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Aftershocks still reverberating from Putin's State of the Nation address: Russia, China, the US and the balance of power' restored

Alexander Mercouris
The Duran
Sat, 03 Mar 2018 21:56 UTC
trump Putin xi china armaments
As the repercussions of President Putin's State of the Nation address sink in, it is useful to highlight those words in the address which set out Russian thinking on international relations, and which explain Russian actions, including first and foremost the military build up President Putin discussed during the address.

Western orthodoxy about Russia - repeated in endless media articles and position papers - is that Russia is a 'revisionist' power, with Putin set on re-creating the USSR and reversing Russia's 'defeat' in the Cold War, and prepared in order to achieve this to overturn the 'rules based international order' the US supposedly established following the end of the Second World War.

The Russians do not conceive of themselves in that way at all. Nor do they recognise the above paragraph as an accurate reflection of the current state of international relations.
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Better Earth

With IOC ban lifted, Russian Olympic doping scandal probably only in remission as Russia's enemies plan next attack

Alexander Mercouris
Russia Feed
Fri, 02 Mar 2018 21:58 UTC
olympics
Despite considerable backstairs pressure the International Olympic Committee has decided - as was widely expected - to reinstate the Russian Olympic Committee after the end of the PyeongChang Winter Games despite two Russian athletes failing doping tests.

The International Olympic Committee seems to have accepted that these two doping violations were individual cases and were not evidence of any larger doping conspiracy in Russia.

I should say that on balance I think this is correct. Two extremely shrewd observers of the international scene - Rick Sterling and The Saker - have both expressed the opinion that the doping violations might have happened because the athletes' food or drink was spiked by those who want to prevent Russia's reinstatement in the Olympic movement.

That is far from being a farfetched theory, but it is necessary to say that there is no actual evidence that it happened, and people do from time to time do bad and stupid things.

As to where the opposition to Russia's reinstatement has come from that has been made all too clear by the comments of Adam Pengilly, the British Olympic Committee's representative on the International Olympic Committee, who has recently been forced to resign after being sent home from PyeongChang following an altercation with a security guard.
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TV

NBC's Megyn Kelly gets demolished (again) by Vladimir Putin in latest one-on-one interview (Video)

Alex Christoforou
The Duran
Sat, 03 Mar 2018 21:08 UTC
Putin
© NBC News
NBC's Megyn Kelly is once again sitting down with Russian President Vladimir Putin to disseminate Deep State propaganda to her Today Show base, and maybe give it another go at trying to outsmart Russia's President.

As expected, Kelly looks like a complete fool when confronting Putin, as she peddles the tiresome and stupid narrative of "Russian bots" and "Facebook Ads", only to be schooled by Putin on how the real world of diplomacy and international law works.

Interview below...

Comment: One would think Ms. Kelly would approach Putin with a little more caution and respect, considering her last interview attempt. Apparently she hasn't learned. The highlight reel of the SPIEF conference in which Kelly attempted to play the tough moderator in a discussion between Putin and the presidents of India and Moldova.

Putin's best moments at SPIEF while smashing NBC's airhead Megyn Kelly

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Map

Syrian proxy war sitrep: Afrin, Idlib, East Ghouta


Moon of Alabama
Sat, 03 Mar 2018 21:41 UTC
After a slow start the Turkish and Jihadi attack on the Afrin canton in north-west Syria is making some progress. Despite intimate knowledge of the terrain and years of preparation the local Kurdish forces of the YPK have little chance to withstand.
afrin map march
© syriancivilwarmap.com
Turkish air and artillery support for the attacking force opponents is overwhelming the Kurds. The ground troops Turkey is using are mostly Islamist Free Syrian Army fighters directed by Turkish officers. A few Turkish special forces are acting as forward observers to call in artillery and airstrikes. Only yesterday the Turkish air force flew more than 30 bombing missions on a rather small front. Today some 36 fighters were killed by Turkish air strikes.

Last week the local Kurdish forces were reinforced by other Kurdish forces and Syrian government paramilitaries. Some of the Kurdish groups had split off from the U.S.-supported SDF in east Syria, crossed through Syrian government-held land and reached Afrin. Kurdish groups in Aleppo city gave control of two of the three districts they held to the Syrian government to join their brethren in Afrin. A contingent of 500 Syrian paramilitary fighters from two Shiite towns near Afrin also joined the fight. The Turkish army tried to interdict the convoys reinforcing Afrin but most of the fighters reached the front lines. The Syrian Red Cross sent a convoy with humanitarian goods for the about one million inhabitants of the canton.

