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Alarming: Russia says drilled hole in International Space Station was intentional


South China Morning Post
Tue, 02 Oct 2018 12:56 UTC
Internationl Space Station
© NASA via AP
The International Space Station in an undated picture.
'Manufacturing defect' ruled out after initial investigations, Moscow says

Russian investigators looking into the origin of a hole that caused an oxygen leak on the International Space Station have said it was caused deliberately, the space agency chief said.

A first commission had delivered its report, Dmitry Rogozin, the head of the Russian space agency Roskosmos, said in televised remarks late on Monday.

"It concluded that a manufacturing defect had been ruled out which is important to establish the truth."

Comment:

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Attention

Hillary Clinton to receive honorary degree from Queen's University Belfast


The Irish News
Thu, 27 Sep 2018 16:28 UTC
Hillary Clinton Peter Gregson

Hillary Clinton meeting former Queen's Vice-Chancellor Professor Peter Gregson during a previous visit
Former US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton is to receive an honorary degree from Queen's University Belfast.

She will be awarded the degree of Doctor of Laws for her exceptional public service in the US and globally, and her outstanding contribution to peace and reconciliation in Northern Ireland.

The ceremony will take place on October 10 during which Secretary Clinton will deliver an address.

Comment: When a woman who should be tried for crimes against humanity is awarded with an honorary degree, you know something is terribly wrong with humanity. Anyone with two firing neurons would want to be associated with anyone other than Hillary Clinton. Queen's University Belfast may live to regret this decision.

See also:

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Megaphone

Trump mocks Christine Blasey Ford testimony at Mississippi rally

Megan Keller
The Hill
Tue, 02 Oct 2018 20:54 UTC
Trump Mississippi
President Trump at a rally on Tuesday night mocked testimony from Christine Blasey Ford, one of the women accusing Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct.

"36 years ago, this happened," Trump said at the rally in Mississippi, referring to the party in 1982 where Ford alleges Kavanaugh sexually assaulted her.

Trump then launched into a mocking imitation of Ford as she testified at last week's hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, prompting applause and laughter from the audience.

Comment: See also:

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Light Sabers

Trump to Saudi King: You won't last '2 weeks' without US support


RT
Wed, 03 Oct 2018 10:47 UTC
King Salman MBS Donald Trump
© Jonathan Ernst / Reuters
Saudi Arabia's King Salman presents Donald Trump with state medal at the Royal Court in Riyadh,
The Saudi Arabian monarchy would fall "within two weeks" if it wasn't for the military support that the US has provided to the Gulf kingdom over the decades, Donald Trump noted in graceless remarks to the King.

"We protect Saudi Arabia," Trump proclaimed at a rally in Southaven, Mississippi. "And I love the King, King Salman. But I said 'King, we're protecting you, you might not be there for two weeks without us. You have to pay for your military.'"

While Trump failed to mention when the undiplomatic remarks were made to King Salman, it is known that the two leaders held a phone conversation on Saturday to discuss global oil supplies.
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Stop

Pepe Escobar: EU finally says 'no' to US bullying over Iran sanctions

Pepe Escobar
Asia Times
Wed, 03 Oct 2018 10:47 UTC
EU Iran foreign policy
© AFP
From left, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Federica Mogherini, Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, France's Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, Germany's Foreign Minister Heiko Maas and Britain's former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson after a meeting in Brussels, on May 15, 2018.
History may one day rule this was the fateful geopolitical moment when the European Union clinched its PhD on foreign policy.

Last week, EU foreign policy head Federica Mogherini and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, announced at the UN a "special purpose vehicle" (SPV) to deal with the Trump administration's sanctions on Iran after the US unilaterally pulled out of the JCPOA, also known as the Iran nuclear deal.

Mogherini crucially emphasized, "in practical terms, this will mean that EU member states will set up a legal entity to facilitate legitimate financial transactions with Iran and this will allow European companies to continue to trade with Iran in accordance with European Union law and could be open to other partners in the world."
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Quenelle

Putin reassures Serbian president that Russia supports their territorial integrity


RT
Wed, 03 Oct 2018 10:47 UTC
Aleksandar Vucic Vladimir Putin
© Yuri Kadobnov / Reuters
Vladimir Putin (R) with his Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic, Moscow, Russia, October 2, 2018.
Moscow has reassured Belgrade that it supports the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the Balkan nation, following a crisis in Kosovo over the weekend, President Aleksandar Vucic noted, following his visit to Russia.

