10 New Messages
Digest #4467
Messages
Mon Aug 20, 2012 5:55 am (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://english.
Voice of Russia
August 20, 2012
Who really wages the war in Syria?
Boris Volkhonsky
====
German spies, stationed on ships off the Syrian coast, are transmitting intelligence to the FSA to aid in their campaign against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.
Germany's Federal Intelligence Service (BND) agents use high-tech equipment enabling them to observe troop movements as far inland as 600 kilometers. Later, this information is passed to US and British intelligence officers who pass it on to FSA.
[I]n this war the West is siding with forces it has been so keen to fight since 2001. The Jabhat al-Nusra is not just one of the anti-Assad groups (who are, by definition, good guys), but a jihadist group suspected of affiliations to al-Qaeda.
====
As reported by the Sunday Times, British intelligence on Syrian troop movements is helping rebels launch successful attacks on regime forces. The newspaper quoted a Syrian opposition official who said that British authorities "know about and approve 100%" the intelligence from their Cyprus military bases being passed through Turkey to the rebel troops of the Free Syrian Army (FSA).
According to the official, the most valuable information has been on the movements of troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad towards the town of Aleppo. The information the rebels get from British intelligence through Turkey enabled them, among other things, to ambush troops and a column of more than 40 tanks in a valley near Saraqib. "We cut them off and destroyed many of them with repeat attacks with rocket-propelled grenades." said the official.
Also on Sunday, the German newspaper Bild also revealed that Germany is much more active in Syria than was previously believed. German spies, stationed on ships off the Syrian coast, are transmitting intelligence to the FSA to aid in their campaign against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.
Germany's Federal Intelligence Service (BND) agents use high-tech equipment enabling them to observe troop movements as far inland as 600 kilometers. Later, this information is passed to US and British intelligence officers who pass it on to FSA.
The German newspaper also quotes an unnamed US intelligence official as saying that "No Western intelligence service has such good sources inside Syria" as Germany's BND.
The information really has a twofold impact.
On the one hand, it obviously shows that the West is in fact totally ignoring the UN resolutions on Syria which exclude any outside interference. While starting open warfare would require a UN Security Council approval, the West is conducting clandestine operations and supplying arms to the rebels. How far are NATO countries from openly admitting that they already have both feet in the Syrian civil war still remains an open question.
But there remains another question that the NATO strategists are probably reluctant to face – let alone answer it. In the past one and a half year (or, probably even more) the West has spent a lot of resources on its attempts to picture the Syrian president as not just a bad guy, but likely the worst ever seen in the region.
That, by definition, would presuppose that the rebels fighting Bashar Assad are good guys. Otherwise it would be too difficult to sell to the public the fact that the West is supporting them.
But as events in Libya and other Arabic countries have shown, the forces triumphing after the oppressive regimes are toppled are far from even distantly resembling the ideals of "democracy" propagated by the West. In Syria, where sectarian differences are greater than anywhere in the Middle East (possibly excluding Lebanon), the task of finding real "good guys" seems even harder. While the West is obsessed with the idea of toppling Bashar Assad, it will continue to turn a blind eye to the fact. But once (and if) it succeeds, the outcome might be even more dreadful than whatever atrocities are now ascribed to the Syrian "dictator".
This fact is already beginning to dawn upon at least some members of the Western media community. On Monday, the Washington Post published a story about one of the groups within the Syrian opposition movement. The group, the al-Nusra Front for the Protection of the People of the Levant, popularly known as the Jabhat al-Nusra, is fielding scores of fighters, some of them foreigners, in the battle for Aleppo, and reportedly in other locations, too.
The fact that it recruits foreigners does not seem strange in the context of the above information on foreign aid to the rebels. Indeed, the war in Syria has ceased to be a civil war and is turning into a combined operation of outside forces.
But what is more important is the fact that in this war the West is siding with forces it has been so keen to fight since 2001. The Jabhat al-Nusra is not just one of the anti-Assad groups (who are, by definition, good guys), but a jihadist group suspected of affiliations to al-Qaeda. And, according to the Washington Post, it is gaining prominence in the war to topple the current regime in Syria.
So, the question that remains unanswered is the following – what will the US and its NATO allies do after they manage to topple Bashar al-Assad? And what if the virus of the anti-establishment militancy spreads to the countries the West would not like to be infected, like Saudi Arabia and its Gulf satellites. There is little reason to mourn the Saudi regime, but there may be reason to be wary of the forces that might replace it.
Boris Volkhonsky, senior research fellow, Russian Institute for Strategic Studies
============
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============
Voice of Russia
August 20, 2012
Who really wages the war in Syria?
Boris Volkhonsky
====
German spies, stationed on ships off the Syrian coast, are transmitting intelligence to the FSA to aid in their campaign against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.
Germany's Federal Intelligence Service (BND) agents use high-tech equipment enabling them to observe troop movements as far inland as 600 kilometers. Later, this information is passed to US and British intelligence officers who pass it on to FSA.
[I]n this war the West is siding with forces it has been so keen to fight since 2001. The Jabhat al-Nusra is not just one of the anti-Assad groups (who are, by definition, good guys), but a jihadist group suspected of affiliations to al-Qaeda.
====
As reported by the Sunday Times, British intelligence on Syrian troop movements is helping rebels launch successful attacks on regime forces. The newspaper quoted a Syrian opposition official who said that British authorities "know about and approve 100%" the intelligence from their Cyprus military bases being passed through Turkey to the rebel troops of the Free Syrian Army (FSA).
According to the official, the most valuable information has been on the movements of troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad towards the town of Aleppo. The information the rebels get from British intelligence through Turkey enabled them, among other things, to ambush troops and a column of more than 40 tanks in a valley near Saraqib. "We cut them off and destroyed many of them with repeat attacks with rocket-propelled grenades." said the official.
Also on Sunday, the German newspaper Bild also revealed that Germany is much more active in Syria than was previously believed. German spies, stationed on ships off the Syrian coast, are transmitting intelligence to the FSA to aid in their campaign against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.
Germany's Federal Intelligence Service (BND) agents use high-tech equipment enabling them to observe troop movements as far inland as 600 kilometers. Later, this information is passed to US and British intelligence officers who pass it on to FSA.
The German newspaper also quotes an unnamed US intelligence official as saying that "No Western intelligence service has such good sources inside Syria" as Germany's BND.
The information really has a twofold impact.
On the one hand, it obviously shows that the West is in fact totally ignoring the UN resolutions on Syria which exclude any outside interference. While starting open warfare would require a UN Security Council approval, the West is conducting clandestine operations and supplying arms to the rebels. How far are NATO countries from openly admitting that they already have both feet in the Syrian civil war still remains an open question.
But there remains another question that the NATO strategists are probably reluctant to face – let alone answer it. In the past one and a half year (or, probably even more) the West has spent a lot of resources on its attempts to picture the Syrian president as not just a bad guy, but likely the worst ever seen in the region.
That, by definition, would presuppose that the rebels fighting Bashar Assad are good guys. Otherwise it would be too difficult to sell to the public the fact that the West is supporting them.
But as events in Libya and other Arabic countries have shown, the forces triumphing after the oppressive regimes are toppled are far from even distantly resembling the ideals of "democracy" propagated by the West. In Syria, where sectarian differences are greater than anywhere in the Middle East (possibly excluding Lebanon), the task of finding real "good guys" seems even harder. While the West is obsessed with the idea of toppling Bashar Assad, it will continue to turn a blind eye to the fact. But once (and if) it succeeds, the outcome might be even more dreadful than whatever atrocities are now ascribed to the Syrian "dictator".
