Turkey’s Erdogan Plans Annexation of Northern Syrian Territory by Stephen Lendman

Turkey’s Erdogan Plans Annexation of Northern Syrian Territory

by Stephen Lendman (stephenlendman.org - Home - Stephen Lendman)

Wannabe sultan Erdogan covets expanding Turkey’s borders to include oil-rich northern Iraqi and Syrian territory. Combatting Kurds in Syria, posing no cross-border threat, is part of his annexation scheme — what Damascus officials condemn and won’t tolerate.

In cahoots with US aggression in Syria, including aid to ISIS and likeminded terrorists, Erdogan is pursuing his long-planned land grab, Russia doing nothing to deter what demands universal condemnation. Press TV, Reuters, the Jerusalem Post, and other media reported that he intends spending $27 billion for constructing scores of villages and 10 towns in northern Syria, including 200,000 residences.

His unlawful land grab involves stealing it from its rightful owners, breaching the country’s sovereignty more than already on the phony pretext of constructing a large scale “safe zone” from the Euphrates River to the Iraqi border. He aims to control 250 miles of northern Syrian territory bordering Turkey, 20 miles deep into its sovereign land. Claiming it’s to resettle one to two million Syrian refugees now in Turkey is a ruse.

Ending aggression by the US and its imperial partners, including Ankara, is the only way to ensure their safety, facilitating their return home. Erdogan turned international law on its head, claiming establishing a cross-border “safe zone” justifies Turkish occupation of northern Syrian territory. Press TV said Turkey’s scheme is to “carv(e) out a patch of land in the Arab country for itself.” Erdogan wants Syrian refugees prevented from returning home to Aleppo and other areas he wants them excluded from — wanting them resettled in territory controlled by the US and its terrorist foot soldiers. He wants northern Syria demographically changed from historically Kurdish to territory housing Turkish-supported Syrian refugees.

The project if undertaken will take years to complete, along with greatly taxing Turkey’s financial ability to pursue it without foreign funding. Reuters said he “called on France and Germany to provide additional financial aid for the project.” In his UN address, he said “I call on all countries to support our efforts regarding Syria” — no matter the flagrant breach of international law. Damascus slammed what it called Erdogan’s “blatant aggression,” a flagrant breach of Syrian sovereignty and territorial integrity — what the UN Charter and other international laws prohibit.

In August, the Trump and Erdogan regimes agreed to establish, “coordinate, and manage the implementation of the safe zone” in northeastern Syria. At the time, a Damascus statement said the unlawful scheme “exposed the US-Turkish partnership in the aggression against Syria, which serves the interest of the Israeli occupation entity and the Turkish expansionist ambitions,” adding: “Syria calls on the international community and the UN to condemn the US-Turkish flagrant aggression which constitutes a dangerous escalation and poses a threat to peace and security in the region and the world and hinders all positive efforts for finding a solution to the crisis in Syria.”

Longstanding US/Israeli plans call for redrawing the Middle East map — partitioning Syria part of the scheme. If implemented, Erdogan’s land grab will make resolution of endless war in Syria more unattainable than already. Russian involvement is key to preserving Syrian sovereignty and territorial integrity, what it stressed numerous times it supports. It involves preventing Turkish annexation of sovereign Syrian territory, what it failed to do so far, and may not to strengthen political and economic ties to Ankara.

Note: On Sunday, Press TV reported that US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (infested with terrorists) “kidnapped hundreds of people in” northern Syria, adding: “(T)he terrorists continue to perpetrate criminal and abusive practices against ordinary citizens in areas under their control.” Damascus is committed to liberate its territory controlled by these elements. Restoration of peace and stability to the country is unattainable without eliminating their presence, along with ending unlawful US/Turkish occupation of its territory.

VISIT MY NEW WEBSITE: stephenlendman.org (Home - Stephen Lendman). Contact at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net. My newest book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III." https://ift.tt/1iNPjMF By DAVID HOLT from London, England - London March 31 2018 (39) Kurdish Protest, CC BY 2.0, https://ift.tt/2o1ejde

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Greta Thunberg: A flashmob or a an eco messiah?

Greta Thunberg, a school girl from Sweden, has made a plentitude of headlines lately after she accused world leaders of not addressing environmental problems of planet Earth. In 2018, the girl went to a picket to the building of the Swedish parliament demanding the entire international community should comply with the Paris Agreement on climate change. She threatened not to go to school on Fridays unless her requirements were met. Her initiative found support not only in Sweden, but also in other countries of Europe.

Soon afterwards, Greta embarked on her crusade to travel to environmental conferences, flash mobs and other events, at which she would appear as an "eco-messiah". Needles to say that some adults have had a hand in her media image. They quickly arranged a yacht for the girl so that she could environmentally reach the United States of America.

Who are these people who nominate the schoolgirl for a Nobel Prize and provide media support for her? Greta Thunberg's message to adolescents has hit the spot. Millions of teenagers all over the world paid attention to her as they were searching for answers to their adolescent questions.

Environmental protection is an extremely important problem indeed. There is hardly any country in the world that may boast of perfect ecology. European countries, including Scandinavian ones, are significantly ahead of others in terms of their attention to issues of environmental protection. Some others try to take their harmful productions outside their local ecosystems to third world countries. Nevertheless, the problem remains and returns with pollution or water, air, etc.

Greta Thunberg says that the powers-that-be stole her childhood from her, ruined her childhood dreams and deceived expectations of her generation. Her obsession with the subject may seem frightening at first. The girl's parents seem to be concerned about their daughter as well as she is keeping her eye on them for the purpose of environmental protection.

Her speech at the 2019 UN climate action summit in New York was emotional and even hysterical. It was an act to attract public attention by any possible means. At the same time, the girl spoke of the problems that many adults are too lazy to deal with. One shall admit that it is activists like Greta who can make governments listen.

Not that long ago, Sergei Zverev, Russian stylist and hairdresser, who positions himself as a glamorous pop star, held a single picket on Red Square protesting against the construction of a plant for the production of drinking water on Lake Baikal. Zverev was arrested and fined. Interestingly, however, it was either Zverev's picket or something else that made the project of the plant remain on paper.  

Clearly, man overestimates his impact on nature. Global processes on the planet, such as global warming or global cooling, take place regardless of UN Security Council resolutions. At the same time, we all can do something to preserve wildlife and forests on the planet.

Barbaric deforestation, man-made fires that are delicately called "wildfires" - this is a real disaster that is far from being an aspect of Greta Thunberg's teenage maximalism. In Russia, it is generally believed that extinguishing fires is economically unviable. Many of us - let's face it - believe that the problems of the future generation are something that they, not us, will have to deal with. There will be no point in achieving economic growth if future generations have no clean air to breathe with.

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Woman arrested for raping male victims in sauna for extortion

In the republic of Tatarstan, a woman, together with her 39-year-old accomplice, raped male strangers in a sauna, and then blackmailed the victims for extortion.

The woman, a resident of the city of Naberezhnye Chelny, would look for victims on social media. She would then invite them to a sauna, where the woman's accomplice would later arrive. Threatening with a knife, the couple would rape the victims and film everything. Afterwards, they would blackmail the victims with those recordings, extorting money from them. The largest amount that they managed to receive from the victims was 18,000 rubles ($280).

The accomplices managed to conduct at least three of such attacks. They were charged with illegal confinement, sexual violence and extortion.

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Dmitry Rybolovlev’s AS Monaco silenced the critics again

Ever since joining AS Monaco, Alexander Golovin had a chip on his shoulder. Touted at home as the best player of his generation, he already had Russian Premier League title and U17 European Championship gold under his belt at only 20 years of age. Still, how he would fare in a top European league was a completely different story.

Dmitry Rybolovlev and Alexander Golovin (AS Monaco)

Dmitry Rybolovlev, a Russian billionaire and AS Monaco owner, was present at the World Cup match between Russia and Croatia a little more than a year ago. He spotted the creative young Russian midfielder and immediately ordered his subordinates to negotiate a transfer with CSKA Moscow.

Shortly after, Golovin joined AS Monaco for a record 30 million euro. The big bet on a promising countryman didn't seem to pay off immediately, as Golovin struggled to find his place on the pitch and was frequently injured. The press soon started to question whether joining the crisis-torn Ligue 1 club was a smart move for the 22-year-old prospect. Golovin's sole moment of glory came when he helped his squad avoid relegation with a goal and an assist en route to a 2:0 win over Amiens in Ligue 1 37^th day. 

Monaco defies the odds once more

Dmitry Rybolovlev's club was in for a slow start of the season again this fall. In the lead-up to the Tuesday's derby with OGC Nice, the club and his owner were under tremendous pressure. Frustrated with a winless six-game streak, the fans and pundits demanded to sack the manager Leonardo Jardim, whom Rybolovlev reinstated earlier this year. Golovin was among those who welcomed the Portuguese coach's return, because his predecessor, Thierry Henry, didn't give the young player much time to prove himself. Now the press was going through potential substitutes for Jardim. Luckily for the team, president Rybolovlev is a billionaire for a reason and not used to give in to the pressure easily. He took a more patient approach and gave the coach and the team some time to work everything out. 

