Puppet Masters

How would Brexit be good for Russia?

Finian Cunningham
Strategic Culture Foundation
Thu, 25 Feb 2016 14:00 UTC

Britain will make a once-in-a-lifetime decision in the coming months on whether to leave the European Union. Both Washington and Moscow have a lot at stake. While the US needs Britain to remain within the EU in order to do its bidding, Russia's interests might be better served by a historic split.

The referendum on the so-called 'Brexit' is to take place on June 23. It follows Conservative Prime Minister David Cameron announcing a reform package hammered out with other European leaders last week. Cameron is endorsing EU membership, claiming that his reforms have given Britons the 'best of both worlds' - that is, a measure of national independence while retaining economic benefits from being still part of the EU bloc.

The last time Britain held a similar referendum was back in 1975, when a strong majority voted in favor of remaining in the then 12-member European Economic Community (EEC). Four decades on, the EEC has transformed enormously to become the European Union of 28 member states, with a single currency for most of those members and a series of treaties that enshrine a project for federal political union. Cameron's reforms have secured a British opt-out from the federal project of 'ever closer union' as well as limited curbs on EU migrants' social welfare rights.

Comment: See also: Fear the Brexit: Why the American Empire needs the UK to stay in the EU

Clueless Cameron: 'Bril' UK arms deal meanwhile EU embargoes Saudi Arabia

RT
Fri, 26 Feb 2016 12:07 UTC

European ministers have embarrassed David Cameron by voting to impose an arms embargo on Saudi Arabia on the same day the British prime minister praised the UK for selling "brilliant" arms to the country. Speaking at a BAE Systems factory in Preston, the prime minister said the UK had pushed the sale of Eurofighter Typhoons to countries in the Middle East, including Oman and Saudi Arabia.

His comments come as a report by Amnesty International reveals that EU and US arms trading provided Saudi Arabia with arms worth billions of dollars in 2015. The Saudis are engaged in a military offensive against Houthi rebels in Yemen. The latest figures from Action on Armed Violence (AOAV) suggest some 6,400 civilians have been killed or injured in the conflict.

Cameron's speech in Preston came at the same time the European Parliament voted to impose an EU-wide ban on arms exports to Saudi Arabia, citing criticism from the UN of its bombing in Yemen.

Asked at the talks how he was helping to export the planes, Cameron said: "With the Typhoon there is an alliance of countries: the Italians, Germans and ourselves. We spend a lot of time trying to work out who is best placed to win these export orders. We've got hopefully good news coming from Kuwait. The Italians have been doing a lot of work there. The British have been working very hard in Oman."

Comment: The EU has a legally binding code of contact - can't export arms to countries in violation of humanitarian law.

Comment: War is a pathological business, where money is more important than human life and condition. When these weapons find their way into the "moderate rebel" hands, what then becomes the choice? Leaving innocent civilians for a slaughter or arming all sides for a fairer fight? At the end of the day, it is still horrific death tolls and destruction while the 'Camerons' are 'brilliant' all the way to the bank.

Another nail in the dollar coffin: Russia and India to trade in national currencies

RT
Wed, 24 Feb 2016 13:54 UTC

© Maxim Shemetov / Reuters
India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi inspects the honour guard during a welcoming ceremony upon his arrival at Moscow's Vnukovo Airport, Russia, December 23, 2015

India and Russia are developing a road map for mutual settlements in national currencies which could open prospects for both countries, India's Ambassador to Russia Pankaj Saran told RIA Novosti on Wednesday.

"Transition to mutual settlements in national currencies of the BRICS looks promising. Russian and Indian companies are interested in using national currencies in trade settlements," he said, adding that there is already a mechanism in place for them to use.

According to the ambassador, New Delhi and Moscow aim expanding economic and trade cooperation. They have already chosen priority sectors such as agriculture, pharmaceuticals, jewelry, technical equipment and machinery, oil and gas, and textiles.

During Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Moscow in December, the two countries set a goal of tripling trade to $30 billion over the next ten years and significantly boost mutual investment.

They also signed a number of multi-billion dollar defense and nuclear energy deals. India has approved the purchase of five S-400 air defense systems from Russia which is part of the biggest arms deal between the two countries in a decade.

Moscow said it will supply India with 10 million tons of oil annually in the next 10 years and build at least 12 new nuclear reactors by 2035.