This fact is already beginning to dawn upon at least some members of the Western media community. On Monday, the Washington Post published a story about one of the groups within the Syrian opposition movement. The group, the al-Nusra Front for the Protection of the People of the Levant, popularly known as the Jabhat al-Nusra, is fielding scores of fighters, some of them foreigners, in the battle for Aleppo, and reportedly in other locations, too.
The fact that it recruits foreigners does not seem strange in the context of the above information on foreign aid to the rebels. Indeed, the war in Syria has ceased to be a civil war and is turning into a combined operation of outside forces.
But what is more important is the fact that in this war the West is siding with forces it has been so keen to fight since 2001. The Jabhat al-Nusra is not just one of the anti-Assad groups (who are, by definition, good guys), but a jihadist group suspected of affiliations to al-Qaeda. And, according to the Washington Post, it is gaining prominence in the war to topple the current regime in Syria.
So, the question that remains unanswered is the following – what will the US and its NATO allies do after they manage to topple Bashar al-Assad? And what if the virus of the anti-establishment militancy spreads to the countries the West would not like to be infected, like Saudi Arabia and its Gulf satellites. There is little reason to mourn the Saudi regime, but there may be reason to be wary of the forces that might replace it.
Boris Volkhonsky, senior research fellow, Russian Institute for Strategic Studies
============
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Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.
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============
Mon Aug 20, 2012 5:55 am (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://english.
Voice of Russia
August 17, 2012
Uncle Sam of the Middle East
Andrei Smirnov
====
[T]he US is slowly implementing its “big Middle East” strategy, Central Asia expert at the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies Azhdar Kurtov says.
"This development became clear already at the beginning of last year with the events in Egypt and Libya. It is not a secret that the US had long developed a plan for the transformation of the region under US patronage; and Americans have been acting in accordance with that plan."
The US “achievements” with that respect are Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and partially Syria.
====
Washington does not exclude the possibility of a military attack on Iran in order to force it to stop its nuclear program. Such was the statement of the US Under Secretary for Political Affairs who supported Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu in his positive views on active preventive measures against Teheran.
At the same time Wendy Sherman noted that a diplomatic solution to the problem is still possible. Experts are now figuring out whether a new war in the Persian Gulf will take place.
The exchange of threats between the US and Israel on one side and Iran on the other is an old story. However, in the past months, especially this week, the “dialogue” has become especially intense. At first Israeli Minister for Home Front Defense Matan Vilnai declared that his country was ready for a 30-day war with Teheran and was later supported by Prime Minister of Israel. Washington supported the Israeli position. In return, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that Israel should be “wiped off the face of the world”.
According to Israeli analyst Moshe Slav, the regional territory has become an arena for the big game. And Washington’s position in the game is not clear even to Tel Aviv.
The US position is indeed hard to understand. Right now Washington is playing the role of good old Uncle Sam who is trying to keep his overly active “cousin” from getting into a fight too soon. At the same time from a more global perspective it seems like the US is slowly implementing its “big Middle East” strategy, Central Asia expert at the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies Azhdar Kurtov says.
"This development became clear already at the beginning of last year with the events in Egypt and Libya. It is not a secret that the US had long developed a plan for the transformation of the region under US patronage; and Americans have been acting in accordance with that plan."
The US “achievements” with that respect are Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and partially Syria. But there is still hope that it won’t come to military action in Iran. If there are still any “cool heads” left in Washington, they should understand that war with Teheran would mean the beginning of military action all over the region, an expert at the Institute of Oriental Studies Boris Dolgov notes.
"This is a serious threat. But still, I think that this psychological war will not lead to a real one, because a real war in the region is dangerous both for Iran and Israel, and American bases. Iran would have Syria on its side as well as Hezbollah and a number of Shiite and Palestinian militant groups."
Washington’s “concerns” over Israel’s well-being are no more than bluff in this game. If the US really cares about the future of Israel they should better forget about their attempts to democratize the Arab world and admit that other countries have the right to exist even if they’re different from the US.
============
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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============
Voice of Russia
August 17, 2012
Uncle Sam of the Middle East
Andrei Smirnov
====
[T]he US is slowly implementing its “big Middle East” strategy, Central Asia expert at the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies Azhdar Kurtov says.
"This development became clear already at the beginning of last year with the events in Egypt and Libya. It is not a secret that the US had long developed a plan for the transformation of the region under US patronage; and Americans have been acting in accordance with that plan."
The US “achievements” with that respect are Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and partially Syria.
====
Washington does not exclude the possibility of a military attack on Iran in order to force it to stop its nuclear program. Such was the statement of the US Under Secretary for Political Affairs who supported Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu in his positive views on active preventive measures against Teheran.
At the same time Wendy Sherman noted that a diplomatic solution to the problem is still possible. Experts are now figuring out whether a new war in the Persian Gulf will take place.
The exchange of threats between the US and Israel on one side and Iran on the other is an old story. However, in the past months, especially this week, the “dialogue” has become especially intense. At first Israeli Minister for Home Front Defense Matan Vilnai declared that his country was ready for a 30-day war with Teheran and was later supported by Prime Minister of Israel. Washington supported the Israeli position. In return, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said that Israel should be “wiped off the face of the world”.
According to Israeli analyst Moshe Slav, the regional territory has become an arena for the big game. And Washington’s position in the game is not clear even to Tel Aviv.
The US position is indeed hard to understand. Right now Washington is playing the role of good old Uncle Sam who is trying to keep his overly active “cousin” from getting into a fight too soon. At the same time from a more global perspective it seems like the US is slowly implementing its “big Middle East” strategy, Central Asia expert at the Russian Institute for Strategic Studies Azhdar Kurtov says.
"This development became clear already at the beginning of last year with the events in Egypt and Libya. It is not a secret that the US had long developed a plan for the transformation of the region under US patronage; and Americans have been acting in accordance with that plan."
The US “achievements” with that respect are Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and partially Syria. But there is still hope that it won’t come to military action in Iran. If there are still any “cool heads” left in Washington, they should understand that war with Teheran would mean the beginning of military action all over the region, an expert at the Institute of Oriental Studies Boris Dolgov notes.
"This is a serious threat. But still, I think that this psychological war will not lead to a real one, because a real war in the region is dangerous both for Iran and Israel, and American bases. Iran would have Syria on its side as well as Hezbollah and a number of Shiite and Palestinian militant groups."
Washington’s “concerns” over Israel’s well-being are no more than bluff in this game. If the US really cares about the future of Israel they should better forget about their attempts to democratize the Arab world and admit that other countries have the right to exist even if they’re different from the US.
============
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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============
Mon Aug 20, 2012 6:05 am (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://news.
CNTV
August 20, 2012
Japan, U.S. to conduct joint drills near Diaoyu Islands
BEIJING: Japan and the U.S. have decided to intensify military and defense cooperation at a very sensitive time for the region. The decision was first reported on in the Japanese newspaper Sankei Shimbun. The news comes as relations between China and Japan have been severely strained due to the territory dispute over Diaoyu Islands.
According to the paper, Japan and the United States will undertake a joint military exercise in the western Pacific starting Tuesday, which will run through September 26th. Forty of Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force personnel will take part in the exercise with US Marines stationed in Okinawa. The troops will travel 2,000 kilometers on a US naval vessel to Tinian Island, off the coast of the Northern Marianas. They will use boats and helicopters in their joint landing drill.
