive at Incirlik on Friday. It said that 30 ground personnel and equipment had already arrived aboard C-130 Hercules military transport planes on Tuesday.

Ankara has said it is in favour of a ground operation in Syria, but only if it is conducted in coordination with Saudi Arabia and other Western and Gulf members of the anti-ISIS coalition.

"We have since the beginning argued for the necessity of ground operations and all kinds of strategic moves to be carried out in addition to the air campaign," Turkish foreign minister said. link (http://english.alarabiya.net/en/News/middle-east/2016/02/26/GCC-military-equipment-personnel-arrive-at-Turkey.html)

Calz

26th February 2016, 21:43

Would take a supercomputer to keep track of what the heck is going on here.

No chance there as the high end quantum stuff is busy with the amerikans with the AI Jade Helm (don't tell me you fell for it was simply an exercise)

Mastering the human domain ... hey you guys that still have a soul ... wtf are you doing???

Pepe Escobar: Midnight in Damascus

Pepe Escobar
Sputnik
Fri, 26 Feb 2016 20:39 UTC

Imagine you are part of a hardcore, heavily weaponized Islamist outfit in Syria.

You would have had until noon this Friday to contact the US and/or Russia military and win a prize; be part of a "cessation of hostilities," ersatz "ceasefire" that does not apply to ISIS/ISIL/Daesh and Jabhat al-Nusra, a.k.a. al-Qaeda in Syria, as well as assorted remnants of the former Free Syrian Army (FSA) who are for all practical purposes embedded with al-Nusra.

Compounding the drama, as background noise you have US Secretary of State John Kerry bluffing that Plan B is the partition of Syria anyway. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov once again had to call for order in the court.

So what do you do? You're a Washington-approved "moderate rebel". So you re-label yourself as FSA. Will you fool the task force set up by the US and Russia — hotline included — to monitor the "ceasefire"? Well, at least you've got a shot. The "ceasefire" mostly applies to the Syrian Arab Army (SAA), unspecified "moderate rebels" and the Syrian Kurds. Everyone must de-weaponize by midnight this Friday.

If you've skipped the deadline, you may be in serious trouble. Because for the Russians, that qualifies you as an ally of Salafi-jihadis. You will be bombed to smithereens. And there's nothing Uncle Sam can do to save you.

This positively Dadaist development is what passes for a road map to peace in Syria — even though odds are on Washington and Moscow will be seeing red on virtually every nook and cranny of it.

What this might spell out though goes way beyond Syria; it's all about the White House, the Pentagon and NATO's spectacular demise as exceptionalist arbiters and executioners — using Shock and Awe, R2P (responsibility to protect) or straight-up regime change — of geopolitical tangles.

Or is it?

A hefty case can be made whether the "ceasefire" benefits Damascus and Moscow — considering the "4+1" (Russia, Syria, Iran, Iraq plus Hezbollah) has been heavily on the offense. The "ceasefire" may certainly benefit Washington if the hidden agenda — to re-weaponize gaggles of "moderate rebels" — still applies. After all Pentagon supremo Ash "Empire of Whining" Carter, Marine General Joseph Dunford and CIA Director John Brennan are terminal Russophobes who will never admit defeat.

The vague terms of the "cessation of hostilities" do not explicity specify that Washington, London and other members of the US-led-from-behind "coalition" should stop bombing Syrian territory. And there's nothing about suicide bombs and chemical weapons routinely used by any outfit, from ISIS/ISIL/Daesh to "moderate rebels", against the civilian Syrian population.

So there's got to be some heavy-duty horse-trading between Washington and Moscow behind all the shadowplay. And none of it has leaked, at least not yet.

Daddy Stole My Invasion

Meanwhile, the much-ballyhooed joint invasion of Syria by Turkey and Saudi Arabia is not going to happen because His Masters' Voice vetoed it — as Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu was forced to explain. He essentially admitted that the invasion would need the agreement of all members of the US-led-from-behind coalition fighting ISIS/ISIL/Daesh. Unfortunately, they are scared to death of being decimated by the Russian Air Force. So they might as well cozily revert to the "cessation of hostilities" charade.

On what really counts — the Syrian theatre of war — the most pressing issue is whether the SAA will finally be able to control Aleppo and environs, continue to rule in Latakia, and manage to configure Idlib as a Saudi remote-controlled Army of Conquest enclave cut off from almost all sides and depending solely on Ankara, which for its part won't dare a face-to-face with the Russian Air Force.

It's no wonder Turkey's Sultan Erdogan fears this ceasefire business like the plague. Because he's got nothing; at best a vague promise, extorted by Team Obama, that Syrian Kurds won't keep advancing to smash either ISIS/ISIL/Daesh along the border, or pockets of al-Qaeda in Syria.

In return, Ankara shall desist from its Syrian invasion and that dream of a 10 km "safe zone" inside Syrian territory to keep away the Kurds and facilitate the re-weaponizing of its Islamist proxies. Ankara's favorite Jabhat al-Nusra, by the way, remains active north of Aleppo, and in the Turkmen regions of Latakia and Azaz (in the Turkish-Syrian border).

What Team Obama seems to have finally understood — and "seems" is the operative word — is that neither ISIS/ISIL/Daesh nor al-Nusra could ever "unify" Syria; assuming 60% of Syria's population is Sunni, what matters is that over half are secular and do support Damascus against all those Turk/Saudi-supported Salafi-jihadi crazies.

Will this all be enough to assure the success of the "cessation of hostilities" charade? Hardly. Keep calm and carry on (watching). Plan B remains Return of the Living Dead material.

http://www.sott.net/article/313148-Pepe-Escobar-Midnight-in-Damascus

Hervé

27th February 2016, 19:57

Newly Translated WikiLeaks Saudi Cable: Overthrow the Syrian Regime, but Play Nice with Russia (http://levantreport.com/2016/02/25/newly-translated-wikileaks-saudi-cable-overthrow-the-syrian-regime-but-play-nice-with-russia/)

by Brad Hoff (http://levantreport.com/author/levantreport/) February 25, 2016

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1f/Bashar_al-Assad_in_Russia_%282015-10-21%29_06.jpg
(Image Source: Wiki Commons)

IT IS NO SECRET that Saudi Arabia, along with its Gulf and Western allies, has played a direct role (http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/24/world/middleeast/us-relies-heavily-on-saudi-money-to-support-syrian-rebels.html?_r=0) in fueling the fires of grinding sectarian conflict that has kept Syria burning for the past five years. It is also no secret that Russian intervention has radically altered the kingdom’s “regime change” calculus in effect since at least 2011. But an internal Saudi government cable sheds new light on the kingdom’s current threats (http://www.cbsnews.com/news/turkey-saudi-arabia-threaten-ground-troops-syria/) of military escalation in Syria.

Overthrow the Regime “by all means available”
A WikiLeaks cable (https://www.wikileaks.org/saudi-cables/doc110212.html) released as part of “The Saudi Cables” (https://wikileaks.org/saudi-cables/press) in the summer of 2015, now fully translated here for the first time, reveals what the Saudis feared most in the early years of the war: Russian military intervention and Syrian retaliation. These fears were such that the kingdom directed its media “not to oppose Russian figures and to avoid insulting them” at the time.

Saudi Arabia had further miscalculated that the “Russian position” of preserving the Assad government “will not persist in force.” In Saudi thinking, reflected in the leaked memo, Assad’s violent ouster (“by all means available”) could be pursued so long as Russia stayed on the sidelines. The following section is categorical in its emphasis on regime change at all costs, even should the U.S. vacillate for “lack of desire”:

The fact must be stressed that in the case where the Syrian regime is able to pass through its current crisis in any shape or form, the primary goal that it will pursue is taking revenge on the countries that stood against it, with the Kingdom and some of the countries of the Gulf coming at the top of the list. If we take into account the extent of this regime’s brutality and viciousness and its lack of hesitancy to resort to any means to realize its aims, then the situation will reach a high degree of danger for the Kingdom, which must seek by all means available and all possible ways to overthrow the current regime in Syria. As regards the international position, it is clear that there is a lack of “desire” and not a lack of “capability” on the part of Western countries, chief among them the United States, to take firm steps… Amman-based Albawaba News (http://www.albawaba.com/loop/saudi-cables-translation-document-bring-down-syrian-regime-716790)—one of the largest online news providers in the Middle East—was the first to call attention to the WikiLeaks memo, which “reveals Saudi officials saying President Bashar al-Assad must be taken down before he exacts revenge on Saudi Arabia.” Albawaba offered a brief partial translation of the cable, which though undated, was likely produced in early 2012 (based on my best speculation using event references in the text; Russia began proposing informal Syrian peace talks in January 2012 (http://english.alarabiya.net/articles/2012/01/30/191474.html)).

Russian Hardware, a Saudi Nightmare
Over the past weeks Saudi Arabia has ratcheted up its rhetoric on Syria, threatening direct military escalation and the insertion of special forces on the ground, ostensibly for humanitarian and stabilizing purposes as a willing partner in the “war on terror.” As many pundits are now observing (http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/02/23/how-obama-lost-the-mideast-to-putin.html), in reality the kingdom’s saber rattling stems not from confidence, but utter desperation as its proxy anti-Assad fighters face defeat by overwhelming Russian air power and Syrian ground forces, and as the Saudi military itself is increasingly bogged down (https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/concerns-in-saudi-arabia-over-signs-of-more-military-involvement-in-syria/2016/02/21/76ef6008-d588-11e5-b195-2e29a4e13425_story.html?postshare=7881456149713628&tid=ss_tw-bottom) in Yemen.

Even as the Saudi regime dresses its bellicose rhetoric in humanitarian terms, it ultimately desires to protect the flow of foreign fighters into Northern Syria, which is its still hoped-for “available means” of toppling the Syrian government (or at least, at this point, permanent sectarian partition (http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/feb/23/john-kerry-partition-syria-peace-talks) of Syria).

The U.S. State Department’s own 2014 Country Report on Terrorism (http://www.state.gov/j/ct/rls/crt/2014/239403.htm) confirms that the rate of foreign terrorist entry into Syria over the past few years is unprecedented among any conflict in history: “The rate of foreign terrorist fighter travel to Syria – totaling more than 16,000 foreign terrorist fighters from more than 90 countries as of late December – exceeded the rate of foreign terrorist fighters who traveled to Afghanistan and Pakistan, Iraq, Yemen, or Somalia at any point in the last 20 years.”

According to Cinan Siddi (http://explore.georgetown.edu/people/sc778/), Director of the Institute for Turkish Studies at Georgetown’s prestigious School of Foreign Service, Russian military presence in Syria was born of genuine geopolitical interests. In a public lecture recently given at Baylor University, Siddi said that Russia is fundamentally trying to disrupt the “jihadi corridor” facilitated by Turkey and its allies in Northern Syria.

The below leaked document gives us a glimpse into Saudi motives and fears long before Russian hardware entered the equation, and the degree to which the kingdom utterly failed in assessing Russian red lines.

For the first time, here’s a full translation of the text
THE BELOW original translation is courtesy of my co-author, a published scholar of Arabic and Middle East History, who wishes to remain unnamed.
Note: the cable as published in the SaudiLeaks trove appears to be incomplete.

[…] shared interest, and believes that the current Russian position only represents a movement to put pressure on him, its goals being evident, and that this position will not persist in force, given Russia’s ties to interests with Western countries and the countries of the Gulf.

If it pleases Your Highness, I support the idea of entering into a profound dialogue with Russia regarding its position towards Syria*, holding the Second Strategic Conference in Moscow, working to focus the discussion during it on the issue of Syria, and exerting whatever pressure is possible to dissuade it from its current position. I likewise see an opportunity to invite the head of the Committee for International Relations in the Duma to visit the Kingdom. Since it is better to remain in communication with Russia and to direct the media not to oppose Russian figures and to avoid insulting them, so that no harm may come to the interests of the Kingdom, it is possible that the new Russian president will change Russian policy toward Arab countries for the better. However, our position currently in practice, which is to criticize Russian policy toward Syria and its positions that are contrary to our declared principles, remains. It is also advantageous to increase pressure on the Russians by encouraging the Organization of Islamic States to exert some form of pressure by strongly brandishing Islamic public opinion, since Russia fears the Islamic dimension more than the Arab dimension.

In what pertains to the Syrian crisis, the Kingdom is resolute in its position and there is no longer any room to back down. The fact must be stressed that in the case where the Syrian regime is able to pass through its current crisis in any shape or form, the primary goal that it will pursue is taking revenge on the countries that stood against it, with the Kingdom and some of the countries of the Gulf coming at the top of the list. If we take into account the extent of this regime’s brutality and viciousness and its lack of hesitancy to resort to any means to realize its aims, then the situation will reach a high degree of danger for the Kingdom, which must seek by all means available and all possible ways to overthrow the current regime in Syria.

As regards the international position, it is clear that there is a lack of “desire” and not a lack of “capability” on the part of Western countries, chief among them the United States, to take firm steps […]

*[in the Arabic text: Russia, but this is a typo]

Hervé

27th February 2016, 21:22

Kurdish Women Protest in France, Draw Attention to Turkey's Atrocities (http://sputniknews.com/world/20160227/1035446774/women-kurds-protests.html)

World (http://sputniknews.com/world/) 15:12 27.02.2016
(updated 15:20 27.02.2016)

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/305076/large/1035447154.jpg
© AFP 2016/ MIGUEL MEDINA

Kurdish women continue to protest Ankara's ongoing atrocities against Kurds in the mainly-Kurdish town of Cizre in Turkey's southeast and elsewhere in the region.

http://cdn5.img.sputniknews.com/images/103499/42/1034994261.jpg
© REUTERS/ Sertac Kayar Turkey Traps: 'Ankara Wages Psychological Warfare Against Kurds' (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160220/1035083149/turkey-kurds-war.html)

Kurdish women will continue to hold protest rallies in Strasbourg against Ankara's ongoing atrocities against Kurds (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160219/1035046348/ankara-adopting-terror-methods-war-against-kurds.html)living in the mainly Kurdish town of Cizre in southeastern Turkey's Sirnak province, according to Nursel Kilic, a representative of the Kurdish Women's Movement in Europe. In an interview with Sputnik, Nursel Kilic, who represents the Kurdish Women's Movement in Europe, said that the protests are being held in front of the buildings of the Council of Europe (http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160125/1033661615/pace-assembly-migration-challenge.html) and the European Court of Human Rights.

She recalled that in addition to Cizre, the violence shows no sign of abating in other towns throughout southeastern Turkey, where Turkish irregular troops have stepped up their activity.

http://cdn3.img.sputniknews.com/images/103544/61/1035446169.jpg
© REUTERS/ Rodi Said Kurdish people carry flags as they march during a protest in the city of al-Derbasiyah, on the Syrian-Turkish border, against what the protesters said were the operations launched in Turkey by government security forces against the Kurds, February 9, 2016

Cizre (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160204/1034220358/turkey-kurds-cizre.html) has been under curfew for the past 76 days, which has resulted in civilians being cut off from receiving medical supplies, water and electricity, she said, adding that a total 200 Kurds were recently killed in Turkish air and artillery strikes on predominantly Kurdish towns in Turkey's southeastern regions.

"In Cizre, the death toll included students, rights activists, journalists as well as even month-year-old babies who became a target for Turkish strikes," Kilic said. She also claimed that the Turkish army's military operation against Kurds in Cizre continues despite the Erdogan administration's words to the contrary. This, she said, has been confirmed by photos obtained by the Kurdish Women's Movement in Europe.

"The operation is still under way despite the Turkish Interior Minister announcing the end of the operation two weeks ago. Every day we get photos from [Cizre], including those showing burned bodies of Kurds, which confirm that the operation is in full swing," Kilic said. She lamented the fact that Turkish authorities have prevented the High Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe from visiting Cizre for "security reasons."

"It seems that hurdles are being made in order to ensure that the truth will never come out at the international community level," she added.
http://cdn5.img.sputniknews.com/images/103485/52/1034855211.jpg
© Flickr/ Kurdishstruggle (https://www.flickr.com/photos/kurdishstruggle/15601037101/) Turkish Prime Minister Claims Syrian Kurds Following PKK Orders (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160223/1035214851/turkish-pm-kurds-pkk.html)

On February 11, Turkey's Interior Minister Efkan Ala said that the anti-terrorist operation in Cizre had wrapped up, but that the curfew will remain in place for some time. In December 2015, the Turkish authorities declared a curfew in a number of southeastern regions where armed clashes between Ankara's forces and Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK)'s fighters continue. The Turkish General Staff has said that about 850 PKK militants have been killed since mid-December. Kurdish activists, in turn, argue that most of the dead were civilian victims.

http://cdn2.img.sputniknews.com/images/103543/45/1035434598.jpg
© Sputnik/ Kurdish women in Europe protest against Turkish atrocities in Cizre

Hervé

28th February 2016, 03:02

PressTV documentary: Dirty Game - Imported Mercenaries (http://www.sott.net/article/313231-PressTV-documentary-Dirty-Game-Imported-Mercenaries#)

Harrison Koehli Sott.net (http://www.sott.net/article/313231-PressTV-documentary-Dirty-Game-Imported-Mercenaries#) Wed, 20 Jan 2016 01:07 UTC

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/304386/large/700x350c50.jpg (http://www.sott.net/image/s15/304386/full/700x350c50.jpg)

This is a great resource, providing insight not only into how Syrians see the conflict in which they find themselves, but also into the true nature of Daesh. Aside from the obvious American/Israeli support, these two quotes from the production sum it all up:

"No human being can do such horrible things. No one with human nature commits such savage crimes."
--Ashwaq Abbas, Political Sciences Lecturer, Damascus University And the ones that do have a name: psychopaths.

"These groups commit crimes only against Muslims. Show us what positive measures these groups have taken so far. Have they gone to Palestine?"
--Nabil al-Halbavi, Syrian member of AhlulBayt World Assembly The fact is, the people most in danger from so-called Islamic terror are Muslims. Daesh has killed far more Muslims in Iraq and Syria than any other group. Think about that the next time you see someone even slightly "Arab-looking" and feel a bit nervous. And if they're Syrian, not only have they had to deal with barbaric groups like Daesh back at home; they also have to deal with the barbaric bigotry of Westerners who are convinced every Muslim is a potential terrorist. Statistically speaking, it's an utterly absurd notion.

WARNING: Graphic Content!

uq7cX6M0Rn4

Hervé

29th February 2016, 16:27

Erdogan Steps up Proxy War Against US, Uncle Sam Finally Hits Back (http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/erdogan-steps-proxy-war-against-us-uncle-sam-finally-hits-back/ri13103)

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/40x40/public/userphoto/1.jpg?itok=SE3AbkvzMarko Marjanović (http://russia-insider.com/user/1406) Russia Insider (http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/erdogan-steps-proxy-war-against-us-uncle-sam-finally-hits-back/ri13103) Mon, 29 Feb 20161 hour ago

Meanwhile the western media shrugs its shoulders at Erdogan's in-your-face cultivation of ISIS

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/s400/public/0420-0905-0722-4020_a_military_jet_taking_off_from_an_aircraft_carrier_o.jpg?itok=JVL08oQj (http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/0420-0905-0722-4020_a_military_jet_taking_off_from_an_aircraft_carrier_o.jpg)
Uncle Sam springs into action

Finally it has happened. Finally Erdogan has pushed the envelope so far that Washington not only stood its ground but pounded his assets into minced meat. As we reported (http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/nato-bombs-itself-syria-us-airstrikes-target-isis-militants-coming-turkey/ri13093) this Saturday ISIS militants made a push for for the Kurdish held town of Tel Abyad on the Syrian-Turkish border from Turkish territory.

And it's not us saying these guys are ISIS, it's Reuters (http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-mideast-crisis-syria-telabyad-idUKKCN0W00EQ), the anti-Assad Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, and Sky News (http://news.sky.com/story/1650104/war-planes-strike-six-towns-in-syria).

In other words Erdogan had staged its own Bay of Pigs style invasion of Syria – but using ISIS as its Cuban exiles. This was too much even for the United States (or at least the Pentagon) which promptly dispatched planes to back the Kurds.

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/1200xauto/public/abyad.jpg?itok=6Ka7Urm9
Tell Abyad (yellow icon) is nowhere near ISIS' access to Turkey
(dark grey = ISIS/DAESH, yellow = Kurds, red = Syrian Army, light greenish grey = Turkey, light grey = non-occupied desert)

Firstly, we should take a moment to truly comprehend and appreciate the level of Ankara's cynicism here. Tell Abyad is nearly 100 kilometres away from the nearest ISIS-held crossing on the Syrian-Turkish border at Jarabulus. There is simply no way ISIS could have covered this distance without the cooperation of Turkey. Indeed, if Russians are to be believed (http://syria.liveuamap.com/en/2016/28-february-russian-mindef-claims-turkish-army-units-goes) Turkey had no intention of even pretending it wasn't behind the offensive but actually openly backed it with its artillery.

What an insane sight: artillery of NATO member Turkey and ISIS suicide car bombers (https://twitter.com/markito0171/status/703900584273944576) working in tandem to soften up the enemy.

That enemy being the Kurdish-dominated SDF (http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/turkey-now-waging-proxy-war-against-us-syria/ri12955) which brings us to our second point; the quick and no nonsense reaction of the US. Erdogan's frustration with the US refusal to cut ties with the Kurds is understandable. As is his anger at the Kurds' increasingly sealing the Turkish-Syrian border and reducing his influence on the Syrian war. However, it is unclear what he thought he could accomplish in this instance.

US had been willing to accommodate Erdogan and back off of its support for the Kurds in north-western Syria where there is a hodge-podge of various different factions and where the US is also pursuing its Syria regime change war and looking benevolently on Turkish-backed jihadis who may accomplish that.

However, in the north-eastern Syria, where ISIS and the Kurds are the only game in town, the US support for Kurdish militiamen has always been absolute. YPG captured Tell Abyad in 2014 with US air cover in the first place. Turkey may have its red lines in the west, but here it's the US which draws its own red lines – Erdogan crossed one and his proxies paid the price.

As a final point, where is the western mainstream media on this? President of NATO member Turkey has just organized his own merry little troupe of ISIS head choppers and sent them to invade a neighboring state from his territory.

None of this is in dispute or controversial – it's western reporting which is saying the invasion force was ISIS and struck from Turkey. So then where is the outrage? Where are the condemnations? Where are the calls for Turkey to finally be brought into line?

Or is that only reserved for Russia?

Calz

29th February 2016, 18:11

Finally it has happened. Finally Erdogan has pushed the envelope so far that Washington not only stood its ground but pounded his assets into minced meat.

If so ... that is quite an interesting development.

At the same time it opens up yet more questions/confusion than answers.

Hervé

3rd March 2016, 03:34

Indeed:

Couldn't Make It Up: This Is How Mad the War in Syria Has Become (http://russia-insider.com/en/one-fact-show-just-how-messed-war-syria-has-become/ri13104)

Mark Nicholas (http://russia-insider.com/en/mark_nicholas) Mon, Feb 29, 2016

Madness explained in two lines

Fact number #1: Turkey is sponsoring ISIS up to the point of facilitating ISIS offensives into Syria from Turkish territory (http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/erdogan-steps-proxy-war-against-us-uncle-sam-finally-hits-back/ri13103)

Fact number #2: US has the use of Turkish airbases (http://news.yahoo.com/us-deploys-ground-attack-10-planes-turkey-155644211.html) which it uses to fly air sorties against ISIS in Syria

Ergo:

Theoreticaly US planes could be flying from Turkey into Syria to hit Ankara-backed militants who are also attacking from their Turkish bases into Syria.

Meditate on that.

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/s400/public/obama_live-696x465.jpg?itok=v6XhIMqa (http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/obama_live-696x465.jpg)

Hervé

3rd March 2016, 14:27

Kurds claim downing of Turkish helicopter bombing them over Iraqi Kurdistan - reports (https://www.rt.com/news/334377-turkish-helicopter-downed-kurdistan/)

Published time: 3 Mar, 2016 08:42
Edited time: 3 Mar, 2016 14:04

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/306081/large/56d7f767c46188324e8b4608.jpg
© Umit Bektas / Reuters

Reports have emerged that Kurds have shot down a helicopter over Iraqi Kurdistan, which they say was used in airstrikes against them. Turkish officials have made no comment, but a source confirmed to RT that the incident took place.

Previously Ankara acknowledged conducting airstrikes on alleged PKK targets in Iraq. Turkish military is also targeting Kurds inside the country and shelling Kurdish militias in northern Syria.

One sortie apparently went wrong for a Turkish assault helicopter as Iraqi Kurdish militia claim they shot the aircraft down.

Kani Xulam, from the American Kurdish Information Network, told RT that official Ankara would refrain from reporting any losses in operations against the Kurds, striving to portray the Turkish military as “an invincible power that cannot be beaten.”

The Turkish authorities are aiming to make the Kurds submit to them and “come down on their knees,” he said.

Xulam said “scores of Turkish soldiers” were taken prisoner by the Kurds with the Turkish government never acknowledging such facts.

In the case of the allegedly downed helicopter, there is no reference about the incident in Turkish media, yet the story is now emerging in Kurdish media, Xulam said.

No Turkish military losses ever make it into national mainstream media, Middle East political analyst Shwan Zulal told RT.

The Kurdish PKK militia, which may be responsible for the alleged downing of the Turkish helicopter, traditionally remains idle during the harsh winter months. However, it will be active from the beginning of spring, which explains why Turkey has recently been shelling Kurdish positions in the mountains, Zulal said.

With the military operation against the Kurds ongoing in Turkey for months now, the violence is likely to escalate further, Zulal predicted.

The Turkish military has been operating against Kurdish PKK militia in northern Iraq since the early 1990s.

In September 2015, the Turkish parliament prolonged a mandate allowing the deployment of its military in neighboring Syria and Iraq to fight Kurdish militants.

Early last December, Ankara started carrying out airstrikes targeting Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) forces in northern Iraq.

Tensions have recently spiked between Ankara and Baghdad after Turkey deployed more than 100 troops equipped with tanks and artillery to Iraq’s northern Nineveh governorate, saying they will train forces battling Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL).

Hervé

4th March 2016, 15:06

Somebody is making money to cause others' misery...

20,000 uniforms bound for ISIS, Al-Nusra Front seized in Spain (VIDEO) (https://www.rt.com/news/334535-isis-uniforms-seized-spain/)

Published time: 4 Mar, 2016 14:09
Get short URL (http://on.rt.com/764n)

https://cdn.rt.com/files/2016.03/original/56d9923ac46188873a8b45c0.jpg

Spanish police have confiscated 20,000 battle uniforms destined for jihadists of the Middle East, likely Islamic State and Al-Nusra Front. The uniforms were prepared for dispatch in three containers under the guise of second-hand clothes.

The Interior Ministry believes that the “roughly 20,000 military uniforms and accessories” confiscated, bound for destinations controlled by Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) and Al-Qaeda affiliate Al-Nusra Front in Syria and Iraq would enable terrorists to “equip an entire army,” it said in the statement.

“The containers which carried the military uniforms were declared as secondhand clothes so as not to raise suspicions and be able to pass different customs inspections without any difficulty,” the statement said.

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The camouflage uniforms were packed in large bundles hidden among used clothes.

Spanish police revealed that one of the companies run by the detained suspects was specializing in importing second-hand clothes. One of the arrested used this second-hand clothing company for dispatching “military material, money, electronic and transmission material, firearms and precursors for making explosives” to Syria and Iraq, police said.

The operation took place nearly a month ago, yet Spain's Interior Ministry only announced the results on Thursday.

https://cdn.rt.com/files/2016.03/original/56d99262c3618896188b45c2.jpg

“Two of the three containers were intercepted at a port in Valencia and one at Algeciras in an anti-terror operation conducted on February 7. The containers were being shipped to areas controlled by IS and Al-Nusra Front in Iraq and Syria,” said the ministry.

Spanish law enforcement also arrested seven suspects, thus neutralizing “very active and efficient business network,” whose primary purpose was to supply, maintain and strengthen Islamic extremists, the police statement said. The arrested individuals provided logistic and financial services to Islamists, maintaining a continuous flow of supplies to terrorists.

Last month, Europol officials called attention to the fact that unknown number of jihadists could have infiltrated into the EU via the poorly-controlled influx of asylum seekers coming into Europe.

Between 3,000 and 5,000 EU citizens trained in IS terror camps as so-called ‘foreign fighters’ have returned to Europe and pose a “completely new challenge,” acknowledged Rob Wainwright, Europol’s director.

According the continent’s top cop, “Europe is currently facing the highest terror threat in more than in a decade.”

The seizure in Spain of five tons of military goods destined to such a “schizophrenic” terrorist group as IS serves proof that there are established international networks illegally serving terrorist interests, Gorka Castillo, a journalist and Middle East expert from Madrid, told RT Spanish.

“It demonstrates once again that the ongoing worldwide black cash flow serves interests of such terrorist groups as Daesh [Arabic pejorative term for IS],” Castillo said, noting that filters the Spanish authorities use to screen asylum seekers are not exactly effective, just like the policies pursued by the EU in order to restrain terrorist groups financially.

Hervé

4th March 2016, 15:47

EXCLUSIVE: Turkey ‘protects & supplies’ Al-Nusra camps at its border – Syria’s YPG to RT (https://www.rt.com/news/334483-turkey-nusra-ypg-exclusive/)

Published time: 4 Mar, 2016 05:04
Edited time: 4 Mar, 2016 14:24
Get short URL (http://on.rt.com/7637)

https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/647541642262540288/unkB0btd_bigger.jpg Lizzie Phelan ‏@LizziePhelan (https://twitter.com/LizziePhelan)
2.&just a few km from Nusra controlled Azaz that #Turkey (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Turkey?src=hash) is determined 2 prevent YPG from taking.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/CcimsvkUsAEvaOY.jpg

Jabhat Al-Nusra terrorists have pitched their camps right next to the border and receive regular supplies from the Turkish side, Syrian Kurdish forces told RT’s Lizzie Phelan, who traveled with YPG to investigate suspicious activity there.

An RT crew has filmed a number of vehicles coming through the Bab al-Salam crossing on the Turkish-Syrian border, on the outskirts of the northern town of Azaz, which is partially controlled by Al-Nusra, according to reports.

“We can actually see here the important border town of Azaz, that Turkey is determined to prevent YPG from taking. Just a little beyond that you can see the Bab al-Salam border crossing and a heavy flow of vehicles coming from Turkey into Azaz,” the RT correspondent said, reporting from the Turkey-Syria border, an area that TV crews rarely gain access to.

“When we zoom in we can see Turkish military vehicles, probably around a kilometer away, maybe less. And just in front here's another small village that YPG say Al-Nusra uses for training,” Phelan said.

“Beyond that we can see the Turkish flag flying, that’s on the Turkish side of the border, and through there the YPG says they monitor a regular supply of weapons coming from Turkey to that Al-Nusra camp.”

iwe9Xy0hJHI

According to the Kurds, after the terror group was excluded from the ceasefire, Al-Nusra have taken down most of their flags, which would give their location away and invite airstrikes. However, the RT crew still managed to film some flags flying above their positions.

YPG are unequivocal about Turkey’s sponsorship of terrorist groups in Syria.

Head of the YPG in Afrin, Abdu Khalil, says Turkey is definitely providing support for terrorist groups in the area.

“Turkey wanted to make a coalition against terrorism, but any country which would be in a coalition against terrorism should not open its border to Al-Nusra Front,” he said.

“When there is a Kurdish prisoner, when he is in Turkish hands, they deliver him to Al-Nusra Front, whereas a wounded man from Islamic State who is in a Turkish hospital: he gets immunity and guards. No one can even look at him. What more evidence do you want than that?”

Abdu Khalil also said that some of the corpses that they found on the battlefield "that belong to Al-Nusra Front were of Turkish origin and we even found IDs and passports. And the ammo we found in their warehouses - closed boxes of ammo - they were closed and stamped by the Turkish government. We even found clearance documents to allow [the boxes of ammo] cross the borders which proved that they were approved to cross the borders."

Ankara says its direct strikes against the YPG are justified due to its links with the Turkish-based militant group the PKK, which Turkey has recently resumed its war against at home.

The rebel fighters on the ground say they are certain Turkey is providing assistance to IS, Al-Qaeda and Al Nusra.

“The reason Turkey is on the ground is to support groups like Al-Qaeda. Support for ISIS is coming from Turkey. They are shelling because it wants to occupy our land, not to help our people. Turkey dismissed many of the armed groups, and supported Al Nusra against us,” Abu Jouma Benawii, a general in the FSA and co-founder of Jaish al-Thuwar (Army of Revolutionaries), told RT.

“Our fronts against the regime have stopped, but our fronts against ISIS are going on and against Al Nusra as well. We are committed to the ceasefire, one million percent,” he added.

Asked if he would have changed his mind about joining the uprising, Abu Jouma Benawii said in hindsight:
"Really I would have changed my mind, because everybody contributed to destroying Syria, at the beginning and the end it is only the people who lose."

“Had we known that Syria’s friends would be like this, we wouldn’t have been with them. All our people were forced to flee," he added.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently said Turkey has the right to carry out military operations not only in Syria, but in any other country hosting terror groups that threaten the Turkish state. He alleged that Ankara’s stance has “absolutely nothing to do with the sovereignty rights of the states that can’t take control of their territorial integrity.”

“On the contrary, this has to do with the will Turkey shows to protect its sovereignty rights,” Erdogan added.

Turkish forces have been shelling YPG, which Ankara considers a terrorist organization, as well as government army positions in Syria, since mid-February. The bombings of YPG targets, the military wing of the Democratic Union Party (PYD), have been underway despite the US, Ankara's ally, viewing the Kurdish fighters as a vital partner in fighting Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL).

There were reports of dozens of Turkish military vehicles crossing into Kurdish northern Syria, with servicemen digging trenches in the area. Turkey’s “provocative” military buildup on the border and shelling of the Syrian territory could thwart the fragile truce and disrupt the peace process in the Arab Republic, the head of the Russian ceasefire monitoring center Lt. Gen. Sergey Kuralenko said this week.

The ceasefire in Syria, which came into force on February 27, brokered by leading world powers, including the US and Russia, is designed to pave the way to reconciliation between the Syrian government and moderate rebel forces. They would together agree on a peaceful transition in the country. Some of the forces in Syria, including IS and Al-Nusra, are not subject to the ceasefire.

Experts have been criticizing moderate rebel forces, but even they think that the situation is shifting now.

Moderate rebels used to be “a fable, a pure lie,” Syrian political analyst Taleb Ibrahim told RT.

“Everyone remembers what happened to the rebels who had been trained in Turkish camps by the CIA, and when they returned to Syria, and turned to Al-Nusra Front”.

However, the situation is starting to change slowly, as more and more Syrian rebel fighters “discover that they are destroying their country and serving external plans to divide Syria.”

Russian aircraft continue to carry out airstrikes against Al-Nusra front militants to “stabilize the situation” in the regions north of the city of Aleppo, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.

There have been at least 31 violations of the Syrian ceasefire over the past three days, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday, adding that during the same period the number of local ceasefire agreements between various factions had increased to 38.

Related:
Dozens of Turkish military vehicles cross Syria border, dig trenches – report (https://www.rt.com/news/332924-turkish-vehicles-cross-syria/)
Russia presents proof of Turkey’s role in ISIS oil trade (http://on.rt.com/6y7b)

Hervé

5th March 2016, 22:23

'Everyone is being framed', journalist deported from Turkey tells RT amid govt media takeover (https://www.rt.com/news/334674-turkey-media-takeover-zaman/)

Published time: 5 Mar, 2016 20:27
Get short URL (http://on.rt.com/768i)

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/306618/large/CcvOPsQWIAATd5y.jpg (http://www.sott.net/image/s15/306618/full/CcvOPsQWIAATd5y.jpg)
Riot police use tear gas to disperse protesting employees and supporters of Zaman newspaper at the courtyard of the newspaper's office in Istanbul, Turkey March 5, 2016.

The latest government takeover of the Zaman media outlet in Istanbul is "not a surprise at all," a journalist who had been working in the country told RT, adding that "the press has never been free in Turkey."

"Everybody who opposes them [the government], every journalist who is against the government is being framed. I was framed as a terrorist supporter and Zaman is linked to the Gulen movement – which is a movement of a religious Turkish leader [Sunni cleric Fethullah Gulen] who is based in the US, and they say he is trying to stage a coup against the government. So now Zaman journalists and people who read Zaman are being framed as coup supporters, that's how the government is doing it," Frederike Geerdink, Dutch freelance journalist who was deported from Turkey last year, told RT.

On Friday, the Istanbul-based Turkish-language Zaman newspaper, which has been sharply critical of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, was ordered into administration by a court decision. Following the order, which the outlet journalists proclaimed an "unlawful takeover," the paper's editor-in-chief Abdulhamit Bilici was fired by trustees, while police put barbed wire around the headquarters.

"All content management systems at Zaman" have also been blocked by the new administration, Zaman's sister publication in English, Today's Zaman, said, with its journalists covering the situation via social media and posting updates on Twitter.

"All internet connection is cut off at the seized Zaman building by police raid," they posted, adding that after the takeover of the headquarters in Istanbul, Ankara office has also "lost access to company internal servers."

Government affiliates have also taken under control and blocked access to the outlet's Cihan news agency, Today's Zaman reported, adding that it is "the only news agency that was monitoring elections besides state-run Anadolu."

iz8t0QYz8j8
"It's not a surprise at all. Several of the government newspapers have in the last couple of weeks hinted at this [takeover] already, and other media who are linked to the Gulen movement have come under the same procedure with trustees," Frederike Geerdink, who has herself been prosecuted in Turkey "for making propaganda for a terrorist organization," said.

The journalist told RT that she has been in contact with one of Zaman's employees, who told her weeks ago that they had been "having a difficult time" because of government pressure. Zaman was losing advertisers and readers, "because if you work for the state you cannot be seen with Zaman under your arm, as it can lead to losing your job," the Dutch journalist was told by her Turkish colleague.

"Zaman was being attacked for months," she said, but added that the current situation with the media in the country "is not something new."

Two years ago, one of Today's Zaman journalists, Azerbaijan national Mahir Zeynalov, was deported from Turkey after having worked at the Turkish newspaper for years. The reporter was facing prosecution related to a tweet, his employers said, adding that a complaint against Zeynalov was filed by then PM Erdogan, accusing the journalist of "defamation and inciting public to hatred."

"People now think that Erdogan invented the lack of press freedom in Turkey - which is totally not true. He takes it to extreme heights – that's definitely true, but the press has never been free in Turkey," Geerdink told RT. "For example, 20 years ago nobody could go to the southeast to report on the realities there. At the time it was the army that was censoring the press, and now Erdogan is using the same mechanisms to silence opponents," she said.

Not only government-owned media outlets are being biased in Turkey, the Dutch journalist said. Some are under indirect, economic pressure.

"Most of the big papers and big channels, also the ones we call 'mainstream' which are not necessarily total mouthpieces of the government, have economic ties to the government, because they are part of big companies, and have to report in line with general government policy. [Otherwise] these companies lose contracts in the telecom market," Geerdink said, adding that CNN Turk – which hasn't been covering the Zaman protests, is one example.

"CNN Turk cancelled two rather popular talk shows of people who are not really in line with the government - and that is another problem in Turkey," she said.

Related:
RT reporter teargassed in Istanbul as Zaman ‘take-over’ protest enters 2nd day (https://www.rt.com/news/334635-istanbul-zaman-protest-tear/)

Hervé

5th March 2016, 22:41

ISIS Lines Collapsing as Syrian Army Closes in on Palmyra, Raqqa (http://russia-insider.com/en/isis-lines-collapsing-syrian-army-closes-raqqa/ri13187)

Paul Kaiser (http://russia-insider.com/en/paul-kaiser) 38 minutes ago

With the ceasefire largely holding, the Syrian Army and its allies can now focus on destroying ISIS

With the fragile ceasefire largely holding, the Syrian army and its allies have driven eastward into ISIS-held territory. And they've made significant gains in the last week (https://almasdarnews.com/article/syrian-army-pushes-north-towards-isis-controlled-quraytayn/):

On Friday morning in the southeastern countryside of the Homs Governorate, the Syrian Arab Army’s 120th Brigade of the 2nd Division – in close coordination with the National Defense Forces (NDF), Liwaa Suqour Al-Sham (Desert Hawks Brigade), and Dara’ Qalamoun (Qalamoun Shield) – continued their advance towards the strategic city of Quraytayn, striking the Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham’s (ISIS) positions at the important hilltop of Tal Quraytayn. ISIS is now facing attacks on at least 3 fronts:

https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/559828642444738562/L2yx4yfJ_bigger.jpeg Bosno Sinj ‏@BosnjoBoy (https://twitter.com/BosnjoBoy)

BREAKING. #ISIS (https://twitter.com/hashtag/ISIS?src=hash) lines collapsing in E.Qalamoun, Rebels advancing on 3 axis. #Syria (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Syria?src=hash) #Damascus (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Damascus?src=hash) #Homs (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Homs?src=hash) provinces

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cct7U9XUsAAq9rT.jpg
In the southeast, the Syrian army is also closing in on the ancient city of Palmyra (https://almasdarnews.com/article/russian-air-force-hammers-isis-east-homs-syrian-army-advances-palmyra/):

While the Russian were busy hitting ISIS positions in eastern Homs, the Syrian Arab Army’s 67th Brigade of the 18th Tank Division was zeroing in on the ancient city of Palmyra, where they're attempting to advance to from two different flanks.

The Syrian Arab Army’s 67th Brigade – in close coordination with Liwaa Suqour Al-Sahra (Desert Hawks) – continued their advance inside Al-Dawa in the Palmyra countryside, seizing almost the entire village after a violent battle with ISIS. Meanwhile, to the northeast of Al-Dawa, the Desert Hawks and Panther Forces imposed full control over the small hilltop of Tal Halawa near the Ancient Palmyra Quarries. This map shows just how close they are:

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/1200xauto/public/palmyra_0.png?itok=5hStcvCn
The SAA controls the red areas; ISIS controls the grey

Of course, seizing the Caliphate's "capital" of Raqqa is still the end goal, and would have tremendous symbolic value for Assad and his allies (https://almasdarnews.com/article/isis-capital-in-danger-as-syrian-army-and-kurdish-fighters-approach-map-update/):

[G]overnment forces have advanced along the M45-highway (Hama to Raqqah) and reached the western fringes of ar-Raqqah province while also completely repelling the ISIS offensive which had the government supply route to Aleppo cut last week. Meanwhile, Kurdish fighters of the People’s Protection Units (YPG) and Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) have taken firm control of the northern region of the ar-Raqqah governorate. Last year, Kurdish forces won a last-minute battle against ISIS at Kobane city. Moreover, the YPG seized upon vital momentum and remarkably captured the entire Turkish-Syrian border area which stretches from ar-Raqqah to Hasakah together with hundreds of ISIS-held villages. A map of the advance on Raqqa:

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/1200xauto/public/Raqqah-Map_0.jpg?itok=1bOOJNzB

Russian airstrikes have been critical to the rapid advance. And speed is of the essence: As long as ISIS remains a serious threat in Syria, Turkey and Saudi Arabia can use it as an excuse to "intervene."

Wide-Eyed

5th March 2016, 23:07

norman

5th March 2016, 23:27

Oh waw, just imagine what those Russian special op's guys have found out about the real sources of ISIS weapons etc.

Hervé

6th March 2016, 16:59

I finally found a simple, suitable map with most names of provinces and cities for both Syria and Iraq:

http://www.veteranstoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/iraq_syria_map.png

Hervé

6th March 2016, 17:21

Syria: Political Breakthrough at Hmeimim? (http://www.veteranstoday.com/2016/03/06/syria-political-breakthrough-at-hmeimim/)

By South Front (http://www.veteranstoday.com/author/southfront/) on March 6, 2016

Original by Aleksandr Kots published by Komsomolskaya Pravda (http://www.kp.ru/daily/26502.7/3369965/); translation by J.Hawk

https://southfront.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/2016-03-05-19_22_29-%D0%A1%D0%B8%D1%80%D0%B8%D0%B9%D1%81%D0%BA%D0%B0%D1%8F-%D0%BE%D0%BF%D0%BF%D0%BE%D0%B7%D0%B8%D1%86%D0%B8%D1%8F_-%C2%AB%D0%9C%D0%BE%D0%B6%D0%B5%D1%82-%D1%85%D0%B2%D0%B0%D1%82%D0%B8%D1%82-%D0%B2%D0%BE%D0%B5%D0%B2%D0%B0%D1%82%D1%8C_%C2%BB-Tor-Browser1.jpg

A meeting which without any exaggeration can be called historic just took place at the Russian airbase at Hmeimim, which is the location of the Ceasefire Coordinating Center (CCC). Leaders of various opposition movements and armed formations, who have fought against Syrian government forces for years, assembled behind one table. Remarkably, the meeting took place at the opposition’s initiative.

–We trust Russia, said Meis Kreidi, who spent a long time abroad as a member of the opposition. –We finally have peace in our land thanks to Russia’s support. We have finally taken the first steps toward ending the war.

Meis Kreidi represents the For Democratic Syria organization. She was a member of delegations discussing Syria’s problems in Moscow.

–Starting with February 27, Syrian population’s conditions have been improving. And I would like to say only one thing: perhaps we’ve had enough fighting? I believe that now is the time for a political dialogue. Our country needs a new constitution. We need to involve all the factions, all field commanders and muftis. Everyone except the terrorists, there is no place for them on Syria’s soil. God willing, we will establish the transition council in the near future. After negotiations, we will be able to adopt a new constitution, hold democratic elections, and promote the Syrian people’s trust in the government. Big thanks to the Russian Federation!

Ms. Kreidi was supported by the National Conference party General Secretary Ilyan Mansad. His party is in favor of a unitary secular state.

–We are the only organization supporting a unitary secular state. We organized the Front for Change and Liberation. Our organization consists of 15 parties. We believe that the new constitution can protect the Syrian people’s rights, and we can begin reforms with the constitution.

–Whoever sees one solution to any problem is wise and reasonable, concluded Sheikh Salih al-Harib, form the As-Salikhin mosque in Elda, Damascus Province. His people control Beit Sakhim. –He will undertake measures to solve that problem. Therefore our idea for dealing with this crisis is reconciliation. Even though we are not politicians, we understand that the political process, whether in Geneva or Vienna, will be very important for Syrians. It’s crucial that we understand the need to find a place for negotiations and ways to end the crisis. First of all, we know that Russia plays a big role in the SAR, since it is the initiator of the ceasefire. Secondly, it is the intermediary between all the parties to the conflict in order to find a solution.

The meeting was attended by other opposition representatives of the clergy who favor a peaceful resolution. Sheikh Anas al-Tayal is the imam of Al-Quiarim mosque, a moderate oppositionist controlling Baila in Damascus Province. His group together with al-Harib’s men expelled al-Nusra forces from their regions.

–There is a phrase in the Q’uran: peace is better than war, therefore we are adhering to that principle and are decided to reconcile. We are not saying it’s a reconciliation among Muslims. It’s reconciliation among all people. The most important prophet–and you know of whom I’m speaking–said: if you will reconcile people, all will be well. And peace is at the root of that. War does not lead to anything good.

The participants, who represented about 10 various movements and groups, agreed on the need to create an initiative group to craft the new constitution for Syria. Which would then be subject to a general discussion. There are still many disagreements with Damascus, however, they are in agreement on the most important: the need to preserve Syria’s integrity and sovereignty as a secular state.

Hervé

7th March 2016, 00:26

Al-Nusra militants in Syria shell Turkey to prompt return fire – Russian military (https://www.rt.com/news/334739-syria-militants-shell-turkey/)

Published time: 6 Mar, 2016 18:28
Get short URL (http://on.rt.com/76ab)

https://cdn.rt.com/files/2016.03/original/56dc638bc3618879398b461c.jpg
© Rodi Said / Reuters

Jihadists in Syria have been shelling the Turkish area in an apparent attempt to provoke a response that could lead to Ankara sending troops into the neighboring country, according to Russia’s truce center in Syria.

“On March 6, 2016 several militants of Jabhat Al-Nusra terror group repeatedly fired mortars at Turkish territory from the area near the Syrian settlement of Metishli,” Lieutenant General Sergey Kuralenko, Head of the Center for Reconciliation, said on Sunday.

“The actions of militants are aimed at provoking the Turkish military units to return fire and bring their troops into Syria, which will inevitably lead to the disruption of the peace process,” Kuralenko added.

He also stated that several Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) armed groups are stationed near the settlement Nusaybin in Turkey, some 1.5km from the Syrian border.

According to the information the Center has, these groups are preparing an attack on the settlement of Qamischli, located on the Syrian territory and populated mainly by Syrian Kurds.

The official also spoke about terrorists’ attempts to demonize the Syrian army and blame it for violations of the ceasefire.

“Staged clashes between two armed groups were filmed by terrorists near Narb-Nafsa settlement in Hama province. To add feasibility to what was happening the militants used real firearms, Molotov cocktails and a variety of simulation tools. They plan to use the footage of the so-called ‘armed conflict’ will be used to accuse the Syrian army of violating the agreement of the cessation of hostilities.”

According to the official press release of the Russian Reconciliation Centre on March 6, the center continues receiving ceasefire applications, as well as appeals for participating in the discussion of the new Syrian Constitution from representatives of opposition forces.

“In the course of the past 24 hours, preliminary agreements with elders of six towns located in the Damascus province have been achieved. The total number of towns, which joined the ceasefire agreements, remains 42. Thirty ceasefire application forms have been signed with leaders of armed groupings.”

However, it also states that the situation on the ground remains unstable, with 15 ceasefire violations have been registered in the course of last 24 hours and four civilians injured in attacks on inhabited areas and units of government troops in Damascus.

Meanwhile, the Russian Defense Ministry reports that in order to debar the ceasefire, IS militants have launched a headhunt to capture elders and administration leaders of Syrian towns, as well as field commanders of the “moderate” opposition, who had signed ceasefire agreements. The Russian Centre for Reconciliation says it will assist in providing security to these persons.

The release stresses that both Russian Aerospace and Syrian Air Forces did not strike any armed formations, which have been following the ceasefire agreement and have informed the Russian or American centers for reconciliation about their location.

Related:
Syrian ceasefire holds, paves way to transition – Putin, European leaders (https://www.rt.com/news/334566-syria-putin-europe-call/)

Hervé

8th March 2016, 13:58

Surprise! The EU Just Admitted That Ukraine Will Never Be a Member State (http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/surprise-eu-just-admitted-ukraine-will-never-be-member-state/ri13193)

Matthew Allen (http://russia-insider.com/en/matthew-allen) Sat, Mar 5, 2016

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker says that Ukraine will not be eligible for EU membership in the next 20-25 years. But the European Union won't exist in 25 years? Juncker is a funny guy.

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/s400/public/ukraine-eu-nope.png?itok=stp_3tkp (http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/ukraine-eu-nope.png)
'Euro-Maidan' just got a bit less 'Euro'

We don't know whether to laugh or cry. Via the Moscow Times (http://www.themoscowtimes.com/news/article/juncker-ukraine-to-remain-outside-eu-for-20-years/561506.html):

Ukraine will not be able to join NATO or the European Union for at least another 20 years, the European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker estimated on Thursday, Germany's DPA news agency reported.

“Ukraine will definitely not be able to become a member of the EU in the next 20-25 years, and not of NATO either,” Juncker was quoted by DPA as saying. This is a polite way of saying that Ukraine will neverbe part of the European Union. In 25 years, Europe will be 10 years into the Second Thirty Years' War, or the entire earth will have already been united under false pretenses to fight holographic space bugs, sort of like in "Starship Troopers", making EU membership irrelevant. What we're trying to say is: Ukraine went along with a US-backed coup, fought a brutal, destructive civil war, and got nothing but corruption, lies, and laws prohibiting public workers from criticizing the government (http://mobile.reuters.com/article/idUSKCN0W351A). The promise of EU membership was the carrot on the "selfie stick" that turned out to be a pile of rotten NATO mush.

None of the promises of "Euro-Maidan" were kept. None. The so-called reform government under Petro Poroshenko is now less popular than Yanukovich's government ever was (http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-02-23/orange-revolution-flashback-for-tymoshenko-as-ukraine-unravels):

Poroshenko’s party would win 16.6 percent if the vote was now, according to a poll released Tuesday by the Kiev International Institute of Sociology. Tymoshenko’s party would garner 15.1 percent, while support for Yatsenyuk’s Narodnyi Front plunged to 2.5 percent, from 22.1 percent in 2014, too little to enter parliament. The situation is so bad in Ukraine that politicians want (http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-02-23/orange-revolution-flashback-for-tymoshenko-as-ukraine-unravels) ex-Georgian President (and wanted fugitive) Mikheil Saakashvili as interim prime minister until new elections are held.

Juncker's admission, while unsurprising, is at least merciful: No more illusions about Ukrainian "integration" into Europe. Ukraine is nothing more than a tool for the west to exploit for economic purposes. And if America has its way, Ukraine will eventually be completely destroyed in the pursuit of provoking Russia. We're not too far from this outcome.

Anyway. When's the next Maidan?

Hervé

8th March 2016, 18:25

‘Truce hasn’t changed anything, terrorists intensified attacks’ – Aleppo residents to RT (https://www.rt.com/news/334881-syria-terrorists-shell-civilians/)

Published time: 8 Mar, 2016 11:28
Get short URL (http://on.rt.com/76e9)

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/307079/large/aleppo_371147.jpg (http://www.sott.net/image/s15/307079/full/aleppo_371147.jpg)
© Getty

Piles of rubble which once were houses, never-ending shelling and civilians who have nowhere to go – RT’s Lizzie Phelan visited the Kurdish-populated Aleppo district of Sheikh-Maqsood, which has been caught in the crossfire of terrorist artillery.

Having spent just two hours in Sheikh-Maqsood, Phelan said she rarely had a moment when she did not hear shelling. She passed by the ruins of a building which was leveled the day before. A whole family died there – four women and three children.

https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/647541642262540288/unkB0btd_bigger.jpg Lizzie Phelan ‏@LizziePhelan (https://twitter.com/LizziePhelan)
things just as bad in Sheikh Maksoud #Aleppo (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Aleppo?src=hash) post ceasefire. 4 kids & 3 women killed when this house attacked y'day

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cc9EF6SW4AAF5_e.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cc9EIylWAAAwaue.jpg

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Cc9EKXCWIAA2XBU.jpg

“We saw something flying towards the house and then there was an explosion. The building collapsed in just a few seconds,” their neighbor told the RT crew.

Phelan counted nine destroyed buildings in the neighborhood close to two front lines.

“It was definitely Al-Nusra,” a local girl told RT, referring to one of the recent attacks on the district. “They must have been targeting civilians because there are no fighters here. The only reason all these people were killed is because they lived in a district of strategic importance.”

The US-Russian agreement on a “cessation of hostilities” in Syria came into effect in late February. A total of 97 armed groups operating in Syria have agreed to the ceasefire. However, it does not not apply to Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL), Al-Nusra Front, or “other terrorist organizations” designated by the UN.

“For us the truce hasn’t changed anything. In fact, it’s even worse than before. Terrorists have intensified their attacks,” another resident said.

The Syrian Army insists that Al-Nusra Front, which is Al-Qaeda’s branch in Syria, and Islamic State maintain a strong presence everywhere in parts of the city held by the opposition.

Related:
ISIS & al-Nusra make ceasefire unlikely in Aleppo, Syrian troops tell RT (https://www.rt.com/news/333787-syria-ceasefire-aleppo-phelan/)

Hervé

9th March 2016, 17:37

Lula and the BRICS in a fight to the death (https://www.rt.com/op-edge/334904-brazil-brics-lula-economy-regime/)
(https://www.rt.com/op-edge/334904-brazil-brics-lula-economy-regime/)
Published time: 8 Mar, 2016 16:46
Get short URL (http://on.rt.com/76ew)

https://cdn.rt.com/files/2016.03/original/56defbc4c4618818528b4615.jpg
Former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva © Paulo Whitaker / Reuters

“BRICS” is the dirtiest of acronyms in the Beltway/Wall Street axis, and for a solid reason: the consolidation of the BRICS is the only organic, global-reach project with the potential to derail Exceptionalistan’s grip over the so-called “international community.”

So it’s no surprise the three key BRICS powers have been under simultaneous attack, on many fronts, for some time now. On Russia, it’s all about Ukraine and Syria, the oil price war, the odd hostile raid over the ruble and the one-size-fits-all “Russian aggression” demonization. On China, it’s all about “Chinese aggression” in the South China Sea and the (failed) raid over the Shanghai/Shenzhen stock exchanges.

Brazil is the weakest link among these three key emerging powers. Already by the end of 2014 it was (http://journal-neo.org/2014/11/18/brics-brazil-president-next-washington-target/) clear the usual suspects would go no holds barred to destabilize the seventh largest global economy, aiming at good old regime change via a nasty cocktail of political gridlock (“ungovernability”) dragging the economy to the mud.

Myriad reasons for the attack include the consolidation of the BRICS development bank; the BRICS’s concerted push for trading in their own currencies, bypassing the US dollar and aiming for a new global reserve currency to replace it; the construction of a major underwater fiber-optic telecom cable between Brazil and Europe, as well as the BRICS cable uniting South America to East Asia – both bypassing US control.

And most of all, as usual, the holy of the holies – connected with Exceptionalistan’s burning desire to privatize Brazil’s immense natural wealth. Once again, it’s the oil.

Get Lula or else
WikiLeaks had already exposed how way back in 2009 Big Oil was active in Brazil, trying to modify – by all extortion means necessary – a law proposed by former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, known as Lula, establishing profitable state-run Petrobras as the chief operator of all offshore blocks in the largest oil discovery of the young 21st century; the pre-salt deposits.

Lula not only kept Big Oil – especially ExxonMobil and Chevron – out of the picture but he also opened Brazilian oil exploration to China’s Sinopec, as part of the Brazil-China (BRICS within BRICS) strategic partnership.

Hell hath no fury like Exceptionalistan scorned. Like the Mob, it never forgives; Lula one day would have to pay, like Putin must pay for getting rid of US-friendly oligarchs.

The ball started rolling with Edward Snowden revealing how the NSA was spying on Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff and top Petrobras officials. It continued with the fact that the Brazilian Federal Police cooperate, receive training and/or are fed, closely, by both the FBI and CIA (mostly in the anti-terrorism sphere). And it went on via the two-year-old “Car Wash” investigation, which uncovered a vast corruption network involving players inside Petrobras, top Brazilian construction companies and politicians from the ruling Workers’ Party.

The corruption network is real – with “proof,” usually oral, rarely backed up by documents, obtained mostly from artful dodgers-cum-serial liars who rat on someone as part of a plea bargain.

But for the “Car Wash” prosecutors, the real deal was, from the beginning, how to ensnare Lula.

Enter the tropical Elliott Ness
That brings us to the Hollywood spectacular enacted last Friday in Sao Paulo that sent shockwaves around the world. Lula “detained,” interrogated, humiliated in public. This (http://sputniknews.com/columnists/20160306/1035858412/brazil-interrogation-petrobras-scandal.html) is how I analyzed it in detail.

Plan A for the Hollywood-style blitz on Lula was an ambitious double down; not only to pave the way for the impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff under a “guilty by association” stretch, but to “neutralize” Lula for good, preventing him from running for office again in 2018. There was no Plan B.

Predictably – as in many an FBI sting – the whole op backfired. Lula, in a political master class of a speech beamed live across the country, not only convincingly clad himself as the martyr of a conspiracy, but also re-energized his troops; even respectable conservatives vocally condemned the Hollywood show, from a minister in the Supreme Court to a former justice minister, as well as top economist Bresser Pereira, one of the founders of the PSDB – the former social democrats turned Exceptionalistan-allied neoliberal enforcers and leaders of the right-wing opposition.

Bresser actually stated the Brazilian Supreme Court should intervene on Car Wash to prevent abuses. Lula, for instance, had asked for the Supreme Court to detail which jurisprudence was relevant to investigate the accusations against him. Moreover, a lawyer on center stage during the Hollywood blitz said Lula answered all questions during the almost four-hour interrogation without blinking – questions he had already answered before.

Lawyer Celso Bandeira de Mello, for his part, went straight to the point: the Brazilian upper middle classes – which include a largely appalling lot wallowing in arrogance, ignorance and prejudice, whose dream is a condo in Miami - are fearful and terrified to death that Lula may run, and win again, in 2018.

And that brings us to the judge and executioner of the whole drama: Sergio Moro, Car Wash’s leading actor.

Moro’s academic career is hardly exciting. He’s not exactly a theorist heavyweight. He graduated as a lawyer in 1995 in a mediocre university in the middle of nowhere in one of Brazil’s southern states and made a few trips to the US, one of them financed by the State Department to learn about money laundering.

As I noted before, his chef-d’oeuvre is an article published way back in 2004 in an obscure magazine (in Portuguese only, titled Considerations about Mani Pulite, CEJ magazine, issue number 26, July/September 2004), where he clearly extols “authoritarian subversion of juridical order to reach specific targets” and using the media to intoxicate the political atmosphere.

In a nutshell, judge Moro literally transposed the notorious 1990s Mani Pulite (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mani_pulite) (“Clean Hands”) investigation from Italy to Brazil – instrumentalizing to the hilt mainstream media and the judiciary to achieve a sort of “total delegitimization” of the political system. But not the whole political system; just the Workers’ Party, as if the comprador elites permeating Brazil’s rightwing spectrum were cherubic angels.

So it comes as no surprise that Moro’s prime sidekick as Car Wash unrolled is the Marinho family’s oligopoly, the Globo media empire – a nest of reactionary, and not very clever, vipers who entertained very cozy relations with the Brazilian military dictatorship from the 1960s to the 1980s. Not by accident, Globo was informed about Lula’s Hollywood-style “arrest” way before the fact, allowing it to invest in CNN-style blanket coverage.

Moro is viewed by legions in Brazil as an indigenous Elliot Ness. Other lawyers who have closely followed his work though hint he harbors the warped fantasy of a Workers’ Party as a mob leeching and plundering the state apparatus with the aim of delivering it, in pieces, to trade unions.

According to one of these lawyers who talked to Brazilian independent media, a former president of the Lawyers’ Association in Rio, Moro is surrounded by a bunch of young fanatical prosecutors, with little juridical knowledge, and posing as the Brazilian Antonio di Pietro (but without the solidity of the “Clean Hands” Milanese prosecutor). Worse, Moro is oblivious that the implosion of the Italian political system led to the rise of Berlusconi. In Brazil, it would certainly lead to the rise of a clown/village idiot supported by the Globo empire, whose oligopolistic practices are quite Berlusconian.

The digital Pinochets
A case can be made that the Hollywood blitz on Lula holds a direct parallel to the first attempt at a coup d’etat in Chile in 1973, which tested the waters in terms of popular response before the real deal. In the Brazilian remix, assorted Globo media maggots pose as digital Pinochets. At least many a street in Sao Paulo now bears graffiti to the effect of “Military coup – Never again.”

Yes, because this is all about a white coup – in the form of a Rousseff impeachment and sending Lula to the gallows. But old (military) habits die hard; Globo media maggots are now extolling the Army to take to the streets to “neutralize” popular militias. And this is just the beginning. Right-wingers are getting ready for a national mobilization on Sunday calling for – what else – Rousseff’s impeachment.

Car Wash’s merit is to investigate corruption, collusion and traffic of influence in abysmally corrupt Brazil. But everyone, every political faction, should be investigated – including those representing Brazilian comprador elites. That’s not the case. Because the political project allied with Car Wash couldn’t care less about “justice”; the only thing that matters is to perpetuate a vicious political crisis as a means to drag the seventh largest economy in the world into the mud and reach the Holy Grail: a white coup, or good ol’ regime change. But 2016 is not 1973, and the whole world by now knows who’s a sucker for regime change.

https://img.rt.com/files/opinion/8a/00/00/00/21.bn.jpg (https://www.rt.com/op-edge/authors/pepe-escobar/)Pepe Escobar is an independent geopolitical analyst. He writes for RT, Sputnik and TomDispatch, and is a frequent contributor to websites and radio and TV shows ranging from the US to East Asia. He is the former roving correspondent for Asia Times Online. Born in Brazil, he's been a foreign correspondent since 1985, and has lived in London, Paris, Milan, Los Angeles, Washington, Bangkok and Hong Kong. Even before 9/11 he specialized in covering the arc from the Middle East to Central and East Asia, with an emphasis on Big Power geopolitics and energy wars. He is the author of "Globalistan" (2007), "Red Zone Blues" (2007), "Obama does Globalistan" (2009) and "Empire of Chaos" (2014), all published by Nimble Books. His latest book is "2030", also by Nimble Books, out in December 2015.

The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT.

Hervé

10th March 2016, 19:55

Western Reporter in Syria Finds U.S.-Backed Fighters Are Jihadists (http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2016/03/western-reporter-syria-finds-u-s-backed-fighters-jihadists.html)

by Eric Zuesse (http://www.washingtonsblog.com/author/eric-zuesse-2) March 9, 2016 (http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2016/03/western-reporter-syria-finds-u-s-backed-fighters-jihadists.html)

http://www.sott.net/image/s11/239097/full/fsa2.jpg

Eva Bartlett, an independent journalist who is the first Western reporter who has traveled through the areas of Syria that have been freed from jihadist control by the Syrian government with Russian air-support, is reporting, at the sott.net website (http://www.sott.net/article/313862-Syria-Dispatch-Most-Syrians-Support-Assad-Reject-Phony-Foreign-Revolution#searching), that everyone she speaks with has stories of horror to tell, and that in many instances the jihadists who were inflicting the horrors were U.S.-armed and backed, basically supported by Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Turkey — often “al-Nusra,” the Syrian branch of Al Qaeda. As Seymour Hersh (http://www.lrb.co.uk/v36/n08/seymour-m-hersh/the-red-line-and-the-rat-line) and others (http://nsnbc.me/2013/10/07/top-us-and-saudi-officials-responsible-for-chemical-weapons-in-syria/) have reported, the U.S. has worked with the Sauds, Qatar, and Turkey, to get men and weapons to al-Nusra.

For example:
In Latakia, many of the the over 1 million Internally Displaced Persons (http://www.globalresearch.ca/why-syria-is-winning-advancing-towards-a-strategic-victory-that-will-transform-the-middle-east/5468277) from Idlib, Aleppo and surrounding areas who are being housed and supported by the Syrian government spoke of the same heinous kidnappings, beheadings, and other crimes that most media currently only associate with Da’esh (ISIS), but which were perpetrated (with Turkish support) by the so-called FSA [that’s the Free Syrian Army, the people that the Obama Administration backs and calls ‘moderates’] and other terrorist factions.

