Puppet MastersS


Handcuffs

Arresting Putin would be 'declaration of war' - African leader


RT
Tue, 18 Jul 2023 18:55 UTC
Ramphosa
© AFPSouth African President Cyril Ramaphosa
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has sought an exemption from executing the ICC warrant for his Russian counterpart...

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has warned that executing an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin when the Russian leader attends the BRICS summit next month in Johannesburg would amount to a "declaration of war" against Moscow.

Ramaphosa, in a court filing released on Tuesday, said:
"Russia has made it clear that arresting its sitting president would be a declaration of war. It would be inconsistent with our constitution to risk engaging in war with Russia."
He added that such a move would also fail his duty to protect South Africa.

As an ICC member, South Africa is required to abide by the court's orders, including the March ruling to arrest Putin for alleged war crimes in Ukraine. However, the country also is the hosting member of this year's BRICS summit, and it has sought to maintain good relations with Russia.
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Bullseye

UK likely involved in Crimean Bridge attack - Russian diplomat


RT
Tue, 18 Jul 2023 08:20 UTC
Deputy
© John Minchillo/AFPDeputy permanent representative of Russia to the United Nations, Dmitry Polyansky
September 23, 2021 in New York
The deputy UN envoy also blasted the West for failing to condemn Kiev for the "act of terrorism"...

The UK's intelligence services likely played a considerable role in setting the stage for Ukraine's drone attack on the Crimean Bridge, which took the lives of two civilians, Dmitry Polyansky, Russia's deputy permanent representative to the UN claimed on Monday.

His remarks came after Russia's National Antiterrorist Committee (NAK) accused Kiev of staging a "terrorist attack" on the key link between the Crimean Peninsula and the country's mainland, which it said involved two sea surface drones.

While the raid did not damage the bridge's supports, it led to a partial collapse of one section of the roadway and killed a married couple from Belgorod Region, injuring their 14-year-old daughter.

Speaking at a UN Security Council briefing on Ukraine, Polyansky blasted "the Kiev regime" for the attack, while suggesting there may have been Western complicity.
"We have yet to understand the extent to which Western, particularly British, intelligence services were involved in the preparation and execution of this attack: too much is pointing at it."
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Bad Guys

US turning Ukraine into 'burial ground' for lethal waste - Russian envoy


RT
Tue, 18 Jul 2023 13:39 UTC
Anatoly Antonov
© Sputnik / Maksim Blinov
The US is using the Ukrainian battlefield as a dump site for its outdated weapons, Russia's ambassador to Washington has said, warning that the country will become a graveyard for "lethal waste."

After the White House claimed it has no plans to replenish the Pentagon's stockpiles of controversial cluster bombs, Ambassador Anatoly Antonov said the US is "plunging lower and lower in terms of observing elementary moral principles, cynically dumping the lethal waste on Ukraine."

"Washington wants to use [Ukraine] to dispose of its old weapons, turning the once rich and fertile part of the USSR into a 'burial ground' where it will be simply impossible to live," he said. "Unexploded US submunitions will remain in this territory, as well as piles of scorched metal of the German-made Leopards and other Western materiel."

Comment: See also: Nato isn't defending Ukraine. It's stabbing it in the back

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Network

Nearly 50 African states to attend summit in Russia - FM


RT
Wed, 19 Jul 2023 13:39 UTC
Russia Africa
© Sputnik / Alexei DruzhininRussian President Vladimir Putin talks to Guinea's President Alpha Conde during a meeting on the sidelines of the 2019 Russia-Africa Summit and Economic Forum in Sochi, Russia.
Forty-nine countries have confirmed their participation in the Russia-Africa summit set to take place next week in St. Petersburg, Aleksandr Polyakov, deputy director of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Africa department, announced on Tuesday.

Polyakov said the decision to participate demonstrates African nations' firm commitment to developing relations with Moscow, despite Western pressure.

"So far, we have received confirmation of participation from 49 African delegations, with about half of the African countries to be represented at the highest level: the level of heads of state and government," he told the media.

The second Russia-Africa Summit is scheduled for July 27-28, taking place alongside the Economic and Humanitarian Forum, which is expected to provide a platform for business meetings and panel sessions.