Meanwhile, Japan’s Nikkei Weekly says the Japanese government plans to use unmanned scout planes to conduct the mission of monitoring the Chinese navy in the area.
The Diaoyu Islands have been Chinese territory since the Ming Dynasty, although they were occupied by Japan during the 1894 to 1895 Sino-Japanese war until its defeat at the end of World War Two.
But they were not returned to China, its rightful owner, and were wrongly assigned to the then U.S.-controlled Ryukyu zone under an illegal treaty signed between Tokyo and Washington in 1951. This treaty has never been recognized by the Chinese government.
============
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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============
CNTV
August 20, 2012
Japan, U.S. to conduct joint drills near Diaoyu Islands
BEIJING: Japan and the U.S. have decided to intensify military and defense cooperation at a very sensitive time for the region. The decision was first reported on in the Japanese newspaper Sankei Shimbun. The news comes as relations between China and Japan have been severely strained due to the territory dispute over Diaoyu Islands.
According to the paper, Japan and the United States will undertake a joint military exercise in the western Pacific starting Tuesday, which will run through September 26th. Forty of Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force personnel will take part in the exercise with US Marines stationed in Okinawa. The troops will travel 2,000 kilometers on a US naval vessel to Tinian Island, off the coast of the Northern Marianas. They will use boats and helicopters in their joint landing drill.
Meanwhile, Japan’s Nikkei Weekly says the Japanese government plans to use unmanned scout planes to conduct the mission of monitoring the Chinese navy in the area.
The Diaoyu Islands have been Chinese territory since the Ming Dynasty, although they were occupied by Japan during the 1894 to 1895 Sino-Japanese war until its defeat at the end of World War Two.
But they were not returned to China, its rightful owner, and were wrongly assigned to the then U.S.-controlled Ryukyu zone under an illegal treaty signed between Tokyo and Washington in 1951. This treaty has never been recognized by the Chinese government.
============
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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============
Mon Aug 20, 2012 6:05 am (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://blogs.
Voice of America
August 19, 2012
Insurgents Kill 4 NATO Troops, 2 Civilians in Afghanistan
Insurgents in Afghanistan have killed four NATO troops and two Afghan civilians in separate attacks, while a NATO airstrike killed dozens of Taliban militants in the country's east.
NATO said the three soldiers from New Zealand were killed Sunday in a bomb attack in eastern Afghanistan. It did not provide further details. In southern Afghanistan, a person wearing an Afghan police uniform shot and killed a NATO service member. NATO did not release the names of the victims.
...
NATO said it carried out an airstrike on Taliban militants engaging in hostile activity in the eastern province of Kunar on Saturday, killing dozens of heavily-armed fighters including a local Taliban leader. It said no civilians were harmed in the airstrike.
...
In a series of attacks this month, Afghan security personnel or gunmen disguised in security uniforms have attacked NATO troops, killing at least eight Americans.
...
============
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Stop NATO website and articles:
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============
Voice of America
August 19, 2012
Insurgents Kill 4 NATO Troops, 2 Civilians in Afghanistan
Insurgents in Afghanistan have killed four NATO troops and two Afghan civilians in separate attacks, while a NATO airstrike killed dozens of Taliban militants in the country's east.
NATO said the three soldiers from New Zealand were killed Sunday in a bomb attack in eastern Afghanistan. It did not provide further details. In southern Afghanistan, a person wearing an Afghan police uniform shot and killed a NATO service member. NATO did not release the names of the victims.
...
NATO said it carried out an airstrike on Taliban militants engaging in hostile activity in the eastern province of Kunar on Saturday, killing dozens of heavily-armed fighters including a local Taliban leader. It said no civilians were harmed in the airstrike.
...
In a series of attacks this month, Afghan security personnel or gunmen disguised in security uniforms have attacked NATO troops, killing at least eight Americans.
...
============
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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============
Mon Aug 20, 2012 8:53 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://rt.com/
RT
August 20, 2012
UK and German spies feed intelligence to Syrian rebels - reports
British and German spy intelligence on Syrian government troop movement has been shared with rebels to aid attacks on pro-Assad forces, UK and German newspapers revealed on Sunday.
An unnamed Syrian opposition official admitted that British intelligence is covertly aiding antigovernment forces in Syria, UK weekly newspaper the Sunday Times reported.
British authorities "know about and approve 100%" of intelligence from their Cyprus military bases being passed through Turkey to the troops of the rebel Free Syrian Army (FSA), the official said.
The UK owns two military bases on the island of Cyprus, one at Dhekelia and another at Akrotiri. The bases monitor regional airwaves and report to the GCHQ (Government Communications Headquarters)
"British intelligence is observing things closely from Cyprus. It's very useful because they find out a great deal," the official said. "The British are giving the information to the Turks and the Americans and we are getting it from the Turks."
According to the source, the most valuable intelligence has been about the movements of troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad towards the city of Aleppo, which has recently become the ground for fierce clashes between the government and the rebels.
"The British monitor communications about movements of the government army and we got information about reinforcements being on their way to Aleppo," the official told the newspaper. "We hit at the government troops in Idlib and Saraqib [southwest of Aleppo], with success."
The official claimed that early in August, FSA fighters were given advance warning of two large columns of government troops advancing on Aleppo. One was from Latakia on the Mediterranean coast, and the other from the capital Damascus.
"We ambushed troops and a column of more than 40 tanks in a valley near Saraqib," the official said. "We cut them off and destroyed many of them with repeat attacks with rocket-propelled grenades."
The German newspaper Bild also revealed on Sunday that Germany is much more active in Syria than was previously believed. German spies, stationed on ships off the Syrian coast, are transmitting intelligence to the FSA to aid in their campaign against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, Bild reported.
Agents from Germany's Federal Intelligence Service (BND) are equipped with high-tech spy technology, allowing them to observe troop movements as far inland as 600 kilometers (400 miles). The spies pass their findings onto US and British officers, who then pass the intelligence along to the FSA, Bild said.
The newspaper also claims that BND agents are currently operating at a NATO base in Adana, Turkey, where they eavesdrop on phone calls and radio traffic within Syria.
"No Western intelligence service has such good sources inside Syria" as Germany's BND, Bild quoted an unnamed US intelligence official as saying.
============
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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============
RT
August 20, 2012
UK and German spies feed intelligence to Syrian rebels - reports
British and German spy intelligence on Syrian government troop movement has been shared with rebels to aid attacks on pro-Assad forces, UK and German newspapers revealed on Sunday.
An unnamed Syrian opposition official admitted that British intelligence is covertly aiding antigovernment forces in Syria, UK weekly newspaper the Sunday Times reported.
British authorities "know about and approve 100%" of intelligence from their Cyprus military bases being passed through Turkey to the troops of the rebel Free Syrian Army (FSA), the official said.
The UK owns two military bases on the island of Cyprus, one at Dhekelia and another at Akrotiri. The bases monitor regional airwaves and report to the GCHQ (Government Communications Headquarters)
"British intelligence is observing things closely from Cyprus. It's very useful because they find out a great deal," the official said. "The British are giving the information to the Turks and the Americans and we are getting it from the Turks."
According to the source, the most valuable intelligence has been about the movements of troops loyal to President Bashar al-Assad towards the city of Aleppo, which has recently become the ground for fierce clashes between the government and the rebels.
