Puppet Masters

Is the Strait of Hormuz the new Gulf of Tonkin? Trump warns Iran it will 'suffer greatly' if it does 'anything'

RT
Tue, 14 May 2019 09:32 UTC

Blame for the "sabotage operations" that damaged four oil tankers off the coast of the UAE has been placed at the feet of "Iran or Iran-backed proxies," courtesy of anonymous "US officials" breathlessly quoted by MSM.

Anonymous officials are an integral part of a good casus belli. Their deeds should be heroic enough that merely fact-checking their story reflects badly on the journalist attempting it. What kind of cynical reporter would question the bravery of "Curveball," the informant who spilled the beans about Saddam Hussein's "mobile biological weapons laboratories," sealing the doom of a million Iraqis with the Weapons of Mass Destruction myth? Yet credulous reporters are once again repeating the conclusions of an anonymous official without asking how he arrived at them.

Comment: See also:

Report: A US plan specifies deployment of 120K troops to counter Iran

RT
Tue, 14 May 2019 06:14 UTC

Donald Trump has reportedly been presented with a plan to send as many as 120,000 troops to the Middle East to counter the so-called Iranian threat, the New York Times reported.

Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan disclosed the updated military plan at a meeting of Trump's top security aides on Thursday, the publication said, quoting anonymous sources inside the administration.

Several options to tackle Tehran in the region were outlined to the president during the briefing, while "the uppermost option called for deploying 120,000 troops, which would take weeks or months to complete," the Times said.

While the revisions "ordered" by "hard-liners" do not promulgate a land invasion of Iran, "the development reflects the influence of Mr. Bolton, one of the administration's most virulent Iran hawks," The Times reported. Bolton has been a long-time advocate of using military force against Tehran, even penning an op-ed in 2015 titled "Top Stop Iran's Bomb, Bomb Iran."

Comment: More from Reuters:

President Donald Trump on Tuesday denied a New York Times report that U.S. officials were discussing a military plan to send up to 120,000 troops to the Middle East to counter any attack or nuclear weapons acceleration by Iran. Trump told reporters at the White House:
"I think it's fake news, OK? Now, would I do that? Absolutely. But we have not planned for that. Hopefully we're not going to have to plan for that. And if we did that, we'd send a hell of a lot more troops than that."
The Times reported that Acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan presented an updated plan last week in a meeting of top national security aides that envisions sending as many as 120,000 American troops to the region if Iran attacks U.S. forces or accelerates work on its nuclear weapons.

The updated plan does not call for a land invasion of Iran, which would require far more troops, the Times reported, citing unidentified administration officials.

The plan reflects revisions ordered by Iran hawks including national security adviser John Bolton, the newspaper said.

House Aviation Subcommittee to review findings FAA overlooked 'critical safety risks' of Boeing 737Max

RT
Tue, 14 May 2019 18:07 UTC

Senior officials at the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) failed to properly oversee safety tests on the flight-control system of Boeing's 737 MAX aircraft, according to an internal investigation leaked to the press.

In an internal review set to be discussed before Congress on Wednesday, the FAA determined that its own personnel were lax in monitoring Boeing's safety assessments and effectively allowed the company to conduct the testing on its own, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Comment: See also:

US plays carrot-and-stick game with India over their plans to buy Russian defense systems

RT
Tue, 14 May 2019 16:15 UTC

The US has long vowed sanctions if India buys the S-400 from Russia, but now it is offering its THAAD and Patriot missiles as an alternative. But the sticks-and-carrots game won't help the US get its way, an analyst told RT.

Washington has pitched Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) and Patriot Advanced Capability (PAC-3) missile defense systems to India last month. Other details of the generous offer are shrouded in mystery, but it obviously comes to outweigh the $5 billion deal India has signed with Russia to acquire the S-400 air defense systems.

Simultaneously, the US seemed to have reeled back its threat of sanctions, choosing to go soft with India this time. This tactic looks particularly interesting when compared to the enormous pressure Washington is piling on Turkey, another future operator of the cutting-edge S-400.

As US pressures India to cut Iran oil import, Indians ask what Iranian FM can offer in rushed talks

RT
Tue, 14 May 2019 18:44 UTC

While the plane of the Iranian Foreign Minister was landing at the New Delhi airport for unexpected talks with his Indian counterpart, Indians have been wondering about the timing and purpose of this last-moment scheduled meeting.

Javad Zarif has come at a peculiar time, in the middle of India's general elections. If he was to wait two more weeks, he could arrange talks with a new government, but the urgency of the meeting speaks volumes.

But as Washington puts pressure on Iranian oil importers, some Indians agree that some issues cannot wait.

India was once Iran's top oil client after China. Then the US and sanctions stepped in. Last year India, along with seven other nations, received a waiver from Washington which allowed them to import some oil. But earlier this month, the US renewed sanctions and New Delhi had to stop any purchases of Iranian crude. But while big politics are being decided in high places, Indians themselves seem positive about Iran, with many saying India should stick to its vows to Iran.

Lavrov and Pompeo agree to work on nukes control but clash on Venezuela, election interference

RT
Tue, 14 May 2019 18:27 UTC

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov concluded the Sochi talks by agreeing to cooperate on nuclear arms control. The two diplomats, however, could not reach agreement on Venezuela.

After emerging from a sit-down in the Russian Black Sea resort on Tuesday, Pompeo and Lavrov both talked of their governments' desire to improve relations, currently at a low ebb. Lavrov described the meeting as "frank and useful," while Pompeo said the US "stands ready to find common ground" with Russia.

