Puppet MastersS


Cross

Ukraine: Orthodox hierarchs refuse to take part in Poroshenko's 'unification council'


RT
Sat, 15 Dec 2018 05:53 UTC
Poroshenko/Clergy
© Sputnik/Mikhail PalinchakPoroshenko and Ukrainian clergy
Hierarchs of the canonical Ukrainian Orthodox Church have refused en masse to take part in the so-called 'unification council' championed by the country's president, sending "invitations" to the event back without reply.

The unification council kicks off on Saturday in Kiev. The event, announced by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko himself in early December, is supposed to "bring together" members of various Orthodox Churches of the country to create a new, "independent" church.

While the event has been pompously hailed by the country's senior officials, things look rather bleak since the only canonical religious organization - the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of Moscow Patriarchate - refused to take part. The head of the Church, Kiev Metropolitan Bishop Onufriy, returned his "invitation" (effectively an ultimatum) back to the sender.

The mailbox of the man who sent the invitations - the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew I - has apparently been full of late, since 56 hierarchs have already followed suit, the Church said on Thursday. Apart from them, the Church's bishops refused to take the invitations in the first place.

While Ukraine boasts two other self-styled Orthodox 'churches', one of which even has its own self-proclaimed 'patriarch', any sort of unification council with the majority of schismatics in attendance would effectively be void, experts have repeatedly warned.

Comment: The soulless government wants to aggregate all independent institutions under its control, or at the very least alienate Russia and congregations with some religious ties to people who happen to be Russian. That assures a domination of message and information, further cutting off mankind from its spiritual legacy, to service the state. See also: The meeting went ahead as planned:
"It happened," Poroshenko told a crowd awaiting the council's decision in central Kyiv on December 15. "This day will go down in history as the sacred day of the creation of the autocephalous local Orthodox Church of Ukraine. The day we finally receive our independence from Russia."


That's rich, coming from someone as unspiritual as Poroshenko.


Metropolitan Epifaniy was elected by the council to head the new church.

The meeting in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, was a crucial step in years of efforts to create a church in Ukraine that is independent of Moscow.

Several thousand people rallied outside the ancient St. Sophia's Cathedral in Kyiv where the meeting had taken place behind closed doors.


For or against?


Poroshenko has made an independent church a campaign pledge as part of his campaign for reelection in 2019.


Which he has no chance of winning legitimately.


"Let's stand and pray for a Ukrainian church to be created today," Poroshenko said as he greeted several of the rally's participants before going into the cathedral.

"The creation of our Church is another declaration of Ukraine's independence and you are the main participants of this historic event," he added.

Meanwhile, Poroshenko's press secretary, Svyatoslav Tsegolko, posted on Facebook a photo from inside the cathedral where the priests are meeting.

The Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate said on December 13 that Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, the "first among equals" in the global Eastern Orthodox faith, will hand over a "tomos" -- a decree granting autocephaly, or independence -- to the future head of the local Orthodox Church in Ukraine on January 6.


Read More...
Bomb

Iranian ex-diplomat tells Sputnik Iranian weapons could have been sent to Yemen before blockade, but not after


Sputnik
Sat, 15 Dec 2018 17:06 UTC
sanaa yemen
© AP Photo / Hani Mohammed
The UN has claimed that a number of allegedly Iranian-made weapons have been found recently in the territory of Yemen. Speaking to Sputnik, former Iranian diplomat Dr Seyed Hadi Afghahi explained how the supposed missile fragments had found their way to Yemen.

There are two goals the enemies of Iran are currently pursuing in the UN, Dr Seyed Hadi Afghahi, an Iranian political scientist, leading expert on the Middle East, diplomat and a former official of the Iranian Embassy in Lebanon, told Sputnik Persian.

On 11 December, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reported that the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen found two launch units for anti-tank guided missiles allegedly manufactured by Iran in 2016 and 2017.

A UN resolution that came into force in January 2016 prevents the Islamic Republic of Iran from importing and exporting weapons without the Security Council's approval.

"The Secretariat found that they had characteristics of Iranian manufacture and that their markings indicated production dates in 2016 and 2017", Guterres said at the Security Council's meeting. However, he avoided blaming Tehran for an apparent violation of the UN resolution.

Comment: Iran's foreign minister denies the latest allegations:
"We've never provided weapons to Houthis. The Houthis use the weapons provided to them by Saudi Arabia... with Saudi money buying weapons from Russia, buying weapons from China, and buying weapons from North Korea... You are looking at the wrong address if you ask Iran", Zarif said at the Doha Forum in Qatar.

At the same time, Zarif stressed that the Saudi-led coalition's bombing of Yemeni people was an obvious fact that needed no extra evidence.

"I don't need to show any evidence about the jets that are flying in Yemen, bombing the Yemenis. Those are American-made jets, and those are Saudi fighters, I assume... There are facts about US weapons, there are facts about Saudi bombing", he said.