A man from Harem, near the Turkish border, spoke of (https://ingaza.wordpress.com/2014/05/04/horrors-from-haram-nobbul-zahra/) being kidnapped by FSA terrorists, and of the decapitations of Harem residents, heads sent home in boxes.

“The terrorists attacked us, terrorists from Turkey, from Chechnya, and from Arab and other foreign countries. They had tanks and guns, like an army, just like an army. [The Sauds had bought those from the U.S.; the equipment is sent into Syria via Turkey.] For 73 days we were surrounded in the citadel of Harem. They hit us with all kinds of weapons. We had women and children with us. They showed no mercy. When they caught any of us, they slaughtered him, and then send his head back to us. They killed over 100 people, and kidnapped around 150… children, civilians, soldiers. Until now, we don’t know what’s happened to them,” he said (http://zeroanthropology.net/2014/10/26/useful-atrocities/).

People from the village of Kassab (http://www.crescent-online.net/2014/07/the-liberation-of-kassab-eva-bartlett-4531-articles.html) spoke of the joint Turkish-Nusra attack (http://www.globalresearch.ca/nato-and-turkeys-genocidal-war-on-syria/5377216) on their village in March 2014, of escaping with the help of Syrian soldiers, of the over 80 who were slaughtered, including 13 who were beheaded, and of the raping and plunder of their people and homes. “They raped our older women because they couldn’t find any girls,” one resident told me (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WV0j8KICrrk).

She said that in the city of Homs, when she was there in April 2014 (before the recent liberation of Homs by Syrian government forces):
Others spoke of (https://ingaza.wordpress.com/2014/06/24/freedom/) the sectarian slogans in the early protests in Homs, including the slaughtering of Alawis and the driving out of Christians.
In other words, the jihadists who were occupying Homs were killing non-Sunnis: Alawites are Shiites; and, of course, Christians are also non-Sunnis. Bartlett reports that when she visited Homs again in December 2015 (after the Russian bombing campaign — which President Assad had invited into Syria — started on September 30th), the locals “were preparing to celebrate Christmas for the first time in years.”

She also reports that:
In Sweida, a Druze [non-Islamic (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Druze), not merely non-Sunni] area southeast of Damascus which has largely fought off the attacks of militants since the beginning of the crisis in 2011, residents told me they had from very early on recognized the ‘revolution’ as a foreign plot against Syria. Druze leader, Sheikh Hammoud al-Hanawi (http://www.smh.com.au/national/cry-my-fathers-country-20140223-33b69.html) (known as Sheikh al-Aqel) reiterated what residents had said about this plot, and spoke of how Sweida’s young and old men have protected the region and stand with the Syrian Arab Army.
Near the close she says:
Wherever I’ve gone in Syria (as well as many months in various parts of Lebanon, where I’ve met Syrians from all over Syria) I’ve seen (http://www.ipsnews.net/2014/05/syria-life-goes-despite-everything/) wide evidence of broad support for President al-Assad. The pride I’ve seen in a majority of Syrians in their President surfaces in the posters in homes and shops, in patriotic songs and Syrian flags at celebrations (https://ingaza.wordpress.com/2014/04/21/easter-celebration-despite-sordid-realities-and-other-snippets-from-syria/) and in discussions with (https://ingaza.wordpress.com/syria/my-short-videoaudio-fromon-syria-and-syrians-many-links/) average Syrians of all faiths. Most Syrians request that I tell exactly what I have seen and to transmit the message that it is for Syrians to decide their future, that they support their president and army and that the only way to stop the bloodshed is for Western and Gulf nations to stop sending terrorists to Syria, for Turkey to stop warring on Syria, for the West to stop their nonsense talk about “freedom” and “democracy” and leave Syrians to decide their own future.
What she says is supported by Western-sponsored polls that have been taken of the Syrian public (http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2015/11/u-s-demands-there-be-no-democracy-in-syria.html). It’s not merely the people she has met in Syria. This — the fact that the Syrian people support overwhelmingly Assad’s leadership of their country — is the reason why the Obama Administration has been insistent that Assad must be overthrown and excluded from being a candidate, before there can be any elections to determine who should be Syria’s President (http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2015/11/twice-in-one-day-ban-ki-moon-condemned-obamas-actions-on-syria.html).

The U.S. regime is the enemy of democracy in Syria (and the Syrian public resent this (http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2015/09/polls-show-syrians-overwhelmingly-blame-u-s-for-isis.html)); the U.S. backs the Sunni Arabic royal families, and they’re unalterably opposed to democracy, because they fear their public. The American political system is far more sophisticated than theirs. For example, Obama said on 2 October 2015 (https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2015/10/02/press-conference-president),
“They’ve been propping up a regime that is rejected by an overwhelming majority of the Syrian population because they’ve seen that he has been willing to drop barrel bombs on children and on villages indiscriminately.” He blatantly lied. The American people trust their leaders’ lies. Consequently, America’s leaders aren’t nearly as afraid of their public as are the Arabic royal families of their public — not even if America’s leaders actually represent those royal families more than they do the U.S. public.

America’s leaders have PR; they don’t even need to post severed heads as warnings to their public (http://www.newsweek.com/2014/10/24/when-it-comes-beheadings-isis-has-nothing-over-saudi-arabia-277385.html).

In the U.S., deceiving the public (such as in this example (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-RyOaFwcEw)) achieves the desired degree of control.

Hervé

11th March 2016, 15:50

Interesting:

Mikhail Lesin, Ex-Putin Aide, Died of Blunt Force Trauma in Washington: Autopsy (http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/mikhail-lesin-ex-putin-aide-died-blunt-force-trauma-washington-n536456)

Mikhail Lesin, 57, was found dead on the floor of his room in Dupont Circle on November 5 (http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/former-putin-aide-found-dead-upscale-d-c-hotel-n459296).[2015] ... that's a bit over one month after Russia started air strikes in Syria...

Lesin served as Russia's Minister for Communications and Mass Media between 1999 and 2004, and later went on to run the media holdings of energy giant Gazprom. He also helped to create Kremlin-funded English-language news channel, Russia Today.

See also here (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?89366-Suicide-changed-to-murder-Mikhail-Lesin-Ex-Putin-Aide-Died-of-Blunt-Force-Trauma-in-Washington-Autopsy&p=1052587&viewfull=1#post1052587) (<---)

Hervé

12th March 2016, 14:25

Investigation Reveals US Funding Of "Color Revolutions" in Russia
(http://www.fort-russ.com/2016/03/investigation-reveals-us-funding-of.html)
Translated by Ollie Richardson for Fort Russ
11th March, 2016

Lenta (http://lenta.ru/news/2016/03/11/pelevina1/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter)

https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-A8RX-j4daXY/VuLaVD2a1GI/AAAAAAAAJFQ/n9IpYKrUTtELPo1nDZjpc-UYdX3UOCQlw/s640/pic_4c5247dc7f9a862c62fc82906cc72ff4.jpg (https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-A8RX-j4daXY/VuLaVD2a1GI/AAAAAAAAJFQ/n9IpYKrUTtELPo1nDZjpc-UYdX3UOCQlw/s1600/pic_4c5247dc7f9a862c62fc82906cc72ff4.jpg)
Natalia Pelevine (https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-A8RX-j4daXY/VuLaVD2a1GI/AAAAAAAAJFQ/n9IpYKrUTtELPo1nDZjpc-UYdX3UOCQlw/s1600/pic_4c5247dc7f9a862c62fc82906cc72ff4.jpg)

Seized documents confirm that an activist from the People's Freedom Party (PARNAS), Natalia Pelevine, was involved in foreign foundations that organized the mass riots on the 6th of May 2012. This was reported on the website of the Investigative Committee of Russia (SKR) on Friday, March 11th.

During the investigation into Pelevine, documents were seized on the financing of an oppositional "Committee on May 6th", the American "National Endowment for Democracy" (NED). According to the Investigation Committee, its activity was aimed at discrediting law enforcement bodies that were investigating the case about the mass disorder on Bolotnaya Square on the 6th of May 2012.

"The seized documents confirm the version of events put forward by the investigation about the involvement of foreign anti-Russian centers in the financing of mass riots to attempt a "color revolution" in Russia", — stated the message.

The investigation claims that, in the period from 2013 to 2014, NED gave Pelevine more than $35,000. Also, a receipt for the reception of money from relatives of those convicted of involvement in the unrest in May 2012 was found during the search.

A criminal case against Natalia Pelevine was initiated on March 11th. The case was initated after it was discovered she had used a pen with a built-in camera. She is suspected of committing a crime specified in article 138.1 of the Criminal code of the Russian Federation ("Illicit trafficking by special technical means intended to obtain secret information"). According to the investigators, Pelevine used a DVR-pen to record not only members of law enforcement, but also people from the opposition in order to later use these recordings for her own purposes. The message from the Investigatory Committee states that charges against Pelevine will be made in the near future.

As was noted by the SKR, Pelevine is the Executive Secretary of the "Independent Council for Human Rights", as well as the founder and Director of the American nonprofit organization Democratic Russia Committee ("International Committee for a Democratic Russia").

seko

13th March 2016, 16:44

http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/03/13/455511/Turkey-Syria-Lavrov-Russia-UN-YPG-Kurds-Moscow-Daesh

33037

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says Moscow has evidence that Turkish forces are on Syrian territory despite Ankara’s denial of troops’ entry to the war-torn Arab country.

Lavrov made the remarks in an interview with Ren-TV that was broadcasted on Sunday.

Last December, Moscow also said it has evidence Turkey is involved in the smuggling of oil from areas held by Daesh in Iraq and Syria. Ankara has strongly rejected the claim.

Russian Defense Ministry officials showed satellite images at a briefing in Moscow, revealing that tanker trucks loaded oil at installations controlled by Daesh in Syria and Iraq, before entering neighboring Turkey.

Turkish Defense Minister Ismet Yilmaz has rejected that Turkish forces have entered Syrian territory to help foreign-backed militants fighting against the Syrian government. Last month, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, however, said Saudi Arabia and his country could launch a ground operation in Syria.

Hervé

13th March 2016, 18:31

Israel steps up oil drilling in Golan (https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/charlotte-silver/israel-steps-oil-drilling-golan)

Charlotte Silver (https://electronicintifada.net/people/charlotte-silver) 8 March 2016

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/308019/large/eeheadshot.jpg
Afek (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/afek-oil-and-gas) chairperson Effie Eitam has ordered fatal beating of Palestinians and has expressed his desire for them to be killed. (Juda S. Engelmayer (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Effi_Eitam#/media/File:EeHeadshot.JPG))

Israel is moving forward with plans to drill for oil in the occupied Golan Heights (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/golan-heights), despite warnings that the move violates international law.

For the last year, Afek (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/afek-oil-and-gas), an Israeli subsidiary of the US firm Genie Energy (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/genie-energy), has undertaken exploratory drilling in the Golan. Afek believes there is a vast reservoir of oil under Syria’s (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/syria) Golan that could supply all of Israel’s energy needs.

In September 2015, Afek announced (http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4699008,00.html) it had discovered its first oil reservoir at one of the sites where it had been drilling.

Last month, the company was granted (http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-1.705391?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter) the go-ahead to conduct more drilling in the Golan by the Israeli authorities.

In response, Palestinian legal rights group Adalah (http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-1.705391?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=twitter) and Al-Marsad (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/al-marsad), the Arab Human Rights Center in the Golan Heights, wrote (http://www.adalah.org/en/content/view/8755) to Yuval Steinitz (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/yuval-steinitz), Israel’s infrastructure minister, demanding that the drilling permits be withdrawn.

In the letter, attorneys Suhad Bishara and Karama Abu Saleh reminded Steinitz that international law requires that residents of the Golan be able to control and benefit from the land’s resources.

Population expelled
In 1967, Israel occupied Syria’s Golan Heights, expelling most of the Syrian population.

Approximately 130,000 Syrians were driven out and most of the Golan’s 200 villages destroyed, according to a 2010 investigation (http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/the-disinherited-1.304959) by the Tel Aviv (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/tel-aviv) newspaper Haaretz.

Today, 22,000 Syrians belonging to the Druze (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/druze) minority community remain (http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-stakes-claim-golan-after-oil-find-913890970) amid a similar number of Jewish settlers. The settlers are spread out across 30 settlements, all of which are illegal under international law.

In 1981, Israel formally annexed the territory but governments around the world, including the United States, consider that annexation null and void (http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/un/un497.htm).

In 2006, the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution (http://www.un.org/en/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/61/184&Lang=E) that reaffirmed what it called the “inalienable rights” of the Arab population in the Golan over its natural resources.

As the occupying power, Bishara and Abu Saleh write, Israel is “prohibited from altering, transferring or confiscating immovable properties,” as well as looting the Golan’s resources.

The 1907 Hague Regulations (https://www.icrc.org/applic/ihl/ihl.nsf/0/1d1726425f6955aec125641e0038bfd6), a cornerstone of international law, state that an occupying power must “safeguard the capital of these properties.” Stealing resources from an occupied territory constitutes the crime of pillage (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/pillage).

But in December 2011, Israel’s high court (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/israeli-high-court) ruled (https://electronicintifada.net/content/stealing-palestines-resources-illegal-despite-israeli-court-ruling/10904) that Israel’s occupation is unique and not bound by the laws against pillage.

Indeed, Israel has already made profitable use of the Golan’s agricultural and water resources.

As journalist Jonathan Cook reported (http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-stakes-claim-golan-after-oil-find-913890970) recently, the company behind the drilling expedition may have its own ideological motivations for the oil venture.

“Depths of darkness”
The chairperson of Afek is Effie Eitam, a far-right former politician and military general, who is an Israeli settler in the Golan.

Eitam has previously ordered the beating (https://electronicintifada.net/content/we-will-have-kill-them-all-effie-eitam-thug-messiah/8555) of Palestinians, some of whom have died as a result. He has also made a series of racist comments telling (http://www.jeffreygoldberg.net/articles/tny/a_reporter_at_large_among_the.php) Jeffrey Goldberg of The New Yorker that Palestinians are “creatures who came out of the depths of darkness.”

“We will have to kill them all,” he said. At that time, in 2004, Eitam was Israel’s housing minister.

The members of the strategic advisory board of Afek’s parent company include Dick Cheney (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/dick-cheney), the former US vice-president, the media tycoon Rupert Murdoch (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/rupert-murdoch) and Larry Summers (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/larry-summers), the former secretary of the US treasury.

The last year has seen Israel attempt to intensify its grip on the Golan Heights, while Syria is consumed by bloodshed and war.

Israel has offered significant financial incentives (https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/patrick-strickland/israel-invests-millions-occupied-golan-heights-settlement-college) to its Jewish citizens to settle in the Golan and politicians have sought the world’s recognition of its annexation of the occupied territory.

At a meeting (http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-1.685267) between Benjamin Netanyahu (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/benjamin-netanyahu), the Israeli prime minister, and Barack Obama (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/barack-obama), the US president, last November, Netanyahu reportedly suggested that the US change its position on the status of the Golan Heights in light of Syria’s civil war.

According to media reports, Netanyahu argued that because Syria is likely to be divided in the future, Israel’s rule over the Golan should be recognized as legitimate.

Last summer, Israel’s education minister Naftali Bennett (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/naftali-bennett), who leads the far right Habeyit Hayehudi (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/habeyit-hayehudi) (Jewish Home) party, called on (https://electronicintifada.net/blogs/patrick-strickland/israeli-army-incursion-syria-hits-refugee-camp) “the entire world” to “recognize Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.”

Since 2011, President Bashar al-Assad (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/bashar-al-assad) has defended his rule against rebel factions, including Islamic State (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/islamic-state-iraq-and-levant) and affiliates of al-Qaida (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/al-qaida).

Israel has assisted the opposition to Assad by attacking (http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2015/11/report-israel-strikes-target-in-syria/415446/) areas under his force’s control and providing assistance (https://electronicintifada.net/content/why-has-israel-embraced-al-qaidas-branch-syria/14619) to Syrian opposition forces, including Jabhat al-Nusra (https://electronicintifada.net/tags/jabhat-al-nusra), an affiliate of al-Qaida.

Editor’s note: this article has been updated since original publication to correct a typographical error that misstated the year that the conflict in Syria began.

Hervé

13th March 2016, 23:10

Syrian ceasefire bulletin: Israel's collusion with the moderate terrorists exposed, increase in ceasefire violations (http://www.sott.net/article/314272-SOTT-Exclusive-Syrian-ceasefire-bulletin-Israels-collusion-with-the-moderate-terrorists-exposed-increase-in-ceasefire-violations#)

Harrison Koehli Sott.net (http://www.sott.net/article/314272-SOTT-Exclusive-Syrian-ceasefire-bulletin-Israels-collusion-with-the-moderate-terrorists-exposed-increase-in-ceasefire-violations#) Sun, 13 Mar 2016 18:30 UTC

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/308072/large/1033858193.jpg (http://www.sott.net/image/s15/308072/full/1033858193.jpg)
© AFP 2016/ STRINGER

Yesterday, two more Syrian towns joined the ceasefire agreement, making for a total of 44 who have signed on. The number of armed groups who have signed the truce remains 42, but active negotiations are being held with three more. Consultations have been ongoing with Syrian opposition political parties, religious leaders, and public representatives in business and industry.

The Russian monitoring group registered 10 ceasefire violations, including attacks on the Syrian army in Damascus and on Kurdish militias by the so-called moderate Free Syrian Army. It was an average day. However, today (http://eng.syria.mil.ru/en/index/syria/reconciliation_centre_bulletins/more.htm?id=12080568@egNews) saw a threefold increase in violations, with 29 registered, mostly in Latakia, using large-caliber machine guns and mortars. Turkey continues to shell Syrian territory. The Russian Center for Reconciliation, which was set up in Aleppo yesterday, also went into operation, monitoring the ceasefire and humanitarian situation there.

Meanwhile, a Syrian MiG-21 was shot down by a man-portable air defense system yesterday. There are conflicting reports (https://www.rt.com/news/335391-syrian-mig-downed-hama/) about the fate of the pilots. One reportedly made it to safety, but the other died, either as a result of an unsuccessful emergency landing, or being shot and killed by jihadists in the vicinity. Jaish al-Nasr militants claimed responsibility for the attack. Today, al-Nusra killed about 10 people and injured 30 more in continuous attacks in Damascus and Idlib provinces.

On Wednesday, militias allied with the Syrian Army ambushed a convoy of terrorists in the Sweida province, confiscating the weapons (http://sana.sy/en/?p=71614) they were attempting to transfer to terrorists in the Eastern al-Badiya desert. Among the weapons left behind after the battle were mortar shells, land mines, RPG shells, ammunition of machineguns and Israeli-made LAU missile.

How do the terrorists in Syria get those Israeli-made weapons? FARS News Agency (http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13941222000417), via the Times of Israel, has the answer:

In a video uploaded to YouTube by the Executive Sharia Council in the Eastern Daraa region, a court established by al-Nusra in Southern Syria, Sharif As-Safouri, the commander of the FSA's al-Haramein Battalion, admitted to having entered Israel five times to meet with Israeli officers who later provided him with Soviet anti-tank weapons and light arms, Times of Israel reported.

Safouri was abducted by the al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Nusra Front in the Quneitra area, near the Israeli border, on July 22.

"The [opposition] factions would receive support and send the injured in [to Israel] on condition that the Israeli fence area is secured. No person was allowed to come near the fence without prior coordination with Israel authorities," Safouri said in the video.

While al-Nusra and the FSA have collaborated in the battlefield against Syria, friction has intensified as they began to implement their stringent version of Islam in the area, establishing local Sharia courts.

In the edited confession video, in which Safouri seems physically unharmed, he says that at first he met with an Israeli officer named Ashraf at the border and was given an Israeli cellular phone. He later met with another officer named Younis and with the two men's commander, Abu Daoud. In total, Safouri said he entered Israel five times for meetings that took place in Tiberias.

Following the meetings, Israel began providing Safouri and his men with "basic medical support and clothes" as well as weapons, which included 30 Russian [rifles], 10 RPG launchers with 47 rockets, and 48,000 5.56 millimeter bullets.

Hervé

14th March 2016, 19:49

Putin orders start of Russian military withdrawal from Syria, says ‘objectives achieved’ (https://www.rt.com/news/335554-putin-orders-syria-withdrawal/)

Published time: 14 Mar, 2016 17:42
Edited time: 14 Mar, 2016 19:30
Get short URL (http://on.rt.com/76wy)

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/308204/large/56e6fa70c4618842228b45ef.jpg
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu © kremlin.ru

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu to start the withdrawal of forces from Syria starting Tuesday. Russia will however keep a military presence at the port of Tartus and at the Khmeimim airbase to observe ceasefire agreements.

“I consider the objectives that have been set for the Defense Ministry to be generally accomplished. That is why I order to start withdrawal of the main part of our military group from the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic starting from tomorrow,” Putin said on Monday during a meeting with Shoigu and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.

"In a short period of time Russia has created a small but very effective military group [in Syria]... the effective work of our military allowed the peace process to begin," Putin said, adding that with the assistance of the Russian Air Force "Syrian government troops and patriotic forces have changed the situation in the fight with international terrorism and have ceased the initiative."

To control the observation of ceasefire agreements in the region, Moscow will keep its Khmeimim airbase in Latakia province and a base at the port of Tartus, Putin said.

At Moscow's initiative, a phone conversation between Vladimir Putin and Syria's President Bashar Assad was held on Monday evening, the Kremlin reported.

The two leaders agreed that the actions of Russia's Air Force in Syria have allowed them to "profoundly reverse the situation" in connection to fighting terrorists in the region, having "disorganized militants' infrastructure and inflicted fundamental damage upon them."

Bashar Assad has recognized the “professionalism, courage and heroism” of Russian Army soldiers and officers, who have taken part in the military action, thanking Russia not only for extensive help in the fight against terrorism, but also for providing humanitarian aid and assistance to the Syrian civilian population.

The Syrian leader also stressed its readiness to engage in the political process in Syria as soon as possible, the Kremlin said.

Russia's president also addressed his foreign minister. He had tasked Lavrov with intensifying Russia's participation in the peace process to solve the Syrian crisis, the Kremlin reported.

Moscow launched its anti-terror campaign in Syria on September 30 last year. Russia’s participation in the operation, according to a previous statement by Putin, has its basis in international law and has been conducted “in accordance with an official request from the president of the Syrian Arab Republic [Bashar Assad].”

The Russian Air Force has been carrying out airstrikes against Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) and other terrorist targets in the region, eliminating military equipment, communication centers, vehicles, arms and fuel depots.

Related:
Only alternative to Syria peace talks is ‘even worse war’ – de Mistura (https://www.rt.com/news/335560-un-syria-mistura-talks/)
Russia, US truce initiative in Syria ‘may be last chance to stop violence’ – opposition (https://www.rt.com/news/334952-russia-us-syria-opposition/)
Putin: Syrian truce is real chance to end bloodshed [FULL STATEMENT] (https://www.rt.com/politics/official-word/333294-putin-syria-ceasefire-us/)

Cidersomerset

14th March 2016, 20:31

BREAKING: Putin orders start of Russian military withdrawal from Syria

5rCwhYshgw8

Published on 14 Mar 2016

Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered Defense Minister Sergey
Shoigu to start the withdrawal of forces from Syria starting Tuesday.

==================================================

http://static.bbci.co.uk/frameworks/barlesque/3.8.0/orb/4/img/bbc-blocks-dark.png

Syria conflict: Russia's Putin orders 'main part' of forces out

25 minutes ago

In a surprise move, Russian President Vladimir Putin has ordered his military to
start withdrawing the "main part" of its forces in Syria from Tuesday.

He said the Russian intervention had largely achieved its objectives.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-35807689

Hervé

15th March 2016, 16:44

Job done: Russia saved Syria from US regime change… now it’s over to diplomacy (https://www.rt.com/op-edge/335661-syria-war-assad-russia-peace/)

Published time: 15 Mar, 2016 12:50
Edited time: 15 Mar, 2016 13:03
Get short URL (http://on.rt.com/76zx)

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/308379/large/56e7f487c36188e9348b45d2.jpg
School children play with a ball in a playground in Ras al-Ain city, Syria. © Rodi Said / Reuters

Five years of war, five months of Russian military intervention, and now peace talks are underway. It’s as simple as that.

However, rather than acknowledging a successful Russian mission, Western media outlets immediately began speculating (http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-35809087?ocid=global_bbccom_email_15032016_top+news+stories) that President Putin’s surprise announcement to withdraw Russian forces from Syria indicates a “rift” between Moscow and Damascus.

This is just more of the same Western media weapon of mass distraction that has obscured the real nature of the five-year war.

The sovereignty of Syria is the central principle officially underpinning peace talks that resumed in Geneva this week. Without Russia’s military intervention, Syria would not have the chance to pursue a political settlement on a such solid footing.

By contrast, after nearly two years of US-led military intervention allegedly to “defeat terrorism”, the Syrian state was on the brink of collapse from a largely foreign-backed terrorist assault. Until, that is, Russia intervened at the end of September last year.

The touchstone is that Russia from the outset was motivated by supporting the Syrian nation and supplanting the terror threat. While the US and its allies were ultimately the source of the threat.

Western media in hock to their governments’ political line still strain the implausible narrative of a “popular uprising” in Syria that somehow descended into a “global proxy war”.

But to the rest of the world, US-led illegal regime-change is the obvious, and damning, story. This should be the focus, not speculation about Putin’s alleged ulterior motives to withdraw militarily now from Syria.

US Secretary of State John Kerry speaking (http://en.rfi.fr/france/20160313-kerry-meets-european-foreign-ministers-paris-ahead-syria-truce-talks) in Paris last weekend alongside European counterparts appeared to highlight Syria as a priority for peace efforts.

It is rather galling that Kerry should lecture Russia about making “clear choices” in Syria or elsewhere, when the only plausible explanation for the violence in the Arab country can be traced to the criminal interference of Washington and its partners, in flagrant violation of international law and thereby unleashing mayhem that destroyed millions of lives.

As opposition parties gather for tentative talks in Geneva, the New York Times informed (http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/03/13/world/middleeast/syria-control-isis-maps-cease-fire-civil-war-five-years.html?emc=edit_th_20160313&nl=todaysheadlines&nlid=65464666&_r=1) its readers that it coincides with the “fifth anniversary of the beginning of the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad, which morphed into civil war and then a regional and global proxy war.”

This is a typical sample of Western distortion on Syria that persists in contradiction to the abundant evidence. That Western narrative is based on the dubious premise that the violence was instigated after the Syrian state crushed a genuine pro-democracy uprising. Secondly, the narrative blandly portrays that the conflict then escalated into a proxy war between foreign governments, as if the latter scenario is unrelated to the initial “uprising”.

However, thanks to alternative news media in the West and also internationally, such as channels like RT and Press TV, there is a substantial body of information that challenges the Western mainstream narrative. Not only challenges, but exposes it as willful deception.

For a start, substantive reports in the alternative media convincingly show that the initial, small-scale protests in Syria during March 2011 were infiltrated by armed provocateurs who fired on civilians and state security forces alike in order to incite large-scale violence. One of the best investigations on these crucial events was carried out (https://www.rt.com/op-edge/157412-syria-hidden-massacre-2011/) by Sharmine Narwani for RT.

Secondly, we must bear in mind the well-documented long-term objective of regime change against the government of Syria authored by Washington, London and Paris. We know, for instance, from the disclosure in 2007 by US General Wesley Clark (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RC1Mepk_Sw), the former NATO supreme commander, that Syria was in the Pentagon’s crosshairs for regime change as far back as 2001, along with Afghanistan, Iraq and Libya, among others.

Another important reference to this criminal agenda is the testimony of former French foreign minister Roland Dumas who revealed (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kz-s2AAh06I) in 2013 that he was approached by British officials two years before the Syrian conflict erupted with a covert plan to topple the Assad government.

We also know from the revelations (http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/headtohead/2015/07/blame-isil-150728080342288.html) of former US intelligence chief Lt General Michael Flynn that the administration of President Barack Obama deliberately fomented the infiltration of “jihadist” terror groups as far back as 2012 with the calculation that these mercenaries would destabilize the Damascus government.

That’s why it is stomach-turning when John Kerry tells media in Paris at the weekend about how the “evil of Daesh [ISIS]” must be defeated.

Tellingly, from the outset of the conflict, Washington and its Western allies lost no time to make strident demands that President Assad “had to go”. These demands have become toned down of late as Washington endeavors to supposedly participate in the Geneva peace process. Nevertheless, the blatant objective of the Western governments remains, for the Damascus authorities to eventually step down after a “political process” – or, in other words, for “regime change”.

The other telling factor is the involvement of various regional despotic states in the Western chorus calling for Assad to stand down. Seriously: the regimes of Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the autocratic head-choppers in Saudi Arabia and Qatar on the side of a “pro-democracy uprising”?

The fact that these Western-backed regimes have poured billions of dollars into recruiting, training and weaponizing mercenaries from dozens of countries – including supplying chemical weapons – speaks of the reality of foreign-orchestrated regime change as the key determinant in the Syrian war.

Damningly, former UN envoy Lakhdar Brahimi revealed in an interview (https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/news/middle-east/24444-former-syria-special-envoy-lakhdar-brahimi-tells-al-jazeera-english-that-syrian-conflict-could-have-been-solved-in-2012) at the weekend that the conflict in Syria could have been halted in 2012 – just over a year from its inception. Brahimi praised Russia for having “a much more realistic analysis of the situation” and that “everyone should have listened to the Russians a little bit more.” Moscow has consistently said that the political future of Syria must be decided by the people of Syria and that no external preconditions, such as Assad standing down, can be imposed by Western powers or their regional proxies. The current Geneva talks underscore this principle.

Last Friday, John Kerry flew (http://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-kerry-saudi-idUSKCN0WD26J) to Saudi Arabia seemingly to urge an end to conflict in Syria. Notably, the Saudi-backed Syrian opposition, the High Negotiations Committee, suddenly reversed its rejection of the Geneva dialogue and said that it would be attending talks this week after all. The HNC comprises Al Qaeda-linked terror groups, Jaish al-Islam and Arhrar al-Shams. However, the HNC stipulated that any negotiations must be predicated on Assad’s removal.

Syria’s war, death toll and destruction are patently a result of a US-led bid for regime change in that country. The background intrigue, the explosive escalation of violence over the past five years and the belated political attempts to prosecute regime change by alternative means are all clear evidence of a criminal foreign assault on Syria.

Russia’s military intervention on behalf of the Syrian authorities, as designated by international law, has exposed the true nature of the conflict. The danger of US-backed covert war on Syria has been removed, and now it is over to diplomacy to resolve the peace.

That is a stunning achievement.

https://img.rt.com/files/2015.08/original/55cf1b73c361880a228b4575.JPG (https://www.rt.com/op-edge/authors/Finian-Cunningham/)Finian Cunningham (born 1963) has written extensively on international affairs, with articles published in several languages. Originally from Belfast, Northern Ireland, he is a Master’s graduate in Agricultural Chemistry and worked as a scientific editor for the Royal Society of Chemistry, Cambridge, England, before pursuing a career in newspaper journalism. For over 20 years he worked as an editor and writer in major news media organizations, including The Mirror, Irish Times and Independent. Now a freelance journalist based in East Africa, his columns appear on RT, Sputnik, Strategic Culture Foundation and Press TV.

Related:
Syrian Kurds accuse Turkey of aiding sarin gas delivery to rebels after fresh chemical attacks (https://www.rt.com/news/335069-kurds-turkey-syria-rebels-sarin/)
Syria: The hidden massacre (https://www.rt.com/op-edge/157412-syria-hidden-massacre-2011/)

Rocky_Shorz

15th March 2016, 17:53

Obama Regime “In Shock” After Putin Wins Syrian War, Orders Forces To Leave

The Ministry of Defense (MoD) is reporting today that the Obama regime has been left “in a state of shock” after President Putin, yesterday, ordered Aerospace Forces to cease combat operations and leave the Syrian region of the Levant War Zone after a peace agreement was reached with anti-government forces fighting the government of that embattled Middle Eastern nation—and which just two hours ago the first Federation Su-24 bombers returned home.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-s4_h3PHsE

http://www.whatdoesitmean.com/rrss1.jpg

First video and picture of Russian jets taking off for home from Syria airbase on 15 March 2016

According to this report, President Putin, on 30 September 2015, and for the first time in 24 years, issued an order authorizing combat operations to begin outside of Federation territory to defend the Syrian government against an array of American and Saudi Arabian supported terrorists groups seeking to overthrow it by force.

After 6 months of continuous Aerospace Forces bombardments, this report continues, the remaining US-Saudi supported terrorist elements operating against the Syrian government, centered mainly in the Hama Province, negotiated a peace agreement thus enabling Federation forces to withdrawal and claim victory.

Though not exactly stated in this report, but its strongly eluding towards, is that the Syrian and Iraqi governments have agreed to a de facto division (partition) of their countries, with the Kurdish peoples being allowed to establish a “homeland” zone next to the Turkish border (which in the future will be merged with its Iraqi counterpart), and the Sunni controlled eastern regions, now controlled by the Islamic State (ISIS/ISIL/Daesh), becoming a protectorate of the US and its coalition, and a Shiite homeland established in the eastern portion of present day Iraq.

http://www.whatdoesitmean.com/rrss3.jpg

In order to “firmly establish” the integrity of the Syrian government from future attempts of violent overthrow by the Obama regime, this report says, President Putin has further ordered that the feared S-400 air defense system will remain there to protect that nations airspace, and that additional Federation forces stationed at the Khmeimim airbase in Latakia Province, and the base at the Port of Tartus, will remain there too.

So with the Federation now being victorious in their 6-month war to protect the Syrian government and its peoples, this report concludes, it remains left to the Obama regime and its coalition to defeat the Islamic State terrorists they created—and to which one top general in this report plainly states: “They created them, it’s their mess to clean up, not ours.” link (http://www.whatdoesitmean.com/index2013.htm)

http://www.whatdoesitmean.com/rrss2.jpg

Wow, could it really mean Kurdistan is getting Independence...

Turkey and Iran still need to give up their occupied territory to fulfil the prophecy, I was expecting a seaport in North Syria, a large chunk of Kurdistan is still missing...

Bill Ryan

15th March 2016, 21:19

Obama Regime “In Shock” After Putin Wins Syrian War, Orders Forces To Leave

This is yet another Sorcha Faal article:
http://whatdoesitmean.com/index2013.htm

Rocky, buddy, I love you to bits, but PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE stop posting Sorcha's articles on Avalon. They're fiction.

Sorcha Faal = CIA agent David Booth. You're being taken for a ride. Please don't mislead other good people here, who may not have the experience or knowledge-base to critique what you're posting. You mean well, but honest-to-God, you're really not helping anyone by doing this.

:bearhug:

Rocky_Shorz

16th March 2016, 02:07

even Fulford has recently admitted right now Sorcha is from Naval intelligence, I am watching news of Kurdistan rising...

if up to 90% of this article is real, creating new borders, is what the whole region has been waiting for...

I don't drop Sorcha into view outside of con

spiracies often, but when I do it is a first release of whaat everyone will be sharing soon.

come on Bill, half the fun is seeking the truth of what is real, we are open to all channels coming at us...

life is good Bro,

Coincidences are daily events...

Wide-Eyed

16th March 2016, 02:35

School children play with a ball in a playground in Ras al-Ain city, Syria. © Rodi Said / Reuters

Let's hope and pray the children survive this 'War on Terror' and we can start to implement "new normal" and take back the Peace.Job done: Russia saved Syria from US regime change… now it’s over to diplomacy

Published time: 15 Mar, 2016 12:50
Edited time: 15 Mar, 2016 13:03
Get short URL

School children play with a ball in a playground in Ras al-Ain city, Syria. © Rodi Said / Reuters

Five years of war, five months of Russian military intervention, and now peace talks are underway. It’s as simple as that. :clapping:

JRS

16th March 2016, 03:22

Wow! If the Sorcha Faal site is from US Intelligence (as Bill, Rocky, and Fulford have stated) then I find the article that Rocky posted to be REALLY interesting! Is it even possible that a group in US Intelligence is considering the creation of new borders (maybe along ethnic and religious lines-thereby promoting peace, rather than across ethnic and religious lines-guaranteeing friction) in the Mideast?

If it is true, then the ramifications are huge. The borders instituted by the Brits after the Lawrence of Arabia days were guaranteed to cause huge, continuous problems in the Mideast (divide and conquer?).

Seems to me the globalists would be against this-preferring to keep those in the Mideast at each other's throats. I'm surprised to see something like this in print! Doesn't US Intelligence check with British Intelligence before something like this gets out?

ks4ever

16th March 2016, 04:09

"Fighting Islamic State: The Road To Raqqa”
Here is a terrific report worth watching from SkyNews embedded with SDF/YPG
*Alex Crawford, the wonderful woman reporter who reported from the back of a Toyota gun truck, riding with the Libyan rebels into Tripoli.

https://youtu.be/MzPiuwzEtuY

Hervé

18th March 2016, 15:30

This is Why Putin is the Most Unpredictable Politician in the World (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160316/1036405972/putin-syria-withdrawal.html)

http://cdn5.img.sputniknews.com/images/103630/93/1036309331.jpg
© Sputnik/ Mikhail Klimentyev

Politics (http://sputniknews.com/politics/)18:10 16.03.2016
(updated 18:25 16.03.2016)
Get short URL

Two days have passed since President Vladimir Putin's surprise announcement that Russia would begin withdrawing the main part of its military forces from Syria. Volumes of analyses have already been written on the subject, but there's one important thing most of them seem to miss.

On Monday, Putin announced (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160314/1036274550/putin-orders-syria-withdrawal.html) that the Russian air operation in Syria had largely achieved its objectives, and that Russia would begin a withdrawal of its main forces from the country.

"With the participation of the Russian military…the Syrian military and patriotic Syrian forces have been able to achieve a fundamental turnaround in the fight against international terrorism, and have taken the initiative in nearly all areas to create the conditions for the start of a peace process," Putin said (http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/51511), in a working meeting with Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. Since then, volumes of analysis have been written (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160316/1036368838/russia-withdrawal-versions.html), both in Russian and foreign media, on what the move really means.

For his part, Russian television journalist Vladimir Solovyov suggested that what many analysts have missed, and what they should go back and review, is the promise Putin made at the very beginning of Russia's air campaign.

In an interview with Solovyov recorded on October 10, Putin, asked how long the operation would last, offered an answer which some will find eerily prescient today.

The success of the Syrian army offensive, Putin said (http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/50482),
"depends above all on the Syrian army itself and on the Syrian authorities. We cannot commit ourselves to more than is reasonable and have never done so. I said from the start that the active phase of our operations on Syrian soil will be limited in time to the Syrian army's offensive. Coming back to your earlier question, our task is to stabilize the legitimate government and establish conditions that will make it possible to look for political compromise." With a Moscow-Washington brokered ceasefire in place, Syria's government stabilized and Daesh and Nusra Front terrorists on the run, it becomes instantly clear what the president meant when he said that Russia's objectives have been "generally fulfilled."

In other words, Solovyov wryly noted:

"it's not by accident that Putin is called the most unpredictable politician in the world, because he constantly does what he says he is going to do."

Related:
Russia's Military Withdrawal From Syria Surprise for Many in EU (http://sputniknews.com/world/20160316/1036381717/russia-syria-eu-military.html)

Hervé

18th March 2016, 15:58

Map of the different factions as of recent:

http://cs622323.vk.me/v622323045/443d3/ADnUzbFtIwI.jpg
http://cs622323.vk.me/v622323045/443d3/ADnUzbFtIwI.jpg

Hervé

19th March 2016, 23:55

2012 Clinton Email Reveals Syria War All About Securing Israeli Hegemony (http://nonalignedmedia.com/2016/03/2012-clinton-email-reveals-syria-war-securing-israeli-hegemony/)

Brandon Martinez (http://nonalignedmedia.com/author/bmar999/) March 19, 2016

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/309206/large/Clinton_Israel.jpg

Hilary Clinton candidly outlined US plans to overthrow Assad as a prelude to weakening Iran in a 2012 email released by Wikileaks (https://wikileaks.org/clinton-emails/emailid/18328). Clinton argued that this criminal policy of regime change in Syria was being pursued in large part to help Israel isolate Iran and thereby weaken Tel Aviv’s other regional foes like Hezbollah and Hamas by strategically cutting them off “from [their] Iranian sponsor since Syria would no longer be a transit point for Iranian training, assistance and missiles.”

Clinton noted that the operation in Syria was in part designed to curtail Iran’s nuclear program so that Israel could maintain its “nuclear monopoly” and thereby continue to dominate the region militarily. “The best way to help Israel deal with Iran’s growing nuclear capability is to help the people of Syria overthrow the regime of Bashar Assad,” Clinton wrote in the email. She further pontificated:

Iran’s nuclear program and Syria’s civil war may seem unconnected, but they are. For Israeli leaders, the real threat from a nuclear-armed Iran is not the prospect of an insane Iranian leader launching an unprovoked Iranian nuclear attack on Israel that would lead to the annihilation of both countries. What Israeli military leaders really worry about — but cannot talk about — is losing their nuclear monopoly. An Iranian nuclear weapons capability would not only end that nuclear monopoly but could also prompt other adversaries, like Saudi Arabia and Egypt, to go nuclear as well. The result would be a precarious nuclear balance in which Israel could not respond to provocations with conventional military strikes on Syria and Lebanon, as it can today. If Iran were to reach the threshold of a nuclear weapons state, Tehran would find it much easier to call on its allies in Syria and Hezbollah to strike Israel, knowing that its nuclear weapons would serve as a deterrent to Israel responding against Iran itself. Later in the email Clinton bluntly opined: “Bringing down Assad would not only be a massive boon to Israel’s security, it would also ease Israel’s understandable fear of losing its nuclear monopoly.” She then stated that the US would achieve this by arming Syrian rebels:

Washington should start by expressing its willingness to work with regional allies like Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar to organize, train and arm Syrian rebel forces. The announcement of such a decision would, by itself, likely cause substantial defections from the Syrian military. Then, using territory in Turkey and possibly Jordan, U.S. diplomats and Pentagon officials can start strengthening the opposition. … Arming the Syrian rebels and using western air power to ground Syrian helicopters and airplanes is a low-cost high payoff approach. The full email (https://wikileaks.org/clinton-emails/emailid/18328) is so incriminating that I will re-print the whole thing here:

---------------------------------

UNCLASSIFIED U.S. Department of State Case No. F-2014-20439 Doc No. C05794498 Date: 11/30/2015

The best way to help Israel deal with Iran’s growing nuclear capability is to help the people of Syria overthrow the regime of Bashar Assad.

Negotiations to limit Iran’s nuclear program will not solve Israel’s security dilemma. Nor will they stop Iran from improving the crucial part of any nuclear weapons program — the capability to enrich uranium. At best, the talks between the world’s major powers and Iran that began in Istanbul this April and will continue in Baghdad in May will enable Israel to postpone by a few months a decision whether to launch an attack on Iran that could provoke a major Mideast war.

Iran’s nuclear program and Syria’s civil war may seem unconnected, but they are. For Israeli leaders, the real threat from a nuclear-armed Iran is not the prospect of an insane Iranian leader launching an unprovoked Iranian nuclear attack on Israel that would lead to the annihilation of both countries. What Israeli military leaders really worry about — but cannot talk about — is losing their nuclear monopoly. An Iranian nuclear weapons capability would not only end that nuclear monopoly but could also prompt other adversaries, like Saudi Arabia and Egypt, to go nuclear as well. The result would be a precarious nuclear balance in which Israel could not respond to provocations with conventional military strikes on Syria and Lebanon, as it can today. If Iran were to reach the threshold of a nuclear weapons state, Tehran would find it much easier to call on its allies in Syria and Hezbollah to strike Israel, knowing that its nuclear weapons would serve as a deterrent to Israel responding against Iran itself.

Back to Syria. It is the strategic relationship between Iran and the regime of Bashar Assad in Syria that makes it possible for Iran to undermine Israel’s security — not through a direct attack, which in the thirty years of hostility between Iran and Israel has never occurred, but through its proxies in Lebanon, like Hezbollah, that are sustained, armed and trained by Iran via Syria. The end of the Assad regime would end this dangerous alliance. Israel’s leadership understands well why defeating Assad is now in its interests.

Speaking on CNN’s Amanpour show last week, Defense Minister Ehud Barak argued that “the toppling down of Assad will be a major blow to the radical axis, major blow to Iran…. It’s the only kind of outpost of the Iranian influence in the Arab world…and it will weaken dramatically both Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Gaza.”

Bringing down Assad would not only be a massive boon to Israel’s security, it would also ease Israel’s understandable fear of losing its nuclear monopoly. Then, Israel and the United States might be able to develop a common view of when the Iranian program is so dangerous that military action could be warranted. Right now, it is the combination of Iran’s strategic alliance with Syria and the steady progress in Iran’s nuclear enrichment program that has led Israeli leaders to contemplate a surprise attack — if necessary over the objections of Washington. With Assad gone, and Iran no longer able to threaten Israel through its, proxies, it is possible that the United States and Israel can agree on red lines for when Iran’s program has crossed an unacceptable threshold. In short, the White House can ease the tension that has developed with Israel over Iran by doing the right thing in Syria.

The rebellion in Syria has now lasted more than a year. The opposition is not going away, nor is the regime going to accept a diplomatic solution from the outside. With his life and his family at risk, only the threat or use of force will change the Syrian dictator Bashar Assad’s mind.

The Obama administration has been understandably wary of engaging in an air operation in Syria like the one conducted in Libya for three main reasons. Unlike the Libyan opposition forces, the Syrian rebels are not unified and do not hold territory. The Arab League has not called for outside military intervention as it did in Libya. And the Russians are opposed.

Libya was an easier case. But other than the laudable purpose of saving Libyan civilians from likely attacks by Qaddafi’s regime, the Libyan operation had no long-lasting consequences for the region. Syria is harder. But success in Syria would be a transformative event for the Middle East. Not only would another ruthless dictator succumb to mass opposition on the streets, but the region would be changed for the better as Iran would no longer have a foothold in the Middle East from which to threaten Israel and undermine stability in the region.

Unlike in Libya, a successful intervention in Syria would require substantial diplomatic and military leadership from the United States. Washington should start by expressing its willingness to work with regional allies like Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar to organize, train and arm Syrian rebel forces. The announcement of such a decision would, by itself, likely cause substantial defections from the Syrian military. Then, using territory in Turkey and possibly Jordan, U.S. diplomats and Pentagon officials can start strengthening the opposition. It will take time. But the rebellion is going to go on for a long time, with or without U.S. involvement.

The second step is to develop international support for a coalition air operation. Russia will never support such a mission, so there is no point operating through the UN Security Council. Some argue that U.S. involvement risks a wider war with Russia. But the Kosovo example shows otherwise. In that case, Russia had genuine ethnic and political ties to the Serbs, which don’t exist between Russia and Syria, and even then Russia did little more than complain. Russian officials have already acknowledged they won’t stand in the way if intervention comes.

Arming the Syrian rebels and using western air power to ground Syrian helicopters and airplanes is a low-cost high payoff approach. As long as Washington’s political leaders stay firm that no U.S. ground troops will be deployed, as they did in both Kosovo and Libya, the costs to the United States will be limited. Victory may not come quickly or easily, but it will come. And the payoff will be substantial. Iran would be strategically isolated, unable to exert its influence in the Middle East. The resulting regime in Syria will see the United States as a friend, not an enemy. Washington would gain substantial recognition as fighting for the people in the Arab world, not the corrupt regimes. For Israel, the rationale for a bolt from the blue attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities would be eased. And a new Syrian regime might well be open to early action on the frozen peace talks with Israel. Hezbollah in Lebanon would be cut off from its Iranian sponsor since Syria would no longer be a transit point for Iranian training, assistance and missiles. All these strategic benefits and the prospect of saving thousands of civilians from murder at the hands of the Assad regime (10,000 have already been killed in this first year of civil war).

With the veil of fear lifted from the Syrian people, they seem determine to fight for their freedom. America can and should help them — and by doing so help Israel and help reduce the risk of a wider war.
--------------------------------

Hervé

23rd March 2016, 16:28

Syrian Government Forces Regain Control of Palmyra's Historic Area (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160323/1036821734/syria-palmyra-regain-control.html)

Sputnik (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160323/1036821734/syria-palmyra-regain-control.html) 15:10 23.03.2016
(updated 16:07 23.03.2016) Get short URL

http://cdn3.img.sputniknews.com/images/103203/63/1032036379.jpg (https://ca.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qal%27at_Ibn_Ma%27n#/media/File:Diocletian%27s_camp_and_Qasr_Ibn_Ma%CA%BFan.jpg)
© Wikipedia/ Ulrich Waack (https://ca.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qal%27at_Ibn_Ma%27n#/media/File:Diocletian%27s_camp_and_Qasr_Ibn_Ma%CA%BFan.jpg)

The Syria government forces have regained control of historic area of Palmyra, Syrian brigadier-general said.

"The Syrian army regained control of the historic town of Tadmur (Palmyra) with small weapons," a Syrian brigadier-general told Sputnik. Thus, he emphasized that the town was taken without air assistance. Syria has been in a state of civil war since 2011, when mass anti-government protests against President Bashar Assad escalated to an armed confrontation between government troops and allied militia on the one hand, and Syrian opposition factions and radical Islamists on the other.

Palmyra has been under Daesh control since May 2015. The terrorist group, which is outlawed in many countries, including Russia and the United States, has already destroyed part of the ancient city, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Hervé

24th March 2016, 19:44

Frankenplanes: Croatian MiG-21 jets bought from Ukraine are made of old parts, unable to fly (https://www.rt.com/news/337010-ukraine-fake-jets-croatia/)

Published time: 24 Mar, 2016 10:51
Edited time: 24 Mar, 2016 11:01
Get short URL (http://on.rt.com/781e)

https://cdn.rt.com/files/2016.03/original/56f3bf66c3618844698b45c3.jpg
A Croatian MiG-21 © / Reuters

A scandal is unfolding in Croatia after it was revealed it had bought Soviet-era MiG-21 jets – now unable to fly – that were assembled from dubious parts by Ukraine. The Croatian defense minister has threatened to shoot himself if any wrongdoing in the deal is proved.

Croatian security services and the Defense Ministry have launched an investigation into a 2013 military deal with a Ukrainian company, which is said to have undermined the air force’s combat capabilities.

Under the contract, Croatia paid over $21 million to repair and modernize seven Soviet-era MiG-21 fighter jets at Ukrainian plants, and to purchase another five aircraft of the same type there.

But those five MiG-21s were never sold by the Ukrainians “as such,” Jutarnji List newspaper has revealed. In fact, the aircraft were reportedly assembled from dubious obsolete parts coming from all over the world.

According to the newspaper’s sources, there were serious indications that their fuselages came from Bulgaria and their wings from Algeria, while fuel tanks were reportedly of Soviet origin.

Bulgaria previously reported to NATO that it had destroyed its MiG-21s, which raises questions how the Bulgarian parts made their way to Ukraine. The “Algerian” wings had markings in French and also some Cyrillic letters that allowed their origin to be tracked.

Even worse, when Croatian officials came to inspect the five MiGs they wanted to purchase, the Ukrainians substituted the “Lego-like” fighters for jets owned by Yemen, according to the local media.

The overhaul of the seven Croatian jets in Odessa also seemed suspicious from the outset. Under the contract, the air force’s test pilot – Brigadier General Ivan Selak – had to perform flight tests of the “repaired” jets before final handover. But the Ukrainians never allowed him to fly, using “bad weather” or “risk of flying over populated areas” as an excuse. Finally, when the jets were about to fly back to Croatia following the “overhaul,” the Ukrainians cited a “war situation” and instead returned them by truck in a disassembled form.

The military sources told local media they now know for sure that the fighters were simply unable to reach Croatia by air.

Back in Croatia, one of the "repaired" MiGs suffered engine failure while flying at an altitude of 13km, while another jet’s radar reportedly did not work at all. It was further revealed that all the jets still had Soviet-type communication equipment barely compatible with NATO standards. The aircraft also lacked Western-type Identification, Friend or Foe (IFF) equipment required by the Croatian Air Force to conduct NATO missions.

All the MiGs that arrived from Ukraine have been destroyed as the air force does not know where they actually came from, a source close to the investigation told Jutarnji List, without elaborating. As a result, the country has essentially lost a key part of its air force, the newspaper notes.

The Ukrainian deal triggered a scandal inside Croatia’s military elite. Defense Minister Ante Kotromanovic, who was in charge when the agreement was signed in 2013, insists the bidding process was transparent and denies any allegations of wrongdoing: “I’m accused of favoring [the Ukrainian bid]. I’ll shoot myself if anyone can prove that I did so.”

Related:NATO arming Ukraine with Soviet weapons – Deputy PM Rogozin (https://www.rt.com/news/170388-rogozin-ukraine-arms-europe/)

KiwiElf

24th March 2016, 19:48

Good grief... those MiGs are older than me, Herve! (That really IS old! ;))

Hervé

24th March 2016, 21:23

^^^ it seems these antics are still flying successful missions in Syria :)

What does good maintenance do, eh!?

Anyway, remaining on Ukraine's case:

Russia Already Questioned 100,000 Witnesses for Ukrainian 'Nuremberg' (http://www.fort-russ.com/2016/03/russia-already-questioned-100000.html)

@Maxfux (http://maxfux.livejournal.com/1064544.html) March 23, 2016
Translated by Kristina Kharlova

https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QpIUrMVbtGY/VvNkpep75LI/AAAAAAAAVII/UZFQR0aM4WEYO8unMsca-yC-n4_brVG0w/s640/56.jpg (https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-QpIUrMVbtGY/VvNkpep75LI/AAAAAAAAVII/UZFQR0aM4WEYO8unMsca-yC-n4_brVG0w/s1600/56.jpg)

Russian Investigative Committee is hard at work. Working stubbornly, gently, persistently, collecting information about all the crimes of Ukrainian military and punitive volunteer battalions.

It turns out that quietly, without much noise, a giant amount of evidence about the crimes of Ukrainian armed forces and volunteer battalions is being compiled. The evidence, which sooner or later will come in handy.

This was confirmed by Savchenko's lawyer, Ilya Novikov.

Savchenko's lawyer Ilya Novikov was struck by the volume of documents collected from interviewing the residents of Donbass and told Ukrainian media.

"There is the so-called "big Ukrainian case" under number 201/837072–14. It was called the "big Ukrainian case" among the lawyers, but during the trial against Savchenko suddenly it became clear that the investigators call it the same," - he said, adding that as of fall 2015 more than 100 thousand witnesses have been questioned, 15 thousand were recognized as victims.

"Several rooms at the Investigative Committee are filled with cabinets with volumes of this case, more than 20 investigators are working on it. And from this case, in principle, you can "pinch off" a piece and send it to court," - he said (http://rusgambit.ru/advokat-savchenko-moskva-gotovit-bolshoy-protsess-nad-ukrainskimi-voennyimi-prestupnikami.html).What does it mean? That Russia without much fanfare is gathering evidence of crimes. For what? I am sure that this is not done in vain. And that the perpetrators and punishers will appear before our court. And that these tons of evidence will be a good argument to prove the genocide of Donbass population, and at the right time to finally resolve the Donbass issue.

How much more is going on behind the scenes that we don't know about? You can, of course, laugh at "Putin's cunning plans" and other things. But de facto LDPR [Lugansk and Donetsk Republics] are already fully dependent and controlled from Russia. The laws of the republics are being adjusted to ours. Management system, education, etc. - everything is being changed to our standards. Do you think this is all coincidence?

I don't believe in such coincidences...

Hervé

25th March 2016, 02:02

Turkey has ‘serious questions’ to answer: Reactions to RT report on post-ISIS town in Syria (https://www.rt.com/news/337079-turkey-isis-oil-trade-evidence/)

Published time: 24 Mar, 2016 18:45
Edited time: 24 Mar, 2016 19:57
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https://cdn.rt.com/files/2016.03/original/56f430b0c36188f87a8b45c1.jpg
Trucks with oil products cross the Syrian-Turkish border. © Ministry of defence of the Russian Federation / Sputnik

The stream of accusations is growing against Ankara over illegal oil trade and support of Islamic State, with politicians and experts calling for Turkey to be held accountable for its actions after a new batch of evidence gathered by RT.

Former UK ambassador to Syria, Peter Ford, has described as “very convincing” a report aired by RT which features piles of oil accounting papers left behind by Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) fighters.

“There was plenty of evidence even before these latest – very damning – revelations that Turkey was up to its neck in support for collaboration with Islamic State,” he said.

According to Ford, the “obsession” of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan with removing from power his Syrian counterpart, Bashar Assad, and preventing the strengthening of the Kurds in Syria saw Turkey become eager “to stop at nothing, including collaboration with Islamic State terrorists,” Ford stressed.

“It’s not an exaggeration to say that if Turkey had sincerely tried to put an end to the activities of Islamic State it could well have gone slow and we wouldn’t perhaps even be having this latest atrocity in Brussels,” the former ambassador stressed.

On Tuesday, 31 people died in the Belgian capital in suicide bomb attacks at the airport and subway. The attacks were later claimed by IS.

Lord Peter Truscott, a life peer in the UK's House of Lords, stressed that Ankara has “serious questions” to answer following the revelations by RT.

“RT's report highlights some alarming evidence that Turkey is buying oil from Daesh [Arabic pejorative term for IS], and is either supporting or turning a blind eye to terrorists crossing its border into Syria. If this is the case, Turkey needs to stop aiding Daesh in its murderous activities,” Lord Truscott stressed.

Matthew Gordon-Banks, a former Senior Research Fellow at the UK Defense Academy and former British MP, told RT in an emailed response that “there is no doubt that Turkey has helped ISIS gain huge revenues in the recent past from illegally selling oil.”

Gordon-Banks also praised Russia’s recent military operation in Syria, saying that it had largely cut IS supply lines, hitting them both economically as well as militarily.

Bernard Monot, a French member of the European Parliament, has slammed Ankara for the double game it’s playing with Europe.

“On the one hand they play along with us in order to get financial assistance from the European Union, but on the other – there is a feeling that they are in talks with IS… there is a feeling that this ‘caliphate’ is working closely with the Turkish president,” Monot told RT.

The joint ventures of Erdogan and Islamic State may include “illicit trade in oil and, of course, training camps, which may be on the Turkish territory,” the National Front Party member said.

As for plans to include Turkey into the European Union, Monot stressed that the Turkish state “currently has nothing to do in the EU.”

Turkey has been actively engaged in the Syrian war since the outset, and has repeatedly denied that it is aiding IS. The claims have come from the Russian military, the Syrian authorities, the Kurds and other sources.

An RT Documentary crew has visited towns in northern Syria recently liberated from IS militants. There, the journalists obtained invoices detailing the large-scale illegal oil trade carried out by the terrorists, as well Islamist propaganda brochures printed in Turkey.

They interviewed an IS fighter, detained by the Kurds, who said that the group is selling oil to Turkey.

The RT crew also filmed passports of the deceased or escaped jihadists, many of which contained stamps issued at Turkish border checkpoints.

Related:
ISIS, oil & Turkey: What RT found in Syrian town liberated from jihadists by Kurds (EXCLUSIVE) (https://www.rt.com/news/336967-isis-files-oil-turkey-exclusive/)
EXCLUSIVE: Turkey ‘protects & supplies’ Al-Nusra camps at its border – Syria’s YPG to RT (https://www.rt.com/news/334483-turkey-nusra-ypg-exclusive/)

Hervé

25th March 2016, 12:24

ISIS attacked Brussels? The US created ISIS? Therefore? (https://jonrappoport.wordpress.com/2016/03/23/isis-attacked-brussels-the-us-created-isis-therefore/)

by Jon Rappoport (https://jonrappoport.wordpress.com/author/jonrappoport/) Mar23 (https://jonrappoport.wordpress.com/2016/03/23/isis-attacked-brussels-the-us-created-isis-therefore/), 2016

I want to acknowledge two researchers and reporters, whose work cuts deeply into the ISIS mirage: Tony Cartalucci and Brandon Turbeville. In a half-sane world, Cartalucci would be the international editor of the New York Times, if the Times were a real news outlet.

If we accept the premise that ISIS attacked Brussels, then the next question is: what is ISIS?

Who is behind it? Who supplies it? Who funds it? Who sustains it?

Brandon Turbeville, writing at Activist Post (“Congress Votes To Fight ISIS By Funding ISIS To Fight Assad”, (http://www.activistpost.com/2014/09/congress-votes-to-fight-isis-by-funding.html) 9/19/2014), states:

“Obama’s plan to ‘detect and degrade’ ISIS…the reality is that the plan is nothing more than a plan to…destroy the Syrian government to the benefit of ISIS and other fundamentalist groups that the United States has created, funded, trained, and directed since the very beginning of the Syrian crisis.” Cartalucci, in an article titled, “In Syria, There No Moderates” (http://landdestroyer.blogspot.com/2013/09/in-syria-there-are-no-moderates.html) (9/2013), writes:

“…there were never, nor are there any ‘moderates’ operating in Syria. The West has intentionally armed and funded Al Qaeda and other sectarian extremists since as early as 2007 in preparation for an engineered sectarian bloodbath serving US-Saudi-Israeli interests. This latest bid to portray the terrorists operating along and within Syria’s borders as ‘divided’ along extremists/moderate lines is a ploy to justify the continued flow of Western cash and arms into Syria to perpetuate the conflict, as well as create conditions along Syria’s borders with which Western partners, Israel, Jordan, and Turkey, can justify direct military intervention .” Turbeville writes:

“Indeed, even the New York Times has been forced to admit that there are, as Cartalucci expertly argues in his article, no moderates in the ranks of the Syrian death squads. As Ben Hubbard [NY Times] wrote in April, 2013 ([I]“Islamist Rebels Create Dilemma on Syria Policy” (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/28/world/middleeast/islamist-rebels-gains-in-syria-create-dilemma-for-us.html)), ‘In Syria’s largest city, Aleppo, rebels aligned with Al Qaeda control the power plant, run the bakeries and head a court that applies Islamic law. Elsewhere, they have seized government oil fields, put employees back to work and now profit from the crude they produce…Across Syria, rebel-held areas are dotted with Islamic courts staffed by lawyers and clerics, and by fighting brigades led by extremists. Even the Supreme Military Council, the umbrella rebel organization whose formation the West had hoped would sideline radical groups, is stocked with commanders who want to infuse Islamic law into a future Syrian government…Nowhere in rebel-controlled Syria is there a secular fighting force to speak of.‘” (emphasis added) In other words, the “moderate Syrian rebels” are a fiction no one could fail to notice. The US funding has always gone to ISIS.

I could cite much more from Cartalucci and Turbeville, who effectively argue that ISIS is a created tool of the US government and its allies. I strongly recommend you read and study their work.

As far as the Brussels attacks are concerned, if we assume that ISIS was responsible, the whole scenario is turned upside down after analyzing the basis of ISIS.

The Obama administration (jointly with the Bush administration) should be announcing: “Well, we keep ISIS alive. Unfortunately, things happen. One of those things is Brussels.”

And then you could go on to query the sincerity of the word “unfortunately.”

Articles by Tony Cartalucci:

[I]Brussels Attack: The True Implications of ISIS Links (http://journal-neo.org/2016/03/22/brussels-attack-the-true-implications-of-isis-links/) (3/22/2016)
ISIS: US-Saudi Plague Reaches Indonesia? (http://journal-neo.org/2016/01/16/isis-us-saudi-plague-reaches-indonesia/) (1/16/2016)
America’s Fake War on ISIS Grinds On (http://landdestroyer.blogspot.com/2016/03/americas-fake-war-on-isis-grinds-on.html) (3/22/2016)
Turkey: The Islamic State’s Second Home (http://www.globalresearch.ca/turkey-the-islamic-states-second-home/5502082) (1/18/2016)
Jon Rappoport

Calz

25th March 2016, 12:37

I would be on board everything there ... except anyone can claim anything.

Who is taking "responsibility" and why???

Was that a CIA issued statement??? Heaven forbid.

Can't have that.

Anyway ... as I have stated elsewhere ... until proven otherwise all major "terrorist" attacks are state sponsored.

Prove me wrong ...

Hervé

27th March 2016, 15:15

Caught On Tape: US State Dept. Says Maybe Russia, Syrian Army Shouldn't Take Palmyra From ISIS
(http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-03-25/caught-tape-state-dept-says-maybe-russia-syrian-army-shouldnt-take-palmyra-isis)
http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/pictures/picture-5.jpg (http://www.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden) Submitted by Tyler Durden (http://www.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden) on 03/25/2016 11:46 -0400

Last May, the world was horrified to learn that the band of marauding, black-flag waving, sword-wielding jihadist desert bandits we all know as the CIA-spawn called ISIS had overrun the ancient city of Palmyra. A UNESCO world heritage site, the city is known for its picturesque ancient ruins and boasts a rich cultural history that brings together Greek, Roman and Persian influences.

The fear - well besides the worry that the militants might murder all the men and enslave the women and children - was that ISIS would destroy the city’s architectural treasures. Those fears were realized in October when reports indicated that the group had blown up the Triumphal Archs, a 2,000 year-old monument that dates back to the Roman empire. Here's a drone flyover of the destruction:

_a08qbFYGnE
And a before/after contrast

http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/images/user92183/imageroot/2016/03/06/Arch_0.png
("Allahu akbar?")

“It’s a crime in every sense of the word,” Syria’s chief of antiquities said. “All we can do is share the sadness.”

Yes, “a crime in every sense of the word,” but destroying the Arch wasn’t the only “crime” ISIS committed at the city’s vaunted ruins. The militants also put on a rather horrific (if morbidly epic) display in The Roman Theatre where city residents were forced to watch as two dozen teenage ISIS trainees carried out a mass execution of captured SAA soldiers.

http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/images/user92183/imageroot/2015/11/Palmyra2_0.png

http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/images/user92183/imageroot/2015/11/Palmyra3_0.png

Right. So that's all really, really bad which is why you would think everyone would be happy to learn that the Syrian army - with the help of Russian commandos and Moscow's warplanes - have now entered the city and are on the verge of liberating it from the ISIS scourge. One Russian SpecOps soldier was reportedly killed in the fighting. "The soldier died heroically, calling the strike onto himself after he was discovered and surrounded by terrorists," Interfax said.