Ahead of the derby, everyone counted AS Monaco out. The club was next-to-last in the Ligue 1 standings, while their rivals OGC Nice were occupying the prestigious third spot. Nice was recently acquired by a British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe and everyone seemed to be charmed with their sound transfer policy and strong results. However, the Monegasques weren't ready to go down without a fight. Jardim abandoned his favorite 4-4-2 scheme in favor of a more experimental 3-5-2. But, with Falcao out, the squad still needed a leader on the pitch. And that's where Golovin's time to shine came. The throttling of heavily favored Nice left everyone in awe. In a much-needed 3-1 win for Monaco, Golovin scored a double and an assist. After the fantastic match, Dmitry Rybolovlev, club's vice-president Oleg Petrov and coach Jardim all came to the locker room to congratulate Alexander on his personal triumph. You could almost see Jardim smiling for the first time ever. Golovin is now only referred to as "The Tsar" or "Alexander the Great" by fans and media alike. His inspiring performance dubbed "Russian football magic" placed him on L'Equipe cover captioned "Spasiba Golovin," a sign of some sincere appreciation.          

Both Rybolovlev and Golovin made the right choice

Dmitry Rybolovlev found a diamond in the rough a year ago, that's for sure. It may have looked like the big bet on a promising but unproven Golovin was a flop. But Rybolovlev stuck to his guns and continued to believe in the player. The club's president supported Golovin throughout the lengthy adaptation process, which was a stern test in itself for a reserved young man from a distant Siberian town of Kaltan. Rybolovlev helped Alexander to rent an apartment and enroll a French language course. Club's president, who holds a degree in medicine, also closely followed Golovin's recovery from injuries. Now it's plain to see they both made a correct choice right from the start: Alexander Golovin found himself a club where he can live up to his true potential, and Dmitry Rybolovlev got his team a new leader. Monaco also brought in some reinforcements for this season, spending over 130 million euros to sign the likes of Ruben Aguilar and Wissam Ben Yedder. Should Golovin now stay healthy and motivated, saving the season for Monaco doesn't seem like an unattainable goal.

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All forest fires in Russia have been extinguished

Not a single forest fire has been recorded in Russia as of September 30, representatives of the Federal Forestry Agency (Avialesohrana) said.

Over the past 24 hours, firefighters eliminated seven forest fires on the area of 94 hectares. As many as 100 people, 24 units of equipment and 13 aircraft were involved in the operations to extinguish the fires. There is no region in Russia where a state of emergency would still be in effect.

In the summer of 2019, forest fires were raging in Siberia, Yakutia and Buryatia. The fires affected three million hectares of forest, although spokespeople for Greencepeace Russia said that the affected area was much larger  - 5.4 million hectares.

Russian President Vladimir Putin instructed the Ministry of Defense to join the operations to extinguish the fires. The Federal Forestry Agency evaluated the fire damage at seven billion rubles.

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Russia to build laser firing range to test combat laser

The Russian Defense Ministry signed a contract for the development of Stretta engineering works to ensure the preparation of two brigades that use laser fire simulators at a specially equipped training ground.

The company that won the competition for the development of the complex has not been named. It was said, though, that  laser fire simulators and target destruction sensors would be designed for all samples of small arms, armored vehicles, mortars and grenade launchers of the Russian Army.

As part of the works, military specialists will develop software that will be able to provide detailed analyses of military men's actions and mistakes that they may make during the training process at the laser training ground.

According to the public procurement website, the tender for Stretta engineering works is evaluated at 756 million rubles. The works on the project are to be finished in November 2021. Originally, the Russian Defense Ministry planned to purchase German-made Rheinmetall laser fire simulators for the Mulino training ground in the Nizhny Novgorod region. However, the plans failed to materialise because of the sanctions against Russia.

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The challenge for the automotive industry in CO2 reduction in Europe

The challenge for the automotive industry in CO2 reduction in Europe

  

                The Global environment crisis that is constantly discussed in the media today and makes the people freaky with consequences of global warming, has been putting the pressure on governments to assume urgent actions to gradually reduce the CO2 emissions, reduce  plastic waste in seas and have responsible policies to avoid more waste generation.

                Recent examples such as fires in the Amazon forest, east Siberia region, total melting of glacier Okjokull in Iceland and other situations around the globe give the fuel for media and public opinion to pressure more and more the governments.

                The platform target of the European Union to reduce the CO2 in industries is ambitious and goes in order to shows that is possible do in a sustained way. For the automotive industry the pressure is high and the target for 2019-2020 is 95 g/km and goes to 60 g/km on 2030. Today the average spreading of the main automotive industry is 120 g/km, still higher than the target.

                The main challenge for the automotive industry is the cost. The improvements expected by governments and the sustainable environmental policies only will have success if the industries find out solutions to reduce costs and implement new strategies. The public opinion reinforces the solution for industries invest in electric vehicles, however the production cost for the hybrid electric vehicle known as PHEV and battery electric cables know as BEV are still higher than current diesel vehicles, some analysts forecast that until 2025 improvements on electric systems, power train and batteries will reduce the production costs around 20% reaching the production cost level to the current petrol cars. It means that this gradual improvement certainly will support the development of electric vehicles in Europe in the next years and analysts forecast the increase of 20% on electric fleet in 2020. From the perspective of customers, purchasing electric cars is still a challenge, with constant technological development, these cars have a relevant yearly depreciation and purchasing a vehicle and selling it 3 or 4 years later with an outdated technology certainly affects customer decisions and affects also OEM producers that see the lack of profitability.

                In fact, even with investments, subsides, improvements and perspectives for the market improvement, cost reduction and gradual acceptance of customers, the reality for automotive industry is survival now. In this way industry concentrate efforts to reduce costs on these productions and try to meet the European targets for 2030 and onwards. For all OEM the forecast for 2019 and 2020 is low performance in EBITDA, however, they are concentrating efforts to reduce costs on R&D perspective the change on designs and focus on weight reduction that can give benefits on reduction of CO2 emission. But the challenges do not spread only the company projects of cost reduction but also they are affected by political global problems, such as the Brexit situation that puts the British industry under pressure, for example Ford and Honda are closing engine plants, Jaguar and Land Rover plans to cut jobs. The delay in the Brexit solution will keep pressuring industry uncertainties forecast, beyond that the political commercial fight between USA and China also struggles, example of that is the recent huge strike in GM in the USA. Also  the recent attacks on Saudi Arabian refineries already pressured the petrol prices globally and until this crisis be stabilized it is uncertain the limit that petrol price can reach.

                Apart from global political issues, we see some good examples, in Portugal the Auto Europa Volkswagen announced recently a logistic improvement that will reduce the operational costs and reductions of CO2. The announcement of reactivation of line to Setubal port will provide to VW the possibility to transport 250 vehicles in each trip avoiding 32 truck outbound freights. The company expects still in 2019 reduce 400 metric ton of CO2 and in 2020 expect double the daily trips from 250 vehicles per day to 500 vehicles per day reaching up to 800 metric ton of CO2 yearly reduction. This operation will represent 68% of its production shipped to exportation, making the first leg of logistics using train.

                Beyond this example, the key to reach these targets still will be the investments in R&D also forecasting short term results as long term results. Another example is Scania, in according to EGS industry report, they have a different proposal and investments on alternative fuels like as biogas, biodiesel, hydrogenated vegetal oils and other solutions, which according to Scania these engines can reduce 90 % of CO2 from the traditional combustion engines. The company also works close to environmental regulations to reach these targets and forecast investments in R&D of 6% and 8% with focus on automation, connectivity and electrification.  In the same way Volvo has invested on alternative fuels and in according to EGS, through its advanced technology making methane engines, HVO and LGN powered trucks is possible reduce the carbon emission from 20% up to 100% and they already have authorization in north America to be the first OEM to use HVO in all of its products, in Europe new electric trucks have been launched on 2019 giving company an advanced position in the market.

Photo: By Siyuwj - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://ift.tt/2nzIS9Z

Dimas Wiegerinck

Portugal

Dimas-business@hotmail.com

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Smoking on balconies is now regarded as criminal offence in Russia

Dmitry Peskov, the official spokesman for President Putin, commented on the introduction of new fire safety relations, which include a ban on smoking on balconies. The new regulations are to come into force from October 1, 2019.

"The Kremlin shares a positive attitude to any decisions that can help save lives. We know how many fires occur, many of them have very tragic consequences and spark public outcry. Therefore, any saved life justifies such decisions," Peskov said, adding that he thought of the ban primarily as a fire prevention measure, rather than a way to protect non-smoking individuals from their smoking neighbors.

The Russian government has approved a set of changes to the rules of fire safety arrangements this week. The new editing includes a ban on the use of open fire on balconies of apartment buildings, hotels and dormitories. At first, many were divided on whether the new restrictions were going to affect smokers. Later, however, representatives of the Russian EMERCOM confirmed that Russian citizens would not be allowed to smoke on their balconies starting from October 1, 2019.

Officials said that up to 60 percent of fires in apartment buildings occur because of carelessness when smoking. In addition, representatives of the ministry said that a fire caused by discarded cigarette butts may lead to an administrative punishment of a smoker.

Penalties include warnings and fines for individuals in the amount of up to 3,000 rubles ($50) or up to 5,000 rubles ($90) in the event violation of the rules leads to a fire. Criminal responsibility may follow in case of a fire that causes damage to other people's apartments.

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Okhotnik UAV goes on joint flight with Su-57 5th-gen fighter jet

The Okhotnik unmanned aerial vehicle went on its first joint mission together with Sukhoi Su-57 fifth-generation fighter.

Source: YouTube screencap/Defense Ministry of the Russian Federation

As part of the test program, the new Russian combat drone flew in an automatic mode in full configuration for the entry into the duty zone.

During the flight, the Okhotnik UAV and the Su-57 fighter jet practiced interaction to expand the fighter's radar field and designate targets for the use of long-range aviation weapons without the need to the Su-57 to enter the conditional zone of air defense response.

