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Russia, Turkey and Iran agreement: Syria will not be broken up


Sputnik
Mon, 02 Jan 2017 17:46 UTC
Syria flag
© Reuters
The agreements between Russia, Turkey and Iran on the Syrian settlement will not result in the division of Syria, said Turkish political analyst and diplomat Aydin Sezer.

In late-December, Reuters reported citing sources that Syria would be divided into informal zones of regional power influence and Bashar Assad would remain president for at least a few years under a deal between Moscow, Ankara and Tehran.

"Such a deal, which would allow regional autonomy within a federal structure controlled by Assad's Alawite sect, is in its infancy, subject to change and would need the buy-in of Assad and the rebels and, eventually, the Gulf states and the United States," the report read.

According to Sezer, the agreements cannot result in dividing Syria into zones of influence since Russia, Turkey and Iran abide by Resolution 2254 by the UN Security Council, according to which the Syrian territorial integrity must be preserved. Moreover, Russian officials have repeatedly reaffirmed Moscow's commitment to preserving the territorial integrity of Syria.
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Info

Trump and Revenge of the 'Realists'

Gilbert Doctorow
Consortium News
Sat, 31 Dec 2016 17:39 UTC
Henry Kissinger
During a holiday getaway to India, I picked up the local newspaper, The Times of India, and encountered an article entitled "From Russia with Love" by Indian political observer Swagato Ganguly with the subtitle: "A rapprochement between Putin and Trump could transform the world in 2017."

The author set this prediction within the broader context of a possible return to the "Westphalian principle of sovereignty, which bars intervention in another state's domestic affairs." The article goes on to ask: "What If Trump were to repeat Nixon's rapprochement in reverse? President Nixon's handshake with Chairman Mao in 1972 may have decisively tilted the Cold War in America's favor, as it broke the Chinese away from the Soviet bloc. Today China, rather than Russia is America's principal strategic rival."

This Indian international affairs prognosis was based on Henry Kissinger's identification of the Peace of Westphalia principles as the key to Realpolitik and on implementation of his signature strategy from the past even if Kissinger was not mentioned. Kissinger's strategy was to ensure that Washington was closer to Beijing and to Moscow than either of the two was to one another, a relevant point again given Kissinger's reappearance on the political scene in recent days.

Comment: For more on Kissinger's recent emergence into the limelight:

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Jet5

Russia and Turkey reportedly kill 22 terrorists during strikes in Northern Syria


Sputnik
Mon, 02 Jan 2017 17:24 UTC
Russian jet
© Sputnik/ Dmitriy Vinogradov
The Russian Aerospace Forces and the Turkish Air Force, along with Turkey's artillery have carried out several operations against Daesh in northern Syria, Daily Sabah newspaper reported Monday.

Russian aircraft attacked Daesh positions in the Dayr Kak region located in the vicinity of the Daesh-held city of al-Bab, the Daily Sabah newspaper reported citing Turkish military officials.

The newspaper added that the activities of Turkey's aircraft and artillery in northern Syria near al-Bab had killed 22 Daesh jihadists.

On August 24, Turkish forces, backed by US-led coalition aircraft, began a military operation dubbed the Euphrates Shield to clear the Syrian border town of Jarabulus and the surrounding area of Daesh. As Jarabulus was retaken, the offensive continued southwest.

The operation has been widely criticized by both the Syrian Kurds and the country's legitimate government, who have accused Turkey of violating Syria's territorial integrity.
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Info

Mexico's populist Obrador capitalizes on economic woes

Jude Webber
Financial Times
Sun, 01 Jan 2017 17:22 UTC
Andrés Manuel López Obrador waves to supporters
© AFPAndrés Manuel López Obrador waves to supporters during a protest against the government's education reforms in Mexico City last June.
Anti-establishment figure hopes to follow in Trump's footsteps and win presidency.

Telling voters what they wanted to hear worked out well for Donald Trump. As Mexico shifts into election gear in 2017, another populist, anti-establishment figure will be hoping to follow in the US president-elect's footsteps.