"Syrian government forces fought their way into Palmyra on Thursday as the army backed by Russian air cover sought to recapture the historic city from Islamic State (IS) insurgents," Reuters reports (http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-palmyra-idUSKCN0WQ10I). "The state-run news channel Ikhbariya broadcast images from just outside Palmyra on Thursday and said government fighters had taken over a hotel district in the west [while] the British-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the army had advanced into the hotel district just to the southwest of the city and reached the start of a residential area, after a rapid advance the day before brought the army and its allies right up to its outskirts."

So, after nine months in ISIS hands, the Russians, Hezbollah, and the SAA are about to liberate a UNESCO world heritage site from the most brutal jihadist organization the world has ever known. Unequivocally good, right?

Not necessarily, according to the US State Dept. Watch below as spokesman Mark Toner tries to explain to reporters why it may be better if ISIS holds onto its territory. "You know I mean look... broadly speaking .... you know... it's not a great choice... an either/or... but... you know..."

uxs7yog_CjM
No, Mark, we don't "know."

Hervé

29th March 2016, 16:05

BOMBSHELL: French Counter-Terror Boss: ‘I Have Proof Who Killed Litvinenko - It Wasn’t Russia’
(http://russia-insider.com/en/politics/bombshell-french-counter-terror-boss-i-have-proof-who-killed-litvinenko-it-wasnt-russia)
http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/40x40/public/userphoto/profile_pic.jpg?itok=KrhtmLUQRicky Twisdale (http://russia-insider.com/user/3602)

He says it was done by US and UK secret services and that he is going to go public with the evidence

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/s400/public/bomb.png?itok=XqsHuvWf (http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/bomb.png)
Paul Barril

A former French official who has had senior roles in internal security and terror fighting has come forward with a remarkable statement: that he has documentary evidence proving that Alexander Litvinenko, the Russian spy who died from plutonium poisoning, was killed by US and UK special services.

In a lengthy interview which is soon to be published, he goes further, saying that Litvinenko’s murder was a special sevices operation designed to defame Russia and Vladimir Putin, that the notorious Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky was involved, and was himself killed by MI6 when he became a liability. He even says he knows the code name of the operation: “Beluga”.

From Oped News, Monday, March 27:

Operation Beluga: A US-UK Plot to Discredit Putin and Destabilize the Russian Federation
Renowned French security expert Paul Barril has let loose a bombshell: the existence of Operation Beluga, a covert Western intelligence scheme intended to undermine Russia and its leaders.

Is that what's behind much of the threatening rhetoric now going back and forth between the US and Russia?

Barril exposed Operation Beluga in a recent interview with Swiss businessman Pascal Najadi on the 2006 Alexander Litvinenko death case. Litvinenko was a reputed former spy who many believe was murdered with radioactive polonium on orders of Vladimir Putin.

Najadi says the interview drew out the converse revelation that Litvinenko was actually killed by "an Italian who administered the deadly polonium 210." What's more, he astonishingly says, the operation was carried out under the auspices of the US and UK.

In my books The Phony Litvinenko Murder and Litvinenko Murder Case Solved I've written about an Italian connection. But I can't confirm that Barril is talking about the same person. Barril’s allegations should be taken seriously. He is a renowned French intelligence figure who is known in France as “Superflic”, which translates roughly as “Supercop.” In the French public eye he is a kind of combination of Eliot Ness, James Bond, and William Bratton. For many years he was the second in command of the ski-mask wearing GIGN, the legendary elite French special forces unit, who top the “badass” rankings (http://www.badassoftheweek.com/index.cgi?id=37219222937) of special forces anywhere, and had other high ranking internal security positions in the French government.

Since leaving government service he has handled security issues as a private contractor for heads of state in the Middle East, Latin America and Africa. He has been at the center of several controversies over the years, and is a well-known author. There is no question that he has access to intelligence at the state level which would give him insights into this affair.

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/1200xauto/public/when-terrorist-callfrench-gign-answers-60.png?itok=9_lUW-oG
The French GIGN is one of the most feared and lethal special forces units in the world

In the interview, Barril alleges that Berezovsky was working closely with MI6 and the CIA to discredit Russia and Putin, and that large sums from these agencies were passing through Berezovsky’s hands to be paid to individuals to cooperate in these efforts. Barril says Litvinenko was one of Berezovsky’s bag men, who passed funds on to others.

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/1200xauto/public/53b2ba2d3570c0e743480bbc.jpg?itok=D-oaooMR
Barril has been in the big leagues of state security for 4 decades

From the interview:

“Russia has nothing to do with (the murder of Litvinenko). The case was fabricated from the beginning. Polonium was chosen as the poison because due to its production in Russia it would implicate Russia. The objective of the whole operation was to discredit president Putin and the FSB. It was done because Russia is blocking US interests around the world, especially in Syria. It was an attempt to weaken Putin’s hold on power, to destabilize Russia.” In the interview, Barril mentions the outspoken Putin foe, financier William Browder, as being in close cooperation with Berezovsky in the discreditation efforts. He also says he is sure Berezovsky was murdered by his secret service handlers after they realized he was behaving erratically and had to be silenced so that he wouldn’t give them away.

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/s400/public/Barril-Paul-Missions-Tres-Speciales-Livre-25784530_L.jpg?itok=6rW-ulz9 (http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/Barril-Paul-Missions-Tres-Speciales-Livre-25784530_L.jpg)
Barril has advised heads of state in the middle east, the gulf states in particular

Finally, he says he will make his evidence available to a public investigation of the affair if it is run by a credible individual. He suggests Carla del Ponte as a good choice to do it, because he is convinced she is not under the control of the CIA.

Barril’s allegations are sure to raise further questions around the 2006 Litvinenko murder, which hit the headlines again in January, 2016, when a UK public inquiry into the affair failed to deliver a conclusive verdict.

The case is 10 years old, but still elicits widespread public interest due the spy-thriller ingredients of the murder mystery: spy - counterspy hijinks, radiation poisonings, accusations (which have been conclusively debunked) that Putin himself ‘probably’ ordered the murder, seedy nightclubs, a disgraced oligarch who ends up mysteriously dead in his bathroom, sobbing widows on the stand, preposterous politicized "show" trials, politicians grandstanding, and much more.

An accomplished murder mystery author would have trouble coming up with something this surreal.

------------------------------------------

Finally, he says he will make his evidence available to a public investigation of the affair if it is run by a credible individual. He suggests Carla del Ponte as a good choice to do it, because he is convinced she is not under the control of the CIA.... implying there aren't that many who aren't - or susceptible to be - CIA assets...

Ewan

29th March 2016, 17:54

Didn't he just paint a target in the middle of his forehead? Maybe there's much unsaid, like he has the documents with various people to be released in the event of his death.

norman

29th March 2016, 20:02

Perhaps he's so privvi to the inside story that he's one of very few people who know that all it will take, now, is a little push.

http://parterre.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/nyco_rats.jpg

Hervé

30th March 2016, 13:03

In Syria, Assad Liberates Palmyra While CIA Battles the Pentagon (http://www.ronpaulinstitute.org/archives/peace-and-prosperity/2016/march/28/in-syria-assad-liberates-palmyra-while-cia-battles-the-pentagon/)

By Daniel McAdams (http://www.ronpaulinstitute.org/archives/peace-and-prosperity/?author=Daniel+McAdams) Monday March 28, 2016http://www.ronpaulinstitute.org/images/icons/printer.png

http://www.ronpaulinstitute.org/media/120535/palmyra.jpeg?width=430px&height=258px

The big news out of Syria over the past couple of days has been that Syrian government forces with the help of the Russian military have taken back control of Palmyra from ISIS. The fall of Palmyra and subsequent destruction (http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/02/isis-destruction-of-palmyra-syria-heart-been-ripped-out-of-the-city) of the spectacular Roman ruins there by ISIS horrified the civilized world.

The US government had claimed from the beginning that the Russians were not targeting ISIS at all, but only the "moderate" rebels supported by Washington. That lie now stands bare in newly-liberated Palmyra and onward, as Syrian government troops aided by the Russians speed east toward the "capital" of the Islamic State, Raqqa.

Meanwhile, the five year US "regime change" effort in Syria chugs along in a very different way. We learned in a Los Angeles Times report (http://www.latimes.com/world/middleeast/la-fg-cia-pentagon-isis-20160327-story.html) yesterday that the US is now at war with...itself in Syria.

Yes, that's right. While Syrian government troops and the Russians are dealing a death-blow to ISIS in Syria, one set of rebels supported by the Central Intelligence Agency is at war with another set of rebels supported by the Pentagon!

Apparently for the past several months CIA-backed Fursan al Haq and Pentagon-backed Syrian Democratic Forces have intensified their war against each other. According to the Times piece, US Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) -- a staunch interventionist -- finds the situation "an enormous challenge," adding that "it is part of the three-dimensional chess that is the Syrian battlefield.”

Schiff here epitomizes the total cluelessness of the Washington political class. It is not a challenging situation nor is it three-dimensional chess to those capable of non-Washington thinking. It is a matter of US policy being to wage war against both the Assad government and Assad's main enemy, ISIS. When you fight an enemy and the enemy of that enemy at the same time it is not called three-dimensional chess. It is called madness.

If Euripides is correct that "whom the gods would destroy, they first make mad," it seems we are half-way to destruction in the US.

Related:
CIA-armed militias are shooting at Pentagon-armed ones in Syria (http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/ct-syria-militias-us-cia-islamic-state-20160326-story.html)

Hervé

30th March 2016, 13:26

Pentagon concedes Russia’s ‘constructive role’ in Syrian ceasefire, fight against ISIS (https://www.rt.com/usa/337683-russia-constructive-syria-isis/)

Published time: 29 Mar, 2016 23:37
Edited time: 30 Mar, 2016 11:01
Get short URL (http://on.rt.com/78k3)

https://cdn.rt.com/files/2016.03/original/56fb0af1c461884f028b45b7.jpg
© Jason Reed / Reuters

Russia is playing a “constructive” role in Syria's ceasefire, the Pentagon said, having noted “developments” on the ground. It encouraged Moscow to “continue to focus” on Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL), while persuading Assad to stop the war.
TrendsRussian anti-terror op in Syria (https://www.rt.com/trends/russia-syria-op/), Syria unrest (https://www.rt.com/trends/syria-unrest-assad-opposition/)

“It is clear that they have focused more of their military attention on ISIL, we think that’s a good thing,” Pentagon spokesperson Peter Cook said during a briefing in Washington DC. “They said initially that was their primary goal, was to go after ISIL in Syria and they are doing so now.”

Cook added that the US sees “those developments” on the ground, but also hopes that the ceasefire in Syria would “ultimately lead to a resolution of the Syrian Civil War.”

In this regard, Cook stressed that peace in Syria depends on Bashar Assad and the changes that he as the President is required to make.

Since the Syrian conflict unfolded five years ago, the US has been insisting that Assad has to step down as a part of a peaceful resolution to the military conflict, which has given way to a jihadist insurgency.

“We're also pushing for the cessation of hostilities that we hope will ultimately lead to a resolution of the Syrian Civil War, but to have that happen will require changes on the part of the Assad regime, and nobody has more leverage, more clout – if you will, than Russia,” Cook said. “We hope that they [Russia] would use that leverage in as constructive fashion as possible, and we would encourage them to do so.”

He went on to say that if the Russians “continue to focus their efforts” on Islamic State, this “would be a good thing.”

Cook’s comments have marked a significant shift in the Obama administration’s tone towards Russia’s actions in Syria.

Last week, the Secretary of State, who traveled to Moscow last week to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, also pointed out Russia’s help in the “strategic interest” of the United States.

“Russia is now helping with the cessation of hostilities. And if Russia can help us to actually affect this political transition, that is all to the strategic interest of the United States of America,” Kerry told the CBS show Face the Nation.

Since Russia started its anti-terror campaign over Syria to assist the Syrian army in September 2015, the US has been accusing Moscow of aiming its actions on anti-Assad rebels and targeting civilians, while providing no substantial evidence.

Yet, assisted by Russian air power, the Syrian troops have been making steady progress in retaking grounds from IS. Last week, the Syrian Army achieved one of its major victories after liberating the historic city of Palmyra, or Tadmur. A UNESCO World Heritage Site, it had been occupied by jihadists since last May. Until its capture, the city housed some of the world’s best-preserved monuments of antiquity, which had been partially destroyed, including two of Palmyra’s 2,000-year-old temples.

The Syrian Army has also managed to force terrorists out of Latakia and the northern part of Aleppo, the country’s biggest city and commercial hub in pre-war times, and mopped up Hama and Homs Provinces in central Syria.

Related:
US State Dept fails to say if ISIS must be pushed out of Palmyra or not (https://www.rt.com/usa/337119-us-fails-palmyra-isis/)

-------------------------------------

Hmmmm... would the Pentagon be on the brink of realizing the "intelligence" they are being fed with is "over-cooked"?

In this post (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?89423-Flat-Earth-Idea-Why-so-popular&p=1054439&viewfull=1#post1054439) (<---), see: From Sue Arrigo's Case 12: The Exorbitant Cost of Cooking Intelligence

Ted

30th March 2016, 17:45

“Russia is now helping with the cessation of hostilities. And if Russia can help us to actually affect this political transition, that is all to the strategic interest of the United States of America,” Kerry told the CBS show Face the Nation. Oh, absolutely John, that's exactly what Russia had in mind when they came to Assad's aid.

DbDraad

5th April 2016, 08:32

Hi all, I don't post much, but read quite a bit...this site and others. I must say that this thread is probably one of the most interesting and revealing I have come across...ever. Good stuff!

Sophocles

8th April 2016, 09:40

Armenia vs Azerbaijan, East vs West: Nagorno-Karabakh crisis and the NATO-Israeli connection (http://www.sott.net/article/315892-Armenia-vs-Azerbaijan-East-vs-West-Nagorno-Karabakh-crisis-and-the-NATO-Israeli-connection)

Corey Schink & Mike Tutundjian
Sott.net
Wed, 06 Apr 2016 12:22 UTC

Victoria 'F**K the EU' Nuland's visit to Azerbaijan last year had analysts wondering whether something was afoot. While Nuland surely wouldn't visit a country in order to oversee destabilization along Russia's border (she's never done than that before, right?), a heated conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan would do just that. (http://www.sott.net/article/293366-Nuland-in-Azerbaijan-Another-destabilization-attempt-planned-on-Russias-southern-border) The sudden and violent eruption of this 'frozen conflict' at a time of vastly improving Iranian-Azeri-Russian economic and military cooperation (http://http://www.sott.net/article/315889-Armenian-Azeri-tensions-Why-they-re-happening-and-who-benefits) provides both the means and motive for NATO/Israeli forces - an opportunity to destabilize Russia and Iran in one blow.

http://www.sott.net/image/s11/231770/medium/1424182111_us_assistant_secret.jpg
What was Nuland up to in Azerbaijan?

Historical background

Armenia and Azerbaijan have been at war two times over the Nagorno-Karabakh region - once in 1918 and the second time in 1988, in the last years of the Soviet Union. Azeris began massacring Armenians in Azerbaijan, causing a large number of people to flee. Then they attacked the ethnically Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh in Azerbaijan with a modernized military, attacking people trying to defend themselves with hunting rifles or whatever they could get hold of. The Azeris blockaded Nagorno-Karabakh and all transport and shipments into Armenia proper. Turkey joined the blockade, while Georgia was having its own civil war with Abkhazia, making border crossing there very difficult. So the only border Armenia had that wasn't blockaded (or impaired) was its Iranian one. That blockade is still in place today, although the Georgian border has generally calmed down.

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/311810/large/CfDk22TVAAIVjEi.jpg

On December 10, 1991, Nagorno-Karabakh held a referendum for independence, as was its right under international and USSR law. The vote, done in the presence of international observers and media representatives, saw 82.2% of Karabakh's eligible voters participating. They overwhelmingly approved Karabakh's sovereignty, with 99.89% of the ballots supporting independence.

As the conflict continued, the Armenians started winning battles when some volunteer military commanders came from Armenia proper (and some from overseas) and began to organize the military operations. They also got some light arms. Each battle the Armenian side won, they seized the weapons of the retreating Azeri forces. Among the confiscated weapons were Turkish and Israeli tanks and artillery, and, of course, left-over Soviet equipment. Interestingly, there were Ukrainian volunteers fighting on the side of Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan's air force was not very effective. The Armenians use a primitive but effective air defense system: cable nets they would stretch across the mountains and lift as the helicopter gunships and fighter jets came to attack their positions in the foothills and valleys, causing them to crash (this technique was most used in Shushi).

In 1992, a military and strategic turning point was reached when the Karabakh defense forces secured the Lachin Corridor, opening a direct connection with the border of Armenia. From this point on morale skyrocketed and the lifeline for supplies made continued victories much more likely.

By 1993, Azerbaijan sued for peace. There was a ceasefire agreement, which Azerbaijan immediately began violating. The ceasefire didn't hold and hostilities resumed. By the spring of 1994, Azerbaijan had lost practically the whole of Nagorno-Karabakh, including strategic heights. The ceasefire agreement brokered by Russia and the OSCE is still nominally in place, despite regular but relatively minor violations leading up to the latest breakout of violence.

The Aliev clan and associated oligarchs have been dominating Azerbaijan since the collapse of the USSR. The Azeri elite have brainwashed their population to be totally paranoid and blame all their problems on Armenians. The Azeri establishment also brutally terrorizes and cracks down on dissent among the Azeri population, usually calling them traitors and accusing them of being Armenian spies. Like Ukraine and Crimea, Azerbaijan was basically a Bolshevik creation - it didn't exist before 1918.

The last war thus ended in 1994, with Nagorno-Karabakh resting in the hands of the Armenians. This is fitting, since 95% of the region (http://www.cfr.org/global/global-conflict-tracker/p32137#!/conflict/nagorno-karabakh-conflict) is ethnically Armenian. However, neighboring relations quickly deteriorated, with Armenia finding its borders to Turkey and Azerbaijan closed, thus shutting off vital trade routes which Turkey stubbornly refuses to negotiate. As a result the oil-rich Azerbaijan came out on top with massive arms sales from Israel, the capital Baku hosting the CIA's terror sites (http://www.panorama.am/en/news/2013/02/05/cia-azerbaijan/591635), and the country recently shooting down an Armenian helicopter in 2014, with ceasefire violations continuing apace since.

Then, over the course of March 2016, the Azerbaijan Defense Ministry issued (http://http://en.trend.az/azerbaijan/karabakh/2503787.html) numerous (http://en.trend.az/azerbaijan/karabakh/2503787.html) reports concerning Armenia's numerous violations of the fragile ceasefire in the region. However, as analysts have pointed out, Armenia had nothing to gain from initiating such a conflict. They had enough problems on their hands and had nothing to gain from initiating a larger conflict which would destabilize the region.

On March 21st, media reports (http://armenpress.am/eng/news/840140/nagorno-karabakh-azerbaijan-contact-line-situation-tense-over-the-weekend.html) revealed that Azerbaijan fired 2400 "retaliatory" shots at Armenian positions, thus thawing a 'frozen conflict' at a time of vital Russian-Iranian-Azeri economic and military cooperation. While both sides blame the other for violating the ceasefire, the rhetoric coming from Azerbaijan has been especially volatile, with the ambassador to Russia claiming (https://www.rt.com/news/338169-escalation-hostilities-karabakh-updates/) the country is 'ready to find a military resolution to the conflict.' Vice speaker of Russia's State Duma Sergei Zheleznyak said it best when he stated (http://http://tass.ru/en/politics/866824), "[N]either Azerbaijan nor Armenia essentially need this exacerbation now." He also stated that, "[T]here is every likelihood that this provocation has been organized by a third force," adding that "information on its presence is beginning to leak out."

Interestingly, a week before this escalation, the Minsk Group Co-Chairs responsible for mediating this ceasefire held a closed-door meeting. However, observers have noted that it differed from the usual format in that it featured (http://www.armradio.am/en/2016/03/14/nagorno-karabakh-open-details-of-a-closed-door-meeting/) 'no representatives of the civil society, only experts, including ones from Western countries.' It is rather interesting, in this context, that last December an Azeri parliamentarian introduced a bill which attempted to revoke the US co-chairmanship in the Minsk Group for the settling of the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh (http://www.sott.net/article/309148-Azerbaijans-parliament-drafts-law-to-minimize-unwanted-US-influence). Perhaps someone foresaw such an outcome.

On April 7th, the Stratfor (https://www.stratfor.com/sample/analysis/geopolitical-calendar-week-april-4-2016) website relates that the Foreign Ministers of Russia, Iran, and Azerbaijan were to meet to discuss further economic and political cooperation. More on that below.

Geopolitical perspective

By March, Iran and Azerbaijan had begun inking extremely critical economic, military, and resource-sharing agreements, one of which was leading to a railway aimed at connecting Russian-Iranian-Azeri territories (http://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/The-Political-Consequences-Of-Iran-And-Azerbaijans-Energy-Agreements.html). This in and of itself would have been a major move forward for Eurasian integration, weakening Turkey/NATO's meddling influence in the region (http://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/The-Political-Consequences-Of-Iran-And-Azerbaijans-Energy-Agreements.html):

Looking at the broader regional context of the Azerbaijani president's visit to Iran, two important developments play to Russian interests even more than Iran's. On the one hand, Russia is using the Azerbaijani-Iranian transport talks as a pretext to propose a trilateral meeting of their foreign ministers (APA (http://en.apa.az/xeber_azerbaijani__iranian_and_russian_fms_to__240011.html), February 29). This type of trilateral ministerial-level format is something of a Turkish foreign policy trademark in the region.

Thus given the current standoff in Russian-Turkish relations, coupled with Tehran's own anxiety toward Ankara, this development appears to be a joint initiative by Moscow and Tehran, potentially aimed at weakening Turkey's active diplomacy in the South Caucasus. Baku has little room for maneuver in this respect.

Iran had also been developing a military relationship with the Azeris (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Azerbaijan%E2%80%93Iran_relations#Significant_re-improvement_of_relations_since_2014):

In April 2015, Iran and Azerbaijan announced their decision to form a joint defense commission; a move that may indicate a conspicuous geopolitical shift in the (http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160403/1037395361/nagorno-karabakh-fights.html#ixzz44jkvPT7m) South Caucasus (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transcaucasia). In May 2015, deputy chief of foreign relations at the Secretariat of the Supreme Leader of Iran's Islamic Revolution Mohsen Qomi has expressed his country's readiness to support Azerbaijan. He told chairman of Azerbaijan's State Committee for Work with Religious Organizations Mubariz Gurbanli who visited Tehran, "We are ready to support Azerbaijan at any time".

With all this in mind it's no shock that NATO's pitbull Turkey has come out (https://www.rt.com/news/338196-nagorno-karabakh-armenia-azerbaijan-turkey/) on the side of their Azerbaijani partner, with Israel playing its usual role in the shadows.

A few weeks back a Turkish lobbying firm was busy drafting a letter specifically for US lawmakers, a letter which primed them for the conflict by claiming (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/turkey-lobbyists-armenia_us_56fd85a6e4b0a06d58054b16) that 'the Russians are coming, and Armenia is helping them.' Now Turkey is sending (http://www.fort-russ.com/2016/04/turkish-mercenaries-and-trainers-to.html) mercenaries and trainers to further fan the flames of conflict, while Novorossia Today reports (http://novorossia.today/war-madness-israel-turkey-cia-open/) that Israel and NATO are sending advanced weaponry in preparation for an escalation in conflict.

So it comes as no surprise then when Jordanian Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh makes this (http://www.middleeasteye.net/news/jordans-abdullah-says-1249947869) not-so-cryptic remark:

Saudi Arabia had been "very good at clipping the wings of Iran's foreign activities, including Africa," and he noted that the Saudis had "re-engaged in Azerbaijan and in Asia so they can stand up against Iran".

With Russia allied with Armenia, the looming threat is that a large-scale confrontation will draw Russia into the war on their side, with disastrous effects. No doubt Russia has seen this coming, and has cards ready to play, since they seem to be the last great power to take a bold stand against the world's darkest pathocracies.

Source (http://www.sott.net/article/315892-Armenia-vs-Azerbaijan-East-vs-West-Nagorno-Karabakh-crisis-and-the-NATO-Israeli-connection)

Sophocles

8th April 2016, 12:19

Interview: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, March 30th

sFneWASRWGA

The most important lesson we have learned, but I believe we have known it for a long time, is that the West is not honest. -Assad-

seko

10th April 2016, 17:48

33272

Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk has announced his resignation after weeks of a political crisis in the Eastern European country.

The premier said in a televised address on Sunday that he would formally submit his resignation to parliament on Tuesday.

“I decided to resign from the post of Ukraine’s prime minister. On Tuesday, April 12, the decision will be submitted to the Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian parliament),” Yatsenyuk said, adding, “Since now, I see my goals broader than the powers of the government head.”

The outgoing premier stressed that destabilization would be “inevitable” in Ukraine if a new government was not formed.
http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/04/10/460080/Ukraine-Prime-Minister-Arseny-Yatsenyuk-resignation/

PathWalker

11th April 2016, 11:29

Egypt and Saudi-Arabia change national borders and instigate public roar
http://egyptianstreets.com/2016/04/10/11-arrested-for-protesting-against-egypts-declaration-of-sanafir-and-tiran-as-saudi-arabian-territory/
11 Arrested for Protesting Against Egypt’s Declaration of ‘Sanafir and Tiran’ as Saudi Arabian Territory

http://egyptianstreets.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/tirann.jpg
At least 11 people have been arrested for “protesting without a permit” against Egypt’s recent decision to declare two disputed islands, Sanafir and Tiran, as Saudi Arabian territory, reported Shorouk and El Watan.

A small number of protesters had converged in downtown Cairo to demonstrate the new maritime agreement between Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

The protesters were arrested shortly before Saudi Arabian King Salman was due to give a speech to Egypt’s parliament.

Egypt’s decision to declare the two islands as Saudi Arabian has prompted outrage on social media. #Tiran_Sanafir (#تيران_صنافير) became the top trending hashtag in Egypt on Twitter, with more than 28,000 tweets posted in relation to the decision. Some social media users have accused President Sisi of ‘selling the country to Saudi Arabia’, while others have supported the decision, arguing that previous governments had also planned to ‘return the islands to Saudi Arabia’.

The anger against the decision, which must be voted on in parliament before a referendum is held according to article 151 of the Constitution, has led to several lawyers filing legal complaints.

Among the lawyers who are collecting signatures for a petition is Tarek Al Awady. In a statement on Facebook, which has been shared more than 500 times and has more than 1,000 likes, Al Awady announced he is collecting signatures to file a legal complaint against the Egyptian government’s decision.

Similarly, Khaled Ali, the former head of the Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights (ECESR) and former Presidential candidate, announced that he had filed a legal complaint in court.

However, in response to the anger, Egypt government said that the two islands have historically fallen within Saudi Arabia’s regional waters. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Ministry denied the existence of any territorial disputes, adding the new maritime agreement was decided upon after consultation with Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Yemen and Iraq.

Egypt’s government reasserted in a statement released on Sunday that the agreement will not come into force if Parliament decides to vote against it.

The agreement

Egypt and Saudi Arabia signed an agreement outlining the two countries’ maritime borders, placing the disputed islands of Sanafir and Tiran within the kingdom’s territory, the Egyptian Cabinet announced on Saturday.

“This accomplishment comes after hard work that lasted a long six years, during which time 11 rounds of meetings were held with the maritime delimitation committee between [Saudi Arabia and Egypt],” a statement from the Cabinet reads.

The statement went on to say that the delimitation of the maritime borders relied on a 1990 presidential decree outlining Egypt’s basis of outlining territorial seas, which Egypt notified the United Nations of in May of 1990, in addition to discussions between Egypt and Saudi Arabia during the same year and Saudi Arabia’s basis of outlining territorial seas.

Using “the most modern scientific methods,” the committee came to the conclusion that the islands of Sanafir and Tiran are within Saudi Arabia’s maritime territory.

The agreement will allow the two countries to benefit from what each island provides in “wealth and resources” that will be economically beneficial.

The bilateral agreement will be presented to Egypt’s House of Representatives, which will discuss its contents and issue a decision as to whether to ratify the agreement, as per legal requirements.

The two islands, located in the Red Sea to the east of the Sinai Peninsula and the west of the Arabian Peninsula, have previously been administered by Egypt but Saudi Arabia has also laid claim to them.

In 1949, Saudi Arabia allowed Egypt to occupy the two islands “for defense purposes” following the establishment of the Israeli state. Egypt proceeded to block passage through the Strait of Tiran, Israel’s only maritime passage from the Gulf of Aqaba to the Red Sea.

Tiran Island was captured by Israel during the Six-Day War of 1967 and remained under Israeli control until 1982.

The new maritime agreement between Egypt and Saudi Arabia comes during King Salman’s five-day visit to Egypt. Since his arrival, the Saudi monarch hasannounced the building of a bridge between the kingdom and Egypt over the Red Sea, pledged billions of dollars in various loans and development agreements, and met with Egypt’s Pope Tawadros II and the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi also announced that the Saudi-Egyptian bridge will be named after King Salman and awarded him with the “Order of the Nile,” Egypt’s highest state honor.

Hervé

16th April 2016, 17:56

Syrian Army Starts Battle for Aleppo, ISIS Cuts Turkey-Backed Rebels in Half

Russian air force is backing the Syrian loyalist push

Adam Hill (http://russia-insider.com/en/adam-hill) Thu, Apr 14, 2016

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/s400/public/alalam_635811273773666474_25f_4x3.jpg?itok=VStjyWnM (http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/alalam_635811273773666474_25f_4x3.jpg)

For two week now there have been reports of a Syrian army buildup in the Aleppo region. These culminated yesterday in a report that no fewer than 11,000 new troops (https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/syrian-army-amasses-11000-soldiers-aleppo-offensive/) have been concentrated for the oncoming Aleppo offensive (http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/04/syria-as-rebels-break-ceasefire-army-gathers-for-new-campaign.html).

Syria's prime minister himself announced such a push would begin shortly and reassured loyalists that Russia was onboard (http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-idUSKCN0X70GE).

Today the long-anticipated Battle of Aleppo begun as Syrian army with Russian air support (https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/russian-jets-soar-skies-aleppo/) launched an attack on al-Nusra and other non-ceasefire rebel groups aimed to cut off rebel supply lines into the city. Initial push has met with success (https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/battle-aleppo-city-begins-syrian-army-advances-north-map-update/):

For the first time since 2014, heavy clashes have now broken out inside Aleppo city itself. Earlier today, the Syrian Arab Army (SAA) captured al-Mallah farms (https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/breaking-syrian-army-captures-al-mallah-farms-northern-aleppo/) in the north while simultaneously cutting the rebel supply line to Al-Ramouseh Industrial District (https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/syrian-army-hezbollah-cutoff-important-rebel-supply-route-aleppo/) in the south.

Furthermore, breaking reports indicate that government troops are storming the western section of the Handarat housing, with skirmishes ongoing near the district’s Palestine Mosque and Zuhair Mohsen School. This attack has been launched from the nearby Quarries.

Now, rebels inside Aleppo city are inches from being completely encircled, thus preventing them from receiving vital supplies and ammunitions. This is due to fire control between al-Mallah farms and the YPG-held district of Sheikh Maqsoud. As seen on the map rebels' supply lines have been narrowed down albeit loyalist forces will have to take more ground to completely cut them off:

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/1200xauto/public/Aleppo-city-map.png?itok=IFLh3ml0

Should pro-government forces succeed in encircling rebel-held district of Aleppo it remains to be seen if they will attempt to promptly eliminate it or settle for besieging it which has been their prefered tactic in the war so far.

Turkish-backed rebels cut in half by ISIS
Meanwhile fighting further up north has seen another dramatic reversal that this war keeps throwing up.

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/1200xauto/public/444_0_0.jpg?itok=NdcBj4k6

Last week we were reporting that Azaz pocket rebels were "racing" along the Syrian-Turkish border as, backed by Turkish artillery and US A-10s they took over 20 settlements in all of five days.

However, since then ISIS has regroup and struck back. Under Turkish artillery fire it took territory from rebels even faster than it had previously lost it.

http://russia-insider.com/sites/insider/files/styles/1200xauto/public/erdogansaudi_0.jpg?itok=CWh0qpvR

In one section ISIS has actually reached the Turkish border (https://www.yahoo.com/news/seizes-syria-villages-near-turkish-border-103131523.html) thus splitting the expanded Azaz pocket in half.

This is all the more remarkable if you believe as Moon of Alabama does that rebels are propped up by Turkish special forces (http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/04/islamic-state-occupies-erdogans-safe-zone.html).

It seems that ISIS understood the rebels' border offensive last week was an opening salvo of a larger Turkish plan to install rebels in the entire ISIS-held northern Syria (http://russia-insider.com/en/out-isis-jihadis-moderate-johadis-turkish-plan-keep-syrian-border-thwart-kurds-revealed/ri13797) and decided it need to be nipped in the bud.

We will see if the forces ISIS has dedicated to this task will make a major attempt to eliminate the Azaz pocket or if a stalemate of some sort will return.

Sophocles

21st April 2016, 19:33

Putin blasts 5th columnists (archive video)

Zl90fme0XEc

Sophocles

23rd April 2016, 14:33

It ain't over till it's over: Post-Palmyra liberation, ISIS remains a threat (http://www.sott.net/article/316808-It-aint-over-till-its-over-Post-Palmyra-liberation-ISIS-remains-a-threat)

Paul Mansfield
Sott.net
Thu, 21 Apr 2016 19:39 UTC

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/315142/large/isis_flag.jpg
© www.latinpost.com

Unleashed, the threat that knows no borders.

The recent liberation of Palmyra by Syrian government forces was a significant defeat for ISIS and should represent a turning point in the fight against terrorism in Syria. It still may, but the determination of the USA, Turkey and Saudi Arabia to bring down Bashar al Assad jeopardises continued progress towards the ultimate defeat of ISIS and other terrorist groups in Syria.

US cooperation with Russia to actively fight Islamist forces and support the withdrawal of financing, weapons and supply of fighters from Turkey and Saudi Arabia, would isolate, weaken and lead to the destruction of ISIS as a fighting force. But the insatiable desire for control and influence in the Middle East drives the US and its allies to support 'Islamists' as proxies in order to achieve their goal of overthrowing Assad, a stepping stone to the greater prize of regime change in Iran. (http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2015/jun/17/major-us-figures-join-call-for-regime-change-in-te/)

These contradictory agendas are why ISIS, while in retreat, is far from a defeated force. ISIS is the key fighting force against Assad, so it will continue receiving support, directly or indirectly. Essentially, this means the US, Saudi Arabia and Turkey are aiding and abetting, not fighting, terrorism. A perpetual war, chaos and the foreshadowed partition of Syria (http://www.brookings.edu/blogs/order-from-chaos/posts/2015/06/30-deconstructing-syria-ohanlon) are the consequences of such destructive policies. John Kerry's enunciation of Plan B (http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2016/02/23/kerry-warns-plan-b-syria-if-cease-fire-fails/80810158/) threatens realization, sabotaging the gains of the Syrian government as it seeks to reclaim territory from Islamist forces and reunite the country.

ISIS recently captured 11 localities in northern Aleppo province (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160411/1037835005/daesh-syria-aleppo.html), near the Turkish border. It is still capable of acquiring territory and can capitalise on Syrian army forces being stretched and preoccupied in other regions of the country. (http://www.globalresearch.ca/syria-heavy-fighting-between-isis-and-al-nusra/5519799) ISIS and Al-Nusra are currently attacking the strategically vital M5 highway from Aleppo to Homs, in order to aggravate the humanitarian situation. According to Press TV (http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2016/04/12/460465/syria-daesh-plo-yarmouk-russian-chopper/), ISIS "has taken control of most of the Palestinian Yarmouk refugee camp in Syria after pushing out a rival Takfiri [pseudo-religious] terrorist group."

Islamist US and its Allies Backed ISIS Takeover of Palmyra

The Syrian Army faced a number of foreign-supported terrorist factions, stretching the army's resources almost to breaking point, and saved only by the timely intervention of Russia in September 2015. But before this war-changing intervention, the US and its allies - Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Israel - backed the ISIS takeover and destruction of Palmyra. (http://www.globalresearch.ca/how-america-backed-the-isis-takeover-and-destruction-of-palmyra/5520274) Most of the weapons ISIS used were from the US, with some ammunition from Israel. It received US Hummers, explosives, and military rations. Who can forget the sight of convoys of Toyota 4-wheel drives filled with ISIS fighters jubilantly waving, anticipating the capture of large areas of north-east Syria, including most of the country's oil fields.

A disturbing element of ISIS' takeover of Palmyra was the way it was able to move across expansive stretches of desert without being targeted by the US. For the US to do so, it would have been assisting the Assad government, and this is definitely not in the US playbook. It is one thing to conquer territory; it is another to retain control. Assad faces this challenge in Aleppo, a site of fierce fighting over a key supply route for weapons and fighters from Turkey.

Desperate to keep the supply corridor into Syria open, Turkey has repeatedly shelled the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG), and also Syrian army positions. Turkey intervened with artillery shelling in the battle for Azaz (http://russia-insider.com/en/turkey-admits-aiding-al-qaeda-and-isis/ri12880) and attempted to stop the YPG from capturing the Menagh airbase, (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160220/1035078667/turkey-shelling-northern-syria.html) making it clear they are willing to directly intervene directly on behalf of the proxy Islamist forces.

Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, speaking at a meeting (http://www.pravdareport.com/world/asia/syria/12-02-2016/133320-turkey_saudi_arabia_russia_syria-0/) of the parliamentary faction of the ruling Justice and Development Party, made Turkey's position abundantly clear, saying:

"We will return our historic debt. At one time, our brothers from Aleppo defended our cities of Sanliurfa, Gaziantep, Kahramanmaras, now we will defend the heroic Aleppo. All of Turkey stands behind its defenders."

Davutoglu made the statement after the Syrian military cut off the terrorists' major supplies channels in northern Aleppo province from Turkey.

Erdogan's Dream of a Neo-Ottoman Empire Fuels ISIS Support

Oil Smuggling

The stream of accusations, backed by multiple sources of evidence, is growing against Ankara over illegal oil trade and support of ISIS. Despite the impossible-to-ignore evidence, Western mainstream media has framed the issue as 'tit-for-tat' accusations in a bitter dispute between Russia and Turkey. Meanwhile the US government, decidedly uncomfortable with damning revelations, stubbornly continues to back its NATO ally. The Russian Ministry of Defence (MOD), Syrian authorities, the Kurds and Iraqis have all exposed the smuggling of oil from Syria and Iraq into Turkey. The MOD, after conducting extensive surveillance, released satellite images of convoys of tanker trucks smuggling oil across the Turkish border, unchallenged by Turkish border guards and officials. At last November's G20 summit, held in Istanbul, Russian President Vladimir Putin revealed that 40 countries support ISIS. Within days, Turkey, a key supporter of ISIS, and furious that Russian airstrikes were disrupting the lucrative oil-smuggling trade, committed a blatant act of aggression by downing a Russian Su24.

Erdogan's Hatred of Assad and the Kurds

Erdogan's Hatred of Assad and the Kurds Turkey collaborates with ISIS terrorists for two reasons: to remove Bashar al Assad from power, and to block Syrian Kurds' quest for greater autonomy from Damascus. Turkey is either supporting or turning a blind eye to terrorists crossing its border into Syria. Captured ISIS fighters have said they were trained in camps in Turkey, where they received payments, were supplied with weapons and given passage across the border to fight in Syria.

Weapons Supply Through Turkish Border

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/315135/medium/BAFP_Getty_Images1413918311021.jpg
© AFP Getty Images

ISIS militant examines a supply crate of grenades on the Syria-Turkey border.

Cumhuriyet journalists Can Dündar and Erdem Gül, victims of the ongoing suppression of Turkish media freedom, are standing trial in Turkey, behind closed doors, after publishing a report on the funneling of weapons to Islamists in Syria. (https://www.cpj.org/europe/turkey/) At first Turkey denied the accusations, saying the trucks were carrying humanitarian supplies, but later backtracked and claimed the weapons were for the Free Syrian Army. The narrative then changed again when Istanbul claimed it was supplying local Turkmen, who fight both Syrian state forces and ISIS.

Diligent investigative reporting cost Lebanese-American journalist Serena Shim (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serena_Shim) her life, dying mysteriously in a car accident while reporting on weapons being carried across the Turkish border for ISIS. As covered by one blogger: (https://theburningbloggerofbedlam.wordpress.com/2015/10/20/the-killing-of-serena-shim-the-suicide-of-former-bbc-journalist-jackie-sutton/)

On October 17th last year, just two days before her death, Shim had told Press TV that the Turkish National Intelligence Organization (MİT) had accused her of "spying". She stated it was "probably due to some of the stories she had covered" about Turkey's role in the Islamic State terror group and particularly in regard to the militants in Kobani. It was Shim who had reported on ISIL militants being smuggled across the Turkish border into Syria in trucks deceptively bearing the symbols of NGOs like the World Food Organisation.

Chemical Weapons Supplied Through Turkey

Turkish MP Eren Erdem of the Republican People's Party (CHP) has made allegations that chemical weapons materials were brought into Turkey and used to produce Sarin gas in Syria at ISIS camps. Erdem told RT (https://www.rt.com/news/326084-erdem-rt-interview-treason/) that:

"All basic materials are purchased from Europe. Western institutions should question themselves about these relations. Western sources know very well who carried out the Sarin gas attack in Syria."

Investigations, by the General Prosecutor's Office in the city of Adana in southern Turkey revealed that a number of Turkish citizens assisted ISIS with acquiring Sarin gas. Adana authorities conducted raids and 13 suspects were arrested. However, as quickly as the case was opened it was closed, the suspects released, further investigations dropped, and the case disappeared down a black hole. Erdem himself faced death threats and treason charges (http://www.globalresearch.ca/erdogan-mafia-state-turkish-mp-faces-treason-charges-for-revealing-how-isis-used-turkey-for-smuggling-chemical-weapons/5496387) for daring to reveal Turkey's role in enabling terrorists to acquire illegal chemical weapons.

The US Role in the Creation of ISIS

Opinion is divided on whether the USA deliberately created ISIS (http://www.globalresearch.ca/america-created-al-qaeda-and-the-isis-terror-group/5402881) or created the conditions for ISIS to evolve. (http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-01-02/isis-enemy-us-created-armed-funded)

The former argument says it was deliberately created, consistent with a long history of backing 'Islamists' in pursuit of US geostrategic interests. The latter argues that the destruction and decimation of once prosperous Iraq fomented the rise of ISIS, which was able to rapidly accrue firepower by capturing and using, to its advantage, a vast array of weapons left in Iraq.

US Lieutenant General Michael Flynn, as head of the Defense Intelligence Agency, warned in an August 2012 classified report, that Salafists were the dominant insurgent forces fighting in Syria and that the US and its allies were fully aware of and supported the Salafist-led insurgency. The report stated:

"...the Salafist, the Muslim Brotherhood, and AQI [Al- Qaeda in Iraq] are the major forces driving the insurgency in Syria," being supported by "the West, Gulf countries and Turkey."

"If the situation unravels, there is the possibility of establishing a declared or undeclared Salafist principality in eastern Syria... and this is exactly what the supporting powers to the opposition want, in order to isolate the Syrian regime."

What this report illustrates is that far from being a popular revolt which evolved into armed defence against a deadly crackdown by Syrian security forces, the insurgency was directed and driven by jihadist Islamists, fully backed by Western and regional powers. The US, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Qatar capitalised on popular discontent, using it as false legitimacy to unleash their Islamist proxy forces on unsuspecting Syrians.

In truth, the US planned for the overthrow of Assad (http://www.truth-out.org/progressivepicks/item/33180-wikileaks-reveals-how-the-us-aggressively-pursued-regime-change-in-syria-igniting-a-bloodbath) at least as far back as December 2006, according to a Wikileaks release of a US State Department cable that recommended taking advantage of an "increasing presence of transiting Islamist extremists [in Syria].

Assad was merely one of 7 victims (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RC1Mepk_Sw) of regime change plans spanning 5 years. This staggering genocidal vision is the pursuit of geostrategic ambition to gain total control over the oil-producing regions of the Middle East and North Africa. As Henry Kissinger said, "control oil and you control nations."

ISIS is in financial trouble. Oil smuggling revenue, as well as revenue from antiquities seized in Palmyra, have dried up following systematic and accurate bombing by the Russian air force. While ISIS fighters are enduring their own brand of austerity (http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/isis-budget-cuts-iraq-syria-pay-bonuses-air-strikes-oil-militants-food-snickers-a6877226.html) because of the debilitation of their income streams, there is no cessation of support from the Gulf States and Turkey, from whom the continued supply of weapons and fighters ensures that this conflict will drag on.

Saudi and Turkish-financed weapons and supplies continue to cross the porous Turkish border, despite a cessation-of-hostilities agreement designed to ease the conflict and enable Geneva peace talks. The claim is made that the weapons are for "moderate rebels", however it has been amply demonstrated that these so-called moderates are either killed by Islamists or absorbed into their forces, surrendering their weapons as they do so. The infamous CIA training and supply of moderates was a debacle because they immediately surrendered their weapons to both al-Nusra and ISIS. It is patently absurd to believe it is possible to target weapons in areas that are so hotly contested, with allegiances as fluid as the shifting desert sands, given the widespread ISIS presence and control.

Afghanistan 'Stingers' Redux?

Faced with having their regional hegemonic ambitions thwarted, Saudi Arabia and Turkey have raised the stakes by threatening to supply rebel groups with anti-aircraft weapons.

Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir, in an interview with Der Spiegel, (http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/interview-with-saudi-foreign-minister-adel-al-jubeir-on-syrian-war-a-1078337.html) said that arming Syrian rebels with shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles would shift the balance of power in Syria:

We believe that introducing surface-to-air missiles in Syria is going to change the balance of power on the ground. It will allow the moderate opposition to be able to neutralize the helicopters and aircraft that are dropping chemicals and have been carpet-bombing them, just like surface-to-air missiles in Afghanistan were able to change the balance of power there. This has to be studied very carefully, however, because you don't want such weapons to fall into the wrong hands.

Sorely lacking here is an objective account of just who these "moderates" are and what helicopters and aircraft would be "neutralized". Here, Sputnik explains who Saudi Arabia supports in Syria: (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160221/1035141288/saudi-sams-syria-analysis.html)

...the militants that Saudi Arabia supports include al-Fatah, an Idlib-based coalition of Islamist groups including al-Nusra Front, Ahrar ash-Sham and Jund al-Aqsa, all three of which are affiliated with al-Qaeda. Elsewhere across the country, Riyadh has provided assistance to other al-Nusra Front and Ahrar ash-Sham-affiliated groups, and to the Free Syrian Army, an organization which has been whittled down into a small group that actively cooperates with Islamist militants, and which the Pentagon itself has previously estimated consists of "more than 50%... extreme Islamist groups."

...the militants that Saudi Arabia supports include al-Fatah, an Idlib-based coalition of Islamist groups including al-Nusra Front, Ahrar ash-Sham and Jund al-Aqsa, all three of which are affiliated with al-Qaeda. Elsewhere across the country, Riyadh has provided assistance to other al-Nusra Front and Ahrar ash-Sham-affiliated groups, and to the Free Syrian Army, an organization which has been whittled down into a small group that actively cooperates with Islamist militants, and which the Pentagon itself has previously estimated consists of "more than 50%... extreme Islamist groups."

As for the aircraft and helicopters the Saudi propose be on the receiving end of these anti-aircraft missiles, the Saudis may have implied that Syrian state aircraft would be targeted, but the reference to how surface-to-air missiles changed the balance in Afghanistan can only be read as a none-too-subtle threat to Russia, which in the 1980s lost to the mujahideen (Saudi Arabia's 'holy warriors', later known as 'al Qaeda') when 'stinger' shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles were supplied to them by the CIA. In the Der Spiegel interview, al-Jubeir makes the Saudi position on al-Assad crystal clear, saying:

"I don't think anyone can predict what the short term will look like. In the long term, it will be a Syria without Bashar Assad. The longer it takes, the worse it will get."

"We have always said there are two ways to resolve Syria, and both will end up with the same result: a Syria without Bashar Assad. There is a political process which we are trying to achieve through what is called the Vienna Group. That involves the establishment of a governing council, which is to take power away from Bashar Assad, to write a constitution and to open the way for elections. It is important that Bashar leaves in the beginning, not at the end of the process. This will make the transition happen with less death and destruction."

"The other option is that the war will continue and Bashar Assad will be defeated."
Plan B: Deadlier Weapons to "Moderate" Rebels

http://www.sott.net/image/s15/315143/full/Manpad.jpg
© www.zerohedge.com

Manpads and militants, a lethal combination.

It's easy to see where the Saudis are getting their ideas from. The Wall Street Journal reported on 12 April about the US' Plan B, which envisages carrying on with the charade of pretending to support a negotiated peace in Syria. The WSJ revealed, just before the start of the latest round of Syria peace talks in Geneva on 13 April, CIA plans to arm "vetted rebels" (http://www.wsj.com/articles/u-s-readies-plan-b-to-arm-syria-rebels-1460509400) (obviously an evolution from "moderate" ones) with more powerful weapons, primarily manpads to counter Syrian aircraft, tanks and artillery:

The preparations for a so-called Plan B center on providing vetted rebel units with weapons systems that would help them in directing attacks against Syrian regime aircraft and artillery positions, the officials said.

The Wall Street Journal first reported in February that President Barack Obama's top military and intelligence advisers were pressing the White House to come up with a Plan B to counter Russia in Syria. Since then, fresh details have emerged on the nature of the new weaponry that could be deployed under the covert program.

Officials said the CIA has made clear to its allies that the new systems, once agreed upon, would be given to the rebels only if the truce and the concurrent political track toward a lasting peace—Plan A—fall apart and full-scale fighting resumes.

An unmistakeable message is being conveyed by Washington. Sabotage the ceasefire and "rebels" will receive more powerful weapons, transforming them into a more potent fighting force. The "lasting peace" of Plan A is the resignation of Assad. The Syrian government, backed by Russia, has repeatedly stated that the will of the Syrian people, through elections, will decide if Assad remains the President of Syria. These irreconcilable positions virtually guarantee a resumption of hostilities.

Sure enough, the breakdown of the ceasefire appears certain. The opposition's High Negotiations Committee (HNC) spokesperson, Riyad Naasan Agha, told Sputnik that there is a general feeling that the ceasefire in Syria has ended. (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160418/1038182331/syria-opposition-ceasefire-ended.html) Making strident demands from a greatly weakened negotiating position, Agha posted a statement on behalf of the HNC (https://www.rt.com/news/340130-syria-opposition-suspends-geneva-talks/) on his Facebook page, saying that "the main issue is forming a governing body in which Assad has no role," and thus demonstrating that the opposition has entered a realm of delusion. Right on cue, the opposition has withdrawn from the peace talks and rebel forces have launched assaults against government forces in Latakia province and Hama.

The HNC claims mounting frustration over deteriorating humanitarian and security situations, accusing government forces, backed by Russia and Iran, of violating the ceasefire. Senior opposition negotiator Mohammad Alloush told Reuters (http://http://uk.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-latakia-idUKKCN0XF0VN) there was no way the opposition could continue in peace talks while the humanitarian situation deteriorates. Perhaps Alloush missed the news that Russia has been successfully delivering humanitarian aid (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160420/1038300038/russia-aid-homs.html) to liberated towns across Syria.

The Syrian people have shown great courage and resolve in resisting the barbaric ISIS. They have endured assaults on multiple fronts, from terrorists coming across the Turkish border in the north, to Israel supporting ISIS and Al Nusra in the Golan Heights to the south. Sustained by rogue regional regimes and US complicity, ISIS still has impact. It needs to be crushed and rendered impotent. Hopefully the accomplishment of this task can occur without an escalation between the US and Russia resulting in them aiming their military firepower at each other.

Source (http://www.sott.net/article/316808-It-aint-over-till-its-over-Post-Palmyra-liberation-ISIS-remains-a-threat)

Sophocles

25th April 2016, 06:10

Former Qatari PM's bombshell on Syria revisited (http://presstv.com/Detail/2016/04/24/462300/Saudi-Arabia-Qatar-Syria-plot-Ameri/)

PressTV
Sun Apr 24, 2016 12:5PM

http://presstv.com/photo/20160424/736adf90-7cbe-4889-91fe-c9836c1463d1.jpg
US President Barack Obama (left) stands alongside Saudi King Salman (right) at King Khalid Airport in Riyadh, Jan. 27, 2015. (Photo by AFP)

The former Qatari prime minister’s bombshell in a recent interview with the Financial Times largely went unnoticed but Arab observers are calling for explanations about the Saudi role in the Syria crisis.

Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim Al Thani suggested that the 2012 crisis in Syria, which has claimed about 400,000 lives so far, was a political game and not a revolution as claimed by the West and its allies.

The London-based tycoon who still maintains close links with current Qatari rulers blamed Saudi Arabia for the worsening situation after the US gave the green light to the kingdom to intervene in Syria.

“I will tell you one thing and that is maybe the first time I say this: when we started being involved in Syria we had a green light that Qatar would lead this because Saudi Arabia didn’t at that time want to lead,” Sheikh Hamad said.

“After that there was a change in policy and Saudi Arabia didn’t inform us that they wanted us in the back seat. We ended up competing and it was not healthy,” he added in the FT interview published on April 15.

According to the paper, the Persian Gulf Arab countries’ Syria policy is closely associated with Sheikh Hamad, who was often seen as relishing the rivalry between Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

The FT reporter pushes him on another debacle in Libya, pointing out that the same policies were followed in the African country, where Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have backed opposing sides in the war.

Sheikh Hamad acknowledges that in Libya, “There were a lot of cookers in the end. That’s why it was spoiled,” the newspaper said.

http://presstv.com/photo/20160424/ea58469d-3ee8-403b-bbef-7cd322e01dbb.jpg
In this Oct. 26, 2011 photo, two Syrian women hold a placard with a sarcastic caricature on it against the former emir of Qatar Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani in Umayyad Square in downtown Damascus.

'Very dangerous remarks'

Prominent Saudi writer Tarad bin Saeed al-Ameri has described Sheikh Hamad’s remarks as “very dangerous” which “raise many questions because they totally obliterate the basic foundations of the Syria story.”

That is “the story which (Persian) Gulf littoral states have made up about Syria, Assad's removal, the government’s treatment of the Syrian people, regional security, meddling in other countries’ affairs, Geneva talks and most importantly Iran’s role in the region,” he wrote on the Anha website.

“Hence, more than anything, America, Saudi Arabia and Qatar must provide explanations about Hamad bin Jassim’s statements,” he added.

According to Ameri, the former Qatari PM’s contention that “what is unfolding in Syria is part of an international game is not surprising.”

Planned before Arab Spring

“Like former French Foreign Minister Roland Dumas who said (http://www.globalresearch.ca/former-french-foreign-minister-the-war-against-syria-was-planned-two-years-before-the-arab-spring/5339112) the war against Syria was planned two years before ‘the Arab Spring,’ it is not surprising from Qatar because this is the country which was busy at the time, plotting in Libya, Egypt, Yemen and Syria,” Ameri wrote.

What is surprising and controversial is Sheikh Hamad’s allegation about Saudi intervention in Syria which requires a formal confirmation or denial, he went on to say.

“Hamad bin Jassim’s accusation of Saudi armed support for those who took to the streets to protest against the government totally changes the whole story and eradicates the basics of Saudi claims and those by other (Persian) Gulf states about the Syria crisis.”

http://presstv.com/photo/20160424/e7c8a384-ea94-4b65-b59e-4a3f9f14da65.jpg
Former Qatari prime minister Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim Al Thani (Photo by AFP)

According to the Saudi writer, the Syrian government can use “these dangerous statements as evidence to bring a lawsuit against various countries and receive more than $1 trillion in compensation to rebuild" Syria.

“Involvement in an international plot to topple a sovereign government is not an issue to simply overlook. We need to get full information about the planning and what Hamad bin Jassim calls an international game,” Ameri said.

Israeli link?

However, there remains one important question, "Was the recent Israeli stance about Golan part of the game?” he asked.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sparked an international outcry after convening Israel’s first cabinet meeting in the occupied Golan Heights last week.

It prompted Syrian Ambassador to UN Bashar al-Ja’afari to accuse Tel Aviv of collaborating with Daesh and Nusra Front militants in attacking the country.

According to Ameri, Qatar's former prime minister has dropped the "bombshell in the Saudi lap" and the onus is on the kingdom "to reveal the truth even if it hurts America."

"Can America and its allies in Saudi Arabia and (Persian) Gulf countries call for Bashar al-Assad's removal after this revelation or participate in the negotiations to resolve the Syrian crisis?" he asked.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange said in December that leaked documents from Saudi ministries showed the kingdom, Qatar, and Turkey had a secret deal three years ago to topple the Syrian government.

He told Rossiya-1 channel that the United States, France, and Britain had also been involved in the secret deal in 2012.

Source (http://presstv.com/Detail/2016/04/24/462300/Saudi-Arabia-Qatar-Syria-plot-Ameri/)

Hervé

25th April 2016, 18:45

Another one of those "ineligible-for-presidency" president: Erdogan

Turkish writer, who caught Erdogan lying, found dead (http://katehon.com/news/turkish-writer-who-caught-erdogan-lying-found-dead)

Katehon (http://katehon.com/news/turkish-writer-who-caught-erdogan-lying-found-dead) Friday, 22 April, 2016 - 16:00

Turkish writer Ergun Poyraz, who had earlier said that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has no actual higher education and [therefore] received this [presidency] illegally, [has been] found dead.

Poyraz organized an investigation that proved that Erdogan's diploma is a fake and he did not study at the university. Poyraz published the original version of Erdogan's diploma, which he allegedly [earned] while studying at Marmara University. It turned out that the diploma is dated [to] when the University of Marmara was not existent.

It should be noted that the 4-year college education is mandatory for [candidacy to] the election of the President of Turkey.

Turkish party "Salvation of the people" on the basis of the investigation lead by Poyraz appealed to the court, stating that Erdogan presented a fake diploma to participate in the elections.

Poyraz soon began to face various difficulties in Turkey. Now, he was found dead.

Morbid

29th April 2016, 21:32

nikolai starikov. i got couple of his books and he is truly a prominent persona in russia right now for his vast knowledge of history in terms of geopolitical confrontation that russia experienced since it became a global player on the chessboard.
wc5zvFXiIDQ

starikov about karabach conflict:
uRHjiDaFc-o

Sophocles

1st May 2016, 02:21

Seymour Hersh: Hillary Clinton approved sending Libya's sarin gas to Syrian rebels (https://www.sott.net/article/317361-Seymour-Hersh-Hillary-Clinton-approved-sending-Libyas-sarin-gas-to-Syrian-rebels)

Article at sott.net (https://www.sott.net/article/317361-Seymour-Hersh-Hillary-Clinton-approved-sending-Libyas-sarin-gas-to-Syrian-rebels)

---------------------------

Playing “the Circassian card” again (http://thesaker.is/playing-the-circassian-card-again/)

by Bozhidar Trpkovich
April 21, 2016

A.Kabard, a representative of New York Adyghe society, Circassian activist, supported by information resources (“Echo of Caucasus”, etc.), financed by Western funds, announced in September 2015 the setting up of a new transnational structure – “Circassian polity,” with headquarters in London.

As was stated, the new structure would focus on the unification of Circassians of various countries and acknowledgement of their ethnic identity on the international arena. This initiative is actively supported by the USA and the European Union, which are interested in setting up of such a puppet organization, which could counterbalance the quite moderate International Circassian association and provoke tension in relations with Moscow.

The theme: “Russia has been oppressing Circassians for centuries” was started to be actively promoted by their overseas and European “friends” almost right after the beginning of the cold war. Nowadays the theme of genocide is cultivated in an intensified way by organizations abroad, which are characterized by quite specific reputations and ties. Besides the Jamestown fund, the following entities are “fighting” for the “independence of the Circassian people”: American Agency STRATFOR, National Fund for Support of Democracy (NED), Circassian Cultural Center in Georgia, the Institute of Eastern Partnership from Israel, “Amnesty International”, Turkish organizations, etc.

Recently we observed the activation of these forces before Sochi Olympics. At that time a number of organizations of the Circassian Diaspora opposed the Sochi Olympics, giving as their reason the necessity to honor the memory of their ancestors, which Russia was going to violate with its construction projects and sport events in the places of ancient cemeteries. Such a position was supported by some Circassian activists in Russia itself.

But they were not a successful. Even during NATO aggression against Serbia, several dozen Circassian families managed to be brought from Kosovo to Russia. They were given the possibility of settling on their historical territory in a newly built Mafehable (“Village of happiness” – Caucasus type of village). A Syrian Circassian delegation visited republics of Russian Northern Caucasus in January 2012. At that time agreements were reached on cooperation with the Circassian side to solve the problems of Syrian Circassians. And it was well timed. Soon families of Circassians started escaping from Syria and other countries, to save their lives from the war and other misfortunes, and Russia warmly welcomed them despite its own difficulties. The refugees were provided with accommodations, were given jobs, and helped with studying languages (Russian, Kabardinian, Adygean, which they had mostly forgotten). In a word, Russia proved its concern about the problems of the Circassian population in unsafe regions not only verbally but practically as well.

“When I lived in Jordan, I did not know anything about things which were happening in Kabardino-Balkaria”, one repatriate shared his experience.

“We were told that there was no freedom and that the life of the people was hard. But when I came there, I saw for myself that we had been told lies. Russia built the Kabardinian theatre. Excuse me, but where else in the world could it happen? In Russia, only! There are Kabardinian, Circassian, Chechen theatres. And there in Jordan almost nobody speaks his native language any longer,” said another. Really, for many returnees it became a discovery that people who lived in Kabardino-Balkaria, Karachaevo-Circassia and Adygea, jointly celebrated Circassia Memory Day, and Victory Day and last year, on September 20, they celebrated for the first time the Day of Adygeas (Circassian). That day was jointly celebrated by Adygeas of various families, people from Karachaevo, Balkaria and Russians. All Circassians, who arrived from Turkey, Jordan and Syria, were saying the same things: “We were all foreigners in those countries. To become one of them, it is necessary to stop being a Circassian and finally assimilate with the local people”.

“It is senseless to try to create Circassia abroad” states Mr.Orfan Barsik, a representative of Kabardino-Balkarian Diaspora in Syria. “One can call ‘Circassia’ even some territory in Africa but it does not mean that it will become his motherland. Motherland is here. It is Russia”. Those people who are behind the subversive processes do not care that much about the fate of the Circassians; they are eager to hurt Russia. And we know who they are – USA and Great Britain.

There is a strange thing that cannot be logically explained: Circassians, who had escaped from the Russian Empire, settled in 50 countries. They have forgotten their language, culture, customs and many of them consider Russia as an oppressor of Circassians. And those Circassians, who remained in Russia are living, developing their culture, having their statehood, and thriving as a nation.

“Yes, we saved our language and raised our culture to unprecedented heights,” confirmed Mr. Mohammad Hafize, the head of “Adygea Hasse”, Circassian public organization. “We achieved success in sports. Our sportsmen became Olympic champions in Munich, Beijing and Australia and their number has already reached the number of our Turkish compatriots. We thank our Mother-Russia for all these achievements. On this issue one should not act contrary to one’s conscience. In Russia nationalities policy, under any system, was at a higher level than in any other country. We have 100 members in the Union of Writers, whereas, about 90% of Circassians in Jordan, Turkey and Syria do not even remember their native languages. And we are sending teachers to them from here.”

The triumph of the Sochi Olympics discredited the propaganda of Russia’s enemies. But they did not let up and started developing other plans. One of them is the setting up of a virtual republic, “Greater Circassia,” which is planned to become real as time goes on.

The essence of the project is as follows: select via Internet several thousand willing persons to become its citizens and let them already receive passports of this virtual state by the year 2016. Some time ago there were plans to print “Circassian passports” in Australia as souvenirs for whoever wanted them. However, experts from Jamestown advised to print not just souvenirs but real documents with fifteen degrees of protection in accordance with the requirements of the European Union. So any Circassian, who voluntarily agrees to carry out commitments as a citizen of the “Greater Circassia” and is ready to transfer annually USD 100-200 as a tax to a specially set up account, can become a citizen of this virtual state. Some amount of money shall be paid also for manufacture of the passport. In return, the Circassians, who are living abroad, are promised that they will be able to elect and be elected to representative bodies of the virtual Circassia.

“Circassian polity”, as an initiator of the project, intends to announce “its claim to statehood and representation before the international community.” Moreover, it has stated that, ”In case of any natural or other alteration of the existing borders of Russia, liquidation of Russian statehood or other reasons which will lead to a change in the status quo, the Circassian people is the only and indisputable possessor of the right to the territory and the status which had been lost because of annexation by the Russian state.”

This quote reveals the real targets, camouflaged by the demands to Moscow to apologize for the actions of the Russian Empire and the USSR. Though, to be honest, the policy of the Russian Empire was quite tolerant, in modern terms. Especially, if compared with the contemporaneous behavior of Great Britain, Germany and France.

A.Kabard and A.Jemirze, the leaders of the Australian Circassian Diaspora set up a website to facilitate the production and distribution of passports to ethnic Circassians in January 2016. It is possible to get it only upon registration on that site and forwarding of personal data to the address of the project founders. The first batch of passports is supposedly ready for handing out and is kept by A.Jemirze.

It is clear that these passports are actually a fraudulent affair that is very similar to selling sections of territory on the Moon or Mars. Besides, stored personal data of future citizens of “Greater Circassia” on an open Internet site can be used for criminal purposes.

The UN High Commissioner for Refugees renders consulting assistance to A.Kabard and A.Jemirze. This Office of the High Commissioner supported an application to the management of the EU on behalf of Australian Circassians concerning a special procedure for the absorption of Circassian refugees from Syria. Such a passport system is aimed at differentiating Circassians from Syrian refugees who are arriving in Europe and also helping them to assert their right to be considered as refugees from virtual Circassia. It is worth noting that this quasi state, from the point of view of its founders, shall geographically encompass the territory of almost a dozen countries, including: Turkey, Jordan, Georgia, not to mention Russia. However, A.Kabard and A.Jemirze do not refer to this topic in their speeches, nor do they deal with the question of whether these countries agree with such an approach.

It is planned also in the future to negotiate with the countries which have recognized the “genocide” of the Circassian people, acknowledge the Circassian passport and agree to provide its bearer with civil and economic rights comparable to the rights of natives in those countries. It would give the Circassians the right to enter those territories without visas and legalize their property.