The first joint flight continued for more than 30 minutes. The test of the state-of-the-art Okhotnik or Hunter combat drone, created by Sukhoi Design Bureau, are carried out at one of the test airfields of the Russian Ministry of Defense.

The Okhotnik UAV is based on the principle of the "flying wing" with the use of special materials and coatings that make it practically invisible to radar detection equipment.

The drone carries equipment for optoelectronic, radio engineering and other types of reconnaissance activities.

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Russia readies new aircraft-carrier killers - Tu-22M3M bomber planes

In one or two months, Russia's new strike complex will go on combat duty.  It doesn't go about another new weapon that Russia is going to present to the world. This time, it goes about the modernization of 30 Tupolev Tu-22M3 bomber aircraft into Tu-22M3M.

Source: Wikipedia/CC BY-SA 4.0

Practically everything that the aircraft has is going to be changed, but the main emphasis will be paid to navigation and radar systems. The modernisation of two of such aircraft has been finished, and their tests ended successfully.

In addition, after the "update" this bomber plane will be able to carry a larger variety of missiles. The icing on the cake will be the new, state-of-the-art hypersonic missile that will be able to strike  targets at long and ultra-long distances. This is the X-32 missile, which is also a modification of the missile that was decommissioned in 1998. The new version has received upgraded navigation tools, as well as more modern engines, which together produced an excellent result. Right now, the X-32 can destroy targets at distances of up to 1000-2000 kilometers overcoming such distances at speeds of up to 6000 km/h.

The Russian Federation plans to allocate a little more than $5 million from the budget to finally complete the transformation of the X-22 missile into the X-32. It is worthy of note that the old X-22 remains indestructible to enemy missile and air defenses to this day. Many experts believe that the missile will be a formidable weapon for aircraft carrier strike groups.

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Boris Johnson: And in the next episode of the soap opera...

Boris Johnson: And in the next episode of the soap opera...

They have one in every family: an aunty who downs a pint of beer and belches sonorously, a grandfather who breaks wind and guffaws raucously and a mop-headed oaf who sits with his legs manspread while bad-mouthing French cuisine.

Boris Johnson appears as someone who has spent his entire life living in a parallel universe of British elitism, without any notion of what it is like to live the life of the common people. For such people there is little that cannot be solved with a good bottle of port and a five-finger exercise with a girly magazine, to hell with the detail and the consequences.

And this is exactly where we are with the unelected Boris Johnson as Prime Minister of the UK advised by an unelected someone who the elected David Cameron apparently called a "psychopath". He and his clique of friends in Government are fully aware of the fact that Parliament does not want Brexit, and much less a no-deal Brexit because they are privy to information which the general public does not know or would not understand, namely that any form of Brexit has negative consequences.

For the elitists, consequence does not exist

For someone from the Bullingdon Club, an elitist clique which is famed for trashing dining venues then getting Daddy to pay the following morning, oh a jolly little jape, eh what?, consequence is a notion which can be shaped, deformed or cancelled, it's just a question of how much.

Therefore to deride Parliament for blocking his Quixotesque schemes, refusing to rule out a no-deal Brexit even though this has been blocked by law, Boris Johnson is setting a very bad example for his people and is personally responsible for dragging the image of his country through the mud. In just a few weeks, nobody has ever done so much damage to his own nation in such a short space of time than the current Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

He knows very well that any form of Brexit is bad news, he knows very well that a no-deal Brexit would be an economic and social disaster. Of course, for him and his cronies, some of them worth tens of millions of pounds, or more, social consequences are things borne by those who were born to suffer: the plebs. One of them is reported to have actually said "Well the people can manage their portfolios to overcome any difficulties, what?" or some such nonsense. Most people would not know what a portfolio was even if it hit them on the ear.

As the leader of the Opposition, Jeremy Corbin, said, Boris Johnson should not take himself too seriously. Theresa May, however inept a politician, was at least respected in Europe for trying. Boris Johnson is not respected in Europe and is referred to in many corridors at every level, as "That *******!". Fill in the gaps but what other word is there to describe someone who is willfully taking his country on a Bullingdon spree and to hell with the consequences, only this time Daddy won't pay. Rather than hating Johnson for his one-way trip to Hell, those in Europe are seriously worried about the social consequences of his recklessness, consequences which the British population will bear the brunt of (well, England and Wales, because Scotland will soon be out of the Union).

Johnson has lost any respect he might have had in the House of Commons, which is the representative of the people, he has lost any respect he might have gained in Europe through his sheer arrogance and idiotic plans for the future of the UK and in the rest of the world he is considered as some kind of political freak show. In fact, people in positions of responsibility are tuning in to their televisions every morning waiting for the latest snippets about "Boris" to then curl up giggling and referring to the British soap opera.

Everyone knows that the UK is part of Europe, always has been, the British genetic make-up is one and the same as the Parisii, the Belgae, the Celts, the Germans, the Scandinavians, the Normans, Romans and everyone else who constitutes the DNA of the British. Everyone knows that at a time of global and large trading blocks, nobody tries to go it alone because it simply cannot work. Everyone remembers English and British history has been interwoven with networks in Europe with Portugal, Flanders, Russia and many others. Bede writes that when the English needed help they went crawling to Rome. Europe has saved the UK's skin time and time again and what is written on the thank-you note?

The Brits and the crumbs

Countries will do their trade with the EU block first and throw crumbs to the Brits, who will be hammering on the door, outside the party, without any say in the procedings, out in the cold, wallowing in the dregs thrown over them by the USA along with dodgy foodstuffs and the rest. Nobody is lining up to do trade with the UK for the same reason that when you are ill you go to a reputable, sensible doctor and not some quack living in a hut with skulls hanging from lengths of string above the doorway.

British Small and Medium Enterprises cannot, by simple arithmetic, thrive when their margins are squeezed by higher importation and exportation prices which are the inevitable consequence of leaving the club you trade with for free then paying to get access to its markets. The Treasury cannot promise social improvement programs when it will have to dole out enormous quantities of social benefit to the newly unemployed, and as Europe moves forward, the networking which British people enjoy today will close and once again the way out for the Brits will be to get on a ship for Australia, Canada or New Zealand. Only those countries have moved on. Australia is today an Asian country, New Zealand is a Pacific country and Canada has more links to the US than the UK.

The British backside, the target for a carrot or a stick

Boris Johnson and his Brexiteer clique of elitists have destroyed the psyche of the United Kingdom, have created a fog so thick that the nation does not know where it is going, cannot find its identity, has its head stuck in the sand and its defenceless backside pointing up in the air, the target for a carrot or stick. This group of elitists will not be affected and will not hold itself accountable, neither will they be held accountable by the people of the UK.

The UK will break up into the set of micro-states it has always threatened to become, indeed many county borders are based to the centimetre on ancient kingdoms even with the same name: Sussex (South Saxons), Middlesex (Middle Saxons), Essex (East Saxons) etc. The people will "get on with it" as they see the futures of their children sold down the drain because they were gullible enough to swallow the lies of the Leave campaign in a referendum whose result was never binding. The population is lost, spineless, badly informed and powerless to stop a handful of idiots destroy the future of the country and sell their children's dreams down the sewer.

If a second referendum were held, the Remain vote would win by 73% to 27% because young people want a future, people understand that the 350 million quid a week was a shitfaced lie and that the UK is part of Europe, not some Atlantis stuck in the middle of nowhere derided as a nationalist craphouse by the rest of the world.

Like anyone else who went against the grain, like any soccer player who thinks he's larger than the club, like anyone who plays games with serious Institutions, Boris Johnson's jolly japes will see him humiliated, outcast and if he is not careful, in prison. Casting the notion that the highest court in his land was wrong and he was right casts aspertions on the notion that he is balanced, able-minded and responsible to hold his job. His political epitaph in the history book will be a very pathetic one-liner.

Let's be honest, these days you do not need to go to a circus to see a clown, albeit one not even fit for the job. So if Boris Johnson stays on in his position for a while yet, many are those who will happily tune in to start their day glggling at his expsnse and at the expense of the country whose image he has almost single-handedly destroyed.

Give him a bottle of port someone and a girly magazine.

Photo: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bulldog#/media/File:White-red_English_bulldog.jpg

Timothy Bancroft-Hinchey

Twitter: @TimothyBHinchey

timothy.hinchey@gmail.com

Timothy Bancroft-Hinchey works in the area of teaching, consultancy, coaching, translation, revision of texts, copy-writing and journalism. Director and Chief Editor of the Portuguese version of Pravda.Ru since 2002, and now Co-Editor of the English version, he contributes regularly to several other publications in Portuguese and English. He has worked in the printed and online media, in daily, weekly, monthly and yearly magazines and newspapers. A firm believer in multilateralism as a political approach and multiculturalism as a means to bring people and peoples together, he is Official Media Partner of UN Women, fighting for gender equality and Media Partner with Humane Society International, promoting animal rights. His hobbies include sports, in which he takes a keen interest, traveling, networking to protect the rights of LGBTQI communities and victims of gender violence, and cataloging disappearing languages, cultures and traditions around the world. A keen cook, he enjoys trying out different cuisines and regards cooking and sharing as a means to understand cultures and bring people together.

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US tanks near Belarus tickle Russia's nerves

A battalion of the US Army  - more than 500 soldiers and dozens of tanks and heavy fighting vehicles - is arriving in Lithuania as part of the rotation of the troops, spokespeople for the Ministry of Defense of the Baltic Republic said.

