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Best of the Web: Could it be John Brennan's and James Clapper's last gasp?

Larry C. Johnson
The Gateway Pundit
Tue, 10 Sep 2019 00:00 UTC
ClapperBrennan
© Molly Riley/AFP/Getty ImagesFormer Director National Intelligence James Clapper • Former CIA Director John Brennan
A flood of news in the last 24 hours regarding Russiagate. I am referring specifically to reports that the CIA ex-filtrated Oleg Smolenkov, a mid-level Russian Foreign Ministry bureaucrat who has hooked himself on the coat-tails of Yuri Ushakov, who was Ambassador to the US from 1999 through 2008. He was recruited by the CIA (i.e., asked to collect information and pass it to the U.S. Government via his or her case officer) at sometime during this period. A supposedly "sensitive" source. He was not. But you would not necessarily glean this fact if you read either the Washington Post or New York Times accounts of this event.

This is the kind of source that helps a CIA case officer get promoted but adds little to actual U.S. intelligence on Russia. If you understood the CIA culture you would immediately recognize that a case officer (CIA terminology for the operations officer tasked with identifying and recruiting human sources) gets rewarded by recruiting persons who ostensibly will have access to information the CIA has identified as a priority target. In this case, we're talking about possible access to Vladimir Putin.

If you take time to read both articles you will quickly see that the real purpose of this "information operation" is to paint Donald Trump as a security threat that must be stopped. This is conveniently timed to assist Jerry Nadler's mission impossible to secure Trump's impeachment. But I think there is another dynamic at play - these competing explanations for what prompted the exfiltration of this CIA asset say more about the incompetence of Barack Obama and his intel chiefs. John Brennan and Jim Clapper in particular.
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Target

Regime change on schedule? US military encircling Venezuela

Darius Shahtahmasebi
RT
Thu, 12 Sep 2019 15:33 UTC
Chopper/personnel
© AFP/Guillermo Legaria
While protests in Hong Kong and the debacles in the UK Parliament under Boris Johnson have pushed Venezuela out of the media narrative, a recent troop detachment indicates Caracas may be back in the crosshairs.

The US has a long and hidden history of encircling rivals and adversaries with military bases with two notable goals in mind: one being to contain and surround the rival nation to prevent it from expanding its sphere of influence as much as possible; and two, to support a regime-change operation in that rival nation.

For example, I suspect most Americans have heard of the Monroe Doctrine. But I equally suspect that very few Americans realized that as of now, the US military has just recently returned to Guyana for the first time in a decade. The purpose of this detachment, according to Military.com, is to "shore up relationships amid growing tensions in neighboring Venezuela."

Comment: See also: Venezuela rejects US invocation of mutual defense treaty, calls it a 'shameful heritage of neocolonialism'

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Nuke

Imran Khan: 'No rational human being can talk of a nuclear war'


RT
Fri, 13 Sep 2019 08:40 UTC
Putin/Khan
© Grigory Sysoev/SputnikRussian President Vladimir Putin • Pakistani PM Imran Khan
The further escalation between nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan may lead to "unimaginable" fallout so the world must intervene to help avoiding that, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan told RT in an exclusive interview.

The "explosive" situation in Kashmir could escalate "way beyond" the Indian subcontinent, Khan told RT's Paula Slier. He reminded that it would be "the first time [when] two nuclear-armed countries come face-to-face after the Cuban crisis" of 1962. "No rational human being can talk of a nuclear war."

The Indo-Pakistani standoff took a turn for the worse after New Delhi revoked the decades old autonomy of the part of disputed Kashmir it controls. Khan urged the world community to help preventing the conflict from spiraling into "a nuclear hotspot" with "unimaginable" consequences.

Watch full interview with Imran Khan on RT.com.


Comment: More from RT, 13/9/2019: Khan interview 'I expected world to react much more to Kashmir'
Talks between India and Pakistan alone aren't enough to resolve the ongoing Kashmir standoff anymore, but the global reaction has so far been too weak.

"Sadly, I would have expected the world to react much more than it has," he said. The PM noted that some states may be unwilling to disrupt trade with India. "I feel that [to the world community] markets, trade, material gains - I'm sad to say - are much more important than human beings."

Khan promised that Pakistan will continue to raise the issue of Kashmir at the UN and even file a case to its judiciary, the International Court of Justice.

"Every forum we will use. We will knock on every door... No one should expect that now any bilateral talks between India and Pakistan are going to solve anything. That stage is long gone."
In addition from RT, 13/9/2019: 'Putin is a big voice in the world'
Russia and Pakistan should give their relations a fresh start. Moscow could be part of the solution to the Kashmir crisis. ...although Moscow and Islamabad were on opposite sides of the barricade during the Cold War, it is time to put the past behind and start anew.

