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by "Rick Rozoff"
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by "Rick Rozoff"
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by "Rick Rozoff"
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by "Rick Rozoff"
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by "Rick Rozoff"
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by "Rick Rozoff"
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by "Rick Rozoff"
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Voice of Russia
June 27, 2012
US expanding military aid to Africa – for what end?
Boris Volkhonsky
====
[In] recent years have witnessed a radical shift of Africa's role – not as a new important global player, but rather as an important playing ground for the new "Great Game". And the country that has really changed the global attitude towards the continent is China.
The big difference in China's attitude as compared to the West, and primarily the U.S., is that it used the so called "soft power" creating a positive impression of itself rather than twisting the arms of its partners and expanding military presence...Feeling that they might lose the competition with China if it continues to move along economic rails only, the West has resorted to the time-tested tactics of increasing its military presence.
[W]hile shifting the focus of its strategy to the Asia Pacific (i.e. to China's immediate neighborhood)
====
As reported by The Associated Press, speaking this week at a conference attended by representatives from African nations, General Carter Ham, head of U.S. Africa Command, said that the U.S. is carefully expanding efforts to provide intelligence, training and at times small numbers of forces to African nations, to help counter terrorist activities in the region.
He also said that coordinated moves by several Africa-based terrorist groups to share their training, funding and bomb-making materials are worrisome and pose a threat to the U.S. and the region.
"Do we collect information across Africa? Yes, we do," said Ham, singling out the Lord's Resistance Army and its leader Joseph Kony operating in Uganda and in neighboring countries. "To have some intelligence collection capability that has the ability to monitor the areas in which we believe the Lord's Resistance Army is operating, to be able to see, to be able to listen, to be able to collect information which we then pass to the four nations, four African nations, which are participating, I think is a good way ahead."
General Ham also made special reference to Libya where "Al Qaeda and other terror groups want to establish a foothold", and where "the U.S. is seeking a partnership - not a large military presence." He also briefly mentioned Djibouti, in the Horn of Africa, where the U.S. has a military base stationing about 2,000 U.S. troops, and "small, temporary" troop presences in other nations, like Liberia, Morocco and Cameroon.
Altogether, Ham said, the U.S. has trained as many as 200,000 peacekeepers and enforcement personnel from about 25 different African nations.
The General's statement at the conference came only a couple of weeks after The Washington Post published a lengthy article on the U.S. military expanding covert intelligence operations in Africa. According to that story, the US military is expanding its secret intelligence operations across Africa, establishing a network of small air bases to spy on terrorist hideouts from the fringes of the Sahara to jungle terrain along the equator. At the heart of the surveillance operations are small, unarmed turboprop aircraft disguised as private planes.
The operations have intensified in recent months, as part of a growing shadow war against Al Qaida affiliates and other militant groups. The surveillance is overseen by U.S. Special Operations forces but relies heavily on private military contractors and support from African troops.
In fact, both reports reflect the changing reality in the African continent which for many years was regarded as "forgotten land." While the global economy and politics were focused elsewhere, the countries of the continent (most of which gained formal independence in early the 1960s) were by and large neglected by leading world powers and looked upon only as a source of cheap mineral resources.
But recent years have witnessed a radical shift of Africa's role – not as a new important global player, but rather as an important playing ground for the new "Great Game". And the country that has really changed the global attitude towards the continent is China. In recent years China has become the main trading partner for quite a number of African countries. In terms of investment, it still lags behind the U.S. and the European Union, but is swiftly narrowing the gap. The big difference in China's attitude as compared to the West, and primarily the U.S., is that it used the so called "soft power" creating a positive impression of itself rather than twisting the arms of its partners and expanding military presence.
In any case, such developments have posed a serious threat to Western interests in Africa. Feeling that they might lose the competition with China if it continues to move along economic rails only, the West has resorted to the time-tested tactics of increasing its military presence.
The pretext may be any – the anti-terrorism fight as in the case of Africa, or even "humanitarian operations" and search for the remnants of U.S. pilots killed in World War II like the one the U.S. is planning to launch in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, bordering China and disputed by the latter. But the long term goal is clear – that is, pressing China out of all spheres of vital interest.
Whether such development and the substitution of China's "soft power" by the U.S. "hard power" is in vital interests of the affected countries themselves, is for the latter to judge. But one thing is clear – while shifting the focus of its strategy to the Asia Pacific (i.e. to China's immediate neighborhood)
Boris Volkhonsky, senior research fellow, Russian Institute for Strategic Studies
============
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Voice of Russia
June 27, 2012
US expanding military aid to Africa – for what end?
Boris Volkhonsky
====
[In] recent years have witnessed a radical shift of Africa's role – not as a new important global player, but rather as an important playing ground for the new "Great Game". And the country that has really changed the global attitude towards the continent is China.
The big difference in China's attitude as compared to the West, and primarily the U.S., is that it used the so called "soft power" creating a positive impression of itself rather than twisting the arms of its partners and expanding military presence...Feeling that they might lose the competition with China if it continues to move along economic rails only, the West has resorted to the time-tested tactics of increasing its military presence.
[W]hile shifting the focus of its strategy to the Asia Pacific (i.e. to China's immediate neighborhood)
====
As reported by The Associated Press, speaking this week at a conference attended by representatives from African nations, General Carter Ham, head of U.S. Africa Command, said that the U.S. is carefully expanding efforts to provide intelligence, training and at times small numbers of forces to African nations, to help counter terrorist activities in the region.
He also said that coordinated moves by several Africa-based terrorist groups to share their training, funding and bomb-making materials are worrisome and pose a threat to the U.S. and the region.
"Do we collect information across Africa? Yes, we do," said Ham, singling out the Lord's Resistance Army and its leader Joseph Kony operating in Uganda and in neighboring countries. "To have some intelligence collection capability that has the ability to monitor the areas in which we believe the Lord's Resistance Army is operating, to be able to see, to be able to listen, to be able to collect information which we then pass to the four nations, four African nations, which are participating, I think is a good way ahead."
General Ham also made special reference to Libya where "Al Qaeda and other terror groups want to establish a foothold", and where "the U.S. is seeking a partnership - not a large military presence." He also briefly mentioned Djibouti, in the Horn of Africa, where the U.S. has a military base stationing about 2,000 U.S. troops, and "small, temporary" troop presences in other nations, like Liberia, Morocco and Cameroon.
Altogether, Ham said, the U.S. has trained as many as 200,000 peacekeepers and enforcement personnel from about 25 different African nations.
The General's statement at the conference came only a couple of weeks after The Washington Post published a lengthy article on the U.S. military expanding covert intelligence operations in Africa. According to that story, the US military is expanding its secret intelligence operations across Africa, establishing a network of small air bases to spy on terrorist hideouts from the fringes of the Sahara to jungle terrain along the equator. At the heart of the surveillance operations are small, unarmed turboprop aircraft disguised as private planes.
The operations have intensified in recent months, as part of a growing shadow war against Al Qaida affiliates and other militant groups. The surveillance is overseen by U.S. Special Operations forces but relies heavily on private military contractors and support from African troops.
In fact, both reports reflect the changing reality in the African continent which for many years was regarded as "forgotten land." While the global economy and politics were focused elsewhere, the countries of the continent (most of which gained formal independence in early the 1960s) were by and large neglected by leading world powers and looked upon only as a source of cheap mineral resources.
