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Assad urges ministers to fight political corruption after cabinet shuffle


Sputnik
Fri, 30 Nov 2018 16:06 UTC
Bashar Al Assad
© Sputnik / Mikhail Klimentiev
Syrian President Bashar Assad on Thursday called on the newly appointed government ministers to fight corruption, comparing its implications to those of terrorism.

On Monday, Assad carried out a cabinet reshuffle, changing nine ministers. Notably, the new interior minister was appointed to replace Mohammad Shaar, who had been in the position since the early days of the Syrian crisis, and the Directorate of the National Reconciliation was created to substitute the Ministry of the Interior. Moreover, Assad appointed the new mayor of Damascus. On Thursday, the new cabinet ministers were sworn in in the presence of the president.

"All the Syrian people, mainly the security forces and all those related to them, have been suffering ... They have the right to see something better and it is our duty to show them the results of our work, particularly, our fight against corruption," Assad said during a cabinet session, as quoted by his press service.

Comment: Assad has turned out to be a leader with integrity and responsibility. Rather than blame everything on external actors, he takes the high road by pointing out the problems that actually need fixing. Syria is a better place because of it.

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Attention

Fascist Ukraine raids home of Russian Orthodox cleric in Kiev accused of 'inciting hatred'


RFE/RL
Fri, 30 Nov 2018 16:00 UTC
Father Pavlo leads the Pechersk Monastery in Kyiv
© Volodymur Shuvayev / AFP
Father Pavlo leads the Pechersk Monastery in Kyiv
Ukraine's intelligence service said its officers have searched the home of the father superior of Kyiv's biggest and oldest monastery, which is part of the Russian Orthodox Church.

Ihor Huskov, chief of staff of the SBU intelligence agency, told reporters on November 30 that Metropolitan Pavlo, who oversees the Pechersk Lavra monastery, was suspected of "inciting hatred."

The SBU was investigating him under an article in the Criminal Code covering "violations of citizens' equality depending on racial ethnicity, religious convictions, incitement of interconfessional hostility," Huskov said.


Comment: How ironic...


Metropolitan Pavlo confirmed the raid.

"Today there are many questions about whether the actions of our state authority in relation to the church are legitimate. To a certain extent they are illegal," Pavlo said in a statement.

"There is a pressure on me personally, threats are being heard, all sorts of attacks not only on me, but also on other bishops and priests. For what reason I do not know."

Comment: More on the Orthodox schism prompted by Poroshenko (maybe he should be investigated for incitement of hatred?):

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Stormtrooper

Fascist Ukraine: Hired thugs throw eggs at presidential candidate, beat up his team (VIDEO)


RT
Thu, 29 Nov 2018 18:07 UTC
CCTV footage of the attack in Odessa
© Screenshot from YouTube
CCTV footage of the attack in Odessa
Anatoliy Grytsenko, who is in the race to become Ukraine's president in next year's election, has accused current head of state Petro Poroshenko of organizing an attack during a campaign visit to the Black Sea port of Odessa.

The former defense minister was due to make a local radio appearance on Wednesday night, but when he arrived at the station, the entrance was blocked by a group of masked men "of athletic build," according to a statement from his press secretary, published by Interfax-Ukraine.

They handed Grytsenko a carved pumpkin with a dildo stuck in its "mouth", and the words "F*** off home" written on the side, and attempted to pelt him with eggs.

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Rocket

Too big to fail: Saudi Arabia inks deal for Lockheed's THAAD missile defense system

Mike Stone
Reuters
Fri, 30 Nov 2018 15:48 UTC
thaad
© U.S. Department of Defense / Reuters
Saudi Arabia will buy Lockheed Martin's (LMT.N) $15 billion missile defense system, a U.S. Department of State spokesman said on Wednesday, after aggressive lobbying by the administration to close the deal that included a personal call between President Donald Trump and Saudi King Salman.

The State Department said the Saudis and U.S. officials signed the letters of offer and acceptance documents on Monday, formalizing terms for Saudi's purchase of 44 Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) launchers, missiles and related equipment.

In recent weeks the Trump administration and the U.S. defense industry worked to save the few actual deals in the much-touted $110 billion arms package for Saudi Arabia amid rising concerns about the role of the kingdom's leadership in the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, a prominent Saudi critic.

The THAAD deal had been under discussion since December 2016 and is now completed, the spokesperson said.

Comment: It's just business, after all. And Israel. Mattis commented:
The Pentagon's chief called Riyadh "fundamental" to regional and Israeli security, as well as crucial for the US' own interests.