"The world has changed. We should develop a new relationship - and I hope we do," he stressed. "I hope now Russia would get closer to Pakistan."

After India controversially revoked the self-governing status of Kashmir last month, Pakistan has been peddling for an international response to the tensions there.

The PM noted that Russian leader Vladimir Putin is "a big voice in the world," while Russia remains among the "main powers," along with the US and China.

"If these three powers decide, they can resolve most of the world's issues," Khan said - including Kashmir, "the most explosive issue in the world today."

"If these three powers get together - I think, they can resolve it."
See also: PM Khan: Pakistan is 'unfairly' blamed for US failures in Afghanistan

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Arrow Down

Venezuela rejects US invocation of mutual defense treaty, calls it a 'shameful heritage of neocolonialism'


RT
Wed, 11 Sep 2019 22:53 UTC
Venezuelan flag images
© Anadolu Agency
The government of Venezuela has denounced the US invocation of a Cold War-era mutual defense treaty on behalf of the opposition in Caracas, a move which clears the way for military intervention in the Latin American country.

Washington has invoked the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance (TIAR) with 10 other Latin American countries and Venezuela's self-proclaimed "interim president" Juan Guaido, declaring in a statement on Wednesday that President Nicolas Maduro "not only poses a threat to the Venezuelan people, his actions threaten the peace and security of Venezuela's neighbors."

Blaming the "increasingly destabilizing influence that the former regime of Nicolas Maduro is having on the region," US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo pointed to "recent bellicose moves by the Venezuelan military to deploy along the border with Colombia as well as the presence of illegal armed groups and terrorist organizations."

The treaty nations would have no choice but to consider an array of "multilateral economic and political options," he warned, signaling that while the hawkish National Security Advisor John Bolton may have resigned on Tuesday, his spirit still steers the foreign policy in Washington.

Comment: See also: Regime change on schedule? US military encircling Venezuela

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Hearts

Best of the Web: MintPress interviews Russian Foreign Ministry's Maria Zakharova

Eva Bartlett
MintPress News
Thu, 12 Sep 2019 00:00 UTC
Bartlett/Zakharova
© ScreenshotRussian Foreign Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova • Interviewer: Eva Bartlett
Russia's Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova weighs in on Syria, Crimea, the Moscow protests and more.

In a simple meeting room at the Russian Foreign Affairs Ministry building, Russia's Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova gave me a generous hour of her time in a conversation peppered with bemused laughter at Western allegations about Russia and clear frustration at the West's incessant vilification of all things Russia.

I traveled to Moscow in August, where to my delight I had the opportunity to interview Zakharova. Given that Russia is the focus of obsessive and largely negative Western media reporting, and also the country's role in eliminating the proliferation of terrorist groups that once controlled large swaths of Syria, I wanted to ask Zakharova for her take on a variety of topics related to both Russia and Syria.

In our wide-ranging discussion, Zakharova spoke of the U.S. sanctions regime against Russia and of the Western interference in Russian domestic issues — such as the protests seen in Moscow in July and August.

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Arrow Up

Zelenskiy 'grateful' to Trump for $250M in military aid

Christopher Miller
RFE/RL
Fri, 13 Sep 2019 10:29 UTC
Zelenskiy
© Reuters, Mykola TysUkraine President Vlodymyr Zelenskiy
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has thanked U.S. President Donald Trump for releasing a $250 million military assistance package that the White House had previously held for review.

The military aid is largely meant to train and equip Ukrainian forces as they fight against Russia-backed separatists in a war that has lasted more than five years, killed more than 13,000 people, and torn apart a large swath of eastern Ukraine.

"I am thankful, I am grateful to him," Zelenskiy said on September 13, a day after the White House dropped its resistance to the aid.

Speaking at the opening of the annual Yalta European Strategy (YES) meeting organized by Ukrainian tycoon Viktor Pinchuk in Kyiv, Zelenskiy said that he felt his relationship with the fellow former TV star-turned-President was "very good" and called the United States an "important strategic partner."

Last week, the White House said it would review the military aid package, apparently over corruption concerns and to ensure that it would be used to further American foreign policy interests.

But the announcement came after efforts by Trump's lawyer, Rudolph Giuliani, to get the new Ukrainian president and government to investigate alleged Ukrainian interference in the 2016 U.S. election and the work of former Vice President and Democratic candidate for president Joe Biden in Ukraine.