"The British monitor communications about movements of the government army and we got information about reinforcements being on their way to Aleppo," the official told the newspaper. "We hit at the government troops in Idlib and Saraqib [southwest of Aleppo], with success."
The official claimed that early in August, FSA fighters were given advance warning of two large columns of government troops advancing on Aleppo. One was from Latakia on the Mediterranean coast, and the other from the capital Damascus.
"We ambushed troops and a column of more than 40 tanks in a valley near Saraqib," the official said. "We cut them off and destroyed many of them with repeat attacks with rocket-propelled grenades."
The German newspaper Bild also revealed on Sunday that Germany is much more active in Syria than was previously believed. German spies, stationed on ships off the Syrian coast, are transmitting intelligence to the FSA to aid in their campaign against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad, Bild reported.
Agents from Germany's Federal Intelligence Service (BND) are equipped with high-tech spy technology, allowing them to observe troop movements as far inland as 600 kilometers (400 miles). The spies pass their findings onto US and British officers, who then pass the intelligence along to the FSA, Bild said.
The newspaper also claims that BND agents are currently operating at a NATO base in Adana, Turkey, where they eavesdrop on phone calls and radio traffic within Syria.
"No Western intelligence service has such good sources inside Syria" as Germany's BND, Bild quoted an unnamed US intelligence official as saying.
============
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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============
Mon Aug 20, 2012 8:53 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://ckuwnews.
CKUW News
August 20, 2012
Scott Price: Warning Shot
Rick Rozoff: Hillary Clinton's trip to Africa and an update on Africom
Recorded on August 20, 2012
Recently U.S Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a trip through Africa. She visited Senegal, South Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, Malawi, and South Africa.
Rick Rozoff, manager of Stop NATO international, talks with Scott Price about the trip, what polices are connected to the visit and what roles these countries play in both African politics and the wider geo-political landscape.
Rick also talks about the need for a global alternative information collective.
============
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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============
CKUW News
August 20, 2012
Scott Price: Warning Shot
Rick Rozoff: Hillary Clinton's trip to Africa and an update on Africom
Recorded on August 20, 2012
Recently U.S Secretary of State Hillary Clinton made a trip through Africa. She visited Senegal, South Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, Malawi, and South Africa.
Rick Rozoff, manager of Stop NATO international, talks with Scott Price about the trip, what polices are connected to the visit and what roles these countries play in both African politics and the wider geo-political landscape.
Rick also talks about the need for a global alternative information collective.
============
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:
stopnato-subscribe@
============
Mon Aug 20, 2012 8:53 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.interfax
Interfax
August 20, 2012
Moscow cautions against smuggling arms into Syria
MOSCOW: Smuggling arms into Syria, particularly when elements linked to international terrorism are becoming more active there, is inadmissible, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on its website on Monday.
"Moscow has repeatedly pointed out that that arms smuggling into Syria is inadmissible. We have warned those who had such ideas of the consequences of such actions. This is particularly dangerous because elements linked to international terrorist and extremist networks are becoming more active in Syria," the statement says.
There have been reports both in Russian and foreign media of arms deliveries to the Syrian opposition via third countries, including Libya, Turkey and Lebanon, which are financed by a number of Persian Gulf countries.
A Swiss TV channel has recently shown Syrian opposition militants using hand grenades produced in Switzerland. They also use anti-tank grenade launchers and portable anti-aircraft systems that were reportedly brought from Libya, the ministry says.
According to the British Sunday Times newspaper, arms have been streaming into Syria through the Lebanese border as well.
"Earlier, we raised the issue of Libya at the UN Security Council's Committee on Sanctions, calling for an investigation into the Lutfulla-2 vessel carrying a batch of arms for Syrian rebels, which was intercepted by the Lebanese Navy in the territorial waters of Lebanon. There were several containers with small arms, grenade launchers identical to those used by rebels in Libya, and a large amount of explosives," the statement says.
------------
http://english.
Itar-Tass
August 20, 2012
Moscow declares inadmissibility of smuggling arms to Syria
Moscow has again declared the inadmissibility of arms smuggling to Syria. This is contained in a Russian Foreign Ministry comment on its website.
The diplomats note that recently the media has been citing instances when weapons are transferred to the Syrian opposition via the territory of Libya, Turkey and Lebanon.
"Recently Swiss television aired a feature on the Syrian opposition using hand grenades manufactured in Switzerland. There is also information about deliveries of anti-tank grenade launchers and portable air-defense units from Libyan territory to the rebels," said the Russian Foreign Ministry.
The diplomats stressed that the weapons are particularly dangerous when falling into the hands of Syrian militants linked to international terrorist and extremist networks.
============
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Interfax
August 20, 2012
Moscow cautions against smuggling arms into Syria
MOSCOW: Smuggling arms into Syria, particularly when elements linked to international terrorism are becoming more active there, is inadmissible, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on its website on Monday.
"Moscow has repeatedly pointed out that that arms smuggling into Syria is inadmissible. We have warned those who had such ideas of the consequences of such actions. This is particularly dangerous because elements linked to international terrorist and extremist networks are becoming more active in Syria," the statement says.
There have been reports both in Russian and foreign media of arms deliveries to the Syrian opposition via third countries, including Libya, Turkey and Lebanon, which are financed by a number of Persian Gulf countries.
A Swiss TV channel has recently shown Syrian opposition militants using hand grenades produced in Switzerland. They also use anti-tank grenade launchers and portable anti-aircraft systems that were reportedly brought from Libya, the ministry says.
According to the British Sunday Times newspaper, arms have been streaming into Syria through the Lebanese border as well.
"Earlier, we raised the issue of Libya at the UN Security Council's Committee on Sanctions, calling for an investigation into the Lutfulla-2 vessel carrying a batch of arms for Syrian rebels, which was intercepted by the Lebanese Navy in the territorial waters of Lebanon. There were several containers with small arms, grenade launchers identical to those used by rebels in Libya, and a large amount of explosives," the statement says.
------------
http://english.
Itar-Tass
August 20, 2012
Moscow declares inadmissibility of smuggling arms to Syria
Moscow has again declared the inadmissibility of arms smuggling to Syria. This is contained in a Russian Foreign Ministry comment on its website.
The diplomats note that recently the media has been citing instances when weapons are transferred to the Syrian opposition via the territory of Libya, Turkey and Lebanon.
"Recently Swiss television aired a feature on the Syrian opposition using hand grenades manufactured in Switzerland. There is also information about deliveries of anti-tank grenade launchers and portable air-defense units from Libyan territory to the rebels," said the Russian Foreign Ministry.
The diplomats stressed that the weapons are particularly dangerous when falling into the hands of Syrian militants linked to international terrorist and extremist networks.
============
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Stop NATO website and articles:
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Mon Aug 20, 2012 8:53 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://rt.com/
RT
August 21, 2012
Obama threatens to attack Syria
US President Barack Obama has a stern warning for the country of Syria. In an address made early Monday, the commander-in-
Speaking from the White House, President Obama said that if Syria is able to procure chemical or biological weapons, the United States will follow through with its threat of launching an attack.
Responding to a question about America’s current attitudes towards Assad, Obama said that the United States will not tolerate any efforts to allow Syria or any other countries to come into possession of weapons of mass destruction.
“We have been very clear to the Assad regime but also to other players on the ground that a red line for us is we start seeing a whole bunch of chemical weapons moving around or being utilized,” the president said. “That would change my equation...We’re monitoring that situation very carefully. We have put together a range of contingency plans.”