"We are seldom free to work with unblemished partners," Mattis bluntly admitted. He went on to argue that the ties with the kingdom "cannot be dismissed" even as Washington condemned Khashoggi's death.

The officials also came out of their way to shield Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, widely known as MBS, against the allegations that he might have been in on the plan to kill Khashoggi all along.

"We have no smoking gun the Crown Prince was involved, not the intelligence community or anyone else. There is no smoking gun,"Mattis told reporters. Pompeo agreed with him, claiming there is "no direct reporting" connecting MBS with the order to kill the journalist.
You can say that again. In fact, you can say that about the U.S. itself and the CIA in particular: it's assassination central there.

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No Entry

Fascist Ukraine: Kiev bans all Russian males aged 16 to 60 from entering country


RT
Fri, 30 Nov 2018 15:32 UTC
crimea border
© Reuters / Vyacheslav Madiyevsky
A member of the Ukrainian Border Guard seen on the border between Russia and Ukraine on November 28, 2018.
Kiev authorities have decided to turn away all Russian men aged 16 to 60. It's apparently designed to prevent Moscow from forming "private armies" on Ukrainian soil.

The move was announced by the county's president Petro Poroshenko in a tweet on Friday. Kiev has imposed a blanket ban on all the Russian males aged between 16 and 60, effectively allowing only women and children to visit the country - although there have been reports that even they have been turned away at the border. Some men might be eligible for an exception over some sort of "humanitarian" reasons.

The ban is supposed to prevent Russia from "forming 'private' armies, which are in fact representatives of the Russian armed force," as well as "to prevent Russians from carrying out those operations in Ukraine which they've planned back in 2014." The president did not elaborate what exactly Moscow had allegedly planned and why it had not managed to carry it out over the past four years.


Comment: The entire Kiev ruling class have lost their collective mind. Actually, they lost it back in 2014 and have never recovered. If anything, they've only gotten worse.


Moscow condemned the new hostile move by the Kiev authorities, yet already ruled out a mirror response to the measure.
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Chess

S-400 blowback? Turkey seeks replacement for US-withheld helicopter engines in $1.5bn export deal with Pakistan


RT
Fri, 30 Nov 2018 00:00 UTC
AgustaWestland AW159 Wildcat helicopter
© Lutz Blohm via Flickr
An LHTEC T800-4A engine (non-export CTS800-4N variant) installed on an AgustaWestland AW159 Wildcat helicopter.
Ankara and Islamabad have agreed to seek replacement engines for 30 Turkish-made attack helicopters after the US blocked supplies. Some Turkish officials say Washington is retaliating for the purchase of Russian-made missiles.

In July, Turkey and Pakistan signed their biggest-ever arms deal, ending four years of negotiations. The Turkish Aerospace Industries (TAI) is to produce 30 T129 ATAK multipurpose helicopters for the Pakistani military for $1.5 billion. The model is a derivative from the Italian Agusta A129 Mangusta, which integrates Turkish avionics and weapons with AgustaWestland's airframe and has some upgrades.

The deal however hit a stumbling block after the Turkish company failed to obtain an export license from the US Department of Defense. The license is required for the US-made parts of the engines that are meant to power the aircraft. The LHTEC T800-4A turboshaft engines are produced by a joint venture of the US-based manufacturer Honeywell and Britain's Rolls-Royce.

Comment: See also:

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Chess

Warren demands lobbying firms come clean on Saudi ties - targets interactions with Trump officials


Politico
Fri, 30 Nov 2018 14:33 UTC
Elizabeth Warren
© John Minchillo/Associated Press
Sen. Elizabeth Warren is calling on D.C. lobbying shops to divulge their ties to Saudi Arabia.

In a letter sent Wednesday to 18 firms and provided to POLITICO, the Massachusetts Democrat asks about their current or previous work for Saudi Arabia, in light of the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. She seeks details of their contracts, descriptions of whether anyone from the Trump administration was involved in the "negotiation or performance" of the contracts," and whether they plan to continue to lobby for Saudi Arabia in the future.


Comment: So Warren's drive to clean up the lobby system with respect to Saudi Arabia isn't as pure as it appears. Why doesn't she go after the cancer that is the Washington lobby system in general? (Hint: because AIPAC)


The push comes as Warren is set to deliver a speech Thursday outlining her foreign policy vision, in advance of a likely run for president in 2020.

