Puppet MastersS


Star of David

Palestinian president: Rupturing relations with US for 'legalization' of West Bank settlements is imminent


RT
Tue, 26 Nov 2019 19:27 UTC
Palestinian and settlement
© Reuters/Mohamad TorokmanA Palestinian protester stands facing the settlement of Qadomem in the West Bank.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has threatened to end the nation's relationship with the US after the Trump administration declared Israel's Jewish-only settlements in the West Bank - illegal under international law - as legal.

"We are ready to go to a complete breakdown of relations with [the US]," Abbas told Russian journalists on Tuesday. He explained that "almost every country in the world" has condemned US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's statement legitimizing the settlements last week, and Palestinian authorities were not willing to let such a brash move go unaddressed.

"The US administration has long been hostile to the Palestinian people," Abbas continued, recalling that President Donald Trump's so-called "deal of the century" kicked off by cutting off Palestinian refugee aid through UNRWA and relocating the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Palestine has been "boycotting" White House initiatives since Trump announced the embassy move in December 2017, and has even taken Washington to court over the move - to no avail. However, the two states maintain security ties, for now.
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Arrow Down

US delegation met with General Haftar, head of Libyan National Army, to discuss ending hostilities


Sputnik
Tue, 26 Nov 2019 07:07 UTC
Haftar
© AP/Mohammed El-SheikhyLNA Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar
US officials have met with the commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA), Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, discussing possible ways of resolving the conflict with the UN-backed Government of National Accord in Libya, the US State Department said in a statement.

"Senior U.S. officials met with General Khalifa Haftar on November 24 to discuss steps to achieve a suspension of hostilities and a political resolution to the Libyan conflict," the State Department said on Monday.

According to the release, the US delegation included Deputy National Security Advisor for Middle Eastern and North African Affairs Victoria Coates, Ambassador to Libya Richard Norland, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Affairs at the US Department of Energy Matthew Zais, and USAFRICOM (United States Africa Command) Deputy Director for Strategy, Engagement, and Programs Brigadier General Steven deMilliano. The US State Department emphasized:
"These frank discussions build on recent talks with Tripoli-based officials aiming to establish a common basis for progress between the parties on the issues that divide them, in the context of moving toward a ceasefire. These include concrete efforts to address militias and extremist elements, and the distribution of resources so they benefit all Libyans."
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Snakes in Suits

3 Senate committees now investigating the Bidens and Ukraine

Ivan Pentchoukov
The Epoch Times
Wed, 27 Nov 2019 19:28 UTC
hunter_biden
© Andy Wong-Pool/Getty ImagesVice President Joe Biden (C) tours a Hutong alley with his son Hunter Biden (L) and granddaughter Finnegan Biden (R) during an official visit to Beijing, China, on Dec. 5, 2013.
As House Democrats wrapped up the public impeachment hearings on Nov. 21, Senate Republicans sent the latest round of records requests as part of a growing inquiry into the Obama administration's actions related to Burisma, the Ukrainian gas firm that hired Hunter Biden, the son of former Vice President Joe Biden.

Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) wrote to the National Archives requesting records of January 2016 White House meetings with senior Ukrainian officials. The senators reference events detailed in an April 25 article by investigative reporter John Solomon, who quoted firsthand witnesses to report that Ukrainian officials who attended the White House meeting were encouraged to reopen an investigation involving the chairman of the Trump campaign and stand down from an investigation into Burisma.

On the same day, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) requested records from the State Department regarding the communications in 2016 between Biden, then-Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, and their respective offices.

Graham also requested information about a March 2, 2016, meeting between Devon Archer, Hunter Biden's business partner, and then-Secretary of State John Kerry. The meeting took place weeks after Ukrainian authorities seized the assets of Mykola Zlochevsky, the owner of Burisma. Archer and Hunter Biden were on the board of directors of Burisma at the time of the seizure.
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Rocket

Russia shows cutting-edge Avangard hypersonic glider to US inspectors


RT
Wed, 27 Nov 2019 19:25 UTC
Avangard glider
© Sputnik / Russia's Defense MinistryAvangard glider
Moscow has showcased its top notch Avangard hypersonic missile system to a team of US military inspectors, saying the unprecedented move is an attempt to revitalize the key New START arms control treaty.

The US team became familiar with Avangard over the past two days, Russia's Defense Ministry said Tuesday. It was not immediately clear how close the US inspectors were able to get to the cutting-edge system and whether it was shown to them in action.

The Avangard is a hypersonic glider, launched by silo-based ballistic missiles, said to be able to penetrate any - both existing and prospective - defenses. It achieves extremely high speeds during its final approach while retaining the ability to maneuver.
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War Whore

Assistant Secretary of State says State Dept, Pentagon probing reports of US arms diversion in Yemen


Sputnik
Wed, 27 Nov 2019 19:09 UTC
military vehicles
© Wikipedia / U.S. Navy
The US State Department and Pentagon are investigating reports that American-made armored vehicles may have fallen into the hands of terrorist groups in Yemen via Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, a newly published letter to a lawmaker showed.
"The Department of State takes these allegations very seriously and is working closely with partner nations to determine whether there were any such unauthorized transfers", Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs Mary Elizabeth Taylor wrote to Senator and presidential hopeful Elizabeth Warren in a letter published on Tuesday.
Taylor said that since allegations were limited to Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles, both the State and Defence Departments had already inspected MRAP inventories in the United Arab Emirates and were planning 'a similar oversight visit' to Saudi Arabia in November 2019.
"Once the Departments of State and Defence complete the visits and any necessary follow-up discussions with the two governments, the Department expects to have a full account of the circumstances related to the disposition of this equipment and any potential violation of the agreements", Taylor added.
The letter was sent to Warren in response to her query submitted to the State Department last month.