“We cannot have a situation in which chemical or biological weapons are falling into the hands of the wrong people,” Mr. Obama added. “We have put together a range of contingency plans. We have communicated in no uncertain terms with every player in the region that that’s a red line for us.”
Obama added to reporters that his warning doesn’t imply only to Syria, either, but that the United States could consider maneuver with or against any other country that is considering chemical warfare.
"It doesn't just include Syria. It would concern allies in the region, including Israel, and it would concern us,” President Obama said.
“At this point,” Mr. Obama said, “the likelihood of a soft landing seems pretty distant.”
Last month, Syrian Foreign Ministry spokesman Jihad Makdissi told reporters that his country will not use chemical weapons amid a months-long standoff with anti-Assad rebels. He did, however, admit that Syria has access to such warheads and could deploy them upon further developments.
"All of these types of weapons are in storage and under security and the direct supervision of the Syrian armed forces and will never be used unless Syria is exposed to external aggression," Makdissi said.
------------
http://english.
Itar-Tass
August 21, 2012
Obama voices conditions for U.S. invasion of Syria
The U.S. military could intervene in events in Syria, should there be a threat of use of chemical or biological weapons there. This was announced Monday by U.S. President Barack Obama at a news conference in Washington.
Obama stressed that for the present he has not issued any orders to that effect.
"However, if we see that chemical weapons are being transported somewhere, or used, then we will consider it as crossing the threshold," said the U.S. leader.
In his opinion, the use of weapons of mass destruction by Damascus could lead to the conflict spilling over to the rest of the region, including U.S. allies, such as Israel.
Earlier, Washington did not rule out the possibility of military intervention in the intra-Syrian conflict.
Russia is opposed to such a scenario. On Monday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov once again urged avoiding a "bomb democracy," reminding that use of force in Syria may be authorized only by the UN Security Council.
============
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RT
August 21, 2012
Obama threatens to attack Syria
US President Barack Obama has a stern warning for the country of Syria. In an address made early Monday, the commander-in-
Speaking from the White House, President Obama said that if Syria is able to procure chemical or biological weapons, the United States will follow through with its threat of launching an attack.
Responding to a question about America’s current attitudes towards Assad, Obama said that the United States will not tolerate any efforts to allow Syria or any other countries to come into possession of weapons of mass destruction.
“We have been very clear to the Assad regime but also to other players on the ground that a red line for us is we start seeing a whole bunch of chemical weapons moving around or being utilized,” the president said. “That would change my equation...We’re monitoring that situation very carefully. We have put together a range of contingency plans.”
“We cannot have a situation in which chemical or biological weapons are falling into the hands of the wrong people,” Mr. Obama added. “We have put together a range of contingency plans. We have communicated in no uncertain terms with every player in the region that that’s a red line for us.”
Obama added to reporters that his warning doesn’t imply only to Syria, either, but that the United States could consider maneuver with or against any other country that is considering chemical warfare.
"It doesn't just include Syria. It would concern allies in the region, including Israel, and it would concern us,” President Obama said.
“At this point,” Mr. Obama said, “the likelihood of a soft landing seems pretty distant.”
Last month, Syrian Foreign Ministry spokesman Jihad Makdissi told reporters that his country will not use chemical weapons amid a months-long standoff with anti-Assad rebels. He did, however, admit that Syria has access to such warheads and could deploy them upon further developments.
"All of these types of weapons are in storage and under security and the direct supervision of the Syrian armed forces and will never be used unless Syria is exposed to external aggression," Makdissi said.
------------
http://english.
Itar-Tass
August 21, 2012
Obama voices conditions for U.S. invasion of Syria
The U.S. military could intervene in events in Syria, should there be a threat of use of chemical or biological weapons there. This was announced Monday by U.S. President Barack Obama at a news conference in Washington.
Obama stressed that for the present he has not issued any orders to that effect.
"However, if we see that chemical weapons are being transported somewhere, or used, then we will consider it as crossing the threshold," said the U.S. leader.
In his opinion, the use of weapons of mass destruction by Damascus could lead to the conflict spilling over to the rest of the region, including U.S. allies, such as Israel.
Earlier, Washington did not rule out the possibility of military intervention in the intra-Syrian conflict.
Russia is opposed to such a scenario. On Monday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov once again urged avoiding a "bomb democracy," reminding that use of force in Syria may be authorized only by the UN Security Council.
============
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http://groups.
Stop NATO website and articles:
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Mon Aug 20, 2012 9:15 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.southern
Southern Times
August 20, 2012
US Military Comes to SADC
Mpho Tebele
Gaborone: There are fresh reports that Botswana is inching closer to hosting the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM).
This follows more than two weeks of joint military exercises by troops from the two countries in Botswana. A few months prior to this, another joint military exercise was held in Botswana.
AFRICOM Commander, General Carter F. Ham, was scheduled to visit Botswana on August 15 and 16 to close off the military exercises and hold talks with security chiefs in that country.
Despite both Botswana and the US denying an agreement on hosting of AFRICOM is nigh, analysts say Gaborone has not done enough to dispel these fears.
And in their denials, senior Botswana Defence Ministry officials said whether or not the country will host AFRICOM is a matter to talk about on “another day”.
Both SADC and the African Union have made it clear that they do not want a permanent US military base on the continent.
But there have long been suspicions that Botswana and Liberia are amenable to hosting the unit.
AFRICOM is presently domiciled in Stuttgart, Germany, but is actively seeking a base in Africa. A military advisor told the US Congress last year that AFRICOM would get its African home in 2012.
Africa is the only continent in the world that remains without permanent US military presence, though several bases with American troops are dotted across various regions.
Botswana’s hosting AFRICOM would directly suck SADC into the orbit of Pentagon and NATO military adventures, while indirectly affecting the rest of Africa.
According to AFRICOM’s website, “The Botswana Defence Force and the US Embassy announced that Botswana will host a joint military exercise known as Southern Accord 12, August 1-17, 2012.
“Joint exercise activities conducted during Southern Accord 12 will enhance the capabilities of military personnel for both countries in a variety of areas, including humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, anti-poaching, peacekeeping, and convoy operations, as well as aero-medical evacuation.”
AFRICOM’s website also features an article on another US-led military exercise, Eastern Piper 12.
In that exercise, elite Green Berets from the 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne) trained with the Botswana Defence Forces Special Forces on "marksmanship, close quarter battle, medical and tracking training in an effort to strengthen US and BDFSF relationships and to promote and support Special Operations Capabilities”.
Eastern Piper 12 was conducted by AFRICOM and Special Operations Command, Africa for three weeks at Thebepatswa Air Base in Gaborone, Botswana.
This was the site of Exercise Southern Accord, which ran from August 1 to 17.
“With more than 187,000 soldiers based in nearly 160 countries, the US Army presence around the globe points to its commitment to strengthening relationships and assisting with building military capacity in partner nations,” AFRICOM said.
Major-Gen David Hogg of the US Army said afterwards that America would soon begin regular deployment of a brigade of 3,000 or more troops to Africa.
The unit is the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, which “will be the main force provider for security co-operation and partnership-
Fears are that this unit will form the core of AFRICOM and will be stationed in Botswana.
Gen Ham was expected in Botswana on August 16 to close Exercise Southern Accord and unconfirmed reports had it that talks would be held on the possibility of that country hosting AFRICOM.
Weak Denials
Efforts to get a comment on the record from both the Botswana military and the Foreign Affairs Ministry were fruitless at the time of writing (August 16).
