Puppet MastersS


Putin

Putin-Erdogan deal sugar-coats the Turks' surrender

Scott Ritter
RT
Fri, 06 Mar 2020 10:23 UTC
Putin Erdogan Lavrov Cavusoglu
© Getty Images/Turkish Presidency/Murat Cetinmuhurdar/Anadolu AgencyR to L: President of Russia Vladimir Putin • President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan • Russian FM Sergey Lavrov • Turkish FM Mevlut Cavusoglu
This week's meeting between Presidents Putin and Erdogan in Moscow was cast as preventing a war between Russia and Turkey in Syria. War, however, was never on the horizon. Putin called Erdogan's bluff, and the Turk folded.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Erdogan, accompanied by their respective senior national security advisers, met in Moscow on March 5. The purpose of this emergency summit was to negotiate the terms of a ceasefire that would bring an end to heavy fighting in Syria's Idlib province that threatened to draw their two nations into direct military conflict. After more than six hours of meeting, a new agreement, packaged as an "additional protocol" to the "Memorandum on Stabilization of the Situation in the De-escalation Area as of September 17, 2018" (better known as the "Sochi Agreement"), was agreed to by both parties.
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Star of David

Draining the intelligence community swamp? Trump's new hires will all be Israel's

Philip Giraldi
Information Clearing House
Tue, 03 Mar 2020 00:00 UTC
RGrenell
© APInterim Director of National Intelligence, Richard Grenell
The appointment of U.S. Ambassador to Germany Richard Grenell as interim Director of National Intelligence (DNI), a position that he will apparently hold simultaneously with the ambassadorship, has been criticized from all sides due to his inexperience, history of bad judgement and partisanship. The White House is now claiming that he will be replaced by Texas Congressman John Ratcliffe after the interim appointment is over, though sources in Washington suggest that Ratcliffe might have some problems in being approved by Congress.

But such criticism, including my own, has somewhat missed the point, which is that what we are already seeing is a purge orchestrated by Grenell of federal employees in the White House and national security apparatus who are holdovers from the Obama Administration and who are therefore considered to be unreliable. That is why Grenell will continue to be ambassador as well as DNI as it is envisioned that his wrecking ball will have completed its task within six months and he will be able to return to Berlin, in spite of the fact that he is despised in Germany and many officials there even refuse to meet with him, which characteristically doesn't appear to bother the White House at all.

Comment: Most Americans receive information in bits and dribbles. It is only in the context of personal research or articles such as this, that a broader picture comes into focus. Americans do not control the USA. Israel's infiltration and influence has long been in place and getting stronger.

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X

US 'blocks' UNSC from supporting the Russian-Turkish ceasefire in Syria's Idlib province


RT
Fri, 06 Mar 2020 18:49 UTC
Syrian army guys
© SANA/handout via ReutersSyrian army soldiers in southern Idlib province, Syria
US opposition reportedly blocked the UN Security Council from backing the agreement between Russia and Turkey for a ceasefire in Syria's Idlib province. US diplomats earlier sought to back Turkey's incursion in the area.

Friday's meeting was requested by Russia, after President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan hammered out a ceasefire after a six-hour meeting in Moscow the day before.

However, "one of the parties" blocked the Security Council statement that would have expressed support for the agreement, Russian envoy to the UN Vassily Nebenzia said.

Though Nebenzya refrained from naming the culprit, both AFP and TASS reported that it was the US that vetoed the statement, citing diplomatic sources on East River.

Comment: While the partnership of Turkey and Russia is not convincingly strong, in comparison the user-liaison of Turkey and the US is pathetic. Russia is respected for keeping its word and advises accordingly. Neither Turkey, nor the US can say the same.

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X

Trump rejects Graham's push for DACA amnesty

Neil Munro
Breitbart
Fri, 06 Mar 2020 00:00 UTC
TrumpGraham
© Drew Angerer/GettyUS President Donald Trump • Senator Lindsey Graham
President Donald Trump and a group of GOP senators quickly rejected a DACA amnesty deal pushed by Sen. Lindsey Graham on Thursday afternoon - but left the door open to future negotiations.