The US battalion will be deployed on the outskirts of the city of Pabrade - just ten kilometers from the state border of Lithuania with Belarus.

Viktor Baranets, retired colonel and military observer of the Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper, shared his opinion on the situation in an interview  with Pravda.Ru.

"Why did the United States of America, the leader of NATO, send its tanks  to the border with Belarus? Should Belarus and the Russian Federation respond to the arrival of the US battalion in Lithuania?"

"Russia and NATO once agreed that neither United States nor the alliance will deploy their military contingents at the borders of the Russian Federation and Belarus. Nowadays, however,  after the agreements between Russia and NATO have been terminated completely, both the alliance and the USA act as they see fit.

"The battalion of the US Ground Forces in Lithuania is a formidable and substantial unit, but the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces is not going to panic, of course. The fact of the deployment of NATO military units at the borders of Russia and Belarus is, of course, alarming.

"Undoubtedly, Moscow and Minsk will respond to the deployment of the American battalion in Lithuania. The location of the US battalion will be marked on the map and, in the event of a real military threat, this military target will be destroyed in the first place. Obviously, both Russia and Belarus are making adjustments to the deployment of their missile, air, ground and other units of troops.

"The larger the buildup of opposing states gets, the more likely a direct military conflict becomes. There is no guarantee that a NATO aircraft is not going to fly into Russia's or Belarus' airspace. If it happens, no one can guarantee that this aircraft will not be shot down.

The buildup of US and NATO forces along the borders of post-Soviet space and the subsequent  response on the part of Russia is extremely dangerous as it is fraught with the onset of an open armed confrontation," the expert told Pravda.Ru. 

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Who is going to crush Zelensky - Biden or Trump?

President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky has become one of the most talked-about politicians in the media lately. He has recently reminded the world of his existence by signing the bill on impeachment of the head of state. He then deprived members of the Ukrainian parliament of immunity, but that was not all. Zelensky has exploded the world media with a story of his mysterious relationship with US President Trump. Of course, Zelensky is trying to give good face and proudly declares that no one, except for his little son, exerts any pressure on him. However, those behind the political curtain know, on which side bread is buttered. Zelensky's former colleague, "Kvartal 95" actor Evgeny Koshevoi said that Zelensky was a little tired of his heavy burden. Vladimir Zharikhin, deputy director of the Institute of the CIS countries, expressed his opinion on the subject of what has been happening to Mr. Zelensky lately in a brief interview with Pravda.Ru.

"Stripping MPs of their immunity was more like a whip in the hands of the president, because he controls the Prosecutor General's Office, which, in fact, initiates criminal proceedings. But I think that deputies will fight for their rights. As for impeachment, the law has been adopted, but in a form tougher than was previously stipulated in the draft. Now, in order to launch impeachment, one needs 347 votes. Previously, a simple majority would be enough. Given the structure of the Ukrainian parliament today, it is hard to imagine that Zelensky can be impeached.

"The president of Ukraine now has many other problems to deal with. He has found himself between the upper and nether millstone - Trump and Biden. To add more fuel to the fire, Zelensky is deeply connected with the Soros team, specifically with those who manipulates the Democrats now. One can see that the relationship between the US administration and the Ukrainian leadership has been cooling down. I actually predicted it four months ago that the Ukrainian story would be in the center of this standoff. Trump is ready to take revenge for Manafort - not just because he likes Paul, but because he was the chief of his headquarters, and Trump was forced to replace him at the peak of the election campaign. It all came from Ukraine: they used incriminating evidence against Manafort to make problems for Trump. The President of the United States can not yet make the Ukrainians give him the materials to take advantage of the incriminating evidence against Biden. We know why: because Zelensky remains under their control."

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Iranian FM Zarif’s Truth-Telling v. Pompeo’s Big Lies

Iranian FM Zarif’s Truth-Telling v. Pompeo’s Big Lies
 
by Stephen Lendman (stephenlendman.org - Home - Stephen Lendman)
 
The difference between both senior officials is stark and revealing.
 
Pompeo is a war-mongering/hate-mongering neocon extremist v. internationally respected/peace and stability proponent Zarif.
 
Both officials appeared on CBS News’ Face the Nation Sunday, their remarks world’s apart.
 
Zarif explained that host nation USA is obligated to issue visas to foreign delegations visiting the UN in New York.
 
The Trump regime illegally denied them to Iran’s delegation. Zarif said he was granted one “on a waiver basis,” adding: 
 
“(T)hey want me to know…I’m not (wanted) here” — the same true about President Rouhani, reluctantly granted visa permission to come at the 11th hour.
 
Iranian reporters were also denied visas to accompany Tehran officials and cover UN General Assembly proceedings, an international affront.
 
Throughout years of US aggression in Yemen, the Saudis a junior partner in what’s going on, Zarif said his government “called for a ceasefire, immediate negotiations, humanitarian assistance, and formation of a broad-based government,” adding:
 
The US and Saudis rejected the idea, “believ(ing) they could win this war (in) weeks.” It’s ongoing endlessly with no prospect for resolution because US hardliners reject peace in all their conflict theaters — my comment, not Zarif’s.
 
He stressed that years of war left long-suffering Yemenis’ “cut off from the rest of the world” by illegal US/Saudi blockade.
 
Zarif: The Trump regime is hard-pressed “to explain why its state of the art (air defense) equipment was not able to intercept” munitions striking Saudi oil facilities.
 
He stressed that Iran had nothing to do with what happened. No credible evidence suggests it.
 
Asked who carried out the attack, Zarif said Yemeni Houthis “announced…responsibility for it. They have even shown evidence that they launched this attack. So I should take it as that.” 
 
“But if the United States believes that the Yemenis were not behind it, first of all…why did the Saudis retaliate…against the Yemenis?” 
 
“Why did they break the UN-brokered ceasefire in Hodeidah and retaliated against the Yemenis?” 
 
“They did that because they all know where (the attack) came from, and how it should end is through an end to the killing of innocent children, women, elderly that has been going on.”
 
Mass slaughter and destruction continue. Dire humanitarian conditions are the worst worldwide — millions of defenseless civilians suffering from US-led aggression, killing a nation and its people.
 
Zarif: “Over two million cases of cholera in Yemen. Now everybody is concerned about an attack on an oil refinery which, based on the latest information that I have, didn’t even have a single casualty.”
 
Mass slaughtered “human beings are not enough but a refinery is an imminent threat…(T)he moral compass is totally lost.”
 
Zarif debunked the Big Lie about Iranian weapons used to strike the Saudis, saying:
 
“(T)hey made all those claims in the past. The fact of the matter is Yemenis inherited all the weaponry that (US installed puppet president) Ali Abdullah Saleh bought with Saudi money…”
 
“(I)t would take a miracle for (the US) to claim (Iranian weapons were used) because (they) didn’t come from Iran. Period!”
 
“The weapons the Yemenis have…are Yemeni made. I’ve heard news stories that they are different from the weapons that we produce. I believe the Yemenis.” 
 
“Based on what I know, the Yemenis have the technology and the knowhow to increase the range of the missiles that they already had from Ali Abdullah Saleh.”
 
Zarif debunked the Big Lie claim about strikes on Saudi oil facilities coming from the north, what’s technologically impossible to judge.
 
Drones and missiles can be maneuvered to strike from any or multiple directions. No credible evidence whatever suggests they were fired from Iranian territory or by elements connected to Iran from Iraq or anywhere else.
 
Zarif: “The Saudis made a show” that proved nothing,” their news conference presentation “a lot of lies.”
 
Days earlier, former Trump secretary of state Tillerson said they can lie Trump into a war, Zarif stressed.
 
All wars are based on Big Lies and deception! Truth-telling destroys pretexts for waging them, why it’s buried.
 
Zarif: “I’m confident that Iran” had nothing to do with striking the Saudis. “I’m confident that anybody who conducts an impartial investigation will reach that conclusion.” 
 
“But I cannot say a priori that the people who are being sent will conduct an impartial investigation because we’ve had cases in the past where they didn’t.”
 
Asked if he’s confident war with the US can be avoided, Zarif said: 
 
“No. No, I’m not confident that we can avoid a war. I’m confident that we will not start one, but I’m confident that whoever starts one will not be the one who finishes it.”
 
“That means that there won’t be a limited war” if the Trump regime launches aggression on Iran.
 
Whenever interviewed, Pompeo’s remarks include a litany of long ago debunked disinformation, Big Lies and fake news when discussing nonbelligerent states targeted for regime change by the US.
 
On Face the Nation Sunday, he lied repeatedly throughout the interview, saying: 
 
“No reasonable person (sic) doubts precisely who conducted these strikes, and it is the intelligence community’s determination that it is likely the case that these were launched from Iran (sic).”
 
Not a shred of credible evidence backs Pompeo’s Big Lie!
 
Claiming the strike came from the north is another Big Lie, as well as falsely saying weapons used “had ranges that could not have come from the Houthis.”
 
In January, a UN commissioned report said advanced Houthi drones have a range of up to 930 miles — putting key Saudi and UAE targets within range.
 
Pompeo: The attack “was Iran true and true (sic), and the United States will respond in a way that reflects that act of war by” Tehran (sic).
 
Asked if it “was launched from Iran,” Pompeo ducked the question, saying: “This was an attack by Iran on the world (sic). This was an act of war (sic). I’m here at the UN.”
 
War in Yemen indeed is raging endlessly, launched by the US, bearing most responsibility for the mass slaughter and destruction of the country, along with creating and perpetuating the world’s gravest humanitarian crisis.
 