However, an official in the Foreign Affairs Ministry said, “I know of no such thing. But I can’t comment. Our superiors are in Mozambique (for the SADC Summit).”
Minister of Defence, Justice and Security, Ramadeluka Seretse denied that Southern Accord was a step closer to hosting AFRCIOM.
But when pressed for more details as to how Botswana will respond to formal US request to host AFRICOM, he ominously said: “That is a decision for another day.”
In a terse note, the Embassy in Gaborone responded to the speculation saying: “Reports that there are plans by AFRICOM to establish a military base in Botswana are wrong. No plans exist for establishing a military base in Botswana.”
That has done little to calm the fears.
In 2007, Botswana’s then President, Festus Mogae, said it had not taken a final position on the matter "because we don't know what the animal (AFRICOM) will look like".
Prior to that, according to leaked diplomatic cables from the US Embassy in Gaborone, Botswana gave Washington the green light to explore the possibility of establishing an AFRICOM base on its territory.
A cable sent by America’s Ambassador in Botswana, Katherine Canavan, to the US Secretary of State in Washington in October 2007, shows senior embassy officials met then Vice President Mompati Merafhe to discuss the matter.
Canavan said Botswana and other unidentified African countries were being considered for hosting elements of AFRICOM.
“Recalling the earlier receptivity towards the AFRICOM concept, the ambassador sought to confirm Botswana’s current sentiments and whether the country would be willing to receive a technical assessment team in the near future,” the cable said. It said Merafhe “appeared genuinely interested” and wanted to know how many American troops would be based in Botswana. Five days later, according to the cables, Merafhe said Botswana was not averse to the idea of hosting AFRICOM and that Mogae was “favourably disposed”.
Backlash
The response from the region has been swift.
Officiating at the opposition Botswana National Front’s 45th anniversary in Mochudi on August 11, the deputy secretary-general of South Africa’s ruling ANC, Thandi Modise, said it was disappointing to learn that some countries were planning to host the American military.
Modise said some “leaders want to host people who want to hurt us. They think as long as they can get funding from these Western people they are fine. But I can tell you that we are not happy at all".
Modise, who is also the North West Provincial Premier, called for greater unity in the SADC, asking why integration was so slow and yet imperialists had left the region long ago.
Former ANC Youth League president Julius Malema also accused Botswana of pandering to the interests of the West, in particular the US.
Political analyst Honourable Saka, in a blogpost this past week, said Africa should resist all attempts to establish foreign military bases on continental soil.
“...they are not in Africa to protect the continent’s interests, they are on African soil to facilitate the exploitation of our resources for the benefit of the tiny minority that controls the wealth of the American people and who are sitting on top of this world.”
He added: “I am appealing to the governments f the Southern African Development Community (SADC)...These countries all have a collective responsibility to act in order to defend the future of their children and Africans as a whole.”
He said African leaders “must show some responsibility and put our security into our own hands; not into the hands of those who seek military adventurism as a means to exert political pressure on Africans in order to loot our natural resources on a much larger scale. Unity is what we need; not military adventures”.
============
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http://groups.
Stop NATO website and articles:
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============
Southern Times
August 20, 2012
US Military Comes to SADC
Mpho Tebele
Gaborone: There are fresh reports that Botswana is inching closer to hosting the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM).
This follows more than two weeks of joint military exercises by troops from the two countries in Botswana. A few months prior to this, another joint military exercise was held in Botswana.
AFRICOM Commander, General Carter F. Ham, was scheduled to visit Botswana on August 15 and 16 to close off the military exercises and hold talks with security chiefs in that country.
Despite both Botswana and the US denying an agreement on hosting of AFRICOM is nigh, analysts say Gaborone has not done enough to dispel these fears.
And in their denials, senior Botswana Defence Ministry officials said whether or not the country will host AFRICOM is a matter to talk about on “another day”.
Both SADC and the African Union have made it clear that they do not want a permanent US military base on the continent.
But there have long been suspicions that Botswana and Liberia are amenable to hosting the unit.
AFRICOM is presently domiciled in Stuttgart, Germany, but is actively seeking a base in Africa. A military advisor told the US Congress last year that AFRICOM would get its African home in 2012.
Africa is the only continent in the world that remains without permanent US military presence, though several bases with American troops are dotted across various regions.
Botswana’s hosting AFRICOM would directly suck SADC into the orbit of Pentagon and NATO military adventures, while indirectly affecting the rest of Africa.
According to AFRICOM’s website, “The Botswana Defence Force and the US Embassy announced that Botswana will host a joint military exercise known as Southern Accord 12, August 1-17, 2012.
“Joint exercise activities conducted during Southern Accord 12 will enhance the capabilities of military personnel for both countries in a variety of areas, including humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, anti-poaching, peacekeeping, and convoy operations, as well as aero-medical evacuation.”
AFRICOM’s website also features an article on another US-led military exercise, Eastern Piper 12.
In that exercise, elite Green Berets from the 10th Special Forces Group (Airborne) trained with the Botswana Defence Forces Special Forces on "marksmanship, close quarter battle, medical and tracking training in an effort to strengthen US and BDFSF relationships and to promote and support Special Operations Capabilities”.
Eastern Piper 12 was conducted by AFRICOM and Special Operations Command, Africa for three weeks at Thebepatswa Air Base in Gaborone, Botswana.
This was the site of Exercise Southern Accord, which ran from August 1 to 17.
“With more than 187,000 soldiers based in nearly 160 countries, the US Army presence around the globe points to its commitment to strengthening relationships and assisting with building military capacity in partner nations,” AFRICOM said.
Major-Gen David Hogg of the US Army said afterwards that America would soon begin regular deployment of a brigade of 3,000 or more troops to Africa.
The unit is the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division, which “will be the main force provider for security co-operation and partnership-
Fears are that this unit will form the core of AFRICOM and will be stationed in Botswana.
Gen Ham was expected in Botswana on August 16 to close Exercise Southern Accord and unconfirmed reports had it that talks would be held on the possibility of that country hosting AFRICOM.
Weak Denials
Efforts to get a comment on the record from both the Botswana military and the Foreign Affairs Ministry were fruitless at the time of writing (August 16).
However, an official in the Foreign Affairs Ministry said, “I know of no such thing. But I can’t comment. Our superiors are in Mozambique (for the SADC Summit).”
Minister of Defence, Justice and Security, Ramadeluka Seretse denied that Southern Accord was a step closer to hosting AFRCIOM.
But when pressed for more details as to how Botswana will respond to formal US request to host AFRICOM, he ominously said: “That is a decision for another day.”
In a terse note, the Embassy in Gaborone responded to the speculation saying: “Reports that there are plans by AFRICOM to establish a military base in Botswana are wrong. No plans exist for establishing a military base in Botswana.”
That has done little to calm the fears.
In 2007, Botswana’s then President, Festus Mogae, said it had not taken a final position on the matter "because we don't know what the animal (AFRICOM) will look like".
Prior to that, according to leaked diplomatic cables from the US Embassy in Gaborone, Botswana gave Washington the green light to explore the possibility of establishing an AFRICOM base on its territory.
A cable sent by America’s Ambassador in Botswana, Katherine Canavan, to the US Secretary of State in Washington in October 2007, shows senior embassy officials met then Vice President Mompati Merafhe to discuss the matter.
Canavan said Botswana and other unidentified African countries were being considered for hosting elements of AFRICOM.