Comment: See also: Putin won't attend BRICS summit - South Africa

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Putin

Putin won't attend BRICS summit - South Africa


RT
Wed, 19 Jul 2023 13:39 UTC
Ramaphosa
© Pete Marovich-Pool / Getty ImagesSouth African President Cyril Ramaphosa
The office of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa announced on Wednesday that Russian leader Vladimir Putin will not attend the summit of BRICS leaders in Johannesburg next month. The decision was taken by the two nations, it added.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will represent Moscow at the high-profile event, the host nation announced.

"In due course, a comprehensive statement on the substantive issues to be covered at the summit and other related foreign policy matters will be issued," the statement said.

Russia has yet to confirm the statement. As of last Friday, Putin's office said no final decision had been taken on his plans for the summit.

Comment: In case there is a need for explanation: Putin is not going to the BRICS summit not due to the ICC's arrest warrant, but because he doesn't wish to risk yet another attempt to assassinate him at a high profile event.

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Network

India-Russia train deal back on track after dispute resolution


RT
Wed, 19 Jul 2023 13:39 UTC
India train
© STR / AFPIndian Prime Minister Narendra Modi waves during the flagging off for India's first semi-high speed express train Vande Bharat Express at New Delhi Railway station on February 15, 2019.
Moscow and New Delhi have resolved a dispute over a joint venture worth an estimated $6 billion to build and maintain 120 trains for India's ambitious Vande Bharat Express rail service, it was reported on Wednesday.

The joint venture to construct semi-high-speed trains involves the government-owned, publicly traded Indian company Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL) and Metrowagonmash - part of Transmashholding, Russia's largest rail manufacturer. The project is back on track after contractual issues were ironed out, Indian media have reported.

The venture was formed last year to bid for the Vande Bharat tender, with Metrowagonmash receiving a 70% stake while RVNL and a smaller Russian partner, Locomotive Electronic Systems (LES), would gain shares of 25% and 5% respectively. The bid won the tender after offering the lowest price of 1.2 billion rupees ($14.61 million) per train, seeing off rivals such as Germany's Siemens, France's Alstom Transport, and Swiss Stadler Rail.
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Newspaper

US to deploy 2,500 troops to Syria, Russian jets intercept US reconnaissance aircraft over Syrian airspace, Israeli jets bomb Damascus


The Cradle
Tue, 18 Jul 2023 12:00 UTC
syria us troops
A US military official recently said that there is a Russian-Iranian initiative to expel Washington's troops from Syria
Turkish newspaper Yeni Safak reported on 18 January that Washington intends to deploy around 2,500 troops to northern Syria.

"Following Turkiye's relentless struggle against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a series of controversial steps have been taken consecutively by the US," the report reads, adding that Washington "has recently announced the deployment of 2,500 troops to northern regions of Syria."

"Several sources reveal that the 2,500 US soldiers, having completed their training, are scheduled to be deployed to Syria and Iraq for a minimum of nine months," the Turkish report goes on to say.

According to the report, their "primary objective" will be to support Kurdish militants, particularly the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), who are military aligned with the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units (YPG), a branch of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which is considered a terrorist organization by Ankara.

Comment:



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Attention

Barack Obama's brother claims he's 'definitely gay' - media


RT
Tue, 18 Jul 2023 20:06 UTC
malik obama
© Getty Images / Drew AngererMalik Obama attends a US presidential debate in October 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
The former US president's sibling has responded to his defense of LGBTQ-themed books in children's libraries.

Barack Obama's half-brother in Kenya has reportedly responded to the former US president's effort to promote the inclusion of LGBTQ-themed books in school libraries by suggesting that his half-sibling is homosexual.

"This man is definitely gay," Malik Obama purportedly said on Monday in a since-deleted Twitter message. The post, which was reported by multiple media outlets, came in response to a letter in which Barack Obama denounced the banning of controversial books in children's libraries, including at least one that features graphic illustrations of gay sexual acts.

Comment: See also:

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Whistle

Former FBI agent assigned to Hunter Biden investigation confirms key detail of whistleblower testimony

Jake Smith
Daily Caller
Mon, 17 Jul 2023 08:02 UTC
Hunt&Joe
© news.sky.comHunter and Joe Biden: Like father, like son
A former FBI supervisory special agent assigned to the Hunter Biden criminal investigation has confirmed several key aspects of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) whistleblower testimony from June, House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer announced Monday.