Comment: See also: Trump considering military aid suspension to Ukraine

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Stock Up

Finance: LSE rebuffs Hong Kong - China-US tariff ceasefire - Secret cannabis formula


Yahoo!
Fri, 13 Sep 2019 16:55 UTC
Follow the money...
© Pinterest/KJN
London Stock Exchanges Rebuffs Hong Kong

OTCMKTS:LNSTY), which trades over the counter in the US, has rejected the preliminary $37 billion takeover bid from Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (OTCMKTS:HKXCY), and has also said that it has no interest in engaging in talks with its Hong Kong counterpart.
"The Board has fundamental concerns about the key aspects of the Conditional Proposal: strategy, deliverability, form of consideration and value. Accordingly, the Board unanimously rejects the Conditional Proposal and, given its fundamental flaws, sees no merit in further engagement," the LSE said. It could have something to do with not wanting China to ultimately own the London Stock Exchange, which wouldn't have such a nice ring to it, as Hong Kong could be about to be owned by China."
China Eases Up on Tariffs, For Now"

Another break in the stratus clouds of the Chinese-American trade war. Is there a ray of sunlight? China will lift tariffs imposed on US soybeans and pork in what's being called a goodwill gesture before more talks take place in October. This move comes after President Trump suspended the implementation of high tariffs on Chinese goods until the next round of negotiations. Trump may be getting desperate to find a way to get off his tariff high horse given that he is way down in the polls to all Democrats currently running. China's ongoing pork shortage due to swine fever is also causing price problems and consumers can't afford even more taxes on top of that. Chinese companies have in the meantime started purchasing from Argentina, which really needs the money, given that it is bankrupt, again.

Comment: See also: Trump's good will gesture: Tariff hikes on China delayed by two weeks

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Whistle

UN Report: US forces in Syria may have committed war crimes

Andrea Germanos
Common Dreams
Wed, 11 Sep 2019 00:00 UTC
Destruction in Syria
© Global Look Press/Sheikh AliRemnants in Syria
The conflict, now in its ninth year, "continues to torment civilians who bear the brunt of hostilities"

A new report out Wednesday from United Nations investigators says that U.S. forces may have committed war crimes in Syria.

Released by the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic, the report catalogs how the eight-year conflict "continues to torment civilians who bear the brunt of hostilities," as operations carried out by the U.S.-led international coalition, militants, and Russia-backed pro-government forces have left essential infrastructure obliterated, civilians killed, maimed, and uprooted, and communities in "near complete destruction."

The powers providing support for the warring parties, the report says, "bear a shared responsibility for the crimes committed against millions of Syrian women, men, and children." The commission's findings are based on investigations conducted from January to July this year, including satellite imagery, interviews, and medical records.
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Magnify

US declassifies key name in Saudi-9/11 lawsuit, but WILL NOT release it publicly


RT
Fri, 13 Sep 2019 17:42 UTC
ground zero
© Pixabay / 12019
The US Justice Department has agreed to declassify the name of a Saudi official who allegedly helped mastermind the 9/11 terrorist attacks, but refuses to release it to the public or reveal any other information sought by victims.

The Trump administration has finally opted to declassify the name of an individual - believed to be a Saudi official - who allegedly directed two men with links to the Saudi government in assisting the September 11, 2001 hijackers, announcing on Thursday they'd release the name to the families after a lengthy court battle.

The name won't be available publicly, however, and the administration refuses to declassify any of the other documents the families are seeking, citing the "exceptional nature of the case."

Terry Strada, chair of 9/11 Families and Survivors United for Justice Against Terrorism, called it "a good result," while the FBI pointed out that the name was "the primary piece of information that the plaintiffs in the 9/11 litigation have been seeking." However, the 9/11 victims resented having to jump through legal hoops in return for crumbs.
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Light Sabers

'Loser' v 'warmongering chickenhawk': 2 Republican lawmakers in epic Twitter beef


RT
Fri, 13 Sep 2019 17:29 UTC
rand paul and liz cheney
© REUTERS/Erin Scott; REUTERS/Mark MakelaSenator Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) and Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyoming)
A disagreement on 9/11 over John Bolton and US withdrawal from Afghanistan descended into a full-on Twitter war between Rep. Liz Cheney and Senator Rand Paul, in a sequel to the beef between their fathers over invading Iraq.

It all started when Paul (R-Kentucky) backed two state legislators who blasted Cheney (R-Wyoming) for demanding a more aggressive foreign policy. "Why do some neocons continue to advocate for endless wars?" he quipped. "Let's focus on America First, not Afghanistan!"

Cheney snapped back that she stands with Trump and US troops in not surrendering to terrorists, "unlike [Paul], who seems to have forgotten that today is 9/11."
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