It is obvious, if this project is successful Circassian separatists would not be the only ones to celebrate it. It would also benefit criminal clans with experience in sending terrorists to Europe to commit terrorist attacks. We already saw how that works in November of last year in Paris and in March this year in Brussels. Ultimately, the consequences may become unacceptable because the entire Circassian community will be placed under suspicion for presumed relations and assistance to terrorists. Under that scenario, even legitimate activities of Circassians, at cultural and educational levels, may become quite difficult.

Article at thesaker.is (http://thesaker.is/playing-the-circassian-card-again/)

Morbid

6th May 2016, 08:34

9b0hFIf4Zaw

please note that the person who is in charge of this set up is the so called putin's link to the panama papers..

Sophocles

12th May 2016, 12:24

The story of Crimea:

S5En31xjLeY

mfgg_e7FIBs

Source: The Saker- Two excellent videos about Crimea (MUST SEE!) (http://thesaker.is/two-excellent-videos-about-crimea-must-see/)

Sophocles

12th May 2016, 12:36

Here`s Yanis Varoufakis on Erdogan`s "attempted murder" on freedom of speech in Germany (via Jan Böhmermann)

3Fs4bzNQg1A

Satirists, comedians, musicians, artisits, must be left utterly and completely alone form political interference and from coercive moves by dictatorial forces from outside and from within. -Y.V.-

Akasha

18th May 2016, 12:06

Virginia Senator Richard Black, recently back from his visit to Syria, shares some of his experiences there as well as dropping many truth-bombs not least of which about how the CIA planned and backs ISIS - very revealing and quite a (pleasant) shock to be hearing such frank information from the mouth of an active (at least for now) US senator although I did notice the interviewer interjecting that the now well-known seven countries (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9RC1Mepk_Sw) to be conquered in the region were simply assumed to be as a result of their allegiance to Russia with no mention of Oded Yinon's 1982 document "A Strategy for Israel in the Nineteen Eighties" as reiterated over a decade later in Richard Pearl's 1996 "Clean Break Strategy" - limited hang-out?:

WrKteSrZJbY

Sophocles

19th May 2016, 10:30

Erdogan stirs the pot in Crimea: Another provocation aimed at Russia? (https://www.sott.net/article/318565-Erdogan-stirs-the-pot-in-Crimea-Another-provocation-aimed-at-Russia)

Brandon Turbeville
Activist Post (http://www.activistpost.com/2016/05/turkeys-erdogan-expresses-need-to-rescue-crimea-nagorno-karabkh.html)
Wed, 18 May 2016 00:00 UTC

https://www.sott.net/image/s16/320423/large/IMAGE635962356970966250.jpg

The 13th Islamic Summit entitled "Unity And Solidarity For Justice And Peace," set up by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (IOC) took place on April 10-15 in Istanbul, Turkey and yielded some revealing but certainly not unsuspected news. At the summit, chaired by Turkish President Recep Erdogan, more signs emerged of a Turkish/GCC attempt to not only continue to destabilize Syria but an attempt to extend the destabilization into Eurasia, up to the Russian border, and even inside Russian territory itself.

During the course of the summit, then-Turkish Prime Minister Davitoglu addressed the issues of the "Occupied Islamic Territories," i.e. Palestine, Nagorno-Karabkh (http://www.brandonturbeville.com/2016/04/regional-conflict-brewing-in-azerbaijan_24.html), and Crimea and expressed concerns about the development of those situations. He stated that these areas needed to be rescued via cultural, religious, and "other" means although he was not specific as to what these "other" means might be. He also referred to the Crimean issue as one of the main issues of the summit.

Although the Turkish version of the summit's communique was not ultimately not accepted by the group, the communique that was produced condemned "Armenian aggression" in Nagorno-Karabkh (http://www.activistpost.com/2016/04/regional-conflict-brewing-in-azerbaijan-armenia.html) and expressed "interest" in the Crimean situation.

It should also be noted that Mustafa Dzhemilev, former chairman of the Mejlis Of the Crimean Tatar People, was presented by the summit as the only legitimate representative of the Crimean people. Dzhemilev held a joint meeting with the Turkish and Azeri presidents during the course of the summit.

In addition, King Salmaan of Saudi Arabia was in attendance and was greeted at the airport by Recep Erdogan who later presented the King with an award at an official ceremony.

News organization SouthFront (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mubUlAyGIO8) has suggested that Saudi Arabia and Qatar are using Turkey to expand their influence in both Eurasia and, eventually, the EU. SouthFront argues (https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/turkey-takes-step-destabilize-muslim-regions-southern-russia/) that Turkey has accepted this scheme and is currently moving forward in terms of implementation.

Regardless, Turkey's attempt to stir up (http://www.activistpost.com/2015/08/turkey-and-ukraine-prepare-terrorist-brigades-aimed-at-russia.html) the crisis in Ukraine by using Crimea and its Tatar population is nothing new (http://www.brandonturbeville.com/2015/08/turkey-and-ukraine-prepare-terrorist.html). Remember, on August 1-2, a meeting was convened at the Hotel Billkent in Ankara (http://www.ukrweekly.com/uwwp/world-congress-of-crimean-tatars-held-in-turkey/), Turkey labeled the Second World Congress of the Tatars. This meeting brought together over 200 Tatar NGOs and associations from all over the world. The event was also attended by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin and Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Numan Kurtulmus. Both officials participated in the event as well.

As Today's Zaman/Cihan reported in its article, "Crimean Tatars Gather In Ankara To Discuss Ukrainian Crisis (https://www.cihan.com.tr/en/crimean-tatars-gather-in-ankara-to-discuss-ukrainian-crisis-1841396.htm),"

Nearly 200 Crimean Tatar nongovernmental organizations and civil society groups gathered in Ankara as part of the Second World Crimean Tatar Congress to discuss the ongoing crisis in Ukraine and the situation of their brethren in Crimea, which was annexed by Russia in February of last year.

The meeting took place on Saturday at Ankara Bilkent Hotel and Congress Center and focused on the dire conditions under which Crimean Tatars have to live in the face of encroaching Russian pressure on their cultural life. The gathering offered an opportunity for lengthy discussions about how to resolve the prolonged conflict in Ukraine and to maintain Tatars' threatened community rights under the new administration in Crimea.

But, while Russia and the annexation of Crimea were the focus of the meeting, a foolish and potentially dangerous decision was made between Ukraine and Turkey.

At the meeting, it was announced by Mustafa Abdulcemil Cemiloglu, acting leader of the Crimean Tatars as decreed by Ukrainian President Poroshenko, announced the creation of a "Muslim Brigade" to oppose "Crimean separatism," as well as "human trafficking" and the "transportation of goods near conflict zones." In other words, the meeting spawned the creation of a terrorist brigade to combat Russian involvement in Crimea and pro-Russian sentiment and activism in the area.

It should be noted (http://www.voltairenet.org/article188381.html) that Cemiloglu was a notorious CIA asset and collaborator throughout the years of the Reagan Administration. He was also the former leader of the Crimea Tatar Majlis.

After the announcement was made by Cemiloglu, he was received by Turkish Recep Erdogan, who assured him of Turkey's full support for the Tatars against Russia. Turkey has been vocal (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20150803/1025364190.html) about the "territorial integrity" of Ukraine and has, like the rest of NATO, taken a strong anti-Russian stance on the issue of Ukraine.

The "Muslim Brigade" apparently will be based at Herson, near the Crimean border and was designed to include volunteers and jihadists from a number of other locations in the region - "Tatarstan," Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Chechnya, and Georgia.

Turkey was not to be left out of the mix, however, since it was committed to donate a number of the jihadists currently operating within its own borders for the purposes of destroying the government of Syria to the new Muslim Brigade in Ukraine.

Indeed, Turkey has already acted on its jihadist-based intervention in Ukraine since, in December 2013, Turkish intelligence sent a number of Tatar jihadists to Ukraine so they would be able to assist the Western color revolution in Kiev where the terrorists acted as "security" for pro-European and anti-Russian protests in the Maidan, often suspected of being the culprits behind a number of violent acts resulting in the violent crackdown by police.

As the Voltaire Network reported in its article "Jihadists In Charge of Crowd Control In Kiev Protests, (http://www.voltairenet.org/article181380.html)"

They are members of the "Azatlyk'' (freedom) movement led by young Naïl Nabiullin, and campaign for a Greater Turkey. They are backed by Trotskyist parties such as the Russian Left Front of Sergei Udaltsov, as well as the Turkish government of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. They've just come back from Syria, through Turkey, where they had gone to practice jihad against the Syrian government. They seem to be behind the provocations that have led the Riot Police to commit excesses.

With this in mind, it is very concerning that Turkey and Ukraine have taken steps towards greater provocations against Russia - this time using jihadist terrorists on and inside Russian borders. Such moves clearly increase the likelihood that Russia will be forced to engage NATO and its proxies in a direct military fashion at some point.

After all, color revolutions, if caught early enough, can be eliminated by removing the NGOs and Foundations responsible for organizing the "golden youth" but repeated acts of suicidal terrorism must be cut off at the source or it will continue to take place indefinitely. If Russia finds itself surrounded by US/NATO military bases and missile systems while, at the same time, being faced with economic warfare and sanctions, it may view its current position of non-intervention as untenable when faced with cross-border terrorist attacks openly supported by NATO countries.

Indeed, it appears that Vladmir Putin is already well aware of the attempts by NATO and Turkey in particular to use terrorism against Russia inside the Russian borders. According to a report by Press TV (http://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2015/08/19/425469/Russia-President-Vladimir-Putin-Crimea), during a visit to the Crimea, Putin stated

It's obvious that a risk remains from outside forces to destabilize the situation on the [Crimean] peninsula in one way or another. In certain capitals they talk openly about ... the need to carry out subversive activities. Personnel are being recruited and trained to carry out subversion, acts of sabotage to conduct radical propaganda.

Turkey's move also bolsters the assertions made by others such as Webster Tarpley (http://tarpley.net/faction-fight-in-pentagon-fox-news-reveals-anger-of-loyal-us-officers-against-isis-czar-gen-allen/) that the Turkish bombing of ISIS - on the rare instances where ISIS forces are actually targeted - is nothing more than an attempt to push some ISIS forces east towards Iran and, eventually, Russia.

Tensions between the United States, NATO and Russia over Syria, Iran, Ukraine, and the current sanctions can only be increased by Turkey's support of terrorism aimed at Russia. Erdogan's fantasies of becoming the next Ottoman emperor have apparently become so great that he believes challenging Russia is a legitimate means to this end. It is time for both Erdogan and the rest of the Western world to realize the folly of these attempts and to immediately back off of further provocation.

Article at sott.net (https://www.sott.net/article/318565-Erdogan-stirs-the-pot-in-Crimea-Another-provocation-aimed-at-Russia)

Snoweagle

20th May 2016, 18:43

The Zionist plan for Greater Israel - Oden Yinon

Herewith the pdf:
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/pdf/The%20Zionist%20Plan%20for%20the%20Middle%20East.pdf

Hervé

20th May 2016, 22:02

Outgoing Defense Minister Ya'alon: Extremists Have Taken Over Israel
(http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.720653)
Jonathan Lis Haaretz (http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.720653) May 20, 2016 12:11 PM

https://www.sott.net/image/s16/320709/large/796670039.jpg
Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon explains his resignation at IDF headquarters in Tel Aviv on Friday, May 20, 2016.Tomer Appelbaum

'I recently found myself in strong disagreement with the prime minister on moral and professional issues,' Ya'alon says of his resignation from politics.Extremist elements have taken over the country, Defense Minister Moshe Ya'alon warned on Friday morning as he explained his resignation from political life.

"This morning I told the prime minister that I'm resigning from the government and the Knesset and taking a break from political life," Ya'alon said at the IDF's military quarters in Tel Aviv. "I have no intention of leaving the public and political life, and in the future will return to compete for the national leadership of Israel."

"I saw before me the safety of Israel and its citizens in all of my acts and decisions, and the good of the country above all other considerations. This was so in security and professionals matters and in matters of values and rule of the law."

Earlier on Friday, Ya'alon wrote on Facebook that "I notified the prime minister this morning that following his conduct in the latest developments and in view of the lack of trust in him, I am resigning from the government and the Knesset and taking time out from political life."

Noting that he worked harmoniously with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for a long time, Ya'alon said in his speech that "unfortunately, I recently found myself in strong disagreement on moral and professional issues with the prime minister, a number of ministers and several MKs."

"I fought with all my might against manifestations of extremism, violence and racism in Israeli society, which are threatening its sturdiness and also trickling into the IDF, hurting it already," he said.

"I fought with all my might against attempts to harm the Supreme Court and Israel's justices, trends whose outcomes greatly harm the rule of law and could be disastrous for our country."

The latest confrontation between Netanyahu and Ya'alon, which took place at the beginning of the week, was over the public backing Ya'alon gave senior IDF officials to express their opinions. His remarks followed Netanyahu's criticism of comments made by IDF Deputy Chief of Staff Yair Golan on Holocaust Remembrance Day.

The rift between Ya'alon and significant parts of the Likud central committee and party voters widened over the past year over the obstacles the defense minister placed in front of efforts regarding construction in the settlements.

"The rupture between Netanyahu and Ya'alon is real and serious, not political spin. Netanyahu owes a lot to right-wing voters who marked Ya'alon as a red flag," a Likud source said.

"In general, Israeli society is a healthy society, and the majority of it is sane and aims for a Jewish, democratic and liberal country," Ya'alon said. "But to my great sorrow, extremist and dangerous elements have taken over Israel and the Likud Party and are shaking the foundations and threatening to hurt its residents."

"Sadly, senior politicians in the country have chosen the way of incitement and segregation of parts of Israeli society instead of unifying it and bringing it together. It is unbearable to me that we will be divided among us out of cynicism and lust for control, and I expressed my opinion on the matter more than once out of honest concern for the future of society in Israel and the future of the next generations."

Carmody

20th May 2016, 22:27

People need to understand that the Russians are absolutely terrified. And that is not good for the world. If I was a Russian strategist the following would terrify me:

- How the USA and European public seem to blindly buy into the fake narrative of 'Russian Aggression in Ukraine'
- How Jeb Bush can get away with describing the Russian leadership as corrupt with no sense of irony
-How the public are accepting the huge NATO build-up on Russia's borders without grasping the dangers
- How easy it is to trigger conflict when you have such a stand-off, the instigator can be anyone-or a false flag
-Proven fact that USA generals have tried to start hostilities with Russia in Yugoslavia in 1999(see link below)
- The Germans do not seem to care or realise the USA is fomenting a hot war on their own doorstep, they have lost their basic self preservation instinct.
- How the USA public buy into 'American Exceptionalism', and huge unnecessary military spending (half of which is siphoned off into black projects with no oversight or accountability)
-How the British public are ignoring murky rumours that new missiles are/are not being secretly stationed in the East of the UK
-How Russian military capability is quite shrunken, despite more resources recently.
- How the USA appears not to be controlled by its own Government (which is totally corrupt anyway)

Proof of USA aggression:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-11753050

Singer James Blunt 'prevented World War III'
• 14 November 2010

• From the sectionUK Politics
Singer James Blunt has told the BBC how he refused an order to attack Russian troops when he was a British soldier in Kosovo. Blunt said he was willing to risk a court martial by rejecting the order from a US General.
But he was backed by British Gen Sir Mike Jackson, who said: "I'm not going to have my soldiers be responsible for starting World War III."
Blunt was ordered to seize an airfield, but the Russians had got there first.
In an interview with BBC Radio 5 live, broadcast on Sunday, he said: "I was given the direct command to overpower the 200 or so Russians who were there.
"I was the lead officer with my troop of men behind us...
James Blunt had worldwide hits after leaving the Army
"The soldiers directly behind me were from the Parachute Regiment, so they're obviously game for the fight.
"The direct command [that] came in from Gen Wesley Clark was to overpower them. Various words were used that seemed unusual to us. Words such as 'destroy' came down the radio."
'Mad situation'
The confusion surrounding the taking of Pristina airfield in 1999 has been written about in political memoirs, and was widely reported at the time.
But this is the first time Blunt has given an account of his role in the incident.
Blunt, who was at the head of a column of 30,000 Nato troops with his unit, told Pienaar's Politics it was a "mad situation".
That sense of moral judgement is drilled into us as soldiers in the British armyJames Blunt
He said he had been "party to the conversation" between senior officers in which Gen Clark had ordered the attack.
"We had 200 Russians lined up pointing their weapons at us aggressively, which was... and you know we'd been told to reach the airfield and take a hold of it.
"And if we had a foothold there then it would make life much easier for the Nato forces in Pristina. So there was a political reason to take hold of this.
"And the practical consequences of that political reason would be then aggression against the Russians."
Court martial
Asked if following the order would have risked starting World War III, Blunt, who was a 25-year-old cavalry officer at the time, replied: "Absolutely. And that's why we were querying our instruction from an American general.
"Fortunately, up on the radio came Gen Mike Jackson, whose exact words at the time were, 'I'm not going to have my soldiers be responsible for starting World War III', and told us why don't we sugar off down the road, you know, encircle the airfield instead.
"And after a couple of days the Russians there said: 'Hang on we have no food and no water. Can we share the airfield with you?'."
If Gen Jackson had not blocked the order from Gen Clark, who as Nato Supreme Commander Europe was his superior officer, Blunt said he would still have declined to follow it, even at the risk of a court martial.
He said: "There are things that you do along the way that you know are right, and those that you absolutely feel are wrong, that I think it's morally important to stand up against, and that sense of moral judgement is drilled into us as soldiers in the British army."
Blunt left the Army in 2002 to pursue a career in music, later scoring a worldwide hit with You're Beautiful.

Interestingly, you cannot find the top gear episode, in video form... where James Blunt himself directly tells the story.

You cannot find it on youtube, which is US controlled through Google.

You have to go to the euro/French controlled 'dailymotion', to find it.

So, if one wonders about propaganda and news control, this is a living example, right here. Where things ...are. ..just...quietly erased.

http://21topgear.com/james-blunt-interview-lap/

Hervé

21st May 2016, 12:13

Kurdish MPs in Turkey lose immunity as parliament passes bill (http://rudaw.net/english/middleeast/turkey/200520162)

By Rudaw (http://rudaw.net/english/authors/rudaw) 22 hours ago
http://rudaw.net/ContentFiles/217335Image1.jpg

https://www.sott.net/image/s15/311123/medium/Erdogan_con_Isis_800x600_.jpg

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region--Turkey’s parliament has voted to approve a bill to temporarily suspend the constitution and lift immunity from a selection of Members of Parliament.

In Friday’s vote, 376 MPs voted to approve the bill, which was introduced by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and aims to lift the immunities of mainly pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) MPs.

Friday’s vote surpassed the minimum 367 required to pass the bill without going to a referendum.

The bill was backed by from President Recep Tayyip Erdogan who has accused HDP parliamentarians of violating the Turkish constitution by advocating for autonomy for Kurds in Turkey in the midst of a reignited war between Turkey and the PKK.

Erdogan has also accused HDP of being a political wing of the PKK, an outlawed organization in Turkey.

Selahattin Demirtas, co-chair of HDP, has denied Erdogan’s accusations and has accused Erdogan of trying to remove the opposition in order to manipulate parliamentary numbers and gain the support he needs to amend the constitution, putting more power into his own hands.

Demirtas also warned that approving this bill would be denying the Kurdish minority access to democracy, which would result in disillusionment in political processes and a negotiated peace.

"Democratic political channels in Turkey are already in great difficulty, and if the bill passes, many people will feel that these channels have been shut completely," warned co-chair of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP) Selahattin Demirtas when parliament was debating the bill. "The belief in democracy and politics of peace will drop to zero.”

Erdogan hailed Friday’s vote as “historic,” saying “My people do not want to see guilty lawmakers in this parliament.”

Kati Piri, Member of the European Parliament and rapporteur for Turkey to the EU, responded to Erdogan, calling the vote a “’Historic’ mistake!”

“Dark days in Turkey,” Piri warned on Twitter. “Silencing elected MPs of the opposition HDP is a major leap away from democratic standards.”

Filiz Kerestecioğlu, a HDP MP, said “You’re approving a coup d’etat. That’s how history will remember you. So be it. But we’ll be remembered as the women of resistance.”

A similar move to strip immunity of pro-Kurdish parliamentarians 22 years ago led to some of the worst violence in the decades’ long conflict between the PKK and Turkey.

In March 1994, a group of lawmakers were stripped of their immunity after speaking Kurdish in the Turkish parliament. Several were charged with treason and separatism for collaboration with the PKK. Four MPs spent a decade in prison.

The same month, at its national conference, the PKK declared “all economic, political, military, social and cultural organizations, institutions, formations – and those who serve them, have become targets.”

Hervé

22nd May 2016, 14:01

‘War minister!’ Hundreds rally in Tel Aviv to decry Israeli PM’s defense chief pick (https://www.rt.com/news/343979-israel-protest-lieberman-minister/)

RT Published time: 22 May, 2016 05:08
Get short URL (http://on.rt.com/7dez)

https://img.rt.com/files/2016.05/original/57413d6ac3618870228b459c.jpg
© Saeimas Kanceleja / Wikipedia

Hundreds of protesters gathered in Tel Aviv on Saturday to protest the far-right turn the government has signaled by choosing Avigdor Lieberman as Defense Minister. Activists say PM Benjamin Netanyahu is putting Israel on a path of war.

Demonstrators came together at HaBima Square in Tel Aviv, saying that by appointing Lieberman to head the military, Netanyahu had created the “most right wing government in the history of the State,” Israeli media reported.

“We think this government is a disaster for our country,” the Jerusalem Post quoted one of the organizers as shouting. “There is no future or vision.”

Protesters held up Peace Now signs and waved green left-wing Meretz party flags as they chanted slogans with Netanyahu’s nickname: “Bibi you failed, Bibi go home,” and “We don’t want more victims, Lieberman is a minister of war.”

Netanyahu chose to replace Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon with Lieberman, the controversial chair of the far-right Yisrael Beiteinu party, rather than form a coalition with the center-left Zionist Union.

Ya’alon resigned from both the government and parliament on Friday, citing “a lack of faith” in Netanyahu, even as the PM reportedly tried to appease him by offering up the job of the foreign minister.

“I informed the PM that after his conduct and recent developments, and given the lack of faith in him, I am resigning from the government and parliament and taking a break from political life,” Ya’alon said.

The opposition was outraged by the appointment, stating that it would result in a policy “on the brink of madness.”

Tamar Zandberg, a member of the left-wing Meretz party, spoke at the rally, stressing the new level of extremism in the government ranks.

“This week we reached new heights of extremism and an even more right-wing government” she told the crowd. Zandberg also described Lieberman as “corrupt” and “racist.”

She urged the Israeli pubic to make a choice between the right and the left and make their voices heard. “This is a week of political deals but it is also a week of choice,” she added.

Lieberman is known for his controversial suggestions, such one advocating “cutting off heads” of Arab-Israelis not “loyal” to Israel.

Sophocles

23rd May 2016, 16:18

Two years ago...

Poroshenko pledges to step up anti-terrorism operation, bring success within 'hours,' not months (http://www.kyivpost.com/article/content/ukraine-politics/poroshenko-pledges-to-step-up-anti-terrorism-operation-bring-success-within-hours-not-months-349441.html) (Kyivpost May 26, 2014)

...and now...

Poroshenko on Azov's rally: No military way to retake Donbas (http://www.kyivpost.com/article/content/ukraine-politics/poroshenko-on-azovs-rally-no-military-way-to-retake-donbas-414242.html) (Kyivpost May 20, 2016)

Poroshenko admits Ukraine can get Donbass back only peacefully (http://tass.ru/en/world/877296) (Tass May 20, 2016)

Sophocles

24th May 2016, 13:19

Showdown: Battle for Aleppo May Put End to 'Erdogan’s Imperial Designs (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160523/1040080491/aleppo-erdogan-imperial-plans.html)

Sputniknews 23.05.2016

The future of Syria is now being decided not in Damascus or Geneva, but in Aleppo. If the Syrian Army and its allies win the battle for Aleppo it will not only end the war but also ruin plans of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is reportedly supporting radical groups in Syria, analyst Catherine Shakdam wrote.

Currently, Aleppo is part of the silence regime in Syria, a ceasefire brokered by Russia and the US. However, the situation in the city remains complicated.

Over the past several weeks, the fiercest clashes in Syria have taken place in Aleppo.

"With major military operations already underway in Aleppo and more to come, the province is emerging as the focal point of the war in Syria. Of the ongoing battles in the region, the largest and most decisive is the fight between rebels and loyalists for the divided city of Aleppo," a report by Stratfor think tank read.

While the Syrian government tries to strengthen its position with a victory in Aleppo, the rebels are fighting for the "survival of their case."

Different rebel groups have been carrying out their offensives in Aleppo, including the al-Nusra Front, Ahrar al-Sham, and the Free Syrian Army. However, the advances of the Syrian Army and its allies backed by Russian airstrikes have foiled attempts by militants to advance, according to Stratfor.

The Syrian conflict involved a number of different forces, and some of them are not interested in ending the war, Russian political analyst Azhdar Kurtov said in an interview with the newspaper Vzglyad.

"Radical groups have strong positions near Aleppo. They are not ready for a compromise with Assad. Many of them also have foreign sponsors like Turkey and Saudi Arabia. Even if Moscow and Washington have the same positions Ankara and Riyadh would continue to support terrorists," he pointed out.

He added that radical groups in Syria would do everything they can to undermine the ceasefire.

Earlier this week, President Erdogan gave further indication that his government is actively considering the deployment of troops in Syria.

On Friday, the media center of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan reported that Turkish soldiers accompanied by two tanks entered the territory of Syria near the Turkish city of Nusaybin.

Throughout 2016 there have been growing signs of Ankara’s intention to deploy ground forces in Syria. In February, the Russian government reported "a growing number of signs of hidden preparation by the Turkish armed forces to carry out active operations in Syria."

Obsessed with ambitions to revive the Ottoman Empire, Erdogan is ready to send troops to Syria, in a bid to support terrorist groups, Catherine Shakdam, the Associate Director of the Beirut Center for Middle Eastern Studies, wrote in her article for the New Eastern Outlook. (http://journal-neo.org/2016/05/21/battle-for-aleppo-the-end-of-erdogan-s-ottoman-dream-in-syria/)

However, such a reckless move could bring Erdogan’s political career to collapse, the author added. If Turkey invades Syria in an unilateral act of aggression, Syria’s allies – Russia and Iran – will deliver a military response.

What is more, with his ambitions, Erdogan is ready to oppose its NATO allies, including the US.

"Erdogan is sending a signal to NATO and Turkey’s European partners – they should turn a blind eye to his possible aggression in Syria or they will face floods of migrants he pledged to stem in accordance with a migrant deal between Ankara and Brussels," the article read.

Considering the fact than Turkey has been a long-time supporter of terrorism in Syria to pursue its geopolitical ambitions, Erdogan now poses a threat to Europe, the author concluded.

Source (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160523/1040080491/aleppo-erdogan-imperial-plans.html)

Sophocles

28th May 2016, 17:30

NATO just attempted to invade Moldova, thwarted by people's resistance (https://www.sott.net/article/319016-NATO-just-attempted-to-invade-Moldova-thwarted-by-peoples-resistance)

Scott Humor
Vineyard of the Saker
Mon, 23 May 2016 00:00 UTC

https://www.sott.net/image/s16/321684/large/screen_shot_2016_05_25_at_1_09.jpg

NATO's invasion of Moldova foiled thanks to coordinated actions of many nations' patriots

It's hard to overestimate the value of planning in advance, especially when it comes to getting reservations in popular restaurants and invading countries by military force.

In the week of the May 9th Victory Day two significant failures took place each one remarkable in its own way. Each event went completely unreported by the Western corporate and government media, but discussed on Social Media.

[The followings is an excerpt. Look for a full version of this investigation in the June release of my new book: "Scott Humor: Rumors, Speculations and Investigations of the First Hybrid War"]

In the following three weeks after the incident with the USS Florida, while Russia was preparing for Victory Day celebrations and all eyes were on Moscow, attention of Ukrainians was fully concentrated on the visit of Victoria Nuland to Kiev on April 26th allegedly to discuss the implementation of the Minsk II Agreement and the future elections in Donetsk and Lugansk republics. Since the day when President Putin said that the republics can have their elections anytime they want, the question of these elections ceased to be a subject of blackmail toward the Kremlin. It appeared that the true reason for Nuland's visit could be located to the west of Kiev, rather than the east.

Just recently, Robert D. Kaplan (http://www.counterpunch.org/2014/05/02/inside-the-fanciful-world-of-stratfor/), a former Stratfor's Chief Geopolitical Analyst, and currently a senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) has published a book "In Europe's Shadow" where he lays out a plan to reunite Romania with "its lost province of Moldova."

Nuland visited Moldova back in January (https://kingofromania.com/2016/01/19/nuland-reveals-plan-to-crush-democracy-in-rm/), with the task to coerce Moldova's government and its oligarchs to change the country's Constitution provision of neutrality.

"We powerfully support the desire of the people in Moldova to have responsible leaders who can implement reforms. This is the best way to assure the future of Moldova. Romania and the United States, in conjunction with NATO, have support programs in place to assure the security of Moldova but the government has to work to implement these programs."
Before she left, she gave a short speech at the American Embassy in Bucharest after a private dinner with PM Ciolos and President Klaus.

Moldova is one of the poorest countries in Eastern Europe, and its economy heavily relies on Russia. According to the CIA Fact Book:

Moldova's annual remittances of about $1.12 billion comes from the roughly one million Moldovans working in Europe, Russia, and other former Soviet Bloc countries;

Moldova imports almost all of its energy supplies from Russia and Ukraine;

Moldova's dependence on Russian energy is underscored by a more than $5 billion debt to Russian natural gas supplier Gazprom;

Moldova signed an Association Agreement and a Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement with the EU during fall 2014, however its biggest trade partner remains Russia.

Everyone understands that a NATO membership will cut all economic ties with Russia, including jobs, and it will turn Moldova into a failed state, or in the CIA doublespeak, the country would stop being vulnerable to "Russian pressure."

Apparently, the failure of Moldova as a state, and its disappearance as a nation is also what the EU wants. On January 6, the new Moldovan Ambassador to Germany (https://kingofromania.com/2016/01/18/nuland-still-scheming/) was presenting his credentials when, out of the blue, the German president asked the new ambassador what the procedure was for Republic of Moldova to formally unite with Romania.

On May 4th, the Katehon reported on Vladimir Plahotniuc's (http://katehon.com/article/nuland-supports-infamous-oligarch-rule-moldova) (the infamous Moldavian oligarch and mafia boss) visit to the US and his meeting with Victoria Nuland there.

As the Victory Day celebration was approaching, we all fully anticipated from the US to conduct terror acts, military excursions/drills, and political and legal attacks on Russia as the US and the EU always do to harass Russia during its major national and Church holidays.

Starting with April 21st, we saw a flurry of "news" about Ukraine and Romania joining NATO Black Sea flotilla and the organization of Romanian-Ukrainian-Bulgarian brigade similar to that created by Poland. On April 26, Georgia (Gruzia) pitched in via the Georgia Today: "creation of NATO Black Sea Fleet Gains US Support" and praising Turkey, Bulgaria and Romania for calls to expand the Western military. (https://www.google.no/?gws_rd=cr&ei=jClIV6WnNcPO6ASJk4SIBg#q=ukraine+romania+black+sea+nato)

All that Russia said to all this NATO generated noise was a brief statement of Russia's envoy to NATO Alexander Grushko. (http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160422/1038451347/russia-black-sea-nato.html) "NATO should be in a position to know that all necessary steps will be taken from our side to neutralize the emerging threats."

With all these preparations for the war on Russia going on, NATO also planned military drills in neutral Moldova, chosen to start on May 2nd, the day of remembrance for the victims of the Odessa Massacre.

Meanwhile, the patriots of Moldavia who worked together regardless of their political views, discovered something interesting and saved Moldova.

NATO reported that for drills they would be entering Moldova in four formations, and that the total of motorized units will be 50+. However, the very first formation that made an attempt to enter the territory of Moldova contained 100+ unites. This was just one formation. And there was expected three more formations.

It was an obvious deception by NATO.

The plan of NATO was to enter the country with too large a number of units for this tiny country's forces, to stage a bloody false flag attack during the Victory Day celebration in Moldova with the participation of Ukrainian Right Sector terrorists masquerading as "pro-Russia separatists." This plot worked in Ukraine, so it should work in Moldova, right? That's the true reason why Nuland was in Kiev two weeks prior. After this false flag attack, a Romanian fleet was planned to enter Ukrainian territorial waters "by invitation of the Ukrainian government" and arrive to Odessa in order to block Russian fleets from interfering and helping Transnistria.

But...

Coming back to the bizarre incident near Gibraltar, when one NATO member's tiny 20 tone Costal Guards' boat was attacked by another NATO member for interfering with the 18,000 tones behemoth of a submarine of the third NATO member.

The NATO plan apparently was to stealthy and quietly position the Ohio-class ballistic guided-missile submarine USS Florida (SSGN 728) in the Mediterranean or even in the Black Sea so it would be able to shoot into Moldova to overwhelm Moldovan minuscule defense forces.

We have to remember that it was the USS Florida "that opened up the Libya intervention," firing more than 90 cruise missiles to destroy Libya's air defenses and clearing the way for NATO air strikes. "Never before in the history of the United States of America has one ship conducted that much land attack strikes, conventionally, in one short time period," Rear Adm. Rick Breckenridge had said. (https://warisboring.com/this-is-how-america-could-bombard-syria-by-sea-bbcef61c3ecb#.nm15q1uet)

However, thanks to Spanish Costal Guards the submarine was discovered and talked about all around the world via social media and the press. The USS Florida had no other options but to retreat and return to home base.

In fact, there were TWO incidents on the same April 16th day involving the USS Florida (http://chronicle.gi/2016/05/navy-fired-flare-in-sva-sub-incident/). First, it was the Spanish patrol boat belonged to the Servicio de Vigilancia Aduanera, at whom the British Navy opened fire. A bit later, the Guardia Civil vessel Rio Cedeña tried to cut across the submarine's bow and was photographed by multiple witnesses.

Someone in Spain wanted to make sure that these "incidents" just wouldn't go unnoticed.

According to V.V. Pyakin, (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwJuBLLv3p4) a political analyst with the Concept Technologies Foundation, a think tank located in St. Petersburg, NATO was in a process of conducting a full-scale invasion of Moldova with the annexation of a Southern part of Ukraine including Odessa to construct a NATO Navy base there. Moldova was supposed to become a part of Romania automatically with the US military forces arriving to the capital and taking over the government of Moldova. That's why NATO needed all those military "drills" in the Black Sea region and in the Baltics simultaneously.

When the patriotic forces of Moldavia discovered that NATO was about to enter the territory of Moldova in four formations, 100+ motorized units each, they protested loudly and blocked the entrance of NATO troops on the border. Meanwhile, the biggest political fraction in Moldova threatened with the impeachment of the president for treason, if NATO troops would be allowed to enter the country.

Reports from Moldova at the time disclosed that American troops stopped at the border crossing didn't have proper ID and other papers. Moldovans came to greet them with the banners "Moldova is a neutral country" and "Stop bases of NATO," "Stop NATO" and "NATO go home." As the result, on April 28th only about 60 units and 200 servicemen the U.S. Army 2nd Cavalry Regimental Engineer Squadron were allowed to enter the country.

Images of creeping NATO invasion of Moldova here (http://colonelcassad.livejournal.com/2734681.html)

When a formation of American military crossed the Romanian-Moldova border (http://katehon.com/ru/agenda/voyska-ssha-i-nato-voshli-v-moldovu) allegedly to take part in Dragon Pioneer 2016 NATO military drills, Moldavian opposition leaders expressed protests. Several members of the Parliament blocked the road. They reported to Russian and international media and news outlets that the US troops didn't have an international agreement signed by the defense ministers of Moldova and USA. They also lacked a legal government agreement on the entrance of the heavy military equipment and weaponry to the territory of the country. 60% of American servicemen didn't have valid military IDs.

According to a TASS report, (http://www.fort-russ.com/2016/05/us-military-arrives-at-training-ground.html) "To prevent collisions, officers from the Fulger (Lightning) police battalion of special purpose intervened, which were specially delivered from Chisinau. After checking the documents, a column of military vehicles followed the US to the place of temporary location at the site of Negresht," said the inspectorate."

"The initiative to invite the US troops into the country and hold the exhibition of American technology belongs to the Minister of Defense of Moldova Anatol Șalaru, who is famous for the organization of the "Museum of Soviet occupation" in Chisinau, calls to repeal neutrality and make the country a member of NATO, and the fight against monuments of the Soviet era."

This move was harshly criticized by Igor Dodon, whose party has the largest faction in Parliament and controls a quarter of the seats.

He stated: "We believe military exercises involving US troops on Moldovan territory is a flagrant violation of the constitutional principle of neutrality of Moldova. In this regard, the deputies from the Party of socialists have already initiated a number of procedures. They will continue, and this will be one of the reasons for introducing in May the initiative to dismiss the government."

By Victory Day it became apparent that the Nuland-Kogan-NATO plan for invasion of Moldova was foiled. All Americans could do was to "crush" a Victory Day parade in the center of Moldova's capital by coming uninvited and bringing their motorized vehicles to it.

And that's where NATO troops and Moldovan patriots came face to face.

An American Colonel demands the citizen of Moldova leave the central square

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Moldavian activists chased NATO troops from the capital during the Victory Day Celebration

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Comment: Though this story is a hoot, it is also a very stark reminder of just how aggressive and underhanded Washington is in trying to subsume another country to its will, and how the U.S. is using NATO in its asinine attempts to further encircle Russia militarily.

Full article (https://www.sott.net/article/319016-NATO-just-attempted-to-invade-Moldova-thwarted-by-peoples-resistance)

Sophocles

29th May 2016, 11:25

Silencing America as It Prepares for War (http://www.counterpunch.org/2016/05/27/silencing-america-as-it-prepares-for-war/)

By John Pilger
May 27, 2016
Counterpunch

http://uziiw38pmyg1ai60732c4011.wpengine.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/dropzone/2016/05/shutterstock_324859283-3.jpg
Shutterstock.com

Returning to the United States in an election year, I am struck by the silence. I have covered four presidential campaigns, starting with 1968; I was with Robert Kennedy when he was shot and I saw his assassin, preparing to kill him. It was a baptism in the American way, along with the salivating violence of the Chicago police at the Democratic Party’s rigged convention. The great counter revolution had begun.

The first to be assassinated that year, Martin Luther King, had dared link the suffering of African-Americans and the people of Vietnam. When Janis Joplin sang, “Freedom’s just another word for nothing left to lose”, she spoke perhaps unconsciously for millions of America’s victims in faraway places.

“We lost 58,000 young soldiers in Vietnam, and they died defending your freedom. Now don’t you forget it.” So said a National Parks Service guide as I filmed last week at the Lincoln Memorial in Washington. He was addressing a school party of young teenagers in bright orange T-shirts. As if by rote, he inverted the truth about Vietnam into an unchallenged lie.

The millions of Vietnamese who died and were maimed and poisoned and dispossessed by the American invasion have no historical place in young minds, not to mention the estimated 60,000 veterans who took their own lives. A friend of mine, a marine who became a paraplegic in Vietnam, was often asked, “Which side did you fight on?”

A few years ago, I attended a popular exhibition called “The Price of Freedom” at the venerable Smithsonian Institution in Washington. The lines of ordinary people, mostly children shuffling through a Santa’s grotto of revisionism, were dispensed a variety of lies: the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki saved “a million lives”; Iraq was “liberated air strikes of unprecedented precision”. The theme was unerringly heroic: only Americans pay the price of freedom.

The 2016 election campaign is remarkable not only for the rise of Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders but also for the resilience of an enduring silence about a murderous self-bestowed divinity. A third of the members of the United Nations have felt Washington’s boot, overturning governments, subverting democracy, imposing blockades and boycotts. Most of the presidents responsible have been liberal – Truman, Kennedy, Johnson, Carter, Clinton, Obama.

The breathtaking record of perfidy is so mutated in the public mind, wrote the late Harold Pinter, that it “never happened …Nothing ever happened. Even while it was happening it wasn’t happening. It didn’t matter. It was of no interest. It didn’t matter … “. Pinter expressed a mock admiration for what he called “a quite clinical manipulation of power worldwide while masquerading as a force for universal good. It’s a brilliant, even witty, highly successful act of hypnosis.”

Take Obama. As he prepares to leave office, the fawning has begun all over again. He is “cool”. One of the more violent presidents, Obama gave full reign to the Pentagon war-making apparatus of his discredited predecessor. He prosecuted more whistleblowers – truth-tellers – than any president. He pronounced Chelsea Manning guilty before she was tried. Today, Obama runs an unprecedented worldwide campaign of terrorism and murder by drone.

In 2009, Obama promised to help “rid the world of nuclear weapons” and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. No American president has built more nuclear warheads than Obama. He is “modernising” America’s doomsday arsenal, including a new “mini” nuclear weapon, whose size and “smart” technology, says a leading general, ensure its use is “no longer unthinkable”.

James Bradley, the best-selling author of Flags of Our Fathers and son of one of the US marines who raised the flag on Iwo Jima, said, “[One] great myth we’re seeing play out is that of Obama as some kind of peaceful guy who’s trying to get rid of nuclear weapons. He’s the biggest nuclear warrior there is. He’s committed us to a ruinous course of spending a trillion dollars on more nuclear weapons. Somehow, people live in this fantasy that because he gives vague news conferences and speeches and feel-good photo-ops that somehow that’s attached to actual policy. It isn’t.”

On Obama’s watch, a second cold war is under way. The Russian president is a pantomime villain; the Chinese are not yet back to their sinister pig-tailed caricature – when all Chinese were banned from the United States – but the media warriors are working on it.

Neither Hillary Clinton nor Bernie Sanders has mentioned any of this. There is no risk and no danger for the United States and all of us. For them, the greatest military build-up on the borders of Russia since World War Two has not happened. On May 11, Romania went “live” with a Nato “missile defence” base that aims its first-strike American missiles at the heart of Russia, the world’s second nuclear power.

In Asia, the Pentagon is sending ships, planes and special forces to the Philippines to threaten China. The US already encircles China with hundreds of military bases that curve in an arc up from Australia, to Asia and across to Afghanistan. Obama calls this a “pivot”.

As a direct consequence, China reportedly has changed its nuclear weapons policy from no-first-use to high alert and put to sea submarines with nuclear weapons. The escalator is quickening.

It was Hillary Clinton who, as Secretary of State in 2010, elevated the competing territorial claims for rocks and reef in the South China Sea to an international issue; CNN and BBC hysteria followed; China was building airstrips on the disputed islands. In its mammoth war game in 2015, Operation Talisman Sabre, the US practiced “choking” the Straits of Malacca through which pass most of China’s oil and trade. This was not news.

Clinton declared that America had a “national interest” in these Asian waters. The Philippines and Vietnam were encouraged and bribed to pursue their claims and old enmities against China. In America, people are being primed to see any Chinese defensive position as offensive, and so the ground is laid for rapid escalation. A similar strategy of provocation and propaganda is applied to Russia.

Clinton, the “women’s candidate”, leaves a trail of bloody coups: in Honduras, in Libya (plus the murder of the Libyan president) and Ukraine. The latter is now a CIA theme park swarming with Nazis and the frontline of a beckoning war with Russia. It was through Ukraine – literally, borderland — that Hitler’s Nazis invaded the Soviet Union, which lost 27 million people. This epic catastrophe remains a presence in Russia. Clinton’s presidential campaign has received money from all but one of the world’s ten biggest arms companies. No other candidate comes close.

Sanders, the hope of many young Americans, is not very different from Clinton in his proprietorial view of the world beyond the United States. He backed Bill Clinton’s illegal bombing of Serbia. He supports Obama’s terrorism by drone, the provocation of Russia and the return of special forces (death squads) to Iraq. He has nothing to say on the drumbeat of threats to China and the accelerating risk of nuclear war. He agrees that Edward Snowden should stand trial and he calls Hugo Chavez – like him, a social democrat – “a dead communist dictator”. He promises to support Clinton if she is nominated.

The election of Trump or Clinton is the old illusion of choice that is no choice: two sides of the same coin. In scapegoating minorities and promising to “make America great again”, Trump is a far right-wing domestic populist; yet the danger of Clinton may be more lethal for the world.

“Only Donald Trump has said anything meaningful and critical of US foreign policy,” wrote Stephen Cohen, emeritus professor of Russian History at Princeton and NYU, one of the few Russia experts in the United States to speak out about the risk of war.

In a radio broadcast, Cohen referred to critical questions Trump alone had raised. Among them: why is the United States “everywhere on the globe”? What is NATO’s true mission? Why does the US always pursue regime change in Iraq, Syria, Libya, Ukraine? Why does Washington treat Russia and Vladimir Putin as an enemy?

The hysteria in the liberal media over Trump serves an illusion of “free and open debate” and “democracy at work”. His views on immigrants and Muslims are grotesque, yet the deporter-in-chief of vulnerable people from America is not Trump but Obama, whose betrayal of people of colour is his legacy: such as the warehousing of a mostly black prison population, now more numerous than Stalin’s gulag.

This presidential campaign may not be about populism but American liberalism, an ideology that sees itself as modern and therefore superior and the one true way. Those on its right wing bear a likeness to 19th century Christian imperialists, with a God-given duty to convert or co-opt or conquer.

In Britain, this is Blairism. The Christian war criminal Tony Blair got away with his secret preparation for the invasion of Iraq largely because the liberal political class and media fell for his “cool Britannia”. In the Guardian, the applause was deafening; he was called “mystical”. A distraction known as identity politics, imported from the United States, rested easily in his care.

History was declared over, class was abolished and gender promoted as feminism; lots of women became New Labour MPs. They voted on the first day of Parliament to cut the benefits of single parents, mostly women, as instructed. A majority voted for an invasion that produced 700,000 Iraqi widows.

The equivalent in the US are the politically correct warmongers on the New York Times, the Washington Post and network TV who dominate political debate. I watched a furious debate on CNN about Trump’s infidelities. It was clear, they said, a man like that could not be trusted in the White House. No issues were raised. Nothing on the 80 per cent of Americans whose income has collapsed to 1970s levels. Nothing on the drift to war. The received wisdom seems to be “hold your nose” and vote for Clinton: anyone but Trump. That way, you stop the monster and preserve a system gagging for another war.

[B]Source (http://www.counterpunch.org/2016/05/27/silencing-america-as-it-prepares-for-war/)

Sophocles

30th May 2016, 10:50

How Russia Is Preparing for WWIII (http://www.unz.com/tsaker/how-russia-is-preparing-for-wwiii/)

The Saker • May 26, 2016
Unz.com

http://www.unzcloud.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/shutterstock_192428225-600x400.jpg

I have recently posted a piece in which I tried to debunk a few popular myths about modern warfare. (http://thesaker.is/debunking-popular-cliches-about-modern-warfare/) Judging by many comments which I received in response to this post, I have to say that the myths in question are still alive and well and that I clearly failed to convince many readers. What I propose to do today, is to look at what Russia is really doing in response to the growing threat from the West. But first, I have to set the context or, more accurately, re-set the context in which Russia is operating. Let’s begin by looking at the AngloZionist policies towards Russia.

The West’s actions:

First on this list is, obviously, the conquest by NATO of all of Eastern Europe. I speak of conquest because that is exactly what it is, but a conquest achieved according to the rules of 21st century warfare which I define as “80% informational, 15% economic and 5% military”. Yes, I know, the good folks of Eastern Europe were just dreaming of being subjugated by the US/NATO/EU/etc – but so what? Anyone who has read Sun Tzu will immediately recognize that this deep desire to be ‘incorporated’ into the AngloZionist “Borg” is nothing else but the result of a crushed self-identity, a deep-seated inferiority complex and, thus, a surrender which did not even have to be induced by military means. At the end of the day, it makes no difference what the locals thought they were achieving – they are now subjects of the Empire and their countries more or less irrelevant colonies in the fringe of the AngloZionist Empire. As always, the local comprador elite is now bubbling with pride at being, or so they think, accepted as equals by their new masters (think Poroshenko, Tusk or Grybauskaite) which gives them the courage to bark at Moscow from behind the NATO fence. Good for them.

Second is the now total colonization of Western Europe into the Empire. While NATO moved to the East, the US also took much deeper control of Western Europe which is now administered for the Empire by what the former Mayor of London once called the “great supine protoplasmic invertebrate jellies” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LI5oRTL-6rA) – faceless bureaucrats à la François Hollande or Angela Merkel.

Third, the Empire has given its total support to semi-demonic creatures ranging from al-Khattab to Nadezhda Savchenko. The West’s policy is crystal clear and simple to the extreme: if it is anti-Russian we back it. This policy is best exemplified with a Putin and Russia demonization campaign which is, in my opinion, far worse and much more hysterical than anything during the Cold War.

Fourth, the West has made a number of highly disturbing military moves including the deployment of the first elements of an anti-missile system in Eastern Europe, the dispatching of various forms of rapid reaction forces, the deployment of a few armored units, etc. NATO now has forward deployed command posts which can be used to support the engagement of a rapid reaction force.

What does all this add up to?

Right now, nothing much, really. Yes, the NATO move right up to the Russian borders is highly provocative, but primarily in political terms. In purely military terms, not only is this a very bad idea (see cliché #6 here (http://thesaker.is/debunking-popular-cliches-about-modern-warfare/)), but the size of the actual forces deployed is, in reality, tiny: the ABM system currently deployed can, at best, hope to intercept a few missiles (10-20 depending on your assumptions) as for the conventional forces they are of the battalion size (more or less 600 soldiers plus support). So right now there is categorically no real military threat to Russia.

So why are the Russians so clearly upset?

Because the current US/NATO moves might well be just the first steps of a much larger effort which, given enough time, might begin presenting a very real danger for Russia.

Furthermore, the kind of rhetoric coming out of the West now is not only militaristic and russophobic, it is often outright messianic. The last time around the West had a flare up of its 1000 year old chronic “messianic syndrome” Russia lost 20 (to 30) million people. So the Russians can be forgiven if they are paying a great deal of attention to what the AngloZionist propaganda actually says about them.

The Russians are most dismayed at the re-colonization of western Europe. Long gone are the days when people like Charles de Gaulle, Helmut Schmidt or François Mitterrand, were in charge of Europe’s future. For all their very real faults, these men were at least real patriots and not just US colonial administrators. The ‘loss’ of Western Europe is far more concerning for the Russians than the fact that ex-Soviet colonies in Eastern Europe are now under US colonial administration. Why?

Look at this from the Russian point of view.

The Russians all see that the US power is on the decline and that the dollar will, sooner or later, gradually or suddenly, lose its role as the main reserve and exchange currency on the planet (this process has already begun). Simply put – unless the US finds a way to dramatically change the current international dynamic the AngloZionist Empire will collapse. The Russians believe that what the Americans are doing is, at best, to use tensions with Russia to revive a dormant Cold War v2 and, at worst, to actually start a real shooting war in Europe.

So a declining Empire with a vital need for a major crisis, a spineless Western Europe unable to stand up for its own interest, a subservient Eastern Europe just begging to turn into a massive battlefield between East and West, and a messianic, rabidly russophobic rhetoric as the background for an increase in military deployments on the Russian border. Is anybody really surprised that the Russians are taking all this very, very seriously even if right now the military threat is basically non-existent?

The Russian reaction

So let us now examine the Russian reaction to Empire’s stance.

First, the Russians want to make darn sure that the Americans do not give in into the illusion that a full-scale war in Europe would be like WWII which saw the US homeland only suffer a few, tiny, almost symbolic, attacks by the enemy. Since a full scale war in Europe would threaten the very existence of the Russian state and nation, the Russians are now taking measures to make darn sure that, should that happen, the US would pay an immense price for such an attack.

Second, the Russians are now evidently assuming that a conventional threat from the West might materialize in the foreseeable future. They are therefore taking the measures needed to counter that conventional threat.

Third, since the USA appears to be dead set into deploying an anti-ballistic missile system not only in Europe, but also in the Far East, the Russians are taking the measures to both defeat and bypass this system.

The Russian effort is a vast and a complex one, and it covers almost every aspect of Russian force planning, but there are four examples which, I think, best illustrate the Russian determination not to allow a 22 June 1941 to happen again:

The re-creation of the First Guards Tank Army (in progress)

The deployment of the Iskander-M operational-tactical missile system (done)

The deployment of the Sarmat ICBM (in progress)

The deployment of the Status-6 strategic torpedo (in progress)

The re-creation of the First Guards Tank Army

It is hard to believe, but the fact is that between 1991 and 2016 Russia did not have a single large formation (division size and bigger) in its Western Military District. A few brigades, regiments and battalions which nominally were called an “Army”. To put it simply – Russia clearly did not believe that there was a conventional military threat from the West and therefore she did not even bother deploying any kind of meaningful military force to defend from such a non-existing threat. By the way, that fact should also tell you everything you need to know about Russian plans to invade the Ukraine, Poland or the Baltics: this is utter nonsense. This has now dramatically changed.

Russia has officially announced that the First Guards Tank Army (a formation with a prestigious and very symbolic history (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1st_Guards_Tank_Army_%28Soviet_Union%29)). This Guards Tank Army will now include the 4th “Kantemirovskiaia” Guards Tank Division, the 2nd “Taman” Guards Motorized Rifle Division, the 6th Tank Brigade, the 27th Guards Motor Rifle Brigade Sevastopol and many support units. This Army’s HQ will be located in the Odinstovo suburb of Moscow. Currently the Army is equipped with T-72B3 and T-80 main battle tanks, but they will be replaced by the brand new and revolutionary T-14 Armata tank (http://taskandpurpose.com/why-russias-new-tanks-are-a-wake-up-call-for-the-us/) while the current infantry fighting vehicles and armored personnel carriers will be replaced by the new APC (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bumerang) and IFV (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurganets-25). In the air, these armored units will be protected and supported by Mi-28 and Ka-52 attack helicopters. Make no mistake, this will be a very large force, exactly the kind of force needed so smash through attacking enemy forces (by the way, the 1TGA was present at the Kursk battle). I am pretty sure that by the time the 1TGA is fully organized it will become the most powerful armored formation anywhere between the Atlantic and the Urals (especially in qualitative terms). If the current tensions continue or even worsen, the Russians could even augment the 1TGA to a type of 21st century “Shock Army” with increased mobility and specializing in breaking deep into the enemy’s defenses.

The deployment of the Iskander-M operational-tactical missile system

The new Iskander-M operational tactical missile system is a formidable weapon by any standard. While technically it is a short-range tactical missile (under 1000km range, the Iskander-M has an official range of 500km), it can also fire the R-500 missile has the capability of striking at an intermediate/operational range (over 1000km, the R-500 has a range of 2000km). It is extremely accurate, it has advanced anti-ABM capabilities, it flies at hypersonic speeds and is practically undetectable on the ground (see here (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/9K720_Iskander) for more details). This will be the missile tasked with destroying all the units and equipment the US and NATO have forward-deployed in Eastern Europe and, if needed, clear the way for the 1TGA.

The deployment of the Sarmat ICBM

Neither the 1TGA nor the Iskander-M missile will threaten the US homeland in any way. Russia thus needed some kind of weapon which would truly strike fear into the Pentagon and White House in the way the famous RS-36 Voevoda (aka SS-18 “Satan” (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R-36_%28missile%29#SS-18) in US classification) did during the Cold War. The SS-18, the most powerful ICBM ever developed, was scary enough. The RS-28 “Sarmat” (SS-X-30 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RS-28_Sarmat) by NATO classification) brings the terror to a totally new level.

The Sarmat is nothing short of amazing. It will be capable of carrying 10-15 MIRVed (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multiple_independently_targetable_reentry_vehicle) warheads which will be delivered in a so-called “depressed” (suborbital) trajectory and which will remain maneuverable at hypersonic speeds. The missile will not have to use the typical trajectory over the North Pole but will be capable of reaching any target anywhere on the planet from any trajectory. All these elements combined will make the Sarmat itself and its warheads completely impossible to intercept.

The Sarmat will also be capable of delivering conventional Iu-71 hypersonic warheads capable of a “kinetic strike” which could be used to strike a fortified enemy target in a non-nuclear conflict. This will be made possible by the amazing accuracy of the Sarmat’s warheads which, courtesy of a recent Russian leak, we now know have a CEP of 10 meters:

The Sarmat’s silos will be protected by a unique “active protection measures” which will include 100 guns capable of firing a “metallic cloud” of forty thousand 30mm “bullets” to an altitude of up to 6km. The Russians are also planning to protect the Sarmat with their new S-500 air defense systems. Finally, the Sarmat’s preparation to start time will be under 60 seconds thanks a a highly automated launch system. What this all means is that the Sarmat missile will be invulnerable in its silo, during its flight and on re-entry in the lower parts of the atmosphere.

It is interesting to note that while the USA has made a great deal of noise around its planned Prompt Global Strike (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prompt_Global_Strike)system, the Russians have already begun deploying their own version of this concept.

The deployment of the Status-6 strategic torpedo

Do you remember the carefully staged “leak” in November of last year when the Russians ‘inadvertently’ showed a super dooper secret strategic torpedo on prime time news? (http://thesaker.is/did-russia-just-gently-threaten-the-usa/) Here is this (in)famous slide:

http://www.unzcloud.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/SakerTorpedo.jpg

What is shown here is an “autonomous underwater vehicle” which has advanced navigational capabilities but which can also be remote controlled and steered from a specialized command module. This vehicle can dive as deep as 1000m, at a speed up to 185km/h and it has a range of up to 10’000km. It is delivered by specially configured submarines.

The Status-6 system can be used to target aircraft carrier battle groups, US navy bases (especially SSBN bases) and, in its most frighting configuration, it can be used to deliver high-radioactivity cobalt bombs (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cobalt_bomb) capable of laying waste to huge expanses of land. The Status-6 delivery system would be a new version of the T-15 torpedo which would be 24m long, 1.5m wide weigh 40 tons and capable of delivering a 100 megaton warhead which would make it twice as powerful as the most powerful nuclear device ever detonated, the Soviet Czar-bomb (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tsar_Bomba) (57 megatons). Hiroshima was only 15 kilotons.

Keep in mind that most of the USA’s cities and industrial centers are all along the coastline which makes them extremely vulnerable to torpedo based attacks (be it Sakharov’s proposed “Tsunami bomb” (https://www.facebook.com/john.bengtson.9/posts/10202519228606552) or the Status-6 system). And, just as in the case of the Iskander-M or the Sarmat ICBM, the depth and speed of the Status-6 torpedo would make it basically invulnerable to incerception.

Evaluation:

There is really nothing new in all of the above, and US military commanders have always known that. All the US anti-ballistic missile systems have always been primarily a financial scam, from Reagan’s “Star Wars” to Obama’s “anti-Iranian ABM”. For one thing, any ABM system is susceptible to ‘local saturation’: if you have X number ABM missile protecting a Y long space against an X number of missiles, all that you need to do is to saturate only one sector of the Y space with *a lot* of real and fake missiles by firing them all together through one small sector of the Y space the ABM missile system is protecting. And there are plenty of other measures the Russians could take. They could put just one single SLBM capable submarine in Lake Baikal making it basically invulnerable. There is already some discussion of that idea in Russia. Another very good option would be to re-activate the Soviet BzhRK rail-mobile ICBM. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RT-23_Molodets) Good luck finding them in the immense Russian train network. In fact, the Russians have plenty of cheap and effective measure. Want me to list one more?

Sure!

Take the Kalibr cruise-missile (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3M-54_Klub) recently seen in the war in Syria. Did you know that it can be shot from a typical commerical container, like the ones you will find on trucks, trains or ships? Check out this excellent video which explains this:

mbUU_9bOcnM

Just remember that the Kalibr has a range of anywhere between 50km to 4000km and that it can carry a nuclear warhead. How hard would it be for Russia to deploy these cruise missiles right off the US coast in regular container ships? Or just keep a few containers in Cuba or Venezuela? This is a system which is so undetectable that the Russians could deploy it off the coast of Australia to hit the NSA station in Alice Springs if they wanted, an nobody would even see it coming.

The reality is that the notion that the US could trigger a war against Russia (or China for that matter) and not suffer the consequences on the US mainland is absolutely ridiculous. And yet, when I hear all the crazy talk by western politicians and generals I get the impression that they are forgetting about this undeniable fact. Frankly, even the current threats against Russia have a ‘half-backed’ feel to them: a battalion here, another one there, a few missiles here, a few more there. It is like the rulers of the Empire don’t realize that it is a very, very bad idea to constantly poke a bear when all you are carrying with you is a pocket-knife. Sometimes the reaction of western politicians remind me of the thugs who try to rob a gas station with a plastic or empty gun and who are absolutely stunned with they get gunned down by the owner or the cops. This kind of thuggery is nothing more than a form of “suicide by cop” which never ends well for the one trying to get away with it.

So sometimes things have to be said directly and unambiguously: western politicians better not believe in their own imperial hubris. So far, all their threats have achieved is that the Russians have responded with a many but futile verbal protests and a full-scale program to prepare Russia for WWIII.

As I have written many times, Russians are very afraid of war and they will go out of their way to avoid it. But they are also ready for war. This is a uniquely Russian cultural feature which the West has misread an innumerable number of time over the past 1000 years or so. Over and over again have the Europeans attacked Russia only to find themselves into a fight they would never have imagined, even in their worst nightmares. This is why the Russians like to say that “Russia never starts wars, she only ends them”.

There is a profound cultural chasm between how the West views warfare and how the Russians do. In the West, warfare is, really, “the continuation of politics by other means”. For Russians, it is a ruthless struggle for survival. Just look at generals in the West: they are polished and well mannered managers much more similar to corporate executives than with, say, Mafia bosses. Take a look at Russian generals (for example, watch the Victory Day parade in Moscow). In comparison to their western colleagues they look almost brutish, because first and foremost they are ruthless and calculating killers. I don’t mean that in a negative way – they often are individually very honorable and even kind men, and like every good commander, they care for their men and love their country. But the business they are in in not the continuation of politics by other means, the business they are in is survival. At all cost.

You cannot judge a military or, for that matter, a nation, by how it behaves when it triumphs, when it is on the offensive pursuing a defeated enemy. All armies look good when they are winning. You can really judge of the nature of a military, or a nation, at its darkest hour, when things are horrible and the situation worse than catastrophic. That was the case in 1995 when the Eltsin regime ordered a totally unprepared, demoralized, poorly trained, poorly fed, poorly equipped and completely disorganized Russian military (well, a few hastily assembled units) to take Grozny from the Chechens. It was hell on earth. Here is some footage of General Lev Rokhlin in a hastily organized command post in a basement inside Grozy. He is as exhausted, dirty and exposed as any of his soldiers. Just look at his face and look at the faces of the men around him. This is what the Russian army looks like when it is in the depth of hell, betrayed by the traitors sitting in the Kremlin and abandoned by most if the Russian people (who, I am sorry to remind here, mostly were only were dreaming of McDonalds and Michael Jackson in 1995).

4KpUlDu5tYk

Can you imagine, say, General Wesley Clark or David Petraeus fighting like these men did?

Check out this video of General Shamanov reading the riot act to a local Chechen politician (no translation need):

rZ8Xd9ZPoGI

http://www.unzcloud.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/SakerShamanov.jpg

Shamanov nowadays is the Commander in Chief of the Airborne Forces (see photo) whose size Putin quietly doubled to 72,000 (http://www.examiner.com/article/russia-to-double-size-of-airborne-forces-over-the-next-7-years), something I mentioned in the past as highly relevant, especially in comparison with the rather tepid force level increases announced by NATO (see “EU suicide by reality denial” (http://thesaker.is/the-eus-suicide-by-reality-denial/)). To get a feel for what modern Russian airborne forces are like, check out this (http://thesaker.is/a-look-into-the-modern-russian-airborne-forces/) article.

It is not my intention here to glorify nuclear war or the Russian Armed Forces. The reason for this, and many other, articles is to try to raise the alarm about what I see is happening nowadays. Western leaders are drunk on their own imperial hubris, nations which in the past were considered as minor stains on a map now feel emboldened to constantly provoke a nuclear superpower, Americans are being lied to and promised that some magical high tech will protect them from war while the Russians are seriously gearing up for WWIII because they have come to the conclusion that the only way to prevent that war is to make absolutely and unequivocally clear to the AngloZionists that they will never survive a war with Russia, even if every single Russian is killed.
(http://www.businessinsider.com/a-spherical-bunker-in-russia-was-the-most-secure-place-in-the-entire-cold-war-2015-3?r=US&IR=T&IR=T)

I remember the Cold War well. I was part of it. And I remember that the vast majority of us, on both sides, realized that a war between Russia and the West must be avoided at all costs. Now I am horrified when I read articles by senior officials seriously discussing such a possibility.

Just read this article, please: What would a war between the EU and Russia look like? (https://www.quora.com/What-would-a-war-between-the-EU-and-Russia-look-like/answer/Sorin-Adam-Matei-1) Here is what this guy writes:

To the poetically inclined, the Russian military looks more like a gigantic pirate crew, than a regular army. The ones who rule are the ones with the sharpest cutlass and biggest mouth, typically some scurvy infested mateis who rely on the support of their mates to make any unpopular “officer” walk the plank… Or, more apt, they resemble the members of the cossack horde, run by the brashier warriors… While these troops can be very brave, at times, they are not effective in the field against a well regulated and trained modern military machine. Given this, it is improbably, ney, impossible for ordinary Russian troops to conduct operations of major consequence at more than platoon level against any disciplined armies, especially the US, British, German, or French.

This kind of writing really scares me. Not because of the imbecilic and racist stupidity of it, but because it largely goes unchallenged in the mainstream media. Not only that, there are plenty such articles written elsewhere (see here (http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/not-so-scary-why-russias-military-paper-tiger-14136), here (http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/Articles/2014/04/30/Russia-s-Military-Bear-Paper-Tiger) or here (http://imrussia.org/en/analysis/world/2389-russias-military-is-a-paper-tiger-in-the-baltic)). Of course, the authors of that kind of “analyses” make their money precisely the kind of manic cheer-leading for the western forces, but that is exactly the mindset which got Napoleon and Hitler in trouble and which ended with Russian forces stationed in Paris and Berlin. Compare that kind of jingoistic and, frankly, irresponsible nonsense with what a real military commander, Montgomery, had to say on this topic:

The next war on land will be very different from the last one, in that we shall have to fight it in a different way. In reaching a decision on that matter, we must first be clear about certain rules of war. Rule 1, on page I of the book of war, is: “Do not march on Moscow”. Various people have tried it, Napoleon and Hitler, and it is no good. That is the first rule.