The former agent said that the Biden family and the Secret Service were tipped off about an interview the FBI planned to have with Hunter Biden in December 2020, according to a transcribed interview conducted by the House Oversight Committee on Monday. Biden entered a plea deal in late June after he was charged with two misdemeanor tax offenses and illegal possession of a firearm.

IRS whistleblower Gary Shapley previously alleged that the U.S. attorney for the District of Delaware's investigation into Hunter Biden was "slow-walked" by the Department of Justice, calling the breach of protocol "way outside the norm."

The former agent also said that the FBI was told not to approach Hunter Biden until he told them he was ready to give the interview, which he never did - so the interview was never conducted.

Comer released a statement on Monday following the House Oversight Committee's interview with the former FBI agent.

Comment: It appears this investigation has merely begun:
Two Internal Revenue Service (IRS) whistleblowers are set to testify in front of Congress on Wednesday about the Department of Justice's (DOJ) investigation into Hunter Biden as multiple questions remain unanswered:
  • Did Merrick Garland lie under oath in his Congressional testimony about the Biden investigation?
  • Is there more evidence U.S. Attorney David Weiss formally requested Special Counsel status?
  • Did Weiss have authority to charge Biden in D.C. and California without Special Counsel status?
  • Do you have a response to apparent falsehoods from Hunter Biden's Attorney?
  • What additional information was discovered from the Hunter Biden search warrant?
  • How much did the FBI participate in the DOJ's alleged efforts to slow-walk the Biden investigation?
  • Do the IRS whistleblowers know who leaked information to the media about the Hunter Biden case?
  • Will the IRS whistleblowers release more evidence showing alleged obstruction by DOJ prosecutors?
  • What areas of the Hunter Biden investigation concerned Joe Biden and where should the DOJ have investigated further?


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Target

Trump says he is DOJ Jan. 6 grand jury investigation target

Brooke Singman, Anders Hagstrom
Fox News
Tue, 18 Jul 2023 11:30 UTC
trump
© Mario Tama/Getty ImagesFormer President Trump • Nevada Republican recruiting event • Fervent Calvary Chapel
July 8, 2023 • Las Vegas, Nevada
Former President Trump says he expects to face both an arrest and indictment...

Former President Trump says he received a letter from Special Counsel Jack Smith stating that he is the target of a Jan. 6 grand jury investigation on Tuesday.

Trump said he initially received the letter on Sunday and said he expects to face both an arrest and indictment.

A government source with direct knowledge of the situation also told Fox News that Smith's office sent Trump a target letter.

Trump wrote on Truth Social:
"Deranged Jack Smith, prosecutor with Joe Biden's DOJ, sent a letter (again it was a Sunday night!) stating that I am the TARGET of the January 6th Grand Jury Investigation, and giving me a very short four days to report to the Grand Jury, which almost always means an arrest an indictment.

"So now, Joe Biden's Attorney General, Merrick Garland, who I turned down for the United States Supreme Court (in retrospect, based on his corrupt and unethical actions, a very wise decision!), together with Joe Biden's Department of Injustice, have effectively issued a third indictment and arrest of Joe Biden's NUMBER ONE POLITICAL OPPONENT, who is largely dominating him in the race for the Presidency.

"Nothing like this has ever happened in our Country before, or even close."

Comment: Domestic Revolution ahead? The case is primed with yet another negative:
The Georgia Supreme Court denied former President Donald Trump's bid to block a grand jury report Monday.

In a unanimous ruling, the court refused to quash an upcoming report from the special grand jury empaneled by Fulton County Fani Willis, who launched the probe into Trump's efforts to contest the results of the 2020 presidential election. Willis announced in April that the probe could lead to the indictment of Trump.

Trump's attorneys petitioned the Georgia Supreme Court to quash the report of the special grand jury and to disqualify Willis, Newsmax reported.

"Petitioner has not shown that this case presents one of those extremely rare circumstances in which this Court's original jurisdiction should be invoked, and therefore, the petition is dismissed," the unsigned opinion said.

Emily Kohrs, the forewoman of a special grand jury that investigated the former president and his allies for their efforts to contest the 2020 presidential election's result, gave multiple interviews on cable networks, including CNN and MSNBC, saying she anticipated indictments to result from the probe and expressing excitement at the possibility of confronting former President Trump.

Kohrs' media tour prompted backlash from across the political spectrum, including CNN and ABC's The View, whose co-hosts fretted that Kohrs may "destroy" the case against Trump.



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