Like Mr. Trump, Andrés Manuel López Obrador is a love-him or loathe-him figure with a message that resonates with the underprivileged and the angry.

In the case of Amlo, as the maverick leftist is widely known, that message includes: promises to stamp out corruption, sweep out the 'mafia of power', give the elderly better pensions, cut fat cat government salaries, create jobs and roll out a huge infrastructure program. He pledges to bring "real change" to Mexico.
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Network

Wordfence CEO, malware expert: 'Not enough data to show Russian link to election'


RT
Sun, 01 Jan 2017 17:09 UTC
hacker
© Ints Kalnins / Reuters
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS)'s claims that Russia hacked the 2016 US election are based on flimsy evidence, says security expert Mark Maunder.

On December 29, the DHS and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) released a Joint Analysis Report (JAR) put together by the DHS and the FBI that blames Russia for hacking the US presidential election in an operation which they nicknamed GRIZZLY STEPPE. Among other things, the report cites the presence of PHP malware as one of the clues pointing to Russian involvement.

RT talked to Mark Maunder, CEO of internet security company Wordfence, to get his perspective.

"Our field is PHP malware and WordPress security," Maunder explained. "We protect about two million WordPress websites."

"The Wordfence team analyzed the PHP malware the DHS and FBI included in their report, and we analyzed the IP addresses. Looking at the PHP malware, they provided a sample, so we used the sample to find the original PHP malware which is actually in some of the attacks we've seen on our customer's websites and that we've blocked. And that malware is encrypted, so we had to find some way to decrypt it.

"Once we decrypted it, it showed us the name of the malware and some other information, like the version of the malware. We used that to do a few searches, and we actually found what looks like the source of the malware which is a hacking group that claimed they were based in Ukraine, and they're distributing versions of that malware which are slightly newer," he said.

Maunder said the malware isn't so much tool for breaking into systems, as one used to control those already compromised.

Comment: More background:

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Sherlock

Incoming Press Secretary Sean Spicer nails Obama's anti-Russian measures as "political retribution"


RT
Mon, 02 Jan 2017 16:21 UTC
Sean Spicer
© Carlo Allegri / Reuters Sean Spicer
The incoming White House Press Secretary, Sean Spicer, said it makes him wonder if President Obama's anti-Russian measures were "political retribution," given that a massive hack of federal data in 2015 linked to China saw "not one thing happen" in response.

Spicer brought into question the magnitude of the new sanctions approved by Barack Obama, which included the expulsion of 35 diplomats and the closing of two diplomatic facilities while speaking to ABC's This Week program hosted by Jonathan Karl and aired on Sunday.

"I think one of the questions that we have is, 'Why the magnitude of this?' I mean you look at 35 people being expelled, two sites being closed down, the question is, 'Is that response in proportion to the actions taken?' Maybe it was, maybe it wasn't - but you have to think about that," Spicer said, adding later, "If you look at our history, you haven't seen a response like that in modern history for any action."

Donald Trump's team member then went on to contrast Obama's decision with the apparent lack of action on what has been branded the biggest security breach in US government history, when millions of federal employees had their unique fingerprint records stolen. While US officials have accused China of being behind the hack that made headlines in June 2015, the furthest Obama went was to warn Beijing of economic sanctions as President Xi Jinping was visiting the US.


Comment: Spicer's point on the lack of US response to the alleged 2015 Chinese hacks is apt in the sense that the US isn't consistent in the way that it responds to its own propaganda. This is a sign that the elite are feeling threatened and are striking out in more reactive and aggressive ways. No evidence was ever presented on the Chinese hacks just as no evidence has been presented on the so-called Russian hacks. Anonymous intelligence officials remain the sources of both claims, which have no credibility.

While there has been absolutely no evidence presented indicating 'Russian hacking', it's beyond clear that it was the Clinton team who were actively interfering in the elections as Spicer rightly points out during the interview:
"When are we going to start talking about the other side of this? Which is: What did Hillary Clinton do to influence the election? Is she being punished in any way?" Spicer asked, referencing the fact the Democratic nominee received debate questions ahead of time during the primary.
And later:
"The fact is that everyone wants to make Donald Trump admit to certain things," Spicer said.

