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US 'disinvites' China from RIMPAC 2018 naval exercises citing 'militarization' of Spratly Islands


RT
Wed, 23 May 2018 19:15 UTC
Chinese Navy
© China Stringer Network/ReutersChinese PLA Navy units on maneuvers
The US has revoked the Chinese navy's invitation to participate in the RIMPAC 2018 naval drills, citing Beijing's militarization of disputed islands in the South China Sea. The two countries vie for influence in the region.

"As an initial response to China's continued militarization of the South China Sea we have disinvited the PLA Navy from the 2018 Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) Exercise," US Department of Defense spokesman Marine Lieutenant-Colonel Christopher Logan said in a statement on Wednesday.

At issue is the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy presence in the Spratly Islands, an archipelago also claimed by the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei.
"We have strong evidence that China has deployed anti-ship missiles, surface-to-air missile (SAM) systems, and electronic jammers to contested features in the Spratly Islands region of the South China Sea," Logan said. "We have called on China to remove the military systems immediately and to reverse course on the militarization of disputed South China Sea features."

Comment: The US is not about 'keeping one's enemies closer.'

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Question

Afghanistan: US' worth questioned; Pentagon watchdog admits lack of progress


RT
Wed, 23 May 2018 11:50 UTC
Military reflection
© Task & PurposeA reflection of the US military
Despite committing additional resources to Afghanistan, US troops and local security forces have made little inroads against the Taliban. Some Afghan lawmakers are questioning whether the country needs US assistance at all.

A report to Congress prepared by the Pentagon's inspector general challenges an earlier assessment of the US military that the latest increase of support to the Afghan national security forces helped turn the corner and gain momentum against the militant movement. Over the first quarter of 2018 the Taliban's threat has not greatly diminished.

"The Taliban continued to hold territory and launched devastating terrorist attacks in Kabul and across the country," Glenn Fine, the deputy Pentagon inspector general, wrote in an introductory note to the report, which was released on Monday.

The Trump administration changed the US Afghanistan policy in August last year, deploying 3,000 additional troops to the country. Yet Kabul is far from achieving the benchmark of controlling areas where at least 80 percent of the Afghan population lives, as set out by Washington. As of the end of January, the figure stood at 65 percent, compared to 64 percent last quarter, the report said. There were few changes in control over territory too, with the Taliban controlling or contesting almost half of Afghanistan.

Comment: See also:

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Attention

Clapper lies (again) about his previous lies on NSA spying

Bre Payton
The Federalist
Tue, 22 May 2018 00:00 UTC
Clapper
© FacebookJames Clapper, expert on NSA surveillance or not
In an interview with the ladies of The View Tuesday afternoon, James Clapper told another lie about his previous lies about the NSA program to spy on American citizens.

Meghan McCain confronted Clapper about a statement he made while testifying before Congress five years ago, when he was asked whether or not the NSA was spying on Americans. "In 2013 when you were asked about it, you said 'no,'" McCain said. "So that is a lie."

"I made a mistake," Clapper said. "I didn't lie. I was thinking about something else, another program." Clapper then proceeded to prattle on about two different surveillance programs in an attempt to obfuscate his answer.
"I've been trotting up the Hill testifying for 25 years," Clapper said. "Gee, just for a change of pace, I think I'll lie on this one question and by the way do it on live television and do it in front of one of my oversight committees. So I made a mistake, but I didn't lie."
Let's revisit the exchange that Clapper referenced.

Comment: Lying is a standard mastery for top jobs in Washington. Clapper isn't particularly good at it - even to defend his use of it.

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Dollars

Russia ready to toss dollar like a smelly sock in favor of Euro for foreign trade


RT
Thu, 24 May 2018 18:09 UTC
Euro dollar
© Dado Ruvic / Reuters
Settlements in US currency could be dropped by Russia in favor of the euro if the EU takes a stand against the latest US sanctions on Moscow, Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum.

"As we see, restrictions imposed by the American partners are of an extraterritorial nature. The possibility of switching from the US dollar to the euro in settlements depends on Europe's stance toward Washington's position," said Siluanov, who is also Russia's first deputy prime minister.
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Rocket

Russia provides exhaustive evidence that Ukrainian BUK systems were used in downing MH17


Sputnik
Thu, 24 May 2018 17:40 UTC
MH17
© Sputnik / Andrey Stenin
Russia has provided exhaustive evidence pointing to the involvement of the Ukrainian BUK system crews in the destruction of the MH17 flight, Russian Defense Ministry said.

"The Russian Defense Ministry, both in the first hours after the tragedy, and in the future, officially denied the insinuations of the Ukrainian side about the alleged involvement of Russian servicemen in the skies of Ukraine and brought the relevant evidence to the Dutch investigation team. Not a single anti-aircraft missile system of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation has ever crossed the Russian-Ukrainian border," the Russian Defense Ministry report said.

Dutch investigators in the case of the Boeing crash did not take into account eyewitness testimonies regarding the launch of a missile from territory controlled by the Ukrainian Armed Forces, the Russian Defense Ministry added.
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Rocket

Russian MoD shows video of sub launching barrage of 4 nuclear ICBMs


RT
Thu, 24 May 2018 19:16 UTC
Launching a missile
© Russian Defense Ministry
The Russian Defense Ministry has released footage of a Borei-class submarine firing a barrage of four Bulava missiles - the first such test for this type of submarine. The test was conducted on Tuesday in the White Sea.

The video published on Wednesday shows some pre-launch activities on board the Yuriy Dolgorukiy, the lead of the project. Then the submarine is shown firing four Bulava missiles at a test range in Kamchatka in quick succession.

