Puppet Masters

Say what? Ukraine will demand that Turkey shuts Bosphorus Strait to Russian ships over Kerch incident

RT
Thu, 29 Nov 2018 14:27 UTC

A Ukrainian Navy chief has vowed to ask Turkey to close the Bosphorus Strait for Russian warships over the Kerch naval standoff. Moscow wasn't impressed, as the official cited laws referring exclusively to warring countries.

"I'm sure that the international community will make up its mind and recognize that there was an aggression against the state of Ukraine," commander of the Ukrainian Navy, Admiral Igor Voronchenko, said on Thursday.

Citing this, and the rules of the Montreux Convention, namely Article 19, we will try to ask the Republic of Turkey for the closure of the Bosphorus Strait, to teach the Russians what it takes to violate international rules," the official, who used to be a top officer with the county's national guard and was recently promoted to admiral, said.

The bold statement has surely raised some eyebrows in Moscow, since the article he mentioned regulates rules of passage through the Bosphorus Strait for the nations that are currently in the state of war. Some officials have dismissed the threat out of hand.

Comment: The Poroshenko regime is really grasping at straws!

Former Greek foreign minister: 'Diplomats are issuing visas to unaccompanied children so their organs can be harvested'

RT
Fri, 30 Nov 2018 21:20 UTC

Diplomats from Greece have been blasted as "traitors" by the country's former foreign minister, after he shockingly repeated allegations that visas were issued "to unaccompanied children to illegally traffic their organs".

Nikos Kotzias, who resigned last month in a row over Macedonia's name, damningly said last week - and for the second time - that some 93 cases had been sent for prosecution, with a string of "highly respected ambassadors" already behind bars.

"Do you know what visas for unaccompanied minors mean? It means the organ trade."

Comment: Crikey!

Comment: As we've been pointing our for years now, illicit trafficking in organs for transplant is a world-wide problem. Destitute children are the easiest target. The do-gooders facilitating the migrant movements have no idea what evil they're facilitating.

In Siding With Fascism, Western Ideologues Pose a Greater Threat to The West's Security Than ISIS

John Wight
RT
Thu, 29 Nov 2018 13:09 UTC

© Reuters/Gleb Garanich
Activists of far-right parties in front of the presidential administration headquarters in Kiev, Ukraine November 26, 2018 .

A Western ideologue unravelling is no pretty sight. It's like watching a lobster boiling in a pot. And like that lobster he or she eventually pops.

'Popping' recently over Russia have been key figures of the Western geopolitical and ideological firmament - people for whom the world is made of a Western bloc of nations divinely ordained to command, and the rest of the world condemned to obey.

A prime example of what I mean concerns the Atlantic Council in Washington, one of the more notorious of an ever expanding network of neocon think tanks in our world, within whose Washington offices you will find gathered cranks of inordinate dimension.

For such people Russia is not a country of 146 million people whose contribution to the world in the fields of art, science, culture and so on has been profound throughout its history and remains so today, but instead is a cancer that needs to be removed - preferably by force.

Comment: See also: US Congress stops funding for Ukraine's war-criminal, neo-Nazi Azov Battalion

CNN fires Marc Lamont Hill for pro-Palestine remarks, but gives a platform to Israeli gov't spokespeople

Amith Gupta
Mondoweiss
Fri, 30 Nov 2018 20:44 UTC

Yesterday, CNN fired grassroots activist, professor, and occasional commentator Marc Lamont Hill after his passionate remarks at the United Nations defending freedom in Palestine and supporting the use of grassroots resistance against Israeli policies. In particular, Hill's critics slammed his call for freedom in the holy land "from the river to the sea," alleging that this long-standing, unambiguous Palestinian slogan of liberation amounted to calling for the "destruction" of Israel or otherwise contains some sort of anti-Jewish or anti-Israeli sentiment. Hill denies any secret meanings, and it prompts the question of what it says about Israel as an ethnocracy that freedom for Palestinians is perceived as "destruction".

CNN's decision to fire Hill, nonetheless, is not surprising. Though Zionist groups regularly allege anti-Israel bias on CNN, the record, detailed below in chronological order, shows almost the exact opposite. While CNN had no shame in firing a prominent black professor for little more than defending Palestinian rights at a United Nations panel, CNN has a long history of hiring Israeli government personnel and lobbyists, and even Netanyahu speechwriters, to freely spout war propaganda designed to dehumanize the Palestinian people and sanitize Israeli government abuses.

