Puppet MastersS


Pirates

Rouhani blames world powers for spread of terrorism


Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
Thu, 22 Sep 2016 00:00 UTC
rouhani at un
© www.theguardian.comRouhani at the United Nations
Iranian President Hassan Rohani has blamed world powers for the spread of terrorism over the past 15 years and what he called a less secure world. Rohani told the UN General Assembly on September 22 that "repression and military intervention" by unnamed countries had caused terrorism to expand and led to a more insecure world. He also called on regional rival Saudi Arabia to "cease and desist" from divisive policies in the Middle East if it is serious about peace and security.

Rohani said that, if Saudi Arabia is "serious about its vision for development and regional security, it must cease and desist from divisive policies, the spread of hate ideology, and the trampling upon the rights of its neighbors."

Relations between leading Shi'ite power Iran and Saudi Arabia, which is predominantly Sunni, have worsened over Iranian support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in his country's civil war and Saudi and Iranian support for the opposite sides in the conflict in Yemen, among other issues.

Rohani also praised the nuclear deal reached with the United States and five other world powers last year as a "win-win approach for both sides." But he was quick to criticize what he called Washington's "lack of compliance" with the nuclear deal that he said should be immediately "rectified." He also criticized a U.S. Supreme Court ruling allowing the families of victims from bomb attacks associated with Iran to receive financial compensation from Tehran's frozen assets in a decision that could cost Iran hundreds of millions of dollars.
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Snakes in Suits

US military aid to Israel aids who and towards what end?

Tony Cartalucci
New Eastern Outlook
Thu, 22 Sep 2016 21:46 UTC
U.S. and Israeli officials sign an unprecedented military-spending deal in Washington, D.C., on September 14
© Gary Cameron / Reuters
Recently, the United States just renewed military aid to Israel in a decade-long, $38 billion deal - the largest of its kind in American history. It represents a significant increase in aid, roughly $3.8 billion a year - expected to be supplemented by additional assistance through US Congress - up from $3 billion per year previously.

The Atlantic in an article titled, "Why Does the United States Give So Much Money to Israel?," attempted to explain the reasoning behind the otherwise unreasonable and unprecedented assistance by claiming:
Defenders of the deal would say it's necessary. Dalton described the uptick in spending as a natural extension of the long-standing relationship between the United States and Israel, "as well as close ties between those countries and their peoples." She described the "fraught neighborhood" surrounding Israel: war-torn Syria to the northeast, Hezbollah-influenced Lebanon to the north, and an Islamist insurgency in Egypt's Sinai to the south, all of which help explain the historically high promise of $5 billion in missile funding over the next 10 years.

Comment: For more analysis on the aid package: Five reasons why the US-Israel military deal stinks with hypocrisy

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Hiliter

Peace deal signed between Afghanistan and hard-line militant group


Radio Free Europe/radio Liberty
Thu, 22 Sep 2016 00:00 UTC
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar
© AFPAfghan warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar
The Afghan government has signed a draft peace accord with notorious exiled warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, paving the way for his return after years of fighting the central authorities. A government delegation and a team representing Hekmatyar's Hezb-e Islami militant group signed the document at a press conference in Kabul on September 22. The final agreement is expected to be signed by Hekmatyar and President Ashraf Ghani in the coming days. That is expected to be a mere formality.

"Fortunately, after two years of negotiations between Afghanistan's High Peace Council and the Hezb-e Islami, the peace negotiations have been successfully completed, and an agreement between both sides has been finalized," the Afghan High Peace Council, the presidentially appointed body tasked with pursuing a peace settlement with militant groups, said in a statement. Sayed Ahmad Gilani, head of the High Peace Council, said at a news conference in Kabul that "in the light of our national interests, this could benefit both sides." He added, "I hope that this is the beginning of a permanent peace in our country."

Hekmatyar's forces were accused by rights groups of gross human rights violations during Afghanistan's civil war in the 1990s, and they have carried out deadly attacks against U.S. and Afghan forces since 2001. Hundreds of protesters rallied in Kabul on September 22, holding placards reading "Butcher of Kabul" and "We will neither forget nor forgive." A senior researcher on Afghanistan for the international group Human Rights Watch (HRW) has called the deal with Hekmatyar "an affront to victims of grave abuses."

Comment: Peace has to start somewhere.

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Magnify

Empire in motion: Imperium Americana's regional warlords march to their own drum beats

Wayne Madson
Strategic Culture Foundation
Mon, 19 Sep 2016 21:20 UTC
Phillipines vassal
Not since the days of the Roman Empire have regional warlords commanded so much authority to craft their own military and diplomatic policies apart from the central government. The United States calls its warlords «combatant commanders» and the title is not misleading. These combatant commanders are always looking for new wars and conflicts, all of which are in the personal interests of them and their top military echelons, but certainly not in the general interest of the American people.

