Puppet MastersS


Propaganda

Damage control: WaPo says CIA wasn't involved in attack on N. Korea embassy - blames dissident group


RT
Sat, 16 Mar 2019 18:24 UTC
madrid north korea embassy
© REUTERS/Sergio PerezA man walks past the North Korea's embassy in Madrid, Spain February 28, 2019.
The Washington Post has reported, citing anonymous sources, that an obscure dissident group was behind a violent break-in at the North Korean Embassy in Spain, defying reports in local media that the CIA was involved.

A group of 10 unidentified men stormed into the North Korean Embassy in Madrid on February 22, several days before the summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Vietnam. According to reports in Spanish media, the attackers tied up and gagged the staff, placing hoods over their heads. They then seized documents, computers and other electronic devices before dashing away in two diplomatic vehicles they soon abandoned.

While the investigation into the bizarre, brazen, action movie-style attack has been shrouded in secrecy, some shreds of information have been leaked to the Spanish media, with Spanish outlets El Pais and El Confidencial reporting that police now believe that at least two of the attackers were connected to the CIA.

The reports were received with a grain of salt by the mainstream media, reported cautiously by most and outright rejected by some. Yahoo called the allegations "unlikely" while citing former CIA officials. The senior editor at the Diplomat, Akit Panda, came out in the CIA's defense on Twitter.


Comment: Could that possibly be because the mainstream media is infested with people working for the CIA?



Comment: And yet no possibility is raised that the CIA itself is working with, or controlling, this "obscure" North Korean dissident group. The mainstream sources are either idiots, or they take their readership to be idiots.

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Snakes in Suits

Pompeo: 'Change your course!' as ICC war crimes probe threatens 'US rule of law'


RT
Fri, 15 Mar 2019 16:56 UTC
Pompeo
© Reuters/Yuri GripasUS Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
In an effort to threaten everyone into not investigating US or Israeli war crimes in the International Criminal Court, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says anyone involved in such probes will lose their visa and may be sanctioned.

The Washington war hawk said that action had to be taken because any investigation into alleged war crimes and torture committed by the United States would be a threat to US rule of law. Visas will be pulled or denied for anyone who has been involved in or even requested an ICC investigation of "any US personnel."

The ICC is currently mulling over a request to investigate possible war crimes committed by the US in Afghanistan in the course of the nearly 20-year conflict which has left over 100,000 Afghans dead. The international court prosecutor's office says it has "reasonable basis" to believe that "war crimes and crimes against humanity" were, and continue to be, committed by foreign government forces in Afghanistan.


Comment: See also:

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Arrow Up

Poland's 'Fort Trump' closer to a reality: Ready to negotiate an offer US can't refuse

Tyler Durden
Zero Hedge
Fri, 15 Mar 2019 04:15 UTC
Army guys, equipment
© AP
Poland's push to house a major permanent US military base dubbed last year by Polish President Andrzej Duda as "Fort Trump" is a big step closer to becoming a reality this week after top US defense officials met with Polish counterparts in Warsaw to negotiate an offer. US Defense Undersecretary for Policy John Rood led a delegation to the former Soviet satellite country and longtime east European defense ally on Wednesday to discuss the US "robust offer" to establish a permanent facility on Polish soil.

The Poles previously vowed to pay $2 billion for a base that could host a division-sized installment of US forces, which the US has called "very generous" - though likely to fall short of the total cost for such a base. A spokesperson for Rood's office informed the House Armed Services Committee on Wednesday said:
"We have come forward with what we think is a very serious robust offer and we're working out some of the technicalities this very week, when we hope to have a solid foundation to work from having coming out of this meeting."
Though the idea of a permanent US base in Poland has been floated for years, especially after the Russian-Ukraine conflict grew hot, last September's official visit between Presidents Duda and Trump at the White House gave it real momentum.