And... it worked again: Every meeting between Trump and Putin has been obstructed by sabotage

RT
Fri, 30 Nov 2018 00:35 UTC

US President Donald Trump has canceled a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin at the G20 summit, citing an incident with Ukraine, the latest in a series of attempts to block all talks between Moscow and Washington.

After consulting with his hawkish national security adviser John Bolton and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Trump backed out of the scheduled meeting with Putin on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Argentina. It was the first known instance of the US president bowing to those seeking to stop him from talks with Putin - but not the first time they tried.

On the eve of the Trump-Putin summit in Helsinki, Finland in July, special counsel Robert Mueller indicted twelve Russian nationals on charges of hacking the Democrats during the 2016 US presidential election. Mueller is investigating Hillary Clinton's claim that Trump "colluded" with Russia to steal an election that was rightfully hers.

The Russian Foreign Ministry reacted to the indictment by saying it seemed calculated to spoil the meeting. Moscow wasn't alone in coming to that conclusion: The top Democrat in the US Senate, Chuck Schumer, argued along the same lines, saying that "Glad-handing with Vladimir Putin on the heels of these indictments would be an insult to our democracy."

Trump: Wouldn't rule out pardoning former aide targeted in Russia probe

RFE/RL
Thu, 29 Nov 2018 04:04 UTC

U.S. President Donald Trump says he will not rule out pardoning his former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, who this week became the renewed target of a special investigation into ties between Russia and his 2016 campaign.

Trump told the New York Post in an interview published on November 28 that he had not "discussed" pardoning Manafort, "but I wouldn't take it off the table. Why would I take it off the table?"

Manafort was convicted of bank and tax fraud this summer, and in September he pleaded guilty to money laundering and conspiracy charges leveled by Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who is leading an investigation into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election.

Manafort, 69, faces years -- even decades -- in jail, particularly since a cooperation agreement he signed with prosecutors fell apart this week. Manafort had been cooperating with Mueller since September in hopes of a lighter sentence. But Mueller informed a U.S. court on November 26 that Manafort had violated the cooperation deal by lying repeatedly to prosecutors.

Manafort denied lying or breaching the agreement, but he agreed to face immediate sentencing for his crimes. Without a pardon, former prosecutors say he could spend the rest of his life in jail.

Comment: It doesn't sound like Mueller is investigating as much as he is trying to bully his suspects into the shape of what he wants to see. Is that his job?

Saudi Arabia and Egypt urge Arab nations to create ties with Israel

Sputnik
Fri, 30 Nov 2018 12:58 UTC

© REUTERS/Bandar Algaloud/Courtesy of Saudi Royal Court
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman • Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi

Although Saudi Arabia is officially at a state of war with Israel, reports indicate that the two countries covertly maintain ties, especially with respect to military and intelligence issues. Egypt, in turn, signed a peace treaty with Israel 39 years ago and has since maintained official diplomatic ties with the Jewish state.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman are seeking to encourage other Arab nations to establish trade ties with Israel and resolve political differences with the Jewish state, according to Al-Arabi Al-Jadid.

The newspaper reported that the two leaders discussed the issue during Bin Salman's visit to Cairo on Monday, when they also focused on US President Donald Trump's peace plan for the Middle East settlement, which is expected to be unveiled in December.

Government officials in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Israel have yet to comment on the Al-Arabi report.

Comment: With enemies for friends the ME should be one truly happy place.

An anti-war shift or Riyadh regime change? Analysts question motive for US Senate's Yemen resolution

RT
Thu, 29 Nov 2018 14:45 UTC

A Senate resolution that would end US support for the Saudi-led invasion of Yemen may be using humanitarian concerns as a pretext to dethrone Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, analysts say.

A bipartisan proposal to block any further US military assistance to the Saudi-led coalition waging war in Yemen is one step closer to being adopted, after the Senate voted 63-37 on Wednesday to allow a floor vote on the resolution.

The legislation's early successes have been interpreted as a kick in the teeth to US President Donald Trump's unapologetic support for Riyadh, but some have questioned the timing of the proposal - and whether it will have any long-term effect on Washington's deep-rooted ties to the Kingdom.

