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UK tabloids: Russia hacked ambassador's Trump memos...while FM Jeremy Hunt plays along


RT
Tue, 09 Jul 2019 10:31 UTC
Headlines 3UK
© mirror.co.uk; dailymail.co.uk; thesun.co.uk
London has said there is no evidence that a foreign state was behind the recent leaks from its embassy in Washington, but this hasn't stopped British officials from quietly feeding tabloid narratives blaming Russia for the affair.

The UK government is in full damage-control mode after a series of memos penned by the UK ambassador to Washington, Sir Kim Darroch, were leaked to the press. The diplomatic cables described US President Donald Trump as "incompetent."

While British officials appear to believe that the embarrassing leaks were carried out by an "unpatriotic" insider, Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt didn't seem to mind playing along with tabloid speculation that Russia is somehow at fault.

Pressed by the Sun about whether he believed "hostile states such as Russia" may be behind the leaks, Hunt was all too happy to quietly fan the flames - even while acknowledging that there was no reason to suspect that Russia or any other country played a part in the incident.

Comment: RT: Kremlin responds: Scandal is between London and Washington
There is no reason for Russia to comment on the row caused by a series of leaked memos in which the UK Ambassador to the US called Donald Trump "inept" and assessed his administration as "dysfunctional."

The scandal is obviously "between Washington and London," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Tuesday. "Let these two capitals deal with it. This is not our story."

The revelation raised ire in Washington, with Trump angrily saying that "we will no longer deal with him." However, outgoing UK Prime Minister Theresa May assured that she has "full faith" in Ambassador Darroch. Nevertheless, some UK tabloids were quick to point fingers at Russia after Jeremy Hunt said London is also examining the meddling of a "foreign state."
See also: US will 'no longer deal with' British ambassador following leaks scandal - Trump

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Document

Taliban and Afghan delegates agree on road map to peace, with differing texts


RFE/RL
Tue, 09 Jul 2019 07:40 UTC
Kabul talks
© mashaalradio
Taliban-Afghan talks in Kabul
The Taliban and a delegation representing Afghan society have agreed at talks in Qatar upon a road map for a future political settlement in what is seen as a major step toward ending Afghanistan's nearly 18-year war.

However, there are major discrepancies between different versions of the resolution released in the Pashto, Dari, and English languages that highlight where difficulties in the negotiations remain.

The English version, released on July 9 by U.S. envoy Zalmay Khalilzad as an "unofficial translation," declares that the Taliban and intra-Afghan delegates had agreed to assure Afghan women their fundamental rights in "political, social, economic, educational, [and] cultural affairs" in a way that is "in accordance with the values of Islam." That is a key demand from Afghanistan's internationally backed government in Kabul.

The English translation also did not contain any reference to one of the key issues for the Taliban -- their demand for the withdrawal of all foreign military forces from Afghanistan.

Women's Rights

In Pashto, the main language of most Taliban, the text included references to the withdrawal of foreign troops as part of the road map. But it did not include any reference to guarantees for women's rights. Like the English text, the Dari version of the resolution included references to guaranteeing women's rights but did not mention the withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan.

Comment: More from FRN: No compromise: Taliban rejects any ceasefire until withdrawal of West
"We want foreign troops to leave Afghanistan, we want the Islamic system in the country with the representation of all Afghans, we want peace in the country and the participation of all Afghans in its reconstruction," stated by the representative of the Taliban, Soheil Shahin.

He also made it clear that the Taliban do not intend to discuss the possibility of a cease-fire until the fulfillment of their main demand - the cessation of a foreign military presence. The main result of the inter-Afghan meeting in Doha was the recognition by all parties of the thesis that life in Afghanistan should be held in accordance with the norms of Islam. This is enshrined in the "road map" of reconciliation approved by the participants of the meeting, including the Taliban.
From Sputnik: Agreements and a call for peace in Afghanistan
"The peace conference strongly supports the peace process, a call for achieving peace in Afghanistan and believes in its effectiveness. To protect the population of Afghanistan, the parties to the conflict agreed to release ill prisoners, ensure the protection of all educational institutions, make efforts to reduce civilian casualties to zero," the statement read.

"We urge the international community to respect our values and support us in reaching a peace agreement as well as to provide support in settling the situation after concluding a peace deal," the statement said.
See also:

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Propaganda

Oh, the irony! British Foreign Ministry holds conference on media freedom, bans RT from attending

Simon Rite
RT
Tue, 09 Jul 2019 19:16 UTC
media
© Getty Images / Mihajlo Maricic / EyeEm
Britain's Foreign Office can't keep its diplomatic secrets, but it has managed to keep its sense of irony, and banned RT from attending a conference on media freedom.