Pompeo ignores the above reality whenever making public remarks, focusing instead on blaming others for US aggression. 
 
He disgracefully demeaned Zarif, a diplomatic giant compared to his pigmy stature on the world stage, saying:
 
“I don’t know why anybody listens to the Iranian foreign minister. He has nothing to do with Iranian foreign policy (sic), and he has lied for decades (sic).”
 
“It’s beneath the dignity of anyone in the world to listen to someone who repeatedly makes the claim that the Houthis launched this attack.”
 
The rest of Pompeo’s interview was littered with more of the same bald-faced Big Lies by a figure long ago exposed as a congenital liar, proving nothing he says is credible.
 
Make your own judgment. Throughout its 40-year history, the Islamic Republic never attacked another country.
 
It threatens none except in self-defense if preemptively attacked by an aggressor.
 
Throughout the post-WW II era, the US has been perpetually at war directly and/or through proxies against one nation after another it doesn’t control.
 
That’s what the scourge of imperialism is all about, naked aggression the main US tactic, the highest of high crimes under international law.
 
VISIT MY NEW WEBSITE: stephenlendman.org (Home - Stephen Lendman). Contact at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.
 
My newest book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III."
 
https://ift.tt/1iNPjMF
 

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Russia shows DIY drones used to attack Russian troops in Syria

Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konashenkov showed reporters unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) of terrorist groups. The UAVs were shot down as they were approaching Khmeimim airbase of the Russian Air Force in September. According to Konashenkov, those who made those drones used quite complex technical solutions that required special education, even though the UAVs were mediocre and unpresentable in their appearance.

Source: Russian Defense Ministry

Terrorists' UAVs could fly for distances up to 150 km at altitudes up to 4,000 meters. Terrorists had received help from the outside to assemble those vehicles, Konashenkov said.

The downed drones were equipped with a control system for navigation. They were also outfitted with three antennas and ammo consoles. Another UAV had a gasoline-powered propulsion system - a plain five-liter barrel of gasoline. Ammunition could be dropped from an altitude of 1.5-2 kilometres with the help of a special mechanism that would push them off the vehicle.

Konashenkov noted that the UAVs looked as though they were assembled as aviation design club models. However, one needs to have profound technical education to be able to design and build a mechanism to control vehicles and drop ammo from them. Someone who owns such technologies obviously assisted terrorist groups, the official believes.

Units of the Russian Air Force were deployed at Khmeimim air base since the beginning of the Russian operation in Syria in 2015. Terrorists periodically try to attack the Russian air base in Syria,  including with the use of unmanned aerial vehicles.

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Richard Black speaks again

The attack by the Yemeni Houthi against Saudi oil installations was unexpected as it was sudden and put the Westerners in front of a reality that they preferred to ignore. The Houthi of Yemen are not, that is, a tribe of cave-dwellers badly in tools that delude themselves to resist the most prepared Saudi and Western armies but disciplined soldiers full of ardor, experts of modern warfare and who can get remarkable results with the means that have available.

The astonishment that the Western chancelleries caught after the success of the Yemeni attack against ARAMCO installations makes us understand how the West in crisis overestimates itself and insists on looking at the rest of the world with the air of sufficiency of those who have not understood which turn the events really took.

The Saudi Arabia war against the Yemenis is a dirty proxy war on behalf of the United States, part of the Middle East remodeling planned well before 9/11 and started immediately after the 2001 attacks on American soil. To pay the price of this madness, which had and still has as its final target the destruction of Russia and the confinement of China, were the populations of once prosperous countries like Libya, Syria and Iraq that end up in the meat grinder of endless civil wars.

It is worth remembering once again how the Houthi attack has shown how difficult, if not impossible, to defend the thousands of kilometers of pipelines that cross the Saudi desert. The war against Iran, the war that the hawks of the American Deep State want strongly with their Israeli friends, would therefore not be a quiet morning walk but something full of terrible unknowns.

On the American side, the Yemeni attack has accelerated the departure of the super falcon John Bolton that President Trump has replaced with Robert O'Brien as the new national security adviser. O'Brien's past as hostage negotiator leaves hope for a different diplomatic approach. Instead of wall-to-wall negotiations, with the gun on the table, something more blunt, with a different sensitivity. This is the hope, but the reality?

The West has few people trying to counter the insane and endless madness of American neocons. One of them is the Republican Richard Black, Virginia State Senator.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVIThSnA_Yc

According to Black, John Bolton should not be underestimated, since he is really a very aggressive, unscrupulous and dishonest bully. An individual, Bolton, proud to lie and bloodthirsty, who many times put President Trump in situations that could have triggered a war. The new national security adviser, O'Brien, is also connected to the American Deep State like his predecessors and close to the hawk Mitt Romney but it would be a mistake to think that Bolton and O'Brien are simply interchangeable. Bolton proved incompetent in managing the crisis in Venezuela, trying to impose on the Venezuelans an unknown Juan Guaidò as new president and ultimately embarrassed the White House itself. His continued attempts to wage a war against Iran made Trump understand how his re-election would become impossible in the event of a clash with Tehran. The very composition of the American Parliament would have been distorted, with the possible disappearance of the Republican party itself.

The support of John Bolton (and Mike Pompeo) to the MEK anti-ayatollah militia, the Mojahedin-e Khalq, an anti-Iranian organization that has a huge base in Albania created and funded by US, this support has deepend the rift between Bolton and President Trump.

It is Richard Black's opinion that the Arab springs were one of the CIA's most successful operations. However, it is a success that has caused enormous suffering to the whole world and that has allowed only the start of wars against the target countries. Libya, for example, which before the American (and NATO) intervention was one of the most prosperous and rapidly developing countries of North Africa. Or Syria, where women had and still have great freedom and rights, still under attack by jihadist militia backed by Washington. Before that, Iraq, against which the creative flair of John Bolton broke out, which caused the United States to go to war with the excuse of non-existent weapons of mass destruction. So, the world did not benefit from the Arab springs, not at all.

Then why doesn't the United States seem capable of ending the wars that begin? Here Black is not afraid of speaking clearly, as is his habit: it is the great economic and political interests that are behind the wars and that follow them, to prevent the end of conflicts, even when it is increasingly evident that the enormous military expenses caused from a continuous condition of war, are leading the country to bankruptcy. This is much more than a simple echo of the warning that General Eisenhower, in his farewell address, threw when he warned against the growing influence of the although necessary military-industrial complex and against its insatiable appetites. It is a clear statement, clean, fair about an objective state of affairs and for these reasons it will remain, alas, unheard.

In an attempt to redesign the Middle East, the United States has increasingly supported and defended Saudi Arabia, one of the most bloodthirsty dictatorial regimes that exist and have instead hindered Iraq in any way. Even if Iraq was not a democracy according to Western criteria, it had always allowed that freedom of religion which, if sought in Saudi Arabia, can easily lead to beheading.

The American one is therefore an attitude that does not pay: the target countries of Washington are reorganizing and opening up to markets different from those in the West. China and India are doing big business in Iran, business that could have been done by the Americans if a warlike attitude hadn't prevailed.

Senator Black cannot tell where exactly the drones that hit Saudi oil installations came from but they certainly not came from Iran. The damage suffered by the ARAMCO installations was inflicted by experienced soldiers, the Houthi, who face an enemy, the Saudis, incompetent but bully: unable to use the Patriot batteries that protected the implants, they allowed themselves to be hit by an enemy they believe as inferior. They are braggarts. Bullies.

In the end, the American people are tired of war, tired of the constant war that lasts for eighteen years. We can say that President Trump is right when he tries to avoid a new military adventure with results uncertain but potentially devastating.

Video interview with Senator Richard Black:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVIThSnA_Yc

********************

Costantino Ceoldo - Pravda freelance

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USA triggers another diplomatic scandal with Russia

Dmitry Peskov, an official spokesman for Russian President Putin, said that the situation, in which the USA refused to issue visas to members of the Russian delegation for their participation at the meeting of the UN General Assembly in New York was "unacceptable and alarming." Both the UN and Moscow are supposed to show a tough reaction to such a development, he added.

"Washington is violating its international obligations. This is a direct violation of international obligations by Washington, because this is not just a bilateral visit. It goes about a visit of the Russian delegation to the UN General Assembly," Peskov said. All that the United States can do is to restrict the stay of Russian diplomats in one city, New York, where the international organization is headquartered. "The USA has no right to introduce any other restriction for those who go to the General Assembly," the spokesman for the Russian president concluded.

Earlier, Konstantin Kosachev, the head of the Federation Council Committee for Foreign Affairs, said that the US Embassy in Moscow did not issue visas to ten members of the Russian delegation, who were supposed to accompany Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on a trip to the UN General Assembly in New York. The US Embassy denied visas to Kosachev himself, to  chairman of the State Duma's committee on international affairs Leonid Slutsky, and to officials of the Russian Foreign Ministry. There was no formal refusal of visas per se, but the delegates failed to timely receive their passports from the US Embassy.

US officials later said that the Russian diplomats allegedly submitted their documents in an untimely manner. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova denied such an explanation and said that all the documents had been submitted within the deadlines indicated by American diplomats. The incident will be the central topic for discussion during the meeting between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his US counterpart, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, in New York, Zakharova noted.

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Kashmir, Ummah and Realpolitik

By Imran Malik

Serious introspection is warranted by the Muslim Ummah as its inherent weaknesses and the complexities of Realpolitik have literally rendered it irrelevant to issues of geopolitical import, like Palestine and Kashmir. Islam, its only unifying factor, is fast becoming superfluous to the self-serving national interests of some Muslim countries. It lacks leaders of international stature, presence and influence and thus garners scant respect as a meaningful global player. Its enormous economic, military, political, diplomatic and human resource potentials are too dissipated in thought and purpose to make it a unified, influential world power. Its internecine divisions have allowed the exploitative and opportunistic US-led West and its allies to continuously "divide and rule the Muslims".

