Puppet MastersS


Telephone

Saudi Arabia ceases all dialogue with Doha after talks with the Emir of Qatar and President Trump


RT
Sat, 09 Sep 2017 10:14 UTC
AlThani/Salman/Trump
© The Financial Express/Sputnik/express.co.ukSheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani • Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman • USA President Donald Trump
Riyadh is suspending all communication with Doha after Qatari media allegedly misreported the contents of the first phone talks on the crisis between the two Arab states, Saudi state media said. It comes after Donald Trump called on Gulf countries to unite against Iran.

On Friday, the Emir of Qatar contacted Saudi Arabia's defense minister Mohammed bin Salman - recently elevated to the rank of crown prince - by phone to discuss the list of demands issued to Doha by the four Arab countries, led by the Saudis. Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the UAE insist Qatar comply with the ultimatum if it wants an end to the ongoing economic and travel blockade.

Initial reports said Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani expressed his willingness to enter into negotiations with the quartet. However, Saudi state news agency SPA soon broke the news that Riyadh was suspending all dialogue and communication with Doha and accused the Qatar News Agency (QNA) of "distorting facts" while reporting on the phone conversation.

"The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia announces the suspension of any dialogue or communication with the authority in Qatar until a clear statement is issued clarifying its position in public," the SPA reported.

QNA said the Saudi crown prince allegedly proposed to "assign two envoys to resolve the dispute in a way that respects the sovereignty of states," while both leaders "stressed the need to resolve this crisis... to ensure the unity and stability" of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Al Jazeera reported. The agency added that the call was coordinated with US President Donald Trump.
Read More...
Snakes in Suits

Illinois: Governorial candidate drops running mate for BDS support


RT
Fri, 08 Sep 2017 23:27 UTC
candidate Biss
© Biss for Illinois / YouTubeCandidate Daniel Biss
Illinois governor candidate Daniel Biss has dropped Carlos Ramirez-Rosa as his running mate following Rosa's alleged support of a Palestinian group calling to boycott Israel. Rosa's support for the Palestinian-led 'Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions' (BDS) movement was the reason he was dropped from the ticket, Biss said in a statement.

BDS calls for companies to stop doing business with Israel over its occupation of Palestinian territories.

The Democratic state senator wrote that Rosa told him he opposed the group prior to being chosen. Rosa's position on the issue then changed, Biss claimed.

"I strongly support a two-state solution. I support Israel's right to exist, and I support Israel as the homeland of the Jewish people. I also care deeply about justice for Palestinians, and believe that a vision for the Middle East must include political and economic freedom for Palestinians," Biss wrote, adding "That's why I oppose the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement, or BDS, as I believe it moves us further away from a peaceful solution."

In a Facebook post, Rosa wrote that while he and Biss "both oppose pursuing BDS at the state level, the difference of opinion we have on the role the BDS movement plays at the federal level would make it impossible to continue moving forward as a ticket." Rosa did not immediately respond to RT's request for comment.

Comment: Israel has managed to dodge the two-state solution for almost seven decades. It is delusional to think they will alter their course without some sort of unified global counter pressure.

Read More...
Compass

US Navy officers testify on warship collisions: 'We allowed standards to drop'


RT
Sat, 09 Sep 2017 11:41 UTC
The U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald
© U.S. Navy / ReutersThe U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald.
The US Navy has compromised its standards in order to meet high operational demands, a top admiral acknowledged at a Congressional hearing on a series of recent collisions involving US warships in the Asia-Pacific.

Admiral William F. Moran, the vice chief of naval operations, conceded that the Navy had accepted higher risks with uncertified ships and crews, but said it was done to meet increasing operational demands.

Navy commanders have approved numerous waivers to expiring certifications of standards, such as seamanship, Moran told the Seapower and Projection Forces Subcommittee of the House Armed Services Committee on Thursday.

"We have allowed standards to drop as the number of certifications has grown," Moran said. The Navy is under great strain, the admiral noted, deploying about 100 ships around the world each day.
Read More...
Map

Lithuania proposes 'military Schengen project' for easier movement of troops in Europe


RT
Sat, 09 Sep 2017 11:22 UTC
German armored infantry fighting vehicles Marder in Lithuania
© Ints Kalnins / ReutersGerman armored infantry fighting vehicles Marder in Lithuania.
Lithuania's defense ministry has called on EU states to join its "military Schengen project," which it says would "facilitate the movement of troops" in the region. The proposal coincides with NATO's accusations that Russia and Belarus are moving forces between territories of allied states for its military drills.

At the latest EU defense ministers' meeting in Tallinn, Raimundas Karoblis announced "practical ways" to increase military cooperation between the EU states, Lithuania's defense ministry reported Friday.

Among the proposals put forward by Vilnius is the development of a so-called "military Schengen project that would facilitate the movement of troops in Europe." The Benelux countries - Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg, as well as Finland and Estonia support the plan that includes "simplifying procedures and investing in infrastructure," according to the minister.

"Lithuania supports enhanced EU defense cooperation, and permanent structured defense cooperation must contribute to the increase in defense spending in the EU and the creation of real defense capabilities in Europe," Karoblis said, adding that implementing Lithuania's project "is important both in the EU and NATO."

Earlier the European Commission proposed the establishment of a European Defense Fund, planning to allocate 500 million euro ($601 million) for defense by 2020.
Read More...
No Entry

'In the national interest': Trump extends Cuba embargo for one year


RT
Sat, 09 Sep 2017 11:13 UTC
Cuban resident
© Alexandre Meneghini / Reuters
President Donald Trump has announced the extension of the trade embargo against Cuba for another year after rolling back much of the previous administration's policies that reopened American investment and travel policy.