But recent years have witnessed a radical shift of Africa's role – not as a new important global player, but rather as an important playing ground for the new "Great Game". And the country that has really changed the global attitude towards the continent is China. In recent years China has become the main trading partner for quite a number of African countries. In terms of investment, it still lags behind the U.S. and the European Union, but is swiftly narrowing the gap. The big difference in China's attitude as compared to the West, and primarily the U.S., is that it used the so called "soft power" creating a positive impression of itself rather than twisting the arms of its partners and expanding military presence.
In any case, such developments have posed a serious threat to Western interests in Africa. Feeling that they might lose the competition with China if it continues to move along economic rails only, the West has resorted to the time-tested tactics of increasing its military presence.
The pretext may be any – the anti-terrorism fight as in the case of Africa, or even "humanitarian operations" and search for the remnants of U.S. pilots killed in World War II like the one the U.S. is planning to launch in the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, bordering China and disputed by the latter. But the long term goal is clear – that is, pressing China out of all spheres of vital interest.
Whether such development and the substitution of China's "soft power" by the U.S. "hard power" is in vital interests of the affected countries themselves, is for the latter to judge. But one thing is clear – while shifting the focus of its strategy to the Asia Pacific (i.e. to China's immediate neighborhood)
Boris Volkhonsky, senior research fellow, Russian Institute for Strategic Studies
============
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North Atlantic Treaty Organization
June 27, 2012
NATO Deputy Secretary General to visit Georgia
The NATO Deputy Secretary General, Ambassador Alexander Vershbow will pay a visit to Georgia on 28-29 June 2012.
During his visit he will meet with Vice Prime Minister Giorgi Baramidze, Minister of Interior Ivane Merabishvili, Minister of Defence Bachana Akhalaia and National Security Advisor Giorgi Bokeria. Ambassador Vershbow will also meet with the Chairman of the Parliament, Mr. David Bakradze, as well as with representatives of opposition parties.
As part of his visit, Ambassador Vershbow will deliver a keynote speech at the Georgia Defence and Security Conference in Batumi on 29 June 2012.
============
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North Atlantic Treaty Organization
June 27, 2012
NATO Deputy Secretary General to visit Georgia
The NATO Deputy Secretary General, Ambassador Alexander Vershbow will pay a visit to Georgia on 28-29 June 2012.
During his visit he will meet with Vice Prime Minister Giorgi Baramidze, Minister of Interior Ivane Merabishvili, Minister of Defence Bachana Akhalaia and National Security Advisor Giorgi Bokeria. Ambassador Vershbow will also meet with the Chairman of the Parliament, Mr. David Bakradze, as well as with representatives of opposition parties.
As part of his visit, Ambassador Vershbow will deliver a keynote speech at the Georgia Defence and Security Conference in Batumi on 29 June 2012.
============
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Stop NATO website and articles:
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http://rickrozoff.
Stop NATO: Digest for June 20-27
U.S. Military Expansion In Africa Aimed At China
June 27, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Audio: NATO And Syria, Not If But When?
June 26th, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
What’s Behind NATO Reaction To Downed Turkish Jet?
June 26, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
U.S. Expanding Bases To Contain China
June 26, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
NATO War Council To Target Syria
June 26, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
As Syria Beckons, Libya Descending Into Chaos After NATO “Success”
June 25, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Pakistan and the Emerging Geo-Political Scenario
June 25, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
NATO: What’s In A Name?
June 25, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Syria: A Precursor To War
June 25, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Gulf Of Tonkin Redux?
June 23, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
U.S. Reconstructs Former Military Bases Across Asia-Pacific
June 23, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Cold War Politics Redux
June 23, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Pre-Determined Guilt: Wars Waged With Mass Media Complicity
June 22, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Open Letter on Saudi Arabia
June 22, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
NATO Expands Military Network To All Continents
June 22, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Drug-Addled Burlesque Empire On Global Joyride
June 21, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
No Replay: Russia Says NATO, Not Libyan People, Decided Gaddafi’s Fate
June 21, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
U.S. Remains In Gulf With Tens Of Thousands Of Troops
June 20, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Syria Is West’s Way Station En Route To Iran And Russia
June 20, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Iraq: NATO Forges New Strategic Partnership In Persian Gulf
June 20, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Interview: Why Does U.S. Provoke Russia?
June 20, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
============
Stop NATO e-mail list home page with archives and search engine:
http://groups.
Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.
To subscribe for individual e-mails or the daily digest, unsubscribe, and otherwise change subscription status:
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============
Stop NATO: Digest for June 20-27
U.S. Military Expansion In Africa Aimed At China
June 27, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Audio: NATO And Syria, Not If But When?
June 26th, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
What’s Behind NATO Reaction To Downed Turkish Jet?
June 26, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
U.S. Expanding Bases To Contain China
June 26, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
NATO War Council To Target Syria
June 26, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
As Syria Beckons, Libya Descending Into Chaos After NATO “Success”
June 25, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Pakistan and the Emerging Geo-Political Scenario
June 25, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
NATO: What’s In A Name?
June 25, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Syria: A Precursor To War
June 25, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Gulf Of Tonkin Redux?
June 23, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
U.S. Reconstructs Former Military Bases Across Asia-Pacific
June 23, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Cold War Politics Redux
June 23, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Pre-Determined Guilt: Wars Waged With Mass Media Complicity
June 22, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Open Letter on Saudi Arabia
June 22, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
NATO Expands Military Network To All Continents
June 22, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Drug-Addled Burlesque Empire On Global Joyride
June 21, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
No Replay: Russia Says NATO, Not Libyan People, Decided Gaddafi’s Fate
June 21, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
U.S. Remains In Gulf With Tens Of Thousands Of Troops
June 20, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Syria Is West’s Way Station En Route To Iran And Russia
June 20, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Iraq: NATO Forges New Strategic Partnership In Persian Gulf
June 20, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
Interview: Why Does U.S. Provoke Russia?
June 20, 2012
http://rickrozoff.
============
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http://groups.
Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.
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++++
Anti-war essays, poems, short stories and literary excerpts:
http://rickrozoff.
++++
============
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Stop NATO website and articles:
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Anti-war essays, poems, short stories and literary excerpts:
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++++
============
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http://groups.
Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.
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http://rickrozoff.
Stop NATO
June 27, 2012
NATO Expands Caucasus Presence As Broader War Looms
Rick Rozoff
On the sidelines of the twentieth anniversary summit of the Organization of Black Sea Economic Cooperation in Istanbul, Turkey on June 26, Georgia's President Mikheil Saakashvili met with his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul and, according to Trend News Agency of Azerbaijan, dscussed "Issues of regional security and stability...
The presidents also discussed regional - Transcaucasian and Trans-Caspian - energy and transportation projects engineered by the United States and several key NATO allies over the past twenty years.
President Gul also met with Azerbaijan's president Ilham Aliyev to deliberate over, among other matters, the increasingly volatile situation on the borders of Azerbaijan and Armenia and Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabakh, where over a dozen Armenian and Azerbaijani soldiers have been killed in armed clashes this month.
The unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic is supported by Armenia and although surrounded by Azerbaijan is near Armenia to its west and Iran to its south. The fact that deadly hostilities have of late not only occurred along Azerbaijan's border with Nagorno-Karabakh but with Armenia directly is cause for particular concern.
Standing immediately behind Azerbaijan in any war to "reclaim" Nagorno-Karabakh, as Azeri officials from the president down constantly threaten, is its ethnic and linguistic cousin and main military ally Turkey. Having conducted ongoing armed incursions and air strikes inside Iraq against the Kurdistan Workers Party, branded a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and NATO, and actively preparing for the same against Syria (which is defending its own territory), there is no reason to believe that Ankara would sit on the sidelines if Azerbaijan attacked Nagorno-Karabakh and in so doing triggered a war with Armenia.