The latest regional tensions surrounding Serbia and its renegade province of Kosovo were discussed in detail in Moscow between President Vladimir Putin and his Serbian counterpart. And, while the specifics of the talks were not shared with the public, Vucic seemed happy with the outcome and support he said he'd received from the Russian president amid the crisis in the region.

"We received everything we were looking for. We agreed on everything," Vucic told reporters, following his meeting with Putin at the Kremlin.
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Toys

US mad that China dominates rare-earth metals market, accuses it of 'hurting national security'


RT
Wed, 03 Oct 2018 06:50 UTC
A Tomahawk missile launch.
© US Navy Handout / Reuters
A Tomahawk missile launch.
A new Pentagon study is expected to accuse China of selling components used in American weapons at dumping price, putting pressure on US competitors and threatening to force them out of business, according to a media report.

The study, which was commissioned by President Donald Trump in July 2017 and is now set to be published following long delays, was described to Foreign Policy by two anonymous sources. It will accuse China of "underhanded trade practices" intended to hurt US national security.

For example, China controls much of the world's supply of ammonium perchlorate, a compound used to make rocket fuel, while the US has only one supplier. The study says China sells the chemical at artificially low prices, which makes it hard for the American company to stay in business.

Comment: But it's ok when the US and its allies supplies terrorists with arms, vehicles and medicine, and for free:

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Stock Up

Russian oil production jumps to record high amid rising prices and fears of shortage due to upcoming Iran sanctions


RT
Wed, 03 Oct 2018 05:34 UTC
oil russia
© Ilya Naymushin / Reuters
Russia is ramping up crude oil output after OPEC and other countries agreed to ease production curbs. In September, Russia produced a record amount of oil in its modern history.

The country's production rose to 11.36 million barrels per day (bpd) in September and exceeded the record high 11.247 million bpd hit in October 2016, Russian Energy Ministry said. The previous record served as Russia's baseline for a deal with OPEC to reduce production.

But in June, OPEC+ countries at a meeting in Vienna decided to increase production from July by about 1 million bpd. Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said that Russia's share in the total increase in oil production could be about 200,000 bpd.

Comment: See also:

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Boat

Italian port of Trieste aiming to be China's primary entry into Europe

Emanuele Scimia
Asia Times
Mon, 01 Oct 2018 14:14 UTC
Trieste
© AFP / Alberto Pizzoli
An aerial view of the port and commercial harbor in the northeastern Italian city of Trieste on the Adriatic Sea. This shot was taken in Oct 2017.
The Chinese are keen to invest in new terminals, docks, yards, logistics platforms and industrial areas in the northern Italian port, given its deeper integration into EU rail networks than Piraeus, the Greek port taken over by Cosco in 2016.

A seaport city of just over 200,000 residents in northeast Italy could play a significant geopolitical role in promoting Eurasian integration. The port of Trieste is only the 11th busiest in Europe by tonnage, but nonetheless is designed to become the western end of the Maritime Silk Road, a key section of Chinese President Xi Jinping's Belt and Road Initiative to improve connectivity between China and Western Europe.

Zeno D'Agostino, president of the Port Network Authority of the Eastern Adriatic Sea, the public company that runs Trieste port and other facilities in the area, told Asia Times that the Chinese were ready to invest in the infrastructure. "They have been attracted by Trieste's geographic position, strong connectivity with the rest of Europe and robust supply chain," he said.

Comment: See also: Also check out SOTT radio's: Behind the Headlines: Trump Ditches Europe, Europe Bluffs, Russia and China Carry on With Eurasian Integration

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Arrow Up

Austrian Chancellor Kurz set to meet Putin for fourth meeting this year to strengthen ties & foster dialogue


RT
Tue, 02 Oct 2018 08:18 UTC
kurz putin
© Mikhail Klimentyev / Reuters
Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz is set to meet President Vladimir Putin this week, their fourth meeting this year, displaying the pragmatic politics that are so badly needed right now in relations between Moscow and Europe.

Kurz is scheduled to make his second visit to Russia in less than a year and is expected to meet with Putin in St. Petersburg on Wednesday as part of a working trip. It will be the fourth meeting between the two leaders in less than nine months. Such frequent contacts have brought the already constructive and cordial relations between the two nations to a seemingly unprecedented level.

How these continue to improve might seem even more unusual against the backdrop of the ongoing cooling in relations between Moscow and the West, which has brought contacts between Russia and Europe to lows that are, at times, comparable with the Cold War era.

Austria's distinct approach to dealing with Russia has, so far, stood in stark contrast to that of other Western European nations, and are a sign of its cherished political neutrality and non-ideological approach to foreign policy.

Comment: See also: Austrian Chancellor's common-sense strategy with Moscow - no peace possible without Russia

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