Yugoslavia, interrupted: A European success story ruined by NATO invasion

Sputnik News
Sat, 27 Feb 2016 12:12 UTC

If NATO hadn't ruined Yugoslavia, the country would be on par with major European powers, US political analyst Phil Butler notes, adding that the dismantling of Yugoslavia was part of the West's bigger plan to convert potential rivals into Third World regions.

Post-World War II socialist Yugoslavia was something of a European success story and it was that prosperity that prompted the Western political establishment to seek the country's dismantling, US political analyst Phil Butler emphasizes.

"Can you imagine Europe today with Yugoslavia as a key player among nations? I can. Yugoslavia was in fact, one of the greatest cultural and human experiments in history. Formed in the crucible that was the conflict in between the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Ottoman Empire, Yugoslavia melded together people of both cultures, and in ways not seen since the time of Alexander the Great's assimilation of peoples after immense conquest," Butler writes in his article for New Eastern Outlook.

The political analyst underscores that the state was built on an idea that Southern Slavs should not remain a weak and divided people.

Pepe Escobar: The Iranian elections broken down

Pepe Escobar
RT
Thu, 25 Feb 2016 01:32 UTC

© Morteza Nikoubazl / Reuters
An Iranian man casts his vote during Iran's parliamentary election, at a mosque in central Tehran March 2, 2012

Iran's elections this week are crucial as they will determine whether the Persian-style controlled opening conducted by President Hassan Rouhani - and his premier Javad Zarif - will ensure continuity, supported by a favorable Majlis (Parliament).

Not only have Iran's elections yielded prime political players, such as "dialogue of civilizations" president [Mohammad] Khatami, and the immensely controversial president [Mahmoud] Ahmadinejad; parliamentary elections for their part pit an array of factions involved in complex alliances virtually opaque to outside observers.

At stake this time around are the business fruits to be collected after the Vienna nuclear deal and the end of the UN and EU sanctions (significant US sanctions remain); the progressive integration of Iran into the China-driven New Silk Roads; Iran's strategy to recover market share in the global oil trade, coupled with the immense investment necessary to upgrade its energy industry; deals after deals clinched with European - not to mention Asian - partners; the full, and not partial re-entry of Iran into global consumer markets; and last but not least a shot at reelection for Rouhani in the next presidential elections.

So forget about proverbially pathetic Western disinformation, especially the usual US neocon and Zionist demonization of all things Iran. Here's what you need to watch to keep these elections in perspective.

The truth on Syria: Is there a crack in the dam?

JiminNH
The Saker
Fri, 26 Feb 2016 00:00 UTC

One cannot help but noticing two rather interesting articles, by Steven Kinzer and Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., published in mainstream media that just may indicate that the dam holding back the truth about the western-backed invasion of Syria by head-chopping, organ eating, sex slave trading jihadi "rebels" has sprung a few major leaks.

Steven Kinzer in the Boston Globe

First came the article by Steven Kinzer, a longtime journalist with the New York Times and now a Professor and Senior Fellow at the Watson Institute, who published a piece in the eminently mainstream Boston Globe entitled "The Media Are Misleading the Public on Syria". Mr. Kinzer was rather direct, pulling no punches from his very first sentence were he declared: "Coverage of the Syrian war will be remembered as one of the most shameful episodes in the history of the American press."

Prof. Kinzer initially focused on the situation in Aleppo, scene of most recent fighting but also a stronghold of al Nusra and its allies for over 3 years. He recapped how upon seizing the city the jihadi's "rule began with a wave of repression. They posted notices warning residents: "Don't send your children to school. If you do, we will get the backpack and you will get the coffin."

He touched upon the destruction of industry in Aleppo, Syria's second major city and formerly its industrial heartland, briefly mentioning how the rebels "destroyed factories, hoping that unemployed workers would have no recourse other than to become fighters. They trucked looted machinery to Turkey and sold it.

Comment: The ability to write and speak the truth becomes a dangerous action when the PTB cannot afford their lies exposed. In return, lies become a dangerous action when the truth cannot afford to be compromised. We need more brave writers who will not compromise the truth to reach those who will listen and encourage more brave writers to challenge the narrative. This author's summation is convincing. Maybe there is a crack in the dam.

Syria ceasefire implemented, UNSC approves agreement, Damascus and Daraa quiet for first time in years

RT
Sat, 27 Feb 2016 01:21 UTC

The US-Russian truce deal on "cessation of hostilities" in Syria came into effect at midnight Damascus time. The ceasefire does not apply to Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL), Al-Nusra, or "other terrorist organizations" designated by the UN.