So who do you trust? Professional cheerleaders or professional soldiers? Do you really believe that Obama (or Hillary), Merkel and Hollande will do better than Napoleon or Hitler?

If the AngloZionist ‘deep state’ is really delusional enough to trigger a war with Russia, in Europe or elsewhere, the narcissistic and hedonistic West, drunk on its own propaganda and hubris, will discover a level of violence and warfare it cannot even imagine and if that only affected those responsible for these reckless and suicidal policies it would be great. But the problem is, of course, that many millions of us, simple, regular people, will suffer and die as a consequence of our collective failure to prevent that outcome. I hope and pray that my repeated warnings will at least contribute to what I hope is a growing realization that this folly has to be immediately stopped and that sanity must return to politics.

Source (http://www.unz.com/tsaker/how-russia-is-preparing-for-wwiii/)

See also Paul Craig Roberts - As Our Past Wars Are Glorified This Memorial Day Weekend, Give Some Thought To Our Prospects Against The Russians And Chinese In World War III (May 28, 2016) (http://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2016/05/28/as-our-past-wars-are-glorified-this-memorial-day-weekend-give-some-thought-to-our-prospects-against-the-russians-and-chinese-in-world-war-iii/)

Sophocles

31st May 2016, 07:15

Putin gives grave warning to Romania and Poland against installing NATO's ABM missiles, "no one is listening" (https://www.sott.net/article/319223-Putin-gives-grave-warning-to-Romania-and-Poland-against-installing-NATOs-ABM-missiles-no-one-is-listening)

Eric Zeusse
Sott.net
Sun, 29 May 2016 00:00 UTC

https://www.sott.net/image/s16/322392/large/57349d1bc46188fe0d8b4594.jpg

On Friday, May 27th, Russia's President Vladimir Putin again said that American President Barack Obama lies when saying that the reason America's anti-ballistic missile ("ABM") or Ballistic Missile Defense ("BMD") system is being installed in Romania, and will soon be installed in Poland, is to protect Europe from Iranian missiles that don't even exist and that Obama himself says won't exist because of Obama's deal with Iran. Putin is saying: I know that you are lying there, not being honest. You're aiming to disable our retaliatory capacity here, not Iran's. I'm not so dumb as to believe so transparent a lie as your assurances that this is about Iran, not about Russia.

Putin says that ABMs such as America is installing (http://www.defense-aerospace.com/articles-view/release/3/173811/aegis-ashore-missile-defense-site-in-romania-declared-operational.html), disable a country's (in this case, Russia's) ability to retaliate against a blitz invasion — something increasingly likely from NATO now as NATO has extended right up to Russia's very borders — and that Russia will not allow this disabling of Russia's retaliatory forces.

He said (https://www.rt.com/news/344642-putin-visit-greece-tsipras/) that "NATO fends us off with vague statements that this is no threat to Russia ... that the whole project began as a preventive measure against Iran's nuclear program. Where is that program now? It doesn't exist. ... We have been saying since the early 2000s that we will have to react somehow to your moves to undermine international security. No one is listening to us."

In other words, he is saying that the West is ignoring Russia's words, and that therefore Russia will, if this continues, respond by eliminating the ABM sites before they become fully operational. To do otherwise than to eliminate any fully operational ABM system on or near Russia's borders would be to leave the Russian people vulnerable to a blitz attack by NATO, and this will not be permitted.

He said: "At the moment the interceptor missiles installed have a range of 500 kilometers, soon this will go up to 1000 kilometers, and worse than that, they can be rearmed with 2400km-range offensive missiles even today, and it can be done by simply switching the software, so that even the Romanians themselves won't know."

In other words: Only the Americans, who have designed and control the ABM system, will be able to know if and when Russia is left totally vulnerable. Not even the Romanians will know; and Putin says, "Russia has 'no choice' but to target Romania" — and later Poland, if they follow through with their plans to do the same.

By implication, Putin is saying that, whereas he doesn't need to strike Romania's site immediately, he'll need to do it soon enough to block the ABM system's upgrade that will leave Russia vulnerable to attack and (because of the fully functional ABM) with no ability on Russia's part to counter-strike.

He is saying: Remove the ABM system, or else we'll have to do it by knocking it out ourselves.

Putin knows that according to the Article Five, "Mutual Defense," provision of the NATO Treaty, any attack against a NATO member, such as Romania, is supposed to elicit an attack by all NATO members against the nation that is attacking. However, Putin is saying that, if NATO is going to be attacking Russia, then it will be without any fully operational ABM system, and (by implication) that Russia's response to any such attack will be a full-scale nuclear attack against all NATO nations, and a nuclear war resulting which will destroy the planet by unleashing all the nuclear weaponry of both sides, NATO and Russia.

Putin is saying that either Romania — and subsequently Poland — will cancel and nullify their cooperation with U.S. President Obama's ABM installation, or else there will be a surgical strike by Russia against such installation(s), even though that would likely produce a nuclear attack against Russia by NATO, and a counter-strike nuclear attack by Russia against NATO.

When Putin said "No one is listening to us" on the other side, the NATO side, Putin meant: I don't want to have to speak by means of a surgical strike to eliminate a NATO ABM system, but that's the way I'll 'speak' if you are deaf to words and to reason and to common decency.

He will not allow the Russian people to become totally vulnerable to a nuclear attack by the United States and its military allies. He is determined that, if NATO attacks Russia, then it will be game-over for the entire world, not only for Russia.

He is saying to Obama and to all of NATO: Please hear and understand my words, and be reasonable, because the results otherwise will be far worse for everyone if you persist in continuing to ignore my words.

Source (https://www.sott.net/article/319223-Putin-gives-grave-warning-to-Romania-and-Poland-against-installing-NATOs-ABM-missiles-no-one-is-listening)

Akasha

31st May 2016, 12:33

Redstar Kachina

31st May 2016, 14:21

..........

Redstar Kachina

1st June 2016, 00:53

..........

Sophocles

1st June 2016, 09:40

A Russian warning (http://thesaker.is/a-russian-warning/)

June 01, 2016
The Saker

We, the undersigned, are Russians living and working in the USA. We have been watching with increasing anxiety as the current US and NATO policies have set us on an extremely dangerous collision course with the Russian Federation, as well as with China. Many respected, patriotic Americans, such as Paul Craig Roberts (http://thesaker.is/as-our-past-wars-are-glorified-this-memorial-day-weekend-give-some-thought-to-our-prospects-against-the-russians-and-chinese-in-world-war-iii/), Stephen Cohen (http://www.thenation.com/article/the-obama-administration-has-just-recklessly-escalated-its-military-confrontation-with-russia/), Philip Giraldi (http://www.unz.com/article/how-the-world-ends/), Ray McGovern (http://scotthorton.org/interviews/2016/02/10/21016-ray-mcgovern/) and many others have been issuing warnings of a looming a Third World War. But their voices have been all but lost among the din of a mass media that is full of deceptive and inaccurate stories that characterize the Russian economy as being in shambles and the Russian military as weak—all based on no evidence. But we—knowing both Russian history and the current state of Russian society and the Russian military, cannot swallow these lies. We now feel that it is our duty, as Russians living in the US, to warn the American people that they are being lied to, and to tell them the truth. And the truth is simply this:

If there is going to be a war with Russia, then the United States
will most certainly be destroyed, and most of us will end up dead.

Let us take a step back and put what is happening in a historical context. Russia has suffered a great deal at the hands of foreign invaders, losing 22 million people in World War II. Most of the dead were civilians, because the country was invaded, and the Russians have vowed to never let such a disaster happen again. Each time Russia had been invaded, she emerged victorious. In 1812 Napoleon invaded Russia; in 1814 Russian cavalry rode into Paris. On July 22, 1941, Hitler’s Luftwaffe bombed Kiev; On May 8, 1945, Soviet troops rolled into Berlin.

But times have changed since then. If Hitler were to attack Russia today, he would be dead 20 to 30 minutes later, his bunker reduced to glowing rubble by a strike from a Kalibr supersonic cruise missile launched from a small Russian navy ship somewhere in the Baltic Sea. The operational abilities of the new Russian military have been most persuasively demonstrated during the recent action against ISIS, Al Nusra and other foreign-funded terrorist groups operating in Syria. A long time ago Russia had to respond to provocations by fighting land battles on her own territory, then launching a counter-invasion; but this is no longer necessary. Russia’s new weapons make retaliation instant, undetectable, unstoppable and perfectly lethal.

Thus, if tomorrow a war were to break out between the US and Russia, it is guaranteed that the US would be obliterated. At a minimum, there would no longer be an electric grid, no Internet, no oil and gas pipelines, no interstate highway system, no air transportation or GPS-based navigation. Financial centers would lie in ruins. Government at every level would cease to function. US armed forces, stationed all around the globe, would no longer be resupplied. At a maximum, the entire landmass of the US would be covered by a layer of radioactive ash. We tell you this not to be alarmist, but because, based on everything we know, we are ourselves alarmed. If attacked, Russia will not back down; she will retaliate, and she will utterly annihilate the United States.

The US leadership has done everything it could to push the situation to the brink of disaster. First, its anti-Russian policies have convinced the Russian leadership that making concessions or negotiating with the West is futile. It has become apparent that the West will always support any individual, movement or government that is anti-Russian, be it tax-cheating Russian oligarchs, convicted Ukrainian war criminals, Saudi-supported Wahhabi terrorists in Chechnya or cathedral-desecrating punks in Moscow. Now that NATO, in violation of its previous promises, has expanded right up to the Russian border, with US forces deployed in the Baltic states, within artillery range of St. Petersburg, Russia’s second-largest city, the Russians have nowhere left to retreat. They will not attack; nor will they back down or surrender. The Russian leadership enjoys over 80% of popular support; the remaining 20% seems to feel that it is being too soft in opposing Western encroachment. But Russia will retaliate, and a provocation or a simple mistake could trigger a sequence of events that will end with millions of Americans dead and the US in ruins.

Unlike many Americans, who see war as an exciting, victorious foreign adventure, the Russians hate and fear war. But they are also ready for it, and they have been preparing for war for several years now. Their preparations have been most effective. Unlike the US, which squanders untold billions on dubious overpriced arms programs such as the F-35 joint task fighter, the Russians are extremely stingy with their defense rubles, getting as much as 10 times the bang for the buck compared to the bloated US defense industry. While it is true that the Russian economy has suffered from low energy prices, it is far from being in shambles, and a return to growth is expected as early as next year. Senator John McCain once called Russia “A gas station masquerading as a country.” Well, he lied. Yes, Russia is the world’s largest oil producer and second-largest oil exporter, but it is also world’s largest exporter of grain and nuclear power technology. It is as advanced and sophisticated a society as the United States. Russia’s armed forces, both conventional and nuclear, are now ready to fight, and they are more than a match for the US and NATO, especially if a war erupts anywhere near the Russian border.

But such a fight would be suicidal for all sides. We strongly believe that a conventional war in Europe runs a strong chance of turning nuclear very rapidly, and that any US/NATO nuclear strike on Russian forces or territory will automatically trigger a retaliatory Russian nuclear strike on the continental US. Contrary to irresponsible statements made by some American propagandists, American antiballistic missile systems are incapable of shielding the American people from a Russian nuclear strike. Russia has the means to strike at targets in the USA with long-range nuclear as well as conventional weapons. (http://thesaker.is/how-russia-is-preparing-for-wwiii/)

The sole reason why the USA and Russia have found themselves on a collision course, instead of defusing tensions and cooperating on a wide range of international problems, is the stubborn refusal by the US leadership to accept Russia as an equal partner: Washington is dead set on being the “world leader” and the “indispensable nation,” even as its influence steadily dwindles in the wake of a string of foreign policy and military disasters such as Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Syria, Yemen and the Ukraine. Continued American global leadership is something that neither Russia, nor China, nor most of the other countries are willing to accept. This gradual but apparent loss of power and influence has caused the US leadership to become hysterical; and it is but a small step from hysterical to suicidal. America’s political leaders need to be placed under suicide watch.

First and foremost, we are appealing to the commanders of the US Armed Forces to follow the example of Admiral William Fallon, who, when asked about a war with Iran, reportedly replied “not on my watch.” (http://original.antiwar.com/bock/2008/03/15/fallon-leaves-will-iran-war-follow/) We know that you are not suicidal, and that you do not wish to die for the sake of out-of-touch imperial hubris. If possible, please tell your staff, colleagues and, especially, your civilian superiors that a war with Russia will not happen on your watch. At the very least, take that pledge to yourself, and, should the day ever come when the suicidal order is issued, simply refuse to execute it on the grounds that it is criminal. Remember that according to the Nuremberg Tribunal (http://avalon.law.yale.edu/imt/judnazi.asp#common) “To initiate a war of aggression… is not only an international crime; it is the supreme international crime differing only from other war crimes in that it contains within itself the accumulated evil of the whole.” Since Nuremberg, “I was just following orders” is no longer a valid defense; please don’t be war criminals.

We also appeal to the American people to take peaceful but forceful action to oppose any politician or party that engages in irresponsible, provocative Russia-baiting, and that condones and supports a policy of needless confrontation with a nuclear superpower that is capable of destroying the US in about an hour. Speak up, break through the barrier of mass media propaganda, and make your fellow Americans aware of the immense danger of a confrontation between Russia and the US.

There is no objective reason why US and Russia should consider each other as adversaries. The current confrontation is entirely the result of the extremist views of the neoconservative movement, whose members have infiltrated the US Federal government, and who consider any country that refuses to obey their dictates as an enemy to be crushed. Thanks to their tireless efforts, over a million innocent people have already died in the former Yugoslavia, in Afghanistan, in Iraq, Libya, Syria, Pakistan, the Ukraine, Yemen, Somalia and in many other countries—all because of their maniacal insistence that the USA must be a world empire, not a just a regular, normal country, and that every national leader must either bow down before it, or be overthrown. In Russia, the irresistible force that is the neocon movement has finally encountered the immovable object. They must be forced to back down before they destroy us all.

We are absolutely and categorically certain that Russia will never attack the US, nor any EU member state, that Russia is not at all interested in recreating the USSR, and that there is no “Russian threat” or “Russian aggression.” Much of Russia’s recent economic success has a lot to do with the shedding of former Soviet dependencies, allowing her to pursue a “Russia first” policy. But we are just as certain that if Russia is attacked, or even threatened with attack, she will not back down, and that the Russian leadership will not “blink.” With great sadness and a heavy heart they will do their sworn duty and unleash a nuclear barrage from which the United States will never recover. Even if the entire Russian leadership is killed in a first strike, the so-called “Dead Hand” (the “Perimetr” system (http://www.businessinsider.com/russias-dead-hand-system-may-still-be-active-2014-9?r=US&IR=T&IR=T)) will automatically launch enough nukes to wipe the USA off the political map. We feel that it is our duty to do all we can to prevent such a catastrophe.

Eugenia V Gurevich, PhD
http://thesaker.ru/

Dmitri Orlov
http://cluborlov.blogspot.com/ (http://cluborlov.blogspot.no/)

The Saker (A. Raevsky)
http://thesaker.is/

Source (http://thesaker.is/a-russian-warning/)

Morbid

2nd June 2016, 00:39

i would say that this is the view of most russians, also its propagated over the mass media in such manner. the victory day is the ultimate reminder for every human being of what the consequences of war are.

11one

3rd June 2016, 23:41

animovado

4th June 2016, 06:56

its kind of funny to me how people are obsessed with russias so called empire building when china is blatantly making such moves in the south pacific. theyre watching how america has handled this whole russian debacle and they are not impressed and are acting accordingly. america better be careful or theyre gonna lose a lot of global influence. i dont know what the sentiment on this forum is but id much rather have america as the lone global superpower than say russia or god forbid china

The need for a global superpower is in demise. Mutual respect, communication and cooperation are the traits of our future society.
The struggle in controlling sea trading routes you are referring to as in "the south pacific", is actually happening in the
south chinese sea. That name alone should tell us something, I believe.

Sophocles

4th June 2016, 10:25

CrossTalk: South China Sea

t2sWepJD66Y

11one

4th June 2016, 19:51

Morbid

4th June 2016, 21:21

there been empires in the past that concentrate on developing the periphery of their influence at the expense of the core structure. there also some empires that develop only metropolia at the expense of those lands that can be easily lost. go figure whats more fair..

Sophocles

5th June 2016, 12:07

Erdoganistan. RT Doc investigates allegations that Turkey oppresses Kurds and collaborates with ISIS

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Turkey's Erdogan threatened to flood Europe with migrants: Greek website (http://www.reuters.com/article/us-europe-migrants-eu-turkey-idUSKCN0VH1R0) (Reuters)

Erdogan says Turkey may abandon Europe amid crisis after German ‘blackmail’ on Armenian genocide (Reuters)

Cidersomerset

5th June 2016, 12:24

Cidersomerset

5th June 2016, 12:29

Keeping Afghanistan at war real interest US has in region - Pakistani intel ex-chief

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Published on 3 Jun 2016

Former Chief of Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence, the ISI – Lieutenant-General Asad Durrani is on Sophie&Co today.

Full transcript: https://www.rt.com/shows/sophieco/345...

11one

5th June 2016, 23:39

i dont think its about whats fair but what works. an empire is only interested in keeping, expanding and not losing power. they act accordingly and thats why they all commit atrocities and get trapped in unwinnable wars and eventually fall away

Sophocles

6th June 2016, 07:15

Foreign Ministry: “Moderate opposition” groups involved in terrorist attacks in Aleppo (http://www.syriaonline.sy/?f=Details&catid=12&pageid=22773)

Foreign and Expatriates Ministry sent on Sunday letters to the UN Secretary General and Head of the Security Council complaining about the continued terrorist attacks targeting safe neighborhoods in Aleppo city since Friday.

In the letters, the Ministry affirmed that armed groups classified by some Western countries as “moderate opposition” are involved, along with the internationally listed Jabhat al-Nusra terrorist organizations, in Aleppo attacks, which included shelling of hundreds of rockets, mortars and gas cylinder bombs that indiscriminately target neighborhoods and have so far claimed the lives of 110 civilians, including 40 children, and left hundreds of others injured.

These attacks, the letters said, are only “part of the series of the systematic terrorist acts plotted and prepared by the Turkish regime and perpetrated by the ‘moderate opposition’ groups in cooperation and coordination with Jabhat al-Nusra and its affiliates such as Jaish al-Islam, Ahrar al-Sham and Jaish al-Fatah among others.”

This is happening in “a blatant attempts by the regime of Erdogan and the other regimes supporting and sponsoring terrorism in Riyadh and Doha to undermine the efforts seeking to stop the bloodshed and to foil the Geneva talks and the truce arrangements,” the letters added.

The Foreign and Expatriates Ministry dismissed the rejection of the Security Council representatives of the US, France, Britain and Ukraine to place “Jaish al-Islam” and “Ahrar al-Sham” on the Council’s list of terrorist groups and entities.

This refusal only stresses that these countries and others continue to use double standards regarding the fight against terrorism and are not serious about this fight, said the Ministry, adding that the real cause allowing these massacres in Aleppo and the breaches of the cessation of hostilities agreement to happen lies in turning blind eyes to the Turkish regime’s opening of its border to let thousands of terrorists, all types of weapons and even some Turkish soldiers, into northern Aleppo.

It conveyed in its letters Syria’s demand for vehement and immediate condemnation from the Security Council of the terrorist organizations’ crimes.

The Council, the letters said, is demanded to assume its responsibilities in preserving international peace and security through taking immediate deterrent and punitive measures against the countries and regimes supporting terrorism, mainly those of Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Qatar, to stop those from going on with supporting terrorism and compel them to abide by the relevant Security Council resolutions 2170, 2178, 2199 and 2253.

The Foreign Ministry also stressed in its letters that the Syrian government will not be dissuaded by the terrorist attacks from continuing its duty of fighting terrorism and working for a political solution to the crisis through a Syrian–led dialogue.

Source: syriaonline.sy (http://www.syriaonline.sy/?f=Details&catid=12&pageid=22773)

-------------------------------

What Most Syrians See of Their War (http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2016/06/57977.html) (excerpt)

Posted on June 3, 2016 by Eric Zuesse.
Washingtonblog.com

The United States is allied here actually with the Saud family who own Saudi Arabia, and with their friends the Thani family who own Qatar, and also with their friends the Sabah family who own Kuwait, and also with the six royal families who own UAE; and all of these fundamentalist-Sunni royal families are aiming to supply their oil and gas, and pipelines for oil and gas, selling into the world’s largest energy-market, Europe. Those pipelines would be built through Syria, which is the reason why the U.S. and its Gulf-state allies want to take Syria over, or at least to conquer enough of a strip through what today is Syria, so as to enable construction of these pipelines into Europe.

Full article (http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2016/06/57977.html)

Sophocles

6th June 2016, 10:10

Obama Slams Door in Putin’s Face: Says if Putin doesn’t want Russia’s retaliatory forces eliminated, he’ll need to be the one to press the nuclear button first (http://thesaker.is/obama-slams-door-in-putins-face-says-if-putin-doesnt-want-russias-retaliatory-forces-eliminated-hell-need-to-be-the-one-to-press-the-nuclear-button-first/)

The Saker
June 06, 2016
by Eric Zuesse

Actions speak louder than mere words, and U.S. President Barack Obama has now acted, not only spoken. His action is to refuse to discuss with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Russia’s biggest worry about recent changes in America’s nuclear strategy — particularly a stunning change that is terrifying Putin.

On Sunday June 5th, Reuters headlined “Russia Says U.S. Refuses Talks on Missile Defence System” (http://www.reuters.com/article/russia-europe-shield-usa-idUSL8N18X07N?rpc=401), and reported that, “The United States has refused Russian offers to discuss Washington’s missile defence programme, Russian Deputy Defence Minister Anatoly Antonov was quoted as saying on Sunday, calling the initiative ‘very dangerous’.”

Russia’s concern is that, if the “Ballistic Missile Defense” or “Anti Ballistic Missile” system, that the United States is now just starting to install on and near Russia’s borders, works, then the United States will be able to launch a surprise nuclear attack against Russia, and this system, which has been in development for decades and is technically called the “Aegis Ashore Missile Defense System” (http://www.defense-aerospace.com/articles-view/release/3/173811/aegis-ashore-missile-defense-site-in-romania-declared-operational.html), will annihilate the missiles that Russia launches in retaliation, which will then leave the Russian population with no retaliation at all, except for the nuclear contamination of the entire northern hemisphere, and global nuclear winter, the blowback from America’s onslaught against Russia, which blowback some strategists in the West say would be manageable probems for the U.S. and might be worth the cost of eliminating Russia.

That theory, of a winnable nuclear war (which in the U.S. seems to be replacing the prior theory, called “M.A.D.” for Mutually Assured Destruction (http://thesaker.is/the-end-of-m-a-d-the-beginning-of-madness/)) was first prominently put forth in 2006 in the prestigious U.S. journal Foreign Affairs, headlining “The Rise of Nuclear Primacy” (https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/united-states/2006-03-01/rise-us-nuclear-primacy) and which advocated for a much bolder U.S. strategic policy against Russia, based upon what it argued was America’s technological superiority against Russia’s weaponry and a possibly limited time-window in which to take advantage of it before Russia catches up and the opportunity to do so is gone.

Paul Craig Roberts was the first reporter in the West to write in a supportive way about Russia’s concerns that Barack Obama might be a follower of that theory. One of Roberts’s early articles on this was issued on 17 June 2014 and headlined “Washington Is Beating The War Drums” (http://www.paulcraigroberts.org/2014/06/17/washington-beating-war-drums-paul-craig-roberts/), where he observed that “US war doctrine has been changed. US nuclear weapons are no longer restricted to a retaliatory force, but have been elevated to the role of preemptive nuclear attack.”

Russia’s President Vladimir Putin has tried many times to raise this issue with President Obama, the most recent such instance being via a public statement of his concern, made on May 27th. (http://rinf.com/alt-news/latest-news/putin-warns-romania-poland-installing-abm-missiles/) Apparently, the public statement by Antonov on June 5th is following up on that latest Putin effort, by Antonov’s announcement there that Obama now explicitly refuses to discuss Putin’s concerns about the matter.

The fact that these efforts on the part of the Russian government are via public media instead of via private conversations (such as had been the means used during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, when the shoe was on the other foot and the U.S. President was concerned about the Soviet President’s installation of nuclear missiles 90 miles from the U.S. border) suggests that Mr. Obama, unlike U.S. President John Fitzgerald Kennedy in 1962, refuses to communicate with Russia, now that the U.S. is potentially in the position of the aggressor.

Russia is making its preparations (http://thesaker.is/how-russia-is-preparing-for-wwiii/), just in case it will (because of the Aegis Ashore system) need to be the first to attack. However, some knowledgeable people on the subject say that Russia will never strike first (http://thesaker.is/a-russian-warning/). Perhaps U.S. President Obama is proceeding on the basis of a similar assumption, and this is the reason why he is refusing to discuss the matter with his Russian counterpart. However, if Mr. Obama wishes to avoid a nuclear confrontation, then refusing even to discuss the opponent’s concerns would not be the way to go about doing that. Obama is therefore sending signals to the contrary — that he is preparing a nuclear attack against Russia — simply by his refusal to discuss the matter. In this case, his action of refusal is, itself, an answer to Putin’s question, like slamming the door in Putin’s face would be. It’s a behavioral answer, instead of a merely verbal one.

The geostrategist John Helmer discussed on May 30th the question of when the “Trigger Point” will likely be for Putin to decide whether there is no reasonable alternative but to launch — and for him then to launch — World War III. (http://johnhelmer.net/?p=15751)

Investigative historian Eric Zuesse is the author, most recently, of They’re Not Even Close: The Democratic vs. Republican Economic Records, 1910-2010 (http://www.amazon.com/Theyre-Not-Even-Close-Democratic/dp/1880026090/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1339027537&sr=8-9), and of CHRIST’S VENTRILOQUISTS: The Event that Created Christianity (https://www.amazon.com/CHRISTS-VENTRILOQUISTS-Event-Created-Christianity-ebook/dp/B007Q1H4EG?ie=UTF8&*Version*=1&*entries*=0).

Source (http://thesaker.is/obama-slams-door-in-putins-face-says-if-putin-doesnt-want-russias-retaliatory-forces-eliminated-hell-need-to-be-the-one-to-press-the-nuclear-button-first/)

Sophocles

8th June 2016, 11:53

The Duran Interviews The Saker: The World According to The Saker

dxo6RhNHGQM

Sophocles

9th June 2016, 14:02

Michael McFaul: We declared war on Russia. What’s next? Updated by Scott (http://thesaker.is/michael-mcfaul-we-declared-war-on-russia-what-next-by-scott/)

Baby Steps

9th June 2016, 17:03

Thank you Seymour Hersh for reminding us that parts of the US military understand correctly what the priority is in Syria. Sadly it also means that parts of the US military industrial complex are acting against other parts. All a bit 'last days of the Roman Empire' really.

http://www.lrb.co.uk/v38/n01/seymour-m-hersh/military-to-military

Military to Military
Seymour M. Hersh on US intelligence sharing in the Syrian war

Barack Obama’s repeated insistence that Bashar al-Assad must leave office – and that there are ‘moderate’ rebel groups in Syria capable of defeating him – has in recent years provoked quiet dissent, and even overt opposition, among some of the most senior officers on the Pentagon’s Joint Staff. Their criticism has focused on what they see as the administration’s fixation on Assad’s primary ally, Vladimir Putin. In their view, Obama is captive to Cold War thinking about Russia and China, and hasn’t adjusted his stance on Syria to the fact both countries share Washington’s anxiety about the spread of terrorism in and beyond Syria; like Washington, they believe that Islamic State must be stopped.
The military’s resistance dates back to the summer of 2013, when a highly classified assessment, put together by the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) and the Joint Chiefs of Staff, then led by General Martin Dempsey, forecast that the fall of the Assad regime would lead to chaos and, potentially, to Syria’s takeover by jihadi extremists, much as was then happening in Libya. A former senior adviser to the Joint Chiefs told me that the document was an ‘all-source’ appraisal, drawing on information from signals, satellite and human intelligence, and took a dim view of the Obama administration’s insistence on continuing to finance and arm the so-called moderate rebel groups. By then, the CIA had been conspiring for more than a year with allies in the UK, Saudi Arabia and Qatar to ship guns and goods – to be used for the overthrow of Assad – from Libya, via Turkey, into Syria. The new intelligence estimate singled out Turkey as a major impediment to Obama’s Syria policy. The document showed, the adviser said, ‘that what was started as a covert US programme to arm and support the moderate rebels fighting Assad had been co-opted by Turkey, and had morphed into an across-the-board technical, arms and logistical programme for all of the opposition, including Jabhat al-Nusra and Islamic State. The so-called moderates had evaporated and the Free Syrian Army was a rump group stationed at an airbase in Turkey.’ The assessment was bleak: there was no viable ‘moderate’ opposition to Assad, and the US was arming extremists.
Lieutenant General Michael Flynn, director of the DIA between 2012 and 2014, confirmed that his agency had sent a constant stream of classified warnings to the civilian leadership about the dire consequences of toppling Assad. The jihadists, he said, were in control of the opposition. Turkey wasn’t doing enough to stop the smuggling of foreign fighters and weapons across the border. ‘If the American public saw the intelligence we were producing daily, at the most sensitive level, they would go ballistic,’ Flynn told me. ‘We understood Isis’s long-term strategy and its campaign plans, and we also discussed the fact that Turkey was looking the other way when it came to the growth of the Islamic State inside Syria.’ The DIA’s reporting, he said, ‘got enormous pushback’ from the Obama administration. ‘I felt that they did not want to hear the truth.’
‘Our policy of arming the opposition to Assad was unsuccessful and actually having a negative impact,’ the former JCS adviser said. ‘The Joint Chiefs believed that Assad should not be replaced by fundamentalists. The administration’s policy was contradictory. They wanted Assad to go but the opposition was dominated by extremists. So who was going to replace him? To say Assad’s got to go is fine, but if you follow that through – therefore anyone is better. It’s the “anybody else is better” issue that the JCS had with Obama’s policy.’ The Joint Chiefs felt that a direct challenge to Obama’s policy would have ‘had a zero chance of success’. So in the autumn of 2013 they decided to take steps against the extremists without going through political channels, by providing US intelligence to the militaries of other nations, on the understanding that it would be passed on to the Syrian army and used against the common enemy, Jabhat al-Nusra and Islamic State.
Germany, Israel and Russia were in contact with the Syrian army, and able to exercise some influence over Assad’s decisions – it was through them that US intelligence would be shared. Each had its reasons for co-operating with Assad: Germany feared what might happen among its own population of six million Muslims if Islamic State expanded; Israel was concerned with border security; Russia had an alliance of very long standing with Syria, and was worried by the threat to its only naval base on the Mediterranean, at Tartus. ‘We weren’t intent on deviating from Obama’s stated policies,’ the adviser said. ‘But sharing our assessments via the military-to-military relationships with other countries could prove productive. It was clear that Assad needed better tactical intelligence and operational advice. The JCS concluded that if those needs were met, the overall fight against Islamist terrorism would be enhanced. Obama didn’t know, but Obama doesn’t know what the JCS does in every circumstance and that’s true of all presidents.’
Once the flow of US intelligence began, Germany, Israel and Russia started passing on information about the whereabouts and intent of radical jihadist groups to the Syrian army; in return, Syria provided information about its own capabilities and intentions. There was no direct contact between the US and the Syrian military; instead, the adviser said, ‘we provided the information – including long-range analyses on Syria’s future put together by contractors or one of our war colleges – and these countries could do with it what they chose, including sharing it with Assad. We were saying to the Germans and the others: “Here’s some information that’s pretty interesting and our interest is mutual.” End of conversation. The JCS could conclude that something beneficial would arise from it – but it was a military to military thing, and not some sort of a sinister Joint Chiefs’ plot to go around Obama and support Assad. It was a lot cleverer than that. If Assad remains in power, it will not be because we did it. It’s because he was smart enough to use the intelligence and sound tactical advice we provided to others.’
*
The public history of relations between the US and Syria over the past few decades has been one of enmity. Assad condemned the 9/11 attacks, but opposed the Iraq War. George W. Bush repeatedly linked Syria to the three members of his ‘axis of evil’ – Iraq, Iran and North Korea – throughout his presidency. State Department cables made public by WikiLeaks show that the Bush administration tried to destabilise Syria and that these efforts continued into the Obama years. In December 2006, William Roebuck, then in charge of the US embassy in Damascus, filed an analysis of the ‘vulnerabilities’ of the Assad government and listed methods ‘that will improve the likelihood’ of opportunities for destabilisation. He recommended that Washington work with Saudi Arabia and Egypt to increase sectarian tension and focus on publicising ‘Syrian efforts against extremist groups’ – dissident Kurds and radical Sunni factions – ‘in a way that suggests weakness, signs of instability, and uncontrolled blowback’; and that the ‘isolation of Syria’ should be encouraged through US support of the National Salvation Front, led by Abdul Halim Khaddam, a former Syrian vice president whose government-in-exile in Riyadh was sponsored by the Saudis and the Muslim Brotherhood. Another 2006 cable showed that the embassy had spent $5 million financing dissidents who ran as independent candidates for the People’s Assembly; the payments were kept up even after it became clear that Syrian intelligence knew what was going on. A 2010 cable warned that funding for a London-based television network run by a Syrian opposition group would be viewed by the Syrian government ‘as a covert and hostile gesture toward the regime’.

But there is also a parallel history of shadowy co-operation between Syria and the US during the same period. The two countries collaborated against al-Qaida, their common enemy. A longtime consultant to the Joint Special Operations Command said that, after 9/11, ‘Bashar was, for years, extremely helpful to us while, in my view, we were churlish in return, and clumsy in our use of the gold he gave us. That quiet co-operation continued among some elements, even after the [Bush administration’s] decision to vilify him.’ In 2002 Assad authorised Syrian intelligence to turn over hundreds of internal files on the activities of the Muslim Brotherhood in Syria and Germany. Later that year, Syrian intelligence foiled an attack by al-Qaida on the headquarters of the US Navy’s Fifth Fleet in Bahrain, and Assad agreed to provide the CIA with the name of a vital al-Qaida informant. In violation of this agreement, the CIA contacted the informant directly; he rejected the approach, and broke off relations with his Syrian handlers. Assad also secretly turned over to the US relatives of Saddam Hussein who had sought refuge in Syria, and – like America’s allies in Jordan, Egypt, Thailand and elsewhere – tortured suspected terrorists for the CIA in a Damascus prison.
It was this history of co-operation that made it seem possible in 2013 that Damascus would agree to the new indirect intelligence-sharing arrangement with the US. The Joint Chiefs let it be known that in return the US would require four things: Assad must restrain Hizbullah from attacking Israel; he must renew the stalled negotiations with Israel to reach a settlement on the Golan Heights; he must agree to accept Russian and other outside military advisers; and he must commit to holding open elections after the war with a wide range of factions included. ‘We had positive feedback from the Israelis, who were willing to entertain the idea, but they needed to know what the reaction would be from Iran and Syria,’ the JCS adviser told me. ‘The Syrians told us that Assad would not make a decision unilaterally – he needed to have support from his military and Alawite allies. Assad’s worry was that Israel would say yes and then not uphold its end of the bargain.’ A senior adviser to the Kremlin on Middle East affairs told me that in late 2012, after suffering a series of battlefield setbacks and military defections, Assad had approached Israel via a contact in Moscow and offered to reopen the talks on the Golan Heights. The Israelis had rejected the offer. ‘They said, “Assad is finished,”’ the Russian official told me. ‘“He’s close to the end.”’ He said the Turks had told Moscow the same thing. By mid-2013, however, the Syrians believed the worst was behind them, and wanted assurances that the Americans and others were serious about their offers of help.
In the early stages of the talks, the adviser said, the Joint Chiefs tried to establish what Assad needed as a sign of their good intentions. The answer was sent through one of Assad’s friends: ‘Bring him the head of Prince Bandar.’ The Joint Chiefs did not oblige. Bandar bin Sultan had served Saudi Arabia for decades in intelligence and national security affairs, and spent more than twenty years as ambassador in Washington. In recent years, he has been known as an advocate for Assad’s removal from office by any means. Reportedly in poor health, he resigned last year as director of the Saudi National Security Council, but Saudi Arabia continues to be a major provider of funds to the Syrian opposition, estimated by US intelligence last year at $700 million.
In July 2013, the Joint Chiefs found a more direct way of demonstrating to Assad how serious they were about helping him. By then the CIA-sponsored secret flow of arms from Libya to the Syrian opposition, via Turkey, had been underway for more than a year (it started sometime after Gaddafi’s death on 20 October 2011).＊ The operation was largely run out of a covert CIA annex in Benghazi, with State Department acquiescence. On 11 September 2012 the US ambassador to Libya, Christopher Stevens, was killed during an anti-American demonstration that led to the burning down of the US consulate in Benghazi; reporters for the Washington Post found copies of the ambassador’s schedule in the building’s ruins. It showed that on 10 September Stevens had met with the chief of the CIA’s annex operation. The next day, shortly before he died, he met a representative from Al-Marfa Shipping and Maritime Services, a Tripoli-based company which, the JCS adviser said, was known by the Joint Staff to be handling the weapons shipments.
By the late summer of 2013, the DIA’s assessment had been circulated widely, but although many in the American intelligence community were aware that the Syrian opposition was dominated by extremists the CIA-sponsored weapons kept coming, presenting a continuing problem for Assad’s army. Gaddafi’s stockpile had created an international arms bazaar, though prices were high. ‘There was no way to stop the arms shipments that had been authorised by the president,’ the JCS adviser said. ‘The solution involved an appeal to the pocketbook. The CIA was approached by a representative from the Joint Chiefs with a suggestion: there were far less costly weapons available in Turkish arsenals that could reach the Syrian rebels within days, and without a boat ride.’ But it wasn’t only the CIA that benefited. ‘We worked with Turks we trusted who were not loyal to Erdoğan,’ the adviser said, ‘and got them to ship the jihadists in Syria all the obsolete weapons in the arsenal, including M1 carbines that hadn’t been seen since the Korean War and lots of Soviet arms. It was a message Assad could understand: “We have the power to diminish a presidential policy in its tracks.”’
The flow of US intelligence to the Syrian army, and the downgrading of the quality of the arms being supplied to the rebels, came at a critical juncture. The Syrian army had suffered heavy losses in the spring of 2013 in fighting against Jabhat al-Nusra and other extremist groups as it failed to hold the provincial capital of Raqqa. Sporadic Syrian army and air-force raids continued in the area for months, with little success, until it was decided to withdraw from Raqqa and other hard to defend, lightly populated areas in the north and west and focus instead on consolidating the government’s hold on Damascus and the heavily populated areas linking the capital to Latakia in the north-east. But as the army gained in strength with the Joint Chiefs’ support, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey escalated their financing and arming of Jabhat al-Nusra and Islamic State, which by the end of 2013 had made enormous gains on both sides of the Syria/Iraq border. The remaining non-fundamentalist rebels found themselves fighting – and losing – pitched battles against the extremists. In January 2014, IS took complete control of Raqqa and the tribal areas around it from al-Nusra and established the city as its base. Assad still controlled 80 per cent of the Syrian population, but he had lost a vast amount of territory.
CIA efforts to train the moderate rebel forces were also failing badly. ‘The CIA’s training camp was in Jordan and was controlled by a Syrian tribal group,’ the JCS adviser said. There was a suspicion that some of those who signed up for training were actually Syrian army regulars minus their uniforms. This had happened before, at the height of the Iraqi war, when hundreds of Shia militia members showed up at American training camps for new uniforms, weapons and a few days of training, and then disappeared into the desert. A separate training programme, set up by the Pentagon in Turkey, fared no better. The Pentagon acknowledged in September that only ‘four or five’ of its recruits were still battling Islamic State; a few days later 70 of them defected to Jabhat al-Nusra immediately after crossing the border into Syria.
In January 2014, despairing at the lack of progress, John Brennan, the director of the CIA, summoned American and Sunni Arab intelligence chiefs from throughout the Middle East to a secret meeting in Washington, with the aim of persuading Saudi Arabia to stop supporting extremist fighters in Syria. ‘The Saudis told us they were happy to listen,’ the JCS adviser said, ‘so everyone sat around in Washington to hear Brennan tell them that they had to get on board with the so-called moderates. His message was that if everyone in the region stopped supporting al-Nusra and Isis their ammunition and weapons would dry up, and the moderates would win out.’ Brennan’s message was ignored by the Saudis, the adviser said, who ‘went back home and increased their efforts with the extremists and asked us for more technical support. And we say OK, and so it turns out that we end up reinforcing the extremists.’

But the Saudis were far from the only problem: American intelligence had accumulated intercept and human intelligence demonstrating that the Erdoğan government had been supporting Jabhat al-Nusra for years, and was now doing the same for Islamic State. ‘We can handle the Saudis,’ the adviser said. ‘We can handle the Muslim Brotherhood. You can argue that the whole balance in the Middle East is based on a form of mutually assured destruction between Israel and the rest of the Middle East, and Turkey can disrupt the balance – which is Erdoğan’s dream. We told him we wanted him to shut down the pipeline of foreign jihadists flowing into Turkey. But he is dreaming big – of restoring the Ottoman Empire – and he did not realise the extent to which he could be successful in this.’
*
One of the constants in US affairs since the fall of the Soviet Union has been a military-to-military relationship with Russia. After 1991 the US spent billions of dollars to help Russia secure its nuclear weapons complex, including a highly secret joint operation to remove weapons-grade uranium from unsecured storage depots in Kazakhstan. Joint programmes to monitor the security of weapons-grade materials continued for the next two decades. During the American war on Afghanistan, Russia provided overflight rights for US cargo carriers and tankers, as well as access for the flow of weapons, ammunition, food and water the US war machine needed daily. Russia’s military provided intelligence on Osama bin Laden’s whereabouts and helped the US negotiate rights to use an airbase in Kyrgyzstan. The Joint Chiefs have been in communication with their Russian counterparts throughout the Syrian war, and the ties between the two militaries start at the top. In August, a few weeks before his retirement as chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Dempsey made a farewell visit to the headquarters of the Irish Defence Forces in Dublin and told his audience there that he had made a point while in office to keep in touch with the chief of the Russian General Staff, General Valery Gerasimov. ‘I’ve actually suggested to him that we not end our careers as we began them,’ Dempsey said – one a tank commander in West Germany, the other in the east.
When it comes to tackling Islamic State, Russia and the US have much to offer each other. Many in the IS leadership and rank and file fought for more than a decade against Russia in the two Chechen wars that began in 1994, and the Putin government is heavily invested in combating Islamist terrorism. ‘Russia knows the Isis leadership,’ the JCS adviser said, ‘and has insights into its operational techniques, and has much intelligence to share.’ In return, he said, ‘we’ve got excellent trainers with years of experience in training foreign fighters – experience that Russia does not have.’ The adviser would not discuss what American intelligence is also believed to have: an ability to obtain targeting data, often by paying huge sums of cash, from sources within rebel militias.
A former White House adviser on Russian affairs told me that before 9/11 Putin ‘used to say to us: “We have the same nightmares about different places.” He was referring to his problems with the caliphate in Chechnya and our early issues with al-Qaida. These days, after the Metrojet bombing over Sinai and the massacres in Paris and elsewhere, it’s hard to avoid the conclusion that we actually have the same nightmares about the same places.’
Yet the Obama administration continues to condemn Russia for its support of Assad. A retired senior diplomat who served at the US embassy in Moscow expressed sympathy for Obama’s dilemma as the leader of the Western coalition opposed to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine: ‘Ukraine is a serious issue and Obama has been handling it firmly with sanctions. But our policy vis-à-vis Russia is too often unfocused. But it’s not about us in Syria. It’s about making sure Bashar does not lose. The reality is that Putin does not want to see the chaos in Syria spread to Jordan or Lebanon, as it has to Iraq, and he does not want to see Syria end up in the hands of Isis. The most counterproductive thing Obama has done, and it has hurt our efforts to end the fighting a lot, was to say: “Assad must go as a premise for negotiation.”’ He also echoed a view held by some in the Pentagon when he alluded to a collateral factor behind Russia’s decision to launch airstrikes in support of the Syrian army on 30 September: Putin’s desire to prevent Assad from suffering the same fate as Gaddafi. He had been told that Putin had watched a video of Gaddafi’s savage death three times, a video that shows him being sodomised with a bayonet. The JCS adviser also told me of a US intelligence assessment which concluded that Putin had been appalled by Gaddafi’s fate: ‘Putin blamed himself for letting Gaddafi go, for not playing a strong role behind the scenes’ at the UN when the Western coalition was lobbying to be allowed to undertake the airstrikes that destroyed the regime. ‘Putin believed that unless he got engaged Bashar would suffer the same fate – mutilated – and he’d see the destruction of his allies in Syria.’
In a speech on 22 November, Obama declared that the ‘principal targets’ of the Russian airstrikes ‘have been the moderate opposition’. It’s a line that the administration – along with most of the mainstream American media – has rarely strayed from. The Russians insist that they are targeting all rebel groups that threaten Syria’s stability – including Islamic State. The Kremlin adviser on the Middle East explained in an interview that the first round of Russian airstrikes was aimed at bolstering security around a Russian airbase in Latakia, an Alawite stronghold. The strategic goal, he said, has been to establish a jihadist-free corridor from Damascus to Latakia and the Russian naval base at Tartus and then to shift the focus of bombing gradually to the south and east, with a greater concentration of bombing missions over IS-held territory. Russian strikes on IS targets in and near Raqqa were reported as early as the beginning of October; in November there were further strikes on IS positions near the historic city of Palmyra and in Idlib province, a bitterly contested stronghold on the Turkish border.
Russian incursions into Turkish airspace began soon after Putin authorised the bombings, and the Russian air force deployed electronic jamming systems that interfered with Turkish radar. The message being sent to the Turkish air force, the JCS adviser said, was: ‘We’re going to fly our fighter planes where we want and when we want and jam your radar. Do not **** with us. Putin was letting the Turks know what they were up against.’ Russia’s aggression led to Turkish complaints and Russian denials, along with more aggressive border patrolling by the Turkish air force. There were no significant incidents until 24 November, when two Turkish F-16 fighters, apparently acting under more aggressive rules of engagement, shot down a Russian Su-24M jet that had crossed into Turkish airspace for no more than 17 seconds. In the days after the fighter was shot down, Obama expressed support for Erdoğan, and after they met in private on 1 December he told a press conference that his administration remained ‘very much committed to Turkey’s security and its sovereignty’. He said that as long as Russia remained allied with Assad, ‘a lot of Russian resources are still going to be targeted at opposition groups … that we support … So I don’t think we should be under any illusions that somehow Russia starts hitting only Isil targets. That’s not happening now. It was never happening. It’s not going to be happening in the next several weeks.’
The Kremlin adviser on the Middle East, like the Joint Chiefs and the DIA, dismisses the ‘moderates’ who have Obama’s support, seeing them as extremist Islamist groups that fight alongside Jabhat al-Nusra and IS (‘There’s no need to play with words and split terrorists into moderate and not moderate,’ Putin said in a speech on 22 October). The American generals see them as exhausted militias that have been forced to make an accommodation with Jabhat al-Nusra or IS in order to survive. At the end of 2014, Jürgen Todenhöfer, a German journalist who was allowed to spend ten days touring IS-held territory in Iraq and Syria, told CNN that the IS leadership ‘are all laughing about the Free Syrian Army. They don’t take them for serious. They say: “The best arms sellers we have are the FSA. If they get a good weapon, they sell it to us.” They didn’t take them for serious. They take for serious Assad. They take for serious, of course, the bombs. But they fear nothing, and FSA doesn’t play a role.’
*
Putin’s bombing campaign provoked a series of anti-Russia articles in the American press. On 25 October, the New York Times reported, citing Obama administration officials, that Russian submarines and spy ships were ‘aggressively’ operating near the undersea cables that carry much of the world’s internet traffic – although, as the article went on to acknowledge, there was ‘no evidence yet’ of any Russian attempt actually to interfere with that traffic. Ten days earlier the Times published a summary of Russian intrusions into its former Soviet satellite republics, and described the Russian bombing in Syria as being ‘in some respects a return to the ambitious military moves of the Soviet past’. The report did not note that the Assad administration had invited Russia to intervene, nor did it mention the US bombing raids inside Syria that had been underway since the previous September, without Syria’s approval. An October op-ed in the same paper by Michael McFaul, Obama’s ambassador to Russia between 2012 and 2014, declared that the Russian air campaign was attacking ‘everyone except the Islamic State’. The anti-Russia stories did not abate after the Metrojet disaster, for which Islamic State claimed credit. Few in the US government and media questioned why IS would target a Russian airliner, along with its 224 passengers and crew, if Moscow’s air force was attacking only the Syrian ‘moderates’.

Economic sanctions, meanwhile, are still in effect against Russia for what a large number of Americans consider Putin’s war crimes in Ukraine, as are US Treasury Department sanctions against Syria and against those Americans who do business there. The New York Times, in a report on sanctions in late November, revived an old and groundless assertion, saying that the Treasury’s actions ‘emphasise an argument that the administration has increasingly been making about Mr Assad as it seeks to press Russia to abandon its backing for him: that although he professes to be at war with Islamist terrorists, he has a symbiotic relationship with the Islamic State that has allowed it to thrive while he has clung to power.’
*
The four core elements of Obama’s Syria policy remain intact today: an insistence that Assad must go; that no anti-IS coalition with Russia is possible; that Turkey is a steadfast ally in the war against terrorism; and that there really are significant moderate opposition forces for the US to support. The Paris attacks on 13 November that killed 130 people did not change the White House’s public stance, although many European leaders, including François Hollande, advocated greater co-operation with Russia and agreed to co-ordinate more closely with its air force; there was also talk of the need to be more flexible about the timing of Assad’s exit from power. On 24 November, Hollande flew to Washington to discuss how France and the US could collaborate more closely in the fight against Islamic State. At a joint press conference at the White House, Obama said he and Hollande had agreed that ‘Russia’s strikes against the moderate opposition only bolster the Assad regime, whose brutality has helped to fuel the rise’ of IS. Hollande didn’t go that far but he said that the diplomatic process in Vienna would ‘lead to Bashar al-Assad’s departure … a government of unity is required.’ The press conference failed to deal with the far more urgent impasse between the two men on the matter of Erdoğan. Obama defended Turkey’s right to defend its borders; Hollande said it was ‘a matter of urgency’ for Turkey to take action against terrorists. The JCS adviser told me that one of Hollande’s main goals in flying to Washington had been to try to persuade Obama to join the EU in a mutual declaration of war against Islamic State. Obama said no. The Europeans had pointedly not gone to Nato, to which Turkey belongs, for such a declaration. ‘Turkey is the problem,’ the JCS adviser said.
Assad, naturally, doesn’t accept that a group of foreign leaders should be deciding on his future. Imad Moustapha, now Syria’s ambassador to China, was dean of the IT faculty at the University of Damascus, and a close aide of Assad’s, when he was appointed in 2004 as the Syrian ambassador to the US, a post he held for seven years. Moustapha is known still to be close to Assad, and can be trusted to reflect what he thinks. He told me that for Assad to surrender power would mean capitulating to ‘armed terrorist groups’ and that ministers in a national unity government – such as was being proposed by the Europeans – would be seen to be beholden to the foreign powers that appointed them. These powers could remind the new president ‘that they could easily replace him as they did before to the predecessor … Assad owes it to his people: he could not leave because the historic enemies of Syria are demanding his departure.’
*
Moustapha also brought up China, an ally of Assad that has allegedly committed more than $30 billion to postwar reconstruction in Syria. China, too, is worried about Islamic State. ‘China regards the Syrian crisis from three perspectives,’ he said: international law and legitimacy; global strategic positioning; and the activities of jihadist Uighurs, from Xinjiang province in China’s far west. Xinjiang borders eight nations – Mongolia, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India – and, in China’s view, serves as a funnel for terrorism around the world and within China. Many Uighur fighters now in Syria are known to be members of the East Turkestan Islamic Movement – an often violent separatist organisation that seeks to establish an Islamist Uighur state in Xinjiang. ‘The fact that they have been aided by Turkish intelligence to move from China into Syria through Turkey has caused a tremendous amount of tension between the Chinese and Turkish intelligence,’ Moustapha said. ‘China is concerned that the Turkish role of supporting the Uighur fighters in Syria may be extended in the future to support Turkey’s agenda in Xinjiang. We are already providing the Chinese intelligence service with information regarding these terrorists and the routes they crossed from on travelling into Syria.’
Moustapha’s concerns were echoed by a Washington foreign affairs analyst who has closely followed the passage of jihadists through Turkey and into Syria. The analyst, whose views are routinely sought by senior government officials, told me that ‘Erdoğan has been bringing Uighurs into Syria by special transport while his government has been agitating in favour of their struggle in China. Uighur and Burmese Muslim terrorists who escape into Thailand somehow get Turkish passports and are then flown to Turkey for transit into Syria.’ He added that there was also what amounted to another ‘rat line’ that was funnelling Uighurs – estimates range from a few hundred to many thousands over the years – from China into Kazakhstan for eventual relay to Turkey, and then to IS territory in Syria. ‘US intelligence,’ he said, ‘is not getting good information about these activities because those insiders who are unhappy with the policy are not talking to them.’ He also said it was ‘not clear’ that the officials responsible for Syrian policy in the State Department and White House ‘get it’. Anthony Davis of IHS-Jane’s Defence Weekly estimated in October that as many as five thousand Uighur would-be fighters have arrived in Turkey since 2013, with perhaps two thousand moving on to Syria. Moustapha said he has information that ‘up to 860 Uighur fighters are currently in Syria.’
China’s growing concern about the Uighur problem and its link to Syria and Islamic State have preoccupied Christina Lin, a scholar who dealt with Chinese issues a decade ago while serving in the Pentagon under Donald Rumsfeld. ‘I grew up in Taiwan and came to the Pentagon as a critic of China,’ Lin told me. ‘I used to demonise the Chinese as ideologues, and they are not perfect. But over the years as I see them opening up and evolving, I have begun to change my perspective. I see China as a potential partner for various global challenges especially in the Middle East. There are many places – Syria for one – where the United States and China must co-operate in regional security and counterterrorism.’ A few weeks earlier, she said, China and India, Cold War enemies that ‘hated each other more than China and the United States hated each other, conducted a series of joint counterterrorism exercises. And today China and Russia both want to co-operate on terrorism issues with the United States.’ As China sees it, Lin suggests, Uighur militants who have made their way to Syria are being trained by Islamic State in survival techniques intended to aid them on covert return trips to the Chinese mainland, for future terrorist attacks there. ‘If Assad fails,’ Lin wrote in a paper published in September, ‘jihadi fighters from Russia’s Chechnya, China’s Xinjiang and India’s Kashmir will then turn their eyes towards the home front to continue jihad, supported by a new and well-sourced Syrian operating base in the heart of the Middle East.’
*
General Dempsey and his colleagues on the Joint Chiefs of Staff kept their dissent out of bureaucratic channels, and survived in office. General Michael Flynn did not. ‘Flynn incurred the wrath of the White House by insisting on telling the truth about Syria,’ said Patrick Lang, a retired army colonel who served for nearly a decade as the chief Middle East civilian intelligence officer for the DIA. ‘He thought truth was the best thing and they shoved him out. He wouldn’t shut up.’ Flynn told me his problems went beyond Syria. ‘I was shaking things up at the DIA – and not just moving deckchairs on theTitanic. It was radical reform. I felt that the civilian leadership did not want to hear the truth. I suffered for it, but I’m OK with that.’ In a recent interview in Der Spiegel, Flynn was blunt about Russia’s entry into the Syrian war: ‘We have to work constructively with Russia. Whether we like it or not, Russia made a decision to be there and to act militarily. They are there, and this has dramatically changed the dynamic. So you can’t say Russia is bad; they have to go home. It’s not going to happen. Get real.’

Few in the US Congress share this view. One exception is Tulsi Gabbard, a Democrat from Hawaii and member of the House Armed Services Committee who, as a major in the Army National Guard, served two tours in the Middle East. In an interview on CNN in October she said: ‘The US and the CIA should stop this illegal and counterproductive war to overthrow the Syrian government of Assad and should stay focused on fighting against … the Islamic extremist groups.’
‘Does it not concern you,’ the interviewer asked, ‘that Assad’s regime has been brutal, killing at least 200,000 and maybe 300,000 of his own people?’
‘The things that are being said about Assad right now,’ Gabbard responded, ‘are the same that were said about Gaddafi, they are the same things that were said about Saddam Hussein by those who were advocating for the US to … overthrow those regimes … If it happens here in Syria … we will end up in a situation with far greater suffering, with far greater persecution of religious minorities and Christians in Syria, and our enemy will be far stronger.’
‘So what you are saying,’ the interviewer asked, ‘is that the Russian military involvement in the air and on-the-ground Iranian involvement – they are actually doing the US a favour?’
‘They are working toward defeating our common enemy,’ Gabbard replied.
Gabbard later told me that many of her colleagues in Congress, Democrats and Republicans, have thanked her privately for speaking out. ‘There are a lot of people in the general public, and even in the Congress, who need to have things clearly explained to them,’ Gabbard said. ‘But it’s hard when there’s so much deception about what is going on. The truth is not out.’ It’s unusual for a politician to challenge her party’s foreign policy directly and on the record. For someone on the inside, with access to the most secret intelligence, speaking openly and critically can be a career-ender. Informed dissent can be transmitted by means of a trust relationship between a reporter and those on the inside, but it almost invariably includes no signature. The dissent exists, however. The longtime consultant to the Joint Special Operations Command could not hide his contempt when I asked him for his view of the US’s Syria policy. ‘The solution in Syria is right before our nose,’ he said. ‘Our primary threat is Isis and all of us – the United States, Russia and China – need to work together. Bashar will remain in office and, after the country is stabilised there will be an election. There is no other option.’
The military’s indirect pathway to Assad disappeared with Dempsey’s retirement in September. His replacement as chairman of the Joint Chiefs, General Joseph Dunford, testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee in July, two months before assuming office. ‘If you want to talk about a nation that could pose an existential threat to the United States, I’d have to point to Russia,’ Dunford said. ‘If you look at their behaviour, it’s nothing short of alarming.’ In October, as chairman, Dunford dismissed the Russian bombing efforts in Syria, telling the same committee that Russia ‘is not fighting’ IS. He added that America must ‘work with Turkish partners to secure the northern border of Syria’ and ‘do all we can to enable vetted Syrian opposition forces’ – i.e. the ‘moderates’ – to fight the extremists.
Obama now has a more compliant Pentagon. There will be no more indirect challenges from the military leadership to his policy of disdain for Assad and support for Erdoğan. Dempsey and his associates remain mystified by Obama’s continued public defence of Erdoğan, given the American intelligence community’s strong case against him – and the evidence that Obama, in private, accepts that case. ‘We know what you’re doing with the radicals in Syria,’ the president told Erdoğan’s intelligence chief at a tense meeting at the White House (as I reported in the LRB of 17 April 2014). The Joint Chiefs and the DIA were constantly telling Washington’s leadership of the jihadist threat in Syria, and of Turkey’s support for it. The message was never listened to. Why not?

Baby Steps

10th June 2016, 12:32

OOPS! The BBC just admitted that TURKEY is supplying ISIS!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-36496392

Syria conflict: Food aid reaches besieged Darayya

The first deliveries of food aid since 2012 have reached the besieged Damascus suburb of Darayya.
Trucks carrying medicine, food and flour reached the town that was among the first to report protests against Bashar al-Assad's government.
An aid delivery to Darayya early this month carried only a small amount of medicines and other non-food items.
In April, the UN said at least 4,000 people were besieged in Darayya by Syrian government forces.
The UN's special envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura, said on Thursday that the Syrian government had given permission for aid to be delivered to 19 besieged areas.
The UN has 19 areas designated as "besieged" in the country, where an estimated 600,000 people live.
The latest delivery to Darayya was made by a teams from the Syrian Red Crescent and the United Nations' humanitarian body.
Tamam Mehrez, the operations director of the Syrian Red Crescent, told AFP news agency the goods would be enough for residents for one month.
Media captionInside the besieged suburb of Darayya
"There aren't many residents waiting for the convoy because they don't believe in promises anymore," one rebel in Darayya, Shadi Matar, told AFP.
"And because of the bombings on the town, people are afraid to go out and gather in groups."
The US, UK and France have called for air drops of aid, given the previous reluctance of Damascus to allow relief into rebel-held areas.
Mr de Mistura said he believed the pressure on the Syrian government over the prospect of air drops led it to allow aid into besieged areas.
Elsewhere in Syria, US-backed forces drew closer to a stronghold of the so-called Islamic State in the north of the country on Thursday.
Manbij, a key town on the supply line between Turkey and the de facto IS capital Raqqa, is now effectively encircled, news agencies said.
But it does not appear that IS fighters are withdrawing from the town, reports said.

DNA

10th June 2016, 21:37

John Pilger on the Threat of World War Three (Going Underground)

ahEdcuxlN1o

Published on 4 Jun 2016

Afshin Rattansi goes underground on the outcome of whoever wins the White House
in November. Multi-award winning author and filmmaker John Pilger gives his take on
the threat of World War Three as Britain's defence secretary Michael Fallon jets off to
Singapore for the Asian Security Conference where the keynote address will be given
by US Defence Secretary Ash Carter.

LIKE Going Underground http://fb.me/GoingUndergroundRT

This interview with John Pilger who talks about the difference between the projected image of Obama and the actual man based on the politics he has placed his signature on and passed into existance. One of the things discussed is how Obama talked about reducing the worlds nuclear arsenal in 2009, and yet he has responsible for more nukes being created than any other president.

Pilger also points out the state department of federal government stating to the pentagon "let us handle the diplomacy aspect of things and you handle the military side of things". This from the defense secretary Ash Carter, who has expressed frustration over the ubiquitous power represented by the Pentagon.

Further talk about China as well. That China has previously been on low alert which means that they have kept their war heads and rockets seperate.
But now they are on higher alert, keeping their nuclear warheads ready to launch at a moments notice. Pilger goes on to mention that China has for the first time launched subs armed with nuclear missiles into the pacific ocean.

China has expressed rage over the US doing military fly overs of it's recent artificial island which holds a millitary/navel base.

This guy John Pilger has a good head on his shoulders.

DNA

10th June 2016, 23:03

Sophocles

15th June 2016, 12:18

NATO officially recognizes cyberspace as domain for war (http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2016/06/14/NATO-officially-recognizes-cyberspace-as-domain-for-war/2271465941545/)

BRUSSELS, June 14 (UPI) -- The North Atlantic Treaty Organization on Tuesday, for the first time, recognized cyberspace as a frontier for war -- in addition to the traditional sites of battle, like land and sea.

The declaration was made following a meeting of NATO's defense ministers (http://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/opinions_132349.htm?selectedLocale=en) Tuesday.

"Today, we met in the Nuclear Planning Group to consider the safety, security and effectiveness of NATO's nuclear deterrent. We also turned our attention to cyberspace," NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg (http://www.upi.com/topic/Jens_Stoltenberg/) said. "We agreed that we will recognize cyberspace as an operational domain. Just like air, sea and land."

Stoltenberg said it has become clear that dangerous attacks can be launched on the Internet and among computer networks just as easily as they can on the battlefield.

"Most crises and conflicts today have a cyber dimension," he added. "So treating cyber as an operational domain would enable us to better protect our missions and operations."

NATO and allies also agreed Tuesday to set up four reinforced battalions in the Baltics and Poland and examine a possible brigade in Romania to boost its presence.

The moves, which also include doubling the size of the organization's rapid response force, are being made amid what leaders view as an evolving landscape in Europe due to Russia's recent intervention in Ukraine.

Making cyberspace an official war zone means attacks carried out in that manner can trigger an Article 5 response, which is a collective action by the 28-member organization against the perpetrator of an incident aimed at any NATO-protected state. Before, only actions in traditional war frontiers -- land, sea or air -- had that potential.

The last time an Article 5 response happened was after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Cyber attacks have become more commonplace in recent years. The U.S. government has claimed multiple attacks over its computer networks from hackers in both Russia and China. The Islamic State (http://www.upi.com/topic/Islamic-State/) terror group is also further developing its cyber attack capabilities, intelligence officials say.

It was reported Tuesday (http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2016/06/14/Russian-hackers-accessed-DNC-computers-took-research-on-Trump/8021465922427/?spt=sec&or=tn), for example, that Russian hackers were able to breach computer networks of the Democratic National Committee, reportedly to access information on Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump (http://www.upi.com/topic/Donald_Trump/).

"The security of our system is critical to our operation and to the confidence of the campaigns and state parties we work with," DNC Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz (http://www.upi.com/topic/Debbie_Wasserman_Schultz/) said.

Full article at upi.com (http://www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2016/06/14/NATO-officially-recognizes-cyberspace-as-domain-for-war/2271465941545/)

Hervé

16th June 2016, 15:33

NATO Says It Might Now Have Grounds to Attack Russia (http://thesaker.is/nato-says-it-might-now-have-grounds-to-attack-russia/)

by Eric Zuesse June 15, 2016

On Tuesday, June 14th, NATO announced (http://bigstory.ap.org/article/b7a8330df0114498a1611257d4cb5d58/air-land-sea-cyber-nato-adds-cyber-operation-areas) that if a NATO member country becomes the victim of a cyber attack by persons in a non-NATO country such as Russia or China, then NATO’s Article V “collective defense” provision (http://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/topics_110496.htm) requires each NATO member country to join that NATO member country if it decides to strike back against the attacking country. The preliminary decision for this was made two years ago after Crimea abandoned Ukraine and rejoined Russia, of which it had been a part until involuntarily transferred to Ukraine by the Soviet dictator Nikita Khrushchev in 1954. That NATO decision was made in anticipation of Ukraine’s ultimately becoming a NATO member country, which still hasn’t happened. However, only now is NATO declaring cyber war itself to be included as real “war” under the NATO Treaty’s “collective defense” provision.

NATO is now alleging that because Russian hackers had copied the emails on Hillary Clinton’s home computer (http://deutsche-wirtschafts-nachrichten.de/2016/06/15/us-demokraten-russland-hat-server-der-partei-gehackt/), this action of someone in Russia taking advantage of her having privatized her U.S. State Department communications to her unsecured home computer and of such a Russian’s then snooping into the U.S. State Department business that was stored on it, might constitute a Russian attack against the United States of America, and would, if the U.S. President declares it to be a Russian invasion of the U.S., trigger NATO’s mutual-defense clause and so require all NATO nations to join with the U.S. government in going to war against Russia, if the U.S. government so decides.