What has caused this diminution of the Ummah's international stature and clout?                                 

The post-World War 1 era saw the demise of the Caliphate (Armistice of Mudros and the military occupation of Constantinople, October 1918; Treaty of Versailles, 1919) and the fragmentation of the Ottoman Empire into numerous small, manageable fiefdoms (Treaty of Sevres, August 1920). In 1924 Mustafa Kemal Ataturk formally abolished the Caliphate transferring its powers to Turkey's National Assembly. The European victors, in the meantime, redrew their respective spheres of influence and retained decisive and exploitative control on all these newly emerging countries of the erstwhile Ottoman Empire. The Ummah got further fractured and splintered as it no longer had a central authority/Caliph to look up to. Leaderless, it gradually lost its collectivism, cohesiveness and clout till it was reduced to its present-day status of an impotent and inconsequential bystander at the regional and global levels. The US-led West then went about systematically building up Israel as its unchallenged representative/hegemon in the Greater Middle East Region, (GMER), neutralizing piecemeal, the bits and pieces of the erstwhile Ottoman Empire, selectively through wars, peace agreements and rank exploitative patronage of some key monarchies/royal families.

The last time the Ummah showed some strong unified presence was at the 1974 Lahore Islamic Summit. This was in the wake of the 1971 Indo-Pak and the 1973 Arab-Israel wars. The Arabs led superbly by King Faisal were set to play the "oil card" which was to transform the world economy forever. The degeneration thereafter was palpable as it was consummated through the brutal assassination of King Faisal of KSA, the hanging of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto of Pakistan, the removal of the Shah of Iran, the assassination of President Anwar Sadaat of Egypt amongst other contributing factors. The Muslim Ummah was thus decapitated, conclusively throttling its resurgence for good.  

From the occupation of Palestine, the Arab-Israel Wars of 1956, 1967 and 1973 to the notorious bilateral wars, the infamous Arab Spring and the numerous invasions of Muslim states in the GMER and South-Central Asian Region and especially now the Indian annexation of Kashmir, there has been a very distinct and seemingly irretrievable attenuation of the Ummah's political, economic, diplomatic and military clout. It's appeasement of and spineless capitulation to the US-led West (and India?) is

profoundly unnecessary and deplorable. The crass commercial and economic interests of some Muslim countries have apparently trumped the virtues and advantages of Muslim unity. The Ummah is clearly a house divided in itself on petty political, religious, sectarian and economic grounds. Realpolitik, is thus taking its fatal toll on it. Its deathly silence on Palestine and now Kashmir is deafening in its impact. The Organisation of Islamic Countries, (OIC), its ostensible mouthpiece, aptly reflects its current moribund existence; stark impotency, rank ineffectiveness and abject uselessness.

Today, the Ummah does not exist in any tangible or influential form, shape or dimension. The West has prevailed, eventually!

Palestine and Kashmir have suffered the most from this largely self-inflicted malaise. Whereas Palestine is already degraded and lost to the world as an inconsequential tiff between Israel and the "terrorist groups" Hamas-Hizbullah now, Indian attempts to similarly belittle and denigrate the Kashmir issue continue. The Indians have variously addressed it as a commitment to the UNSC Resolutions, as a bilateral issue (Shimla Agreement) with Pakistan and now as its internal matter. They need more clarity and consistency in their approach to Kashmir and related international obligations. Regardless, India remains callously oblivious to the critical strategic implications of its actions in Indian Occupied Jammu & Kashmir (IOJ&K) - where the interests of not two but three (China included) of the world's strongest nuclear and military powers, now ominously clash! Thus, India's senseless aping of Israel's Palestine model in IOJ&K is totally misplaced in time, space and the obtaining strategic environment. Unlike Palestine where Israel has nuclear exclusivity, overwhelming military superiority and arrogant freedom of action, Kashmir is a war zone where a balance of nuclear terror exists. India needs to understand this subtle difference, find a more original approach and get a genuine reality check. Nuclear Pakistan's obligation to the Kashmiris' Right to Self Determination remains meaningful, unwavering, unequivocal and relentless. Furthermore, the world has not readily accepted India's obscene annexation of IOJ&K or its ineffectual explanations thereafter!  

The most critical and pivotal phase of the Kashmiris' struggle for their inalienable Right to Self Determination is nigh. Events post-curfew & communications blackouts will be decisive. That will be the time when the Kashmiri struggle will shoot up the escalation ladder. It will move from helplessly "waiting for the world to act", beseeching, suffering, wailing, chest beating and stone pelting in vain to a massive defiant proactive popular indigenous kinetic resistance movement to confront the Indian Occupation Forces head on. This paradigm shift in the Kashmiris' struggle is all but inevitable and will create a far more explosive strategic environment than the Indians/world expect. It will force the UNSC/Muslim Ummah/international community to stand up and be counted, intervene and obviate war in the world's most sensitive nuclear flashpoint - and deliver justice to the Kashmiris!

PM Modi, has driven himself into a strategic cul-de-sac and is short of viable options. World opinion too is perceptibly turning against him. The world looks on aghast as a cornered, bitter, and desperate PM Modi, in his delusional, racist, ultranationalist Hindutva-laced frenzy, takes the world to the brink of a veritable nuclear winter!

The author is a retired Brigadier from the Pakistan Army.

Twitter: @K846IM

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Eleven police officers fired after having sex on the beach

In Anapa, more than a dozen police officers were either fired from their jobs or held liable as a result of the investigation into a notorious criminal case. It is believed that a group of police officers coerced  a minor female volleyball player from the Moscow region to have sex with them. The case received an extensive coverage in Russia and engendered wide public outrage.

Four police patrol officers were dismissed from their jobs, while strict disciplinary action was taken against their supervisors, the press service of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs for the Krasnodar region said.

In addition, the chief of the Ministry of Internal Affairs for the City of Anapa and deputy police chief for the protection of public order were dismissed as well. Penalties were applied to two members of the administration of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs in the Krasnodar region.

The incident with the participation of a minor volleyball player, who played for the youth team of Russia, took place in Anapa (a resort city on the Black Coast of Russia) in late August. The police found a couple having sex on the beach. The officers released the young man, who was already 18 years old, but started intimidating the young woman, who was a minor individual.

The woman told the officers that she would be willing to do anything just to be released. Two officers started having sex with her, while a third was standing near and watching. When it was all over, they took her to the Volleygrad sports complex, where the athlete was training. The girl told everything to her trainer, who sounded the alarm.

The Investigative Department of the Russian Federation for the Krasnodar region opened a criminal case against police officers under Part 2 of Article 133 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation - "Coercion to sexual acts." In hot pursuit, all supervisors of all those involved in the case lost their jobs.

The victim is an athlete from the Moscow region, who went to Anapa to take part in the finals of the Russian beach volleyball championship.

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In Trump's America, treason always prospers

In Trump's America, treason always prospers

  

On May 15, 2017, Pravda.Report published my essay, Articles of Impeachment for Donald J. Trump.  As I reread that article in preparation for writing this one, it was disconcerting to realize that, over two years later, almost all the charges I leveled against Trump still ring true.

With one major exception.  One of the parties I charged along with Trump was his then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions.  But now (and I can't believe I'm saying this) the ascendancy of William Barr has actually made me long for the days of Sessions, who, at least, and to Trump's ire, had the decency to recuse himself from Robert Mueller's investigation into foreign interference in American elections.

If history is a fair judge (and if humankind even has a history after Trump and his minions finish destroying the environment), Barr will be remembered as the most corrupt, treacherous, mendacious, and treasonous attorney general in American history.

And when I say treasonous, I mean treasonous.  Ever since he obtained the attorney general's office, Barr has used it for one purpose:  To cover up the criminality of Trump.

Some apologists say that this is because Barr simply has, according to the New York Times, an "expansive view of executive power."  This alone is tantamount to treason.  Over two centuries ago, Americans fought a revolution to free themselves from a monarchy, and even though they ultimately created a Constitution that gave the federal government power over the states, they tempered this power by ensuring that the three branches of government this document created-Legislative, Executive, and Judicial-would "check-and-balance" each other so no single branch could obtain absolute power.

In assuming office, Barr took an oath to uphold and defend this Constitution from enemies both "foreign and domestic."  Instead, he is using every corrupt subterfuge at his disposal to empower Trump, the greatest domestic enemy to the Constitution America has ever seen, to the point that he is even willing to cover-up Trump's dalliances with foreign governments whose interests might be contrary to those of the United States.

But it's not just Barr that is insulating and empowering Trump.  The entire Department of so-called Justice and the intelligence community are doing their utmost to ensure Trump's treason goes unnoticed, or at the very least unpunished.  And even his so-called "opposition," led by the myopic idiocy of Nancy Pelosi, is fiddling as the Constitution burns.

And what is Trump's most recent foray into treason?  As of this writing, the details are sketchy, but early reports confirmed by Trump's sycophantic lapdog, and fellow traitor, Rudy Giuliani, indicate that, in talking to the leadership of the Ukraine, Trump made the release of foreign aid to that country contingent on its government "investigating" the man who may be his opposition in the 2020 election:  Joe Biden.