"But the fact of the matter is, we're having part of a conversation. Why aren't we talking about ... other influences on the election?" he asked.

"Why aren't we talking about Hillary Clinton getting debate questions ahead of time? That's a pretty valid attempt to influence an election," he continued.

"... I can tell you this, if my boss at the time, Reince Priebus, had gotten the debate questions, and handed them off, he would have been driven out of this town on a stake, and Donald Trump would have been vilified. No one wants to ask those questions now."


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Laptop

More good reasons not to buy the 'Russian hack' story

Leonid Bershidsky
Bloomberg News
Thu, 22 Dec 2016 16:48 UTC
hillary russian hack twitter meme
I'm willing to believe that Russia sought to hack the U.S. election, but I still find the evidence lacking. That skepticism applies to the latest sensation -- a report that Russian proxies in Ukraine are employing the same malicious software used on the U.S. Democratic National Committee.

For months, I have been parsing stories of the great Russian hack -- the anonymous leaks from U.S. administration officials, the two fact-poor statements from the U.S. intelligence community, the distant echoes of briefings received by U.S. legislators -- for technical evidence. There have been red herrings, such as a feeble attempt to prove that Trump was in contact with Russians through a server at Alfa Bank in Moscow (in reality, a marketing company was sending unsolicited email to Alfa managers). But so far, the only evidence pointing to Russian government involvement comes from cybersecurity companies that have studied Advanced Persistent Threat 28, a hacker collective that has attacked many targets over the years -- including the DNC in 2016.

That evidence is best summarized in a 2014 blog post by the security firm FireEye. APT 28 attacks governments and militaries hostile to Russia or strategically important for it. APT 28 appears professional and well-financed. APT 28 uses Russian in its malware. The malware is compiled during working hours in the Moscow time zone.
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Handcuffs

Egypt's court sentences 148 people to life imprisonment over violent 2013 clashes


Sputnik
Mon, 02 Jan 2017 17:01 UTC
Egyptian police
© AFP 2016/ STR
An Egyptian military court sentenced 148 supporters of ousted country's President Mohamed Morsi to life imprisonment in absentia over the 2013 clashes in the city of Minya, local media reported.

The defendants were charged with sabotage, violence, rioting and calling for protests, the Aswat Masriya media outlet reported Sunday.

According to the media outlet, the court has also acquitted 10 other defendants.
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Propaganda

The New York Times continues lying about Ukraine

Eric Zuesse
Strategic Culture Foundation
Mon, 02 Jan 2017 16:19 UTC
Ukraine neo-nazis
The New York Times' hiding — for nearly three years after this massively important historical event — the U.S.-imposed bloody coup that occurred in Ukraine during February 2014, makes the Times' hiding of it from the public, become by now no longer merely egregious 'news'-reporting, but finally lying about history: it's an egregious lie about a major event of recent world history — a worse lie as each year passes without the Times' acknowledgment that they had been hiding it from their readers, all along; hiding the news, until it became history — a lie which is harder to extricate themselves from, as each year passes and as this event becomes more and more important, because it accumulates more and more consequences, all of which are bad.

So: when will the NYT finally come out publicly acknowledging that the coup existed — that it was a "coup", and no 'revolution' (such as they've falsely claimed it to have been, and still refer to it)? Will it remain unstated (to have been a coup), until decades later?
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Gold Coins

Swiss banking secrecy replaced by financial data exchange


RT
Mon, 02 Jan 2017 16:43 UTC
swiss bank
© mago stock&people / Global Look Press
Switzerland's enviable reputation as a tax haven is becoming a thing of the past. The alpine nation has begun collecting data on Swiss bank accounts held by citizens of some 104 countries, and will begin sharing it with select countries from 2018.

The shift in policy comes after the ratification of the 'Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters,' which came into force on January 1.

The Convention has been touted as "the most comprehensive multilateral instrument available for all forms of tax co-operation to tackle tax evasion and avoidance, a top priority for all countries."
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