They will now wait until after the Supreme Court decides on the legality of Barack Obama's work permit giveaway to 800,000 younger illegals, says multiple media reports.

The quick amnesty pitch by Graham (R-SC) was rejected when GOP Senators urged Trump to wait until the court releases its decision, due by June. The court's decision may give Trump more leverage as he tries to get an immigration reform deal from Democrats, a GOP source told Breitbart News.
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Rocket

Moscow: Nuclear conflict now is considered 'a political option' for Washington


RT
Fri, 06 Mar 2020 11:39 UTC
US missile
© Getty Images/USAF 148An unarmed Minuteman II intercontinental ballistic missile launches from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.
The US is expanding its nuclear capability with new types of low-yield weapons, and Moscow believes US strategists now consider launching a nuclear strike as a viable option in a conflict.

The US has made adjustments to its nuclear posture and has been introducing low-yield nuclear warheads to its arsenal, including those that can be launched from submarines. Russia sees such developments with great concern, the spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova told journalists on Friday.

The developments make Moscow believe that the American leadership "has made a decision to consider a nuclear conflict as a viable political option and are creating the potential necessary for it."

She rejected US justification of the upgrade by pointing the finger at Russia, and called on Washington to adhere to nuclear non-proliferation and reduction goals, saying that the path of "unrestricted growth of military strength," which it was pursuing, was "a road to a dead end".
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Padlock

Ghani refuses to free Taliban prisoners, as required in the US peace deal, without an 'executive guarantee'


RT
Sat, 07 Mar 2020 09:35 UTC
Ghani
© Reuters/ParwizAfghanistan's President Ashraf Ghani speaks in Jalalabad
The proposed release of 5,000 jailed Taliban fighters, required under their peace deal with the US, can happen only if the Afghan government gets a guarantee that they will not 'return to violence,' President Ashraf Ghani said.

"The people's request is that there should be an executive guarantee so that these people will not return to violence once they are released," the Afghan leader told parliament on Saturday, adding that a "transparent mechanism" has to be established to enact that part of the Taliban-US deal.

Under the agreement signed by the US and the Taliban in Qatar last Saturday, as many as 5,000 members of the militant movement currently held in Afghan prisons would be released by March 10. This would pave the way to intra-Afghan talks on the future of the country.

Ghani, who is to be inaugurated on Monday for his second term as Afghanistan's president, said earlier that his government was bound to no commitment to free the prisoners.

Comment: Is this a compromise Ghani will have to make? Neither he nor his government took part in the negotiations, nor had input into the agreement.

See also:

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Stop

Romney may block subpoena in Hunter Biden probe, says the investigation 'appears political'

Alex Nitzberg
Just the News
Thu, 05 Mar 2020 07:47 UTC
Romney
© Getty Images/George FreyUS Senator Mitt Romney
Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) on Thursday said that investigating Burisma and former Vice President Joe Biden's son Hunter "appears political" and that he had not decided whether to vote in favor of a subpoena related to the investigation. Romney told reporters Thursday:
"There's no question but that the appearance of looking into Burisma and Hunter Biden appears political. And I think people are tired of these kind of political investigations and would hope that if there's something of significance that needs to be evaluated that it would be done by perhaps the FBI or some other agency that's not as political as perhaps a committee of our body.

"We also have a lot of work to do on matters that are not related to Burisma, we probably oughta focus on those things."
Romney added he would speak with Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) later on Thursday.

Romney could thwart Johnson's plan to issue a subpoena related to the Biden-Burisma probe, as the legal step requires a majority vote of the committee comprised of eight Republicans and six Democrats. If Romney votes against the subpoena, he could cause a tie, blocking the subpoena.