Armenia is, like Azerbaijan and Georgia, a NATO partner (all three are members of the Partnership for Peace program, have an Individual Membership Action Plan and have deployed troops to Afghanistan under NATO command), but alone among the South Caucasus nations is also a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, Russia's only security alliance in the former Soviet Union.
If a new and expanded conflict erupts between Armenia and Azerbaijan and Turkey backs the second and Russia the first, the threat of a direct confrontation between NATO and Russia would be a possibility for the first time.
Three weeks ago Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited all three South Caucasus nations - Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia - and in the third country pledged American assistance in training the armed forces of the nation "to better monitor your coasts and your skies" and committed Washington to "helping Georgia give its officers the 21st century training they need for today's changing missions."
She also reiterated the U.S. and NATO contention that independent Abkhazia and South Ossetia (along with Nagorno-Karabakh and Transdniester the so-called frozen conflicts in former Soviet space) are part of Georgia and currently "occupied territories"
In the aftermath of the five-day war between Georgia and Russia in August 2008 following Georgia's armed assault on South Ossetia, Russian officials revealed that air and other bases in Georgian had been prepared for prospective attacks against Iran. Georgia's military has been upgraded and transformed by the U.S. Marine Corps (and for a brief period before that by Green Beret U.S. Army special forces) over the past decade and 2,000 U.S.-trained Georgian troops served in Iraq and soon 1,700 will be in Afghanistan. The Pentagon has prepared the Georgian army for expeditionary operations in foreign theaters of war and, as President Saakashvili has repeatedly emphasized, made it a modernized, more battle-ready force for wars nearer home.
On June 25 Saakashvili asserted "we have real chances to become a NATO member" at the next summit of the military bloc, stating:
“The next summit will probably take place in 2014 and I think that Georgia will have a very good chance; I’ve never been so sure about it as I am now.”
After meeting with what NATO refers to as aspirant countries - Georgia, Bosnia, Macedonia and Montenegro - at the alliance summit last month, Hillary Clinton vowed that those states and perhaps others were candidates for full NATO membership, saying "I believe this summit should be the last summit that is not an enlargement summit."
When Georgia joins NATO the latter will be in an immediate de facto state of conflict with Russia over Abkhazia and South Ossetia which, recall, in Clinton's words are Russian-occupied parts of Georgia.
On June 22 NATO's Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, Poland's General Mieczyslaw Bieniek, visited Georgia for two days and according to the Georgian Ministry of Defence stated, "Georgia`s aspiration toward NATO has been once more confirmed at the Bucharest and Chicago summits and Georgia is making a lot of efforts on its way to NATO integration.
Bieniek toured the host country's National Defence Academy, lecturing students on the role of the U.S.-based Allied Command Transformation, and met with the defense attachés of NATO member states in Georgia.
Three days before 28 U.S. soldiers graduated from a course at the Sachkhere Mountain Training School, a NATO standard and NATO-supported institution. The graduation ceremony was attended by leading Georgian military officials and representatives of the NATO Liaison Office in Georgia. The latter was opened in October 2010 and its purpose is, as described by NATO, to "Provide advice and assistance to the Government of Georgia in support of civilian and military reform efforts required for NATO integration" and to "Conduct liaison with Georgian, NATO, Allied, and Partner Authorities to enhance cooperation and understanding in pursuit of the NATO/Georgia goal of Georgia becoming a full NATO member."
According to a statement issued by the Georgian Defence Ministry last July, "Under PfP [Partnership for Peace] status the School will train military units of NATO and its partner countries' armed forces."
It added:
"In September the instructors of the Mountain Training School will conduct a mountain training basic summer course for military servicemen of NATO countries. The essential part of the course consists of practical exercises. Its aim is to provide soldiers with the basic mountain-technical skills and master them in operating under mountain circumstances. The exercise will be conducted in the English language...
"Under the schedule military servicemen from Poland, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia will undergo trainings in the Sachkhere Mountain Training School as well."
NATO Deputy Secretary General Alexander Vershbow, a former National Security Council and Defense Department official and U.S. ambassador to NATO, is paying a two-day visit to Georgia on June 28-29, where he will meet with several major government officials, including the defense minister, interior minister and national security advisor as well as deliver a keynote speech at the Georgia Defence and Security Conference on June 29.
The South Caucasus, composed of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Nagorno-Karabakh, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, borders Iran, Russia and Turkey and will not remain unaffected by military conflicts in the general region, nor will hostilities between states in the region not create the potential for far larger conflicts.
============
Stop NATO e-mail list home page with archives and search engine:
http://groups.
Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.
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stopnato-subscribe@
============
Stop NATO
June 27, 2012
NATO Expands Caucasus Presence As Broader War Looms
Rick Rozoff
On the sidelines of the twentieth anniversary summit of the Organization of Black Sea Economic Cooperation in Istanbul, Turkey on June 26, Georgia's President Mikheil Saakashvili met with his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul and, according to Trend News Agency of Azerbaijan, dscussed "Issues of regional security and stability...
The presidents also discussed regional - Transcaucasian and Trans-Caspian - energy and transportation projects engineered by the United States and several key NATO allies over the past twenty years.
President Gul also met with Azerbaijan's president Ilham Aliyev to deliberate over, among other matters, the increasingly volatile situation on the borders of Azerbaijan and Armenia and Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabakh, where over a dozen Armenian and Azerbaijani soldiers have been killed in armed clashes this month.
The unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic is supported by Armenia and although surrounded by Azerbaijan is near Armenia to its west and Iran to its south. The fact that deadly hostilities have of late not only occurred along Azerbaijan's border with Nagorno-Karabakh but with Armenia directly is cause for particular concern.
Standing immediately behind Azerbaijan in any war to "reclaim" Nagorno-Karabakh, as Azeri officials from the president down constantly threaten, is its ethnic and linguistic cousin and main military ally Turkey. Having conducted ongoing armed incursions and air strikes inside Iraq against the Kurdistan Workers Party, branded a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and NATO, and actively preparing for the same against Syria (which is defending its own territory), there is no reason to believe that Ankara would sit on the sidelines if Azerbaijan attacked Nagorno-Karabakh and in so doing triggered a war with Armenia.
Armenia is, like Azerbaijan and Georgia, a NATO partner (all three are members of the Partnership for Peace program, have an Individual Membership Action Plan and have deployed troops to Afghanistan under NATO command), but alone among the South Caucasus nations is also a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization, Russia's only security alliance in the former Soviet Union.
If a new and expanded conflict erupts between Armenia and Azerbaijan and Turkey backs the second and Russia the first, the threat of a direct confrontation between NATO and Russia would be a possibility for the first time.
Three weeks ago Secretary of State Hillary Clinton visited all three South Caucasus nations - Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia - and in the third country pledged American assistance in training the armed forces of the nation "to better monitor your coasts and your skies" and committed Washington to "helping Georgia give its officers the 21st century training they need for today's changing missions."
She also reiterated the U.S. and NATO contention that independent Abkhazia and South Ossetia (along with Nagorno-Karabakh and Transdniester the so-called frozen conflicts in former Soviet space) are part of Georgia and currently "occupied territories"
In the aftermath of the five-day war between Georgia and Russia in August 2008 following Georgia's armed assault on South Ossetia, Russian officials revealed that air and other bases in Georgian had been prepared for prospective attacks against Iran. Georgia's military has been upgraded and transformed by the U.S. Marine Corps (and for a brief period before that by Green Beret U.S. Army special forces) over the past decade and 2,000 U.S.-trained Georgian troops served in Iraq and soon 1,700 will be in Afghanistan. The Pentagon has prepared the Georgian army for expeditionary operations in foreign theaters of war and, as President Saakashvili has repeatedly emphasized, made it a modernized, more battle-ready force for wars nearer home.