As predicted, nuclear arms control was top of the agenda, following the Trump administration's recent withdrawal from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty. Pompeo and Lavrov seemed open to cooperation on establishing new arms control pacts, with Pompeo restating President Donald Trump's desire to bring China into any future deal.

With the New START nuclear arms reduction treaty set to expire in February 2021, Pompeo said that Washington is willing to work towards extending the deal by five years, while the Russian FM said he hopes any future agreements will be "positively received by both nations."

Comment: Putin also met with Pompeo in Sochi and made it clear he wants to restore relations between Russia and the US since the Mueller inquiry exonerated Trump:

"As you know, just a few days ago, I had the pleasure of talking with the US president on the phone," Putin told Pompeo on Tuesday, as the two met in Sochi. "I got the impression that the [US] president was inclined to re-establish Russian-American relations and contacts to resolve together the issues that are of mutual interest to us."

"For our part, we have more than once said that we would also like to fully restore relations, and we hope that now the conditions for that have been met," Putin added.

Tulsi Gabbard on Joe Rogan podcast: I'd drop all charges against Assange and Snowden

Caitlin Johnstone
Medium
Tue, 14 May 2019 18:17 UTC

In midst of an interesting and wide-ranging discussion on the Joe Rogan Experience, Democratic congresswoman and presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard said that if elected president she would drop all charges against NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden and WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

"What would you do about Julian Assange? What would you do about Edward Snowden?" Rogan asked in the latter part of the episode.

"As far as dropping the charges?" Gabbard asked.

"If you're president of the world right now, what do you do?"

"Yeah, dropping the charges," Gabbard replied.

Comment: Watch the full interview with Tulsi Gabbard below:

Gold prices on fire, sparked by US-China trade war

RT
Tue, 14 May 2019 16:53 UTC

Renewed trade war fears are breathing life into the gold market, according to Phil Streible, senior market analyst at RJO Futures, who also pointed to growing investor fears over the possibility of a rate cut.

"Potentially down the road, if equities slow down, and if the global economy slows down enough, you might see the Fed cut rates, that's what's breathing life right now into that gold market," Streible told Kitco News.

Gold prices jumped on the news of China's tariff retaliation against the US, retaking the $1,300 key level. The yellow metal, which has been trading well below its key psychological level for the last few weeks, reacted as a safe haven asset on Monday, gaining one percent and hitting $1,303.26, which is its highest in over a month. Gold steadied on Tuesday, trading at $1297.60 an ounce as of 9:12 GMT.

Western aggression in ME heats up: B-52 bombers, F-15 fighters fly first deterrence sorties pointed at Iran

Kyle Rempfer
Air Force Times
Mon, 13 May 2019 16:41 UTC

The Air Force began flying deterrence missions in the Middle East Saturday, aimed at what the Pentagon has called threats from Iran.

B-52H Stratofortress bombers from the 20th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, touched down at Al Udeid Air Base, Qatar, Thursday, according to Air Force Central Command.

Air Force F-15C Eagles also flew deterrence missions on Saturday and were refueled by a KC-135 Stratotanker from the 28th Expeditionary Aerial Refueling Squadron at an undisclosed location. The 28th EARS maintains a presence across AFCENT's area of responsibility, including in Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan.

The F-15Cs deployed to an undisclosed location in the Middle East on Wednesday. F-35A Lightning IIs are also in theater.

"We will not discuss mission specifics," said Air Force Maj. Holly Brauer, an AFCENT spokesperson. "They have begun flying deterrence missions in the region, including over the Arabian Gulf."

Pompeo meets Lavrov: Says Trump wants to improve relations with Russia

RT
Tue, 14 May 2019 12:53 UTC

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov have sat down to talks in Sochi, Russia. Although both officials welcomed the chance to thaw Russia-US relations, they have much to discuss first.

Speaking before the meeting on Tuesday, Lavrov stated that "it is time to build a new, more constructive and responsible" relationship between Washington and Moscow. "It's not destiny that we're adversaries on every issue," Pompeo added, touting the cooperation between both nations on counterterrorism issues.

"I'm here today because President [Donald] Trump is committed to improving this relationship," Pompeo said. "I hope that we can find places where we have a set of overlapping interests, and can truly begin to build out strong relationships."

Comment: Poor Lavrov. He has to continue extending his hand for rational reasonable discussion knowing full well that, even if Trump's attempts at detente are sincere, the larger body of the insane and power-mad in Washington will continue to push for US aggression towards Russia and her national interests. And there's nothing Russia can do about it but prepare as well as it can.

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Puppet Masters

Is the Strait of Hormuz the new Gulf of Tonkin? Trump warns Iran it will 'suffer greatly' if it does 'anything'

Report: A US plan specifies deployment of 120K troops to counter Iran

House Aviation Subcommittee to review findings FAA overlooked 'critical safety risks' of Boeing 737Max

US plays carrot-and-stick game with India over their plans to buy Russian defense systems

As US pressures India to cut Iran oil import, Indians ask what Iranian FM can offer in rushed talks

Lavrov and Pompeo agree to work on nukes control but clash on Venezuela, election interference

Tulsi Gabbard on Joe Rogan podcast: I'd drop all charges against Assange and Snowden

Gold prices on fire, sparked by US-China trade war

Western aggression in ME heats up: B-52 bombers, F-15 fighters fly first deterrence sorties pointed at Iran

Pompeo meets Lavrov: Says Trump wants to improve relations with Russia

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