Comment: If Romney throws a spanner into the vote, it is aimed at disrupting Trump.
See also:

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Attention

Maduro: US is hatching plans for war against Venezuela


TASS
Fri, 06 Mar 2020 22:57 UTC
Maduro
© EPA-EFE/Rayner PenaVenezuelan President Nicolas Maduro
The United States is hatching a plan for war against Venezuela, Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro said at a meeting with governors and mayors in Caracas on Friday. Maduro, at the meeting telecast on government-run TV, said:
"They (the US authorities - TASS) have decided to make a plan to bring war and terrorism to Venezuela, to destabilize it, to fill it with violence, to trigger an armed conflict and to excuse military intervention in our country."
Maduro said that the United States had chosen Brazil as its supporter in this scheme.
"We are asking the democratic and humanitarian circles, the people of Brazil and the armed forces [of that country] to stop any adventures against Venezuela by [US President] Donald Trump-backed [Brazilian President] Jair Bolsonaro."

Comment: Announcement or alarm? Many plans are hatched but few are implemented.

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X

Turkey registers zero violations since the Idlib ceasefire took effect


Sputnik
Sat, 07 Mar 2020 08:29 UTC
Saraqib, Idlib Governate, Syria
© Sputnik/Basel ShartouhSaraqib, Idlib Governate, Syria
On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, agreed on a ceasefire in Idlib, which started at midnight. The sides also agreed to create a security corridor six kilometres (3.7 miles) north and south of the M4 highway in Syria, which connects the provinces of Latakia and Aleppo.

Turkey has not registered ceasefire violations in the Idlib de-escalation zone after a new ceasefire took effect on Friday, Turkish Defence Minister Hulusi Akar said on Saturday.
"From the moment the ceasefire agreement in Idlib entered into force, there have been no cases of violation thereof until now. We are closely monitoring the situation and in case of attacks on our observation posts will immediately respond."
Akar added that Russian delegation will visit Ankara next week to discuss joint patrols in Syria's Idlib de-escalation zone:
"Within the framework of the agreement reached in Moscow, starting 15 March, we will begin joint patrolling in Idlib. We started discussing the conditions for creating a security corridor along the M4 highway. For that, the Russian delegation will come to Ankara next week."

Comment: Meanwhile, the Russian military has recorded 6 violations by militants
The Russian Centre for Syrian Reconciliation says it has registered at least 6 violations by militants operating in Syria's Idlib province since the new ceasefire took effect.

"Six shelling have been registered since the beginning of ceasefire at midnight on 6 March", Rear Admiral Oleg Zhuravlev, the commander of the centre, said at a daily briefing.

Following the ceasefire agreement, the situation in northern Syria calmed down following major clashes between Ankara and Damascus. The Russian Defence Ministry said that Turkish forces were not supposed to be in the area targeted by the Syrian Army's fire.


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Bizarro Earth

China rejects accusation it fired laser at US spy plane


ABC
Sat, 07 Mar 2020 05:53 UTC
China jet
© (Austin Ingram/U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class via AP, File)The Associated PressFILE - In this Oct. 23, 2019, file image provided by the U.S. Navy, a sailor assigned to the Grey Knights of Patrol Squadron (VP) 46 signals the pilot in the flight station of a P-8A Poseidon during a pre-flight check, in Oak Harbor, Wash. China's Defense Ministry said Friday, March 6, 2020, that a report one of its navy ships fired a laser last month at a U.S. Navy surveillance plane P-8A Poseidon circling overhead does not “accord with reality."
China's Defense Ministry says a report one of its navy ships fired a laser last month at a U.S. Navy surveillance plane circling overhead does not "accord with reality."

The report last month was the latest accusation that Chinese forces have used lasers to harass and potentially damage U.S. and other nations' military aircraft and personnel.

However, ministry spokesman Ren Guoqiang was quoted as saying Friday that the ministry "refuted" the report and said a Chinese squadron was conducting routine exercises in international waters on Feb. 17 when the incident allegedly happened.

Comment: Despite the ABC news commentary that the US has 'sought to avoid such incidents', the evidence proves the contrary and in fact the US has repeatedly and unnecessarily intruded into the South China Sea in what can only be considered acts of belligerence: US Navy continues to antagonize China with another South China Sea sail by

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