Saudi Arabia is interested in increasing tensions in the region, and the examples of a blockade of Qatar and the military operation in Yemen prove that the minister stressed.

"Unfortunately, Saudi Arabia does not want to reduce tensions. Actually, Saudi Arabia believes that it is in its interest to increase tensions. Look at what they did with Qatar. Look at how they imprisoned the prime minister of another country. Look at what they are doing in Yemen", Zarif said.
...
Zarif also addressed the humanitarian aspect of the situation in Iran, stressing that Tehran decisively opposes human rights abuses.

"Obviously, everybody's record of human right can be improved... Of course, our human rights record can be improved, of course we have excesses, obviously, every country has excesses", the diplomat said.

The Iranian foreign minister stressed that Iranian citizens were on whom the state relied for the country's defence, prosperity, economic development and scientific achievements.

"We build our own weapons, these are the people who are building those weapons... So if it is a moral obligation for someone to observe human rights, for us it is a matter of national security. We make mistakes, people commit excesses, but that does not mean that others are in position to give us lectures about human rights," Zarif stressed.
The fact is, Iran has never been caught actually sending weapons to the Houthis. Yemen is under a full blockade. All we have are accusations from Iran's enemies - not exactly a reliable source in a time of war.

Read More...
Map

Russia ready to participate in construction of Trans-African railway


RT
Sat, 15 Dec 2018 16:15 UTC
South Sudanese children wait at a train station in Khartoum
© Reuters / Mohamed Nureldin AbdallahSouth Sudanese children wait at a train station in Khartoum.
Moscow is ready to take part in the ambitious project of constructing a cross-continental railway line which will connect East and West Africa. That's according to the Russia-Sudan intergovernmental commission.

"The Sudanese side expressed interest in participation of the Russian companies in constructing of the Trans-African railway over Dakar - Port Sudan - Cape Town," said the commission in a document seen by TASS.

It added that "The Russian side confirmed readiness to work out the opportunity for participation... but asked for [the] provision of all the financial and legal characteristics of this project."
Read More...
Info

Moscow urges Pentagon to reconsider its Syria strategy and INF Treaty withdrawal


RT
Sat, 15 Dec 2018 16:03 UTC
The US forces set up a base in Manbij, Syria. May 2018.
© Rodi Said / ReutersThe US forces set up a base in Manbij, Syria. May 2018.
Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu delivered a scathing criticism of the US policy in Syria and offered direct talks over the landmark 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF).

The situation in parts of eastern Syria, controlled by the US-backed and Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), remains "deeply concerning," Shoigu wrote in a letter to Pentagon chief James Mattis earlier this week.

Washington does little to nothing to restore peace and help the devastated region to recover from the long war, while its airstrikes continue to rack up civilian deaths, the defense minister said. He noted that at least 1,500 civilians have been killed in recent months as the SDF was clearing the last remaining pockets of Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) resistance.
Read More...
Briefcase

Mick Mulvaney tapped to replace John Kelly as 'acting' chief of staff for White House

Alex Pappas
Fox News
Sat, 15 Dec 2018 15:17 UTC
Mick Mulvaney
© Chip Somodevilla/GettyMick Mulvaney
President Trump says budget director Mick Mulvaney will replace John Kelly as White House chief of staff on an interim basis; Kevin Corke reports.

President Trump on Friday named White House budget director Mick Mulvaney as his new acting chief of staff, saying the former South Carolina Republican congressman will replace John Kelly as his top aide.

"I am pleased to announce that Mick Mulvaney, Director of the Office of Management & Budget, will be named Acting White House Chief of Staff, replacing General John Kelly, who has served our Country with distinction," Trump tweeted. "Mick has done an outstanding job while in the Administration. I look forward to working with him in this new capacity as we continue to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!"

Comment:

Read More...
Oil Well

What would the end of OPEC mean?

Liubov Georges
Oilprice.com
Thu, 13 Dec 2018 15:39 UTC
doors
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries - the oil market institution that has exerted an unyielding power over the price of crude for nearly 60 years - is now in deep crisis. The latest OPEC meeting in Vienna offered new insights into the cartel's raging civil war that is tearing it apart and threatens to ultimately make the cartel irrelevant.

In a two-year period since the group of 15 major oil producers formed an alliance with Russia, OPEC's smaller members have been marginalized, their voices have been diminished and Saudi Arabia seems to prioritize its partnership with Moscow above all else. An unlikely partnership between Saudi Arabia and Russia is causing dissension within OPEC, with one of the oldest members announcing it would withdraw from the organization in January just days prior to the talks. With Russia tightening its grip over OPEC's decisions and the United States officially reaching net oil exporting status in late November for the first time in decades, even if only briefly, the new world oil order is now dependent on three energy superpowers: Saudi Arabia, Russia and the United States.
Read More...
Snakes in Suits

The real reason Western media and CIA turned against Saudi MBS

Darius Shahtahmasebi
RT
Sat, 15 Dec 2018 15:20 UTC
Mohammed bin Salman (r) and Vladimir Putin
© Global Look Press / Ralf Hirschberger
Forces are aligning against Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince, lead by elements within the CIA and strong players in the mainstream media. But what is really behind this deterioration in relationship, and what are its implications?