Long overdue?

The horrific war in Yemen has been raging for three years, so why is it only now that lawmakers are sharing heartbreaking photographs of starving Yemeni children on the Senate floor?

Comment: That the US legislative bodies are lagging in responsibility for US war activities, care not about international laws and are late (by just a few years) to the horrific Yemeni humanitarian crisis, shows the sad state of awareness and lack of information-gathering taking place. The Senate's focus for the resolution is closer to home. It wants to trim Trump's wings regarding war decisions. The better question: So what didn't Israel like about MBS?
See also:
5 Republican senators, voting against the Yemen war resolution, received funding from Saudi lobbyists

Angela Merkel's plane to G20 forced to make unscheduled landing

The Guardian
Thu, 29 Nov 2018 18:26 UTC

The German chancellor, Angela Merkel, will likely miss the opening of the G20 summit in Argentina after her plane was forced to make an unscheduled landing after developing technical problems.

The plane, which was en route to Buenos Aires, turned back when it was over the Netherlands and landed in the German city of Cologne because it was the only base with a replacement aircraft, the German news agency DPA reported.

The Airbus A340 was met on the tarmac by fire engines, DPA said, adding that the captain told the passengers the plane had to turn back as a technical problem was disrupting several electrical systems. According to German military blog Augengeradeaus.net, the aircraft was transmitting a 7600 transponder code, indicating a radio failure.

"We will not be proceeding today," Merkel's spokeswoman told the news agency AFP.

5 Republican senators, voting against the Yemen war resolution, received funding from Saudi lobbyists

Cristina Maza
Newsweek
Thu, 29 Nov 2018 09:51 UTC

On Wednesday, senators delivered a historic blow to the country's relationship with ally Saudi Arabia, a country whose leadership has committed notable human rights violations, by voting to move forward a resolution that would end all U.S. military support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen.

But at least five of the Republican Senators who voted against the bill have received funding from lobbyists working for Saudi Arabia, a fact that illustrates how the kingdom uses its vast wealth to influence U.S. foreign policy.

Republican Senators Roy Blunt of Missouri, John Boozman of Arkansas, Richard Burr of North Carolina, Mike Crapo of Idaho, and Tim Scott of South Carolina received financial contributions from lobbying firms that worked for Saudi Arabia, according to a report by the Center for International Policy released last month.

Comment: Any 'payment for a particular response' is a form of bribery. Not much different than Israel's and various Jewish lobbies' pressure and financial influence on Congress.

More from Al Jazeera:

"It's a major rebuke of the Trump administration and of Secretary Pompeo in particular, who this morning made his case about why the US support for the Saudi operations in Yemen were so critical," he told Al Jazeera.

"Clearly Senators were not convinced. What we're seeing are several issue play out. The Trump administration for the first part of the term has been able to ride roughshod over congressional oversight.

"What we're seeing now is both Democrats and Republicans saying: 'We want to look at these issues. We want to look at the direction that you're heading on whether it's on Saudi Arabia, Iran or North Korea'."

Pressure has been mounting for the US to end its support for the conflict. According to a recent YouGov poll, 89 percent of liberals Americans and 54 percent of conservatives expressed an opinion opposing continued arms sales to the Saudi-UAE alliance fighting in Yemen.

"The Saudis, lobbyists, the Secretary of Defense, none of them have been able to stop this anger which is brewing."

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Puppet Masters

Say what? Ukraine will demand that Turkey shuts Bosphorus Strait to Russian ships over Kerch incident

Former Greek foreign minister: 'Diplomats are issuing visas to unaccompanied children so their organs can be harvested'

In Siding With Fascism, Western Ideologues Pose a Greater Threat to The West's Security Than ISIS

CNN fires Marc Lamont Hill for pro-Palestine remarks, but gives a platform to Israeli gov't spokespeople

And... it worked again: Every meeting between Trump and Putin has been obstructed by sabotage

Trump: Wouldn't rule out pardoning former aide targeted in Russia probe

Saudi Arabia and Egypt urge Arab nations to create ties with Israel

An anti-war shift or Riyadh regime change? Analysts question motive for US Senate's Yemen resolution

Angela Merkel's plane to G20 forced to make unscheduled landing

5 Republican senators, voting against the Yemen war resolution, received funding from Saudi lobbyists

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