Comment: According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the terrorists in East Ghouta have imposed a curfew on the civilians under their control, severely punishing them when trying to escape Ghouta into the protection of the Syrian Army:
Militants controlling the Damascus suburb have shelled a medical aid point and continuously open fire at a checkpoint in the area, Major General Vladimir Zolotukhin, a spokesman for the Russian Center for Reconciliation in Syria, told reporters on Sunday.

"At 12:50 [10:50 GMT] the militants from western suburbs of the Er-Rikhan settlement shelled a medical aid point. Six mortar shells exploded at a distance of 200-400 meters in the west," Zolotukhin said. He added that no one was injured in the attacks, unlike yesterday's assault at the humanitarian corridor, which left three civilians wounded.

Apart from constantly attacking the corridor, militants have also introduced a curfew to coincide with the daily five-hour humanitarian pauses to prevent civilians from fleeing. They have also prohibited people from holding any public gatherings, according to the official.

"Civilians violating the rules established by the militants are severely punished in public," the general said, referring to information obtained earlier by the reconciliation center.

The Russian military has previously reported that the civilian population was being used as "human shield" by the terrorists. On Sunday, Zolotukhin said that they "hide behind the backs of the elderly, women and children" while boosting their positions inside civilian infrastructure.


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Mr. Potato

Ex-CIA chief and crazy person John Brennan calls Trump "unstable, inept, inexperienced, unethical"

John Bowden
The Hill
Fri, 02 Mar 2018 21:36 UTC
Brennan
© The Counter Jihad Report
Former CIA director John Brennan
Former CIA chief John Brennan on Friday predicted "rough waters ahead," particularly on international issues, saying President Trump is "unstable, inept, inexperienced, and also unethical."

In an interview with MSNBC's "Deadline: White House," Brennan told host Nicolle Wallace that the president was "ill prepared" to take on the duties of commander in chief, particularly growing military aggression from Russia and North Korea.

"It is no secret to anybody that Donald Trump was very ill prepared and unexperienced in terms of dealing with matters that a head of state needs to deal with, head of government, and I think this is now coming to roost," Brennan said.

"Our country needs to have confidence that we're going to be able to deal with [Russian President Vladimir] Putin, who is flexing his muscles once again on the military front, that we can deal with North Korea, that we can deal with these issues. And if we have somebody in the Oval Office who is unstable, inept, inexperienced, and also unethical - we really have rough waters ahead."


Comment: Hmm, Brennan must think Trump won't go to war with Russia and North Korea. And that's a bad thing?

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USA

America is a System Not a Democracy

Chris Kanthan
Sott.net
Sun, 04 Mar 2018 22:14 UTC
US democracy
Are you perturbed by what's happening in America? Are you shocked by inequality, disappearing middle class, declining quality of health, police brutality, gun violence, ever-growing national debt, government's Orwellian monitoring etc.? You are not alone, but all these are confusing only if you think in terms of an "American government" or "American corporations" or "American banks" that have, or should have, unique loyalty or consideration towards the American people.

But that's the wrong way to think about American today. Everything becomes clear if you think of it as a "System".
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Pistol

Echoes of Vegas: Authorities are hiding surveillance footage of Parkland shooting

Matt Agorist
The Free Thought Project
Sun, 04 Mar 2018 20:57 UTC
Parkland nikolas Cruz
© The Free Thought Project
Just like officials have done in Las Vegas, authorities in Broward County are now surrounding themselves in secrecy and refusing to released the surveillance footage showing Nikolas Cruz attack the school.

In the weeks since the tragic shooting occurred in Parkland, Florida, we have learned that cops cowered outside instead of helping, the police and FBI were all warned on multiple occasions that the alleged shooter, Nikolas Cruz, told people he was going to shoot up the school, nearly two dozen people reported Cruz for death threats, and first responders were told to stand down. Now, we are finding out that the surveillance footage from the school - which the public has a right to see - is being deliberately kept secret by the Broward county sheriff - which many say is illegal.

Broward county sheriff Scott Israel, who has already been caught contradicting the official story, is claiming that the surveillance footage must remain secret.

Comment: A strange commonality. Perhaps media pressure will prevail in this case, but then one has to wonder:

Why does the media care more about the Parkland shooting than it ever did about Las Vegas?

