Puppet MastersS


Snakes in Suits

NATO changes rules after Turkey's spat with Austria threatens to paralyze alliance


RT
Wed, 24 May 2017 15:10 UTC
Austrian troops as part of the NATO force in Kosovo
© Hazir Reka / ReutersAustrian troops as part of the NATO force in Kosovo.
The 28 NATO member states have reportedly agreed that military cooperation with non-members can be approved on a country-by-country basis after alliance member Turkey put a veto on Austria's participation and froze out 40 other partner states in the process.

Ankara has had a stormy relationship with Vienna which has repeatedly criticized Turkey's human rights record and political reforms. Austria has even argued that stalled talks for Turkey's accession into the EU should officially be abandoned.

In response, Turkey has vetoed cooperation with Austria, which is a NATO partner state, but officially neutral and not a NATO member, despite participating in joint operations as borne out by its current deployment of 400 troops in Kosovo.
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V

Kim Dotcom teases: Promises to disclose Seth Rich testimony, but only to Special Counsel in return for safe passage to US

Tyler Durden
Zerohedge
Tue, 23 May 2017 20:46 UTC
kim dotcom and seth rich
Kim DotCom and the late DNC operative Seth Rich
As promised over the weekend, Kim Dotcom has delivered his official 'statement' on the Seth Rich murder. Unfortunately, it's a bit light on the details and more of a teaser along with a promise to disclose full details of his relationship with Seth Rich to Special Counsel Mueller in return for safe passage to and from the United States.

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Gold Coins

Arizona ends taxation on purchase and exchange of gold and silver coins


RT
Wed, 24 May 2017 15:02 UTC
gold coins
© imagebroker/Stocktake / Global Look Press
The Governor of Arizona Doug Ducey has signed into law a bill which removes all state income tax on precious metals coins. The measure was passed in the Arizona Senate on May 10 by a margin of 16-13.

When people buy gold or silver to protect themselves against the devaluation of America's paper currency, they frequently end up with a "gain" when exchanging the metal back into dollars.

However, this is not necessarily a real gain, regarding purchasing power. This "gain" is often nominal because of the slow but steady devaluation of the dollar. The government nevertheless assesses it as a gain for tax purposes.
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Shopping Bag

Turkey imposes new restrictions on Russian wheat imports as Putin restricts Turkish tomatoes


RT
Wed, 24 May 2017 14:39 UTC
wheat plants
© Usher, D. / Global Look Press
Sales of Russian wheat to Turkey are facing another hurdle after Ankara introduced a new law limiting Russian imports to 25 percent of the total amount of grain imported. Russia's leading exporters confirmed the information reported by business daily Vedomosti on Wednesday.

The new law comes after Turkey promised earlier this month to lift a 130 percent tariff on Russian wheat, which made business impossible for Russian exporters.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made the pledge on May 3 after meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in Sochi.

Ankara also imposed restrictions on duty-free supplies of Russian sunflower oil.
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Telephone

Trump discusses 'madman Kim and good guy Xi' in leaked call with Philippines' Duterte


RT
Wed, 24 May 2017 14:22 UTC
Donald Trump and Rodrigo Duterte
© Reuters
Donald Trump told Philippines' Rodrigo Duterte in a phone call last month that he is prepared to use force against "madman" Kim Jong-un but hoped the "good guy" Xi Jinping will help solve the North Korean nuclear issue, according to a leaked transcript.

The full transcript of the conversation from April 29, at the close of the 30th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) summit in Manila, was leaked on Tuesday to both the Washington Post and The Intercept. A senior Trump administration official acknowledged the accuracy of the transcript to the Washington Post, while well-placed Philippines sources confirmed its authenticity to Philippines' Rappler news.

Comment: Duterte is courting Russia: 'We need modern weapons': Duterte meets Putin but cuts trip short over Philippines terrorist crisis

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Radar

Intel heads tell Senate: 'Inevitable' that N. Korea builds nuclear-armed missile able to reach US


RT
Wed, 24 May 2017 13:57 UTC
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspects the intermediate-range ballistic missile Pukguksong-2's launch test
© AFPNorth Korean leader Kim Jong Un inspects the intermediate-range ballistic missile Pukguksong-2's launch test, May 22, 2017.
The Defense Intelligence Agency has provided the first official US assessment of North Korea's latest missile test, telling a Senate committee that the reclusive nation is on a clear trajectory to obtaining a nuclear-armed missile that could hit the US.