Comment: See also:

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Bulb

Moscow: Venezuelan blackouts are a 'diversion' orchestrated from overseas


RT
Fri, 15 Mar 2019 13:27 UTC
Venezuelan blackout
© Global Look Press/Juan Carlos HernandezVenezuelan blackout
The Venezuelan energy sector was "targeted from abroad," Russia's Foreign Ministry spokesperson said, claiming the culprits aimed for the grids which work on Western-made equipment.

In order to cause "a diversion," foreign actors hit the nation's key power stations which "had equipment manufactured in Canada," Maria Zakharova explained, adding that the perpetrators were well aware of "all the algorithms and weak spots" of Venezuela's power grid.

The official claimed that attacks on vital infrastructure are often being employed by the West in "hybrid wars."

Venezuela began suffering from nationwide blackouts last week. President Nicolas Maduro labelled the outages "sabotage" orchestrated by the US. He said that several "saboteurs" have been apprehended while trying to tamper with the power grid. He earlier accused Washington of plotting a coup against him, among other alleged subversive activities.


Comment: See also:

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X

US Defense Chief: Charging allies 'cost+50%' for troop presence not in the plan


RFE/RL
Fri, 15 Mar 2019 07:27 UTC
Shanahan
© unknownU.S. acting Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan
U.S. acting Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan has rejected reports that the Pentagon plans to force allies to pay sharply higher costs for the right to host U.S. forces on their territory.

Shanahan on March 14 told the Senate Armed Services Committee that allies did need to pay their fair share of the cost of having U.S. troops in their country, but added that compensation often comes in differing forms -- including providing support for war in places such as Afghanistan.

U.S. news media had reported that President Donald Trump was pushing a "cost-plus-50 percent" formula for countries such as Germany, Japan, Italy, and South Korea, and others to compensate Washington for U.S. troop deployments.

According to the reports, the formula would mean a hosting country would pay the total cost of housing U.S. troops, plus pay a premium of another 50 percent for the privilege of having them on their territory. But Shanahan told the Senate panel the reports were "erroneous. He said:
"We're not going to run a business and we're not going to run a charity. Payment comes in lots of different forms. At the end of the day, people need to carry their fair share. Not everyone can contribute. It is not about 'cost-plus-50 percent.'"
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Arrow Down

US envoy Jeffrey claims Daesh is down to a few hundred fighters in Baghuz, Syria


Sputnik
Fri, 15 Mar 2019 13:17 UTC
SDF Fighters
© AP/Syrian Democratic ForcesSyrian Democratic Forces
The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in February began a final assault to clear out the village of Baghuz, which, as they say, is the last Daesh stronghold in Syria. Recently, they transferred some 280 captured terrorists to Iraqi security agencies.

US Special Representative for Syria James Franklin Jeffrey said that the US is appealing to countries to take back Daesh foreign fighters and their families captured by the US-backed SDF in Syria, to share the burden of prosecution and re-education.

Jeffrey added that the US believes there are 15,000-20,000 Daesh adherents in Syria and Iraq, with many of them in sleeper cells. "We are just about finished with the campaign along the Euphrates to defeat the last territorial holdings of the Caliphate. They're down to a few hundred fighters and less than a square kilometre of land," Jeffrey said.

Recently, the SDF has been carrying out operations against Daesh terrorists in Syria, with support from the US-led coalition.
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Vader

US regime change specialist Abrams forced to admit failure of plot to put Venezuelan presidential pretender Guaido in power


Sputnik
Sat, 16 Mar 2019 17:07 UTC
guaido
© Sputnik/Leo AlverezSelf-proclaimed Venezuela's interim president Juan Guaido
On Thursday, Venezuelan opposition leader and self-proclaimed president Juan Guaido made it plain that "all options" remain on the table to force the country's government of President Nicolas Maduro to resign.

The US sees opposition leader Juan Guaido as Venezuela's acting president but admits that he does not have real power because President Nicolas Maduro did not resign, US Special Representative for Venezuela Elliott Abrams told a news briefing on Friday.