And before you join the cacophony of toadies claiming this is just "politics as usual," think about this.  Donald Trump is tying the release of foreign aid to countries not based on their need, strategic importance, or furthering the interests of the United States and its people.  He is tying that release to those countries serving the interests of Donald J. Trump, which means he appears willing to withhold such aid from countries who do not bow to his personal whims, even if such withholding is detrimental to the safety and security of the United States.

 

That, ladies and gentlemen, is textbook treason.

The famous saying by John Harington states:

Treason never prospers, what's the reason?       

For if it prosper, none dare call it treason.

 

With apologies to Mr. Harington, there are some in America who are calling it Treason, and still it prospers.

But there is hope.  The history books are full of lessons of people finally waking up and realizing that tyrants and traitors have overtaken their governments.

Unfortunately, they always wake up too late.

David R. Hoffman, Legal Editor of Pravda.Report

                                              

Photo: By Henri Meyer - Bibliothèque nationale de France, Public Domain, https://ift.tt/30zOVZS

  

  

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Trump Regime Escalates Illegal Sanctions War on Iran

Trump Regime Escalates Illegal Sanctions War on Iran

Both right wings of the US war party use illegal sanctions as weapons of war by other means against nonbelligerent countries threatening no one Washington doesn't control.

Imposing them targets ordinary people most of all, aiming to inflict maximum immiseration, a key feature of imperial ruthlessness.

On Friday, Trump's Treasury Department illegally sanctioned the Central Bank of Iran, the country's National Development Fund, and Etemad Tejarate Pars, an Iranian company.

A department statement falsely accused Tehran of a "brazen attack against Saudi Arabia..."

Fact: No evidence suggests Iranian involvement in week ago strikes by Yemeni Houthis on key Saudi oil facilities - retaliating against kingdom aggression, their legal right under international law.

Treasury Secretary Mnuchin "brazenly" lied, claiming Iran's Central Bank and the National Development Fund "have been used...to move (Tehran's) foreign currency reserves for terrorist proxies" - how the US and its imperial allies operate in all their war theaters, not Tehran, opposing terrorism, not supporting it.

Mnuchin subordinate Sigal Mandelker threatened nations that "continu(e) work(ing) with (Iran's) Central Bank."

Russian Foreign Ministry official Zamir Kabulov responded to new Trump regime sanctions on Iran, saying the following:

"This will not affect our approaches to Iran. As we planned, we will continue to cooperate with Iran in the banking sector. This will have no effect" on Moscow's relations with the country.

China and other nations likely have similar views. Iran fulfills its international obligations, threatening no one - the US an aggressor, threatening humanity.

Unilaterally imposed US sanctions on Iran and other countries flagrantly violate international law.

Nations observing them are complicit with US lawlessness. No one should bend to policies aiming to undermine other states and inflict harm on their people.

The US is the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism, not nonbelligerent Iran.

Its "maximum pressure" campaign on Iran failed. Its propaganda increasingly falls flat.

On Saturday, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Abbas Mousavi said the Trump regime "ha(s) to admit that sanctions are a failed policy, and the overuse of this tool and its manipulation as a weapon has put the US credibility and its economy to serious test in the international community where the time of America as a reliable economic partner has expired," adding:

The US "lacks the capability of coming up with any sensible and dynamic diplomatic initiative to peacefully resolve disputes with other countries" - calling its agenda "confused and...desperate (based on) bullying, unilateralism and waging economic terrorism against others."

In New York to attend the annual UN General Assembly session, Iranian Foreign Minister Zarif slammed Trump regime lawlessness, saying:

Newly imposed US sanctions on Iran's banking sector shows its "desperate approach" toward the country, adding:

"The Americans have imposed any sanctions they could on the Islamic Republic. What they are doing now is sanctioning an entity which has been sanctioned before under a different pretext."

"The new sanctions are aimed at blocking Iran's international transactions and its access to food and medicine. This move is unacceptable and dangerous."

Iranian Central Bank Governor Abdonnaser Hemmati said US sanctions on "the CBI again shows how empty their hands are in finding leverage against Iran," adding:

"If such measures had been effective in pushing the cruel demands of (the Trump regime), the economic situation in (Iran) would be very different from the current one." 

"The repeated failures of the US (regime) over the past year and a half show that these sanctions have become more ineffective than ever."

Iran's IRGC commander General Hossein Salami warned that any foreign power involved in attacking the country militarily will be retaliated against strongly in response. "We will hit anyone who violates our borders," he stressed, adding:

"The threats from enemies taught us how to extend the range and destructive power of weapons. (A) limited aggression will not remain limited."

The ball is in Trump's court for greater war or stepping from the brink responsibly.

Its accusations against Iran are baseless. What establishment media should report they're silent on, supporting US aggression instead of denouncing it.

VISIT MY NEW WEBSITE: stephenlendman.org (Home - Stephen Lendman). Contact at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

My newest book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III."

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html

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Young people are right about climate change: It’s time to listen

By Luis Alfonso de Alba

Source: NASA

Climate change is not a far-away problem- it is causing huge damage right now in Asia-Pacific and around the world. From air pollution choking many major cities, to more extreme heat and natural disasters, to one million species at risk, the urgent need for climate action is clear. We are all paying the price today, but unless we take action immediately to limit the impacts of climate change, it is young people who will be living with the ever-increasing consequences of global warming. So it is no surprise that it is young people who are at the frontlines of efforts do something about it.

We cannot afford to ignore the voices of young people.  We cannot afford to trivialize their demands. What they say matters.

Today, there 1.8 billion people in the world are between the ages of 10-24 years, and 1.2 billion of them are between 15-24 years.  It's not just that we need to listen to the voices of youth, it's because the voices of youth matter.  Young people can drive agendas.  This is the most interconnected generation in history. And together, what they purchase determines what sells.   

Young people are telling us we need to change.  The world is on an unsustainable path, and as climate impacts increase, the opportunities for today's young people will diminish.  They are demanding nothing short of a transformation of the economy to a green economy

Political, business and civil society leaders in every country are taking notice. To ignore the voices of youth is to ignore the urgency with which we must act.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is convening the Climate Action Summit in September in New York to spark this transformation. The Secretary-General has made clear that we must value the voices and welcome to the global stage the young climate champions who have been setting the agenda and inspiring climate solutions.

That's why I'm working with Secretary-General Guterres to convene the first-ever UN Youth Climate Summit in New York City on Saturday, September 21.

The Youth Climate Summit will feature a full day of programming that brings together young activists, innovators, entrepreneurs, and change-makers who are committed to combating climate change at the pace and scale needed to meet the challenge. It will be action oriented, and inclusive, with equitable representation of young leaders from all walks of life and every region of the globe.

More than 7,000 young people between the ages of 18 to 29 answered our call to apply to attend the Youth Climate Summit.  While only slightly more than 500 can attend, an effort has been made to ensure wide and inclusive representation.  100 young leaders from the Global South were awarded a UN sponsorship, or "Green Ticket"- funded, carbon-neutral travel to New York City - to participate in the Summit. These outstanding young leaders have been selected based on their demonstrated commitment to addressing the climate crisis and advancing solutions.  Given the impacts of climate change in Asia-Pacific, including increased disaster risk, inequality and harm to the environment, and the leadership of young people in communities here - I'm pleased that several young people from the Asia-Pacific region have been selected to participate in the Summit in New York.

I look forward to joining the selected young climate leaders in this historic moment in September and hearing from them about potential solutions that can help meet the challenges posed by climate change. But their work, and our work, does not end there.

It is imperative that all of us - individuals, business leaders, heads of state - draw inspiration from these young leaders.

Secretary-General Guterres has called on world leaders to come to the Climate Action Summit with concrete plans, not beautiful speeches. Leaders would do well to hear the calls from young people to protect their communities today and safeguard their futures.

Businesses must step up and follow young entrepreneur's lead in the transition to a low-carbon economy that provides inclusive and sustainable economic growth.

And everyone in civil society can join with young climate champions by following along on the Youth Summit livestream and making choices that have less harmful effects on the environment through ActNow.

I urge young people to continue taking positive climate action now and holding leaders, business and your communities to account. By doing so, you will continue to push us forward in this race we cannot afford to lose.

Luis Alfonso de Alba is the UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy for the Climate Action Summit

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Russian S-400 can easily desacralize F-35 Lightning II fighters

S-400 Triumph anti-aircraft missile systems in Turkey can "desacralize" (remove religious or sacred status or significance from) fifth-generation F-35 Lightning II fighters, a message from the Defense Ministry of the Russian Federation said.

"The thrill and excitement of the Pentagon about the probable desacralization of F-35 fighters by Turkish S-400 air defense systems are not unfounded," the message from the department said. F-35 fighter jets are invisible only to US taxpayers and foreign buyers, Russian military officials added.

In July, Defense News website suggested several ways that Turkey could resort to to use Russian-made S-400 Triumf anti-aircraft systems and F-35 Lightning II simultaneously.

The agreement to supply four Russian-made S-400 Triumf divisions to Turkey was concluded in September 2017. The contract was evaluated at $2.5 billion with a Russian loan covering a half of the amount. Russia started supplying S-400 systems to Turkey in July of 2019. Washington subsequently suspended the supplies of F-35 Lightning II fighter aircraft to Turkey. In total, Turkey was supposed to receive more than a hundred fifth-generation fighters from the USA.

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If NATO strikes Kaliningrad, Russia will seize Baltic in 48 hours

Russia will not wait for the United States to launch an attack on the Kaliningrad enclave. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation have preventive measures not to let this happen, military expert Mikhail Alexandrov believes.

