Puppet MastersS


Candle

China marks 80th anniversary of Nanjing Massacre with call to work toward peaceful and friendly cooperation with Japan


Reuters
Tue, 12 Dec 2017 00:00 UTC
china nanjing massacre anniversary
© AFPChina on Wednesday marks the 80th anniversary of the Nanjing massacre by Japanese troops, an enduring source of bad blood as present-day rivalry between the two countries keeps a spotlight on historical animosities.
China and Japan have long sparred over their painful history. China consistently reminds its people of the 1937 massacre in which it says Japanese troops killed 300,000 people in what was then its capital.

A postwar Allied tribunal put the death toll in the eastern city of Nanjing at 142,000, but some conservative Japanese politicians and scholars deny a massacre took place at all.

Ties between China and Japan, the world's second- and third-largest economies, have been plagued by a long-running territorial dispute over a cluster of East China Sea islets and suspicion in China about efforts by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to amend Japan's pacifist constitution.

However the two countries have sought to get relations back on track, and Abe and Xi met last month on the sidelines of a regional summit in Vietnam.

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Snakes in Suits

Declassified documents reveal Western leaders lied shamelessly to Gorbachev

Eric Margolis
ericmargolis.com
Mon, 18 Dec 2017 20:20 UTC
George H. W. Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev
George H. W. Bush and Mikhail Gorbachev
At a time when the United States is convulsed by anti-Russian hysteria and demonization of Vladimir Putin, a trove of recently declassified Cold War documents reveals the astounding extent of the lies, duplicity and double-dealing engaged in by the western powers with the collapsing Soviet Union in 1990.

I was covering Moscow in those days and met some of the key players in this sordid drama. Ever since, I've been writing that the Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev, and Foreign Minister, Eduard Shevardnadze, were shamelessly lied to and deceived by the United States, Britain, and their appendage, NATO.

All the western powers promised Gorbachev and Shevardnadze that NATO would not expand eastward by 'one inch' if Moscow would pull the Red Army out of East Germany and allow it to peacefully reunify with West Germany. This was a titanic concession by Gorbachev: it led to a failed coup against him in 1991 by Communist hardliners.

The documents released by George Washington University in Washington DC, which I attended for a semester, make sickening reading (see them online). All western powers and statesmen assured the Russians that NATO would not take advantage of the Soviet retreat and that a new era of amity and cooperation would dawn in post-Cold War Europe. US Secretary of State Jim Baker offered 'ironclad guarantees' there would be no NATO expansion. Lies, all lies.

Comment: See also:

Declassified US documents prove Gorbachev WAS promised 'no eastward NATO expansion'

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Briefcase

Iran expects to seal deal with Russia-led trade bloc soon


PressTV
Wed, 13 Dec 2017 19:02 UTC
Eurasian Economic Union
Russian President Vladimir Putin founded the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) in 2015 as an economic force e to challenge the might of the European Union and the US.
Iran says it expects the formalities over its membership to the Eurasian Economic Union (EEU) - a regional trade bloc led by Russia - would be finalized soon and an agreement with the Union's member states would be signed accordingly.

Iran's media quoted a trade official as saying that the agreement with the EEU would be signed by the presidents of all member countries.

Behrouz Hassanolfat, the director of Europe and Americas Department of Iran's Trade Promotion Organization, was quoted by IRNA news agency as saying that the Islamic Republic expected its membership to the Union to become effective from as early as February 2018.

The EEU is an economic union of former Soviet states including Kazakhstan, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan and Armenia and Russia which leads it. The Union is meant to guarantee free transit of goods, services, capital and workers among member states.
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Bullseye

Venezuela awards 2 offshore gas field licenses to Russia's energy giant Rosneft


RT
Mon, 18 Dec 2017 23:10 UTC
Offshore gas
© Jorge Silva / Reuters
Russian energy giant Rosneft has been awarded licenses to two offshore gas fields in Venezuela. The deal was signed as Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin met with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas on Saturday.

According to the agreement a Rosneft subsidiary, Grupo Rosneft, will become the operator of Patao and Mejillones offshore gas fields in the Caribbean Sea.

For the next 30 years, the Russian company will have the right to sell all gas produced at the fields for exports, including in the form of LNG (liquefied natural gas).