He referred to the developments on 23 January, when Guaido was declared "interim president" by Venezuela's National Assembly, in line with Article 233 of the country's constitution which limits the interim president's authority to 30 days.
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Star of David

Perception tweak: US DoS report drops references to 'occupation' of Palestine, now 'Israeli-controlled'


RT
Wed, 13 Mar 2019 20:56 UTC
Israeli guard
© REUTERS/Mussa Qawasma"Israeli-controlled"
In the latest annual global human rights report, the US has stopped using the term "occupied" when talking about areas of Palestine controlled by Israel, including the Golan Heights, the West Bank and Gaza.

In a report by the State Department intended to detail data regarding human rights around the globe in 2018, the US has decided to alter the words it uses to describe the situation in the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel, opting for what seems to be more neutral language.

This decision comes despite the fact that the word "occupation" is official terminology approved by the United Nations and how the US had formerly described the territories in question.

The administration said that the change in rhetoric does not imply any policy changes, but were otherwise unclear about their reasons for the new phrasing.

The report appears to reflect the sentiments of a meeting between Senator Lindsey Graham, US ambassador to Israel David Friedman and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, where the three discussed plans to work towards US recognition of the Golan Heights as a part of Israel.

"Working with Senator [Ted] Cruz, I will start an effort to recognize the Golan as part of the State of Israel now and forever," Graham said in light of the meeting.

Comment: Israel is a master of message control. It has proven that, over time, small tweaks are an effective method to alter meaning, shift perception and redirect public focus in order to achieve its desired response. The US government, Israel's puppet and arguably its greatest manipulated success, employs this skillful deception on Israel's behalf without question. It doesn't change reality, however; the Golan Heights are Syria, not Israel.

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Snakes in Suits

US special envoy Elliott Abrams: 'Interim president' of Venezuela not violating rules because they were changed for him


RT
Sat, 16 Mar 2019 14:16 UTC
Self-proclaimed 'Interim president' of Venezuela Juan Guaido
© Reuters / Ivan Alvarado
The US-backed 'interim president' of Venezuela Juan Guaido isn't violating the 30-day constitutional limit because the legislature backing him voted to make it not apply, 'explained' the US special envoy Elliott Abrams.

Guaido was declared "interim president" by the National Assembly on January 23, under Article 233 of the Venezuelan constitution, which limits the institution to 30 days. But his term did not expire on February 23, because the National Assembly passed a resolution declaring that the 30-day countdown won't start until "usurper" President Nicolas Maduro steps down, Abrams told reporters at the State Department on Friday.
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Treasure Chest

Korea's economic potential divides US billionaires

Caleb Maupin
New Eastern Outlook
Sat, 16 Mar 2019 13:42 UTC
Korea north corea
© REUTERS/ KCNA
The first historic summit between US President Donald Trump and Chairman Kim Jong Un of North Korea took place in the prosperous Asian city-state of Singapore. The city is also the home of one of the leading voices championing a possible entrepreneurial boom on the Korean Peninsula, legendary investor Jim Rogers.

Jim Rogers is currently the chairman of Rogers Holdings and Beeland Interests Inc. He explained to South Korean TV: "Important opportunities are coming in the Korean peninsula, and North Korea is going to be the most exciting country in the world for the next decade or two." He went on to say: "North Korea today is where China was in 1981. North Korea is a copy. He has been opening up the country just as Deng Xiaoping did."

In an appearance on FOX news, Rogers emphasized the fact that the population of the DPRK is highly educated, making them more highly skilled than other people throughout the developing world. Rogers is associated with Republican and libertarian circles and has admitted that the Austrian School, with its "hands off" approach, is closest to his view of how the state should handle the economy.

Despite his personal libertarian bent, Rogers seems to embrace the highly authoritarian government of his current country of residence. However, an old business partner of his seems to hold the opposite view, not just about Singapore, but about North Korea, Trump, and everything else.
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