On June 25 Saakashvili asserted "we have real chances to become a NATO member" at the next summit of the military bloc, stating:
“The next summit will probably take place in 2014 and I think that Georgia will have a very good chance; I’ve never been so sure about it as I am now.”
After meeting with what NATO refers to as aspirant countries - Georgia, Bosnia, Macedonia and Montenegro - at the alliance summit last month, Hillary Clinton vowed that those states and perhaps others were candidates for full NATO membership, saying "I believe this summit should be the last summit that is not an enlargement summit."
When Georgia joins NATO the latter will be in an immediate de facto state of conflict with Russia over Abkhazia and South Ossetia which, recall, in Clinton's words are Russian-occupied parts of Georgia.
On June 22 NATO's Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Transformation, Poland's General Mieczyslaw Bieniek, visited Georgia for two days and according to the Georgian Ministry of Defence stated, "Georgia`s aspiration toward NATO has been once more confirmed at the Bucharest and Chicago summits and Georgia is making a lot of efforts on its way to NATO integration.
Bieniek toured the host country's National Defence Academy, lecturing students on the role of the U.S.-based Allied Command Transformation, and met with the defense attachés of NATO member states in Georgia.
Three days before 28 U.S. soldiers graduated from a course at the Sachkhere Mountain Training School, a NATO standard and NATO-supported institution. The graduation ceremony was attended by leading Georgian military officials and representatives of the NATO Liaison Office in Georgia. The latter was opened in October 2010 and its purpose is, as described by NATO, to "Provide advice and assistance to the Government of Georgia in support of civilian and military reform efforts required for NATO integration" and to "Conduct liaison with Georgian, NATO, Allied, and Partner Authorities to enhance cooperation and understanding in pursuit of the NATO/Georgia goal of Georgia becoming a full NATO member."
According to a statement issued by the Georgian Defence Ministry last July, "Under PfP [Partnership for Peace] status the School will train military units of NATO and its partner countries' armed forces."
It added:
"In September the instructors of the Mountain Training School will conduct a mountain training basic summer course for military servicemen of NATO countries. The essential part of the course consists of practical exercises. Its aim is to provide soldiers with the basic mountain-technical skills and master them in operating under mountain circumstances. The exercise will be conducted in the English language...
"Under the schedule military servicemen from Poland, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia will undergo trainings in the Sachkhere Mountain Training School as well."
NATO Deputy Secretary General Alexander Vershbow, a former National Security Council and Defense Department official and U.S. ambassador to NATO, is paying a two-day visit to Georgia on June 28-29, where he will meet with several major government officials, including the defense minister, interior minister and national security advisor as well as deliver a keynote speech at the Georgia Defence and Security Conference on June 29.
The South Caucasus, composed of Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Nagorno-Karabakh, Abkhazia and South Ossetia, borders Iran, Russia and Turkey and will not remain unaffected by military conflicts in the general region, nor will hostilities between states in the region not create the potential for far larger conflicts.
============
Stop NATO e-mail list home page with archives and search engine:
http://groups.
Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.
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============
http://english.
Itar-Tass
June 28, 2012
Turkey pulls military hardware to Syrian border
Turkey is deploying its military hardware along its Syrian border.
Tanks, artillery guns, multiple rocket launchers and a convoy of 30 infantry carrier vehicles have entered the Hatay and Sanliurfa border provinces, local media report.
The recent downing of a Turkish fighter jet by Syria has strained Syrian-Turkish relations to such an extent as to trigger speculation about an imminent war, something Ankara has denied.
...
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Itar-Tass
June 28, 2012
Turkey pulls military hardware to Syrian border
Turkey is deploying its military hardware along its Syrian border.
Tanks, artillery guns, multiple rocket launchers and a convoy of 30 infantry carrier vehicles have entered the Hatay and Sanliurfa border provinces, local media report.
The recent downing of a Turkish fighter jet by Syria has strained Syrian-Turkish relations to such an extent as to trigger speculation about an imminent war, something Ankara has denied.
...
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http://www.rt.
RT
June 28, 2012
3 in 4 Pakistanis now consider the US an “enemy”, resentment towards US grows
Approximately 3 in 4 Pakistanis now consider the US an enemy according to a new Pew research poll released on June 27th. The polls show increasing hostility towards the US and new lows in the already strained relationship between the two countries.
The Pew Research poll conducted by the Pew Global Attitudes Project has published stark numbers. The poll, entitled “Pakistani Public Opinion Ever More Critical of US”, says 74% of Pakistanis now view the US as an ‘enemy’ up from 69% last year, while support for President Barack Obama continues to be exceptionally low.
A majority of Pakistanis hold the view that Obama has been just as bad a president as George W. Bush was in his last year in office. Furthermore, approximately 4 in 10 Pakistanis believe that US military and financial aid is having a negative impact on their country; only 1 in 10 believes the impact has been positive.
Tensions have been extreme between the two countries due to unceasing US drone attacks inside Pakistani territory. Pakistan shut down a highly strategic NATO supply route through its territory into Afghanistan last November in response to a NATO air strike that killed 24 Pakistani troops on the Afghan border.
The US has argued that the air strikes are necessary to counter the insurgency movements in Afghanistan. However, resentment towards the tacit alliance with the US allowing the drone strikes has fueled a domestic insurgency in Pakistan, leading to broad outrage at the resulting loss of Pakistani life.
“Pakistan has lost somewhere between 5000 to 6000 soldiers and paramilitary soldiers, but more than that, we’ve lost more than 35,000 civilians, and these people died because of terrorist bombings,” Ahmed Quraishi, President of the Paknationalists forum, told RT in an interview.
However, Washington’s view differs, with many in the United States government seeing Pakistan as a willing recipient of US humanitarian aid and funding, but an uncooperative US partner in the region. In May, a US senate panel voted to cut aid to Pakistan if Islamabad did not re-open the NATO supply corridor in a frustrated attempt to resolve the months-long dispute.
"We're not going to be giving money to an ally that won't be an ally," Senator Lindsey Graham, the panel's top Republican, told reporters at the Senate vote.
However, there is division on how far Pakistani loyalty to US should extend, and the high cost that Pakistan is paying for allowing US aid.
“They want the Pakistanis to do the dirty work for us, and the Pakistanis have simply said ‘we supported you for 11 years, and we can’t do it anymore, you’re killing our stability.’ They have to stop the civil war in the country, they have to stop the war that’s going on in their own territory because of their helping the United States, so they have number of problems which I think amount to a mess, and they’re going to be left high and dry when we leave,” said SB Michael F. Scheuer, a former CIA intelligence officer.
“There is one mistake that we have committed we put all our eggs in the American basket,” Ahmed Quraishi continued. “And part of the deterioration of our strategic position of the past decade since 2001 is because of this fact, that we completely relied on the Americans…They’ve ditched us before as well, but we made this mistake, and we’re now trying to correct that mistake.”
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RT
June 28, 2012
3 in 4 Pakistanis now consider the US an “enemy”, resentment towards US grows
Approximately 3 in 4 Pakistanis now consider the US an enemy according to a new Pew research poll released on June 27th. The polls show increasing hostility towards the US and new lows in the already strained relationship between the two countries.
The Pew Research poll conducted by the Pew Global Attitudes Project has published stark numbers. The poll, entitled “Pakistani Public Opinion Ever More Critical of US”, says 74% of Pakistanis now view the US as an ‘enemy’ up from 69% last year, while support for President Barack Obama continues to be exceptionally low.