Following the brutal murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, western media and various entities, including the CIA, appear to have turned their back on Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman (MBS). In response to the scandal, the Guardian released a video which its celebutante, Owen Jones, captioned "Saudi Arabia is one of the biggest threats on Earth. Time to stop propping up its repulsive regime."

The Guardian was not alone in its condemnation. "It's high time to end Saudi impunity," wrote Hana Al-Khamri in Al-Jazeera. "It's time for Saudi Arabia to tell the truth on Jamal Khashoggi," the Washington Post's Editorial Board argued. Politico called it "the tragedy of Jamal Khashoggi."

Even shadowy think-tanks like the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) and the Atlantic Council released articles criticizing Saudi Arabia in the wake of Khashoggi's death.
Read More...
Black Cat

Ukraine wants nukes! Will the West oblige the crazies in Kiev?

Federico Pieraccini
Strategic Culture Foundation
Thu, 13 Dec 2018 00:00 UTC
nuclear bomb


Efforts to prevent nuclear proliferation are one of the few issues on which the great powers agree, intending to continue to limit the spread of nuclear weapons and to prevent new entrants into the exclusive nuclear club.

The former Ukrainian envoy to NATO, Major General Petro Garashchuk, recently stated in an interview with Obozrevatel TV:
"I'll say it once more. We have the ability to develop and produce our own nuclear weapons, currently available in the world, such as the one that was built in the former USSR and which is now in independent Ukraine, located in the city of Dnipro (former Dnipropetrovsk) that can produce these kinds of intercontinental ballistic missiles. Neither the United States, nor Russia, nor China have produced a missile named Satan ... At the same time, Ukraine does not have to worry about international sanctions when creating these nuclear weapons."
Read More...
Eye 1

Investigating Integrity Initiative: Foreign Office-funded dirty tricks organization, staffed by spies, housed by MI5

Kit Klarenberg
Sputnik
Thu, 13 Dec 2018 14:29 UTC
integrity Initiative headquarters
© SputnikTwo Temple Place, the headquarters of the Institute for Statecraft
It's the afternoon of December 11 and I've just been aggressively turfed from the offices of the Institute for Statecraft, an until recently virtually unheard-of think tank, secreted in the basement of Two Temple Place - a crenellated Gothic-style mansion overlooking the River Thames.

Things started promisingly, as Simon Bracey-Lane - a research fellow at the Institute - welcomed me in the foyer with a warm hello and handshake. His demeanour shifted seismically mere seconds later when I revealed I was a journalist.

"You need to leave right now!" he intoned urgently, eyes wide and face rapidly growing pale, "you haven't arranged to see us! Go! Right now! Please leave immediately! Leave!"

Stopping short of physically expelling me from the building but invading my personal space to such a degree he may as well have done, I made for the exit, Simon shadowing me every step of the way and relentlessly repeating his menacing entreaties to depart until I was safely outside and the office's heavy oak front door slammed firmly shut.

I wasn't overly surprised by his response - despite receiving millions from taxpayers, the Institute plainly doesn't like outsiders and goes to enormous efforts to conceal its true location from public view. Still, the organization may perhaps need to become comfortable with prying eyes in short order - for it's now at the epicenter of a international political scandal of potentially historic proportions.

Comment: Russia isn't meddling the affairs of other countries. That prize goes to the UK, leading the covert Atlanticist charge to remake the world in the globalist's vision, using every underhanded ploy in the book.

Read More...
Biohazard

RIP Obamacare? Texas federal judge strikes down Affordable Care Act as 'unconstitutional'


RT
Sat, 15 Dec 2018 15:07 UTC
Obamacare pamhlet
© Reuters / Lucy Nicholson
A Texas federal judge has struck down the Affordable Care Act, ruling it can not be classed as a tax without a penalty for those who don't buy health insurance. Without that penalty, he wrote, "Obamacare" is unconstitutional.

The ruling is expected to be appealed to the Supreme Court and the law will remain in effect until the appeals process is over. The ACA previously withstood more than 70 unsuccessful repeal attempts.

US District Judge Reed O'Connor sided with a coalition of state governments, led by Texas, that argued removing the "individual mandate" last year - a provision included in Trump's tax bill - invalidated the entire law. The Supreme Court had previously upheld the ACA in 2012 based on its classification as a tax - something within Congress' authority to impose. But without that provision, "the architectural design fails," O'Connor wrote in his decision.
Read More...