[...]

Full article: http://thesaker.is/nato-says-it-might-now-have-grounds-to-attack-russia/

Sophocles

16th June 2016, 15:53

More anti-Russian rhetoric as John Kerry visits Oslo (and Oslo Forum (http://www.osloforum.org/)) where he said (http://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2016/06/258506.htm):

"And Russia needs to understand that our patience is not infinite. In fact, it is very limited now with respect to whether or not Assad is going to be held accountable. And meanwhile, we also are prepared to hold accountable members of the opposition who have both been playing off each other to continue the violence and break the cessation.

So, this is a critical moment, and we are working very, very hard to see if we can in the next, literally, week or two come to an agreement that has the capacity to more fully implement a cease-fire across the country and deliver humanitarian access in a way that then provides for a genuine opportunity to bring people to the table and start talking about a transition."

And... (http://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2016/06/258526.htm)

"So we’ve made it very clear that unless we get a better definition of how this cessation is going to work, how it will be enforced, who it applies to, how it is applied, we are not going to sit there while Assad continues to offensively assault Aleppo and while Russia continues to support in that effort."

Hervé

17th June 2016, 15:24

URGENT: Fallujah Freed (http://en.farsnews.com/newstext.aspx?nn=13950328000717)

Fri Jun 17, 2016 7:10

http://media.farsnews.com/media/Uploaded/Files/Images/1395/03/28/13950328000200_PhotoI.jpg

TEHRAN (FNA)- Iraq's Police Chief on Friday declared full liberation of Fallujah after the two-year-long ISIL control over the strategic city.

Commander of Iraq's Federal Police Major General Raed Shaker Judat appeared on the country's national TV in an interview carried out at the center of Falluja minutes ago, declaring that the city has been completely purged of ISIL terrorists.

Meantime, Fallujah Liberation Operation Commander Abdol-Wahhab Saedi told the state-run TV that his forces are in control of the entire city and state buildings now.

Iraqi government troops continued their advances in the city of Fallujah on Friday by winning back new strategic regions. The police and security forces seized back al-Arsan and al-Nazal regions as well as the governor's building of Fallujah city earlier today. The ISIL terrorists had planted bombs in Fallujah governor's building.

The government forces also purged terrorists from the entire Western bank of the Euphrates River.

On Thursday, government troops restored security to newly-liberated district of Shuhada in Southern Fallujah after they made a significant advance in the battle against ISIL militants in the Fallujah.

The victory by the Iraqi forces came as they continued their clashes with ISIL militants in Iraq's Western province of Anbar.

Hervé

19th June 2016, 12:28

Syria - Russian Surprise Attack Blows Up Kerry's Delaying Tactic (http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/06/syria-another-russian-surprise-ends-kerrys-delaying-tactic.html)

Moon of Alabama (http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/06/syria-another-russian-surprise-ends-kerrys-delaying-tactic.html) June 18, 2016

https://www.sott.net/image/s16/326195/large/564c52d3de7d940b60c9b1b1.jpg

The U.S. is unwilling to stop the war (http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/06/syria-the-us-is-unwilling-to-settle-russia-returns-for-another-round.html) on Syria and to settle the case at the negotiation table. It wants a 100% of its demands fulfilled, the dissolution of the Syrian government and state and the inauguration of a U.S. proxy administration in Syria.

After the ceasefire in Syria started in late February Obama broke his pledge (http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/35984-obama-broke-pledge-to-demand-syrian-opposition-s-separation-from-nusra-front) to separate the U.S. supported "moderate rebels" from al-Qaeda. In April, U.S. supported rebels, the Taliban like Ahrar al Sham and al-Qaeda joined to attack the Syrian government in south Aleppo. The U.S.proxies broke the ceasefire.

Two UN resolutions demand that al-Qaeda in Syria be fought no matter what. But the U.S. has at least twice asked Russia not to bomb al-Qaeda. It insists, falsely, that it can not separate its "moderates" from al-Qaeda and that al-Qaeda can not be attacked because that would also hit its "moderate" friends.

The Russian foreign minster Lavrov has talked wit Kerry many times about the issue. But the only response he received were requests to further withhold bombing. Meanwhile al-Qaeda and the "moderates" continued to break the ceasefire and to attack the Syrian government forces.

After nearly four month Kerry still insists that the U.S. needs even more time for the requested separation of its proxy forces from al-Qaeda. Foreign Minister Lavrov recently expressed (http://sputniknews.com/politics/20160616/1041448629/lavrov-nusra-us.html) the Russian consternation:

The Americans are now saying that they are unable to remove the 'good' opposition members from the positions held by al-Nusra Front, and that they will need another two-three months. I am under the impression that there is a game here and they may want to keep al-Nusra Front in some form and later use it to overthrow the [Assad] regime," Lavrov said at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.The bucket was full and Kerry's latest request for another three month pause of attacking al-Qaeda was the drop that let it overflow. Russia now responded by hitting (http://www.latimes.com/world/middleeast/la-fg-russia-syria-strikes-20160617-snap-story.html) the U.S. where it did not expect to be hit:

Russian warplanes hit Pentagon-backed Syrian fighters with a barrage of airstrikes earlier this week, disregarding several warnings from U.S. commanders in what American military officials called the most provocative act since Moscow’s air campaign in Syria began last year. The strikes hit a base near the Jordanian border, far from areas where the Russians were previously active, and targeted U.S.-backed forces battling the Islamic State militants.
...
These latest strikes occurred on the other side of the country from the usual Russian operations, around Tanf, a town near where the borders of Jordan, Iraq, and Syria meet.
...
The Russian strike hit a small rebel base for staging forces and equipment in a desolate, unpopulated area near the border. About 180 rebels were there as part of the Pentagon's program to train and equip fighters against Islamic State.

When the first strikes hit, the rebels called a U.S. command center in Qatar, where the Pentagon orchestrates the daily air war against Islamic State. U.S. jets came and the Russian jets went away. The U.S. jets left to refuel, the Russian jets came back and hit again. Allegedly (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/06/17/russian-warplanes-bomb-elite-british-backed-syrian-rebels/) two U.S. proxy fighters were killed and 18 were wounded.

Earlier today another such attack hit the same target.

This was no accident but a well planned operation and the Russian spokesperson's response makes the intend clear:

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov appeared to confirm the attack Friday, telling reporters it was difficult to distinguish different rebel groups from the air.Translation:
"If you can not separate your forces from al-Qaeda and differentiate and designate exclusively "moderate" zones we can not do so either."
The forces near Tanf are supported by U.S. artillery from Jordan and air power via Iraq. British and Jordan special operations forces are part of the ground component (and probably the majority of the "Syrian" fighters.) There is no al-Qaeda there. The Russians know that well. But they wanted to make the point that it is either separation everywhere or separation nowhere. From now on until the U.S. clearly separates them from AQ all U.S. supported forces will be hit indiscriminately anywhere and anytime. (The Syrian Kurds fighting the Islamic State with U.S. support are for now a different story.)

The Pentagon does not want any further engagement against the Syrian government or against Russia. It wants to fight the Islamic State and its hates the CIA for its cooperation with al-Qaeda and other Jihadi elements. But John Brennan, the Saudi operative and head of the CIA, still seems to have Obama's ear. But what can Obama do now? Shoot down a Russian jet and thereby endanger any U.S. pilot flying in Syria or near the Russian border? Risk a war with Russia? Really?

The Russian hit near Tanf was clearly a surprise. The Russians again caught Washington on the wrong foot. The message to the Obama administration is clear. "No more delays and obfuscations. You will separate your moderates NOW or all your assets in Syria will be juicy targets for the Russian air force."

The Russian hits at Tanf and the U.S. proxies there has an additional benefit. The U.S. had planned to let those forces move north towards Deir Ezzor and to defeat the Islamic State in that city. Eventually a "Sunni entity" would be established in south east Syria and west Iraq under U.S. control. Syria would be split apart.

The Syrian government and its allies will not allow that. There is a large operation planned to free Deir Ezzor from the Islamic State occupation. Several hundred Syrian government forces have held an isolated airport in Deir Ezzor against many unsuccessful Islamic State attacks. These troops get currently reinforced by additional Syrian army contingents and Hizbullah commandos.A big battle is coming. Deir Ezzor may be freed within the next few month. Any U.S. plans for some eastern Syrian entity are completely unrealistic if the Syrian government can take and hold its largest eastern city.

The Obama administration's delaying tactic will now have to end. Russia will no longer stand back and watch while the U.S. sabotages the ceasefire and supports al-Qaeda.

What then is the next move the U.S. will make?

Posted by b on June 18, 2016 at 11:15 AM | Permalink (http://www.moonofalabama.org/2016/06/syria-another-russian-surprise-ends-kerrys-delaying-tactic.html)

Sophocles

21st June 2016, 07:29

Dmitry Orlov: The US Is Sleepwalking Towards A Nuclear Confrontation

hoM0-ZJKbaI

Hervé

21st June 2016, 12:27

Crimeans recount their experiences when the West took Ukraine (https://www.sott.net/article/320609-Crimeans-recount-their-experiences-when-the-West-took-Ukraine#)

Eric Zuesse
Sott.net (https://www.sott.net/article/320609-Crimeans-recount-their-experiences-when-the-West-took-Ukraine#)
Tue, 21 Jun 2016 01:50 UTC

https://www.sott.net/image/s16/326555/large/13f6451e792d601ef774bcc880cd1a.jpg (https://www.sott.net/image/s16/326555/full/13f6451e792d601ef774bcc880cd1a.jpg)
Korsun massacre Ukraine

This news-report consists of a compilation of accounts that Crimeans have given to human rights groups or directly posted to the internet, regarding their experiences when the freely elected President of Ukraine, Viktor Yanukovych, who had received 75% of the votes of Crimeans, was violently overthrown (http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2014/12/head-stratfor-private-cia-says-overthrow-yanukovych-blatant-coup-history.html) during January (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stK3YPz6WTc#t=25) and February (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-RyOaFwcEw) of 2014.

On 20 February 2014, eight busloads of people from Crimea, who had come into Ukraine's capital Kiev and were holding signs there demonstrating in opposition to the "Maidan" movement, which was seeking to oust Yanukovych, were violently attacked by "Right Sector" people who were leading the Maidan movement; and those terrified Crimeans then scrambled back into their buses, which promptly sped southward, toward home in Crimea.

An organization "Ukraine Human Rights" created and posted to the internet, on 14 August 2014, a 25-minute video, with English subtitles, telling these people's stories. It's titled "The Pogrom of Korsun" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=loKajkXoTBU), and it reports, with testimony and some of the videos from survivors, the attacks against those buses when a gang of Ukraine's Right Sector members caught up with those escaping Crimeans, near the Ukrainian town of Korsun.

Private cellphone videos that were taken of these incidents were shown in the compilation by Ukraine Human Rights, but one other striking cellphone video, which was posted to youtube on 15 August 2014 (http://web.archive.org/web/20150907035538/https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=13&v=pwtiw7MoRVs), isn't fully available anymore, and it showed the view from the rear seat of a car as it was approaching a blockage, and the blocked buses, some of which were aflame. A few car-drivers were standing watching at a distance, while the Right Sector people beat and killed Crimeans alongside their buses.

https://www.sott.net/image/s16/326554/medium/1023745068.jpg (https://www.sott.net/image/s16/326554/full/1023745068.jpg)
© Sergey Guneev/sputnik Crimean Prosecutor General Natalia Poklonskaya

One Crimean who managed to escape Kiev and survive, happened to be a minor official of the Ukrainian government under Yanukovych, an assistant prosecutor, Natalya Poklonskaya, who got into her car while the Maidan demonstrations were peaking, and escaped back to Crimea; she soon thereafter was unemployed, and was, in early April, interviewed on Crimean TV where she told about her experiences (http://rinf.com/alt-news/editorials/evidence-connection-ukrainian-coup-crimeas-breakaway/) during the overthrow, and she was shortly thereafter appointed by Crimea's new government to be a prosecutor. She was then, on 12 May 2014, banned from travel to U.S-allied countries. In the announcement of this ban, she was listed as "Natalia Vladimirovna Poklonskaya: Prosecutor of Crimea. Actively implementing Russia's annexation of Crimea." (http://www.martindale.com/immigration-law/article__2143566.htm) In other words, she was banned for simply doing her job — if not for her still just being alive (and unwilling to work under the people who overthrew Yanukovych (http://peoplesworld.org/ukrainian-ultra-rightists-given-major-cabinet-posts-in-government/)).

On 10 June 2016, "The Saker" posted a brief video from Russian Television, which realistically portrayed what almost certainly would have happened to Crimeans "If Crimea Didn't Reunite with Russia?" (http://thesaker.is/what-if-crimea-didnt-reunite-with-russia-alternative-history-of-crimea-by-rt/) A reader there posted his personal account of what he had, in fact, experienced in Crimea during that fateful time, when the news was coming to Crimeans of the horrors occurring (such as shown here in January 2014 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stK3YPz6WTc#t=25), and here in February (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-RyOaFwcEw)). His entire comment is worth posting, and thus now follows:

Comments by Auslander on June 10, 2016 at 5:16 am UTC:
The return of Krimu and Sevastopol to Russia was a lot more of a near thing than many people think. I remember very well the day, if memory serves it was the day of the 'Tatar', read right sector and mejlis, riot at Krim Rada [Crimean legislature] in Simferopol, that the Russian Black Sea Flot [fleet] commander stated when asked by a news type, that his [obligation] was to defend the Flot, not Sevastopol or the citizens.That statement was like a bucket of ice cold water thrown in our faces and more than a few of the 'new patriots' of Sevastopol were given pause but most simply understood how serious the situation was, doubled down and got to work.

wywot1rCVxQ

Right sector operatives had been coming down to Krimu and Sevastopol starting in mid January, one could spot them a kilometer away with ease. However, they were here and did start to subtly intimidate some of the citizens. On the other hand most were quietly noted and their little nests, usually in private lodgings in dachi areas, were located and listed. They were interesting to watch, three or four young men with a few young women, lounging around during the day on street and park benches during the time when everyone else was working. They would also nose around to every back alley and side street and photo everything while trying to pass themselves off as 'tourists'. In January and February? Nice try but no cigar.The were two major turning points in the events leading up to the success of the Third Defense of Sevastopol during that fateful week after the coup in Kiev.

https://www.sott.net/image/s16/326557/medium/Crimea_Berkut.jpg (https://www.sott.net/image/s16/326557/full/Crimea_Berkut.jpg)
© Russian Defense Ministry Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, left, salutes a former Ukrainian special forces "Berkut" officer, back to camera, at a military base in Sevastopol, Crimea, Monday, March 24, 2014.

One, our Berkut [police] and Militsiya [militia] units that were in Kiev during the Maidan coup d'etat had literally fought their way back to Krimu and Sevastopol after their betrayal [escape] by Yanukovich and his stalwart allies. Their welcome in Naxhimova Square in City Center was a flower strewn tumult and from the hearts of Sevastopol Citizens, so much so that some of our Berkut and Militsiya were reduced to tears. Berkut then moved to their lager in City where a cordon of citizens was set up to protect them from SBU as armed Berkut guarded from inside. As an aside Ukraine SBU [Security Bureau of Ukraine] were faced down more than once as they attempted their usual foolishness. After the first face down the word spread like wildfire through the citizenry that they were nothing but a paper tiger, a semi armed criminal gang that were nothing. That was the end of SBU down here.

The citizens of Sevastopol and Krimea began to set up road block posts at the Krim-Ukraine borders and around Sevastopol, Simferopol and Yalta. They were armed with clubs and one or two ancient hunting weapons. In mid week Berkut, after negotiations with Sevastopol locals, declared for Sevastopol, armed up and headed for the barricades to assist and stiffen them. The thugs in Kiev were, to put it mildly, furious.

https://www.sott.net/image/s16/326562/medium/Maidan_26_Feb_clash_outside_Ra.jpg (https://www.sott.net/image/s16/326562/full/Maidan_26_Feb_clash_outside_Ra.jpg)
Altercation outside Simferopol Rada in Crimea between pro-Russians and pro-Ukrainian Crimean Tatars February 26, 2014

The second watershed event was thus. After the riot at Krim Rada in Simferopol where right sector, clearly identifiable in the overhead videos, were defeated, as they withdrew they expressed their extreme displeasure at the turn of events and swore they would be back to burn Rada to the ground and show the locals 'who was boss down here'.

Not much more than 24 hours later a small convoy of aging civilian vehicles appeared at the Krimea Rada Complex in Simferopol, well before dawn. The vehicles disgorged a fairly large group of well armed men who calmly tossed a flash bang through the door of Rada Building and stormed in, much to the shock of the Militsiya Guard Detail stationed there who were expecting a different group to arrive around dawn, politely but firmly removed the pistols and cell phones from Militsiya and invited them to leave. The cell phones were returned to the Militsiya worthies as they left, the pistols stayed in Rada building with the men.

https://www.sott.net/image/s16/326568/medium/00_simferopol_druzhinniki_01_0.jpg (https://www.sott.net/image/s16/326568/full/00_simferopol_druzhinniki_01_0.jpg)
Simferopol 01.03.14

These two events, Berkut pledging allegiance to Sevastopol and moving to the barricades and the taking of Krim Rada by the citizens, were the two salient events that led to the success of the Russian Spring in this peninsula. Unarmed citizens had already begun to block all major and minor bases of the Ukraine Armed Forces, demonstrations and marches were held all over Krim and Sevastopol and Militsiya, DAI and SBU were relegated to bit players in the events who were made well aware of the consequences to themselves if one citizen was harmed by them.

I have no doubts that Moscow was watching these events keenly and it was these two salient events plus the spontaneous blockading of the peninsula, major cities and the Ukraine Armed Forces that in my opinion was the catalyst for Moscow to move and come to the assistance of Krimea and Sevastopol.
—-------------------
https://www.sott.net/image/s16/326566/medium/nato_buildup.jpg (https://www.sott.net/image/s16/326566/full/nato_buildup.jpg)
© Wall Street Journal

The United States and its allies are now pouring troops and armaments onto and near Russia's borders, and have imposed economic sanctions against Russia, for Russia's having helped the people of Crimea, which Washington and its allies call 'seizing' Crimea (http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2015/02/crimea-seized-russia-russia-block-seizure-u-s.html). Russia doesn't like having nuclear weapons and tens of thousands of NATO troops etc., on and hear its borders (no more than America's JFK liked having Soviet missiles 90 miles from the U.S. in Cuba), and therefore a nuclear war could result, from Russia's protecting Crimeans against being seized like the rest of Ukraine was, by the U.S. and its allies.

While building up these forces on and near Russia's borders, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said (http://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/opinions_132488.htm?selectedLocale=en) on 15 June 2016, as he presented the excuse for doing that, "Allies do not, and will not recognise the illegal and illegitimate annexation of Crimea. And we will continue to call on Russia to stop its destabilisation of Ukraine [which isn't even a member of NATO, and therefore isn't even within NATO's purview]." He wasn't referring to the U.S. government's — the Administration of U.S. President Barack Obama — having illegally (https://gpforecasts.wordpress.com/2014/02/28/yanukovychs-removal-was-unconstitutional/) taken Ukraine in February 2014, in what one expert called "the most blatant coup in history" (http://rinf.com/alt-news/breaking-news/head-stratfor-private-cia-says-overthrow-yanukovych-blatant-coup-history/), but instead to Russia's and the Crimean peoples' response to it, which occurred the following month.

So, the world is heading toward what would be the biggest war in history, over little Crimea, and on the basis of only false arguments — strained false arguments, whose underlying assumptions cannot even bear to see the light of day.

One might think that this would be the central issue in the U.S. Presidential campaign. However, Americans don't even know about it — and almost all of the few who do 'know' something about it, misunderstand it. Why is that the case? Why is all of America's political debate focused on gun laws and other issues that even collectively are far less important than this one issue, whose stakes are whether or not a livable planet will end within a few years, or perhaps even within months?

Whatever is responsible for this issue's being ignored, could destroy the planet, because it's an essential part of what has been getting us nearer and nearer to where we're now heading — which is heading toward the end. If we're to turn away from the end, then when will that turn happen? Isn't doing that, more and more difficult, the closer we get, to the end? And, if the end is to come, no one will announce it ahead of time: announcing it, would be to nullify effectiveness of the attack that will start the war, which might last from ten minutes to an hour. Basically, every nuclear weapon that's not eliminated within the first ten minutes will be fired, and probably all of the weapons will be gone before the hour is up. It won't be at all like World War II. It will be unprecedentedly brief, and final. (Although some people think not (https://www.vice.com/read/this-guy-is-building-doomsday-shelters-for-billionaires-111) — or at least not for themselves.) The nuclear winter and mass-starvation following it, will be much slower, but just as final — and far more widespread.

Practically speaking, a change in direction might already be too late. But at least one can spread the word about the issue that everyone should be (and to have been) talking and thinking and writing about, in precedence above all other public issues — even if it's already too late. Thus, this news report is provided, so that at least some of the public (and not only the few people, such as Obama and Stoltenberg, and NATO Supreme Commander Curtis Scaparrotti (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Curtis_Scaparrotti), who are making the decisions) can understand what's actually happening, and why (http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2014/06/u-s-re-started-cold-war-backstory-precipitated-ukraines-civil-war.html).

Apparently, for the people at the very top in The West, staying #1 is more important than anything else. Obama said on 28 May 2014 (https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2014/05/28/remarks-president-united-states-military-academy-commencement-ceremony), to graduating West Point cadets, "the United States is and remains the one indispensable nation. That has been true for the century passed and it will be true for the century to come." In other words: every other nation is "dispensable," only the U.S. is not — and he is determined to dispense with any nation that challenges this. We're heading there, right now. It can be said that we started on this path (http://rinf.com/alt-news/breaking-news/how-america-double-crossed-russia-and-shamed-the-west/) under U.S. President George Herbert Walker Bush, back in 1990. But now we may be near the end of it. And yet Americans aren't even discussing it. In a Presidential election year, moreover. People don't know about it; so, the government isn't even being challenged on it. At all. This isn't fiction; it is the reality.

—————

Investigative historian Eric Zuesse is the author, most recently, of They're Not Even Close: The Democratic vs. Republican Economic Records, 1910-2010 (http://www.amazon.com/Theyre-Not-Even-Close-Democratic/dp/1880026090/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&qid=1339027537&sr=8-9), and of CHRIST'S VENTRILOQUISTS: The Event that Created Christianity (http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007Q1H4EG).

Baby Steps

21st June 2016, 12:50

PETITION TO LEAVE NATO!

http://action.larouchepac.com/petition_to_leave_nato

The following appeal is being circulated internationally, including on the websites of the international LaRouche movement.
The upcoming NATO summit in Warsaw on July 8-9, is expected to be yet another provocation against Russia. By signing this call, we say “stop” this nuclear escalation, before the irreparable occurs!
The hour is grave. A new missile crisis is building, in a mirror image of that which led the Soviet Union in 1962 to deploy nuclear warheads in Cuba, at the doorstep of the United States. Today, the situation is the reverse. At the time, NATO was fighting the Warsaw Pact, today, it is organizing a summit in Warsaw!
We the undersigned observe that NATO is carrying out a provocative policy of “encirclement”:
1. The continuous eastward expansion of NATO towards the borders of Russia, despite the guarantees given by the West to Gorbachov in 1989 that this would not happen;
2. The deployment of the Aegis anti-missile defense system in Romania, Poland, Turkey and Spain. These weapons, equipped with MK41 launchers, can be used for defensive missions (air, land, sea), but also for offensive attacks with nuclear weapons;
3. The planned permanent rotational deployment in the Baltic States, Poland and Romania, of four battalions of 1,000 troops each, and heavy military equipment;
4. The creation of a “Nordic Front” against Russia, comprised of an alliance of NATO members Denmark, Iceland and Norway, and of NATO's “Partnership for Peace” (Sweden and Finland);
5. The modernization of nuclear weapons, in particular the B61-12 bomb and the Long Range Standoff (LRSO) Cruise Missiles, based in Germany. U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein said of these weapons: "The so-called improvements to this weapon seemed to be designed... to make it more usable, to help us fight and win a limited nuclear war."
To put an end to this threat, we demand:
1. that our government adopt a policy of the “empty chair” (boycott) at the next NATO summit in Warsaw;
2. that our government announce its intention to leave NATO which no longer has any “raison d’être”.
To escape the current countdown to nuclear war, we also call on our government to create without delay the conditions for a new global peace and security architecture, based on the win-win cooperation proposed by the BRICS, cooperation which Europe and the United States, in their own interests, should join in.
The vast efforts we deployed in the 20th Century for war, must be mobilized today for peace and mutual development!

Hervé

21st June 2016, 15:15

Bulgaria Rejects NATO Fleet in the Black Sea, Romania Hurriedly Backs Off (http://sputniknews.com/world/20160619/1041590077/bulgaria-romania-nato-fleet.html)

World (http://sputniknews.com/world/) 16:26 19.06.2016
(updated 10:56 20.06.2016)

http://cdn1.img.sputniknews.com/images/104158/96/1041589667.jpg
© AFP 2016/ VELKO ANGELOV

Bulgaria’s prime minister firmly ruled out his country’s participation in the proposed NATO fleet in the Black Sea aimed at countering Russian forces in the area: “I don’t need war,” the politician said after Russia promised a response; meanwhile Romania’s president, one of the initiators, has hurriedly backed off.

"I always say that I want the Black Sea to see sailboats, yachts, large boats with tourists and not become an arena of military action… I do not need a war in the Black Sea," Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov said on Thursday referring to the proposal for the NATO fleet in the Black Sea made by Romanian President Klaus Iohannis while visiting Bulgaria on June 15-16.

http://cdn4.img.sputniknews.com/images/104153/80/1041538035.jpg
© REUTERS/ MURAD SEZER In the Face of Russian Warnings, US Says It Will Remain in Black Sea (http://sputniknews.com/us/20160617/1041538563/uss-porter-ignores-warnings.html)

“Our country will not become part of the Black Sea fleet being prepared against Russia,” Borissov said as quoted by EurActiv.com website. “To send warships as a fleet against Russian ships exceeds the limit of what I can allow,” Borissov told reporters in Sofia on Thursday, as cited by Bloomberg.

“To deploy destroyers, aircraft carriers near [the resort cities of] Bourgas or Varna during the tourist season is unacceptable.”

Klaus Iohannis has quickly backed off, insisting that “the Black Sea naval initiative regards joint training and exercises and that NATO cannot and does not want to keep a fleet in the Black Sea,” Romanian news agency Agerpres reported on Thursday.

“The initiative I introduced to the Bulgarian President and Prime Minister is an initiative designed for cooperation in the area of joint exercises and joint training of the Romanian, Bulgarian and Turkish naval forces. This is the so-called naval initiative, and it does not comprise all naval forces, just joint exercises and training," the agency quotes the Romanian leader as saying in response to recent statements by the Bulgarian prime minister.

http://cdn2.img.sputniknews.com/images/104140/13/1041401353.jpg
© REUTERS/ US Navy/Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Robert S. Price/Handout

Russian Response to US Navy Destroyer in Black Sea 'Expected' - Ex-Navy Officer (http://sputniknews.com/military/20160615/1041401425/us-navy-russia-response.html)

The Romanian president apparently said that “the initiative should be deployed under the NATO umbrella, because all the three Black Sea countries — Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey — are NATO allies.” ''Where the misunderstanding probably emerged was in relation to the concept of a NATO fleet. Nobody creates a NATO fleet. That would be nonsense. NATO cannot and does not want to keep its own Black Sea fleet,” Agerpres quotes Iohannis as explaining.

‘We will board the ships, we will waive our flags, but only Bulgaria and Romania”, the Bulgarian prime minister said, adding that any other scenarios could lead to a military conflict.

After the USS Porter (DDG-78), armed with assault cruise missiles and an Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System (primary weapon: Standard Missile 3), entered the Black Sea last week, Moscow promised “response measures” to Washington.

“If a decision is made to create a permanent force, of course, it would be destabilizing, because this is not a NATO sea," Andrey Kelin, head of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s European Cooperation Department then said.

http://cdn2.img.sputniknews.com/images/103846/40/1038464058.jpg
© AFP 2016/ DANIEL MIHAILESCU After Downing of Russia’s Jet Erdogan Needs NATO in the Black Sea (http://sputniknews.com/world/20160612/1041202073/turkey-nato-black-sea.html)

Under the Montreux Convention, countries which don't have a Black Sea coastline cannot keep their warships there for more than 21 days. NATO members Turkey, Romania and Bulgaria are all Black Sea Basin countries. Earlier reports of the Balkan Insight website however suggest that Bucharest is urging NATO to create a permanent alliance fleet in the Black Sea in a “move aimed to counter Russia’s strong involvement in the region.”

The website said that as early as February Romanian Defense Minister Mihnea Motoc announced that Romania is taking the first steps to negotiate with NATO to set up a regular multinational naval patrol in the Black Sea.

“The possibility of creating such a fleet might be discussed at the next NATO summit in July,” Motoc then said. He added that Romania must be ready by then with a clear plan and proposal.

The outlet also added that the regular flotilla might include ships from NATO countries bordering the Black Sea, namely Bulgaria, Romania and Turkey, but also from Germany, Italy and the United States.

The Bulgarian prime minister was not that optimistic. He said that his country was among the most loyal EU countries and was doing what was expected from the European family. But he added that there was no way that Bulgaria would be attacked by Russia. “You remember how our nuclear reactors from the Belene central left for Turkey. Not a single colleague spoke in my defense when President Putin, in the presence of Erdogan, waived his finger at me, saying that Bulgaria lost everything”, EurActive quotes Borissov as saying.

The website adds that “indeed, under Western pressure, Bulgaria abandoned plans to build a nuclear central with Russian technology, and gave up the South Stream gas pipeline project. Putin made strong statements against Bulgaria, and in January 2015, Borissov warned that his country faced an energy catastrophe.”

The International Court of Arbitration at the International Chamber of Commerce in Geneva ruled in favor of the Russian Atomstroyexport company and ordered to pay €620 million in compensation from Bulgaria to Russia.

Hervé

21st June 2016, 21:52

Women of Steel: Meet the Brave Hearts Fighting Against Daesh in Middle East (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160621/1041698432/women-fighters-daesh-iraq.html)

Middle East (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/) 19:19 21.06.2016

http://cdn1.img.sputniknews.com/images/104169/72/1041697212.jpg
© Sputnik/ Dmitriy Vinogradov

In Iraq slowly but surely the offensive on Mosul continues as the Iraqi forces are trying to liberate the second largest city from the grips of Daesh. At the forefront, along with men, women are fighting the terrorists fiercely. A correspondent of RIA Novosti met with some of these women.

http://cdn2.img.sputniknews.com/images/103821/50/1038215033.jpg
© AP Photo/ Hussein Malla, File, Kurdish Troops Liberate Over 40 Square Miles From Daesh Near Mosul (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160601/1040585704/iraq-kurd-daesh-mosul.html)

Wife goes to war, husband to Germany
It is said that the self-proclaimed Caliph of Daesh, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, was forced to issue a special fatwa “allowing” jihadists to be killed by women. Prior to that, Daesh militants believed that if they die at the hands of “the weaker sex” they will not go to heaven.

Female volunteer fighters in Iraq and Syria fight really well, so the Daesh leader had no choice but to adjust his own ideology, to bring back the enthusiasm to the militants.

“But still the militants are afraid (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160531/1040555022.html) of us by instinct, it is undignified for a brave warrior to be killed by a woman's bullet, as they consider women as second-class citizens,” 24-year-old Hasiba Nouzad, a Turkish Kurdish woman by birth, told RIA Novosti.

Currently, she is a commander of the women's division squad called Hezi-Agri (The Power of Fire).

“Two years ago I saw on TV and online what Daesh is doing in Sinjar (Yazidi town under Daesh). I cried a lot as it really moved me and I decided that my place is here. I have to fight to protect my people,” Hasiba said.

Alas her husband did not share her enthusiasm and decided to move to Germany like many other refugees. However, the couple is in touch and talk on Skype.

In May, Peshmerga fighters were faced with a fierce battle with Daesh as the terrorists broke into Telskhov village which has been under control of the Kurds for the past one year.

About 400 terrorists broke into the village but the Kurds (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160518/1039813198.html) quickly managed to pull a large group together calling for reinforcements. They were assisted by the US Special Forces and aviation.

“We surrounded the militants in Telskhov. We heard them asking for reinforcements from their commanders in Mosul: Save us, we are surrounded,” Hasiba recalls the militants as saying.

Haseeba is not angry with her husband as she said, “Of course, with him it would have been easier for me, but it's his choice, he told me that he does not want to fight.

“Whether I'll go back to him? I do not know, because I do not know for how long I will fight. First we destroy Daesh and then we shall see,” Hasiba said.

Revenge for the Loved Ones
Asima Dahar is a Yazidi girl who has joined the ranks to fight against the militants who captured her loved ones and took them prisoners.

About 30 thousand Yazidis were taken as prisoners by Daesh when they took control of the city of Sinjar. Five thousand men were executed and two thousand women were taken as prisoners.

“Militants killed my uncle, my cousin and brother was captured. Their fate exactly is unknown to me; it seems that my brother has to work on some of the most difficult jobs at the hands of the militants,” Asima said.

http://cdn5.img.sputniknews.com/images/104050/24/1040502451.jpg
© REUTERS/ Azad Lashkari Kurdish Troops Retake 9 Villages From Daesh East of Mosul - Kurdistan Security Council (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160530/1040502498/kurds-daesh-villages.html)

Sometimes she gets text messages from unknown numbers which seem to be from her relatives that were taken prisoners. They use someone else’s phone to get in touch. “The worst thing is that all of our Sunni neighbors with whom for centuries we lived side by side, always trusting and helping each other turned to Daesh and became their supporters.”

“One day they came for our property and our lives. They said… Now it is our power and you are an infidel. We must adhere to the caliphate and do as they say; otherwise they will kill us too. They took my family and it was the people we knew,” Asima Dahar recalled through tears.

Youth Spent at War
The fighters of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) of Abdullah Ocalan enjoy a reputation in the Middle East of being the bravest fighters. Now the PKK is fighting on two fronts, against Daesh and the Turkish army.

Life as a PKK member is extremely tough; they have no personal belongings, except arms and underwear. The PKK have a ban on alcohol and loving relationships as the guerrillas must direct all their energy towards war and political education.

Almost half of the PKK fighters are women. Imposing such restrictions by the founders of the PKK (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160527/1040380735.html), are aimed at preventing any “confusion and vacillation” and moral decay, inevitable for a mixed group.

http://cdn5.img.sputniknews.com/images/103232/89/1032328966.jpg
© AP Photo/ Cagdas Erdogan Turkish Forces Kill Some 7,600 PKK Militants Since July 2015 (http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160608/1040966710/turkey-pkk-militants-killing.html)

It is surprising, that within the ranks of the PKK there are very young girls. Near the Kirkuk province, the RIA correspondent and his team met two nice guerrilla fighters. One was 20-year-old Dieren and the other was 19-year-old Evie, both are from Turkish Kurdistan. Both girls wanted to avenge the Turkish government so they joined the Kurdistan Workers' Party. “My whole family for several generations has been a part of the PKK. That is why I decided to join the party, I was not forced though, Dieren said. “Our country, Kurdistan, has been occupied by Turkey so we have to fight for its independence,” she further said.

She added that she does not care whether the fighting is in Turkey or in Iraq because either way she is fighting for the future of Kurdistan and its “independence and for the people’s freedom.”

Dieren said that in two years of war with Daesh she has killed 8 or 10 militants. “More precisely I cannot say, because when there is a fight, everyone shoots because it is a battle. Did I hit a terrorist or some of my comrades, did I kill them or wounded them, that is hard to say.”

“We are fighting against Daesh as the world's evil, against subjugation which it carries for women and for the Kurds,” the young fighter concluded.

bluestflame

22nd June 2016, 08:45

dunno how this fits or if it's been posted putin seems to be very direct https://www.facebook.com/eurasiadaily.nz/videos/1621432474814405/

09GBjzxYymQ

Hervé

22nd June 2016, 16:10

US STRATEGY FOR RUSSIA – WAGE WAR BUT NOT DECLARE IT (http://johnhelmer.net/?p=15877)

John Helmer, Dances With Bears (http://johnhelmer.net/?p=15877), Sun, 19 Jun 2016 20:06 UTC

http://johnhelmer.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/dwb_1822_%D0%BE%D1%82%D1%80%D0%B5%D0%B4%D0%B0%D0%BA%D1%82%D0%B8%D1%80%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B0%D0%BD%D0%BE7 7.jpg

Between August 9 and 12, 1941, taking their battleships in turn to meet in a Canadian bay, US President Franklin Roosevelt (centre, left) and British Prime Minister Winston Churchill (centre, right) discussed what to do about their adversaries at the time, Germany and Japan. Roosevelt had whispered, and Churchill later reporting him as saying aloud: “I will wage war, but not declare it.”

Until February 21, 2014, President Barack Obama’s (right) whispers were audible; President Vladimir Putin (left) didn’t believe what he was hearing. Now there is armed US war against Russia on the Ukraine and Syria-Turkey fronts; exchanges of armed signals in the Black and Baltic Seas; and an all-fronts war against Russian capital. For the US, no declaration; for Russia, no way back.

Putin said (http://tass.ru/en/politics/883251) as much at last week’s St. Petersburg meetings: “People feel no danger and that is alarming for me. Why can’t we see that we are dragging the world into an utterly new dimension? This is the problem (http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/52182).” “I am not interested in laying blame now. I simply want to say that if this policy of unilateral actions continues and if steps in the international arena that are very sensitive to the international community are not coordinated then such consequences are inevitable.” By consequences, Putin meant war, undeclared by the US against Russia, compelling Russia to forestall in its defence. “If we continue to act according to this logic, escalating [tensions] and redoubling efforts to scare each other, then one day it will come to a cold war.”

Cold is not the kind of war Putin means. “I don’t know where it [the deployment of the U.S. missile defense system in Europe] might lead to but I know for sure that we will have to respond.”

For the precedents of undeclared US warmaking, provoking the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour, and that as the intended backdoor to US war with Germany, it’s necessary to open, The Challenge of Grand Strategy. This is a little-known collection of essays by US historians of the period between World War I and World War II. Open it here (http://www.cambridge.org/gb/academic/subjects/politics-international-relations/international-relations-and-international-organisations/challenge-grand-strategy-great-powers-and-broken-balance-between-world-wars).

http://johnhelmer.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/1822-2.jpg

The nine American academics and one Japanese don’t present their research results to make pro-Soviet or pro-Russian points. They recognize Russian and German policy in the inter-war period as ideological; American exceptionalism isn’t the same thing, they write. Stalin, they regard as delusional and paranoid.

The research is presented instead as demonstrating, not how reluctant, appeasing, misguided, fanatical or uncompromising the Americans, British, Germans and Japanese were; but rather how deliberate, calculating, and reasonable each was in what they thought were their own best interests, facing the only choices they believed their own and their adversaries’ capabilities and intentions allowed.

In retrospect, the evidence proves Roosevelt planned US economic sanctions against Japan, first against trade in strategic minerals, then against Japan’s offshore cash and capital, and finally against the sale of oil, in order to provoke war in the Pacific. As Roosevelt is quoted as telling his Secretary of War in October 1941, seven weeks before the Pearl Harbour attack: “we face the delicate question of the diplomatic fencing to be done so as to be sure that Japan was put in the wrong and made the first bad move – overt move.”

“MAGIC”, concludes Jeffrey Tagliaferro about the US cracking of Japan’s most important coded communications from Tokyo and from Berlin, “confirmed the underlying suppositions of Roosevelt’s strategy since mid-1940, namely to wage an undeclared naval war on Germany in the north Atlantic in the expectation that Hitler would provoke a casus belli. If that failed [it did, Tagliaferro adds] – Roosevelt would use economic sanctions to provoke Japan into striking against US possessions in the Pacific, on the assumption that Hitler would enter a US-Japan war.”

Today, according to Russian sources, it is the conclusion of the Kremlin and General Staff that Obama and his would-be successor, Hillary Clinton, are following the Roosevelt line. Putin made the point last Friday when asked how differently he views the presidential candidacies in the US of Donald Trump and Clinton.

Trump, said, Putin, “is a vivid personality. Is he not? He is. I did not ascribe any other characteristics to him. However, what I definitely note and what I definitely welcome – and I see nothing wrong about this, just the opposite – is that Mr Trump said that he is ready for the full-scale restoration of Russian-US relations. What is wrong with that? We all welcome this! Don’t you?”

http://johnhelmer.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/1822_3.jpg
Clinton with Putin in Moscow, March 2010. According to Clinton, “he was hardly even listening.”
Source: http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/life/article4114685.ece

About Clinton, Putin said: “I did not work with her, [Foreign Minister Sergei] Lavrov did. Ask him. He is sitting here… I worked with Bill Clinton, although for a very short time, and we had a very good relationship. I can even say that I am grateful to him for certain moments as I was entering the big stage in politics. On several occasions, he showed signs of attention, respect for me personally, as well as for Russia. I remember this and I am grateful to him. About Ms Clinton. Perhaps she has her own view on the development of Russian-US relations.”

It was the objective of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) last week to warn Europeans not to over-estimate their own or US capabilities in fighting the current war with Russia; nor underestimate Russian capabilities and intentions to fight back. Record-breaking announcements from the SPIEF secretariat were planned to substantiate the fight-back on the business front. According to Tass (http://tass.ru/en/economy/883343), “332 formal agreements for around 1 trillion rubles ($15.44 billion) were signed, Adviser to the Russian President, Deputy Chairman of the Organizing Committee – Executive Secretary, Anton Kobyakov said on Friday at a press conference of the results of the forum.”

This compares with the reported SPIEF result in 2015 — 205 agreements for a total of Rb293.4 billion ($4.52 billion); and in 2014, 175 agreements for Rb401.4 billion ($11.5 billion). In 2013 (http://forumspb.com/en/2013/sections/12), the last pre-war SPIEF, 102 contracts were reportedly signed (http://forumspb.com/en/2013/sections/12) for a value estimated at Rb9.6 trillion ($294 billion).

http://johnhelmer.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/1822_4.jpg

Financially, the 2013 result was the acme. This year, though, a record number of 12,000 participants attended; a record number of 130 countries were represented.

Russia, Putin told his session with foreign corporation chiefs, has the advantage of knowing the measure of its enemies’ capabilities, Europe and the US lack the measure of Russian intentions. Americans have capabilities, especially in economic warfare, Putin conceded. But the price is being paid in Europe, which cannot sustain the losses as hardily as Russia can, and lacks Russia’s military options. “The world needs a powerful country like the United States, and we also need it,” Putin told the table on Friday.

http://johnhelmer.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/1822_5.jpg
Source: http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/52182/photos/44718

“But we do not need it to continuously interfere in our affairs, telling us how to live, and preventing Europe from building a relationship with us. How are the sanctions that you have mentioned affecting the United States? In no way whatsoever. It could not care less about these sanctions because the consequences of our actions in response have no impact on it. They impact Europe but not the United States. Zero effect. However, the Americans are telling their partners: ‘Be patient.’ Why should they? I do not understand. If they want to, let them.”

Some European businessmen in St. Petersburg speak sceptically of the capabilities of Russian businessmen to sustain war; a few are scornful. According to an international banker, “the well-known oligarchs of the first rank — we know they want to be too much like us, live in our palaces. They like our life better than the one at home. For them, this war is turning them from paragons into pariahs. They don’t like it. They indulge in wishful thinking. But politically they are impotent. [Gennady] Timchenko, [Yury] Kovalchuk, and the Rotenbergs , whom the Americans have hit with the crony sanctions, were never going to make it in the west, so sanctions against them will also have no political effect. [Former finance minister Alexei] Kudrin stands for capitulation. He stands alone. There’s no lobby in Moscow for peace on US terms.”

City of London bankers add they don’t believe the leaders of Russia’s state banks and state-controlled corporations are better capable of warfighting than the oligarch-owned and market listed companies. For evidence the sources point to the failure of the Russian Finance Ministry and the state banks in the issue of the state’s Eurobond in the last week of May.

A first attempt at issuing the bond in February had been postponed after the US Government persuaded US banks not to underwrite or subscribe. Then Finance Minister, Anton Siluanov (below, left), announced (http://www.vedomosti.ru/economics/articles/2016/05/24/642144-rossiya-zhdet-inostrannih-pokupatelei-evrobondov) that “Russia will raise $3 billion in single tranche, regardless of the position of the US banks.”

http://johnhelmer.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/1822_6.jpg

Siluanov also authorized the bond prospectus to undertake that none of the proceeds would help in the financing of sanctioned individuals or companies; this was despite the fact that the underwriter and issuer of the prospectus, the state bank VTB, was on the sanctions list (http://www.reuters.com/article/russia-eurobond-idUSR4N18E01D).

The attempt by VTB, headed by Andrei Kostin (above, right), reportedly (http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-05-23/russia-plans-10-year-dollar-eurobond-as-early-as-today) had attracted between $5.5 billion and $7 billion in offers by the close of bidding on May 23. The next day, however, according to the Finance Ministry announcement (http://minfin.ru/ru/press-center/?id_4=34466&area_id=4&page_id=2119&popup=Y#), the bank and the ministry were only able to sign buyers for $1.75 billion. “More than 70% of the bond was purchased by foreign investors”, Siluanov announced to the press. “This is the group we focused on. We are satisfied with the placement.”

Spokesman for Siluanov and Kostin refuse to provide a copy of the prospectus; identify the officials they delegated to manage the bond issue; or substantiate Siluanov’s claim. US officials leaked to business reporters in New York and London that the bond had failed to achieve its foreign target because the two bond market trading organizations, Euroclear and Clearstream, had refused to participate. The Wall Street Journal called (http://www.wsj.com/articles/russia-stumbles-over-debt-sale-1464107272) the issue “so-called Eurobonds”, adding market comment that traders were “not aware of any major foreign investors who have participated due to the concerns over the settlement of the bonds.”

A veteran bond market source in London says Euroclear and Clearstream did not refuse to accept the bonds. “They simply delayed replying to VTB’s application. That meant there was no security number assigned to the bond, confirming it could be traded among their members. If you can’t trade, you can’t buy. So the majority of those who applied to buy the bonds withdrew when they realized what Euroclear and Clearstream were up to. The big success in the bidding stage was a big failure at the settlement stage.”

http://johnhelmer.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/1822_7.jpg

Euroclear is owned by J.P. Morgan, while Clearstream is owned and operated by the Deutsche Borse, run by an American, Jeffrey Tessler (above). Neither organization responds to questions about the Russian bond issue. The source adds: “There was serious negligence at the Finance Ministry and VTB in Moscow. They should have checked and obtained the trading guarantees in advance. Instead, they had to say in the prospectus they were still negotiating, but had received ‘no assurance’ of compliance from Euroclear and Clearstream. Also, it’s obvious in retrospect that the London advisors to MinFin on the bond failed to anticipate the clearance problem. Who was deceived by this? Maybe Putin.”

Market sources say Siluanov and Kostin were forced into arranging offshore buyers to disguise what they had failed to anticipate, and what had happened. “Nothing could be a clearer illustration of how the US is waging its war, and how the Russians, on the civilian side, are incapable of fighting back. The Russians say they are applying the rules of the market. They use the words. They don’t seem to appreciate that the US is waging a well-co ordinated, command war.”

“We remember how it all started,” Putin said (http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/52182) last week at SPIEF. “Russia did not initiate the current breakdown, disruption, problems and sanctions. All our actions have been exclusively reciprocal. But we don’t hold a grudge, as they say, and are ready to meet our European partners halfway. However, this can by no means be a one-way street.”

[B]By John Helmer, Moscow

Hervé

22nd June 2016, 18:34

Oh, yeah... forgot about that third party pulling the strings from the ceiling:

Israeli Intel Chief: We Don’t Want ISIS Defeated in Syria (http://news.antiwar.com/2016/06/21/israeli-intel-chief-we-dont-want-isis-defeated-in-syria/)

Says ISIS Faces Difficulty, Loss Would Put Israel in 'Hard Position'

by Jason Ditz, June 21, 2016

In a speech at the Herzliya Conference, Israel’s military intelligence chief, Major General Herzi Halevy, took Israel’s long-standing position that it “prefers ISIS” over the Syrian government to a whole ‘nother level, declaring openly that Israel does not want to see ISIS defeated in the wa (https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/israeli-intelligence-chief-not-want-isis-defeat-syria/)r.

http://news.antiwar.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/idf.jpg

Quoted in the Hebrew-language NRG site, linked to Maariv, Maj. Gen. Halevy expressed concern about the recent offensives against ISIS territory, saying that in the last three months the Islamist group was facing the “most difficult” situation since its inception and declaration of a caliphate.

Israeli officials have regularly expressed comfort (http://news.antiwar.com/2016/01/19/israeli-dm-prefers-isis-to-iran/)with the idea of ISIS conquering the whole of Syria, saying they find it preferable to the Iran-allied government surviving the war. At the same time, they were never so overtly supportive of ISIS and its survival.

Halevy went on to express concern that the defeat of ISIS might mean the “superpowers” leaving Syria, saying this would put Israel “in a hard position” after being so opposed to the survival of the Syrian government.

He then said Israel will do “all we can so as to not find ourselves in such a situation,” suggesting that the Israeli military is looking at direct support for ISIS as a matter of policy, and not just rhetoric.

AutumnW

1st July 2016, 19:55

I haven't read thought his entire thread. Maybe somebody can tell me if I am correct. Isis kind of took over where Alqueda, left off. We know that Alqueda were Saudi operatives, for the most part, who have recruited from all over Islam, and predominantly Sunni Islam, if not exclusively. This explains animosity towards Iraq, predominantly Shia.

Of course the usual puppeteering suspects are in the background. Iran is also Shia, so this religious dynamic is being used to leverage unrest in that part of the world, too. And Iran is a huge enemy of Israel and Saudi Arabia, both.

Somebody clearly wants to keep the Middle East in the Stone Age. My bets are on the U.S. starting this clusterfu**, Saudi Arabia, for oil and world view or mind share. Throw in Pakistan with all of their horrendous Sunni madrasa, child molesting centres, that have been funded by Saudi Arabia for years.

Dynamic is changing with Putin taking the lead and the Americans not putting up much opposition, seeing as they have fracking and seem to also be working on alternatives to oil, in a big way.

I think, eventually, U.S. does a total pivot away from the Middle East, lets Israel twist in the wind a bit. The next demon to feed the war machine could be China, as they now have a space programme. It's essential to the U.S. financial industry that they be able to control, through satellite systems, our current globalized financial system. China and Russia represent a potential threat. Catherine Auatin Fitts seems to think this is the case.

Hervé

2nd July 2016, 20:09

Western officials criticize Damascus in public but secretly deal in private not to upset US – Assad (https://www.rt.com/news/349097-assad-sbs-double-standards/)

Published time: 1 Jul, 2016 08:58
Edited time: 1 Jul, 2016 11:48
Get short URL (http://on.rt.com/7hd5)

https://img.rt.com/files/2016.07/original/57760a52c361881e5c8b457f.jpg
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad meets with Russian parliamentary delegation in Damascus. © Mikhail Voskresenskiy / Sputnik

Western politicians have been forced into the awkward position of being obliged to negotiate with Damascus over security under the table in fear of raising Washington’ ire, Syria’s president told Australia’s SBS News in an exclusive interview.

“They attack us politically and then they send officials to deal with us under the table, especially the security, including your [the Australian] government,” Bashar Assad told (http://www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/video/716262979573) SBS News reporter Luke Waters.

“They don’t want to upset the United States,” the Syrian leader said. “Actually most of the Western officials only repeat what the United States want them to say. This is the reality,” Assad said in an interview filmed in Damascus that took two years of negotiations to arrange.

Ahead of airing the interview with President Assad, SBS also interviewed Australia’s former ambassador to Syria, Bob Bowker, who denied the Syrian leader’ claims, saying that “The reality is that Assad is seen in the West as an unfit leader to be dealt with,” while adding that Assad has “lost the credibility” in “the rest of the Arab world.”

SBS quotes Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, who has called Bashar Assad a “murderous tyrant,” as well as the nation’s opposition leader, Bill Shorten, who has described Syria’s president a “butcher.”

“These statements, I just can say they are disconnected from our reality, because I’m fighting terrorists,” President Assad said, rejecting the accusations.

“Our army is fighting terrorists, our government is against terrorists, the whole institutions are against terrorists. If you call fighting terrorism butchery, that’s another issue,” he said.

Former US ambassador to Ukraine John Herbst told Sputnik this week that keeping President Bashar Assad in office is the only alternative to Islamic extremists taking power in Syria.

“I think Assad is a tyrant, he is brutal, but he is not as bad as the Islamic extremists,” Herbst said, adding that Washington and Moscow have similar interests in Syria and could cooperate if the Russian military “stops bombing Syrian rebels” supported by the US.

President Bashar Assad also condemned foreigners coming to fight in Syria, regardless of which cause they support.

“If there are foreigners coming without the permission of the government they are illegal, whether they want to fight terrorists or want to fight any other one,” he said. “It’s the same. It’s illegal we can call it.”

Cidersomerset

2nd July 2016, 22:18

Breedlove’s war: Emails show ex-NATO general plotting US conflict with Russia

By David on 2 July 2016 GMT

https://www.davidicke.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/5776a38ec361883b3a8b45ba.jpg

Hacked private emails of the US general formerly in charge of NATO reveal a
campaign to pressure the White House into escalating the conflict with Russia
over Ukraine, involving several influential players in Washington.

The emails, posted by the site DCLeaks, show correspondence between General
Philip M. Breedlove, former head of the US European Command and supreme
commander of NATO forces, with several establishment insiders concerning the
situation in Ukraine following the February 2014 coup that ousted the elected
government in favor of a US-backed regime.

Breedlove served as the NATO Supreme Commander between May 2013 and
March 2016. His personal email incorporated his Air Force call sign “Bwana”
– a Swahili word for “boss.”

pZ04Wvk5sa8

Read more: Breedlove’s war: Emails show ex-NATO general plotting US conflict with Russia
https://www.rt.com/usa/349213-hacked-emails-breedlove-ukraine/?utm_source=browser&utm_medium=aplication_chrome&utm_campaign=chrome

Hervé

4th July 2016, 02:31

Western-Backed Chechen “Freedom Fighter” Named as Istanbul Attack Mastermind (http://www.boilingfrogspost.com/2016/07/03/western-backed-chechen-freedom-fighter-named-as-istanbul-attack-mastermind/)

Christoph Germann (http://www.boilingfrogspost.com/author/cgermann/) Boiling Frogs Post (http://www.boilingfrogspost.com/2016/07/03/western-backed-chechen-freedom-fighter-named-as-istanbul-attack-mastermind/) July 3, 2016

Meet Akhmed Chatayev: Freedom Fighter - Government Informant - Most Wanted Terrorist

http://www.boilingfrogspost.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/070216_CGPost.png

First details begin to emerge about the suspected Islamic State attack on Istanbul’s Atatürk Airport that left at least 44 people dead and more than 230 injured.

A senior Turkish government official announced on Thursday that the three suicide bombers who carried out the attack were nationals of Russia, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan.[1]

Turkish pro-government newspaper Yeni Safak quoted police as saying that eight terrorists were involved in the operation. Three of them were killed, one was detained and four others remain at large.

According to the Yeni Safak report, well-known Chechen Islamic State commander Akhmed Chatayev organized the deadly attack.[2]

Turkish officials did not immediately confirm Chatayev’s involvement but a Turkish police source with direct knowledge of the investigation told NBC News that Chatayev is believed to be the planner of the attack.[3]

Turkish police reportedly launched a manhunt to catch the Chechen terrorist leader.[4]

Western governments and media are now scrambling to explain why they dismissed Russian warnings about Chatayev and protected him for many years despite a long history of terrorism-related offenses.

Akhmed Chatayev first caught the Russian authorities’ attention when he was captured during the Second Chechen War in the late 1990s. Depending on whom you want to believe, Chatayev lost his right arm either due to a wound sustained during the fighting or as a result of torture after his arrest.

The circumstances of his release remain unclear, which prompted Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s The Interpreter to suggest that Chatayev might have been recruited as a Russian informer or agent.[5]

Judging by his actions upon release, this seems unlikely.

Chatayev left Russia in 2001 and found refuge in Azerbaijan,[6] like many other Chechen “freedom fighters.”[7]

This can be explained by the fact that Azerbaijan served as one main conduit for the U.S.-NATO-led ‘Gladio B’ operations in the region – the other main conduit being Turkey.[8]

The true extent of U.S.-NATO involvement in the Chechen struggle for independence is still a well-guarded secret but Chatayev’s story sheds some light on dubious Western machinations that have fueled terrorism in Russia and beyond.

In 2003, “Akhmed One-Arm” moved to Austria. He was granted asylum and received Austrian citizenship. While enjoying Austrian hospitality, Chatayev made extensive use of his new passport that “allowed him to travel freely in Europe and elsewhere.”

Russian media reports suggest that Chatayev was wanted by Russian authorities since 2003 on suspicion of recruiting fighters and raising funds for the North Caucasus insurgency. According to sources in Chechen Islamic groups, this task was assigned to him by none other than Caucasus Emirate leader Doku Umarov.[9]

Neither Chatayev’s close connection to Umarov nor his criminal activities seemed to bother anyone in the West. Russia repeatedly tried to get him extradited, to no avail.

In 2008, “Akhmed One-Arm” made headlines in Sweden. He was arrested and sentenced to 16 months in prison for smuggling an automatic weapon and two handguns with munition and silencers into the country. Chatayev had arrived by ferry boat from Germany along with two other Chechens. He told the Swedish authorities that they were on their way to Norway to go fishing and denied having any knowledge of the weapons hidden in a spare wheel in the trunk of his car. Chatayev was convicted in March 2008 and released in January 2009.[10]

A few months later he continued his tour through European prisons in Ukraine. The Ukrainian authorities arrested him at Russia’s request. Russia asked for Chatayev’s extradition but the European Court of Human Rights and Amnesty International intervened, reminding the Ukrainian government that the wanted terror suspect had been granted refugee status in Austria.[11]

Instead of enjoying life in Wien, Chatayev then got into trouble in Bulgaria. In summer 2011, he was detained at the Bulgarian border while attempting to cross into Turkey. A Bulgarian court decided to extradite him to Russia but Chatayev filed an appeal and played the refugee card – with success.[12]

Afterwards, Umarov’s trusted associate settled in Georgia, where he was offered a job by then-Deputy Interior Minister Giorgi Lortkipanidze due to his excellent connections to the North Caucasus insurgency.

In an exclusive interview with The Daily Beast, Lortkipanidze did his best to obfuscate what really happened in Georgia and which role Chatayev played. He claimed that he recruited Chatayev as an informer and negotiator between the Georgian government and the Islamic underground of the North Caucasus to prevent terrorist attacks in Georgia.

Lortkipanidze told The Daily Beast that he was pleased with Chatayev’s work for more than a year until he refused to rat out a group of radical militants that was trying to cross from Georgia into Russia.[13]

Georgia’s former Deputy Interior Minister was referring to the so-called Lopota incident in August 2012, but for some reason he failed to mention that this incident exposed a secret government training program for Chechen fighters. An investigation into the clashes in the Lopota gorge by Public Defender Ucha Nanuashvili unearthed explosive information (http://www.civil.ge/eng/article.php?id=25911):

According to the report, in February 2012 senior officials from the Georgian Interior Ministry contacted some of “veterans of the Chechen war”, as well as representatives of Chechen community now living in Europe with the purpose to convince them that the Georgian authorities were ready to give armed militants “so called corridor”, a free passage for infiltrating into Russia’s North Caucasus via Georgia.

These efforts, according to the report, resulted into arrival from Europe of about 120 Chechens and other natives of the North Caucasus in Georgia.

“Flats were rented for them in various neighborhoods of Tbilisi, mainly in Saburtalo district,” the report reads, adding that the Interior Ministry officials were picking them up at Tbilisi airport and providing them with firearms and driving licenses. Georgian military officials and “Chechen militants with large combat experience” trained the Chechen recruits at the Shavnabada and Vaziani military bases near Tbilisi. There is evidence to suggest that Akhmed Chatayev was involved in this secret program. Nanuashvili’s report named Lortkipanidze as having coordinated the recruitment and training, which explains why he didn’t tell The Daily Beast the whole truth about Chatayev’s work for the Georgian government.

According to Nanuashvili’s sources, the Chechens grew impatient because their training was taking longer than expected and demanded to be taken to the Russian border. But after arriving in the Lopota gorge, the fighters were prevented from entering Russia and told to surrender their arms before returning either to a military base or to Pankisi gorge.[14]

Chatayev was reportedly one of the “authoritative Chechen individuals” that were brought in to mediate after the Chechen fighters refused to lay down their arms. The talks yielded no results and Chatayev was injured during the ensuing fighting. Georgian security forces arrested him a few days later. His injured leg had to be amputated and he was charged with illegal possession of two hand grenades.

Russia asked once again for Chatayev’s extradition, with the same result as before. In December 2012, Chatayev was released on bail and the Georgian Prosecutor’s Office eventually dropped the charge against him one month later.[15]

Former President Mikheil Saakashvili and his United National Movement (UNM) seized upon this fact in the aftermath of the Istanbul airport attack to settle political scores.

Saakashvili emphasized that Chatayev was arrested by his government in a counter-terrorist operation led by Lortkipanidze, and lamented that, after a change of government, “the new Georgian government, led by Russian oligarch Ivanishvili, promptly freed him.”[16] The former Georgian leader failed to mention that his close associate Lortkipanidze was in charge of a secret government training program for Chechen fighters and that Chatayev had been working for him.

Lortkipanidze later escaped prosecution in Georgia for his role in the Lopota debacle by following his old boss Saakashvili to Ukraine.[17]

In addition to Chatayev, nine Chechen fighters survived the 2012 clashes. They were allowed to leave the country a few days later and the Georgian Interior Ministry assisted them in traveling to Turkey.[18]

Turkey is the preferred destination of many Chechen “freedom fighters,” and Chatayev was no exception.

According to Russian independent news agency Caucasian Knot, he lived in Turkey between 2012 and 2015. During this time, he came into direct contact with Islamic State commander Tarkhan Batirashvili – a man with a similar story.[19]

After serving as the Caucasus Emirate’s representative in Turkey, Chatayev reportedly joined IS in 2014.[20]

As early as January 2015, “a trustworthy source from Istanbul” told Georgian media that Chatayev was organizing the transit of young recruits from Georgia’s Pankisi gorge to Syria.[21]

One month later, Chatayev removed any last doubts about his activities by appearing in an IS video in Syria as the commander of the Yarmouk Battalion, a Chechen-led IS battalion of Russian-speaking jihadists.[22]

In August, Russian security services identified “One-Legged Akhmet” as the main recruiter of Russian nationals to the Islamic State.[23]

In October 2015, the U.S. government finally acted on the IS video from February and added Chatayev to its list of specially designated global terrorists.[24]

Within a few years, Chatayev had gone from working for the U.S.-backed Georgian government and enjoying protection in the West to becoming one of the most wanted terrorists - despite barely changing his behavior. The biggest difference was that his activities were no longer limited to Russia.

The fact that Akhmed Chatayev has now emerged at the center of the investigation into the Istanbul airport attack raises many inconvenient questions - and Western governments have a lot to answer for.

# # # # Christoph Germann- BFP Contributing Author & Analyst
Christoph Germann is an independent analyst and researcher based in Germany, where he is currently studying political science. His work focuses on the New Great Game in Central Asia and the Caucasus region. You can visit his website here (http://www.christophgermann.blogspot.com/)

[1] Humeyra Pamuk and Daren Butler, “Istanbul airport bombers were Russian, Uzbek, Kyrgyz: Turkish official,” Reuters, 30 June 2016: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-turkey-blast-raids-idUSKCN0ZG0RM.

[2] “Russian national identified as a suicide bomber in Istanbul airport attack,” Yeni Safak, 30 June 2016: http://www.yenisafak.com/en/news/russian-national-identified-as-a-suicide-bomber-in-istanbul-airport-attack-2488906.

[3] William M. Arkin, Mansur Mirovalev and Corky Siemaszko, “Chechen Akhmed Chatayev Is Called Suspected Planner of Istanbul Attack,” NBC News, 1 July 2016: http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/istanbul-ataturk-airport-attack/chechen-akhmed-chatayev-called-suspected-planner-istanbul-attack-n602401.

[4] Dominique Soguel and Suzan Fraser, “Attention in Istanbul bombing focused on Chechen extremist,” The Associated Press, 1 July 2016: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/fad6ca6eda9142bead29b11b7b259981/turkish-official-mastermind-feb-terror-attack-killed.

[5] Catherine A. Fitzpatrick, “Russian Press Claims Alleged Mastermind of Istanbul Attacks Was Detained For Terrorism In Four Countries But Was Let Go,” The Interpreter, 30 June 2016: http://www.interpretermag.com/turkey-claims-airport-bombers-were-russian-uzbek-and-kyrgyz-georgian-ties-possible/#14408?pressId=14408.

[6] Nino Burchuladze, “‘Ahmed One-Arm’ - The man who sends Jihadists from Pankisi to Syria,” Georgian Journal, 31 January 2015: http://www.georgianjournal.ge/military/29509-ahmed-one-arm-the-man-who-sends-jihadists-from-pankisi-to-syria.html.

[7] Sibel Edmonds, “BFP Exclusive: US-NATO-Chechen Militia Joint Operations Base,” Boiling Frogs Post, 22 November 2011: http://www.boilingfrogspost.com/2011/11/22/bfp-exclusive-us-nato-chechen-militia-joint-operations-base/.

[8] Nafeez Ahmed, “Why was a Sunday Times report on US government ties to al-Qaeda chief spiked?,” Ceasefire Magazine, 17 May 2013: http://ceasefiremagazine.co.uk/whistleblower-al-qaeda-chief-u-s-asset/.

[9] Fatima Tlisova, “Chechen Suspected in Istanbul Attack, but Questions Remain,” Voice of America, 30 June 2016: http://www.voanews.com/content/chechen-suspected-istanbul-attack-questions-remain/3399309.html.

[10] “The Latest: Tunisian town buries doctor killed in Istanbul,” The Associated Press, 1 July 2016: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/fda76e4091a14140b0c30212f60139d0/latest-us-official-chechen-organized-airport-attack.