Previous tests of the weapon were conducted solo or in barrages of two on two occasions. Firing missiles in a barrage is more challenging for the crew and ship, but reduces the time the submarine stays close to the surface exposed to detection and possible attack.
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Star of David

Israeli Security Cabinet annuls law allowing Netanyahu to declare war 'on his own'


Sputnik
Thu, 24 May 2018 18:55 UTC
Knesset
© CC BY 2.0 / James EmeryKnesset
Israel's government has reportedly moved to alter a law that would allow the prime minister to declare war without the backing of the majority of the cabinet.

The Israeli Security Cabinet has decided to annul a law that was approved by the parliament last month and which effectively grants the country's prime minister and defense minister the authority to declare war without the support of other ministers or legislators, Haaretz reports.

According to the newspaper, the original draft of the law, which is about to be "promoted anew" by the government, allows the cabinet to declare war or authorize any significant military action even if some of the cabinet's members are absent when the decision is being made.

Comment: See also: Israeli parliament allows Netanyahu to declare war with only defense minister's approval

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Document

Pentagon report: Arms industry not sustainable - problems in demography, material sourcing, innovation, lack of manufacturing diversity


RT
Thu, 24 May 2018 16:41 UTC
military industry
© Jeff Martin/StaffProduction lines for military equipment might face challenges in the future, as the industrial base ages out.
Between globalization and nearly 20 years of constant warfare, the industrial part of the US military-industrial complex is not looking so good, putting future wars at risk, according to a new Pentagon report.

The Annual Industrial Capabilities report, published by the Pentagon's Office of Manufacturing and Industrial Base Policy, warns that reliance on foreign-sourced materials combined with "twenty years of intermittent conflict," have put a strain on US manufacturers of weapons, parts and ammunition.

"While US national defense demands for materials are seldom unmet, there exist risks to their supply now and risks are anticipated in the foreseeable future," the report says, describing the two broad trends as the scarcity of materials used in new technologies and the US' growing reliance on foreign supply sources.

Both US economic security and national defense are at risk due to "high US import reliance on foreign countries who may become adversaries and cut off peacetime supply during future conflicts,"the report says.

One example is Dechlorane, a flame retardant used in insulation on all US missile systems. The sole source of the material is the Belgian company Occidental Chemical. Worse yet, the precursor to make Dechlorane used to come from China, but is no longer available, "so there is now no source for Dechlorane in the world."

Comment: And those aren't the only problems:
The greatest challenge that could harm domestic defense capabilities is the demographics of the workforce. Only 39 percent of the current workforce is under the age of 45. And while jobs in the aerospace and defense sectors are seen positively by the majority of young professionals, only 1.5 percent of 25- to 34-year-olds in the U.S. have a science degree.

Taken together, the challenge is obvious to the authors of the report: Aerospace and defense companies are "faced with a shortage of qualified workers to meet current demands as well as needing to integrate a younger workforce with the 'right skills, aptitude, experience, and interest to step into the jobs vacated by senior-level engineers and skilled technicians' as they exit the workforce."
...
According to the Pentagon, the biggest risk for the aerospace sector is its ability to "sustain the design and manufacturing skills and capabilities needed for future aircraft design and manufacture." Specifically, the authors of the report are concerned that "foreign dependency, single or sole sources, and financial viability continue presenting a risk for the aircraft" puts lower-tier suppliers at risk in the defense and aerospace sector.

For the ground vehicle sector, the Pentagon is concerned that a lack of innovation over the last decade has led to stagnation, and hence "any new combat vehicle design will face cost, schedule, and performance challenges." And notably, the authors warn that around the world, combat vehicles are slowly approaching parity with the U.S. at a time that "the lack of new development programs for tracked systems is challenging the U.S. ability to innovate in this subsector."


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Stock Up

"Those people": Michael Bloomberg on why raising taxes for the poor is a good thing


Americans for Tax Reform
Tue, 22 May 2018 16:23 UTC
Michael Bloomberg
© REUTERS/ Stephane MaheMichael Bloomberg
Bloomberg: "The question is do you want to pander to those people?"

Bloomberg: "Taxes or life? Which do you want to do? Take your poison."

Nanny-state-imposing left-wing billionaire Michael Bloomberg is now on video admitting how much he likes to raise taxes on poor people, calling such tax hikes a "good thing." For years, Bloomberg has personally funded and promoted all sorts of regressive taxes and regulations in an attempt to push people around. He uses the coercive power of the government to force people to live their lives as he sees fit.
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Propaganda

Elon Musk sets up 'Pravda' - organization for public to rate credibility of mainstream journalists and publications


RT
Wed, 23 May 2018 16:14 UTC
Tesla CEO Elon Musk bankruptcy joke
© Joe Skipper / Reuters
Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk appears to have declared war on the media, tweeting that he was launching a site that would let the public rate the credibility of journalists, editors and publications - which he will call "Pravda."

Annoyed by the recent media coverage of him and his companies, Musk fired off a series of tweets on Wednesday, culminating with the proposal for the new site. The public would be able to rate the "core truth of any article" and track the "credibility score over time" for each reporter, editor and publication, he said.


Pravda, the word for "truth" in most Slavic languages, was also the name of the official newspaper of the Russian (later Soviet) Communist Party for much of the 20th century.

In a follow-up tweet, Musk explained the reasoning behind creating such a site. Even if the public doesn't care, he said, "the journalists, editors & publications will. It is how they define themselves."

Comment: This has the potential to be amazing. But of course, the public who give bad ratings to many mainstream sources will be denounced by the media as Russian bots. So it goes.

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