American combatant commanders rule over their own virtual fiefdoms, which the Pentagon calls «areas of responsibility» or «AORs». The Roman Empire's warlords were called «proconsuls» and they were military commanders appointed to govern newly-conquered territories. These Roman AORs, known as proconsular imperia, differed little from modern-day American AORs. However, the Roman proconsuls were much more answerable to the Roman emperors than American combatant commanders are presently to the President of the United States.

The U.S. military-intelligence complex has divided the world into AORs over which combatant commanders exercise authority over U.S. military, political, diplomatic, and, increasingly, economic decision-making. These commands - U.S. Central Command, Pacific Command, European Command, Southern Command, Northern Command, and Africa Command - also involve themselves in the military and political activities of nations within their AORs that are either allied with the United States or dependent on U.S. security arrangements. Conveniently, the chief of the U.S. European Command also served as the Supreme Allied Commander of Europe, the military chief of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Effectively, NATO is an integral part of U.S. military hegemony.

Comment: Duterte with his moves away from the United States, colorful critique of other institutions such as the EU and his opening up to cooperation with China certainly has the attention of the United States military complex and its commanders. In the past, the Philippines had been a compliant vassal toward the US empire's goals to surround and confront China. Now it seems Duterte and the Philippines is a wild card that will likely get special attention. Some form of 'revolution' or political ousting of Duterte attempted via Western intervention can be expected should the path set by Duterte continue.

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Bad Guys

Russia rejects Kerry's offer to protect al-Qaeda - Syrian army on the offensive after ceasefire fails

Alexander Mercouris
The Duran
Thu, 22 Sep 2016 21:12 UTC
kerry lavrov
Kerry and Lavrov
In series of statements Russian diplomats reject US demand that Syrian and Russian bombing of Al-Qaeda's Syrian branch Jabhat Al-Nusra cease, and that Kerry-Lavrov agreement be rewritten to soften US's obligation to separate the fighters it supports from Jabhat Al-Nusra.

It has taken the Russians no time to reject US Secretary of State Kerry's demand that the ceasefire in Syria be extended to Jabhat Al-Nusra (i.e. to Al-Qaeda's local Syrian branch) and that the Russians and the Syrians in effect impose a no-fly zone on themselves in northern Syria.


Comment: Just to get an idea how insane the U.S. military is, check this out. They (i.e. Ash Carter and Joseph Dunford) think that only US coalition planes should be allowed to fly over Syria. That in itself is insane. But they then admit that such a move would require going to war with Syria and Russia! Then, after saying he "didn't have the facts" about the convoy attack, Dunford then went on to conclude, "It was either the Russians or the regime." Guess he doesn't need the facts! Carter then did Dunford one better: "the Russians are responsible for this strike whether they conducted it or not." That's some quality generals you've got there, America.


Comment: Lavrov made a huge statement at the UNSC today. From Fort Russ's Joaquin Flores:
Russian Foreign Minister, Sergei Lavrov made history today at the UN's meeting of the Security Council, declaring that future unilateral pauses couched as 'ceasefire agreements' are off the table. He has skillfully referred to the mounting factual evidence of the US's continued flagrant violations on any number of points of agreement over the course of this conflict.
...
Analysts and activists have long debated the utility of the ceasefire agreements. It had been noted, at times passionately, that the ceasefires were observed unilaterally by Russia and had the effect of allowing the US backed terrorist groups, whether organized under the 'moderate' banner or not, to rearm and regroup. Aid convoys had long been used as a backdoor to smuggle in needed dual-use basic supplies for repairing weapons, such as nuts, bolts, wiring - and even munitions and new weapons. It had long been documented that first aid and medicines intended for affected civilian populations generally wound up used by terrorist fighting groups inside of occupied parts of Aleppo.

Now this chapter comes to end, and it is revealed that Russia understood clearly all along that this was precisely the case. What was needed was a pretext, a consensus building show-and-tell to the security which provides Russia and its allies on the Security Council and in the international community that 'we tried Ceasefires - and this is what happened.'


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Snakes in Suits

Top US general Dunford testifies that a no-fly zone would 'require war with Syria and Russia'


RT
Thu, 22 Sep 2016 21:21 UTC
US Defense Secretary Ash Carter and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Joseph Dunford
© Yuri Gripas / ReutersUS Defense Secretary Ash Carter and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Joseph Dunford testify before the Senate Armed Services Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, September 22, 2016.
Speaking to the US Senate, the Pentagon's leaders blamed Russia for the Aleppo aid convoy attack, but admitted they "had no facts." Only US coalition planes should be allowed over Syria, they said, though that would require war against both Syria and Russia.

Defense Secretary Ash Carter and General Joseph Dunford, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, faced the Senate Armed Services Committee on Thursday to report on the ongoing military operations and "national security challenges" faced by the US. They also asked the senators for more reliable funding, saying the uncertainty was hurting the defense industry.

"Not only our people - our defense industry partners, too, need stability and longer-term plans to be as efficient and cutting-edge as we need them to be," Carter told the senators.
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Snakes in Suits

Was Poroshenko's rant at the UN his last?