A spokeswoman told British media: "We have not accredited RT or Sputnik because of their active role in spreading disinformation."

The accusation of 'disinformation' is the exclusive view of the Foreign Office, because it's worth remembering that while RT has been censured by OFCOM (like every other broadcaster in Britain), it still operates freely under a license from the broadcasting watchdog, so this claim of disinformation is at best subjective.
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Bad Guys

Elizabeth Warren: It should not be a criminal offense to cross the border illegally

Hannah Bleau
Breitbart
Mon, 08 Jul 2019 18:43 UTC
Elizabeth Warren

Elizabeth Warren
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) does not believe it should be a criminal offense to cross the border illegally, she said during an interview with the California Nation podcast, which was posted Monday.

While the presidential candidate hit a number of issues during the broad discussion, Section 1325 of the immigration code, which makes it a criminal offense for people to cross the border illegally, became a highlight.

"Are you in favor of repealing that?" she was asked.

"I am," Warren said, arguing that "criminalizing" illegal entry does not make people safer.
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Chess

Iran declares war on US's covert influence in Iraq

Elijah J. Magnier
ejmagnier.com
Tue, 09 Jul 2019 17:22 UTC
iraq us troops
When US officials visited Baghdad and met with the Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi, they had two requests: first, to close all commerce and financial exchanges with Iran to strangle the Iranian economy and bring it to its knees. The second was to neutralise the Iraqi groups (known as Hashd al-Shaabi) which sympathise with Iran and carry a similar ideology.

The Iraqi Premier is aware he is being pushed into the heart of two minefields, Iranian and American, and therefore he cannot just walk straight into these fields. He has decided to reject the first US demand because Iraq has religious, commercial and energy bonds with Iran. He is refusing to transform Iraq into a US-Iran battlefield where no winner can be expected to stay on his feet, including Iraq. He wants to force the US administration to back down and agree to provide Iraq with waivers to buy Iranian gas and keep commercial exchange flowing.

What were Abdel Mahdi's reasons for responding to US pressure? He did not want to have the Americans on his back or turn the country upside down. Therefore, though he refused to satisfy US officials in their first request, he did take account of the latter, seeking to avoid a potential coup d'état and a possible US manoeuvre to allow the return of the terrorist group "Islamic State" (ISIS). The Prime Minister issued Diwani Order (decree) no. 237 "to organise Hashd al-Shaabi, where all factions close their headquarters and have the option to either join the armed forces or engage in political activity (unarmed). Any faction acting secretly or publicly bypassing these instructions is forbidden. Compliance with the ultimatum is required by the 31 of July".

The US administration was satisfied with this move, but...
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Bad Guys

Democratic congresswoman Veronica Escobar secretly sending staff into Mexico to coach asylum-seekers

Anna Giaritelli
Washington Examiner
Fri, 05 Jul 2019 17:08 UTC
Veronica Escobar coach migrants
© KFOX
Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-Texas, speaks to KFOX from Capitol Hill on Jan. 23, 2019.
A Democratic congresswoman is sending staff to Mexico's northern border town of Ciudad Juárez to find migrants returned from El Paso, Texas, under the "remain in Mexico" policy, then coaching them to pretend they cannot speak Spanish to exploit a loophole letting them to return to the U.S.

The National Border Patrol Council's El Paso chapter and several Customs and Border Protection personnel told the Washington Examiner aides to Rep. Veronica Escobar, who took over 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Beto O'Rourke's district, and the local Catholic diocese have interviewed thousands of migrants in Juarez over the past few weeks to find cases where Department of Homeland Security officials may have wrongly returned people.

"What we believe is happening is Veronica Escobar's office is going ... to basically second-guess and obstruct work already done by the Border Patrol," said one senior union official, who shared evidence with the Washington Examiner from concerned CBP managers and rank-and-file members. Those documents have been held to protect identities.

Comment:

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Russian Flag

'I wouldn't sanction Georgia out of respect for its people' - Putin


RT
Tue, 09 Jul 2019 17:19 UTC
Putin
Any measures that damage ties between Russia and Georgia must be avoided, Vladimir Putin said. As for the Georgian TV host who targeted him with an abusive rant, the man is too insignificant to be mentioned, the President added.

"I wouldn't introduce sanctions against Georgia out of respect for its people," Putin said.

Earlier on Tuesday, the parliament had urged the Russian government to ban imports of Georgian wine and table water, as well as to restrict money transfers to the country, among other measures.