[11] “Ukraine: Ukraine obliged to halt extradition: Ahmed Chataev : Further information,” Amnesty International, 22 January 2010: https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/eur50/002/2010/en/.

[12] “Bulgarian court refuses to hand over terror suspect to Russia,” Russia Today, 22 July 2011: https://www.rt.com/news/terror-suspect-denied-extradition/.

[13] Anna Nemtsova, “Mastermind of Istanbul Airport Attack Had Been Georgian Informant, Official Says,” The Daily Beast, 1 July 2016: http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/07/01/mastermind-of-istanbul-airport-attack-had-been-georgian-informant-official-says.html.

[14] “Public Defender Calls on MPs to Probe into Lopota Armed Clash,” Civil Georgia, 1 April 2013: http://www.civil.ge/eng/article.php?id=25911.

[15] Liz Fuller, “President Again Denies Georgia Co-Opted Chechen Fighters,” Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 28 April 2013: http://www.rferl.org/content/georgia-chechen-militants-allegations-saakashvili-denial/24970927.html.

[16] Mikheil Saakashvili, Facebook, 30 June 2016: https://www.facebook.com/SaakashviliMikheil/posts/1224494270914285.

[17] “New head of Odessa Police escapes prosecution in Georgia,” Caucasian Knot, 17 June 2015: http://eng.kavkaz-uzel.ru/articles/32068/.

[18] Ibid., Civil Georgia.

[19] Ibid., Tlisova.

[20] “Details of Atatürk Airport attack planner emerge,” Yeni Safak, 2 July 2016: http://www.yenisafak.com/en/news/details-of-ataturk-airport-attack-planner-emerge-2489718.

[21] Ibid., Burchuladze.

[22] Joanna Paraszczuk, “Russian Citizen Linked To Lopota Gorge Incident Now Heads IS Battalion In Syria,” Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 25 February 2015: http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-lopota-gorge-incident-islamic-state-syria/26869379.html.

[23] Joanna Paraszczuk, “Main Russian IS Recruiter 'Identified In Turkey,' But Who Is One-Legged Akhmet?,” Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 10 August 2015: http://www.rferl.org/content/russia-islamic-state-one-legged-akhmet-recruiter/27181197.html.

[24] “Treasury Sanctions Individuals Affiliated With Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, and Caucasus Emirate,” U.S. Department of the Treasury, 5 October 2015: https://www.treasury.gov/press-center/press-releases/Pages/jl0199.aspx.

Hervé

4th July 2016, 15:32

Georgia Could Investigate Istanbul Bomber's Alleged Links to Saakashvili (http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160704/1042408033/georgia-istanbul-daesh-saakashvili.html)

Sputnik (http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160704/1042408033/georgia-istanbul-daesh-saakashvili.html) Europe (http://sputniknews.com/europe/) 15:28 04.07.2016
(updated 15:52 04.07.2016)

https://www.sott.net/image/s16/328897/large/1042141289.jpg
© REUTERS/ Murad Sezer

Georgia confirmed on Monday that the alleged terrorist behind the recent suicide bombing attack in Istanbul, was backed by former Georgian President.

TBILISI (Sputnik) — Georgia's minister of Internally Displaced Persons from the occupied territories, accommodation and refugees confirmed on Monday that Akhmed Chatayev, the alleged mastermind behind the recent suicide bombing attack in Istanbul, was backed by former Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili (http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160512/1039486668/ukraine-foreigners-government-reforms.html), adding that Tbilisi may open an investigation into the issue. On June 28 evening, three suicide blasts (http://sputniknews.com/asia/20160703/1042351820/daesh-osama-terror-dhaka-istanbul.html) rocked Istanbul's Ataturk International Airport, leaving 42 people dead and more than 200 injured. Turkish media, citing sources in the prosecutor's office, reported that the terrorist act was plotted by Chatayev, a Russian citizen from the Republic of Chechnya who had been wanted by the Russian authorities for terrorism-related offenses but escaped to Europe and avoided extradition to Russia.

"This notorious terrorist has turned out to be an agent of Saakashvili (http://sputniknews.com/world/20160702/1042342604/turkey-help-us-attack.html) and received funding from him. Saakashvili changed his passports one after another. Since we are talking about it, there is relevant evidence by the relevant bodies… Presumably, an investigation will be started in connection with this and it will be very interesting to hear what Saakashvili has to say," Sozar Subari told reporters.

Chatayev received political asylum in Austria after claiming that he had lost an arm as a result of torture in Russian camps. Chatayev was detained in possession of weapons in Ukraine but was found not guilty of any offense and was subsequently handed over to Georgia, as the European Court of Justice forbade his extradition to Russia. In 2011, Chatayev was detained on the Bulgarian-Turkish border. A Bulgarian court initially ruled to extradite him to Russia but a higher court repealed the ruling.

"As to why Chatayev was released by our authorities — he was charged only… with illegal possession of weapons, and we did not have any other evidence… Witnesses of the former authorities testified that he had a gun, then they changed their testimony and therefore denied the information. Therefore, his arrest would have been illegal, " Subari said.

In January, the Russian National Anti-terrorist Committee warned that Chatayev was in command of a special unit of Daesh tasked with preparing terrorist acts in Russia and Europe, comprising mainly of people from the North Caucasus.

Last week, the Russian Interior Ministry said that Chatayev had lived in Georgia where he was granted citizenship before leaving for Syria in 2015.

Sophocles

6th July 2016, 19:38

Ukraine's neo-Nazi parliament speaker Parubiy admits Ukraine won't follow Minsk agreements, exposes absurdity of sanctions policy (https://www.sott.net/article/321615-Ukraines-neo-Nazi-parliament-speaker-Parubiy-admits-Ukraine-wont-follow-Minsk-agreements-exposes-absurdity-of-sanctions-policy)

Alexander Mercouris
The Duran
Wed, 06 Jul 2016 18:45 UTC

The weekend after EU sanctions are renewed, Ukraine Parliament Speaker admits he has opposed Minsk II Agreement all along.

https://www.sott.net/image/s16/329320/large/385398356.jpg

Andrey Parubiy, Speaker of the Ukrainian parliament, founder of the neofascist Svoboda movement, creator of Ukraine's National Guard, former secretary of Ukraine's National Security and Defence Council, author of Ukraine's misnamed "Anti-Terrorist Operation" in the Donbas, former Maidan Commandant and the man possibly responsible for the sniper shootings in Kiev in February 2014, has just exposed the total illogic of the EU's entire sanctions policy.

That sanctions policy - imposed by Angela Merkel - purports to link the lifting of the sanctions the EU has imposed on Russia to the full implementation of the Minsk II Agreement. Yet as everyone knows it is not Russia which is not implementing the Minsk II Agreement. It is Ukraine. Putin set out the position clearly at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Tashkent:

"We all know that these restrictions are supposedly tied to the implementation of the Minsk agreements but the key aspects of the implementation of the Minsk agreements today are in the hands of our Kiev partners, in the hands of the Kiev authorities. Without them, we can do nothing. We cannot amend the Ukrainian Constitution; we cannot implement and enforce the law on special forms of governance in the well-known territories, the Lugansk and Donetsk People's Republics; we cannot sign an amnesty law for the Ukrainian president.

These are key issues in the settlement of the Donbass situation. And it is simply absurd to expect us to make these decisions. I cannot think of any other word for it. Nevertheless, we have worked patiently and are willing to continue working just as patiently both with our Ukrainian partners and with our EU partners. However, there is no other way to fully resolve the situation in Donbass other than by implementing the Minsk agreements."

The EU nonetheless on Friday rolled over the sanctions against Russia for a further 6 months till December, on the grounds that the Minsk II Agreement has still not been implemented. Here is how it is explained (http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2016/07/01-russia-sanctions/) on the EU's website:

"On 19 March 2015, the European Council agreed to link the duration of the sanctions to the complete implementation of the Minsk agreements, which was foreseen to take place by 31 December 2015. Since the Minsk agreements were not fully implemented by 31 December 2015, the Council extended the sanctions until 31 July 2016. Having assessed the implementation of the Minsk agreements, the Council decided to renew the sanctions for a further six months, until 31 January 2017."

Now - immediately after the sanctions were extended - Andrey Parubiy has acted to prove the EU wrong and Putin right. Though he is the Speaker of the Ukrainian parliament and a key figure in the Ukrainian power structure he admits that he entirely opposes the Minsk II Agreement and always did. In a television interview on Monday 4th July 2016 he is reported as saying: (http://tass.ru/en/world/886253)

"I have not supported the Minsk Agreements from the very start. I thought, and I still think that the Minsk Agreements were signed in conditions that were unfavourable for Ukraine."

The EU's decision to link sanctions against Russia to the full implementation of the Minsk II Agreement happened directly after that agreement was reached in February 2015. Deeply humiliated by Putin at Minsk, Merkel tried to salvage her reputation with the US hardliners and gain some leverage over the process by getting the European Council to link the lifting of the sanctions to the full implementation of the Minsk II Agreement.

By doing so Merkel led the EU into a trap where its sanctions policy against Russia - which is severely hurting scores of European businesses, including German businesses - is now hostage to the obsessions of people like Parubiy, who have made it perfectly clear that they will never willingly implement the Minsk II Agreement.

Though this fact may not be widely known by the generality of the European public, it is very well known by the businesses affected and of course it is well known to EU governments including - as I discussed recently - to members of Merkel's own coalition government.

At SPIEF 2016 I saw and heard the anger and exasperation amongst European businessmen and amongst some EU political leaders with a policy which is increasingly hurting them and which makes no sense. By contrast the mood amongst the Russians was the diametric opposite. More and more of them were openly expressing the view that the sanctions for Russia had actually been beneficial.

There are quiet voices starting to be heard in Europe which blame Merkel's disastrous policies for Britain's vote for Brexit. If reports of Merkel's attempts to unseat EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker (http://theduran.com/angela-merkel-gearing-fire-eu-chief-jean-claude-juncker/) are true, it is almost certainly because he is widely known to be one of these voices and is also quietly believed to share his friend German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier's increasingly open skepticism about the sanctions policy. The stories being spread about Juncker's supposed alcoholism do look like an attempt to undermine Juncker and are fully in keeping with the sort of vicious backstairs character assassination Merkel regularly uses against her enemies.

Comment: This might turn Juncker's apparent gaffe (https://www.sott.net/article/321353-Juncker-is-losing-it-European-Commission-president-says-he-speaks-with-alien-leaders-and-they-re-worried-about-the-EU) in a new light. He was pretty much saying the Americans are from another planet.

Regardless of how any power struggles within the EU play out, Vladimir Chizhov, Russia's ambassador to the EU, is surely right when he says that who is reported to have said (http://tass.ru/en/politics/886300) at the same time that Parubiy was speaking that

"......the EU countries are gradually starting realise that the sanctions have already brought the European Union into a stalemate. However, it (ie. the EU) will have to find the way out of this deadlock on its own."

One way or the other the sanctions policy is collapsing under the weight of its own absurdity. When it does - possibly in December - without the British to back her, Merkel will be left to face the music on her own.

Source (https://www.sott.net/article/321615-Ukraines-neo-Nazi-parliament-speaker-Parubiy-admits-Ukraine-wont-follow-Minsk-agreements-exposes-absurdity-of-sanctions-policy)

Cidersomerset

8th July 2016, 20:50

Putin Issues Desperate Warning of WWIII

RMMscY7Btus

Published on 7 Jul 2016

Alex Jones breaks down the western mainstream media cover-up of Vladimir Putin
warning journalists of war. The Russian president met with foreign journalists at
the conclusion of the Saint Petersburg International Economic Forum on June 17th,
and left no one in any doubt that the world is headed down a course which could
lead to nuclear war.

http://russia-insider.com/en/politics...

Help us spread the word about the liberty movement, we're reaching millions help
us reach millions more. Share the free live video feed link with your friends &
family: http://www.infowars.com/show

====================================================
====================================================

This has come out of nowhere......

http://static.bbci.co.uk/frameworks/barlesque/3.20.0/orb/4/img/bbc-blocks-dark.png
Women to serve in close combat roles in the British military

6 hours ago.....From the section UK

http://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/660/cpsprodpb/C871/production/_90331315_mediaitem90331314.jpg

A ban on women serving in close combat units in the British military has been lifted
by Prime Minister David Cameron.Women, who have previously served on the front
line in support roles, will now be allowed to enter the cavalry, infantry and
armoured corps. Mr Cameron said it was a "major step" and meant the armed
forces could "make the most of all its talent".But the Army's research suggests
fewer than 5% of its 7,000 women would pass the current infantry fitness test.

'World-class'

The PM's decision follows a government review in which the head of the Army,
General Sir Nick Carter, recommended the ban should be lifted.Announcing the
move at a Nato summit in Warsaw, Poland, Mr Cameron said: "It is vital that our
armed forces are world-class and reflect the society we live in.

Read More....

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-36746917

PathWalker

8th July 2016, 22:44

Report: Police investigating Israel PM Netanyahu on money laundering allegations
http://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Report-Police-investigating-Netanyahu-on-money-laundering-allegations-459863

This is very serious issue.
Since Netanyahu is above the law and controls the police, apparently there is internal war within the security/secret service to topple him.
As they did to the former Israeli PM Ulemert serving prison time now.

The secret rulers in Israel are the financial elite and secret-services.
Last month Netanyahu discharged his war minister (who publicly charged him for war mongering in Syria and Iran), this disharge grew the secret-service displeasure with Netanyahu. And now they plot to topple him, and crown one of their favourable generals after pseudo elections.

This is becoming the war of ultimate power in Israel. Netanyahu is PM for 10 years, and has very strong hold on all systems (like Putin and Erdugan). Yet the people in the secret service are above the law and can plot anything they want without any trace (we know what they did the Rabin in 1995).

Hope this summer will be hot.

Cidersomerset

9th July 2016, 09:26

Security Split: On surface NATO working well together

tfRj9_ZTtNY

Published on 8 Jul 2016

As NATO's largest summit since the Cold War opens in the Polish capital
RT's William Whiteman gauges the mood at the summit.

=============================================
=============================================

CrossTalk: Aggressive NATO

ddklF4fBeT4

Published on 8 Jul 2016
Since the end of the Cold War, NATO has been trying to find its new role.
Its operations in Afghanistan and Libya were disasters. Now NATO has
focused on what is described as “Russian aggression.” Does NATO create
its own security risks?

CrossTalking with David Swanson, Sherle Schwenninger, and Peter Roberts.

=============================================
=============================================

EU propaganda against Russia

By David on 9 July 2016 GMT

http://www.voltairenet.org/article192756.html

Hervé

9th July 2016, 14:09

How George Soros Singlehandedly Created The European Refugee Crisis - And Why (http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-07-08/how-george-soros-singlehandedly-created-european-refugee-crisis-and-why)

http://www.zerohedge.com/sites/default/files/pictures/picture-5.jpg (http://www.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden)by Tyler Durden (http://www.zerohedge.com/users/tyler-durden) Jul 8, 2016 10:01 PM

By David Galland and Stephen McBride, Garret/Galland Research (http://www.garretgalland.com/passing-parade/how-george-soros-singlehandedly-created-the-european-refugee-crisisand-why/)

How George Soros Singlehandedly Created the European Refugee Crisis - And Why

George Soros is trading again.

The 85-year-old political activist and philanthropist hit the headlines post-Brexit saying the event had “unleashed” a financial-market crisis.

Well, the crisis hasn’t hit Soros just yet.

He was once again on the right side of the trade, taking a short position in troubled Deutsche Bank and betting against the S&P via a 2.1-million-share put option on the SPDR S&P 500 ETF.

More interestingly, Soros recently took out a $264 million position in Barrick Gold, whose share price has jumped over 14% since Brexit. Along with this trade, Soros has sold his positions in many of his traditional holdings.

http://www.garretgalland.com/images/uploads/newsletters/Image_2_20160708_TPP.jpg

Soros had recently announced he was coming out of retirement, again.

First retiring in 2000, the only other time Soros has publicly re-entered the markets was in 2007, when he placed a number of bearish bets on US housing and ultimately made a profit of over $1 billion from the trades.

Since the 1980s, Soros has actively been pursuing a globalist agenda; he advances this agenda through his Open Society Foundations (OSF).

What is this globalist agenda, and where does it come from?

The Humble Beginnings
The globalist seed was sowed for young George by his father, Tivadar, a Jewish lawyer who was a strong proponent of Esperanto. Esperanto is a language created in 1887 by L.L. Zamenhof, a Polish eye doctor, for the purpose of “transcending national borders” and “overcoming the natural indifference of mankind.”

Tivadar taught young George Esperanto and forced him to speak it at home. In 1936, as Hitler was hosting the Olympics in Berlin, Tivadar changed the family name from Schwartz to Soros, an Esperanto word meaning “will soar.”

George Soros, who was born and raised in Budapest, Hungary, benefited greatly from his father’s decision.

Allegedly, in 1944, 14-year-old George Soros went to work for the invading Nazis. It is said that until the end of the war in 1945, he worked with a government official, helping him confiscate property from the local Jewish population.

In an 1998 interview with 60 Minutes, Soros described the year of German occupation as “the happiest time in my life.”

Soros’s Venture into Finance
When the war ended, Soros moved to London and in 1947 enrolled in the London School of Economics where he studied under Karl Popper, the Austrian-British philosopher who was one of the first proponents of an “Open Society.”

Soros then worked at several merchant banks in London before moving to New York in 1963. In 1970, he founded Soros Fund Management and in 1973 created the Quantum Fund in partnership with investor Jim Rogers.

The fund made annual returns of over 30%, cementing Soros’s reputation and putting him in a position of power—one he utilizes to this day to advance the agenda of his mentors.

The Currency Speculations That Threw Britain and Asia into Crisis
In the 1990s, Soros began a string of large bets against national currencies. The first was in 1992, when he sold short the pound sterling and made a $1 billion profit in a single day.His next big currency speculation came in 1997. This time Soros singled out the Thai baht and, with heavy short-selling volume, destroyed the baht’s artificial peg to the US dollar, which started the Asian financial crisis.

“Humanitarian” Efforts
Today, Soros’s net worth stands at $23 billion. Since taking a back seat in his company, Soros Fund Management, in 2000, Soros has been focusing on his philanthropic efforts, which he carries out through the Open Society Foundations he founded in 1993.

So who does he donate to, and what causes does he support?

During the 1980s and 1990s, Soros used his extraordinary wealth to bankroll and fund revolutions in dozens of European nations, including Czechoslovakia, Croatia, and Yugoslavia. He achieved this by funneling money to political opposition parties, publishing houses, and independent media in these nations.

If you wonder why Soros meddled in these nations’ affairs, part of the answer may lie in the fact that during and after the chaos, he invested heavily in assets in each of the respective countries.

He then used Columbia University economist Jeffrey Sachs to advise the fledgling governments to privatize all public assets immediately, thus allowing Soros to sell the assets he had acquired during the turmoil into newly formed open markets.

Having succeeded in advancing his agenda in Europe through regime change—and profiting in the process—he soon turned his attention to the big stage, the United States.

The Big Time
In 2004, Soros stated, “I deeply believe in the values of an open society. For the past 15 years I have been focusing my efforts abroad; now I am doing it in the United States.”

Since then, Soros has been funding groups such as:

The American Institute for Social Justice, whose aim is to “transform poor communities through lobbying for increased government spending on social programs”

The New America Foundation, whose aim is to “influence public opinion on such topics as environmentalism and global governance”

The Migration Policy Institute, whose aim is to “bring about an illegal immigrant resettlement policy and increase social welfare benefits for illegals”

Soros also uses his Open Society Foundations to funnel money to the progressive media outlet, Media Matters.

Soros funnels the money through a number of leftist groups, including the Tides Foundation, Center for American Progress, and the Democracy Alliance in order to circumvent the campaign finance laws he helped lobby for.

Why has Soros donated so much capital and effort to these organizations? For one simple reason: to buy political power.

Democratic politicians who go against the progressive narrative will see their funding cut and be attacked in media outlets such as Media Matters, which also directly contribute to mainstream sites such as NBC, Al Jazeera, and The New York Times.

Apart from the $5 billion Soros’s foundation has donated to groups like those cited above, he has also made huge contributions to the Democratic Party and its most prominent members, like Joe Biden, Barack Obama, and of course Bill and Hillary Clinton.

Best Friends with the Clintons
Soros’s relationship with the Clintons goes back to 1993, around the time when OSF was founded. They have become close friends, and their enduring relationship goes well beyond donor status.

According to the book, The Shadow Party, by Horowitz and Poe, at a 2004 “Take Back America” conference where Soros was speaking, the former first lady introduced him saying, “[W]e need people like George Soros, who is fearless and willing to step up when it counts.”

Soros began supporting Hillary Clinton’s current presidential run in 2013, taking a senior role in the “Ready for Hillary” group. Since then, Soros has donated over $15 million to pro-Clinton groups and Super PACs.

More recently, Soros has given more than $33 million to the Black Lives Matter group, which has been involved in outbreaks of social unrest in Ferguson, Missouri, and Baltimore, Maryland, in 2015. Both of these incidents contributed to a worsening of race relations across America.

The same group heavily criticized Democratic contender Bernie Sanders for his alleged track record of supporting racial inequality, helping to undercut him as a competitive threat with one of Hillary Clinton’s most ardent constituencies.

This, of course, greatly enhances the clout Soros wields through the groups mentioned above. It is safe to assume that he is now able to drive Democratic policy, especially in an administration headed by Hillary Clinton.

Simply, what Soros wants, he gets. And it’s clear from his history that he wants to smudge away national borders and create the sort of globalist nightmare represented by the European Union.

In recent years, Soros has turned his attention back to Europe. Is it a coincidence that the continent is currently in economic and social disarray?

Another Home Run: the Ukrainian Conflict
There’s no doubt about Soros’s great influence on US foreign policy. In an October 1995 PBS interview with Charlie Rose, he said, “I do now have access [to US Deputy Secretary of State Strobe Talbott]. There is no question. We actually work together [on Eastern European policy].”

Soros’s meddling reared its ugly head again in the Russia-Ukraine conflict, which began in early 2014.

In a May 2014 interview with CNN, Soros stated he was responsible for establishing a foundation in the Ukraine that ultimately led to the overthrow of the country’s elected leader and the installation of a junta handpicked by the US State Department, at the time headed by none other than Hillary Clinton:
CNN Host: First on Ukraine, one of the things that many people recognized about you was that you during the revolutions of 1989 funded a lot of dissident activities, civil society groups in Eastern Europe and Poland, the Czech Republic. Are you doing similar things in Ukraine?

Soros: Well, I set up a foundation in Ukraine before Ukraine became independent of Russia. And the foundation has been functioning ever since and played an important part in events now.
The war that ripped through the Ukrainian region of Donbass resulted in the deaths of over 10,000 people and the displacement of over 1.4 million people. As collateral damage, a Malaysia Airlines passenger jet was shot down, killing all 298 on board.

But once again Soros was there to profit from the chaos he helped create. His prize in Ukraine was the state-owned energy monopoly Naftogaz.

Soros again had his US cronies, Secretary of the Treasury Jack Lew and US consulting company McKinsey, advise the puppet government of Ukraine to privatize Naftogaz.

Although Soros’s exact stake in Naftogaz has not been disclosed, in a 2014 memo he pledged to invest up to $1 billion in Ukrainian businesses, but no other Ukrainian holdings have since been reported.

His Latest Success: the European Refugee Crisis
Soros’s agenda is fundamentally about the destruction of national borders. This has recently been shown very clearly with his funding of the European refugee crisis.

The refugee crisis has been blamed on the civil war currently raging in Syria. But did you ever wonder how all these people suddenly knew Europe would open its gates and let them in?

The refugee crisis is not a naturally occurring phenomenon. It coincided with OSF donating money to the US-based Migration Policy Institute and the Platform for International Cooperation on Undocumented Migrants, both Soros-sponsored organizations. Both groups advocate the resettlement of third-world Muslims into Europe.

In 2015, a Sky News reporter found “Migrant Handbooks” on the Greek island of Lesbos. It was later revealed that the handbooks, which are written in Arabic, had been given to refugees before crossing the Mediterranean by a group called “Welcome to the EU.”

Welcome to the EU is funded by—you guessed it—the Open Society Foundations.

Soros has not only backed groups that advocate the resettlement of third-world migrants into Europe, he in fact is the architect of the “Merkel Plan.”

The Merkel Plan was created by the European Stability Initiative whose chairman Gerald Knaus is a senior fellow at none other than the Open Society Foundations.

The plan proposes that Germany should grant asylum to 500,000 Syrian refugees. It also states that Germany, along with other European nations, should agree to help Turkey, a country that’s 98% Muslim, gain visa-free travel within the EU starting in 2016.

Political Discourse
The refugee crisis has raised huge concern in European countries like Hungary.

In response to 7,000 migrants entering Hungarian territory per day in 2015, the Hungarian government reestablished border control in order to keep the hordes of refugees from entering the country.

Of course this did not go down well with Soros and his close allies, the Clintons.

Bill Clinton has since come out and accused both Poland and Hungary of thinking “democracy is too much trouble” and wanting to have a “Putin-like authoritarian dictatorship.”

Seeing through Clinton’s comments, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán responded by saying, “The remarks made about Hungary and Poland … have a political dimension. These are not accidental slips of the tongue. And these slips or remarks have been multiplying since we are living in the era of the migrant crisis. And we all know that behind the leaders of the Democratic Party, we have to see George Soros.”

He went on to say that “although the mouth belongs to Clinton, the voice belongs to Soros.”

Soros has since said of Orbán’s policy toward the migrants: “His plan treats the protection of national borders as the objective and the refugees as an obstacle. Our plan treats the protection of refugees as the objective and national borders as the obstacle.”

It’s hard to imagine that he could be any clearer in his globalist intentions.

The Profit Motive
So why is Soros going to such lengths to flood Europe with hordes of third-world Muslims?

We can’t be sure, but it has recently come to light that Soros has taken a large series of “bearish derivative positions” against US stocks. Apparently, he thinks that causing chaos in Europe will spread the contagion to the United States, thus sending US markets spiraling downward.

The destruction of Europe through flooding it with millions of unassimilated Muslims is a direct plan to cause economic and social chaos on the Continent.

Another example of turmoil equaling profit for George Soros, who seems to have his tentacles in most geopolitical events.

We all understand correlation is not causation. However, given Soros’s extraordinary wealth, political connections, and his long track record of seeing and profiting from chaos, he is almost certainly a catalyst for much of the geopolitical turmoil now occurring.

He is intent on destroying national borders and creating a global governance structure with unlimited powers. From his comments directed toward Viktor Orbán, we can see he clearly views national leaders as his juniors, expecting them to become puppets that sell his narrative to the ignorant masses.

Soros sees himself as a missionary carrying out the globalist agenda taught to him by his early mentors. He uses his vast political connections to influence government policy and create crises, both economic and social, to further this agenda.

By all appearances, Soros is conspiring against humanity and is hell-bent on the destruction of Western democracies.

To any rational thinker, some global events just don’t make sense. Why, for example, would Western democracies take in millions of people whose values are completely incompatible with their own?

When we look closely at the agenda being actively promoted by the leading globalist puppet master, George Soros, things become a little clearer.

Want to read more? If you haven’t done so already, sign-up for your free subscription to The Passing Parade from Garret/Galland Research. It’s a rousing weekly romp on economics and markets, with a dose of politics and other follies. It’s free and you can cancel at any time. Click here now to start subscription today! (https://www.garretgalland.com/free-research)

On Soros & Gold
David, again.

While I’m not a conspiracy theorist per se, I do believe there is a naturally occurring and constant collaboration about shared interests occurring amongst the heads of governments, corporations, investment managers and all of the bottom feeders that survive off their scraps.

What I find most interesting about Soros is that he is so obvious in his intentions and persistent in their pursuit. Given the consequences of his actions, it is also clear he’s a believer in moral relativism and that the ends justify the means.

That he turns a nice buck in his crusade for what certainly rhymes with a one-world government is a Soros hallmark.

“It allows me the money needed to fund my philanthropies” he might answer to the charges he is profiting from blood in the streets he was instrumental in spilling.

Going forward when something big is happening geopolitically, I am going to start my analysis by checking under rocks for signs of Soros.

At the beginning of this article we noted that Soros has gone big into American Barrick (ABX), a leading gold producer. As of the end of March it was his single largest holding at 7.36% of his overall portfolio.

As telling, he has dumped a lot of his more conventional stocks in recent months.

Given the man’s inside track – and active manipulations – you might want to take the hint and pick up some physical gold as an insurance policy against a systematic shock.

If you already own gold, I probably wouldn’t chase it here as it has had a good run of late. Ditto silver which is up 46% year to date. But if you don’t own some, adding precious metals to your portfolio as a long-term holding, even at today’s prices, makes sense.

Per last week, I continue to believe the gold stocks have probably gotten ahead of themselves and could be in for a pretty significant correction. If so, I would be inclined to up my allocation to the sector to 20% of my total portfolio.

That said, no one can predict the future and gold could continue to power ahead, with the gold shares a more leveraged way to play the sector.

As always with gold shares, it is important to remember a few things:

In most cases, these are speculations. That’s because their financial metrics often don’t line up with anything looking like a good value. What you are really betting on is a revaluation of the ounces of gold or silver a company is sitting on. Thus, if a company is sitting on one million ounces of gold and gold goes up by $100, the company just got a lot more valuable.

Never fall in love with a gold stock. Set a rational return goal and once hit, at least scrape your original investment off the table. That way you are playing with the casino’s money. Also per my article last week, keep in mind that should gold stocks buck the trend in a future global equities correction, the money managers who own big positions in gold stocks will almost certainly dump their holdings in order to dress up the rest of their portfolios. As the trading volume in precious metals share is relatively thin, you want to beat them out the door.

Embrace the volatility. The low trading volume of most of these stocks is a key reason they have such explosive upside. Any significant uptick in investor interest can send a stock soaring. However, the flipside is also true. In the bear market that started in 2011, the majority of the precious metals stocks lost upwards of 75% of their value and many simply dried up and went away. Enjoy the ride, but don’t stay too late at the party.

Earlier this week I commented to a friend that if the EU was going to remain relevant, there had to be some major financial pain dished out post-Brexit. To let that seminal event pass with nothing more than the equivalent of a global shrug would entirely change how people view the European Union.

The bottom line, I’m expecting some volatility, perhaps triggered by Soros taking a second run at crushing the British pound, the source of much of his fortune and fame.

It’s promising to be a long, hot summer.

Here Come the Clowns
Nothing comes close to the Get Out of Jail card handed by the clowns at the FBI to Hillary over her private email servers. This despite pretty much no one disputes she broke any number of federal laws of the sort which would have landed a lesser clown in jail.

To quote FBI Director James Comey, “Although there is evidence of potential violations of the statutes regarding the handling of classified information, our judgment is that no reasonable prosecutor would bring such a case.”

There is nuance in that statement. For starters, that there is evidence of violations. But also the stark political reality that no “reasonable prosecutor” would enforce the laws, considering who the perp is: the standard bearer for the Democrats going into this election.

Besides, going after Clinton means crossing swords with Soros and no “reasonable prosecutor” would want to do that.

Just saying…

Sophocles

18th July 2016, 06:55

Kelli Ward -McCain is "Directly Responsible" for ISIS:

dzV9bjMg2ZU

John McCain, Barack Obama, and Hillary Clinton have been partners in creating and arming ISIS. -Kelli Ward (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kelli_Ward)-

Jancy

18th July 2016, 12:28

I have read for the last 12 months on other sites that ISIS was created by the cabal in the US or the elite I should say. I do have a lot of US friends who are awake and aware and angry about what is going down in their country. I hope things do not get any worse for them, because I love them a lot.

Sophocles

26th July 2016, 12:05

Italian state TV (RAI 2) on the war in Ukraine - ENG subs

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Sophocles

27th July 2016, 15:44

Hmm...:silent:

“It was a political credit which we were forced to take... Our position is that we shouldn’t return the money,” Ukraine’s Finance Minister Oleksandr Danilyuk

Sott: Kiev refuses to pay debt to Russia because it was 'forced to take the money' (https://www.sott.net/article/323389-Kiev-refuses-to-pay-debt-to-Russia-because-it-was-forced-to-take-the-money)

Sophocles

28th July 2016, 12:13

“Gulen-Gate” Islamic Terrorists Descending on the Democratic National Convention (http://thesaker.is/gulen-gate-islamic-terrorists-descending-on-the-democratic-national-convention/)

by GH Eliason
July 28, 2016
The Saker

Why are known terrorists at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia? Doesn’t the Secret Service vet people that are in the same building as the President of the United States anymore?

What the hell is going on?

Invited as a guest to the 2016 Democratic National Convention is none other than Kadri Veseli, the Speaker of the Kosovo Assembly.

Veseli is a former Kosovar Albanian leader of the KLA (http://prishtinainsight.com/kosovo-assembly-speaker-attending-democratic-national-convention/) and its spy organization SHIK. He’s being indicted along with the current president of Kosovo, Hashim Thaci for small things like organ trafficking and crimes against humanity.

“A new investigation into the shadowy spy group, known as Shik, could also prove embarrassing for western intelligence agencies, particularly the CIA (https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/cia) and France’s DGSE, whose support for prime minister Hashim Thaçi, the PDK and Shik dates back to the 1998-9 Kosovo war. At the time, the Americans and French backed Thaçi as the most effective Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) commander fighting the Serbian military, which was conducting a brutal counter-insurgency and “ethnic-cleansing campaign”…The launch of the new enquiry, which will be conducted by Kosovan and Eulex investigators, will raise questions of why it was not begun five years earlier.

“In his 2009 video Bllaca said that he worked for the execution arm of Shik, charged with killing “collaborators”, LDK officials and potential witnesses against KLA commanders for war crimes.

He said that between 1999 and 2003 he took part in an estimated 17 crimes, including assassinations, attempted assassinations, threats and blackmail, claiming that he worked directly for Syla.

His explosive testimony threatened to devastate the PDK and confirm suspicions that Shik, supposed to have been disbanded, remained a potent force in the shadows of Kosovan public life.”-Alleged connections between top Kosovo politicians and assassin investigated (https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/nov/07/kosovo-hitman-inquiry-eulex-hashim-thaci) Julian Borger The Guardian November 2014

Thaci, who is obviously preparing his defense against the charges didn’t make it this time. But after all, he was a special guest when Secretary of State John Kerry was in the running.

Do organ trafficking operations run like the urban legend would have you think? You know, a guy walks into a bar and a beautiful girl seduces him and gives him a “mickey.”. He wakes up in a bathtub with stitches, feeling a “little sore” and a few pounds lighter?

This real world confession from one of Kadri Veseli’s men lays the horror out plainly. And shows why both he and Thaci are facing charges for it.

“The interview was broadcast on Monday a day after Serbia’s war crimes prosecutor Vladimir Vukcevic told AFP his office had a witness who “testified about a medical procedure, done in northern Albania, that consisted of harvesting organs from Serbs kidnapped during the 1998-99 conflict in Kosovo”.

“They gave me a scalpel. I put my left hand on his chest and began cutting. When I got near the bottom (of the ribs), the blood started pouring,” the witness, whose face was not shown and whose voice was distorted, told RTS.

“As soon as I started cutting, he began screaming not to kill him and then he lost consciousness. I don’t know if he fainted or died,” he said,”- Former Kosovo rebel describes removing prisoner’s heart for black market sale The Telegraph September 2012 (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/kosovo/9534691/Former-Kosovo-rebel-describes-removing-prisoners-heart-for-black-market-sale.html)

After you cut out a man’s heart I think it’s safe to say everyone else in the room can figure out if he died or not even if you can’t. The monsters who ordered these things are people Hillary Clinton calls friends. Emigre Super Bloc Part 4- Clinton’s Jihadis | Will the Super Delegates Vote YES to More Terrorism? (http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2016/07/emigre-super-bloc-part-4-clintons-jihadis-will-super-delegates-vote-yes-terrorism.html)

“With revealed NATO files (https://wikispooks.com/w/images/4/49/NATO-KFOR-Kosovo_Organised_Crime.ppt) as well as WikiLeaksdocuments (https://wikileaks.org/wiki/The_End_of_the_Affair%3F_The_BND,_CIA_and_Kosovo's_Deep_State), findings suggest that the government of Kosovo is lead by crime fugitives with names such as the ‘Butchers’, ‘Balkan Mafia Boss’ as well as organ harvesters. Judging from the revelations origin, it seems like the United States and some other Western European powers that support the government of Kosovo, have had extensive knowledge for several years of criminal ties to former rebel leader Hashim Thaci, including the whole structure of political parties in the country, without exception. Foreign political, military, police, and justice powers (http://www.nlpwessex.org/docs/balkansusbackterrorism.htm) in Kosovo have scandalously kept silent for over 17 years, granting crime a lawless and consequence-free paradise. Those findings suggest that the foreigners would continue to turn a blind eye to crime gangs on their doorstep if there were no insiders to reveal the evidence of their tacit involvement.”-Kosovo: A Nest of Crime Fugitives in Europe Foreign Policy Journal March 2016 Vedat Xhym****i

“Even before, there were accusations from The Hague (war crimes) tribunal, and KLA commanders prevailed against injustice and slander. The war of the Kosovo people was a just war.”

Prosecutors and diplomats say efforts to investigate war crimes allegedly committed by the KLA have run into witness intimidation, a culture of reverence for the former guerrillas and deep clan loyalties.

The organ harvesting allegations hit the headlines in 2011 with publication of an explosive report by Council of Europe rapporteur Dick Marty.

He alleged that Thaci and four high-ranking members of the prime minister’s Democratic Party of Kosovo (PDK) had been part of a group involved in the sale abroad of organs removed from Serb prisoners who had been smuggled out of Kosovo to a makeshift clinic in Albania during the war…All four of his party allies named in the report are running for parliament on Sunday. One of them, Kadri Veseli, was beside Thaci as he stepped out a black BMW jeep in Gjakova. Kosovo votes under shadow of war crimes probe (http://www.reuters.com/article/us-kosovo-election-idUSKBN0EG1T920140605) Gjakova Kosovo Reuters Fatos Bytyci

In spite of all this, Vice president Joe Biden calls Thaci the “George Washington” of Kosovo (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/13/world/europe/kosovos-thaci-aspires-to-statesmanship-but-guerrilla-past-haunts-him.html?_r=1). I didn’t know George Washington engaged in ethnic cleansing, torture, political assassinations, mafia-like crime and drug trade activities, or of course, the organ trade.

In a rare honest moment, Madeline Albright had this to say to Thaci (http://irishecho.com/2011/02/inside-file-for-whom-the-chair-tolls-2/) “I hope you will become Kosovo’s Gerry Adams and choose peace over continuing war and terrorism.”

“For me, my family and my fellow Americans this is more than a foreign policy issue, it is personal,” Clinton stressed. Hillary Clinton was speaking about the KLA and Hashim Thaci.

In Thaci’s Kosovo today, IGIL is quietly setting up training camps ahead of the US presidential elections. The war in Serbia will more than likely start directly after a Clinton win. If we are at war with IGIL, should we be inviting IGIL’s friends to political conventions?

“On the territory of Kosovo and Metohija (https://translate.google.ru/translate?hl=en&sl=ru&u=http://warfiles.ru/show-110538-kosovo-zaderzhany-tri-boevika-igil-kotorye-hoteli-ustroit-terakty-v-serbii.html&prev=search), the local police detained three militants of so-called “Islamic State” (a terrorist organization banned in Russia), is going to organize a series of terrorist attacks in Serbia.” Terrorists LIH (IGIL) break through the Balkans to Western Europe March 2016

Once again, I’m not accusing Hillary Clinton of a lack of judgment in this situation. Her judgment is clear. Hillary Clinton supports organ selling, drug trafficking, genocidal Islamists that revive Waffen SS battalions in return for their support at the ballot box (http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2016/07/emigre-super-bloc-part-4-clintons-jihadis-will-super-delegates-vote-yes-terrorism.html).

According to USA Today (http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/onpolitics/2016/07/26/democratic-convention-isis-trump/87561256/), there were 61 speakers on the first day of the Convention and not one mention of terrorism or terrorist groups.

Does Vice presidential nominee Tim Kaine show better judgment…or at least something recognizable as American policy?

We have a winner! “In 2007, Kaine was the Governor of Virginia and, of all people, chose Muslim American Society (MAS) President Esam Omeish to the state’s Immigration Commission. A Muslim organization against Islamism criticized the appointment and reckless lack of vetting (http://aifdemocracy.org/aifd-statement-on-virginia-commission-on-immigration-controversy/).

Federal prosecutors said in a 2008 court filing that MAS was “founded as the overt arm of the Muslim Brotherhood in America.” A Chicago Tribune investigation (http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/watchdog/chi-0409190261sep19-story.html) in 2004 confirmed it, as well as MAS’ crafty use of deceptive semantics to appear moderate.” Clinton VP Pick Tim Kaine’s Islamist Ties (http://www.breitbart.com/2016-presidential-race/2016/07/23/clinton-vp-pick-tim-kaines-islamist-ties/) Ryan Mauro July 2016

The article goes further to state that he spoke at a dinner that gave a lifetime achievement award to the founding father of the Muslim Brotherhood USA, a terrorist that wants to institute the Islamic Revolution in the United States.

What is nice about this is that Senator Kaine along with Hillary Clinton also share a special relationship to Fetullah Gulen and his many groups. Kaine, who supports the Muslim Brotherhood also supports the Gulen terrorist organization. When even Gulen’s recent past is looked into, aside from the attempted coup, he directly supports groups that have murdered more people than Osama bin Laden.

Gulen groups are known (http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2015/05/lawmakers-who-traveled-to-azerbaijan-urged-action-benefiting-state-oil-company-that-funded-trip/) for greasing (http://turkishinvitations.weebly.com/investing-in-us-politicians.html) the wheel in Congress, and our Congressmen are known (http://thesaker.is/emigre-super-bloc-the-failed-turkish-coup-an-exploded-view/) for protecting the Islamic graft. -Emigre Super Bloc: The Failed Turkish Coup – An Exploded View (http://thesaker.is/emigre-super-bloc-the-failed-turkish-coup-an-exploded-view/) George Eliason

What’s kind of nice is that along with Senator Kaine, the Muslim Brotherhood (http://www.ikhwanweb.com/article.php?id=26761) which then Secretary of State Clinton tried to install in power during the Arab Spring in Yemen, Libya, Egypt, Syria, and so on, also support Gulen.

Gulen on the other hand, supports the US Congress. In stories broken by the Washington Post and USA Today, Gulen’s groups illegally funded over 200 Congressional trips to Turkey. The practice has been stopped as a result of a House ethics panel investigation. One member of the panel recused themselves because of taking trips that Gulen paid for. A couple others that should have did not.

“Craig Holman, government affairs lobbyist at Public Citizen, agreed. “The fact these organizations were sponsoring 100 members of Congress and then suddenly dropping to zero would raise red flags that the organizations themselves or their funders are not supposed to be sponsoring these kinds of trips,” Holman said.” USA Today June 2016 (http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2016/06/21/congress-stops-traveling-to-turkey-ethics-committee-investigation/86134674/)

According to Congressman David Scott from Georgia (https://www.congress.gov/crec/2016/06/09/CREC-2016-06-09-pt1-PgE876.pdf), “In a robust republic, civic organizations such as the Gulen movement cannot and should not be designated as terrorist organizations without evidence for the sake of political expediency.”

The Gulen organization is a finely tuned political machine. When the political donations are looked at they go across the board. Both Democrat and Republican alike are on the graft wagon with this Islamist group. This is not just a Democratic party problem. It’s an American Problem.

“You must move in the arteries of the system without anyone noticing your existence until you reach all the power centers … until the conditions are ripe, they [the followers] must continue like this. If they do something prematurely, the world will crush our heads, and Muslims will suffer everywhere, like in the tragedies in Algeria, like in 1982 Syria … like in the yearly disasters and tragedies in Egypt. The time is not yet right. You must wait for the time when you are complete and conditions are ripe, until we can shoulder the entire world and carry it … You must wait until such time as you have gotten all the state power, until you have brought to your side all the power of the constitutional institutions in Turkey … Until that time, any step taken would be too early—like breaking an egg without waiting the full forty days for it to hatch. It would be like killing the chick inside. The work to be done is [in] confronting the world. Now, I have expressed my feelings and thoughts to you all—in confidence … trusting your loyalty and secrecy. I know that when you leave here—[just] as you discard your empty juice boxes, you must discard the thoughts and the feelings that I expressed here. [I]-Secret Fethullah Gülen Sermon1990 broadcast on Turkish television

Groups like the Muslim Brotherhood and the Gulen groups make inroads because they are not Muslim in character or practice. They are fascist, nationalist, and terrorist.

In the last article segment Fetullah Gulen has been shown to be a terrorist leader. Congressman Scott, now that the proof has been shown, how about revisiting the designation question again?

What are the differences between Osama bin Laden, Hassim Thaci, and Fetullah Gulen? Osama bin Laden was never accused of the organ trade, mafia-like crimes, or bribing Congressmen. Through the emigre groups, the other two not only do the above but sway election results in the USA.

This leads to the conclusion that bin Laden’s great sin was being stingy in the political donation arena. I don’t know for sure but given that the other two have committed greater crimes and he’s dead, it makes you wonder.

Do we really need Fascist Islamist Terrorists having a bigger say in who gets elected to be President of the United States than you do? It’s time to fix the system.

Welcome to Gulen-Gate’ where every terrorist that donates is a winner.

The Saker (http://thesaker.is/gulen-gate-islamic-terrorists-descending-on-the-democratic-national-convention/)

Sophocles

28th July 2016, 18:28

RT: Anti-US rally staged at NATO Incirlik air base in Turkey (VIDEO, PHOTOS (https://www.rt.com/news/353753-turkey-protest-incirlik-base/))

----------------------

You Tube:

#1 Incirlik Turkey protesting against supposed US link to coup attempt
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#2 Incirlik Turkey Protesters have been shouting anti-American and anti-Israel slogans
GycEP-IVXMA

Morbid

29th July 2016, 08:12

the power of 'нет'

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2016-07-28/power-nyet-how-one-word-staggered-imperial-washington

Sophocles

30th July 2016, 08:11

NATO’s War on Russia: Someone Is Playing Us (http://journal-neo.org/2016/07/27/nato-s-war-on-russia-someone-is-playing-us/)

journal-neo.org (http://journal-neo.org/)
Author: Christopher Black
27.07.2016

For 17 months, since the Minsk Agreements were signed in February 2015 to try to bring peace to the eastern Ukraine the Kiev regime, and its neo-Nazi and NATO allies, have been preparing for a new offensive against the east Ukraine republics. On July 22nd the Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin stated in a letter to the UN Security Council that “a relapse of large-scale military operations in eastern Ukraine may bury the process of peace settlement there.” He then called on Kiev’s allies to pressure Kiev to back off its war preparations which include the continuous shelling of civilian areas by Ukraine heavy and medium artillery and constant probing attacks by Ukraine and foreign units over the past spring and summer months.

The commander of the Donetsk Republic forces stated in a communiqué on July 22 that the region along the contact line between the two sides was shelled 3,566 times in one week alone ending on the date of the communiqué and confirmed the information set out in Churkin’s letter and reports of the Organisation For Security Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) that the Kiev regime had transferred more heavy artillery, mortars, tanks, multiple rocket launchers to the front.

The shelling has destroyed civilian housing, a water treatment plant and other infrastructure with the clear objective of forcing out the residents and to prepare the ground for a large scale offensive. Ambassador Churkin added that not only were regular Kiev forces massing in the east but they had also deployed the new-Nazi Azov and Donbas “volunteer” battalions, and that Kiev has begun a wide ranging seizure of land in the neutral zone and the towns located there.

Of course the blame for all these criminal actions by NATO and its marionettes in Kiev is placed on Russia as we have seen set out in both the Atlantic Council Report earlier this year and in the NATO Warsaw Communiqué on July 9th in which NATO put the ultimatum to Russia, “do what we say or you will see what we will do”. The day before Ambassador Churkin sent his letter to the Security Council, the French Foreign Minister, Jean-Marc Ayrault, in a speech at the Centre of Strategic and International Studies stated that the “sanctions”, that is, the economic war being carried out against Russia by the NATO countries, would only stop if Russia did what it was told.

The Germans have also made noises about being prepared to halt this economic warfare against Russia, about how much they regret it and how they desire only peace and harmony, but, again, only if Russia adheres to their demands.

The attacks on the Donbas republic civilian areas are of course war crimes and crimes against humanity to which the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court responds with her practiced silence despite the fact she has accepted two letters from the Kiev regime providing the ICC with jurisdiction to prosecute war crimes committed there. But, of course, neither Kiev, nor their NATO bosses that control the prosecutor of the ICC have any intention of laying war crimes charges against themselves.

The Russian fear of a renewed offensive against the Donbas republics is a real one since the Warsaw Communiqué issued by NATO on July 9th stated emphatically that NATO does not recognise the republics, that Ukraine needs to be reunited by force if necessary, and that Crimea must be returned to Ukraine. The increased military activity in eastern Ukraine is taking place at the same time that there is increased activity in the Baltic centred on the Russian base at Kaliningrad, a strategic objective for NATO in order to control the Baltic sea lanes and air space and the approaches to St. Petersburg. Crimea is an objective because of the Russian naval base at Sevastopol, the seizure of which was one of the primary objectives of the NATO coup that overthrew the government of President Yanukovich. It is the main objective in the on going NATO “Sea Breeze” naval exercise in the Black Sea.

The situation has become increasingly dangerous as the war against Russia is conducted without limits, that is, across all sectors of life from the military and economic to sports. The International Olympic Committee has now banned the core of the Russian Olympic track and field team from competing at the Games, plus any others who have faced doping allegations in the past, an act of collective punishment that is totally unjustified since it is based on the dubious statements of a wanted man in Russia, Grigory Rodchenkov, who is singing for his supper in the United States, and will sing any song they want him to. The whole scandal is motivated not by problems with doping, but by an attempt to further isolate Russia from the world and slander its leadership and people. The result is that the Olympic Games will be a farce both as a sports event and as a symbol of peace in the world and should be cancelled or boycotted.

On top of all this, compelling evidence is daily coming out that the attempted coup against the government of Turkey was instigated by the Americans and its partners in other NATO countries in order to stop President Erdogan from a rapprochement with Russia. The timing alone of the coup indicates that; for it took place just a few days after Erdogan apologised to President Putin regarding the shoot down of the Russian plane, and just after rumours circulated that the would kick the US out of their base at Incirlik and give it to Russia.

The Turkish government has accused the US of being involved at least indirectly by supporting Turkish Islamist émigré elements led by the cleric, Fethullah Gulen, an arch enemy of President Erdogan, who resides in the US and appears, to Erdogan, to be linked to the coup. Stories have also appeared in the Turkish press of the arrest of the two pilots that shot down the Russian plane over Syria, who happen to be, according to the accusations, the same two pilots that attempted to shoot own Erdogan’s plane the night of the coup. It is stated, though not confirmed, in the Turkish press that these two men worked for the CIA.

On Monday July 25th, it was reported in the Turkish press that American General John Campbell, former commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan was central to the planning of the coup and that it was financed with CIA money through meetings at the US base at Incirlik. If these accusations are correct then the attempted coup constitutes act of aggression by the United States and its allies against Turkey, an attack by NATO on a NATO member.

The British on the same day floated a story in the Daly Express that their special forces, the SAS, are ready to go into to Turkey to “rescue UK citizens” in the event of a second coup attempt and predicted civil war in Turkey of there is a second coup attempt. They stated,

“With fears rebels could be about to try to overthrow the government for a second time, which is likely to result in a Turkish civil war, troops have moved into neighbouring Cyprus and are preparing a rescue mission to save stranded Britons.

Defence chiefs have drawn up emergency plans and fully armed soldiers, together with members of the Special Forces Support Group, are ready to fly into areas popular with tourists and help families get home safely.

Hundreds of jets, helicopters and other aircraft will be drafted in to help the estimated 50,000 Brits flee the danger. “

This means that Britain as well as the US are prepared to help a second coup attempt against Erdogan and further confirms their involvement in the first coup attempt, as does the reported refusal of the Germans to allow Erdogan’s plane to enter German air space to seek refuge when it appeared he had been overthrown. That decision turned out to be a mistake as he quickly recovered his wits, returned to Turkey and broke the coup.

However this turns out, the principal target remains Russia. Erdogan’s rapprochement with Russia and falling out with NATO weakens NATO in its war against Russia and provides Russia with another card to play, even if it may be the Joker.

Meanwhile in the United States the war against Russia has become a dangerous internal political issue as the Clinton camp accuses Donald Trump of being a Russian agent and his campaign financed by Russian money, essentially accusing Trump of treason. Trump laughs all this off but the fact that these absurdities can even get the attention of the news media shows how desperate things are. The New York Times columnist Andrew Rosenthal wrote a column on the 25th of July with the title “Is Donald Trump Putin’s Puppet” then proceeded to state that he was Putin’s pet poodle at the least.

But things get even more curious as the FBI states it is investigating whether emails “leaked” by Julian Assange’s WikiLeaks organisation, were provided to him by Russia after Russia hacked into the email system of the Democratic National Convention. The Russians deny this absurd charge but so far I have not seen Julian Assange deny that they are his source and we must wonder what his true motivations are if the effect of his “leak” is to have Russia accused of hacking into US government and political party email systems thereby supporting the NATO propaganda against Russia.

It also begs the question as to why Assange would get involved in American party politics at all by publishing emails that would supposedly damage the Clinton campaign for the benefit of the Trump campaign. Is he working for Trump? Is he working for Clinton trying to make it look like Trump works for Russia, or, as is more likely, is he working for those who want to bring down both Trump and Russia? Andrew Rosenthal for the Times, quipped, “it’s eerie, at best, that Julian Assange’s WikiLeaks chose this moment to release the stolen emails…”

But it is not so “eerie” if the exercise is meant to smear Russia and a candidate for President who is willing to at least talk with the Russians. Perhaps his supporters can ask him and report back what his answer is because his actions raise serious questions as to his motivations, his intentions, and his connections. Someone is playing us. It’s about time we found out who.

Christopher Black is an international criminal lawyer based in Toronto, he is a member of the Law Society of Upper Canada and he is known for a number of high-profile cases involving human rights and war crimes, especially for the online magazine “New Eastern Outlook (http://journal-neo.org/).”

Sophocles

30th July 2016, 10:29

Erdogan’s counter-coup weakens the Syrian rebels (http://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21702570-arrests-senior-officers-and-look-inward-turkey-mean-setbacks-rebels)

Arrests of senior officers and a look inward in Turkey mean setbacks for rebels in Syria.

economist.com
Jul 24th 2016

http://cdn.static-economist.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/full-width/images/2016/07/articles/main/20160723_map506.jpg

SYRIAN rebels looking to the heavens for salvation have grown used to seeing Russian incendiary and Syrian barrel-bombs raining down instead. But at least they could count on succour and sustenance from across the Turkish border. After the aborted coup against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, that seems in doubt.

The commander of the second army, who is entrusted with securing Turkey’s southern borders, is in prison, says a veteran Turkish commentator. So too are most of the commanders of combat units on Syria’s border. (They are among more than 100 generals and admirals and 9,000 security personnel arrested since the coup attempt.) As Mr Erdogan focuses on the enemy within, he has tried to batten down what hatches he can, periodically closing the Bab al-Hawa border crossing, hitherto the prime supply route to Syria’s Sunni opposition-held territory. “We’re seeing a more inward-looking, introverted posture,” says the commentator. “The military’s ability to project Turkey’s power regionally has been undermined.”

The downturn in Turkey’s relations with America, which harbours Fethullah Gulen, whom Mr Erdogan accuses of masterminding the coup, also fractures the external alliance backing Syria’s rebels. Irked by America’s sanctuary for Mr Gulen, Mr Erdogan temporarily cut electricity to Incirlik, a large air base, interrupting the American-led bombardment of Islamic State. The private American companies based near Turkey’s borders with Syria that are contracted to extend non-lethal support to Syrian rebels wonder whether they too might be swept into the fray. Both Turkey and America, for separate reasons, now appear to be hedging their bets on the war’s outcome. Both are seeking a working relationship with Russia, the prime sponsor of Bashar al-Assad, the Syrian president whom the rebels had vowed to overthrow. “We’ve staked everything on changing the regime,” says a glum spokesman of the Free Syrian Army, the umbrella group holding Eastern Aleppo, the largest urban centre still in opposition hands. “Instead everything has changed but the regime.”

Even as international support for the rebels recedes, external support for the regime is strengthening. Russia continues to command the skies, despite pledges to withdraw. Iran and its satellites, which include the southern Lebanese militia, Hizbullah, prop up the regime’s exhausted troops on the ground. Two days after Turkey’s military establishment launched its coup, forces allied to the Syrian government established positions on Castello Road, the last supply road into Eastern Aleppo, imposing a full siege on the opposition enclave. Four more field hospitals and a blood bank were struck from the air on July 23rd. “Where are your red lines, Mr Erdogan?” asks an exiled Syrian politician in Gaziantep, Turkey’s gateway to Syria. “It seems Turkey no longer has a long-term strategy in Syria.”

By contrast, regime forces cheer Turkey’s mayhem. In Damascus soldiers at government checkpoints greeted news of the coup with bursts of celebratory gunfire. In the almost ten months since Russia launched its aerial bombardment in support of Mr Assad, Syrian rebels have lost between half and a third of their territory, says a Syrian opposition official in southern Turkey. South of Damascus Mr Assad’s forces have captured the farmland around Daraya, starving its population and bringing its fighters to the verge of defeat after nearly four years of siege. In Ghouta, another Damascus suburb where rebels are also losing territory, the regime is offering to bus rebels to safety if they surrender. It now appears to be applying the same tactics to eastern Aleppo after a counter-attack, in which some 200 rebels were killed, failed to reopen the road. UN agencies expect some food stocks to begin to run out after a month. The city’s plight, says a Red Cross official, is “devastating and overwhelming”.

Some still hope for a reversal of fortunes. Aleppo’s fighters say they have long anticipated a siege and built up supplies. Aided by Jabhat al-Nusra, an al-Qaeda affiliate, they suggest they could cut the road to regime-held Western Aleppo and impose a siege of their own. (Though the regime-held west hosts the bulk of the city’s remaining 1.4m people, students fleeing Syria’s former economic hub to Turkey say it suffers from collapsed services, and has no running water or electricity.) A few rebels argue that as part of his counter-coup Mr Erdogan might yet project his Sunni triumphalism abroad and come to their rescue. But among exiled leaders in Gaziantep and the Americans co-ordinating their logistical backup, the mood is one of despondency. “It’s game over [for Syria’s rebels] already,” says one.

Source (http://www.economist.com/news/middle-east-and-africa/21702570-arrests-senior-officers-and-look-inward-turkey-mean-setbacks-rebels)

---------------------------------------------------------

Russia wants EU gas pipe inroads backing Nord Stream (https://www.neweurope.eu/article/moving-closer-together-putin-erdogan-push-turkish-stream/)

By Kostis Geropoulos
Energy & Russian Affairs Editor, New Europe (https://www.neweurope.eu/)
Published 15:09 July 29, 2016

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on July 29 Moscow and Ankara are discussing the Turkish Stream gas pipeline. “In general, we are currently talking about the construction of two lines. The second line is for southwestern European consumers which can also be laid under the Black Sea and routed through Turkey,” Rossiya-24 quoted Novak as saying.

On July 26, Russian news agencies quoted Turkish Economy Minister Nihat Zeybekci as saying a political decision has been taken to continue work on Turkish Stream and the Akkuyu nuclear power plant in Turkey. Zeybekci said Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, would “give the final impetus” to Turkish Stream in St Petersburg on August 9. The meeting will be the first since Russia and Turkey began normalising relations following the downing of a Russian warplane in November last year.

Turkey’s Deputy Prime Minister Mehmet Simsek has reportedly said Moscow and Ankara want to normalise relations as quickly as possible. In June, Erdogan wrote to Putin in a bid to normalise relations and the two leaders held a telephone conversation soon after that.

Chris Weafer, a senior adviser at Macro-Advisory in Moscow, told New Europe on June 28 it is reasonable to assume that Putin was just as keen to make peace with Turkey, as was Erdogan.

“President Putin wants to build a new southern route gas pipe into Europe to compliment Nord Stream 1 and 2. South Stream has proven to be too problematic because of Brussels and the Russians don’t seem keen to want to engage with them on this issue any longer. Turkish Stream is the only other alternative and I believe that Putin is very keen to build that pipe before competition from other areas, such as LNG [liquefied natural gas] or pipelines from Central Asia and Iran are more available,” Weafer said.

“Building the pipe across Turkey would also have the added advantage of blocking other competing pipes. Putin seems to take the view that once you have a pipeline in place you then only ever argue over price; you already have the customer locked in,” he said.

Turkish Stream would also be a big revenue earner for Turkey and could possibly open up the possibility of building the delayed Samsun-Ceyhan oil pipeline, which was planned to ease congestion in the Bosporus, and also draw Turkey closer to improving trade and investment in the Eurasia Economic Union, Weafer said.

Turning to other reasons Putin and Erdogan are keen to normalise relations, Weafer noted that more than any other action since early 2014, the cancelling of holiday flights to Turkey caused a great deal of unhappiness and resentment amongst Russian people. “It seems that the 25% food price inflation (winter 2014) or the ruble collapse were accepted as collateral damage from the weak oil price and sanctions while cancelling holidays is in an entirely different league. Russia people really like Turkish holiday resorts for price, convenience and service. This is election year after all,” Weafer said.

Moreover, Turkish companies are already big investors in Russia and are very important in some sectors such as construction. “Russia also managed to substitute a lot of food, which was blocked from Europe as a result of sanctions from or via Turkey. So the Turkish dispute risked inflation pressure in the autumn and winter or even some shortages again,” Weafer said.

Finally, the Moscow-based expert said that it is clear that some sort of lasting settlement in Syria is impossible without Turkey being involved. “Given that Russia has no intention of fully withdrawing from the region, e.g. it’s only Mediterranean naval base is in Syria, then for even purely pragmatic reasons both governments needed to re-engage,” Weafer said.

Source (https://www.neweurope.eu/article/moving-closer-together-putin-erdogan-push-turkish-stream/)

ThePythonicCow

30th July 2016, 11:33

NATO’s War on Russia: Someone Is Playing Us (http://journal-neo.org/2016/07/27/nato-s-war-on-russia-someone-is-playing-us/)

journal-neo.org (http://journal-neo.org/)
Author: Christopher Black
27.07.2016

For 17 months, ...
There is a lot in this NEO (New Eastern Outlook (http://journal-neo.org/)) article by Christopher Black, which if more or less accurate, is quite damning of the American/CIA/Neocon/NATO/... efforts to cause war and havoc in eastern Europe and the Middle East.

My hunch is that it is mostly accurate.

TODD & NORA

30th July 2016, 14:45

..........

Hervé

30th July 2016, 18:57

French General Calls for NATO's Liquidation & Anti-Terror Alliance With Russia (http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160730/1043791252/pinatel-nato-russia-terror-commentary.html)

Sputnik (http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160730/1043791252/pinatel-nato-russia-terror-commentary.html)
Sat, 30 Jul 2016 18:14 UTC
(updated 20:35 30.07.2016)

https://www.sott.net/image/s16/334303/large/1037233124.jpg (https://www.sott.net/image/s16/334303/full/1037233124.jpg)
© REUTERS/ PHILIPPE WOJAZER

NATO's present format and the alliance's continuing expansion eastward is beneficial only to the United States, which seeks to keep Russia and Europe at odds, says retired French Army General Jean-Bernard Pinatel. Accordingly, he suggests the alliance be liquidated or 'Europeanized', and the creation of a European-Russian alliance against terror.

Interviewed by Le Figaro (http://www.lefigaro.fr/vox/monde/2016/07/29/31002-20160729ARTFIG00235-general-pinatel-contre-l-islamisme-s-allier-a-la-russie-et-faire-disparaitre-l-otan.php?redirect_premium), Pinatel, a retired officer who now works as an expert in geopolitics and economic intelligence, recalled that if Russia and the European countries had succeeded in forming an alliance in the 1990s, following the collapse of the Soviet Union, they would have been able to effectively challenge US pretentions to global hegemony.

Now, the retired general emphasized, the threat of radical Islamist terrorism has once against opened a discussion on global leadership, and whether the US truly deserves its hegemonic position in Europe. According to Pinatel, the spate of attacks in Europe has clearly demonstrated to the French, and to other NATO members, that the US-led alliance is helpless in the struggle against the terrorist threat.

http://cdn2.img.sputniknews.com/images/103367/28/1033672843.jpg
© Sputnik/ Vladimir Sergeev Anti-Russia Sanctions Inadequate, Aim at ‘Wrong Enemy' - French Lawmaker (http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160730/1043788962/russia-myard-sanctions.html)

Moreover, against the background of NATO's ineffectiveness is the example being set by Moscow, which, according to the expert, is once again forcing the French to consider an alliance with their eastern neighbor. "This evidence, obtained at the cost of 234 civilians killed and 671 wounded since 2012, should not only jolt NATO, but lead to its total liquidation, or its full Europeanization, since the current policy of the alliance serves only interests which are not those of France," Pinatel noted.

The general also recalled that Russia has repeatedly proposed cooperation with the United States in a coordinated campaign in Syria against Daesh and the Nusra Front terrorists, but has been refused, under the pretext that the so-called 'moderate opposition' still had potential.

As a result, he noted, the Middle East is witnessing the formation of a new equilibrium. "Russia, which has always been present in the region historically, is returning there once again. China, for the first time, is also actively poking its nose in the region. And only France, having once been privileged with the position of mediator, has lost everything under the patronage of the United States."

http://cdn3.img.sputniknews.com/images/104360/18/1043601829.jpg
© REUTERS/ Ian Langsdon/Pool French Media Push Hollande to 'Join Hands With Russia' to Tackle Radicalism (http://sputniknews.com/europe/20160725/1043601600/french-media-russia-cooperation.html)

The officer emphasized that he believes that Russian and French geostrategic and economic interests are "completely complementary" to one another, and that the history of the two countries has shown periods of fruitful cooperation and friendship, most recently during the Second World War. Ultimately, "the US desire to return the atmosphere of the Cold War to Europe is being carried out through NATO, and serves the interests of the Americans, as well as incompetent and corrupt European leaders," not those of the European people, Pinatel concluded.

Hervé

31st July 2016, 14:16

[...]