A majority of Pakistanis hold the view that Obama has been just as bad a president as George W. Bush was in his last year in office. Furthermore, approximately 4 in 10 Pakistanis believe that US military and financial aid is having a negative impact on their country; only 1 in 10 believes the impact has been positive.
Tensions have been extreme between the two countries due to unceasing US drone attacks inside Pakistani territory. Pakistan shut down a highly strategic NATO supply route through its territory into Afghanistan last November in response to a NATO air strike that killed 24 Pakistani troops on the Afghan border.
The US has argued that the air strikes are necessary to counter the insurgency movements in Afghanistan. However, resentment towards the tacit alliance with the US allowing the drone strikes has fueled a domestic insurgency in Pakistan, leading to broad outrage at the resulting loss of Pakistani life.
“Pakistan has lost somewhere between 5000 to 6000 soldiers and paramilitary soldiers, but more than that, we’ve lost more than 35,000 civilians, and these people died because of terrorist bombings,” Ahmed Quraishi, President of the Paknationalists forum, told RT in an interview.
However, Washington’s view differs, with many in the United States government seeing Pakistan as a willing recipient of US humanitarian aid and funding, but an uncooperative US partner in the region. In May, a US senate panel voted to cut aid to Pakistan if Islamabad did not re-open the NATO supply corridor in a frustrated attempt to resolve the months-long dispute.
"We're not going to be giving money to an ally that won't be an ally," Senator Lindsey Graham, the panel's top Republican, told reporters at the Senate vote.
However, there is division on how far Pakistani loyalty to US should extend, and the high cost that Pakistan is paying for allowing US aid.
“They want the Pakistanis to do the dirty work for us, and the Pakistanis have simply said ‘we supported you for 11 years, and we can’t do it anymore, you’re killing our stability.’ They have to stop the civil war in the country, they have to stop the war that’s going on in their own territory because of their helping the United States, so they have number of problems which I think amount to a mess, and they’re going to be left high and dry when we leave,” said SB Michael F. Scheuer, a former CIA intelligence officer.
“There is one mistake that we have committed we put all our eggs in the American basket,” Ahmed Quraishi continued. “And part of the deterioration of our strategic position of the past decade since 2001 is because of this fact, that we completely relied on the Americans…They’ve ditched us before as well, but we made this mistake, and we’re now trying to correct that mistake.”
============
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http://news.
Xinhua News Agency
June 28, 2012
Joint Philippine-US Naval Exercise to start next week
MANILA: A joint Philippine-U.
Philippine Navy Spokesman Col. Omar Tonsay said Thursday the exercise will be pursued under Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training or CARAT 2012. The nine-day exercise will start on Monday in General Santos City.
Tonsay said the U.S. is bringing in two Navy ships (USS Vandergrift and USNS Safeguard) and a Coast Guard vessel (USCG Waesche) with 350 Navy personnel and 150 Coast Guard personnel for the annual activity.
The Philippine Navy will dispatch four ships (BRPs Magat Salamat, Miguel Malvar, Salvador Abcede and Teotimo Figuracion) and 400 personnel for the training. The Philippine Coast Guard has dedicated one ship (BRP Pampanga) and 50 personnel.
The aircraft to be employed include a P3C Orion, and an SH60B helicopter from the US Navy while the Philippine Navy and the Philippine Coast Guard will be using an Islander plane and a BO- 105CB helicopter, respectively.
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Xinhua News Agency
June 28, 2012
Joint Philippine-US Naval Exercise to start next week
MANILA: A joint Philippine-U.
Philippine Navy Spokesman Col. Omar Tonsay said Thursday the exercise will be pursued under Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training or CARAT 2012. The nine-day exercise will start on Monday in General Santos City.
Tonsay said the U.S. is bringing in two Navy ships (USS Vandergrift and USNS Safeguard) and a Coast Guard vessel (USCG Waesche) with 350 Navy personnel and 150 Coast Guard personnel for the annual activity.
The Philippine Navy will dispatch four ships (BRPs Magat Salamat, Miguel Malvar, Salvador Abcede and Teotimo Figuracion) and 400 personnel for the training. The Philippine Coast Guard has dedicated one ship (BRP Pampanga) and 50 personnel.
The aircraft to be employed include a P3C Orion, and an SH60B helicopter from the US Navy while the Philippine Navy and the Philippine Coast Guard will be using an Islander plane and a BO- 105CB helicopter, respectively.
============
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http://www.interfax
Interfax-Military
June 28, 2012
NATO chief Rasmussen to visit Georgia this fall
TBILISI: NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen will visit Georgia this September, Georgian Deputy Prime Minister Giorgi Baramidze said at a briefing on Thursday after a meeting with NATO Deputy Secretary General Alexander Vershbow who is in Tbilisi on a visit.
"The upcoming visit by the NATO secretary general to Georgia and the visit by his deputy these days attest to the deepening of cooperation between Georgia and NATO," Baramidze said.
NATO supports Georgia's aspiration to integrate in the Euro-Atlantic structures, Vershbow said at the briefing. He also thanked Georgia for its participations in the operation in Afghanistan.
We confirm once again that Georgia will become a NATO member, the deputy secretary general said.
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Interfax-Military
June 28, 2012
NATO chief Rasmussen to visit Georgia this fall
TBILISI: NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen will visit Georgia this September, Georgian Deputy Prime Minister Giorgi Baramidze said at a briefing on Thursday after a meeting with NATO Deputy Secretary General Alexander Vershbow who is in Tbilisi on a visit.
"The upcoming visit by the NATO secretary general to Georgia and the visit by his deputy these days attest to the deepening of cooperation between Georgia and NATO," Baramidze said.
NATO supports Georgia's aspiration to integrate in the Euro-Atlantic structures, Vershbow said at the briefing. He also thanked Georgia for its participations in the operation in Afghanistan.
We confirm once again that Georgia will become a NATO member, the deputy secretary general said.
============
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http://english.
Voice of Russia
June 28, 2012
U.S. double standards crystal clear in Bahrain
John Robles
====
[W]here are the calls from the U.S. and NATO for a “humanitarian intervention” or for regime change in Bahrain, a U.S. ally that hosts the headquarters of the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet? Nowhere. However on May 9, 2012 Hillary Clinton met with Bahraini Crown Prince Salman Bin Hamad Al Khalifa and expressed that “much work remains to fully address ongoing human rights issues.” Where were statements like this in regard to Gadaffi or to Assad?
The entire Bahraini military, called the Bahraini Defense Force and numbering about 13,000, is equipped with U.S. hardware, everything from F-16s to Blackhawk helicopters, to Abrams tanks and even an Oliver Hazard Perry class frigate. But the relationship does not end there, Bahrain hosts the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, giving them a base in Juffair, and has signed a cooperation agreement with the U.S. military.
====
Even in today’s world of instant messaging, the Internet, mobile and satellite communications and worldwide mass media, there are still places that exist where events take place unbeknownst to the rest of the planet. There exist countries that do not want the world to know what is going on within their borders or there exist countries that try to control the flow of information coming out of areas where their activities are not within the boundaries of what the civilized world would find as acceptable or appropriate.
Serbia and Kosovo are places where such a media blackout exists and those are places where I believe need more attention from the international community. Another is Bahrain.
Officially called the Kingdom of Bahrain, the country is a small island nation situated in the western part of the Persian Gulf and has a population of about 1,234,571 according to a 2010 census. The country ranks 42nd on the Human Development Index, it is also a member of the UN, the WTO, the Arab League, the Organization of the Islamic Conference and the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf.