Rosneft is now to prepare proof-of-concept and base projects, which would require approval from the Venezuelan authorities for production to begin.

Comment:
Last year, Syria offered Russia the rights to explore and develop land and offshore oil and gas deposits. In particular, Russia was invited to upgrade the Baniyas refinery and construct a refinery with Iran and Venezuela.
See also: Russia will use Syrian seaports to export grain to the Middle East - official

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Blackbox

Roy Moore sets up "election integrity fund" to prove claims of Alabama voter fraud


RT
Mon, 18 Dec 2017 19:17 UTC
roy moore
© Reuters
Republican candidate Roy Moore is refusing to concede defeat following his loss to Democrat rival Doug Jones in the race for the vacant Senate seat in Alabama.

Moore has reportedly set up an 'election integrity fund' to investigate if voter fraud contributed to his loss.

The former state supreme court judge has refused to recognize the defeat which came by a margin of just over 20,000 votes, less than two percent of the overall total. Despite his campaign being rocked by multiple allegations of sexual misconduct, Moore had been favorite to gain the seat held by the Republicans for 25 years.

Comment: See: Roy Moore defeated by Democrat Doug Jones for Alabama Senate. It appears the smear campaign against Moore won out over voters (assuming no tampering; not necessarily a safe assumption, mind you). It probably didn't help that the press jumped on Moore in the 11th hour for "praising Putin," a total exaggeration of his statement. It's a real testament to how effective a media smear campaign can be, to turn a traditionally red state blue. At this point in American history, vote tampering is just part of the electoral process. Even if it occurs, there is no official acknowledgment, and no consequences. The winner "wins", "fair" and square. A lot will have to chance before that changes.

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Stormtrooper

SOTT Focus: Is Mexico Heading Towards a Military Dictatorship?

Marina Romero & Andrés Perezalonso
Sott.net
Mon, 18 Dec 2017 20:22 UTC
Mexico protest Internal Security Law
© AFPA masked demonstrator in Mexico City participates in a protest against the approval of Mexico’s Internal Security Law, which empowers the army with police powers.
It is not without good reason that modern political systems separate the armed forces from the three branches of the state: the executive, legislature and judiciary. Under this model, the executive is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces; only the legislature can declare war; and police duties are overseen by the judiciary. This system of checks and balances enables the branches of government to regulate each other. Notice that military power is always subordinated to the executive and legislature, and is independent from the judiciary. One could say that the military - a professional organism designed to kill and destroy - is a necessary evil given the potential external threats to a state. It is a beast that must remain domesticated, to be unleashed only in extraordinary situations, and never against its own people. And woe unto those who break these rules!

On Friday 15 December both Mexico's Senate and the Chamber of Deputies approved the Internal Security Law, thanks to the majority held by the party in power, the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), and the support of some legislators from other parties. The law breaks with the principles of the modern state and sets Mexico on a course for tragedy because it grants police powers to the army.
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Cross

The socio-religious ideology behind Poland's Three Seas Initiative: "Make Europe Christian again"

Andrew Korybko
Oriental Review
Sat, 16 Dec 2017 18:57 UTC
Mateusz Morawiecki
Mateusz Morawiecki
Poland's new Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki shared his dream to make Europe Christian again.

The newly appointed premier replaced Beata Szydlo and symbolizes that Poland is taking a more combative posture towards the West than in the past. While Prime Ministers undoubtedly have a very important domestic role to play too, it's important not to overlook the international implications of Morawiecki's appointment, especially given what he shared in his very first interview after the announcement when he said that "My dream is to re-Christianize the EU since unfortunately, in many places, people no longer sing Christmas carols, the churches are empty and are turning into museums, and this is very sad." In responding to the interviewer's comment about how the EU might cut off funding for Poland, Morawiecki proudly said that "I do remember one former president telling us earlier this year 'you have values, we have funds.' Well, I would love to help the West with proper values."

Comment: The EU is splitting, and it's no one's fault but their own. For Poland's part, their efforts to counter the Western EU are probably a step in the right direction. But as long as they maintain their anti-Russian stance, they'll only be shooting themselves in the foot.
Three-Seas Initiative: Chronically deluded Poland's attempt to dominate Europe from Baltic to Adriatic - by cutting off nose to spite their face

For their side Poland has dreams of using the Three Seas Initiative to make Poland into a new gas hub for the EU by importing US Liquified Natural Gas (LNG).