Russia wants EU gas pipe inroads backing Nord Stream (https://www.neweurope.eu/article/moving-closer-together-putin-erdogan-push-turkish-stream/)

By Kostis Geropoulos
Energy & Russian Affairs Editor, New Europe (https://www.neweurope.eu/)
Published 15:09 July 29, 2016

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on July 29 Moscow and Ankara are discussing the Turkish Stream gas pipeline. “In general, we are currently talking about the construction of two lines. The second line is for southwestern European consumers which can also be laid under the Black Sea and routed through Turkey,” Rossiya-24 quoted Novak as saying.
[...]

Here is what's at stake (from post # 878 (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?69621-Ukraine-Crimea-Syria-Israel-Iran-Putin-and-World-War-III&p=1024075&viewfull=1#post1024075)):

Here we go:

What I outlined in post # 871 (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?69621-Ukraine-Crimea-Syria-Israel-Iran-Putin-and-World-War-III&p=1023578&viewfull=1#post1023578) (also follow links to original posts) seems to finally see the light of day with Europe being stuck to Us policies via IMF pressures making Bulgaria drag their feet to give an OK for the South Stream pipeline route; then Ukraine becoming unstable on top of economical sanctions and, now Turkey being out of question for the last solution for Russian oil and gas to be distributed to Europe.

So, Europe is now cornered for energy resources unless Russia manages to keep Syria as an ally and Europe quits wanting Bashar Al Assad out of the picture:

Impacts of Turkey’s Aggression against Russia. The “Turkish Stream” is Dead. Disruption of Gas Pipeline Routes to the EU. Russia’s Economy in Crisis? (http://www.globalresearch.ca/impacts-of-turkeys-aggression-the-turkish-stream-is-dead-disruption-of-gas-pipeline-routes-to-the-eu-russias-economy-in-crisis/5491756)

By Prof Michel Chossudovsky (http://www.globalresearch.ca/author/michel-chossudovsky)
Global Research, November 27, 2015

http://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/erdogan-poutine.jpg

“Regime change” in Ukraine engineered by the US State Department was largely responsible for the collapse of the “South Stream” gas pipeline project. Washington’s intent was to establish a de facto blockade which would prevent the flow of Russian gas to the European Union.

“The South Stream gas pipeline worth €15.5 billion was intended to pump 67 billion cubic meters of Russian natural gas to Europe annually.

The pipeline’s underwater section 900 km (559 miles) long was intended to run along the bed of the Black Sea from the Russkaya compressor station on the Russian shore to the Bulgarian coast.” (TASS, January 14, 2015)

On December 1, 2014, President Vladimir Putin announced that the project to build the South Stream gas pipeline “was closed due to the European Union’s unconstructive approach to cooperation, including Bulgaria’s decision [pressured by the US] to stop the construction of the pipeline’s stretch on its territory.”

http://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/south-stream-map-en-1024x502.jpg (http://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/south-stream-map-en.jpg)
South Stream Pipeline Route Options, source TASS

The South Stream was replaced by the “Turkish Stream”. The scrapping of the South Stream was coupled with the signing in Ankara of a historic December 2014 deal between presidents Vladimir Putin and Recyyp Erdogan.

Under the Russian-Turkish agreement pertaining to gas pipeline routes, Turkey was slated to become a major hub and transit route for the export of Russian natural gas to both Southern and Western Europe.

Russia’s Gazprom in a historical announcement by CEO Alexey Miller in January 2015 confirmed that: The Turkish Stream gas pipeline project was considered “the sole route for Russia’s future supplies of 63 billion cubic meters of natural gas to Western Europe… The Gazprom head made this statement in response to a question about the fate of Russia’s South Stream gas pipeline project.” (Tass, January 14, 2015)

http://www.sott.net/image/s14/284940/large/Screen_Shot_2015_11_26_at_17_4.png

“The [South Stream] project is closed. The Turkish Stream is the sole route, which can deliver 63 billion cubic meters of Russian natural gas. … There are no other options,” Miller said. (Ibid)

http://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Screen-Shot-2015-11-26-at-18.46.04-1024x926.png (http://www.globalresearch.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/Screen-Shot-2015-11-26-at-18.46.04.png)

November 24 2015: Turkey’s Act of Aggression against Russia marks the Disruption of the Turkish Stream Project

Back in January, the Moscow-Ankara deal was considered to be a slap in the face for Washington. Today, the Turkish Stream (sponsored by Moscow) is in jeopardy.

The downing of the SU-24 plane engineered by US-NATO has contributed to destabilizing the Russia-Turkey deal. It was by not means the only objective.

In January following the abandonment of the South Stream, the Turkish pipeline was announced as the “sole route”.

What next?
Following the downing of Russia’s SU-24 plane and the collapse of diplomatic relations between Moscow and Ankara, that “sole route” is no longer there, leading not only to a potential crisis in the supply of natural gas to the European Union, but also a major blow to Russia’s national economy, which depends heavily on the energy sector.

From the point of view of Washington, Wall Street and the Pentagon: “War is good for business”.

The original source of this article is Global Research

Turkish Stream Falls Under Russia's Restrictive Measures Against Turkey (http://sputniknews.com/world/20151126/1030796887/turkish-stream-russia.html)
[...]

==============================================

[...]

http://www.sott.net/image/s10/218114/full/gazprom_3.jpg

NATO Orders Stool-Pigeon Turkey to Shoot Down Russian Jet (http://www.sott.net/article/307145-NATO-Orders-Stool-Pigeon-Turkey-to-Shoot-Down-Russian-Jet#)

Joe Quinn Sott.net (http://www.sott.net/article/307145-NATO-Orders-Stool-Pigeon-Turkey-to-Shoot-Down-Russian-Jet#) Wed, 25 Nov 2015 13:38 UTC

http://www.sott.net/image/s14/284243/full/gas_line_qatar.jpg
[...]

Anyone still wondering why the troubles in Libya, Syria, Ukraine and now Turkey?

Sophocles

4th August 2016, 06:30

Kiev mayor approves city council decision to rename Moscow Avenue after nationalist Bandera

Kiev Mayor Vitaly Klitschko (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitali_Klitschko) on Wednesday signed a decision by the city council to rename Moscow Avenue after Ukrainian nationalist Stepan Bandera, RIA Novosti reports. Russian Foreign Ministry Envoy for Human Rights, Democracy and the Supremacy of Law Konstantin Dolgov earlier described Kiev deputies’ decision taken on July 7 as “a direct insult to the memory of all those who died in the fight against Nazism and fascism with its local accomplices.”

https://www.rt.com/news/line/ (15:57 GMT)

Hervé

4th August 2016, 13:19

[...]
Here is what's at stake (from post # 878 (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?69621-Ukraine-Crimea-Syria-Israel-Iran-Putin-and-World-War-III&p=1024075&viewfull=1#post1024075)):

[...]Anyone still wondering why the troubles in Libya, Syria, Ukraine and now Turkey?

And now for the real reason they want Bashar al-Assad out of the picture:

10 Facts the Mainstream Media Won’t Tell You About the War in Syria (http://theantimedia.org/10-facts-war-syria/)

August 3, 2016 | Darius Shahtahmasebi

(ANTIMEDIA (http://theantimedia.org/)) Corporate media regularly attempts to present Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria as solely responsible (https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/jul/31/forces-aleppo-mourns-terror-assad-victims-syrian-anger-isis) for the ongoing conflict in the region. The media does report on events that contradict this narrative — albeit sparingly — but taken together, these under-reported details shine a new light on the conflict.

[...]

3: Turkey, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia wanted to build a pipeline through Syria, but Assad rejected it
In 2009, Qatar proposed (http://armedforcesjournal.com/pipeline-politics-in-syria/) a pipeline to run through Syria and Turkey to export Saudi gas. Assad rejected the proposal and instead formed an agreement with Iran and Iraq to construct a pipeline to the European market that would cut Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar out of the route entirely. Since, Turkey, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia have been staunch backers (http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/24/world/middleeast/us-relies-heavily-on-saudi-money-to-support-syrian-rebels.html)of the opposition seeking to topple Assad. Collectively, they have invested billions of dollars (http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/24/world/middleeast/us-relies-heavily-on-saudi-money-to-support-syrian-rebels.html), lent weapons (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/qatar/11110931/How-Qatar-is-funding-the-rise-of-Islamist-extremists.html), encouraged the spread of fanatical ideology (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-yousaf-butt-/saudi-wahhabism-islam-terrorism_b_6501916.html), and helped smuggle fighters (http://www.express.co.uk/news/world/670764/Islamic-State-terrorists-shipped-Turkey-treatment) across their borders.

The Iran-Iraq pipeline will strengthen Iranian influence in the region and undermine their rival, Saudi Arabia — the other main (http://www.opec.org/opec_web/en/about_us/169.htm) OPEC producer. Given the ability to transport gas to Europe without going through Washington’s allies, Iran will hold the upper-hand and will be able to negotiate agreements that exclude the U.S. dollar completely.

[...]

Full article: http://theantimedia.org/10-facts-war-syria/
===========================================

That's the BIG PICTURE... ain't it disappointing!? Yet it is deemed worth a few million deads...

norman

4th August 2016, 15:25

That's the BIG PICTURE... ain't it disappointing!? Yet it is deemed worth a few million deads...

The big picture must be a jigsaw puzzle, then.

The piece I'm looking at shows the middle east as deliberately set-alight to then burn down Europe, and threaten Europe with butchery of the population just as the global economic switcheroo happens soon.

Hervé

4th August 2016, 16:01

[...]
The big picture must be a jigsaw puzzle, then.
[...]

Once one finds the central core piece, then the other vested interests are grafted onto it as in:

You never let a serious crisis go to waste. And what I mean by that it's an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before.

- Rahm EmanuelIt's like insider tradings with the "deciders (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?91903-Military-coup-in-Turkey-coup-attempt-by-part-of-army-fizzled&p=1085590&viewfull=1#post1085590)" telling the buddies of their elite club (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?91903-Military-coup-in-Turkey-coup-attempt-by-part-of-army-fizzled&p=1083643&viewfull=1#post1083643): "Look, this is what we want (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?91903-Military-coup-in-Turkey-coup-attempt-by-part-of-army-fizzled&p=1085347&viewfull=1#post1085347) and what we gonna do to get it; up to you to take advantage of it..."... and it goes out like wildfires with "ideas" on how to make a profit for multinational corporations, etc...

PS: as For an idea on the "big" picture (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?25102-For-an-idea-on-the-big-picture) (<--- click)

Sophocles

5th August 2016, 13:46

Hezbollah Leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah says Saudi Arabia's Wahhabi culture behind world terrorism - English Subs (7/29/16)

cbpGDItZ00A

(The Saker (http://thesaker.is/hezbollah-leader-says-saudi-arabias-wahhabi-culture-behind-world-terrorism/))

Subtitles from YT:

What happened in Aleppo is of very high importance. Its importance is not only tied to the Syrian crisis, but also to the regional situation, (and) to regional equations, and to regional projects, and to dreams of (forming) a regional empire.

What was downed a few days ago in Aleppo was the dreams and projects of (forming) a regional empire. (It was downed) by the steadfastness of the resistance movements, and the steadfastness of these nations, and by increase of awareness. Awareness in the region and the world.
Does this (Saudi) minister and his rulers, kings, and princes, think that they can go on fooling world nations and world public opinion?

Isn`t the world beginning to clearly uncover that the one who slaughters an 80-year-old priest in a church, that although he is a product of Daesh (ISIS), yet his culture comes from you? (Or) the ones who charges in Nice and butcher people; and the one who kills in Germany and does not care who he is killing -whether Muslim or Christian- as long as he is killing people; and the one who blows himself up in a protest that is calling for electricity in Kabul, (a protest) that has nothing to do with politics, killing 80 people and leaving 250 injured; or the one who commits a crime as grave as the crime of Karrada of Baghdad, 300 martyrs in one instance, men, women, young and bold, (all) burnt (to ashes); or the one who slaughters the Palestinian child in Aleppo. The whole world knows that this is your Wahhabi culture, and that these are (products of) your schools, and that these are (products of) your educational curriculums, and (products of) your sheiks, your media, and your television channels, all of which do «takfir» (label others as infidels and kill them)! Your product does not have a future.

Saudia Arabia and its rulers are before an opportunity, to go back and rethink their whole policy project in the region. As long as the Yemenis are saying, «we are ready to negotiate», and (as long as) the Bahrainis are ready to negotiate, and the Syrians, Iraqis, Iranians, and others, then come negotiate. Do not be arrogant, do not be overtaken by pride, and put aside hate.

You have an opportunity to be a partner in resolving the situation in the region, and (then) you will receive a share. That you be partners, and (then) you will receive a share. However, if you insist on comtinuing on this path and these wars, then with full confidence, certainty, and faith I tell you that you will be defeated! The project of the House of Saud in the region will be defeated, and it will be covered with disgrace! That is if there still remains thereafter a regime called the regime of the House of Saud.

Hezbollah Leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on who created Daesh (ISIS) - English Subtitles (6/5/15)

-mQ7e-xuV3I

Subtiles from YT:

What is strange is that from over one year ago, meaning when Daesh first appeared, it appeared in Mosul -of course it hadn`t controlled Mosul completely but it had a presence in Iraq- because the birth place of Daesh is Iraq.

It was named the Islamic State of Iraq, it then developed after entering Syria, seizing Raqqa, and parts of the province of Deir Ezzour and Hasaka etc., it was then named the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, so it was abbreviated by some journalists and opponents as «Daesh».

But Daesh began in Iraq. From that time, there was a debate: Daesh is a product of whom? When the situation in Syria developed, this talk escalated.
For example, because we are in a time of very great media and political deception, I am forced to address it a bit, because we saw something along these lines even in the last few days and weeks. That is, when a suicide bomber blew himself up in one of the mosques of the Shia Muslims in the town of Qudaih, in the region of Qatif, Saudi Arabia, and thereafter, when another (suicide) bomb occurred on the doors of a mosque, where brave youth stood in the (suicide bomber`s) way, leading to the martyrdom of some of them, God bless them, there was a lot of talk in the media within Saudi Arabia, the Gulf, Lebanon, and the region, putting forth accusations that the one who is behind Daesh is Iran.

Imagine this...now you are a rational person, and someone is speaking to you. Look at what age we are in. The Islamic Republic of Iran, which is wrongly accused of (pursuing a project to turn Sunnis into Shias), and which is wrongly accused of not caring about anyone in the Islamic world but the Shias, and which is accused of everything related to Shias and propagating Shiism, then you get (people saying): the one behind Daesh is Iran, Iran moves Daesh, and Iran sent Daesh (militants) to Shia mosques in Qatif or Dammam, in order to blow them up, so that Shia in Qatif, Ihsa, and Dammam angrily rise up against the Saudi regime, holding protests that lead to mischief and strife etc.

Wow, what a great analysis.

Of course, talk that is not based on any evidence or proof, rather, it goes against the mind, logic and all issues.
The same thing in Iraq and Syria: who established Daesh?

Imagine, the one who established Daesh according to some of these «great» (thinkers), was President Bashar al-Assad. He brought Daesh, and gave it Raqqa, and gave it portions of Deir Ezzour and Hasaka, and sent it to the outskirts of northern Alleppo, because President Bashar al-Assad wants Daesh to deal a blow to the national Syrian opposition that threatens the regime.
If someone wanted to produce a Hollywood film, he still wouldn`t come up with this (scenario).
Imagine this -and likewise in Iraq, but let`s not give too many examples.

I even read in some articles, on the question of how Daesh was established...it`s okay, you can laugh a bit, we are in mixed days of happiness and sadness. (The articles) said that a trilateral meeting occured between Iran, Syria, and Hezbollah, and that I was present in the meeting, and that the idea of establishing Daesh, in order to strike a blow to the Nusra Front and ther Syrian opposition, was my idea. I swear this idea wouldn`t cross my mind even during my sleep. This talk is absurd...absurd.

Then they theorise about it, and write articles, books, and media outlets are employed (in order to spread it), using logic along the lines of: «The sun is out, therefore you must be at home sleeping.» What does the sun being out have to do with you being at home sleeping? What is the connection between the two? Like that, proofs of such kind. Premises that have nothing to do with the conclusions.

However, in order to clarify, in order to remind, although this is a clear, simple, well-known issue:

Daesh, which means the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, war originally the Al-Qaeda organisation in Iraq, it was the Al-Qaeda organisation in Iraq which was lead by Abu something al-Muhaajir, Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, and Abu something something, they succeded each other in the leadership of the Al-Qaeda organisation in Iraq. It is the Al-Qaeda organisation`s branch in Iraq.

It was the Al-Qaeda organisation up until about one year and a bit ago, it had a (binding) allegiance to Osama bin Laden, and after that to Ayman al-Zawahiri, and the whole world knows this group`s leaders, ideology, establishment, roots, (foreign) branches, (source of) funding, ties -everything is known.

After that, when they disagreed over Syria, over whether Syria ought to be part of the emirate of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, or a separate emirate led by Ayman al-Zawahiri, the man (Baghdadi) rebelled, relinquished his pledge of allegiance, declared himself an emir and thereafter a Caliph.

Therefore, in all clarity, Daesh was originally the Al-Qaeda organisation, it split from the Al-Qaeda organisation due to an issue related to the leadership of the Syrian arena and (the issue of) allegiance. Okay, if Daesh was Al-Qaeda, who in the world does not know who established Al-Qaeda, was it established by Iran, or President Bashar al-Assad, or Hezbollah, or whom?

The whole world knows that the one who established Al-Qaeda was the American Central Intelligence (CIA), meaning America, and the Saudi intelligence, meaning Saudi Arabia, and the Pakistani intelligence. And this (fact) is present in books, works of writing, and documents from around the world.

It was formed in Afghanistan to fight the Soviets, and then it turned on those who established it, because snakes (act) like that.

Okay, this is Daesh, this is how it originated. Is this what you want to know?

If we are in need today, whether myself or others, we are required to allocated parts of our speeches to remind people of those things which are self-evident, and that Daesh is Al-Qaeda, and that its origin is Al-Qaeda, it was as such merely one year (and a bit) ago it had allegiance to Al-Qaeda, and then they differed over leadership. And nothing changed, only that rather than its emir being Ayman al-Zawahiri, its emir is now Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. That`s it.

What does Iran have to do with it, or President Bashar al-Assad, or Hezbollah, or others?

Yes, regarding the argument «okay, how did (Daesh) seize Raqqa, how did they seize Mosul». Well, this is an open conflict, and in any regime, you may find a military commander in a particular region that is a traitor, or a security official in a particular region who is a traitor, or a coward, or he became scared, or he miscalculated -there are regions that fell. In Iraq there are areas that fell -from the beginning of the developments there- and there are regions that fell in Syria.

However, does this mean that the regime, or Iran, or the Iraqi government, they established Daesh and gave it regions, and told it to go ahead and threaten the whole world? I believe that even children, if you explain to them some of the self-evident facts, they would not accept this assessment.

Daehs is of American origins -and there is a US admission to this- of American, Saudi, Pakistani origins, of course there are some Gulf states who gave it huge resources from the beginning, it later became Daesh, after it rebelled against its mother and father (Al-Qaeda), and it began to have (its own) project and it is now being exploited, protected, financed, its oil and gas is being bought and sold, and its movement of human resources is being facilitated, and it is being used in the current regional conflict.

Therefore, I hope that no one tries to confuse (people) in identifying and knowing the enemy.

The ones who are truly fighting Daesh in this region, with firmness and seriousness, are the ones being accused of establishing and steering Daesh, meaning the Islamic Republic of Iran, the brothers in Iraq, the brothers in Syria, us and those who are with us in Lebanon. These are the ones fighting Daesh.

As for the others, they are helping it via media (support), sell its oil and gas, provide it with funds, open up their borders so that fighters from all over the world can come to it.

So always there is a twisting truth.

Hervé

6th August 2016, 13:48

[...]

Once one finds the central core piece, then the other vested interests are grafted onto it as in:

You never let a serious crisis go to waste. And what I mean by that it's an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before.

- Rahm EmanuelIt's like insider tradings with the "deciders (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?91903-Military-coup-in-Turkey-coup-attempt-by-part-of-army-fizzled&p=1085590&viewfull=1#post1085590)" telling the buddies of their elite club (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?91903-Military-coup-in-Turkey-coup-attempt-by-part-of-army-fizzled&p=1083643&viewfull=1#post1083643): "Look, this is what we want (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?91903-Military-coup-in-Turkey-coup-attempt-by-part-of-army-fizzled&p=1085347&viewfull=1#post1085347) and what we gonna do to get it; up to you to take advantage of it..."... and it goes out like wildfires with "ideas" on how to make a profit for multinational corporations, etc...

PS: as For an idea on the "big" picture (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?25102-For-an-idea-on-the-big-picture) (<--- click)

Going along the "For an idea on the "big" picture (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?25102-For-an-idea-on-the-big-picture)" , there is this comprehensive article on VT:

Who Rules the Anglosphere? (http://www.veteranstoday.com/2016/08/05/who-rules-the-anglosphere/)

By Moti Nissani (http://www.veteranstoday.com/author/moti/) on August 5, 2016

America’s real rulers have access to immense fortunes, operate behind the scenes, and enjoy near-absolute power

“[The Controllers of the Invisible Government] would continue to grow in strength, until they had the whole silly world, the whole credulous world, the whole ingenuous world, in their hands. Anyone who would challenge them, attempt to expose them, show them unconcealed and naked, would be murdered, laughed at, called mad, ignored, or denounced as a fantasy-weaver.” — Taylor Caldwell, Captains and the Kings, 1972

http://www.veteranstoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/invisible_government_by_garveate-TRoosevelt-768x584-1-640x487.png

The Controllers

This article argues that the five major countries of the Anglosphere — Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the UK, and the US — are governed behind the scenes by a coterie. This coterie shapes historical events, accounts for the near-uniformity of these five countries’ political developments, and enjoys partial or full control of most nations of the world. As far as we can guess, this coterie is comprised of a few banking families and their allies and subordinates in the information, corporate, military, intelligence, secret society, and “religious” worlds.

This coterie and its members go by such names as the deep state, One Bank (http://www.veteranstoday.com/2016/07/05/the-mystery-of-the-one-bank-its-owners-jeff-nielson/), bankers (http://www.cjournal.info/2015/10/08/people-versus-the-banks/), oligarchs, Directors (http://survivingcapitalism.blogspot.com/), Men in the Shadows (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j3YcZ233MIs), Owners, or Princes of Power (http://chinarising.puntopress.com/china-rising-the-book/). In this series, I shall refer to the entity itself as the Invisible Government and, following Aldous Huxley (http://www.idph.com.br/conteudos/ebooks/BraveNewWorld.pdf), to its head honchos as the Controllers.

What is it that the Controllers are after? Why aren’t they content with what they already have? The best guess is that they are just as sick as the fictional Eddorians:

While not essentially bloodthirsty—that is, not loving bloodshed for its own sweet sake—they were no more averse to blood-letting than they were in favor of it. Any amount of killing which would or which might advance an Eddorian toward his goal was commendable; useless slaughter was frowned upon, not because it was slaughter, but because it was useless—and hence inefficient. And, instead of the multiplicity of goals sought by the various entities of any race of Civilization, each and every Eddorian had only one. The same one: power. Power! P-O-W-E-R!! (Doc Smith, Triplanetary (http://www.gutenberg.org/files/32706/32706-h/32706-h.htm#CHAPTER_1), 1948)

Likewise, the head of the Invisible Government in This Perfect Day (http://www.veteranstoday.com/2015/05/08/revolutionary-lessons-from-ira-levins-this-perfect-day/) reveals his real motives:
“Chip, listen to me,” he said, leaning forward, “there’s joy in having it, in controlling, in being the only one.”

_________

Why Prove the Reality of the Invisible Government?

I’m not aware of any near-conclusive proof for the existence of the Invisible Government. This article attempts to close that gap.

Full article: http://www.veteranstoday.com/2016/08/05/who-rules-the-anglosphere/

ThePythonicCow

6th August 2016, 18:44

Going along the "For an idea on the "big" picture (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?25102-For-an-idea-on-the-big-picture)" , there is this comprehensive article on VT:

Who Rules the Anglosphere? (http://www.veteranstoday.com/2016/08/05/who-rules-the-anglosphere/)

Excellent article and well worth the time to read it.

It explains, with some detail, but without losing sight of the sweeping scope, who the Bastards in Power are, focusing on the American part of the Anglo-American Empire, such as the Rockefeller's and their various minions.

avid

6th August 2016, 20:13

I found this link so important, shared and explained really how important it is we take note of the 'bigger picture', who benefits, and keep track of the events purported/contrived to effect a profitable outcome, however nauseating, because warmongers make fortunes playing both sides against the other to effect their control goals.

Sophocles

7th August 2016, 13:20

The Exoneration of Milosevic: the ICTY’s Surprise Ruling (http://www.counterpunch.org/2016/08/01/the-exoneration-of-milosevic-the-ictys-surprise-ruling/)

by Andy Wilcoxson
counterpunch.org
August 1, 2016

The International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) in The Hague has determined that the late Serbian president Slobodan Milosevic was not responsible for war crimes committed during the 1992-95 Bosnian war.

In a stunning ruling, the trial chamber that convicted former Bosnian-Serb president Radovan Karadzic of war crimes and sentenced him to 40 years in prison, unanimously concluded that Slobodan Milosevic was not part of a “joint criminal enterprise” to victimize Muslims and Croats during the Bosnian war.

The March 24th Karadzic judgment states that “the Chamber is not satisfied that there was sufficient evidence presented in this case to find that Slobodan Milosevic agreed with the common plan” to permanently remove Bosnian Muslims and Bosnian Croats from Bosnian Serb claimed territory (p. 1303).

The Karadzic trial chamber found that “the relationship between Milosevic and the Accused had deteriorated beginning in 1992; by 1994, they no longer agreed on a course of action to be taken. Furthermore, beginning as early as March 1992, there was apparent discord between the Accused and Milosevic in meetings with international representatives, during which Milosevic and other Serbian leaders openly criticised Bosnian Serb leaders of committing ‘crimes against humanity’ and ‘ethnic cleansing’ and the war for their own purposes.”

Full article (http://www.counterpunch.org/2016/08/01/the-exoneration-of-milosevic-the-ictys-surprise-ruling/)

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

International Tribunal for the Prosecution of Persons Responsible for Serious Violations of International Humanitarian Law Committed in the Territory of the former Yugoslavia since 1991 (http://www.icty.org/x/cases/karadzic/tjug/en/160324_judgement.pdf)

Redstar Kachina

8th August 2016, 18:47

..........

Sophocles

9th August 2016, 10:45

Making a Killing: The 1.2 Billion Euro Arms Pipeline to Middle East (http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/making-a-killing-the-1-2-billion-euros-arms-pipeline-to-middle-east-07-26-2016)

http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/file/show//Images/ADA/BalkanArmsTrade-webimages/IMG_4715_EXPORTED-lead.jpg

An unprecedented flow of weapons from Central and Eastern Europe is flooding the battlefields of the Middle East.

Lawrence Marzouk, Ivan Angelovski and Miranda Patrucic
BIRN Belgrade, London, Sarajevo
balkaninsight.com (http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/page/all-balkans-home)
27 Jul 16

As Belgrade slept on the night of November 28, 2015, the giant turbofan engines of a Belarusian Ruby Star Ilyushin II-76 cargo plane roared into life, its hull laden with arms destined for faraway conflicts.

Rising from the tarmac of Nikola Tesla airport, the hulking aircraft pierced the Serbian mist to head towards Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

It was one of at least 68 flights that in just 13 months transported weapons and ammunition to Middle Eastern states and Turkey which, in turn, funnelled arms into brutal civil wars in Syria and Yemen, the Balkan Investigative Reporting Network, BIRN, and the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, OCCRP, has found. The flights form just a small part of €1.2 billion in arms deals between the countries since 2012, when parts of the Arab Spring turned into an armed conflict.

http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/file/show//Images/ADA/Arms%20stories%20/10Jan2016%20640.jpg
Belgrade Airport | BIRN

Meanwhile, over the past two years, as thousands of tonnes of weapons fly south, hundreds of thousands of refugees have fled north from the conflicts that have killed more than 400,000 people. But while Balkan and European countries have shut down the refugee route, the billion-euro pipeline sending arms by plane and ship to the Middle East remains open – and very lucrative.

It is a trade that is almost certainly illegal, according to arms and human rights experts.

“The evidence points towards systematic diversion of weapons to armed groups accused of committing serious human rights violations. If this is the case, the transfers are illegal under the ATT (United Nations’ Arms Trade Treaty) and other international law and should cease immediately,” said Patrick Wilcken, an arms-control researcher at Amnesty International who reviewed the evidence collected by reporters.

But with hundreds of millions of euros at stake and weapons factories working overtime, countries have a strong incentive to let the business flourish. Arms export licences, which are supposed to guarantee the final destination of the goods, have been granted despite ample evidence that weapons are being diverted to Syrian and other armed groups accused of widespread human rights abuses and atrocities.

ONtLaZMqNcs

Robert Stephen Ford, US ambassador to Syria between 2011 and 2014, told BIRN and the OCCRP that the trade is coordinated by the US Central Intelligence Agency, CIA, Turkey and Gulf states through centres in Jordan and Turkey, although in practice weapon supplies often bypass this process.

BIRN and the OCCRP examined arms export data, UN reports, flight records, and weapons contracts during a year-long investigation that reveals how thousands of assault rifles, mortar shells, rocket launchers, anti-tank weapons, and heavy machine guns are pouring into the troubled region, originating from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia and Slovakia.

Since the escalation of the Syrian conflict in 2012, these eight countries have approved the shipment of weapons and ammunition worth at least 1.2 billion euros to Saudi Arabia, Jordan, United Arab Emirates, and Turkey.

http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/file/show//Images/ADA/Arms%20stories%20/1_point_2_billion_ENGLISH_hires_1045.jpg

The figure is likely much higher. Data on arms export licences for four out of eight countries were not available for 2015 and seven out of eight countries for 2016. The four recipient countries are key arms suppliers to Syria and Yemen with little or no history of buying from Central and Eastern Europe prior to 2012. And the pace of the transfers is not slowing, with some of the biggest deals approved in 2015.

Eastern and Central European weapons and ammunition, identified in more than 50 videos and photos posted on social media, are now in use by Western-backed Free Syrian Army units, but also in the hands of fighters of Islamist groups such as Ansar al-Sham, Al Qaeda-affiliated Jabhat al-Nusra, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, ISIS, in Syria, factions fighting for Syrian President Bashar-al Assad and Sunni forces in Yemen.

Markings on some of the weapons identifying the origin and date of production reveal significant quantities have come off production lines as recently as 2015.

Out of the 1.2 billion euros in weapons and ammunition approved for export, about 500 million euros have been delivered, according to UN trade information and national arms export reports.

The frequency and number of cargo flights – BIRN and the OCCRP identified at least 68 in just over one year – reveal a steady flow of weapons from Central and Eastern Europe airports to military bases in Middle East.

The most commonly used aircraft - the Ilyushin II-76 - can carry up to 50 tonnes of cargo or approximately 16,000 AK-47 Kalashnikov rifles or three million bullets. Others, including the Boeing 747, are capable of hauling at least twice that amount.

But arms and ammunitions are not only coming by air. Reporters also have identified at least three shipments made by the US military from Black Sea ports carrying an estimated 4,700 tonnes of weapons and ammunition to the Red Sea and Turkey since December 2015.

One Swedish member of the EU parliament calls the trade shameful.

“Maybe they – – do not feel ashamed at all but I think they should,” said Bodil Valero, who also served as the rapporteur for the EU’s last arms report.“Countries selling arms to Saudi Arabia or the Middle East-North Africa region are not carrying out good risk assessments and, as a result, are in breach of EU and national law.”.

OCCRP and BIRN talked to government representatives in Croatia, Czech Republic, Montenegro, Serbia, and Slovakia who all responded similarly saying that they are meeting their international obligations. Some cited that Saudi Arabia is not on any international weapons black lists and other said their countries are not responsible if weapons have been diverted.

[B]A question of legality

The global arms trade is regulated by three layers of interconnected legislation -- national, European Union, EU, and international – but there are no formal mechanisms to punish those who break the law.

Beyond the blanket ban on exports to embargoed countries, each licence request is dealt with individually.

In the case of Syria, there are currently no sanctions on supplying weapons to the opposition.

As a result, the lawfulness of the export approval hinges on whether countries have carried out due diligence on a range of issues, including the likelihood of the arms being diverted and the impact the export will have on peace and stability.

Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia and Slovakia are signatories of the UN’s Arms Trade Treaty, which entered into force in December 2014, and lists measures to prevent the illicit trade and diversion of arms.

Member states of the EU are also governed by the legally-binding 2008 Common Position on arms exports, requiring each country to take into account eight criteria when accessing arms exports licence applications, including whether the country respects international human rights, the preservation of “regional peace, security and stability” and the risk of diversion.

As part of their efforts to join the EU, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Montenegro have already accepted the measures and have amended their national law. Serbia is in the process of doing so.

Weapons exports are initially assessed based on an end-user certificate, a key document issued by the government of the importing country which guarantees who will use the weapons and that the arms are not intended for re-export.

Authorities in Central and Eastern Europe told BIRN and the OCCRP that they also inserted a clause which requires the buyer to seek approval if they later want to export the goods.

Beyond these initial checks, countries are required to carry out a range of other risk assessments based on national and EU law and the ATT, although conversations with, and statements from, authorities revealed little evidence of that.

OCCRP and BIRN talked to government representatives in Croatia, Czech Republic, Montenegro, Serbia, and Slovakia who all responded similarly saying that they are meeting their international obligations. Some cited that Saudi Arabia is not on any international weapons black lists and other said their countries are not responsible if weapons have been diverted. The three other countries did not respond to requests for comment.

The Czech Foreign Ministry was the only public body to directly address concerns about human rights abuses and diversions, saying it took into account both when weighing up an export licence and had blocked transfers on that basis.

How legal are these arms sales to the Middle East? Find out more here (http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/arms-exports-to-middle-east-a-question-of-legality-07-26-2016)

Saudi Arabia – The weapons king

The Central and Eastern European weapons supply line can be traced to the winter of 2012, when dozens of cargo planes, loaded with Saudi-purchased Yugoslav-era weapons and ammunition, began leaving Zagreb bound for Jordan. Soon after, the first footage of Croatian weapons in use emerged from the battleground of Syria.

http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/file/show//Images/ADA/Arms%20stories%20/Saudi_Shopping_List_ENGLISH_hires_1022.jpg

According to a New York Times report (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/26/world/middleeast/in-shift-saudis-are-said-to-arm-rebels-in-syria.html?_r=0) from February 2013, a senior Croatian official offered the country’s stockpiles of old weapons for Syria during a visit to Washington in the summer of 2012. Zagreb was later put in touch with the Saudis, who bankrolled the purchases, while the CIA helped with logistics for an airlift that began late that year.

While Croatia’s government has consistently denied (https://www.occrp.org/en/investigations/1905-croatia-shipped-arms-to-jordan) any role in shipping weapons to Syria, former US ambassador to Syria Ford confirmed to BIRN and the OCCRP the New York Times account from an anonymous source of how the deal was hatched. He said he was not at liberty to discuss it further.

This was just the beginning of an unprecedented flow of weapons from Central and Eastern Europe into the Middle East, as the pipeline expanded to include stocks from seven other countries. Local arms dealers sourced arms and ammunition from their home countries and brokered the sale of ammunition from Ukraine and Belarus, and even attempted to secure Soviet-made anti-tank systems bought from the UK, as a Europe-wide arms bazaar ensued.

Prior to the Arab Spring in 2011, the arms trade between Eastern Europe and Saudi Arabia, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, UAE, and Turkey – four key supporters of Syria’s fractured opposition – was negligible to non-existent, according to analysis of export data.

But that changed in 2012. Between that year and 2016, eight Eastern European countries approved at least 829 million euros worth of weapons and ammunition exports to Saudi Arabia, according to national and EU arms export reports as well as government sources.

Jordan secured export licences worth 155 million euros starting in 2012, while the UAE netted 135 million euros and Turkey 87 million euros, bringing the total to 1.2 billion euros.

Qatar, another key supplier of equipment to the Syrian opposition, does not show up in export licences from Central and Eastern Europe.

Jeremy Binnie, Middle East arms expert for Jane’s Defence Weekly, a publication widely regarded as the most trusted source of defence and security information, said the bulk of the weapon exports from Eastern Europe would likely be destined for Syria and, to a lesser extent, Yemen and Libya.

“With a few exceptions, the militaries of Saudi Arabia, Jordan, the UAE and Turkey use Western infantry weapons and ammunition, rather than Soviet-designed counterparts,” said Binnie. “It consequently seems likely that large shipments of such materiel being acquired by – or sent to – those countries are destined for their allies in Syria, Yemen, and Libya.”

BIRN and the OCCRP obtained confidential documents from Serbia’s Ministry of Defence and minutes from a series of inter-ministerial meetings in 2013. The documents show the ministry raised concerns that deliveries to Saudi Arabia would be diverted to Syria, pointing out that the Saudis do not use Central and Eastern European stock and have a history of supplying the Syrian opposition. The Ministry turned down the Saudi request only to reverse course more than one year later and approve new arms shipments citing national interest. Saudi security forces, while mostly armed by Western producers, are known to use limited amounts of Central and Eastern European equipment. This includes Czech-produced military trucks and some Romanian-made assault rifles. But even arms exports destined for use by Saudi forces are proving controversial, given their involvement in the conflict in Yemen.

The Netherlands became the first EU country to halt (http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-netherlands-saudi-arms-idUKKCN0WH2T4) arms exports to Saudi Arabia as a result of civilian deaths in Yemen’s civil war, and the European Parliament has called for an EU-wide arms embargo.

Supply Logistics: Cargo flights and airdrops

Weapons from Central and Eastern Europe are delivered to the Middle East by cargo flights and ships. By identifying the planes and ships delivering weapons, reporters were able to track the flow of arms in real time.

Detailed analysis of airport timetables, cargo carrier history, flight tracking data, and air traffic control sources helped pinpoint 68 flights that carried weapons to Middle Eastern conflicts in the past 13 months. Belgrade, Sofia and Bratislava emerged as the main hubs for the airlift.

http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/file/show//Images/ADA/Arms%20stories%20/Planes_Map_ENGLISH_hires_1106.jpg

Most frequent were flights operated from Belgrade, the capital of Serbia. The flights were either confirmed as carrying weapons, were headed to military bases in Saudi Arabia or the UAE or were carried out by regular arms shippers.

The Middle East Airlift

At least 68 cargo flights from Serbia, Slovakia, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic have carried thousands of tons of munitions in the past 13 months to Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Jordan, three key suppliers of the Syrian rebels.

These were identified through detailed analysis of airport timetables, cargo carrier history, flight tracking data, leaked arms contracts, end user certificates, and air traffic control sources.

Cargo flights from Central and Eastern Europe to the Middle East, and particularly military bases, were extremely uncommon before late 2012, when the upsurge in weapons and ammunition purchases began, according to EU flight data and interviews with plane-spotters.

The most commonly used aircraft - the Ilyushin II-76 - can carry up to 50 tonnes of cargo or approximately 16,000 AK-47 Kalashnikov rifles or three million bullets. Others, including the Boeing 747, are capable of hauling at least twice that amount.

Of the 68 flights identified, 50 were officially confirmed to have carried arms and ammunition:

-Serbia’s Civil Aviation Directorate confirmed that 49 flights departing or passing through Serbia were carrying arms and ammunition from June 1, 2015 to July 4, 2016. The confirmation came following weeks of refusal to comment on grounds of confidentiality and after BIRN and the OCCRP presented its evidence, including photographs showing military boxes being loaded onto planes at Belgrade’s Nikola Tesla Airport on four different occasions.

-An official at the Bulgarian National Customs Agency confirmed one flight, operated by Belarussian cargo carrier Ruby Star Airways, was carrying arms from the remote Bulgarian Gorna Oryahovitsa Airport to Brno–Turany Airport, the Czech Republic, and on to Aqaba, Jordan.

-An additional 18 flights were identified as very likely to have been carrying arms and ammunition based on one of three variables: the air freight company’s history of weapons supplies; connections to earlier arms flights; or a destination of a military airport:

-Ten flights were made to Prince Sultan Air Base in Al Kharj, Saudi Arabia and Al Dhafra Air Base in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, indicating the likely presence of weapons or ammunition. Additionally, 14 flights to Prince Sultan and Al Dhafra air bases are confirmed as having carried weapons during the same period by Serbia’s Civil Aviation Directorate.

-Seven flights were operated from Slovakia and Bulgaria by Jordan International Air Cargo, part of the Royal Jordanian Air Force, which were revealed to have carried weapons and ammunition from Croatia to Jordan in the winter of 2012. Bulgarian retired colonel and counter-terrorism expert Slavcho Velkov, who maintains extensive contacts with the military, told BIRN and the OCCRP that the Sofia-Amman flights “were transporting weapons to Saudi Arabia, mostly for the Syrian conflict.” Additionally, one other flight operated by this airline is confirmed as having carried weapons during the same period by Serbia’s Civil Aviation Directorate.

-One flight was operated by a Belarussian cargo carrier TransAVIAexport Airlines, which has a long history of transporting weapons. In 2014, the airline was hired by Serbian arms dealer Slobodan Tesic to transport Serbian and Belarussian weapons and ammunition to air bases in Libya controlled by various militant groups. The United Nations, UN, Sanctions Committee investigated the case and found potential breaches of UN sanctions, according to a 2015 UN report. Additionally, five flights operated by this airline are confirmed as having carried weapons during the same period by Serbia’s Civil Aviation Directorate.

Many of these flights made an additional stop in Central and Eastern Europe – meaning they were likely picking up more weapons and ammunition - before flying to their final destination.

EU flight statistics provide further evidence of the scale of the operation. They reveal that planes flying from Bulgaria and Slovakia have delivered 2,268 tons of cargo – equal to 44 flights with the most commonly used aircraft - the Ilyushin II-76 – since the summer of 2014 to the same military bases in Saudi Arabia and UAE pinpointed by BIRN and OCCRP.

Distributing the weapons

Arms bought for Syria by the Saudis, Turks, Jordanians and the UAE are then routed through two secret command facilities – called Military Operation Centers (MOC) – in Jordan and Turkey, according to Ford, the former US ambassador to Syria.

These units – staffed by security and military officials from the Gulf, Turkey, Jordan and the US – coordinate the distribution of weapons to vetted Syrian opposition groups, according to information from the Atlanta-based Carter Center, a think tank that has a unit monitoring the conflict.

“Each of the countries involved in helping the armed opposition retained final decision-making authority about which groups in Syria received assistance,” Ford said.

A cache of leaked cargo carrier documents provides further clues to how the Saudi military supplies Syrian rebels.

According to the documents obtained by BIRN and the OCCRP, the Moldovan company AeroTransCargo made six flights in the summer of 2015 carrying at least 250 tonnes of ammunition between military bases in Saudi Arabia and Esenboga International Airport in Ankara, the capital of Turkey, reportedly an arrival point for weapons and ammunition for Syrian rebels.

Pieter Wezeman, of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, a leading organisation in tracking arms exports, said he suspects the flights are part of the logistical operation to supply ammunition to Syrian rebels.

From the MOCs, weapons are then transported by road to the Syrian border or airdropped by military planes.

A Free Syrian Army commander from Aleppo, who asked to remain anonymous to protect his safety, told BIRN and OCCRP that weapons from Central and Eastern Europe were distributed from centrally controlled headquarters in Syria. “We don’t care about the county of origin, we just know it is from Eastern Europe,” he said.

The Saudis and Turks also provided weapons directly to Islamist groups not supported by the US and who have sometimes ended up fighting MOC-backed factions, Ford added.

The Saudis are also known to have airdropped arms and equipment, including what appeared to be Serbian-made assault rifles to its allies in Yemen.

Ford said that while he was not personally involved in negotiations with Serbia, Bulgaria and Romania over the supply of weapons to Syria, he believes that the CIA is likely to have played a role.

“For operations of this type it would be difficult for me to imagine that there wasn’t some coordination between the intelligence services, but it may have been confined strictly to intelligence channels,” he said.

The US may not have just played a role in the logistics behind delivering Gulf-sponsored weapons from Eastern Europe to the Syrian rebels. Through its Department of Defense’s Special Operations Command (SOCOM), it has also bought and delivered vast quantities of military materiel from Eastern Europe for the Syrian opposition as part of a US$500 million train and equip programme.

Since December 2015, SOCOM has commissioned three cargo ships to transport 4,700 tons of arms and ammunition from ports of Constanta in Romania and Burgas in Bulgaria to the Middle East likely as part of the covert supply of weapons to Syria.

The shipments included heavy machine guns, rocket launchers and anti-tank weapons – as well as bullets, mortars, grenades, rockets and explosives, according to US procurement documents.

The origin of arms shipped by SOCOM is unknown and the material listed in transport documents is available from stockpiles across Central and Eastern Europe.

Not long after one of the deliveries, SOCOM supported Kurdish groups published an image on Twitter and Facebook (https://twitter.com/westkurdistan/status/722373819474776065) showing a warehouse piled with US-brokered ammunition boxes in northern Syria SOCOM would not confirm or deny that the shipments were bound for Syria.

US procurement records also reveal that SOCOM secured from 2014 to 2016 at least 25 million euros (27 million dollars) worth of Bulgarian and 11 million euros (12 million dollars) in Serbian weapons and ammunition for covert operations and Syrian rebels.

A Booming Business

Arms control researcher Wilcken said Central and Eastern Europe had been well positioned to cash in on the huge surge in demand for weapons following the Arab Spring.

“Geographical proximity and lax export controls have put some Balkan states in pole position to profit from this trade, in some instances with covert US assistance,” he added. “Eastern Europe is rehabilitating Cold War arms industries which are expanding and becoming profitable again.”

Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vucic boasted recently that his country could produce five times the amount of arms it currently makes and still not meet the demand.

“Unfortunately in some parts of the world they are at war more than ever and everything you produce, on any side of the world you can sell it,” he said.

Arms manufacturers from Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia are running at full capacity with some adding extra shifts and others not taking new orders.

Saudi Arabia’s top officials – more used to negotiating multi-billion-dollar fighter-jet deals with Western defence giants – have been forced to deal with a handful of small-time arms brokers operating in Eastern Europe who have access to weapons such as AK-47s and rocket launchers

Middlemen such as Serbia’s CPR Impex and Slovakia’s Eldon have played a critical role in supplying weapons and ammunition to the Middle East

The inventory of each delivery is usually unknown due to the secrecy surrounding arms deals but two end-user certificates and one export licence, obtained by BIRN and the OCCRP, reveal the extraordinary scope of the buy-up for Syrian beneficiaries.

For example, the Saudi Ministry of Defence expressed its interest in buying from Serbian arms dealer CPR Impex a number of weapons including hundreds of aging T-55 and T-72 tanks, millions of rounds of ammunition, multi-launch missile systems and rocket launchers. Weapons and ammunition listed were produced in the former Yugoslavia, Belarus, Ukraine, and the Czech Republic.

An export licence issued to a little-known Slovakian company called Eldon in January 2015 granted the firm the right to transport thousands of Eastern European rocket-propelled grenade launchers, heavy machine guns and almost a million bullets worth nearly 32 million euros to Saudi Arabia.

BIRN and OCCRP’s analysis of social media shows weapons that originated from the former states of Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia, and Serbia, Croatia and Bulgaria are now present on the battlefields of Syria and Yemen.

While experts believe the countries continue to shirk their responsibility, the weapons pipeline adds more and more fuel to a white hot conflict that leads to more and more misery.

“Proliferation of arms to the region has caused untold human suffering; huge numbers of people have been displaced and parties to the conflict have committed serious human rights violations including abductions, executions, enforced disappearances, torture and rape,” said Amnesty’s Wilcken.

Full article (http://www.balkaninsight.com/en/article/making-a-killing-the-1-2-billion-euros-arms-pipeline-to-middle-east-07-26-2016)

Additional reporting by Atanas Tchobanov, Dusica Tomovic, Jelena Cosic, Jelena Svircic, Lindita Cela, RISE Moldova and Pavla Holcova.

This investigation is produced by BIRN as a part of Paper Trail to Better Governance project.

Read all the documents used in the investigation at BIRN's online library BIRN Source (http://birnsource.com/en/folder/193).

Sophocles

9th August 2016, 13:51

US-backed rebels who beheaded a Palestinian child show up in Aleppo battlefield

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From sott article BREAKING: Aleppo battle updates - SAA now have the advantage (https://www.sott.net/article/324596-BREAKING-Aleppo-battle-updates-SAA-now-have-the-advantage) (8/8/16)

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A hardcore Russian nationalist shares his opinion about Islam (very interesting!) (http://thesaker.is/a-hardcore-russian-nationalist-shares-is-opinion-about-islam-very-interesting/)

The Saker
August 08, 2016

Let me begin by saying that I am not a big supporter of Konstantin Dushenov (https://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%94%D1%83%D1%88%D0%B5%D0%BD%D0%BE%D0%B2,_%D0%9A%D0%BE%D0%BD%D1%81%D1%82%D0%B0%D0%BD%D1%82%D0%B8%D 0%BD_%D0%AE%D1%80%D1%8C%D0%B5%D0%B2%D0%B8%D1%87). Without going into a long detailed discussion about this, let’s just say that I don’t consider myself a nationalist. However, I will readily admit that Dushenov makes some excellent points and that I do agree with a lot of what he says. This time, I decided to post his short commentary about Islam to show that in Russia, even the hardcore nationalists are very pro-Islamic, at least by European or US standards. There is an (apparent) paradox here: the Russians fought the Takfiris in at least 3 extremely vicious wars (Afghanistan, First Chechen and Second Chechen) and yet after 35+ years of fighting the Takfiris there is no Islamophobia in Russia. Amazing no? In the West, all it took to trigger an anti-Muslim hysteria was a few false flags, and millions of westerners immediately bought into the “Islamic boogeyman” canard. Russians fight Takfiris in wars far more brutal and violent than anything experienced by the US/NATO militaries, and yet they do not indulge in Islam-bashing.

What do the Russians know which folks in the West apparently ignore?

I leave you with Dushenov’s comments on this topic.

Cheers,

The Saker

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Octavusprime

9th August 2016, 22:44

Sounds like the Turkish/Russian pipeline deal may come back on the table. How the tides change....

https://www.rt.com/business/355245-turkey-restart-tukish-stream/

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says the Turkish Stream pipeline is going ahead and will be implemented swiftly. The announcement came after Tuesday's meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg.
Read more
© Gleb Garanich Ankara ready to resume talks on Turkish Stream project
The Turkish Stream project was parked late last year due to the dispute between Moscow and Ankara after Turkey shot down a Russian warplane in Syria. However, with a thaw in relations the project is expected to be given another life.

The pipeline was announced by President Putin in December 2014 during a visit to Turkey. The project was to replace the abandoned South Stream pipeline through Bulgaria.

The Turkish Stream pipeline is intended to deliver gas from the Russian Black Sea coast to Turkey and on to Greece.

Initially, Russia’s Gazprom wanted to deliver 63 billion cubic meters of gas per year. Later the capacity was cut to 32 billion cubic meters. Turkey would take about 14 billion cubic meters, with the rest going to Europe.

The two sides also decided to continue with Turkey’s first nuclear power plant at Akkuyu. The agreement to build four 1,200 MW reactors at a total project cost of $20 billion was signed in May 2010. Before relations between the countries deteriorated, the first reactor was planned to be commissioned in 2022.

READ MORE: Russia halts Turkish Stream project over downed jet

President Putin also said Russia intends to resume charter flights to Turkey, as Ankara has provided security guarantees for Russian tourists.

"We have considered the possibility of the resumption of charter flights. It’s a mere formality and time," said Putin.

The Russian President added that the number of Russian tourists visiting Turkey will soon return to pre-crisis levels, and that the sale of tour packages to Turkey resumed in June. On Tuesday, it was reported the number of Russian tourists visiting Antalya has plummeted 97 percent this year.

READ MORE: Putin lifts Turkey tourism ban

In February, Russia's Ambassador to Turkey Andrey Karlov said Turkish exports to Russia fell by two-thirds soon after the jet incident. In November 2015, a Russian pilot died when his plane was shot down over Syria by a Turkish fighter.

Following the incident, Moscow introduced a package of economic measures against Ankara – a visa regime, travel ban, as well as an embargo on agricultural products and on hiring Turkish nationals. All major projects were also frozen.

TODD & NORA

10th August 2016, 10:00

..........

Sophocles

10th August 2016, 14:58

Question: President Putin, I have quite a simple question... From 2014, Russia has had sanctions put on from the EU and the US. Furthermore, NATO this week has announced it is moving further Eastward. Russia has reciprocated, saying it will build up its defence forces. Are we at a new Cold War? Perhaps to a lesser degree than before, but nevertheless -is it Russia vs West?

Putin: After the fall of the Soviet Union, we all thought that now we will enter an era of worldwide peace and trust in one another. Shortly after -Russia ran into economic, social and internal political issues. We were faced with separatism, radicalism and the aggression of international terrorism. In our Caucasus region, warring parties representerd the Al Qaeda network. This is now a fact and nobody disputes this. We hoped the West would help us -but what we found was the complete contrary. The West was supporting separatism within Russia (Chechnya). They told us -«we don`t recognise your separatists at a high level, but more at a technical level.» Very well, thanks for that! But who gave them support? The financial and administrative help they recieved? Do you think we don`t know this? Very well... Once we defeated this threat, having been to hell and back, we came upon another...

The Soviet Union dissapeared, the Warsaw Pact seized to exist, why does NATO have to constantly inch in closer to the borders of the Russian Federation? It`s not like your percieved threat dissapeared only recently. Only the other day, I heard they were enlisting Montenegro into NATO. Who is threatening the security of Montenegro? They (US) really couldn`t give a toss less about what we might percieve this development. In everything -not only Montenegro.

This includes the very large problem of their unilateral withdrawl from the Anti Ballistic Missile Treaty signed in 1972 between USA and USSR, to limit nuclear weapons. It was withdrawn by G W Bush in 2001. Two regions were taken into consideration during this pact -Russia`s Moscow, and the US area of anti-ballistic missile positioning. What did this arise from? From the need to secure a strategic balance of power between the two contries. But no, in a one-sided fashion, they simply withdrew from the agreement. They said «this is not against you -and if you want to develop your own nuclear capabilities, we assume it is not against us.» Do you want to know why they said this?

It`s simple really. They never tought for a second, that the beginning of the 2000`s -Russia, seemingly succumbing to internal separatism, being torn apart in opposing directions by terrorism (funded by US and Saudi Aabia). The very thought that it could rebirth its military industrial complex was very far fetched. They assumed, that not only could we never invent anything new -but those technologies that we had left over from the USSR would become obsolete. They thought they could continue to develop their systems, while ours would simply degrade with time. What was their excuse for the continued development of nuclear weapons? The «Iranian nuclear threat» -where the hell is this threat today? I don`t see it... but the «project» is continuing.

One step, after another, until they began support the «Arab Spring». They were ecstatic about it. How many «positive reviews» did we read about what is happening in the Middle East?! What did it lead to?... Chaos! Please don`t get me wrong, I`m not here to blame you. I am just saying that if you continue these one-sided actions, if you won`t look for compromise on sensitive issues on the international arena, then dire circumstances are inevitable.

On the other hand, if we simply try to listen to one another, try to find a balance, then we can avoid this. Is it a difficult process? Yes! The ability to come to agreement is the only ability that can lead to rational decision-making. I think if we can reach this level of cooperation, nobody in their right mind will be able to talk about another Cold War.

After the Arab Spring, they continued to inch toward our own borders... Why did you have to fund the government coup in Kiev? Sure, internal politics weren`t simple, and my guess is that the opposition that was active at the time would have come to power via democratic means if the people desired it... And that`s it, we would have worked witht them in the same way as the previous President... But no, you had to go all the way and cause a very bloody conflict, a civil war... Scare the Russian-speaking population of the Southeast Ukraine and Crimea... What did you do this for? And after that, after we had no other option than to take measures, to protect certain groups of society, you continued to fuel anti Russian rhetoric in the Ukraine.

You know, in my opinion, this whole thing was started to justify the existence of NATO. You need an external threat -otherwise, what`s the purpose? There`s no Warsaw Pact, there`s no Soviet Union. Who are you afraid of? If this is the logic we are working with, scaremongering one another, then yes there will be another Cold War. But our logic is different to yours. We aspire to cooperate with you and to find compromises.

vvRHZuAyZgM

Sophocles

10th August 2016, 15:50

A nuclear Rio, attempted murder of Plotnitsky, armed attack on Russian border guards in Crimea SITREP August 8th, Updated by Scott (http://thesaker.is/a-nuclear-rio-attempted-murder-of-plotnitsky-armed-attack-on-russian-border-guards-in-crimea-sitrep-august-8th-by-scott/) (excerpt)

The Saker
August 08, 2016

...

Attempted assassination of Igor Plotnitsky

When it comes to Russia, Washington has always been dedicated the time of the Olympic games to terror attacks, color revolutions, and local armed conflicts. Everyone knows this. It was easy to guess that the situation would be most likely to deteriorate in Donbas, around Crimea, and in Syria.

On Saturday August 6th, during the opening ceremony in Rio, in Lugansk a powerful explosive devise placed inside a hollow metal utility pole was activated and injured Igor Plotnitsky, the head of the Lugask People republic (http://tass.ru/en/world/892840). He survived this terrorist attack, and was hospitalized (https://www.rt.com/news/354844-lugansk-head-car-blast/).

Ukraine’s security officers implicated in attempted assassination on LPR head (Ukraine’s security officers implicated in attempted assassination on LPR head – militia) – militia.

Ukraine: LPR head Plotnitsky hospitalized after suspected assassination attempt

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Briefly about Igor Plotnitsky

We don’t see Plotnitsky, or “Plot,” meaning unthinkable raft, on TV. He doesn’t make many loud statements, and doesn’t give many interviews. What this brilliant manager and administrator has done since his elections in 2914, is a short of a miracle. Working quietly and unhurriedly he managed to restore production lines of the local manufacturers, to clean landmines off the arable lands, rebuilt infrastructure, rebuilt and reopened hospitals, schools, kindergartens, universities and technical colleges that were destroyed by NATO.

NATO, as we all know, goes first after the civilian objects and infrastructure that are needed by the population to survive. To destroy these objects would make civilian population to surrender faster, as the US military and NATO war doctrines state. Also, restoration of these vital objects brings the price of war way up.

“Plot” is also one of very few of government officials who openly stated the provable fact that “Jews masterminded the Ukrainian revolution. (http://www.jpost.com/Diaspora/Top-rebel-leader-accuses-Jews-of-masterminding-Ukrainian-revolution-406729)”

“During a lecture last week titled “Contemporary Ukraine as Fascist State of a New Type” at the Nekrasov State University of Kostroma in Russia, Igor Plotnitsky, who heads the Luhansk People’s Republic – a Kremlin- backed separatist enclave in eastern Ukraine – asserted that while he is not an anti-Semite, the fact that Jews are in control of Ukraine is inescapable.”

He and his security services have also accomplished a Herculean task of getting rid of those NATO and Kiev mercenaries, who as we all know initiated a war on Donbass, working by the direct command of Pentagon and Langley. You probably recall an armed band formation under command of the “Batman.” On January 1st, 2015 the National Security of Lugansk openly stated that it was them who executed “Batman” and his “lieutenants” for banditism, armed robberies, theft, rapes, and other multiple crimes against civilians. The mercenaries from the “Batman” battalion proved to organize kidnappings and tortures of local civilians, and to brag about this pretending that they were the part of the “GRU” to implicate Russia in their terroristic activities. But most importantly, for being an agents of the foreign governments’ secret services.

I refer to the analysis posted two days ago by Matvey, a.k.a. Cat Motja, where he explains how the murder of Plotnitsky was planned by the Kiev authorities (https://catmotya.blogspot.no/2016/08/blog-post_6.html), Ukraine’s secret service, and the US occupational authorities to bring to power in Lugansk and Donetsk their agents, like the Rada deputies Alexander Efremov, Oleg Tsarev and Valery Bolotov. If you remember they were the once to organize the referendum of independence in Donbass, despite Russia’s president Putin advice to abstain from it.

Matvey reminds us that Plotnitsky had managed to stop the bloody merry-go-round of shot down planes, epic battles for airport, and raids of armed band formations on local villages and towns. His security services also caught many US spies and agents. The Washington’s plan here is to kill Plotnitsky, to get rid of his security forces, and to bring to power these three people I listed. They are supposed to bring Lugansk and Donetsk republics under occupational authorities in no time.

Statement of Igor Plotnitsky from the hospital

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“Dear citizens of our Republic,

Today is not the best day of my life, but I want to tell you that I am alive and well. Any attempts to speculate on my health is a sabotage coming from the Ukrainian side. We all know that the war is still going on. The Ukrainian government is being managed by the special services of the US, and those who try to destabilize the situation in Ukraine and in the world. Those who wants to topple the legitimate authorities of the LPR, are agents provocateurs. I think that we shouldn’t listen to them, because these people are trying to destabilize and to destroy everything that we have accomplished.

In terms of the events that have been taking place in regard to my life and my health, the information about people involved, about the agents of the Ukraine and American secret services that are located on the territory of the Lugansk People Republic and even on the Russia’s territory is already outside of the republic on the territory of Russia. It specifically will be reported either to the president Vladimir Putin or FSB.

That’s why I am advising everyone to stay calm. Nothing serious had happened. Those who say that I’m incapable of working, is a traitor and enemy of the Republic. Thank you.”

And finally, about the shootout that took place on Crimean border early on Saturday August 7th

Colonel Cassad gives a detailed SITREP (http://colonelcassad.livejournal.com/2884407.html)

Regarding information about the shooting in the area of the Isthmus of Perekop, the narrow, 5–7 kilometers wide strip of land that connects the Crimean Peninsula to the Ukraine.

The shootout occurred early in the morning on the border of Russia and Ukraine in Krasnoperekopsk district of Crimea. As a result of the incident one border guard was killed, three others got wounded. The victims were taken to a local hospital.

Circumstances of incident are being investigated.

The state border service of Ukraine announced the temporary suspension of admission of people and vehicles through all three checkpoints on the border with Crimea on Sunday, August 7th.

According to the statement, such measures taken in response to actions of the Russian side allegedly suspended similar operations. “That’s why moving from mainland Ukraine at the checkpoint “Kalanchak”, “Chaplynka” and “Chongar” on the territory of the Crimea is also not possible,” States a press release.

On the border of Ukraine with Crimea there are three car checkpoint: “Kalanchak” (on the Russian side, “Armenian”), “Chaplynka” (“Perekop and Chongar” (Dzhankoy).

In July, the Crimean border Department of the FSB of Russia accused their Ukrainian colleagues in slowness. Since the Ukraian side was too slow, the Russian checkpoint “Dzhankoi” experienced long traffic queues.

Immediately after the shootout, the Ukrainian side started spreading rumors alleging concentration of Russian military equipment on the border and military control of the border crossings. There are no actual evidence to support these rumors yet, especially if you pay attention to the presence among distributors of Lenur Islyamov.

However, the fact that the shootout took place, just not yet clear what happened actually that feeds different versions and interpretations of this border incident.

About movements of military equipment: the accumulation of military equipment of Ukraine and NATO troops in the Kherson region (perhaps with the aim of transfer them to the Mariupol direction through Berdyansk. It is possible to strengthen the group in the South of Kherson region).

On our side, on the contrary observed moving columns of armored vehicles across the Kerch Strait to Russian mainland, which disproves the Ukrainian rumors that Russia is amassing troops in Crimea. Considering that the concentration of the troops of the Russian Federation in the Northern Crimea surpasses everything that Ukraine has concentrated in the Kherson region.

Ukrainian troops being moved from Odessa to the Kherson region

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Ukraine moves Grads from Odessa to the Kherson region

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August 1st movement Ukraine’s troops to the Kherson region

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News Front reported that it was the staged provocation of the Ukraine

“Ukraine staged a provocation on the border with Crimea. This was announced by the head of news Agency News Front Konstantin Knyrik on his page in facebook.
“Enough with the rumors. Yes indeed, last night in Armyansk was a provocation by the Ukrainian saboteurs, trying to break on the Crimean territory. After that the Ukrainian side unilaterally closed the pass on the border for more than 1,500 people. The Ukrainian border guards didn’t let people to pass , but they say that the Russian side had closed the pass,” wrote Konstantin Knarik. He added that there is no proof of “the break through on the territory of a Sabotage and Reconnaissance groups (DRG) nowhere there is no proof, about the victims on the part of our guards, too, but the fact of provocation from the Ukrainian side took place. That’s all for now…”

The Colonel Cassad’s SITREP with a few links, is practically all that was published about this border incident. Apparently, the Russian government asked the Media not to write about it. There was no official statements made.

Irina Alksnis, a political publicist (https://cont.ws/post/339337), wrote an interesting write-up saying that we witnessing now a completely new phenomenon, the Russian civil society has reformed itself for the “state of war.”

Society as a whole and every one of us act more like military than like civilians. We love to criticize our government, however at this juncture the government tells us not to talk about this incident, and we do exactly what our government asks us to do, we don’t write and don’t make posts on social media. We know and trust that the specialists would do the right things and to sort everything out. All we have to do is what they tell us to do.

According to the latest dispatches, Ukraine had opened two checkpoints. According to the Kiev authorities, traffic was restored at about 14.30 Sunday, August 7th.

UPDATE

The Colonel Cassad has just posted an image of an announcement made by the administration of the town of Novo-Krymsk (The Colonel Cassad has just posted an image of an announcement made by the administration of the town of Novo-Krymsk.).

“Important Announcement

According to the information received from the Ministry of Internal Affairs, a severe crime was committed on the territory of Armyansk. In connection with this crime, the law enforcement is looking for four individuals wearing Russia’s khaki colored general armed forces uniform with a diamond shaped chevron on the left sleeve with the flag of the Russian Federation. They could be on a move using motorized vehicles or on foot.

All of them have Slavic appearance. A description of two of them:

· 180-195 centimeters tall, with athletic body type and blonde hair. Approximately 30-35 years old.

All these individuals are heavily armed with fire arms. Report them to your local law enforcement, or your local civil authorities.”

Thank you for your time

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Source (http://thesaker.is/a-nuclear-rio-attempted-murder-of-plotnitsky-armed-attack-on-russian-border-guards-in-crimea-sitrep-august-8th-by-scott/)