Comment: Elizabeth Warren is a mixed bag of political views. She has many good things to say about the rigged economy, yet espouses global warming nonsense. What is not in doubt is her determination to run for president in 2020. Everything she says/does should be viewed through that lens.

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Snakes in Suits

Trump blasts Cohen as 'weak and not very smart' for plea deal based on made-up story

Kara Scannell, Pamela Brown, Erica Orden and Maegan Vazquez
CNN
Thu, 29 Nov 2018 20:11 UTC
Michael Cohen
© Craig Ruttle/AP
Michael Cohen, former personal lawyer to President Donald Trump, leaves federal court in New York, Aug. 21, 2018.
President Donald Trump reacted to the news that Michael Cohen pleaded guilty to making false statements to Congress about the Russia investigation, calling his former lawyer "very weak."

"He's a weak person," Trump told reporters on the White House South Lawn before departing for Buenos Aires, Argentina. "He was convicted with a fairly long-term sentence with things unrelated to the Trump Organization," Trump said, citing Cohen's legal issues with mortgages and the IRS. Trump speculated that "what he's trying to do is get a reduced sentence.

"Cohen is scheduled to be sentenced next month in a separate case where he pleaded guilty to violating campaign finance laws to help Trump win the presidency by suppressing stories about Trump's alleged affairs. He also admitted that he lied on his taxes, and for those crimes he likely faces three to five years in prison, according to his earlier plea agreement.
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Bullseye

Fast learners: Russian-trained Syrian air defense downs several 'enemy targets' in southern Syria


RT
Thu, 29 Nov 2018 14:10 UTC
al Kiswah Syria
© Google maps
Kiswah town
Syria's air defense forces have shot down "enemy targets" in Kiswah town, located south of Damascus, according to state media. The report by the SANA news outlet does not specify the "enemy" that was targeted.

Military sources told SANA that the incoming projectiles were heading toward the al-Kiswah area.

"Our air defense systems repelled an attack by several enemy targets over the al-Kiswah area in the south of the country and shot them down," a Syrian military source said, as quoted by Ikhbariya television.

Comment: The IDF issued the usual denials:
The Israeli military has described reports that one of its jets was brought down while carrying out airstrikes in Syria as "bogus," amid reports that the country's air defense systems engaged and downed several "hostile targets".


Israeli Defense Forces have refused to comment on the country's alleged role in the attack, with a spokesperson saying that they're not commenting on reports in foreign media. Yet the IDF has denied a particular report that it had lost a warplane during the raid on Syria.
Videos purporting to show the interceptions have appeared online:




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Boat

Study: Chinese Navy may overcome US Navy capabilities within 15 years


South Front
Fri, 30 Nov 2018 13:08 UTC
submarines
A new study finds that the Chinese Navy may overtake the US Navy within 15 years as global superpower.

On November 28th, the Asia Times published an article by Peter J. Brown, which mostly cites an essay written by Boston College Political Science Professor Robert Ross, an expert on Chinese defense and security policy, which appeared in the influential Lawfare blog on November 18th.

It is titled "The End of US Naval Dominance in Asia," and claims that the US Navy is not receiving enough funding and requires more so as to secure its position as the world's dominant naval power.
"The rapid rise of the Chinese Navy has challenged US maritime dominance throughout East Asian waters," Ross writes. "The US, though, has not been able to fund a robust shipbuilding plan that could maintain the regional security order and compete effectively with China's naval build-up. The resulting transformation of the balance of power has led to fundamental changes in US acquisitions and defense strategy. Nonetheless, the US has yet to come to terms with its diminished influence in East Asia."
Ross also stated that China's fleet will soon outnumber the US one, and it will also be more modern. "From 2017 to 2018, for example, as China's Navy grew from 328 to 350 ships, more than 70% were of the latest designs - up from 50% in 2010, based on a RAND Corp study."
"China is the largest ship-producing country in the world and at current production rates could soon operate 400 (naval) ships. It commissions nearly three submarines each year, and in two years will have more than 70 in its fleet. The Chinese Navy also operates growing numbers of cruisers, destroyers, frigates and corvettes, all equipped with long-range anti-ship cruise missiles. Between 2013 and 2016, China commissioned more than 30 modern corvettes. At current rates, China could have 430 surface ships and 100 submarines within the next 15 years," the essay reads.

Comment: It may not be just only the Navy that could be surpassed. With the US trillions of dollars in debt and the military's constant misappropriation of funding, they will eventually be left behind on the world stage. See also:

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