DIA Director Lieutenant General Vincent Stewart and Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats testified before the Senate Armed Services Committee about worldwide threats on Tuesday, just two days after North Korea test-launched its Pukguksong-2 intermediate range ballistic missile (IRBM).

Although the US confirmed Sunday's launch, American experts doubted the reliability of the new solid-fuel type for the IRBM after so few tests, Reuters reported. Solid fuel is harder to produce than liquid, but is more stable and can be transported in the missile tank to allow for a swift launch.

Comment: Coats' testimony frames N. Korea missile development as an offensive threat rather than a defensive measure from the US.

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Bad Guys

Manchester attacker linked to Libyan terrorists harbored by UK govt for decades

Tony Cartalucci
Land Destroyer Report
Wed, 24 May 2017 13:53 UTC
abedi manchester
UK Proscribed terrorist organization, Libyan Islamic Fighting Group (LIFG), maintains large presence in Manchester area and is now being linked to recent blast.

As suspected and as was the case in virtually all recent terror attacks carried out in Europe - including both in France and Belgium - the suspect involved in the recent Manchester blast which killed 22 and injured scores more was previously known to British security and intelligence agencies.

The Telegraph in its article, "Salman Abedi named as the Manchester suicide bomber - what we know about him," would report:
Salman Abedi, 22, who was reportedly known to the security services, is thought to have returned from Libya as recently as this week.
While initial reports attempted to craft a narrative focused on a "lone wolf" attacker who organized and executed the blast himself, the nature of the improvised explosive device used and the details of the attack revealed what was certainly an operation carried out by someone who either acquired militant experience through direct contact with a terrorist organization, or was directed by a terrorist organization with extensive experience.

Comment: See also:

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Map

'Not if, but when': US intel chief warns Kurdish secession from Iraq imminent


RT
Wed, 24 May 2017 13:49 UTC
Young Kurdish Iraqis carry the flag of the Kurdistan Regional Government in Iraq
© Imad Aqrawi / AFPYoung Kurdish Iraqis carry the flag of the Kurdistan Regional Government in Iraq.
Iraqi Kurdistan's independence from Baghdad appears to be only a matter of time, presenting a tremendous challenge to Iraq's future, according to the head of the US Defense Intelligence Agency.

"Kurdish independence is on a trajectory where it is probably not if, but when. And it will complicate the situation unless there's an agreement in Baghdad," Lieutenant General Vincent Stewart, head of the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), told a Senate hearing, according to Reuters.

Kurd militias are essential to the US-led coalition's campaign to defeat Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL) in Iraq. The Kurds are also taking part in the battle of Mosul, where Iraqi forces are trying to force IS militants from their major stronghold.
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Eye 1

Obama NSA secretly conducted illegal searches on Americans for years

John Solomon and Sara Carter
Circa
Wed, 24 May 2017 13:12 UTC
obama nsa spying
© Circa
The National Security Agency under former President Barack Obama routinely violated American privacy protections while scouring through overseas intercepts and failed to disclose the extent of the problems until the final days before Donald Trump was elected president last fall, according to once top-secret documents that chronicle some of the most serious constitutional abuses to date by the U.S. intelligence community.

More than 5 percent, or one out of every 20 searches seeking upstream Internet data on Americans inside the NSA's so-called Section 702 database violated the safeguards Obama and his intelligence chiefs vowed to follow in 2011, according to one classified internal report reviewed by Circa.

The Obama administration self-disclosed the problems at a closed-door hearing Oct. 26 before the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court that set off alarm. Trump was elected less than two weeks later.
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Info

Moscow suspects 'deliberate provocation' in Libya massacre to disrupt the peace process


RT
Wed, 24 May 2017 13:03 UTC
Libyan soldiers
© Reuters
Russia has condemned the recent spike of violence in Libya where over 140 troops and civilians were reportedly slaughtered in an attack on the Brak Al-Shati airbase. Moscow called it a "deliberate provocation" intended to disrupt the peace process.

"Moscow is very concerned about the recent outbreak of violence in Libya," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

On May 18, 141 people were killed after clashes broke out at the Brak al-Shati airbase between the Libyan National Army (LNA) and a rival Third Force militia loyal to the UN-backed government.
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