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© Reuters / Vasily Fedosenko
Speaking about the prospects of economic integration in an interview with RIA Novosti published on Wednesday, Lukashenko said, "There's the Russian ruble... Everyone wants a single currency."
According to him, a past agreement with former Russian president Boris Yeltsin said that if the two countries shared a currency, "it wouldn't be the Belarusian ruble or the Russian ruble, but a different, third currency. But seeing as we have the ruble, and you have the ruble, why make something up and call it [something else] or what-have-you? Yes, it will be the ruble."
"We'll have to get to the currency step-by-step," he added.
© WikipediaAustralian Signals Directorate Logo
The move allows the agency to collect signals intelligence on individuals within the country without a warrant, although allegedly only in situations where there is an "imminent risk to life." Domestic terror suspects are cited as a key target in the Directorate's crosshairs, and it will also collect intelligence in conjunction with the Australian Defence Force for military operations, with ministerial authorization.
Rules governing the reform and protecting citizens' privacy will be published on the agency's website, and subject to review and scrutiny by the Australian parliament's security and intelligence committee. While framed as sincerely concerned with keeping Australians safe, experts have expressed grave reservations about the development. Among them is John Blaxland, Professor of International Security and Intelligence Studies at the Australian National University, himself a military intelligence veteran, who warned the powers were ripe for abuse.
© Reuters/Spasiyana SergievaSoldiers from the US Army, Georgia and Bulgaria take part in the 'Balkan Sentinel 21' military drill at Novo Selo training grounds, Bulgaria, May 31, 2021.
Speaking in Stockholm, which is currently hosting a meeting of the OSCE Ministerial Council, Lavrov emphasized that Moscow wants to improve "strategic stability" on the continent, which he said is "rapidly eroding."
Accusing the US-led bloc of rejecting constructive discussion, Lavrov said:
"NATO refuses to consider our proposals on de-escalation of tensions and prevention of dangerous incidents. On the contrary, the alliance's military infrastructure is moving closer to Russia's borders... The nightmarish scenario of military confrontation is returning."Lavrov's comments come amid increasing fears over an alleged military buildup on the Russian border with Ukraine. Since the start of November, some Western media outlets have claimed that Moscow is planning an "invasion" of its neighbor, an allegation strongly denied by the Kremlin.
Comment: Unending accusations may sadly manifest, driving irretrievable actions on the part of the accusers. Russia now claims military action in Ukraine is highly likely:
The risk of an all-out armed conflict in south-eastern Ukraine is extremely high and is becoming a matter of grave concern for Russia, Moscow has cautioned, as international tensions heighten over the war-torn Donbass region.See also:
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov said that "the probability of hostilities in Ukraine is still high" when asked about the likelihood of a war in the country's east. "This is a matter of particular concern and worry for us," he added.
Peskov's remarks come a day after Russia's foreign ministry spokeswoman alleged that Kiev was significantly beefing up its military force in the region by "pulling heavy equipment and personnel" into the area. Maria Zakharova said on Wednesday:"According to some reports, the number of troops... in the conflict zone already reaches 125,000 people. This, if anyone does not know, is half of the entire composition of the Armed Forces of Ukraine."Tensions on the Russian-Ukrainian border have grown in recent weeks. Speaking on the same day at the Kiev Security Forum, US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Victoria Nuland warned Russia against making any moves "to internally destabilize Ukraine or use these forces to enter the country."
Should Russia's military do so, she insisted, Moscow "will be met with high-impact economic measures, the likes of which we have not used before, from all of [NATO,]" she insisted.
The Kremlin, however, has consistently rejected claims made by the US-led military bloc and Western media reports that Moscow is massing its military along the frontier line with Ukraine, blasting the claims as "hysteria."
Peskov also insisted that Russia poses no threat to anyone, and that "the movement of our armed forces on our own territory should be of no concern to anyone."
- Putin's plans for Ukraine
- Putin's economic advisor spells out joint Nazi-NeoCon strategy in Ukraine: 'U.S. militarizing Ukraine to invade Russia'
- Zelenskiy says coup plot uncovered, Ukraine ready for any escalation with Russia
- Kremlin responds to claims Russian troops are 'massing' on border with Ukraine
- Ukraine dismisses US media reports about alleged Russian 'military buildup' on border
- Ukraine refutes Wapo report of Russian troop buildup near its borders, follows Ukraine drone strike on breakaway region of Donbass
© Reuters/Tom BrennerUS President Joe Biden
Biden implemented "emergency" vaccine mandates only to push back the deadlines for when people would need to be vaccinated. He pushed back the deadline for large employers to have their employees vaccinated from Dec. 8 to Jan. 4, and, though the administration says that it set a Nov. 22 deadline for federal employees, the Office of Management and Budget is telling federal agencies that they can postpone firing unvaccinated employees until after the holidays.
Apparently, emergencies operate on a slower time frame, or perhaps the coronavirus spreads less quickly, when Christmas is approaching.
Meanwhile, Biden is also planning on requiring all travelers to the United States to test one day before boarding their flight, regardless of vaccination status. He is also considering requiring them to test again within three to five days of arriving in the country and requiring all travelers, including U.S. citizens, to quarantine for seven days even if they test negative or face fines.
Somehow, Biden has decided that U.S. COVID policies should be more strict now that we have a vaccine than before it existed.
Comment: Like 'truth' for Biden...Coronavirus is being stretched.
© screenshotEU Chief Ursula von der Leyen
In a call to action, Ursula von der Leyen said the EU's 27 member states should rapidly deploy booster doses and a commission communique backed countries opting to temporarily enforce pre-travel PCR tests even within the bloc's borders.