Another spike in tensions between Moscow and Tbilisi occurred last weekend, when local TV host, Georgiy Gabuniya opened his TV chat show with an obscene address to Putin, delivered in Russian, in which he targeted the President and his late parents in the most vulgar terms possible.

The bizarre stunt made headlines, but the Russian leader believes that it wasn't worth the fuss. "He came out, said something, being a real nothing," he said of Gabuniya.

As for calls to bring criminal charges against the so-called journalist for offending a head of state, Putin pointed out that the man just "didn't deserve such an honor."

Anti-Russian sentiment in Georgia is promoted by those who don't remember history and who want to harm their own country, he added.


Comment: See also:

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Vader

US State Dept boasted in 2017 that the appointment of FM Chrystia Freeland meant Canada had adopted an 'America First foreign policy'

Ben Norton
The Grayzone
Tue, 09 Jul 2019 15:30 UTC
Nieto Trump trudeau freeland USMCA siging
© Getty Images
Enrique Pena Nieto, Mexico's president, President Donald Trump, and Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau sign the USMCA, with FM Chrystia Freeland looking on.
The US embassy in Ottawa boasted in a March 2017 memo, "Canada Adopts 'America First' Foreign Policy," just after PM Trudeau appointed hard-line hawk Chrystia Freeland as foreign minister.

The US State Department boasted in a declassified memo in March 2017 that Canada had adopted an "America first" foreign policy.

The cable was authored just weeks after the centrist government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appointed Chrystia Freeland as foreign minister. The former editor of the major international news agency Reuters, Freeland has pushed for aggressive policies against states targeted by Washington for regime change, including Venezuela, Russia, Nicaragua, Syria, and Iran.

The State Department added that Trudeau had promoted Freeland "in large part because of her strong U.S. contacts," and that her "number one priority" was working closely with Washington.

Comment: For more on Chrystia Freeland's sketchy past, see this excellent background piece from Arina Tsukanova on Consortium News.
"Canada's fiercely anti-Russian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland says her Ukrainian grandfather struggled "to return freedom and democracy to Ukraine," but she leaves out that he was a Nazi propagandist justifying the slaughter of Jews, writes Arina Tsukanova."


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Arrow Down

Judge rules against Trump on drug pricing disclosures - says it's up to Congress

Nathaniel Weixel
The Hill
Mon, 08 Jul 2019 16:58 UTC
pills Big pharma money
© REUTERS/Srdjan Zivulovic
A federal judge on Monday sided with a coalition of drug companies and blocked the Trump administration from implementing a policy that would require prescription drug manufacturers to disclose list prices in TV ads.

The pharmaceutical companies — Amgen, Merck, and Eli Lilly — were joined in the lawsuit by the Association of National Advertisers. The rule was scheduled to take effect Tuesday. U.S. District Court Judge Amit P. Mehta in Washington, D.C., agreed with the drug companies that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) does not have the authority to compel drug companies to disclose prices.

"To be clear, the court does not question HHS's motives in adopting the [rule]," Mehta wrote. "Nor does it take any view on the wisdom of requiring drug companies to disclose prices. That policy very well could be an effective tool in halting the rising cost of prescription drugs. But no matter how vexing the problem of spiraling drug costs may be, HHS cannot do more than what Congress has authorized. The responsibility rests with Congress to act in the first instance."

Under the rule, which was announced by HHS Secretary Alex Azar in May, drug manufacturers would have to state the list price of a 30-day supply of any drug that is covered through Medicare and Medicaid and costs at least $35 a month.
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Boat

Norwegian tanker 'attacked' in Gulf set to dock in Iran despite US blame-game


Sputnik
Tue, 09 Jul 2019 16:51 UTC
oil tanker
© AFP 2019 / HANDOUT / Emirati National Media Council
Four tankers in the Gulf of Oman, belonging to Norway, the UAE and Saudi Arabia, were left crippled as a result of several explosions that damaged their hulls in May 2019. While an investigation by the UAE has failed to determine the actor behind the "sabotage", the US has groundlessly accused Iran of it. Tehran has denied all the accusations.

Andrea Victory, a Norwegian tanker that suffered a significant blast on 12 May while sailing in the Gulf of Oman near a UAE port, is readying to dock at Iran's Bandar Imam Khomeini port, almost two months after the attack, the research company Refinitiv Energy reported on its Twitter.

According to Refinitiv, the tanker is completing its voyage, which was interrupted by the May incident, carrying a shipment of oil from Argentina to Iran. Following the blast, Andrea Victory reportedly unloaded its cargo onto another ship and was then moored at a dry dock for repairs needed to cover the hole in its hull. Recently, the tanker reclaimed its cargo and is now heading towards its destination, according to Refinitiv Energy.
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