Bahrain was caught up in what has become known as the Arab Spring on February 14th 2011 when protestors took to the streets demanding more political freedom and an improvement in the human rights situation in the country. Originally there was no threat to the monarchy nor were there calls for a regime change in the country. This all changed however on February 17th when police killed four protestors while attempting to clear the Pearl Roundabout in Manama, the central gathering place for most of the protests taking place in the country.
Since then the response and the crackdowns on peaceful and unarmed demonstrators by police and security forces has been described as brutal. Almost 3,000 people have been arrested and more than 70 have been killed, according to the acting president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, Maryam Al-Khawaja, in an interview for the Voice of Russia ( http://english.
As with most of the Arab Spring countries there is an internal conflict between Shiite and Sunni Muslims. In Bahrain the majority of the population is comprised of Shiites although the Sunnis control most of the government sectors and politics. There are reports of widespread and institutionalized discrimination in employment, housing and other areas against the Shiites.
According to Ms. Al-Khawaja, there exists a media blackout in Bahrain. The most obvious and pervasive form being a system of filtering and blocking Internet sites that is implemented and executed by the Bahraini Information Affairs Authority (IAA) and which has a noticeable impact on the overall speed of Internet traffic for the country’s more than 250,000 Internet users. According to the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR) there are over 1,000 sites currently blocked in Bahrain including their own.
Bahrain has also seriously cracked down on bloggers and regularly arrests people for posting on Twitter and Facebook. Opposition groups views and opinions have no place in Bahraini media so they resort to the Internet. One such person, Nabeel Rajab, the president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (http://www.bahrainr
The situation in the country is getting worse, with many experts saying that the situation may soon explode. According Ms. Al-Khawaja, part of the daily routine for many Bahraini citizens involves being tear gassed and trying to save their children from suffocating.
Human rights organizations all over the world have called for a halt to dozens of widespread abuses in the Kingdom. Some of the most notable being the following: Human Rights Watch has called on Bahrain’s High Court of Appeal to reject the use of confessions possibly obtained by torture. The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint program of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organization Against Torture (OMCT), wrote an open letter to the King of Bahrain to state its concerns about the arbitrary detention of Nabeel Rajad.
Amnesty International has issued many statements, in particular with regard to the persecution of medical personnel who were attempting to assist injured protestors. Human Rights First says the persecution of human rights workers is getting worse. The Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies stated in a report: “The human rights situation in Bahrain in 2011 witnessed unprecedented deterioration at almost all levels, especially in light of the repressive retaliatory action aimed at crushing the popular uprising which demanded far-reaching democratic reforms.” And the list goes on.
So where are the calls from the U.S. and NATO for a “humanitarian intervention” or for regime change in Bahrain, a U.S. ally that hosts the headquarters of the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet? Nowhere. However on May 9, 2012 Hillary Clinton met with Bahraini Crown Prince Salman Bin Hamad Al Khalifa and expressed that “much work remains to fully address ongoing human rights issues.” Where were statements like in regard to to Gadaffi or to Assad?
So with all of these reports, what does the U.S. do? They sell arms to the Bahraini government. In February of this year 18 representatives and 3 Senators, all of them from the Democratic Party, wrote a letter of protest to Clinton who in turn, did nothing.
There have been widespread reports that the security forces are using military-grade tear gas on protestors and gassing homes, killing civilians.
But that is just one of the lesser pieces of equipment and weaponry that the U.S. is selling Bahrain. The entire Bahraini military, called the Bahraini Defense Force and numbering about 13,000, is equipped with U.S. hardware, everything from F-16s to Blackhawk helicopters, to Abrams tanks and even an Oliver Hazard Perry class frigate. But the relationship does not end there, Bahrain hosts the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, giving them a base in Juffair, and has signed a cooperation agreement with the U.S. military.
When speaking recently with regards to Syria, I think Russia’s plenipotentiary envoy for human rights affairs, Konstantin Dulgov, said it best: “Double standards in human rights are unacceptable and Russia and the majority of the international community reject that”.
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter also recently stated something worth repeating with regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “The U.S. government’s policies are now clearly violating at least 10 of the declaration’s 30 articles, including the prohibition against 'cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.'”
So there you go, another example of a double standard and complete hypocrisy from the only country in the world where its leader signs off on a daily kill list. Who shall we kill today?
============
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Stop NATO website and articles:
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============
Voice of Russia
June 28, 2012
U.S. double standards crystal clear in Bahrain
John Robles
====
[W]here are the calls from the U.S. and NATO for a “humanitarian intervention” or for regime change in Bahrain, a U.S. ally that hosts the headquarters of the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet? Nowhere. However on May 9, 2012 Hillary Clinton met with Bahraini Crown Prince Salman Bin Hamad Al Khalifa and expressed that “much work remains to fully address ongoing human rights issues.” Where were statements like this in regard to Gadaffi or to Assad?
The entire Bahraini military, called the Bahraini Defense Force and numbering about 13,000, is equipped with U.S. hardware, everything from F-16s to Blackhawk helicopters, to Abrams tanks and even an Oliver Hazard Perry class frigate. But the relationship does not end there, Bahrain hosts the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, giving them a base in Juffair, and has signed a cooperation agreement with the U.S. military.
====
Even in today’s world of instant messaging, the Internet, mobile and satellite communications and worldwide mass media, there are still places that exist where events take place unbeknownst to the rest of the planet. There exist countries that do not want the world to know what is going on within their borders or there exist countries that try to control the flow of information coming out of areas where their activities are not within the boundaries of what the civilized world would find as acceptable or appropriate.
Serbia and Kosovo are places where such a media blackout exists and those are places where I believe need more attention from the international community. Another is Bahrain.
Officially called the Kingdom of Bahrain, the country is a small island nation situated in the western part of the Persian Gulf and has a population of about 1,234,571 according to a 2010 census. The country ranks 42nd on the Human Development Index, it is also a member of the UN, the WTO, the Arab League, the Organization of the Islamic Conference and the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf.
Bahrain was caught up in what has become known as the Arab Spring on February 14th 2011 when protestors took to the streets demanding more political freedom and an improvement in the human rights situation in the country. Originally there was no threat to the monarchy nor were there calls for a regime change in the country. This all changed however on February 17th when police killed four protestors while attempting to clear the Pearl Roundabout in Manama, the central gathering place for most of the protests taking place in the country.
Since then the response and the crackdowns on peaceful and unarmed demonstrators by police and security forces has been described as brutal. Almost 3,000 people have been arrested and more than 70 have been killed, according to the acting president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights, Maryam Al-Khawaja, in an interview for the Voice of Russia ( http://english.
As with most of the Arab Spring countries there is an internal conflict between Shiite and Sunni Muslims. In Bahrain the majority of the population is comprised of Shiites although the Sunnis control most of the government sectors and politics. There are reports of widespread and institutionalized discrimination in employment, housing and other areas against the Shiites.
According to Ms. Al-Khawaja, there exists a media blackout in Bahrain. The most obvious and pervasive form being a system of filtering and blocking Internet sites that is implemented and executed by the Bahraini Information Affairs Authority (IAA) and which has a noticeable impact on the overall speed of Internet traffic for the country’s more than 250,000 Internet users. According to the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (BCHR) there are over 1,000 sites currently blocked in Bahrain including their own.
Bahrain has also seriously cracked down on bloggers and regularly arrests people for posting on Twitter and Facebook. Opposition groups views and opinions have no place in Bahraini media so they resort to the Internet. One such person, Nabeel Rajab, the president of the Bahrain Center for Human Rights (http://www.bahrainr
The situation in the country is getting worse, with many experts saying that the situation may soon explode. According Ms. Al-Khawaja, part of the daily routine for many Bahraini citizens involves being tear gassed and trying to save their children from suffocating.