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Stock Up

What's the real game Trump is playing on NAFTA?

Edward Alden
Politico
Mon, 26 Feb 2018 00:00 UTC
trumpdollar
© CNN.com
He isn't negotiating. He's stalling for time.

As the United States, Canada and Mexico head into the seventh round of the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement, there is a question increasingly looming over the talks: Why hasn't Donald Trump pulled the plug already?

The president has made no secret of his loathing for NAFTA, calling it during the campaign "the worst trade deal in history." He came very close to ending it nearly a year ago, in April 2017, but reportedly was talked down at the last minute by personal calls from Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto. Throughout the year, as the negotiations dragged past their original end-of-2017 deadline with no progress in sight, Trump continued to threaten withdrawal. As recently as the last round in Montreal in January, Canadian officials were telling reporters in advance that they were certain Trump was on the verge of pulling the U.S. out of NAFTA.

And yet, even with the president's top trade negotiator acknowledging last month after the Montreal round that the talks are "progressing very slowly," Trump now looks increasingly unlikely to leave the table. He told the Wall Street Journal that he was "leaving it a little bit flexible," and acknowledged that it would be hard to conclude a new NAFTA prior to Mexico's general election on July 1. "There's no rush," he added. That could mean the talks will now drag on until 2019, since the new Mexican president will not even take office until December.

Comment: The buck stops here...and big bucks as well, if negotiated honorably and structured fairly. Trump can't make up for yesterday's financial decisions and deficits.

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Stock Up

Trump defends tariffs, says 'Trade wars are good'


RT
Sat, 03 Mar 2018 02:18 UTC
tradewars
© Axios
President Donald Trump has justified his decision to slap import taxes on trade partners in a bid to stem the growing multi-billion dollar deficit. China, the EU and Canada were mulling their response to the looming trade war.

"We must protect our country and our workers. Our steel industry is in bad shape," Trump tweeted Friday morning. "IF YOU DON'T HAVE STEEL, YOU DON'T HAVE A COUNTRY!"

On Thursday, Trump said import tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum would be announced next week. The New York Stock Exchange reacted badly, with the Dow Jones index dropping 420 points the same day.

Comment: A $566B trade deficit is a significant loss to the US economy.

Blue Ridge reports:
Trump's decision to seek steep tariffs on steel and aluminum imports has provoked rarely seen urgency among Republicans, now scrambling to convince the president that he would spark a trade war that could stall the economy's recent gains if he doesn't reverse course.

The issue pits Trump's populist promises to his voters against the party's free trade orthodoxy and the interests of business leaders. Unlike recent immigration and gun policy changes that require legislation, Trump can alter trade policy by executive action. That intensifies the pressure on Republican lawmakers to change his mind before he gives his final approval for the penalties as early as this coming week.

Trump on Saturday showed no sign of backing away, threatening on Twitter to impose a tax on cars made in Europe if the European Union responds to the tariffs by taxing American goods. He also railed about "very stupid" trade deals by earlier administrations and said other countries "laugh at what fools our leaders have been. No more!"
See also:

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Cloud Grey

Gathering war clouds: N. Korea will 'counter US' if it holds drills with Seoul


RT
Sat, 03 Mar 2018 15:03 UTC
N Korean military
© unknown
North Korea has threatened to "counter the US" if Washington holds joint military exercises with Seoul while still enforcing sanctions against Pyongyang.
"If the US finally holds joint military exercises while keeping sanctions on the DPRK [Democratic People's Republic of Korea], the DPRK will counter the US by its own mode of counteraction and the US will be made to own all responsibilities for the ensuing consequences," North Korea's official KCNA news agency said in a commentary on Saturday. "The US should clearly understand this and exercise prudence."
The US is due to begin joint exercises with Seoul in early April, a South Korean presidential security adviser said earlier this week, as quoted by Yonhap news agency. The plan has angered North Korea, which has long seen joint drills as a threat.

The KCNA commentary referred to the scheduled drills as an intention by America "to bring dark clouds of a war to hang over the Korean Peninsula." It also called for the US to be denounced by the international community, accusing Washington of aiming to "aggravate the situation on the Korean peninsula at any cost."

Pyongyang also said on Saturday that it is willing to have talks with the US, but that it rejects Washington's demands that it must first demonstrate willingness to denuclearize.

Comment: North Korea is being emboldened by Washington to a new level of reactivity. Trump is 'pushing the envelope', a strategy of escalating risks.

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