To ship gas by LNG tanker is a costly process. It requires construction of special LNG terminals at both port of origin and of destination. The gas must first by transformed into a cold liquid state at about −260 °F, and loaded on the specially-made tankers. At destination a similar special LNG terminal is required where the gas can be again changed from liquid to gas state for ultimate consumption. All this is quite costly compared with pipeline gas routes.

By contrast, Russia today delivers most of its gas via pipeline to the EU market. The cost of Russian gas as a result of this and other factors is significantly lower. For Poland this seems not to matter. They dream of replacing Ukraine as the gas transit to the EU with gas from Norway and LNG gas from the USA and perhaps gas from Qatar if Washington does not manage to disrupt that via Saudi sanctions.


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SOTT Logo S

SOTT Exclusive: Western diplomats condemn Ukrainian protesters for Maidan-style 'damage of public buildings'


Sott.net
Mon, 18 Dec 2017 18:28 UTC
maidan
© MAXIM DONDYUKThe Maidan "revolution", 2014
Today in Kiev, pro-Saakashvili protesters calling for the removal of President Poroshenko tried to break inside the October Palace amid their ongoing protests against the current regime. Western diplomats rebuked their efforts.

Said Canadian Ambassador Roman Waschuk:


Said British Ambassador Judith Gough:

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Bad Guys

US vetoes UN resolution on withdrawing Trump's Jerusalem decision - All other members voted in favor of the document


RT
Mon, 18 Dec 2017 19:29 UTC
United Nations Security Council
© Brendan McDermid / ReutersThe United Nations Security Council meets on the situation in the Middle East, including Palestine, at U.N. Headquarters in New York City, New York, U.S., December 18, 2017 Brendan McDermid / Reuters
The US has vetoed the UN Security Council (UNSC) resolution on Jerusalem, which had demanded the American decision recognizing the city as the Israeli capital be withdrawn. All other UNSC members voted in favor of the document.

The US exercised its veto right to "defend its sovereignty" as well as its role in the Middle East, Washington's envoy to the UN, Nikki Haley, said. She also repeatedly stated that US President Donald Trump's decision to officially recognize Jerusalem as the Israeli capital is "fully consistent" and "in line with the previous UN resolutions."

Comment: The UN Security Council is expected to vote Monday on a resolution confirming the international status of Jerusalem and outlawing any changes to it - which implies the recent US move to recognize it as the capital of Israel.
The text of the document, drafted by Egypt, which was seen by Reuters, says that "any decisions and actions which purport to have altered the character, status or demographic composition of the Holy City of Jerusalem have no legal effect, are null and void and must be rescinded in compliance with relevant resolutions of the Security Council."

It does not specifically mention the US or its recent decision to officially recognize Jerusalem as the Israeli capital, but it implies a call on Washington to withdraw it. The text also mentions "deep regret at recent decisions concerning the status of Jerusalem."
See also: UNSC weighs resolution nullifying Jerusalem capital decision

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Light Saber

Assad vows to root out all terrorism in Syria: Including those backed by the West


RT
Mon, 18 Dec 2017 17:45 UTC
Syrian President Bashar Assad
© Global Look PressSyrian President Bashar Assad
The war in Syria won't be over until every last terrorist is defeated, including those backed by the West, Syrian President Bashar Assad has said, accusing some Western countries of having hands "covered in Syrian blood." Speaking to reporters after his meeting with Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin in Damascus, Assad told journalists that focusing on Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) alone distracts from the other extremists in Syria supported by the West such as Al-Nusra Front, also known as Jabhat al-Nusra, an affiliate of Al-Qaeda.

"Terrorism is not limited to Daesh [derogatory name for IS]. Daesh is just a part of terrorism. And while there are terrorist organizations like Daesh, Al-Nusra and organizations with other names, this means that we are still at war. So the war on terrorism in Syria will be completed when the last terrorist in Syria is eliminated without reference to their name. Then you can really talk about a victory," the Syrian leader explained.

Comment: Two years ago Assad said: "It's Europe that exports terrorists, not the other way round - terrorists come to Syria from Europe and when they return home they carry out terrorist attacks."
See also:

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