Human rights organizations all over the world have called for a halt to dozens of widespread abuses in the Kingdom. Some of the most notable being the following: Human Rights Watch has called on Bahrain’s High Court of Appeal to reject the use of confessions possibly obtained by torture. The Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint program of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organization Against Torture (OMCT), wrote an open letter to the King of Bahrain to state its concerns about the arbitrary detention of Nabeel Rajad.
Amnesty International has issued many statements, in particular with regard to the persecution of medical personnel who were attempting to assist injured protestors. Human Rights First says the persecution of human rights workers is getting worse. The Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies stated in a report: “The human rights situation in Bahrain in 2011 witnessed unprecedented deterioration at almost all levels, especially in light of the repressive retaliatory action aimed at crushing the popular uprising which demanded far-reaching democratic reforms.” And the list goes on.
So where are the calls from the U.S. and NATO for a “humanitarian intervention” or for regime change in Bahrain, a U.S. ally that hosts the headquarters of the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet? Nowhere. However on May 9, 2012 Hillary Clinton met with Bahraini Crown Prince Salman Bin Hamad Al Khalifa and expressed that “much work remains to fully address ongoing human rights issues.” Where were statements like in regard to to Gadaffi or to Assad?
So with all of these reports, what does the U.S. do? They sell arms to the Bahraini government. In February of this year 18 representatives and 3 Senators, all of them from the Democratic Party, wrote a letter of protest to Clinton who in turn, did nothing.
There have been widespread reports that the security forces are using military-grade tear gas on protestors and gassing homes, killing civilians.
But that is just one of the lesser pieces of equipment and weaponry that the U.S. is selling Bahrain. The entire Bahraini military, called the Bahraini Defense Force and numbering about 13,000, is equipped with U.S. hardware, everything from F-16s to Blackhawk helicopters, to Abrams tanks and even an Oliver Hazard Perry class frigate. But the relationship does not end there, Bahrain hosts the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet, giving them a base in Juffair, and has signed a cooperation agreement with the U.S. military.
When speaking recently with regards to Syria, I think Russia’s plenipotentiary envoy for human rights affairs, Konstantin Dulgov, said it best: “Double standards in human rights are unacceptable and Russia and the majority of the international community reject that”.
Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter also recently stated something worth repeating with regard to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “The U.S. government’s policies are now clearly violating at least 10 of the declaration’s 30 articles, including the prohibition against 'cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.'”
So there you go, another example of a double standard and complete hypocrisy from the only country in the world where its leader signs off on a daily kill list. Who shall we kill today?
============
Stop NATO e-mail list home page with archives and search engine:
http://groups.
Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.
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============
http://www.globalre
Global Research
June 28, 2012
NATO Proxies Turkey and Saudi Arabia Move to War Footing on Eve of Syrian ‘Peace Summit’
By Finian Cunningham
The NATO-backed covert aggression against Syria could be reaching a tipping point for all-out war involving state forces. That should be no surprise. For the past 16 months, NATO and its regional proxies have been steadily increasing the violence and turmoil inside and outside Syria, while the Western corporate-controlle
Ironically, the crisis is culminating at the same time that the United Nations convenes an emergency summit on Syria in Geneva this weekend. The meeting, which is ostensibly aimed at “reviving the Kofi Annan peace plan”, will be attended by the five permanent members of the UN security council and other “invited” regional states. The irony is that leading NATO members, the US, Britain and France, as well as their Turkish and Arab allies who will also be attending the crisis conference, are the very parties that have deliberately created the precipice for all-out war in the Middle East.
As dignitaries fly into Geneva to “salvage peace in Syria”, there is a lockstep military build-up on the northern and southern flanks of Syria underway, with news that Turkey has dispatched battlefield tanks, missile batteries and heavy artillery to its Syrian border, while to the south Saudi Arabia has announced that its military forces have been put on a “state of high alert”.
Ankara’s military mobilization along its 800km land border with Syria came within hours of the declaration by Turkey’s prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan slating Syria as “a hostile state”. The immediate cause of the deterioration in relations between the neighbouring countries is the downing of a Turkish fighter jet last week in Syrian territorial waters. Syria claims it was acting in self-defence after the Phantom RF-4E warplane entered its airspace on Friday. Ankara has so far failed to give an explanation for why one of its warplanes was making such a provocative low-flying manoeuvre into Syrian airspace. But the Turkish government has announced that any move by Syrian armed forces towards its border will be viewed as another “hostile act” that it will respond to. How’s that for a provocative tether? Especially towards a country that is being attacked by armed groups crossing over its border with Turkey.
Meanwhile, on the same day that Turkey is militarizing along its border with Syria, Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah makes an unprecedented announcement putting his armed forces on high alert “due to the tense situation in the Middle East”. Using vague and contrived language, the Saudi ruler warned against “foreign or terrorist attacks” to justify the mobilization of the kingdom’s armed forces.
The military pincer movement against Syria tends to support the analysis that the downing of the Turkish fighter jet was a deliberate set-piece scenario designed to furnish a cause for war, or at least a stepping up of the international psy-ops campaign of intimidation against Syria.
It is notable that the circumstances surrounding the shooting down of the warplane have yet to be clarified. The Syrians seem to have firm grounds for acting in the way they did given the provocative conduct of the Turkish fighter jet. And there is an onus on the Ankara government to give some explanation for the unusual military manoeuvre, especially in the light of claims that the aircraft was on a reconnaissance mission on behalf of anti-Assad forces on the ground in Syria. Yet almost reflexively, before details have been established about the incident, Turkey has moved on to a war footing. Equally telling is that Saudi Arabia, a key ally of Ankara in opposition to Syria, has simultaneously moved also on to a war footing – without any substantive grounds for such a mobilization.
Some informed analysts have said that the Turkish-Saudi pincer on Syria is more aimed at intensifying the psy-ops pressure on Bashar Al Assad to cave in and relinquish power. Hisham Jaber, director of the Beirut-based Center for Middle East Studies, told Press TV that Ankara and Riyadh will balk at an all-out war with Syria because both are well aware that any such conflict will bring in Iran, Russia and China in support of their ally in Damascus.
Nonetheless, there is an ineluctable logic towards all-out war. Ever since the armed insurrection by foreign mercenaries was instigated in Syria’s southern town of Deraa in mid-March 2011, Turkey and Saudi Arabia have played key roles in fomenting the covert campaign of aggression to overthrow the Assad government – a campaign that is authored by leading NATO members, the US, Britain and France. The division of labour is such that Turkey has supplied land bases to organize the mercenaries from Libya, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and Iraq; while Saudi Arabia provides the money – up to $100 million – to buy weapons and pay wages for the soldiers of fortune; and ultimately it is Washington, London and Paris that are calling the tactical shots in the NATO war plan on Syria.
As several other commentators have pointed out, this war plan is aimed at asserting Western capitalist hegemony in the oil-rich Middle East and Central Asia regions. Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria are part of an overarching bid for “full-spectrum dominance” that will eventually target, overtly, Iran, Russia and China.
It is this crucial wider context of war-making by the waning capitalist powers that underscores the gravity of the military build-up inside and outside Syria. The dynamic for war has a compelling, nefarious logic – as the history of world wars testifies.
Which makes the Geneva “crisis conference” this weekend appear all the more ludicrous. In attendance are the US, Britain, France, Turkey and the Gulf Arab monarchical states of Kuwait and Qatar. All are professing to support a peaceful solution in Syria even though all the above are funnelling weapons, logistics and personnel to wage a brutal, terrorist assault on that country – an assault that has now led to the precipice of all-out regional war.