Ruslan Ostashko
Fort Russ
Thu, 22 Sep 2016 00:00 UTC
Poroshenko
From PolitRussia - translated by J. Arnoldski

Petro Poroshenko has developed his geopolitical activism and continues to entertain observers with his wrinkled suits and clumsy attempts at begging for cookies from the leaders of other countries. For some reason, Ukrainian experts think that the pseudo-president is inflicting serious damage upon Russia with his actions and is demonstrating the capacity of the Ukrainian state. In fact, however, the only ones affected by the Ukrainian government's actions are Russian comedians. They simply can't compete with Poroshenko who works with quality and efficiency every day for free.

And so, what did the Ukrainian pseudo-president achieve during his voyage to New York?

First of all, he delivered a sparkling speech at the UN assembly in support of the Russian Federation, No, I haven't misspoken. I haven't heard such advertising for Russia in a long time. As it turns out, Russia is frightening, a strong enemy, and a terrifying aggressor. After such a speech, the leaders of surrounding countries should tremble with fear and send telegrams to Putin begging to accept them in the mighty Russian Empire.

Comment: Heh. Poroshenko is pretty much reviled all-around by everyone. Evil enough to perpetuate a low-level war with Donbass and kill innocents of his own country (evoking the ire of Russia and all identified culturally with Russia in Ukraine) - but not quite evil and crazy enough for his Western masters to go the full distance as the article states. And this is to say nothing of his own people who now recognize how much of an incompetent and power-hungry buffoon this jackass of a leader is. Why couldn't he just stick to making chocolates?

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Snakes in Suits

John Kerry really wants the Syria ceasefire extended to protect Al-Qaeda

Alexander Mercouris
The Duran
Thu, 22 Sep 2016 21:02 UTC
John Kerry
In comments to the UN Security Council US Secretary of State Kerry effectively tears up Lavrov - Kerry Agreement and demands that protection from bombing be extended to Al-Qaeda's regional branch Jabhat Al-Nusra.

The impossibility of achieving a workable ceasefire in Syria was made clear by a blustering speech US Secretary of State Kerry made to the UN Security Council on 21st September 2016.

Possibly alarmed that European governments - including especially the German government - are failing to support US claims the relief convoy attacked near Aleppo was bombed by the Russian air force; and by the fact that the UN appears to have dropped its assertion that the convoy was bombed from the air; and perhaps even more alarmed by Russian demands for an independent investigation of the whole incident; Kerry went on the attack, listing what he said were Russian claims about the incident, which he either misrepresented, or represented in such a way as to make them look inconsistent and contradictory, when in reality they are no such thing.

More to the point, Kerry also demanded the grounding of the Syrian air force over what he called 'the contested areas' of northern Syria. This is a strange demand to make in the immediate aftermath of the attack on the relief convoy.

Comment: AP has released the ceasefire deal that the US refused to make public: Text of Syria cease-fire deal

For more analyses on Kerry's speech: Straw man: Kerry blasts Moscow for things they never said

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Cowboy Hat

Straw man: Kerry blasts Moscow for things they never said


RT
Thu, 22 Sep 2016 21:01 UTC
kerry
© AFP 2016/ TIMOTHY A. CLARY John Kerry pointing menacingly.
US Secretary of State John Kerry has used a UN session to criticize Moscow over the recent Syria aid convoy attack. Saying that he and the Russian foreign minister are in "parallel universes," Kerry appeared confused by what top Russian officials had actually said.


Comment: Kerry finally gets something right. Lavrov lives in the reality-based world, otherwise known as reality. Kerry lives in a world of the U.S. propagandists' creation. He's been there so long, he apparently doesn't even realize it anymore.


"I listened to my colleague from Russia and I sort of felt like we're in a parallel universe here," Kerry said in a fiery 28-minute speech at the 71st UN General Assembly session in New York on Wednesday. He pointed to the differing accounts regarding the conflict in Syria, where Russia and the US have been working together on facilitating a ceasefire.

Comment: See: Russia's counter-blow: Aleppo convoy attack and the Russian info-war victory

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Info

US, Russia and other nations stand ready to provide lethal aid to Libyan Security Forces


Sputnik
Thu, 22 Sep 2016 20:41 UTC
Libya army helicopter
© REUTERS/ Ismail Zitouny
The United States, Russia and dozens of other countries said they are prepared to provide lethal assistance to Libyan military forces in the fight against the Daesh, a joint communique released by the US Department of State said on Thursday.

"We stand ready to respond to its requests for international assistance to train and equip the legitimate Libyan military and security forces throughout Libya through an appropriately scaled exemption to the arms embargo for procurement of lethal materiel necessary to counter Daesh and other UN-designated terrorist groups," the communique, issued after a ministerial meeting, stated.

Comment: So what will happen to the rival governments in Libya like the Council of Deputies?

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