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Russian Flag

Stronger than sanctions: What's driving countries from Turkey to India to buy Russia's S-400?

Shishir Upadhyaya
RT
Sat, 15 Feb 2020 16:29 UTC
S-400
© AFP / Alexander Nemenov
The S-400 'Triumf' air defense system is taking the globe by storm. After NATO member Turkey, India is next in line and even Iraq is reportedly interested, despite US threats of sanctioning anyone who buys weapons from Moscow.

At the Lucknow DefExpo 2020 last week, Russian officials confirmed that India will receive its first shipment of S-400s by September 2021. The $5 billion deal signed in 2018 will be moving ahead despite US warnings that such a purchase could trigger sanctions under the CAATSA (Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act), which President Donald Trump signed in August 2017 as part of a wider program aimed against Russia.
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Newspaper

'We did not forget, we did not forgive': India marks one year since bombing of troops in Pulwama, Kashmir


RT
Fri, 14 Feb 2020 00:00 UTC
Pulwama wreckage 2019
© REUTERS/Danish IsmailForensic officials inspect the wreckage of a bus after a suicide bomber rammed a car into the bus carrying Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel on Thursday, in Lethpora in south Kashmir's Pulwama district, February 15, 2019.
India has unveiled a memorial for the 40 troops killed in a suicide bombing in the Indian-controlled part of Kashmir a year ago on Friday. The incident sparked a tense standoff that brought the region to the brink of war.

Tributes to the servicemen that lost their lives in the February 14, 2019 attack in Kashmir's disputed Pulwama district were led by PM Narendra Modi and other top government, as well as military, officials.

"They were exceptional individuals who devoted their lives to serving and protecting our nation. India will never forget their martyrdom," Modi tweeted early Friday morning.

Comment: In the latest cross-border shelling between India and Pakistan, one civilian was killed and 3 were injured in Shahpur, Jammu & Kashmir:
One civilian was killed and several others were injured by artillery fire near a mosque after the Pakistani army violated a ceasefire in disputed Kashmir, India's police chief has said.

Pakistani troops fired heavy mortars and small arms toward army outposts in the Line of Control (LoC) in the Poonch District of India's Jammu and Kashmir region on Friday, Indian media reported, citing military officials.

The district's Superintendent of Police Ramesh Kumar Angral said that a shell exploded near a mosque in the Shahpur area, killing a civilian and injuring three others when they were heading for Friday prayers. Other reports said that four people were injured. The Pakistani military did not comment on the alleged incident.

On Thursday, the Indian army and police busted a weapons cache belonging to local militant groups, recovering several pieces of firearms and ammunition.


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Question

Bojo seeks to govern like Trump, 'a populist with less austerity and big spending projects' - Galloway on cabinet reshuffle


RT
Sat, 15 Feb 2020 00:43 UTC
bojo
© REUTERS/Hannah McKayBritain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson leaves Downing Street in London, Britain February 12, 2020.
The cabinet reshuffle undertaken by PM Boris Johnson clearly shows he seeks to be a true populist leader just like US President Donald Trump - and signals the end of austerity measures in the UK, ex-MP George Galloway tells RT.

"Boris Johnson has signaled that he intends his government to be a populist one, where he controls not just the important decision-making, but his office controls the infrastructure and everyone else's departments," Galloway said on Thursday.

Sacking well-known ministers is hardly surprising, then, as populist leaders prefer technocrats in their governments, while all the attention revolves around their own persona. The rest of Johnson's team will therefore be "just window dressing and administrators," as Galloway put it.

"Who are Donald Trump's ministers? - Nobody knows. Donald Trump is the one and only in the United States. And Boris Johnson is now the one and only in the British government," he added.