“Recalling the earlier receptivity towards the AFRICOM concept, the ambassador sought to confirm Botswana’s current sentiments and whether the country would be willing to receive a technical assessment team in the near future,” the cable said. It said Merafhe “appeared genuinely interested” and wanted to know how many American troops would be based in Botswana. Five days later, according to the cables, Merafhe said Botswana was not averse to the idea of hosting AFRICOM and that Mogae was “favourably disposed”.
Backlash
The response from the region has been swift.
Officiating at the opposition Botswana National Front’s 45th anniversary in Mochudi on August 11, the deputy secretary-general of South Africa’s ruling ANC, Thandi Modise, said it was disappointing to learn that some countries were planning to host the American military.
Modise said some “leaders want to host people who want to hurt us. They think as long as they can get funding from these Western people they are fine. But I can tell you that we are not happy at all".
Modise, who is also the North West Provincial Premier, called for greater unity in the SADC, asking why integration was so slow and yet imperialists had left the region long ago.
Former ANC Youth League president Julius Malema also accused Botswana of pandering to the interests of the West, in particular the US.
Political analyst Honourable Saka, in a blogpost this past week, said Africa should resist all attempts to establish foreign military bases on continental soil.
“...they are not in Africa to protect the continent’s interests, they are on African soil to facilitate the exploitation of our resources for the benefit of the tiny minority that controls the wealth of the American people and who are sitting on top of this world.”
He added: “I am appealing to the governments f the Southern African Development Community (SADC)...These countries all have a collective responsibility to act in order to defend the future of their children and Africans as a whole.”
He said African leaders “must show some responsibility and put our security into our own hands; not into the hands of those who seek military adventurism as a means to exert political pressure on Africans in order to loot our natural resources on a much larger scale. Unity is what we need; not military adventures”.
============
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http://groups.
Stop NATO website and articles:
http://rickrozoff.
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============
Mon Aug 20, 2012 9:30 pm (PDT) . Posted by:
"Rick Rozoff" rwrozoff
http://www.strategi
Strategic Culture Foundation
August 21, 2012
"International" Missions Patronize Apartheid in Kosovo
Alexander Mezyaev
====
Speaking of the security climate in the province, discrimination and violent outbreaks in Kosovo come with apartheid as a predictable part of the package. In line with what has already grown into a tradition, Albanians serially organize provocations on the days of Serbian holidays.
The credibility of international courts, on the other hand, is also dubious – former Kosovo Liberation Army commander Fatmir Limaj, for example, is known to have committed mass atrocities against Serbs in the Lipjan concentration camp and elsewhere but easily got off the hook in the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, as, by the way, did former “Kosovo premier” Ramush Haradinaj.
====
The situation in Serbia's breakaway autonomy, Kosovo and Metohija, increasingly drifts towards apartheid. Incidents in which locals Serbs, including children, are targeted or Orthodox churches, monasteries, and cemeteries are vandalized recur across the province, as the administration evidently attempts to squeeze out the UN mission and to establish itself as the absolute authority.
That will largely become reality with the upcoming closure of the so-called International Civilian Office set up to oversee the implementation of Ahtisaari's “comprehensive” plan: at the moment, Pristina is compiling a package of “legislative” reforms to strip the international bodies in Kosovo of any executive powers.
On July 2, the International Steering Group, a joint venture between the 25 [Western] countries recognizing Kosovo independence, announced that the mandate of the International Civilian Office would be recalled by the end of 2012, and the Financial Intelligence Center hastily passed its functions to the Kosovo administration on June 15. It is clear that the dismantling of the system of international oversight in Kosovo is on the horizon.
In the meantime, Pristina successfully wrestles with Belgrade. Serbia had to put talks with the Kosovars on hold while the electoral campaign in the country unfolded and the resulting government was in the formative phase, but the deals sealed before the break were fairly deep and in many regards left an impression that Kosovo was already treated as a stand-alone country.
One of the accords, for example, enabled residents from either side to cross into the other based on locally issued IDs. Technical details pertinent to heightened vehicle insurance tariffs which are being charged at the border are still on the table, but the problem is in principle resolved.
In a move that outraged the resident Serbs, the Kosovo administration went so far as to outlaw, starting in July, the use of Serbian-issued license plates in the province – seen against the background, the spat over labeling the desks for the Kosovo delegation at the talks appeared to be a ridiculous form of lip service to public opinion in Serbia.
As of today, the official title of the Kosovo delegation is set to Kosovo, the asterisk indicating that the term does not reflect the positions on Kosovo status and should agree with UN Security Council Resolution 1244 and the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice on the Kosovo independence.
The reference, actually, is misread in the context, considering that UN Security Council Resolution 1244 reaffirmed the territorial integrity of Kosovo, and the Court's advisory opinion was limited to saying that proclaiming independence was not necessarily illicit. Worst of all, Belgrade deals with the separatist-run Kosovo as with a de facto independent country by allowing the insertion of formal issues into the talks' agenda. The current list of themes – free movement of people and goods plus joint maintenance of checkpoints - is clearly out of range if Serbia is serious about its sovereignty over Kosovo, and the involvement of the Serbian foreign ministry in the talks is completely inappropriate.
Speaking of the security climate in the province, discrimination and violent outbreaks in Kosovo come with apartheid as a predictable part of the package. In line with what has already grown into a tradition, Albanians serially organize provocations on the days of Serbian holidays. On Vidovdan, tens of Serbs reportedly started a “confrontation” with the Kosovo police at a border checkpoint in Merdare, hurling stones and trying to bring down a poster saying “The Border of Kosovo”.
The UN Secretary-General'
In another incident which took place off the main expressway in Pristina, Albanians threw stones and Molotov cocktails at several buses carrying children from Gazimetsan to their home in Gračanica, injuring 16 children who had to be hospitalized. The response of the Kosovo police which admitted to certain deficiencies in its operative plans was a parody but earned it accolades from the UN Secretary-General.
On top of mistreating the Kosovo Serbs, the administration of the province shows undisguised disrespect for the EU countries rejecting its independence claim. The five EU countries – Slovakia, Spain, Cyprus, Greece, and Romania – had to request legal assistance from EULEX, but at all times Europe's foreign-policy creed tends to be centered around some sort of appeasement. On June 14, the European Commissioner responsible for Home Affairs, Cecilia Malmström, handed over to the Kosovo authorities the roadmap to the liberalization of the visa regime, and on June 27 the European University Association churned out stamps of approval for the first pile of transcripts awarded by Kosovo learning institutions.
Some advancements did materialize in the investigation into human organs trafficking in Kosovo. The Pristina district court is to hear EU Council special rapporteur Dick Marty, who will testify in the notorious Medicus clinic case on September 3. Seven individuals face trial in its framework, some of them over the trafficking as such, others – however weird that may sound - over unauthorized medical activities and service abuses.
A person linked to the case was arrested in Israel last May with Interpol's taking part. The conclusion inescapable from the outset is that the case should not have been fed to the Kosovo judicial system whose credentials are below criticism even if EULEX judges are added to the panel to save face.
On May 2, a mixed Pristina jury comprised of a local judge and two dispatched by EULEX acquitted Fatmir Limaj, Naser Krasniqi, Nexhmi Krasniqi, and Naser Shala of war crimes in the Klecka case, in which six others had been similarly cleared of charges earlier on.