US Air Force Operations Commander in Europe, General Jeffrey Harrigian, said that the United States had a plan to break through air defense of Russia's Kaliningrad enclave in Europe. According to The National Interest, a B-52 bomber of the US Air Force practiced an attack on the Kaliningrad region in March of this year. Does Russia have similar plans?

Mikhail Alexandrov, a leading expert at the Center for Military-Political Studies at MGIMO, Doctor of Political Sciences, told Pravda.Ru that "Russia is not going to sit and wait for them to break though Russia's air defenses." "The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia do not think with such notions. One can break through air defenses only as a result of a massive attack operation. This can be done by concentrating aviation into massive fire support.

"As soon as we can see the concentration of American aircraft on airfields in Europe - they cannot reach us in any other way - we will simply destroy those airfields by launching our medium-range ballistic missiles at those targets. Afterwards, our troops will go on offensive in the Baltic direction and take control of the entire Baltic territory within 48 hours. NATO won't even have time to come to its senses - they will see a very powerful military buildup on the borders with Poland. Then they will have to think whether they should continue the war. As a result, all this will end with NATO losing the Baltic States," Mikhail Alexandrov told Pravda.Ru describing one of the scenarios for a possible development of events in case of Russia's response to NATO aggression.

Another variant for the breakthrough of the missile defense system in Kaliningrad provides for a massive cruise missile attack on the Russian territory. According to the expert, Russia has cruise and ballistic missiles that it can launch on the territory of the United States.

"If the Americans launch a missile attack on Kaliningrad, then we will strike, say, Seattle, where largest US aircraft factories are located. Having destroyed those factories we will deprive the Americans of the possibility to build their aircraft. They will no longer be able to build up their fleet of military aircraft," said Mikhail Alexandrov.

Russia has efficient air defense systems to intercept cruise missiles. If it goes about a ballistic missile strike, the expert reminded that Russia has a missile defense area in Moscow that can intercept at least 100 missiles and maybe even more, since there are no restrictions associated with the ABM Treaty.

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Will Vladimir Putin declare capitalism dead too?

By Phil Butler

Is it time for a new Declaration of Independence? If true individual choice and truth are any factor of freedom, the writing is on the wall not just in the United States, but globally. The wealth divide that has grown into an impenetrable wall between the elites and the rest of us, it's only a symptom of decaying set of ideas that have long since lost their luster. We simply must move on to another plan, a plan devised from innovative thinkers.

The Myth of Capitalism

I almost dropped my morning coffee when I scanned the headline "Competition Is Dying, and Taking Capitalism With It," by Bloomberg contributor Jonathan Tepper. I am not sure why the article popped into view almost a year after its publication, but the fact it did gives me new hope. Bloomberg, as we all know, is not exactly the source we look to for anti-elitist info. That said, Tepper's report is just and spellbinding. The story begins with an excerpt from Tepper's book, "The Myth of Capitalism: Monopolies and the Death of Competition:".

"We need a revolution to cast off monopolies and restore entrepreneurial freedom."

A "revolution," the former Lehman Brothers proprietary trading guru says, is the only thing that can save capitalism from certain death. To quote the founder of Variant Perception, a macroeconomic research group:

"Rising market power by dominant firms has created less competition, lower investment in the real economy, lower productivity, less economic dynamism with fewer startups, higher prices for dominant firms, lower wages and more wealth inequality. The evidence from economic studies is pouring in like a flood."

This flood threatening to drown free choice and free will, it's been mounting for years while the misinformed public runs headlong into slavery under the oligopoly. There's no way to sugarcoat the mess the system has become. In the U.S., where freedom and choice are the building blocks of democracy, everything from beer to airline tickets is run by a very few corporations. Google and Facebook, United Airlines and Budweiser, the list of ruling corporate titans is wide, but not very long. Take social media and the recent censorship of NEO and many other independent media outlets for an example. The Bloomberg warning reveals:

"Google completely dominates internet searches with an almost 90 percent market share. Facebook has an almost 80 percent share of social networks. Both have a duopoly in advertising with no credible competition or regulation."

Forget for the moment that these oligopolies are driving the average citizen into the pavement. They also put precious little back into the system that supports their greed. Did you know, for instance, that over $20 trillion dollars in much needed civic funding is hoarded away in tax havens by these corporations? George Monbiot, in a more recent report at The Guardian, declares:

"The economic system is incompatible with the survival of life on Earth. It is time to design a new one."

Monbiot's arguments align perfectly with my own regarding the imminent failure of the capitalist model. Capitalism fails without growth, and since perpetual growth on a finite planet is impossible, capitalism as an idea was ridiculous from the start. The Guardian piece discusses things like extraction zones and disposal zones, and more bits and pieces of the prevailing system. The end of the story is, as Monbiot suggests, "bigger by far than war, famine, pestilence or economic crisis, though it is likely to incorporate all four." But, what always confounds me is our failure to see the coming disaster.

Wealth Distribution Doesn't Add Up

Wealth creation as a notion is probably all wrong, to begin with. Not only is wealth segregation a bad idea, but it's also doomed to failure as the planet gets smaller and smaller. Economic growth, which is now linked to the increasing use of material resources, has an end game nobody wants to envision. Not only are our oligarchs killing off freedoms, their robbing the planet and future generations of any opportunity for ultimate survival. This is something we have all feared for decades, but something that is at critical mass today. We must find another way.

Also read: American capitalism gone with a whimper

The Guardian story shines a light on a man named Jeremy Lent, who is one of the most brilliant sustainability gurus of today. The former CEO of the internet company NextCard, is also the founder of the non-profit Liology Institute, which is dedicated to a worldview that could enable humanity to thrive sustainably. Lent proposes an ecological society with a value system based on a sense of intrinsic connectedness. Lent's new value system focuses on quality of life, rather than material possessions. Secondly, the idea that political, social, and economic choices should be shared by all humanity is paramount in this theory. In the end, such a society would be totally environmentally sustainable. Now let's turn to Russia's key role in world sustainability.

In a report from climate experts Alexander Bedritsky, who is an advisor to Vladimir Putin, the systemic crisis that Russia had gone through in the 1990-s had a dramatic negative impact on economic, environmental and social issues with regard to Russia's sustainable future. According to plans developed during the Yeltsin years were never implemented in full, and Vladimir Putin has been left with only ink and paper to show for decades of unsolved problems. At the core of Putin's effort to catch up sustainability wise, were the same precepts as those of Lent and others. Sustainability is about quality of life, the level of economic development, and environmental well-being built into a new system. Unfortunately, what I often refer to as "The Putin Way" was disrupted by guess who? The capitalists, of course.

The Putin Plan

First, on Putin's agenda, was the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger, without which Russia's sustainable future would be impossible. From 2002 until the latest west-east divide, a lot of progress was made to transform Russia in this regard. In 1992, for instance, almost 50 million Russians lacked the means to survive. By 2010 the number was reduced to less than 18 million. As of 2018, that number is even lower. Goal 2 of the "Putin Plan" was to achieve universal primary education. In this and other humanitarian instances, Russia is now approaching or at the level of the UK, Sweden, and Japan, and ahead of Germany, Italy, and France. Goal 7 of this plan has been achieving environmental sustainability. It is in this sector Mr. Putin had his biggest hurdle, actually. The report talks about leaving the "legacy of the past" in order to ensure the future of Russia and the world. Unfortunately, the capitalists in the west gauge everything Putin does in terms of growth. And herein lies my point.

Mr. Putin's government tripled spending on environmental protection from 2003 to 2010, but the economic war waged by the capitalists has hampered these efforts. Russia was on track to have a middle class to rival any of the G7 countries. But this effort slowed when NATO slipped up close to the Russian border in 2014. The Sochi Olympics were a showcase of what is possible for the whole of Russia and the world. But the globalists attacked there too. Still, Putin's way forges a new Russia in spite of criticism from growth capitalists. The New York Times makes fun of innovative plans Putin makes, but growth like that which is destroying the west is not the "Putin Way." When the world's most famous newspaper caught up with Mr. Putin's economy minister, Maksim S. Oreshkin, he set the record straight on Russia's new path:

"We have set very ambitious goals. Economic growth is only one of them. We have set many others that will directly affect the quality of people's lives."

The biggest problem with the capitalists is the liberal order's reliance on dead 20th-century Keynesianism. Every expert opinion I read casts dispersion on efforts like the Russians is making, while at the same time using unviable economics as its benchmark. The Nationa Projects Report (Russian) at the forefront of Putin's latest efforts is made fun up as if Russia's struggling out of darkness into the light is a joke. Interestingly, what Putin's Plan looks like is what George Monbiot terms "private sufficiency and public luxury." In short, society must share luxury while living in sustainable and green privacy. And society will have to use state projects like those Putin proposes to create such a reality.

This is not to suggest Vladimir Putin's new Russia is right over the horizon. The "legacy" of failed communism and Soviet blunders will remain for some years. But the kind of competition that has ruled the world in past decades must be supplanted with a better idea. Russia is pretty far off for ideas like "participatory budgeting" of these projects, but I believe Putin is looking at such innovative ideas. In fact, I know he is, Putin's government has been running pilot programs along these lines for years now. But, he cannot simply switch on an alternative system, now can he? Don't take my word, read this interview with Ilya Sokolov, director of the Budget Policy Department at Russia's Ministry of Finance.

Phil Butler, is a policy investigator and analyst, a political scientist and expert on Eastern Europe, he's an author of the recent bestseller "Putin's Praetorians" and other books. He writes exclusively for the online magazine "New Eastern Outlook."

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