Comment: Bojo's actual accomplishments and legacy remain to be seen, but If Bojo's time in regional and national government positions are anything to go by, the future doesn't look too bright for the UK:

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Newspaper

Taliban agree with US to reduce violence in return for withdrawal from Afghanistan


RFE/RL
Fri, 14 Feb 2020 18:26 UTC
Ashraf Ghani
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (center) shakes hands with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani as U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper looks on at the Munich Security Conference on February 14.
The United States and the Taliban have reached a deal on a weeklong reduction of violence that could lead to U.S. troops withdrawing from Afghanistan, a senior U.S. official has said.

The official, who was not authorized to publicly discuss the matter and spoke on condition of anonymity, told reporters on the sidelines of a security conference in Munich on February 14 that the deal to achieve a seven-day reduction in violence would take effect "very soon."

However, he told reporters that the agreement on a week of reduced violence had yet to begin.

The remarks came after a meeting between U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Defense Secretary Mark Esper, and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on the sidelines of the conference.

Comment: Considering the powerful factions within the US government that want to remain in Afghanistan, the likelihood of the agreement holding is shaky at best: Pentagon identifies 2 airmen killed in Afghan crash, denies hostile action, residents doubt Taliban involvement

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Newspaper

Corbyn praises Assange for exposing US war crimes, calls for extradition to be halted

Rob Merrick
Independent
Sat, 15 Feb 2020 10:40 UTC
corbyn assange
Jeremy Corbyn has called for the extradition of Julian Assange to the US to be halted, praising the Wikileaks founder for exposing US "war crimes".

Boris Johnson refused to comment on the case, which will begin this month - but surprised the Commons by agreeing the extradition treaty between the two countries is "unbalanced".

The Labour leader's call came as he also demanded to know whether Anne Sacoolas, who drove the car that killed teenager Harry Dunn, is being "shielded" because she was a CIA spy.

On Mr Assange, who faces up to 175 years in a US jail if convicted, Mr Corbyn backed MPs on the Council of Europe who have warned the extradition "sets a dangerous precedent for journalists".

Comment: See also:

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Arrow Down

Terrorists in Syria shoot down second government helicopter in a week

Areeb Ullah
Middle East Eye
Fri, 14 Feb 2020 13:18 UTC
Aleppo
(Screengrab) Footage posted online showed a Syrian helicopter falling from the sky Activists posted footage of the downed helicopter in the Western Aleppo countryside
Syrian rebels shot down a government helicopter on Friday, the second in a week, as thousands continue to be displaced in the country's northern Idlib province under bombardment from the forces of President Bashar al-Assad.

Footage posted online by pro-opposition groups and activists appeared to show the government helicopter falling from the sky and turning into a ball of fire.

Activists confirmed to Middle East Eye that the helicopter was shot down in the western Aleppo countryside, where fighting continues to take place between rebels and government forces.

Comment: As for the above comment that these 'international backers' - the US, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, to name just a few - have been 'hesitant' to supply the terrorist militias in Syria, or anywhere else in the Middle East, is demonstrably false.
Sputnik provides footage of the incident and reports on the recent escalating tensions in the area:
The downing came amid escalating tensions in northern Syria which deteriorated after eight Turkish nationals were killed after Syrian forces shelled one of Turkey's observation posts in Idlib. The Turkish military retaliated by launching an air strike which Ankara claimed had killed 76 Syrian servicemen.

Idlib is one of four de-escalation zones created in Syria by Russia, Iran and Turkey during talks in May 2017. The province is one of the remaining militant strongholds in the country, with pockets of the region controlled by terrorist groups.





See also:

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Eye 1

More lies on Iran: The White House just can't help itself as new facts emerge

Philip Giraldi
Strategic Culture Foundation
Thu, 13 Feb 2020 10:06 UTC
Trump white house
Admittedly the news cycle in the United States seldom runs longer than twenty-four hours, but that should not serve as an excuse when a major story that contradicts what the Trump Administration has been claiming appears and suddenly dies. The public that actually follows the news might recall a little more than one month ago the United States assassinated a senior Iranian official named Qassem Soleimani. Openly killing someone in the government of a country with which one is not at war is, to say the least, unusual, particularly when the crime is carried out in yet another country with which both the perpetrator and the victim have friendly relations. The justification provided by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, speaking for the administration, was that Soleimani was in Iraq planning an "imminent" mass killing of Americans, for which no additional evidence was provided at that time or since.