The credibility of international courts, on the other hand, is also dubious – former Kosovo Liberation Army commander Fatmir Limaj, for example, is known to have committed mass atrocities against Serbs in the Lipjan concentration camp and elsewhere but easily got off the hook in the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, as, by the way, did former “Kosovo premier” Ramush Haradinaj.
In a couple of weeks, the UN Security Council will convene to discuss the reports of the UN Secretary-General and the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs on the international missions in Kosovo. Hopefully, they will be asked to explain with utmost clarity what punishments await those guilty of mass crimes in the province, especially the attacks on Serb children, and what progress had been achieved in the inquiry into the human organs trafficking.
It is imperative that the reports meet with the ruthless assessment which they deserve – it must be stated that the missions do not comply with their obligations as their mandates require them to and that convincing steps are overdue to remedy the situation. This is what the UN Security Council is under an obligation to accomplish given Resolution 1244, which asserts the territorial integrity of Serbia. Moreover, the UN Security Council should do whatever it takes to bulldoze the apartheid regime built by the Albanian “administration” in Kosovo and Metohija, which is Serbia's autonomous province.
Strategic Culture Foundation
August 21, 2012
"International" Missions Patronize Apartheid in Kosovo
Alexander Mezyaev
====
Speaking of the security climate in the province, discrimination and violent outbreaks in Kosovo come with apartheid as a predictable part of the package. In line with what has already grown into a tradition, Albanians serially organize provocations on the days of Serbian holidays.
The credibility of international courts, on the other hand, is also dubious – former Kosovo Liberation Army commander Fatmir Limaj, for example, is known to have committed mass atrocities against Serbs in the Lipjan concentration camp and elsewhere but easily got off the hook in the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, as, by the way, did former “Kosovo premier” Ramush Haradinaj.
====
The situation in Serbia's breakaway autonomy, Kosovo and Metohija, increasingly drifts towards apartheid. Incidents in which locals Serbs, including children, are targeted or Orthodox churches, monasteries, and cemeteries are vandalized recur across the province, as the administration evidently attempts to squeeze out the UN mission and to establish itself as the absolute authority.
That will largely become reality with the upcoming closure of the so-called International Civilian Office set up to oversee the implementation of Ahtisaari's “comprehensive” plan: at the moment, Pristina is compiling a package of “legislative” reforms to strip the international bodies in Kosovo of any executive powers.
On July 2, the International Steering Group, a joint venture between the 25 [Western] countries recognizing Kosovo independence, announced that the mandate of the International Civilian Office would be recalled by the end of 2012, and the Financial Intelligence Center hastily passed its functions to the Kosovo administration on June 15. It is clear that the dismantling of the system of international oversight in Kosovo is on the horizon.
In the meantime, Pristina successfully wrestles with Belgrade. Serbia had to put talks with the Kosovars on hold while the electoral campaign in the country unfolded and the resulting government was in the formative phase, but the deals sealed before the break were fairly deep and in many regards left an impression that Kosovo was already treated as a stand-alone country.
One of the accords, for example, enabled residents from either side to cross into the other based on locally issued IDs. Technical details pertinent to heightened vehicle insurance tariffs which are being charged at the border are still on the table, but the problem is in principle resolved.
In a move that outraged the resident Serbs, the Kosovo administration went so far as to outlaw, starting in July, the use of Serbian-issued license plates in the province – seen against the background, the spat over labeling the desks for the Kosovo delegation at the talks appeared to be a ridiculous form of lip service to public opinion in Serbia.
As of today, the official title of the Kosovo delegation is set to Kosovo, the asterisk indicating that the term does not reflect the positions on Kosovo status and should agree with UN Security Council Resolution 1244 and the advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice on the Kosovo independence.
The reference, actually, is misread in the context, considering that UN Security Council Resolution 1244 reaffirmed the territorial integrity of Kosovo, and the Court's advisory opinion was limited to saying that proclaiming independence was not necessarily illicit. Worst of all, Belgrade deals with the separatist-run Kosovo as with a de facto independent country by allowing the insertion of formal issues into the talks' agenda. The current list of themes – free movement of people and goods plus joint maintenance of checkpoints - is clearly out of range if Serbia is serious about its sovereignty over Kosovo, and the involvement of the Serbian foreign ministry in the talks is completely inappropriate.
Speaking of the security climate in the province, discrimination and violent outbreaks in Kosovo come with apartheid as a predictable part of the package. In line with what has already grown into a tradition, Albanians serially organize provocations on the days of Serbian holidays. On Vidovdan, tens of Serbs reportedly started a “confrontation” with the Kosovo police at a border checkpoint in Merdare, hurling stones and trying to bring down a poster saying “The Border of Kosovo”.
The UN Secretary-General'
In another incident which took place off the main expressway in Pristina, Albanians threw stones and Molotov cocktails at several buses carrying children from Gazimetsan to their home in Gračanica, injuring 16 children who had to be hospitalized. The response of the Kosovo police which admitted to certain deficiencies in its operative plans was a parody but earned it accolades from the UN Secretary-General.
On top of mistreating the Kosovo Serbs, the administration of the province shows undisguised disrespect for the EU countries rejecting its independence claim. The five EU countries – Slovakia, Spain, Cyprus, Greece, and Romania – had to request legal assistance from EULEX, but at all times Europe's foreign-policy creed tends to be centered around some sort of appeasement. On June 14, the European Commissioner responsible for Home Affairs, Cecilia Malmström, handed over to the Kosovo authorities the roadmap to the liberalization of the visa regime, and on June 27 the European University Association churned out stamps of approval for the first pile of transcripts awarded by Kosovo learning institutions.
Some advancements did materialize in the investigation into human organs trafficking in Kosovo. The Pristina district court is to hear EU Council special rapporteur Dick Marty, who will testify in the notorious Medicus clinic case on September 3. Seven individuals face trial in its framework, some of them over the trafficking as such, others – however weird that may sound - over unauthorized medical activities and service abuses.
A person linked to the case was arrested in Israel last May with Interpol's taking part. The conclusion inescapable from the outset is that the case should not have been fed to the Kosovo judicial system whose credentials are below criticism even if EULEX judges are added to the panel to save face.
On May 2, a mixed Pristina jury comprised of a local judge and two dispatched by EULEX acquitted Fatmir Limaj, Naser Krasniqi, Nexhmi Krasniqi, and Naser Shala of war crimes in the Klecka case, in which six others had been similarly cleared of charges earlier on.
The credibility of international courts, on the other hand, is also dubious – former Kosovo Liberation Army commander Fatmir Limaj, for example, is known to have committed mass atrocities against Serbs in the Lipjan concentration camp and elsewhere but easily got off the hook in the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, as, by the way, did former “Kosovo premier” Ramush Haradinaj.
In a couple of weeks, the UN Security Council will convene to discuss the reports of the UN Secretary-General and the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs on the international missions in Kosovo. Hopefully, they will be asked to explain with utmost clarity what punishments await those guilty of mass crimes in the province, especially the attacks on Serb children, and what progress had been achieved in the inquiry into the human organs trafficking.
It is imperative that the reports meet with the ruthless assessment which they deserve – it must be stated that the missions do not comply with their obligations as their mandates require them to and that convincing steps are overdue to remedy the situation. This is what the UN Security Council is under an obligation to accomplish given Resolution 1244, which asserts the territorial integrity of Serbia. Moreover, the UN Security Council should do whatever it takes to bulldoze the apartheid regime built by the Albanian “administration” in Kosovo and Metohija, which is Serbia's autonomous province.