Earlier on Friday, the United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution urging all parties involved in Syrian civil war to adhere to the terms of the US-Russian deal.

The US-Russia brokered ceasefire was first announced on February 22 by Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Barack Obama.

Comment: Further reading:

Pepe Escobar: The rise of China and its New Silk Road will challenge US hegemony around the world

Pepe Escobar
telesur
Wed, 24 Feb 2016 01:16 UTC

Beijing is advancing a Chinese-led globalization that will challenge U.S. hegemony both regionally and globally.

Earlier last week, the first Chinese commercial train, with 32 containers, arrived in Tehran after a less than 14-day journey from the massive warehouse of Yiwu in Zhejiang, eastern China, crossing Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan.

This is a 10,400 km-long trip. Crucially, it's also no less than 30 days shorter compared to the sea route from Shanghai to Bandar Abbas. And we're not even talking about high-speed rail yet - which in a few years will be installed all along from eastern China to Iran and onward to Turkey and, crucially, Western Europe, enabling 500-plus container trains to crisscross Eurasia in a flash.

When Mohsen Pour Seyed Aghaei, president of Iran Railways, remarked that, "countries along the Silk Road are striving to revive the ancient network of trade routes," he was barely touching the surface in what is an earth-shattering process.

Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Iran only last month - the first global leader to do so after nuclear sanctions were lifted. Then the heirs to the former Silk Road powers - imperial Persia and imperial China - duly signed agreements to boost bilateral trade to $600 billion over the next decade.

And that is just the beginning.

So much for sanctions: Russian exports of caviar make huge jump

RT
Fri, 26 Feb 2016 01:11 UTC

The export of Russian black caviar has tripled in the first eleven months of last year compared with the same period of 2014, the Russian Ministry of Agriculture reported on Friday.

Every year Russia produces about 50 tons of black caviar, and exported 4.71 tons last year. Caviar imports fell from 8.67 tons in 2014 to just 3.5 tons. According to the ministry, the improvement in exports is mainly due to sturgeon farming as well as favorable market conditions due to the exchange rate.

With the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia's caviar business became dominated by poachers. Wide-spread poaching in the Caspian Sea depleted the sturgeon population. Statistics from the World Wildlife Fund Russia showed that in 2010 the fish population was just 2.5 percent of what it had been in the late 1980s.

Russia imposed a blanket ban on the export of black caviar in 2002, and later on commercial sturgeon fishing. Since then black caviar have been produced by state fish farms where sturgeon are reared. The only caviar available for purchase legally today is from fish raised on fish farms.

In February 2011, the caviar export ban was lifted. Sturgeon fishing is allowed in Russia only for scientific and reproduction purposes.

Brazil building undersea cable to Europe to avoid US snooping

RT
Sat, 27 Feb 2016 01:06 UTC

A new underwater cable that is to link Brazil with Portugal will protect Latin American internet traffic from US surveillance, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff indicated after meeting the presidents of the European Commission and the European Council.

"We have to respect privacy, human rights and the sovereignty of nations. We don't want businesses to be spied upon," Rousseff told a joint news conference.

Rousseff was among the world leaders who openly criticized the US after the revelation of the scale of its electronic surveillance program by NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden. She postponed a scheduled visit to America over a report that the US intelligence agency snooped on her emails and phone.

Not only Brazilian political leaders, but also captains of industry have been reportedly under US surveillance, including the oil giant Petrobras. Critics accused the US of using its intelligence capabilities for economic espionage that has nothing to do with national security.

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Puppet Masters

How would Brexit be good for Russia?

Clueless Cameron: 'Bril' UK arms deal meanwhile EU embargoes Saudi Arabia

Another nail in the dollar coffin: Russia and India to trade in national currencies

Yugoslavia, interrupted: A European success story ruined by NATO invasion

Pepe Escobar: The Iranian elections broken down

The truth on Syria: Is there a crack in the dam?

Syria ceasefire implemented, UNSC approves agreement, Damascus and Daraa quiet for first time in years

Pepe Escobar: The rise of China and its New Silk Road will challenge US hegemony around the world

So much for sanctions: Russian exports of caviar make huge jump

Brazil building undersea cable to Europe to avoid US snooping

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