It soon emerged that the Iranian was in fact in Baghdad to discuss with the Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi a plan that might lead to the de-escalation of the ongoing conflict between Saudi Arabia and Iran, a meeting that the White House apparently knew about may even have approved. If that is so, events as they unfolded suggest that the U.S. government might have encouraged Soleimani to make his trip so he could be set up and killed. Donald Trump later dismissed the lack of any corroboration of the tale of "imminent threat" being peddled by Pompeo, stating that it didn't really matter as Soleimani was a terrorist who deserved to die.

Comment: See also:

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Hourglass

Hamas halts cross-border arson and rocket attacks on Israel in 'goodwill gesture'


Sputnik
Fri, 14 Feb 2020 23:26 UTC
balloons gaza flag
© Abed Rahim Khatib/ Flash90Balloons flying a Palestinian flag, seen in the sky during a protest near the Gaza border.
Earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cautioned Hamas against launching any more projectiles from the Gaza Strip into Israel, warning that the Palestinian militant group that it would be in for "the surprise of their lives" if attacks continued.

Hamas has unilaterally agreed to halt its arson balloon and rocket attacks against Israel, Channel 12 has reported, citing an unnamed defence official.

According to the Israeli television channel, the militant group halted the attacks as a "gesture of good will," with hopes that Tel Aviv might reciprocate by expanding the fishing zone for Gazans in the Mediterranean Sea from 10 to 15 nautical miles, and provide 500 permits to allow exclave businessmen to enter and exit the territory at will.
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Arrow Up

Syria shoots down Israeli missiles fired from occupied Golan Heights


RT
Thu, 13 Feb 2020 22:07 UTC
Syria
© Global Look Press /ZUMA Press/ Ammar SafarjalaniFILE PHOTO: Syria's air defense missile, responding to a missile strike, is seen in the sky over Damascus, capital of Syria.
Syria's air defenses have thwarted a missile attack, intercepting several "hostile targets" launched towards the capital, Damascus, Syrian state media reported.

The attack reportedly did not result in any damage or casualties.

"The hostile missiles came from the occupied Golan... and they were downed before they reached their targets," a military source said, as cited by Syrian SANA news agency.

Comment: See also:

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Attention

'I receive direct threats': Russia's top diplomat in Turkey describes heated environment amid Idlib tensions


RT
Fri, 14 Feb 2020 20:32 UTC
aleksei erkhov
© REUTERS/Khalil Ashawi; Twitter / RusEmbTurkey(L) Turkish military vehicles are seen in Hazano near Idlib, Syria, February 11, 2020. (R) Aleksei Erkhov, Russian ambassador to Turkey
The Russian envoy to Ankara has said that Turkish social media is flooded with hatred against Russia, and revealed that he has received threats. Security for Moscow's diplomats has now been increased amid the flare-up in Idlib.

"Look at the terrible madness on social media. I will read out some of the comments: 'Say goodbye to your life,' 'No one will cry for you,' 'It's time for you to burn,' and so on," Aleksey Yerkhov told Sputnik Turkey.
All of this had already been happening in the press and online five years ago. The reason back then was not Idlib, but Aleppo. What was the result of that? The crisis over a [Russian] plane, and the assassination of Ambassador Karlov. By the way, I receive direct threats [too].
Russia's previous envoy to Turkey and Yerkhov's immediate predecessor, Andrey Karlov, was killed by a Turkish national in Ankara in December 2016. Yerkhov pointed out that the hatred against Moscow and "incomprehensible bloodthirstiness" displayed by some Turkish bloggers and social media users does not help to defuse the situation. He admitted that there is some vitriol from Russian internet users as well.

Comment: More on Turkey's recent belligerence and idiocy in Syria:

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