Also attending the UN conference are secretary general Ban Ki-moon and the UN/Arab League special envoy to Syria, Kofi Annan. The UN and the Arab League and these two figureheads in particular have shown themselves to be willing dupes to NATO’s war of aggression on Syria, and beyond, by indulging in the charade that the Western powers are “supporting peace” instead of denouncing them as “supporting war”. Significantly, the UN and Annan have not invited Iran to attend the conference as a result of US pressure. How provocative is that? Iran clearly has vital interests at stake given its proximity and geopolitical threats from the encroaching war on its Syrian ally.
The other ghost missing from the feast in Geneva this weekend is Saudi Arabia. The omission of Saudi Arabia should not be seen as some kind of consolation to Syrian and Iranian sensibilities, but rather as a way of shielding the House of Saud from embarrassment. Considering the incendiary role of Saudi Arabia in Syria, and possibly the region’s conflagration, the Saudi rulers should be summoned to a top seat at the “peace summit” – to face the most withering questions about their warmongering, criminal interference in a neighbouring state.
Then, using Nuremburg principles, prosecutors should proceed to arraign the rulers in Riyadh along with their accomplices in Washington, London, Paris and Ankara.
Finian Cunningham is Global Research’s Middle East and East Africa Correspondent
Global Research
June 28, 2012
NATO Proxies Turkey and Saudi Arabia Move to War Footing on Eve of Syrian ‘Peace Summit’
By Finian Cunningham
The NATO-backed covert aggression against Syria could be reaching a tipping point for all-out war involving state forces. That should be no surprise. For the past 16 months, NATO and its regional proxies have been steadily increasing the violence and turmoil inside and outside Syria, while the Western corporate-controlle
Ironically, the crisis is culminating at the same time that the United Nations convenes an emergency summit on Syria in Geneva this weekend. The meeting, which is ostensibly aimed at “reviving the Kofi Annan peace plan”, will be attended by the five permanent members of the UN security council and other “invited” regional states. The irony is that leading NATO members, the US, Britain and France, as well as their Turkish and Arab allies who will also be attending the crisis conference, are the very parties that have deliberately created the precipice for all-out war in the Middle East.
As dignitaries fly into Geneva to “salvage peace in Syria”, there is a lockstep military build-up on the northern and southern flanks of Syria underway, with news that Turkey has dispatched battlefield tanks, missile batteries and heavy artillery to its Syrian border, while to the south Saudi Arabia has announced that its military forces have been put on a “state of high alert”.
Ankara’s military mobilization along its 800km land border with Syria came within hours of the declaration by Turkey’s prime minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan slating Syria as “a hostile state”. The immediate cause of the deterioration in relations between the neighbouring countries is the downing of a Turkish fighter jet last week in Syrian territorial waters. Syria claims it was acting in self-defence after the Phantom RF-4E warplane entered its airspace on Friday. Ankara has so far failed to give an explanation for why one of its warplanes was making such a provocative low-flying manoeuvre into Syrian airspace. But the Turkish government has announced that any move by Syrian armed forces towards its border will be viewed as another “hostile act” that it will respond to. How’s that for a provocative tether? Especially towards a country that is being attacked by armed groups crossing over its border with Turkey.
Meanwhile, on the same day that Turkey is militarizing along its border with Syria, Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah makes an unprecedented announcement putting his armed forces on high alert “due to the tense situation in the Middle East”. Using vague and contrived language, the Saudi ruler warned against “foreign or terrorist attacks” to justify the mobilization of the kingdom’s armed forces.
The military pincer movement against Syria tends to support the analysis that the downing of the Turkish fighter jet was a deliberate set-piece scenario designed to furnish a cause for war, or at least a stepping up of the international psy-ops campaign of intimidation against Syria.
It is notable that the circumstances surrounding the shooting down of the warplane have yet to be clarified. The Syrians seem to have firm grounds for acting in the way they did given the provocative conduct of the Turkish fighter jet. And there is an onus on the Ankara government to give some explanation for the unusual military manoeuvre, especially in the light of claims that the aircraft was on a reconnaissance mission on behalf of anti-Assad forces on the ground in Syria. Yet almost reflexively, before details have been established about the incident, Turkey has moved on to a war footing. Equally telling is that Saudi Arabia, a key ally of Ankara in opposition to Syria, has simultaneously moved also on to a war footing – without any substantive grounds for such a mobilization.
Some informed analysts have said that the Turkish-Saudi pincer on Syria is more aimed at intensifying the psy-ops pressure on Bashar Al Assad to cave in and relinquish power. Hisham Jaber, director of the Beirut-based Center for Middle East Studies, told Press TV that Ankara and Riyadh will balk at an all-out war with Syria because both are well aware that any such conflict will bring in Iran, Russia and China in support of their ally in Damascus.
Nonetheless, there is an ineluctable logic towards all-out war. Ever since the armed insurrection by foreign mercenaries was instigated in Syria’s southern town of Deraa in mid-March 2011, Turkey and Saudi Arabia have played key roles in fomenting the covert campaign of aggression to overthrow the Assad government – a campaign that is authored by leading NATO members, the US, Britain and France. The division of labour is such that Turkey has supplied land bases to organize the mercenaries from Libya, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and Iraq; while Saudi Arabia provides the money – up to $100 million – to buy weapons and pay wages for the soldiers of fortune; and ultimately it is Washington, London and Paris that are calling the tactical shots in the NATO war plan on Syria.
As several other commentators have pointed out, this war plan is aimed at asserting Western capitalist hegemony in the oil-rich Middle East and Central Asia regions. Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Syria are part of an overarching bid for “full-spectrum dominance” that will eventually target, overtly, Iran, Russia and China.
It is this crucial wider context of war-making by the waning capitalist powers that underscores the gravity of the military build-up inside and outside Syria. The dynamic for war has a compelling, nefarious logic – as the history of world wars testifies.
Which makes the Geneva “crisis conference” this weekend appear all the more ludicrous. In attendance are the US, Britain, France, Turkey and the Gulf Arab monarchical states of Kuwait and Qatar. All are professing to support a peaceful solution in Syria even though all the above are funnelling weapons, logistics and personnel to wage a brutal, terrorist assault on that country – an assault that has now led to the precipice of all-out regional war.
Also attending the UN conference are secretary general Ban Ki-moon and the UN/Arab League special envoy to Syria, Kofi Annan. The UN and the Arab League and these two figureheads in particular have shown themselves to be willing dupes to NATO’s war of aggression on Syria, and beyond, by indulging in the charade that the Western powers are “supporting peace” instead of denouncing them as “supporting war”. Significantly, the UN and Annan have not invited Iran to attend the conference as a result of US pressure. How provocative is that? Iran clearly has vital interests at stake given its proximity and geopolitical threats from the encroaching war on its Syrian ally.
The other ghost missing from the feast in Geneva this weekend is Saudi Arabia. The omission of Saudi Arabia should not be seen as some kind of consolation to Syrian and Iranian sensibilities, but rather as a way of shielding the House of Saud from embarrassment. Considering the incendiary role of Saudi Arabia in Syria, and possibly the region’s conflagration, the Saudi rulers should be summoned to a top seat at the “peace summit” – to face the most withering questions about their warmongering, criminal interference in a neighbouring state.
Then, using Nuremburg principles, prosecutors should proceed to arraign the rulers in Riyadh along with their accomplices in Washington, London, Paris and Ankara.
Finian Cunningham is Global Research’s Middle East and East Africa Correspondent