Yemen has been locked in a conflict between the government forces led by President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi and the Houthi rebels. A Saudi-led coalition has been conducting strikes against the Houthis at Hadi's request since March 2015.
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Vader

Afraid Moscow might fix it? US dares complain about 'destabilizing RUSSIAN presence' in Libya wrecked by NATO regime change

Nebojsa Malic
RT
Wed, 27 Nov 2019 18:49 UTC
libya
© Reuters / Esam Al-Fetori
Having sponsored the 2011 'humanitarian' regime-change in Libya and reducing the North African country to chaos and civil war, the US is now protesting the alleged presence of Russian troops there as "incredibly destabilizing."

That was the claim on Tuesday by David Schenker, the assistant secretary for near eastern affairs at the State Department. He told reporters that Russian regulars were being sent to Libya "in significant numbers" to support the Libya National Army (LNA) and said that "raises the specter of large-scale casualties among the civilian population."

Schenker's concern for the lives and well-being of Libyan civilians is especially touching, given that the US was one of the driving forces behind the regime-change operation in 2011 targeting the government of Col. Moammar Gaddafi. Few can forget then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton cackling ghoulishly when she was informed of Gaddafi's brutal murder at the hands of US-backed 'moderate' rebels.
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Attention

Flashback US has no evidence of Syrian use of sarin gas, Mattis says

Robert Burns
Associated Press
Wed, 27 Nov 2019 18:12 UTC
sarin gas syria
The U.S. has no evidence to confirm reports from aid groups and others that the Syrian government has used the deadly chemical sarin on its citizens, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Friday.

"We have other reports from the battlefield from people who claim it's been used," Mattis told reporters at the Pentagon. "We do not have evidence of it."

He said he was not rebutting the reports.

"We're looking for evidence of it, since clearly we are dealing with the Assad regime that has used denial and deceit to hide their outlaw actions," Mattis said.

Comment: The US government and its media knew all along there was no evidence of Assad using sarin gas against the Syrian people. But that did not stop the information war waged in the name of US dominance. Now that the truth has reached the mainstream, it still does not matter. Lies upon lies have led an hysterisized American population into a bizarre world where truth is the enemy.

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Bad Guys

Bolivia's parliament approves bill on snap presidential election, Anez rejects amnesty for Morales

Drago Bosnic
Fort Russ
Mon, 25 Nov 2019 18:04 UTC
Jeanine Áñez Bolivia
© REUTERS / Carlos Garcia Rawlins
The Bolivian parliament's Chamber of Deputies has voted in favor of holding new general elections, the lower house said in a Twitter post.

"The Chamber of Deputies unanimously voted to approve the bill on a special and transitional period for holding general elections," the tweet read, according to TASS.

The document was earlier approved by Bolivia's Senate. Now it will be sent to Interim President Jeanine Anez for signature. The bill said that new judges of Bolivia's Supreme Electoral Tribunal and regional commissions are to be appointed and the election should be held as soon as possible.

The presidential election in Bolivia was held on October 20. According to the Supreme Electoral Tribunal, Evo Morales who was the head of state at that time won in the first round. His main competitor, Carlos Mesa, stated that he does not recognize Morales' victory in the first round.
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Bad Guys

Swedish court rejects appeal by Russia's Gazprom in gas transit dispute with Ukraine's Naftogaz


RT
Wed, 27 Nov 2019 17:59 UTC
Gazprom
© Gazprom
Sweden's Svea Court of Appeal on Wednesday upheld an earlier arbitration decision forcing Russian energy major Gazprom to pay Ukraine's Naftogaz $2.56 billion in an ongoing gas transit dispute.

"Today's decision means that the court has rejected Gazprom's claim, and the decision of the arbitration cannot be canceled. Apart from that, the court has not detected any procedural violations," said the ruling. It has noted that the decision cannot be appealed.

The existing agreement for Russian gas transit through Ukraine to Europe expires next year, but the talks have stalled. Last week, Gazprom offered to extend the existing agreement or sign a new deal for one year, taking into consideration the forecast for the European Union's gas demand.
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Network

Russian-British trade growing, expected to reach $15 billion this year


RT
Wed, 27 Nov 2019 17:47 UTC
London bride
© Pixabay / E. Dichtl
The volume of trade between the UK and Russia may rise eight percent in 2019 compared to last year, the Russian Trade Representative to the UK announced at a business forum in London.

The growth of trade turnover between the two countries has been more rapid this year, Boris Abramov said on Wednesday, when the 5th Russian-British Business Forum (RBBF) opened at the Queen Elizabeth II Center.

"We expect the volume of trade to reach $15 billion by the end of 2019," he stated as cited by TASS. He added that in the first nine months of this year Russia's non-resource exports to the UK jumped 22 percent, while last year this figure stood at eight percent.

Comment: We can expect to see continuing economic growth between the two countries. The UK will be the first European country to integrate Russia's cross-border payment system MIR, which was created out of the sanctions imposed by the US.

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