The White House issued the presidential memorandum Friday, extending the ban under the Trading with the Enemy Act on Cuba until September 14, 2018.

The memo states the embargo against the former Cold War enemy, which prevents American companies from importing goods from Cuba or exporting goods to the island nation, has been extended "in the national interest of the United States."

Comment: Looks like it's in the "national interest" to keep Cuba impoverished.

Read More...
Hiliter

Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland: Ukraine and the Toronto Globe & Mail exposé - Soros is a "close friend"

John Helmer
Dances with Bears
Mon, 04 Sep 2017 00:00 UTC
CHRYSTIA FREELAND AND GEORGE SOROS
© Unknown
A Toronto newspaper has revealed that Canada's leading Russia hater, Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland, had a deal with George Soros (lead image) to write his biography after she had lost her journalist jobs at the Financial Times and Reuters, and before she started her run for election to the Canadian parliament.

On August 16 the Toronto Globe and Mail reported Soros is a "close friend" of Freeland, and that with her he has "very great hopes for Canada". Before she decided to run for parliament, the newspaper says Freeland had a "deal" for "a sort of authorized biography of George Soros". Soros's spokesman in New York, Laura Silber, refused to answer repeated questions last week for clarification of the terms of this deal or the compensation Soros agreed with Freeland.

Freeland's first filing to the Canadian parliament's ethics watchdog was registered on May 1, 2014. There is no mention of Soros, but there is "income received under a book collaboration agreement with an individual". Freeland refused last week to identify that individual by name.

Comment: Lascaris's "fact-checking" response can be read in this separate John Helmer article related to the Dimitri Lascaris blog:

Chrystia Freeland and George Soros - The Real News Network comments

Read More...
Snakes in Suits

Obama's liberal 'clones' prove all style & no substance

Bryan MacDonald
RT
Fri, 08 Sep 2017 20:54 UTC
Trudeau Macron Varadkar Obama Liberal President
© ReutersCanadian PM Trudeau, French President Emmanuel Macron, Irish PM Varadkar and Former US President Barack Obama
A very noticeable feature of contemporary politics is the tendency for young liberal politicians, often with extraordinary campaigning skills, to enter office on a wave of expectation and then bomb in the job.

From the base of the victory column in Berlin's Tiergarten, looking out toward the Brandenburg Gate, he addressed the excited crowds. Like a suited messiah, the senator from Illinois held the attention of around 200,000 people, promoting a brighter, and more liberal, future for the West.

His name was Barack Obama, and he promised a new political era. One built on kindness, understanding and, most importantly, peace. A few months later, he won the US presidency and wound up dropping 26,171 bombs on seven countries in 2016. All the while overseeing a growing surveillance state, which, incredibly, hacked the phone of Angela Merkel, the German chancellor who had allowed him the podium on that hot day in July 2008.

Comment: Further reading: Confronting Your Liberal Beliefs is the Single Most Important Thing You Can Do at This Time

Read More...
Chess

Turkey now eyeing alliance with 'power bloc' of Pakistan, Russia & China

Zain Khan
The Duran
Fri, 08 Sep 2017 20:54 UTC
Erdogan Chinese President Xi
A power bloc may just be formed from the friendship between Ankara, Islamabad, Russia and China. As celebrations are ongoing for the 70 years of diplomatic ties between Turkey and Pakistan, the long economic relations between Ankara and Islamabad bring China and Russia together to form a formidable four-nation bloc.

The relationship between Pakistan and Turkey has dated back to several centuries and this has been the foundation for bringing the two nations together that could possibly gain from the power bloc, that is, China from Pakistan's side and Russia from Turkey's side,

Comment: Further reading:

Read More...
Snakes in Suits

Killary's new book: Obama assured me I'd be President!

Alex Christoforou
The Duran
Fri, 08 Sep 2017 20:54 UTC
obama hillary
Obama was way off on that prediction.

More excerpts from "Crooked" Hillary Clinton's new book, 'What Happened' are making the rounds on the interwebs.

The latest insider election secret that HRC is revealing details how then US President Barack Obama assured Hillary she had won the US Presidency the night before Trump trounced her in the electoral college...take out the millions of votes Hillary won in California and the popular vote would have also tipped in Trump's favor.
Read More...
Bad Guys

Top GOP senator Graham demands Comey testify again in Clinton email scandal: "I Smell a Rat Here"

Joshua Caplan
Gateway Pundit
Fri, 08 Sep 2017 20:52 UTC
Comey
© Alex Brandon/Associated Press
Former FBI Director James Comey has a lot of explaining to do. After testifying he decided to exonerate Hillary Clinton after her July meeting with the FBI, a recent report suggests the move was decided in the Spring. Senior Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina wants Comey to testify on the Clinton email scandal.

Fox News reports:
Sen. Lindsey Graham told Fox News on Thursday that he wants to bring back James Comey to testify on Capitol Hill, citing concerns about his statements on the conclusion of the Hillary Clinton email case.

"This doesn't add up, and I smell a rat here," Graham, R-S.C., told Fox News.

The Republican senator, who chairs a Senate Judiciary subcommittee, and Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, last week revealed new details they learned about the Clinton case from interview transcripts. According to the senators, the transcripts say Comey began drafting an "exoneration statement" for Clinton weeks before interviewing her - which in turn raised questions about the former FBI director's testimony in June before the Senate Intelligence Committee.

At the time, Comey was asked whether his decision to announce the results of the investigation in July 2016 was influenced by then-Attorney General Loretta Lynch's infamous meeting days earlier on an Arizona tarmac with former President Bill Clinton.

Comment:

Read More...