There have been a total of 59 identified cases in the EU of the Omicron variant all of which have involved mild symptoms or been asymptomatic.
Asked whether she supported the Greek government in its imposition of a €100 (£85) monthly fine on those aged 60 and over who failed to get a Covid jab, Von der Leyen said the spread of the disease and lack of vaccine take-up in parts of the EU meant mandatory vaccination had to be on the table as a policy response.
Comment: From other most recent reports, the Omicron variant is a complete dud. Meanwhile, persons of influence, such as Von der Leyen, will parlay fear into policy, mandates and penalties.
See also:
- NewsReal: Omicron! Nu Variant! More Lockdowns! More Jabs!
- WHO says will take "weeks" to understand new coronavirus variant Omicron, advise against travel bans
- Sigh of relief in South Africa as Omicron variant appears to be 'super mild' mutation with Covid death rate not jumping
- Relax: Most Omicron cases are 'mild', no evidence to suggest vaccines may be less effective against variant - WHO official
- Covid hospital admissions are falling in England, as are total number of Covid patients - Omicron looks unlikely to change that
- Omicron variant symptoms 'unusual but mild', says South African doctor - WHO urges countries to keep borders open
© Official website of the European Union https://ec.europa.eu/Region's representatives did not appear in court to argue case due to public holidays
Namur city's Court of First Instance ruled Tuesday that use of the COVID Safe Ticket (CST) was illegal in the Wallonia region.
According to the judgment, rules requiring everyone to show their CST before entering cafés, restaurants, gyms and cultural venues were curbing individual freedoms in a disproportionate way which does not serve the goal they pursue.
Comment: This isn't the first court ruling against vaccine passports and lockdowns, however, many of them have been ignored or later overturned, likely reflecting that these orders are coming from a place that has much more influence than a regional court:
- Spain's top court rules lockdown unconstitutional
- Germany's new lockdown law sparks flurry of Constitutional Court complaints: 'Ineffective & disproportionate"
- Czech Supreme Court overrules Health Ministry's mask mandate following failure to provide evidence
© FORSCOM US ARMYGeneral Michael Garrett
"The secretary has directed today a review of the civilian casualty incident that occurred on March 18, 2019, in Baghuz, Syria," press secretary John Kirby told reporters.
The investigation will be conducted by Gen. Michael Garrett, the head of Army Forces Command, who will review investigations already conducted on the incident and "conduct further inquiry into the facts and circumstances related to it," according to Kirby.
Garrett will have 90 days to complete the investigation, first reported by The New York Times.
The new high-level review comes after an investigation by the Times, released earlier this month, that detailed the U.S. airstrike that killed 70 civilians and allegations that top officers and civilian officials tried to hide the casualties. The strike, which was carried out by the classified special operations unit known as Task Force 9, was unknown to the public until the Times report.
Comment: As long as the public remains clueless, the military and the government have carte blanche.
© Kent Nishimura/LA Times/Getty Images/Joshua RobertsSenator Patrick Leahy • Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell
Lawmakers are rushing to approve a short-term spending bill, known as a continuing resolution (CR), ahead of Friday's deadline to briefly extend the deadline to January and avoid a government shutdown. Republicans are hoping to block its passage or at least delay it past the midnight deadline Friday unless Democratic leaders agree to strip out funding to enforce the mandate.
The caucus, chaired by Rep. Scott Perry, R-Pa., wrote in its letter:
"Today the House of Representatives will pass, over our objection, a continuing resolution to fund government without ending any of President Biden's very damaging, unAmerican, and in the worst cases, unlawful vaccine mandates.Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., who chairs the Senate Committee on Appropriations, said he's confident Republicans won't follow through on their threat.
"As you know, the current government funding mechanism expires on Friday night, thus the Senate Republican conference enjoys important leverage against those mandates. We therefore write to request that you use all procedural tools at your disposal to deny timely passage of the CR unless it prohibits funding - in all respects - for the vaccine mandates and enforcement thereof."
Comment: Default lies with Congress. Send them the bill, not the American public.
More witnesses detail festivities at Downing Street while the rest of the public were told not to mingle
Witnesses have come forward to detail party games and festivities beyond midnight in Downing Street during the winter 2020 lockdown, expanding on reports first made in the Daily Mirror.
Johnson and his press secretary did not deny the events took place though they simultaneously insisted no Covid rules were broken. Without elaboration, they said on Wednesday that they "don't recognise" some of the reports.
Comment: Since the beginning of the contrived crisis there have been endless scandals exposing the hypocrisy of those in society, particularly high level politicians, but even mayors and teachers, who will readily flout the tyrannical restrictions they deem others must suffer, including young children.
For some, such as the teachers, it's likely that they're looking for any outlet to release the pent up stress from the nearly two years of draconian measures and are almost oblivious to what they're doing, however, others, particularly those legislating the restrictions are almost certainly aware of what they're doing but they believe that the nonsensical rules simply do not apply to them, because they're special and not part of the 'great unwashed'. What does that say about the psychology of those people?
Here are just a few of the latest examples:
Austria's politicians:
President Biden & Prince Charles:
Israel's politicians:
UK teachers:
San Francisco Mayor:
See also:
- Political Ponerology And The Rise Of Totalitarianism In The West
- Psychopathy and the Origins of Totalitarianism
- Political Ponerology: A Science on The Nature of Evil adjusted for Political Purposes
- MindMatters: How Psychopaths Infect and Destroy Hierarchies of Competence
- MindMatters: Joshua Slocum: We're Living in a Cluster B World
- The Truth Perspective: Introducing Political Ponerology, plus some odds and ends
Comment: The author makes an interesting point regarding Australia being a testing ground, given the totalitarian measures taken in response to COVID. See also: