Puppet MastersS


Attention

Iran to block the Strait of Hormuz in response to US attempts to stop oil exports


RT
Thu, 05 Jul 2018 15:05 UTC
Esmail Kowsari Rev. Guards
© Fox CarolinaDeputy Commander Esmail Kowsari, Revolutionary Guards
Tehran will close the Strait of Hormuz, effectively blocking all the oil shipments from the Persian Gulf if Washington succeeds in its attempts to reduce Iranian oil exports, an Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander said.

"Any hostile attempt by the US [to impede Iran's oil trade] will be followed by an exorbitant cost for them," Esmail Kowsari, a deputy commander of the Revolutionary Guards' Sarollah base in Tehran told the Iranian Young Journalists Club, which is linked to the national broadcaster controlled by the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

"If Iran's oil exports are [stopped], we will not give permission for oil to be exported to the world through the Strait of Hormuz," Kowsari said, as cited by Bloomberg.

The US and Iran have been trading veiled threats for quite some time now. On Wednesday, the Iranian President Hassan Rouhani also warned Washington against intervening into Iran's oil trade and threatened the US with "consequences," even though he did not name any specific measures. Some international media then promptly attributed the remark to a possible closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Comment: See also:

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Snakes in Suits

Ex-Dem IT aide Imran Awan pled guilty to bank fraud in a plea deal with prosecutors

Alex Pappas
Fox News
Tue, 03 Jul 2018 00:00 UTC
Imran Awan
© UnknownImran Awan
Imran Awan, the former IT aide to congressional Democrats whose federal court case has drawn the interest of President Trump and other Republicans, pleaded guilty Tuesday to federal bank fraud in a plea deal where prosecutors said they "uncovered no evidence" that Awan "violated federal law with respect to the House computer systems."

During a hearing before U.S. District Judge Tanya S. Chutkan in Washington, Awan pleaded guilty to making a false statement on a loan application. As part of the deal, the prosecution dropped fraud charges against Awan's wife, Hina Alvi.

The case has generated interest from Republicans on Capitol Hill, who have suggested Awan could have been involved in a cyber breach operation. But prosecutors said Tuesday they investigated allegations of misconduct by Awan while on the job in Congress and determined federal charges were not warranted.
"Particularly, the government has found no evidence that your client illegally removed House data from the House network or from House members' offices, stole the House Democratic Caucus server, stole or destroyed House information technology equipment, or improperly accessed or transferred government information, including classified or sensitive information," the prosecution said in the plea deal.
Prosecutors said the government conducted a "thorough investigation of those allegations."

Comment: Federal bank fraud...and what else? Seems fairly unlikely his 'contributions' end with 'false information about a property'. See also:

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Snakes in Suits

Russian envoy to the US: 'US officials wouldn't shake my hand for fear of being fired'


RT
Wed, 04 Jul 2018 06:36 UTC
Anatoly Antonov
© AVA 360Russian Ambassador to US, Anatoly Antonov
Russian envoy to the US Anatoly Antonov expressed hope that the US and Russian leaders will establish good chemistry at their upcoming summit, adding that when the two great powers are "in the same boat, the world can sleep well."

With less than two weeks to go until the summit between US President Donald Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in Helsinki, Antonov told RT that he does not expect a miracle, but hopes the highly anticipated meeting will give much-needed impetus to bilateral relations, which are currently on the rocks.
"This meeting will help to establish the so-called chemistry between them, and I hope that this chemistry will help to solve outstanding issues between the US and Russia," Antonov said, noting that "it goes without saying that there will be progress regarding bilateral relations as well as regional and world problems."

Comment: Sad commentary on US non-diplomacy and discourtesy to those entrusted with the state of the world - whatever their affiliation, cause, part to play and contribution.

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Briefcase

Sovereignty? EU sues Poland over judiciary reforms

Frank Sellers
The Duran
Tue, 03 Jul 2018 00:00 UTC
President Poland
© PAP/Maciej KulczyńskiPresident of Poland Andrzej Duda
So much for sovereignty. Poland's government is due to implement a controversial law which would de facto force some of its supreme court justices into early retirement, opening up the way to stack the judiciary deck in the government's favour. The EU, on the other hand, sees the move as an assault on the rule of law, and is therefore opening up a lawsuit against Poland, and threatening sanctions, over the matter. Sanctions, however, would require unanimity, which is unlikely to appear, meaning that they aren't likely to see the light of day. The justices are also fighting the 'reform' measures by declaring the law to be unconstitutional and thus refusing to step down.

Comment: Is the EU justified in dictating Poland's internal processes?

When did an economic union become a political one?

If it is a political one, and they are not subject to electoral oversight, who do the Eurocrats answer to?

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Rocket

US to send next generation nukes to Turkey and other NATO countries in Europe


PressTV
Thu, 05 Jul 2018 19:46 UTC
A B61-12 nuclear bomb placed on a US Air Force fighter jet
© File photoA B61-12 nuclear bomb placed on a US Air Force fighter jet
The United States is preparing to send an unknown number of its next generation nuclear weapons to military bases across Turkey and other NATO countries in Europe, according to a new report.

The report by Russian media comes weeks after the US Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration (DOE/NNSA) and the US. Air Force carried out non-nuclear system qualification flight tests of the B61-12 gravity bomb at Tonopah Test Range in Nevada.


Comment: US Department of Energy: US Air Force test-drops upgraded nuke from B-2 stealth bomber over Nevada


The tests on June 9, which were reported to be the first of their kind, sought to extend the decades-old B61 bomb's service life by making it compatible with next generation aircraft, including B-2A Spirit bomber as well as the F-35 stealth jet.

Comment: US President Donald Trump and the leaders of NATO member states will talk during the alliance's upcoming summit in Brussels about ways to deter Russia's malign activities, US Permanent Representative to NATO Ambassador Kay Bailey Hutchison told reporters on Thursday.
"Our major area of deterrence will be Russia and the malign activities of Russia, the efforts of Russia to divide our democratic nations," Hutchinson said.


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Bad Guys

Fmr US ambassador to Russia: There is nothing Russia can offer that US needs


RT
Thu, 05 Jul 2018 17:50 UTC
putin
© Sergey Guneev / Sputnik
Michael McFaul, the former US ambassador to Russia, says there is nothing Russia can offer that the US needs. But who else would be playing a scapegoat for every bad thing happening in America?

Admittedly, McFaul's not-so-diplomatic statement didn't come out of the blue. He was responding to the words of a Russian journalist, a retired colonel and military expert with hardline attitudes. If the US now seeks closer dialogue with Russia, this means it needs something from Russia, so we should not be trying to appease the Americans and be tough during talks, Igor Korotchenko argued.

Sure, there is nothing the US gets from Russia that is not replaceable. Even those Russian ferry runs to the ISS are not vital for America's survival and will soon cease to be without an alternative. Aluminum can be bought elsewhere. And if US tech firms can no longer draw on Russia's pool of talents, their headhunters will still have India, Ukraine and the rest of the world.
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Network

Trump and Putin will meet one-on-one in Helsinki to discuss arms control and strategic stability


RT
Thu, 05 Jul 2018 17:06 UTC
trump putin
© Jorge Silva / Reuters
Arms control and strategic stability will be among the issues discussed by US President, Donald Trump, and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, during their much anticipated meeting on July 16, the US official said.

The extension of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) for another five years may be on the agenda during the talks in Finland's capital, Helsinki, a senior US administration official said, according to Reuters.

The START envisages the reduction of the number of the US and Russian strategic nuclear missile launchers by half.

The two leaders are likely to discuss arms control and strategic stability, including what Washington considers violations of the INF treaty by Moscow, he added.
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Arrow Down

Trump's trade war sparks boycott of US goods in Canada

Frank Sellers
The Duran
Mon, 02 Jul 2018 16:46 UTC
corporation US flag corporatacracy
It's a rather silly claim that importing raw materials from Canada presents a threat to American security

US President Donald Trump levied metals tariffs affecting steel and aluminum imports of 25% and 10% respectively on the pretext of national security. Objectively speaking, it's a rather silly move to claim that importing raw materials from Canada presents a threat to America's national security, with Canada being a long time ally and major trade partner.

On top of that, he chose to take a swipe at the country's Prime Minister following the G7 summit, which Trump honored with an abbreviated attendance followed by a withdrawal of his backing of the summit's statement on matters of trade and climate among others. In the wake of these actions, Canada responded with tit-for-tat countermeasures amounting to some $13 billion, and now Canadians themselves are weighing in by withholding their funds from the purchase of American goods and from tourism in America.

Comment:

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Snakes in Suits

Delusional Poroshenko raises ire by declaring Ukrainian flag will fly again in Crimea

Matfey Shaheen
Russiafeed
Mon, 02 Jul 2018 16:32 UTC
poroshenko
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, out of touch with reality - as usual - has declared that the Ukrainian flag will fly high again in Crimea; Crimean leaders reply. Earlier, Crimean leaders have already addressed the dangers of Ukrainians talking about forcefully returning Crimeans to Ukraine, against the will to remain in Russia, as I covered in this article.

The chairwoman of the Legislative Assembly of the city of Sevastopol, Yekaterina Altabayeva, commented on Petro Poroshenko's words that the Ukrainian flag will be raised again in the city.

She said in a (Russian) statement:
"Sometimes it's just sad, when it a head of state does not know how to assess the situation and the opportunities that exist," Altabaeva said in an interview with RT. She stressed that even when Sevastopol was part of Ukraine, it remained a Russian city.
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Eye 2

Remember when Killary took John Bolton's favorite Middle East terror cult off the terrorist list?

Caitlin Johnstone
caitlinjohnstone.com
Thu, 05 Jul 2018 15:57 UTC
hillary clinton evil
I just wanted to give everyone a quick reminder of the fact that the MEK, an Iranian cult of highly suspicious funding which is beloved by Trump insiders like John Bolton and Rudolph Giuliani for its extremely vocal pro-regime change agenda, was removed from the US State Department's list of designated terrorist organizations by none other than Hillary Rodham Clinton.

I point this out because I've been butting heads with the pro-Trump faction of my readership quite a bit lately about this administration's dangerous escalations against Iran, including starvation sanctions explicitly geared toward provoking unrest following America's withdrawal from the Iran deal, as well as escalated CIA covert ops. There is no legitimate reason to believe that this administration can simultaneously (A) deliberately stir up chaos in Iran while also (B) maintaining so much control of the situation that it can keep things from getting out of hand, while also (C) making sure control of the situation remains in the hands of the Iranian people, as many faithful Trump supporters have confidently assured me. These are nonsensical, intrinsically contradictory beliefs, and I figure my best shot at getting people's skepticism up to a sane level is to throw a monkey wrench in their partisan loyalties by pointing out that Hillary Clinton helped advance the same agendas.

Comment: MEK is being groomed to be the new mujahideen in Iran. We all know how well that gambit went the last time.

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